Been awhile since I have written anything. With Covid restrictions, not a lot to write. Holidays were uneventful. 2020 election is in the rearview. No matter how you wanted it to be, the world keeps spinning and life goes on. Fortunately we live in a state that is open, so we can shop, go to restaurants and so forth. Not the same though. I miss seeing people's smiling faces not hidden behind a mask. I think they will be lifting the mask mandate soon, rumor has it. Everything has changed. Almost everything. I will say one thing never changes...GETTING OLD SUCKS... at least for one of us, lol.
Seems someone in the family has lost his hearing. He's always said "what?" every time I say anything. Could be because I mumble. Could be because I have a voice in that "men can't hear you" range. Could be because he is dumbfounded by what profound, intelligent, noteworthy statement I just made. Who can tell. One thing is for sure. I can't be in the same room with him while he watches tv. Lordy that thing is so loud, the neighbors down the block can tell what we are watching. So, at the suggestion of Bruce Clark, I ordered him some ear phones. What a difference. At least he can now hear what's being said and I can stay in the same room. But that only helped with one aspect; tv watching. Didn't help with conversations or going out to dinner and trying to hear the server. People probably thought we don't like each other since our conversation at the table was limited to him pointing at what he wanted me to hand to him: the salt and pepper shaker (that I brought with us, because germs, you know).
So someone had to admit they needed hearing aids. Now mind you, LJ does nothing without research or shopping around. Try going with him to buy shoes. Pack a lunch because it will be awhile... oh and remember your first stop because you will ultimately be going back there to buy the first thing he saw (insert eye roll here). So for weeks he researched, learning everything there is to know about hearing aids. A few trips to the ENT and the Audiologist and he finally confirmed what he needed. He had suffered definite hearing loss. Could be from years in the helicopter unit. Could be old age (most likely). And probably a contributing factor was the radiation treatment for his cancer. No matter what the cause, he needed to break down and get them. So he did.
The tv can be at a normal level once again. We can talk in restaurants and in the car. Finally he can hear me. (Not necessarily a good thing when he pisses me off and I call him something endearing like "dickhead" under my breath. Now he hears that. No more "I didn't say anything" and getting away with it😆😈). Pros and cons, lol. They are actually quite small! You really can't see them at all. It does explain why he has suddenly let his hair grow, though. Completely invisible behind those lovely locks of gray. And if he tires of my talking, he just takes them out...to recharge he says. Regardless, it works for us, lol, and I know his frustration level has dropped.
Home life:
Not a whole lot going on at Casa de James. Weather in AZ has been really cool this winter. Not "Oh wow! How cool is that!", kind of cool, but freaking cold. I had to wear sweats and socks. So not what I signed up for. Pool is too cold to swim. Really must consider getting solar. Have had to wear a jacket outside. Not funny, Mother Nature. Not funny. Even fired up the ol Fire Pit when company was here. But finally it is getting warmer. We are going from the 60s last week to mid 90s by the end of this week. Screw spring. Lets just go straight to summer. Mama needs to get a tan and soak up that anti-virus vitamin D.
At least we don't get bored. I dink around in the craft room. Karin and Hersh came up over Christmas. We played dominoes and hung out for a while. It was nice. We went to their place to see Bonnie and Tom. That was a great day. Lisa and Dave Torgerson came to visit for a day since they were Rving here in Arizona. They brought Bella, the mini pony. (ok.. she's a Great Dane. same thing). Bella is a joy to be around. Such a good dog and such a great personality. Scooter wasn't quite sure at first, but after a bit just kept an eye on her. He kept trying to smell her butt. Of course, without a step ladder that wasn't happening. So he waited for her to lay down to complete his "getting to know you" ritual. She largely ignored him. It was a wonderful visit and we can't wait to RV up to their place in Montana! We will visit with them and the Petries and whoever else we can force to enjoy our company lol.
In February LJ did take a trip to Quartszite for a week to go atv riding. He skipped Yuma since at the time covid cases were on the rise there. I'm certain that's not because of all the border crossings...must just be a fluke. Anyway, he really enjoyed himself. I decided not to go. Quite frankly we needed a bit of a break. I just wanted to veg out at home and do nothing. I did drive up for a day and spend the night, just to say hi to everyone and go shopping with Jean Ezell and Karin. It was only a 90 minute drive. Piece of cake.
