Living With Health Conditions

 

It would be easy for me to say that I cannot walk anymore. Just stop doing it. I don't have a disease that causes it like some people do. Though maybe Osteoarthritis is actually a disease. I consider it a condition. Lymphedema is a disease but does not actually stop me from doing things. As long as I wear the compression stockings I can walk with it. Even if my feet and calves are swelled and/or tight. If you knew me in person, you would not think I was the strongest person. Not by a long shot! My strength is the kind that is inside. Inside my brain and mind. I refuse to quit. It has been quite hard for me to accept having an aide help me with cleaning my apartment. I could see it if I had a huge house but this is a small studio apartment. Yet there are some jobs I find difficult to do. They will take me hours to complete! I have accepted having an aide and I will give her more to do as I see her ability to do what I want done.

In recent years, I have realized I do not like to go anywhere. Not social activities or events. There are many local events that go on within walking distance of my apartment. I don't go to many of them and if I do, I am in and out rather quickly. I do not like to be around cigarette smoke and it seems to be everywhere these days. Even when there is a no smoking sign I will see someone smoking right next to the sign. Either they can't read or they don't care. They act like it does not apply to them. Most smokers have no respect for others or the environment, polluting the air and littering by throwing their cigarette butts on the ground or out car windows. (I apologize to the smokers who do not do those things but the others know who they are.) So I suppose even if others do not like the smoke they will tolerate it to go to something. Well, that is not me. Breathing is important to me.

I research. That is what I do. I was one of those kids who would read a whole encyclopedia just for fun. It is one of the reasons I love the internet. So I have learned over the years since moving here how to manage the problems I have with my health. My knees are not going to get better but I can live with them. Sometimes they are not as bad as other times. Inflammation is the key and controlling it with your diet works. But.........you have to stick to it 100% and I am doing that now. Another thing I have learned is to not baby them. I walk with a walker and I am able to walk every morning in the hall outside my door. So no matter what the weather is I can do it.   

If you have a health condition, even being controlled by a doctor, it is good to do your own research and learn what you can about your condition. Ask questions and record or write down the answers. Then research it again. I never rely on anyone else and many times I tell the doctor what I want done and they usually do it. However long I am slated to live on this earth I will try to do the best I can. Many times the tests and treatments are worse than the disease or condition. It helps if you have a doctor you can totally trust but these days they are hard to find. Most are controlled by the insurance and drug companies. If they don't do what they say they won't get paid. Oh to go back to the days when the patient paid the doctors out of their own pockets and the prices weren't out of sight. That was a true doctor patient relationship!

Ribeye for supper!

What nobody tells you is that food is medicine. It matters what you put in your mouth. Look at how many people buy special foods for their pets.......spending more for better quality food. Then go to the grocery store and fill their own grocery carts with high carbs, grains, sugar, fruit and highly processed foods. Foods that hinder you instead of helping you. Of course, it does not heal you overnight but you need time to overcome whatever is wrong inside your body. Many people would rather take a prescription cocktail every day rather than give up their favorite foods. Your choice. I am not trying to influencing anyone. Just saying what has worked for me. 

LMNT Electrolyte Drink

I am trying to increase my mobility and decrease the fluid under my skin (Lymphedema). You need to figure out what you can do that helps your own health issues.Things that work for me is:

1. Keto Lifestyle (food & preparation)

2. Walking

3. Leg Massager

4. Compression Stockings

5. Lymphedema Therapist

6. Taking electrolytes (LMNT not one with sugar)

7. Increased Salt

8. Good Protein

9. Dry Brushing (before shower with a dry brush)

10. Sunshine (daily if possible)

 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole

Why I Choose To Live Without A Vehicle

There are many reasons that I chose not to own a vehicle. I am still thankful not to have one. Cars have always been a big part of my life. My father owned a gas station back in the fifties and early sixties. He liked working on cars and my brother did at a young age also. My brother was driving a 49’ Dodge around the big field next to our house. Over the years, I had many different cars and some were better than others. The last years though, I was poor. I did not have the money to pay for repairs and if I did, I had to use a credit card to pay for it. So it changed my opinion on owning a vehicle when I was moving here in 2018. I decided not to have one. Best decision I ever made!

