OT: Walmart...

[Michael Terrell]

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

 

[John Doe]

Michael Terrell <terrell.michael.a@gmail.com> wrote:

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear
a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they
closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager
brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were
furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I
had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to
find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the
length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the
heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about
15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they
thinking?

When they first started metering people going into and out of the
store, I overheard the enforcer (standing next to the female
manager) boasting about what he would do to a customer if it didn\'t
walk 100 feet around the pylons and tape barrier before entering the
store, even though there were ZERO people in line and therefore
obviously no need for anybody to walk all the way around.

Listen to their canned announcement \"to make shopping easier\".
That\'s a laugh. No idea why they have closed at night, either.
Extremely few people shop at night, it\'s natural social distancing.

Walmart is what happens when a monopoly falls into the hands of
incompetent descendents.

 

[server]

On Sat, 25 Jul 2020 16:27:37 -0700 (PDT), Michael Terrell
<terrell.michael.a@gmail.com> wrote:

>Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

Our Safeway has a single entry/exit now, with a guard who checks for
masks. That sort of crowds the parking at one end.

I keep going to my old exit with a cart full, and find it closed, and
have to trek to the other one.

At least there\'s no heat. The parking lot of the Diamond Heights
Safeway is legally part of Antartica.

We oogle women here, as \"Wow, she looks hot in a parka.\"



--

John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc

Science teaches us to doubt.

Claude Bernard

 

[Ricketty C]

On Saturday, July 25, 2020 at 7:27:41 PM UTC-4, Michael Terrell wrote:
> Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

I haven\'t been to Walmart in a couple of weeks, but I feel your pain about the walking. Before my hip was fixed it was a literal PITA to go in a door only to find I can\'t exit that door and after walking all through the store having to walk the length twice more.

I suggest you contact the store and Walmart corporate, even if it doesn\'t result in any direct action, at least it let\'s them know there is a problem. If enough do that it will get noticed.

--

Rick C.

- Get 1,000 miles of free Supercharging
- Tesla referral code - https://ts.la/richard11209

 

[bitrex]

On 7/25/2020 7:27 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

I understand many elderly and/or disabled people perfer to make their
own way but if there\'s a time to leverage the curbside pickup hour many
Walmarts are offering now\'s probably the time.

 

[bitrex]

On 7/25/2020 8:01 PM, jlarkin@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:

On Sat, 25 Jul 2020 16:27:37 -0700 (PDT), Michael Terrell
terrell.michael.a@gmail.com> wrote:

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

Our Safeway has a single entry/exit now, with a guard who checks for
masks. That sort of crowds the parking at one end.

I keep going to my old exit with a cart full, and find it closed, and
have to trek to the other one.

At least there\'s no heat. The parking lot of the Diamond Heights
Safeway is legally part of Antartica.

We oogle women here, as \"Wow, she looks hot in a parka.\"

A local chain in MA and CT founded back in the heady days of 1936 is one
of the nicest supermarket chains I\'ve been to anywhere in the US. Little
smaller than most other chain stores, no fancy automatic checkouts, but
they run a tight ship and employee retention seems very good and never
hear about any labor disputes (unlike the new england behemoth Stop & Shop.)

Also, electric car chargers at most stores! cool

<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Y>

When C-19 hit other supermarkets were still scratching their heads but
the local big Y store within days had reorganized half the store with a
new entrance and exit plan, lane markers, Lexan cashier-shields and
re-organized the cafe as an indoor staging area with employees in
special vests directing traffic, like something out of Japan more than
the US.

Gotta move fast and do the value-adds as a small player up against
Wal-Mart and other big-timers and it looks like they have an on-the-ball
management.

 

[Tom Gardner]

On 26/07/20 00:27, Michael Terrell wrote:

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I
went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the
entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big
deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space
was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the
closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips
the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I
had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before I
could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

Is that the real extent of your problem?

My mother is in a worse way than you (zimmer frame in
the house), but she can manage to get around such \"sheds\".
She uses a lightweight electric scooter that I can lift
in and out of the car.
https://access-able.co.uk/product/drive-3-wheel-folding-mobility-scooter/

The scooter also enables her to go many other places,
albeit not along a sandy beach.

For heavier scooters, lifts can be retrofitted to cars.

 

[Michael Terrell]

They can, if you have the money out of pocket. There was a huge scandal about scooters in the US, so Medicare no longer provides them.

 

[Don Y]

On 7/25/2020 4:27 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:

Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I
went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the
entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big
deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space
was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the
closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips
the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I
had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before
I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

It\'s been that way, here (AZ), since the start of this mess (Feb).

Stores having implicit entrances and exits (Loew\'s, Home Depot, TJ\'s, etc.)
now \"enforce\" those restrictions (rent-a-cops) instead of leaving them
to be a matter of convenience (i.e., walk in the entrance, notice that
they don\'t have what you want, try to exit via the entrance and be firmly
told that you must exit via the \"exit\" -- at the other end of the store,
often).

Stores that have more fudge-able entrances and exits now tend to shut
all but one to funnel traffic (both in and out!) through that one portal.
In some cases, they pick the WRONG portal -- like forcing entering customers
to walk \"upstream\" through the checkout lines in order to enter the store!

[In the case of the local post office, they actually *fixed* their traffic
flow so arriving customers and departing customers no longer cross paths as
they had for the past 30+ years!]

Others create artificial barricades (e.g., moving the shopping cart \"coral\"
to the inside the store and using it to prevent folks from exiting the
checkout lines via the entrance).

Trivial barricades (crime scene tape, movable metal barriers, etc.)
are readily circumvented (move it aside or step over it). This is
tolerated as long as you\'re not effectively bucking the line, in the
process. (no, i\'m not going to walk 30 feet out of my way to get to
the door that\'s right in front of me; I\'ll just step over the
barricade... pity folks who are short! :> )

Most stores are only seeing grocery traffic, though. So, for example,
having the entrance to the automotive end of the store closed isn\'t
a real hindrance for most folks (yeah, you CAN still buy a set of
replacement wiper blades... but, you\'ll have to enter through the
\"grocery\" entrance and walk across the store -- and then back -- to
get them). No one purchasing TV\'s/electronics/office supplies/furniture
or even CLOTHING (!) at Costco, Walmart, etc.

All place limits on the number of customers allowed inside. So obviously
that you can see the gatekeeper letting one person in *as* each previous
customer exits. (ask them and they can tell you how many customers are
inside at the present time!)

Most have discouraged (or outright forbidden) bringing along kids.
Still amazes me that \"Ma\" AND \"Pa\" both need to be on hand to sort
out what to buy! <shakes head>

Membership stores (Costco, Sam\'s) have placed limits on how many
folks can gain admittance per membership card (i.e., ONE guest).

And, most stores offer special (early!) hours for old folks, special
needs, first responders, healthcare professionals.

