Set Myself on Fire, Transfer Trouble, Farmers Life For Me

    So I'm not digging some of the things going on in my world, for starters on March 26th I set myself on fire. Heating something up in the microwave from Wendy's in the bag I didn't realize it was in a foil lined wrapper. The bag caught fire, I took it out and promptly dropped it on my footrest, instant bbq!

I can't control my right leg, so I couldn't get it out of the way. It just burned! 2nd degree burns, multiple trips to the wound care clinic, I still have a pad on it, without it every time I have a cramp it rubs up against the pad and the new shin rubs off, fun. 

    My days of transferring have just about come to an end. the shower and the toilet have become my arch enemies. The toilet I can still do, providing my body gives me enough warning to get there, but the shower is another story. I sit there and stare, I only need to lift up a few inches, but it may as well be a few feet, ain't happening. We are looking into a ceiling lift, what a procedure it is for that.  Trying to figure out if Medicare pays for any of it, so far no straight answers  

    Something I am digging are my new garden boxes. The men from church put them together, even filled them for me. I now how 2  4'x8'  raised boxes, 5 potato bags, and 5 tomato plants in self watering tubs. We just harvested swiss chard, I can't wait for the rest!

Forcing Myself to do More

   I’m going to cook a sirloin tip roast today, all by myself! That’s right, you heard me, by myself. I edged the sidewalks yesterday, almost killed me, but I did it. The boy did the hard pard, he got the edger, the blower, and the extension cord. Ok, that’s not by myself, but I did the edging. The roast is going to be all me. Going to force myself to do some things, if not I’m going to lose the battle. The hope is the more I do, the more I will be able to do. The eyes are a little fuzzy today, combination of the heat and the exertion. Hopefully the roast will look something like this?

New Garden View

     As you can see it was a tangled mess! A friend of The Boy’s from bowling, his bowling mother, her husband and his nephew cleared it out, proof there are kind people in the world. The job is almost finished. I love it!

A Bad Case of MS Depression

     I’ve been bitten by the depression bug the last few days, particularly bad today. MS is kicking my ass today! Let’s see, what was it that got to me, hard to isolate just one thing? My pay went up $44 a month, that opens the world at my feet. That massive raise was swallowed up by the landscaping we just had done, next years also. Paid to have the yard work done, that’s always a trigger. It’s not the money, though it is, it’s that I want to do it! I planted 4 flower boxes today, all by myself. Well, the wife brought me the boxes, poured the potting soil in, brought me the flowers, then cleaned up the incredible mess I made. But I did it all by myself! Oh, by the time I was finished my right arm hung down at my side, lifeless and useless. It was about then I had to go to the bathroom. Imagine trying to insert a catheter with one hand. Let’s just say it didn’t go well. Now I’m in bed, worn out and discouraged. Still can’t recline, my rear is irritated, nothing serious, yet. May seem small to you, but my world is crashing in around me today.

Gardening Not For MS

     It’s tough having interest that aren’t shared. I loved working out in the yard, the sense of accomplishment, seeing immediate results. I always knew I was alone in the joy of working outside, never mattered because I could do it all myself. That’s a thing of the past. The desire is still there, but you can figure out the rest. The family’s only outdoor activity is walking from the house to the car, that’s about it. So now I hire people to do what I always enjoyed doing myself. As if that’s not bad enough, the people I hire have a habit of not showing up. Hired a dear friends nephew to do the work, was told he needed the work. We got the friends and family rate, $30 an hour, down from $45. He’s been here 1 of the last 10 days, got here around 10, went to lunch with a friend for 1 1/2 hours, hasn’t been back since.  It’s like having cigarettes put out in your eye, watching the slow progression, not being able to do anything about it. So I wait. And stew. And get into a further depression as I not only think of the things I can’t do, but look out into the yard and see them.

Maryland Grow 100 Challenge, Back On Paleo

The kids are coming over for mothers day, the wife said she wanted her gift to be help cleaning up the yard. My plan is to cornswaggle them into helping with the garden. I am entering Maryland's Grow 100 Challenge, don't see how I can lose? If I combine my raised bed, my bag garden (bags are now gone), and my idiot garden, mathematically I can't go wrong. Now to pick my crops! I'd share what I'm doing, but I don't want anyone moving to MD to steal my sure thing.

