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I haven't posted anything in awhile as my life is groundhog day, every day. Can't get much more boring. I finally have some good news:)

Wednesday I get a shot in my bad knee (motorcycle wreck from the '70's) that is catching up with me in old age. Some new kind of injection that isn't a steroid and will supposedly last for 6 months instead of 3. Unfortunately, that puts me into August for the next one, generally, the hottest month of the year. Actuall, July, August, September and most of October are still hot as in 90 degrees and 90 percent humidity. The later part of June can be there too. It all depends if it is a severe or mild summer for the shoulder months. It's been a mild Winter so far, so no telling. It was 78 here yesterday but most days justs breaks 60 or less.

The areas agency on the ageing finally stopped by. I think I contacted them before December but they finally showed. They contacted a home care company for me and we had an appointment last Thursday. They are going to be sending a caretaker for 5 hours a day, 4 days a week. This will allow me some recuperation. The bad news is this will only happen for 90 days and then supposed to wait a year and reapply. We'll see. Care starts this afternoon and thursday, 3:30- 8:30. Friday will be 9-2, much better hours for me and by the end of the week I'll now how Monday's schedule pans out. Schedules subject to change and I am stuck with the few options they can provide. So Mon, Tues, Thur, Fri will be home care and Wednesdays will still be the DIL and her mother. I can finally think about going to the dentist. Haven't been in over two years and needed badly.

Maybe I can start getting rid of this weight I have put on sitting here doing very little. I need to get back on the road as I was down to only needing to lose 15 pounds, now it is 35, Ug. Getting outta shape too, can't walk very far without huffing and puffing and this is near sea level. Can't imagine what it will be like at altitude!

The homecare representative also contacted two hospice providers and we had appointments Friday. We picked one and the nurse came by yesterday and left us some supplies, depends, baby wipes, gloves, etc. Should save a few bucks each month, over $100 just in depends. I always thought hospice was for the last 6 months of life but the rules have changed since my dad needed them quite a few years back. My wife is at the stage that she qualifies. After the homecare people stop, the hospice people will send aids to bath my wife and other very small things 2 or 3 times a week. They will only be here for an hour or so but it will still be a big burden off. The hospice people said something about I may be able to get 5 full days off in a row where they will put my wife in a dementia care facility. Talked to the nurse about it yesterday and she will be talking to the office person in charge of these things.

I don't know how much replying I'll be doing but the news will be better:) This will allow me to do some deferred maintenance and projects on the van. It has been sitting for about 16 months. This is what keeps me getting up everyday, the glimmer of hitting the road again.
 
So good to hear you're getting these opportunities to help you with the job of caring for your wife, and the healing for your knee. I don't understand why she isn't in assisted living already. Is it because of the cost? I'm hoping my children will never have to provide care for me - I would much rather be in a facility if it gets to that point.
 
Hi Brian,

That's a lot to deal with, I hope the better news continues to flow in.

I am sorry your wife needs hospice but I hope you can both get the care and help you need.
 
That is great news about a long lasting medication for your knee. Hope you get it ASAP, that will fix the issue of not enough exercise :) Having help around the house several days a week, what a huge bonus in your life forever how long it last every day of help will be a lifting of some of your burdens.
 
Assisted living around here is $7-10K Mo depending on what you can put up with. Not in the budget, not even close. Thanks for the well wishes.
 
when I went out for a drive to the post office today, a bright sunny day. I took the route up the hill through the residential neighborhood. The sun was out and so were the first of the early spring blossoms. There were a few bright pink blooms on a camilla, some patches of purple crocus, some pots of early daffodils, the early blooming cherry trees had some blossoms open.

It made me feel like I had survived on of the wettest and a very gloomy winters in Seattle. Not a super cold or snowy one but the temperature did get to freezing the last two nights. Not perfect weather, not especially warm but this is the sunniest week of 2020. Unfortunately at this time of year sunny days means colder nights as there is no cloud blanket to hold in the heat.
 
How much work left on your cute camper Maki? Almost ready to take off?
 
I have a daffodil blooming in my yard and more bulbs awakening. Beautiful time of year! Also, this morning, rediscovered my favorite tea cup and a water glass in a food box I brought with me from Idaho.

Honestly, I am not 100% adjusting well to this mobile home. I'm trying.. but it isn't perfect.
 
Cammalu said:
How much work left on your cute camper Maki?  Almost ready to take off?
it is pretty cold yet. That makes it difficult to do task where warmth is required for instance today I need to do some caulking inside so I have to heat up the interior of the trailer as well as the caulk. The same thing is true if I need to use adhesive, paint, varnish and such. . I will start pushing harder on it in April when temperatures are starting to warm up into the upper 50s and lower 60s during the day. Sitting inside the workshop at the moment and my hands feel icy cold and I have my down jacket on and am sitting right next to a small electric heater. A hot cup of coffee is calling my name, hand warmer plus a dose of caffeine might help get me motivated.
 
