Life should be that easy

But it ain't...However it does look like I'm going to make my promised Mile 14 deadline of at least two a month.  Since my News Years post of promise and rejuvenation it's been a slog, a horrible painful ordeal . So I guess those of you that could tire of this kind of post and I'll just say that I'm posting this for two reason...one is that it's all I've done, I have nothing else to write about . Two, if this helps anybody in anyway with their own health assessments or maybe Mexico health strategies then it's some of the good that I always say must come from bad.

Having seen the good, the bad and the ugly of Mexican health care through the years MP and I discussed the ' code red ' situation many times. We came to this : if something huge was happening to either of us we would only go to a Mazatlan hospital unless one of the two of us could not get on an airplane. Of course we've had to have treatment here but our strategy however right or wrong was to exit stage left. We've seen to many friends languish in the hospital, charged ungodly amount and held hostage to their credit cards, come down with infections....die...

So, a good three weeks ago I awoke with a stiffness in my left knee like I've never had, I could barely walk. Being an active guy I always have some soreness and of course my neck just keeps getting worse and worse. The leg was somewhat red and I ran a low grade temp for a week or so and the swelling and the pain behind my knee seemed to be better. Of course I at first thought it was a blood clot but it didn't fit the extraordinary calf swelling and calf pain that would signal a Deep Vein Thrombosis, a DVT . In fact I kinda got it in my mind that it was related to my neck issues and maybe that damn osteoarthritis that is taking over my life was now invading my knee.  

But Sunday morning a week ago I woke up with severe pain throughout my leg and groin then turning on the light it was obvious my ankle and entire leg was swollen. We were convinced that indeed it was a blood clot . Code red . We call Alaska Airlines get me outa here number and a wonderful woman named Christy in Boise  Idaho says how about tomorrow , in less than 24 hours  .  The flight to LAX was horrible. My neck was actually bothering me the most and once I sat next to the wall in the MZT airport and supported my head against it helped, MP got me boarded first. Once we got through customs and we were relieved to be back in the USA, what ever happened from then on out I new we could deal with. I can't say enough for Alaska Airlines, on the plane or in the terminal they took care of me. In the Board Room we found a high back chair for my neck that I could also elevate my feet. So all be it a little late flight later we went on to Seattle and spent the night. As we waited for our Helena flight the next day I called my Primary Physician and was told ' don't come here, go Straight to St. Peters urgent care when you land, which we did. 

Angela Axmann got me right in....Blood work that came back asap and then an ultrasound imaging shows an unusually large DVT from the knee to the foot. Serious. 30 to 40 % of these DVT's have a piece of clot break free and cause an embolism. Of the 30  to 40% that this happen to 25% have instant death....don't get anymore serious than that . So, it's off to the Pharmacy for the the very best blood thinner named Eliquis. Then I'm told what to do and what not to do and especially told what to watch for and when to immediately get to the emergency room. Luckily I have not had any complications . MP and I woke up on Saturday to great relief in that the swelling and redness were obviously looking better. As I type I'm exactly one week out from flying into  Helena . Tomorrow I get a follow up Dr. check, I feel better and feel like I'm hopefully over the danger and ready to see what this means for the rest of my life. 

So here's a few takeaways :

1. MPeasy is an amazing person...got me here and soooo much more.

2. Tom and Angel, everyone should have friends like them.

3. Alaska Airlines...we try to be loyal to these guys , they're the best.

4. St. Peters Health...in less than two hours had a plan and knew the problem, we even had a few laughs.

5. Compression socks.

6. Stupidity....seems we collide with that in this ole life. I always say you can't worry about what DIDN'T happen, but , you'd be a class 5 dummy if you didn't learn from it.

        A. Never have a massage with  DVT, it can cut loose a blood clot.

        B. don't fly with a DVT, it can cut loose a blood clot.

        C. reading and researching the Internet doesn't make you a doctor.

        D. Have trust.

        E. AND this is a big one that I continuously ignore, because ? well ? #5 , If something is bothering you at age 70 it generally won't just go away, it will and it does get  worse, maybe dangerously worse.

