... old life

“On average, four people are killed and ninety are seriously injured every day on Australia’s roads. The economic cost of road accidents in Australia is enormous—estimated at $27 billion each year—and the social impacts are devastating (Australian Transport Council 2011).”

This was the note contained within the Heart Foundation report “Move It: Australia’s Healthy Transport Options” provided earlier this year. The report was not really about the real circumstances to people injured or the reason why police, fire engines and ambulances attended the road incidents. There was no report about the injured children and the reason why they are in the car. There was no report about just why people have apparently unusual accidents.

Dr Lyn Roberts AM wrote: “Physical activity improves the chances of living longer with less disease. It protects against heart disease and stroke, as well high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol.” Perhaps that may be wonderful, but it doesn’t stand up to inspection of the usual seemingly okay person who drove their car off the road and caused the followers to call the help. Police, tow trucks, fire engine with crew, ambulances, more police. And us, little old people who might have some less physical activity with less protection against our very own heart disease and stroke.

Yet, this time, the woman who drove could have come under her own satellite, and driven off the edge of the road and into a tree. No alcohol. Could she have been internally ill?  Who would know anything?

Talking to this woman’s granddaughter, who had been inside the car and rescued whilst we waited for the fire engine which would cut her grandmother out, it seemed that her Nan had offered her love and attention while her daughter was overseas. No spendthrift. No failure. Nan looked after her two grandsons as well. Today was a break on the care of the grandsons, who, yet, wouldn’t have any idea. This accident seemed so very unfair.

Have you ever had an accident like this one? You have just driven off the road, no reason for doing that, nothing which has showed up to prove some medical problems? Would you do that out of fun? Bored? Tired? Do you know what caused it?

Neither do I. My own assumption is that this particular accident is a result from something inside the driver which turned her off. Unknown. Unfelt. Until she left the road and hit a tree and my friend and I had experienced some smoke from under the car motor, so getting her granddaughter out of the back seat was essential.

We were only at the site for a fairly short time this afternoon. After the police, fire and ambulance people turned up, we left. But the short hold of this accident has given us some thoughts. What goes on between this grandmother and granddaughter when they went off the road? What about ambulances which will take them to separate hospitals? Who has told the ambulance or police about the day care for the grandsons? What were we doing to stop any fires in the car? Who was helping us? What was all the traffic thinking of in this situation? Was anyone careful?

I had been 6.5 weeks in PA Hospital after my own stroke. Today I found that very obvious as the possibility for a cause of some medical problem with the driver in front of me when she left the road. And yet the police, the ambulance people, the fire engineers, the tow truck people, everyone who attended this accident have not, yet, had their own injury from some internal problem.

Perhaps we should be very grateful about that.

The Australian Transport Council in 2011 said: “The economic cost of road accidents in Australia is enormous—estimated at $27 billion each year—and the social impacts are devastating.” Today’s accident would have cost a whole heap as everyone who helped out – police, fire engineers, ambulance people, tow truckies – would still get paid, their gear gets used, the time is not diarised.

Are the social impacts devastating? Yes, they are. This accident, today, would not have been overly paid, and yet the driver had her own social personality. So did her granddaughter. So did her relations.

I hope that social impacts can be repaired, if the person is still alive. Perhaps the end of a life is a different story.

New Life

Have you ever lost your driver’s licence, for 6 months, from a medical statement? I did. I lost mine according to the doctor’s warning words about my aneurysm, but it was taking from me for 6 months due to my stroke. 6 months of not being able to drive – so very hard!

Last week I sat the assessment in the Redcliffe Health office – and I passed it. I am, right now, very grateful to my GP, who yesterday wrote me a little form which doctors are required to, gave me my own driver’s licence, and the form is dated for 2 years. I got home on the bus and I reintroduced myself to my car.

Yesterday afternoon I lay the car seats down, covered the back area with some old covers, and took my dogs out. Most days in the past they can walk by the bay which is close to my Woody Point address, but this time I took them out to the beach between Margate and Redcliffe.

