Broken bone and parting with treasurers

June 2018

Charlie has not been on treatments since January 2017.  However, the cancer has deteriorated his bones and after hobbling around for six weeks on Saturday, June 9th his right femur broke.  He was in the basement looking for a tool when it happened.  He hollered for me to bring the crutches down and I found him sweating and pale standing by his tool box.  He tried to move but slowly went to a sitting position avoided hitting his head on the stand saw.  I called 911 and the squad came and got him into a dolly chair to get him out of the basement then transferred him to the gurney and off to the ER we went

Nancy following the squad.

We arrived at the ER and once again Charlie was transferred to another bed.  Wooster was under a cyber attack so all information was being taken by long hand.  They ordered a X-ray so once again he was transferred to another table.  Dori Hartzler was the X-ray tech and Charlie convinced her to straighten his right leg from the knee down.  Once again he was transferred back to the ER bed.  The orthopedic surgeon on call looked at the x-ray and made the call to transfer him to a larger hospital.  We chose Akron City because Charlie had been there in 2015 when he started his cancer journey.  Another transfer to the ambulance gurney and off the Akron we go.  Once he arrived at Akron City ER of course they had to transfer him to the ER bed.  Because of the cyber attack we could not bring the x-rays from Wooster so Akron had to do the x-rays again.  They were able to bring the x-ray machine to the ER room so he did not have to be transferred to another bed.  However, once in his room they had to transfer him to the bed in his room.  That made for 7 moves from one bed to another with a broken femur that was not mobilized.  OUCH..OUCH...OUCH.  What a trooper, he never screamed in pain...moaned loudly.  It was decided Dr. Scott Weiner would do the surgery on Monday, June 11.  Dr. Weiner is an orthopedic oncology surgeon and has worked on bones that have been compromised with cancer.  

Keith came home and arrived at Akron about the time Charlie got to his room.  On Monday, Charlie went into surgery.  He made a deal with the Doctor to put him asleep in the hospital bed then transfer him to the surgery table.  Dr. Weiner put a rod in his femur from just above the knee and attached it to his hip.  Charlie was back in his room around 2:30 and encouraged Keith, Ammey, Rod and me to go out for dinner for my birthday.  We went to Spaghetti Warehouse and all enjoyed a great meal.

Keith and Ammey at Akron City Hospital

Ammey, Rod, Keith and me at B-day dinner

Parting with Treasurers

Charlie owned a 15ft Grumman canoe.  The canoe had lived at his Mom and Dad's house all these years, however, when the house was put up for sale the canoe had to come to our house.  Knowing our canoeing days were over, I tried to sell it at the Smithville Garage Sales.  It did not sell so I posted it on Marketplace and Wooster Buy and Sells on Facebook.  On Saturday June 9th, the day Charlie's femur broke I was contacted by a girl that wanted to buy it.  We decided, after finding out that Charlie's surgery would not be until Monday for them to come get it on Sunday.  Charlie tells quite the story about me selling his treasurers while he was being transported by ambulance to the hospital.  His treasured canoe was purchased by a man that will love it and use it. 

A visit to Blacksburg

April 2018
We went to Blacksburg to celebrate Savena's 4th birthday.  We attending Easton's soccer game on Saturday.  We always enjoy our visits and it is so hard to leave.  Keith took Friday off from work and took us to the shooting range.  That was fun, I shot his 22 pistol and he had me shot another one of his guns but that one was heavy in my hand and very loud.  We went to a restaurant in downtown Blacksburg for lunch. Natasha made a castle for Savena's birthday cake.  Family and friends enjoyed all the wonderful food Natasha and Keith made.

Camping at Ohio Power

May 2018
We went camping for two nights at Ohio Power in southeast Ohio.  The first night the temperature dipped to the low 30's.  That morning when I woke up I thought how sweet, Charlie is snuggling with me, only to find out the air mattress was losing air.  Getting out of bed was a challenge for both of us.  We went morel mushroom hunting both days and didn't find any.   On the second day we decided to tour the Wilds and go into Belle Valley for a late lunch.  We had a great time reminiscing about camping years ago.

ReCreation Land

One of AEP's best-known reclamation projects, ReCreation Land is a 34,500-acre area in Southeast Ohio that offers a wide assortment recreational activities to the public, including camping, fishing, hunting, bike trails, and horseback riding. AEP reclaimed this land, once strip-mined for its rich coal deposits, and turned it into a vibrant recreation area. Vigorous reclamation efforts involved planting 63 million trees, establishing over 350 lakes and ponds, and creating nearly 380 campsites. Use of the land requires obtaining a free ReCreation Land permit. You can also obtain a map of the area.

The Wilds

The Wilds is a 10,000-acre wildlife conservation center in Cumberland, Ohio. AEP reclaimed the area from coal-mining lands in southeast Ohio and turned it into one of the largest and most innovative wildlife conservation centers in the world. The Wilds is home to rare and endangered species from around the world as well as hundreds of indigenous species. In addition to unique and in-depth science and education programs, the Wilds offers guided to the public on selected days May through October.

Playing catch-up

Ok, yes....once again I have been slacking.  So, to get a little caught up.....
On January 20, 2018 for the first time in two years we was able to make the Hocking Hills Winter Hike.  Ammey and Rod joined us and it was fabulous.  We celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary on January 20th.  Ammey and Rod arrived on Friday evening and took us for dinner at Millstone BBQ.  They had stocking hats made for us.  The weather had been extremely cold so there were some spectacular ice formations.