Author: survivalday416

I’m trying my best to make life work for the cats and myself. It’s harder than I remember. I’m older than I was 23 years ago when I was making this happen before. My body has a lot to say about this struggle I’ve had, but I’m trying to keep its complaining to a minimum. New seizure manifestation, so new expensive medication to combat the strangeness. Marching onward!

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

imageI’m in the city I studied for 3months: September 2003, October 2003 and February 2004.

I had quit the best job I had EVER had to attempt something I had always wanted to do… I used all of my savings to enroll in a 2 month immersion German language course.

  • I received a scholarship to return for a month in 2004.  I chose February, because some of my friends were still there, and I wanted to return to work ASAP.  No one would hire a person due to leave again so soon.

Yesterday, I climbed to the top of the white tower you see in this photo.  When I work out how to post a full series of photos I’ll post the panorama I took!

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Traveling is more complex than I thought

I’m having a fantastic journey!  It is more complicated than I anticipated.

I didn’t realize the strength of my deficits.

  1. Focus – list list list list,
  2. Time – it slips away!  Set a timer every 15-20min to stay on task,
  3. Pack/repack – why did I pack so much?!?!
  4. Money – disappears as quickly as the hours,
  5. Friends – invaluable!

I’m In Amsterdam and Fine

  1. I apologize for the lack of a blog to this point.
  2. When I explain, I hope you will understand.
  3. I finally ate a decent meal today!
  4. I finally parsed my luggage down where I can (almost) carry it alone!
  5. I would like to mail a chunk of it to my brother where I will meet him at a future date in my trip, but I don’t know if I will have time.  I’m only here the entire day tomorrow, before moving on.  It’s the “moving on” that causes a problem…
  6. To describe what it’s like managing my life with a Traumatic Brain Injury, I refer you to Claudia Osborne and her entry TBI What’s It Like.  I resemble this in almost every respect!  (Imagine having these challenges and trying to tour Europe on a schedule!)
  7. I decided to simplify life tomorrow and purchase a guided tour of old Jewish Amsterdam, to include a “semi-private tour” of the Anne Frank Huis and allowing me to browse as long as I feel I need within.  As Anne is such a critical centerpiece of my trip, I do not want to miss seeing her hiding place.  I cannot, with the challenges noted in Claudia’s profile video above, realistically expect to manage tomorrow by waiting in line 2 – 3 hours and returning to see it at an assigned time.  I’d rather have the guided tour, at a set time I can plan to arrive.
  8. It also includes additional Jewish history of Amsterdam, which I did not expect I would experience.  That will be lovely!  Well worth the cost of the program for the peace of mind, alone.
  9. It’s a very tiny tour.  Only 20 people total!  I managed one of the last 9 spaces in my time slot.  Only two time slots available tomorrow and the first time was sold out. #IDoneGood!
  10. Tomorrow I will see the Anne Frank Huis!
  11. Now I can sleep and not concern myself with waking up at the crack of dawn to stand in line forever!  #IamSoSmart!
  12. Only now is not the time to try to play with my camera! DUH!  It’s 12:35am here now!! Time for bed, peoples!! Yike! Gonna sleep!

 

 

First Post of SurvivalDay trip!

I apologize for no posts, when I’ve been traveling since March 18th

  • This trip is beating my ass!
  • I packed FAR TOO MUCH!
  • I can’t go into it much now, but I’m investigating various options, including:
  1. Each time I stop to #Shuffle #Regroup I lose more stuff, but my packs do not have wheels.
  2. I am exhausted and starving! (The stores that take credit cards are no longer open…)
  3. I’m fading fast… I’m going to bed now.  I wanted an entry today.
  4. I’ll format and add photos tomorrow.
  5. Til later.

#LookAtYourselves #AreYouProudOfYourselves #ThinkAboutWhatYouAreDoing

#LookAtYourselves #AreYouProudOfYourselves #ThinkAboutWhatYouAreDoing

I only HEARD about this until this morning.
I watched it for the first time a moment ago. 

It sent a #ShiverDownMySpine!

My #SurvivalDay20 trip is as much about the Holocaust as it is about my recovery

I thought I was #AnneFrank in the hospital #ForFucksSAKE!

Nothing, I repeat NOTHING is so bad about Hillary or Bernie that can excuse voting for this #PieceOfSHIT!
–>> Think about Niemoller’s poem #RightNow and ask yourself what you need to do:
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out— 

Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— 

Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

Holocaust Encyclopedia

I’m walking to Starbucks again today! YAY ME!

