24/7 Chat About Anything

[user 30781]

Oh no! You must have been in a lot worse pain then I'd be willing to try to tough out myself. I'm glad you're being taken care of!

 

[bullfrog]

Hang in there nature lover, you still got lots left to do!

 

[jacqueg]

RAINY day here . . . so rainy. RV guy came by to say the guy with the RV shop may be backing out, and that he and the woodworker might do it without the RV shop's help. Don't know why the RV shop would do that, but apparently he watched a lot of videos of people with magnificent builds and was thinking I was expecting something like that when I really am looking for something much more simple and basic at this time. I'm focusing more on the framework and gadgets like solar panels, fan, etc... not on fancy cabinetry. 

Maybe find a pic or two of vans you like? It helps people to know what you are expecting. 

I will say that if you are not expecting anything fancy, the RV shop may be overkill anyway. Do you have a plan/layout? If you do, then post it here and ask for comments. Much easier for the person you hire if you can give them something concrete to ponder.

 

[jacqueg]

So they did a CAT scan and now I am in intermediate intensive care at Lancaster General Hospital. Nine ribs broken and they’re doing therapies like breathing exercises to keep me from having pneumonia. So this Stubborn old man wouldn’t go to the doctor because he thought he could handle it and now he spending at least one day in intensive care. But I am getting therapies and the boys to sleep van is waiting for me at my friends house. God bless the nomads and their friends everyone of them.  The journey will continue here, there, or in the air.

Holy cow, nine cracked ribs!! It hurts just to think about it.

You are nothing if not resilient. And you know the drill by now - do what they tell you to do. "They" don't know everything, but they know enough to get you back on your feet, where you belong. You still have runway in front of you.

 

[travelaround]

Good to hear from you Nature Lover - glad you're getting hospital care to start you out on your recovery.

Right now the van plan is in transition. I'm just about at the point where I'd want to mark spaces with tape on the floor, but even that is going to have to be flexible.

 

[user 30781]

It's Apple Blossom Festival time in Wenatchee. It was cancelled last year and this year it's happening now instead of the usual late April-early May. Today is the Grand Parade and I'm watching it live at home with tears running down my face. The pandemic has brought out a lot of emotion for me.

 

[maki2]

9 ribs damaged. Wow Nature Lover that is very bad news. Get better soon, glad you have friends around to keep your van safe for you.

 

[Cammalu]

All my life I’ve wondered why men wait till they are almost dead or even too late before they will go to a doctor. I’m so glad you finally went and are getting the care you need.

 

[maki2]

Putting off going to see a doctor is not a gender specific issue. A whole lot of women also put off going to see the doctor.

 

[Cammalu]

Well I put off this shoulder operation for years so that is true enough. Late hubby kept putting off going to the doc for a cough until he coughed blood. Too late then...

I’m still in the hospital getting pain under control. It’s never been an easy thing for me. I hope to go home tomorrow. They can hit me with oxy, diladad and one other and I think I can still take a sobriety test. Seems I’ll get a bit fuzzy headed but still have terrible pain. The block helps some and I have a tube in my neck and five days worth of meds dripping but still not cutting it.

I’ve had stupid problems since I’ve been here but expect a good outcome. Only one more shoulder, hips and back to go.

 

[bullfrog]

I think because medicine and treatments keep improving over time many are advised to wait as long as the injury or problem isn't causing you other problems. I have a pain in my knee that if I stay active isn't hurting me as long as I limit how far and long I can walk. The shot I got for my knee seemed to help my shoulder more than my knee the pills I later got for another problem seemed to help my knee. Most of the time I have pain after setting for long periods and have learned to deal with it. When I asked about surgery the doctor said even at my advanced age it was better to wait. My father had several surgeries and waited for others, he always said he wished he had gotten the surgeries before he developed heart problems keeping him from getting them later and having to deal with the pain. I'm trying to not develop heart problems and waiting! Lol!!! Wish me luck! Hope everyone gets to feeling better soon!

 

[VanFan]

Nature Lover:  I, for one, feel much better now.  Thank you.  Hoping you are next!!

 

[Cammalu]

Oh no bullfrog. Don’t wait any longer. You can camp at my place and I can take you to Vanderbilt for surgery and bring you back. Then you can recover at my place. Physical therapy is only about six miles and I can take you to that.

You can recover here. I even have RV hookups and you can have the very best Docs at Vanderbilt. Don’t wait till winter as I’ll be gone.

 

[bullfrog]

^^^I've got all sorts of good reasons to wait, believe me, and actually since I've started loosing weight my odds of doing better with the surgeries are improving as well. I'm mainly upset about letting myself get fat, old and lazy! Lol!!! The old I can't do much about the other two I'm working on! I may someday take you up on your offer though. Thanks!