We are back on the paleo diet, no more excuses! I figure if I'm going to hang around, I may as well look good doing it? I dropped 90 lbs the last time we committed to it, gained 30 of it back, rough year with my surgery, the mother in law's illness and passing. When I do something, I go all in, including eating badly! I'm not a have 3 Oreo's double stuff cookies and leave the box alone, more a, "hey, who ate all the Oreo's?" So, I'm 14 lbs down in a few days, back down to a svelte 270. Was going to post pictures to chronicle my journey, but decided nobody deserved to have to see that!

Depression Rules The Day, Vegetables For Those Who Need Them

Depression is rearing its ugly head right now, can't seem to shake it off.  Combination of not feeling good, circumstances with the mother in law, and feelings of having had wasted my life, nothing too heavy.  I can't do anything about how I feel or the mother in law, but I wish I had done a better job with making my life count towards something.  I feel I was nothing more than a cog in the go to work and pay your bills machine, not accomplishing anything of importance.  I dreamed once of making a difference, looks like that ship has sailed?

My dream was to teach the impoverished how to become more food self sufficient by teaching children how to grow food.  180 or so public schools in my county, if each of them grew a 40 x 40 foot garden just think of how much food that would garnish.  I also wanted to turn vacant lots and unused county property into community gardens.  Think what it would mean to people who their only exposure to vegetables are the onions that come on the double cheeseburger they get on the dollar menu.  Oh well, it was a nice dream to have at one point.

I'm Bored To Tears, And Rosie Is The Best Girl Dog In Perry Hall

What to do, what to do?  Getting harder with each passing day to answer that question.  I've read every page on the internet, played every game, so what do I do now?  We haven't opened the pool, the wife is so busy running with her parents it didn't seem worth it?  "My" garden is a joke this year for the same reason, only thing I did was my lettuce table and that's played out already.  The boredom is becoming as much an issue as the pain and dysfunction, been home now almost 16 years, running out of things to do.  Not a people person, the local clubs send me thank you cards periodically for staying away, need to find my "thing".

Rosie has been a great addition to the family!  Now when I talk during the day there is a living thing to respond to me.  Yeah, she gives me the same vacant stare most humans give me, but she is by my side all day until the wife gets home.  Sure, she ate my shoes and my favorite hat, and all the remote controls, and all the throw pillows, and anything paper she can get her paws on, but who among us hasn't had that same urge?  She loves tomatoes and carrots, especially if the tomato is on the perfect sammich you constructed with your favorite ingredients and left it on the table to run to the bathroom.  If she is off somewhere in the house and someone rings the doorbell she runs to me and sits while barking to protect me.  Yeah, should have done it a long time ago!

Into Second Week Of Wahl's Diet, Planted The Wrong Garden

Seems like it's been 6 years since I started my diet, usually I'd mark such an occasion with a big ole hunkering cake!  But those were the old days.  Now I am having vegetable smoothies or almonds to pass the time.  Added no eggs or nightshades to the regimen, although I had to look up what a nightshade was.  Makes my six tomato plants seem like a huge waste, but I don't know any other way of doing an elimination diet than eliminating things.  Not feeling incredible yet, but have lost 25 lbs, down to a svelte 300.

So my garden this year, planted prior to new eating plan, is loaded with things I'm not eating.  I have tomatoes, green, yellow, and jalapeno peppers, all of which are nightshades.  I have peas, green beans, potatoes, and corn.  Right now I'm only able to have the cabbage, swiss chard, and lettuce.  Worry that as long as I am burning fat I will be burning the bad things out of my system, not allowing me to know when my system is reset.  Be nice to have my biggest worry be that I was burning too much fat.

The Wife On Vacation And The Church Garden Died

The wife is in Punta Cana for the week, soaking up the sun at an all inclusive resort. She and 3 childhood friends set it up in honor of them all turning 50. The wife was a little reluctant to go, worried I would miss her too much, not remember to eat and stuff. Well, I will miss her, and the eating, yeah, right! Truth of the matter is I wish she would do this more often. I don't travel well, and she lives for it, so beam her up Scotty!

