The Most Dangerous Thing in MY Shop...

fitzo said:
I was afflicted with an inherited ( genetic flaw) autoimmune disease that in me expressed as psoriatic arthritis. It flared in earnest about 3t years ago. Unfortunately, those first ten years were before the modern biologic drugs you see on the tube. It pretty much ravaged most every joint in my body before they got me on a biologic. That really changed things, but coupled with “co-morbidities“ I was failing and I was medically retired 20 years ago. And I was on oxygen at the time (ex smoker) and just sat down in my chair and waited to die like the doctor had told me I was going to do. Being a stress eater, it took advantage of all that stress and by August 2019 I looked like this:
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One day I stepped on the scale after a long spell and I’d gained yet another 25 and hit 388. I went on a diet. Then illness helped. Covid, Long Haul, serious food poisoning, poisoned by the vaccine, yada yada. Through it all I stayed on that 1000 calorie diet and eventually I looked like this:
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And I got out of that chair and fired up my shop after a dozen years and I am neither gaining weight nor sitting in that chair full time again.
I have no real goals, can’t do a lot but can do a little almost every day. Sure, there’s bad days. Suffer through it and move on. And now this AFib crap. Slower yet, but still moving, bumping, bleeding.
The box around my neck is a TENS for my lowest back, in case anyone wonders. I use it on Interferential mode. It allows me to move.
Anyway, that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

For those who feel it’s “ too much info”, well, you should’a stopped reading. ;)
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Wow...my wife is on prednisone and she has the same issues of bumping into unknown things and suddenly there's another bruise.

Good for you for keeping going. I've had some health issues lately myself, but minor in comparison. It's good to see others not letting things stop them. You're an inspiration.

I'll be in my shop tomorrow.
 
Sean Jones said:
Wow...my wife is on prednisone and she has the same issues of bumping into unknown things and suddenly there's another bruise.

Good for you for keeping going. I've had some health issues lately myself, but minor in comparison. It's good to see others not letting things stop them. You're an inspiration.

I'll be in my shop tomorrow.
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I was really happy when your lung/breathing issue began to turn around, and hope it is either back to normal or continues to improve.
And I am sorry to hear your wife has issues that land her on pred. If there is one drug class that is a two edged sword, corticosteroids are it. Wonder drug with evil side effects. I wish her well, Sean.

Gettin’ old is certainly for the birds, but better than any other option I’ve been presented lately. LOL.

As the 70s told us, “keep on keepin‘ on!”
 
fitzo said:
I was really happy when your lung/breathing issue began to turn around, and hope it is either back to normal or continues to improve.
And I am sorry to hear your wife has issues that land her on pred. If there is one drug class that is a two edged sword, corticosteroids are it. Wonder drug with evil side effects. I wish her well, Sean.

Gettin’ old is certainly for the birds, but better than any other option I’ve been presented lately. LOL.

As the 70s told us, “keep on keepin‘ on!”
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Thanks for the well wishes for my wife. As you say the steroids are two-edged
And my lung issues are almost normal. The pulmonologist says I'm at 90% of normal. He doesn't expect any further improvement. But I'm able (so far) to do what I want, so I'm happy with that.

Best wishes.
 
Fritzo same problem here. Rotten skin. I can bump something and tear my skin and bleed for a while. i keep Neosporin and band aids in the shop.
Worst I have done was on a drill press. Let a blade helicopter and cleaned everything from second joint up to first joint. Grabbed a paper towels and wrapped. Sat in chair until my head cleared then went to the house to get my wife to drive me to emergency room. Thankfully 5 miles away. Still have knot at first joint middle finger on my left hand.
 
Geez fellers, I just thought that it is normal (I'm 74 now) to bleed like a stuck pig on every knife I build ! Didn't realize prednisone was part of the problem. Like you other guys , my skin is like parchment paper and COPD slows me down , but darn the torpedoes and full speed ahead- I do love making these bad boys. Guess I'll keep spilling red stuff ... that's why they invented bandaid and paper towels. All of us gotta stay busy and positive.
 
