December 19, 2022
Other activities that are organized here at The Lakes at St. David include hiking along the trails of state land. The land backs up to the back of the park so there is easy access. The hikes are usually on Wednesday afternoons. On Monday afternoons, they started bike rides. Today was the first one and it was billed as an easy 4 mile ride on flat, paved roads. Nancy decided to try the ride. Unfortunately it might be a few more weeks before I can try it. She had a very nice time. They took a road across from the park and it wound around into downtown St. David. There they explored some local shops. All and all it was a very nice ride and a great day for her.
December 13, 2022
Very busy day today. At 2:00 PM in the clubhouse there will be a jam session. A few local musicians will come in and have some fun playing music and singing. Of course, Michael and Christi are the driving force for this session. Anyone is welcome to attend. Since we are going to be in the clubhouse for dinner at 5:00PM it was decided to keep my walking to a minimum. We arrived at the jam session about 3:00PM. Then we would just stick around until after dinner.
We went home after dinner and gathered our games for the next trip to the clubhouse at 7:00PM for Game Night. The Activities Director has determined that on Tuesday evenings we will have Game Night from 7:00PM to 9:00PM. There are a multitude of games available or you can bring your own. We took a few of our games over but we wound up playing Mexican Train Dominoes. It was a lot of fun. We didn’t get the chance to finish but we had a good time.
December 12, 2022
Oh boy, I turn 69 today. For the last several years, it has become tradition to have pizza on my birthday and to enjoy my favorite cake, German Chocolate with coconut pecan icing. I also love red velvet cake! The German Chocolate brings back fond memories of my Mom. So Nancy made my cake and we had pizza for dinner. I was able to FaceTime with Andrew and Braxton for a few minutes. It was a very enjoyable day.
December 7, 2022
Today is the day! My first post-op follow up. Riding an hour in the truck is rough on my left knee as I can not move around as freely as I would like. By the time we got to the doctor’s office I was achy. Most of my pain lately has been in my knee and thigh but not my hip. I am still using a walker but slowly using a cane more. I get into the office and the first thing is that they send me to x-ray. After I get back into the room about 2 minutes go by and Dr. Smith comes in. He has good news and some not so good news.
The good news is that the x-rays are fabulous. The hip is in a great position and is where it is supposed to be. He was not pleased that my progress is moving a lot slower that he would like but at least it is progress. He heard me walking back to the room and thought I should have been further along. He also is not happy with the swelling that I have developed in my leg and ankle. Nancy calls it pitting edema. His recommendation is to return in a month and suggested an Ace wrap for the swelling. Or if we can find a good compression sock.
We left the office and our next appointment is now scheduled for 1/11/23. We then looked up medical supply places. We found one close by and Nancy went in and found a pair of compression socks that went up to the knee. So instead of a wrap, I can wear a sock. Once we got home she put the sock on me. That was a real treat. Trying to stretch this tight sock over a swollen foot. But she did. The next morning when she removed it, the swelling had gone down significantly. Now just to lay off the salt and don’t overdo it on my feet.
December 4, 2022
I finally get to shower again, today. Since the surgery, I’ve had one shower in the shower stall. The rest of the cleanings were hospital baths. Using a foam from a can and getting wiped down with a wash cloth. But today I could stand and enjoy the hot water. Once that was done, I had to have a few more steri strips put on. You always feel better after a shower.
November 30, 2022
Today was supposed to be my follow-up. However Dr. Jordan had the office call me yesterday to reschedule the appointment. Nancy believes he wants to see me after a week on the antibiotics. So now my first post-op appointment is 5 weeks after my surgery on December 7th. He has offered to hire Nancy as he is pleased with her decisions and insight.
So instead of going to Tucson, Nancy put up our Christmas decorations. Through our travels this year, we have collected Christmas ornaments. There are a couple of stipulations. We didn’t want anything too heavy or extremely fragile. Oh, and they couldn’t be too expensive. Some places were very proud of their merchandise. As an alternative we figured key chains would work just as well.
