My health was going down and I retired a few years early. Fortunately my savings and financial planning all
along my work career had me set up well. House and cars paid for, and a good monthly income.

My health had taken a serious nosedive and I was grossly misdiagnosed, drugged up with drugs that made
me a zombie. Three major meds, four more for the side effects of the first three, and even more for the side
effects of the side effect drugs. I was so far down I used to argue with myself whether I'd get up out of bed
and walk the 8 feet to the bathroom or just piss the bed. I was that exhaused all the time. I'd have to take 3
or 4 naps a day. I fell asleep and ran off the road in front of the Jr. High. Good thing it was before school
let out, and no kids on the side, and I woke up and stopped without hitting anything. I had to quit driving for
a while as I would nod off. I'm a musician and had to quit playing, did not have the energy.

And through all that I had developed diabetes and very high blood pressure (200/120) after years of being
in good health with blood sugar and BP.

When I finally fired my doctors and got a new one, the new guy had to wean me off the drugs, as just stopping
suddenly could kill me. Took me six months to get off that crap. After another six months I felt good enough
to start going to the gym. I started doing 15 min at 2 mph, which is a slow walk. Over the next six months I
worked up to doing 3 mph for an hour with 5 degree incline. Once I got there I started on weights and machines.

I will say that now, at nearly age 70, I can out lift 90% of the guys at the gym that are half my age. I'm not
going to be able to do the Iron Man or Toughest Man in (My City) things, I still have old knees. I have to limit
weights due to what my joints will allow. And my knees are not up to running. But I'm in pretty good shape
now.

I get to the range 6-8 times a month. While I'm not a National Match shooter, I do OK. All of my equipment is
well dialed in.

And I hang out with an old (can't tell you or I'll have to kill you) guy and we try to stay out of jail... haha.

My three band fan dipole (75m-40m-20m, which could also work 17m, 15m, 10m) became buried in some
jasmine that has wrapped around it like an automotive wiring harness and pulled part of it down.  I need to
get out and hack all that crap down and run new wire.  So I've been off the air a while, just had other things
doing.

It was nice finding out guys were asking about me.  I'll try to get on here more, sorry I've been away.

Glad you're back and on the mend.

You're a great asset to this forum, and a hell of a nice guy.

Glad to hear you're on the mend

Thanks, guys.  I was pretty far down.

Two years after I changed over to my current MD I was in for a checkup I commented to him that
when I came to him I didn't think I'd last another two years.  He told me he didn't think I'd make
it a year.  Now he tells me I'm the best in shape patient he has at my age, and among the best
in shape guys of all his patients of any age.

I won't bore you guys with what was wrong with me, but I'm feeling good.

Interesting thing, I was in that gap between when my company insurance quit, and I was not old
enough for Medicare/Obamacare.  So no insurance.  

I found out you can negotiate prices.  I had to do a sleep study at the local hospital.  I walked into
the billing office there, sat down, explained I didn't have insurance.  They quoted me some outlandish
price.  I then said, If I had Blue Cross or some other insurance, what is the lowest price you would
bill them?  I'll pay that, write a check right now, you deposit it, and tomorrow the money is in the
bank.  If I had insurance it would take you 6 mo to a year to get the money.  So what do you want
to do?  I paid less than 10% of what I was originally quoted.

I needed a CPAP.  My new MD had a company contact me to supply that.  They called, said they
had a machine for me, wanted my insurance info.  I explained the no insurance thing.  They said
they could only work with insurance.  I told them I would write a check for the machine in full.  
Nope, only insurance, they said.  Well, we can't do business, bye.  Hung up, they called back,
went through it all again with another person there, same end result.

I got online, did some research on what were good machines, got on Amazon and bought one.  It
was on my doorstep in less than 48 hours.  I got the machine, mask (not the nose thing, I'm a
mouth breather when I sleep), hose, the whole shebang for about $550.  Insurance would have
paid 10x-20x that amount.  

Sometimes you just have to take charge and work around the bastards.  Now if only I could stop
all the phone calls trying to sell me mobility scooters, back braces, and all kinds of other crap I
don't need.

