Well, it seems I didn’t do a post yesterday, I forgot about it. Anyway, here we are at Friday and that of course means a bit more about Parkinson’s Disease.

As the disease progresses those of us with it must learn how to adapt and adjust to the new challenges in our everyday life.

If one finds themselves shuffling and not lifting their feet when walking, they need to think about not having small rugs which could cause them to trip and fall. If you have bare floorboards and like to wear socks around the house without shoes you need to really be wearing grip socks, so you don’t slip over.

At some point one may find buttons hard to manage thus needing to change to something that doesn’t involve buttons unless there is someone to help with the buttons. I do not wear anything that needs to be buttoned up.

Shoelaces can be a real challenge and one may find at some point they will need to change to either slip on shoes or ones with Velcro. The shoes I wear have Velcro.

Getting up from a low chair is next to impossible this I discovered after the tree came through the roof and I had to go to Jessica’s house, her lounge was too low, and I had a lot of trouble getting up from it, I solved the problem by using my wheelchair.

These are photos of my armchair including the remote and in a raised position.

My armchair is a lift chair although I don’t need the lift option at this stage I may do in the future, I find that not having to use my legs to lower the footrest and kick it into place better, the lift chair has a button that raises and lowers the footrest.

Yes these are photos of my bathroom, you will notice the towels over the handrails, these we need to mop up the floor as the drain is only so so. The pink towel is mine and it is over my shower chair which is a chair with handrails and a back. 

Another problem is many toilets are too low and both sitting on and getting up from it is a real struggle, this I had to deal with our first few days in emergency accommodation. The toilet we have here is a disabled toilet which means it is higher and I have handrails to hold onto when sitting and standing.

Many people have a problem getting out of bed or turning over in bed, thankfully I do not have this problem and I will worry about that when or if it happens. I have read that some think using slippery nylon sheets helps and maybe they do but at this stage such sheets would just annoy the hell out of me.

More about the daily struggles next week.

Ok time to wrap up the battle of the Coral Sea in June 1942 a much more crucial sea battle was to take place this was the battle of Midway. By mid-May Allied Intelligence had discovered that the Japanese intended to attack the U S territories of Midway Island in the Central Pacific and the Aleutians in the North Pacific.

This would give the Japanese a strategic superiority in the Pacific, and that wasn’t something the Allies wanted so the Americans sent the carriers USS Enterprise, USS Hornet and USS Yorktown to an are north of Midway.

                        A Japanese Carrier

The Japanese commander, Yamamoto ordered his four large carries, Kaga, Akagi, Hiryu and Soryu south from Japan to attack Midway Islan.

On the 3 June both sides saw each other, and the next day U S aircraft sunk all four Japanese carriers, the main lose for America was the Yorktown.

So, the battles of the Coral Sea and Midway put an end to Japan’s naval superiority.

Of course, these things didn’t stop the Japanese war machine from attacking the east coast of Australia. On the night of the 31 May-1 June Japanese midget submarines entered Sydney Harbour, two of the subs were sunk but not before they managed to hit the depot ship Kuttabul, killing 19. Townsville which had an important airfield was also attacked on the 26 July.

                       Troops at Guadalcanal 

The battle of the Solomons inn August 1942 was significant among the many sea battles in the Southwest Pacific Area. It was fought mainly by the US Naval forces as they attempted to land troops and supplies on Guadalcanal. Three Australian ships were part of the force supporting the US supply ships. It was during this operation that the HMAS Canberra was sunk, north of Guadalcanal.

The Battle of the Coral Sea prevented a seaborne invasion of Port Moresby and is thought by many that it also saved Australia.  

From 1946 to I don’t know when there was something called Coral Sea Week Celebrations with marches by servicemen from both countries and social functions to express our thanks to the USA for its part in the battles and support given to us from the Americans in World War 11.

Next week we move on to the Kokoda Trail.

Hello everyone, it is Tuesday, and I found another book about spiders, snakes, sharks, big cats and dinosaurs and I will kick it off with a bit about big cats.

