I just spent a couple days out in the workshop actually working on one of them, the Spitfire. I could work for an hour at a time with half-hour breaks in between, and no real ill effect. This might sound mundane but for me it's huge!
This after three months of physical therapy in a saltwater pool. I've gained good shoulder mobility and strength as well as enough leg strength to get out of the Spit (where your arse is only six inches off the ground or so) and stand. It ain't 100% graceful, but it works and I'm chuffed!
I still have the Midget to try, and it still might not be possible, as the one thing not coming back is the spine, about a foot of it well fused now and the pelvis doesn't rotate or rock in relation to the base of the spine. We have gotten about an inch of rock as of PT today so there is hope and we'll beat hard on that, but it will be a long tough row to hoe; I'm looking forward to it but I'm not expecting miracles. We also have shifted focus to more strengthening of legs and upper body as they now have much more work to do compensating for the non-functioning bits in between. So, what I have gotten is more than I ever expected and we still have more available to gain.
Why the probably unwelcome details? I'm seriously cheered and some good news in our mutual fights against the effects of age and of the physical abuse we've wrought upon our own carcasses can't be a bad thing.
I refuse to give up quite yet.
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