Sup Dawg?

Yo!

Thank you all so much for the ninja vibes and advice with Angel, we really appreciate it. Angel is pretty much all better now. She's not putting full weight on that paw yet, but she's putting some on it. Fortunately she can walk enough so we don't have to pick her up.
It's funny, Angel absolutely hates being picked up for any reason, and Helen absolutely loves being held. Sadly, Angel tends to get a bad reputation for her whole "not being affectionate" thing, and that really irks Crippie. Angel is very loving, caring, and highly intelligent... but people can't look past the fact that she will nip at you if you try to pick her up. I dunno, maybe it's the whole "I'm crippled and thus am used to things not being perfect" thing but I'm not angry at Angel for this. Angel was abused, I don't even want to know what people have done to her. If she doesn't want people touching her and or getting too close to her I understand that and I respect her wishes. Crippie cannot stand when people call her a "bad dog" or heaven forbid suggest putting her down (seriously people, WTF). Does she have some issues, sure... but overall she is a very good girl. To me that's like saying "Oh, you're a cripple... you're a horrible person". Angel is like any other member of our family... either physically or mentally disabled!
Well, I guess this post turned out to be a CrippleRant/vent. So in conclusion Angel is a very good and misunderstood puppy. And now... PICTURES!

I enjoy watching day time TV

I'm resting my paw... and my entire body

How could anyone hate this face? 

Crippie's Tippie - If you're getting a pet, get them from a rescue. These guys deserve a good home.

Awe, Temporarily Crippled Puppy

Ohai Everyone!

Crippie hopes all of her readers are having a lovely week this far. The weather is still kinda kicking my ass, but at least my allergy meds are keeping the whole "not being to breathe" thing at bay. Apart from the weather there isn't much new and or excited to report about... oh wait, Crippie forgot to mention that her dog is now the biggest cripple in the house.
On Sunday night our not blind dog Angel was perfectly fine. When we awoke Monday morning Angel was not using one of her front paws! She was hobbling around the house and wouldn't let us touch her paw, so clearly something was wrong. We took her to the vet and the vet figured that the probably sprained or twisted her lil' footie sometime during the night. She was given pain medicine and she'll be fine with a few days rest. Lucky for us Angel enjoys resting so that won't be a problem. Unlucky for us, Angel can't go up and down stairs for now so someone has to carry her. No big deal right? Lol, wrong. Angel was more than likely abused by prior owners and does not like being picked up... at all... ever... under any circumstances. To solve this fun little problem, my sister has to wear really thick gloves and a really thick jacket in order to pick Angel up (once she has her Angel tends to settle down, it's the whole picking up process that is tricky). Any tips for picking the dog up readers?
Since Angel's pain meds are keeping her comfortable and she'll be all better in a few days, I have absolutely no guilt in saying what I'm about to say. Crippie is getting a kick out of having a dog that limps around like she does. Her tails wags when I say "WHO'S MY LITTLE CRIPPLE... YOU ARE!!!" I also find it amusing how she has mastered the "My paw hurt... I deserve treats" look. She will limp towards you and stare at you while dangling her paw. Angel's alway's been smart that way, I guess she takes after her auntie ;)

My life is so hard, woe is me. Bacon would make it better though, yeaaaaaah, bacon

Crippie's Tippie - Injured doggies deserve more treats ;)

Angel's Tippie - Why just injured dogs? I deserve more treats anyway!

Holy Pressure Changes Batman!

Ohai!

