Would a local developer love the look of a multi-storied bridge?

Yep, there seems to be some malcontentedness here "in the land of the liquid sunshine" has posted a message by carrier pigeon to the local and regional officials and bridge builders that they do NOT want to be looking at a multi-storied or stacked bridge.

It seems they want to see the a smaller, one lane bridge so they can see the local F-15, historic plane take-offs and landings from Portland International Airport along with the Mount Hood in the background.

They would also like to see nothing blocking their view of the moon, the stars and the flatter the bridge, the better from their multi-million dollar condo view! I mean it has to be thinner than the Portland Mayor's haircut.

If you would like to hear more of what the local officials really think and what is coming down the pike for the revitalized Columbia River Crossing Project Project Sponsorship Council:

http://www.cityofvancouver.us/cvtv/cvtvarchive2/Community_Events/2010_Events/Columbia_River_Crossing_Project_Sponsors_Council_12-10-10.wmv

And please do not forget to let them know how you FEEL about how they are doing! http://www.columbiarivercrossing.org

Some times Money & power are just not enough

Years ago, I learned a simple fact of life. That greed, money, power, corruption are just not some thing that I thrive on. They are like shackles on the mind. Limiters of freedom, controls of the very things that are distractions of life. They take away the good, the loving, the most positive things in life.

They are some thing enslaves all of humanity all over the universe at one time or another, at one pace of life.

This evening I was reminded of my personal story. That I was not going to see my sick father who on his own has a weak heart, a chronic disease that took him away from his family for most of his life. It may be one of the only diseases in one of its forms that is a choice can change from living as a normal human being to someone who has to live decades in and OUT medical care settings.

I could not go see him because I do not have the financial resources. I too suffer from this debilitating disease. I TOO have the chronic symptoms & kidney issues because for two decades I did not take care of myself. I have had the retinal, the foot infections, the heart attacks. I have been in out and out of the Emergency Rooms with pneumonia, bronchitis.

Some around me say that I am a spitten image of my father's life journey. That I learned all of my life from him. The failed relationships, friendships, the usury of people?

There are some things in life throughout this experience, you begin to wonder life is really worth living. The day-to-day pain, the mental anguish, the chemical imbalances, the stress of the a failing body. The insufferable loss on some many different levels.

I cry every night wishing & wondering from the higher power what would he want me to come back tomorrow to do. No life is worth losing what I have had to endure. Even the more horrible cancerous chronic disease takes its toll faster than the decades long than the nightmare that has consumed me and my family.

But what seems to me to be the worst thing another human could do without any sensible reasoning is to tell a fellow family member that you cannot see them BECAUSE you don't have a penny, a dime, quarter, a dollar, ten dollars? To go see a dying family member who maybe on their last day of life.

That you further do not have the emotional stomach and fortitude to watch what will be happening to you in less than a decade because that family member is living with the same disease, the very same symptoms, the very same issues that you have lived and will live with with the rest of your days and existance. That you will have to watch as the resuscitated shell is living with mechanical means to artificially keep them alive and that you will be that person so very soon.

That you won't have the enjoyment of having children, to have the chance of loving another person or to enjoy happiness of a day because you too are slowly leaving this earth with so much internal strife, medical uncertainty.

Well, I am going to leave this one up to a higher power because there is nothing left within me anymore.......

History, my first love

For anyone who knows me privately, I have a love and desire to learn the historical nature of my community.

While I was at a local mcdonald's visiting with a friend, I saw a wonderful picture of the old time Fort Vancouver barracks (that used to be occupied until 2009 - 2010 when they left for Joint Base McChord - Lewis near Tacoma Washington in a joint move by the United State government to close down underutilized bases or military camps - installations, which Fort Vancouver was.)

This got me to thinking how MANY local treasures that I really did not know existed until some slight-of-hand of life kicked a momentary glance my way. It just seems like it happens all time down here. Some glorious old building I come across one day is overgrown with vegetation or is really fixed up, cleaned up and rejuvenated into the wonderful splendor.

A great example of this is the local 2 and 3 run theater, the Kiggins downtown. A lot of young adults, families and people of Vancouver and surrounding Clark County know of this little treasure off Main Street just an immediate block north of the old Seventh Street Transit Center off Main Street. If you search on the social media site Facebook for "The New Kiggins theater" you'll see all the wonderful people that are volunteer to turn this old yeller of a local theater into a wonder hotspot that this community could enjoy for future generations. With a new coat of paint, pulling old worn chairs out and sold locally to help raise money to revitalize this wonderful place of history!