Early on (when lines outside were the norm), I learned the value of doing
a bit of reconnaissance BEFORE my planned shopping excursions. \"Let\'s
see how long the lines are at 7:45 -- for an 8:00 opening...\" Often,
you can game the system. E.g., if a store opens at 7 \"for seniors\",
arriving before 7 will leave you in a slow moving line full of other
seniors -- who tend to be slow shoppers. OTOH, arriving at 7:50 (just
prior to the \"normal\" opening) will find all of the waiting seniors
have been accommodated and the folks lined up presently are the
\"non-seniors\" waiting for admittance at 8. So, you can buck the line
and walk right in! :-/ (but, if you don\'t LOOK old, you\'ll get lots
of glares from the younguns, waiting!)

The biggest disappointment in all of this has been the obvious inadequacy
of the on-line inventory data:
\"Your web site said you had 5 of these in stock, 10 minutes ago. You\'ve
only been open for 7 minutes -- I don\'t believe you\'ve sold all 5 of them
in that short time!\"
\"Well, my little handheld terminal says we don\'t have ANY in stock...\"
(so, TWO computer systems tracking the same data in very different ways??)
Moral of story: call the store and have them put <whatever> aside for you.
Or, order it \"for pickup\" and let THEM deal with the fact that their inventory
data is incorrect!

 

[Don Y]

On 7/25/2020 11:36 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:

They can, if you have the money out of pocket. There was a huge scandal
about scooters in the US, so Medicare no longer provides them.

There is a HUGE supply of \"previously used\" scooters, powerchairs and
electric wheelchairs. Most folks are hard pressed to figure out how to
DISPOSE of theirs (or, that of a loved one who has died or no longer is
able to use it). They\'re THRILLED if you\'ll come and take it off
their hands, for them!

I used to recondition these devices for a local non-profit. But,
found that most ended up being discarded before ever seeing a
new home! Folks balk at the $200-$400 cost of buying replacement
batteries -- even if *I* installed them (after THEY purchased them
from amazon, etc.).

And, they aren\'t trivial to transport! If you don\'t have a
chair lift on your vehicle, you\'ll never get it home! (We\'d
load them on the back of pickups -- with forklift -- and
shake our heads wondering how the hell the recipient was
going to get it OFF... they weigh ~400 pounds!)

And, there\'s more to acquiring a mobility device than just gaining
possession of it -- even if the batteries WORK! There are dozens of
adjustments that need to be fitted to the occupant. And, the
\"controller\'s\" dynamics need to be tweeked based on the needs of
the driver (grandma might not be capable of handling a 6MPH chair
*indoors* without smashing all of her furniture!).

And, of course, if something on the device BREAKS... <shrug>

I finally stopped doing refurbishing them as it was a lot of time
(20 - 80 hours, each) with few \"takers\". Plus, if the previous
owner/user was incontinent, you\'d spend hours cleaning everything
(with bleach) before you could even get near it! <frown>

But, I managed to set aside a pair of these, for my own use:

<https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1403/1461/products/IMG_5334_clean_1024x1024.JPG>
It\'s got tilt, recline, leg lift and elevator -- plus headlights
and turn signal indicators (not shown on the sample photo)! <groan>

I pulled the seating system off of one and replaced it with a wheelbarrow
bucket (electric wheelbarrow with \"power dump\") and the batteries with a
70A 24V power supply as it\'s never going to be far from an electric outlet!

The second one I\'ve been modifying for an automation project, here.
(it\'s got real batteries so I take it for a spin around the neighborhood
every month or so to keep the batteries topped off)

Check Craig\'s List in your area. Or, see if there are any charities
that accept \"durable medical equipment\" donations and inquire as
to whether or not they get such donations -- and how they \"dispose\"
of them.

 

[Tom Gardner]

You do need to be aware of the wide range of devices available;
choosing an inappropriate one will cause problems. No surprises there!


On 26/07/20 08:36, Don Y wrote:

On 7/25/2020 11:36 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:
They can, if you have the money out of pocket. There was a huge scandal
about scooters in the US, so Medicare no longer provides them.

There is a HUGE supply of \"previously used\" scooters, powerchairs and
electric wheelchairs.  Most folks are hard pressed to figure out how to
DISPOSE of theirs (or, that of a loved one who has died or no longer is
able to use it).  They\'re THRILLED if you\'ll come and take it off
their hands, for them!

I used to recondition these devices for a local non-profit.  But,
found that most ended up being discarded before ever seeing a
new home!  Folks balk at the $200-$400 cost of buying replacement
batteries -- even if *I* installed them (after THEY purchased them
from amazon, etc.).

The SLA batteries on my mother\'s scooter cost ~£80.

And, they aren\'t trivial to transport!  If you don\'t have a
chair lift on your vehicle, you\'ll never get it home!  (We\'d
load them on the back of pickups -- with forklift -- and
shake our heads wondering how the hell the recipient was
going to get it OFF... they weigh ~400 pounds!)

The small one my mother has weighs 20kg. She
probably weighs three times that.

This is a modern version of her\'s; I presume you can get
something like this in the US:
https://www.careco.co.uk/item-p-ms01016/pride-go-go-elite-traveller-plus-3-travel-mobility-scooter/

(I presume you don\'t mean the recipient weighs
400lbs )

And, there\'s more to acquiring a mobility device than just gaining
possession of it -- even if the batteries WORK!  There are dozens of
adjustments that need to be fitted to the occupant.  And, the
\"controller\'s\" dynamics need to be tweeked based on the needs of
the driver (grandma might not be capable of handling a 6MPH chair
*indoors* without smashing all of her furniture!).

Not on my mother\'s. The only adjustment is the handle angle,
and that is set every time I take it in/out the car.


> And, of course, if something on the device BREAKS...  <shrug>

I\'ve replaced the SLA batteries a few times. Yes, that
does give the hint that is it maybe 15 years old.

Some of the screws in the lift-off battery container
are broken. They are only stressed when removing/replacing
battery after a car journey, and I can be gentle.

 

[Don Y]

On 7/26/2020 1:51 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:

You do need to be aware of the wide range of devices available;
choosing an inappropriate one will cause problems. No surprises there!

We (non-profit) didn\'t have a choice as to what we\'d receive as
donations. :>

Part of my job was to consider the sort of client that might benefit
from a donated chair.

E.g., I would frequently see a young girl (child) waiting for the
school bus in a (manual) chair if I was on the road in the morning.
I eventually processed a donated chair that was ideal for a person
with a small frame. And, had a \"deep\" back that would provide
lots of side-support.

I reconditioned the chair and then made a special visit to the
leasing office of the apartment complex where she (must?) live.
As I had no right to her identity or to access her personally,
I left a note at the front desk and described the girl in
question. They recognized the family involved and agreed
to forward my note offering the chair (\"but you\'ll have to
buy your own batteries -- which I will gladly install!\")

After hearing nothing from the family in a month, I revisited
the leasing office and again pressed the issue. They remembered
my original visit, indicated that they HAD passed my note along
and could offer no reason for the lack of followup.