Holy crap I'm getting lazy with regular posting, sorry 'bout that. Mother nature has been kicking Crippie's ass for the past few days. There have been some crazy pressure changes around here, so Crippie has been feeling kinda bleh overall. Lots of pain meds, NPH, and extra naps.
On top of the pressure changes it appears Crippie is also developing allergies. Apparently Crippie's lungs are special, if I smell something really strong like cigarette smoke or lots of perfume I choke and start having a coughing fit. BTW, if you're smoking by me and I start obnoxiously coughing I'm not trying to be a dick... I honestly can't breathe. For the past couple of days I've been getting seemingly random periods of feeling tightness in my airway... super fun. Oh well, at least allergy medicine helps.
So what does Crippie do on days when she can't function? Well, recently all of Crippie's co-workers convinced her that she needed to start watching "The Walking Dead", so I've been doing that. I got through the entire first season in three days! One perk of being a cripple, I'm pretty much used to blood and gore so I'm not phased by seeing all these zombies getting their faces smashed in. I've also gotten pretty familiar with how the human body works, so I've been analyzing how all the zombies move and determining their mental capacities! Yes, this how Crippie spends her downtime, determining the mental capacities of zombies.

And here's another photo dump to make up for not posting in several days!

Me and Helen playing around 

Me holding Helen like a baby (kinda shocked that this picture turned out as well as it did)

Frida and Nellie sleeping in their cuddle cups  

Crippie saw a rainbow at work a couple of days ago and was able to snap a pic!

Now Crippie's Sew Able Doll has a piggie too! I received a lovely guinea pig shaped soap from http://cavysavvy.blogspot.com/. It reminds me of Emma <3

Crippie's Tippie - Before getting addicted to a TV show, be sure to find ways of watching all the seasons.

Heat Pack Challenge - Day 15

Hello!

First off, thank you all for the kind words about my product review, I really hope y'all enjoyed it. Crippie certainly had a lot of fun making it, although I realized that you could probably have a drinking game for every time I said "FREAKIN' AWESOME" but hey... all the more reason to watch the video, right ;)

Moving on, it's been a little over a week since I mentioned my FREAKIN AWESOME (yeah, I'm owning up to it) heat pack. I decided to name my heat pack Neil Patrick Harris, cause let's face it... NPH IS FREAKIN AWESOME. I've been using NPH every night for at least two hours and my pain levels have significantly decreased. The combination of heat and pain meds has put Crippie in a pretty happy place as far as pain management goes, and that's (say it with me now) FREAKIN AWESOME! Again, Crippie is well aware that using a heat pack for the duration of time is not recommended, but Crippie don't give a damn!

Since it's a short post today, here's some pictures of the animals!

Mama Pig being cute

Way to ruin the picture mom - Aggi

Helen sleeping on my bed

Angel says "What? Your bed is comfy... sue me" (and thats my old heat pack next to her)

Crippie's Tippie - Heat packs are awesome, but they are not magic cure alls. If something is really bothering you consult a doctor.

Special "Special Needs" Dolls

Yo!

I hope all of my readers are having a lovely Sunday. Crippie's Sunday went very well... mainly because I got to review a crippled doll!


Sew Able Doll Review from Special McSpecial on Vimeo.

Crippie still in awe that there are companies out there that actually include disabled children. Granted, most of these are small "Mom & Pop" companies but I can live with that.

HERE is a link to Sew Dolling's website :D

Crippie's Tippie - Support this company! They are absolutely brilliant!

LOL... You Can't Do That!

Top of the Mornin' To Ya!

