chipperg

Volunteer Road Patrol?

chipperg — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 01:27:00 GMT

I'd just parked outside Wal*Mart this morning, put the ramp up and as the door was closing, I started toward the back of the van. A guy in a uniform came up to me and I noticed a white card in his hand.

"Is this your car?" he asked.

"Yes," I said.

"Do you know you're illegally parked?"

"The accessible parking law states that if..."

"Don't quote me the law," he said while poking at his name tag; "I've been to all the schools and I know the law!"

"Okay," I said, slowly. "I have to park like this to get out of my van."

"You're still in the walkway," he said, cutting me off, again.

"Look, I need at least 5 feet to let the ramp down and another 3 get off the ramp to get out..."

"How can you get out when you're in the walkway?" cutting me off, again. Pressing the remote control to open the door and let the ramp down, I said, "My ramp is on the passenger side of the van. How am I supposed to get out if I can't let the ramp down and get down it?"

"Isn't your ramp on the driver's side?" he asked, sounding very sure of himself.

"No, it's on the passenger side like all the accessible conversions with a side conversions that I know of."

"You have a special ramp, then, because all ramps are on the driver’s side," he paused, "and where's your hang tag?"

"I'm not required to have a hang tag because I have an accessible license plate!"

"Whatever... take this as a souvenir," he said handing me the white card that was still in his hand; he quickly walked away.

The card was from the St. Petersburg Police Department, Volunteer Road Patrol; printed in big red letters is "THIS IS A WARNING ONLY" The card listed possible reasons why it would have been issued.

I put it the card in the van and went into the store, where a crowd had formed to watch the above exchange. "I can't believe he gave you a ticket," one woman exclaimed, "that's terrible!". "He didn't," I said, "He said I could keep the warning card as a souvenir, though!"

When I got back to the van after shopping, I looked across the parked cars to the next row. There was a delivery truck half parked in an accessible parking space and a non-accessible one, but in the walkway were 2 long rows of shopping carts! I’m sure glad I didn’t park there; I’d still be in my van!

Oui, not again...

chipperg — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:30:00 GMT

Just once,why can't it happen at home? I was in the doctor's office this afternoon when I slipped my hand under my thigh and it came out wet... Man, it sure is hot outside, I'm sweating like a pig... I get into the room where I'm having a DEXA Scan only to find more than a wet hand... my pants, underwear, socks and everything else is wet, too! There's only one thing that can cause that much moisture... yep, my catheter had come apart! I told the rad tech I had an emergency kit in the van, she volunteered to get it for me, but couldn't find it - she felt uncomfortable going through my things - so she went to the surgery center next door and borrowed a pair of scrub pants for me to change into. By the time she got back to the room, I had my trusty professional strength Superglue out and had the problem fixed. Just once, though, if its going to happen, why can't it happen at home? And I wanted to go grocery shopping while I was out, too... Oh, man... one of those days...

Ummmm... it was so good!

chipperg — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:17:00 GMT

I haven't posted in a long time, so I thought I'd better post or someone might think I'm dead!

I harvested my pineapple a couple weeks ago; tt was so juicy and sweet. I took a bunch of pictures to post, but with all the changes in Disaboom, I'm having trouble posting them, but when I figure it out, I'll let everyone know. I shared the pineapple with my neighbors and even the ones who said they didn't like pineapple couldn't believe it's taste because it didn't have that acidy taste that everyone is used to. I saved the top and already have it rooting in a glass jar. I wish I could have shared it with all of you, but that would have been a little tricky.

We're in the heat of summer, here, with temperatures over 95 and tomorrow is supposed to be even higher. I don't think my AC has shut itself off for longer than 5 minutes and I have the thermostat set at 82; just enough to keep the humidity out of the house. My training for the Chicago 3-Day is going okay; it's just tough to get out when it's so hot and humid. I did 12 miles last weekend and really wasn't sore the next day - gotta love that Tiger Balm! The Stick 'um seems to be working quite well and I've adjusted to using only the pushrims instead of the tires. I've also adjusted my gloving so between the two, things are looking up. This weekend I'm going to go out to one of the fixed bridges and have a go at that.