I waited another month and then discarded the chair (chairs
take up lots of space and such a small chair is really only
useful for a child!)

<shrug>

On 26/07/20 08:36, Don Y wrote:
On 7/25/2020 11:36 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:
They can, if you have the money out of pocket. There was a huge scandal
about scooters in the US, so Medicare no longer provides them.

There is a HUGE supply of \"previously used\" scooters, powerchairs and
electric wheelchairs. Most folks are hard pressed to figure out how to
DISPOSE of theirs (or, that of a loved one who has died or no longer is
able to use it). They\'re THRILLED if you\'ll come and take it off
their hands, for them!

I used to recondition these devices for a local non-profit. But,
found that most ended up being discarded before ever seeing a
new home! Folks balk at the $200-$400 cost of buying replacement
batteries -- even if *I* installed them (after THEY purchased them
from amazon, etc.).

The SLA batteries on my mother\'s scooter cost ~£80.

It\'s a small, light-weight \"scooter\". The last \"scooter\"
that I gave away used a pair of SLAs that could be purchased for
~$100. That, of course, assumes you have someone around who can
install them. (not hard on most scooters; considerably harder on
electric wheelchairs and powerchairs!)

It could be broken down into 4 pieces for transport:
- seat
- drive unit (back wheels)
- frame (front wheel(s) and tiller
- battery box
Unfortunately, the woman I gave it to couldn\'t even lift
the battery box (nor the cardboard box in which the batteries
were delivered to her home!). But, had neighbors who could
help her out...

So, \"portable\" is a relative term.

And, they aren\'t trivial to transport! If you don\'t have a
chair lift on your vehicle, you\'ll never get it home! (We\'d
load them on the back of pickups -- with forklift -- and
shake our heads wondering how the hell the recipient was
going to get it OFF... they weigh ~400 pounds!)

The small one my mother has weighs 20kg. She
probably weighs three times that.

This is a modern version of her\'s; I presume you can get
something like this in the US:
https://www.careco.co.uk/item-p-ms01016/pride-go-go-elite-traveller-plus-3-travel-mobility-scooter/

Yes -- if you want to spend money you can buy all sorts of things! :>

The last scooter that I scrapped had a \"power folding\" capability...
get off the scooter, lift seat and press button and it folds flat
using the drive motor to power the folding mechanism.

Of course, if batteries are dead, you can\'t rely on that \"feature\".

[If the seat is in the down (not elevated) position on my chairs,
you can\'t access the battery compartment. You have to remove the seat
cushion, the seat plate and thread a special tool through a hole
in the seat bottom to manually crank the elevator mechanism \"up\"
before the tops of the batteries are exposed.

Or, if you\'re an engineer, you open the circuit breaker to disconnect
the (dead) battery from the chair\'s wiring. Then, feed 24VDC in through
the charging connector WHILE DISABLING THE INHIBIT CONTROL. This
allows you to use the motorized lift mechanism to raise the seat without
having to go through all that disassembly hassle.

You can\'t RUN the chair in this way as the conductor from the
charging port to the drive motors isn\'t capable of carrying much
sustained current. Even sitting in the seat as it elevates
would stress the connection!]

I think the (inflated for insurance) \"list\" price for a battery replacement
on my chairs is $1100. I can purchase replacement batteries for about
$200-250/each (12V 75AHr). Paying a provider to replace them involves
a fair bit of labor -- including a trip to your home to perform the work
(or fetch the chair and bring it back to the \"shop\")... hence the
outrageous price tag.

[This is important, in the non-profit application, in that *I* am not
an ongoing \"support person\"! So, anyone wanting a \"free\" chair has
to consider these consequences, down the road]

(I presume you don\'t mean the recipient weighs
400lbs )

My chairs will support a 300pound driver. The HD version will support
an individual weighing up to 450 pounds. I figured that a fully loaded
wheelbarrow bucket is roughly equivalent to that 300 pound driver.
And, I\'ve already discarded the ~150 pound SEAT so I\'ve got some
margin, there...

I refurbished a chair a few years ago that had a seat wide enough
for TWO people to sit side-by-side (hint: I don\'t believe it was
intended for dual drivers!)

And, there\'s more to acquiring a mobility device than just gaining
possession of it -- even if the batteries WORK! There are dozens of
adjustments that need to be fitted to the occupant. And, the
\"controller\'s\" dynamics need to be tweeked based on the needs of
the driver (grandma might not be capable of handling a 6MPH chair
*indoors* without smashing all of her furniture!).

Not on my mother\'s. The only adjustment is the handle angle,
and that is set every time I take it in/out the car.

If you have a tiller (handle), then that often has an adjustment.
The seat has a height adjustment (often a nut/bolt so it isn\'t
readily changed). The armrests can often be elevated or lowered.
They can also be positioned farther apart (wider driver). The
back rest often has some limited amount of incline. If a
headrest is present, it can be adjusted (height/angle).

On a powerchair or an electric wheelchair, there are often
legrests that can be adjusted (how LONG are the driver\'s
legs). The angle of the foot rests can be set. Supports
on the outside of each thigh can be positioned (width/height).
Likewise for each calf and rib cage supports.

The ANGLE of the armrests can be adjusted (in addition to height
and spacing). The position of the control joystick can be
set (how long are your arms) -- as well as which armrest it
affixes to.

I have to set the stiffness of the suspension on my chairs
(riding on a bumpy road is BRUTAL on your back!).

The top speed can be set -- forward and reverse. Likewise
the maximum acceleration. The sensitivity of the joystick can
be set along with any delay in its response (driver may have
ET or PT so you don\'t want the controls reacting to \"twitches\").
How quickly the chair brakes (regenerative and mechanical)
engage.

[If another form of control -- e.g., sip-and-puff is fitted -- then
it\'s characteristics have to be accommodated. And, don\'t forget the
bluetooth interface! :-/ ]

And, each of these settings can be stored in a user-selectable
\"profile\" (e.g., indoor vs. outdoor, work vs. play, etc.).

Scooters are primarily for \"old people who can\'t walk easily.
Powerchairs for folks with more severe needs. Wheelchairs
for the most \"special\" needs. (e.g., the seat cushion on my
chairs is an inflatable air bladder intended to reduce the
possibility of \"pressure sores\" -- for folks who LIVE in
the chair all day long!)

<https://permobilus.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/ROHO%C2%AE-Custom-Cushion-min.jpg>

(though it\'s actually in a covered case) You have to manually
inflate the cushion based on the weight and bone structure of
the occupant (so the pelvic bones don\'t rest on the metal
base beneath the seat)

And, of course, if something on the device BREAKS... <shrug

I\'ve replaced the SLA batteries a few times. Yes, that
does give the hint that is it maybe 15 years old.

