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About Me

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  Ageing rapidly and with sadly now incurable spinal condition , I have an invisible ball and chain which limits my walking distance before pain , it varies , there's good days and bad days and some days I can't walk at all , it's called neurogenic claudication and it's a literal pain in the butt , I travelled many years in my fitter days , worked with the circus and ran my own bus , including it's maintenance , put my hand to all kinds of work depending on my needs at the time , and then one day POOF , like that , with no warning , I couldn't walk properly anymore , my legs wouldn't work , and so began the long and never ending search for diagnosis and therapies , Including amongst other things , acupuncture , mesotherapy, dietary , yoga , cortisone injections , surgery , to no avail (boohoo), and tolerating the endless stream of 'have you tried' suggestions ! Think about it , if you had a long term painful condition , would you not be endlessly res...
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Paris Orly

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 This airport doesn't have a great reputation anyway , but circumstances led me to having to find out for myself ! I had an urgent but complicated journey to make involving lots of changes because things didn't match up (do they ever?), so I ended up getting off a bus outside of Paris Orly departures , the right one of course , here is another spot where I was supposed to spread my wings and fly , getting from the bus stop to the handicap check in desk . I had pre booked airport assistance via my flight provider which is the normal procedure , so I managed to hobble to the disabled passengers desk , in pain by this time , presented myself and my tickets and asked about my assistance , the seated assistant fluttered away at the computer keyboard then stated that I was not on the computer and so they couldn't help me ! 'So what am I supposed to do ? ' said I,  'you will have to go and check in at the airline companies desk' said she , 'where is that ? ...
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PLANNING

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Planning (isn't so straightforward) Sooo, I need to plan a trip , well first of all lets choose a destination ! I've learnt a few lessons the hard way on this subject , there's no way you can make an infallible plan but one can do ones best , I got very stuck in Catania because my lodgings although central were beyond my limpable distance to a public transport hub , I ended up very limited , not to mention the 4 lane roundabout you had to cross to access the bus station, When I first started getting claudication I wasn't aware of things like airport assistance and found myself in the shit several times , one that sticks in my memory is Luton airport arrivals , all other passengers were streaking off ahead and I realized that it's a long long way to baggage check , it took me a long time and a lot of pain to get there , everyone had left and mine was a lonely suitcase all alone going round and round, customs was about to shut up shop and were amazed to see me hobble ...
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Walking Sticks

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On Sticks, Our Trusty Sidekicks  The simple walking stick is more than just an aid , it is a symbol , as far as walking is concerned a pair of hiking sticks is more balanced and useful , but are seen as sporting equipment , few people give way to someone with a pair of trekky sticks , you are just considered a rather odd hiker in the middle of a town , so when travelling I have to fall back on the single walking stick as a symbol of recognition , people see a stick and it registers as someone with difficulties and so behavior changes as a consequence, often they are a pain in the butt for getting in the way , or falling to the ground as one tries to manage things that require 2 hands , but there is now an infinite variety of choices available with useful gadgets integrated , but never quite everything you need , for example ... integrated torch with wind up recharge , magnet , foldable ,alarm, flip down extra handle for getting up , rechargeable functions with USB , fold down seat ...
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