Friedreich's ataxia: The ataxia to the max-ia

I just saw on TV that Ben Affleck has some kind of bond with ataxia-telangiectasia. Apparently, this is nothing new -- it's on Wikipedia, with a Falls Church reference even. And I don't want to criticize, A-T is a totally sucky disease. But, Ben, Booby, have you read about FA?

Wil E Coyote was a super-genius

Sometimes, I do not shower on Mondays.

Now before everyone screams UNCLEAN! I shower Sunday afternoon, go swim, eat dinner, cogitate, vegetate, watch The Walking Dead and go to bed. Plus, I wash up even if I do not shower.

This morning I did shower. And my brother-in-law is totally to blame.

I have a hard time flushing my toilet. I have to lean over the bowl to reach the flusher, and while I am not a germ-a-phobe who worries that a flush shoots up all kinds of bacteria, it still is a little gross to flush a toilet with your face in the bowl. It is also just hard to bend all the way over to reach the handle.

I came up with a brilliant and inexpensive solution involving a C-clamp, fishing line and an eyelet that would have solved all my problems. It also involved a sinker, just for kicks.

I decided to run my plan by my brother-in-law the builder. I didn't even get to the sinker. He just started staring at me like I was insane. Then he started calling it a Wil E Coyote plan and suggested I find another idea.

As I was going to the bathroom last night I thought about Wil E and the Roadrunner, and I laughed. This was bad because I was standing up, lost my balance, peed on my leg and realized I'd still have to shower.

I am totally ordering a C-clamp on Amazon.

This concludes our test of the Emergency Claren System

I just finished getting Claren to speak. Treats were involved, so it was not a problem.

It was a problem 20 minutes earlier when I was on the floor of the bathroom. I don't carry treats with me into the bathroom, and she would not speak at all. It's been a long time since I have been that mad at Claren.

As I have recovered my breath, I have calmed down. She isn't used to obeying me when I am on the floor. I am almost always in a chair. Even with treats I had to give her some encouragement to speak when I was in the out-of-the-ordinary location of the chaise. She was probably a little scared, too.

But she is my service dog, and she utterly failed me for the first time in a long while.

Claren didn't speak readily when I got her almost nine years ago, but since she has shown a willingness to bark when I have her ball and she wants it, when she wants attention, when it's dinner time. In short, when she wants something.

Unfortunately, she did not see any need for me to get off the floor this morning. That was something I wanted.

I was just transferring back to my chair from the toilet, and my legs got tangled up under the shower chair. I called for help, but my sister and brother-in-law were outside, and the little goofs did not hear me. We have good sound-proofing in the house, and my door was shut.

I called Claren and asked her to speak numerous times. Silence. I finally yelled at her and shouted "BED" to get her to go to her bed and out of my sight. She did. I called her back and asked her to speak. Nothing.

I could hear the little goofs, so I called out a few more times.   But no one heard me.

Finally, I slid on my butt over to open the door and called for help. My sister and brother-in-law came and helped me. They are now out running "errands." I won't be surprised if that involves getting some device so I can signal them, maybe an air horn. They felt really guilty about not hearing. But it wasn't their fault. I eon't even blame my dumb dog.

Fucking Friedreich's ataxia.

Enough February

I guess it is a good thing February is so short. I am so tired of its cold. I realize the cold won't end next week when February does, but with March you can start waiting for it to go out like a lamb.

And the Uggs are getting tired of the cold, too. At least that is my thinking because my feet are getting cold almost every day again.  Not as bad as before, but ...

Sickness sucks

I am surrounded by sick people, it seems, and it really makes me sad.

Not cold and flu sick -- although my officemate was coughing more than me today -- things no one likes to talk about: masses and ruptures and failures and lesions.

I'm confident God did nothing to cause any of these. And while I suppose good may come with a disease, I am sure it is despite the disease. God doesn't people to be sick. But ...

I still don't get why God doesn't do more to help people who are sick or prevent illness altogether (just spitballing here).

Illness in others about kills me. I can't do anything. And I hate that more. And most of me wants to remain healthy (except for the massive disease I already have), but a small part of me wishes I was sick and others weren't. As I have said I don't want to be sick, but I think I could handle it better. I also have no one depending on me. Others do.

So until God wakes the f up and gets rid of disease, I guess I'll just be sad.