I opted to rescue a second chair (the \"wheelbarrow\") primarily
as a source of spare parts. I also pulled lots of \"bits\"
off of chairs that were discarded (motor drivers, cable assemblies,
even the metric capscrews used to hold things together!).
I surely am not going to spend \"real money\" maintaining
something that I got for free! :>

Some of the screws in the lift-off battery container
are broken. They are only stressed when removing/replacing
battery after a car journey, and I can be gentle.

There\'s a large, molded plastic *cosmetic* cover that
hides the mechanisms below the seat on my chairs. This
must be removed to access the batteries and electronics
(as well as the lift/elevate/recline/etc. actuators).
\"Custom\" (I\'d say \"proprietary\" but that has a different
meaning on the other side of the pond) thumbscrews
are used to hold this down. Sadly, they have a very FINE
thread! So, care must be used to avoid cross-threading
them when removing/installing the cover.

The rest of the fasteners are hex-head cap screws. I think
I can service the chairs with 3 (maybe 4?) Allen wrenches
and one socket (?). No screwdrivers, pliers, etc.

Much depends on usage. I\'ve seen casters with big gouges
in them (what the hell did the driver HIT to cause that much
damage??). I\'ve seen broken castings (driver leaning back
too forcefully and snapping the frame that supports the
backrest -- a 300 pound man can exert a lot of force when
pushing with his back!). I\'ve seen broken control interfaces
(joysticks, etc.) -- but never a motor drive or a \"controller\"
(regardless, I pulled spares of all of these!) And, the
\"covers\" for the various cushions and supports often end
up frayed.

But, then again, I was encountering a couple of these each week,
EVERY week. So, you\'d expect a fair bit of wear-and-tear
to be in evidence.

OTOH, the sheer number of donations made it relatively easy to
piece together a complete chair from parts of unsalvageable
chairs (that\'s how I got the headlights and turn signals
for my chairs -- as well as the bluetooth interfaces!).

 

[Tom Gardner]

We\'re in violent agreement.

Anybody that has tried to help other people knows that in
some cases you can bring water to the horse, but can\'t make
it drink. That\'s particularly sad if a young person is
involved.

My mother\'s small scooter can be broken down like that.
She could not lift the scooter either; she can hardly
lift herself.

Batteries can be dangerous when they become flat. My mother
has a motorised bath seat, and it claims that it won\'t go
down if there isn\'t enough charge to get it back up again.
I don\'t see a /beneficial/ way of testing that.

We don\'t have the \"insurance uplift\" problem here, I\'m
very glad to say. Callout fees are ~£60, which is very
reasonable.



On 26/07/20 11:17, Don Y wrote:

On 7/26/2020 1:51 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:
You do need to be aware of the wide range of devices available;
choosing an inappropriate one will cause problems. No surprises there!

We (non-profit) didn\'t have a choice as to what we\'d receive as
donations.  :

Part of my job was to consider the sort of client that might benefit
from a donated chair.

E.g., I would frequently see a young girl (child) waiting for the
school bus in a (manual) chair if I was on the road in the morning.
I eventually processed a donated chair that was ideal for a person
with a small frame.  And, had a \"deep\" back that would provide
lots of side-support.

I reconditioned the chair and then made a special visit to the
leasing office of the apartment complex where she (must?) live.
As I had no right to her identity or to access her personally,
I left a note at the front desk and described the girl in
question.  They recognized the family involved and agreed
to forward my note offering the chair (\"but you\'ll have to
buy your own batteries -- which I will gladly install!\")

After hearing nothing from the family in a month, I revisited
the leasing office and again pressed the issue.  They remembered
my original visit, indicated that they HAD passed my note along
and could offer no reason for the lack of followup.

I waited another month and then discarded the chair (chairs
take up lots of space and such a small chair is really only
useful for a child!)

shrug

On 26/07/20 08:36, Don Y wrote:
On 7/25/2020 11:36 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:
They can, if you have the money out of pocket. There was a huge scandal
about scooters in the US, so Medicare no longer provides them.

There is a HUGE supply of \"previously used\" scooters, powerchairs and
electric wheelchairs.  Most folks are hard pressed to figure out how to
DISPOSE of theirs (or, that of a loved one who has died or no longer is
able to use it).  They\'re THRILLED if you\'ll come and take it off
their hands, for them!

I used to recondition these devices for a local non-profit.  But,
found that most ended up being discarded before ever seeing a
new home!  Folks balk at the $200-$400 cost of buying replacement
batteries -- even if *I* installed them (after THEY purchased them
from amazon, etc.).

The SLA batteries on my mother\'s scooter cost ~£80.

It\'s a small, light-weight \"scooter\".  The last \"scooter\"
that I gave away used a pair of SLAs that could be purchased for
~$100.  That, of course, assumes you have someone around who can
install them.  (not hard on most scooters; considerably harder on
electric wheelchairs and powerchairs!)

It could be broken down into 4 pieces for transport:
- seat
- drive unit (back wheels)
- frame (front wheel(s) and tiller
- battery box
Unfortunately, the woman I gave it to couldn\'t even lift
the battery box (nor the cardboard box in which the batteries
were delivered to her home!).  But, had neighbors who could
help her out...

So, \"portable\" is a relative term.

And, they aren\'t trivial to transport!  If you don\'t have a
chair lift on your vehicle, you\'ll never get it home!  (We\'d
load them on the back of pickups -- with forklift -- and
shake our heads wondering how the hell the recipient was
going to get it OFF... they weigh ~400 pounds!)

The small one my mother has weighs 20kg. She
probably weighs three times that.

This is a modern version of her\'s; I presume you can get
something like this in the US:
https://www.careco.co.uk/item-p-ms01016/pride-go-go-elite-traveller-plus-3-travel-mobility-scooter/


Yes -- if you want to spend money you can buy all sorts of things!  :

The last scooter that I scrapped had a \"power folding\" capability...
get off the scooter, lift seat and press button and it folds flat
using the drive motor to power the folding mechanism.

Of course, if batteries are dead, you can\'t rely on that \"feature\".

[If the seat is in the down (not elevated) position on my chairs,
you can\'t access the battery compartment.  You have to remove the seat
cushion, the seat plate and thread a special tool through a hole
in the seat bottom to manually crank the elevator mechanism \"up\"
before the tops of the batteries are exposed.

Or, if you\'re an engineer, you open the circuit breaker to disconnect
the (dead) battery from the chair\'s wiring.  Then, feed 24VDC in through
the charging connector WHILE DISABLING THE INHIBIT CONTROL.  This
allows you to use the motorized lift mechanism to raise the seat without
having to go through all that disassembly hassle.

You can\'t RUN the chair in this way as the conductor from the
charging port to the drive motors isn\'t capable of carrying much
sustained current.  Even sitting in the seat as it elevates
would stress the connection!]

