Ardith Hinton wrote to James Bradley, "Time Passes, and..." on
08-31-05 23:04

 AH> Hi, James!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

 JB>  I just visited with the God-Mother. She seems to be MUCH
 JB>  better than the last time I saw her. $600 of annuals alone
 JB>  in this year, and she scaled back. Quite a girl! What a
 JB>  bunch of laughs too.

 AH>           Sounds like a kindred spirit, all right....  :-)

But the God-Father isn't doing so well. Like sands through the
hourglass, and all that... /-:


 AH>  and you are able to apply some of the insights your
 AH>  sister has gained from Pilates....  :-)

 JB>  Shoot... Just what I didn't need.... 


 AH>           You found the exercise ball helpful, didn't you?  Your sister

Oh, YA!!!

 AH> may be upset that you're not using it quite the way it was
 AH> designed to be used and/or you may have heard more than you
 AH> ever really wanted to know about Pilates, but you're able
 AH> to problem-solve with the resources available... I consider

It's not like I don't use it as designed, but as an air-bag suspension
- I'm sure the designers only had that idea as a passing thought.

 AH> that a very important survival skill!  I'll take a good
 AH> idea from anywhere & adapt it to suit our needs as well.
 AH> Nobody has asked us why we've hung a fuzzy key fob on the
 AH> light switch in our bathroom, but there's another example... [chuckle].

"Fuzzy key fob?"
 A) What is it.
 B) What's it doing in your bathroom, let alone on your light switch?

Don't get me wrong. Palate is/was a smart cookie! Sharp as a whip,
well researched, and solid in execution. (Windsor - the sister tells
me - aint so.) While waiting for a light, or on long stretches, I'll
catch myself using the thing as designed. Likely, I just need to
adjust my posture to give the tail-bone a break, but I do find myself
continuing to shift the weight as the instructions explain.

 JB>  I think the nerves are exactly the same but different.
 JB>  THIS is what I think of the half-full/half-empty scenario.
 JB>  I too cut the end of a finger pad clear off. The same
 JB>  tingling you speak of was there, and a few numb sensations
 JB>  bracketing the over-activity.


 AH>           Numbness *and* tingling... yes, that's what I had!  I know it
 AH> sounds weird to have both together, but you obviously
 AH> understand what I mean....  :-)

The explanation I remember, is that the nerves are in the process of
finding their new termination point. As there is no nerve in a place
there used to be - that's the numb part. Because the nerve is either
becoming used to it's new finale, and desperately attempting to become
what it used to be - that's the tingly.

In short, yes. I know exactly what you mean. 

 JB>  For my hip, we are now treating it successfully by
 JB>  addressing how the brain is responding to those
 JB>  sensations.


 AH>           Makes sense to me.  That's more or less what we've been trying
 AH> to do too, I guess.  Initially I considered Nora's recovery a
 AH> matter of re-educating the brain... teaching it how to
 AH> interpret the signals from the nerves & how to recognize
 AH> the instructions other parts of the body needed to reproduce various
 AH> motions.
 AH>  Later it became increasingly evident that Nora's
 AH> physiotherapist was the sort of person who enjoys new
 AH> projects, but prefers to leave the long-term followup to
 AH> others.  Recently we consulted a neurophysiotherapist we
 AH> had heard about.  She says the connections are in place now
 AH> & the next order of business is to develop the weaker
 AH> muscles.  We're much cheered by this news although we still
 AH> have a lot of work ahead!  Like you, we're trying to work
 AH> smart....  :-)

What... There's an option? 


 JB>  I think I mentioned how astonished I was at a lack of
 JB>  measuring equipment for my case. There's talk about a
 JB>  conduction test, but even a CAT scan will miss a nerve.


 AH>           I suspect we're in much the same position.  The absence of
 AH> objective scientific measurements does make the task more
 AH> difficult sometimes, but I can relate to what the
 AH> neurophysiotherapist has been doing because it's similar to
 AH> what I did in Learning Assistance.  When one particular kid
 AH> saw the word "hen" in a book and said "chicken", for
 AH> example, I didn't need a CAT scan to tell me he was
 AH> thinking in Chinese!  There are ways to figure out how a
 AH> person's brain is responding without extensive medical
 AH> testing.  And while they may seem like black arts, they may
 AH> yield more practical information in the long run....  :-)

I guess we grew up in an age, where the medical profession was
purported to be the panacea to all knowledge. When there's an "I don'
know." the illusion disappears.

 AH>  And now you'll probably find little old ladies taking
 AH>  an interest in you who hadn't noticed you before...
 AH>  that's what I found when I was using a cane for awhile.
 AH>  Older men would stop me on the street to ask for directions
 AH>  & whatnot.  I found it amusing, but rather flattering...

 JB>  Ardith???

 JB>  They're just smart enough to know you know the shortcuts. 


 AH>           Phooey!  I was hoping they'd noticed other attributes too....
 AH> ;-)))

L!!! You have many attributes to which I can attest to.

As for me, I can catch a glance of someone (Yes, male *and* female.)
sneaking a peek, and body language turns off when they see the stick,
or watch my Ozzy Osbourn shuffle.

On the upside, my former-favourite grocery store just renovated. Now,
they force me to walk through the entire store, before I can open the
milk cooler. Now, I have developed a shuffle that seems to make great
time, but will be murder on the right shoe's toe. 

I put most of my weight on a cart, and swing my left foot like usual,
but the right one follows in a bit of a trot, then the toe has to drag
to catch up for the next pace.

My last time into the store, I saw two hard-hat wearers outside, that
didn't have a speck of dust on them. I pointed to the stick, and
voiced my complaint about the distance I had to travel to get my milk,
where the business-casual, paused his conversation with his
contractor-general to laugh, and say "It's all a part of a plan."

"Next time I need milk, I'm going to call you to go fetch it."

I think they both realized it wasn't that funny at that point.

Just because they have one more handicapped stall in their parking lot
than is mandated, they think they are the best citizens to walk the
earth? 

A) I broached the subject as a good humoured yuck.
B) I asked how dare they laugh.
C) Good thing I don't get to "C" too often.



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