Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mom's 79th birthday...Happy Birthday Mom...!!!! I Love You...!!!

I know it's been a long time since I've updated this blog, I've actually had one of my friends that this blog gets sent out to, send me a text message wondering if everything was okay since he hadn't gotten an update for over a month. Now, if that isn't a good friend or what..?
It's just that as I've explained before, that things get kind of monotonous after awhile and I hate going over the same thing time after time...

Well, this time I do have something new to update on..actually a couple of new and interesting things...
The first thing, back starting on June 10th I had one of my migraine episodes start and this one was the worst one I've ever had. It stretched out over a full week and I literally wasn't able to eat for the first 4 days. I was sick to my stomach multiple times and the diarrhea was worse than it had been in the past. I got so weak because I wasn't able to eat that even after I was able to start eating it took me another week to even start getting my strength back. So, I was basically incapacitated for two weeks from this one. It flat out sucked.

I have to say that I was getting kind of bummed because the Canton Blues Fest was on the 18th and 19th and I so wanted to go....well, even though I was still really weak, I managed to go. My wife and I went down there, found a nice spot to set up our chairs, I plopped down and then didn't move. I sat and enjoyed the music. We took cold drinks to keep me hydrated and also fortunately the weather was absolutely perfect.

So the next thing, my wife and I changed family doctors. We were getting tired of all the run around with our doctors and the insurance issues that we were having. We have had to change doctors three times in the last year because of the doctors having what is called "credentialing" problems with our insurance..TriCare.

We found a doctor just down the road from us that has been with TriCare for a long time and so we went in and had an appointment to establish ourselves there. While I was in with the doc, we were discussing my TM issues and she mentions that she also has another patient with TM. I think this is a good thing because she will be familiar...but then I am also thinking...wow, this is interesting, because I thought I knew all the other people in town that had TM, This is apparently someone different.
So, I say to the doc, I know that she can't give me their contact info but I ask the doc if she will pass my info on to this person. She says that she will do one better, she says that while I am there in the office, she will call the guy and ask him if it's okay if she gives me his info. So, she calls him and he says sure, to go ahead and give me his info. So the doc gives me his contact info and so I call him the next day. This guy lives in a small town right outside of Canton and has had TM for 5 years.
This is all really bizarre because the stats for TM are that about 3 - 5 people per million get it and now there are 4 of us right here in a roughly 20 mile area that have it.
So anyway, this guy doesn't have internet so he really isn't very connected on alot of the information on TM and the support groups and the things that are happening and so on, so I told him that I am going to print off a bunch of info and ail it to him and then I'll call him again in a few days, I'd like to set up something to get together for a coffee or something. It would be great to meet him and maybe get all of us together so that he can meet the others here in town too.

Okay, one other thing, a few weeks back I met this guy on Facebook through a group that we are in. The group is called Forgotten Bands, it's a group about music bands that are old, kind of obscure and have been kind of forgotten over the years. This group is for the hard core music lovers that want to keep that great music alive.

Anyway, this guy is from Finland and he is a professional photographer and artist and we were discussing what each of us does. I explained to him that I am disabled but that I carve wood and I directed him to my photo page on Facebook to see some of my carvings. When he saw my canes he fell in love with them and inquired about having one made. We struck a deal that I would make him one in exchange for him taking professional photo's of it and letting me have them to use for myself in a website or business cards or whatever. He said that he would take whatever photo's I wanted.
So, I have the cane made and now I am working on getting it shipped to him. I checked on shipping and didn't realize that shipping to Finland would be so much. Almost $190 for UPS or FedEx. He's saving the money now to wire to me so that I can ship it.

Yesterday I'm on Facebook and I post a few pictures of some of the old carvings I did. Well lo and behold as soon as I post them I start getting comments about how cool the stuff is.
A little while later I get a message from a woman inquiring about one of my canes. She wants one and she asks about pricing and what I need to know to get started to build one. I send her back a note and the next thing, she send me back a note with all the info I need and she says she wants one...I'm thinking...Cool!!
So just a little while after that, I'm sending a message to someone else about something and I get a Facebook instant message from a friend...we chat for a bit and he asks what I've been up to. I tell him that I've been doing a little carving. He asks about that, what do I carve.. I tell him to go to my photo page...he comes back a few minutes later and asks about the canes. Do I sell them and how much..I tell him and he asks if I could make him one..He would like to have one made for his grandmother. I tell him sure, that I just took an order earlier that day and it will be a couple of days to finish it but I will be glad to make one for him. He says that is great.
So, within a matter of an hour or so, I took two cane orders....how cool is that..?

I got started on the first one yesterday, will get working on carving the face today. This is too cool...I am so happy.

OK, that's about it.
Oh, by the way...that website that I had put together will be closing soon. The "Ning" site that it is hosted on is going to start making everyone pay to have their site.
I created another one that is currently a work in progress. I will be developing it over time. Here is the link... http://kevinsraisingcane.snappages.com/

Now for a little music....I'm feeling a little Jazzy today...how about some of the late great Maynard Ferguson and that absolute amazing ear blaster song "Pagliacci"


Till Next Time......