HAPPY SAINT PATRICK'S DAY EVERYONE! Crippie was talking in her impressive Irish accent all day, even though Crippie is exactly 0% Irish. I hope all of my readers had a safe and happy holiday. Crippie has actually had a very good couple of days... kinda shocking actually. Why? Because holidays like St. Pattie's day focus on parties and drinking. Days like this remind Crippie she can't do those things. For those just joining us, Crippie's medications and alcohol do not mix. Crippie also has some... "social anxiety" issues I guess, so parties are not fun at all.
Normally I don't think about my total inability to do certain activities until that activity is shoved in my face. So what does Crippie do when faced with these super depressing scenarios? First, even when being reminded of my inabilities I don't dwell on them. Maybe I'm just really used to not doing things, but I usually just go "Oh well... that sucks" and continue on with my business. Second, I look on the bright side of it. Tomorrow I can guarantee that I will see at least one facebook status along the lines of "omg I was so wasted last night I literally puked emerald green" when I see this status I will laugh and say something like "LOL SUCKS FOR YOU BITCH!" Sometimes you gotta realize that there are positive aspects of not being able to do something, it might not seem good at that moment but the good exists. Last but not least I remember that I can do things that others can't. I know I've had opportunities and experiences that others would have loved to have, so it makes sense that I feel both ends of the spectrum.
Wanna hear a perfect example of this? Crippie went to see a local production of "Cats" today with her family and a family friend. Crippie's family is full of "theatre nerds". We all love the theatre, and several of my relatives act, sing, dance, all that jazz (snaps to anyone who got that joke). Apart from the fact that my crippledness keeps me from dancing Crippie is a terrrrrriiiiiiibbbbbbbbbblllllllllleeeeeeeeeee singer. To put it in perspective I make Rebecca Black sound friggin awesome. Let's just say that these factors have kept Crippie off the stage. Seeing this show could've made Crippie all sad and full of self pity, but then I stepped back and looked at the bigger picture. I said "Ya know what, you may never be able to be in a show like Cats, but seeing as how this show has no damn plot and how awful the songs are... that's probably a good thing." Ultimately Crippie had a awesome time with her family and friends watching a really good production of a really horrible show. Sounds so much better than getting wasted at a pub!
And sorry if Crippie offended any of her readers by saying Cats was a horrible show, but it really is! Seriously, if any of my readers actually like that show and understand it's plot, please post it in the comment section. I really have no idea what that show was about...

In other news Crippie is super excited for tomorrow. I'm not gonna tell you why though, I guess you're just gonna have to tune in tomorrow ;) Also, speaking of partying... Nellie partied a little too hard today, I guess she really got into the holiday spirit

Crippie's Tippie - I probably say this a lot, but oh well. FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE. You will seem like a Debbie Downer if constantly focus on the bad in your life and refuse to see the good.

Why Yes I Can See You!

Yo! 

I hope all my readers had a lovely day, Crippie's day went relatively well. Right now I'm trying to get tired by doing things on the internet while listening to the soundtrack of "Silence! The Musical". I must say... for a musical comedy based of Silence of the Lambs, the sound is pretty freakin' awesome. 

Anyway, for tonight's blog post Crippie figured she'd do something that she hasn't done in a good long while... answer a crippie question! People have asked Crippie if it feels weird when people stare at me. The answer... yup, very much so. Crippie absolutely hates it when anyone over age 10 stares at her. Why? Small kids stare at you with honest curiosity. They really don't know what's going on nor do they know better. People who are old enough to know better don't stare with an honest curiosity. The vibe I get from them is "ew... she's walking with crutch...". They then proceed to stare at you in some attempt to figure out why I'm crippled. I really hate how people think that I can see them... guess what... I CAN SEE YOU! Even if you're not in my direct line of vision I can tell that you are staring at me! As annoying as this is... I do my best to brush it off and continue on with my day.

Now, what should a normal do instead of awkwardly staring at a cripple? If you reallllyyyyyyyy have to know why I'm crippled don't stare at me when you think I can't see you. Please just say something like "Excuse me, I couldn't help but notice your cane, may I ask why you have to use it?" If the normal is polite about it I'd have no problem answering the question. 

So there ya have it folks, a crippie question! If anyone has any other cripple questions for me feel free to post a comment or to email me. I'll answer damn near anything.

Crippie's Tippie - STOP STARING AT CRIPPLES... WE CAN TELL YOU ARE DOING IT

Cripple Comics!

Greetings!

Oh my word, Crippie is loooovvvvviiiiinnnngggggg this weather. Mid 60's for the win! I hope all my super awesome readers had a lovely day. Crippie had a relatively busy day. I drove with my mom to get gas in my car, since I'm still not totally comfortable with driving to the gas station yet, my mom has been driving and I've been watching her and attempting to memorize the directions and what to do. It's weird, I am well aware of where the gas station is, I've been their countless times throughout my life... yet I do not know how to get there and I would probably have an anxiety attack if I attempted to go alone. Apart from that moment of funness Crippie spent the remainder of the day at work. I also took a little nap after work, around 9pm... so chances are this is gonna be a late night for Crippie. Oh well. 