Nancy decorated the inside with some greenery and a strand of lights. She placed this around the TV on the wall using an RVers favorite item, Command Strips. Then she placed the ornaments on the greenery. Outside she took the tripod that would normally sit under our kingpin and wrapped it in green material. Then she wrapped it with garland and lights and found a snowman for the top. Then she took 3 cardboard boxes and put a brick in each and wrapped it with plastic tablecloth to act as presents under the tree. The bricks were necessary so the wind wouldn’t blow them away.
November 26, 2022
I have to say that my doctor, Dr. Jordan Smith, is extremely awesome. After I had my little episode after my surgery, he gave his cell number to Nancy. He made himself available for any questions and or concerns. Nancy has been keeping an eye on the incision and she and Carissa (via pictures) did not like the way the incision looked. After a consult with Dr. Jordan, via text, he suggested that the sutures be removed. He also sent a prescription in for another round of antibiotics. His theory is that the sutures were being treated like a foreign body by my body and was causing the adverse reaction.
So this evening, as I lay on the bed, Nancy removed the sutures. Once that was done she put steri strips on then and applied a dressing. Time will tell. Apparently I’m not healing very quickly. I’m sure Nancy and Carissa are concerned but they are not being open and honest with me. Imagine that!
November 24, 2022
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! It is very strange not being around family for the holidays. This will be our first Thanksgiving that I can remember when we are not with Carissa’s family or Phillip’s family. For me it does not feel like a holiday. Just another day. However, there is a pitch-in dinner at the clubhouse for all work campers and residents. The managers are providing ham and turkey and everyone else is providing sides and desserts. It was a nice time but still not the same.
As a side note Christi, one of the managers, texted me a couple of days ago to see if I wanted to smoke one of the two turkeys. I politely declined as I would have needed more time to gather supplies and the fact is that a 20 pound turkey will not fit on my tabletop smoker. Maybe a 10 pounder. But I appreciated the offer. Additionally, I’m not sure if I would have been up for the challenge, physically.
November 23, 2022
Big day for me after my hip replacement surgery. Baby steps. Today I was able to get myself out of my chair without assistance. And to top it all off, I was able to get a shower. I’m so happy that I can ease Nancy’s burden. It’s been almost two weeks. In addition to taking care of me, she is also fulfilling our 20 hour per week work obligation for our site. I’m hoping for more progress and maybe a little speedier.
November 14, 2022
Four days post surgical. Feeling better. I haven’t had a pain pill since late Saturday night. I need assistance getting out of my recliner but other than that I’m doing pretty good, in my opinion. I try to walk 4 to 5 times a day. Tonight I went up and down the stairs in the kitchen a couple of times. I’m sure my nurse is just prepping me to go outside tomorrow. She did text the Dr. today and got the okay from him to push me in that direction. My pain control is Tylenol, Ibuprofen, and Arizona legal “gummies”. Nancy had to go back to work today but she was just working right outside. She’s laying pavers for our patio. We started this last week before the surgery.
November 11, 2022
Nancy is off today as we are supposed to work Monday thru Wednesday. So she can be with me the whole weekend. For a few days now we have not had very good water pressure. I didn’t really have time to look at it before surgery so I was going to talk Nancy through the process. It just so happened Ron saw her and asked her if she needed anything. Ron came over and checked the screen on the water faucet. It had some gunk in it so he cleaned it off. The water pressure really didn’t get any better so the next step was to check our water filters. They were changed out and now our pressure is great. Thank you Ron. Several other work campers have offered any assistance if we need it. Thank you all.