As I am sure everyone knows domestic cats and related to the big cats as they are all part of the Felidae family.  

Most cats have a similar skeleton, with rounded heads and a body structure that allows them to move swiftly and silently. Their backbone is very different to a human, we have rigid spine, but a cat has a flexible one which allows them to curl into a ball.

Cats are hunters who love meat, domestic cats hunt for small creatures like mice while the bigger cats stalk their prey in the wild, unless they are in a zoo.

Big cats are found all over the world except for Antarctica and Australia. Sadly, some of these big cats are facing extinction, such as the Bornean Bay Cat, The Clouded Leopard, African Lion, Tiger to name a few.

Big cats have large eyes, excellent hearing, sharp teeth and strong limbs with sharp claws. These characterises are what make them good hunters.

They also have long tails in their tails are 10 per cent of their bones and their tail is used to maintain balance. Cats have 230 bones humans have 206.

They have a life span of anywhere between 8yrs and 20yrs.

It is time to look at another country and this week it is Germany, the capital of which is Berlin with a population of around 84 million. It is the most populated country in the European Union and globally ranks 19^th, its official name is the Federal Republic of Germany.

The flag is a tricolour flag of black, red and gold which was first adopted way back in 1919, this flag holds a lot of historical and symbolic meaning for Germans.

Of course, during the second world war the flag was replace with a reg flag with a white disk in the centre with a black swastika. This flag was used from 1939 to 1945, it is now banned in Germany. Prior to this flag the black, red & gold flag was replaced with the black, white and red one of the German Empire  

Germany is a Western European country with a landscape of forests, rivers, mountain ranges and North Sea beaches. It has over 2 millennia of history. Berlin, its capital, is home to art and nightlife scenes, the Brandenburg Gate and many sites relating to WWII. Munich is known for its Oktoberfest and beer halls, including the 16th-century Hofbräuhaus. Frankfurt, with its skyscrapers, houses the European Central Bank.

Germany is a democratic and federal parliamentary republic, where federal legislative power is vested in the Bundestag (the parliament of Germany) and the Bundesrat (the representative body of the Länder, Germany’s regional states).

The head of the government is the chancellor who’s like a Prime Minster or President.  The voting age is from 16.

One thing Germany if famous for is Oktoberfest which this year will be held between 21 September and 6 October. It is the world’s largest Volksfest featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival with more than six million international and national visitors.

It is also known for its beer, castles and Albert Einstein.

Between 1949 and 1990 the country was dived into two parts East under control of the Russians and West under the control of the allies. In 1961 the Berlin Wall was built and was in place till 1989 when it was torn down.

This post is about Germany now and not during the time of Hitler, which is the only mention he will get in this post.

I found something written at the end of yesterday’s diary entry this morning and it made me feel so happy. I thought Tim wrote it, but I was wrong, it was Natasha.

I had a good night slept straight through. Waking with the alarm at 5am the temp is 12 degrees and my BGL is 4.8.

Had the next door neigbour (Bear)come and ask if we have power, we do, Tim told him to ring maintenance. Bear said he thought he would be kicked out when he turns 75, that doesn’t sound right.

I did only 1,157 steps.

At 1am this morning we lost power till Cpap machine I noticed when the power went out and was awake till it came back on.

A cold morning temp was 6 degrees and my BGL was 5.5.

Sue came over for a visit, which made me happy.

The temp at midday was 14 degrees

Sam’s early day and Joel was driving a different van a white minibus which was a surprise. If he is driving it in the morning, I will not be able to pick him out when he turns into the street.

Just after I emptied the recycle bins it pissed down rain.

I also decided to hem my new pants so I can wear them.

I did 2,799 steps.

Had another shocking night very restless and up and down ever 30 minutes or so to pee and not just a dribble, how could a body produce so much urine in only 30 minutes.

I ended up getting out of bed at 4.50am and having a shower the house was darker than usual this morning, so I turned the ceiling light on for a while and had the heater going for a couple of hours.

