What Do American Presidents and Wheelchairs have In Common? Periodically, they both have to be Replaced

Hello Fellow Travelers!

Callalilys

I was going to present a typical image of a basic wheelchair but then selected these callalilys in an Orient & Flume vase because the flowers are elegant and visually pleasing and any wheelchair is neither.

You know by now how  I loathe them! Unfortunately, they  do occasionally need to be replaced.  I refuse to accept their continued presence in my environment as anything more than an annoying nuisance.  I only order the most basic, manual, model available.  If I could order a wheelchair made from Popsicle sticks I'd get one but the "Rickshaw Chair" is not currently available, so I've been pricing these odious conveyances online.  And you know what?  Even the crappy ones are pretty expensive!  My solution to rolling along like a dachshund with no back legs?  Try really hard not to be a wiener dog on wheels!

Wheelchairs are an unfortunate tool required for all manner of illnesses and conditions.   They are also a prime piece of motivational equipment in my rehabilitation.  No "Rascals" or "scooters" or anything with a cupholder/horn/headlight or a motor for me!  The less moving parts the better! Any participation in the selection process indicates an acceptance of an actual need for a wheelchair and I refuse to acquiesce to a piece of medical equipment!

Acceptance still = surrender and I won't give up!  I'll find neuroplasticity!

Though I'm forced to temporarily rely on this wheeled "thing" to get from point "A" to point "B",  nothing dictates I have to be happy about it.

This particular chair incorporates everything that is American and "bad". I don't mean Michael Jackson "Bad" either -  just crapola. The seat is naugahyde or maybe "pleather".

Anyway I stick to the "naug" (eg?) when I move and I sort of peel myself off.

Then there are the wheels, even though I've kept them clean they are gouged and leave marks on floors.

George Costanza's future mother-in-law (Grace Zabriskie) Mrs. Ross ("Seinfeld") said it, "Is it too much to ask that you wipe your wheels?"

It doesn't help that my not-so-cheap-ass-but-it's-falling-apart-chair was manufactured by an unfortunately named company called "Invacare".

"Inva" is part of the word"invalid" which is both a noun (a person who can't walk) and an adjective (used to describe something, usually a document, that is no good or of no use) and neither definition is a positive descriptor of a human being.

I can overlook a lot but  I draw a line when I repeatedly see that "Invacare" label, bolted into the chair.

 Standing around and snarking, biking, walking for hours is my normal, I've never been a "sitter".  I'm more of a "stander".

Then there is the view from a wheelchair and it's tragic!  You have this weird viewpoint where you're eye-level with everyone's rear.  As if that isn't uncomfortable enough you're invalid and apparently you were eaten by a faux leather chair!  And there's a photo to prove it!

If that image doesn't send you screaming to your gym, at least have a cookie for me!

Happy Mother's Day!

My Kind of Dragon- Disney-esque, More Goofy Than Menaacing

Hello Fellow Travelers!

Everybody has one - a mother.  I refer to my own using an assortment of  highly questionable nicknames that have met with  varying degrees of success.  I'm a "Game of Thrones" fan (It's not TV - It's HBO) so I refer to my dear Mom lately as the "MOD" or "Mother of Dragons".

I believe my journey has a bigger purpose than just where it takes me.

Brain cancer is just part of much larger picture.

Next week I have my five-year MRI (brain scan).

Assuming it's clear (Thank you, HA!), I can sail off (or wheel off) into the sunset.

With the completion of the five-year MRI and some bloodwork, the "cancer phase" will be over. I won't be constantly looking over my shoulder for another tumor to appear.  I can look forward to newer and different disasters!

I am as one doctor told us, a "walking medical miracle".

Since I'm lucky enough to still be topside, I feel a huge responsibility to utilize every minute of every day to improve anything or anyone I encounter, myself especially. These "improvements" can be small, but any improvement moves me forward and moving forward is all I'm concerned with.

My mom won't take any credit for my uncanny resilience or any of my survival skills.  It is true that I'm scaling this "post cancer mountain" by myself but I don't think I could do it without the inherent skills she passed onto me.

My ambivalence towards eating, who cares anyway?  Not my mother!  "You can't be too rich or too thin" might have been said by  Coco Chanel but we lived it!  "The world is full of food - you can't eat it all." Some chef said that and it's true.  Eating is a big pain since neurosurgery so until/unless they come up with a capsule that contains the RDR of protein, I'll keep skipping food (except quality baked goods)

I used to enjoy fine (and not so fine) wine.  Never again since brain surgery!  And it used to be a big part of my life!  And I don't miss it at all!  My mother abstains from alcohol.

Best of all my mother encouraged my love of reading and the written word.

I love to read.  I'll read anything.  Sometimes more than once.  And you know what else?  I read really fast!

Since I was little, my mom has been giving me lots of books!  Reading is the key to understanding writing

I have a constant drive to find out what happens next, to see how it turns out.  "It" doesn't have to have a happy ending whatever "it" is, I just need to know how "it" ends.

I'm currently unable to speak but I can type!

Throughout this latest journey my mother has fed me Scooby Snacks and clothed me in gym wear. I can't write longhand.  My mom sent me a laptop.  I know I told you when she sent actual cat fur in a Ziploc bag!  (When she sent the baggie, it made more sense...)

My weird sense of 'funny" definitely originates with my mother - when things are their bleakest point sometimes all you can do is laugh.

Strength, sarcasm and unshakable objectives have gotten me through this "handicapped" phase.  I'm ready to find out what happens next!