#139 The Flying Dutchman
For those who haven’t heard of the Flying Dutchman, here is a link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Dutchman
I’m only here in the U.S. for 6 days more.
Abruptly, after 6 weeks of upheaval and leaving preparations, I find myself almost at a loose end. Only minute tweaks to be done to my packing and migrate my US mobile number to a different provider (Done – For those interested, Mint Mobile seems better than the U.S. providers I’ve dealt with). That is about it. I have 6 months supplies of my various medications and supplements and am packed for either winter or summer and a bit of preparedness in case of disaster. 😊
Turkey does not appear to be doing well as regards COVID. However, I have my ticket and my lodging is all set up so I am going to go and try it. I believe that as long as I have a nice place to stay in, with a good Internet connection, and have access to food, a little bit of exercise outside (there is a very nice park about 400 m from my apartment) … then I will be just fine. I have had several people inquire as to whether it is a good idea. Maybe. Maybe not. But I am stocked up on supplies and I have so many things to study that being in a place with lockdown really should not be an issue. Here in the U.S. the main reason I go out so much is because nothing is in walking distance. In Vegas most places are 5 – 10 miles away. It’s crazy.
At the same time it has been a very troubling few weeks. A very close friend is extremely ill and just got back home from being in the hospital. It is cancer and it is shocking how quickly it got worse. Really my friends – take the time to get yourself checked out regularly and pay attention to the results.
I have been having some issues myself. I actually feel great, but the cardiologist, following a echocardiogram and a nuclear stress test, immediately wanted to dive in and do an angiogram with the possibility of installing a stent. As another close friend of mine said, if you go to a chiropractor what do they do? They manipulate you. Because that’s what they do. And cardiologists? What do they do? They like to do an angiogram and think about stents. I’m not saying it might not be necessary, but I’m very uncomfortable with medical care here in United States. The system is so completely and utterly broken that attempting to do this just days before I’m supposed to get on a plane and travel… I just said no. They’ve given me at medication, just in case. Baby aspirin, a beta blocker (minimum dosage and I’m only taking half of each pill anyway), and nitroglycerin (just in case again). It is a little bit annoying. The people I talked to make it sound like there’s a possibility I might keel over at any moment. But truly, what they said to me when they were looking at the test results was that this one area of one of the coronary arteries at the very end was lighting up “slightly less” than the other arteries.
Anyway, calculated risk, but I have the medication, I will take it, I will be careful, I will take note of what my body is telling me, but I think that I will wait until I get back to Thailand later in the year, and do this procedure at my favorite hospital. I been going there for 25 years, I know them, and I trust them. Far more so than any place here in the United States. Honestly, the medical community here should just be mortally embarrassed about how totally F#CKED up and broken this system is. I just don’t know any other word for it. It is abysmal.
Am I excited to be back on the road. Yes. I think so. But those who know me well … also know I rarely get ‘excited’ about anything 😊. But I can say I am looking forward to it. I will try to post more often once I am on the road and have stuff to show and talk about.
I am in Flying Dutchman mode. I’ve no particular destination and no timetable. I’m hoping to connect with a friend in Denmark and possibly visit Bulgaria. Honestly – I’m sitting at the moment in the Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas airport on my way to visit my son and ex-wife before leaving the country again – And I am almost excited. I really haven’t traveled like this … well … ever. I’m going to take advantage of it while I can. I was noticeably anxious this morning before heading to the airport. I haven’t traveled for 14 months. But it was pretty easy. Not that many people and having invested in the time and trouble for the DHS Global Entry Card / TSA PreCheck status … wow! That is worth every penny. Getting through security is just so easy. I was amazed. Made a HUGE difference. This trip to SLC is a dry run for the long trip next week. There is no doubt there is more to do when traveling now. Extra forms, tests, etc. But not impossibly hard or anything.
Centurion Lounge Las Vegas
I did decide after much debate to buy a 3rd bag to travel with and take the hit on excess baggage. I noticed once I made the decision, I had a lower stress level regarding the trip. Instead of 2 bags maxed out to the allowable weight and trying to shave ounces, now I can simply have 3 bags, moderately packed out with no anxiety about leaving stuff behind. Ancillary benefit is the 3rd bag serves as a good bag for intermediate short trips from my base in Turkey.