What do you do when your health gets the best of you?
Between Diabetes and Arthritis I’m stuck in my recliner for the next few weeks, no standing or working on my layout until the pain resides.
I decided to build another scratch/bash 1930s house. I went to my old standby site http://www.antiquehome.org/. They have hundreds of floor plans of older homes, many were kit homes back in their day.
I have macular degeneration in left eye and cannot gauge distance up close.
Also, hands and fingers not always steady. No more modeling or soldering.
I am slowly bringing rolling stock to a place in town for selling.
Gave large scale and 0-27 stuff to young boys in family.
Had many years of fun modeling.
I ride an eBike on local rail trails in my area now. My small city still has it’s train station and a Union Station on the same trail about ten miles away with an Amtrak loading platform. Pan Am freights through that city also right next to the rail trail. About forty miles of rail trails in my area… Saves on wear and tear for the car.
Keep up with a couple train forums. Staying positive.
At seventy six, still dating and dancing.
I am a veteran and VA center about thirteen miles away I can bike to.
Mel: The most important thing in such a situation is (I believe) to not let the situation get the better of you. You have handled that wonderfully. I have AS and as such I had /have to adjust my layout construction techniques so that almost everything is on the top of the layout. Or come up with new ways to accomplish tasks that a lot of modelers look at as almost “plug and play” situations. Ironically, I have actually found that this slowing down and examining things has allowed me to build a better railroad. Perhaps the same is true with you and others in our boat. You are correct in your position on aging - it is most certainly not for the wimps.
Robert: I try hard to not let it get to me, depression can be deadly. I really enjoy scratch building vintage houses for my layout. I still have three craftsman kit houses on my layout but the majority are Mel scratch builds.
Several years ago I bought a hospital bed swing type table for use at my recliner, works great for building model railroad stuff.
Mel
Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951
Wow Rich, 76 and bike 13 miles to the VA center. I can’t bike 13 miles and I’m 25 years younger than you.
I am however falling apart and have been for at least 10 years noow. I have really bad arthritis in my knees, so I bought a single story house. If it gets really bad, I can install a chair lift down to the basement. I have partial vision loss in my right eye due to severe and stubborn glaucoma - various medicines did nothing to reduce the pressure so I had surgery on both eye, and even with that AND still using 2 kinds of eye drops, it’s still well above normal. I’ve worn glasses since I was 7, I’m something like a -11 in one eye, not sure what the other is. A strong magnifier lamp has been my friend for years.
It’s a vicious cycle, too. With my knees, I can’t really walk up my front yard (house sits on a hill), let alone push a lawn mower up it, so a former means of exercise is totally out. I was away most of the best days of summer, now that I’m home and can use my pool, it’s too dang cold. We’ve been having lows in the 50’s at night and not so sunny days, and low 70’s is just a bit too cool for the water. So I sit all day at work, come home, and mostly sit.
But, I’m trying to eat better, more healthy stuff. I have great plans for that basement and I want to be able to do it. I don’t want someone else to build my layout for me.
I am doing reasonably well, although I have recently developed paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. Don’t know why. I have always been athletic and active. Diet is quite good. Sleep a bit iffy; it’s great while it lasts.
However, it isn’t me that’s been the problem. My aged father has had to have a carotid bypass and a hip replacement and relied on my heavily for travel, appointments, recovery, etc. No big deal, except my wife has also had her health problems. Between the two, I have lost my spark and have stalled for nearly two years on my latest layout. Just the past two weeks I have begun to get some mojo back and have been tinkering in the train room. I feel a track laying session coming on. [:P]
great looking build mel know what bad hips are like mine are also going , right now i’m working on the John Johnson house off the habr side , would post photo but i don’t belong to any storage site . fun build if you put the name in on search you can see it.
Wow Mel…talk about opening a can of worms?..LOL. Just too much to list, in one sitting, so I won’t go there. I’m going on My tenth reconstruction right shoulder surgery since 1967, from a infamous gift I got in Vietnam of the same yr. Just had one at the end of July and am due to have another this Sept 11, (of all days) to try and correct the constrictive movement of My shoulder, can’t lift My shoulder past My head without terrific pain, I was able to do so before the last surgery with minimal pain. I have six pins in it and sumtin’ ain’t right…I told them this will be the last time…can’t take it anymore…along with My other ailments…eyes, other shoulder, left ankle that gives out when it wants…balance, on constant alert…had a stroke in 2007 and that effected My balance, still learning how to do things without falling…being totally drunk without having a drink, would be how I would describe it…oh, and I forgot about My back…when that gets to hurting due to a pinched nerve in lower vertebra…I try to stand the pain as long as I can without the pain pills, for they are addictive…but it does get one to thinking about the end…
I take one day at a time and do what My body will let Me…that’s all I can do, try not to dwell on it. My spirits are high…family taken care…so I laugh whenever I can…and found that also helps others around Me. I will be 75 in a 2 months…
When I was in my early twenties I suffered a bad injury at work and spent almost four months more or less in bed.
