The Misadventures of our Family Circus

[cnetbuild]

In our exploration if living at Disney, our attention turns to water. Florida is surrounded by water, has lakes everywhere, and it rains 100 days per year. Nevertheless, the cost of municipal water is 3-4 times our cost in upstate New York. I guess it is very expensive to keep the gators out of the reservoir.

With water being so expensive, how can people afford to water their lawns? Every house is on a sprinkler system. It turns out that every house has a tank buried underground that captures the rain water. When it is time to water the lawn, they pump the water out if the tank.

Sometimes the underground water source can have a strong surfer smell. As a result, many of the Home Owner Associations (HOA) require home owners to water their lawns at night with the hope the sulfur smell will be done by day.

And now you know about the challenges of water when living at Disney!

 

[cnetbuild]

Guest Assistance Card
When I heard about the changes to the Guest Assistance card (Disability Access Service Card), I was concerned that we might not have a good Disney vacation this year. Now that we used it for a month, I will give you my review.

First, let me explain that I appreciate that everyone is different and my experience might not be yours.

My son has autism, Tourette's, and ADHD. A few short lines aren't a problem. But if we stood in a long line it would be a bad experience for us and everyone around us. In addition, his frustration levels build throughout the day. He might be doing fine at the start of the day but the more lines he waits in, the worse he gets.

In the past, the guest assistance card would work like a never ending fast pass allowing us to immediately get on any ride we wanted. That was a great gift Disney provided so we tried not to abuse it, but I always felt guilty when we used it.

Now, you get a card, similar to a miniature golf score card, with your picture on it. When you find a ride you need, you walk up to the fast pass line, hand the attendant your card, and she writes down a return time onto your card. The return time is equal to the time you would have spent in line anyways. You can come back to the ride anytime after the time written on the card, but, you can only have one ride on your card at a time. For emphasis: you can return anytime after the time written on the card. So, come back right on time or four hours later - it doesn't matter.

Compared to before, this sounds terrible doesn't it? Well... Not really. Because we use the guest assistance card with our Fast Pass Plus system. We get a time on the card, then do a Fast Pass Plus ride. After the ride, it is time to use the guest assistance card. You can alternate the two passes all day long to get on any ride with no real waiting.

Yes, it is a hassle. You have to walk all the way to the ride to get a time, leave, and then return. But considering the fact Disney doesn't have to provide this at all? And we all want to be fair with everyone? It isn't so bad.

In the 32 days at Disney we used the card seven times. Mostly Toy Story Mania. But also Seven Dwarfs, Jungle Cruise, Spaceship Earth, and Safari. And every time it was an easy and good experience. But I want to emphasize that if you take advantage of the new Fast Pass Plus system, your reliance on the guest assistance card diminishes substantially to the point that we only really needed it for rides whose fast passes were booked.

There have been many people on the boards and elsewhere who are angry about the guest assistance card change. While I can't speak to everyone else's situation, I can tell you that for us, this change was not a big deal. It was fine. Our view of Disney has not diminished in any way. And now I feel a less guilty because this new program is more fair to everyone while allowing our son to still enjoy his favorite rides.

 

[cnetbuild]

The Cost of Disney
This summer we spent 32 days living at Disney and we are planning to return in late December. This is a good opportunity to review our goals. Specifically, financial goals. Last year we were at Disney for 22 days and this year 32 days. We didn't hit the lottery, these trips are really expensive, so we attempted things to make the 2014 trip cheaper.

First, the cost of the villa. In 2013 we paid $119 per day. This year we paid $93 per day which saved $26 per day!

Next, a huge expense is food. Our goal was to eat at home and off property as much as possible. We didn't do as well as I had hoped. In fact, many opportunities to eat at home were lost because we were challenged getting out the door in a timely fashion. However, we did cut nearly all of the Disney table service restaurants this year. We did have an improvement. Considering groceries (including soaps, cleaners, paper, and everything) and out-to-eat, in 2013 we averaged $129 per day. This year we averaged $85 per day which saved $44 per day.

$85 still blows me away and I know there are huge improvement opportunities there without taking away from our vacation.

