More Equipment

I spent an hour or so today putting together the latest torture device for the knee. I hopped on it after I was done and started pedaling. I didn't even make one revolution. I had the seat too low and my knee wouldn't bend enough to go over the top of the stroke. It hurt like heck and I darn near fell off. After adjusting the seat I did a little pedaling on it, but my knee was tired from a bigger than normal workout this morning. I went over to check on the twins today and got a great video of Harper that I may have edit down in size and put on here, she is really cute! Quite the day, we had wind, rain and a good hail storm. Glad I was inside.

Busy Day

Well this day did not go exactly as planned, but turned out OK!

I started the day by doing my exercises, climbing the deck steps, working out on the weight machine and hitting the tread mill a little. After cleaning up we decided to go check on Vera's sister and see how the surgery had gone. She was sleeping when we got there and getting a transfusion because of a low blood count. She woke up and talked to us a little but was really tired and kept falling asleep so we did not stay long.

After having a bite to eat we headed home. Not long afterwards I got a call from Mik, his Mom's car had broken down in Castle Rock and would I check on her. When I got there the wrecker was just hooking it up. We followed the wrecker down the West Side Hwy and at one point ran into hail on the road a half to one inch deep. After we got to the Little Car Hospital and she had taken care of everything I ran her home to Kalama. Big surprise, the night chain was on the door as she had came out through the garage and used the remote to close that door. Back to Lexington to get the remote out of the car. We had a nice visit and the traffic was not too bad so it was not a big problem.

A friend had been wanting to come up and get some advice on his plane, as I was going right by his place I called him and stopped by and took care of it. He gave me 6 or 8 pounds of Elk and Salmon as I was leaving that I am really looking forward to.

I started to go out to the shop this evening, but decided to walk over to Steve and Dianne's and see what was going on. I got there just in time for Steve's serenade of the twins. I was waving at them and it looked like Harper (I think?) was waving back. I ended up staying quite a while and had a great time visiting and playing with the kids .

Why is my slipper wet?

I slept good last night, after about 6 hours I had a cramp in my leg. No pain in the knee, now most of the issues are with muscles and tendons being tight. I went in to put a heat pad on my leg at 5 AM and while I was sitting at the table I noticed my slipper was wet. I walked around bare footed for a couple of minutes and narrowed the wet area down to in front of the french doors. This area has been wet before when the water heater leaked, so I headed in to check on it as we had the trouble with the thermostats last week. There was no water there, so I checked the guest bathroom and found the supply line to the toilet leaking. Because I could not bend down very good last week I had not gotten it screwed together right. Much easier to get down there this week as the knee keeps improving every day. After fixing that I got out the wet/dry vac and started vacuuming up water. When I got all I could, I lifted up the rug and pad and started drying them with a heater. After all that, I was ready for a nap about 8 AM. Things are looking good this evening and I will put the rug down tomorrow.

I hope your day started out better.

Flying then a big surprise!

This what I flew today. It was a really nice day for flying and we had a lot of fun. The knee held up pretty well, but after 3 hours it was getting pretty stiff. We loaded up, I put an ice pack on my knee and we headed to Centralia to see Vera's sister. We had a big surprise when we got to her room at the hospital. She was in bed on oxygen, turns out they had sent her home Friday after her skin graft seemed to be healing OK. She fell this morning, broke the hip implant that was installed in January and laid on the floor for 3 hours until the neighbor found her. We happened to be there when all the doctors showed up and checked her. They are going to replace the implant with a longer one in the morning and get her back on her feet. She is seriously talking about a Life Alert system.

Left, Right, Left, Right

That's the drill, left, right, left, right as I go up and down the steps to the deck. It does not seem like much, but up and down twice today was a major accomplishment.

Going up is not too bad, but the going down is kind of scary yet. Everyday things are getting better. Just yesterday it was one trip down and up, with only one step down with the left leg. I did my exercises, worked out on the weigh machine and then hit the steps. Next week when the exercise bike gets here, I will add it to the schedule. After the work out today, I set down to ice my knee and ended up taking an hour nap. Boy they can sure sneak up on a person.

Tomorrow looks like a nice day, hope you have plans to enjoy it. James and I are going flying for awhile. Then James is going to mow for me and do a few other chores I can't.

