Home Sweet Home!!!!!

Sunday, January 15, 2012   WE ARE HOME!!!!!   After months of being away - Gainesville, Atlanta, Tampa - Gary was discharged from the VA hospital in Tampa....on Friday the 13th and sent home. Given my run of luck we didn't relax and feel really safe at home until THAT DATE was over. BUT we are here safe and sound and beginning to settle in. I can't explain Gary's joy at being in his own home. He is thrilled. We are making some modifications to the house as quickly as possible so that Gary can efficiently move around and accomplish Activities of Daily Life - ADL for short.   The list of Angels is GIGANTIC in this blob! We are so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people.   Our good friend Jay came over to help and will be laying a new bedroom floor for Gary on the first floor. While he was here Jay kept finding "little" thing to do to help us out, what a champ! Nate, Hali's significant other has been helping while we were away and had some of his "guys/friends" build a ramp, level out thresholds and enlarge doorways for the wheelchair. What a great job they did...we are ever so grateful to them all!     Anyway, I owe a HUMONGOUS thank you to Josh for putting on a fundraiser for Gary and me last Saturday evening. The dance was a terrific success. Words cannot express how wonderful it was to see so many friends willing to give of themselves to help us. Again it is hard to put into words how deeply we are touched. I was grateful to EVERYONE who showed up or sent donations, but a special thanks goes to: Josh for doing so much great work, getting the word out...and doing his usual blend of funky, interesting and talented publicity!! Sabrina who hasn't had a day off in months for taking the time to drive most of the way cross the state and share her love for and knowledge of dance with us. She is a very giving and special friend! Thanks to the GREAT DJs for donating their time - Earl and Bruce who both drove in from Jacksonville. I love dancing with both men! Their music was terrific!  Usually I don't get to dance much with Earl - because he is always busy with the music, but when I do he is so much fun...and Bruce and I have always have a great time! We have danced together for years and it feels like a new experience each time.Thank you both. I am also grateful to Chad for sharing his sound system and the great dances. And I forgot to mention that Chad came to our house TWICE! to install wireless internet - what a good friend. We are thankful that Sweetheart Swing organizers Sandy Chase and Phil Dorroll donated a free pass to that event, how thoughtful! we are grateful to the generous pros who donated private lessons to the raffle; Stephen White, Demery Strickland, Patti Jobst, Danielle Blouin and Sabrina Paxmann!! WOW!  And last but certainly not least Thank you to all the people who came and supported us. The event raised over $3000 for us, what a gift! We are still not totally sure what we will do - Gary has his eye on 2 different types of vehicles - a road chair (sort of like a manual ATV - if you can picture that) to cruise around the yard...or an exercise bike that cranks with hand pedals. Both options are possible and Gary is excited about both...so thank you to everyone who participated on our behalf. What a gift your friendship has been.   Anyway, as our life begins to return to a more normal pace we hope that we will be able to see all of our friends. Thank you all so much for hanging in there with us.   Judi and Gary

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year!

So sorry this is the first Blob entry in awhile. We have been quite busy ...as I am sure you all have been also.

We moved Gary to the Veteran's Hospital in Tampa right before Christmas Day. He seems to be doing well there and has basically told me to go home and leave him alone for awhile. (He means that in a good way.... He needs to concentrate on rehab and I have to catch up on stuff at home.)

Anyway, here is some great news: Gary came home for a visit and spent New Year's weekend at home - even though both of us were snoring and drooling well before midnight on New Year's Eve. It was wonderful to see him with the dogs. They all slept in bed with him his first night back!! We found that our home will accomodate his wheelchair without HUGE modifications. That was a relief to both of us. The VA will also help him financially so that is another bit of good news.

Gary is feeling better. He still has the neuropathic pain across his chest which will likely not go away because those nerves have been severely damaged. Most of the other medical complications are improving. New to the list of problems are leg spasms.  Apparently these are common with this type of injury, but they are unpredictable and can be powerful. The result of these are that sometimes he can't get his legs to go where he wants them to and sometimes they go on their own where he doesn't want them to.  (Kind of like me following Gary while dancing 2Step.)

Gary is becoming more independent at many activities. He is continuing to improve at dressing himself, showering and transferring himself in and out of his wheelchair. He wanted to try and get on the lawnmower when he was home, but the hardest part of our home is negotiating the yard and he couldn't get to the lawnmower. We will probably have to make some concrete paths around the entire place eventually.

In Gary's words the home visit was "bittersweet". He was so happy to be home, but it reminded him of what he is no longer able to do. Everywhere there are reminders of his active lifestyle. Consequently I will probably be selling the sailboat, windsurfing equipment and the kiteboarding CRAP...which I can't even look at without some cringing spasms of my own. Along those lines, Gary has asked me to take his dance shoes and boots to a dance this weekend. The dance is a fundraiser that Josh Angel and Sabrina Paxmann are so kindly hosting on Gary's behalf Saturday, January 7. Gary wants me to give his shoes away to anyone who wants them. I think most of them are size 9 - 10. I will be at the dance, but Gary will not.

Anyway, Happy New Year to you all.  Very selfishly I am hoping that 2012 will be a better one than 2011 for my loved ones and me!

Ongoing Treatment in Tampa

Dec 26

Well it is about time I finally wrote in this "Blob" as I mistakenly once typed it to Hali. With all of the confidence that kids these days think their parents know about texting, blogging, Facebook, etc. Hali actually thought that I really thought that was what it is called. So since then I have called this the Blob.

Anyway, I hope everyone is having a good holiday season. Gary and I have been so busy as I am sure you all are.

Here is what is going on now:

We packed up and left the Shepherd Center after several months of wonderful experiences there on Wednesday, Dec. 21 and drove to Tampa. The highlights of this trip were Gary getting in and out of the car with minimal help from me and me dismantling and "mantling?" the wheelchair to get it in and out of the car. I can't say it was smoothly done but we got to Tampa by ourselves!!! I have to say that I was much closer to a parking lot faceplant or meltdown than Gary was.

We checked into the Tampa VA on Thurs Dec 22 and Gary has been very pleased with the care he has gotten.

Eventually we should move into "self care" where he will stay outside of the hospital and I will be there with him. In the meantime, I have been able to stay with my good friends Danielle and Mike (and Brandi) in Tampa. Danielle and I had alot of good laughs...and a few good crys which was cathartic for me.

My dad and his wife Dorothy visited and were very pleased with how Gary looked and Gary was pleased with how my dad looked. Both men are getting stronger all the time (Dad having survived 3 different types of cancer at 89 was on his way to a Christmas cruise). 

Gary is becoming more independent and his spirits are still positive. Gary sent me home to spend time with the family...I hated to leave him but I know he is trying to watch out for my feelings and my stamina as well. Why else would he call me from the VA cafeteria (where he was having lunch with Santa Claus) to quote a statistic that spouses of paraplegics usually only stick it out for 2-3 years? (Wimpy, wimpy, wimpy.)

Then on Christmas Day Gary was visited by our good friends Randy and Susi. That was wonderful for him!

We believe that Gary will be at the VA for several months for continuing therapy and follow up. Alot of what they plan to do with him will take time to develop strength and skill. However it appears that I will be able to bring him home once in awhile for a visit. The rehab schedule seems to be quite aggressive. Alot of the patients in the Spinal Cord program are young military - recently wounded in combat and they are highly motivated. Gary's therapist challenged him to try to keep up with the young guys. As they were explaining to him the opportunities for sports competition one younger vet told Gary he would be eligible for the "Golden Games" HAHA!!

Ok, that's enough for now. Both Gary and I send our best wishes to you all,

Judi and Gary