Moving on the title topic, today one of Crippie's fellow cripple buddies sent her a link to a site called "That Deaf Guy" which has oodles of awesome comics drawn by a deaf guy and his wife. The comics are s'darn adorable that I couldn't help but share some of my favorites with y'all.

 

 

While Crippie is on the topic of cripple comics, I have to recognize one favorite crippled cartoonists, the late John Callahan. John Callahan was a quadriplegic and had a gloriously twisted sense of humor. He created one of my favorite shows of all time "Pelswick" as well as another show "Quads". His cartoons might be considered offensive to some... but Crippie freakin' loves them.

Crippie's Tippie - Humor is one of the greatest coping mechanisms of ALL TIME

Random Cripple Goodness

Happy Monday Everyone!

Crippie hopes all of her readers had a decent Monday, this oddly lovely NY weather certainly helped make my Monday rather pleasant. I was pretty busy today and I can't exactly think of a cohesive blog topic, so here is some random bits and bobbles of cripple stuff.

DANCING CRIPPLE... so amazing. I wish I had rhythm.

HERE is an awesome article about being a parent to a special needs child. Even though I'm not a parent I totally relate to it and agree with everything the author says. 

Temporarily Crippled Sloth... AAAAWWWWWWEEEEE

http://www.r-word.org/ - Here's a fabulous campaign to end derogatory uses of the r-word. Take the pledge people!

And the piggies wanted to share with you their new favorite blog, http://cavysavvy.blogspot.com/.

I actually just won some guinea pig shaped soap from there :D

Yup, so there ya have it peoples, some awesome cripple links! 

Quick Heat Pack Update - I've been regularly using the heat pack and the pain in my hip has definitely decreased. It still hurts from time to time, but it's a 2 instead of 5. FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!!

Crippie's Tippie - YouTube is dangerous place. I was writing this post, went to find the URL for the sloth video... and spent the next 20 minutes looking at videos of baby sloths and monkeys.

It's A Sunshine Day!

Hi Y'all

I don't know about you guys, but the weather today was AWESOME by Crippie. Mother Nature might be a bitch most of the time but this 70 degree day was totally awesome. Crippie actually got a lot accomplished today!
Since the weather was so awesome we decided to the dogs to the park! We didn't realize how windy it was so it was short lived trip to the park. The dogs had a blast in their quick 10 outing, I reckon that's all that matters.
After that Crippie drove to the pet store. Seemingly not a big deal, but I haven't driven there in years. It was almost like driving to a new place, and I didn't have a panic attack... YAY ME! Mini cripple rant... while at the pet store I could help but look at the guinea pigs... PET STORE OWNERS... TAKE CARE OF YOUR PETS. The piggies had no hay, crap bedding, were not properly taken care of, and most importantly SICK. I feel so horrible for those poor babies. I wish there was something I could do for them. If any of my readers are looking to obtain guinea pigs be very wary of pet stores, try your best to rescue a pig.
Once we finished our errands Crippie had her appointment with the pain management doctor. Since the heat pack has helped my pain levels for the time being we started forming a plan for what to do when I eventually get worse. She doesn't want me to immediately jump into an anti-depressant as a treatment, but there are some transitional medications that she would put me on. Crippie's doctor also suggested injections for pain relief. The thought of needles does not appeal to Crippie AT ALL. Have any of my readers tried shots for pain? Did they work? Were they really painful?
Annnnnnndddd after that we took a drive to the location of a potential freelance client. It was a completely foreign area to me and I was not comfortable driving there. So, Crippie and her mom are going to make some practice runs over the weekend until I am okay driving there.
Whew, what a busy day. Once I got home I fell asleep for a few hours. Crippie also rested with her piggies.

Frida Being Snuggly, she was making up for peeing on me earlier -_-

Mama Pig's Tushie!

