Category: Dear Mom

Hello Mom and Everyone Else!  I have finally returned to the "nest" or home once again at long last.  I am now  home from the rehab facility after more then three months of recovery following my right shoulder surgery in late October of 2009.  The satement "The is know place like home" certainly has more meaning to me now.  I missed the simple pleasures of life such as being able to sleep in my own bed, being allowed to come and go as I wished, or even eat home cooked food on a regular basis.  The food at the facilty definately left a lot to be desired!

On a positive note though, the staff there were excellant and so was the quality of the physical therapy that I received during my stay there.  They have helped get me to the point that I am now able to function at home with some assistance.  That isn’t to say that I can yet do all thaat I did prior to the surgery on my own, but that should come in time and with continued in home physical therapy.

My doctor has told me that the full recovery from this type of surgery normally takes between nine months to a year.  I have to keep reminding myself, I am only just over three months along in the process so I am actually doing well at this point working towards a complete recovery.  There is also the possibility that my complete recovery process may even take loneger then most individuals because my arms must bare more weight then most other individuals due to my physical disability. 

Only time will tell what will happen along my journey to complete recovery…  All, I know is that I am so very glad to once again be home and I look forward to sharing many interesting  and exciting discoveries with you about hummingbirds.  

Yes, surprisingly Cuba does have hummingbirds.  Cuba is not a place that I would have imagined having hummingbirds. Why exactly this is I can’t explain,but it just never occurred to me that hummingbirds would be found there.  There are three species which are found there.  They are the following: Cuban Emerald Hummingbird, Bee Hummingbird,and the Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

The Bee Hummingbird is known as endemic, because it is a species of hummingbird which is restricted to a given area.  The Ruby-throated Hummingbird is considered to be a rare or accidental occurrence in Cuba.

I hope you enjoy this information.  It makes me think of my mom because, like me, she would have been surprised to learn that there are indeed hummingbirds found in Cuba.

It is the female Ruby-throated Hummingbird that performs the aerial display to capture the males attention and signal that she is ready to mate.  With other species of hummingbirds, it is the male that usually performs the aerial display in an effort to capture the females attention prior to mating taking place.

Does this fact surprise you?  It did me, even though I have discovered a great deal about hummingbirds in recent years.  This is the type of information about hummingbirds that I wish my mom was still alive for me to share with her.

Hi, Hummingbird here. Today’s post isn’t about hummingbirds.  I must explain my need to undergo shoulder surgery.  By the time you read this, I will have already undergone shoulder surgery earlier today.  The need for the shoulder surgery is a direct result of a fall I took while in the shower back in early January of this year.  In May of this year, I was finally diagnosed as having a completely torn right rotator cuff, thus the need for surgery. 

The surgery was originally scheduled to take place in May of this year, but I chose to postpone it due to my fear that the area where I live would experience another hurricane this year and that it would then require that we evacuate the area for an unknown length of time.  You may be wondering why this scenario would have effected  my ability to have had the surgery.   Let me explain.

I am in a wheelchair and do not have the ability to walk.  Therefore, I use my arms to help me do everything from standing, transferring and almost anything else you can imagine.  Think of it this way, I use my arms like most people would use their legs, so I did not want to have the surgery previously in the event it became necessary to leave the area.

My surgery has been rescheduled and will take place today before you ever read this post.  I am expected to remain in a local hospital only overnight, but then after that I will require an extended stay in a local nursing home for between 2-3 months, due to not being able to put any real amount of weight on the arm until then.  That’s right, I did say 2-3 months.  The exact length of my stay there will depend on the speed at which I am able to heal and my overall progress following surgery. 

I am telling you this, so that you will understand why the new post will eventually stop for quite some time following the surgery.  This will not happen immediately following today’s post because I am trying to write as many as post in advance of going into the hospital and having them automatically post on a specified date.

Thanks, in advance, for your understanding in this matter.  I will be back as quickly as my health will allow me to do so and I look forward to continuing to share with you all kinds of information about hummingbirds.