The Turtle Walks: Wheelchair

Showing posts with label Wheelchair. Show all posts

Sunday, February 10, 2013

My Story As Of Today: From Wheelchair To Walking

I was 20 at the time of my accident. I've moved around a bit in my lifetime. My dad worked in the army and then the Public Health Service. We moved everywhere from West Virginia, Germany, Wisconsin, to Seattle. Not strongly connected to one place very closely, I was going to college at Colorado State while my parents lived in North Carolina. Minus a few crazy events here and there I had a pretty boring childhood and early adulthood. I had never even had a broken bone.

Me pretending I know what I'm doing on a longboard.

After spending Christmas with friends, I flew out to spend New Years with my family. We were up in Maryland where much of my extended family lives.

THE ACCIDENT - December 29^th, 2009.

The plan was to spend a few days in the Baltimore area then drive home to North Carolina the day of the 29^th. I've always hated long car rides, so I always tried to sleep through them. I figured I'd be sleeping the entire ride to North Carolina, so I spent the entire night before my accident playing video games on my little cousin's XBOX (Lego Indiana Jones). I was asleep practically before we left my Aunt and Uncle's driveway. I did wake-up momentarily to hug my older sister as we dropped her off at the airport but otherwise I was down for the count.

How I spent the last night before the accident. I finished the entire game about 30 minutes before everyone woke up.

I slept in the back seat up against the door with my seat-belt on. From what I'm told, my Dad was driving on the freeway when he saw the car ahead of him stop suddenly. My dad slammed on the breaks and our car started spinning wildly out of control. Our car slammed into the bumper of a neighboring truck.

My Mom was in the front seat and had been knocked unconscious. My dad, awake and unharmed, told me later that I was screaming my head off; I have no memory of this. They shipped my off to Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland. I had two of my vertebrae (L1 and L2) completely shattered, broke both arms, and had lots of other internal damage. They put two stabilizing rods on either side of my spine but the surgeons felt it was better not do any surgery that could damage potentially intact nerves. The bones in my arms were set and a metal rod was placed in each.

I broke L1 and L2(top of Lumbar curve) but my injury level is considered T10(bottom of Thoracic curve) since that was the initial line of what I could move.

I woke up not able to move anything below the level of my belly button. The next few days were a morphine haze interrupted by a swirl of visiting family. I was sort of emotionally numb, staying upbeat the entire time. I just kept repeating that I wasn't going to be stuck using a wheelchair. They moved me out of there and into a rehab hospital. I starting to learn about the realities of my new life and what it would be like to move and live in a wheelchair.

I eventually went through all 5 stages of grief and loss over my legs. I felt that the part of my life where I walked had died.

It was about 6 days after the accident when I finally broke down. I wasn't able to wheel myself around with both arms in slings, I couldn't move very well, couldn't even control when I shit, and didn't know what I would do. It all hit like a ton of bricks.

NURSING HOME (rebreaking my right arm)

About a week into my new rehab I rolled on my right arm in therapy and rebroke it. My surgeons, extremely irritated with me, said that I wasn't allowed to continue therapy there for at least a month and advised me to go to a nursing home.

In the nursing home after I rebroke my arm.

Though some of my darkest moments were in that nursing home, this was the place that I regained movement in my legs. After a month not moving anything I wiggled my right big toe. The next day I wiggled my left big toe. Progress slowed for awhile but over the next few weeks I regained good chunks of my right leg back.

KENNEDY KRIEGER

During my stay at the nursing home we heard about the spine program at Kennedy Krieger Institute. An offshoot of Johns Hopkins, the hospital had a reputation for significantly improving function after spinal cord injuries. A few people warned me, including my physical therapist at the nursing home, that they felt Kennedy Krieger made too many promises. I was hesitant but after the dismal conditions at the rehab hospital and the nursing home I felt that anything was worth a shot.

The staff of KKI helped put my mind at ease and helped push me forward. Shown here trying out e-stim on my leg.

It turned out to be better than I could have ever hoped. Primarily a kids hospital, the spine program's inpatient wing will take you if you are under 21. Full of energy and excitement, the feelings were infectious. They advocate activity based rehab. This is the idea that muscles needs to be used and exercised, in the hope to promote new nerve growth. They make no promises but the research shows that if the spinal cord isn't cut completely the working of muscles will help to promote the growth of nerves. This is accomplished through electrical stimulus, in the form of portable electrical stim-units and electrical stim-bikes. They use these alongside more traditional mobility, balance, and care training.