Maybe this will be the last winter you have to suffer through. I’m in Yuma right now and the little thermometer in the window tells me that it’s 78 outside. Cooler inside. Might have to turn on the AC soon
 
travelaround said:
I have a daffodil blooming in my yard and more bulbs awakening. Beautiful time of year! Also, this morning, rediscovered my favorite tea cup and a water glass in a food box I brought with me from Idaho.

Honestly, I am not 100% adjusting well to this mobile home. I'm trying.. but it isn't perfect.
Not being perfect is not all that bad, that will encourage you to get out in the van and go exploring. In my nearly 70 years I have never had a home that I though was perfect, there were always things that annoyed me.

Home ownership comes with phases just like relationships between humans. You are moving out of the honeymoon phase now and into the "what have I done phase".  Before long you will move into the "it will do for now" phase. There are a few more to go through after that but I will stop there.
 
Right now I'm in a phase of thinking, "Who in their right mind would buy property in California?" ... I hope I get over that. I like the town and can't imagine buying a home elsewhere, but I'm not a fan of the state. We're 20 miles from Oregon, but I wouldn't want to buy into that state either. There's been a movement for years to get this area designated the State of Jefferson. That seems to be at a standstill now. There's another movement to make most of Oregon and a few counties in California, including this one, included in a "Greater Idaho" but a lot of people are against it.
 
"Article IV, Section 3, of The United States Constitution expressly prohibits any other state from dividing up and forming smaller states without Congressional approval. The relevant clause says "New states may be admitted by the Congress into this union; but no new states shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states, or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned as well as of the Congress""

The "divisionist" seem to have nothing better to do with their time than live in fantasy land dreams. A waste of energy that would be much better used doing something actually achievable. But then it is much easier not to do anything that takes actual work or commitment to real community improvement projects. Fortunately travelaround that is not the kind of person you are. You are not sitting around dreaming without taking action to make your dreams a reality.
 
One thing I disliked about living in Oregon was the wild bush people (aka feral humans) and their armed takeovers of public land. It did not feel very warm and fuzzy to be the government contractor (camp host) whose camp was getting shot up by those guys. Hope the action in southern Oregon does not become militarized.  -crofter
 
I don't think they're planning anything like that. They want to go to county board of supervisor meetings and circulate petitions. Many people here are not in favor of it - though some are... but nothing happening here unless counties in Oregon approve this. I don't think it will happen. State of Jefferson sure didn't and seems like whoever tried that a few years back finally gave up.

My issues with California are the extreme gas prices and the closure of our libraries because our county can't afford to pay branch librarians anymore. We do have the library open one day a week, but with a volunteer librarian.
 
Some Virginians who are more rural and conservative than the closer to DC folks are talking about becoming part of West VA. IMO they wont see it in their life time. I heard the Jerry Fallwell Jr was involved but who knows the real story? I don't always agree with Mr. Trump but his complaining about fake news seems true. (Is that too political to say here.) It just seems that news reporters get things wrong so often even with out their bias - two or more sides to every story. BTW it is still cold in PA.
 
travelaround said:
I don't think they're planning anything like that. They want to go to county board of supervisor meetings and circulate petitions. Many people here are not in favor of it - though some are... but nothing happening here unless counties in Oregon approve this. I don't think it will happen. State of Jefferson sure didn't and seems like whoever tried that a few years back finally gave up.

My issues with California are the extreme gas prices and the closure of our libraries because our county can't afford to pay branch librarians anymore. We do have the library open one day a week, but with a volunteer librarian..
Physical branch libraries locations are closing in many areas because there are fewer patrons who go to them now that free to read digital versions of books can be downloaded from the library system and from other sources. Counties can't justify keeping libraries open when the statistics show dwindling use numbers of patrons. Used to be lots of students going to the library for school research papers but now they can do that research online and tap into even more information resources doing it that way.  I read books from the library most everyday but I check out digital copies, I need to use digital versions so I can enlarge the print. So now I rarely go into the branch library.
 
Nice day today, I was out running errands and enjoyed the sunny weather. I appreciated having a dry day for my errand of bringing home a new to me foam mattress that was given to me by free from someone in the neighborhood. The mattress on the bed I have in the workshop was going flat and giving me backaches. This free one was in a guest bedroom and is only 1 year old and was in a guest bedroom.

Then I continued on to the hardware store to get some butyl rubber tape for doing some caulking work. I had used up the last of what I had yesterday on my travel trailer project and needed some more to complete the task.

Partly sunny tomorrow, that will be nice :)
 
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