It looks a bit funny with so many tiny jellyfish washed up onto the beach, but I am still aware that they could, possibly, be dangerous. I let the dogs walk along the beach just for a short while, before we took in the wooden walkway. It was lovely – I’m sure they thought so! Both of my old dogs are just happy to say hello to anyone who happens to walk past. Most people don’t ever ignore these two.

We went for a little drive down around Scarborough, and my dogs thought they were so lucky with the windows open!

This morning I decided to go out by myself, and the dogs were left in the house. Sorry guys, today was for me! I started down at the Redcliffe street market, where a couple of weekends ago I had found some cheap clothes and wore them today. I got there just after 8am and it had only started, so it didn’t really seem as full as it was on the past weekends. I had a fairly quick wander through the markets, and just wanted to drive my car.  It wasn’t hard.

I headed up north, taking the road out past Deception Bay, and got onto the M1 motorway. It wasn’t very full, so was probably a good time to get out there. I had printed out my internet maps, showing where I need to get off, so I could do a short – and very steep – walk up Wild Horse mountain. I found the park, and maybe I was still too early, but it was beautiful. There were two other cars in the carpark. One was empty, but there was a woman waiting at the other for her partner. I rather think I was just a wee bit older than her, but I didn’t think the hill was too bad. It’s only 700 metres up there, and some wonderful places to stop and take photos.  This first pic is from about half way up the hill, taken across the M1 at a couple of the Glasshouse Mountains.

 

Carrying up the hill was very slow, even for someone like me who smiles about it. Despite only 700m from the carpark to the top, it seems to get steeper, especially past the halfway. I sometimes think of someone in Wellington (NZ) who lives in such steep hills!

Up the top at the canopy there were steps to the top. The canopy itself has posters all around it giving history of the different views – a full circle. This picture is almost the same of Glasshouse Mountains that I took halfway down the hill, but you can still see the Bruce Highway going straight through, The third picture looks south, towards Brisbane showing the Bruce Highway traffic.

A young family – mum, dad and small daughter – caught me up at the top just as I was ready to walk down. I thought the wee girl had done so well – until dad told me she was sitting on his shoulders on the way up!

I walked down the hill almost at a very quick pace, feeling very ahead of the new (old) chap who was heading the way up. This, to me, looks so much like the steep motorbike roads I used to get used to. They were very steep!

When I got back to the carpark I saw a car which left – they obviously didn’t like the steepness of the walkway, but I felt pretty good with it – only 700m!

Back into my car, I got back on the Bruce Highway, took the Deception Bay exit off the M1, and before the middle of the day I got home. It almost felt like a wee secret drive, which never took me so long. Perhaps, now, I’m a bit frustrated with these sort of Glasshouse Mountains which are now so very close to me than they ever used to be.  Perhaps I just need to go just a wee bit further…

Women have rights

"Woman gang-raped by Tinder date and his friends". This was an article in Sydney Morning Herald on 8 October. This was an horrendous event for a young New Zealand woman. She didn't ask for it. Why would she? Why was she drunk? Why did these dudes spike her over? 

I agreed with the police spokesperson comments at the disgusted action, and yet I was still quite mad at the police who said they "are warning online daters to be careful of meeting with strangers". I had to think about it again after Anne, today, added her comments to my share on Facebook. 

In my speech at the International Women's Liberation Summit this last Monday, I spoke some of the thoughts in my own language that Anne today put on my FB in her own language. I am a victim, with my own agreement with what she has said. Why is that? It's because we, women, should always be aware of what happens on the street, in a bar, in a stranger's place or a known person's place. Are we responsible for what happens? Does not doing that make us guilty? Hell no! NO woman is ever guilty of getting raped. NO woman is ever guilty of drinking herself into some sexual agreement with strangers. But... here's the crunch... NO woman should ever feel guilty if they have simply gone over stuff with their "modern" thoughts. 

Freedom? Here are Anne's comments. Read them and think hard about them.

Women have rights....they also have responsibilities.

We are constantly warned that the internet is rife with predators - it's the perfect place for them to hunt out the vulnerable & the uninformed. We are told to take precautions to ensure our own safety when meeting up with people we've connected with through dating sites etc. because of this fact. And yet so many women still naively/unwittingly enter into situations where they could be putting themselves in danger of becoming the victim of the next date-rape story on the news.