Let's see, what else... The boys (cats) are doing fine; Thai (the Siamese) always "wants out" and I keep telling him it's too hot outside, be happy you're an indoor cat! Shere Khan (Red Spotted Tabby) is trying to talk like Thai, but I don't understand what "ma-ow" means; and I'm always getting head butted if I don't brush him when he wants it. At least, Peanut (short-haired mixed breed) doesn't talk or want brushed, he's only interested in food and it shows! Paco, my Sun Conure, still misses Mom; he screeches sometimes for 20 minutes if I'm not where he can see me. If I'm quiet enough upstairs during the day, he'll settle down, but if I'm not there ar 5 pm, he gets going; then he panics the twit, Apricot (the psychotic Latino Peach-faced Lovebird) and she gets going then they feed off each other! I feel like I live in a frickin' zoo sometimes! The Rays lost both games to the Yankees and the Red Sox won, so we're only 2 games ahead of the Red Sox in the AL East. New York is happy, it gives them hope for the post season; if we had won, they would have had no hope.

I guess that's about it for now. I'll try to post a little more regularly... until then... Grace and Peace

I can't believe I just got myself into...

chipperg — Sun, 25 May 2008 00:18:00 GMT

I can't believe I just committed to doing another Breast Cancer 3-Day! I had a phone call from one of the 3-Day coaches asking if I wanted to join a new team they've started, All Abilities Team. The All Abilities Team is a team comprised of men and women with disabilities. They've picked Chicago to do the event. Thinking I could just change my registration from Tampa Bay to Chicago, I said yes! Only to find out I couldn't change it, I have to register separately! For those of you who haven't read my blog posts, the Breast Cancer 3-Day is a fund raising event for the Susan G. Komen For the Cure. There are different levels of participation, but most will walk 60 miles in 3 days. This year will be my 4th; I've completed 2 and was medically red carded on my 1st when I had a tussle with a port-a-potty and ended up with several stitched in my elbow. I was feeling very confident that I'd be able to get myself ready for the Tampa Bay 3-Day the end of October, after having shoulder surgery the end of April. Now, I have to get ready for Chicago by August 8th! It's going to be close, but I'm fairly confident I can get ready.

My main concern is the fund raising component - each walker has to raise a minimum of $2,200 per event and since I'm now doing 2 events I have to raise $4,400! I just sent out 75 e-mail letters asking for donations. In the past, I've always exceeded my minimum fund raising amount, but this year, I'm a little nervous, If you would like to help, go to the Breast Cancer 3-Day, click on "Donate Now," search by participant name (Gail Goepfert) in FL. There you can make a donation to either my Chicago account or my Tampa Bay account. Since Chicago is first, that's where I need it the most. If you can't donate, I need all the prayers I can get for doing both events!

American Gladiator

chipperg — Tue, 13 May 2008 02:53:00 GMT

I watched the 2 hr American Gladiator this evening. John, one of the male contenders was an above the knee amputee; he competed using various prosthetic legs! I found myself crying and cheering this guy on! He was incredible (and not bad looking, either); just to make it to the televised show took a lot of guts and he finished every challenge! Sadly, he didn't win, but he finished and that was his goal. John, I think you're amazing...

So busy...

chipperg — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:56:00 GMT

For someone who only works part-time, I sure don't have any time for myself! And I can't believe how long it's been since my last blog. My latest adventures include volunteering with the NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four. I had so much fun! I was a greeter at the airport, a transportation assistant, and anything else they wanted me to do. I didn't get to see any of the games in person, there are usually no tickets available to volunteers at big events like this and the Women's Basketball Final Four tickets are sold out at least a year in advance! But I know some guys who snuck in to watch the game... it's pretty hard to sneak anywhere in a wheelchair, but I got home in time to watch them on ESPN. The Local Organizing Committee for the Final Four is also the organization that will handle to Super Bowl in January and I've been asked to come back, so I'm registered to be an airport greeter starting about a week prior to the actual game. The Super Bowl makes it very plain that there will be no volunteer positions inside the stadium and there will be no discounted tickets available either.

My pineapple is growing and maturing. I haven't taken any more pictures because it looks like it's not going to grow any larger than the last pictures I posted, but I will post pictures when it's ripe enough for picking.

