As has been said..."time & tide wait for no man."

[John Schmidt]

Having said that, time (and years) have again caught up to me. Nearly seven years ago I had my right hip replaced. Was bone on bone and quite painful, the new joint was a blessing indeed. At that time, the dr. told me the left side was "ok" but he guessed I'd be back to see him in about six years. Well...it appears he was a good prognosticator. The left side has been getting more painful as time passes, at times I can barely walk without my cane. The xrays bore it out, showing the majority of cartilage is gone. So today at my daughter's urging, I went to see a hip specialist that uses the anterior approach. He looked at my 4" scar from 2016 and said you'll now have a set when I'm done...one on each side. As before, I researched the local drs. and settled on this guy, found he does about 200 per year so has good experience. He's 38, age is not a big issue, his reputation is. In looking at his profile and patient surveys, he has a very high rating amongst all patients...understanding that they may well be gleaned of all negative remarks. Although I spend a fair amount of time in the gym for general conditioning and strength maintenance, I do realize I'm seven years older than the last hip surgery. One does not necessarily recover as quickly at 85 as they might at 78. My only issue is my A1c was quite high at my last PCP appt., not sure why it was but been working on that by watching diet and losing weight. At my last appt. I was down 10 lbs. and now nearly another 10 in the last few months. The surgeon today said they really want the A1c well under 8 so I should be able to hit that by Sept., I've been right at 8+/- a fraction for some time. I'll know on August 16. The date has tentatively been set for Sept. 7, which is exactly one year from when Nancy had her knee replaced. I hope we aren't setting a pattern.

This brings up another issue...swapping out the motor on the trike. I'll be able to ride but doubt I'll be able to crawl around on the cement floor of the garage before cold weather sets in so looks like it might not happen until next spring. My plan was, and still is, to make the swap and get the trike back running good using it in normal forward gearing. Once that's worked out, then worry about getting the electronics mounted to operate the reverse function. In the past, I've done an engine R&R on a Valk in one looong day. I doubt that's in the cards this time around. 

[Ramie]

Maybe it's time to teach someone else how to crawl around on the cement floor.  Do you have anyone who would be willing?  My dad taught me all about crawling on cement floors, some of the best moments of my life.

[John Schmidt]

Nobody nearby except my son-in-law and he has his own business to run so his time is pretty well taken. I'll work at it a little at a time beginning next month, it's difficult before the surgery due to the current state of the hip. After surgery the issue is obvious plus it will start getting chilly and the garage has no heat. If I can get it up and running so I can put it in storage until spring I'll feel much better about it. If I keep the trike here then one car has to sit outside. I guess time will tell.  

[da prez]

  John , have an engine swap party.  Free food , beer , dunk tank , and tents for bike parking.  After a few beers , just watch this. Five speeds in reverse and one forward. 

                                     da prez

[John Schmidt]

  John , have an engine swap party.  Free food , beer , dunk tank , and tents for bike parking.  After a few beers , just watch this. Five speeds in reverse and one forward. 

                                     da prez

Now we're talking.    Five in reverse and one forward...reminds me of an old school clock I tore apart when just a kid, maybe about 8 yrs. old. Got it back together and it ran with a couple exceptions...the hours passed rather quickly, as did the minutes. The second hand moved hourly. Boy, how time did fly back then.

[Willow]

By my calculations you are 180 miles or 3 hours from da prez.  It may be a good investment of time and travel.

[cookiedough]

good luck in Sept. on the hip replacement.  Surgeon told me both of mine he will do, one at a time, of course, but said now over 1 year ago, he wants my BMI under 40, to reduce the risk from 5 to 1% of a blood clot. 

NOT going well on that 30lb. weight loss though over 1 year later so living in pain daily, which as we all know, is NO fun.  I can walk, but going up stairs is very slow going using handrail, and lifting my legs up over 6 inches at a time is some days nearly impossible.   Standing for long periods of time (say over 1 hour) is also nearly impossible without hurting badly.  Tying shoes and putting on clothes is also so much fun, NOT!   Some days are better than others, but the days when pain is bad,  almost brings me to tears.

[John Schmidt]

By my calculations you are 180 miles or 3 hours from da prez.  It may be a good investment of time and travel.

Well, you're right on target give or take a couple miles based on route taken. I've made that trip before, gets a little funky the closer you get to Chicago. At this time, I feel Ross has other things on his mind dealing with Bonnie's health problems. Thanks for the suggestion.