Lew's Logbook: New Hearing Aids

(Welcome to a special Sunday edition of "Lew's Logbook." Enjoy! ~ Tracy)

Hearing aid saga update:

Tracy and I went to Togus last Thursday to pick up my hearing aids. The audiologist could not have been nicer or more helpful.

There is a little bit to know regarding the care and maintenance of these devices, but the VA supplies all of the replacement items needed, free of charge. After that explanation there was a tune up process which adjusts the aids to the way I hear. Our brain plays a much larger role in the hearing process than I realized.

The devices that I picked are Bluetooth compatible…”there’s an app for that.” I can adjust levels and pick settings from my phone. I can even stream music but I doubt that I will ever do that.

Also, they are rechargeable. At night I just drop them in a tray and they recharge overnight. A charge lasts for about 16 hours. I wore them for 14 hours yesterday and there was still about 40% left on the charge.

Now, how am I hearing? Very well! I’m hearing things that I have not heard in a very long time: birds chirping, rain hitting the windshield of my car, keys jingling, squeaky floors, and Tracy when she talks to me from another room. 😉

The audiologist tells me that it may take as long as six months to totally adjust, but after only three days I’m very impressed with my new level of hearing. Feeling blessed. To all of Tracy’s blog readers (who pay taxes), I thank you.

Road Trip to MMA

Lew and I rode up to Maine Maritime Academy with Debbie and Glen today. We went to Josh’s football game then ate a late lunch with him before heading home.

The outcome of the game wasn’t what we were hoping for, but at least the weather was beautiful. And, of course, the best part of today was spending time with Debbie, Glen, and Josh.

It was a day to remember... yes, a really great day!

Can You Hear Me Now?

Lew and I went to Augusta to pick up his hearing aids today!

Good!

😊

Dad 429: 107 and Counting

("Poodle pet!" Confused? See last Wednesday's intro. Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! After yesterday's fall day we enjoyed perhaps the last full day of summer today. We'll see over the next few days.

 

I must admit that our lawn is as green as I have ever seen it this time of year. It is ready to be mowed. It will get done in the next few days. And then maybe one or two more times this fall.

 

Well, I just watched a makeup game as part of a day-night doubleheader. It wasn't much of a game as the Red Sox won their 107th game of the year. Score was 19-3. Now I wait for the night game to see if they can continue to a new high of wins. Should happen as Baltimore has the worst record in baseball. Just three games left in the regulation season. Of course they are with the Yankees. GO SOX!

 

Spouse continues to rehab at her own pace. Some days are better than others. Must still get rid of some phantom pain that remains in the missing limb. Please go away, pain. Prayers are still welcome.

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

The Heat is On

Lew told me tonight that he turned the heat up in our house today. It was the first time this season that we've done that. (Today was the fourth day we ran the space heater in our office at work.)

How I feel about the temperature change:

😭

The above emoji is called "loudly crying face." Yep.... That describes how I feel pretty well.

Sports Roundup

Dad mentioned last Wednesday that he hoped the Red Sox would clinch the division that night. If I remember correctly, they didn't clinch until Thursday. But they did indeed win their division. Hooray!

Zack's football game was streamed on Friday night. Lew and I watched over on my parents' side of the house. Zack's team won easily.... Easily!

Josh's football team was not as fortunate, but they did play their best game of the season so far. Keep it up, Mariners!

Lew was excited yesterday because Tiger Woods won a golf tournament. Lew had me come downstairs to watch Tiger's final putt (although it was a foregone conclusion he would win). We are happy for Tiger.

We haven't been watching the NFL at all, but I hear the Patriots lost last night. Is that two losses in a row? I think so. But it doesn't really matter to me. I'm not watching.

And there you have it: my sports report. Take that, ESPN! Ha ha!

Lew's Logbook: Nothing to Report

(Lew writes tonight. And I definitely understand his sentiments, as the last post I personally wrote was four days ago. Thanks for taking one for the team, Lew! ~ Tracy)

In an episode of Seinfeld, Kramer wrote a coffee table book about coffee tables. Well, this is a blog about writing a blog. Tracy asked me to do my “guest” appearance for her blog tonight and I really couldn’t come up with anything interesting.