If it could not get any worse....

I am not sure how much worse it could get. For someone who HAS used Emergency Room services over the past decade because of uncontrollable infections and blood glucose problems, its just unconscionable that some one would limit access to the very most basic service of a hospitals emergency room, especially for someine who has a chronic disease like mine.

Link: http://hrsa.dshs.wa.gov/News/Budget.htm

Bullet point under October 22, 2010.

• An additional three-visit limit a month on emergency room visits would be added for Medicaid clients.

I understand that there some who abuse the privilege of the emergency room for just minor aches & pains or for non-serious medical issues. But to cut someone off in their dire need? Or someone who has a preventable condition who pops in & out because they do not have the financial means for a regular doctor visit and wait until the very last second?

I do hope my 49th district representative & senator is reading this. I am out watching how you will be taking notice and care of this mess. AND FOR ALL SERIOUSNESS, Please stop playing the one sided political talking points Mr. Moeller. I am sick of hearing 'em.

How many election cycles has a certain political party had majority in both the state house of representatives, governor and state senate?

I can count through Gregiore, Locke and Mike Lowry whose name is fallin' out of my brain. So for nearly 25+ years, its been a one sided game. And you know, it takes TWO political parties to make the United States go round & round. ( in reference to my commentary on "It takes two to do the tango of life.") So I am not letting the other side off the hook either!

Medicaid cuts proposed for Washington State

For some who might not know, I suffer from a debilitating and brittle form of Type 2 diabetes. And because I used to work, I DO have some functioning idea of what is like to put food on the table from a paycheck and have to pay for medical care out-of-my-own pocket along with insurance.

In 2001, I developed myfirst runaway infection. Though its not funniest place, it was at the top of my butt. I tried nearly a year to control it through Rocephin (injectable antibiotic Ceftriaxone) and high doses of other pill form antibiotics to try to stem its growth. I even had to have personal primary care physician use local anesthetic and a scalpel to open up the wound so it could properly drain several times over several visits.

Eventually that did not work, so I had to resort to a surgeon specialist in Bellingham Washington that had to cut out the infection in an outpatient surgical setting. Having to wear a special diaper for nearly three months while it was effectively healing. I remember a special medical tape that felt like a specialized ductape that held my butt together. Its in a very sensitive area where the spinal cord connects to lower body fuctions. If there had been one mistake, I might not be walking!


In 2002 & 2004, I had both of my outer metatarsal toes amputated because they were infected to the point that the infection was moving up the leg. I had heavy doses of antibiotics including intravenous and healthcare stays in hospitals because of the uncontrollable nature of the blood glucose levels. Some might say that know me in my real life, think that I might be a type 1 or 1.5 or a cross between the two. Eventually after seeing a world renown wound specialist that couldn't seem to pinpoint the source of the infection, I had an orthopedic physician cut them out.

This lessoned into two visits after foot surgeries to local nursing homes with rapid infused antibiotics to help kill the infection in my feet in what what remained of them. During these three years, I had to swallow my personal pride and ride around town in a wheelchair! Eventually I did take my wheelchair with me on my next move & adventure.

At this point around 2004, I knew that I had to make a change both for my own mental acuity but also for my health. The local Bellingham transportation system for those who do not drive is very limiting if you live out in the rural area. And in some areas, its just stifling because you be basically shut-in some times of year (the winter) OR you get used to the local yahoos up there. A lot of my young adults friends have moved away from this community because its so very limiting mentally. A lot of people who continue to live there move there for its quaintness, the local university jobs, closeness to Seattle or Vancouver BC jobs or have the income from a job or career retirement to live out the rest of their lives there.

For a youngin' adult, its a place that most move away from for employment, economic OR educational ideals and mature in their lives. Some may move back but I have not heard any of my friends interested in moving back except for the ocassional family gathering during a holiday event.

In 2005 when I moved back to Vancouver in Clark County, Washington, I became fully aware that I needed to have a retina reattachment surgery to effectively treat my ailing right eye. I had all ready had three to four years of laser eye treatments through a Seattle retina specialist that I was referred too to try to control the bad eye vein growth and inner eye bleeding.

