Well, it's been a while since I have posted here. I'm still alive and soon-to-be well in Panama. Someone recently send me an e-mail with the phrase "Old Age Ain't for Sissies".
Just this week I found out that it is true. I had to go to a local hospital for emergency surgery to remove a "hot" appendix. Then I spent three days in the hospital with IV antibiotics to take care of the infection from the leaking appendix. It was not a pleasant experience! The surgery and medical follow-up were first rate; however, concern for other people's comfort is not part of the local culture. I am very happy and grateful to be recovering at home now with many local friends helping out.
My new house which has been "just one month" from being finished for the past four months will have to wait until I am fully recovered from the surgery; physically and financially. Maybe I'll be able to move in by the end of October.
It's great to see so many posts about CV memories / characters, and from several new contributors. I often remember how I couldn't wait to leave Cedar Vale when I was young, and how my perspective has changed over the years. I'm sure it would be a pleasant place for me to live now ... except for the hot summers and cold winters. In the mountains of western Panama I have 75-80 degree days and near 55 degree nights year-round. We have no tornadoes, hurricanes, or snow storms and few prairie fires. We do have plenty of rain (Tropics) and the occasional mild earthquake (living less than 9 miles from Volcan Baru volcano). The volcano is dormant and supposed to stay that way for another 150 to 200 years.
So, having survived the surgery and hospital stay, I can now say without reservation: "Old age ain't for sissies" nor is it for the faint of heart. It still beats the alternative in my book and, borrowing from a famous blog, I fully intend to continue having fun until I die.
Best Regards from Volcan, Chiriqui Province, Republic of Panama.
Jay (J.D.) Mills, CVHS Class of '59.
6 comments:
Jay, A curiosity question. Are you covered by U.S. Medicare while living in Panama?
Hey, Jay, good to hear from you again. Get well soon and let us hear from you regularly. As for the "famous blog" I'm flattered that I have achieved a little bit of fame in Panama. But, of course, we all know that fame is a fleeting thing, as we have just heard from Dick Williams.
Oh, and by the way, Wayne, I'm not covered by US Medicare while I'm living in Spain, although I continue to pay the premiums.
Gary, thanks for the wishes and I will be much more regular when the house is finished .. maybe October or November now.
----
Wayne, Sorry for the delayed response.
No, medicare does not provide coverage outside of the U.S. as Gary mentioned. I also continue to pay so I will have coverage in the U.S. if needed.
I do have hospital and doctor coverage through private insurance at the hospital that treated me. That's another story and a battle for when I feel better.
I am doing much better at home than in the insensitive care unit at the hospital.
---
By the way, my brother Carl Mills is one of the "lurkers" who reads this blog on a fairly regular basis.
Great to hear from you. Check in from time to time and let us know how you are doing. CV "inquiring minds" want to know!
Hope you're recovered from your appendectomy by now. My sister had a ruptured appendex at about age 13 and was deathly sick. Good oldd penicillan saved her. My appendectomy at age 13 just kept me from msrching in the band at the Arkalala that year.
Good luck!
Diane B.
Post a Comment