Sheri and a sad insurance story (corrected)

Yesterday I saw on Facebook that a former coworker name to Sheri was going to a rehab facility in Ankeny. This is a good news/bad news item. Good news is she's improving and rehab looks promising over the long term. This is a good news bad news The bad news is she can no longer attend the rehab at St. Luke’s Hospital here in her hometown area. This was due to insurance considerations.

I think I know how they feel. Is bad enough to lose your health and deal with a medical condition. It’s even worse when you find out that you are now the enemy of your health insurance company. In my case I have paid in and been part of medical insurance for 40 years. When I started to lose my health I found out that the people who were there to help me viewed me as the enemy. This is no exaggeration. We had United healthcare when I was first diagnosed and I thought they were bad. When I needed a power wheelchair they thought it was fine for me to travel 300 miles across the state to stay within the network. That took months to straighten out and I purchased a used power chair in the interim. It is pretty bad when you have to buy something used so that you can wait for the insurance company to do what they are supposed to.

The absolute worst company was Coventry. They were literally insulting to me. It was their reactions that made me realize my work career was coming to an end. They did not want to do anything to help me. All I heard from them was they existed as a company for profit and that was their number one concern. Obama care reinforces this attitude. I got into a major hassle with them over a medication to help me stay awake so I could keep working.

After being insulted and ignored and proceeding on my own I decided I was no longer going to try to keep the cost down of my medical treatment. Because of their attitude I decided to proceed with a new wheelchair that tilted the seat. I had already purchased one used and knew I needed one but they did not care that I bought a used one on my own to save them money. I was just another dumb customer than needed to provide premiums. I’m glad I pursued the wheelchair because I really did need it and this one fits me so much better than the used one I purchased.

My hope is that Sheri and Kelly her husband get treated a little better but this latest move to Ankeny tells me they’re just beginning this difficult part of the journey. I would have to say that the worst part about losing my health has been dealing with health insurance.

This link should take you to her gofundme.com page if you would like to do that.

Hebrews chapter 1

Matt helped me set up my PC a little better. I can download apps now. I was really excited to download the YouVerse app which is the Bible app I use with my iPad. I had hoped to make it easier to post Bible verses on my blog. I’m disappointed to find out I can’t copy the text like I can on my iPad. I still have to select it on my iPad app and email it to myself. Then copy it and paste it into Word. Then on to the blog. Pretty tedious and challenges my abilities but it is what it is.

I find it easier to read on my PC since it is much larger than my iPad. I am reading in Revelation on my iPad and now reading one of my favorites “Hebrews” on my PC. Every chapter in Hebrews makes my heart sing. Today I read the first chapter and these first few verses are dramatic and seem to shout out to me:

“God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;”
Hebrews 1:1-3 KJV

I have no doubts that Hebrews was written by the apostle Paul. He was a Hebrew of Hebrews and highly schooled in things pertaining to the Old Testament. In Hebrews the author brings up the things that pertain to Judaism and shows the supremacy of Christ!

strange disease

The strangeness of this disease (progressive MS) still amazes me. I’m pretty sure one could never make up the symptoms we deal with. As an example, Monday and Tuesday morning I dealt with quite a few spasms in the morning before my wife got me up. One spasm leads my legs to both pull up and shake. It actually feels good for my legs to move. When I finally get them back down and straight then they spasm and jackknife out. Then they shake. This is not very comfortable and I fear my calves will cramp but so far they haven’t. Another spasm is in my shoulders and back. The spasm leads both shoulders to go toward each other and my neck and back curl up like a fetal position. My arms go out and shake.

These disturb the cat more than me. She is usually asleep on my hip, legs or stomach. The spasms make her annoyed and she leaves. The things this poor cat has to deal with! I also noticed Monday and Tuesday morning my right arm and shoulder were stiffer than normal. My right hand and pointer finger did not work very well. I thought perhaps I was getting too warm and toasty under the covers. So today when my wife got up to go to work at six-ish I took the blanket off me so only the sheet remained.

I awoke this morning to many less spasms. My shoulders, arms and right hand were more pliable. Maybe I was getting too warm in the mornings. One of the issues is “who knows”. Too many times there is no rhyme or reason to the symptoms. One day can be one way and the next day different. The engineer in me thinks the disease should manifest the same symptoms all the time or not at all. Strange disease. So many diseases are worse so I try not to feel sorry for myself. Self-pity is my enemy, that I’m sure of.

I can still function enough to be home by myself. This is a great blessing to me. I can still maneuver during the day. I can still run my iPad. Most days I can run my PC. These are not without frustration but I’m glad I can still function somewhat. Most times I feel like the Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. That was one of my all-time favorite movies. After losing both legs and arms in a battle to protect his forest he yells at the other knights “come back you cowards I’ll bite your legs off”. He wasn’t a very good fighter but he was no quitter.

