January 3, 2020. Well, we made it to another year. New Year’s Day we went over to visit with Josh & Karen in the afternoon. The tablet started acting up and I spent a lot of time trying to fix it. By Thursday we decided to go to Verizon to see if they could fix it; and of course could not and recommended a factory reboot. We were looking at a $300 tablet because the reboot did not seem to work, but they did not have it in stock – luckily. While waiting, we looked at the tablet and it started to work again, and Jim was able to recover the games he was working on. By the time we got to Josh & Karen’s, most of the games had downloaded from Manager and I was even able to install Facebook back on it. Now it is working fine; the guy at Verizon put in a new Sim card, so maybe that helped it work again. I am really glad as it saved us a bunch of money!
January 12, 2010. Last night a severe storm came through the area. We were playing cards and got tornado warnings on our phones, which prompted us to take cover. We took in our awning as the wind was picking up and there was a tornado spotted not far from us. We got the dogs into the truck and drove to the music hall to stay out of the rain and wind. A lot of others went into the bathrooms, which is a safe area. Luckily, the storm passed with no damage and we returned to the trailer.
January 13, 2020. Last week upon returning to Tres Rios we had another blood test done. Mine was for TSH as I wanted to see if my new regime was going to keep it where it was or make it better. Unfortunately, my TSH went up .2. The main thing I did was start a new vitamin made from organic vegetables and fruits called Balance of Nature. I then started reading more about what could have caused this rise and discovered that cruciferous vegetables, soy and grapefruit, which are ingredients in these vitamins. Cruciferous vegetables and soy could interfere with my body’s ability to convert and use the T4 and T3. So, I stopped taking them, and also stopped using PUFAs (polyunsaturated oils) which could also harm my body.
Jim saw his doctor again, which was mostly for his PSA, which went down. His doctor wants him to see a pulmonologist and a sleep specialist. We went to see the sleep doctor today who also wants to do more tests to see why Jim’s breathing is restricted and how bad his COPD is.
January 21, 2020. Just got back from a week in Houston with Ellie & Jason while Josh & Karen went to Las Vegas to celebrate Josh’s 40th birthday. They had a good time but said it was really expensive. Our week was a bit trying. Got there on Wednesday even though they weren’t leaving until Thursday afternoon. It’s a 5 hour drive down and I knew we would not make it before they had to leave on Thursday. We had one free day on Friday when they were at school; on Saturday afternoon we went to the Flight Museum. Sunday we took a walk on the greenway and Ellie & Jason rode their bikes. I was a beautiful sunny day and I enjoyed our walk. Jim had a hard time with both Lola and Kayla, but he did OK. Monday was a holiday and a front had come through making it cold and windy outside, so we stayed inside. Josh & Karen came home about 8pm, and I had the kids shower and get their jammies on so they were ready for bed when they got home.
Tuesday was our drive back to Tres Rios, and we are really glad to be back “home.” The dogs seemed to be really happy that they did not have to share their beds with Lola and Kayla anymore. Jim’s duputrene’s contracture surgery is set for Wednesday at 2pm. He is having his left hand done first, which is the worst one.
We are getting a buy out for next week and will be here until the end of February.
January 23, 2020. Jim had the anesthetist use a block on his arm which put it to sleep where he did not feel it at all. He was also put to sleep, and when he woke up he was pretty groggy and it took a while for him to get released. The main problem there was his breathing. The nurses wanted him to take deep breaths, but he was not able to do that very well the way he was sitting in bed. He coughed a lot trying to get rid of the flem in his lungs. We finally got him out of bed, put his pants on and let him stand up and he was able to clear his lungs and breathe much better.
By Thursday there was still no feeling in his arm, and he did not like it. He complained a whole bunch about that and did not like the feeling at all. His feeling finally started coming back mid-afternoon. I went to play cards and Jim came down and would have played cards but we had enough players. He finally went back to get his pool cue and played a bit of pool with Michael and another guy.
He has been taking the hydrocordon to help with the pain. He said he can feel his palm and he can move his little finger even though it’s still in the bandage.
January 27, 2020. Jim’s hand is getting better all the time. I don’t think it hurts him as he has been playing cards with us every day.
