Living Life In A Wheelchair

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January 2021 Newsletter Edition

Whether we were ready for it or not 2021 is here. I certainly don't regret leaving 2020 behind with covid. There is still a lot of unknown. Much of my life hasn't changed because of using the Internet for shopping, banking and social engagement for several years. What has affected me are some quality of life activities that help me better co-exist with my physical disability. I am pleased with what I was able to accomplish this month.

As a strategy to coexist with my physical disability I cook my meals in bulk, freeze them and then unthaw a day at a time. There isn't too much more effort involved in preparing a meal for 1 serving compared to 12. I especially like soups and stews. In early January I placed a bulk grocery order to get me through the next 4 months. I have started the meal preparation. I am enjoying this. By doing it this way I am able to use my energy for the tasks I enjoy and what gives my life meaning. This is instead of just doing the tasks needed to keep myself alive.

I have started my drone maintenance for the 2021 flying season. I was gifted a drone after someones brother tragically died. It needed a new set of bumpers and propellers. I also needed to order some batteries. I am glad this is taken care of. I have to log the maintenance as a condition of my drone pilot certificate. I am not sure how much I will actually fly this summer. It seems I am going to be maxed out for much of spring and summer 2021. My aunt is battling cancer. My weather station requires maintenance. There is more rearranging and organizing I want to do in my home. My physical disability is a bit of an unknown. I am going to try to make my best out of 2021.

I have started thinking about streaming live on youTube. I want to give my DSLR camera the ability to be used with this. I ordered a DC power supply (opposed to the camera running on batteries) and the HDMI cable needed to connect my camera to a video capture card. I have also ordered a new computer. The laptop computer I have been using was manufactured in 2012. It has reached the end of it's life. I think this is part of the mix I need to see growth occurring.

I invested more effort in my dwarf banana plant setup. The leaves aren't the right shade of green. I think the plant is wilting. I believe I need a grow light. This coincides with the days being shorter because of winter. I've ordered an LED based grow light and PVC conduit to make to make a simple frame to hold the grow light about a meter above the dwarf banana plant so the grow light won't burn the leaves. I think this will improve the plants health. I really am enjoying tending to the needs of this plant. It was definitely worth getting.

As the pandemic rages on I ordered Ethernet cable for the shed to home office renovation. Canada Post has adopted measures to keep their employees safe from the virus. This has slowed mail and parcel delivery down. It is the same with all the delivery services used for online shopping. I am importing the Ethernet cable from California. I don't need it until spring when I am working on the shed. This should mean it will be here for when I need it. With my physical disability it will be so helpful to have the physical space of the shed usable year round.