Showing off my wheelchair biceps and my scars.

MORE BACK SURGERIES

Repeat imaging near the end of my inpatient stay showed that the broken pieces of spinal column were pressing on the cord. I had gotten significant function back in my right leg by this time but the left leg was still mostly inert. Even electrical stimulus couldn't get the muscles in the left leg to move; the hope is that another round of surgeries could improve my overall function.

They cut into my back and removed the broken pieces of spinal column. They then put in a metal cage and put the pieces of bone back in. The alive bone cells would regrow into the shape of vertebrae, this time without pinching my spinal cord.

It is safe to say I've seen more hospital beds than I care to mention. Here I am reading a stack of get-well cards

I stayed in Baltimore with my Aunt and Uncle until the end of the summer, doing outpatient rehab at Kennedy Krieger. While the effect wasn't immediate, over the next few weeks I began to get significant function back. I had my right leg completely back by the end of the summer and few more trace muscles in the left leg. I now had enough function back to walk around with a leg brace for short distances, with the help of a walker or crutches.

Out stretching my legs.

COLORADO

It was my goal to return back to Colorado State again. I was still using the wheelchair but I felt confident enough to move out there on my own. I happened to have an older brother who was taking graduate classes at CSU at the time who was willing to share an apartment. I was excited and pumped to start things off again.

Though things started off strong, I eventually started having various health problems. I'm not naturally self motivating so when I felt down I would just lay in bed which only made things worse. Eventually I was in so much pain I stopped going to class altogether. By halfway through the semester I hit my lowest point ever. My mother came for a visit and saw the condition I was in. She asked if I wanted to move back home with them and I said yes.

NORTH CAROLINA

Having someone to kick me out of bed was exactly what I needed and my parents obliged. They started by getting me to wheel around and to do more and more walking. Though this was still difficult I got better. I slowly began to work up stamina and endurance. I had a 3 times a week PT program and worked out/swam at the YMCA. I transferred to Elizabeth City State University, our city's university. Though no Colorado State University they were close and offered a biology degree program. I'm still in North Carolina today, working on finishing up my degree. I'm set to graduate spring 2013.

My physical function continues to improve. I go periodically to Kennedy Krieger for additional rehab. These 2 week bouts, nicknamed “Boot Camp”, yield the most exciting results. In January 2011 I trialed using two canes instead of walking with crutches. In June 2011 I trialed using an AFO (Ankle Foot Orthosis, up to just below the knee) instead of the KAFO (Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis, up to the hip) I had used up to that point. I started out the fall semester of school vowing that I would not bring the wheelchair from the house; every time I left the house I would have to take my leg brace. I was still using my KAFO when I walked anywhere and used the AFO only in therapy. The KAFO was a heavy mess of wires and levers. October 2011, one of the wires on my KAFO snapped during a long holiday weekend. Since I had sworn to not take the wheelchair from the house I used my AFO the rest of the weekend; I never went back.

Trialing out two canes instead of crutches.

I finally ditched the wheelchair completely this past January, two years after my accident. I was using the AFO and canes well enough that I felt it was time. It was hard to get used to at first but I managed eventually. My wheelchair now serves only as a bed for my cats.

My most recent accomplishment is to have regained enough strength and balance to switch to walking using only one cane. Not quite as dramatic a shift as some of my others, it still wasn't easy to adjust to losing a walking aid. I continue to work toward my eventual goal of walking without any leg braces or canes. I'm not there yet but these past two and a half years have shown me it's more than possible.

With one cane and my AFO.

I'm not the boy I was. Who can say what I'll do with my life now since I almost lost mine. The focus of my journey has changed quite a bit, from learning how to use my wheelchair to walking again. I'm walking full time now but it wasn't quick or easy.

I fully acknowledge I was lucky my injury wasn't as severe as it could have been and that I had a lot of help along the way. I can't speak for everyone with a spinal cord injury, since each experience is different. I do know that the most important thing is to be up and aiming toward something. Whether this is finishing the next level of school, getting back function, or simply being fit enough to try something new. At one point I would have stayed in bed and given up. And if I had stayed there I would never have gotten out of my chair. So who knows where you might end up.

