September 2021 Newsletter Edition
I've done as much as I am capable of during September. I had wanted to do more. I've had to schedule my time and energy around when help was available.
I've been continuing to trudge forward with the weather station setup. It is a bit discouraging that everything that I do will have to be undone to replace the main post. But on the other hand at least I will have my hobby in place. What is noteworthy is that I've done the maintenance in preparation for winter. I setup air dehydration using a pair of
I've done and planned some household maintenance this month:
- I purchased and installed a bidet toilet seat. This is an alternative to toilet paper using targetted water to wash instead of wiping. The reason I've purchased this is to help manage the skin break down I'm experiencing on my bum. This is a better management of the bacteria. The air dryer component will also prevent skin breakdown. This is a preventative measure. There is a prescription cream I use to manage the skin breakdown that is a result of using a power wheelchair. There is the possibility that I could become immune to it. This would make managing skin breakdown very difficult. I like this strategy.
- The sump pump had to be replaced. The float caused it to become jammed on. This was a straight forward exercise: The one way value uses a gear clamp. Simply loosening it, removing the defective sump pump and replacing it with the new one is all that was needed. I am able to accommodate a light to show when the sump pump is in use to avoid this in the future. I've ordered a 12 volt LED light for this purpose. Once it arrives I will be setting it up on the main floor of my home. This will help me monitor if the sump pump becomes jammed on in the future.
I took steps to try and improve my broken sleep because by my throbbing hips:
- I've started using 81mg advil again. What is wrong responds better to this than other prescription anti inflammatory medications I've tried. Of course if I am comfortable this means better quality sleep.
- I've purchased melatonin. I am only needing 1 or 1½ mg just as I get into bed. The improved sleep is worth it. I didn't want it to come to this. On the other hand I need to sleep well at night so I am able to be functional during the day time. At least this is natural to the body and there is minimal risk involved for using this supplement. However I am not in any way downplaying the legitimate use of medicines.
- My robot vacuum is requiring maintenance. The battery isn't charging. There is a possibility that a power surge has damaged the robot vacuum. For right now the initial step is a warranty replacement battery. The battery in question is 4 months old. It has a 6 month warranty. I do need to buy a power surge protector for it. I expect this will be resolved in October. This robot vacuum is essential to my daily life. I can't sweep the floor without great pain.
I got behind in my own projects because the time I was spending with my aunt during her cancer treatment and leading up to her death. I am continuing to think through what needs to happen so I don't have multiple projects only partially completed. There is a fine balance in all this that has to do with managing my day to day life with the challenges presented from living with a physical disability. I am trying to work on a "one in / one out" process where I focus on up to 3 projects at a time. This is enough to prevent me from becoming bored. It is manageable since I often need to pause a project waiting for a person to help me complete a step or materials to arrive.
I am continuing to work towards the setup of my laser engraver. I found an orbital sander order that had damaged packaging and was being sold at cost. I have purchased this. Since I saw the deal for the orbital sander I proceeded because the laser engraver is on my short list of tasks to complete. I am hoping to get the laser engraver up and running in early 2022. I need to finish the weather station and have my backyard graded before winter arrives.