The floor around our toilet has been rotting away for a while now and it was getting very wobbly and scary to sit on. So, Sunday I decided it was time to fix it. Saturday we went to Lowe’s to buy some resin and fiberglass to fix the floor. Sunday I took the toilet off and started to pull the flooring away from around it. Jim said he wanted me to remove the entire flooring in the bathroom, which is a good thing I did as the floor was rotten all around the hole going into the holding tank. On our trip Sunday afternoon we discovered wood hardener, which I should have used, but since we did not see it, I did not put the hardener down. So, I cleaned up the rotted wood and then mixed up a bunch of resin and cut fiberglass to put around the seal. I was able to fill most of it in, but decided we needed more filling.
Thus, another trip to Lowe’s Sunday morning to buy Durham’s rock hard, and some flooring to put down. I then mixed the Durham rock hard to fill in the gap and smoothed it down very good. Since that had to dry, we played cards for a couple of hours. I then decided to put a coat of resin on top of the Durham’s to seal it from water, then took the dogs for a walk while that dried.
It was around 5pm when we started on the floor, and with Jim being a former cabinet builder/installer, he was adamant on measurements and making sure the floor was square (which it was not). So we measured and cut and then had to cut some more. Eventually, we got the entire floor down but it still needs some caulk around the edges. I put the toilet back together and anchored it down – solid and no wobbling! And no water leaks either.
Our total time from beginning to end was around 12 hours; finishing up around 10pm (with no dinner until then). Glad we got that project completed.
February 2, 2020. A few days after finishing up the bathroom I was going to caulk around the edges only to discover there was water around the edge by the wall. So, I immediately shut off the water and took the toilet off. Then I pulled up some of the tiles and cleaned up the water and tried to figure out where it was leaking. Then I put Lexel around the area the fitting that sits on the floor that is attached to the tank. There was a small gap so I filled that in. Then I looked at the gasket on the toilet that fits on the fitting and it was all smooshed up. Called Bennett’s and headed up there to buy another gasket. Quite a difference between the new one and the one that I removed. Also put new t-screws on along with the nuts and washers after putting the toilet back on.
No leaks so far, so I caulked the seams and around the outer edges behind the toilet. Still need to finish caulking the rest of the floor and put the fitting and screw back where it holds the wall to the floor.
Then since I ripped the mud flap off when Jim was getting his finger operated on, he fixed that today, which took him all afternoon to do. He also put new chains on to try to hold it out of the way.
February 19, 2020. His finger has been healing well. Been to the therapist a few times and also to see Dr. Wroten’s assistant. They all say his finger looks good. Today we are heading up to see his assistant again. Supposed to go next month to see Dr. Wroten himself, but don’t know if we will.
Yesterday Jim was talking about the toilet not seeming right so I looked at the T-bolts holding it on and discovered that the nut on the wall side was loose. I decided to take the toilet off and look at it only to discover that a piece on the plate where the T-bolt hooks into cracked off. So now I have a section that is completely gone, and this is where the T-bolt goes to hold the toilet down. This plate can be changed, but the bolts are so rusted that I did not replace it when I did the other work. So I decided to put the broken piece back in place and epoxy it to keep it in place. I am hoping this will give us a bit of leeway and hold up until we can replace the plate. So far, it seems to be holding tight.
Jim had some more tests done on Feb. 10: pulmonary breathing test, which took an hour; CT scan of his heart, and an echocardiogram. We then saw Dr. Bhatti the next week, and he said everything looks good; no problems at all. No symptoms of COPD. Just wondering if he has sleep apnea. We are meeting with a technician next month to get an at-home sleep test and then see Dr. Bhatti at the end of March before we hit the road.
March 2, 2020. Our time out from Tres Rios began on February 24 and I decided to go to Lake Texoma Thousand Trails for two weeks. Their website said they had pool tables, but upon arriving and looking for them, and not finding them, I called the office only to find out that they were taken out due to abuse. Jim was very disappointed at that.
Then while we were at the laundry mat on Wednesday we came back to find a note telling us to take the Confederate Flag off of the trike. What?? So I took the note they left and wrote a letter back to them complaining and giving them our opinion. I will also cc: the corporate offices.
On February 28 we drove up to Gene Autry, Oklahoma to visit the Gene Autry Museum, only to discover that it was closed. Their website did say that it was supposed to be open, so I left them a nasty voice message complaining about their hours.
To make sure that this was not a lost trip, we did go to the Greater Southwest Historical Museum in Ardmore. Jim seemed to like this museum better, it was in fact in a nicer building and kept up very nice. It was clean, well laid out, and very informative.
The weekend was very warm, albeit, windy, but I did get the Excursion washed. Jim & I took a bike ride down to the lake; there were some pretty good hills both ways. The lake is low but I thought it would be great to take the dogs down there and let them run along the shoreline and in the water.
