Deaf folks and guns.

[Tinman507]

Sorry you're going through this Boss. Praying the infection clears and you're well again.

The real bummer of it is you won't hear the rumble of Jocko's Harley when he pulls up in front of your place.

[Barth]

Sorry you're going through this Boss. Praying the infection clears and you're well again.

The real bummer of it is you won't hear the rumble of Jocko's Harley when he pulls up in front of your place.

I think that's something you feel more than hear.

[Bawanna]

I've worn a hearing aid for many years. My right ear is has been gone for a long time so only the left ear. I've went thru the various sizes and now supposedly have the most powerful aid there is. Without it I was totally deaf. They do make a huge difference, especially at first.

I missed a lot, never knew the buttons on the micro wave beep when you push them. They are great for mechanical sounds that drive the normal person nuts, the voice is so complex it's much harder to amplify and maintain clarity.

I've though about cochlear implants but have been stalling. Get mixed reviews. Some say they have restored hearing to people deaf all their life, others like Johnh earlier in this thread say they provide a little sound help but really don't make a meaningful difference.

If what little hearing I had doesn't return, I'll have nothing to lose by trying them. Any help at all would be beneficial. Even if its just so the wife can yell and get my attention so she can make nagging hand gestures across the room or from the passenger seat as she tells me where to go.

It was a real experience yesterday visiting the doc and then picking up my prescription. My wife usually goes along as my hearing ear dog, I rarely go to a store, rarely when we go out to eat, she pays etc. She had a different doc appointment at the same time to look at her hand. Found out she has trigger finger! Never heard of that one. Kind of a cyst in the middle of her hand that makes her Hawaiin Good Luck finger numb.
Trying to get the required information across even though both the doc and the pharmacist know us was a challenge.
Realized I'd never used a debit card or credit card in these new fangled deals on the counter, I always just handed them the card, they don't do that anymore. Fortunately my share of the prescription was less than the 4 dollars I had on me so I didn't have to get a lesson on how to do the card.

Sometimes I feel so dumb ya know. Maybe that's where the phrase deaf and dumb come from? Sure is quiet here at work though. Real quiet.

[Bawanna]

Sorry you're going through this Boss. Praying the infection clears and you're well again.

The real bummer of it is you won't hear the rumble of Jocko's Harley when he pulls up in front of your place.

Somehow I think my spidy senses would alert me to Jocko's presence if he got within the 200 mile limit.
It would be nice of him to visit though. How many can actually say they've met the man, they myth and the legend.

[JohnR]

Sorry to hear about your condition, Bawanna. I'm sure your mind will compensate for the hearing loss if it's long term. The other senses will compensate somewhat. It will work out, don't hang up your guns!

[Starbug]

CAN YOU HEAR ME, NOW? Lol...

In all seriousness, I wouldn't get rid of your guns. Heck, now you don't have to shell out for ear plugs or listen to people snoring! This could be a blessing in disguise, lol. By the sound of it, you are adapting well to the various disabilities that are creeping up on you (the mirrors are a great idea). It is weird not being able to hear, I know. Back in my early 20's I came down with something that I no longer remember what it was, probably a bad cold that lead into a bad ear infection as a result of a sinus infection, more than likely. At any rate, I completely lost all hearing in both ears. It was annoying, frustrating, and really strange. My normal hearing is so sharp that I can hear dog whistles/deterrents, bats, and police radar before they switched to lasers. So it was really strange to suddenly hear nothing at all. Took a month before I could hear like I was underwater, and another month before I finally regained full normal hearing. Fortunately, since I know complete deafness runs in my family after 65 or so, I practice reading lips. One day I plan to take sign language classes and drag my hubby with me to learn too so that he doesn't have to yell to be heard during the years where I can barely hear.

So moral of that story is don't give up, adapt, keep a sense of humor (important!), and do what you can now to ease the transition should this turn out to be permanent. My fingers are crossed that this is only temporary. I'd also be tempted to kick the doctor in the shins for not giving you meds early enough to prevent this situation.

Hey, maybe wear a shirt that says "I'm deaf, easily spooked, and armed. Don't mess with me." Lol. Longitude Zero's idea of the business card is an excellent one. You can hand that to any cop that pulls you over, and any other situation where it would really be a good idea to let them know you can't hear them. Also, when dealing with cashiers at the store, do like my deaf customers do and with one hand make a hand gesture like you are holding an invisible pen, while the other hand is held like it is the invisible paper, and make a writing motion. That clues my co-workers and I in that you need pen and paper because you're deaf and this is going to be a written conversation. It's worked everywhere I've been. Or perhaps keep a small pocket notebook and pen with you, instead.

[Bawanna]

I like the shirt idea. I really am easily spooked even when I could hear a little.

All good ideas.

[Starbug]

Advantages to being deaf:
Fortunately, DVD movies come with closed captioning encoded into them so that you can still enjoy movies if you turn that feature on... which means you never miss part of the movie because somebody was talking. Also on the plus side, you can't hear the neighbor's party at 3am on a weeknight. Or the yappy dog next door that barks 24/7 and is never quiet. Or the rap music spewing from the car next to you (although you will probably feel the bass). You can't hear nagging, either!