That got me to thinking that I must lead a very boring life…but that is not true.  I am never bored (except when I am clothes shopping with Tracy).

Each time I am asked to write a blog post I go over the events of the week in my mind to determine if I did or saw something interesting. Usually the week was pretty standard. But standard is good. I didn’t win the Megabucks (hard to win when you don’t play) but there were not disasters either.

So the upshot of my week is that I have nothing to report but all is well.

One item of note, I pick up my hearing aids on Thursday. That should give me something to write about next week.  😉

(P.S. from Tracy: I guess it's good that I don't do too much clothes shopping!)

Dad 428: Less of a Pain in the Arm

("Toodle Pip!" was "Poodle poop!" last week. Today it was "Total hip!" Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! The day is not too sunny and has temperatures in the 60s. A severe change from the mid-80s we had a few days ago. But it will be officially fall before I blog again. And what follows fall? Winter!

 

Spouse mentioned today that she believes her phantom pain (felt in her missing arm) is lessening. It was well worth hearing. Hoping for the complete non-pain in her missing arm.

 

Guess it is about time to move the fans out to the garage. Take the AC out. At least think about what weather will be here shortly.

 

So fortunate to live here where we do not get the violent weather as the Carolinas just received. Thanks!

 

Hope to announce tonight: the Red Sox win their division. It is a foregone conclusion, but it will be great to complete the task. GO RED SOX!

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

The Foot Race

I've been wanting to write this particular post since the night of our big family cookout. (See my earlier post titled Happy Family Photo Night.)

After we had all eaten dinner that night, Eli challenged my sister Kim to a foot race. I believe Eli told Kim that he would beat her, so the stage was set for a real showdown. (Later on I heard that Kim and Eli had some secret plot that other people had to race Eli if he was able to beat Kim. But my recollection of how that went down is a bit sketchy....)

The parameters were to run across the lawn, go around the tree, and run back to the starting point.

Kim did some floppy thing with her arms and basically ran in slow-motion partway across the lawn and back. (There was no tree involved.)

Eli won.

This led to a race with Glen. If I remember correctly, Glen threw his race and allowed Eli to win again.

(You do know where this is going, right....?)

"Tia, will you race me?" I couldn't decline such a request, but I told Eli that I was really going to try and beat him.

I ran my hardest. I really did. I even cheated by not circling the tree. And I still lost.

My excuse was that I was running barefoot, so I had to be careful not to slip on the grass and fall. (I could hear Kim yelling at me to be careful.) But I'm still not sure I could have beaten Eli. A 55-year-old woman is no match for a boy of six-and-a-half (almost seven).

By the way, Josh and Zachariah were able to beat Eli. Zack would have won his race, too, had they finished; Zack decided to tackle Eli instead.

Even though I lost fair and square, I'm still glad that I raced Eli.

And as for my left foot, it took only three weeks to recover.

I Believe It!

I am still on a bit of a "concert high" from seeing the Gaither Vocal Band yesterday.

Although all of the songs were absolutely wonderful, I do believe one stands out as the most memorable.

Want to hear it?

Put this into Google: chain breaker gaither vocal band. Then watch on YouTube.

Testify!

A Sunday Treat

I usually don’t post on Sundays, but I wanted to note the wonderful afternoon Lew and I spent with our friend Trista today. The three of us went to a fabulous, inspirational concert at Merrill Auditorium in Portland....

The Gaither Vocal Band!

I Bought It... When I Saw It...

The locals may recognize the catchy jingle I used for this post’s title, although I have presented a slight variation of it.

Lew and I went shopping at Marden’s tonight because I wanted to find some inexpensive pants/jeans/slacks. I ended up buying four pairs at $9.99 each (plus tax). Even the cashier was amazed at the good deals I found, and she works there!

The jingle in Marden’s ads laments, “I should have bought it... when I saw it... at Marden’s.” 

I am pleased to report I have no such regrets.

Dad 427: A Pain in the Arm

(When I dictated "Toodle Pip!" into my iPad, it came back as "Poodle poop!" Ha ha ha ha ha! Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Another cloudy day here in the Northeast. Hoping and praying that Hurricane Florence will not hit the East Coast as strong as it appears it will. Hope all people follow the evacuation rules.

