Roadtrip Plans & The VA Cirus

Within the time it takes to sip a cup of coffee my Sunday plans changed from wanting to find Carr Canyon waterfalls or the Coronado Monument to a trip to Tombstone. The surprise I had was not only how packed Tombstone was with people but how I felt within the first 5 miles of my trip. Something was wrong. Before I even saw the crowd at Tombstone I knew I wasn't staying long. I continued to drive though, enjoying the 'wild west' scenery on the way.

I can't remember if I mentioned on this blog or my bicycle blog but for the past few weeks at about the one hour twenty minute mark of riding, my right buttock (surgical side) gets really sore from sitting on that bike seat. Now for someone just starting riding that might be normal until you can get your butt in shape while riding a lot of miles. This is a distinct discomfort and it's not from lack of seat time. It's the new hip thing. I may have to pull out some anatomy websites to get the correct name of the muscle but it goes from the lower back stretching over the back of the hip. It gets really sore and close to tapping a nerve. I found out by accident if I stop and get off the bike for five or ten minutes it goes away completely when I finish the ride.

Five miles down the road in the FJ Sunday morning I had the same feeling. Did my longest ride since surgery end up being too much from Saturday? I had felt good all Sunday morning so I didn't think so. I felt that I could ride again Sunday afternoon so I knew all the muscle activity for two hours and twenty seven minutes had recovered. Maybe it was the way I was sitting in the FJ or was it how I got into the FJ? Whatever the cause, there was more than a little discomfort in that hip joint area.

As you can see, Heidi was pretty sure the sun would not be out for long today. It was on the cold side and in her book there is nothing better than a day of sleep. She has declared it a "3 blanket winter" and will move them different times of day or night to the correct position. At one time this week the Mexican blanket was completely off the bed.

She, like Stella has turned into a professional food beggar.

So I pull into Tombstone expecting it to be me and a bunch of empty streets. I could tell by the number of people walking from their parked cars and the distance we were from downtown, that it was nothing different than the highest point of tourist season in the summer. I have yet to walk the streets of Tombstone after a few trips to do just that. Combined with too many people and a sore hip, I turned around and headed home. No roatrip to blog about.

The highlight of that trip was stopping the FJ in the middle of the road to wait for a deer to cross the road in front of the credit union as I was leaving town. Did it know it had to go the other direction in the drive-thru? It stopped and stared at me before I could pull the FJ over to the side of the road and take this picture.

I was about to make a left turn into my neighborhood when I had a flash thought, it might be a good time to check out the movie Ford vs Ferrari at the mall theater. Am I really thinking right ??? Three days before Christmas on a Sunday and I would think the mall would be as empty as it usually is? What is wrong with me? I had barely pulled into a parking lot full of cars when it dawned on me what day it was. I can see the same movie during the week at 2:15pm and I might be the only person in there. I turned around and headed home. The hip joint was feeling the same.

Evidently it snowed a little up on the mountain last night. I am not sure which one this is but that should be completely white Friday morning if the weather forecasters are right. With the cool air I agreed with Heidi, nothing better to do than a Sunday afternoon siesta.

You cannot tell from this photo but the Aerostat is in the process of landing. Does that mean bad weather will arrive a day early? So far the weather app shows no rain until Tuesday. I would love to get inside that thing to look around sometime. Not possible of course but it would be something to see.

Monday morning I almost missed this sunrise. You will see later it only lasted 15 minutes.

All taken standing on the patio.

15 minutes later those skies looked like this. It was cold too with the wind blowing. Stella turned around and came back inside.

This is zoomed in so not real clear this time of day.

I was going to have a busy morning and a frustrating morning. I knew that beforehand. It's the main reason I hate anything medical. It's the reason I never wanted to be involved with medical anything. It should have been simple. I had an appointment to get blood drawn for labwork. I had fasted since 8:47pm last night, skipped black coffee (permitted) this morning and kept drinking ice water.

Since it's been a big pain in the ass to get things done in the civilian sector of the medical field I decided I'd use my VA benefits. Last month I took all the paperwork needed, filled out a new income form and explained why I wasn't eligible with their letter from 20 years ago. When I walked away from her desk 4-6 weeks ago she said I was all updated and they would be in touch to set up appointments.

I never heard a word from them. No email, no text, no phone call or regular post office mail ... nothing.

When I gave my friend a ride to VA last Friday I set up an appointment for me to have some labwork. They brought up my record, assigned me a team for my doctor appointment on Friday and the appointment for my labwork this morning. They did NOT tell me anything else except "see you Monday."

Some of you may have figured out that I have very little patience for bullshit. I assume it's pretty easy to do your job so I've always had a hard time with mistakes and errors when it comes to work. This morning only confirmed my beliefs.