Bruce McLeish said:
Geez fellers, I just thought that it is normal (I'm 74 now) to bleed like a stuck pig on every knife I build ! Didn't realize prednisone was part of the problem. Like you other guys , my skin is like parchment paper and COPD slows me down , but darn the torpedoes and full speed ahead- I do love making these bad boys. Guess I'll keep spilling red stuff ... that's why they invented bandaid and paper towels. All of us gotta stay busy and positive.
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Exactly, sir! Sitting and waiting to die doesn't work for positivity or happiness. Gotta move yer booty to live. I forgot that for a good while.
 
Really happy to see all the positive attitudes here! This seems to be lacking in some younger folks. Us old guys are still alive and kickin' and doing all we can to keep being productive!
 
You can only keep your sanity being active. I'm not the type to set and watch TV. I go to the shop 7 days a week and do at least something. Today was sew 2 sheaths. Finish the handles and sharpen them and put my mark on them. They are both boxed for shipping tomorrow. I lied I'm watching rodeo right now. Best on TV.
 
mike miller said:
You can only keep your sanity being active. I'm not the type to set and watch TV. I go to the shop 7 days a week and do at least something. Today was sew 2 sheaths. Finish the handles and sharpen them and put my mark on them. They are both boxed for shipping tomorrow. I lied I'm watching rodeo right now. Best on TV.
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I used to watch a lot of TV, but I'm down to about an hour a day.

I do watch a lot of YouTube videos on knives and guns, mostly how to type stuff.

I still have a full time 10 hour a day job and that keeps me busy. I try to spend at least 2 hours a day three days a week in the shop and then maybe 4-8 hours on the weekend depending on the wife's demands...
 
Fritz’s I’ve been a member of the club for about 5 years now!
 

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KenH said:
Thanks, just put those in "my list" to order later. Isn't it nice to be to post links to products? :) Just one the many things that keeps us all coming back to this forum.
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I find a prohibition against posting links to be utterly stifling and a real disappointing advent. There is more traffic elsewhere, but Tracy created and maintains a nice place here.

And I enjoy the exchange with fellow knife people. It is the first thing I did when I rekindled my desire to work in the shop again. Forums help interest and inspire me.
Back in the early 2000s there was a voice/text chat room for knife makers on Paltalk maintained by a fellow named Steve Pryor from MO. It had a great draw, and I became close friends with a number of people. (We even got together a couple times, at Bowie's Thunder Mountain Hammer-Ins, at Steve's, Ron Duncan's, MS Bill Buxton's.) Ed used to frequent the room, as well as Tracy, Nick Wheeler, Tom Ferry, "Plain 'ol Bill Cottrell", Ray Rogers, a whole bunch of people. We'd spend hours talking knives and life. I cherish those memories and the associations more than I can put into words.

I agree with your assessment completely, Chris!
 
Well, if it makes anyone feel better, were all in this together....nobody gets out alive.
I've been cut open a couple times and told once I had two years to live.
I had a table at one knife show and had several people come by and say they heard I died. I just asked them why they didn't go to my funeral.
I feel and think I'm in great shape right now so that probably means somethings about to happen Ha ha. oh well, I left home at 17 and just about every guy I grew up back then with has passed from things that could have been avoided so I feel I made the right move then and I'm ahead of the game at this point.:D
 
I've had that, "I thought you died," from a few so far. LOL. I hope I remember that line about not attending the funeral. That's really a quite perfect response! Thanks, Steve.

I made my peace with dying lying in a hospital bed about 20 years ago with my heart running wild, IVs in both arms, nitro patches on both thighs and electrodes everywhere. And I figured I wouldn't make it to morning, and it became okay. A great peace came over me. It has never bothered me since that day.

What getting there is like is a whole different story. It has been an interesting ride so far. It's really nice to be having some fun again! And this forum helps, so, "Thanks, folks!"
 
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