So....I turned 61 today

[moparedtn]

Happy Birthday Ed !!!
Thanks for another "Story Time with Ed"
I really do enjoy reading them
It keeps my mind off of other things going on in my life.
The doctors told my wife a year and a half ago she only had 3 to 6 months left to go from metastatic lung and bone cancer and she is still here although we just found out it has moved into her brain now and they are saying weeks now. We have had a wonderful 34 years together and I am grateful for that. We never know how long we have in this life.
I see you got me by 2 years in age.

Thank you, my friend - and my heart goes out to you and yours, along with my prayers.
I'll be honest with you here... the whole cancer thing in people has really tested my Faith - often.
It's such a purely evil, vile thing to visit upon anyone - and other than trying to follow doc's orders,
going through all the procedures and such mandated in treatments - we really can't do a whole lot
to "fix" it ourselves - and I'm one of those "I can fix anything" sort of guys. Frustrating...

Early on, I was scared and all that like someone gets...
The further I got into it, though...and the more of it that showed up....I just got battle-hardened and
eventually, quite honestly resentful and downright mean sometimes as the situation dictated.
I wasn't the most pleasant to be around sometimes, no doubt - but that's how I got through it all.

It's sort of weird now, though... came out the other side of it, looked around and thought "well, that
was intense - for a long freaking time - now what?"

Life, man, that's what - just life and just me - and I ain't nobody.

 

[moparedtn]

Happy belated birthday Ed, so sorry i missed it.
On a good note, it appears SOMEONE bought you an extended warranty. A few birthdays back I decided to make decisions like I was 17 again. There were too many years I let slip away worrying that everything would be in order for "that day" when it arrives. Too many missed opportunities passed me by or were delayed by my paralysis analysis. It was somewhere around your milestone birthday when it hit me - what would I do if I were 17? Then just did it, whatever it was. Remember 17?, you had no fear of the future. Live for the moment Ed, there are no guarantees or warranties. As for your friend, if you were 17 again it would have never bothered you. You would have called him out and both laughed it off and carried on.
I wish you a truly belated birthday my friend!
Now get your butt to Carlisle next year so we can insult each other in person.

Aww man, you hit a lot of nails on the head with this one my friend...
"Extended warranty" indeed - although I haven't a clue why.
You get into this pickle eventually, everyone does, where you look around and wonder
"why did ___ have to go before me? They had so much more to live for - they were doing
so much more for those around them!" and stuff like that.

Hell, I begged for Him to take me instead of my little brother....or my dad.....
because they both were better people than me and needed, truly needed here.
You get into that mindset of "this shiyat ain't right, God!" and you question why....
a lot, at least I did.
Still do sometimes, honestly...
Thank you for taking the time, I do appreciate it my friend.

 

[moparedtn]

A very Happy Birthday Ed. And wishing you many more.
Your story hits a nerve with me because we're the same age and on a similar note, last month I finished up my 3rd round of radiation treatment for prostate cancer (2nd in a year-and-a-half; 3rd in 10 years) and every year is a blessing. With Godspeed we'll both be posting on this forum for years to come.

Thank you and from your fingers to God's ears, sir!
Folks like you that endure the radiation, God love you....that's REAL. It's been a true Blessing that every
dang time I've gotten cancer, it wound up being a "hack job" and a lot of stitching back together whatever
was left of the carcass - and of course, more prescriptions to take the place of what got took.
(Hint: they really don't - stuff is changed forever and never for the "better").

I look forward to seeing your posts on here for the foreseeable future, my friend. You're a cornerstone of
this place!

 

[moparedtn]

Albeit different years @moparedtn , you share August 13th birthdate with Annie Oakley (1860), Alfred Hitchcock (1899), Fidel Castro (1926), and Janet Yellen (1946).

___________________________________________

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ED​

Just had to toss in that last couple of 'em, didn't ya?
Thanks!

 

[moparedtn]

Cancer is a thing many of us have dealt with but often do not divulge. It isn't as if we chose to get it nor is it a sign of weakness.
I am a member of this unfortunate "club" as well but I rarely mention it.

That's true - most folks keep such to themselves and I come from that on both sides of my own family.
Everyone deals with it however they can, of course - and if this is some manner of accusatory aimed at
me, well please allow me to retort sir:
1. I come from the "keep that stuff to yourself..." world as well, both family sides.
2. Obvious stuff there - nobody chooses to get cancer, as I've often written - and no, it's quite indiscriminate
in where and with who it chooses to manifest itself into.
Health afficionados to slobs, good moral folks to lifer criminals, it jumps any and all equally.
3. I'm very glad you're still with us!

I've tried to explain why I do these posts before...repeating here for reminding:
I reserve the caveat of "I'm just babbling in these posts for myself and if anyone else gets anything out of it,
great! If not, kindly just call me a name under your breath and move on...."