I check in early this morning. He makes copies of the records I hand him from my hip replacement and cardiogram. He tells me I can sign up at the kios for a VA ID card. I know things are running too smooth and 20 minutes later the circus begins with the lady in enrollment telling him "he is not eligible due to making too much income".

Now ... two things or three.

First, she said it loud enough for everyone sitting in the waiting room to hear. (Fantastic) Second, she is the same lady I spoke to last month to correct that problem with proof of current income and showing her that reason was the one they gave me 20 years ago, as I handed here a letter from them 20 years ago as proof. Three, this same lady just told me a month or so ago that she had corrected my record and I was eligible for VA benefits. I sat at her desk for 45 minutes watching her do all kinds of data input with my DD-214 in hand and asking me questions for current address, phone number and email.

So the excuse today was ... my record had not been updated since the changes last month. BUT ... "yes you can still go to your lab appointment" How can that be? Am I not eligible until my record is not updated? They had no answer to that question.

Bottom line, blood was drawn and I'll get the results back on Friday during my next doctor's assistant visit. Oh ... that ID CARD ... go to the kios and log in to get a number. 20 minutes later the SAME LADY telling me to do that tells me "you cannot get a VA ID card today because your NOT UPDATED in the system.

Friends and family wonder why I hate life and most people .... this is just one of many examples that answers that question.

Still, everyday in the 'Wild West' is a good day as long as I stay home alone with the hounds.

Normal Routine For The Hounds.

Stella spent so much time laying in the sun on Friday she was exhausted by Friday night and decided to camp out in one of her five over night spots to sleep. Eventually during the night she ends up sleeping next to my bed right next to the doorway. She can then alert me when Heidi is heading to the patio door to be let out for her nightly middle of the night outdoor run. I cannot remember the last time I had a solid night of sleep. Nothing has happened outside the daily routine since my last post.

The sunrises are still great to see and they are so much different from day to day. I noticed this morning on my weather app on my phone, there is a 'snowflake' icon for next Friday. That will happen sometime before the sun rises Friday morning and will be gone soon after since the high temp that day is 40°. I am interested in seeing what kind of snow they get here, which is pretty light and not for long if it's their normal snowfall.

I have a couple of friends that continue to do their bike riding in the mornings when the temps are in the 40's but that is colder than I want to ride in. I've been waiting until 1pm-2pm to get on the road when the temperatures are above 53°. I found out yesterday that it doesn't make much difference in temperature from the ride I did on Thursday at 53° and what I did yesterday in 63° weather ... high elevation, mountain air is cold no matter what. It's winter no matter how nice and sunny the day is.

No complaints though about the weather from me or the crew. It is so much nicer than what we have experienced in Stella's last four years and Heidi's last eight. She continues to join Stella and I on the daily .57 of a mile walk. With her needing to check out every rock, branch, or desert weed along the way it turns out to be a little longer walk than Stella and I did alone. At least she is getting her physical exercise and a workout for her nose. She does have the better nose than Stella's.

As you can tell, they love that hot sunshine and spend most of their afternoons, or late mornings sleeping outside in the hot sunshine.

Although it's close to Christmas I have three doctor appointments this coming week. I finally get some blood lab work on Monday morning and will be on a water fast from Sunday night until I return home Monday morning after my appointment. Tuesday afternoon of all day's I have my first meeting with a cardiologist. I'll be interested to see if his opinion differs from mine and that of the MD I went to last month.

I'll let him know that I rode my bicycle a little over 30 miles yesterday, climbing a total of ~1,200ft. Plus reports show the heart is working "normal". The third visit of the week will be for another physical at the VA. I'll be anxious to see how much different it is compared to the one I had supposedly at the MD's visit I had last month. Past physicals I had years ago were much more detailed than I got last month.

I'm feeling a road trip today in the 'Wild West', so stay tuned.

Distracted Into A Different Direction

I guess I should apologize right from the start today. When I left you last a few days ago it sure sounded as if I'd be posting again that night with new photos of the next adventure as I said it was time to start exploring the local area again. I intended to and was almost to the point of loading a vehicle and hitting the road ... but first I needed to do something. What that something was I can't remember but all I know is after that took place, the direction I was heading changed ... adventure wasn't on the priority list.

In fact ... traveling wasn't on the priority list, just like that. I found out sitting outside with that direct sunlight on my face was the best thing I had felt in weeks, if not months. I couldn't move and in fact one time felt asleep in the chair on the patio only to be awaken by my iPhone falling from my hand to the patio floor.

Another change, at least for today ... my descriptions are going to be BEFORE the photographs I may or may not talk about. How's that for some examples of indecision?

Like me, the hounds have also been enjoying the warm sunshine. The temps haven't climbed out of the 50's yet but that sun is hotter than hot for most of the day starting around 11:30am. I was cleaning out hound ears the other day and it's always good to see a little more shaking to dislodge some of the stuff I cleaned ...

