Mar 8 - this and that

Sandy was in and out with appointments and shopping.  I was mostly in. 

It's still cool, but not cold.  Away from the water it's warm but we're not away from the water !  Sandy reports that there are 200+ manatees at the Springs, there to keep warm.  Me, I just turn on the furnace :).

I exercised the shoulder on and off all day.  Once I get going, I can lift small weights in most directions, some more painful than others.  To start, however, some movements are almost impossible.

Picture this -- lie on your back with your arms at your sides.  Lift your right arm up parallel to your body.  Easy, right ?  Nope, can't do it.  Lift it up with the assistance of the left arm and then move it up and down without assistance... yes, that works. 

Try another.  Stand straight and lift right arm parallel to body in front of you.  You'd think that the motion is the same but somehow the shoulder is in a slightly different position due to the weight of the arm, I guess -- that works, in fact I can lift weights out in front of me.  I can still feel the pinch but I can do it.

Last week I felt like I'd made a lot of progress.  I am stuck at this plateau now.  Richard will do a full evaluation on Monday to continue the prescription.  We are here for two more months and then go north.  I want this either done or at an "it won't get any better" point, preferably the former.

The shoulder isn't the only thing that's out of line.  I decided to take a look at the right rear camber, pulling the wheel.  Well, the camber bolt had somehow loosened since it was last adjusted in the Spring, going from the maximum positive position (though still not enough) to the maximum negative.  No wonder that wheel looks so askew !  I decided to head over to Tire Kingdom and pay whatever they charge to check the alignment and at least get that wheel closer to spec.

Sure enough, it had slipped from -4+ degrees to -6+ degrees.  The fellow fixed that and made some minor adjustments to the front wheel alignment.  I talked to them about rotating the rear tires, i.e. remounting the tires facing the other way and they said that they were not allowed to do it because the cords in the tires actually move with use and turning them around can cause the tires to then come apart. 

So ... my option with the tires is to either swap with the front to extend the wear or to replace the rears.  I'm inclined to do the latter. 

I'm still studying that rear camber though.  If the upper rear control arm were just a little bit longer, like 1/4 - 1/2 inch or, alternatively, the bolt-hole drilled out slightly, the upper front control arm, which is what also adjusts the toe-in, could be moved out to match and get the camber closer to the -2 spec.

Maybe I'll take up welding.

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We had chicken breasts on the grill for dinner along with oven-roasted potatoes and out good-old-standby, peas.

Jerry is probably on the road now or soon.  He'll keep us posted on his travels.

I'll go biking today, hopefully, which means that I'll be biking today through Wednesday.

It's time to feed Abby ... and me ...

Onward !