Two whole years again, but now it’s time to start blogging again. Why? because some pretty incredible things have happened…
The first was being diagnosed with a life-changing condition, and suffering a fairly rapid decline in my health, the second was purchasing a lovely wee house on the shores of loch fyne.
So, the illness. I have a gene which is carried by about 17% of the UK population – a version of the Human Leukocyte Antigen called HLA-B27. Combine that with the common gut bacteria Klebsiella Pneumonia, and I get my spinal bones slowly fusing together and an excruciating level of pain… it’s called Ankylosing Spondilytis, and it is not fun.
Facing the prospect of only being able to work for 3 or 4 more years (if I was lucky), we set about finding somewhere good for the spirit to retire to – a bungalow somewhere by the water, with a nice view. We had a short list – waterside, with a forest nearby for walks, and a nice view of the mountains.
That, as it happens, is one bloody expensive list if you want it within a reasonable commute from Glasgow… so we cast our net a little bit further… and found St Ronans; a lovely wee bungalow right on the east shore of Loch Fyne.
We bought it in January 2013, and have been gradually doing it up ever since.
Oddly enough though, the AS diagnosis is actually a good thing – because after a decade of worsening pain and gradually decreasing ability to move around, I have two things – an answer to what is happening, and a method of control and treatment. Turns out there is way to block the activity of the Klebsiella Bacteria – by eliminating Starch from my diet, I have been able to completely recover in a little over six months… by locking out rice, potatoes, bread and pasta, I now have no pain, and essentially the prospect of a normal healthy life.
So, suddenly, our retirement home with the slightly negative undertone has become the chance of a lifetime to build a grand design. We’ll be turning it into a two storey building, adding a viewing deck, and possibly a hot tub… it’s gonna be a lot of fun.