I lost my DH 24 yrs ago, surprising what you can learn to do without. Look at this as a great opportunity to try to do something you really like. Did SS approve you going out on disability? Around here it is very difficult to get on. I was going to suggest your ex's SS (nana did) if you were married 20 yrs I think you can get it even if he is remarried. Some TS's have amazing things from clothes to medical supplies to GJ. Have you got a garage full of stuff you never use- have yard sale,spare car needing fixing up-sell it! Look for cheaper housing, if house paid for, can you make taxes, ins. & repairs? Out here some people have group come that help seniors & they get work done free repairing house. If you car is costing you a lot sell it & get an older one ,if leased buy used 1 so it is your's! Have a mechanic check out car before you buy used 1. Shop 99 cent or dollar stores? check them out. Don't need to spend $4 for pretty paper napkins when you can get them for 99cents,they have mouthwash, toothpaste & all kinds of everyday things cheaper than grocery store of dept. store. Good Luck & there are lots of other ideas above, make a list, figure out grocery bill, cleaning bill, all that & look for ways to cut back. Do you drink a $ 4 cup of coffee,& have a donut for breakfast. Make coffee at home & buy dozen day old & warm 1- 10 sec. in microwave (freeze rest) make up dishes from scratch & freeze in portions size you would eat for 1 meal, spagetti with the meat & sauce, beef stew,chicken spagetti etc all freeze well,label & have at least 3-4 kinds made up so you get variety much cheaper & less sodium than TV dinners. With your condition should be on lower sodium diet & so much easier by making from scratch. Cook chicken breasts cut in about 4 pieces each(get done faster) in little butter & 1-2 qt water & use part of cooked chicken in chicken spagetti & save the water(broth) & rest of chicken for a hearty chicken soup by cooking up some kind of pasta,16 oz. reg. or wheat, 2-16oz pkg. mixed veggies plus 1 lb carrots, 6 stalks celery in bite sized pieces onion powder or cut up onions- cook those veggies in microwave & mix in with broth & diced chicken & the cooked pasta & some dried parsley for a soup you can almost eat with a fork,& pretty too, just simmer the mix for about 15 min. Precooking veggies in micorwave leaves the broth in tact so it doesn't all disappear. Freeze in 2 cup containers. Jan

I read your thread way back.... I guess about a year or so ago and just today decided to come back to this forum to check and see what's going on. Lot's have gone on in the time past. I am glad to hear you got your SSDI. I am at the hearing point on mine, I have a lawyer but not sure he's any good.... he has not called and talked to me once and when I've called the office I never get to talk to him it's always his assistance. she tell me it takes about three months once the appeal has been turned in. It's been over three months...I called the SS office to check and make sure it was at the hearing office and it checked out. The wait is awful. I'm so thankful for this forum it is so helpful, One of the members stated to write everything down how life was before and how life is now and that is something I must do for the impending hearing. There is no medication I can take other then pain medication and my doctor will not proscribe anything for more then a month at a time. I don't agree with the doctor that I was being seen for my back so I did not go back to him. The 4th and 5 th lower lumbar is fused together and I have scoilosis curving of the spine. I've had problems with my back off and on but in my younger years it never was that bad. It wasn't until it seem all of a sudden it hit me, Well I guess not really all of a sudden but the worst part is. I now cannot sit for long drives after an hour of sitting in the car I may or I may not be able to get up out of the car seat and at times when I do get up and put my foot down to get up my back may not be able to support me, I have a pain that will run through me as I put my foot down on the ground. Now that the scoilosis has started giving me problems it is hindering the use of arms and moving my neck, when it acts up I can't turn my head to look around when driving I have to use the mirrors. I've also started having problems with my hands and arms. So off I went to the doctor and after some test found corporal tunnel to be the problem but the nerve is don't damaged to the point of being able to do surgery weather that is good or not I don't know but it has changed my life 100% where I use to be very active do what I wanted when I wanted. It's only been 5 years ago that I was working and come home to clean house, cook dinner, do a load of laundry all in a days time now I'm lucky to get through doing a couple of loads of laundry in a day, I can't lift the clothes basket I have to push it with my foot from the bedroom to the laundry room, if I had to go out and do laundry I guess I'd be in a world of hurt. I clean house one room at a time one day at a time just when ever I'm able to. I started to oil the cabinets down but hands and arms can't take it so I stopped. I have started carrying the cell phone with me outside just in case I fall and can't get up. I can't do the thing's I use to do with the grandkids any longer if it's not something simple then forget it. I can no longer walk around the mall. I haven't gotten to the point of asking for a wheel chair ... not wanting to go there. Although I have told my family that I cannot walk around much. I know long find my bed a comfort anymore, for me it is hard cause of pain or discomfort laying down. At times I give up trying to get comfortable and get back up. It is not visible to ones eye of my problems. Just to look at me you would not know I had anything wrong. Wishing you well with your surgery and happy gardening come spring time.