I've started training for the Breast Cancer 3-Day, again, and, of course, the fundraising. I think the hardest part of this event is the fundraising, the distance is just a pain (literally). I've been having some soreness in my shoulder and was hoping it wasn't going to be anything, but it was getting worse, so I had my shoulder scoped yesterday. I have a Marcaine "pain pump" infusing the local anesthesia continuously in my shoulder so I have absolutely no pain. The anesthesiologist also did a regional neuro-muscular block which essentially paralyzed my arm from the jaw line to the tips of my fingers. What a surreal experience... when I bent over to take my shoes off, my arm just flopped down like it wasn't a part of me and it didn't feel like it was part of me either. It was scary. Today, most of the feeling has returned to my arm, except for the Marcaine locally around the shoulder and a couple fingers. It took all day for me to gain control back in my arm. At first when I'd try to move it, I just had muscle spasm and it did anything it wanted to do! Now tonight, everything seems to be working pretty well. Thankfully, there wasn't any major structure damage that had to be repaired, just the "normal" wheelchair wear and tear. I'm using my power chair and absolutely hate it; it's so big and I'm not as independent in it as I am in my manual chair. I'll see the ortho doc either Wed or Thurs to have the pump removed and again next week to take the sutures out and then create a training schedule that won't put too much stress on my shoulder.

I guess that's long winded enough for one posting. Oh, before I forget, the resin stick I got from the sports store is working great. Every once and awhile I rub the resin on the push rims making it just sticky enough to get a good grip. I've found that the football receiver's gloves work quite well, too. I just have to remember to wipe them off because road dirt takes away some it their stickiness, but they are sticky again once their clean. I do have to be more careful on long downhills as they'll rip your arms off because they're sticky!

Stickum Spray...

chipperg — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 21:40:00 GMT

I have a friend who sends me all kinds of e-mail stuff. Most of the things she sends are so funny I've almost fallen out of my chair hysterically laughing! Well, I received one from her today and would love to share it, but I might be turned into the content police. So without being too specific, if you've ever read Playboy magazine (hey, they have some great journalism), there used to be a series of cartoons involving an elderly lady and her pointed anatomy; I'll just leave it at that. If you’re interested, send me your e-mail address and I’ll forward it to you.

On to other things... I'm getting into a pretty good routine balancing working and training for my 4th Breast Cancer 3-Day. If you've read my blog, you'll know the 3-Day is a 60-mile, 3-day event that most people walk; I do it, however, from my everyday wheelchair. Each year I've done the 3-Day I've found something that would either help me save energy or make pushing 60 miles a little easier. This year I'm using Natural-Fit Handrims. Well, actually I had them on my chair since last October, but didn't use them much on the event because I hadn't trained with them. This year I've started using them almost exclusively. Now for my problem... when I’m only doing short hauls like grocery shopping, I don't wear gloves, I just use the handrims. The problem is that I don’t have a lot of hand strength and my hands are always dry so I'm slipping; I can't get a good grip to get an efficient push over time. I have always used the tires of the chair to push so I've glued rubber onto the palms of my wheelchair gloves giving me the most efficient power for the energy expended and my gloves don’t wear out as fast. These gloves are so bulky, though, I can’t do anything else when they’re on and I get so dirty. I don’t need the rubber on my gloves if I use the handrims. I’ve talked with some guys, AB jock friends, and they suggested a substance called Magic Grip, Stickum Spray, or Stickum Powder. This is the stuff football players’ spray on their hands or gloves to get a good grip on a football. I’ve already eliminated the powder because it’s activated by the warmth of your hands; my hands are always cold and I’ll have gloves on. And the Stickum Stray isn’t as durable as the Magic Grip and they all can easily be washed off with soap and water so there won’t any buildup on the rims. Now… has anyone ever used this stuff on a wheelchair? I wanted to try and get wheelers opinions before I bought some. I went to the on-line store where my friends used to get theirs, but the shipping and handling is the same amount as the spray (not cheap)! I’m pretty sure I can find it somewhere locally, anyway. Please, please, please… if you have tried it let me know.