Gotta look on the bright side. Every cloud has a silver lining, as the saying goes. Glass half full? All that stuff. I'll be in your shoes eventually, it's my genetic future with no way out of it. So I try to see the potential benefits so I won't be as bummed out when it finally happens to me. My mom is pushing 60 and already needs to be yelled at in order to hear anything.

[Starbug]

...if I ever find a shirt that says "deaf, easily spooked, and armed" I will send it to you. It will be funny and useful at the same time. Lol

[Bawanna]

Close Captioning has been my friend for many years. Have to make sure though. Still a lot of DVD's that aren't.

I also enjoy movies I've watched 20 times before when I could hear. I know the lines as well as the actors so I don't need to hear em.

Some around here actually believe Clint Eastwood contacts me for his lines. Gran Torino was one. Many said I could have been his stand in and wouldn't even need the script since they figure I wrote it.

I think they are misprofiling me.

[Nimrod]

Bawanna, I am truly sorry to hear about your hearing loss. This does not however take away your right and responsibility to protect yourself and those you love. From your posts, it sounds like you have had to deal with handicaps for quite some time, including poor hearing. Total deafness, and I hope this is not permanant, is just one more thing you must deal with. Again, from your posts, I think your have always handled handicaps magnificently. I think you will do the same with this.

I have been wearing hearing aids for 25 years. They are state-of-the-art but my hearing is only marginal with them. When I take them out at night, I am almost totally deaf. I still have a gun within an arms length. If I live long enough, I will probably be totally deaf. I have no intention of stopping conceal carry.

As long as your brain functins to give you reasonable and rational thought, and you can still reasonably control and fire a gun, continue to carry.

[Starbug]

Close Captioning has been my friend for many years. Have to make sure though. Still a lot of DVD's that aren't.

I also enjoy movies I've watched 20 times before when I could hear. I know the lines as well as the actors so I don't need to hear em.

Some around here actually believe Clint Eastwood contacts me for his lines. Gran Torino was one. Many said I could have been his stand in and wouldn't even need the script since they figure I wrote it.

I think they are misprofiling me.

I'd just say "yes, he does" and let them believe you. You might get lucky every night if they all think you know him. Think about the advantages!

They don't close caption every DVD? Oh wow, I though they did. What about your tv? Don't they all have to do it?

[Bawanna]

The TV is mostly close captioned except for some of the older movies etc. Some shows are far better than others for timing. Survivor is probably the worst I've seen as far as captioning goes, slow and leaves you hanging if a commercial starts, course with those people you really don't need to know what they are saying anyhow, don't know where they find them.

Nimrod? Could you define reasonable and rational thought. Some would say I've had no experience with either of those in many years if ever.

Funny up until about 40 I was a near normal walking dude, hearing was already kind of weak but everything else worked. OH well we deal the cards we're dealt.

[Starbug]

The TV is mostly close captioned except for some of the older movies etc. Some shows are far better than others for timing. Survivor is probably the worst I've seen as far as captioning goes, slow and leaves you hanging if a commercial starts, course with those people you really don't need to know what they are saying anyhow, don't know where they find them.

Yeah, Survivor is best left on Mute w/out CC anyway. Same with Jersey Shore (never watched it, but saw enough commercials and heard about it in other round-a-bout ways).

Funny up until about 40 I was a near normal walking dude, hearing was already kind of weak but everything else worked. OH well we deal the cards we're dealt.

I fully expect to start noticing hearing loss by the time I hit 50, possibly sooner. I should be well on my way to deaf by the time I hit 60, and completely deaf about 65. That's just the way it is in my family. Yay genetics. As you said, we deal with the cards we're dealt. We all get there eventually, some people sooner than others. Be it illness/disease, injury, or genetics. A good sense of humor about it will probably help make the whole thing suck a little less. If it makes you feel any better, my body began falling apart in my late teens. I actually lost the ability to walk because the tendons and ligaments in both knees degenerated during the course of one year, leaving my kneecaps to freely move about around the joint as they pleased. This meant inability to go up/down stairs/hills, inability to get up off the ground or out of chairs/couches. While walking my legs sometimes don't bend when they should, thus causing me to trip and faceplant instead. That's always fantastic. While doing intensive physical therapy to strengthen the muscles around the kneecaps, I had to also come to terms with the possibility that I would be looking at a wheelchair in the near future. So far, no wheelchair. But I humor the possibility of that outcome by thinking about turbo charging it so that I'd be the fastest chair around! Lol. And other silly thoughts to make it suck less if/when it happens. Moral: positive thinking and humor is essential!

Oooh, hiking partner just arrived. Short hike today, then off to test fire my new CM9.

[PYROhafe]

Im with everyone else Super B! Keep carrying, and keep protecting yourself and loved ones! Heck maybe you and the misses can come up with a hand signal for "shoot this focker" just in case.
In the mean time, I gotta find a gun I wanna put some grips on before you totally go! I GOTTA HAVE SOME BAWANNA GRIPS!