One thing to consider is that we would buy groceries and go out to eat if at home. It isn't $85 per day while at home, nevertheless, it makes $85 per day a little more palpable.

Our journey to Florida and home was $300 cheaper because we used cheaper hotels, cut the trip by a day, and cut several of our normal stops out of the trip.

Souvenirs, gas, and our year passes worked out about the same.

I feel pretty good that we were able to significantly extend the length of the trip without increasing the cost, and if we ever try this again, there are opportunities to cut back even further.

 

[cnetbuild]

Gopher Turtles

Most Florida villas have a disappointing view from the pool deck. Either you are starring at your neighbors swimming in their pool, or, you have a wall or white vinyl fence.

But not us!

When we stayed in July, Our view was of a large open field of pine trees! We learned why while talking to a real estate agent. Apparently that land is owned by a elderly doctor who has refused to sell it to the developers. He has held onto the land all this time. And now they have discovered gopher turtles on the land. These turtles are called gophers because they dig into the ground. And gopher turtles are on the endangered species list. So now that highly valued and treasured land isn't as valued anymore. I benefit by having a nice view from the pool deck, and seeing the occasional turtle munching on weeds.

 

[cnetbuild]

Extreme Transportation Around Disney
During our summer stay, I was surprised at all the various modes of transportation I saw.

It is very common for people to rent extended vans that have four or five rows of seating. I watched one of these pull up in front of a 5 bedroom villa with the back end of the van so low it was nearly dragging on the ground. Twenty-five people exited the van and went into the villa. Twenty-five!

In a parking lot behind a Burger King, a uhaul pulled up. The back of the uhaul slid open and three families came out. Small children, teenagers, adults. I suppose a uhaul is cheaper than Enterprise car rental. Someone suggested to me that the three families might additionally be living in the uhaul, but I find that difficult to believe.

In another vacation villa neighborhood, I saw a large tour bus pull up and everyone emptied out and went into a single villa. How many people can sleep in a five bedroom villa?

When you really want to go to Disney, I guess you do what you have to do. But these were some very extreme examples that I saw!

 

[cnetbuild]

We did a lot of grocery shopping during our Disney trip and were concerned that groceries in Florida (particularly around Disney) were more expensive than what we are used to in Upstate New York. So, I did a study. I tried to align similiar products and sizes whenever possible.

I compared the grocery prices between:
- Walmart on Rt 27 (which has similiar prices compared to Walmarts in upstate New York)
- Publix on Rt 192
- Market Place on Rt 192
- Target on Rt 192
- Wegmans in Upstate New York

The results? Generally speaking, Walmart had the cheapest groceries. In a close second was Wegmans in Upstate New York. The worse place to shop was the Market Place.

Milk is generally more expensive in Florida than Update New York:
Wegmans: $2.49
Publix: $4.09
Walmart: $4.38

Loaf of Cinamon Bread shows a strong contrast in prices:
Walmart $2.98
Wegmans $3.49
Publix $3.99
Marketplace $3.99

Another example is a box of Hunts Chocolate Pudding cups:
Walmart: $2.78
Wegmans $2.79
Publix: $2.99
Marketplace $3.69

There was a $.30 price difference between what we were used to paying for Hamburger Buns and what we paid at The Marketplace:
Wegmans: $1.29
Target: $1.39
Publix: $1.39
Walmart $1.48
MarketPlace $1.59

But generally speaking, Walmart had the cheapest prices on most items. And therefore by using Walmart, groceries in the Disney area are not more expensive than what we are used to in Upstate New York. You can see the entire list here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Ce6fMxx-6w0v4WCxwBfJorRzn-lqC9Y97oVPn9A7ZWs/edit?usp=sharing

 

[cnetbuild]

In preparation for the Summer 2014 Disney trip, I dropped a ton of weight. I had put on some weight after a promotion at work and wanted it removed before the summer. A Disney trip can be physically challenging so being in good shape helps. While everyone is different and you have to find what will motivate you, I’ll nevertheless share with you my experience and perhaps you’ll find something helpful. I’m not a doctor, I am sharing my amature experience, and you should consult an expert if you have questions.