        F. You can have several things wrong with you all at the same time .

        G.  You got a good life, take care of it .

 

 

see ya around 2023

 

2023.....whooh....had just about enough of that one . And so it goes, you get THE phone call a couple to many times . You get the first round of no nonsense - can't get around it pain you've ever had . You get disappointed  by people . Depression sits in and all the songs you've relied on for 50 years to help you feel better don't . You miss people and places . You wonder why and why and why.....and then you know what, the year is over and we work on renewal . The best part of your melon steps up to let you know the obvious , nothings forever and looking back is a fool's errand. So we make a plan knowing full well that the first casualty in every battle is the battle plan . But it helps your renewal to know you've got a plan and just maybe, just maybe, it'll all be better, maybe even just fade away.

And along the way it's like fresh air, you know people love you but you've known that for so long you just kinda forgot what it means, how it works , how it helps and walla, that's renewal . It's a call that arrives at exactly the right time. It's a simple ' how ya doing ' ? It's a I got second cousin in Wikashebee that went through that, want me to call him ' ?. It's even just give him room , confident that he's a smart guy who will figure it out . So here's some love, it's a wink .

So there we are, how I've been feeling. I might be the oldest guy ever to have a mid life crisis . With this post I'm wiping it clean. I just wanted my tribe to know that I wasn't dodging work, I wasn't out of adventure or maybe that I was done.....it was just that I' always wanted Mile 14 to be nothing but fun and for just a while there I was out of it, used it up....I love to write and will continue, just needed some of that fresh air .

He's the old school

and he won't say .

When he's hurting 

he'll just hide away.

Till it's over 

and tears are dry.

He's the old school 

and you can't see him cry.

Thanks to John Hiatt

Snook 6, Jeff 2

 It's kinda funny in that when I'm fishing around here and especially over in the Gold Zone people will ask me if we really catch fish right in the middle of town.  I usually respond that the fish don't know that they're in a city, in fact some of the best structure is in town and some of the best fish I've caught or seen caught were in town.....But there's something about the chase when you're alone the beach and can look north and south and see just your fishing team members.

Me, Kiki and Carlos where headed for the 3rd point and decided to stop at point #1 and see how the fishing is in the rocks, it's been slow everywhere so we felt like why go so far if's not going to be very good. It's a bit cool as we tie our leaders in the dark by head lamp and I'm the first to the water and am thinking that those really good days start off first thing in the morning, if you're going to really hit them you  usually hit right off the bat....mmmm.....well I used up a large amount of my casting allotment before the sun came up but I was rewarded with this view of Cerritos with the sun just a glimmering off the huge Peninsula building....I felt good.

We threw for a couple hours and were surprised not to catch a Snapper on the rocks when the commercial guys showed up and wouldn't ya know pulled there net from around the rocks we were casting to . Same old story, first thing they teach you in guide school is take the money, the second thing is don't fish behind a gill net. But I was impressed with these guys boat skills. Being a skiff driver myself I got about half nervous for them as the boat is not only close to bottoming out but it's also sp close to the rocks that any little screw up and the boat is wrecked....maybe it wasn't their boat I don't know....they've done it a million times so it becomes routine, very impressive .

My neck condition has kinda changed so I needed to rest come mid morning. I find a nice shade tree and watch as Kiki throws and Carlos walks away to the south to search. Perseverance pays off and Kiki gets a nice little Cocanaco for supper. He cleans and we share the shade and talk story....great morning, thank you guys.

Somebody planted a little beach art for us....ahhh the creative mind at work.

I used to ride my bike out to oceanica to fish but I kept having flat tires, in fact I had two one morning and stopping to fix them on the fly was just to strange . I mentioned this to a guy at the Bike shop in Helena and he said you need the inner tube liners which I bought and installed and STILL had flat tires. I guess these guys have something to do with that, a pretty knarly plant.

And the title of this post tells the story. I've now hooked 6 or 7 Robalo and all but two earned their freedom . The darn things will pick up your bait right on the shore and you just don't get that good ' wait for the pull ' hook set...then the next wave picks ol slimey up and leaves him high and dry on the beach. And then because he hasn't been played out he thrashes and thrashes around until you see the hooks fly out and then before your 70 year old legs can get you there the next wave grabs him and walla....free at last, the one two days ago weighed 10 kilo or so . I've had that happen 4 times now. So, fighting an incredible run of bad moe-joe I decided to build some good karma and let this one swim off after Curt snapped the pic. Oh, and this one took the teaser and not the Mirrolure that was pulling it, pretty cool.

