Look! A post that is not dedicated to Ingress (well, much anyway)

Work.

At the time of writing this (Sept 11, 2015) I am 50 years old (as of last month) and officially have been in the workforce for a little over 32 years.  The first 10 or so I was a blue collar worker and it agreed with me for a time.  But eventually I snagged a white collar job working for a regional cellular provider in a shirt and tie (!) environment and have been white collar ever since (with the exception of some white collar side jobs taken to make additional money).

After 32 years of working 40+ hours per week, I have really started to think what retirement might look like.  I have colleagues who are retiring (some by choice, others not so much) and seeing people I care about moving on is somewhat sad.

Now to be honest, the odds of me being able to retire are not all that great.  Regular readers/stalkers are aware I have been diagnosed with ALS (I am not going to rehash a previous post...you can look it up and educate yourself if you are unfamiliar with ALS), and barring a few exceptions, my chances of living another 12 years (age of early retirement) are pretty slim.  Statistically,  I should not expect to see my 55th birthday,  which is far below retirement age. No, I am not dwelling on the thought of dying, nor am  I seeking to garner sympathy.  I am just stating a fact.

The fact is I will collect disability far before I can retire.  Disability will not be fun as it pays ~70% of what I earn now and my retirement funds are not stellar (although I am ahead of many I personally know).  My quality of life (and that of my wife, who is 3 years my elder) will change as the money flow slows down and the expenses increase.  Thankfully we are debt free with the exception of the house.

The current work situation has made me question the timing of my taking disability.  Work is stressful (I am pulling double duty right now with job roles) with ongoing projects that constantly clutch at me.  If not for Ingress to help me blow off some steam, I might go mad.

Contract issues, employee issues, contractor issues, PO issues...the list goes on.  Most of it was caused due to a desire to cut costs but the repercussions have been greater than expected.  Since the man who was  dealing with a large part of this has taken another role within the company, not on this account,  I was asked to fill it on an interim basis.  That was supposed  to be a 30 day window but it is looking more and more like 90 days.  I turned down the role because I am formally in a global process related role and dislike the regional politics the role I am filling in for seems to be stuck in. I have been asked by at least two managers to reconsider but I am just not sure I need the added stress. My neuro certainly does not think I need to add to my plate.  He feels I should be cutting back some. While I am still very physically active biking (yes Hockey Family, that was me the other night :-) ), walking and using an elliptical  machine at work, added work stress will not help me any as I manage to live with the early  (slowly progressing) onset of ALS.

On to other subjects.  I like TV.  I like discovering new shows.  I usually take recommendations from colleagues and friends but somehow I seemed to miss "Mr. Robot" on  USA.  DAY-UMMM, that is an awesome show (well  at least  episode one was.  I hope to see more soon)!  I was bored and came across the on demand listing for it and gave it a shot.  I was not disappointed.  Christian  Slater is not all that great but the lead character is.  Interesting story line!

Well, now that Hockey Family has found my blog, I guess I will no longer be discussing Ingress strategies here.  I can tell from the past few nights that the family has changed their tactics some by seeking out high point link anchors.  Good job on making the switch.  Smart move.  I will need to adjust mine strategy as well but Wayne, the guy I geocache and sometimes Ingress with will not change his style, so he is on his own,

Wipeout!

I had a wipe out today on my bike.  I was trying to dodge some glass (at a very low speed, at that) and lost control on some gravel.  I cut my eyelid and have some severe road rash on the back of one of my ears. Other than that (and a sore wrist on my ALS affected hand...I am wearing a brace right now) I am fine.  I need to get my new tires on my bike since the old ones are so old.

And yes, I was doing some Ingress but that is not what cause the spill.  I would serve me right if it did but I was going slow and not even looking at my phone...it was in my pocket...for once :)

Living with ALS - The Early Stages

It has been 7 months since my official diagnosis (and a year since the preliminary diagnosis) and I thought I would post an ALS update.

To date, the only issue I can detect is  the loss of a larger percentage of my fine motor skills in my left (non-dominant) hand.  Everything else appears normal, or a reasonable facsimile thereof.  I have been asked several times what that means, exactly.  Well, the best way to describe the loss of my fine motor skills would be to have you put on a heavy winter glove on your non-dominant hand and try to do simple things like button a shirt, zip a zipper, open and close a zipper baggie, tie your shoes, or fasten your jeans.  It can be done but you will have some difficulty.  Since I cannot manipulate small objects, I have to adjust, which is like learning to do it all over again.

I have ZERO pinch strength in my left hand causing me a lot of issues when I have to grip things with both hands (like a zipper baggie, or tear open a bag of chips).  I tend to use my teeth as a substitute for my left hand when I can (sorry Dr. Weyandt) which speeds things up but if what I am doing is for someone else, they probably should do the opening.  Also using my left hand for washing is cumbersome and awkward without the coordination I used to have

My hand grip is limited but is still useful with the aid of  multi-tools/pliers which are quickly becoming my friends.

Typing has been reduced to a lot of improper form but fortunately I don't have to type a large amount each day.

All that being said, I feel good overall.  My sleep schedule has been altered but that is only because our new dog wants to go use the bathroom at 3 or 4 in the morning and since I get up at 5, it really does not pay to try to go back to sleep.  I end up getting pretty sleepy by 9 PM and rarely do I stay up past 10.