Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967

Uh... I think I'd rather walk. Hardpan Homey don't do heights!

Hell, in these parts they lock up deodorant and toothpaste. One of our supermarket chains even blocks off the toiletries aisle after eight or nine o'clock.

I ain't sayin' where, but....

There were a couple of omissions... favored hangouts for Kappa Phi Delta men "back in the day."

That's a bummer. He was a character, but made mostly fun music! Mostly... "Que Sera Sera" back in '73 wasn't one of their funnest, but it did lead to rumors of Sly and Doris Day being an "item." Uh... no. Great memories of heading out deer hunting in Otto, my '73 Super Beetle, Woody the Wonder Dog in the back seat, a buddy riding shotgun, and Sly And the Family Stone blaring out of the Blaupunkt. Funky stuff!

Sooo... I packaged up the 55" TCI ROKU TV. Bought it about three weeks ago when the last one died at two years of age. (This time I bought the 'extended warranty!') Anyway, the old dead set worked well until it didn't; crisp, bright picture. The replacement I bought three weeks ago was terrible! Picture was dark and picture quality horrid - fresh, broadcast programs had the appearance of soap operas fifty or more years ago. So, finally I boxed it up and with dread hauled it back to Wally World. Surprisingly painless! The actual return and credit took about five minutes ~ ten minutes later I was checking out with a new replacement. Had to argue with two young worker fellas that no, the old man really does not need help hauling it out and loading it in his truck. For some reason, off in the distance I kept hearing the Twilight Zone theme....

Well... you certainly were a race car driver at the time you were driving the race car. Simple grammar!

Here, too. Much louder than the tinkling of the "domestic" trucks. I've wondered what fares they sell... somehow I suspect not the orange sherbet "Push-Ups," Fudgesicles, Drumsticks, Eskimo Pies* and Popsicles I remember from my youth ~ when my teenaged Uncle Joe was the neighborhood Ice Cream Man. *Still available, but now called "Edy's Pies;" the name was changed in 2020 'cuz some folks were offended by "Eskimo."

I avoid it when possible; there are some things, though, that warrant a trip in - motor oil and such is significantly less than at the local auto stores. And I did buy a TV there about three weeks ago (TCL Roku). Which is going back, maybe tomorrow. I hope this doesn't read too terribly, but often I can go in, shop, wait in line and pay then leave without hearing a word of English. I recently needed a staple gun - other stores were closed, I needed it pronto, so off to WW I went. Not surprisingly, staple guns (AND staples!) are locked up. It was a challenge finding someone with a key whom I could communicate with. But then... this is the middle of california.

We'll be waiting, with bated breath....

From the 1987 Australian film "The Lighthorsemen." Somewhat lengthy clip, but remarkable filming. The title "Best cavalry charge filmed ever" might be fitting. Just amazing... attacking with rifles slung and bayonets in hand.

That is plumb cool~! Edit: There are some really fun excerpts on Wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silence_Dogood

Dang, for a buck! (Pics at the bottom)

The driver and kids weren't found and rescued. They escaped, after digging their way out of the semi-truck trailer they were buried in.

What in the world was this gal thinking...? She definitely needs a better grip to control muzzle flip ~ she coulda hurt herself! [At about 00:40]

It'll sure take care of the gophers and ground squrrels, but Lordy I would hate to have to feed this thing!

I actually DO~! Hence, a benefit of switching from Warfarin to Pradaxa. "Oh, SURE you can eat green stuff while taking the 'rat poison,' just be consistent! If ya wanna have six Brussels sprouts on Tuesday, just be sure you have six Brussels sprouts EVERY Tuesday. And get a blood test a dozen or more tiimes a year, and keep changing your dosage by chopping them li'l pills up..."

Another Cowboy with AFib. In case anyone doesn't know, early SASS member "Trinidad Slim:" This picture was posted by @Yul Lose back in '17. ...and @Dantankerous did this one.

That's a right handsome rig there~!