The temp this morning says 8 degrees but feels colder. My BGL was 4.1

It is raining so Jess had to take Sam to wait for transport. I also have had the heater on most of the morning.

Ass Jess had to go work and Tash was busy I walked up to meet Sam and Tash saw me and got upset that I was out in the rain.

I did 1,818 steps

Had a good night slept straight through, woke at 4.55am to pee so I stayed up. It is still raining, and it is 10 degrees and my BGL was 3.6.

By mid-morning the rain had stopped, and it wasn’t as cold.

I used the powerfit twice today.

I rang Sue as she hadn’t replied to my message this morning and I wanted to make sure she was ok, she is.

Had Jess come over to raid my freezer looking for whatever she could find leaving with broccoli and ice cream as well as 2 min noodles and chocolate biscuits.

Steps 2,395

Finding it a bit difficult to get moving this morning, I slept all night waking when the alarm went off.

It is 8 degrees and my BGL is 5.5 the first reading said 6.1 so I washed my hands under running water tried again came down to 5.8, gave them another wash, and it was 5.5 so that will do.

I am super tired this morning.

Had appointment with Dr Babu via phone but for some reason my camera wasn’t working. I will see her face to face in January.

Kathy rang she is unwell, and my camera still wasn’t working so I restarted the phone, and it’s working now.

Had another good night woke with the alarm, it’s 10 degrees and dry, my BGL 4.7. I have a headache and feel sluggish.

Last day of term 2 today.

After a slow start to the day, I picked up managed to do the usual housework.

Sandy came over to pick up so forms I printed for her she looks so thin but otherwise ok.

I did 2,399 steps

Had a good night, was a tad restless around midnight, got up and wandered around the house before going back to bed and settling straight down and back to sleep.

It is 9 degrees and my BGL is 3.9

Tim and I went shopping I have decided that Saturday is my go out and stuff day.

Kathy & Summer came over to drop off banana bread and a book for Sue.

Sam mentioned yesterday that Jess had bought them both tights to wear under their pants to help stay warm, so this morning I decided to get a pair of pantyhose out and wear them under my long pants, makes a big difference.

Tim is working tonight and tomorrow night. Steps 1,897

Hello everyone, I have a headache seem to be getting a few of them recently, oh well. This week let’s look a bit at speech problems and Parkinson’s Disease.

Those with PD may find their speech becoming weak and soft, Tim often says I am speaking so soft he has trouble hearing me, of course I do not notice any difference in my speech volume.

Also, some people thankfully not me may find themselves talking to fast so that their words tumble out on top of each other, or they may repeat a word involuntarily a number of times this is known as palilalia. Dribbling also makes speech difficult.

In order to help improve these issues the PD suffer must be fully aware of what is going on and maybe should use a recorder to record their voice and listen to it.

They can read aloud trying to increase the volume of their speech, singing along to a favourite song can be fun way of using your voice and increasing volume.

If speech problems become severe, they may want to see a speech therapist.

There are devices that can help a person speak like a speech amplifier to increase the volume. It is possible for someone with severe PD to lose the ability to speak all together this would suck and these people have to write things down.

Hello everyone and welcome this week I am sharing just four other physical ways people with BPD may be affected.

In times of intense stress, the body increases production of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. According to The National Eczema Organization, when the body over-produces cortisol, it can suppress the immune system and cause an inflammatory skin response like eczema or other kind of rash.

Sensory overload is a symptom many folks with PTSD can experience. Though PTSD and BPD are different conditions, one study found that 53 percent of people who met the criteria for BPD also met the criteria for lifetime PTSD. Because of this, it makes sense that many folks with BPD experience this physical symptom.

Fatigue is a common symptom of depression, a mood disorder 71 to 83 percent of people with BPD have. Though folks with BPD will have emotional extremes lasting anywhere from a few hours to a few days, the periods of depression can be emotionally and physically taxing.

Hypervigilance is a heightened state of arousal that puts someone (usually someone who has lived through trauma) on high alert, even in times of safety. Studies have shown most patients with BPD have lived through trauma, especially in childhood.