I'd like to cut some hound toenails but my attempts of getting on the floor to the level I need to cut them is still in the "take it easy and watch it" mode. Those muscles in the hip need a little more healing or stretching ... probably both. In that case I might be calling the mobile groomer again for her to cut them.

You may remember me mentioning I was testing out a camera with 65x zoom a few weeks ago. Like I have posted, every camera I have and I DO have TOO MANY of them ... but each does one thing the best. Now I am finding out that TWO of these cameras can do it all for me ...

- the iPhone 11 Pro Max camera
- the new Canon SX70 HD camera

It's a shock to me that I am not listing either Nikon DSLR that I own on that list.

For example ... those mountains you see on that first photo, this is the tops of one of them. My Nikon 70-300mm lens cannot even get this close and this clear to one of the tops of those mountains and both photos were taken from the same spot where I stood in the backyard.

The hounds had a "dog visitor" today, someone they had met before ... Heidi double check some scent from that visitor. The visitor's nose is in the upper right corner if you did not notice. All three got along great.

Here are some photos from today ... taken with the two cameras mentioned above.

As you just saw, the recent pace of life has been pretty fast lately. The hounds have no idea it's December and I had to pinch myself last night when I realized I was rode my bicycle yesterday afternoon on December 19th ... DECEMBER ???? I guess I was already taking this change in location for granted.

My latest addiction .... PGA Golf on PlayStation 4. It took me a while to get back in shape but I am back to my professional level performance from years ago and I can actually win a tournament now. Hey ... it keeps me "off the streets" and out of trouble ... LOL

Just remember I am very impulsive. I live in 5-minute windows but always walk and feed the hounds on schedule every day. After that all the hours in the day/night are up for grabs where my brain cells decide to take me. That might be to the top of Carr Canyon, Tucson or Tombstone ... I don't even know. When it happens I'll take photos of it and blog about it. Believe it or not I am kind of the same way right now with my bike riding. What I plan to do may not happen based on how I feel.

Winter is great in the 'Wild West'.

Time To Explore The Local Area

Don't get me wrong, Monday as you see, was a very nice day ... cold but nice. At the end of the day it did feel like I didn't waste it away and got a few things done besides hanging out on the couch playing PGA Golf on the PS4. I did some things in town, one for the first time, but overall the hounds and I hung out on Monday right here on the homestead. Today isn't going to be a repeat of that. I planned during my second cup of coffee that I will grab a camera and check out some places today, that I have not seen yet.

The hounds are having to wake up at different times since my clock is a little off. Sometimes I am wide awake at 4am so we get up and other days I sleep until Stella is whining loud enough to wake me a little past 6am. Stella thinks and now Heidi thinks that 'wake up' time is now time for their breakfast whether it be 4am or 6am. Believe me, they are ready to eat as soon as they get back from their short trip outside no matter what time of morning it is or how dark it is.

It's dark when they both give me those looks, but I resist mixing up and always changing their feeding times while trying to keep it around 6am and somewhere 2-3pm in the afternoons. Stella starts howling anytime after 3pm if she has not been fed yet. My neighbor claims she has never heard Stella howl except for the times she is left outside while I am gone. She laughed about it so it's not a problem I guess.

You may or may not notice but I took these first eight photos with a different camera on Monday. I am slowly sorting out my equipment on which camera does what the best. Did that make sense? Ha Ha. If I could find a camera shop, I'd take cameras and lens in to trade for a different camera or even sell them but I cannot find a "shop" that has not gone out of business. I found one shop here but after 23 years in business, it closed. I found two 'shops' in Tucson in my online searches but neither phone number was connected. Recent comments under the Yelp reviews said both had gone out of business.

I've read where Al recently did some camera equipment haggling. Jon Katz does the same thing in upper state New York, so it's possible. I am guessing I'll have to make the 3 hour drive to Phoenix to do that. I'll put it on my 'to do' list for when I drive up there to see some friends later on.

Like I said in yesterday's post ... it was cold. The hounds were like me ... they'd like to do something outside (they sleep and me riding my bike) but don't let that bright sunshine fool you. It was still in the 30's as we approached noon. I went down to my new favorite cafe, the Ole' Cafe for breakfast and then for the first time since I have moved here I checked out the Safeway grocery store. I always used Safeway when I lived on the west coast from years ago but here it's not a convenient location.

It's hard to get out of their parking lot onto the main street of four lane traffic and most the time with all the other businesses in that strip mall, the parking lot is packed ... so I never bothered checking it out. I had not even got out of the produce section of the store where I was asking myself what took me so long? "I'm not going anywhere else for groceries."

