Disclaimer: While ultimately this is about classic trucks, if you’re not into being healthy, go on and flip to a colorful feature or informative how-to!

ince the late 1990s, I’ve been plagued with physical effects caused by degenerative disc disease that my late father graciously instilled in me. To date, I’ve had eight spinal surgeries, ranging from discectomies to full spinal reconstruction, all of which I’ve had done to keep me upright and somewhat active. For the most part, it’s kinda worked … for the most part.

In the last year, however, my neck pain had gotten to the point where if I didn’t have to be on my feet, I wasn’t—and that was a lot. Sure, pain meds would’ve helped, but I quit those cold turkey back in 2013 and, well, they just weren’t an option. And up to a point, injections did offer a degree of relief, however, in the wonderful world of HMO insurance, I was no longer able to see the pain management doc of my choice (without having to spend in upwards of $3,000 a pop), and the only “in-network” choice I did have just wasn’t able to hit the spot, no pun intended.

In short, for that last year and even some time beforehand, that pain level caused me to have little, if any, interest in working on my projects … unless I absolutely had to. The enthusiasm was gone, however, I did find great satisfaction in that prone position I found myself in immediately afterward! Extreme pain clouds the mind (one of the main reasons I quit the meds), so I often found it difficult to sit down and write as I used to—but I did, as those deadlines wait for no one, no matter what!

This past spring, I was finally able to get back in to see my neurosurgeon and plead my case … once again. Our five-year reunion (almost to the day of my prior sacroiliac joint replacement surgery in 2020) resulted in him not only being baffled by how I was able to function (something I’ve asked myself since I was a teenager!), but scheduling me for what—hopefully—was to be my last cervical procedure, something I don’t even know what the official name for it is, but it involved a ”bone Bondo” instead of more titanium hardware!

That was back at the end of May; it’s the middle of June as I’m writing this, and while I’m still strapped up in a soft collar (with a couple weeks yet to go), I am finally seeing the “pain-free” light at the end of the long tunnel! And with that, all of a sudden, I can’t wait to get back on my ’48 and ’69 Chevy projects … well, with the help of Ryan Manson, that is! And, I (kind of) am looking forward to getting back out to some events—maybe not right away, but soon (like Triple Crown of Rodding soon!).

So, if you’re asking yourself, “what the heck does this have to do with me?” Simple. Take care of your health, regardless of your financial situation, your insurance situation, whatever. Just do it. Maybe it’s something as minor as a bad tooth (something I was also dealing with, but miraculously the post-op steroids/antibiotics seemed to have fixed!), but in today’s insane world, having one less problem to deal with can literally make a huge difference. And maybe, just maybe, it will change the way you eat/live your life on a daily basis as well. I know it has for me, and I’ve still got a little ways left to go on my road to recovery!