I’ve found a great Website for batteries. You know, the small coin batteries that are $3.50 each at Wal*Mart. The place is wholesaleforeveryone.com. This is where I got the CMOS battery for my laptop… $1.50 for the battery and $1.65 for s/h! They have a lot of other stuff, too.

I’m thinking of writing another article for Disaboom… something on photography techniques – lighting, subject, and framing. I’ll have lots of examples to put with the article because I’ve got lots of photos.

I'm going to be a Mother... to a pineapple!! A couple years ago I planted the top of a pineapple. In my old house, I had a bunch of pineapple plants; they're easy to grow, require little care and they will eventually bare fruit. Of course, the pineapples are as big as they are in Hawaii, but their usually sweet and juicy. So, the end of January, mostly out of curiosity, I started looking into the center of my plant and I saw a red blossom... that means it's going to have a pineapple! I've put up pictures of my little darling so you can follow it's growth.

I guess that’s about it for this week, I’m doing taxes tonight. If you want to get Bush’s Economic Stimulus Rebate, you must file a 2007 income tax return. Even if you SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1are not required to file a return, because of wages earned or social security income, you still are required to file a 2007 tax return in order to receive your rebate. So do it!!!

I Can Only Imagine...

chipperg — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 03:44:00 GMT

The Tampa Bay area put it's most prominent weatherman to rest this morning. Dick Fletcher died as a result of a major stroke last week. Fletch, as he was lovingly called, was a pillar of the community, he loved to teach anyone who would listen, he lived for his job, everyone who met him left as a friend, and he loved his tennis. His family was over whelmed at the amount of well wishes that poured into Tampa Bay's10 News from, literally, around the world. His family said they would read every last one of them, too!

Now, onto other things…

They’ve made some more changes in the Website, I see. Thank you for making the font larger in the blog space. I’ll have to nose around tomorrow to see what else has changed (other than the obvious home page and the font size).
I’m getting pretty good at making a great cup of coffee on my new little coffee maker. I made muffins this morning in my small convection oven instead of the big oven; I didn’t over cook them either!
I did a test drive of an iBot last week. It’s a great wheelchair, but it’s not for me. If someone wanted to give me one, I wouldn’t object, but it’s just not me.
I’m up to about 12 miles a week in training for the Breast Cancer 3-Day and already have $1,200 of the $2,200 I need to raise for the event. I’m not sure I’m going to join another 3-Day team; my team for the last 3 years has not been very patient with me. Since I’m practically on my own with a team, I may as well be on my own without a team. I wonder if there will be any other wheelers this year…

Fresh brewed coffee...

chipperg — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 03:50:00 GMT

I just found out from a friend that I didn’t win the What Makes You Strong Contest from Columbia Sportswear. You’d think Columbia would have sent out notifications of who the winner was. The winner was announced February 21 and she is Bev Veals. Here’s the link to her entry and her comments. I’m happy for her; she’s definitely a strong person. But, still, I’m a little disappointed; I thought I had a good chance to win this thing.

I took today off from work; I got my hair cut and ran a few errands. I bought a small 4-cup Mr. Coffee coffee maker. I used to drink coffee a lot at the hospital, I always drink it at the condo in Winter Park, and when I’m traveling, but I’m tired of microwave brewed coffee. Now I can go out and get some funky coffee… um, flavored coffee. It even has a delay brew feature so, hopefully, I’ll wake up in the morning to the smell of fresh brewed coffee… yum! I hope it helps me get out of bed in the morning, too!

Laptop access...

chipperg — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 01:04:00 GMT

I finally have my laptop working. When I got back from Colorado I went to open my laptop so I could show everyone my pictures, but it was dead. I mean, totally DEAD! It is a very old laptop and it has been a while since I last opened it; if I had to guess, it's probably been close to a year...

Anyway, I was able to get it to turn on after a couple hours of being plugged in and I went onto the Compaq/HP Webstie and downloaded a couple of diagnostic applications. I thought it might be the CMOS battery that went dead and I was right. Well... It is an old laptop! I figured I could fix it; I have a certification as a computer technician with network support and my brother is a geek; I wasn't about to pay someone else to fix it. So I went to my local computer store to find a CR1220 CMOS battery. The problem was, is that this battery is a small battery and no one knew where I could get one... Great... This might not be so easy afterall.