Bottom line, weight loss is the result of creating a calorie deficit. You have to burn more calories than you take in. You can take pills and powders and buy fancy exercise equipment or join expensive gyms – none of that matters. What you have to do is create the calorie deficit. You can waste a lot of money trying to find a trick and not get results.

Exercise: If you aren’t use to exercise, start by doing just what you are willing to do. Are you willing to walk to the front door and back? To the mail box and back? To the corner and back? To the store and back? Just get started and you’ll feel good and want to do more. To get energy you have to burn energy, so, the more you do – the more you will be able to do.
I was used to exercise so I usually did 60 minutes split between two different elliptical, and 10-20 minutes on a bike. Two to three times per week I additionally spent 30-60 minutes walking or jogging or adding resistance (weight) training. Bodies get used to exercise and exercise becomes less effective, so, it is important to confuse your body by changing things and doing many different things and continually turning up the resistance to keep it challenging. Basically, if you enjoy doing it, it probably isn’t effective anymore and the things you hate doing are the things you need the most.
Cardo (bikes, treadmills, running, Zumba) have better calorie burn per minute than resistant training (weights), but you only burn calories while doing the activity. Resistant training keeps the calorie burning throughout the day as your body repairs the muscles and you strain to use sore muscles. When doing Cardo long term, your body will burn fat and muscle, thus reducing muscle tone and reducing calories burnt during the day, so, the trick is to do a combination of cardo and resistance.

Diet: The most difficult. 400 calories for breakfast, 100 for a snack, 500 for lunch, and then dinner got anything that was left over. I’m a big guy, so, my goal was to hit 1500 calories after eating and excercise. If you aren't 6'4", your colorie goal is going to be lower. Just don't starve yourself - starving will shut down your motabolism.

The quality of calories matter. Fat and sugar have more calories per ounce and can be worse for your body than other choices. As a result, you want to pick healthier fats. And think of white flour (which is used everywhere) as if it were sugar too and pick something that is harder for your body to break down (like wheat).

5 or 6 small meals work better than 3 large ones. To keep your motabolism burning all day, keep it fed with smaller meals.

I calorie count, but fruits and vegetables are free. I don’t count those. So, when I need to fill up or am having a bad diet day, I turn to those. And I try to eat as much salad as I can stand. Eat lean meats: chicken, low fat hamburger, ground turkey, turkey bacon, turkey hot dogs, etc.

I have a couple of really good recipes. I find salsa that hasn’t had sugar added and dump it into a slow cooker with chicken. It is healthy, easy, and tasty. Another is chili using ground turkey – you really can’t tell it is ground turkey, and the beans help add healthy protein.

I like chocolate and it has been my weakness. I compensate with coco puffs, chocolate flavored yogurt, and when I need the real thing I turn to dark chocolate.

I give myself one cheat day per week so that if I fall off the wagon, it is OK and permitted and I can get right back on the next day. I don’t use the cheat day every week, but, it has been helpful.

Finally, many people recommend regular weigh-ins to monitor your progress. My weight fluctuates from hour-to-hour and day-to-day. Some weeks would have great progress and others terrible. I was getting very disappointed. So, I switched to doing 5 week weigh-ins and it has been much better.

I hope these suggestions help!

 

[cnetbuild]

My parents had a dream: to retire and move to Myrtle Beach. Then, competition wiped out their business and left them with nothing. They now live in an inlaw apartment attached to my house and never lived out their dream of moving to Myrtle Beach. Similarly, a friend retired and went to Melbourne Florida to search for his retirement house. While there, he dropped dead of a massive heart attack on the beach and never had a chance to live out his dream of moving to Florida.

For several years we have had opportunities to explore our dream: to move to Disney. This dream never seemed closer than the five week trip we took this summer. During this trip, we found a large five bedroom house that would have cut our mortgage payment in half, while being only fifteen minutes from Disney.

And then we came home from vacation and reality hit. All of the reasons we haven’t moved became overwhelmingly obvious almost as soon as we walked through the door after returning from Florida. It has been a challenge for me to come to grips with everything. I became depressed and haven’t wanted to plan our December trip, listen to podcasts, read Disney news, or partake in anything that once fed the dream. I have come to the realization that it is good to dream, but sometimes dreams are just that. Our opportunity to move seems further into the future than ever before, and the chance it could happen seems even less likely.