This morning while walking the dogs in the hay field, they were just going crazy all over. When we got home I caught Hayley licking her leg a lot so I checked it out and discovered a gash in her leg. Luckily there was no blood, the gash just opened up the top layer of skin. I don’t know if it happened on our walk or if the dog two doors up got her when he got out of their trailer and came up to us. And we know that Hayley does not like other dogs coming up to her and of course they fought a bit, and she may have gotten the gash from him.
So I washed it out with alcohol, then put Neosporin on it, a gauze pad and wrapped it with a latex self-adhesive bandage. And now the lake trip with them is out as I don’t think it would be a good idea for her to get into the lake.
March 7, 2020. Still here at Thousand Trails. Water has been shut off a couple of times due to a broken pipe. Jim has not been feeling real good; sore throat and tired, so we did not make any more trips out to museums.
There is a new virus going around which started in China called the Coronavirus. It is spreading quite rapidly and has caused quite a panic around the world. The U.S. economy is still going strong but Wall Street has been panicking and has taken a nose dive. It has lost around 10% of its value in two weeks, and we don’t know when it will end. Unfortunately, we did not get out of the market in time and have lost quite a bit. I think this panic has a lot to do with the media hyping it up so much to try and displace Trump because they dislike him so much. During other viruses that have attacked so many people the market did not go down like it is this time.
According to Guard Reality Shares, the economy is still robust, but that could change if people stop going places – restaurants, work, shopping, etc. That could drive the country into a recession, but let’s hope not. If people would just stop panicking – especially Wall Street – things could get back to close to normal. Hopefully once summer comes and it warms up the virus will go away.
The death rate for this virus is very small with experts saying that you may not even know you have the virus as it mimmicks cold symptoms. The most vulnerable are the very old and those with compromised immune systems.
Found a website that allows us to watch cable TV stations over the computer, or tablet. And with that website I had to download a VPN, which is very inexpensive ($3 a month). So we are able to watch Fox News and a ton of other stations as well. Only problem with using my computer is using up my data on the jetpack. I wonder if using my phone as a hotspot would keep the data on the jetpack from being used.
March 12, 2020. Back at Tres Rios for the next three weeks before heading off in April for our summer trip. The whole world is going nuts over the corona virus – events are being cancelled, cruises cancelled, schools closed, and now Trump stopped air traffic from European countries into the U.S.
The market is tanking and has officially hit bear market territory even though the economy is still doing good. This whole virus thing is being blown so much out of proportion and I think that is what is causing the market to tank. And the Dems are still blaming Trump for not acting sooner?? He started thinking it would come to something back in January and wanted to curtail air traffic and was laughed at by the liberals and did not allow him to do it.
I did not think the market would react this aggressively since it did not during any of the other virus scares. The flu has even caused more sickness and deaths than the corona virus is. It’s crazy right now.
Jim did his at home sleep study last night. Had a device hooked around his chest, a hose in his nose and a plug on his finger. Hoping it all turns out OK as they need at least 5 hours to get a good determination of his sleep apnea.
March 17, 2020. This country is going insane. The government is shutting down state parks; telling restaurants they cannot serve and only do take out; people are hording toilet paper, Kleenex, paper towels, detergent, bread, meat, etc. Buying cases of toilet paper at a time. It’s the craziest thing I have ever seen. Sports events have been cancelled; schools closed; people are working from home instead of going into work.
The stock market has tanked, going down over 20% to about 20,000 when it was near 30,000 just one month ago. We think it is the Deep State and China trying to cause a panic (which happened) because there were no economic signs that the stock market should tank like it did. It’s all fear related.
We have decided to take our week out at Lake Whitney and then come back to Tres Rios for the month of April. Hopefully by then things will have smoothed out.
Will be finishing up our doctor’s appointments by the end of the month with just one in April. Jim’s hand doctor could not see him this week so I had to make an appointment in April.
His sleep study did show him as having sleep apnea, but I don’t know what he will want to do about it. He has been living with it for so many years, I don’t know if he would want a CPAP.
Josh’s friend, Rick, passed away. Josh did three other jobs with Rick since January but there have been no new jobs in March so far. I am hoping things pick up for Josh because I know he really wants to do this job.
Jacklyn heard from Joe the other day. Said he had been calling her and some of their friends making cryptic threats. Called Ben and said he’s going to go to his work; called Jenna; called Craig; called Joe (another friend). He even called Bill Mars. He called me but since I did not recognize the number, I did not answer the phone and then blocked the number.