I think the (inflated for insurance) \"list\" price for a battery replacement
on my chairs is $1100.  I can purchase replacement batteries for about
$200-250/each (12V 75AHr).  Paying a provider to replace them involves
a fair bit of labor -- including a trip to your home to perform the work
(or fetch the chair and bring it back to the \"shop\")... hence the
outrageous price tag.

[This is important, in the non-profit application, in that *I* am not
an ongoing \"support person\"!  So, anyone wanting a \"free\" chair has
to consider these consequences, down the road]

(I presume you don\'t mean the recipient weighs
400lbs )

My chairs will support a 300pound driver.  The HD version will support
an individual weighing up to 450 pounds.  I figured that a fully loaded
wheelbarrow bucket is roughly equivalent to that 300 pound driver.
And, I\'ve already discarded the ~150 pound SEAT so I\'ve got some
margin, there...

I refurbished a chair a few years ago that had a seat wide enough
for TWO people to sit side-by-side (hint:  I don\'t believe it was
intended for dual drivers!)

And, there\'s more to acquiring a mobility device than just gaining
possession of it -- even if the batteries WORK!  There are dozens of
adjustments that need to be fitted to the occupant.  And, the
\"controller\'s\" dynamics need to be tweeked based on the needs of
the driver (grandma might not be capable of handling a 6MPH chair
*indoors* without smashing all of her furniture!).

Not on my mother\'s. The only adjustment is the handle angle,
and that is set every time I take it in/out the car.

If you have a tiller (handle), then that often has an adjustment.
The seat has a height adjustment (often a nut/bolt so it isn\'t
readily changed).  The armrests can often be elevated or lowered.
They can also be positioned farther apart (wider driver).  The
back rest often has some limited amount of incline.  If a
headrest is present, it can be adjusted (height/angle).

On a powerchair or an electric wheelchair, there are often
legrests that can be adjusted (how LONG are the driver\'s
legs).  The angle of the foot rests can be set.  Supports
on the outside of each thigh can be positioned (width/height).
Likewise for each calf and rib cage supports.

The ANGLE of the armrests can be adjusted (in addition to height
and spacing).  The position of the control joystick can be
set (how long are your arms) -- as well as which armrest it
affixes to.

I have to set the stiffness of the suspension on my chairs
(riding on a bumpy road is BRUTAL on your back!).

The top speed can be set -- forward and reverse.  Likewise
the maximum acceleration.  The sensitivity of the joystick can
be set along with any delay in its response (driver may have
ET or PT so you don\'t want the controls reacting to \"twitches\").
How quickly the chair brakes (regenerative and mechanical)
engage.

[If another form of control -- e.g., sip-and-puff is fitted -- then
it\'s characteristics have to be accommodated.  And, don\'t forget the
bluetooth interface!  :-/ ]

And, each of these settings can be stored in a user-selectable
\"profile\" (e.g., indoor vs. outdoor, work vs. play, etc.).

Scooters are primarily for \"old people who can\'t walk easily.
Powerchairs for folks with more severe needs.  Wheelchairs
for the most \"special\" needs.  (e.g., the seat cushion on my
chairs is an inflatable air bladder intended to reduce the
possibility of \"pressure sores\" -- for folks who LIVE in
the chair all day long!)

https://permobilus.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/ROHO%C2%AE-Custom-Cushion-min.jpg


(though it\'s actually in a covered case)  You have to manually
inflate the cushion based on the weight and bone structure of
the occupant (so the pelvic bones don\'t rest on the metal
base beneath the seat)

And, of course, if something on the device BREAKS...  <shrug

I\'ve replaced the SLA batteries a few times. Yes, that
does give the hint that is it maybe 15 years old.

I opted to rescue a second chair (the \"wheelbarrow\") primarily
as a source of spare parts.  I also pulled lots of \"bits\"
off of chairs that were discarded (motor drivers, cable assemblies,
even the metric capscrews used to hold things together!).
I surely am not going to spend \"real money\" maintaining
something that I got for free!  :

Some of the screws in the lift-off battery container
are broken. They are only stressed when removing/replacing
battery after a car journey, and I can be gentle.

There\'s a large, molded plastic *cosmetic* cover that
hides the mechanisms below the seat on my chairs.  This
must be removed to access the batteries and electronics
(as well as the lift/elevate/recline/etc. actuators).
\"Custom\" (I\'d say \"proprietary\" but that has a different
meaning on the other side of the pond) thumbscrews
are used to hold this down.  Sadly, they have a very FINE
thread!  So, care must be used to avoid cross-threading
them when removing/installing the cover.

The rest of the fasteners are hex-head cap screws.  I think
I can service the chairs with 3 (maybe 4?) Allen wrenches
and one socket (?).  No screwdrivers, pliers, etc.

Much depends on usage.  I\'ve seen casters with big gouges
in them (what the hell did the driver HIT to cause that much
damage??).  I\'ve seen broken castings (driver leaning back
too forcefully and snapping the frame that supports the
backrest -- a 300 pound man can exert a lot of force when
pushing with his back!).  I\'ve seen broken control interfaces
(joysticks, etc.) -- but never a motor drive or a \"controller\"
(regardless, I pulled spares of all of these!)  And, the
\"covers\" for the various cushions and supports often end
up frayed.

But, then again, I was encountering a couple of these each week,
EVERY week.  So, you\'d expect a fair bit of wear-and-tear
to be in evidence.

OTOH, the sheer number of donations made it relatively easy to
piece together a complete chair from parts of unsalvageable
chairs (that\'s how I got the headlights and turn signals
for my chairs -- as well as the bluetooth interfaces!).

 

[Don Y]

On 7/26/2020 3:39 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:

We\'re in violent agreement.

Anybody that has tried to help other people knows that in
some cases you can bring water to the horse, but can\'t make
it drink. That\'s particularly sad if a young person is
involved.

In the case of the young girl...

I can\'t fault the girl (she may never have been told of the offer)

I can\'t fault the parents/guardians as I don\'t understand their living
situation, finances, etc.

And, I can\'t fault the leasing office as they (supposedly)
delivered the message.

[In fact, they were eager for me to \"drop off\" more scooters
and chairs as they had \"other residents\" that could make use of
them. \"Um, no thanks!\"]

So, I can be DISAPPOINTED in a lost opportunity to provide assistance
but surely can\'t be ANGRY about it!

My mother\'s small scooter can be broken down like that.
She could not lift the scooter either; she can hardly
lift herself.

This is a common problem with \"medical needs\"... folks with one
problem often have others -- that may or may not be related.

Batteries can be dangerous when they become flat. My mother
has a motorised bath seat, and it claims that it won\'t go
down if there isn\'t enough charge to get it back up again.
I don\'t see a /beneficial/ way of testing that.

Mount the seat on the ceiling?? :-/

There are some Hoyer lifts that impose similar constraints.
With this in mind, you\'d be interested in selecting something that
has a mechanical means of \"backup\" operation. E.g., let the motor
drive a mechanism that can also be manually actuated.

