Hello!
This summer is progressing quite well for me, and I'm currently at my parents , having completed another yr of speech therapy. *smile*
I loved every min of summer so far , doing late night chats with my online buddies , catching up with some long lost friends ( thank you FB! ) and in general enjoying all that summer has to offer.
On August 1st , we celebrated my father's birthday , it was just a simple meal on our boat , wishing him happy birthday , and doing a lot of swimming.I even snorkeled with my dad to get sea urchins for him and mom to eat their gonads , which are a delicacy here.We also got mussels , and few other sea things that I don't know the name of! Also , we learned that it's kinda uncomfortable to step on them..
I also found that a frustration I had last year with snorkeling has been somewhat eradicated.I couldn't wear my mask last year bc the back portion was directly over the implant , and it allowed my mask to leak water , leaving me very frustrated.This year , it was almost non existent , probably my implant has settled a little more in my skull , or I got more muscle over it , who knows? There is still some minimal leaking , but it's not THAT annoying.I got a new annoying thing though..The lower portion of mask that covers the nose , is a bit tight there to not leak water in my nose , but , with the braces , leaves my lip a bit numb! it's not a big problem , but I did manage to get myself drenched when I attempted to drink water immediately after removing it! LOL.Well , the wet people fear no additional drenching! I also decided to get an Ear Band-It if I can to see if I can resolve even that minimal leaking!
While snorkeling , I did see some woods and I deduced they were probably from something getting sunk there.Stones and stuff were partly obscuring them.I also saw some fishes , and I dove to scare them away , LOL.
In the afternoon I went to visit two of my aunties up at nana's house , which now is summer house for mom's siblings , and we had fun visiting , and later , I walked to another house , to see my primary school aide ( she was tutoring me after school ) that I had till 4th grade ( she was vacationing there with her two kids ) and , my , how time flies.It was a bit emotional to catch up with her , but , I was deaf as my battery had died , and I tried to change it ...and I let it fall! Oops , old clumsy me! It wasn't switching on after a fresh battery , so , I was like , hmm I probably forgot to charge it.Out comes a battery holder and disposables ( I always have a six pack for emegenercies , I'm kinda forgetful sometimes ) .Nada.I start panicking.
I had to send it Monday to the office for repairs.Ick.I was deaf until yesterday , and , my , it was a hard time for me.I couldn't hear , I couldn't hear music , and communication was quite the struggle.A lot of misunderstandings , and when it got dark , I couldn't lipread much.It got really lonely quickly , but my CI friends in FB rallied and tried to lift my spirits , and everyone was really happy when I announced I got my ear back on yesterday.Now I've double taped it on my ear , and I'm not going to change batteries again when I'm on the go.I'll try to sit down and be careful , as I don't want to go through THAT again.
I did make some observations though.While deaf , I lost all control of volume of my voice, I was speaking quite worse , and I was having some words muddled.Mom's patience was REALLY tested since Sunday! Not to mention I missed listening to music.Haha.
The problem was that the contacts in the controller , that are for getting power from battery , were dislodged, and they fixed that.Thank god it wasn't something more serious , as I do not have a back up ear.Plus , four days without hearing were a bit much for me!
I also decided that using long coil for when I'm out and about will solve some problems , like the likelihood of falling off me , esp when I'm on boat , ick.I do have one of Kyley's long coil pouches but mom decided to wash it , and , um , washing machine decided it was a tasty morsel and ate it.LOL.But before that , a week ago , we went calamari fishing , and I was wearing my ear with long coil , and it was just...nice , to not worry about my ear , and worry abt my balance ( it was really rocky that day , we kept swinging constantly. ) and abt getting inked from calamari.
I should add that babyworn option doesn't work too well on the boat , for two reasons.One , I know that Freedom's somewhat water resistant , but I do not want to take ANY risks.My head gets sprayed unless I stay in the cabin , where it's hot and stuffy.Second , I don't have anywhere to pin the battery portion so that the wire won't bother me , as I usually I am only with swimsuit on there.I do use all three options where I see fit , and it's just nice to be able to have that flexibility.
I do want to file a bit of a complaint though.What was Cochlear THINKING when it designed Freedom? it's been quite a host of problems for me.My most recent complaint was with the battery prongs breaking off easily.UGH.Also , I tried to get a solar charger for my things so I'll be able to charge them on boat ( ipod , phone , etc ) and , the one I wanted , had only an USB option , and I thought , no problem , it fits all of my needs...except..yup , Freedom batteries.UGH!The N5 charger does charge from USB however , so when I get upgraded it'll be one less hassle!
I also am going to purchase a new battery , with the hope that it'll be my last Freedom one and when I need new ones , I'll have to get N5 ones! A girl , can dream though..I can't upgrade till I'm 5 years post surgery , and every 5 years since then!Another 3 years...*mutters*