One suggestion was to get shoes with more ankle support. I'm pretty sure they were talking about hiking boots but since I have a sense of style I got a pair of Chuck Taylors, the old school high top Converse. Though I wasn't expecting these to make any difference, I found myself walking better and better.

Oh my god, shoes!

I began walking so well that I decided to leave the cane at home. That first day was kinda rough but after that I just kept going. It's now been 2 weeks since I used my cane at all!

No I didn't break my canes. They're in the corner collecting dust!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Freedom!

For 6 weeks I've had movement restrictions, put in place by my spinal surgeon. I'm not allowed to bend, twist, lift over 10 lbs, not allowed in the pool until my incisions heal completely, and not allowed to drive.

Attention Peter:

Do not BEND FORWARD (over 90 degrees)

Do not TWIST

Do not LIFT over 10 lbs

Sincerely, The Precaution Police

(This was put on the back of my wheelchair by my therapists in 2010 after spine surgery.)

The first three I've had in place before so there was no surprises there; the restriction that really got under my skin was not being able to drive. It's not like I had no transportation at all: my mother begrudgingly chauffeured me around Elizabeth City and my friends took pity and picked me up. What I miss is the freedom to come and go as I please. This is all going to change on Tuesday, when all my restrictions are lifted!

I'm not going to go completely nuts, though there are some more complicated maneuvers I wanted to try. I've already tried jumping on a trampoline and working on a balance board. The trampoline was fun but harder than it looked. The balance board was a familiar activity, though this time my therapist combined it with an inflated disk underneath. This changed the balance, reminding me of before the accident. I was a strong skier and a passable snowboarder, and this particular exercise reminded me of what it was like to keep my balance on my snowboard.

Shredding the powder, back in the day

This gave my therapist the idea to try me on the skateboard they had in the gym. It went pretty well, considering I was a terrible skater before the accident (the gimp leg not helping matters at all). It was fun in a way that I haven't enjoyed in a long time. Who knows, you may see me skating down the street one of these days, with a cane strapped to my back for emergencies.

I'll settle for being as off-balance as I used to be.

I'm definitely getting stronger, though I still have a long way to go. The one thing that is guaranteed to improve my mood is I will soon be allowed back in the water, a turtle's natural habitat. The incisions from my surgery were extremely slow in healing, but they are finally healed enough to allow me to get back in teh pool. No matter what how sluggish I may be on land, I rule the waves!

I'm not quite counting the minutes until I can bend, twist, lift, drive, and swim but I'm really close. Three more days, three more days, three more days...

Friday, September 30, 2011

A Blast From The Past: Learning Wheelies

This is the video of me after I first learned to do wheelies.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Losing my security blanket

As of the beginning of this week, I will no longer be bringing my wheelchair into town for any reason. I will now use only my leg brace in town, including when I go to swim at the YMCA.

I look back on the day that I got my own wheelchair. It was an exciting day, one filled with hope and the promise of exciting possibilities. I zoomed around the hallways, weaving in and out of nurses, doctors, aids, patients and family members at top speed. I started doing wheelies every spare second, though we weren't supposed to. I didn't have my legs back but I had my mobility again. It was like getting the keys to a new car, finally able to leave under my own power.

I think how far this chair has gotten me. The paint is scratched and the parts are slightly worn in, a testament to the fact that I wasn't content to sit at home. It got me through the summer months of rehab at Kennedy Krieger, crossing the country to Colorado, crossing back to North Carolina, flying to Minnesota. I've taken it to pools, museums, zoos, aquariums, to fine dining, to fast food, through memories of euphoria, and memories of pain that are forever tattooed across the vision of the past. I've wheeled through tiled hallways, city streets, grassy fields, and forest paths. Through it all, it has carried me farther than I ever imagined.

I now need to leave it behind, for good. I've been using it for shorter and shorter bursts, using it mainly on either side of sleeping and for going to the pool. My body is now at the point where I can walk around without the help of the chair almost the entire day if I'm wearing my leg brace. I'm mostly using the wheelchair out of habit, though a part of me doesn't want to leave it just yet. My chair has become the security blanket that I've been clinging to with childish abandon.