Since we got rid of our CD/DVD player, we have an extra space so Jim was able to find a woodworker up Hwy 144 who manufactured a new drawer face for us ($30) out of maple. Just need to get a finish for it and then mount it.
March 19, 2020. Met with the Assistant after Jim’s elastograph to see the condition of his liver. She asked if he had stopped drinking for a month or two before the test (which he was not told to do) and of course he had not, so she thought the test was not quite accurate. Right now it shows him at a 3, which is one short of cirrhosis of the liver and a chance of developing liver cancer.
So now what she wants him to do is stop drinking the hard liquor. He can still have a beer at lunch but the hard liquor is not doing his liver any good. He said he will do that on his own, so we’ll see how good he is at that. He has to get another blood test in May and then another fibroscan around June 18, and then another visit to the doctor.
We also had another round of blood tests, me for my thyroid and hormones, and Jim for his regular CBC, etc. and doctor visits next month to discuss those.
The corona virus is wreaking havoc on the whole country. Josh said he now has to work from home; Karen’s gym is closed, and the kids are home as well. Governor Abbott has shut down work out centers, restaurants, schools etc. Gatherings cannot be larger than 10 people. Here at Tres Rios we cannot have more than 10 people in the clubhouse at one time; all activities have been cancelled. So far, the park is staying open.
I was trying to figure out what we were doing in 2009 when the H1N1 virus caused a pandemic and Obama did nothing to prevent its spread. In fact, he went golfing the day after he declared a national emergency. The media down played everything and did nothing to show Obama not handling the situation. We were still in Stone Mountain and continued to go to work as usual; I don’t recall doing anything extraordinary to curb the outbreak.
March 27, 2020. Corona virus still slowly spreading around the world. It originated in China and many of us are speculating that they let it loose on purpose to punish the U.S. for the trade wars. Who knows? But it is ruining our country as there are so many people out of work. Josh is working from home and Karen is not working either. At least Jacklyn works from home and can keep going. Many of the surrounding counties have issued stay at home orders, however, we here in Somerville County have not yet been given those orders. We are scheduled to leave here Tuesday for our week out, and are concerned that if they do issue the stay at home, can we come back on April 7 when our week out is over. We do have reservations to return, but need to talk to the manager to ensure our return.
The stock market has been going up and down, mostly down. It did go up that couple of days and in one day our portfolio went up over $13,000! I just wish it would keep going back up.
Jim is going on Monday to the medical place to get fitted for a CPAP. It has a $300 co-pay and then a monthly co-pay of $10 for stuff. I’ll have to find out more on Monday.
I went to my doctor to talk about my latest thyroid test, which was a little better since I had stopped taking the Balance of Nature and changed my food intake. I had to see the nurse practitioner as Dr. Landero is on maternity leave. I was taking 50mg, which also probably contributed to the better numbers, but they upped my dosage to 75mg. I go back in 30-45 days for another blood test to see if my numbers change again. She wants to see the TSH lower than 4.2.
March 29, 2020. Scheduled to leave Tres Rios on March 31 for our week out. Talked to Rene about if a stay at home order went into effect, what would happen. She has no clue. Trailers are still coming in and going out. So far, she sees no problem with us coming back on April 7 after our week out.
However, Governor Abbott will be on TV later today to talk about his plans for Texas. One of the Reps in Dallas wants him to issue a state wide stay at home, even though not all counties have experienced the virus. Us here in Somerville County have no issues of the virus. Hood County where Granbury is located has two. So, we are hoping there is no stay a home order issued. The virus is still plaguing large urban areas, such as New York, New Jersey, California, Louisiana (which held Mardi Gras). Of course, Rene said that Alabama and Louisiana have a stay at home in effect but people are still going into Styx and Abita. We’ll go, but we will come back on April 7.
March 31, 2020. We had to leave Tres Rios today for our week out and went to Lake Whitney Thousand Trails. Got our usual site (99) where we get good TV signals and so-so data signals. Rene says we will be able to get back to Tres Rios next week, but Jim was really worried that we would not be able to. Luckily, Governor Abbott did not institute a stay at home, so I am sure we will be able to get back.
Took the dogs on the trail for our evening walk. There were a bunch of bluebonnets all over the trail; it was really beautiful. I decided to take a picture and posted that on Gypsy Roamers FB page as my new picture. Also, they did pick up all that garbage that had been dumped last summer; I guess my letter to the CEO of Thousand Trails did some good. The manager did call me about it, and I mentioned to her that it should have been picked up, and it was! I was really glad; everything is gone.