County Bus

Living in the city enables me not to really need one. In the country you really have no choice. It is more than a necessity. Here there are other ways to get around. A county bus that will pick me up right at my apartment building Monday through Friday. Our building is one of their bus stops. Taxi service that is pretty slow due to not enough of them and many people are using them. I would rather use the bus because it is more affordable and maybe even dependable. I have a mobility chair, “Jazzy” which is like a car to me. I can take it to the grocery store, drug store or dollar store. Of course, I cannot use it in bad weather, especially heavy rain or in the winter. For the most part though, I love using it and it makes going anywhere fun.

The library right across the street.

Not having a vehicle is one of the reasons that I try to use the businesses closest to my apartment. And there are many since I am in the center of the downtown area. There are four parks within walking distance of my apartment. The library is right across the street. The county office building is within the block. My son’s apartment is two blocks away. Restaurants, bars, a coffee shop, 2 drug stores and hair dressers are a walking distance away. 

December 2020

We have winter here in New York with a good amount of snowfall. Cars being covered with snow is pretty common. Tenants who own vehicles have to clean off their cars and move them so the snowplow can plow the parking lot. So glad that is not something I have to even think about. Often they have to park their vehicles somewhere else if our forecast is a major snow fall during the night. So parking in another area and walking back to my apartment would be difficult. I cannot do that.

My niece and me with my car 1988

Not owning a vehicle also means no auto loan, no auto insurance, no auto registration or inspections, no preventative maintenance, no repairs or tires, etc. etc. The list can go on. Not getting stopped by a cop either! I still have my driver’s license and plan on keeping it. I haven’t driven in a very long time, probably since 2019. Quite honestly, I do not miss it one bit. 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole

Busy Busy Busy, That's me!

 

Loneliness is an emotion many people feel at one time or another in their lifetime. I live alone except for my house bunny, Rabbit. I have always been an introvert so being alone does not bother me as much as some people. I admit that I talk to Rabbit as if he is a person. He listens but does not join in our conversation! Living in an apartment building, downtown, means I can connect with others whenever I feel the need to. So it is not like I am isolated away from others most of the time. If I am, it is my own doing.

My son lives a couple of blocks away and I see him almost daily. He is disabled and it seems to me his disability is getting worse as he ages. So that is something I have to contend with the best I can. Since I am alone it my problem and I deal with it. What else can I do? It is part of being a mother. If he did not have a disability, I suppose I would not be so involved in his life. Probably I would not like that so much. He is my son and I will take care of him as much as I can. I know he gets angry with me but I am on his side all the time. He just does not see or understand it.

Lenovo Legion Laptop

I have been working on a story that I started back in 2010. First I had to figure out how to get Libre Office into my new computer. It took me a year to do that! I was also able to figure out how to get my old external hard drive in it. So I found my old stories and eBooks that I had been working on. In fact, when I bought this new computer, I had to teach myself how to do a few things I thought previously I'd never be able to do. One of those things was to remove Windows completely out of my computer (since it comes in the new computer..........packed full of advertising and things I would never use). I did it and put Ubuntu in and have been happy with it ever since. Did it all on my own with YouTube videos. 

Basically I am pretty busy all day. Even if it is doing trivial jobs like housework, making meals or editing photos in the computer. The day just gets by me and I am always saying, "how could it be this time already?" I don't really like to live by a schedule and for the most part I don't. I might eat breakfast at six in the morning or at noon. Yet there are other things I try to do by a certain time. Like cleaning my bunny's cage. Or using my leg massager. Or getting the coffee ready for the next morning in the coffeemaker. If I am an hour or so off it is okay and I don't stress about it. 

It doesn't bother me to do things by myself. Never did. I remember I used to go to the movies by myself if there was a movie I really wanted to see. Now I could do that easily here since the theater is within walking distance of my apartment. It is being upgraded due to the beautification grant Norwich won. So that will be interesting to see. I loved the vintage feel of the old theater but think that is why it did not have a lot of people attending movies there. I probably would not go to a night time movie since I do not like to leave my apartment after dark.