We don\'t have the \"insurance uplift\" problem here, I\'m
very glad to say. Callout fees are ~£60, which is very
reasonable.

It\'s a perverse set of DISincentives! E.g., if you
*qualify* for a chair, then there\'s no incentive for you
to be economical in your selection process.

If you *don\'t* qualify, then you\'re stuck facing \"list prices\"
that are exhorbitant (my chairs \"list\" for more than many folks\'
annual net pay!)

Additionally, if you qualify, then you are \"entitled\" to
a replacement chair (I think it\'s a 5 year item?). So, no
incentive to KEEP an existing chair OR engage in behaviors
that might increase its lifespan.

Finally, the chairs aren\'t designed to make maintenance
easy -- especially for a person who NEEDS such a chair
(and likely can\'t just climb out of it and start working
on it!)

<shrug> Moral of story: don\'t NEED a chair!

 

[amdx]

On 7/26/2020 7:05 AM, Don Y wrote:

It\'s a perverse set of DISincentives!  E.g., if you
*qualify* for a chair, then there\'s no incentive for you
to be economical in your selection process.


Additionally, if you qualify, then you are \"entitled\" to
a replacement chair (I think it\'s a 5 year item?).  So, no
incentive to KEEP an existing chair OR engage in behaviors
that might increase its lifespan.

 Yep, I have a neighbor that leaves his in the sun and rain constantly.

He recently got a second one after the first one failed and the the
first has been setting in the driveway

for months.


--
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus

 

[Tom Gardner]

On 26/07/20 13:05, Don Y wrote:

On 7/26/2020 3:39 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:
We\'re in violent agreement.

Anybody that has tried to help other people knows that in
some cases you can bring water to the horse, but can\'t make
it drink. That\'s particularly sad if a young person is
involved.

In the case of the young girl...

I can\'t fault the girl (she may never have been told of the offer)

I can\'t fault the parents/guardians as I don\'t understand their living
situation, finances, etc.

And, I can\'t fault the leasing office as they (supposedly)
delivered the message.

[In fact, they were eager for me to \"drop off\" more scooters
and chairs as they had \"other residents\" that could make use of
them.  \"Um, no thanks!\"]

So, I can be DISAPPOINTED in a lost opportunity to provide assistance
but surely can\'t be ANGRY about it!

Yup.

We don\'t have the \"insurance uplift\" problem here, I\'m
very glad to say. Callout fees are ~£60, which is very
reasonable.

It\'s a perverse set of DISincentives!  E.g., if you
*qualify* for a chair, then there\'s no incentive for you
to be economical in your selection process

I understand and accept that theory, but in practice
that doesn\'t seem to be an issue here. I\'m not sure why,
but some speculations can be:
- people value and treasure the health service
above most things, to an almost religious extent.
There is a visceral fear of anything like the US
health system. Many Americans simply cannot believe
that, but it is true
- people know the NHS is under-resourced, and don\'t want
to abuse it
- they have economies of bulk purchases, which keeps the
price down
- the NHS will give you what you /need/, as assessed by
skilled individuals that have nothing to gain by over
or underselling. Hence they are trusted, and the
decision is accepted.

From our PoV, the US system has far more and worse perverse
DISincentives. Salesmen always oversell beyond what is
beneficial to the patient. Doctors overtreat so as to have
a defence against being sued.

But no system is perfect; choose your disadvantages.

If you *don\'t* qualify, then you\'re stuck facing \"list prices\"
that are exhorbitant (my chairs \"list\" for more than many folks\'
annual net pay!)

You can always buy medical treatment/equipment here. The
list prices aren\'t artificially inflated in the way you
outline.

Additionally, if you qualify, then you are \"entitled\" to
a replacement chair (I think it\'s a 5 year item?).  So, no
incentive to KEEP an existing chair OR engage in behaviors
that might increase its lifespan.

That doesn\'t seem to happen here, for the reasons given
above.

My main experience is with deafaids. If you are negligent
then you have to pay ~£100 to replace it. In practice
as long as you aren\'t a repeat offender, \"the parrot/dog
ate it\" is accepted. Yes I do know of cases where exactly
that happened

Finally, the chairs aren\'t designed to make maintenance
easy -- especially for a person who NEEDS such a chair
(and likely can\'t just climb out of it and start working
on it!)

Fortunately my experience is limited to replacing SLAs
and contacts between the battery pack and frame.


> <shrug>  Moral of story:  don\'t NEED a chair!

Long may that be the case

 

[Don Y]

On 7/26/2020 7:25 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:

We don\'t have the \"insurance uplift\" problem here, I\'m
very glad to say. Callout fees are ~£60, which is very
reasonable.

It\'s a perverse set of DISincentives! E.g., if you
*qualify* for a chair, then there\'s no incentive for you
to be economical in your selection process
I understand and accept that theory, but in practice
that doesn\'t seem to be an issue here. I\'m not sure why,
but some speculations can be:
- people value and treasure the health service
above most things, to an almost religious extent.
There is a visceral fear of anything like the US
health system. Many Americans simply cannot believe
that, but it is true
- people know the NHS is under-resourced, and don\'t want
to abuse it
- they have economies of bulk purchases, which keeps the
price down
- the NHS will give you what you /need/, as assessed by
skilled individuals that have nothing to gain by over
or underselling. Hence they are trusted, and the
decision is accepted.

I hear folks talk (wrt insurance, in general) with an attitude of
\"I\'ve PAID for this so I\'m going to get the most out of it!\"

Note that there is also no incentive for insurers to drive costs
down. If health care (or DME) was inexpensive, you\'d never consider
buying insurance to cover those POSSIBLE costs!

From our PoV, the US system has far more and worse perverse
DISincentives. Salesmen always oversell beyond what is
beneficial to the patient. Doctors overtreat so as to have
a defence against being sued.

But no system is perfect; choose your disadvantages.

If you *don\'t* qualify, then you\'re stuck facing \"list prices\"
that are exhorbitant (my chairs \"list\" for more than many folks\'
annual net pay!)

You can always buy medical treatment/equipment here. The
list prices aren\'t artificially inflated in the way you
outline.

Here\'s the published \"retail price list\" for my chairs (from factory):
<https://permobilus.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/US-M300-Corpus-HD.pdf>
(actually, I don\'t have the HD model but the prices are very comparable)

A crude tabulation of the pertinent line items:

M300 Base (i.e., the motorized wheels) 10,480
Power adjustable seat (elevator) 3,466
Batteries (pair) 1,002
LED light kit 1,233
===================================================
subtotal (motorized base) 16,181

(note that we still don\'t have anything to actually SIT ON!)

Color Joystick w/lights 1,232
Stick (not included in the above!) 167
Joystick swing-away mount 374
Controller 699
Controller wiring harness 620
Bluetooth module 962
Multiple seat function control (tilt, etc.) 3,657
Toggle switches on ICS switchbox 327
Memory seat program 132
Legrest linked to recline electronically 50
===================================================
subtotal (control) 8,220

(still no seat!)