I want to thank any medical professionals that may be reading this from Clark County. I may have been one of your patients for some reason OR another. We have some of the best physicians in the WORLD here who moved here to our little piece of heaven. Right next to an airport, alpine skying in the winter, bike trails, mountain climbing and the ocean that is ninety minutes away. Thank you for taking such great care of me!

Since I moved here, I have only had three emergency room episodes. MY blood sugar control is better
and my health is better. Got out of my wheelchair and started to walk in special foam insert diabetic shoes for the next four years. For the ocassional flare up, I'd use my trusty crutches to take off the pressure.

I also used crow wakers & boots. So some might say I'm a medical supplier's dream!

Now fastforward to today:

My next journey is to try and find some form of woundcare to take over for my podiatry which the state is cutting due to budget cuts.

Link: http://hrsa.dshs.wa.gov/News/Budget/Medicaidproposedcuts.pdf

Or the prettier version: http://tinyurl.com/29h5y2f

Yep, I am now amongst the living poor who cannot afford insurance. And if I don't have insurance or medical coverage, I'm a dead goner. If you have not read above, I am have had all of these complications BEFORE my 36th birthday. Nope, not 50, 60 or 70 year old centurion that most of these usually hit as a diabetic.

I am walking amongst you and you may not know that I bleeding from an perforated foot ulcer that won't heal. That I am one of the lucky few that loves to see a medical professional to cut out that overgrown deadskin that cycles from "Oh, its wonderfully healed" to "Oh God, how deep is that?" several times a month.

Add to that, the cycling depression up and down, the worry in January 2011 of "how the fuck am I going to get my medical coverage covered?" No, I do not want to be a ward of the state but with this disease as bad as it is & has robbed me of so much, do you think I could keep a good, clean, calm composure when I see what local bloggers say and what the governor proposes to cut?

My medication in March 2011, Vision, Dental Health and podiatry are cut immediately. And the coup-de-gre for me is this:

"An additional three-visit limit a month on emergency room visits would be added for Medicaid clients." Ocotber 22, 2010 press release. Link: http://hrsa.dshs.wa.gov/News/Budget.htm

Have you ever been in a crisis where your body does not respond to a beaurocrats idea of beancouting?
Would you like to face the hospital who is going to call after YOU Have been in the hospital with a chronic disease and is calling to collect on a ER or other hospital bill you have NO money to pay? No, I am not talking about some person skips out on their responsibilities but the one who is so poor, so sick that there is no option left but to visit the local emergency rooms like all the other people who cannot afford medical care because of the other cuts?

Maybe one of my local state representatives or senators might see this. Because I believe they TOO know someone, maybe a very close person to them who may a chronic disease like recurrent cancer, diabetes and many of the other wonder ones that take YEARS to kill their victims. But when you now have to choose between your medical care or eating, which one would YOU choose?

Being diabetic & poor

I wanted to tell another side to the story that you might not be hearing politically. I won't try to sway your political leanings one way or the other but allow you to make your own mind up.

(And one thing I personally despise is someone coming to me & telling ME how or who I must be or feel.)

The Washington state governor is proposing to cut medicaid patients access to healthcare. They are also proposing to cut in March 2011 access to medications. They also have adult hospice, adult vision & dental care in the cross hairs.

There is more if you want to read the September 30, 2010 press release on the subject:
(http://www.dshs.wa.gov/mediareleases/2010/pr10088.shtml )

Now I do believe that DSHS has to absorb its fair share of cuts. In this economy, the state simply does not have the money to deliver every expectation a citizen has. And there are lobby forces at the state capital at work on just about every single issue trying to muster up the political will for its own causation.

But what I have a problem with is that they take certain medical care things LIKE podiatry or other basic life medical care (sorry my bias but I had to have this. Read my last entry as to why.) and call it "optional care?" Is it optional that I must seek podiatry care to stay out of a wheelchair?

in the following weeks before I have to move, I am going to be calling upon my state legislators (who by the way, they won in the perspective districts this past week) to talk to them about my medical situation. Maybe they can find it somewhere else to come up with the 400 thousand dollars to save my podiatry treatments. I know that there are going to be a lot of push and pull from many other sides to cut taxes and spending. By my life hangs in the balance if this continues.

Living with diabetes (what the hell..)

Since my blog really does not get a whole lot of attention, maybe this is a good time to start a blog session about the major cancer on society that I have, diabetes. Some of the constituents (people) with the disease really do have a wonderful life, from the young to the very old.