Presently I am in the process of changing all my health care to local only. The dental I have no choice on but hopefully soon I will be finished with them. In establishing my independence, I need to get to the appointments on my own. Eventually, your dependence on someone else will end or should end. I chose not to own a vehicle and I do not regret making that decision one bit. It does make it difficult at times if I have an appointment that is 40 miles away though. So changing where I go for medical and dental is important now. I wish I had thought of that when I first moved here. 

As a single person you have to make an effort to keep up your friendships. Sometimes I may not feel like doing something but after I do it, I am usually happy I did. It gets me out of my apartment and usually I enjoyed myself. Sometimes I just sit in the park in the sun and watch people and traffic. Having four parks within walking distance of my apartment is pretty nice. Can go to a different one every day. There are a number of activities that take place right in the area I live in all summer and fall. So the week-ends here are busy and there are a lot of people around. 

Fit King Compression Leg Massager

I think when you have health issues you spend most of your time focused on that and rightly so. Lately I have realized if I don't think about that so much then I feel better. In fact, I will go half the day and then remember I was worried about something that seems to have disappeared or does not seem so bad. Lately I have made progress on Lymphedema and that is because I have committed myself to doing my self-care every day no matter how much time it takes. Along with sticking to a clean Keto lifestyle. It really does pay off! How do I know? Because the day after I eat ice cream or something else that contains sugar or inflammatory cooking oils I am not good. One bad food equals days of discomfort and depression. 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole

Updated 2023

Electric Vehicle Charging Station in Norwich, NY

 

Recently I went for walk, which is unheard of in February in New York! It was really a nice day and I spent time sitting in the sun in the park and watching traffic. I remembered that I noticed a small electric vehicle charging station in the parking lot next to my building. So on my way back home, I took a detour. I figured I would snap a few pictures of it to share on my social media. 

Far corner of the parking lot

As I got closer I saw someone working in the fenced in enclosure near the chargers. This little charging station is located in the far corner of the Hayes Street parking lot. This parking lot is behind the stores and restaurants on South Broad Street (Route 12) in Norwich, NY. I suppose if you have an electric vehicle it would be convenient to park it here to charge while you go to one of the restaurants or shops.

Dept. of Transportation

It turned out that the man working there was from DOT (Department of Transportation). He was very nice and showed me how the charger worked and how you pay to use it. New York State has an Electric Vehicle Charging Station Program available to vendors to place chargers in public spaces. This way the chargers are available to vehicle owners who do not have chargers at home.

Electric Vehicle Charging Station

There are two chargers at this location. I personally have not seen a car being charged there yet. It is hidden away in this parking lot so maybe nobody knows it is here. The restaurants could add it to advertisements and get some business when people are looking for a electric vehicle charger. 

BTC Power EV Charger

The chargers are BTC Power chargers. The system can charge two separate vehicles at the same time. This charging station is able to charge four vehicles since there are two chargers. BTC Power is a manufacturer of electric vehicle charging systems here in the US, Canada and Europe. They are located in Santa Ana, CA. 

Hays Street Parking Lot

I can't tell you much more about this charging station at this time. As soon as the weather permits I will go back and take some more pictures. I wanted to get close up shots of the charger but the DOT worker was there and I didn't want to bother him or take his picture. Hopefully I can get a picture of a vehicle being charged here. 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole

Making Chicken Wings Using the Ceramic Crisping Tray

Copper Crisping Tray

Since I do not have an air fryer I use a Nuwave Pro Plus Infrared oven for most of my oven meals. In case you are not familiar with the Nuwave, it is a counter top cooking appliance that uses infrared, conduction and convection heat to save time and money. I have been using it for almost five years. As much as I love it, I was a bit jealous of all the air fryer meals I was seeing online. Especially the ones with the crisp coatings or for finger foods such as chicken wings or fried shrimp. I was afraid an air fryer would get too hot for my small kitchen and could possibly set off my fire alarm or cause a fire. Discovering the crisping tray was the best thing I could have done. I can make any type of low carb breaded foods which come out as if they were deep fried or cooked in an air fryer. 