November 10, 2022
We left home this morning at 8:30AM to make our 10:00AM appointment time. We arrived at the Oro Valley Surgical Suites and went through the registration process. They took us back to a curtained area which will be mine for my duration here. Of course you have to wear one of those hospital gowns. After donning my gown and getting into bed a Receiving Nurse came over to take vitals, start IV and ensure that the correct body part is being operated on by the correct doctor(s). I spoke with an anesthesiologist. I had two options for this operation. First is general and the second is a spinal block. Nancy and I and the anesthesiologist all agreed to do number 2, the spinal block. But the first option is still in play if unsuccessful on the block. Just my luck, they didn’t have a needle long enough so a general anesthesia it is. They operation is supposed to take about 45 minutes to an hour. The actual time was 1 hour and 15 minutes. I had dense tissue. A polite way of saying i had a lot of fat to cut through. Before they moved me they took an x-ray to ensure everything was in place. They moved me to the gurney and back to my curtained haven. I was seen by Recovery Nurse Sara. Sara noticed that my left foot was turned outward, not straight. I was also in some pain and my feet itched. A common practice is to have the patient stand and kind of sway back and forth to get blood flow to the leg. I did so without any relief or change,. They put me back in bed and gave me more meds. They also contacted Dr. Smith about the situation. As soon as he had finished with his patient he was at my bedside. He seemed very concerned and perplexed. He very rarely has a patient that doesn’t go right by the book. I was his second patient to do this. So to correct the issue, they gave me Versed. Love versed! Took me back to the OR where the C-arm x-ray was. They took another x-ray and it appeared that I might of had a muscle spasm to dislocate the hip. I was very loopy but I remember the Dr. manipulating my leg and I felt a pop. Everything felt fine now. After another x-ray I was returned to my “room” where I stayed until I was discharged. The staff at Oro Valley was awesome. Very friendly. Very caring. Nancy says that the staff and even the administration was concerned about her feelings and what was going on with me. One manager came out of her office and talked to her in the recovery area. The Mgr. wanted to make sure Nancy was okay. Being the battle hardened ED nurse, it was no big deal and she expected me to pull some kind of stunt. I’m known for it.
I got into the truck without much of an issue. I just needed Nancy to maneuver my left leg into the cab. Quiet ride home. I was starving. We arrived home around 7:30PM. I got out of the truck and climbed the 4 steps into the RV. And into my recliner I went. This is my bed for the next few days or so. Nancy decided to sleep in the living room with me also. She opted for the fold-out couch. But in the morning, she regretted not having slept in the recliner, next to me.
November 9, 2022
One request Nancy had was to be able to move into the host site before my surgery. We were told that it was going to be a long shot if it did. However, Michael pushed everything and got us into the site before the surgery. The plumbing and electric were finished up yesterday. A quick check with Michael and we are good to move to our host site today. It is definitely going to be a tricky maneuver to back a 42’ RV in between two trees without a lot of front space to maneuver. A couple of other work campers came over to help spot and guide us. After about 2 hours I decided enough was enough. Even after various tree limbs and branches were cut out of the way I did not feel we could make it. At some point I had contacted a small tree branch and ripped a few feet of roofing off of the side of the RV. Nothing major, but frustrating. We finally go out of our chosen site and went for the easier back in site. We finally got set up by around 3:00PM. A long and frustrating day. Tomorrow is surgery.
November 5, 2022
This afternoon there is a free concert on the patio. Just bring a tip and a chair. The concert is open to all in the campground as well as anyone in the community. This will be our first show of the winter season. The band is Black Hole, They are a blues rock band. They didn’t disappoint. For a three piece band they were great. Nancy was not as impressed with the band as I was. I believe they will be back sometime. This is one unique feature of the Lakes at St. David, they are a music venue. They are even building a stage in front of one of the two lakes. Can’t wait to see it finished.
November 4, 2022
Tonight we played cards with some new friends, Sally and Ron. They have lived in Ohio and Ron actually lived in Carmel, IN for a few years. He was there a few years after I had left but we definitely know some of the same places. We had a great time playing Euchre and some great conversation. Looking forward to many more nights of friendship. They also know several of the games we just learned so we should have lots of fun.
November 3, 2022
Today we decided to go to a one dealer RV Show. It was being held at the Pima County Fairgrounds just on the south side of Tucson. The dealer is La Mesa RV, the largest RV dealer in the area with several locations. We didn’t stay very long. The nice thing was it was free with free parking. We looked a few different models but did not see anything that was totally outstanding. Nancy was satisfied that the quality of our cabinets as compared to ones in the $500,000 Class As.
