There's a first time for everything

Mrs. AOW has gotten sick and tired of giving me manicures and pedicures. She's no good at it, anyway.  Hell, she won't even fool around with her own nails - much less mine!

Today, we're off to the nail spa for the first time for either of us. I hope that I can get into that pedicure chair!  I need a pedicure more than I need a manicure.

Mrs. AOW is going to let them experiment on me before she lets them do her nails.   At least the place she has picked has a great reputation.

Man-cave access at last!

The local American Legion, veterans helping veterans, built me a wheelchair ramp so that I can get back into The Little House, which I used as my man cave.

I had my stroke there on September 15, 2009.

At last I can get back inside my man cave!

Mrs. AOW took these photos:

The reality

I hope that it doesn't come to that last one.

Actually, I've already been there but graduated to a mobility scooter.

I love my scooter.

But it has its drawbacks.

Yesterday I went out on my own on a little adventure down the bike trail. I decided to cross the bridge into the park. Damn. There was a dropoff, and I got stuck there. Mrs. AOW had to come to help me out of that rut. She couldn't lift the scooter, but she flagged down some people on the main part of the trail, and they got me up and running again. On my next trip out on the trail, I'll have to me more careful and watch where I'm going!

I got home long before Mrs. AOW did.  She had to hoof it, but I was zooming along back on the bike trail.

Guinea Pig time

Mrs. AOW tried Pycnogenol yesterday after two friends told he about the benefits.

This morning, Mrs. AOW woke up without any brain fog and full of energy!

Really!

Usually, she is terrible for a long time after she first gets up in the morning.

I took a capsule this morning.  Let's see what happens.

Sometimes folk medicine really does work.

Back to stroke therapy

My neurologist has ordered an evaluation session tomorrow. She noticed some small but definite improvements in my condition since she saw me 6 months ago.

Also, she was upbeat about my graduation.

If Medicare approves the treatment plan, I will be getting a month of therapy twice a week.

Now that we have the van with the ramp, I won't have to spend $20-$60 a week for MetroAccess service - not a free service although most think that it is.  Twice a week, Mrs. AOW will drop me off for therapy, then pick me up a few hours later.

I'm looking forward to getting more therapy!  No pain, no gain!

Coming out of hibernation

For tonight, anyway.

Steve is coming over and taking me to the local VFW for the pool tournament, eats, and beer. It will be raining, but now that we have the van, Steve takes me out even if the weather is bad.

Now that I can get back to bed by myself, Mrs. AOW won't have to wait up to tuck me in tonight. She needs her rest! This miserable winter has worn her down. All she does is shovel snow, then soak her aching back. Easter is late this year, and I think that we're going to get more winter weather. Damn.

I can hardly wait until spring really arrives. I want to see Ballsey! I'm sure that he's pining away for those biscuits that I give him when the weather is good enough for me to ride my scooter down the block.

This coming week, I get two more outings -- the stroke recovery club meeting and the neurologist.

I've graduated!

From this:

To this:

For big jobs, anyway.

This part of my stroke recovery has taken over 4 years.

Mrs. AOW is grateful, and my graduation has arrived in time for her birthday on Monday.

We are both looking forward to the day when our living room once again becomes a living room instead of a hospital room.

Brrrr!

News reports are saying that we're having the coldest month of the century.

I believe it!

The snowy owl has even returned to Washington:

Merry Christmas!

For the first time since the stroke I had in 2009, Mrs. AOW and I have a normal social calendar for Christmas!

We're busy, busy, busy - and it's a good kind of busy. So busy that I haven't had much time for blogging.

Life is for living.

Merry Christmas!

And Merry Christmas to Mysti, Cameo, and Amber - our three kitties. Maybe they'll watch this video:


Nah. They're too busy eating to watch videos.

Wheelchair van adventures

Friday afternoon, Mrs. AOW dropped me off at the local VFW while it was still daylight. Since her eye surgery last month, she's not ready yet to do any driving after dark. Too bad that we're not still on daylight savings time.

Anyway, our local VFW is on a bit of a slope.  This was our first van trip there, and Mrs. AOW picked a drop off point that wasn't too steep.

But apparently it was too steep!

Or else I was going down the ramp too fast.

Our new van

Friday evening, the van with the ramp arrived! It's not new, but it's new to us!

It's a 2007 Dodge Caravan SXT with less than 25,000 miles on it.

Two of the features that I decided our van must have so that I can get in and out by myself: power ramp and power sliding doors.  I left the rest up to Mrs. AOW.  She made sure to get a van with a CD player.

Mrs. AOW can drive like a bat out of hell! On our first trip out, she took a corner way too fast and flipped me off the scooter and onto the van's floor.

It wasn't all her fault! I should have been hanging on! After all, I'm the one who insisted that we didn't have to secure the ramp to the floor gizmos.

We went to a car cruise-in last night.  Mrs. AOW didn't dread the outing this time because there will be no more lifting that scooter out of the trunk of the Crown Vic.

In a few days, Mrs. AOW will be posting some of the photos that she took at her own site.

Having this van means that I won't be shut in the house so much of the time.  A big expense - but worth it.  We hope. 

Road trip this summer!

My neurologist

An excellent doctor and drop dead gorgeous!

She approves of my outings because her motto is "Life is for living." She likes my jokes too.