I decided at the start of this week that I was going to leave it behind when I went into town. The reason this was a big step: I'd never before used just the leg brace when I've gone into the YMCA pool. It's physically demanding and require some extra planning:

1) I normally had my backpack full of personal items, bathroom supplies, wallet, and my phone; my backpack stayed on the back of my chair, wearing a smooth divot into my backrest. I now have to carry these in, along with my swimsuit, towel, and water shoes. You try carrying all that on your back without tipping over. Yeesh!

2) My leg brace can't get wet. I have to leave it locked up in the locker room, which mean I don't have it to use as I walk out. I leave the locker room with no brace and my crutches. I'm able to kick out my leg effectively and move it in time so it doesn't fall behind though the muscles surrounding the knee are not strong enough to hold my weight. While I do have to worry about the crutches slipping on the wet floor I still have one good leg to lean on through the process.

3) Getting in and out of the pool. This is actually the easiest step in the process. There is a pole near the deep end which I can use to lean on while I set down my crutches. Then I simply jump in! (no cannon balls yet) When I get out I use the pole to help me stand and then I pick up my crutches.

4) This is all a lot of work. I try and get the most out of my time when I swim so I'm usually pretty tired by the end. With my chair, when I was finished I was able to slouch and wheel myself to the showers. Now I have more walking ahead of me before I can look forward to going home. This is a positive in the long term, though when I'm tired I tend to care less and less about the long term.

Despite these concerns I've done well. The most exciting part of the process was the people, most of whom already knew me as the guy in the wheelchair. Few knew I could walk at all, since I'd never walked in before. Even those who knew I was doing some walking were unaware that I walking as well as I am. I got lots of encouragement, praise, and support. The one comment that never fails to crack me up is "I had no idea you were so TALL!"*

All in all the loss of my security blanket went pretty well. It was tiring but I know it will be worth it. It seems that I'm going through the steps of childhood all over again: learn to sit up, learn to roll over, learn to crawl, learn to walk, get rid of security blanket... and I thought going through this the first time was hard enough.

*This is actually a fairly common observation. I'm 6'1" but in my wheelchair I was under 5 feet. I've lost track of the number of times I've heard this.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

On back pain and moving forward

Both braces are now back and working! I was secretly relieved that I got a few days off and would be able to relax. But the time I was without my walking legs really clued me in to just how much the braces are helping.

During the early months of this year I had fairly severe back pain in my lower back. This was centered above my back right hip, in large part due to overuse of my right leg. I also used my wheelchair far more often than I should have, using it at every opportunity. I didn't trust my left leg even in the brace, in large part due to the habit of the brace buckling unexpectedly. Thanks to some scolding from therapists and some long distance walking I slowly began to rely more and more on the braced leg. I still didn't trust it but I felt more secure in my use. I hadn't noticed but as I slowly have been switching to being double legged again my back pain was slowly fading into the background. It's at the point where I don't notice it at all unless I'm actively thinking about it.

This realization came to me as I was stuck in the wheelchair for these few days. As I sat there for longer and longer my back was getting stiffer and stiffer. It wasn't to the point yet where it was more any than a little uncomfortable but I could see that that was the direction I was heading if I stayed in the chair too much longer. Fortunately about the time I realized this the wire brace was finally fixed. Now the electric brace is finally fixed as well, taking longer since it had to be shipped to the factory in Minnesota.

It boils down to this:

When I walk, I'm more mobile, have less pain, and feel generally better about myself. When I'm in my wheelchair I'm shorter, have to take more pain medication, and receive pitying looks instead of just curious glances.

This realization doesn't make things easier but it shows me that I am indeed on the right path. I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other I guess.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Beach Fun, AFO, and More Leg Brace Problems

Sorry I haven't written in a while. I just started two summer courses, Intro To Computer Programing and Psychology. So for a while I won't be blogging as often I used to. I went to a gay pride festival in my wheelchair. Or should I say my rainbow wheelchair. I had lots of fun, though some people made me feel vaguely uncomfortable. They kept coming up to me and saying things like "You know you're real brave, you know that," or my favorite "you're such an inspiration!" Random people kept coming and giving me hugs. I should have expected it. But I've become so accustomed to people knowing who I am and who are used to me. Meeting this many strangers made me feel strangely separate. I was a weirdo way before I was injured, so it kind of fits. I hung with an awesome group who were weird in vaguely the same ways as I am. I met some people from all over the state and I won't be forgetting them any time soon!