But my personal experience with Diabetes has been quite the opposite.

And you cannot measure or base one persons experience and success of the disease to another. Yes, there some mileage markers in the disease and there are treatments depending on how bad the disease is and how to effectively treat it.

WIthin the past decade from 2000 to 2010, I have had retina reattachment with diabetic blowout in the back of my eyes, two partial toe amputations, multiple hospital stays in Bellingham and Clark County for uncontrolled blood sugars, staph foot infections, degradation of my feet to point that now I am going to the foot doctor about once or twice a month for cutting out dead tissue without any pain medication, they call this debridement.

I have also had two stays in nursing homes for 30 to 90 days stays with intravenous antibiotics fed through tubes up my arm, up capillary blood vessels or return blood flows to my heart where the intraveneous solution was dispensed into my heart and put throughout my body.

I also have full body neuropathy, meaning all the feeling in my body is dulled to the touch, I also have no taste or smell either, its all numbed. I barely can eat much anymore.

I have heard all the comments about LapBand, stomach stapling and other surgical interventions. This would not be successful on me since I allready believe that I have kidney damage from the exposure of two decades of having the uncontrolled diabetes. The stomach control procedure also take a psychological couseling & every other avenue BEFORE they are tried. One in particular, gastric bypass is irreversible. So if you go back to your same old emotional or out-of-control eating habits, you will still gain the same weight back or have other complications from what I have been reading over the past few years since these surgeries became popular because of medical advertising.

I have also had butt crack skin removal surgery which was my first uncontrolled skin infection. I was not able to sit down for nearly a year while that area healed. Having Rocephin antibiotic injections along with antibiotic pills to try to attempt to kill it.

Then I moved back to Clark County, Washington in 2005. Boy, did my medical situation improve for better. No, it meant the monthly or twice-monthly debridements. I still use crutches & had other surgeries to help with my feet and other issues. Bu the frequent hospitalizations stopped and I am out of the wheelchair for the past five years.

Remember, your sacred humanity depends on...

Ok, guys, gals & the whatever crowd, I just want to remind everyone from which ever broadstroke or small stroke you are painting yourself with, Please, PLEASE take a minute out of your day & vote! (If you can legally.)

November 2, 2010 is a big year of initiatives here in the State of Washington. It's also going to be big year of new & fresh faces from the next generation filling in political offices.

If you need some help, please refer to the online voters guide here:

http://wei.secstate.wa.gov/osos/en/pages/onlinevotersguide.aspx

What one man can do with motivation!

If you want to see one man's hell bent on getting computers, knowledge, experience and love of people, please go see Ken Starks. You'll see what he has been able to accomplish for the lower income and class of peope in the Austin Texas and surrounding areas.

He continues to amaze me with tenacity, broken limbs, health limitations and just about a heart of gold what one man can do with help from others to bring change to his community and to help his kids out with working machines.

There is a variety of posts, some political, some not and what he continually does on a very limited budget of personal donations to him of dollars and hardware and how he makes his non-profit linux can do with so little.

There is a former Free Geek non profit (www.freegeek.org) from Portland and EmpowerThy (http://www.upgradeyourcommunity.org) in Vancouver Washington that has a similar feel to Ken's zeal here in Vancouver. Executive Director from Both programs is Oso Martin. If you are from the Portland Metropolitan area, please check out both of these wonderful non-profits that are helping their communities with education, social action and many other wonderful community aspects.

Or may you have the shear tenacity to start a program of your own. Be sure to never over extend yourself or allow your location to become the local trash dump for electronics. Follow all of your local state, city and regional laws, seek area people who may have done this before to avoid making big mistakes and face BIG fines.

Basically what I am saying is find a local or regional leader (also known as a mentor and there are many different models to doing this type of work, so no one way is the right way unless you create a huge dump!) who has done this before, get involved in their operations, talk to them and find out what pitfalls they faced in starting up and learn from them.

What happens when the internet goes down?

After thinking about this for several months and reading a story from the Seattle Times, (link to Microsoft's new Office 365, an online version of Google Apps.) I began to wonder what would happen to those office workers and other people would do if the internet went down for several hours to several weeks?

With cloud computing becoming of a platform for Office applications, Email, BookMark Syncing and the list could go on?

What would happen? If your wireless router, business router, home router, link up the router food chain went out?