When I got home and saw the higher prices after comparing the different store receipts I've kept just to do this comparison, I may not go there for anything more than their good produce. Three large grocery stores in town and each has one thing better than the rest. Isn't that typical of most businesses ... or cameras?

There are times that Stella shows me she might like another hound to keep her company or to play with. That's not going to happen. I remember the last couple of years or the last year when she and Sadie hardly played at all compared to what they did their first couple of years together. Heidi is somewhat independent and has never needed another hound to wrestle with or sleep with. Winston was interested in that, she wasn't.

Recently Stella's maternal instincts have come out every since the neighbors bought their 8 week old black lab. She has seen the puppy a few times when the neighbor lifts the pup up to me over the fence. Of course they were both interested in each other but it wasn't too long before Stella went back to laying in the sunshine to sleep. That puppy is doing very well and growing very fast. Smart and is leading his obedience class from what I am told. The pup was obeying verbal and sign commands from the 7 year old boy last weekend. I was amazed how well the pup was doing. Once again Stella looks that way when she hears the puppy barking.

Heidi wanted so bad to lie down in the sun and sleep but there was just enough cold air blowing slightly to where she decided that laying in the sunshine on the bedroom floor to sleep was the better option.

Speaking of heat .. it's quite a change to the utility bill (good) to have a gas furnace instead of electric heat during these cold days and nights. Surprisingly the vertical blinds do a good job keeping the cold air out of the house. I can tell a difference when I open them early in the morning. Consequently I don't open them as soon as I get up like I did in the summer.

Every since the doctor told me he'd like for me to lose some weight and his number was my goal from last year I've been re-thinking diets again. Long time readers know what happens when I start thinking about stuff. All that does is lead to too much analyzing, possibly new spreadsheets being made and ending up with confusion with information overload. With all my experience in doing those things for the same topic "what to eat" ... I've been proud of myself this time because I have not decided to go to one extreme or the other. In fact I just need to tweak a few things and keep doing what I am doing.

Of course it's hard to say what is the truth when you are reading articles online, even if it is a website from a doctor or dietitian. I guess that falls into "trust issues" I have based on what a couple of friends have told me but that's a whole different blog post. LOL

Over the years of doing this research and now getting an opinion in person from a MD I have found some consistent  things. A study of all the diets going on currently, lasted one year. During the year some diets were performing better than the others as the goal of all participants was to lose weight. By the end of one year all participants lost roughly 13% of their weight no matter what diet they used. After that first year and not being in a controlled setting most of the participants had regained all the weight they lost.

So when I started searching yesterday for the best diets for someone my age, that had a little exercise during the week, I found one thing that I had never seen before. It also makes me wonder if I really do need to lose weight just so my BMR the MD talked about, would decrease to 25%. A medical journal I was reading yesterday said a man of my age and height, weighs on average 199 pounds. I am below that. Also the average BMR was 29% and I am under that measuring just a tad under 27%.

Maybe pizzas, Ben&Jerry's ice cream and large cheeseburgers at The Diner are not really ba factors ... Ha Ha ... I can only hope.

Like I said in previous blog posts, before I decided where I was going to move I did a lot of searching for the averages in winter weather temps, amount of snow fall if any and did it rain a lot. Tornado? Hurricane? Typhoon? ... all kinds of weather. So when I settled on this town that I live in now I knew it would get in the 30's at night but by mid afternoon it would be sunny and mid 50's. I can definitely live with that compared to the Midwestern winters back in 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana.

I was also told after I moved here by bicyclists I could ride outside every day of the year because the sunshine is hot enough that temperatures would feel warmer than they were. That might be true but so far I have not found that to be accurate. They DID warn me about the winds and that they would follow me to always keep me in a headwind when riding my bike and not getting those high speed tailwinds.

I HAVE found that to be true. So when I decided it was colder than I liked to ride outside I put one of my road bikes on the trainer to ride inside for 30-45 minutes a day. For those not familiar, notice the rear wheel sits up off the ground because the back wheel axle is connected to the trainer. The rear tire spins on the metal cylinder and that fan on the side is magnetic, where I can adjust the tension to make the ride harder besides just shifting to a larger gear.

You might be surprised just how good of a workout I can get in 30 minutes of riding with a few minutes at the start to warm up (slower pedaling) and the last 5 minutes to warm down (to reduce heart rate). It is tiring and I can change gears as I am riding just like on the road. It IS boring where some people ride in front of a tv or put ear buds in to listen to music. I've never wanted to do neither of those options.

So until I get enough nerve or until I quit being a whimp I'll be riding indoors and spending the days on local exploration trips with my camera and doing some hiking since my hip is getting stronger by the day. BTW ... the number of bicyclists riding by the house, people walking their dogs or their morning workout walks are almost zero, so maybe what I am feeling is just normal.  LOL

Let's see what the day brings here in the 'Wild West' today ... I'll blog about it later.