New Blog Title...

Now that I'm in my 60's I figured it was time to make a few changes. I have many friends who think I'm a little strange, but they still like me! So, in that Spirit, I changed my Blog title to "My Mind is a Scary Place to Be..." and it really is!

In spite of a misspent youth of Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll I still have a wicked wit and people find me Charming in a weird way. I'm quick with a quip or a snarky retort, depending on the situation. I'm an observer of Humanity and I can be Brutally Honest if I see something stupid.  I have a clear definition on the differences between being Dumb and being Stupid.

I'm not what you could call a Religious Person, but I have my own Faith in the Bigger Picture. I'm an Art Lover that enjoys all kinds of Art Styles and when I see a Young Person trying their hand at Drawing, Painting or Sculpting, I encourage them with one simple phrase, "Never let ANYONE tell you that you can't do it!"

I'm a Lover, not  Fighter, but I know many ways to hurt Bullies even though I'm in a Wheel Chair.  Mostly Verbal, but many physical ways too.

I love Women, all shapes and sizes, because they are all beautiful and they should see themselves the way I see them.  Ugliness is reflected in attitude and if you have an ugly attitude it show in how you act and treat others.  This goes for Men as well as women.

My attitude is often looked on as somewhat Archaic.  I offer respect and trust until you prove you deserve neither, but I believe in Second Chances. If I am wrong, I will admit it and apologize.  I consider myself a Gentleman of the Old School. I say Please and Thank You, Yes/No Sir/Ma'am and treat people the way I want to be treated.

I prefer Friends over enemies so I try to make friends where ever I go. It makes life much more enjoyable.

These are just a few of the lessons I have learned over the past 60 years and thanks for letting me share them.

HOW I ENDED UP IN A WHEEL CHAIR

People often ask me if I will be able to walk now that I have lost over 200 pounds and my answer may give them the impression that I’m just lazy. I am semi-mobile, which means that I can stand for short times and walk a little, just not very far.

When I was in my mid-40’s I was diagnosed with Sever Plaque Psoriasis, an Auto-immune disorder, and all the stuff that comes with it, especially Psoriatic Arthritis. It’s related to Rheumatoid Arthritis and my joints are inflamed and swollen and extremely painful, but I manage it with Medication. Methotrexate and Humira to be specific.  They keep my own skin from eating me alive and my joints from stopping me from being able to move at all. For a long time I felt sorry for myself and became housebound due to my lack of mobility. This lasted for almost five years until I got my first Power Chair.  Suddenly, I was mobile again!  I could go outside and get to my appointments and meet people again. My life began improving for the better.

Now, on to the other cause. I rode Motorcycles for almost 40 years and have had my fair share of accidents, mostly minor, and enjoyed feeling the Sun and Wind in my face.  It’s something I really miss and wish I could still do it.  While I was getting a chest X-Ray prior to being subscribed Humira, I was asked if I ever had back problems or numbness anywhere.  I had noticed some numbness in my right hand, but I attributed to having had half my right hand ring finger amputated.  When I asked why, the Doctor showed me two spots on my spine that looked, off, for lack of a better term. It seems that I had mangled two vertebra in my lower back and from what was pointed out to me they happened several years apart and are putting pressure on my spinal cord. Not a lot, but enough to impair my ambulatory motor functions.  Surgery would be risky and may do more damage than good, so I live with it.  To me, a little pain and numbness is much more preferable to possibly being paralyzed.  As I looked back, I remember hitting some deep potholes on my Motorcycle, apparently about 10 years apart.

 So much for being Stoic and Macho, suffering in silence!

I'm Back!

Well, I’m back.  Yeah, I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything, but my Muse kind of abandoned me after I got Throat Cancer. It’s been a little over a year since I completed the Radiation and Chemo and things are looking a lot better.

My throat and mouth were totally fried from the Radiation and one of the consequences of that was my Taste Buds and Saliva glands stopped working.  You all know from some of my past ramblings that I love good food. Imagine my chagrin when suddenly I could no longer enjoy even the simplest things, like soup.

Besides not being able to swallow anything with any kind of texture, food tasted weird. Things I knew weren’t salted tasted so salty I would gag. This drove my wife nuts because she couldn’t fix anything I could eat.  My sense of smell went into overdrive and food smells made me nauseous.  Even Bacon! And don’t get me started on Garlic.  I loved to cook with fresh whole garlic and when I would try to make something for my wife and son I almost vomited.

I finally went on a liquid diet after I passed out in the bathroom when I tried to bathe and had to go to the hospital to get checked out. They told me I was under nourished and dehydrated.  They tried to get me to eat solid food and I told them to take a look at my mouth and throat so they could see the scar tissue. My tongue and mouth were brown from the dead, burnt skin and my throat was swollen almost shut.  I WAS able to swallow some liquids as long as they were bland, so they put me on Liquid Diet of Ensure.  My stomach had shrunk so much I couldn't drink very much at a time and that limited me to three 8 oz. cans a day.  This went on for about six months and as I would feel a little better, I’d get adventurous and try some other liquid foods. OH Hell No!  Big mistake! Food began to taste even stranger than before. I can no longer stand the taste of Ice Cream or (gasp!) Chocolate in any form, Sugar tasted bitter and yogurt was sheer torture.

When I began this sojourn back to health I weighed approximately 465 pounds, with my average being in the neighborhood of 450.  Funny thing happened, I began to lose weight!  My clothes no longer fit me and hung on me like sacks.  Even my underwear was falling down when I managed to walk the short distance to the bathroom.  I’ve had to get new clothes to fit me so I could look at least halfway presentable. I still can’t walk very far or stand for very long but at least my clothes didn’t hang on me anymore.  I went from a 65” waist to a 54”! Hey, I was looking good again!  Even the wife said I was getting my SEXY back!

Long story short, since I began, I have lost over 200 pounds and my waist size is still shrinking as is my once humungous backside.  It’s almost flat again!  My taste buds are working again so my semi-liquid diet has flavor again.  I mostly eat Grits and Eggs for breakfast and cottage cheese for dinner. Every now and then I eat soups that I use a stick blender on in order to be able to swallow them to get other proteins to keep me alive.  My Battle Cry has been “I WANT A CHEESEBURGER, DAMMIT!” but that will come when my saliva glands start working again.

I want to thank all my friends and Family for all the support they’ve given me throughout my ordeal, because without them I would have been depressed and probably suicidal.  They convinced me that I was stronger than anything that was thrown at me and that the world still needs me. I Love You All!

Stay tuned and I will try to update you with the things going on in my renewed life!  Who knows, maybe I'll post some pictures next time out...