Why? Because we've been told we/women should be able to do what we like....go where we like....meet who we like, when ever we like? I agree with that.....EVERYONE, every single person should be able to walk freely on this earth without fear - BUT that's not the world we live in. Not the real world....that's a fantasy world, which doesn't exist.

The simple truth is....predators exist - they always have and they always will and it doesn't matter how much we demand our right to walk freely, they are not going to go away. They will remain, hidden in plain sight as they always have....waiting for their next bit of sweet meat.

We (as the women's movement) have done a great injustice to ourselves and continue to do it to the girls coming through - we push the right of freedom to be who we are...but we have not pushed hard enough to teach the responsibility that comes with that. The minute we start talking about women taking responsibility for their own risk management & safety....we are labeled victim-blamers.

As you mentioned in your ... talk the other day.....we wouldn't walk around a construction site without a hard hat on because past experience has proven that there is a possibility we may be injured - so we wear that hat....just in case. Risk management.

Why then, do we as women continue to blindly enter into situations where the risk of becoming the victim of a predator is a very real possibility (probably more so than being hit on the head by a lump of wood at a construction site!). It doesn't make sense does it? Most of us would probably think twice before swimming in a river where we know there might be crocodiles, or a beach where there could be sharks.

You know who gets attacked by crocodiles and sharks? People who think the rules don't apply to them or don't give a second thought to the possible danger they are going into....and a very few who are unaware of the possible danger.

And it's no different for women when we find ourselves in, or are about to enter unknown territory like meeting up with strangers for instance, which is happening more and more now.

Why, when there is so much historical evidence proving date rape is a very real possibility, are we still putting ourselves at risk??

Because......"Girl Power!!"....we've been misguided into believing that it's our right to do as we please, however we want, when ever we want, with whomever we want....and we should be able to do it safely while not taking responsibility for the part we play in any outcome from it.

I'm not blaming this young women for being gang-raped.....not for a nano second.....rape is never okay - EVER. It makes me sick to the stomach knowing she could have been me (years ago) or some other woman I know. No, she is a victim (now) not only of her rapists but also of the society we have created that doesn't instill the importance of personal responsibility in our right to our personal freedom.

We need to start getting real and start being honest with each other about what having "rights" truly entails....and more importantly we need to begin educating our young girls from a very early age in personal risk management. So that making informed decisions about their safety is first nature, not something they wish they had thought of after the fact.

Third World War?

Tony Abbott has determined that Australia is due to attend the war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) “death of cult”, rampaged throughout Iraq and Syria. Abbott has said 600 defence subjects will attend, based in United Arab Emirates, behind 8 Australia fight planes. The frenzy is against the Islamics who have already killed hostages - UK and USA people. By his recent speech Abbott has given very little information for normal people to understand it. This is a war which has been labelled “third world war” by other people interviewed. This war is not realist, and we need to understand some of the Islamic and why the “third world war” is coming. 

Islam was born around 570 BC, with Muhammad named the Prophet. Many Muslims said that Islam had happened many years before, from the part of Adam and with many people before and after Jesus’ history. Most of its civilization occurred in Middle East, spreading to the East, into Spain, Asia, and down India and Africa. Wikipedia says “The people of the Islamic world created numerous sophisticated centers of culture and science with far-reaching mercantile networks, travelers, scientists, hunters, mathematicians, doctors and philosophers”, making it sound pretty good. But the present deepest Islam has, for many years, attempted to take over its control throughout war, in advance against Western countries. While some Western civilizations have stayed ahead, the Islam religion is moving on. It now has domination finance against many Western residents, including major handling of oil and other goods, especially with strategy overtaken in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq, Turkey and Jordan.  

The First World War was from 28 July 1914 until 11 November 1918, predominantly throughout Europe, but later spread through Africa, Middle East, Pacific Islands, China and off the coast of South and North America. World War Two, the Second War World during 1939-1945, was larger, due in part that most

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people were ahead on technology and were able to use it against the enemy. This war spread throughout the world, after Hitler in Europe and Japanese in the Pacific against China and America, but was ultimately won by western USA and UK. 

