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This afternoon when I sat down to write this week’s blog, I was thinking about possible titles when I hit on Camels in Virginia. I wrote it into the subject line and then I thought, Wait a minute. Did I already write about this?”
So what did I do? I did what any right-thinking person would do in this day and age—I googled it and sure enough, there it was—Camels In Virginia, December 23, 2023. Oops. So for those of you who haven’t followed my blog forever, or who aren’t interested in searching out the original, here’s a quick overview.
Twenty some years ago, I kept telling Bill he needed to stop mumbling and he should turn up the volume on the TV set. He said, “You need hearing aids.” I replied, “I DO NOT!”
That’s how things stood until Bill and I went to dinner with our daughter’s relatively new in-laws. We were eating at a noisy Mexican restaurant in Tucson, one with very hard surfaces. During the course of the meal, I heard Jeanne T.’s father-in-law say something about “camels in Virginia.” I was thunderstruck and said, “Really, they have camels in Virginia?” He looked at me as though I was from another planet and said, “I LEFT MY CAMERA IN VIRGINIA!”
Needless to say, I got my first set of hearing aids shortly thereafter, and my ability to hear improved immeasurably, but that restaurant incident has been one of those family stories that lives in infamy and somehow never goes away.
Over the years I’ve been sent any number of photos featuring Colt riding camels in various places, including a petting zoo in VIRGINIA while he was still a toddler. The one here is of a much older version of Colt, and it was taken in Indiana while he was there for a bowling tournament.
But recently Bill has started mumbling again, and the only way for me to hear what he’s saying is to hit the MUTE button on the TV set. As I’ve noted before, in our family room, my chair is on the left and his is on the right. Eventually I began to wonder, is it possible that the hearing in my right ear has gotten worse?
So finally I made an appointment with the audiologist. I thought they could simply adjust the receiver on my current hearing aid—turn up the volume as it were. Turns out I was right about the hearing in my right ear deteriorating but wrong about being able to turn up the volume in the right-hand hearing aid.
The young woman in the audiology office suggested that I might want to purchase a new pair. That would be a hard NO. We all know how much hearing aids cost, and my old ones work just fine, thank you very much. So we agreed that I’d keep the old hearing aids, and they would order in a new receiver.
They did just that. The process took two weeks but finally the new receiver arrived. When I went to pick it up on Monday, they were unable to pair the new right hearing aid with the old left hearing aid due to a “software problem.” Now I’m told it will probably take another two weeks to get the cord in that should fix the problem.
In the meantime, Bill and I will continue to mute the TV set whenever we need to communicate.
This is one of those times when getting old is for the birds.
I can sympathize with your frustration with hearing aids. My current pair with re-chargeable batteries is good in many ways. My original battery ones had a device that paired with the TV. Now I depend on captioned TV because of the volume and dialogue of different streaming shows.
I hope you know that as you get older you make many new friends most with the first name of doctor
My hearing aids are only a year old, but I still have trouble hearing some people over the phone and still use closed captions on the TV, with the volume as high as it will go. so it is good to know about the receiver. I may need it sooner than later.
Just finished Man Overboard. This may be my favorite of all Jance books. For the 30 years of my marriage, I read only science fiction [I guess I needed to escape away from this world] and my introduction to that was I Robot. Asimov, Heinlein and Clarke became my gods.
Blessing to you and Bill.
The same with me but it’s in my left ear.
Love the picture – thanks!
Also for others with this apparent problem, be sure your audiologist or doctor checks for ear wax. Ear wax production often increases when we get older and, in my case, usually only affects my right ear. There are many products on the market to use at home which is beneficial as Medicare doesn’t cover ear wax removal on a regular basis.
If you haven’t already done so, think about investing in a hearing aid dehumidifier which cleans and dries your equipment. It definitely helps if you produce a lot of ear wax which can clog your devices.
That’s a great photo of Colt!!!
Speaking of audio… I have all of your JP Beaumont novels in print. Now, I’m in the process of ordering them in audiobook format. My commute to and from school runs between one and two hours, depending on traffic (I teach in Kirland at LWHS and live in Maple Valley).
JP Beaumont kept me company during long, lonely days and nights when I worked at KING 5 TV in Seattle, had family issues, and no friends. Your stories helped keep me distractted and also gave me reasons to cry, when I didn’t want to reveal the reasons for my tears.
