Aug 29, 2019
A fall and other things
We did a few errands in town on Tuesday and the last one was at Costco. We were almost done, I parked the buggy to the side and turned to my left and started to walk forward. Next thing I knew I was on the ground on my right side. There was nothing for me to trip over except my own feet/shoes. I was totally stunned and the first thing I said was ” how did I get here?” We checked out and I made it to the car which was just outside the door. Literally. A first for us in all our years shopping there but just what I needed. Colin unpacked once we got home. I took a double dose of ibuprofen, 800mg. That is a good thing to do when you have trauma as it starts working right away to get the inflammation down but then you have to go back down to 400mg, three times per day. My right knee, wrist, shoulder and neck were very sore. I could hardly move. However here I am 48 hours later, pretty much fine. I was very lucky that I did not break anything.
At 5:20AM Wednesday we picked up my friend Inger and her grandson Thomas and drove them to the airport to catch a flight to Ottawa. Well Colin drove, I was along for the ride. I pretty much rested for the rest of yesterday.
I can’t recall if I ever mentioned getting a tricycle. Most of you know that I am too scared to ride a regular bicycle due to the fear of falling and re injuring my hips. Someone mentioned to me that there are now e – tricycles which would be perfect for me. I really want to get out and ride along the rail trail which would be ever so much easier with some electrical assistance. It would be much more difficult with a regular tricycle. I had just begun researching which one to purchase. So you can imagine my dismay when I read on Tuesday that our province has added an e – bike policy effective August 2019.
“BC Parks is implementing an e-bike policy to help protect sensitive wildlife, ecosystems and cultural values, the province said in a release Tuesday.
Following the e-bikes classification system already being used by industry and other government bodies, the new policy allows e-bikes in certain areas, depending on the classification.”
I had no idea that there were any classifications on e – bikes. Have a look here to read to full article describing how it has been determined how these bicycles may affect the environment by putting “increased pressure on sensitive wildlife and ecosystems”. Within that article is a link to biking within BC Parks and further down is an explanation on the classes of e – bikes.
This is a quick explanation as to the differences in classes. More details are to be found in the article highlighted above.
Well I am totally deflated. I finally found a way to get back out biking and now fall flat on my face. Figuratively speaking this time.
Is anyone else noticing the changes in weather? A few trees here and there starting to turn yellow. Getting dark slightly earlier. Cool temperatures at night. We are having a bit of a heat wave this week, 31C/88F during the day but dipping down to 11C/51F at night. I almost put the furnace on this morning but just added a sweater instead and the let the sun warm the inside of the house. Of course if we closed the windows at bedtime it wouldn’t be so cool in the morning. But oh those low temps are great for sleeping. Yet by 3PM we have to turn the A/C on. We didn’t yesterday and regretted it, it is on right now.
There is one other thing that I would like to mention. Have you ever heard of..
The following is only a few paragraphs of a short article, found here. I urge you to read this and think seriously about this. Would you want one of your loved ones to suffer needlessly? What if it were you?
If you would like to make your voice heard, it can be done very easily with less than 2 minutes of your time required. Click here and that page will bring you to the article mentioned above. To the right of the page is a form you can fill out. By adding your name, email address, phone number and postal code and then clicking send your message at the bottom, a letter will be sent on your behalf, to your Federal member of parliament here in Canada. I did and shortly thereafter received a letter from my MP. In that letter was a very detailed explanation of where the Dying with Dignity is at this moment within the government. It also gives you links as to how to send a few more emails which will help the cause. If you only do this first step, it will make a huge difference. The politicians will have to notice and do something. It rests on our shoulders.
I thank my dear friend Libby for bringing this to my attention. You have seen her photos in my blog over the years as we visit her in Lake Havasu twice per year, ( she is a Canadian but winters there for medical reasons ). One day in the future but perhaps even sooner, no one knows, Libby will want to have that choice. However the law today here in Canada does not work in her favour. She or you or your loved one must be in their right mind to say that now is the time that they want to die. That is the main obstacle of the current law which does not give an individual the right to have an advanced directive prepared. You currently can’t say that you want to die once you reach a certain stage of your illness. Instead you have to make that decision when you are fully aware mentally. You may still have precious days or even weeks to live before you become that unconscious bundle of humanity laying curled up in a ball. The way the law reads now, you have no choice but to choose to end your life sooner than need be. Please take a moment and fill in that form. You may be the one laying on your deathbed wishing that you had made that effort today. There are many US states that allow assisted death.
Taken April 8th, 2018.
This is an election year and now is the time to wake up the politicians to change the current law so that individuals have the right to have an advanced directive. You might ask why I am talking about this on my blog. I remember first my mother who was in horrific pain, the medication could not control the level of her pain. She wanted to die, the doctors said that she just had to live with her situation. She was drowning from the fluid in her lungs. A few years later I had to listen to my father repeatedly asking to die. He also died a painful death. The choice is ours. We have no idea what the future holds for us but perhaps we can take a moment now to make a difference.
Please take a moment to share this with your families and friends.
I just want to lighten the mood with a gift that Mother Nature shared last evening.
