BRIGHTER DAYS AHEAD

I'm still feeling (cautiously) optimistic, but I want to tell you what happened yesterday.

Remember baclofen - - those horrifying "muscle relaxers" that gave me incredibly bad side effects?

Well, one nurse removed them from my list of meds. A great relief.

So, yesterday some birdbrain nurse (an insult to birds) came in my room with some meds to take.

I saw three little very suspicious tablets.

"What are these?" I ask.

"Oh, those are your baclofen," she said.

What?????

I was absolutely stunned. If I nearly died from one baclofen, what the hell would THREE do???

"No way," I said."Take them back and get them OFF my med list".

She did. I think.

I have to examine my meds VERY carefully. Baclofen is a small round white tablet that looks exactly like lasix (furosemide)- - the water pill that helps edema. Very difficult to tell them apart.

I swear with no exaggeration, if I stay in this careless wacko place, they will eventually kill me.

My chance for escape is finally waiting. We'll save that for later.

So, how did I get here, anyway? Long story.

I was first here at Signature Health Care for three months. That was two years ago when I was recovering from cancer and a heart attack. Never thought I'd be here again.

This precarious journey began about a year ago, around Thanksgiving 2024.

Everything was going okay. I planned to renovate my kitchen before Thanksgiving. I resurfaced the floor, installed cabinets where the old refrigerator used to be. I was making progress....

THEN

One morning when I got out of bed, I was jolted with excruciating pain in my back. My right leg was completely paralyzed - - couldn't move it at all.

I had no alternative but to get in my wheelchair. I lived in that damn chair in the living room. This only made things worse. My legs swelled with edema and the back pain got worse.

I'm drastically condensing this tale of woe. Sometime in December I called 911 and was taken to Cookeville Medical Center. I was in Cookeville for about two weeks. Tests and xrays showed nothing significant with my back.

LET ME INTERJECT HERE

All of my present problems with my back are due to old spinal injuries. Once long ago I fell down a flight stairs - fractured my spine. Here in TN I fell on the ice several times. All of these injuries are finally catching up with me.

So, where was I? Cookeville. After about two weeks there, they decided to send me to Signature Health Care in Jamestown. I was adamantly against it.

They forced me here - - - and after many many long grueling months, here I am. Still trapped. Fact is much stranger than fiction. Can't make this up.

This post is growing at an alarming pace. Stay with me. A lot more to say.

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Anyway

I think just about everybody around here suspects that I'm disgruntled and want to leave. It won't be a surprise (the Dragon Lady knew it months ago).

Now Hospice and Signature can work with Quality Home Health Care. It will give them some substance for the care of my future.

Escaping from here and returning home will definitely not be easy - - but it will be easier than staying here.

My property here on King's Mountain is ensconced in my heart. I bought it in autumn 2013 from Mr. King who built it himself. It was in reasonable shape, yet needed a lot of work. At that time I was in good health and could walk unaided.

I bought rolls of carpet and layed it down in three rooms. I did a great job, despite that I never did a project like that before.

I painted the entire interior of the house. It's a small house, but there are a living room, dining area and tiny kitchen. Three bedrooms, two tiny baths.

I painted the front and back wooden porches. Lots of other stuff.

I haven't seen it in nearly a year. A lady named Shiela who works here, lives up near my place. She checks the house and gets my mail. I'm truly greatful.

But what will I see when I get there?? It rained nearly every day in October, and now snow in November. I'm sure the Mexican guys didn't have a chance to do anything with the property.

And the inside! I left an unbelievable mess. Every room filled with trash. I thought I'd be gone for a few days or a week.....not a YEAR.

The living room still has Christmas lights strung up. Food everywhere - - pies, cookies. Fruit baskets that were gifts.

My new refrigerator and freezer where stocked with food. Milk, juice, fresh fruit, cheese, a whole roasted chicken, cold cuts, lots more.

The power is on, I paid the power bill every month.

The water is off. I had the city turn it off last January. During the frigid winter the pipes tend to freeze and often burst. I didn't want any floods.

I have to clean every room, get rid of spoiled food. Check for critter infestation. Mice, possums, snakes.....you name it.

I have many plans for what to do. Not said now. I've already been overwhelmingly verbose.

I've covered a lot, but my mind is perpetually racing with things unsaid.

Jon 💜 not giving up

Images on this post are mine (of course)