January 2008 Update

Happy New Year everyone (even though it is the end of January)

My T-cells went from 630 to 627 and my viral load remains undetectable. All my other blood work – kidney, liver, etc – was very good and my cholesterol & triglycerides were near perfect so the doctor is very happy! Me too! I also told this doctor how my primary doctor said I should be 180 pounds and how I am dieting smart and exercising – she looked at me as if I was crazy. “She (my primary doctor) told you that”? Then made me feel better by adding how I really don’t need to lose weight and wanted to know where I was planning to lose this weight. In conclusion, the doctor told me to just be smart about weight loss because she said I do not look at all heavy!!!

One note: say a little prayer for my niece Mackenzie. We just found out she has Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes. She will need to have Insulin injections 4 or 5 times a day for the rest of her life now. She’s only 8!! At the very least, I am grateful she will have a long life because of her meds.

Now, back to my update….

Halloween was enjoyable especially when my young nieces came trick or treating and I was able to snag a decent sized pumpkin for pumpkin bread!

I did turn 49 this year on my birthday which was nice because my sister and her husband were here at home (Arlene and Jim). I did decide though for my 50th, I want a summer cookout in September to celebrate. One – the weather is nice and more people can fit into our yard! And, two, it’s warm yet!

My niece Kimberly was married on November 10, 2007. The wedding was extremely nice. I went to both the church and the reception in my van – a pleasure to be able to drive again! I also got dressed up for the first time probably since October 1999, so I was in my glory. No sweatpants, Ts or jeans! I wore a very nice hound’s tooth sport coat with a pair of black dress pants and a mock turtle light-weight sweater. I think I looked good even though I accessorized with a wheelchair!!

For Thanksgiving, I did almost all the cooking for the first time since Thanksgiving 1998. In 1999, I was too sick and hadn’t the gumption to cook at all. Arlene and Jim were off and working which gave me the opportunity to cook since Arlene usually does all the cooking for that day. I had both my parents here and my mother supplied one side dish because I really wanted to do the major things like stuffing the turkey! Which I managed nicely and all the basting and baking too! My arms and hands have probably 90% of their strength and coordination back now, so I did all of it and again, very happy that I could.

Well, since Arlene and Jim had to be away working over Thanksgiving, I know my sister was upset she couldn’t decorate inside or even outside. I thought it would be a nice surprise even if I did the inside for her. (The outdoor decorating would be impossible from a wheelchair and the fear of getting stuck in the yard was very over-whelming!) I managed to find her major decorations in the storage shed here and brought the bins into the house by imaginative use of my power chair. Decorating the living room, kitchen and dining area was not at all bad.

I had to use some imagination to accomplish things, but everything was in its place when I finished. By the way, I could stand using the power chair as a brace against my calves for longer periods and even could manage free standing by balancing for shorter periods of time (with good sneakers or even work boots!) I did the decorating for her first before I would even dare tackle the task of my room – I allowed myself a week between the two jobs and thank God, the weather remained decent making trips to the storage shed easier. The family and friends were impressed by what I accomplished.

Maybe soon, I can put up the outdoor decorations!

One “gift” that I truly loved was when my mother gave me a 20 piece Nativity set. What is so special is this set is probably 30 years-old or close to it. Both she and I made it. My mother did all the ceramic work and then I did all the painting and decorating of these figurines. I was, or am, a good artist – don’t you think?

Of course, I did shopping on good-weather days and it was so nice to go when or where I wanted. One time, I took my 14 and 8 year-old nieces shopping for their Christmas gifts – clothes – much easier for me! We went to lunch and then came home to make cut-out cookies and when finished, we watched Shrek 3 – we made a day of it and plus, it gave my brother and his wife to do their own Christmas shopping sans the girls.

I did bake a lot of cookies this year and tried my hand at cut-out sugar cookies with all the decorating – icing and such – since I had the time and being artistic – in my glory. I did make gifts out of them. I put 2 dozen in each bag as a present – I would hope they were enjoyed!