As part and parcel of my trying to handle all this, personally speaking - and the accompanying search for the
answer of "why was I spared - I ain't nobody?" bit - I've discovered writing such things out is quite therapeutic
sometimes.
Added benefit is that sometimes others like it, too - that can't be bad, either.
Hell, maybe this is even part of what I'm supposed to be doing? I dunno.

Lookit KD:
Your being obnoxious (with a good heart, acknowledged) is part of how you deal with your situation. I get it.
Heck, I enjoy it!
This is a big part of how I deal with mine. It's nothing more than that.

 

[moparedtn]

Happy Birthday Ed even though I missed it. I'm not one that goes looking for who is having a birthday but maybe I should. Hope you and your friend has gotten back on track with each other but it kinda reminds me of a friend (more like an acquaintance) that I have had for the past 20 years. He's one that is never wrong and likes to rile people up. Even told him once to leave the waitress alone before she pours a pitcher of tea over his head. He liked to ask me why I liked 'these damn Dodges' while riding in mine when his Chevy is broke down in his driveway. He has plenty of money to buy a new one but won't fix the old one that he likes so much. I've actually pulled over to the side of the road (twice!) and stopped and told him to get the F out if he hated riding in a 'damn Dodge' so much. He shut up for several months each time lol. Tried to tell him many times that his personality isn't conducive to making or keeping friends but he doesn't seem to care. He once said that forking with people is good entertainment. He can go fork with someone else now....I'm done with the bs. Every now and then he sends me a text asking 'what's up' and I just reply with 'I don't know.'

Thanky Cranky! Sorry, couldn't resist.

I feel the need to say something about this guy here, y'all:
Cranky has spent an inordinate amount of time corresponding with me over this and that in the time I've been
a member here - sometimes he's not happy with something I've done (admittedly, often deserved!);
other times, he's been more informative and helpful about how this or that works here at FBBO.

Point is - he's taken the time and he's been more than civil about doing so.
(This divulging of mine here will probably get him in trouble with the powers that be, too.... ).
What I'm saying is he's the genuine article - a good dude, albeit with a bit of "crust".

Oh, about your "friend" - been there, done that a few times with folks most others wrote off quickly -
I invested more time in them, thinking that everyone has some good in them, sometimes not readily
apparent, just gotta dig a little more to find it.
As you've now determined however...that ain't always the case.
Sometimes folks can be rotten to the core and it's best for self-preservation to get away from 'em, sadly.

Thanks my friend, appreciate it!

 

[moparedtn]

Ed,
Very sorry I missed your birthday - I have been sick for the last few days with Covid so I have not been on the site much.

Now that you have outlasted your 10 year expectation, it sounds to me like it is time to set some new ones! Think about times you may have said to yourself "one day I'd like to...." Well, maybe now is the time to make that dream a reality.

Take Fred on an extended cruise? (one of my favorites!)
Take a vacation to a nice spot you have always thought about?
Learn a new skill?
Others?

Regardless of what you choose, we are glad you are still here. I hope to get a neat story from you for many more years to come!

Hawk

Dang Hawk, sorry to hear about that! Been there, had that crud very early on. Lost my best friend to it, too.
Evil, vile crap, that 'Rona...hope you're on the mend!

Oh yeah, new challenges abound for a fella for sure....
Spent most of yesterday with what started out with a simple kitchen faucet swap (wife wanted a different,
fancier one of course) leading to all sorts of hell under the sink....
Seems our 25 year old drain piping under there has gone all to hell.
*sigh*
Reckon I know what new "challenge" I get to wrestle with this morning! Yay me!

 

[moparedtn]

Looks to be a 1965 Chrysler 300 (maybe an "L"), with possible 413 with rare in C-body 4-speed. But don't tell anybody; it's a secret.

How cool would THAT be! Mercy...

 

[moparedtn]

As always, folks:
I am overwhelmed by how many took the time to drop some well wishes on me on the date of my spawning.
Every one of them, from every one of you, takes me down little memory paths of past interactions I've had
with each of you and that's a freaking blessing - one not lost on me, as I know the next time ain't guaranteed.
God bless and keep all of you and yours!

 

[Roger63]

Ed it took me a couple days to digest what you wrote. Like you my recent birthday passed by unnoticed by the forum. No big deal but like you I had an expected expiration date that has fallen into the past. I got the 18 month survival estimate. So I made the same preparations, I got everything out of my name tied up all my loose ends then I concentrated on walking again. I wasn't going to die in a wheelchair being a burden to my family. What happened after reaching those goals has left me a bit lost. With my cancer disappearing and my physical abilities increasing I'm beginning to think about working again. My wife has done a great job of being the bread winner and holding everything together but it's just bread into me. I'm not upholding my promise to provide for my family. They are confusing thoughts. 2020 was the year that I was tested, 4 hospital stays 3 surgeries paralyzed had shut down my business and lost all my income and lost my parents. Yes as my 59th birthday past it had dawned on me, I'm way overdue for death. What do I do now?

 

[Cranky]

Yes as my 59th birthday past it had dawned on me, I'm way overdue for death. What do I do now?