Thank you all so very much! And thank you for sharing your story, Andrew... I can certainly relate! There are several ways to grow and bloom Hippeastrums, and I have chosen to treat mine as houseplants, allowing them to revert to their natural bloom schedule once the initial forced bloom is complete. Most bloom naturally from early spring to sometime during summer, usually within the early part. Some folks force a dormancy period and opt to schedule blooms during the holidays, and some of us let nature take over. Some growers are lucky and can plant them directly in their gardens without any danger of cold weather. There are as many ways to grow and bloom Hippeastrum bulbs as there are medium types to plant them in, feeding schedules to maintain, etc. We each choose what works best for our own growing environments and needs. After many years of trial and error, I've chosen to use a more inorganic, bonsai-like, larger particulate as a medium, feed with a continual buffet-like nutritional regimen, and allow the bulbs to rest and grow as they see fit. I've had very good results... up until the bug incident. Andrew, of the many, many persons my husband and I know with back, neck, or general spinal issues and accompanying chronic pain and/or mobility issues, there's only one person we know who has gone through surgery and come out the better for it. Both myself and my husband have varying issues with varying levels of chronic pain and mobility... his beginning with an industrial accident that left him unable to walk for a year, and mine from the more recent auto accident. He was also a passenger in the auto accident, and was injured further. We just have all the luck. If I made a list of the many things that have befallen us as a family, you wouldn't believe me. You'd think I was kidding. Instead of allowing it all to keep us down, we opt to joke about it, as if we had our very own personal black cloud of bad luck that rains on us every chance it gets! It's not really funny, but laughing about it all keeps us sane! :-) I wish you the very best with regard to your upcoming procedure, and hope you truly come out much better for it. Living in constant pain with back issues is no kind of life... you're so very lucky to have the ability to get the proper procedure done! You're lucky to have gotten your knee repaired, as well. Without the insurance or the means to seek out the finest in specialists, we're stuck doing the best we can... masking chronic pain and living life one day at a time. Plants have helped me immensely... nurturing them, I think, keeps me moving, and keeps my mind on something I enjoy very much. My husband, on the other hand, has been forced to abandon his career as a college educated industrial engineer, and we get by because he's very skilled in electronics, technology, and the world of computers and that sort of thing. We also help caretake a large farm/estate, so setting our own schedules where we can rest as needed is a big help. It seems we have rather similar stories, and it seems that plants have played a positive role in helping us recover. I haven't tried growing citrus yet, though I have limited indoor space to devote to plants. If everything tender I have in pots can't fit into one window alcove, I can't keep it. My collection consists of mainly bulbs, though I do keep a couple of small orchids, a Chalice Vine, an Epi Cactus, a Pregnant Onion, 2 young Plumerias, and a few assorted houseplants of small size. One is a Ponytail Palm, and another is a small pot of Ledebouria. I keep saying I want to take my bulbs outside for summer... I know it would do them a world of good... but that includes an awful lot of trips up and down stairs, which I'm simply not up to. I bring one Red Lion out, plus the two Plumies. The Red Lion has grown by leaps and bounds, so I know that summering them outside would be the best idea. Perhaps next spring I'll make it a point to carry one pot down with me every trip I make outside... if I can remember! Did I mention a head injury and memory loss were other gifts of our accident? :-) We grow several acres of old garden roses and mixed perennial borders, here... so I do have the outside space to keep bulbs. The only question is whether they'd survive the dogs, the goats, the barn cats, and other critters... some human... that might want to "help" me care for them! Please keep us informed as to the results of your surgery... it's something we have an interest in, not to mention I'm hoping it turns out well, allowing you a better life, less any pain! Time for my daily chores... thank you, everyone... you've been most kind! :-)

I went to the "opt out" page, clicked on the "disable" link and I no longer see the double-underlined in-line links. Link to "opt out": http://www.vibrantmedia.com/whatisintellitxt/gardenweb.asp?ipid=17559&cc=us&server=gardenweb.us.intellitxt.com Are others finding it doesn't work? If so, did you notice the following: Deactivation requires the use of cookie technology. Please note that if you should delete or refresh your cookies the service will be re-activated automatically. So, do you have "Cookies" turned on? If so, do you automatically delete cookies when you close your browser? If you don't have cookies turned on or you automatically delete cookies when closing your browser, you will not be able to permanently get rid of the in-line links. To turn on Cookies & not delete them on exit: Firefox 3.6: From the menu bar, select: Tools --> Options --> Privacy Tab Check the box labeled "Accept cookies from sites" I recommend you uncheck the box "Accept third-party cookies" From the "Keep until" drop down menu, select "they expire" Click the OK button to exit Tools and save your changes Internet Explorer 8: From the menu bar, select: Tools --> Internet Options --> Privacy Tab Click the "Advanced" button Check the "Override automatic cookie handling" box Click the "Accept" radio button under "First-party Cookies" Click the "Prompt" button under "Third-party Cookies" Check the "Always allow session cookies" box at the bottom Click the OK button to exit the "Advanced" dialog box Now, click the "General" tab Under "Browsing History", be sure the box "Delete browsing history on exit" is unchecked; if it's checked, uncheck it Click the OK button to exit Tools and save your changes Note: If you are using Firefox, the best way to eliminate the in-line links and all advertising on pages is to download and install the "Adblock Plus" add-on. Adblock Plus Add-on for Firefox: Adblock Plus (Other add-ons: Add-ons for Firefox) Let me know if this does not help...