Thank you for reading this and I hope to post more in the future.

Book Report – White Seed

Last week I finished a book called “White Seed”. This book was a fiction based on actual history. It was the story of the Roanoke colony in the New World before Jamestown. I had never heard of the Roanoke colony until I read this book. The colony was started due to the influence of Sir Walter Raleigh an English Lord. The story follows John White who was governor of that colony, his family and compatriots. John White’s history is known and formed the basis for this account.

Due to causes outside of his control he had to leave the colony and return to England. While he was there he could not get back to Roanoke for over two years. When he returns all the people (numbering over 100 when he left) were gone. The only trace left were the  deteriorated and destroyed buildings in the Fort. Some dead bodies were found but not enough to account for the number he left behind. It is a mystery that has never been solved. The book presents a fictionalized version of what happened in John White’s absence.

The story starts in England in the book follows Maggie and John. Maggie and John had worked for a and English cooper. Following Maggie’s rape by the cooper, John beat the cooper severely and we find out later killed him without Maggie’s knowledge. Maggie and John are chased by the cooper’s brother Sheridan. Maggie and John gain places on a ship heading to the New World (Roanoke Island). After John’s violence Maggie sees him in a different light and draws away from him. Maggie’s placing on the ship was to John White’s household (Roanoke mayor) and tends to John White’s daughter who is expecting.

The long journey to Roanoke Island is made longer by a stop in the Caribbean. The captain wanted to prey on Spanish ships and the accompanying riches. Finally they are off to Roanoke Island. The plan is to pick up the few troops that were left behind on the previous expedition. Then head north to the Chesapeake Bay area. John White realized there were burnt bridges the previous year at Roanoke Island. The captain of the troops was a bloodthirsty man and his cold-blooded treatment of the local friendly Indians meant they had no more allies on their return. There was a group of Indians that were very unfriendly to the settlers and one that was friendly. The bloodthirsty captain did not differentiate between the two. It was thought best to head north and find a friendlier place to reside.

When they arrive at Roanoke Island they find it empty. It was thought the soldiers were either killed or carried off as slaves. Then their plan to head to a friendlier area was thwarted. The ship’s captain decided to leave them there while he sought out more Spanish treasure. He left them behind and promised to return in a few months. Of course that never happened and they were trapped.

There was so much intrigue it’s hard to condense it. There were a number of factions in this community of about 100 people. There were the soldiers, the settlers and an administrative group made up mostly of Sir Walter Raleigh’s representatives. This group was there to find gold and their efforts to do this lead to disastrous consequences. John White tried a reasonable approach to find a safer area but the group of representatives kept them there even though it was unsafe.

The missing captain did return but there was no time left to take them north because of stormy seas. The group of gold seekers manipulated things so John White was sent back to England with the original group of ships. It took months to get there and when John White got there he found there was a moratorium on ships heading away from England. War with Spain was expected.

When war happened with Spain John White had no way of getting the needed ships to head to the New World and rescue his family and the other settlers. This went on for about two years. The book sets forth the decline and ruin of the existing settlement. The soldier faction “goes off the reservation” and takes over and makes things impossible with the local Indians.

The starvation and soldiers killing makes it difficult. The book is very well done but sad at the same time. Eventually John White does return but I won’t mention anything about that. I don’t want to ruin the book's ending.

Atlas Visits – Near the End of October Story 2

During the visit already mentioned above there was another hilarious interaction. Atlas was in his favorite spot on the couch. Macy was in her favorite spot on the back of the other couch. Matt was over petting Macy. Matt called Atlas over so he could supervise Atlas approaching Macy. He jumped up on the couch and in his eagerness tried to sniff her and probably lick her. He doesn’t have a bad bone in his body and only wants to sniff the kitty and lick her to show he loves her.

When he got too close she didn’t get up but just flopped over backwards, hissed at him and started hitting him with both paws. She gave him the old one-two. He moved back a little. She almost fell over backwards but caught herself. She stayed in the same spot looking quite pleased with herself and her further training of the silly dog!

Hatchery Visit – Near the End of October

After we went to the Manchester Whitewater Park we proceeded on to the state trout hatchery located east of Manchester. There is a small springfed stream there and it has been upgraded with the bank hides. The bank hide consists of poles driven down into the stream bottom. Then planks are run from these poles to the shore. Rocks are then piled on top and eventually dirt fills in the gaps in vegetation grows. This provides an excellent location for trout and protects them from predators and fisherman.