A really interesting event occurred on our way to the RV show. We were headed west on Interstate 10. I was several car lengths from a vehicle and we were both in the left lane. I try to always have awareness of traffic behind me and besides me. That practice paid off today. The speed limit is 75 m.p.h. I was running at 80 m.p.h. when the vehicle in front of me suddenly veered into the right lane. I had to do the same. The reason? This is very cool. I had to avoid hitting a tumbleweed. Yes, a tumbleweed. Apparently out here it is not uncommon. Tumbleweeds are large and have lots of stickers. Maybe the next time we can get a picture.
November 2, 2022
First thing this morning we had to head to Tucson. We rearranged my lab work appointment from tomorrow to today, before my pre-op doctor appointment. This actually freed up tomorrow and since rain is forecast we decided that we would work Friday instead. While I was in my pre-op, Nancy met with someone who was selling a wheeled walker. I need one for a week or two after my surgery. She picked me up and we made a few stops for supplies and home we went.
There was an open invitation on the Facebook page, Friends of the Lakes at St. David, for a Jam Session at site 171. We thought what the heck. It would be a good way to meet people in the park and just relax. We went and glad we did. Had a great time and met some great people. If the music tonight is any indication, it’s going to be a great winter.
October 26, 2022
Today is not a work day but a doctor appointment day for me. Since August in South Dakota, we have been reasonably sure that I will need a hip replacement. The pain and lack of mobility has increased since the beginning. I got a few x-rays. The PA, Tim, came in and said that there was no other testing needed. It is conclusive. I need a new hip. The Doctor, Jordan Smith, came in and said the same thing. I need a new hip. The next question is when would you like it? Yesterday. Since that is not an option, they checked possible dates. They had two. November 10 and December 12. There is no way I am going to have surgery on my birthday, so November 10 it is. I am now scheduled to have a pre-op meeting with Tim on November 2, blood work and urine test (I’m going to study hard for that!) on November 3 and surgery on November 10.
Dr. Smith asked me a bunch of health questions and determined that I was tough and in good health, so he would do the surgery outpatient. Nancy did a lot of research to even select this doctor. He is known for his hip replacements. He does an anterior replacement to lessen the chance of post op hip dislocation. His office is located just blocks away from Arizona University, School of Medicine. Apparently Arizona is a noted orthopedic area. The expected recovery time is 2 to 4 weeks. Mine will be closer to 4 weeks as I can not take NSAIDS, which reduces inflammation. I am so ready to get this done. It would be great to be able to walk at a normal gate for a change. I know most of you were unaware of this situation. Everyone has their own burden(s) to bear. Compare to most, this is minor. Besides, we knew that this was a probability when we left NC. It was a matter of time.
We decided that we were leaving on the trip and if it happened sooner then so be it. Actually recovering in an RV might be a little easier as we do not have large open spaces like in a house. More items closer to steady myself. The best post op exercise will be walking. No formal PT. Fortunately our RV is large enough that I have room to maneuver a walker in. We did find a like new walker on Craigslist that we will pick up Wednesday when we go to Tucson.
October 25, 2022
Today’s jobs included continued work on the night sites. Once we finished with the sites, we were assigned to clean out the pool house. Sometime in the next couple of weeks, new pool and hot tub equipment will be installed. The sites are ready for dirt, gravel, and leveling. They still need electric and plumbing to be finished before we can move in.
October 24, 2022
Today is our first day of work. Michael ( General Manager) met with us at 10:00AM at our place. We talked for about 2 hours to find our what we are expected to due until December 1. The reality is that we spent more time connecting on an emergency responder/medical level than actual work information. Michael was a Corpsman in the Navy. December 1 is the “soft open” date. Our job is night host. For the rest of today we started cleaning up the night hosts sites. Raking and cutting and moving some debris. We also took measurements to see which site we would fit in the best. Our work schedule is Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. At least until December. Then we will work 4 evenings on and 4 evenings off.