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| Diane The Pink House On The Corner |
On Thursday, we took our last wheelchair transport ride to a doctor's appointment.
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| Last Transport Ride |
Like the door-to-door escort!
And not having to drive...
But others things I will definitely not miss. Like the 30-minute-window rule. And the 24-hours-ahead reservations rule. And the can't-leave-the-county rule. And the if-you-are-not-ready-in-five-minutes-we-will-leave-without-you-and-bill-you-anyway rule. Or if the doctor is running late, call-to-be-put-on-standby rule. And all that "hurry up and wait"....
On Thursday, also, the van company picked up Bob's wheelchair and took it to the shop to fit it with an E-Z lock bracket.
On Friday, we picked up our "new" used wheelchair van, which I have christened "The Bobmobile". That way, I figure, I can say, "To the Bobmobile! Quick!" as Bob and I dash off on our caped crusades. Anyway, the van is black, it's for Bob, so it works. And every vehicle needs a name. So add, The Bobmobile to the list which includes "The Little Blue Bomber" (my first car) and, of course, "The Green Machine".
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| Loading Bob in The Bobmobile |
It began to rain. And I'm talking RAIN, as in thunder, lightening, winds, streets flooding, traffic jams, the whole stormy shebang...
As if I wasn't nervous enough already. I mean, here I'm driving an unfamiliar vehicle, on unfamiliar roads (the dealer is way out in the boonies) and now I'm dealing with bad weather....
Then throw a grumpy Bob into the mix....
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| Grumpy Bob in The Bobmobile |
Anyway, once Bob was pulled back and strapped in place, he still complained of being too close to the front of the van. And a few adjustments later, he was still complaining, i.e. saying "Back! Back!" until I had to calm him down and explain that he couldn't go any further back as he would be blocking the ramp door... grrrr....
I was, by then, getting pretty frustrated. And it was still raining. In fact, it was raining even heavier. And, I had really hoped Bob would enjoy the day. I had planned to take photos, you know, happy photos of Bob posed in front of his new ride, ta da! But no such luck...
So I pull over, try to adjust the straps on Bob's wheelchair, adjust the steering wheel position so I can see the dash, find a radio station for Bob, change the setting on the air conditioner as now Bob is "cold" and take off again.
Me, I am nervous, trying to follow the "google maps" directions in the pouring rain. Bob, complaining now that his butt hurts....
Me, wondering what this blinking "S4" means on the dash and how-the-hell-do-I-get-the-back-windshield-wiper to work? Bob wanting to smoke! In the van! Which is, at least to me, a big no-no. And when I tell him this, he got even more surly. grrr....
Finally, I make our way to familiar, though still rainy, turf. Bob is still complaining that his butt hurts and that his wheelchair is rocking and that his feet are too close to the front of the van and he still wants a cigarette and is insisting the cup holder is actually an ashtray....
I tell you, I was frazzled and not in a very good mood when we finally got home. By the time I got the ramp down, pulled out the front passenger seat and dragged it out of the van into the rain then into the garage for storage (by the way, these are not as "easy" to remove as those brochures tout, the thing, frankly, was a bitch to move), and after I got down on my hands and knees and unstrapped the four wheelchair straps, got grumpy Bob out of the van and up to the house in the pouring rain, I tell you, I was ready to kill...
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| Nemo and Kinko lounging on The Green Machine, and they better not try this on The Bobmobile! |
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