What would happen if your ISP went down and you had no connection to the internet. Or a Backbone provider kicked your ISP provider for failing to pay them for service and you were the customer of that ISP?

Even a natural disaster could take out communications for days, if not weeks, maybe months in a situation.

Maybe its time for the average home user starts thinking of backup solutions for this type of situation. And mobile platforms are not as secure as one thinks from this type of issue. Mobile phones could be kicked off for non-payment, overloading of phone circuits, bad tower connections or a natural disaster could knock them out completely. If this were to occur, I would think your LAST thought would be if your Cell phone, PDA, Iphone or connected tablet is your first issue!

If your business "depends" on the Internet access, even in the worst of times, what is your plan on having it? I know for the average person, they can wait until a phone, cable provider, internet service provider, local co-op or ? can come in with an installer, trouble-shooter and fix the average problem.

With more and more of our daily lives from Office Apps to Games to buying your average food, book or other online purchases through various providers, could you deal with no internet access? Do you have backup plans for no power or for an extended time without power?

There are a lot of questions that I have. May be someone out there has answers. I would love to hear them.

Daily Couve gives all the locals a stroke of laughter.!

If you have come to my blog, you'll have a further hoot to our local impersonator in electioneering who runs this hoot-n-blog over at the Daily Couve: http://dailycouve.blogspot.com .

Please do stop by if you are a clark county resident, have no sense of humor and need a good pick-me-up to talk to your local representatives at any level. And please do not fail to mention to them that they might be the next subject of a little jib or jab, in-jest fun!

C-tran eliminates low income all zone passes to Portland

All Adults C-tran bus passes will now as of September 1st, 2010 will no longer allow Adult All zone access to Portland. That basically means all travel passed Jantzen Beach or the Delta Park - VanPort Maxx station will require additional fare.

The only exception to this rule it seems is the Youth Pass, which will continue to have this attached to it.

If you want to verify this comment, please see the same source that I did.

Link: http://www.c-tran.com/Sept1_2010ApprovedFareGrid.html

And you can review further information here: (August Newsletter?)

http://www.c-tran.com/newsletter.html


I first saw the elimination on the #37 Highway 99 bus tonight while I was riding home. So if you are concerned about this, please contact your local C-tran representatives by phone at 360-695-0123, email off the c-tran website: http://www.c-tran.com

back from the Dead!

Well, I found my old blog from researching some fold friends that I used to known here in Clark County Washington. Boy, I was shocked to find this was still up and trawling the internets!

So I have decided to reconstitute this vestigate of blather (which by the way hopefully won't compete with the local newspapers editor) for keyword - seo scratchability or sound like I'm wondering if I can write better than a 5 year old with crayons.

And no, I hope to not pollute the community with another political blog or forum. There are way too many now as it is, fully loaded with comment from local wing-nutters who seem to have nothing better to do than complain or simply can't coherently write a sentence without mentioning a previous president or how the current president is screwed with name calling or some other fallacy tongue lashing.

Honestly, I could do without any of it. There are too many other local news stories not being covered or way too many good places to go in this wonderful heaven we have here. From a local river that brings in and lets go of billions of dollars a year to our local economy to some great local breweries and wine stewards - shops that do not seem to get the recognition they so richly deserve!

Sorry but I do not believe in always taking a huge leap of faith over the flowing puddle to just fly right back over it with loads of trinkets and junk that basically will perish with in the next 24 hours let alone the next 12 months if I seriously can't help not stepping on it because I misplaced it.

Hopefully I will get a chance to go to the new library soon to see its progress. With the economy so bad, at least I will get to see a bright spot coming to final fruition soon enough.

Trains, Trains!

Onward home to Vancouver Washington this morning aboard the Talgo made 80 mile per hour Amtrak trains. Its wonderful to be able to see all the lush greenery and islands from the San Juans to Northern Thurston and Pierce County Islands in the south.

This trip takes about 6 to 8 hours, depending on train traffic and stops. Its such a wonderful train ride that I have been doing for more than a decade!

Then on to Cowlitz county and the Chehalis and Cowlitz Rivers along with the wonderful molehills of Southwest Washington until we finally pull into the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad right across from the Port of Vancouver. (Too bad they built trees to cover up the Car Crushing - Metal crushing operation. I LOVE watching them crush up all of that metal! What a great reminder of our great recycling programs for bigger metal items!)