I drove to the family Christmas party by myself and had my father as a passenger. It was fun to drive and it made all the outdoor displays a little brighter on the way home about 9 PM.

One gift I really like is the digital frame I received. Between it, the 4 X 6 printer and my lap top, my digital camera makes photography a joy. It seems I can do all from a memory chip and like the versatility.

New Year’s just sort of came and went for me – I have regrets but it really will not change a thing – I just hope that 2008 is good!

I have lately gotten into redecorating my room – mainly moving things around – reorganizing my mess into another artistic daydream!! HA HA I am still using a lot of denim to accent my paintings but decided to freshen it up a bit using new fabric and new ideas like re-grouping things and rearranging photos and paintings.

One of my artistic projects is putting silk tropical plants and shells on a natural sponge Arlene and Jim bought in Florida. It did have real air plants, but they all died after 2 years! Not bad. So, I am sure it will come out nicely and they’ll like it.

I am re-doing the front door mini-ramps so I can get in and out easier without bopping into the door jam! I made sure it all was wider, longer and non-skid!

A new therapy for me!!! Paint by numbers! Yes, I used to love it as a child and now it’ll help me with my eye-hand coordination and control. This one painting in particular that I bought has a lot of minute details which I will love to tackle and I know that this will help in my freehand art too. I already have an idea for a painting I would love to accomplish!!

My writing. For the first book, I’m still trying to find a literary agent and also have been kicking around new ideas to rearrange it and use a new format to freshen it up and make it more of a novelty in its genre. As far as #2, I need inspiration!!

I am hoping to manage a few road trips this spring – first New Hope, PA then NYC and, yes, I plan to call everyone in the area in hopes to meet up. When I finalize the dates – then I’ll phone. But again, S-P-R-I-N-G!! I HATE COLD AND SNOW!!

I was so determined to begin a good weight-loss program and looking forward to a full exercise schedule again, also to help. I did let myself go for the Holidays and, no, I didn’t balloon up (or out) but I did hit 200. And according to my doctor, I should be at 180. (By the way, she cannot believe I weigh that much!) I earnestly began on 1/7 when Arlene and Jim left to work because I have this horrible habit of using them as my excuse for eating junk and sloughing off. Well, a week into it all and after a loss of 4.5 pounds (Yeah), my back went out! AND, doing something soooo stupid, I never would have thought!! I was getting in the shower and kicked off my undies and then – BAM! Right up my spine!! So, a week after taking it easy and an anti-inflammatory, I am getting motivated again by true dieting and doing exercises in careful stages until I can get to 100%.

Before anyone even thinks of, “Well, that’s no big deal”! Remember that I lost everything by the end of 1999 – my health, my job, my lifestyle. When 2000 began, I couldn’t walk, talk, write, feed or groom myself, cook and the list goes on. So, when I write things that seem trivial to you or others – I am now able to do such stupid, mundane, every day things again and, guess what, it IS a victory to ME. And a big hug, kiss and heartfelt ‘thank you’ to all of you who never gave up on me and encouraged me to keep trying. You know, my next goal is to walk – even with a cane or walker!!!

Another question I wish to address is my spirituality. I have had a number of friends and family ask me many things relating to my beliefs. Well, I do believe in a Supreme Being (God) and am very spiritual using my Catholic upbringing as a basis for my every day ritual. So, yes, everyday, I make sure – before I do anything else outside the home – I do a very Catholic thing – I say the Rosary as I do the stationary bike with no TV or music to distract my meditation. I have to thank my father for instilling my want of doing this daily and then my mother because I do the Divine Mercy each day instead of the basic Rosary. When I finish, then I quietly do personal prayers for my family, friends and even people who just need a prayer, and, of course – myself – mainly health, protection and happiness is the theme. So, I detest organized religion that tells me that I am a bad person. I don’t see that and never will – my God doesn’t!!

Well, my next update will be in May 2008 and look forward to spring!!!

As always,
Ron