Another cold morning here let’s continue with some more about the Battle of the Coral Sea.

Almost immediately after the first attack against Admiral Crace and second one took place, this time with more accurate patterned bombing from high altitude. Such bombing caused giant columns of water which threatened to sink the Australia thankfully the ships although soaked with sea water managed to evade the bombs.

As often happens there may have been some friendly fire incidents, however, a less excusable incident happened when three planes flew over just missing the Farragut and Perkins. They were US Army Air Force B17 bombers.

The Japanese thought they had sunk one battleship and damaged a few more, when in fact Crace’ squadron was mostly undamaged and at nightfall cruised away to await further events and orders. Due to radio silence, he really had no idea what was happening with the Allied flotilla.

Back in the main area of battle allied pilots were returning to the Yorktown but they were joined by 18 Japanese bombers who mistakenly thought the Yorktown was their own ship. It was when an American pilot noticed and opened fire on them that realising their boo boo flew off as they had no bombs, they were unable to attack the carrier.

It was at the end of the battle during fierce fighting that Lieutenant J.J. Powers an American pilot inflicted heavy damage on the Japanese carrier Shokaku by waiting till the last minute to drop his bomb on the flight deck. He was of course killed and received the Congressional Medal of Honour posthumous. During the blaze on the Shokaku 150 men were killed or wounded.  

During all the fighting the USS Lexington suffered several direct hits causing it to be ablaze from stem to stern and resulting in it being abandoned. It was sunk by the USS Phelps to prevent the Japanese from trying to salvage it.

By the end of this round of fighting neither side could say they had a victory with scores of losses on both sides, however the Japanese objective of taking Port Moresby had taken a beating and this was a moral boost to the Allies.

I will finish this next week.  

Hello everyone since it is Tuesday it is freaky creature day and today’s creature is the Surinam Toad.

The common Surinam toad or star-fingered toad is a purely aquatic species of frog in the family Pipidae with a widespread distribution in South America.

It looks like a leaf or flat rock; it is also known as a star-fingered toad due to the tiny star on the tip of each four fingers on its front legs.

It will lay flat on the riverbed with its arms outstretched and uses them to find food, if something brushes up against the stars it sucks it up.

The species is known for incubating its eggs in honeycombed chambers in the skin of the mother’s back, releasing fully formed froglets after a period of 4–5 months. Once fully formed they pop free and head for the water’s surface to breathe. The mum then sheds its skin ready for the next breeding season.

This was the last creature in my freaky creature book, so I will have to see what else I can find I do have one on dangerous spiders but I’m not sure about that.

Good morning bloggers or is it good afternoon or good evening whatever time you are reading this doesn’t matter, what does matter is how blessed I am to have some wonderful followers, just saying.

This week we are looking at Spain, which is in Western Europe, it has a population of 47 million, the capital is Madrid. It dominates most of the Lberian Peninsula in southwest Europe.

It’s official name is the Kingdom of Spain and was originally called Hispania.

They have a Parliamentary Monarchy with King Felipe VI as the head of state.

The national flag of Spain, as it is defined in the Constitution of 1978, consists of three horizontal stripes: red, yellow and red, the yellow stripe being twice the height of each red stripe. Traditionally, the middle stripe was defined by the more archaic term of gualda, and hence the popular name la Rojigualda.

It is a country famous for its culture, which includes flamenco dancing and bullfighting, it also has some beautiful beaches.

The country’s official language is Spanish or Castilian Spanish, which is spoken by everyone. However, certain Autonomous Communities have their own official language in addition to Spanish. Catalan is spoken in Catalonia, Galician in Galicia, and Basque in the Basque Country and part of Navarre.

Of course, we can’t talk about Spain and not mention bullfighting. Spanish-style bullfighting is a type of bullfighting that is practiced in several Spanish-speaking countries: Spain, Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, as well as in parts of southern France and Portugal.

Although it is still legal in Spain there are some Spanish cities that outlawed it and there are only a few countries throughout the world where it still goes on.