It's a fair point and I appreciate the sentiment (and the extended HN conversation which is sometimes a rarity). I live in South Texas where I am a native and think about moving north as it only gets hotter here. I did mention the pre-existing condition earlier which makes things harder since my job, family, friends and support system are all local and built over a lifetime. Perhaps for me the change is to get a hip replacement and potentially alleviate much of my disability (which is mild compared to what some face, but gives me trouble nonetheless). It's a hell of a thing to imagine a doctor taking a saw to your femur and replacing it with titanium and plastic, but also an amazing feat of modern medicine no doubt. Maybe I'll just change apartments in the meantime lol.
Leaving one’s nest is difficult, particularly when it provides for all the needs. Perhaps one can leave just for the peak heat season, opposite of people leaving cold areas in winters. You go somewhere nice and cold for the summer. Or perhaps in the spirit of HN one can explore unconventional ways to cool down.
Surgery is tricky. I had one recently and asked the nurses to drug the shit out of me. When i saw pipes one with blood coming out of my belly and one stuck in my willy i felt i was going to pass out. I even considered asking to be put down humanely. When they pulled it out i asked for permission to curse and boy i did. A person in a bed next to mine said they had a boner when they removed theirs. To each his own i suppose.
But i did have my surgery, it’s all sorted and a thing of the past, i am recovering, all is good. It’s a thing that a decade or two form now will be just another “ah yeah i did that”. Water under the bridge. My mind is somehow erasing the memory because it now feels as if it happened in another life. Of course each experience is unique but overall i’m laughing at myself at how scared i was, and i am a full grown adult. I say that now but i’d terrified of doing it again. There were bits that did hurt but 90% was all in my head - mostly what ifs, and they suck more than pain. As everyone else i too have fears but some things just need to be done - assuming the risks are low, and other t&cs. Just like data, you “click” your head, switch in low power mode, and walk through hell. There’s light at the end.
Yep, I would occasionally spend a week in Colorado in August which is a nice respite, so it's a good suggestion and reminder.
And you're right about the surgery, though sadly it's not necessarily a one-time thing, but a part that could require future surgeries to maintain (though the hope is that current materials will mean it will last decades). Nevertheless I try and tell myself what you said, that it's a few weeks or months of life to recover and then on with it. The what ifs are indeed the worst, but both people I've talked to online and in my life have gone through with it much success. A therapist would say to focus on the good outcomes rather than the negative, and the statistics really do bare that out too.