 

Tomorrow is another day which will see us at the hairdresser. This will be the first time Spouse and I will be there without Tracy. She set us up with Ron and we went the first two times with Tracy. Tomorrow we solo!

 

The loss of Spouse's arm is three weeks tomorrow. Spouse still has pain in the area of the operation as well as some phantom pain in the missing arm.

 

Spouse also misses our niece Gina who spent some days with us. Gina and Spouse had their own talks and enjoyed each other. Thanks for coming, Gina!

 

Keep your thoughts and prayers for Spouse as she will be recovering from her operation for a few more weeks. Thanks.

 

That's all folks!

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Sweet Land of Liberty

God Bless America!

A Sign of the Season

Get your flu shot today!

Although I didn’t see the sign at first, I must have subconsciously known it was there.... I found myself turning into my pharmacy as I was driving to work this morning.

Yep, got my flu shot. 

Dad got his shot last week, and Mom got hers today. Now if Lew would get his shot, our household would be four for four. (Hint, hint.)

Everybody should get their flu shot! It’s preferable to getting the flu.

Lew's Logbook: Hearing Aids On the Way

(Lew writes today. I'm so happy about his good news! ~ Tracy)

Bad news, good news.

The bad news happened about 18 months ago when I was rejected by the VA health system. The reason for the rejection was not clearly stated but it seemed to be about our financials. This did not make sense to me because everything that I had heard about the system told me that Viet Nam combat vets were automatically qualified.

The reason I wanted to enroll was to get hearing aids. I was told that once enrolled I could go through a process which could result in receiving hearing aids paid for by the VA, a $6,000 - $7,000 value.

Good news. Long story short, my son runs into an American Legion officer, and tells him that I was having trouble enrolling. This gentleman knows a guy who deals with VA claims and calls him and that started the ball rolling. There was a review of my original application and it was discovered that I should never have been rejected. I received a call and several apologies for the error. 

I told the person from the health office that my hearing is bad and I was hoping to get hearing aids through the VA. Once they confirmed I was a combat veteran they set me up with the audiology department in Togus, Maine’s VA Hospital.

Tracy and I went to my appointment last Thursday. My hearing was tested and hearing aids were ordered…just like that. I never filled out another document or had to see any other medical professional. It seems that they were trying to make up for their error and cut all the red tape.  

Admittedly I was discouraged at first, but it seems that my bad news turned into very good news that was slightly delayed. My son says it was God who led him to meet the Legion officer that day. I’m very glad that he thinks that. I think so, too.

Friday Night Football

Nephew Zack is a senior in high school this year. He was named as one of the captains of the football team. Congratulations, Zack!

Lew and I went to Zack’s football game tonight. It was a win! Score of 46-7. Congratulations, Zack!

Here are some photos from tonight. Zack is #76... I hope you can spot him in the first photo! Ha ha!

Safe Travels, Gina!

My cousin Gina heads back to Pennsylvania in the morning. We have all enjoyed her visit, and we will be sad to see her go. She will have to come again — that's all there is to it!

Mom, Gina, and me.

Dad 426: No More Staples, No More Socks

(A very welcome "farewell" to the evil stockings! Enjoy Dad's post!  ~  Tracy)

Derf Here! Another great summer day was enjoyed by all today in Maine.

We had an appointment for Spouse today with the surgeon. Gina, Spouse, and I made the short trip. Melanie removed the remaining staples and put alcohol and tape strips over the scar. The professionals were very happy with their work. It looks great.

Spouse can now take off the long white (tight) socks. This makes her happy. Now all we have to do is quiet the pain down. It has been a great day.

Will see our primary doctor Friday.

Enough for today.

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

After the Yard Sale

We survived the yard sale! Everything we didn’t sell has been taken to Goodwill or the dump. We had a really fun time hanging out with our friends for a couple days, but we are all glad the yard sale is over.

Yesterday was Labor Day. Jerry had the right idea about how to celebrate during the heat wave we were experiencing. He’s a smart kitty!

Yard Sale Weekend

We had so much fun during our Memorial Day weekend yard sale, we are having a Labor Day weekend sale!

Our friends brought over several truck loads of stuff. And, of course, Lew and I had stuff from our massive decluttering project.

Today was a success, and we’ll wrap up the sale tomorrow. Everything must go!

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!