Crippie's Tippie - When dealing with a lifelong condition, having a plan for when things get worse will make your life slightly easier and less stressful when that time comes

Frida's Tippie - Depending on where you live there are lots guinea pigs in shelters that need good homes.


P.S. Ever since a tumor split one of my finger nails I've been wearing nail polish to cover it. I recently found a "nail polish of the month club" if you will. If you want to check it out, it's HERE. If you join, use the code COLOR2012 and get your first month's order for a penny! You can always cancel after your first free month ;)

Heat Pack Challenge - Day 2

Howdy Y'all!

Crippie has an announcement to make... I am in love with my heat pack. Crippie used the heat pack again last night and yet again my hip didn't hurt! I was skeptical last too... cause the weather is going through some super fun changes which generally mean a lot of pain. I still can't believe that the heat is stopping my pain. It's weird, now that I'm not in as much pain I can really see how much pain I was actually in. I'm so used to being in pain, it's feels really strange to be without... awesome... but strange nonetheless.
To be fair, it's not like Crippie is just putting a heat pack on for 20 minutes and the pain magically vanishes. Crippie is putting heat on her hip for a solid 5+ hours. Now some people might say "Whoaaaa... isn't that dangerous?" If I was placing this on bare skin it could potentially be dangerous. Crippie is not placing the heat pack directly on her skin. Crippie is well aware that this is not necessarily the safest practice in the world, but honestly I don't care. My hip doesn't hurt. The end justifies the means.
Now all I really need to do is name my heat pack. Since it's hot I reckon it should be named after some totally awesome actor. What do you guys think I should name my heat pack?

Crippie's Tippie - Heat is awesome, but be cautious when using it in excessive amounts like me

Everything Went Better Than Expected

Ohai!

It looks like Crippie's great quest for a heat pack ended rather quickly. Crippie went to Kmart and obtained a Sunbeam Extra Large Electric Moist Heat Pack. I'll admit, I had really low expectations when it came to this heat pack... some relief and maybe it won't catch on fire. I figured I'd test out the new heat pack when my hip pain is at it's worst... at night.
First off... no heat pack product suggests that you use it while sleeping. There is a chance you can burn yourself. Crippie is rebel and completely disregards those warnings! My reflexes are quick enough to remove it if something starts to hurt. Also, this heat pack has a two-hour timer so I don't really have to worry about fires, which is nice.
I used the max heat setting, which was hot but not "OMG I JUST BURNED MY FREAKING LEG" hot, just the right amount of moist heat IMO. I was able to wrap the heat pack around the heat pack around my hip and leg area, which was rather nice because I wasn't overheating in a giant heated blanket. After about 30 of heat I started to notice that my hip wasn't hurting. I didn't have a feeling that a lead balloon was expanding in my hip. Shocked by this discovery I figured I'd just try lying down in some random position with the heat still secured to my hip. Generally speaking I can lay still for maybe 5 minutes before it gets too uncomfortable and then I switch positions. I got into my random position, watched some TV and before I knew it 30 minutes had passed! I couldn't believe it, I was able to lay down in one position for a relatively lengthy period of time. I can count the number of times I've been able to do that with one hand, and all the instances involved some really strong pain meds. After that I figured I should actually try to go to sleep, so I got into a comfy position with my heat pack and stayed in that position until I fell asleep!
I still can't believe it, I had a night where my hip didn't hurt me! I was actually able to fall asleep like a normal person! When I woke up in the morning my hip felt pretty good. I didn't notice quite as many popping noises from my hip today. I'm using the heat pack right now and my hip isn't hurting!
Crippie is really freaking happy. My hip has been the bane of my existence for 5+ years. I've had to cope with the pain every night for years, all of the sudden a simple heat pack is making it go away. To go from being in constant pain to near nothing... that feeling is indescribable. The only downside now that I think about is "CRAP... I'VE BEEN NEEDLESSLY SUFFERING FOR OVER 5 YEARS... FFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUU".
I really hope I'm not jinxing myself again by posting this, but even if I did, at least I had one night of no pain. I'll definitely keep y'all updated on the miraculous heat pack cure.