I wheeled around on the moderately hilly grass, people occasionally stopping what they were doing to help me wheel through. I'm just not one of those people who will refuse help when I could actually use it. For anyone who doesn't know, wheeling on grass is really annoying! As the day went I took my crutches and grabbed my swim suit and hopped over to the pool. People tried extremely hard not to stare. *stare* *look away* *stare* *look away*.

Finally in the evening we went to the beach. Here I put on my old leg brace and walked on the beach, where the dance party was. By that time I didn't do any dancing but hung around with my cluster of friends on their beach towel. Walking on sand was an intense experience. My canes sunk into the sand if I leaned on them very much, so I ended up walking with almost no support whatsoever. Needless to say at the end of this day I was dead tired. I slept well that night.

Outer Banks Beach Frence by Randy Steele I managed to get my AFO (ankle foot orthosis) which I got casted for the other day. It's pretty boring, just molded plastic and Velcro. We got the most bare bones version we could so that we could take it in the pool, to practice walking underwater.

The AFO is extremely useful because it stabilizes the ankle, which otherwise has a tendency to roll out from under me as I walk. The difficulty is that it also pushes the knee forward due to muscle tightness in the hamstring. This forces me to use my quad and hold the knee tight, which I need to be doing anyway.

And finally my leg brace is on the fritz again! The wires are beginning to pop out of the case, with the possibility that my cats got to the wires. Not majorly, just enough that when you tilt the wire to the side it shuts off power to the brace. As I was leaving physical therapy it went on and off three times in less than 50 ft. All the orthotists had left for the day. So it's broken for a while. Most likely they will send it off to Minnesota to get repaired. It may be a while before I get it back but I guess we will see.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Back Home: Swimming, Biking, and Avoiding Work

Sorry I haven't written in a while. I've been adjusting to getting back into my life in North Carolina. I was expecting to be energized and inspired, which is true for the most part (though not as much as I'd hoped).

Swimming
It's finally warm enough here to go swimming outside! I'm lucky in that my parents live on an inlet sound. The water is warm, only a little salty, and no chlorine! I still do go to the YMCA but there's something just so much more refreshing about swimming in nature. My goal is to swim every day; I haven't quite lived up to that yet but I'm getting close.

Fins
Having SCUBA dived in a previous life I had a pair of fins lying around. Though my dad was tempted to get rid of all the SCUBA gear since no one's used it in years I asked him to save the flippers. When I'm swimming normally I have enough movement in the water to move my left leg in almost any direction and in any motion, though speed may vary. The right leg is stronger than the left so I have a slight tendency to veer toward the left. For anyone who's used flippers, they exaggerate your every movement. Now instead of listing slowly to the left I steer into left wall practically every kick. Though not what I want it to be yet, it's good to have something to work on I suppose.

Biking
I have been using the hand bike more and more every week. I don't use it every day but I make sure to use it a couple of times each week. The area around our house is flat, with miles of farmland in between us and town. At the moment the top distance I've gone is about 8 miles (we clocked it on the car odometer) but I want to go farther still. I felt tired afterward but not exhausted, so I know I can go farther.

Otherwise things have been pretty calm. I'm picking out new classes for next semester but for the mean time I'm enjoying my relative time off (from school work anyway). I have good friends who drag me out to make sure I spend this time doing something fun, always walking of course. So all in all things even out I guess. My life hasn't changed too dramatically but enough that I've noticed.

What to look forward to: the disappearance of my wheelchair. I've been keeping it around, more as my security blanket than anything else. Though I only use it in the house now, both my doctors and therapists have told me to ditch it completely. But it's difficult after all this time. So they've given my parents permission to hide my wheelchair! We'll see how this goes. It hasn't happened yet but my mother has been sending me warnings that it'll happen soon. I'm going to miss you wheelchair.

If you haven't seen Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog you need to! From Joss Whedon, with Neil Patric Harris and Felicia Day. It is amazing!