Stock market is still going up and down, but mostly down. We lost over $100,000 because of the fear over the Covid-19 virus. The whole country is practically on lock down. Las Vegas is shut down; churches are closed; schools are closed; many campgrounds are closing; restaurants are on take out only; lots of stores are closed as well.
January 12, 2010. Last night a severe storm came through the area. We were playing cards and got tornado warnings on our phones, which prompted us to take cover. We took in our awning as the wind was picking up and there was a tornado spotted not far from us. We got the dogs into the truck and drove to the music hall to stay out of the rain and wind. A lot of others went into the bathrooms, which is a safe area. Luckily, the storm passed with no damage and we returned to the trailer.
January 13, 2020. Last week upon returning to Tres Rios we had another blood test done. Mine was for TSH as I wanted to see if my new regime was going to keep it where it was or make it better. Unfortunately, my TSH went up .2. The main thing I did was start a new vitamin made from organic vegetables and fruits called Balance of Nature. I then started reading more about what could have caused this rise and discovered that cruciferous vegetables, soy and grapefruit, which are ingredients in these vitamins. Cruciferous vegetables and soy could interfere with my body’s ability to convert and use the T4 and T3. So, I stopped taking them, and also stopped using PUFAs (polyunsaturated oils) which could also harm my body.
Jim saw his doctor again, which was mostly for his PSA, which went down. His doctor wants him to see a pulmonologist and a sleep specialist. We went to see the sleep doctor today who also wants to do more tests to see why Jim’s breathing is restricted and how bad his COPD is.
January 21, 2020. Just got back from a week in Houston with Ellie & Jason while Josh & Karen went to Las Vegas to celebrate Josh’s 40th birthday. They had a good time but said it was really expensive. Our week was a bit trying. Got there on Wednesday even though they weren’t leaving until Thursday afternoon. It’s a 5 hour drive down and I knew we would not make it before they had to leave on Thursday. We had one free day on Friday when they were at school; on Saturday afternoon we went to the Flight Museum. Sunday we took a walk on the greenway and Ellie & Jason rode their bikes. I was a beautiful sunny day and I enjoyed our walk. Jim had a hard time with both Lola and Kayla, but he did OK. Monday was a holiday and a front had come through making it cold and windy outside, so we stayed inside. Josh & Karen came home about 8pm, and I had the kids shower and get their jammies on so they were ready for bed when they got home.
Tuesday was our drive back to Tres Rios, and we are really glad to be back “home.” The dogs seemed to be really happy that they did not have to share their beds with Lola and Kayla anymore. Jim’s duputrene’s contracture surgery is set for Wednesday at 2pm. He is having his left hand done first, which is the worst one.
We are getting a buy out for next week and will be here until the end of February.
January 23, 2020. Jim had the anesthetist use a block on his arm which put it to sleep where he did not feel it at all. He was also put to sleep, and when he woke up he was pretty groggy and it took a while for him to get released. The main problem there was his breathing. The nurses wanted him to take deep breaths, but he was not able to do that very well the way he was sitting in bed. He coughed a lot trying to get rid of the flem in his lungs. We finally got him out of bed, put his pants on and let him stand up and he was able to clear his lungs and breathe much better.
By Thursday there was still no feeling in his arm, and he did not like it. He complained a whole bunch about that and did not like the feeling at all. His feeling finally started coming back mid-afternoon. I went to play cards and Jim came down and would have played cards but we had enough players. He finally went back to get his pool cue and played a bit of pool with Michael and another guy.
He has been taking the hydrocordon to help with the pain. He said he can feel his palm and he can move his little finger even though it’s still in the bandage.
January 27, 2020. Jim’s hand is getting better all the time. I don’t think it hurts him as he has been playing cards with us every day.
The floor around our toilet has been rotting away for a while now and it was getting very wobbly and scary to sit on. So, Sunday I decided it was time to fix it. Saturday we went to Lowe’s to buy some resin and fiberglass to fix the floor. Sunday I took the toilet off and started to pull the flooring away from around it. Jim said he wanted me to remove the entire flooring in the bathroom, which is a good thing I did as the floor was rotten all around the hole going into the holding tank. On our trip Sunday afternoon we discovered wood hardener, which I should have used, but since we did not see it, I did not put the hardener down. So, I cleaned up the rotted wood and then mixed up a bunch of resin and cut fiberglass to put around the seal. I was able to fill most of it in, but decided we needed more filling.