Late update: James got a better offer, he is going clam digging with Joey and Levi. James is an awesome clam digger, so if they are showing I bet he does great!

Small Steps

Every day things get better. It may not seem like much, but today I went up the back deck stairs left foot, right foot etc. instead of right foot, right foot etc. I also went down one step with my left foot which I could feel, but worked OK. My knee even gets wrinkles in it at times. Of course if I do a little too much it looks like a balloon, but it goes down a lot faster than it did. I even got out and did a little work today spraying weeds. I made a trip over to Dianne's and surprise, the twins were there. I noticed the one Dianne was holding cleared off the table as far as she could reach.

Hope you got out and enjoyed some of that sunshine today!

Long Day

Today we went to Vera's brother Clifford's Funeral. Mik, Michelle and James came up and joined us. They had a really nice service on a beautiful day. We visited with cousins and relatives we seldom get to see. Afterwards Vera stopped by the hospital to visit her sister who had a skin graft. My knee was quite swollen by then and I was content to sit in the Blazer and elevate it. After Vera came back, we decided to take the slow way home on Jackson Hwy and relax. There is lots to see when you are cruising along at 40 MPH.


This place has more junk around it. I think they sell it.

Then there are the classic red barns, fields with cows and horses.

The Jackson log cabin is always interesting to look at.

Of course as we came by the Toledo Airport I had to take a picture of the beacon tower.

There are lots of 50's style houses along this route that look like they will last forever. By the time we got home we were relaxed and ready to settle down for the evening.

Hope you had a chance to enjoy the sunshine today.

Play now, pay later!

I was out taking pictures of flowers and took this picture of moss in a pot on our deck. The Macro feature of the digital cameras can sure turn something ordinary into an unusual picture.

We went flying Saturday at Toledo. Boy was it a nice day, we had 13 members flying. Everyone was happy to be out enjoying the sunshine. I think we spent more time talking than flying.

The guys had not seen James for awhile. I thought he might be a little rusty, but he took off and put on one heck of a show of low level slow flight. He says it is from playing video games, but I think he learned to fly so young that he will never forget.

James leaned a little too far back once. We spent about 3 hours there until the wind came up and it started getting cooler. We stopped in Toledo and picked up a pizza for dinner. Their combination weighs a ton! James mowed the yards after we got home. All the activity kind of caught up with me, my knee swelled up pretty good and got pretty stiff. I iced and elevated it all night and it is doing fine today. The doctor said 8 or 9 weeks recovery, but it feels so good that I am probably pushing it at times.

Hope you got to enjoy Saturday, because Sunday is sure not as nice a day.

2:30 AM What is that strange noise!

OK, I am up at 2:30 getting ice and pillows ready so I can elevate my knee. I hear this strange noise, track it down to the guest bathroom, the toilet did not shut off after I flushed it. No big deal, just turn off the water and run down to Bredfields in the morning for a new one. I slept great after that, woke up around 7:30 and did my exercises. Vera finished her shower, so I went in to shave and shower. No hot water! I go check the breaker and it is OK. Vera cleaned the closet that the water heater is in so I could get to it. Don't ask me why they installed it there, as it is a bear to service. Next time it needs to be changed, I may go through the outside wall. Well, I checked the top thermostat and it is bad, as luck would have it there was new top and bottom thermostats on top of the water heater. Why I had such foresight I will never know. I changed the top thermostat and we turned the power back on. Time to ice the knee while we see if that worked. It did, hot water now, but the bottom thermostat is bad also. After Vera moved some things so I could get down on the floor. I changed the bottom one, turned the power on and checked things out. OK, so I put the covers back on and then the big challenge was getting up off the floor. It was easier this time. Time for more ice and lunch, we ate out on the porch as it is a really nice day. On to the toilet, everything went great there and it was done in about 15 or 20 minutes. Glad I had Vera to make tool runs to the shop for me. I have got to watch her, I think she has her eye on my small Channel Locks. Finally at 2PM I get my shave and shower. With any luck I will not have anything to add here this evening.
Hope all your projects for the day went well.

