Just because you asked Gaz. :)

When Jim left the NIH, they were contacting a rehab here in Pgh for a comprehensive total package that might help Jim.  They referred him to this doc we seen last week.

They said it would be a place for Jim to get his head tweaked to see if they could talk his brain into not feeling any pain...I don't know what you call it.  He could also get some physical therapy, braces if needed, accupuncture, heat, ice, massage, who knows what.

So he meets with a doc who wants to give Jim a different pain med that is in the same family.  He suggests a caudal shot, but Jim's on coumadin and has low platelets.  Accupuncture isn't covered by our insurance, so we can't afford that.  But the bottom line is once again there is no help for Jim. This doc said that Harmarville doesn't even have a program like NIH wanted Jim in.  There isn't one in Pittsburgh, and if there was, our insurance wouldn't cover it, so....

In the meantime, our country is going to pot.  We might not get our disability SSI because of this debt crisis.  And yet I would rather not get paid, than them raise the debt ceiling.  Remind me that I said that if I don't get our SSI and our mortage is due.  :)  I do have to say them calling our Social Security an "entitlement" has me a bit angry.  We usually get ours on the Wednesday at the end of the month, since it's disability ssi, so we shall see if it gets deposited.

How's Australia doing?  I guess I should have e-mailed you, but I don't have your address on my laptop.  I cut the grass today and pushed myself and got heat exhaustion, so Jim was taking care of me today.  I'm getting to old for this crap.  :)  I"m actually thankful that I'm strong, but I can't work in the heat/sun anymore.  Kind of hard for a gardener.

We may actually go to our cottage tomorrow.  But we're really scared  We're afraid it will be like home, Jim in pain and me working and Jim wishing he could be working, and me wishing he could be too. 

Geeze Gaz, I don't know how to make this blog sound upbeat anymore.  I don't want to bellyache, but if I tell you (and others) what's going on, it involves a lot of hard stuff.  I don't want to always sound so negative, but I'm not sure how to say what is going on in our lives without it sounding negative, or like we're complaining, or we don't have anything to be thankful for, because we do.  But it would be silly to sign on here and talk about how thankful I am for my swimming pool...until I have to open it, close it, or clean it.  LOL.  Ok, I quit.

K, nighty nite.  Bedtime for me.

Regards,  my friend.  Jim says, "sup mate."