Thus, another trip to Lowe’s Sunday morning to buy Durham’s rock hard, and some flooring to put down. I then mixed the Durham rock hard to fill in the gap and smoothed it down very good. Since that had to dry, we played cards for a couple of hours. I then decided to put a coat of resin on top of the Durham’s to seal it from water, then took the dogs for a walk while that dried.
It was around 5pm when we started on the floor, and with Jim being a former cabinet builder/installer, he was adamant on measurements and making sure the floor was square (which it was not). So we measured and cut and then had to cut some more. Eventually, we got the entire floor down but it still needs some caulk around the edges. I put the toilet back together and anchored it down – solid and no wobbling! And no water leaks either.
Our total time from beginning to end was around 12 hours; finishing up around 10pm (with no dinner until then). Glad we got that project completed.
February 2, 2020. A few days after finishing up the bathroom I was going to caulk around the edges only to discover there was water around the edge by the wall. So, I immediately shut off the water and took the toilet off. Then I pulled up some of the tiles and cleaned up the water and tried to figure out where it was leaking. Then I put Lexel around the area the fitting that sits on the floor that is attached to the tank. There was a small gap so I filled that in. Then I looked at the gasket on the toilet that fits on the fitting and it was all smooshed up. Called Bennett’s and headed up there to buy another gasket. Quite a difference between the new one and the one that I removed. Also put new t-screws on along with the nuts and washers after putting the toilet back on.
No leaks so far, so I caulked the seams and around the outer edges behind the toilet. Still need to finish caulking the rest of the floor and put the fitting and screw back where it holds the wall to the floor.
Then since I ripped the mud flap off when Jim was getting his finger operated on, he fixed that today, which took him all afternoon to do. He also put new chains on to try to hold it out of the way.
February 19, 2020. His finger has been healing well. Been to the therapist a few times and also to see Dr. Wroten’s assistant. They all say his finger looks good. Today we are heading up to see his assistant again. Supposed to go next month to see Dr. Wroten himself, but don’t know if we will.
Yesterday Jim was talking about the toilet not seeming right so I looked at the T-bolts holding it on and discovered that the nut on the wall side was loose. I decided to take the toilet off and look at it only to discover that a piece on the plate where the T-bolt hooks into cracked off. So now I have a section that is completely gone, and this is where the T-bolt goes to hold the toilet down. This plate can be changed, but the bolts are so rusted that I did not replace it when I did the other work. So I decided to put the broken piece back in place and epoxy it to keep it in place. I am hoping this will give us a bit of leeway and hold up until we can replace the plate. So far, it seems to be holding tight.
Jim had some more tests done on Feb. 10: pulmonary breathing test, which took an hour; CT scan of his heart, and an echocardiogram. We then saw Dr. Bhatti the next week, and he said everything looks good; no problems at all. No symptoms of COPD. Just wondering if he has sleep apnea. We are meeting with a technician next month to get an at-home sleep test and then see Dr. Bhatti at the end of March before we hit the road.
March 2, 2020. Our time out from Tres Rios began on February 24 and I decided to go to Lake Texoma Thousand Trails for two weeks. Their website said they had pool tables, but upon arriving and looking for them, and not finding them, I called the office only to find out that they were taken out due to abuse. Jim was very disappointed at that.
Then while we were at the laundry mat on Wednesday we came back to find a note telling us to take the Confederate Flag off of the trike. What?? So I took the note they left and wrote a letter back to them complaining and giving them our opinion. I will also cc: the corporate offices.
On February 28 we drove up to Gene Autry, Oklahoma to visit the Gene Autry Museum, only to discover that it was closed. Their website did say that it was supposed to be open, so I left them a nasty voice message complaining about their hours.
To make sure that this was not a lost trip, we did go to the Greater Southwest Historical Museum in Ardmore. Jim seemed to like this museum better, it was in fact in a nicer building and kept up very nice. It was clean, well laid out, and very informative.
The weekend was very warm, albeit, windy, but I did get the Excursion washed. Jim & I took a bike ride down to the lake; there were some pretty good hills both ways. The lake is low but I thought it would be great to take the dogs down there and let them run along the shoreline and in the water.
This morning while walking the dogs in the hay field, they were just going crazy all over. When we got home I caught Hayley licking her leg a lot so I checked it out and discovered a gash in her leg. Luckily there was no blood, the gash just opened up the top layer of skin. I don’t know if it happened on our walk or if the dog two doors up got her when he got out of their trailer and came up to us. And we know that Hayley does not like other dogs coming up to her and of course they fought a bit, and she may have gotten the gash from him.