I enjoy the other series, too, but JP remains close to my heart thirty years later.
Thank you for bringing him to life.
Su Ring
As expensive as good hearing aids are you would think that they would get it right. I am experiencing the same frustration as Roberta. My newer rechargeable ones are so much better in so many ways than my older battery ones with so many more options but they don’t stream from the tv requiring closed captions which invariably runs at least 10 seconds behind the dialogue.
Getting older is definitely not for the faint of heart. On the other hand, I appreciate being part of such a great group. (Thanks for the signed copy of “Iniquity”.)
Have you been in our family room with us? That very same hearing problem occurs with us! Whoever said that getting old isn’t for sissies sure got that right! HAHAHAHA
I loved the story the first time and enjoyed it again today. I’m sorry for your frustration. The picture of Colt is priceless. Happy 4th of July to all.
Did I just hear you say you’re getting some old birds?
Camels are not easy to ride and harder getting on and off. Not a pretty picture when you are 60+ It was on my bucket list and I did it in Jericho Israel some over 20 yrs ago.
Great pic of Colt!
And I agree: getting old is for the birds!
<3
For a second when I saw the words title and camels in Virginia in close proximity, I thought that was going to be the title of a new book. I was sure it would be a Beau book. Then my synapses started synapsing and I realized I was wrong. Ops. Truthfully I’m just a trifle disappointed.
Sister-in-law: Did you hear that John got a new hearing aid?
Brother: What did you say?
Husband can’t hear and I don’t see well. Makes for interesting conversations about the newspaper offeringd
Love the camel! Jack and I have the same problem hearing each other. He is always telling me I’m mumbling!
Hahaha…. Thought you were right here in the room with me! When Nick and I converse, I hit the mute on the TV! I know I need to go and get my right hearing aid replaced! Just haven’t one it yet!!
Loved revisiting the “Camels in Virginia” story with you. Hope all works out well with the hearing aids.
Been there done that with my hearing aids. Needed new ones could not fix the old ones. New ones cost me five thousand dollars and Medicare would not pay anything toward them as over their coverage limit. boo hoo My hearing loss required higher than medicare limits.
Oh I’m with you about old age being for the birds sometimes! Had my physical and Doctor said are you really 80. I said fraud so and he said my bone density test was good and not something usually found in an 80 year old person. I told him I would be good if my back and legs and hands didn’t hurt all the time! But back and legs have been that way since early 70s so I will keep plugging along which is good. I drove o er half way from KS to MN so figured that was pretty good. We did break it down to 2 days instead of one very long day usually 12-14 hours. After they just fixed my hearing aids don’t think they can do it again. Not nice. Hope you are having a lovely 4th of July weekend. To start storming here soon with rain into tomorrow early afternoon.
Hearing is a very complex process and so many things can go wrong – the technology doesn’t address all the various combinations of issues, I find. Also volume is distinct from clarity – I seem to be able to get more volume from the existing technology but clarity gets lost and it all sounds like the adults in old Peanuts TV – wah wah wah. I am working on reading lips, which helps, and will be even more helpful after the cataract surgery. Self care is a full time job!
So the camels are alive and well in this part of Virginia!
Ceci
Ceci
My right ear is better and my husband’s left ear is better, so our recliners are arranged with good ears facing each other! Plus we use closed caption and mute for commercials. I’ve tried hearing aids twice in the last 5 years, but I have tinnitus and the hearing aids do nothing for the ringing and make the annoying background noises louder. I’m also cheap and don’t want to spend thousands of dollars for something that only marginally helps, if at all.
Good luck with your new hearing aid! Oh and I thought. you were talking about Camel cigarettes in Virginia! (I’m an ex-smoker)
I LOVE your family! They sound like so much fun! Also, many of my immediate family are profoundly deaf, as is my Best Birding Buddy, and I understand your frustration with hearing aids. They are a boon, but they can be challenging.
Getting old sure isn’t for sissies! Hard things happen to you when you get old. Today our newish minister reminded all of his parishioners (in Sun City) the he is young enough to be our grandson. When did THAT happen? It just sneaks up on you!
Regarding your decision not to upgrade your hearing aids, I can only pass on the advice of a good friend who died too young after a fall left him with a brain bleed – “If you don’t fly first class, your kids will.” We have another friend who just turned 86 and found that a small amplifying device which can be clipped to his shirt or put on the table near him is providing great help.