Update from me on life and stuff

[LavCat]

Hey Yall,

I was having fun on Facebook sharing with Sabra some AI generated images.  It inspired me to come on over and check in with fellow Lurkers.  It has been about 5 years I believe.

For those that didn't know about my health issues, about 6 years ago I started having joint pain in my left wrist (my WASD hand).  It has ruined three great loves of my life, creating software, gaming (mostly), and engaging in robust multi=paged discussions with other intellectually gifted people.  I do play some solo turn based games and non-dexterous real-time games that are not sticklers for time.

I was employed at a University at that time as a software engineer, working on Lamba to scan our database of known people and use 3rd party (USPS, demographics, geocoding) source to enlighten our database in order to improve our analytics.  I was on the University task force to create a dynamic analytics dashboard for decision makers.  Generally, it answers "what if" questions, such as, if X is the high school profile of our ideal successful student, give us a list of the best 100 high schools to focus our recruitment upon.

So the intensity of the keyboard work I was doing vocationally combined with my avocation of gaming was literally torturous.  About the same time my now ex-wife had a mid life crisis, determined there was something seriously wrong with my health and she bailed out, not wanting to be chained to this sinking rock. This was a bummer, not only for me, but caused both my sons to have serious depression issues.  Luckily, life not only gives you valley, but also peaks.

I started my diagnosis journey with a  general practitioner, who didn't know what is was but sent me to a physical therapist, and we spent 6 months trying everything.  Then, not getting any better, they sent me to rheumatologist, then and a few other specialists/  Finally, the neurologist, who after 10 minutes told me I have Parkinson's disease.  

It's really not a disease so much as it is more like a slow acting poisoning that destroys an important part of your brain. So, it's a combination of being susceptible genetically and the result of what is most likely a chemical in the environment that progressively destroys small dark spots in your brain (substantia nigra).  A change in the LRRK2 gene known as G2019S is probably the most common genetic change linked to Parkinson's.  I believe my exposure to the chemical Trichloroethylene occurred when I was in my 20's and living in New Brighton, Minnesota.  The city wells were drilled into an aquifer that had been slowly contaminated by the Arden Hills Armory.  As I understand it, they used Trichloroethylene as a degreasing agent to wash military vehicles on open ground and eventually the TCE found it's way into the water supply.

 The Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP) and the Arden Hills Army Training Site (AHATS)

Who's to blame for poisoning me?   Well, from me who chose to live in the apartment in that city, to the city for not fixing its polluted water supply, to the US Army for not controlling what it's soldiers did with chemical waste, to the hundreds of individuals who carelessly washed their military vehicles.  All of it hubris.

In the fall of 2019, my ex-wife and I finally finished the divorce process.  So, although I'm a nerd, socially awkward, tolerant ( to a fault) and best of all I know my weaknesses...  :-)  I joined some local social clubs, found the most disagreeable woman to pursue, and was determined to prove myself worthy.  We recently celebrated our 3rd year together.

My work though, from 2018 to 2020 was all downhill. It was only a matter of time before my work output suffered enough and my employers were reaching their tolerances. I was pretty much done by November of 2020, so I burned my 12 weeks of PTO, and 5 weeks of vacation, FMLA/STD and went on long term disability in June 2021.  I sold my home at a loss and used the remainder to absolve all my debts.  My new wife, my eldest son and I moved to Texas to be near my remaining family (Mom, Sister, Niece and her 4 kids).  Financially, we get by, and we live a simple rural life with passable internet bandwidth.

My medications are  a combination of artificial dopamine replacements and uptake inhibitors that help me feel almost normal.  The only difficulty is they work best on an empty stomach on a three hour rotation.  

Lately, I've been interested in returning to painting, probably oil painting since it dries slowly and layers well.  In that vein I have been dabbling with a variety of AI image generators based on various AI entities.   

Something like this is artistically inspirational to me, that I first created with AI, then would translate to canvas.



I won't promise voluminously enlightened discussions, but I can offer some good natured and pithy replies.

Kandrathe, thank you for the update!  I take a dopamine agonist, Pramipexole, also used for treating Parkinson's.  My health has not been good.  Probably common as more of us get older.  I miss the Lounge community.  My medical condition of interest has been a large leg ulcer for more than a year and a half.  It's sent me to the hospital twice.  For months and months it was misdiagnosed as Pyoderma Gangrenosum and mistreated accordingly.  Now after a new diagnosis and treatment my leg is getting better.  I still have to bandage the wound every night, and I have been on opioids all this time.  Not looking forward to when I have to stop.  Though it would be nice not to be in pain.

I keep my subscription to WoW, but seldom do I log in.  As I said I miss the community.  Thanks, Bolty, for keeping this place going!