First, moving costs: boxes, trucks, and movers. Friends who moved over the summer report that a move from upstate New York to Florida was between $8000 and $12000. I estimate we would be on the $12000 end. This is money we don’t have and would need to save before we could move.

Second, replacing what you leave behind. You can’t possibly move with everything. It isn’t economical to pay freight to ship some belongings to Florida. Many of those items will have to be repurchased, which is additional money that needs to be saved.

Third, my wife has declared that she would need to take the first year off from work so she can arrange doctors and everything else necessary for a house to run. That income would have to be replaced, which is additional money that needs to be saved. But worse: during the 2014 trip, my wife sized up the work necessary to settle our lives and determined one year would not be enough. She now needs several years of no work.

Fourth, Florida homes do not have much storage. One has to be careful how things are stored (example, in attics) due to the heat. Most subdivisions do not allow sheds. So, where do you store the Christmas tree? Decorations? Old photos and knick knacks? Many people use their garages as store rooms. I intended to use the garage for my gym equipment and wood shop. Now we have a dilemma. And concluded we needed a house with at least three extra bedrooms to accommodate storage, home office, gym, woodshop, and whatever else. In addition, we need guest rooms and places for the kids to live while they finish school or if they just want to live at home. Suddenly, downsizing into a house for retirement has become a search for a gigantic mansion sized house that we’ll never be able to afford.

Fifth, our house in New York includes an attached in-law. If we moved to Florida, we would have to decide what to do with my elderly parents: take them with us? Move them in to a retirement village where they will be on their own? Move them near my sister? And, of course, besides all the challenges of moving them is the additional money for them renting somewhere else.

Sixth, we would like to wait until all our children have left high school (7 more years). During our 2014 trip, I tried to find a solution that would get us to Florida sooner, but the seven years is going to stick. The schools in Florida are terrible compared to New York, and home schooling is probably not an option for us (my wife, who would be off from work, does not want to be responsible for home schooling). In seven more years, my children (especially my oldest, who is in college now) will be settling and starting families. It would be difficult to move away at that point. In addition, in seven years the Florida real estate market is likely to rebound and drive the cost of houses beyond affordability. Finally, I presently have a job that I could use to relocate to Florida; I don’t know if I’ll have that opportunity in seven years.

Seventh, my wife has very good friends and loves her job. She doesn’t want to leave either and I feel bad suggesting she should. Which makes me wonder whether the Disney dream is our dream? Or my dream?

Seven years. I can’t stop living for seven years. I can’t put every cent into the bank. I can’t go into hibernation. Life continues. I will need to make repairs and upgrades to a house I will eventually sell. I will have to go on family vacations and other activities that will rob our savings for the move. I can not miserably hate winter for the next seven years. Most importantly, I need to come to terms with the fact that I might not live at Disney, but where I do live can be just as good.

I look seven years into the future and realize that time frame isn’t absolute. That date is based on our ability to raise a mountain of money necessary to afford the move. In seven years, my middle child will be graduating from college – what help will he need as he starts his career? My youngest will be starting college – what support will he need? My oldest will be five years out of college – will we be able to leave her? Will we be able to leave my parents behind, and will they be in health to be left? Will I have a job that allows me to relocate, or, will I be able to find other work? We need to raise a lot of money while at the same time saving for retirement and college. A lot can change in seven years and by that time, our window of opportunity to move to Florida may have closed.

Maybe seven years is too optimistic. Perhaps it’ll be eight, or ten, or fifteen? Maybe retirement in twenty years? Or maybe moving to Florida is just a dream. Likely, just as with my parents and my friend, moving to Disney will be a dream never realized.

 

[Steve690]

I enjoyed reading about your summer house stay. We had rented a home in w. Palms this past summer for a week. We also have the dream of moving from NY to Florida, looked at houses, love the Windermere area. Don't lose your dream, it is what keeps us going when it's freezing and snowing out. We also have elderly parents who need help and of course there is the money issue. I estimated $50k needed for moving and settling in costs, assuming we can build equity faster now than homes appreciate in Fl., we could downsize our home, only one kid. Of course, going to Disney 2-3 times a year doesn't allow us to sock away any extra money. Anyway, keep the faith, the dream has to be kept alive.