So I washed it out with alcohol, then put Neosporin on it, a gauze pad and wrapped it with a latex self-adhesive bandage. And now the lake trip with them is out as I don’t think it would be a good idea for her to get into the lake.
March 7, 2020. Still here at Thousand Trails. Water has been shut off a couple of times due to a broken pipe. Jim has not been feeling real good; sore throat and tired, so we did not make any more trips out to museums.
There is a new virus going around which started in China called the Coronavirus. It is spreading quite rapidly and has caused quite a panic around the world. The U.S. economy is still going strong but Wall Street has been panicking and has taken a nose dive. It has lost around 10% of its value in two weeks, and we don’t know when it will end. Unfortunately, we did not get out of the market in time and have lost quite a bit. I think this panic has a lot to do with the media hyping it up so much to try and displace Trump because they dislike him so much. During other viruses that have attacked so many people the market did not go down like it is this time.
According to Guard Reality Shares, the economy is still robust, but that could change if people stop going places – restaurants, work, shopping, etc. That could drive the country into a recession, but let’s hope not. If people would just stop panicking – especially Wall Street – things could get back to close to normal. Hopefully once summer comes and it warms up the virus will go away.
The death rate for this virus is very small with experts saying that you may not even know you have the virus as it mimmicks cold symptoms. The most vulnerable are the very old and those with compromised immune systems.
Found a website that allows us to watch cable TV stations over the computer, or tablet. And with that website I had to download a VPN, which is very inexpensive ($3 a month). So we are able to watch Fox News and a ton of other stations as well. Only problem with using my computer is using up my data on the jetpack. I wonder if using my phone as a hotspot would keep the data on the jetpack from being used.
March 12, 2020. Back at Tres Rios for the next three weeks before heading off in April for our summer trip. The whole world is going nuts over the corona virus – events are being cancelled, cruises cancelled, schools closed, and now Trump stopped air traffic from European countries into the U.S.
The market is tanking and has officially hit bear market territory even though the economy is still doing good. This whole virus thing is being blown so much out of proportion and I think that is what is causing the market to tank. And the Dems are still blaming Trump for not acting sooner?? He started thinking it would come to something back in January and wanted to curtail air traffic and was laughed at by the liberals and did not allow him to do it.
I did not think the market would react this aggressively since it did not during any of the other virus scares. The flu has even caused more sickness and deaths than the corona virus is. It’s crazy right now.
Jim did his at home sleep study last night. Had a device hooked around his chest, a hose in his nose and a plug on his finger. Hoping it all turns out OK as they need at least 5 hours to get a good determination of his sleep apnea.
March 17, 2020. This country is going insane. The government is shutting down state parks; telling restaurants they cannot serve and only do take out; people are hording toilet paper, Kleenex, paper towels, detergent, bread, meat, etc. Buying cases of toilet paper at a time. It’s the craziest thing I have ever seen. Sports events have been cancelled; schools closed; people are working from home instead of going into work.
The stock market has tanked, going down over 20% to about 20,000 when it was near 30,000 just one month ago. We think it is the Deep State and China trying to cause a panic (which happened) because there were no economic signs that the stock market should tank like it did. It’s all fear related.
We have decided to take our week out at Lake Whitney and then come back to Tres Rios for the month of April. Hopefully by then things will have smoothed out.
Will be finishing up our doctor’s appointments by the end of the month with just one in April. Jim’s hand doctor could not see him this week so I had to make an appointment in April.
His sleep study did show him as having sleep apnea, but I don’t know what he will want to do about it. He has been living with it for so many years, I don’t know if he would want a CPAP.
Josh’s friend, Rick, passed away. Josh did three other jobs with Rick since January but there have been no new jobs in March so far. I am hoping things pick up for Josh because I know he really wants to do this job.
Jacklyn heard from Joe the other day. Said he had been calling her and some of their friends making cryptic threats. Called Ben and said he’s going to go to his work; called Jenna; called Craig; called Joe (another friend). He even called Bill Mars. He called me but since I did not recognize the number, I did not answer the phone and then blocked the number.
Since we got rid of our CD/DVD player, we have an extra space so Jim was able to find a woodworker up Hwy 144 who manufactured a new drawer face for us ($30) out of maple. Just need to get a finish for it and then mount it.