Monday, January 24, 2011

Phantom Wheel Syndrome

I've been back from Kennedy Krieger over a week now and many things are positive. I've heard the words "oh my, you look so much better than you used to" describing my new walking pattern (a backwards compliment if I ever heard one). I have to give all the credit to my wonderful therapists for slowing my butt down, forcing me to look at the particular features of my gait that they felt needed improvement. Lo and behold, it worked! Every once and a while it's good to have a reminder why I'm listening to my therapists: because they know what they're talking about.

To keep this up I've been trying to incorporate walking into my daily activities as much as possible. I've started leaving my wheelchair in places that are not easily accessible or leaving my crutches more readily available. This is generally a good strategy to use, since I am more likely to use my crutches then hop over one legged across the house to get my wheelchair. My parents found that they have to place chairs in spots that I would normally wheel up to, for example the kitchen table.

It's been a little over a year since my wheelchair became my chief mode of transportation. This recent change to a more mobile lifestyle has given rise to an interesting phenomenon that I've nicknamed Phantom Wheel Syndrome. The crutches force me to pull the seat relatively far back in order to sit down; after I sit down I have to pull my seat back toward the table again. Now any typical two legged ambulator would grab the front or back of their chair and scoot forward toward the table. My first reaction for the first few times was to spin my hands at the side of my chair... only to realize I had no wheels there. It is a very strange experience to find that you have become so used to a wheelchair you simply expect it to be there.

A friend at Kennedy Krieger Christina, who also uses both wheelchair and crutches, remarked how she also reaches out on the side of her seat occasionally only to find the wheels of her wheelchair missing. It was like reaching out with a limb and suddenly find it missing. I have some experience with this. It is a kind of an upgrade to loose your wheels for a set of legs, one many would make I know. Yet somehow the wheelchair has become a source of strength and mobility; more than just a mode of transport it had come to define my new life. It limited me to places with accessible ramps (mostly) but it also opened up the world when I could only look at it through a hospital room window. Freed from the confinement of rehab I got to join my family on outings, showing off wheelies and other tricks that I had learned. Moving on to crutches full time is indeed an upgrade but I still feel a sense of loss.

It may be silly to mourn for a wheelchair but I feel like it deserves a few passing thoughts. I'm not completely done with it yet but as it slowly is phased out I will remember all the places it took me to, places I didn't think were possible. It's carried me this far.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Wheelchair Hands

It's official, I'm a wheelchair user.
My hands bear the marks of traveling far distances. Even though I wear gloves whenever I wheel around I still have distinctive marks:
I have callous built up from between my thumbs and forefingers, extending all the way to the heel of my hand.
I have blisters from where the tires run across my palm.
My thumbs look worn down, as if chiseled away by sandpaper (in reality this is where my thumb rubs across my tires when I'm not paying attention.

It is said you can tell a lot about a person's life from their hands. My story is just a little more obvious than others.

Friday, July 16, 2010

This Wheelchair Buisness is a Pain in the Ass

Something most people may not think about: if you spend your day sitting your behind gets sore a lot.

It's a fact that the more time the skin spends in contact with a solid surface the more likely it is to get bruised, sore, and develop sores. Now I want to say specifically that I do NOT have any pressure sores. (Warning the following link is very graphic and be prepared if you click on it). Google pressure sores some time. It is GROSS! I want to avoid them at all costs.

Since my left leg has still not moved significantly the muscles surrounding my gluts have atrophied, leaving much of the bone and joints exposed. This creates even more points of pressure on exposed skin. The only way to really combat this awful process is to soften my various seats with various types of foam, cushions, etc. And of course the best way is to lie on my stomach, eliminating the problem altogether. So I spend a lot of time sprawled out.

I'm posting this for no other reason other than it's a pain. And also, don't be offended if I don't sit up when you come to visit. Nothing personal.

Monday, March 29, 2010

My new wheelchair

This is the wheelchair I'll be getting! The Quickie Q7 is an ultralight Aluminum Wheelchair. It's slightly heavier than the Tilite ZRA (the equivalent wheelchair from Tilite) but it had a better feel to it than the Tilite. While on paper the ZRA was lighter on paper, it felt heavier when I trialed out the wheelchair. The vendor for my wheelchair has said that it'll be here sometime this week, before I get released from inpatient to outpatient. It's been custom molded to my dimensions and will be exactly what I need for this summer and when I go back to school in Colorado.