This stream has a 14 inch limit and is artificial lures only. This along with the bank hides and water quality leads it to be one of the most natural trout spots in Iowa. Flyfishing in Iowa is limited to a very few locations. The trout need to be in the wild for some time before they become quality flyfishing. Near dusk I have seen some huge trout motor out from under the bank hides. They are pretty smart and difficult to catch.

Most of the streams are stock and the fish are caught rather quickly.The Manchester hatchery provided quality fishing and was the closest to where I lived. I could drive up after work and fish until dusk. Then home again at a reasonable hour. The other good fisheries were 2 to 3 hours away one way.

Inside the hatchery are the rearing pens and also a pond where they keep the brood stock. The brood stock are healthy large trout. It is amazing to see a few hundred of them motoring around the pond. There are browns, rainbows and bookies. Occasionally the state stocks the brood size fish in a stream. with bank I There is fish food available so visitors can feed them.

The visit to the hatchery was more emotional than I expected. It was one of my favorite spots to fish because it was close and had top-notch fish. The spot I'm at in the photo was one of my favorite spots. I would wait up from downstream and fish that little bend. I caught a lot of trout in that spot. It was also that stretch of stream that was my last trout fishing trip. I remember tripping a lot. I remember falling on my rear end. I tried kneeling down and fishing and I would fall forward. Fortunately I did not fall into the water. That would’ve spooked the fish. I found this lack of mobility very confusing. I did not know it then but MS was exerting its influence. I came home and was sad about my inability to fish. I prayed later that evening and felt much better. I remembered that God is good and has blessed me abundantly.

Atlas Visits – Near the End of October

Last weekend, Tom and Atlas visited. They were here it from Friday till Tuesday. We had some interesting cat and dog interactions. Recently my wife started brushing Macy in the evening. Macy loves this more than anything. She now has my wife wrapped around her paw. It is taken Macy four years but she finally has her trained to know what the Macy wants. Because of the brushing Macy has become attached to my wife. This introduced a conflict because Atlas is very attached to my wife. When he is here he follows her wherever she goes and I refer to him as her shadow.

Friday evening Atlas was on one side of her waiting for her attention. Macy was on the other side of her on the couch waiting to be brushed. It was pretty funny seeing their jealousies over her attention. Since Macy wanted to be brushed she didn’t run away when Atlas was near. He went over by her after she jumped down on the floor. She tolerated him until his nose got too close and then she squawked at him and hit him on the nose with her paw.

She is declawed in front so no damage done. He did jump back and Macy’s training of him continued. When his nose gets too close she responds. We laughed very hard! Some of these photos show their interaction. We didn’t get photos never actually hitting him. Later she seemed to tease him by going out where he could see her and when he came by she would run out of the dining room table where he couldn’t get to her. It’s pretty obvious she thinks he’s a silly dog.

Throwback Thursday

This week sure has gone fast. It’s already Thursday. We went on a road trip Monday. Tuesday Tom was still here so I didn’t post anything. I still have things to post about last weekend but will have to do that later. Today I’ve been thinking of past kayaking trips. I had a dream of kayaking last night so that is what is on my mind.

My favorite place to paddle was the Mississippi River. Between McGregor and Gutenberg specifically. A couple times I went from Gutenberg to Clayton. Once I went from Clayton to McGregor. These pictures are from about nine years ago and show some of the scenes I saw. The bridge photo is at McGregor. The boat shown in the Clayton picture was my Caribou. It was my favorite boat that I ever owned. This is the boat I took on big open water as well as the Mississippi.

I always wanted to paddle at Stillwater Minnesota. I had always hoped to go up the St. Croix but never made it there. Usually I limited kayaking to day trips. Overnight trips were always a lot more work and required a lot of planning.

Road trip – Manchester

We enjoyed a nice weekend. Tom and Atlas were here. My wife took Monday off of work and we went up north. I wanted to go to the trout hatchery east of Manchester. On the way we stopped at the new Whitewater Park on the Maquoketa River. It is right in Manchester. The water was low so we didn’t see the Whitewater as is meant. We did have a good time. There is a nice paved trail with a portion that goes down near the water. Tom took Atlas for a walk on the sandbar. When coming back Atlas just ran through the water so he could catch up with my wife. He’s very attached to her.
It was incredibly dry that day. It is been over three weeks since rain. There was so much dust and harvest dust blowing in the air I felt I could taste it even the next day. Fortunately it rained Tuesday. Tom took Atlas home Tuesday afternoon. We sure enjoy their visit. Alice is now over 80 pounds. He still thinks he’s a little puppy though.