March 19, 2020. Met with the Assistant after Jim’s elastograph to see the condition of his liver. She asked if he had stopped drinking for a month or two before the test (which he was not told to do) and of course he had not, so she thought the test was not quite accurate. Right now it shows him at a 3, which is one short of cirrhosis of the liver and a chance of developing liver cancer.
So now what she wants him to do is stop drinking the hard liquor. He can still have a beer at lunch but the hard liquor is not doing his liver any good. He said he will do that on his own, so we’ll see how good he is at that. He has to get another blood test in May and then another fibroscan around June 18, and then another visit to the doctor.
We also had another round of blood tests, me for my thyroid and hormones, and Jim for his regular CBC, etc. and doctor visits next month to discuss those.
The corona virus is wreaking havoc on the whole country. Josh said he now has to work from home; Karen’s gym is closed, and the kids are home as well. Governor Abbott has shut down work out centers, restaurants, schools etc. Gatherings cannot be larger than 10 people. Here at Tres Rios we cannot have more than 10 people in the clubhouse at one time; all activities have been cancelled. So far, the park is staying open.
I was trying to figure out what we were doing in 2009 when the H1N1 virus caused a pandemic and Obama did nothing to prevent its spread. In fact, he went golfing the day after he declared a national emergency. The media down played everything and did nothing to show Obama not handling the situation. We were still in Stone Mountain and continued to go to work as usual; I don’t recall doing anything extraordinary to curb the outbreak.
March 27, 2020. Corona virus still slowly spreading around the world. It originated in China and many of us are speculating that they let it loose on purpose to punish the U.S. for the trade wars. Who knows? But it is ruining our country as there are so many people out of work. Josh is working from home and Karen is not working either. At least Jacklyn works from home and can keep going. Many of the surrounding counties have issued stay at home orders, however, we here in Somerville County have not yet been given those orders. We are scheduled to leave here Tuesday for our week out, and are concerned that if they do issue the stay at home, can we come back on April 7 when our week out is over. We do have reservations to return, but need to talk to the manager to ensure our return.
The stock market has been going up and down, mostly down. It did go up that couple of days and in one day our portfolio went up over $13,000! I just wish it would keep going back up.
Jim is going on Monday to the medical place to get fitted for a CPAP. It has a $300 co-pay and then a monthly co-pay of $10 for stuff. I’ll have to find out more on Monday.
I went to my doctor to talk about my latest thyroid test, which was a little better since I had stopped taking the Balance of Nature and changed my food intake. I had to see the nurse practitioner as Dr. Landero is on maternity leave. I was taking 50mg, which also probably contributed to the better numbers, but they upped my dosage to 75mg. I go back in 30-45 days for another blood test to see if my numbers change again. She wants to see the TSH lower than 4.2.
March 29, 2020. Scheduled to leave Tres Rios on March 31 for our week out. Talked to Rene about if a stay at home order went into effect, what would happen. She has no clue. Trailers are still coming in and going out. So far, she sees no problem with us coming back on April 7 after our week out.
However, Governor Abbott will be on TV later today to talk about his plans for Texas. One of the Reps in Dallas wants him to issue a state wide stay at home, even though not all counties have experienced the virus. Us here in Somerville County have no issues of the virus. Hood County where Granbury is located has two. So, we are hoping there is no stay a home order issued. The virus is still plaguing large urban areas, such as New York, New Jersey, California, Louisiana (which held Mardi Gras). Of course, Rene said that Alabama and Louisiana have a stay at home in effect but people are still going into Styx and Abita. We’ll go, but we will come back on April 7.
March 31, 2020. We had to leave Tres Rios today for our week out and went to Lake Whitney Thousand Trails. Got our usual site (99) where we get good TV signals and so-so data signals. Rene says we will be able to get back to Tres Rios next week, but Jim was really worried that we would not be able to. Luckily, Governor Abbott did not institute a stay at home, so I am sure we will be able to get back.
Took the dogs on the trail for our evening walk. There were a bunch of bluebonnets all over the trail; it was really beautiful. I decided to take a picture and posted that on Gypsy Roamers FB page as my new picture. Also, they did pick up all that garbage that had been dumped last summer; I guess my letter to the CEO of Thousand Trails did some good. The manager did call me about it, and I mentioned to her that it should have been picked up, and it was! I was really glad; everything is gone.
Stock market is still going up and down, but mostly down. We lost over $100,000 because of the fear over the Covid-19 virus. The whole country is practically on lock down. Las Vegas is shut down; churches are closed; schools are closed; many campgrounds are closing; restaurants are on take out only; lots of stores are closed as well.