 

[cnetbuild]

Steve690: thank you for the words of encouragement.

During the past several months I have avoided Disney. In fact, this is the first time I have been to the Disboards in a long time.

I have had difficulty coming to terms with a dieing dream and it was been transformational. Through the transformation I have found no interest in planning for this year's Christmas trip to Disney. My wife has done all the work: arranged the condo rental, travel plans, and researching what we will be doing. When the topic comes up, I try to change it.

It would be very easy for me to dive back into a Disney obsession, but it is too painful. I have yet to find the right comfortable balance. At what level can I enjoy Disney without feeling that drive to want to move to Orlando and live a Disney life?

I occupy myself with work and house repairs as I settle into a common existence.

Why do I share this on a public forum like this? I think it is important for people to understand the reality. The Orlando area is a great vacation spot. We dream of someday living there. The great weather, entertainment, things to do, beaches, palm trees, and terrific memories. Dreams come and go and for most dreamers, never come true. So, enjoy Disney and have great vacations. And then equally enjoy the rest of your life too.

 

[cnetbuild]

Christmas 2014 Itinerary: The plans are settled! We'll have an early Christmas in New York and then drive to Florida two two days.

Then six nights in Kissimmee, just minutes from Disney. That will allow us to see the Disney World Christmas decorations.

Then we head to Ft Lauderdale for four nights to stay at a resort and visit the beach.

On New Year's Day, we go to Melbourne Beach to have dinner with friends.

Then we take a detour an go to West Monroe, Louisiana, home to Duck Dynasty. We'll spend a day touring the locations shown on the TV show.

Then we head North to go home.

 

[Steve690]

Hope you have a great trip! We fly out on Christmas Day for 7 nights at WDW, cant wait. Enjoy every minute!!

 

[foxyroxy40]

We're from michigan and we also drive we leave the 20th of this month I've enjoyed your trip report I think your long lost cousins of ours I thought we were the only ones with bad luck

 

[cnetbuild]

What do you do when you are leaving for Disney in three days? Me? I bake a variety of Christmas cookies!

 

[cnetbuild]

The Van is ready to go!

The vehicle should be serviced before every trip to Florida to make sure it is OK for the journey.

After spending $140 last week to get my car's heater fixed, it was the car's turn. Normal service, air filter, leaking power steering, replace the transaxle, and a bad tire pressure sensor causing a valve stem to leak, I left the garage $550 poorer.

At least I feel good that the van should deliver us safely to Florida and get us home.

 

[cnetbuild]

Pre-trip checklist

A successful trip to Disney requires three things: planning, planning, and planning. Here is a checklist that I used in the past. I hope it gives you some ideas:

T minus 14 weeks
Money diet. We need to save as much as we can for this trip!

T Minus 13 weeks
Buy trading pins online

T Minus 12 weeks
Disney Restaurant Reservations

T Minus 11 weeks
Plan the drive home reservations for drive home

T Minus 10 weeks
Plan any day trips outside of Disney

T Minus 9 weeks
Plan a day trip to go to a beach Research Fast Pass Plus bands

T Minus 8 weeks
Plan what groceries we will be buying Plan the morning checklist to get us up and out each day What rides do we want to ride: Magic Kingdom

T Minus 7 weeks
Get the park schedules (open, close, parades, etc) What rides do we want to ride: Epcot

T Minus 6 weeks
Plan a day-by-day, park-by-park plan for the Itinerary What rides do we want to ride: Hollywood Studios

T Minus 5 weeks
Clothes shopping Water shoes: clean up or buy new? What rides do we want to ride: Animal Kingdom

T Minus 4 weeks
Backup and empty all of the cameras Buy video games for the drive Get a TripTik from AAA Our shoes OK? Or order new?

T Minus 3 weeks
Check our Disney card reward points Print the packing list Print the itinerary Decide what DVDs we will take with us

T Minus 2 weeks
Hair cuts for everyone Refill all prescriptions Van oil change and checkup Check the weather for the trip Buy snacks for the drive down

T Minus 1 week
Pack, pack, and more packing!