I have an appointment for a checkup tomorrow.  I get these checkups once every 6 months.

Mrs. AOW doesn't have to go with me.  I can manage on my own.

Another outing last night

I overdid it at the VFW last night!

It will take me days to recover.

But I had a wonderful time with the guys. And Mrs. AOW got a break too. So it's all good.

Vacation photo

Mrs. AOW took this photo without giving me any notice:

The picture was taken at Diamond Resorts Greensprings in Williamsburg - in the master bedroom.

This morning, we reserved a used minivan with a ramp. In a few weeks, the van will arrive here to our house for our final approval. We have to test it out before we make the purchase.

Vacation!

One of the homeschool families gave Mrs. AOW and me a vacation for an end of the school year teacher present.  How cool is that?

This will be our first vacation since I had my stroke in 2009.

Mrs. AOW will load my scooter into the Crown Vic's trunk, and off we'll go for some r&r.

One of Mrs. AOW blogging friends will be meeting us at our destination.

Forget blogging during vacation! I have some serious partying to do!

Time for humor

With thanks to FreeThinke:

A prominent nutritionist was addressing a large audience at the Mayo Clinic....

"The material we put into our stomachs should have killed most of us sitting here, years ago. Red meat is full of steroids and dye. Soft drinks corrode your stomach lining. Chinese food is loaded with MSG. High transfat diets can be disastrous and none of us realizes the long term harm caused by the germs in our drinking water.

But, there is one thing that is the most dangerous of all and most of us have, or will eat it. Can anyone here tell me what food it is that causes the most grief and suffering for years after eating it?"

After several seconds of quiet, a 70-year-old man in the front row raised his hand, and softly said, "Wedding Cake."

This will be my new joke to tell at the VFW on Friday night, when I go to the pool tournament!

By the way, my occupational therapist has made me a new device so that I can play pool with only one hand. I need lots of practice, though.

This Weekend

I haven't been thinking much about blogging lately because I'm getting ready to go to another coin show.  I always study up for weeks in advance, and that's what I've been doing lately. 

I have pages of notes for this trip to the coin show.

I've been doing a lot of research because a couple of my friends have bankrolled me to make some buys for them.  As a former coin dealer, I still can get the dealer's discount when I make purchases at these coin shows.  Plus, and I hate to say it, a man with a mobility device gets treated more fairly by the dealers.

Maybe I can make some good buys for myself too!  But right now, the bid/ask for precious metals is low, so lots of dealers are in too deep and won't sell at the new lower prices.

The paratransit van will pick me up before the sun rises, and I'll stay at the coin show all day long.  For almost 3 years after my stroke, Mrs. AOW had to go to the coin show with me because of bathrooming issues.  Now I can manage on my own!  Except that I fall in the john once in a while.  The guys at the coin show come to pick me up when I do fall; I call them from my cell phone, which I always wear in a special pouch around my neck

Wish me luck so that I can make some good buys - for my friends and for myself.  Now is a good time to invest!

Award!

Not sure if this award really counts. Mrs. AOW nominated me, and I made her take dictation and type up this post too!

1. Display the award logo on your blog.

2. Link back to the person who nominated you.

3. Answer 7 questions decided by your nominator.

4. Nominate (no limit of nominations) other bloggers for this award and link back to them.

5. Notify those bloggers of the award requirements.


Here are the questions that Mrs. AOW asked me to answer:

1. Other than a parent or a Divinity, who -- living or not -- has most influenced your life?

My father-in-law.

2. What is your favorite movie and why? If you're not a fan of film, what is your favorite book and why?

"Summer of '42" because it's about a young boy having his first affair with an older woman.

3. If you could be any animal, what kind of animal would you like to be?

An eagle.

4. Whom would you nominate for President and Vice President in 2016?

Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin.

5. What is your dream vacation?

Monument Valley.

6. When a new day dawns and you first access your computer on that new day, which site(s) do you visit first?

Woodsterman and Mohave Rat and Always On Watch.

7. What is the biggest regret of your life?

Having a stroke.

I nominate Mohave Rat and Woodsterman.

Nominees, here are your 7 questions:

1. What is your all time favorite joke?

2. What United States coin, past or present, is your favorite design and why?

3. What is your favorite ultimate car or motorcycle and why?

4.  What era of music is your favorite and why?

5. What is your favorite brand of beer or other alcoholic beverage?

6. What is your favorite dessert?

7. What life achievement are you most proud of and why?

If I didn't nominate you, you can answers the questions too - here or at your own web site. Hahaha.

Time for humor

I stopped at your house the other day and was told that you were down at your favorite Biker Bar with some friends. I wasn't sure where that was, but was told I wouldn't have much trouble finding it. Sure enough, I drove just a few blocks and there it was ...

Some of these drivers just might get DUI's on the way home!

Maybe designated drivers in this bar have pickup trucks to take patrons on scooters home. I hope so!

Splat!

Last night around 10:00, I made a trip to the porcelain potty.

You can guess why.

I got there in plenty of time, but when I started to get up to return to bed, I fell.  Not good!  Especially in a tiny bathroom like the one that we have.

At least I wasn't hurt.  Except for my ego, that is.

Mrs. AOW had to call 911 to pick me up off the floor.

As usual, Mrs. AOW, the independent type, tried to get me up by herself - and hurt her back.

This was the third time that 911 had to be called to get me up off the floor.