This current conflagration in ISIL is now called the “Third War World”, seen by Giles Fraser in The Guardian on Saturday 13 September. It is not something anyone ordinary wants. It is not something anyone ordinary wants to fight. Nor does someone ordinary wants Islam or any religion to take over our own future by viciousness. 

Many Australian residents are not religious. We have, for a long time, thrown away the Jesus religion, and have recently learned about the way religious people maintained sexuality against children who were unable to stop what happened. Recently many Islam people now live in Australia, but they are still hanging onto their Islam. It’s still not at all good for Australians, and some of the habituate living stays hidden for many women who are beleaguered – including FGM, female general mutilation. 

With the war growing in ISIL, there are some Islamics from Australia who have left Australia to go fight there – and not with Australia Defence. However there are a great number of Islamics who support Australia and will still say what they have to, like Glenn Mohammed on 29 August, who said clearly “I am an Australian, I am a Muslim. I am an Australian Muslim.” Many Australian Muslims no longer accept the violence in the Middle East territory, where, at one time, many of them have been refugeed during Islam wars. It’s a very straight overview, yet Abbott’s corrosity cuts into it. Abbott will tell us all why he is talking and some of what he believes in, yet mostly no one wants the Third World War with us involved. 

Is the Third World War real? Will it grow faster, like computers and books and phones and TV in this highly technological enterprise? Are we responsible for it? Will it treat us at all like 9-11 in USA? Is there a terrorism in Australian that we will always miss – before it gets us?

These days I feel pretty old. I have a lost job caused by male managers. I had two marriage envisaged against two rather lower males. The Australian PM is male – and not very good to listen or see. Most of the Aussie government is male. Islam is primarily male. Christian religion is primarily male. Many men “work” in the Defence. Most men handle weapons.  Most men injure women. The future, to me, is no better than it was when I was little. In fact, it’s much, much lesser. What is really good for women?

Is there a Third World War starting in the Middle East? I can just hope that it never starts. And that men will change their minds, about life.

Not like an 'old' meeting

When I was admitted to PA Hospital earlier this year for my brain aneurysm (270-ish something days since CT’d it) I was just thinking of the ‘usual’ operation for this sort of thing discovered by ’normal’ people. I was only expecting around 5 days in hospital, getting out early, only 3 months my driver’s licence was medically suspended, then back to normal life. I had no idea what happened to me in my surgery. Sometimes I feel like I was cut open wrong, I bled, and I have my own future problem. I spent 6½ weeks in PA. I have now been out of PA for 3 months, have had some OT and Speech therapists, and still have at least another 3 month before I can even start driving again – if I pass my assessment.

Today I attended an invitation by my new Health Service, Redcliffe, to the North Lake Health Service meeting about stroke, run by the Community Based Rehabilitation Team (CBRT). I had to work out how the buses would get up there, and caught the 690 into Redcliffe and swapped to 680 for a drop off at North Lake. I reached the Health Service half an hour early and was given directions to local cafés where I could get my lunch. There only seemed to be two smallish cafés within walking of the hospital, but I had a long afternoon meeting after my 1¼ hour bus and I was hungry.

Taking a small long black back across the road and into the large meeting room was – for me – essential. We would have afternoon tea provided but later, after another 2½ hours.

The group attending was fairly large, most of the people who have had a stroke appeared to be there with their partners. I was on my own, but didn’t feel left out as the people who sit beside me chatted to me. Our first host speaker was from CBRT and introduced a whole raft of information for the ‘experienced’ strokers and the partners and a video info which she played for us. We received the Stroke Foundation booklet. Did you know what caused a stroke? One was “a blocked artery”, called an ischaemic stroke. The other was “a bleed in the brain”, known as a haemorrhagic stroke. The booklet said: “This causes blood to leak into the brain… stopping the delivery of oxygen and nutrients” and “…can be caused by a number of disorders which affect the blood vessels, including… cerebral aneurysms.”  This is what I suffered from during my aneurysm operation.