HD Seat with power recline 13,475
Corpus HD Ergo Backrest 1,047
Black mesh (backrest) cushion 43
ROHO seat cushion (22\") 628
Incontinence seat cover 161
Height adjustable armrests 357
Left arm pad (gel) 185
Right arm pad (gel) 185
Power lift legrests 3,784
Extra wide foot plates 268
Headrest (10\") 397
Push handles (so someone can push the chair) 447
USB charger 212
===================================================
subtotal (seat) 21,189

Total 45,590

WTF??? You\'ll note that I have *two* of them... i.e.,
TWO people opted to \"discard\" (donate) their chairs!
I wonder how many others never considered making the
donation (or, found some other home for them?)

$50 for \"Legrest linked to recline electronically\"?
What\'s that, a BIT in the controller software\'s
configuration???

[Note that the \"E numbers\" on each line item pertain to
a standardized insurance/medicare/SSI claim]

Additionally, if you qualify, then you are \"entitled\" to
a replacement chair (I think it\'s a 5 year item?). So, no
incentive to KEEP an existing chair OR engage in behaviors
that might increase its lifespan.

That doesn\'t seem to happen here, for the reasons given
above.

My main experience is with deafaids. If you are negligent
then you have to pay ~£100 to replace it. In practice
as long as you aren\'t a repeat offender, \"the parrot/dog
ate it\" is accepted. Yes I do know of cases where exactly
that happened

If this was commonplace -- and the NHS didn\'t want to
get pissy about chastising \"repeat offenders\" -- then
they would find a supplier who could produce a quality
hearing aid for a lower price. There\'s no real incentive
to do that, here.

Finally, the chairs aren\'t designed to make maintenance
easy -- especially for a person who NEEDS such a chair
(and likely can\'t just climb out of it and start working
on it!)

Fortunately my experience is limited to replacing SLAs
and contacts between the battery pack and frame.

Imagine if YOU were the chair\'s user! How easily could
*you* perform those tasks?

<frown>

 

[bitrex]

On 7/26/2020 3:15 AM, Don Y wrote:

Most have discouraged (or outright forbidden) bringing along kids.
Still amazes me that \"Ma\" AND \"Pa\" both need to be on hand to sort
out what to buy!  <shakes head

A piece of \"young man\'s wisdom\" me and the fellas developed many years
ago (when I was more like a young man I guess...)

If you saw a young woman shopping for household goods in a store like
Ikea, alone, she was almost surely single, or close to it, because
there\'s no way most spoken-for women would be out hoofing it around the
store picking up clothes hangers, cutting boards, and Venetian blinds
letting their long-term boyfriend or husband sit on their can back home
with a beer and watch the game.

Nah ah.

 

[Tom Gardner]

On 26/07/20 16:14, Don Y wrote:

On 7/26/2020 7:25 AM, Tom Gardner wrote:

We don\'t have the \"insurance uplift\" problem here, I\'m
very glad to say. Callout fees are ~£60, which is very
reasonable.

It\'s a perverse set of DISincentives!  E.g., if you
*qualify* for a chair, then there\'s no incentive for you
to be economical in your selection process
I understand and accept that theory, but in practice
that doesn\'t seem to be an issue here. I\'m not sure why,
but some speculations can be:
  - people value and treasure the health service
    above most things, to an almost religious extent.
    There is a visceral fear of anything like the US
    health system. Many Americans simply cannot believe
    that, but it is true
  - people know the NHS is under-resourced, and don\'t want
    to abuse it
  - they have economies of bulk purchases, which keeps the
    price down
  - the NHS will give you what you /need/, as assessed by
    skilled individuals that have nothing to gain by over
    or underselling. Hence they are trusted, and the
    decision is accepted.

I hear folks talk (wrt insurance, in general) with an attitude of
\"I\'ve PAID for this so I\'m going to get the most out of it!\"

Not me! I prefer to stay out of hospitals, and where you
have to repeat purchasing insurance, I presume some of
your payout will be recouped by increased premiums.

But then perhaps I\'m too honest. When my car was rear
ended, several times I was asked if I had any neck problems.
I answered no, in the full knowledge that claiming
such problems was a standard way to jack up a payout.

Note that there is also no incentive for insurers to drive costs
down.  If health care (or DME) was inexpensive, you\'d never consider
buying insurance to cover those POSSIBLE costs!

Oh, that\'s a perverse incentive (for the insurance companies)
I hadn\'t thought of!

 From our PoV, the US system has far more and worse perverse
DISincentives. Salesmen always oversell beyond what is
beneficial to the patient. Doctors overtreat so as to have
a defence against being sued.

But no system is perfect; choose your disadvantages.

If you *don\'t* qualify, then you\'re stuck facing \"list prices\"
that are exhorbitant (my chairs \"list\" for more than many folks\'
annual net pay!)

You can always buy medical treatment/equipment here. The
list prices aren\'t artificially inflated in the way you
outline.

Here\'s the published \"retail price list\" for my chairs (from factory):
https://permobilus.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/US-M300-Corpus-HD.pdf
(actually, I don\'t have the HD model but the prices are very comparable)

A crude tabulation of the pertinent line items:

M300 Base (i.e., the motorized wheels)       10,480
Power adjustable seat (elevator)              3,466
Batteries (pair)                              1,002
LED light kit                                 1,233
===================================================
subtotal (motorized base)                    16,181

(note that we still don\'t have anything to actually SIT ON!)

Color Joystick w/lights                       1,232
Stick (not included in the above!)              167
Joystick swing-away mount                       374
Controller                                      699
Controller wiring harness                       620
Bluetooth module                                962
Multiple seat function control (tilt, etc.)   3,657
Toggle switches on ICS switchbox                327
Memory seat program                             132
Legrest linked to recline electronically         50
===================================================
subtotal (control)                            8,220

(still no seat!)

HD Seat with power recline                   13,475
Corpus HD Ergo Backrest                       1,047
Black mesh (backrest) cushion                    43
ROHO seat cushion (22\")                         628
Incontinence seat cover                         161
Height adjustable armrests                      357
Left arm pad (gel)                              185
Right arm pad (gel)                             185
Power lift legrests                           3,784
Extra wide foot plates                          268
Headrest (10\")                                  397
Push handles (so someone can push the chair)    447
USB charger                                     212
===================================================
subtotal (seat)                              21,189

Total                                        45,590

WTF???  You\'ll note that I have *two* of them... i.e.,
TWO people opted to \"discard\" (donate) their chairs!
I wonder how many others never considered making the
donation (or, found some other home for them?)

$50 for \"Legrest linked to recline electronically\"?
What\'s that, a BIT in the controller software\'s
configuration???

[Note that the \"E numbers\" on each line item pertain to
a standardized insurance/medicare/SSI claim]

That seems high, but what do I know? I\'ve no idea
of the cost over here.

