more adventure than planned
Nov. 30th, 2023 04:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kareina I had an appointment with my audiologist today to solve the problem with my hearing aids, which have been giving me horrid feedback squeeks for weeks now--my own hair and even ears seems to trigger it, so I have been avoiding wearing them if I didn't need to actively listen to something.
Keldor has been home from work since Tuesday morning with a fever and sore throat, so I didn't have to ride in with him at 05:30 and then wait till the 10:00 appointment, so I figured it would be easy. Google says it is 46 minutes drive from my place to Hörcentralen, so I left 1.5 hours early, figuring that should be enough. It nearly was. The roads were snowy, so I set cruise control to 79 kph and left it there (the speed limit is 80, which means I could have put the cruise control up to 83 and still been just at the speed limit, and so not triggered the seven speed cameras between here and town, but today I was ok with driving a little slower).
I arrived at the parking lot at the hospital with 10 minutes to spare, which should have been enough time. Alas, they are doing construction in front of the building between the parking lot and where my appointment was, so the road was closed. I looked and couldn't see a way around to the north of the construction, so I tried going around the building to the south, and through the next building (which is huge and sprawling, and, on the map, it looked like if I went through I would be able to come to my destination. Alas, while I did find a door out of the building, it was under scaffolding, and wind-blown snow pressed against the door a meter high, and there was clearly no path anywhere if I had opened it (I didn't try). So I tried to find a door out on the south side of the building. No luck, eventually I manged to make my way back to where I had come in, and I went back to the construction zone and tried to just walk through it, but a man said no, I can't. I explained I was running late, and needed to get to that building, just there. He said to go back, around, and up.
I went the direction he pointed, and saw some tracks across the snow that lead to the road passing just north of the fenced in area, so I cut across the field. Since one person had already gone that way, I didn't get much snow in my boots, which come almost to my knees. Then I followed that road back around to what I thought was the right building, and then realised that no, the one I want is the next one north. Up a steep, snowy hill from where I was standing. I probably could have gone around by the road, but the distance was significant, and I saw tracks where someone had come down the hill, so I decided to just go up. Guys, that snow is hip deep. As I got a little further along the trail up the steep slope I saw that the "someone" who had come down that hill is a deer. Their little cloven hooves didn't sink as deep in the snow as I did, so I was rather snow covered by the time I finally got to the top, fully 13 minutes late for my appointment.
The audiologist was a little amused to see me coming in, covered with snow to the waist, and breathing heavily, and waited patiently as I took off my boots and emptied the snow from them (and left them to dry in the waiting room)
Then I learned something terribly important: the horrid feedback noises my hearing aids have been making constantly in the last month or so is because the little plastic tube that connects the electronic part to the plastic bit that sits in my ears had become too short. One is suppose to change them regularly, which I have done, but each time I set the old bit of tubing next to the fresh length of tubing and cut it about the same size. Presumably "about" has been a tiny bit shorter each time, till they became too short, so the hearing aid is sitting wrong, and my hair and ears became enough to trigger the feedback. Do not recommend.
It is So nice to have hearing aids again which do not cause feedback!
Keldor has been home from work since Tuesday morning with a fever and sore throat, so I didn't have to ride in with him at 05:30 and then wait till the 10:00 appointment, so I figured it would be easy. Google says it is 46 minutes drive from my place to Hörcentralen, so I left 1.5 hours early, figuring that should be enough. It nearly was. The roads were snowy, so I set cruise control to 79 kph and left it there (the speed limit is 80, which means I could have put the cruise control up to 83 and still been just at the speed limit, and so not triggered the seven speed cameras between here and town, but today I was ok with driving a little slower).
I arrived at the parking lot at the hospital with 10 minutes to spare, which should have been enough time. Alas, they are doing construction in front of the building between the parking lot and where my appointment was, so the road was closed. I looked and couldn't see a way around to the north of the construction, so I tried going around the building to the south, and through the next building (which is huge and sprawling, and, on the map, it looked like if I went through I would be able to come to my destination. Alas, while I did find a door out of the building, it was under scaffolding, and wind-blown snow pressed against the door a meter high, and there was clearly no path anywhere if I had opened it (I didn't try). So I tried to find a door out on the south side of the building. No luck, eventually I manged to make my way back to where I had come in, and I went back to the construction zone and tried to just walk through it, but a man said no, I can't. I explained I was running late, and needed to get to that building, just there. He said to go back, around, and up.
I went the direction he pointed, and saw some tracks across the snow that lead to the road passing just north of the fenced in area, so I cut across the field. Since one person had already gone that way, I didn't get much snow in my boots, which come almost to my knees. Then I followed that road back around to what I thought was the right building, and then realised that no, the one I want is the next one north. Up a steep, snowy hill from where I was standing. I probably could have gone around by the road, but the distance was significant, and I saw tracks where someone had come down the hill, so I decided to just go up. Guys, that snow is hip deep. As I got a little further along the trail up the steep slope I saw that the "someone" who had come down that hill is a deer. Their little cloven hooves didn't sink as deep in the snow as I did, so I was rather snow covered by the time I finally got to the top, fully 13 minutes late for my appointment.
The audiologist was a little amused to see me coming in, covered with snow to the waist, and breathing heavily, and waited patiently as I took off my boots and emptied the snow from them (and left them to dry in the waiting room)
Then I learned something terribly important: the horrid feedback noises my hearing aids have been making constantly in the last month or so is because the little plastic tube that connects the electronic part to the plastic bit that sits in my ears had become too short. One is suppose to change them regularly, which I have done, but each time I set the old bit of tubing next to the fresh length of tubing and cut it about the same size. Presumably "about" has been a tiny bit shorter each time, till they became too short, so the hearing aid is sitting wrong, and my hair and ears became enough to trigger the feedback. Do not recommend.
It is So nice to have hearing aids again which do not cause feedback!
After leaving the audiologist I decided I would stop at the big grocery store on my way out of town to get a few things they don't carry at our local store. The mission was a success, but I cannot recommend driving on those small roads that one has to take from the highway around to the parking lot entrance (the store is right on the highway, but you can't get there from the highway, you have to go around). The snow on those roads is hard packed and deeply rutted right now, so driving on them is an unpleasant adventure of sliding along one, then driving up over the ridge, and being slotted into the next, and sliding into it. It was so nice to get back on the highway after that detour.
Once I was home I needed to rest and recover (including a nap), so here it is after 16:30, and I am almost ready to start working for the day. Luckily, that was the last time I need to leave the house for days, unless Keldor recovers from being sick on time to attend Eva's 70th birthday party in Luleå on Saturday, but I am not holding my breath on that.
Once I was home I needed to rest and recover (including a nap), so here it is after 16:30, and I am almost ready to start working for the day. Luckily, that was the last time I need to leave the house for days, unless Keldor recovers from being sick on time to attend Eva's 70th birthday party in Luleå on Saturday, but I am not holding my breath on that.