So... I got back on-line and found the battery for $0.99; with s&h it ended up about $2.50; I don't think I could have gotten a better deal. I also found a Compaq Service Manual for service technicians - what a deal! I received the battery and started to work. That, as it usually is when I do things, it wasn't all that easy.

I've been inside a lot of PCs, but I've never been inside a laptop; everything is so small... and my hands are so big... But I got the new battery in and everything back together without any extra parts of screws! I start the box the screen flashed, "No Operating System Found" ARRGHH!!! I put a boot disk into the floppy disk drive and restarted... The floppy disk was recognized and started... But I had no recognized hard drive...

Now, what? I put another diagnostic disk in... I accessed the BIOS... Everything checked out, all drives are accounted for and in the right boot sequence... But nothing works... So I started taking things apart, again. One by one take it apart, put it back together, restart... Until I finally found the right thing... How simple... It was the hard drive cable...

It's only taken me a month to fix my laptop! But I have a functioning laptop with upgraded software, it's working great, I have a bunch of stupid games on it, and I can show my skiing video to all my friends.

OMG!!!

chipperg — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 04:29:00 GMT

Oh my gosh... I had to have a speedy dinner tonight before going to church so I grabbed a frozen meal out of the freezer. I stripped the plastic film off from the apple cobbler, poked holes in the rest to vent the rest of the meal and put it in the microwave. I didn't put it on for s long as instructed because I like to add a little something to the main meal. I tasted the apple cobbler and thought it needed something extra, too. I got out some cinnamon and some oatmeal for the top. I took a big spoonful of cinnamon and sprinkled it over the apple cobbler, but it didn't look right. Then I looked at the bottle I had taken from the pantry... it was CUMIN!!!! I like spicy things, but not my apple cobbler! I scraped as much of it off as I could and got the cinnamon, and, yes, I looked at it several times before putting the spoon in! I added a little margarine, mixed it all up and sprinkled some oatmeal on top; I also added some salsa and cheese to the blackened chicken entree and prayed!

The entree part was scrumptious. The apple cobbler wasn't bad, either, a little burn in the mouth, but I couldn't taste the cumin. Think I'll learn a lesson from this? Probably not...

I feel better...

chipperg — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:10:00 GMT

It is such a gorgeous day today that when I got home from church, I decided to go to Walsingham Park and do their 6-mile trail. Man, it was a beautiful day to get out! We had a little cool front come down that dropped out temperature into the 40s last night and it was still below 70 when I went out. I've got to get back into the training mode, though; I remembered sun screen, towel, helmet, MP3 player, and hydration, but I forgot my new gloves (2 pairs of old gloves are residing in the van). So I wheeled the old way - on top of the tires. That's okay because shortly after I started out, I felt like a slug! I managed to do the entire 6- miles and in reasonable time - an hour and 45 minutes. Not bad for not being out since October, however, I think skiing does count for something!

Thank you for all your notes of comfort in responding to my last post; last week was really hard. Then last night our Via de Christo community celebrated our 25th anniversary with a Grand Ultreya! David Michael Carrillo was our special speaker at worship following an unbelievable feast! David Michael was awesome! He really lifted my spirits! If you ever have an opportunity to hear his message, GO!

I’ve been really busy working extra hours these last couple of weeks. At least I know my job is secure… I’ve been working on a couple special projects for my manager and they’re both huge projects! When I get caught up, I’m try to spend some more time on-line and join “… the Longest Thread.”

BTW I've posted some of my skiing photos on my photo page, if anyone is interested. I'm going to post some other photos I've taken; photography is one of my hobbies.

Oh, I almost forgot, I'm going to test drive an iBot tomorrow! Should be interesting...

This week has been hard...

chipperg — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 01:04:00 GMT

This week has been hard... I think about Mom a lot and I just sit here and cry; God, I miss her so much.. Everything I seem to do reminds me of her. I almost had to leave church last night; Ash Wednesday and the disposition of ashes was very special to her - it reminds us that from dust we came and to dust we shall return. How fitting... she was creamated! The season of Lent is upon us as we prepare ourselves to remember Christ's suffering and crucifixion and glorify Him on His Easter ressurection. But I still miss her...