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I buit a trestle. Probably the best model I will ever build, just because there was nothing else I could do.
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In preparation for the future, I am remodeling my house, and it will be wheelchair access and include all assist apparatus. My wife and I are OK now, but we are knocking on the door of becoming elderly. I never want to give up my hobbies, so I am planning for what may come.
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While you are in your recliner, the scratchbuilding seems like a great idea. That trestle sure kept my spirits up.
With my declining health I decided to sell off all my older BB and Roundhouse cars and BB locomotives since my oldest Grandson is more into the DCC/Sound and highly detailed cars.
My modeling has almost cease since I’m using my higher detailed RTR cars and engines these will go to my Grandson.
I’m currently slowly working on another 1’ x 12’ ISL.
After my recent congestive heart failure the old pep in my hobby step has slowed. I still railfan locally.
Good to hear that once a model railroader always a model railroader even with health problems.
I have decided to go with the Hickory house for my two to three week convalescent period in my recliner, at 80 everything takes two to four times longer to heal than in my younger years.
Even though it can’t be seen from the outside I do the interiors on my scratch builts, its part of the fun of building my model railroad. This one will sport full lighting (incandescent) for one of my 14 port Arduino Random Lighting controllers.
I like a house with a large front porch, reminds me of my parents and grand parents houses. I think I will bash it a bit by adding a porch to the second floor over the first floor rear porch. By adding a porch to the second floor I can come up with 14 zones for lighting. I can put people all over the place
Not everything. You seem to be typing as well as ever.[:D] No misspellings or anything.
Regarding the porch. I like a big porch too. Down south, we call that a veranda. Wraps around three sides. Move the chairs and tables and iced tea and whatnot depending on the sun, the wind, and/or the rain.
Good luck on your convalescence. Keep us up-to-date on progress. And don’t skimp on the photos.
I do my posts on Word then copy and past to the forum, that eliminates most of my errors. They say that your nose never stops growing, I will add fingers and thumbs to the list. Fat fingers don’t help the keyboard at all.
In a way, I found the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes to have some positives. I have beem exercising more and have lost some weight. Yes, I’ve changed my diet somewhat, but I’m not denying myself those things I really enjoy.
I don’t believe in giving in to illnesses and injuries. I do what I can to alleviate the symptoms with medications, diet and exercise. I try to be aware of side effects, because they can be worse than the condition they are intended to treat. I discuss negative side effects, and if they bother me too much, the doctor helps by listening to me and adjusting the pills.
I really think too many people, particularly us older folks, give in to the side effects and don’t ask for a change. If you are taking Lisinopril for high blood pressure, for example, you may develop a distinctive cough. Tell your doctor. There is no reason to suffer with it. There are alternatives that will work just as well for you.
I guess I can relate to you guys too. I’ll be 69 in Oct., and my health isn’t anything to brag about. I had an aluminum ladder collapse under me in 2007, separated 3 ribs, dislocated 6 vertebras, sprained my right ankle and knee, and bounced my head off the rock hard ground. It took 6 months in a recliner before I could lay down in bed.
Then in 2011 I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, lost 50 pounds through diet and exercise, and continue the regimen to maintain my weight. Then in 2013 I had surgery on my left shoulder to remove a bone spur that severed 95% of my bicep tendon while I was doing therapy for frozen shoulders. He also repaired my rotator cuff.
Then the big one in 2015. I went to my Dr. For my semi annual blood work and told him about a tightening sensation at the base of my throat when doing heavy work. He said “you’re over 50, a former smoker, and you have diabetes, I would suggest we schedule you for a stress test. Flunked that, so they said we’ll do a heart cath and probably put in a stent or two. Flunked that too. I knew it was bad when the Dr. said “look at all the trash in there”. Turned out to have 85-95% blockage in the arteries. Then he called up the heart surgeon and said he has an opening Friday first thing or on Tues in the afternoon. I said let’s do it Friday and get it over with. So after over 4 hours on the table I wound up with 5 bypasses.
That put a serious crimp in my plans for my railroad. I had the basement walls insulated, drywalled, and painted, the new electric run, the floor insulated, and OSB on the floor almost completed. I had to put all that on hold while my sternum knitted back together as I wasn’t allowed to stress the joint. The 2 worst things about the whole ordeal was riding in the back seat of the wife’s car while she sought out every bump in the road, and not being able to run my tractor for a month.
But since then I’ve been working almost daily in the 62&
