Excuse my language but hot damn we made it to 40… the age I was just before being diagnosed and then things came crashing down around me. I pray none of you ever have to experience what I have… and if you have I truly hope things worked out for you! Because dang this is hard. Well on with it I guess.
We’re going to go out of order today and starting with the bad… so if you don’t wanna hear it skim down towards the bottom. I’ll start the good section with the health update, so start reading there if you don’t want to hear my whining 🙂
Well, worst case scenario happened. A major system in the trailer failed at a critical time in the year. NOT ONLY is the “Energy Assistance” for my propane running late, so no propane for heat very soon. The darn propane heater in the trailer went tail up and died yesterday. Lucky I had already fixed the system twice myself, so I mostly know the system. Previously, on the control board, I had to solder a couple points and glue a connector to make it work in the first place… So it needs replaced regardless if it’s bad or not because it could be intermittent or damaging my system with improper operation. That’s not cheap… $180, but I had an old friend from my home town contact me. He lived on my street. I can’t say we didn’t squabble from time to time but he was one of the Reed Street crew for sure. He offered to purchase me a new control board/module, of which I can install myself. That was just beyond amazing. More about our chat down in the good section, let’s finish this negative stuff first. Here’s the problem, it could most likely be one of two things, the control board which is easy to swap out. Or it could be the high limit switch which would require a repair person. The RV place is OPEN so I’m heading down to there after my first appointment. Going to have them first test my current board. Then most likely get a replacement. The gentleman at the RV place said the OEM boards kinds sucked and he had some much nicer ones. He also offered to give me some money off the control board! So bad bad bad with a double win? Let’s just hope it’s the board because the high limit would be just as costly I’d assume for a “home” visit. It’s also a real pain to swap out, I did look it up. So I’ll keep you updated!
In the mean time I got some Heat Storm heaters… let me tell you these things are bad a$$. I looked up the price, not cheap but not horrible. About $130 on Amazon right now. I had 2 large units and a small generic units last year when the furnace died until I found the reset switch. They could barely keep it 15 degrees (give or take) above outside temps. Two Heat Storm heaters kept my RV warm all night at a comfy 62 degrees. I was jaw on the floor. I’ve never seen such a small, thin, made to be mounted to the wall! space heater that worked so well! I don’t know the quality as in life span but these tiny little trailer safe guys are work horses. When it got real cold, got these plugged in and bam. Temp started to go up almost immediately! AND they are WiFi enabled so you can turn them on/off from anywhere, monitor the current temp and change settings as well! So if you need a space heater you should definitely try Storm Heaters out!
So there you have it… something bad happened and I totally tail spun down to the ground crashing. It use to be worse so the positive take away is that is wasn’t worse. I recovered quick. The generosity of others, ALL OF YOU!, is probably what helped the most. With a close second by good conversation. So this is why I’m having my meds reviewed by two different specialists. I’m also getting mental health assistance but more about that in the medical section next. So yeah bad but good things came. I woke up kinda chilly for me, Parkinson’s + cold = bad. Hard on the already struggling body, hands specifically. BUT… felt positive about the day! Ok! now for some good!
So medical update. I saw my new neurologist. She’s WONDERFUL! She explained more in one short visit than my two previous neuros did ever! So that was great. She made some small changes to my meds and those should fully go into play this week or next. I’m also having my medication regime checked by another specialist to hopefully get on a much better track. I won’t know for a bit if the changes worked or not so I’ll keep you updated! I also decided to finally seek out further mental health assistance. I’ve went through a lot of traumatic experiences and I think this will help greatly. Even if not, everything is worth trying right!?!?! Well, maybe not EVERYTHING…
So a friend from back home and I had a great conversation last night. He really helped to easy my anxiety some how just by talking a bit. He was not the only friend who reached out, but he did spend a long time chatting. Other friends also reached out offering assistance and conversation which was also extremely wonderful. That helped more than I knew at the time. Last night I went to sleep with hope and that was fantastic! The friend from my hometown street offered to purchase a new control module after a bit of conversation and there I was again in tears. I know my requests are not frivolous and I know people give because they want to. It’s still very hard to continue to accept help. I’ve said it time and time again. I’m so humbled by this entire experience. I have a new view of life. It’s like I’m now on the outside looking in and have grown for the better as a person. That deserves it’s own whole blog so we’ll get back to that… At this point wish me luck with the control panel!
Other then that just been testing and printing. Also printing Snailiens and now Xenachu. See videos on my Facebook timeline, pics coming soon to the website! facebook.com/dropkag … I’ve sold 4 Snailiens and I don’t expect Xenachu to last long once painted because even I love this thing! I’ve also got many other 3D models I’ll be printing and painting. I’m just randomly trying things right now. I am open to commissions for digital art and design, vinyl decals (single, low, medium size runs) and now 3D printing services!
At that I’m gonna call it good. My hands are already tired and I need to PAINT! so much fun. I love painting and now printing! As always if you’re not already on dropKAG.com, check out my website for an easier way to follow my journey though life with Parkinson’s, shop art and learn all the ways you can further support me!
Stay safe and WARM my friend. MUCH LOVE TO YOU ALL!
PS… If my Amazon list link isn’t working for you please message or email me ken@dropKAG.com. They seem to have problems from time to time…