Good to hear that you are out of the woods.

You need to get back on the air and join the Tuesday night Arfcom net!  

American Radio Friendship Community.

Glad to see you are back!

Glad you're back!

Glad you're back!!!!

Thanks, guys!

So, those of you thinking I was dead and wanting to split up my gear can go to hell... hahahaha!!!!!

Hey I remember you!

Glad to hear from you.

Good to hear from ya! Glad your on the mend. I remember you talked me into an OCF dipole for my 1st wire antenna many moons ago.  It worked very well with proper current balun. I retired last year from Ma Bell, but haven't been OTA much at all. Hoping the solar cycle picks up. My 160m inverted "L" wire is wrapped around a limb now due to these high winds lately. I need to free it & also shorten my 80m doublet to 40 & pull it back up.

Take care of yourself

I am glad that you are doing better and are back here.

Thanks, guys!  I'll try to post more often.

Glad you are back and feeling better!
Many thanks still to your OCFD thread years back - mine is still up and functioning well!

Thanks, penrod72, and thanks to all you guys.

I'm glad that you're feeling better.

Attached File

Glad you are well!

Feeling good is worth more than money!

I too retired not long after I was eligible but about five years sooner than I hoped.  Had some medical issues and was taking more and more time off of work seeing specialists out of town.  Thankfully I was socking money into a 475b retirement plan.  I won’t be rich but should be ok.

Hope to make your acquaintance on the air!

73

Thank you very much.



Damned right it is!!!

Glad you are back.  I retired early myself at the end of last year.  Things started going bad with a heart attack in 2019 and it was not a real bad one but it must have triggered some things.  Several years ago I had quit smoking as I was feeling COPD starting to take hold.  For most people it seems quitting smoking slows or practically stops progress of COPD or their symptoms even get better.  But for me there was not any improvement ever and it seemed most of the time to be progressing more than I would have liked.  In late 2019 after the heart attack my COPD started hitting hard and I had a cardiologist who was still suspecting heart related issues.  Got set up for a new angiogram in early 2020 and then the virus lockouts at hospitals began in earnest so I waited several months taking nitrates until the Governor of Texas would let me in.  The angiogram revealed no worsening of my coronary arteries and echo showed good function so it was all emphysema according to the pulmonologist and it has continued over the past two years without any successful treatment being found yet.  Now it has progressed to right heart failure and the diagnosis is pulmonary hypertension.  This is a more recent development and we are still shopping to find the right specialist covered by my insurance to get effective treatment.  Meanwhile my strength is fading and I can barely get out of the house.  And worst of all I have a brand new station ready to assemble at home but I have not found help to install the antennas (would have been easy for me to do a couple years ago).    Fortunately I did get an easy approval for Social Security disability and also benefitted from a huge real estate bubble in Oregon so we are sitting pretty good with no bills, and in a few months I will be Medicare eligible which I hope will improve the menu of providers available to me.

Anyway here's hoping for your continued progress and also that we can both get back on the air soon!  From AE5TE

This thread sound like a conversation on a local 2M repeater.

2m can't possibly be as bad as 160m.



The BS is deep on that band.

I wish you the best!  Your Baofeng thread has been very helpful!

I hope your absence since 12/25 is due to a nice Christmas vacation.

You know how to handle them. When they call you you tell them that YOU have been trying to contact THEM about their car's extended warranty.

Or tell them they have won an extended week's stay at the Marriot Hotel in Outer Slobovia

Yeah, all OK here.  Not time to split up my gear.  

Between the car warranty, mobility scooter, mesh implant, and all that, I must get 8-10 of these a day on each
phone.  I block each one, but they will call back in a few days with a new number.  The ones calling from the
computer department of the government telling my my computer is sending out viruses and I need to turn
control of my computer over to them to fix the issue seems to have fallen off.  Rachel still calls me often about
the car.  My wife gets calls to extend the warranty on a car we have not owned for 7-8 years and was totaled.  
(Other driver's fault.)  

I think I'll try selling them time shares.