It's been a long time since I felt good enough to blog. Allow me to explain.

Saturday (three days ago) was the first time since July 9 of last year that I have been (almost) pain free. I don't have my previous blogs in front of me as I draft this one, and you may not care to read through them, so here's a quick recap of the past ten months of my life. Actually, let’s go all the way back to April of 2023, when...

I bought a new car. My wife and I enjoyed travel, and decided to dedicate our retirement years to soaking up as much of the United States as we could. So, upon her passing, and after sitting out COVID for two years, followed by a year moving at least half of my clutter from one state to another, I decided it was time to make good on our plan. However...

I had a high-mileage vehicle, so I decided it was only fitting that my "new start" should be done in a new vehicle. So, in April of '23, I bought one. And then, a couple months later, I drove it from Nashville, TN all the way to Portland, OR., where...

In addition to spending time with a couple of friends and one of my nephews, I did some touring. Included among the places I toured: a long day’s drive along the west coast; a day at Mt. Hood: a day at Crater Lake: a day at Mt. St. Helens: a day at Mt. Rainier: and a day at Olympic National Park. Everything went smooth as silk...

Until the morning of July 9, the day I toured Mt. Rainier. Early that morning, while preparing to leave the hotel, I felt a subtle — and strange — movement in my left knee. It didn’t hurt, so I didn’t think much about it. However…

From that moment on, every step I took was more painful than the one before. But — by golly — I wasn't going to let that stop me! I had spent a small fortune, and driven over 2,500 miles, to get there. So, on that day I limped several miles at Mt. Hood; a couple days later, I limped several miles at Olympic N.P., and then I endured a long and painful drive back to Nashville, TN, where...

I rested a couple months, spent a painful week walking 5 miles a day at Williamsburg, VA, rested a couple more months, spent two painful days walking in and around the Opryland Hotel, talked my doctor into an X-Ray which resulted in five weeks of rehab that only made me marginally better, visited an orthopedic surgeon who ordered an MRI which resulted in surgery, followed by more rehab which made me better until a setback/reinjury/whatever sent me back to the orthopedic surgeon, who gave me a steroid shot...

AND, YES, MORE REHAB.

Well, I’m still in rehab, but, three day days ago, the inflammation in my knee finally subsided enough, and the pain got low enough, that I can walk again, think again, and...

Yes, feel good enough to blog again.