Travels with Snowbirds Friday February 1, 2013, Thousand Trails Peace River, Wauchula, FL

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The One About Good News and Nice Stories

I wasn’t going to write today, but several things happened, and the writer in me knew I had to put this one story down before I forgot about it.

Knowing we needed to be on the road about 11 to get to Orlando Airport to pick up Joanne, I lazed around, did a couple of chores, took Winston for a very long bike ride/walk, rearranged my rear cargo space one more time, and talked to neighbors.

While I was making my bed, I looked out my window and saw the neighbor whose rig is behind Kathy’s sitting on the ground trying to get up. He was having difficulty, so I started out my door and around to help him up, when I noticed his lady, assuming wife, was walking around the back of their diesel pusher to help him up. They struggled, but I backed off, something told me they would have been embarrassed if I walked up. I kind of forgot about the incident. About an hour later I noticed he dropped his land lines, left a bicycle and towed car and took the bus out of the spot and left. My mind said ok, he needs gas, something silly. Again, forgotten. When we got back from our ride to Orlando, I was taking Winston for a walk and I noticed him sitting on an assortment of boards, drill in hand, buffing the metal inside one of his rear tires. I walked up, said HI, and told him I saw him on the ground this morning and thought he had fallen. He laughed a lot. Then he told me his story. He asked me if they woke me up at 2:00 in the morning, and I hadn’t heard a thing. At 2:00 his inverter stopped working. RVs use an inverter to convert the power from the utility pole into 12V useable by the lights and pumps of the RV. When not plugged in, the lights run off the ‘house battery.’ When plugged in, the electricity runs thru the inverter, doing its magic and makes the lights light. The only time the electric outlets, the microwave, the a/c work is when plugged in or the generator is in use. His inverter stopped working. No matter what he tried, he could not make it work. They went to bed, got up this morning, he fooled around some more, then ALL the power went out, even those that are electric only. He called a local repair service; that’s where he went. After a couple of bad tries, it seems that something tripped the circuit breaker which sits outside near the engine underneath in back. The mechanic flipped it, nothing. Then the mechanic went into the drivers seat and flipped the ‘kill switch’ which the owner had not realized he flipped during his attempts at fixing the issue. The kill switch does just that, kills all electricity to the coach portion, but not the engine. I laughed a lot at his silliness, sounds like something I would do. He was not laughing. He told me it really wasn’t funny, as he spent 30 years of his life as a master electrician and 20 years as an electric foreman, and he should have been able to fix that issue. He finally laughed a lot. I continued to walk Winston around the loop. On my way past him again I saw him sitting in one of those old people walker thingys that has a seat. Again I stopped and said something smart about being old. He told me had 2 hip replacements 2 years ago. I was humbled. Then he told me he also had a lung replaced 1 year ago, and he really is lucky to be alive. I asked him if he smoked. Never. WTF? He was raised on a farm that basically only grew hay somewhere in the Midwest. He has 5 siblings. They ALL suffer from chronic emphysema, COPD, or pulmonary fibrosis. He was very fortunate to have a lung become available. It’s working fine, but his other lung is failing, and he probably will not have the opportunity to get that one transplanted. They all have been told there is no genetic disposition to these lung issues. Could it possibly be that growing up on a hay farm with all that pollen and dust caused his families issues? Just then, his wife’s phone chiriped, his beeped and 2 alarms inside his bus went off. It was time for his 6:00 meds. He begged off, telling me he hoped they didn’t wake me up tomorrow morning as they are leaving early to go to their new campground in Punta Gorda. They are from some little town between Richmond and Williamsburg and are loving life right now. Very lovely people with a most heartwarming and funny story. Ed and Rose, I salute you.

We left for Orlando at 11:30 after hearing from Joanne that her flight had been delayed while they waited for deicing. Leaving an hour late, it only was 30 minutes late in landing. It’s 85 miles or so from Wauchula to Orlando Airport, a mighty hefty distance over the river and thru the woods on Florida back roads right up the center of the state. The last 11 miles is Toll Road, Ginnie’s favorite thing. It’s the only way you can get to the airport, unless you are a local and know the back back back roads. The toll right before the airport was extremely backed up. 4 CASH lanes, only 2 operator manned, were open. We waited forever for the cars in front of us to move on. AND the toll takers are slower than molasses. I would have thought it was a brown out We eventually got thru, picked up Joanne and I moved to the back seat. Poor Ginnie never got out of the car. Over 4 hours driving……….We brought lunch with us (leftover crockpot stuff for me, sandwiches for Ginnie and Joanne). I at least moved from front seat to back seat. Ginnie's butt was sore at the end of the day.

I had called my Cardiologist on Thursday. He was off, I spoke to the P/A. I wanted him to know my ankles were swollen again and my heart rate was so slow, I couldn’t do anything without feeling exhausted. I think a resting heart rate of 44 for me is just a little low. When I had these previously, he took me totally off the Cardizem (the drug I use to keep my heart rate low) for 2 days, then start up again decreasing dose by half. I did not take Cardizem Thursday or Friday nights just because I had to get rid of the fluid. I didn’t hear back from the P/A on Thursday so I sent positive energy beams her way on Friday, and she called at 4:30. The cardiologist told me to totally stop taking the Cardizem. Just stop!! Cold Turkey!!! Zip/Nada/Nothing. Check my heart rate frequently, if it goes up, restart taking the Cardizem. I am thrilled. STOP TAKING THE CARDIZEM!!!. It does nothing for my arrhythmia, I have always gotten about 20 minutes of palpitations mid afternoon, but I have not had a rapid heart rate for at least 6 weeks. I think it is a whole combination of things, not worrying about much recently, and managing my stress levels better. I am truly a happy camper tonight.

We are all going to see the Lipizzaner Stallions early tomorrow morning, time for bed.

Kat out

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