February 5, 2021

 Dear Friends,

    I'm sorry for having been so negligent in keeping in touch, but I'll try to write one of these general-type letters at the end of each month in order to keep you informed about my progress in using just one leg. 

    The first thing is, I came home from the hospital to a beautifully remodeled home, thanks to the efforts of my daughters and church members who volunteered their time and services to create a truly beautiful, comfortable place for me and my daughter True to enjoy. True left her home near San Diego to live here and take care of me. I am receiving excellent care from her and we enjoy one another. She, having been a fitness trainer in the Army, is quite capable of helping me shoujd I fall, and not only makes my bed, but lifts up the matress and switches it around whenever she thinks it needs it. She also keeps me clean with sponge baths and washes my hair, and does it up once a week. She does the laundry, fixes three good meals for me each day, and makes sure I get my medications on time. I try to help her as much as I can; by opening cans, chopping carrots and celery for soup, and I even scoured the stove burner bans and oven bottom using a little Brillo pad, which she greatly appreciated. So, even though I am an invalid, I'm not entirely useless. In fact, I'd like to get to the point where I can be as independent as I can.

    When this whole business first started, and then again when I received my first wheelchair in December, I set out some goals I would like to accomplish, not knowing how long each would take. They are:

    1) To be able to transfer from my bed into the wheelchair, and then do the reverse, from the wheelchair back up onto the bed again - all without help. This has been pretty well accomplished, happy to say.

    2) To be able to dress myself and stand at the kitchen sink and wash my face. I don't wear many clothes, but I do stand on my one leg to wash my face, and while standing, even do some leg and "stump" exercises.

    3) To be able to use the bedside commode, which has been placed slightly inside the bathroom door. This involves pulling down the pants with one hand, while at the same time trying to keep whatever clothes I may be wearing from getting into the bowl, while the other hand is hanging on to a support in order to keep me from falling. Pretty tricky business! But I'm slowly learning to master it.

    4) To transfer from the wheelchair onto the toilet itself, when its arm supports are attached and it is ready for me to use. This, too, will be very tricky, becuase the halls and doorways in this mobile home are smaller than a normal home, so manuevering a wheelchair, even though mine is narrower than usual, in and out of my small, cramped bathroom will be a bit of a challenge of its own, plus that of the commode. But, I intend to conquer this one too. 

    5) The last one is to be able to transfer from the wheelchair into the front seat of a passenger car. This I would like to do rather quickly, because I'd like to to able to go to Norma, my hairdresser, to get my hair cut and permed, because it sure is getting long and unmanageable. But practicing for that goal won't be able to take place until we get some good weather - not chilly cold, rainy or snowy.

    Yes, my home town of Grants Pass, which touts itself as being very mild in temperature, has just had a storm that dropped a whopping one inch of snow on the ground. And another is expected in a few days. Being homebound anyways, I just sit back and enjoy the view from my window. I have a physical therapist that comes once a week and helps me with specific exercises for my arm, my leg, and even my stump. I am getting stronger each week, and have started using the 5 lb. weights that I bought just before the pandemic began. I feel good and healthy, and she says my vital signs always check out like one half my age. So, that's good to know. No one we know of has come in contact with the virus, and we will accept the vaccine when it becomes available.

    I still feel sorry for True being stuck here with me, and having left all her friends in the San Diego area, although she does use her cellphone to stay in touch, and even sees them frequently on Zoom. Her only friend here is her sister Linda. True continues to manage her businesses from here, designing websites and teaching classes. Linda lives in town but comes here every day or so, especially when True needs a break. Linda is good about making appointments and talking with my doctors. She is in charge of my medications and keeps all prescriptions filled as needed. She also takes care of all my banking and legal affairs, runs errands, and buys all my sanitary items. Both are a great blessing to me in my time of need.

    Linda has more or less finished remodeling the historic old house that she fell in love with when she moved here 3 years ago, only to discover it needed replacement of nearly everything from the ground up, but now has made it into a very charming little home. After working for a while in the Century 21 realty office, Linda decided to study for her own real estate license, which I think is quite commendable, and I wish her well in this new endeavor.

    My son Dan is still at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, but now that he's turned 62, he has decided to take an early retirement and do some traveling. His wife Cathy is not old enough to retire yet, so he may have to do some of this traveling by himself for a while. Since he likes the train so well, I'm sure that will be his main mode of travel. He had originally said his final day would be the end of this month, but now he's decided to to extend it a few months to May. I'll be glad to see him when he comes this way. He has not seen my stump yet.

    Neither has my sister, Carol, who has been very helpful and concerned about me from the beginning. Since she still lives in Perry Utah, and is now 83, and has had a hip replacement, it is getting harder for her, being alone, to travel either by car or by plane, which is very expensive. But even so, she says she does plan to come here sometime this spring or summer. That will be great.

    So, now you know all about me and my little family. Now I would love to know a little about you and yours. So, please do write back to me.

    Till next month, I'll say - Adios Amigos!