I'm playing music this weekend and I'll try to get MPeasy to shoot a video, maybe a Christmas song for you all . 

They call it fishing not catching

 and I should be used to that.  Commercial fishing it was called a water haul , my friend Chick once famously said ' we fished  today and they were unaware of it '. So, the fact of the matter is that it's the slowest ever I've seen it on the beach but the good news is that my neck is slowly but sure;y allowing me to wander the beach and do what I love...fish, meet people , talk story ya know. so I feel good enough I've gone from an hour onto close to two if I feel like it and the other day I threw my big rod for a couple hours and went fairly pain free through it. So if you ladies at St. Petes Re Hab see this, thank  you so much, I'm doing the exercises and stretches and here's the results.

My first Robalo of the season. It's about the fourth one I've had on the hook and the darn things just keep escaping. I had one that bit right at the beach and he just didn't have the hook so it came apart with the first jump and head shake....man it's exciting when that happens. Then just a few hours ago I had one hit at the end of my cast and I set right on time and hard , and yup, he jumped so I could clearly see him and the Mirrolure came flying . The pic below is of the sand carbs that are so thick you hook them just pulling your lure through the sand. The snappers love these guys so they should be everywhere the ' cochita's ' are....and maybe they are and don't need what we fishermen are trying to feed them.

The other morning we had to leave the house so Lorena could clean for us so we jumped the green bus and had breakfeast at Mr. Lionso's on Cerritos point. We walked out to the panga fleet to see how the  experts were doing and with  true Jethronian timing watched Jose unload the largest Lobster catch I've ever seen. For the peso equivalent of about 25 bucks I got three gorgeous mid sized lobsters....it was a push but me and MP but we ate it all in one setting , the key to that deal is we ate just Langosta, no pesky ol salad or veggies....maybe a little wine of course. 

After years of Pandemic cancellations The Marathon of the Pacific was back on Sunday. It's one of our favorite things to walk into the Gold Zone as the runners head towards our house. There's lots of energy and cheering and just simple goodwill going around. This years marathon was a bit watered down, no world class Kenyans and we saw no Banda which is one of my favorite things but its on and that was good enough foe us....Here's team Comacho rooting on their guys and typical athletes....the last pic is the leader with about 10 KM more to go.

So we're into the flow of Mexico now that we're a month in....It feels comfortable and I'm a lucky guy to have found this lifestyle and have the health to do it. The last 3 months have been a struggle for me with physical therapy and some heart wrenching  sadness that happens to people in our age group....and although I feel like I've aged 5 years in 3 months I push forward, have to, that's all there is. I've not complained with the everyday pain and MP notices both my resolve as well as when I hurt. The other night I played songs for the building and it was a struggle. I was feeling it when I started and when the set was over so was I....it's kinda changed and that's a good thing I'd say as a tingling itch kind of thing in your face and head and around your ear is easier than spasms that stop you in your tracks...

100%

 Humidity.....yup, we've been here for 10 days and it's been flat out hot and uncomfortable. I know I'm not going to get much sympathy from those of you N.O.B. but it's true, just now me and MPeasy are getting acclimated and getting away from the air conditioner every so often. Our first sunset in Mazatlan 2023.

Yesterday I went to the weigh in for the Debate sponsored Big fish tournament which is an annual Bisbee type of event here in Maz....and of course I learned a lot. It occurred to me that even the fundamentals of fishing  are way different here. On the world famous you need rain gear , a wild animal or two , maybe a seal sighting , the gentle sound of the water swooshing under the boat, you know , all those little things  that make the magic of sport fishing....But here at Mile 14 south the fishing event features great music, big fish, beer , and of course gorgeous women and gorgeous boats.

Here's better couple shots of one of the card holders. I guess you could say they're kinda like the ring girls at a boxing match .