Sometime during my post-operation I was asked, at PA, if I would be interested in Aphasia Association. I was given a few of business cards which I could have handed out if I was having problems with my words. These have stayed in my bag and just didn’t get used. I never really had any info about them, until today. The CBRT gave a lot of info about that association to the meeting, and it sounds certainly worthwhile for ringing and getting some answers. Sometimes I think of myself as being okay with my words, but most days, when I talk to others, I realise I am a long way behind my original speech.  It’s very frustrating.

Before our afternoon tea the chap who was introduced was, three years after his stroke, speaking about his speech deficit. Whenever he forgot what he had tried to say I was reminded about myself. I could feel my tears running down, as I felt frustrated that I was in this same psych problem. This guy drives and rides his Harley now. I am hoping I will pass my assessment. Three months to go, please let me be okay!

This CBRT has reminded me of my history and my lost future. This week, the 8-14 September, is a National Stroke Week set up by Stroke Foundation. The meeting provided us all with a whole heap of writing: “Know the signs of stroke”, “High cholesterol and stroke”, “Take the challenge”, “Call to action – Fight Stroke”, “Do you know your stroke risk”, and “Information sheet- Dream, Believe, Achieve – the Stroke Self Management Program”. Aphasia also included an advertisement and a sheet that said “10 Things people with Aphasia would like you to know”. This stuff is definitely good for everyone needing to know, even if you don’t have a stroke or know someone who has had it.

Whatever I end up with, I need to thank the CBRT and Aphasia and, generally, all therapists who have worked with me. Whatever I have to succeed in the future, I guess I will just have to do whatever I can do. It’s mine. Anyone can offer.

Cold? Why?

Isn't it Spring yet? I thought it was on 1st September, a date which just happened to be just a few days before the Redcliffe Festival, scheduling the Springtime. It's not made up. It's usually a wonderfully bright, warm day. Most years. Or is that something else I have forgotten after my aneurysm?

This morning I walked my dogs down to the Woody Point Bramble Bay walk, and I already knew it would be cool (cold) outside, so I wore my jacket and a long sleeved jersey and a neck scarf. Just as well. Maybe I have been sent to a "poor day" discipline, but I was a little concerned that so many walkers didn't wear what I was wearing to stay warm. Is there some sort of resident lives shared with long-lived residents?

I seem to have a long memory of Inala, and yet I only lived there for 16 months. I seemed to walk most days, and I was over it. There was, often, dried grass throughout the streets, from what seemed to be no more rain. Winter was cold, but didn't seem to clandestinely invade my skin with low temperature. I just used 2 heaters in the house, and seemed to keeping everything at a "normal" heat. Now, at Woody Point, I seem to be colder than ever before, and I don't like it. When the heat comes out I love it, and will walk most of the time. Yet when it loses temperature, I seem to be growing something I haven't had for a while - a cold.

I worked as a volunteer in the Redcliffe KiteFest in the Clontarf park, Pelican Park, last weekend. Saturday was great, to start with, and I even started an hour before I had been registered. I had a wander around the festival before I started, and some ground-crawling kites took my eye although they never actually "raced". Many of the girl children seemed to turn up dressed in the princess clothes or fairy clothes, something which I'm afraid I actually object to because I don't see those clothes as true "real" clothes for the girls alone.

I spent the day taking coffee orders, food orders, ice creams (no chocolate...). It was very busy, up until 3pm. Then there was a change, with a very strong off-bay wind which was coming straight into our cafe. Most people now just wanted something hot, and most of those customers didn't buy ice creams. I left the cafe as I had become very tired. Night was okay, not quite so cold.  On Sunday I got up and headed back to the KiteFest, but I only made 2 hours before I realised I was over-tired from.... the breeze? 

Perhaps I have just over-seen Woody Point, and now I need to s-l-o-w d-o-w-n to admire it. 

I said goodbye to my visiting sister last Friday and this week I have 3 appointments - one with North Lake CBRS to look over at help they could offer me, one to vollie as temp at the PAA, and my usual speech therapy at Redcliffe. I haven't work out yet if 3 coming appointments are too many. Perhaps I'm just too "good" for the medical team... I will have to work that out!