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| Scooter loved the ducks |
LJ Update:
So far, so good with the post-cancer scans. They have all been negative so far. He has another one in a week. This will be full body, so if this one comes back clean I think we can breathe easy for awhile. Cancer treatment did cause other issues though. One of them, is his teeth. Because he had radiation to his throat and mouth, all of his teeth have issues. All were fine prior to the treatment. But now, because of the radiation and the after affect of severe dry mouth, he has multiple cavities and damage. Dentist told him the repairs would be upward of the price of a new luxury car. If he has them all pulled and does permanent dentures, that will be less, but still a ridiculous amount of money. Full implants are not an option since the radiation damaged his bones. And, of course, no dental coverage will pay for it, except for the $1500 limit. He is appealing to his medical insurance to see if they will cover it since it is a direct result of the cancer treatment (that they did cover). They cover reconstructive surgery for breast cancer and other cancers, so we are hoping they see the correlation and decide the ability to eat, smile and live a normal life falls under the same umbrella. If not...oh well. It is what it is. We will figure it out. Beats the alternative if he didn't get the radiation treatment. Our son jokingly says the cost is ridiculous and his dad should just learn to eat soup. 😂😂. Silly guy. Not my fault we are spending your inheritance on the dog and and your dad, lol. In reality, it's only money and I didn't need a new car anyway.
He finally got that chemo port removed last week. No more button on the ol chest. I saw it as a constant reminder. Glad it's gone. He has a couple minor surgeries coming up. All outpatient stuff. He says, no big deal in the big scheme of things. Other than that, he is doing great! He is back to being LJ... sarcastic, witty, exasperating, wonderful LJ. We feel very fortunate that he made it through all of this. Very fortunate. We will take whatever comes just knowing he is once again healthy.
Oh. Speaking of new cars, LJ decided he wanted a new truck. His 2017 was old now. Nevermind that I bought a used 2015 to get him back and forth to his treatments. I think I am the one who needs a new car, but I digress. Besides... He's only looking; doing research. Doesn't really need one; just hates the dually. Hard to park. Can't take it through a car wash and the dually just simply isn't necessary, anymore. That was his story and I will say he stuck to it.
So... He decided to start this "looking" around Christmas time. Only looking. Not buying. He just really wanted a single rear wheel four wheel drive truck. Don't worry. Just bored so researching and only looking...Not buying. He took off one afternoon. Wanted to go take a look at the trucks that are out there. And, he reminded me...again... He's just looking not buying. Test drove one. Liked it. They made him an offer on his dually. Dammit...a good offer. Giving him what he paid for it in 2017. He came home and told me of this fantastic deal. They had exactly what he wanted. Not many trucks out there. He thinks we should consider it. So this "looking not buying" adventure turned into a new truck sitting in our driveway. And he did, as he says, have cancer, so he should be able to get a new truck, because, you know, cancer. OMG... fiiiiiiiiiiiiine. It is a nice truck. And with such a good trade in, he got a 2021 and it's paid for, so, whatever. Damn he's good, lol. I need to take notes.
Future Plans:
I have mentioned to LJ that I would go back to full time RVing if he wanted to. We really didn't get a chance to do it. Once we started settling into the lifestyle, cancer struck. But I think LJ is being wise. He thinks we should start traveling again, but maintain our home for now. He's probably right. We might tire of it quickly or find that it just isn't that easy to do with virus restrictions still in effect in so many places. Plus doctors don't consider him out of the woods and cancer free until five years. That means he has to have clear scans through 2024. So better to have a home should we need it. And I do love our home.
Although we'd like to get traveling again with the RV, we probably won't be able to until early summer. A few life obstacles in the way (dentist- his minor surgeries) but I'm shooting for June-ish. October we go back to Utah for our ATV trip. So looking forward to that. My fav trip of all. Three weeks of friends and beautiful scenery. We will leave there and head to Reno. We'll stay a day there, then head up to Durham, Ca where our granddaughter, KT, is getting married. We found a nice RV park nearby and will stay a couple of nights there. While at the wedding, Scooter gets to go to a sleepover at Patty and Alan's house. He loves visiting them and playing with the other dogs. We'll pick him up when we get back to Reno. By then he'll be ready to be an only dog again, lol. We plan on staying a week there so we can see friends and family. I need some Reno peeps time. It's been awhile since we've seen everyone.
Other than that, just swimming, sunning, crafting and enjoying life.
So.. thats kind of all there is. No great stories..no great adventures. But we will see what we can do for the next update. Fingers crossed this next scan goes well.
Side note: Found this Pic of LJ from a few years ago... He is a mere shadow of himself these days, lol. I think he looks great 💗. Now if I could only lose a few pounds while keeping pounds on him, lol. I'll keep dreaming.
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| 2018 with his bestie Rich |
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| A couple weeks ago with Scooter |