It will be high 50s & 60s today, 0% chance of rain!  Perfect weather to walk so far!  But first, I must:

  • Make sure I have my wallet – I need OTC (over the counter med, Ranitidine) I take for my trip at Walgreens, on the way and across the street.  –>> Actually, this can wait!! It’s out of the way and I need my ACTUAL Rx again before I go.
  • Check stock (online) of Prince of Tides at Barnes & Noble (I want to physically purchase a book in a book store, not Amazon, before I leave for NYC.  Patrick Conroy just died and Prince of Tides is LUSH with Southern imagery and will help me with my blog.  I want to gift this book to someone at the beginning of my trip and remember to bring my copy of the actual book on my trip!)
  • Look at my Shutterfly account. I think I have enough credit for another copy (copies?) of my Germany 2003/2004 photo album that I completed the day before I entered the hospital for surgeries 2 and 3. (It was due 12/10/2007 and I finished it the night before!  I remember because that was the date I entered the hospital for my next round of surgeries.)
  • Consider upgrading the tiny laptop if I can’t get wifi to work at Starbucks. I’d rather have one that can run the video program I purchased (Corel VideoStudio), anyhow. *Don’t over spend!! Don’t get this if you can’t!! You need to be able to pay for what you need!
  • Possibly purchase another Ravenclaw Quiddich jersey (if it will get here in time) with my name on the back, but now my size – this one 2x is HUGE!
  • My photo book front:
  • My photo book back: 

Yep, I forgot to get a photo of us!

Meh, it’s okay.  We spoke and she knows how much I appreciate her and her style.  She didn’t increase my blood pressure medicine, as I thought she would.  It seems my blood pressure is doing much better, even though it was still elevated.  She gave me a “vacation Rx” for my blood pressure medicine.  BUT I got home and discovered I already had 66 pills left in the same med from a Publix Rx she wrote last month.  I’m going to bring the paper Rx she just wrote with me on my trip.  Doc says the med (Lisinopril) is OTC in Europe – I need to check this – but I can fill it in NYC if need be.

If you read this, doc, I got this under control.

THANK YOU! 😘😎

Today I See My GP (general practitioner) – I hope she is proud

I took her advice to heart and began eating better 

  • she didn’t push me -> if you push me, rather than simply give me the tools/knowledge and walk away I tend to push back rather than take action!
  • she was KINDER and FAR MORE PATIENT than I would have been with me at that point -> knowing what I know now about what I used to eat compared to being stuck in that recliner 99% of the day!

She didn’t say to exercise, because I had already bought the WalgreensActivityTracker and spoke of my intentions to walk, but not of any intention to change how I eat

She is an EXCELLENT Doctor!

I will get a photo with her today, if I can, and post it here, with her permission.

  • If you see a photo of me and my doctor, she gave me permission to use a photo of us and I remembered to take one.
  • If not, I either: 1. forgot to ask, 2. forgot to take one, 3. BOTH!

Walked to Starbucks!!!

Walked to Starbucks!!!

My goal – before my #SurvivalDay20 trip – came true this morning!
I WALKED to the Starbucks near my house (but not the one I used to work, because I’m erring on the side of safety) we now have a SIDEWALK to this one and there still is NOT a sidewalk to MY Starbucks!

  • Same distance (3 miles),
  • I brought my walking stick,
  • I got my favorite drink, since I’ve educated myself on what is GOOD FOR ME,
  • My dad is driving me home!

Gotta love my dad!  LOVE MY #DamnOldMan

Tools

I bought the necessary tool to learn this morning!  I will be making MANY MORE posts soon! 

They will be better organized in phrasing and display.  I prefer to teach myself, or learn by having someone show me specifically how to do something.  

Example: My father is upgrading a netbook I used on a road trip in 2010, during my OccupyAtlanta days, and following my favorite guitarist, Roy Zimmerman, on a few shows in 2011-2012.  I will watch him as he does this, so I can take notes and do it myself the next time I need to upgrade a computer.  Dad always upgrades our computers, himself.  I look forward to knowing how to do this.  I bought an iPad 4 after the Presidential election of 2012.  Since that time it has been my “Computer”.  I love this thing!!!  It does not take the SD cards to attach videos or so, which is unfortunate.  I have learned a lot about wireless technology using this device.  Prior to 2014, I didn’t have a smartphone, even.  I received one for SurvivalDay18 from my dad.  

Enough stream of consciousness writing.  I’ll publish this now and write a real post later: after I eat, nap, clean, exercise, shower, get Goose, and get back.