Chicken Wings ready to cook!

I recently made chicken wings in the Nuwave using the crisping tray to get the skin brown and crisp. On these I did not put any kind of breading, just seasoning. I made sure to allow space between them so they get browned evenly. I used a parchment paper liner on the bottom of the tray but you do not have to do that. Actually it is not recommended. I started doing it so that cleaning the tray would be easier. One thing I also do with the chicken wings is to put them uncovered on a tray in the refrigerator for a few hours before cooking them. That way they are drier and hold the seasonings better. 

Nuwave Pro Plus Infrared Oven

Then I set the dome on top of the Nuwave Pro Plus  oven to cook. I think I set my cooking time to 20 minutes. Now according to the instructions for the crisping tray you do not have to turn the food over. I turn it anyway. Then I season the other side and cook it for about 12 more minutes. Check it to see if it is done and if it is browned enough for you. Depends on how you like them.

Time to turn!

The seasonings I used was Redmond Real Salt, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper. This is not a set recipe for me. I do it different every time. Whatever type of seasoning you have a taste for. That is what I love about using different seasonings! This time I did not make Buffalo wing sauce but sometimes I do that too. Then put a bit on them and back in the oven for 2-3 minutes. Or you can just dip it on your wings when you put them on your plate.

The other side!

I used to like to order chicken wings from local restaurants. They have gotten to be so pricey lately that I don't buy them anymore. Also I cannot be sure of what they put on them or cook them in. Many restaurants use canola or other vegetable oils which is really bad for inflammation. I am trying to control mine and don't want to take the chance. So not only am I controlling what I eat but how much I spend. It is a double win!  

Chicken Wings with salsa and sour cream

Normally I would have served these wings with my homemade Buffalo wing sauce. Since I was out of blue cheese dressing I had them with salsa and sour cream instead. Was just as good. 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole

Repairs and Preventative Maintenance on My Mobility Chair

Just like a car, things need to be maintained or repaired on your mobility power chair and scooters. It isn't cheap either! Hard to do when you are a person who needs help walking let alone repairing your chair or scooter. Even something that sounds as simple as changing the batteries is not a little thing. Depending on how much you use it though your batteries need to be charged often. I make it a habit to put the charger on it every time I come back from using it. 

Last summer I purchased new batteries because it was not holding a charge very long. I did not want to be stranded somewhere. My friend who drives a scooter had to buy new batteries almost every year because she uses her scooter often. The batteries are not cheap! So it is best to build up an emergency fund for batteries and related repairs on your mobility scooter or power chair. The batteries I purchased were Mighty Max sealed lead acid batteries that are under warranty for a year. Since I got them though I have not used the chair enough to know how well they hold the charge.

I had tire problems and had to have new ones put on and that was NOT an easy fix. Somebody did it for me and getting the wheel off proved to be very difficult. It took weeks to finally get them replaced. These new tires have tubes and give a smoother ride. I keep a tire pump nearby to pump them up when or if needed. 

So I thought I was all set and ready to go! Then I drove to the store and it did not feel right to me. I prayed to get home on it. Turns out the caster wheels, particularly one on the front, needs to be replaced too. This is beginning to remind me of a car or a truck. Well, I have the caster wheels now. Just waiting to put them on. I have been watching YouTube videos on how to do it. I will need a couple of tools to do this. My problem is that I am not very strong so it is hard for me to do. 

So these are the two new castor wheels and hopefully I will get them put on soon. Maybe I can have a friend do it for me. The weather this winter has been good enough that I could have used Jazzy to go to the store. Instead I had to use Instacart and spend more money. Running to the store will not be something I take for granted again. I love my mobility chair and hope to keep using it! It has given me so much independence. I hate to have it sitting in my apartment not being used. Soon I hope to have it road ready again! 

Copyright © 2023 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2023  Kathleen G. Lupole