As for deafaids, there are many types on the market, but
at any time the NHS will offer only a very types which
cover the complete spectrum - up to and including cochlear
implants. Presumably the specific types depend on what
they can negotiate from the suppliers this year.

I expect that I /could/ get a better hearing aid (whatever
than might mean) privately, but it would probably set me
back >£5000 for both ears. More importantly, I could not
guarantee in advance that they would be significantly
better (and there\'s evidence they wouldn\'t be), and if
I lose or break them I would have to fork out again.

Additionally, if you qualify, then you are \"entitled\" to
a replacement chair (I think it\'s a 5 year item?).  So, no
incentive to KEEP an existing chair OR engage in behaviors
that might increase its lifespan.

That doesn\'t seem to happen here, for the reasons given
above.

My main experience is with deafaids. If you are negligent
then you have to pay ~£100 to replace it. In practice
as long as you aren\'t a repeat offender, \"the parrot/dog
ate it\" is accepted. Yes I do know of cases where exactly
that happened

If this was commonplace -- and the NHS didn\'t want to
get pissy about chastising \"repeat offenders\" -- then
they would find a supplier who could produce a quality
hearing aid for a lower price.  There\'s no real incentive
to do that, here.

I doubt it is common, and they do supply high quality
hearing aids from major suppliers. I imagine they will
tend to take last year\'s model rather than this year\'s
model, but that is inconsequential.

Finally, the chairs aren\'t designed to make maintenance
easy -- especially for a person who NEEDS such a chair
(and likely can\'t just climb out of it and start working
on it!)

Fortunately my experience is limited to replacing SLAs
and contacts between the battery pack and frame.

Imagine if YOU were the chair\'s user!  How easily could
*you* perform those tasks?

frown

Zero chance!

Hell\'s teeth, there are far too many able people that
couldn\'t do it.

The way I like to look at it is to realise that the
indigenous people in, say, the Amazon know how to do
everything they need to in order to live. Many people
here can\'t prepare an animal before cooking, or other
everyday things like change a fuse.

Now, please explain to me which of those is the
\"savage\" and which is \"civilised\"

 

[server]

On Sun, 26 Jul 2020 00:15:00 -0700, Don Y
<blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

On 7/25/2020 4:27 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:
Have any of you been to Walmart since they mandated everyone wear a mask? I
went on Tuesday. Not only were masks required, but they closed off the
entrance at one end of the building. The manager brushed it off as no big
deal, but the disabled and elderly were furious. The nearest parking space
was past the closed entrance. I had to go to the other end, walk back to the
closed entrance to find what I needed was out of stock. Then two more trips
the length of the store to return to my vehicle. I was sick from the heat. I
had to lean against the outside of the building for about 15 minutes before
I could finish the long walk. What are they thinking?

It\'s been that way, here (AZ), since the start of this mess (Feb).

Stores having implicit entrances and exits (Loew\'s, Home Depot, TJ\'s, etc.)
now \"enforce\" those restrictions (rent-a-cops) instead of leaving them
to be a matter of convenience (i.e., walk in the entrance, notice that
they don\'t have what you want, try to exit via the entrance and be firmly
told that you must exit via the \"exit\" -- at the other end of the store,
often).

Stores that have more fudge-able entrances and exits now tend to shut
all but one to funnel traffic (both in and out!) through that one portal.
In some cases, they pick the WRONG portal -- like forcing entering customers
to walk \"upstream\" through the checkout lines in order to enter the store!

[In the case of the local post office, they actually *fixed* their traffic
flow so arriving customers and departing customers no longer cross paths as
they had for the past 30+ years!]

Others create artificial barricades (e.g., moving the shopping cart \"coral\"
to the inside the store and using it to prevent folks from exiting the
checkout lines via the entrance).

Trivial barricades (crime scene tape, movable metal barriers, etc.)
are readily circumvented (move it aside or step over it). This is
tolerated as long as you\'re not effectively bucking the line, in the
process. (no, i\'m not going to walk 30 feet out of my way to get to
the door that\'s right in front of me; I\'ll just step over the
barricade... pity folks who are short! :> )

Most stores are only seeing grocery traffic, though. So, for example,
having the entrance to the automotive end of the store closed isn\'t
a real hindrance for most folks (yeah, you CAN still buy a set of
replacement wiper blades... but, you\'ll have to enter through the
\"grocery\" entrance and walk across the store -- and then back -- to
get them). No one purchasing TV\'s/electronics/office supplies/furniture
or even CLOTHING (!) at Costco, Walmart, etc.

All place limits on the number of customers allowed inside. So obviously
that you can see the gatekeeper letting one person in *as* each previous
customer exits. (ask them and they can tell you how many customers are
inside at the present time!)

Most have discouraged (or outright forbidden) bringing along kids.
Still amazes me that \"Ma\" AND \"Pa\" both need to be on hand to sort
out what to buy! <shakes head

Membership stores (Costco, Sam\'s) have placed limits on how many
folks can gain admittance per membership card (i.e., ONE guest).

And, most stores offer special (early!) hours for old folks, special
needs, first responders, healthcare professionals.

Early on (when lines outside were the norm), I learned the value of doing
a bit of reconnaissance BEFORE my planned shopping excursions. \"Let\'s
see how long the lines are at 7:45 -- for an 8:00 opening...\" Often,
you can game the system. E.g., if a store opens at 7 \"for seniors\",
arriving before 7 will leave you in a slow moving line full of other
seniors -- who tend to be slow shoppers. OTOH, arriving at 7:50 (just
prior to the \"normal\" opening) will find all of the waiting seniors
have been accommodated and the folks lined up presently are the
\"non-seniors\" waiting for admittance at 8. So, you can buck the line
and walk right in! :-/ (but, if you don\'t LOOK old, you\'ll get lots
of glares from the younguns, waiting!)

The biggest disappointment in all of this has been the obvious inadequacy
of the on-line inventory data:
\"Your web site said you had 5 of these in stock, 10 minutes ago. You\'ve
only been open for 7 minutes -- I don\'t believe you\'ve sold all 5 of them
in that short time!\"
\"Well, my little handheld terminal says we don\'t have ANY in stock...\"
(so, TWO computer systems tracking the same data in very different ways??)
Moral of story: call the store and have them put <whatever> aside for you.
Or, order it \"for pickup\" and let THEM deal with the fact that their inventory
data is incorrect!

I have decided that the best time to go to Safeway is right around
noon on Saturday. It\'s all stocked up, the roasted chickens are still
hot, and there\'s nobody in the checkout lines.

The Canyon Market down the hill allows only one family member into the
store. So we pretend we don\'t know one another until we get inside.

We can now take our own shopping bags, but we have to bag our own
groceries at a dedicated bagging area away from the checkouts. If
fabric carries disease, why do they allow customers to wear clothes?



--

John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc

Science teaches us to doubt.

Claude Bernard