 

[cnetbuild]

Renting A Condo near Disney

i can't believe that in three days I will drive a loaded van to Florida! There is so much that needs to get done. Usually just getting ready for Christmas is enough work. But now are preparing for an early Christmas next weekend and getting ready for the Disney trip at the same time!

We are renting a condo this year instead of a villa (house). The property managers (Alamo Vacation Rentals) have a funny rule: they want us to fill out a form and write our credit card number on it so that if we cause any damage, they can charge us up to $300. Usually, most people would have us pay the $300 and then they refund it if there is no damage. The problem we have with the condo's arrangement is that we don't want our credit card information sitting on some piece of paper at the property management office for an unknown length of time!

To solve that problem, we have requested that they accept a check. If not, we will get an America Express gift card with $300 on it and submit that. In the end, they will not get our credit card!

I have heard the crowds at Disney are very bad, so, I have lowered my expectations. I understand we might not get into the Magic Kingdom if the part closes due to capacity. Therefore, we will hit the Magic Kingdom every day until we can get in! For the first day, we are going to hit in the afternoon with the hope that part of the morning rush might have left allowing us to get in.

Also, setting my expectations correctly, I am not expecting to ride any rides. If we can - great! I would love to ride the Christmas version of the Jungle Cruise! However, I am setting my expectations to just be happy to be at Disney during Christmas and to enjoy the decorations.

Our last several trips to Disney have been long stays to explore what living at Disney might be like. While we are still staying outside of Disney World (staying in the West Gate area of Kissimee), this is going to be a vacation. I'm not setting up an office to do work. We aren't staying for 5 weeks. We are here for one purpose: see the Christmas Decorations at Disney World. Nevertheless, I am interested to see how our family fits into a condo versus a villa. Under a temporary move or vacation home could a villa be an option?

It snowed this week. I am looking forward to leaving the cold weather behind and getting some sunshine!

 

[cnetbuild]

My Office Window

My office doesn't have a window. So, one year I bought a 32" TV during a Black Friday sale for $90, and I hung the TV in my office so it could be an "Electronic Window".

When I rented a house near Disney in the summer time, I stuck the camera out the front window and I recorded the palm tree, blue skies, sunshine, and beautiful neighborhood filled with vacation villas.

I took the recording and placed it here:
http://www.livestream.com/palmtree

I then play this on my electronic window. So, basically, all day long while working I can look out the window and see Florida and imagine I am just miles away from Disney World instead of being buried in snow in New York.

 

[cnetbuild]

Flu to Disney

The plan was to leave for Florida at 6am, but we didn't pull out of the driveway until 8am. That doesn't really surprise me as it is normal for us to get late starts.

We decided not to take our youngest to urgent care. Instead, we would treat him with regular cold medicine. We were leaving for Florida the same time as our friend's the Faes's and didn't want to fall too far behind. My youngest was doing well under medication so we made a run for the Pennsylvania border.

We raced to catch up with the Faes family, cannon ball style. We saw their van on the horizon and started closing the distance. There was no way they were going to beat us to the Pennsylvania border! The gap quickly closed. We started passing them. And they crosses the border half a car length before we did.

We lost that race. But we were determined to lose no others. We left them in the dust as we sped southward and speeds not permitted by the law of man.

Our decision to not take my youngest to urgent care was a huge mistake. By the afternoon, he had coughed and hacked enough within the confines of our van to make us all sick! I counteracted the effects of the cold medicine by drinking energy drinks to keep me alert on the road. It was clear we had all been infected with flu symptoms.

Runny nose, coughing, headache, fever, achy - all the stuff you hear in the cold medicine commercials. And it came on fast!

Our destination for the night was Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina. There was an urgent care center in the town, but the closed at 8 pm! And we weren't going to arrive until just after 8. We needed medical attention!

"No more pit stops! You'll need to hold your bladder. We have to make it to the doctor!" And so I sped through the foothills of the Allegany and into the Blue Ridge Mountain. As the sun set and it turned dark, I kept the gas pedal to the floor. I ignored my symptoms: the drowning feeling in my chest, snot flowing down my face, drenched in a cold sweat. I kept chugging energy drinks. I had to get the family to the doctor!