 

[nature lover]

 I :heart: life. I screwed up so see the next post below to know why.

 

[nature lover]

Hello nomads and wannabes;  I thank you guys for all the well wishes. Those of you who believe in prayer remember me as A needy one. So since I started full-time on June 1, 2020.  I had a heat stroke with extremely low blood pressure and spent five days in the hospital in August of last year. Then in Florida I realized I had a diabetic ulcer that came from dry skin on the foot and ended up eight weeks in the hospital and rehab and then over a month in a very uncomfortable boot to recover from The infection and partial amputation of my foot  Now I’m back in the hospital with nine broken ribs. Is God trying to tell me something? I know HE likes nomads I mean after all the children of Israel wondered in the desert for 40 years.  Abraham and and Lot moved around living in tents. And in his three years of ministry Jesus had no permanent home. (Lots wife back and turned into a pillar of salt, I look back and turned into a tree. So after these discouraging things happening to me I’m still a nomad and plan to be for a long time to come.

I’m going to list some of the best things that of happened since I started traveling full-time. I got to Florida to see a bird I wanted to see for 30 years called the painted bunting.  I also got 28 other species  of Florida birds that I’ve never seen before. And documented them with pictures. I waded in the golf of Mexico and watched the sunset over it. I saw no snowfall or freezing rain. My winter coats remained packed in the loft of the van and never touched. I met probably over 100 new friends.  I have new web friends from joining this forum. I got a great deal of work done on two new books I’m working on.  I have spent many days and  nights in the forest among the trees listening to the birds, breathing fresh air, viewing wildflowers, Several times not seeing a another human being for nearly a week.  I have looked up in the clear skies full of bright stars at night. I have driven over 4000 miles without major problem ( until the accident last Sunday).

Put the negatives on one side of the scale and the positives on the other side there’s no doubt the positives win.  Another positive is I am going to win Bob’s old van, so buy lots of  tickets to support HOWA but I have decided that I get the van. sorry guys you lose.

God bless the nomads even the crazy ones like me.

 

[maki2]

Nature Lover things like car accidents and blisters as well as heat stroke can happen to anyone at any age. Diabetes also happens to younger persons. But as we get older more people do develope diabetes and we are more susceptable to heat stroke and dehydration issues.

But we can do some better self education on these subjects to offset getting in trouble. I am working on that right now regarding dehydration issues which could lead to heat stroke issues as well.

While you are lying around there in the hospital plan out your new summertime health preservation routines for your nomadic life. It won't take a lot of major changes and you have plenty of health care people to fetch you literature.

 

[maki2]

A bit of a struggle to get my popup top working better. I finally realized that the cause is an upward bow in the roof area of interference. That cause is nothing recent, it is happened 50 years ago when the trailer was new. That is where there used to be a floor to ceiling piece of 3/4" plywood at the end of the kitchen on one side and where the fridge cabinetry was on the opposite side. Hardest part of the jog is releasing and then re-stretching the big spring. But I found a tool that made it just barely possible for my arm strength. A stainless steel pot hook I brought along for my eventual pot rack bar I have yet to fabricate. I did not want to have ask a total stranger for help. I know the neighbor near me would have helped but it is best to figure out a way to DIY repairs if at all possible. Possib,le as in this case, often means finding the right tool among the things you already own. I knew I needed a hook of some type to pull on the loop at the end of the spring and that pot hanging hook was the right size as well as easy to grip and very strong too.

Later this summer I will replace the lower popup opening frame pieces and move the lift mechanism about a 1/4" higher. Fortunately I can do that one side at a time without removing the popup top. I do want to keep it in good working condition. It is such a great feature to have.

 

[bullfrog]

^^^I have had pretty good luck using small ratchet straps when things are just a little too hard for me to move.

 

[travelaround]

Praying for you, Nature Lover - I'm so happy to hear about all the positive things that happened for you during your vandwelling adventures. Glad there are more positives than negatives.

Maki - glad you're not giving up on that complicated popup repair job. While I was contemplating vans, before buying one, I noticed that people were asked what one thing they wished they had in their vans that they didn't have. The most common answer was always room to stand up. I think that makes things easier, psychologically.

Also listening to you talk about heat issues... I never had a problem with heat until 2013 and then I started having heat stroke episodes. Very dangerous! I do believe I nearly died a few times. Water is essential, but sometimes not even that is enough. If it gets bad enough I just need to lie down and rest in the shade somewhere while doing what I can to rehydrate. I plan for it. I got a big UV umbrella for walking on hot days. Still have it because it was in the cargo trailer and not in the mobile home. Turning on van air conditioning helps too.

So many health issues these days! I have mine too but nothing to write home about. I'm almost recovered from the fall. My face healed fast! The bruise under my eye is the last thing and it is nearly gone.