Back to the AFib: I've had it off and on for quite a few years; mostly controlled with meds. Since the trip to Kaiser ten years ago, it's been Metoprolol, Nifedipine, and about a year ago switched from Warfarin to Pradaxa - the latter at the STRONG recommendation of an old friend who happens to be a geriatrician. (Plenty of other meds for other reasons... ) So, generally the AFib is unnoticed, but, occasionally makes itself known - dunno if it's considered an attack, episode, event, flare-up, spell or whatever - but when it happens (could be weeks or even months), I'm pretty much out of commission for usually a day or two. About two years ago or so, it actually happened when I was in my doc's office for my annual Medicare physical. "MY GOD! You're in AFib RIGHT NOW!" "Gee, Doc, I can tell!" He ordered up a portable EKG machine, called a cardiologist and transmitted the "strip" to him; they consulted, and then he said I could either head directly to ER, or go home, relax, and take an increased dosage of Metropolol and potassium until it passed. Having done the ER route a few times in the past, I elected the latter, and the Doc increased my prescription "for future use." Plenty stockpiled by now! But now there's something new with me. One of the symptoms can be dizziness; I've had very brief and mild experiences of this in the past. But last Friday evening whoopie! here we go again ~ and this time the brief, slight dizziness turned into hug-the-wall vertigo with a feeling that my head was pressurized. Lie down or hit the recliner, and within minutes feel just as right as rain. Anyway, seem to be nearing the end of this latest "attack, episode, event, flare-up, spell" or whatever it's called. Might even mosey into the kitchen in a bit and see what sort of mischief I can cook up... and I'll get a note off to my doc mañana. Great reports, observations, comments, and advice here! Thanks, Pards!!

Yup! Every night for the last seventeen years save two ~ my overnight stay in the cardiac ward, and an unexpected stay-over on Ms Brimstone's sofa a few weeks ago due to a failed alternator in the Miata. Both very uneasy nights. Actually don't think I could ever get to sleep without it! I've even hauled one to Scout Camp on countless occasions; just ran an extension cord from the nearest outlet. Alas... no more Scout Camp overnights for me. They've passed a well-intentioned but poorly thought out rule: no corded CPAP machines allowed - battery only. "Great fear that someone might trip over a cord." I have a moral and ethical aversion to spending three hundred bucks for something I would only use for unpaid volunteer work. (So sayeth the man who just spent much more than that on tools and supplies to teach a Metalwork/Blacksmith merit badge class )

So about ten years ago I woke up one night and thought the danged cat was sitting on my chest again. I went to bat 'im off, but... no cat. Uh oh. Sumpin' ain't right.... Hied myself outta bed, had the presence of mind to grab a few things like phone, tablet, toothbrush put on clean underwear (remembering what Grandma always said!), hopped into the Miata and drove myself to the Kiaser Hospital in Fresno - 27 miles away, in the next county south of me. Checked in and they took good care of me - spent the rest of the night and the next day in the cardiac ward. At one point, the male nurse in the ER asked who was there with me. "No one." Did you come by ambulance? "Nope. I drove myself." He proceeded to scold me severely. Terrible choice! Dumb! I shoulda at least called an ambulance! "Look... I made it here in under a half hour. If I'd called an ambulance, it would have taken at least an hour, and I would've ended up at [the local community hospital]!" Fella blinked a couple of times, then said... "Good decision!" A week or so later I was similarly scolded by a friend for the same reason... and I gave him the same response. Mark looked at me, put his hand on my shoulder, and said "Good choice! They (the local community hospital) send me a LOT of business!" Mark's a funeral director.

Tom, would that be Sleep Apnea they said you have...? I have that, too. After my sleep study, my doc looked at his computer screen, raised his eyebrows, looked at me then back at the screen, and said "Wow! You got it BAD!" Then he looked at me with wide eyes and said "Dude! When you're sleeping your blood oxygen drops to what I'd expect to see if you were climbing Everest!"