Doctor Appointment

I went in for my first checkup today. Things went great, they X-rayed it and then the doctor checked me over. He was real happy that I can straighten my leg completely. He said that is very important to walking with no limp. He showed me some exercises for a stiff tendon. Now to work on getting full extension. I have about 100 degrees in the morning, but it stiffens up a little as the day goes on. He showed us the X-rays and explained how everything was installed. I had my camera and forgot all about it as the X-rays would have been interesting to put on here. Afterwards, we had lunch at the Country Village, did a little shopping and headed home. After all the activity my knee had swelled so I put ice on it and promptly fell asleep for a nice nap. I did a little work in the shop this afternoon. We got some bad news this evening, Vera's brother Clifford passed away this morning. Nice guy, I always enjoyed talking to him.

Hope you had a chance to enjoy the nice day.

Slept in again

10 AM before I got up again this morning! Nothing hurts that bad, I just have a heck of a time getting to sleep. After watching the Price is Right, I did my exercises, had a shower, ate lunch and iced the knee. I was just heading out to see the twins when Vera got home from Bible Study. I visited with her and then headed over to Dianne's.

Harper needed a bottle not long after I got there.

Emmy working with Ava on her crawling. I ended up spending an hour and a half there and had a great time.

We had biscuits hot out of the oven with tuna on them for dinner, mouths watering just thinking about, I may have to go have another one. I made it out to the shop for a while this evening and put some more foam on the B-36. I also finished the canopy for my helicopter so I can fly it Saturday if I want. You can be sure I will not set it on the motor home table again.

what a difference a day makes

I darn near froze today! The 18 degree drop in temperature was sure a shock. I slept real good last night, in fact I did not get up until 10! We made a mail and grocery run about noon, had lunch at Burger King and then settled in where it was warm for the rest of the day. I went out to the shop and worked on my B-36. I had the center of the fuselage filled in with foam and the glue was dry, so I used a hot wire to rough form it. I must be getting stronger as I lasted 2 hours the first trip to the shop and about an hour and a half the second trip this evening. The exercises are getting easier and I didn't even take the walker to town today.
Hope you were somewhere warm and dry today.

The Foam glued between the formers.

Partly formed with the hot wire.

Big Day

What a nice day! I got off to a slow start and slept in until about 9:00. By the time I did my exercises, and got cleaned up it was really nice outside. While Vera cleaned around the rhubarb which is coming up. I went over to see the twins. They were out enjoying the sunshine and I got to hold Ava for quite a while. It was funny to watch her suck on her shirt, then my shirt, I came home with a wet cuff. After icing the knee for a few minutes it was outside again to clean the pond.


Vera did most of the heavy work, but the steam is flowing normally again. The filter was so plugged that there was just a trickle coming down. After that we sat on the deck by the pond and enjoyed the sunshine. Some where in this time frame there was lunch, more ice and a short nap.


I decided to do some trimming on a helicopter I had put a new radio in.

I had to look at this one twice when I saw it, I did not fall down. I got down there so I could check the tracking on the heli's blades. Let me tell you it was a lot harder getting up than getting down there. I played with it until I ran the battery down.

While Vera had the camera out she went around taking some pictures of flowers. There are quite a few in bloom now and it really smells good by some of them.

Hope you got to enjoy the nice day!

Trimming the Roses

Well, it wasn't Vera or I trimming the Roses, the little deer that has been hanging around was out there doing a great job today. Good day for the knee, the swelling was down and I slept the best last night that I have since coming home. I did my exercises today for the first time in a week. The knee has been so swollen that I could not get through them. I did plenty of icing and elevating today and hope to get two sets in tomorrow. Big deal this morning was bending it 90 degrees, one of the goals. Next is 100 degrees, doesn't seem like much, but sure is! Of all things, I am getting to be a fan of Lets Make a Deal! Shows what laying on the couch will do to you. Hope you stayed dry and warm today.

Visiting the twins

Harper in the walker, hers has lots more accessories than mine has, but I am faster for now. The wind was really cold today so I hustled as fast as I could on the way over. I did visit with Steve and Dianne also, but the girls are so cute they really steal the show.


Boy Ava can really get the jumper going! I had a great time taking pictures of them today. I got to hold Ava for awhile and that was a real treat.


I made several trips to the shop and puttered today. I got the formers made up for my B-36 project, finished up the wiring in a helicopter and repaired a canopy for one helicopter. The helicopter fell off the table in the motor home when we went around a turn. Sure feels good to get out there again. I felt like Burger King for dinner, well really their fries! I checked and I can get into the drivers seat of the Blazer so I drove. Every day is another little bit of progress! Of course it swelled up from all the activity. I will give it another session of ice just before bed.
Hope you enjoyed your day as much as I did!