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THANK YOU FOR BRINGING ATTENTION TO THIS INADEQUATE LAW, CONTESSA. IT WAS A START BUT NOW OUR MAIN PUSH IS TO HAVE THE LAW REVISED SO THAT THOSE OF US WHO MAY WANT TO SAY THAT WHEN WE REACH A CERTAIN STATE OR CONDITION, THAT WE WANT A CLINICALLY ASSISTED DEATH AT THAT TIME. AT THE MOMENT THIS CANNOT BE DONE. WE CAN MAKE THE REQUEST, BUT HAVE TO WAIT 10 DAYS AND ON THAT 10TH DAY, THE INDIVIDUAL WITH ALS, CANCER, ALZHEIMER’S OR SOMEONE HEAVILY SEDATED WITH PAIN MEDICATION, MAY NOT BE ABLE TO SAY THIS ON THE 10TH DAY AND SIGN THE FORMS EVEN THOUGH ALL THE PREPARATION FOR THIS MOMENT MAY HAVE TAKEN PLACE A YEAR BEFORE. THE CURRENT LAW DOES NOT PERMIT AN ADVANCED DIRECTIVE STATING OUR CHOICE. BECAUSE OF THE FEAR OF NOT BEING ABLE TO DO THIS ON THE 10TH DAY, SOME ARE HAVING THEIR ASSISTED DEATHS BEFORE THEIR DESIRED TIME, THUS MISSING MORE LAST DAYS WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS. COMPLETING THE FORM FOR YOUR MP TAKES 2 MINUTES AND YOUR 2 MINUTES MAY MAKE THE END OF LIFE FOR MANY, MUCH MORE TOLERABLE. WE HAVE TO HAVE AN ADVANCED DIRECTIVE IN ORDER FOR DYING WITH DIGNITY TO WORK THE BEST FOR THOSE INVOLVED. SORRY THIS IS SO LONG, BUT IT IS VITALLY IMPORTANT.
Thank you for allowing me to share your personal involvement with my readers.
Glad that your survived your fall and are doing better.
I had an e bike in 2003 for a couple of years before going fulltime, but did run into many issues back then about where I could ride it especially in campgrounds and parks , so eventually sold it and used our bicycles, which have since gone away as well.
Interesting article on dying with dignity.
I knew noting about e-bikes until a few years ago and only found about about e-tricycles a month ago. Most interesting that you had one long ago.
That law was great as it was a first step but it absolutely needs to be changed to permit more people to make the decision ie when someone first finds out they may have alzheimers. If the conservatives get in there is zero chance of that happening. My husband has a huge fear of that based on his family. Our friend chose to be one of the first who made the decision in her last stages of cancer just after the law was passed. Fortunately cancer didn’t prevent her from making that decision. So glad you didn’t hurt yourself worse when you fell. I had no idea they were regulating e bikes. I actually think they need to promote them, so much better than motorcycles and cars for the environment. Just be aware they are also extremely sellable so are often stolen.
Thank for taking the time to comment. Hopefully both you and your husband will fill in the form and send it in. Thinking positively that this will be the year of the change.
That e-bike article only applies to BC Parks and the Okanagan Rail Trail is not a BC Park. Also, as long as you are still peddling your tricycle you are fine, the only time you would have a problem is if your e-bike can move on it’s own without you peddling … most e-bikes are electrical assist and still require you to peddle. So don’t give up hope on your tricycle 🙂 So happy you have recovered from your fall!
I must have misread something. Thank you for putting me straight. I think I need to have a detailed chat with you about e-bikes. What if I don’t want to peddle and need a rest but just want to cost along on my e-trike?
Wow Contessa, thank you so much for posting
Dying with dignity I found it incredibly informative and I really appreciate it.
So glad that you were able to find out about this from my post.
I too saw the Dying with Dignity Canada and was surprised to learn that many who need it most cannot qualify even if they declared their wishes earlier. After reading the information I sent the email to the candidates running in my area and have received one reply thus far supporting the changes suggested. Now to see what the others have to say. Regretfully this, albeit a significant issue, is not the only issue to decide on who to vote for.
We need everyone who is concerned to take action
Thank you for taking the time to follow through and make the contact with the candidates in your area. Every single contact makes a difference.
Good morning Contessa,
This morning over coffee I finally was able to read your last post. The past few days have been hectic up here.
I was dismayed to read just now of your fall. How easily these things can happen and have serious consequences. Luckily in your case, apart from the initial pain you seem to be on the mend but these events can definitely be upsetting.
That was a great write up about medically assisted dying. I’m sure if the current Government had the courage to put this issue on the table in the upcoming election it would have a chance of passing. Many years ago my father gave me a letter. It was very simple but wonderfully written. In it he expressed to me that if ever he was terminally ill and not of sound mind he wanted us to do our best to end his life. He said that if this came to pass it would be the kindest thing we could ever do for him and in doing so do not have any sense of remorse or guilt. He was thanking us in advance as he was most likely not able to do this when the time came. Dad went on to live many years but I always treasured that letter. In writing this, I’m thinking about Government and politics. They have the power to conscript men and women and send them off to obscure wars to kill and be killed, but when it comes to a death of our own choosing to end such terrible pain, they claim the ‘moral’ high ground and sit on the fence.
I know that you are extremely occupied with a number or things at this time. Thank you so very much for taking the time to write this comment. Your father must have been very special man.