Good morning from Kenmore,
Last week was a busy week. We got our two boats out of town, and they are on their way to spend the summer up in Alaska working. They will be tendering salmon up in Bristol Bay and Southeast Alaska. (For our Florida and Indianana ALS friends, tendering salmon means you hang out on the fishing grounds, where the fishing boats are. When those boats are full of fish, they come to our boat and we unload and weigh their delivery. We then take it into town for the fisherpeople. That way the fisherpeople don't lose fishing time, running their own load into town.)
Both boats should be in Bristol Bay by the end of the week. Our 17 yr old son, Sean left on the F/V Brenna A. He will be working as a deckhand all summer....he will be gone until the boat arrives back in Seattle, sometime in August. Yes, Pat and I will miss him like crazy, Brenna too, but he has been so anxious to go, that we are happy that he is happy. All he needs to do is follow the skipper's orders for the summer, and not worry about anything all down here. He deserves a summer of being a hard working kid, doing what he loves. (Check out the new photos of the touching way Brenna and Sean said goodbye for the summer!)
The big news of the week though...the new wheelchair is here!!!! It is GREAT!!! It's fast, it raises up so Pat is at eye level during standing conversations, it's got legs that lift up to help keep the blood from pooling in his feet, and did I mention that it's fast...goes u pto 7 miles per hour...! The controls need a little tweaking, but once we get that taken care, watch out...Pat is ready to roll! It's great though. This chair is much more comfortable than his other one, so I think it will work out really well for him. Again, thanks to the ALS Association for the loaner chair. Our local chapter rocks! (Check out the photo of Pat and his brother John standing eye to eye!)
We had to modify on of the lifts yesterday as the wheelchair is wider that the old chair. It fit, but barely! Pat's friend Pete came over and re-arranged controls so now Pat can roll on and off with room! It's a good thing! Thanks Pete. We appreciate you spending part of your last evening in town with us. (Pete leaves for Bristol Bay tomorrow.)
Other than all that, life continues to march on here on 188th street. I'm trying to get out in the yard. Brenna is very busy with 2 partime jobs, and she is also training a Mustang horse for one of her friends. She is home for the summer, but we never see her! It's ok. She is working hard at what she loves.
Pat's disease still continues to progress. His walking is very limited and his arm and hand movement seems to be holding their own. His voice and speaking are both still very strong and he seems to spend a good portion of the day on his cell phone, solving boat problems and trying to sell some used equipment that we no longer need. Anybody need a commercial wood/tree chipper?!
Ok, gotta run, just wanted to share the good news about the wheelchair. I'll be posting more updates with new adventures! Thanks to everyone who has sent prayers and love our way. It keeps us hopeful and reminds us that we do not walk alone through this fight. We are blessed in many ways.
Lots of love, xxxJenny and Pat