We pulled into the urgent care facility with smoking tires just moments before they were going to close. We made it! And the rag tag bunch that is my dear family, entered like the walking dead and collapsed in chairs in the waiting room.

We were given a mountain of paperwork that I didn't care about. I would have signed off my left kidney and ten years of earning just for medical attention!

The verdict? Sentenced to five days in flu hell. Positive for Flu type A.

I haven't been sick during Christmas since that time I had the Chicken Pox! And worse: to be sick at Disney.

The good news - we have a prescription for Tamaflu! The bad news? There is no Tamaflu in at least a twenty mile radius of us. We will have to go on a search in the morning.

For now, the hotel room is spinning. And two minutes after my head hits the pillow, I will be unconscious until revived in the morning.

 

[cnetbuild]

Life with Flu

Fever induced dreams are really odd. I kept dreaming about glass orbs and styrofoam . Each glass orb contained a project I was working on at work. These orbs would roll around on a bed of styrofoam while I tried to keep them from falling off the edge.

I woke from this hell at 5:30 am in a pool of sweat. The 101.5 fever broke! Exhausted, I slept another four hours before being the first to drag myself out of bed. We had a rented house waiting for us in Kissimmee and needed to get there!

We check every pharmacy along i95 in North Carolina. No one had Temaflu. Our only hope was to make it to the next state and hope they had some. The first flu symptoms dissipated and were replaced by other symptoms less amendable to travel and requiring frequent emergency restroom stops. I left a note for the maid about the flu along with a large tip. And with 11 hours of travel in front of us, we dragged ourselves into the van at noon, pointed in south, and hit the gas.

Our first pull off was in North Carolina for hydration and medicine. The flu effects everyone a little differently. My youngest's symptoms included gagging. While taking medicine in the McDonalds parking lot, this gagging reflex caused my youngest to barf all over himself. Like a scene from the exorcist, he barfed down his open jacket drenching it and his shirt and flooding his pants.

My wife and I just looked at each other in disbelief. The flu was causing us to hold into reality by a very thin string, and this event seemed too bizarre to be real. But it was real!

His clothes bag was buried in the back of the van. While suffering from illness, we completely unloaded the back of the van right there in the parking lot. We retrieved his clothes. It was then my job to parade my flu puke covered kid through McDonalds to the bathroom so he could change.

I think there is a special place in heaven for parents. After that trip through McDonalds, I believe I have earned my place!

Linda called every approaching town as we drove south on I95. We traditionally stop at South Of The Border, but everyone was too ill to even care about shopping for beach themed gifts.

Linda found a CVS in Florence South Carolina who just got a shipment of Temiflu! That was our destination. We turned off the highway and drove deep into the city until we found perhaps the last remaining stockpile of Temiflu in the south. After an hour, we had the precious medicine and got back on the road.

If Ebola ever goes unchecked in the country, it will spread quickly. We stopped at Manning South Carolina Wendy's where I received a coke instead of a diet coke. I tried drinking it, but after a quarter of the cup, I couldnt. I complained, so, the lady dumped out my cup a d then used by flu infested cup to scoop ice into the cup, thus contaminating the entire tub of ice! I was dumbfounded and didnt know what to say, so, I regrettably said nothing. Even more than Wendy's, I think of the hotel we stayed at and all the restaurants and gas stations we stopped at. In just two days we could have passed the flu to a hundred people across many states!

The flu didn't only travel south with us. It infected my elderly parents at home too! That left my adult daughter (who chose not to go the Florida with us) to arrange ambulances and spend 9 hours in the emergency room with them! My wife was in constant communication trying to understand what was going on. She is a bit if a control freak and even at one point called the ER nurse to tell her how to do her job!

Elderly parents in the emergency room, car full of flu patients, and the fear of my youngest barfing again. This was not turning out to be the beautiful stress free vacation we had imagined!

We needed to check into our house but by Alabama it was clear we couldn't make it. We pulled into a hotel. Even though we were exhausted, we still had to wash puke covered clothes in the guest laundry

We are hoping for a better day tomorrow - perhaps even get into the Magic Kingdom.