I'm a black guitar guy myself and these guys had several of them. Nice hard rock that I could hear from the other side of the Marina as I rode over on my bike. I could've stayed and maybe even sat in for a song or two but it was 4 in the afternoon and 88 degrees with 85% humidity and I was dripping....So I bought a hat, had a Tecate visited with a condo promoter for a T-shirt and rode on home . This center console had 4 Mercs and was a thirty footer...nice. 

My friend Randy has a son named Jesse that does metal art and he would have been duly impressed with the welded sculpture that was one of the trophy's .

Of course I was waiting until I caught a fish before doing a blog entry and it was taking a while. It turns out that my neck pain gives me about a good hour every morning before I start feeling it....I'm so thankful that I can do it. My friend Dan is suffering like me with a lower back issue and also like me he is in physical therapy. He summed it up pretty well when he said we both are suffering from ' quality 'problems which really is spot on. A little pain and discomfort and to be able to continue doing the things you love are actually no problem . 

It was about 4 days ago I caught my first noble fish...and there wasn't a person in sight to help me with a photo. Of course I let this guy go and considered myself on the board for yet another season ....did I ever tell you that I'm a very, very lucky guy ? 

There's my kennel mates for the next 4 or 5 months. Kurt got here yesterday , Willie has been here a week and Alejandro and I are celebrating our 20th year together , he brought flowers for MP this morning ....and oh, that would be a fish Willie is holding. It's a funny thing, everyone wants to catch up, kinda check in  on one another but it's done in coolest subtle way...just fishing and you can tell by the laugh, the smile. Kurt simply said ' it's a good day to be alive '.

So, I'm in my natural element....outdoors, with fish , with MP , with friends....here's pic I took on our flight of old friends Ron and Pam Peabody , like Forrest Gump I run into people I know just about everywhere...but then again, I'm also looking for them.

and on the music scene....My favorite playing is when the place is quiet like it is now before the Holidays. Martin and I sit at the bar and trade songs. He like the few classics I know like the Eagles Lieing Eyes and I like the romatica he does as well as a thing called whapapongo (sp) that he does where he uses the sound box like a percussion instrument and kinda strums and bangs at the same time .  He was singing romantica one night and a gringo lady leaned over to me and said that it was to bad that it was in Spanish as she couldn't understand the lyrics.... I replied that of course she must know what he is singing, he says, I love you, you're everything to me , I'm so lucky to love you....that's what he's saying . 

This pic might not move the world but I tried to capture the moisture that just hangs over Mazatlan.The other morning it was a thick sticky fog that kinda turned into a cloud and so slowly moved to the north. To give you an idea....me and MP routinely walk 3 miles. This morning we started out and made it about 1/4 mile to the OXOO for fresh orange juice and then picked up mu Menudo and limped home to the air conditioner......see ya'll next week or so. 

Winter Storm Curtis

 Who's Curtis ?  Well , he's Mooontana's Jackie Purcell, the weather guru. When he says 12 inches of snow overnight that's what you get. Exactly ten years ago me and MPeasy chased Winter Storm Atlas as we drove across North Dakota to Minnesota to see Max. That storm was impressive and so was this one so I figured I'd name it myself .  Now retired #003 knows snow, I've been around it my entire life but there's always more to learn and this is what I'm learning ( the hard way of course ) is that Montana weather is just more dynamic that Alaska. You see in Alaska it starts raining or snowing and it does that for 5 days straight until you get 16 inches, around here it happens quick, 12 inches one night then a bonus 4 inches for a fantastic total of 16 in 24 hours. Kinda like the toad strangler that hit July 3rd 2021 and delivered an unbelievable 2 1/2 inches of rain in about 30 minutes. Here's a pic of our house...

We love this house, one story so no stairs and a beautiful expansive view . It has wonderful outdoor living spaces and mature landscape which means privacy....BUT...there's always the 'didn't think of that deal. We're on a fairly steep hill so now I know what Chris and Melinda on the Hillside of Anchorage go through to have their fantastic view...The morning we woke up to Winter Storm Curtis was exciting, I've never seen so many Subaru's stuck along side the road. People would pull to the right to pass someone turning and walla, the thick wet snow grabs the car and stops it next tot he curb....But Montanan's are a bit like Alaskan's everyone pitches in with the first batch of non-understanders and then things go smoothly the rest of the day. Here's the entryway at our health club.