My thought is you keep on living! As for missing your birthday.....Happy belated! I have a hard time remembering birthdays of my own family and it doesn't matter if I write them down. Gotta remember to look at that. Missed my youngest by 2 days and I looked at the list several days beforehand!

 

[VANDAN]

Happy B-Day Ed, and Many More !
Let the water flow under the bridge, and Enjoy that Great State You call Home !!!

 

[Roger63]

My thought is you keep on living! As for missing your birthday.....Happy belated! I have a hard time remembering birthdays of my own family and it doesn't matter if I write them down. Gotta remember to look at that. Missed my youngest by 2 days and I looked at the list several days beforehand!

Not worried about the missed birthday, Ed's post was just a catalyst for my thoughts. Retirement is not something I'm easing into gracefully.

 

[HawkRod]

Not worried about the missed birthday, Ed's post was just a catalyst for my thoughts. Retirement is not something I'm easing into gracefully.

As usual, Ed does a good job of making us think about things, about life, and through that, perhaps we reevaluate some things. It's good to reflect sometimes. I haven't (yet) had to deal with any doctor giving me an estimated length I'm going to live. That must be very scary, sobering and hard to process.

In my own life, I have found that I need goals or I become a bit lost in the fray. Just going through the daily motions isn't good for me. I need something tangible I'm working towards.

Find something you are passionate about, and then go for it and do it! Find a job you really like (not just a "job" that puts money in your pocket). Maybe it could even be volunteering for a worthy cause or organization? Regardless, congratulations for making the doctor wrong! I hope you find a passion for something new soon!

 

[Roger63]

As usual, Ed does a good job of making us think about things, about life, and through that, perhaps we reevaluate some things. It's good to reflect sometimes. I haven't (yet) had to deal with any doctor giving me an estimated length I'm going to live. That must be very scary, sobering and hard to process.

In my own life, I have found that I need goals or I become a bit lost in the fray. Just going through the daily motions isn't good for me. I need something tangible I'm working towards.

Find something you are passionate about, and then go for it and do it! Find a job you really like (not just a "job" that puts money in your pocket). Maybe it could even be volunteering for a worthy cause or organization? Regardless, congratulations for making the doctor wrong! I hope you find a passion for something new soon!

Thank you sir. Cars have been my therapy the last 2 years I've got a new one coming at the 1st of the month.

 

[CudaChick1968]

Happy birthday my friend!! I hope it's fabulous!!

 

[moparedtn]

Ed it took me a couple days to digest what you wrote. Like you my recent birthday passed by unnoticed by the forum. No big deal but like you I had an expected expiration date that has fallen into the past. I got the 18 month survival estimate. So I made the same preparations, I got everything out of my name tied up all my loose ends then I concentrated on walking again. I wasn't going to die in a wheelchair being a burden to my family. What happened after reaching those goals has left me a bit lost. With my cancer disappearing and my physical abilities increasing I'm beginning to think about working again. My wife has done a great job of being the bread winner and holding everything together but it's just bread into me. I'm not upholding my promise to provide for my family. They are confusing thoughts. 2020 was the year that I was tested, 4 hospital stays 3 surgeries paralyzed had shut down my business and lost all my income and lost my parents. Yes as my 59th birthday past it had dawned on me, I'm way overdue for death. What do I do now?

Mercy, glad you're still with us for starters my friend!
Now, I know you're not seriously asking what to do now, are ya?
Like you, I did the "Shawshank boogie" already - we got busy dying when we were told we were -
but now I reckon it's time to get busy living since we screwed up the whole dying gig thing.

 

[moparedtn]

Not worried about the missed birthday, Ed's post was just a catalyst for my thoughts. Retirement is not something I'm easing into gracefully.

Kiicking and screaming, sir - give 'em hell!
(Besides, I'll be working two years after they put me in the ground - med bills, you know).

 

[haywire 440]

Hey, thanks very much. Shop is looking awesome, congrats on that! How are you liking at wall unit a/c-heat deal?

This is the Taj-Garage being constructed. We started our homesite build “just” as the lumber prices started to rise.
It was brutal.

It got to the point that when someone asked me what I was paying for a sheet of plywood I would just shrug my shoulders. I told my wife I didn’t want to know, and still don’t.

Spray insulation is the way to go. It incapacitated the entire building and split the 2 sides.

That means the underside of the roof plywood was done and the attic in the house and Taj is non vented. I can go up in either attic and it’s 10 warmer or colder that the A/C or Furnace setting. Can you imagine working in an attic on a 100 degree day. Expensive yes, worth it YES.

Ed to answer your question about the mini splits.. they are great. Quite and on those 105 days their set on 80 and it’s a joy to be in there.

Well, it’s packed to the gills now so every day is an adventure unpacking a putting up shelves, cabinets and such.
Good cruising to you Ed and all.

 

[Roger63]

Kiicking and screaming, sir - give 'em hell!
(Besides, I'll be working two years after they put me in the ground - med bills, you know).

Yes unfortunately I do know. But they get there little bit a month.