Snow, Cold and Bored!

Dang it was Cold out today!

We even saw a few snowflakes. I went out to move the van into the sun so the windows would be clear when we went to get the mail. I about froze, so I went in and put on thermals. Then while we were in town I saw the flags at City Hall were straight out with a wind from the North.

While we were in town I went to Lumber yard to get some extruded foam for the B-36 body. It will be mounted to the body between formers similar to the one in the picture. Then I will take a hot wire and run over the formers taking off the excess foam. The foam comes in Wednesday and I will have to post some pictures of the process as I do it. My knee swells up at a moments notice if I am on my feet too long. It had not gone down from Saturdays flying session so it did not take much in the shop and I was ready for the couch and some ice. That lead to another nap. I must be getting better as I was bored today. Being in the shop working felt great even if I did not last long.

I went Flying!

The club president took this picture of me and sent it to me.


I made my first trip to the flying field since surgery today. Also my first time driving, I had not had a pain pill since last night so I felt like driving was OK. What a beautiful day! It was so warm I had to take my vest off. I only put in four flights, but I had a great time visiting with the everyone who I had not seen in 3 or 4 weeks. We baked Lasagna in the motor home for lunch and then stopped at Bettie's in Toledo on the way home and I had a Chocolate, Caramel Peanut butter milk shake. I just finished that and it was great! My knee swelled up quite a bit, but never hurt the whole time. Before surgery it would be aching all the way home. I iced and elevated it after we got home and a nap snuck up on me again.

James Day

A view from the front seat as we passed through Sandy Bend. Lots more to see up here and easier to take pictures since I can put the window down.


After we picked up James we ate at the Panda Express. We had a big thrill on Ocean Beach Hwy when a car started a left turn right in front of us. The Blazer has good brakes and Vera did a great job of avoiding the other car. None of us even spilled our pop. When we got home this deer was right next to the driveway. James hopped out and got this picture of it.

James mowed and took care of our recycling for us. Then it was off to find a cousin to play with. He found Parker and is now spending the night over there.

Vera was out enjoying the sunshine and weeding the flower beds. Me, I sat on the deck, took pictures and supervised! It was a real enjoyable afternoon. The weather forecast looks really good for tomorrow so I am thinking about going flying. I was out checking the batteries in the motor home when it dawned on me that I better see if I can fit behind the wheel. I do and it has more room for my leg than anything else we have. Now for a good night sleep and hopefully I will feel up to flying tomorrow.

Ultrasound

We made a trip to town today for an Ultrasound. The calf of my leg has been hurting enough I have trouble sleeping. The knee joint where the surgery took place just itches, hardly any pain there. I called this morning and they scheduled an ultrasound for me to check for blood clots in the calf. The test came back negative, so it is just pain from the bruising. Of course it felt better right after I called and the swelling was gone in most of my leg, but I wanted it checked out! Afterwards, we went to Freddie's for Fish and Chips. I even made it in without my walker, but holding onto Vera pretty tightly! My first meal out since surgery. Boy did it taste good and was I full. It was a beautiful afternoon for a ride with the sun shining. I even rode in the front seat on the way home. The knee bends well enough now that it was a comfortable trip. Of course, I took a big nap right after we got home!

Hope you had a nice day!

Back to the Shop

Well, I finally made it out to the shop and did something today. Wednesdays Vera has bible study and I made it my goal to go out there while she was gone. She followed me out and made sure I could do the steps both ways without falling. I did not last long and it was time for more ice and elevation for the knee. That was followed by a nap as usual! Then I made a couple of more trips out this afternoon and got one helicopter all set up with a new radio. I also made a trip over to see the twins. Harper woke up while I was there and as soon as I spoke to her she gave me the best smile.


This is the site of all the naps. I tried sleeping in bed last night, but never really got sound asleep so I came in here at 3:30 and slept the rest of the night. We went to town yesterday and I got one of those memory foam pillows to rest my leg on. Worked for me as I have taken several good naps using it. You can see I have the couch set up pretty well, laptop, TV remote, medicines and liquids. I hope to get back to the shop tomorrow if I did not over do it today.