So we do what we've always done in this situation....the car stays in the garage and the truck and camper are safe and sound under the new carport that was the last structure build of my life.  Then we shovel and the area around our porch could be prone to flooding so I use the wheel barrel to take all the snow out into the lawn....I hope you're enjoying that trusty snow blower I left you Mike because that is about the only regret I have in my life right now . We spend the day reading , a guy only needs so much news this day and age....Then about pre-cocktail hour we decide to walk down to the Casino to jokingly make a withdrawal.  They were happy to see us . Now I never hardly gamble but MP she likes to play the reels a bit and turn a 25 dollar breakfast into 40 dollar breakfast sometimes.  It's her upbringing I guess, she loves the hope, the mystery but she was taught to conserve everything so she will never lose any money to speak of . But me...well I usually go full speed ahead and man the torpedoes, that's why I seldom gamble.

So I get an ace and a King dealt to me and then the 10, Jack and Queen come on the draw...Walla !!!...the holy grail for video poker players . So now I've gambled twice in the last year and this is my second Royal Flush. Did I ever tell ya'all that I'm an awful lucky guy ?  It's just a shame to use up your moe-joe on $$$$$ when life's challenges await . So we left and walked home and the next day resisted the temptation to go again...It's called Balance . 

And that's the report from storm central.  We'll be Mazatlan soon and thanks to St. Pete's physical therapy and re hab I'm feeling like I can fish, all be it a bit slower I suppose . Hope ya come along.

The King of understatement

That would be my friend  and fellow retired fishing Pro Randy Berg who stated ' ya know this ageing process can be tricky '.  So as I type ( sitting in a chair of course as the desk hurts my neck ) I'm fasting and beginning my laxative treatment for tomorrow's colonoscopy.  Now if there's anything more awkward than having a colonscopy from a young female doctor I'd like to know what it is . So I might not have a lot fish pics foe this issue of Mile 14 but I do have the promise of a good story....and here's what we got goin on....

We've closed down the ranch portion of Mile 14 south and what a season it was. We have a drip system on a 20 X 20 foot area that out produces the 40 X 40 and two greenhouses we had in Alaska. A couple days ago we pulled  the row of tomatoes and harvest two full baskets and that's after supplying the gym, the neighbors, MP's family. our friends and the food share. We had the most gorgeous Black Crem tomatoes that are a Russian Heirloom....We donated at least 100 pounds of produce to Helena Food Share. Here's a pic of a Zucchini the evaded detection and got to big....The garden plants are so full of fruit that it's like mining when you pick as you never know what you'll find hidden away...we like it.

I was finally feeling good enough to go fishing the other morning. Well I was using that invisible leader that is new to me and on my third cast I hook a good Bass that pulls just hard enough to pull my botched knot job apart....so add a Rainbow colored Rapala shad rap to my losses. I've now lost more Rapala lures than your average fisherman has ever owned . It took a bit but I carefully tie on another and seeing a Bass surface a little farther out than a normal cast I gave it a little extra and walla....a searing pain shoots down my shoulder to my arm and I'm done fishing.....how exciting. Ya know for years I've told people  that this ol life is a marathon and not a sprint. Well, for me it's turning into a sprint.  But somebody somewhere has faith in me, this next pic was my fortune cookie the other night at Yatson's Chinese food , Several of my friends have suggested that I learn to bait fish so I don't have to cast.....mmmm.....nope, not, ain't gonna give it up that easy.

I haven't found anything that isn't helped by walking so I put the rod away and hiked around the lake. The fall colors and soooo vibrant and it looks to me we're an even month behind the world famous Mile 14 of the Kenai River.

Nov 7th we're gonna jump the jet. Ya know if a guy has to slow down a bit and do my re hab Physical Therapy exercises why not do it on the beach ? So being a 100 % guy I'm gonna apply myself to avoiding surgery on the neck. Strengthen the muscles, budget the activities that trigger the pain that are basically my lifestyle.....oh man, I gotta get better and I will.

The good news is that me and this new Chromebook computer are getting along splendidly. It's lightening fast and intuitive. It's going to make my winter of writing a lot easier as I move forward with Mile 14 and other writing projects......and yes, fish pics to come . See all my Team Xer buddies real soon.