A Bigger Life—The Bay trip

San Francisco Views
I wouldn't call my earlier life 'big', but after my ataxia restricted my mobility, it definitely seemed less significant.  As I said in my first post*, getting Skeeter helped me expand a life that seemed much smaller than it was pre–ataxia.

Party–sure
It's so tempting to opt out of activities because it seems like too much trouble.  Then there is sensible opting out because going is too much trouble and just plain stupid.  I've done both, made some mistakes, but try to avoid the former and observe the latter.  Parties, tours, hillside viewing...(sure, sure, no thanks).

Tour de Tiburon

Skeeter was an important part of our recent trip to the bay area.  I couldn't have participated in many things, if not for her (at least, within a reasonable time frame).  Another big part was Earl —disassembling, loading, unloading, reassembling the scooter anywhere from three to ten times a day.  Good news–he's a strong lifter with a good back; bad news, he has the nerve to get tired.

Travel has always provided opportunities, but this trip reminded me that a partner and accommodating friends are necessary as well.  Still, without a motorized conveyance, I wouldn't have been able to fly, meet friends for dinner, tour Tiburon, Belvedere, and Sausalito.  My life would be smaller if I'd opted out; instead it seems a bit bigger.
'Showing up' is a major part of anyone's game, particularly mine.

Tour de Belvedere

The Lesson: It takes more effort to get out, but it beats staying home alone–not always, but most of the time.

*Previous post–Meet Skeeter


Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 23, 2013 at 9:12 AM

    You and Earl are such a good team.
    Yes, you never quite know what you are going to get when you opt to take the trip. Definitely stories to tell. In spite of the complications, good for you for getting out there to 'expand' your life! I've definitely scaled back activities since having surgery to fix my bowels. It's just a bit more difficult to 'want' to get out knowing I *may* have complications to deal with along the way. Some days it's worth staying, some days it's worth going.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

We have contact

Image
Skeeter alerted me to an eyesight problem when I realized there were times when I had to navigate precisely while scooting.  I found myself dealing with my deliberate mono–vision by closing one eye in order to gauge available distance.  How much space was between Earl's car and my car, and between the telephone pole and the edge of the sidewalk?  How much asphalt before the road dropped off into dirt?  It was like my old "contact lens" days when one lens isn't in–blurry around the edge (not exactly double vision) .  Hmm, cataracts (at that time in life) , diminishing acuity (OK,  predictable... ) , Ataxia (a typical symptom for some people) ? Around 1993, I had radial keratotomy (RK) after years of wearing contact lenses or coke bottle glasses for being legally blind.  The surgeons gave me one eye for reading and one for distance (mono–vision) .  It was a good solution for someone in the 40s.  But, as I aged, the difference between the eyes was too significant.
Read more

Resume and Update

Image
It's been almost a year since I last blogged. I'd like to think that I was busy, but in fact, I was just too lazy and got overwhelmed at the thought of writing. The other issue is that not a whole lot new has happened and when friends would say, "You haven't blogged in a while," I just nodded my head and stared blankly. I thought maybe it was time to retire the blog and move on.  I mean-- geez! I started this in 2011. There are nearly 200 posts, two thirds of them after publishing my book.  How much blabbing can a person do?  However, the prospect of not being able to blab was just too much to deal with. So, I decided to dig in and update some old posts-- like, "Whatever happened to...?" or "w hatever happened after...?". Going through old posts was rewarding. I discovered that being honest has paid off in that most of my old observations were still valid.  I was relieved to know that there were few instances of "I wish I hadn't said t
Read more

East Coast Roadtrip

Image
East Coast Fall foliage It had been more than two years since we had ventured on our first roadtrip*.  It was time to move from using a walker to a wheelchair.  That was a particularly difficult humiliation bullet to bite.  I thought I had accepted the inevitability of progression, but I found myself whining, "No-o-o-o!"  Was this the end of the road before absolute immobility? Were my traveling days over?  More importantly, would I strain Earl's back and were my scooting days over? 😱 As with previous transitions, logic and practicality won out.  I was so freakin' slow with a walker. I didn't appreciate how frightening my precarious balance was to others.  Finally, I knew an injury was the bigger personal threat and was to be avoided at all costs.  Thelma and Louise ** became a permanent part of my next chapter.  Wheelchair use gave me greater mobility and freedom than I had expected.  It didn't impact my travel, scooting, and I didn't "
Read more