We lived together for almost 14 years, but if not for that, I have no idea where I'd be. My accident was 13 years ago; 6 months after moving into a custom built home. Our new home was built for accessibility... but not mine... hers. I had no idea the house I designed would be so practical and accessible! I probably would have lost everything, but God had it all planned... the accessible house... my accident... destroying my career... taking care of elderly parents...giving Dad the foresight to plan for their disabilities with home nursing insurance... the list goes on... I guess I just need to get out of His way! But I still miss her...

Oh, no! Not again...

chipperg — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:38:00 GMT

Yesterday when I opened the driver side sliding door to put the few groceries in, I felt something in the door. When it wouldn't close, I felt that familiar resistance like I had last December when I bent some pin in the door. The door was latching onto something because I had to pull on the handle to get it back open. Thankfully the weather was nice; didn't have to worry about rain; and I got home without incident. I unloaded the groceries into the garage and went to close the passenger side slider... The ramp went up, the coor closed, but the back popped open... Great... 2 doors busted! I set my alarm clock early so I could call the Pontiac place and get at least 1 door fixed.

Max, the service writer greeted me on the service drive and we spoke about the door problems. I was still inside the van when he opened and closed the driver side slider. Of course, it closed for him! "You have no idea how many times I opened and closed that door yesterday and it wouldn't close," I said. "I believe you," he said, "I'll have the guys check everything out and we'll get you on your way." I went into the waiting area, had a cup of their infamous hot beverage they call coffee and settled back to read the newspaper.

In less than an hour, Max came in and said they found the problem. "Several bolts in the slider had worked loose so I had them check all the hardware in the door. "There's no charge for today!" WOW!! I must be having a good karma day!

I'm back...

chipperg — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:38:00 GMT

I'm finally home from my whirlwind Christmas in San Diego and skiing in Winter Park, CO. I was a little nervous about getting up to WP on the 5th; forecasts indicated heavy snows moving into the mountains and I was taking a later flight than I usually do. I did the grocery shopping and got to my condo with time to spare before it started snowing.

Bright and early Sunday morning I headed up the hill to the National Sports Center for the Disabled, where I'd be skiing all week. It's funny... I bought 2 time-share condos in Winter Park over 20 yrs ago; I had no idea the NSCD existed. After my accident, I wasn't sure I wanted to ski again, but when I decided I should try, I hit the Internet for info about disabled skiing. Low and behold, I found NSCD in Winter Park... this had to be an omen!

It's taken me a long time to get comfortable with sit-skiing; there's this psychological thing called fear that I never had before. I had a really hard time mastering the mono-ski. Skiing has been so much a part of my life that I couldn't think of giving it up, but since I wasn't having fun any more, I had decided it was time to quit. I was reintroduced to the bi-ski that next winter and fell in love all over again. Thanks to the National Sports Center for the Disabled I'm skiing independently and having fun again. I can't wait to get to the snow every year. Coupled with the increased upper body strength from doing the Breast Cancer 3-Day Events, I keep getting stronger and my skiing only keeps getting better. The snow was great this year, too. We had fresh powder every day and I even found some untracked powder Friday afternoon. I skied long and hard this year... it's great to be back doing something I've loved all my life!

Skiing is an expensive sport and lift ticket prices are soaring out of control. I don't know how much money I've spent, but it's been well worth it. This year I applied for a scholarship with NSCD for my skiing and was granted 6 - 1/2 days of skiing. I found a discount air fare to CO and another discounted rate for a rental car so I was set. I had a great time and no matter how much it costs I will continue to ski. I think almost all ski areas have accessible programs, now; I've been in my comfort zone for a number of years with NSCD; maybe it's time to try somewhere else.

Here's a short video of my skiing... There's a little crash at the end, I was more tired than anything else!

[More videos from chipperg]

This is my first attempt at embedding video; I found out that the uploaded video with accompanying audio runs at a slower speed than the original footage; that's why the audio sounds slow!