My garden idea at church turned out to be a flop! Like most things I've found, the garden idea was discovered too late. My plan was to put in a small plot, get the scouts at church, the younger parishioners, anyone interested in lending a hand to, well lend a hand. If the 15 or so churches in our area all did a small plot that would have been a lot of food for those who needed it. Thanks to the couple of people who did show an interest, I appreciate it. My fate is to have a mind that still has good ideas, but a body that can't carry them to fruition. Oh well, at least I still have my boyish grin!

More Insurance Battles, MS Beat Me On Church Garden

Got my insurance straitened out, if I had medicare part B! Got all new EOB's that said Cigna was paying the "supplemental" portion of the bills, medicare part B would cover the rest. WHAAA? Called them right away, the very nice young girl told me, well that's not right! Waiting for the 15 day period to run for new EOB's to see what's next. In the meantime I had to go to the emergency room, turned my ankle and thought I broke my wrist on the ensuing fall? Just add it to the bill!

Not sure how the church garden went this year? We got a ton of cucumbers, chard and tomatoes, but the weeds have taken over. People are telling me it was great for the first year, but I'm judging it off of what it could have been. It's hard when you have what you think is a great idea but can't work it to fruition like you would have when you were still a viable human. Having a spell where I really miss the old Andy!

Road Wash Out, and Weather Related Crop Damage

Man did it rain today! Went up for my spine injections, they went well, thanks, but the rain was unbelievable! My friend took me, the wife was disinterested, and the ride home was a true adventure. The road in front of us washed out, a lot of debris, a lot water, all from a little babbling brook you wouldn't even know was there, until today.

With all this rain we've had, some of my plants have taken a beating, especially the things I grew from seed and transplanted. My bag tomatoes took a real hit, may need to replace them with plants from Richardson's farm. Need to go up and check the church garden, they were nice sturdy plants, don't expect any problems. Why are the plants I grew from seed in my basement not as strong, they all had little, spindly stems? I think next year I will sow the seeds right into the ground, cut out the middle man.

Church Garden In The Ground, And No Experimental MS Therapies For Me!

We got the garden rolling today, it's going to be great! Went and got a truckload of topsoil to add, already added compost. The garden is at the back of the parking lot, backs up to some pretty nice townhomes. A young couple came over and started asking questions, before we knew what happened the guy was up in the truck blasting out dirt like a steam shovel! We got everything planted and even used their hose to give it the first soaking. The 2 members from church did an incredible amount of work too, probably had to do with the leadership I showed from my lawn chair.

Who can tell me something about CCSVI? Anybody know anyone who's had it? The mother knows a gal, who knows a guy, who saw something about it, on some show, but that's about it? My central nervous system has a blood supply? Is this procedure just angioplasty? Why is there so much controversy around each one of the "cures" for MS? LDN, Bee sting, dental Amalgam. Why can't they just make it work? My mechanic can fix my car, the plumber the pipes. I refuse to take anything else, or get any worse until they fix this! Who's with me?

Church Garden Tilled, And A Spring Cold Thanks To The Boy

Got the church garden underway, got the 20x20 plot tilled, composted and tilled again. That being said it will still be like trying to grow something on a parking lot! I forget sometimes that Perry Hall was settled because of its clay and gravel, at least I think why that's why it was settled? Church is having an outdoor cleanup tomorrow, and a few of the garden people are going to start putting plants in the ground. It will be a matter of time before we are cursing the lack of rain, and trying to figure out how to get rid of the bunnies, can't wait!

I remember thinking what germ factories little kids are, spreading their pathogens all over the place. The boy, now 19, still has a knack for it. He developed an upper respiratory thing, sending out mushroom clouds of death all over the house, and yes I got it too. Don't think I actually caught it from him, but I'm certainly not taking the blame for it. I avoided being sick all winter, hand washing, avoiding human contact, and using my Neti pot. I did that while volunteering all winter at the homeless shelter. I guess the combination of the spring allergy season, the boy sounding like he belonged in the TB ward, and bad luck all joined in a perfect storm type of thing, I need to be institutionalized!

A Great Mothers Day And Church Garden Getting Started

Great day today, the Moms sure seemed to have a nice day, though the wife worked too hard on hers. I should have pushed her out of the kitchen and taken control, but I was feeling a bit slow today, pollen is sky high, killing me, and my right eye is still all oogey. The kids aren't to the point of stepping up yet, don't remember when that happens, I was 40 before I did anything of note. a friend and her husband stopped by, didn't join us for nosh, but was good to see them just the same.