Book report: the Chosen Trilogy

Recently I completed a three book set of historical fiction that was based on the life of Daniel the prophet. The books were the Chosen trilogy by Kalo Shlomo. Overall the books were good but not great. Of course historically they matched the life of Daniel as recorded in the Old Testament.

There was a fictionalized portion on his early life growing up in an Israeli village. His family and friends were fictionalized and contained interesting characters. In Daniel’s recorded life you can clearly see the influences of the imagined characters.

The sections that dealt with his “being carried away to Babylon” were fictionalized. They were fascinating and greatly entertaining. After he arrived in Babylon the story follows a very plausible line as to how he advanced in the king’s court. As I’m sure you know he became one of Nebuchadnezzar’s main advisors.

All the main stories were included such as Daniels three friends who endured the fiery furnace and came out alive. Daniel in the lion’s den was well done. Nebuchadnezzar’s descent into madness and living as a beast for seven years was also well done and a fascinating read. Overall I found the books entertaining and probably recommend them to someone who reads a lot. I would not recommend them for occasional readers.

Fire Camp

Last Saturday night it was perfect weather to have a campfire in our fire ring. One of my wife’s sister’s and her grandson, Carson joined us. Carson is the one with the little dog, Lucy. Carson is seven and a bit of a character. A number of years ago he referred to the campfire as “Fire Camp”. Since then we have always referred to it as fire camp.

Years ago Carson determined there needed to be fire camp rules as well as a fire boss! Carson helped document the rules and Carson is always the fire boss. The rules I can remember are 1) you must bring a buddy to fire camp. Then you must ask each other how their day went. Further rules dealt with safety issues. No firearms or cigarettes allowed! Other rules were included for adding wood to the fire in a safe manner.

The wood needed to be gently set into the fire on the upwind side. My wife broke the rules by dropping the log into the fire on the downwind side. The sparks flew up and Carson informed us she was in violation. He then said it was okay because it was her fire so she could break the rules. Fire camp with Carson is very entertaining!

Dog pictures versus Macy pictures

I realized while looking over my blog that I have many more pictures of dogs than of Macy. The explanation is that the dogs are always accompanied by other people and they take the photos for me. I’m no longer able to use my camera. So when I post photos of Macy they are usually old. Today’s photo is an exception.

You’ve heard of grumpy cat. Macy is a scowly cat. When she doesn’t like something she scowls and puts her ears back. Another problem is that she changes her behavior when someone has a camera out. I tried to get my son to take a picture of her scowling and this is the best I could get. She is very uncooperative. When people try to take movies of her playing she stops and lays down and just stares at them.

She must have some self-image issues that stem from her childhood. Maybe people showed her magazines with retouched cat photos so she developed a complex. One of her many nicknames is Old Scowler.
I want to get a photo of her scowling but that seems problematic because she won’t cooperate. But scowl she does. If I could get pictures of her showing her annoyance may be she could be an Internet sensation like grumpy cat!

More Monday morning

I’m in bed late on Mondays and it is usually the day I listen to sermons from Faith Bible Church here in Cedar Rapids. I have to admit I have fallen behind. When my son Tom is home I get up at a normal time on Mondays and so I miss listening. I’m about a month behind.

Today I was listening to one from the end of August. In this sermon pastor Steve mentioned me and quoted from my blog. I was very touched. I also have to say it was as if he was talking about somebody else.

I have had this disease for a long time without knowing it clear back to 1999. I have known something was wrong with me as far back as 2006. I was diagnosed in 2009. Even with all these years battling the disease I still do not view myself as being ill. When I think about it seems like somebody else and not me. When I picture myself it is always hiking, biking or kayaking. Most often it is with one of my sons. That is my individual view so when the disease is brought firmly to my attention it seems like it is someone else it happened to.

Maybe that’s denial. Maybe that’s one way of looking at it. I really don’t know. It is how I deal with it though. I’ve always dealt with this disease with denial and prayer. I deny it has any power over me until it forces itself into my thinking and then I pray. I’m sure it should do it the other way around but I am what I am. Maybe someday I’ll learn to pray first. I am not young anymore but I know I still have many lessons to learn!

Monday’s

it is another Monday. It is been over a year since I’ve had to work. You would think Monday’s would get easier without work. I used to normally be in a bad humor on Mondays and I just attributed it to having to get up and go to work and deal with people that I hadn’t seen all weekend. Now on Mondays it is my latest morning I get up because my son gets me up around 1130 due to his work schedule.

Today I slept until 11 o’clock. You would think the extra sleep is good but Mondays are still awful. I sleep the most and spend the least amount of time in my chair during the day. I am still so ready to go to bed Monday nights it is work to stay up to my 9 o’clock normal bedtime.

