Out With the Bad Air, In With the Good Air -- 3/16/06

Out With the Bad Air, In With the Good Air-- Joseph:

The good air was fresh today, as Joseph and entourage went out to the cinema! With lunch included during the show, the group enjoyed Firewall, the new Harrison Ford thriller at the Megaplex 12 at the Gateway. Notice Joseph has no tubes . . . no oxygen connected. He's doing better and better as he gets ready in a couple of weeks (hopefully) to get rid of the trach altogether. Early this morning (no, EARLY!), about 2 AM, the cuff of Joseph's trach burst (see the diagram, the cuff is what seals the airway off, so air only goes through the trach tube). A doctor had to be called to remove the entire trach and replace it ('out with the bad, in with the good' again. . . seems to be a theme). This evening another doctor "popped the trach out" (Joseph's words) of the incision and went in with a small video camera to check things out. Everything looked great, no scarring or problems . . . so we're back on track.

Out With the Bad Air, In With the Good Air -- The House:

Today the HVAC guys came and replaced the 30-year-old furnace with a new efficient furnace/AC unit. This one will feed the new bedroom as well. It is not the least bit sad to see the swamp cooler go as well. One of the side effects of paralysis is the inability of the cardiovascular system to regulate body temperature normally. Joseph will need to be able to control his room to whatever temperature he needs independently of the rest of the house. So beside this new full house system, he'll have an independent system in his room to override whatever the rest of the house is doing. As the HVAC crew looked into the air returns they found the builders of the house built the gas vent into the cold air return, which was not even sheet-rocked or sheathed with metal. No wonder Gloria has had problems breathing and has smelled gas for years. The fix could be a huge health benefit, along with getting rid of the swamp cooler and associated dust, pollutants etc.

The new wheelchair compatible laminate floor installation was completed yesterday. Today we covered the living room and kitchen floor with cardboard to protect it as wallboard work, wallpaper removal and painting continue. Gloria is taking lessons in patience and endurance from her son. We have such a profound sense of appreciation for so many who are lifting our family's burdens and our faith.

PHOTOS:

1) Joseph arrives at the Gateway Mall area with Misty (Physical Therapy) and Katie (Nursing). Not shown are Chris (Recreational Therapy), Jennifer (Nursing), and Matt and Bryant Smith, Joseph's friends. Dad showed up just to take pictures again, then run off to work on the house. Dang!

2-3) Flicks, snacks and chicks. Neat tricks.

4) Illustration of trach tube and 'cuff'.

5) Doug Miles labors on the "Out with the bad air" portion of the job. Tearing out the old furnace.

6) The new furnace with air conditioning unit on top. "In with the good air".

7) The new laminate floor and the new 3'6" back door for wheelchair entry.

8) The Scouts came over to help remove wallpaper.

Opps! . . . The wallpaper ripped the wallboard surface off (Tim put it on pretty well 20 years ago). Oh well, we will enjoy the high class texturing job that will fix it.