Get started on the church garden tomorrow, a bit later than I would have hoped, but started just the same. We shall have to resort to plants instead of seed, but that is not the end of the world for the size we are doing. It's just a 20x20 garden to get started, but there has already been a good bit of buzz about it. 20x20 this year, maybe 40x40 next year, or let out 20x20 spots to people and get the entire community involved. The whole idea is to get people thinking about where our food is coming from, and where it is going. Our hope is to show the community how much we can grow, and maybe they will do some, and so on, and so on, and......

Mini Eye Exacerbation, Minions In The Garden

The right eye is acting up, that blurry, fuzzy, fade out type of acting up. This weather is killing me! Don't know about anyone else but I need it to get warm and stay warm, or stay cool, I don't care, but this warm one day, cold the next is tearing me apart! Teaming up with the eye is the usual slow motion of things, like an out of body experience, though I really don't know what one of those is like. Not too hard to deal with, as long as it's only in one eye, so keep your fingers crossed.

Had both my minions out in the yard helping me today, would be funny if they didn't come from my gene pool! The girl panics if she doesn't get it right away, and the boy figures he didn't know it yesterday, won't scar him if he doesn't know it today. They laid a layer of cardboard down to kill the grass, then filled the 6x8' raised bed with compost. The girl did the cardboard and left for school, while the boy got to hump the compost from the truck to the bed. He was all proud of himself, said all finished. Wish you could have seen the look on his face when I said, good job, cut the grass and you're all finished!

Idiot Garden Underway, The Wife Is On Vacation

The idiot garden is off and running. I have potatoes in my trashcan, yellow onions and garlic in my bathtub, onions, mesculin, 2 types of chard, shallots, and tomatoes in my bag garden. I have lettuce in my lettuce table, duh, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and tomatoes in my idiot tubs. I have a 6x8' raised bed planted with a 3 sisters garden, corn, squash or pumpkin, and beans. Seeds are sprouting, transplants are flourishing, we will be eating healthy and local in no time.

The wife is off for 9 straight days, it will be great! We are going to cook good meals, try some new recipes, play with our kitchen set. She is going to clean one room each day, then move onto the next. I'd help her, but I have a bad back and MS, so you know. I'd love to have her home all the time, trying to talk her into moving up to the mountains, to Cumberland, but she is slow to make change. I told her we could move downtown, open a tea room, and live happily ever after. For now, I'll settle for 9 straight days off.

Aquaponics In The Basement Or The Backyard?

Found a cool site about backyard aquaponics, shows you how to do it with either a fish tank or food grade 55 gallon barrels. Another is a video about a system to use in your basement, yeah, fish in your basement! I've got to try one, probably the one in my basement, haven't told the wife yet, but I'm sure she'll be as excited as I am. Now what kind of fish do I want, smoked trout, fried catfish, or broiled Tilapia? There's a house that has been empty for a while up the street that has a cool little greenhouse, may need to figure out how to acquire that for future use? Tomatoes and salad all year long with a little fish, sounds like a plan to me.

Aquaponics For Food And Fun

Who knows anything about aquaponics? I am suddenly struck by the whole concept of being able to grow all my own food, including fish in one system, you can even grow shrimp and crayfish! If I can figure out how to hook it all up to a small solar charger and battery I will be in absolute hog heaven! OK, I have a little bit of research to do, see how much it costs to get started, what kind of fish...alright, I have a lot of research to do, but it's what I do! I wonder if I could get the University of MD involved, have them set it up, use it as a teaching tool, and best of all pay for it?

Delawning Plant Selections and Chickens and Rabbits and Fish, Oh My

Played with the idea of delawning my yard last night, looked up all kinds of stuff. Trying to see what plants I would use to accomplish this feet, trying to stick to all Maryland native plants. Looking for native ground covers that are succulents and thrive in full sun, starting to think they don't exist. I want something that my chickens can run around in, and occasionally my rabbits, and no I don't have either of the critters yet. I'm giving the wife a break by no pursuing the Tilapia aquaculture at this point, but just at this point!