I am not sure why Mondays are so difficult but you work understand as well as I do. I would have to say life really doesn’t get easier just because you don’t have to work! Maybe it’s just more difficult because I think it is supposed to be easier.

The Bible says God’s mercies are new every morning! I’m thinking that Mondays are supposed to be easier (in my mind) and I forget that. Maybe that’s why they’re so difficult.

worry put to rest

When I got Macy the Cedar

Valley humane shelter had a profile on her. It was written by her previous owner. One thing it said was that she loved being brushed. This was good because when I got her she had massive amount of hair coming off of her. She had not been brushed while she was there and really needed it. When I got her home I found out she indeed does love brushing.

She is a very quiet cat and hardly makes a sound. She makes more of a chirping sound than a meow and is very sweet. Sometimes she seems so overcome with emotion her mouth opens the nothing comes out. We call it the silent meow.

Normally she only makes noise when she wants food or when she wants brushed. She does love getting brushed and makes her noises to get brushed. Recently my hands have lost capacity and I’m finding it very difficult to brush her. Since she loves it so much I was afraid she would lose interest in me because I couldn’t serve her interests as a cat owner is supposed to. Now other people are picking up the slack and brushing her.

This morning I found out I was worried for nothing. I got out the brush and held it for her so she could rub her chin. She came over right away and laid on my chest. She rubbed her chin a little bit and then I moved the brush to a more comfortable spot and she did not follow it. She stayed there and started purring. She wanted me to scratch her chin and ears without the brush. She has never chosen getting scratched over the brush until now. She stayed there purring for about 20 minutes. She is such a sweet kitty!

A nice visit

Yesterday I was visited by Tom and Julie. I used to work with Julie and her and Tom still keep in touch. They stopped over after work and Tom and I had a beer. Julie was being good to she had nothing. I think she was saving up for this weekend.

The highlight of the visit was the inclusion of their West Highland Terrier named Max. Max is a very quiet and affectionate dog. He really enjoyed the screened porch. He could get up on the bench and look out the windows at the leaves blowing around and the squirrels. I offered to take him off their hands but they politely declined!

Sleeping Cat

Tuesday afternoon I went out to the screened in porch. Macy followed me out and jumped up on my lap. It always amazes me how she can sleep on my legs. She slept similar to this photo on my legs and I don’t know how she stays up there. I decided I would not move until she got up from her nap. Silly me, an hour and a half later she was still there sleeping. I had enjoyed watching out the porch but was wanting to read so I finally drove back into the house. She jumped off then and went and slept on her bed. She outlasted me.
So yesterday I decided I would make more of an effort at out last her. I went out to the porch about 2:00 PM. I’m not sure why but she doesn’t seem to want to go out there by herself. So she came out like the day before and climbed up on my legs. She made herself comfortable and went to sleep. An hour later I fell asleep. When I woke I had expected she would’ve gotten down and moved on to other things. No she was still there sleeping. It was after 4 PM. She had been asleep in my lap for two hours. I waited another 15 minutes and then wanted to watch Jeopardy. She outlasted me again. I guess when you take a cat on in a sleeping contest you should expect to lose. Macy wins again!.

latest Atlas post

This is the photo I wanted to add yesterday. It shows Tom’s dog Atlas and a friend of his daughter. What’s not shown in the photo is that she had covered him up with her blanket and it was sleepy time. Extremely cute. She used to be afraid of him until last weekend. Now I think she owns him.

Problems posting

I hoped to post something this week by now but my arms and hands are not working very well. I ordered something online and found I needed to update my credit card info. Unfortunately after many strokes I find I can't read the numbers on my credit card because they are worn off. Now I've used up all my capacity for the day

Some Success

I’m feeling pretty happy with myself right now. I figured out how to add multiple pages at the bottom of my blog. So now I have added two more and can add more in the future. The voice recognition program I have works great with an old copy of Microsoft Word. It works great when I go to the old style desktop. It works terrible under Windows 8. I can dictate in all these new apps but it won’t automatically capitalize and I cannot correct its mistakes. To do that I have to dictate in word and copy everything to the app I want to use.

I am happy because I am figuring out how to maneuver around these limitations. I can turn my voice recognition on and use it to control the mouse even in the newer screens. It won’t jump to a menu item like I got used to do with an older version of Windows and voice recognition but I can still control the mouse by voice. I can use it to click or I can use it to move the mouse. Moving the mouse by voice is very slow. I can still use my right hand somewhat so I do that instead and then just click my voice.

So now I am set up to do blog posts as well as pages at the bottom of my blog screen. Yay I feel like I’ve accomplished a goal!