BTW - If anyone is wondering specifically what kind of pain the miraculous heat pack is curing, it is helping relieve inflammation from arthritis.

Crippie's Tippie- HEAT PACKS ARE FREAKING AWESOME... OOOOMMMMGGGG

Heat Heat Baby

Yo!

Yes, I just spoofed "Ice Ice Baby" in a title and yes, I am really proud of it. Before I begin with the actual topic I just noticed that this blog has reached over 10,000 views! I really want to thank all you guys from the bottom of my heart, your support means the world to me. The piggies think that most of the views are for them, fame really got to their heads *sighs*.

We're ignoring you mommy! 

Moving on to the topic at hand, I don't know about y'all but the weather near Crippie has been crazy irregular. One day it's snowing and the next day it's 60 degrees. These rapid weather changes are not fun for Crippie. When the weather turns this craptacular it seems that only moist heat can alleviate my weather pain. The trouble is that our microwavable moist packs keep vanishing, and we can't find any good ones at the store. All the moist heat packs we've bought recently have broken in one way or another. Can any of my readers recommend a good moist heat pack?

Crippie's Tippie - If you don't need moist heat you can make a heat pack with a tube sock filled with dried rice or beans :)

Piggie Post- BATH TIME

Ello!

Apparently Crippie is really good at jinxing things, I talk about not getting sick then I get sick... I talk about my doctor's appointment and it gets pushed back a week... oh well. I will say this opening in my schedule is for the best. It gave me time to watch "Harold and Kumar" movies with the family and of course... BATHE A GUINEA PIG. I was going to bathe several pigs today, but most of them were in hay induced food comas so I opted to only bathe the dirtiest pig, Mama Pig.

Generally speaking I clean the piggies with wet wipes, but every so often they get dirty enough to warrant an actual bath. So without further adieu I give you... PICS AND TIPPIES

Tip #1 - Just because Guinea Pigs can technically swim that does not mean that they should! If water gets into their ears they can get a very serious ear infection. I bathe my piggies in some form of tupperware with about 1.5 inches of lukewarm water. 

Tip #2 - Use a shampoo made for Guinea Pigs. Human and baby shampoos are not good for their skin and hair. I use "Gorgeous Guineas Manuka & Neem Shampoo". "Gorgeous Guineas" IMO has the best piggie grooming products. I use their foot creams for when their little feetsies get dry or red, and I use their melts once or twice a year to soften their skin and hair.

Tip #3 - Try to make bath time a happy time. Mama Pig is a diva and realllllyyyyy enjoys her "spa time". Alas, not all of my pigs are this calm. Maggie, Aggie, Nellie, and Frida all try to jump out of the tub and claw up my shirt. For those pigs I try to bathe them as fast as humanly possible. I also find bribing them with food works sometimes.

LOVE ME!

Once I'm finished lathering up shampoo I use a cup of warm water to rinse her off.

Tip #4 - Dry your piggie quickly. DO NO LET THE PIG GET COLD. The piggie can get very sick if they are cold for a prolonged period of time. Once Mama was removed from the bath I gave her a quick towel dry. I try to get her as dry as humanly possible in this stage because next comes the blow dryer!

Tip #5 - When blow drying a pig use a medium to cool setting, keep the dryer constantly moving, and keep a safe distance from the skin. Most of my pigs are freaked out by the blow dryer. I try to bathe those pigs only in warmer weather, so I can get away with just towel drying them for an hour. Also be careful of the direction the dryer is positioned, if there are any poopies on your towel they might go flying (which happened today, several times)

So there ya have it folks! The whole process took about 40 minutes, most of that was in blow drying stage. Mama Pig is very clean and very happy.

Crippie's Tippie - Guinea pigs are not simple animals to raise, you cannot just leave them in a cage in your kid's room. They require lots of care.