Andy Collins

This thread should be so inspirational to others! Not just those with disabilities, but able bodied too. It should inspire us not to park in a disabled bay, to clear a path for a chair, to enquire why disabled access is so poor. For it could be any one of us, at any time. Personally, I'm reasonably fortunate, with a little pre-planning my day CAN go smoothly, but that applies to everyone else anyway. I've just sat and read this thread from beginning to present, I can relate to certain aspects, laugh inside at others. All I can say is to keep focussed on your targets, (I'm sure you are) roll with the punches life throws at you (I'm sure you are) and best wishes for the future.

I did that very exercise with the hammer and tyre to help build myself up again after the ops. It's a very good system. I did it primarily as I wanted to exercise the muscles again that I'd be using in the job. Seemed to work anyway.

I quite beleive that many things in our lifetime will be proven, disproven, and proven again so long as we live long enough.

Cracking poetry, good story, but please please everyone don't keep copy/pasting the whole chapter in your replies. It makes it all very long winded to follow. TVI, keep it going please:biggrin:

I can almost feel the heat from that as if I'm still cooking up that lamb. Happy days

I think I had about 4pair of those, in a year, they just fell apart. Obviously grounding, being harder on the sole (soul) took it toll on them quicker. A mate had the Stihl tractor ones they lasted much better, but I wouldn't buy them, clumpy great things. The only plus for the Oregon greens was the comfort factor.

6' 3" and 16 st 4, not as fit as I used to be but can still get around. Was told my BMI was high but I can't remember or care about it.

Tbh there is a world of difference between keeping fit, doing an hours exercise a day, and being "work fit" at the pace that industry dictates and expects. It can be a big ask of your body at times. But PMA will help, and get you through the tougher days.

This topic is all very relevant to me. Healthwise I was fine until 47, then things went really wrong big time. I've constantly tried to keep working, I am self employed after all, fighting to regain fitness, fighting pain, dealing with the side issues of my "complications" and so on. But this isn't a grumble, I'm still self employed, I still do a physical aspect of tree work, I do temper it with lawn care, and other "easy" jobs, that actually aren't that easy. But I will say please please do consider your future into late middle age, consider how you will cope if your body and health lets you down. Yes, a percentage of us will never have a problem, but many of us will. We are only human, and it's when your body lets you down that you are truly tested. Cracking thread Adam.

At 50 I'm as keen as I was at 19, maybe keener and more dedicated. Unfortunately things don't always pan out as we'd like. I think most of my body is bigger and stronger than it ever was now, but it's come at a cost. I've spent most of this year dealing with such intense pain I could have screamed at times, while carrying on working. Turns out it was a med I was on had an adverse effect, just took an awful long time for the "experts" to suss it out. A driving factor in my recovery a while ago was to get back into tree work, against surgeons advice. I did it, but it takes its toll now. I've had to accept that I need to adapt and change the way I work, if I'm to make it through the rest of my working life. Many people come into tree work for a relatively short time of their careers, few make it a lifelong vocation, personally I've seen many come and go. Im just too thick to do anything else.

Why??? Well you don't know what's around the corner in life. Plan for the unexpected, maybe a Plan B. Have an ideal Plan A, and a back up. I didn't. I'm 50 and I have just completed my 1st 5 day week in over 3 years. I'm dead chuffed with myself. My life didn't quite pan out as I'd have liked. So now I do a mix of tree work, hedging, planting and lawn care. I've just spent 2 (tedious) days scarifying 5250 m sq of lawn. But the money's good, as good as tree care, and I'm not totally exhausted for the weekend. I pay climbers to climb, draggers to drag, and I point at things. Evolve and survive.

Hi Sean, here's wishing you all the best in your recovery. Stay strong, there's a load of support here and elsewhere. However bleak the future can appear at times, snatch at the small positives rather than the large negatives. And hang onto that dream of playing footie with your lad again, it will happen one way or another. Best wishes, Andy.

IMO it smacks of desperation if you can't afford to wait a mere 24hrs.

Being a 7 day working week forces people to have less family time, usually on crappy zero hours contracts, usually on minimum wage, just so that they can scape a meagre existence. A family unit needs money, it also needs the parents to be there for their kids, to be able to go out as a family, be it church, seaside trips picnics or whatever. I'm in no way religious, but I'm a strong believer in the time a family needs together. This may be seen as old-fashioned, or antiquated, but it's what I believe. We started off with various official days off, with pay, these are now vanishing, and replaced with minimum wages, and the implied threat that you will be replaced by East European labour if you don't comply. Hardly good for a robust, content workforce. If you as a boss work on a Sunday, you then expect others to do the same, it's a vicious circle.

I'm the other side of the argument. I don't do any work on Sundays these days. I have 2clients I will go and discuss work with as they're in the City all week, but that's it. There's 6 other days available for work, if you can't earn it in those days the 7th will make no difference. Personally, I won't answer the phones on a Sunday, I have an answer phone and messages will be picked up Monday. Healthwise, all we hear about is how Stress is a big health issue, learning to take time out and switch off the work mode is the best way of combating stress, you can't do this if you're chasing your tail seven days a week. Family life deteriorates if you're too busy to stop and spend time with them. Erosion of bank Holidays, Sundays off etc have eaten into the working persons free time, for rest and relaxation, or in some cases religious reasons. I think it's becoming detrimental to health and welfare of the workforce.