May 17 2023

Hi everybody. Welcome to my blog where I talk about my present.

Man, I had an awesome mom. Happy belated Mother’s Day. It was Mother’s Day on Sunday, and it reminded me of how awesome my mom was. I remember when I was in hospital, and she said to me, “What do you want to do when you get out?” I said, “Man, after being in bed for so long, I want to take a road trip.” And she said, “Ok, let’s do it. Where do you want to go?” and I said I wanted to go as far away as I could. “Let’s go to L.A.”

So, when I got out, off we went to L.A. My friend here was part of it, who also, by the way, is an awesome mom. The trip was amazing. Check out this link: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/offset/166734041

Anyway, it reminded me that when you go through a traumatic event, all you want is your mom. Maybe it’s a basic instinct. A survival instinct. I don’t know, but at that point, all I wanted was my mom, and she took good care of me. I definitely got better quicker because of her. Anyway, happy mother’s day.

Man, sometimes you’re gonna be tested. Right now, I’m at one of those points. You’re gonna get tired pushing on and pushing on. It’s inevitable, but you gotta keep working hard. You gotta keep telling yourself to work hard. It’s the only way you’re gonna get results. I found out that I actually do well when there’s a high pressure system. When there’s a low pressure system like a storm or rain, I don’t do so well. It’s little observations like these that are gonna help you get through your battle. For example, the other day, at therapy, there was a high pressure system over the area. I walked with a walker really well. It’s encouraging. Anyway, that’s about all for this week.

Oh, yeah, one other thing: my therapist is gonna put me in a body harness with a rope attached to a track so I can walk on my own, which is pretty cool. It’s a little costly, but it’s cheaper than getting a therapist. That will feel weird to walk on my own. All I can do is think of the flying nun. Does that date me or what?!

Love and miss you guys, hope you watch the documentary, B. Nice

May 10, 2023

Hi everybody. Welcome to the blog where I talk about my present.

Now, I have some advice for people that are like me. You know, traumatic brain injury. That sort of thing. The first thing I’d do is buy yourself an iWatch that’s synced up to an iPhone. You’re gonna need this. I’ve had several aides either pass out, and I’ve even had one OD in my bathroom. So, it’s good to have some back-up in case you need it.

The other thing I want to mention is, no matter what, do not give up hope. You gotta keep working and working. It’s tough. I know. I trained as a competitive runner for many years, and I know what it’s like to keep pushing. It’s kind of like being stranded in a lifeboat. If you’re in a lifeboat, the first thing you do is you establish a routine. The second thing you do is keep your mind occupied with what you do. And the last thing is, no matter what, you never give up hope. Just some words of wisdom from a guy in a wheelchair.

One last thing. Don’t confuse your anger of your condition and put that on other people. Being in a wheelchair certainly is a drag, but taking it out on other people makes things even worse. It’s easy to do. I know. But just be mindful of this.

I’m gonna check my email. Here’s my email if you ever want to email me. briannice@me.com - I’d love to hear from you, but if I don’t get back to you right away, it’s because I’m a man of few words these days.

Love and miss you all. Love, B. Nice

May 3, 2023

Hi everybody, Welcome to my blog where I talk about the present.

Oh man, at the present, I’m once again bummed out. You see, at therapy, my outpatient physical therapy, they cut me back to one day a week. They said I plateau’d. Now, at first, I was like, Oh, OK. But now, I’m thinking about it. I’m kind of pissed off. See, one day a week doesn’t do anything for you. In fact, if anything, it would cause you to regress. Now I’ve heard the term Plateau’d many times before, and I know it’s not true in my case. Each time I’ve heard that word plateau’d, it’s put fire under my ass, like right now. So maybe it’s a good thing. Anyway, it’s just another obstacle to go around, and I tell you, it seems never ending. But I’m always up for a challenge. I’ll figure something out.

In the meantime, I’ve started a new creative project. I’ll let you in on it later. That’s all for this week. I’m gonna go and figure things out. Maybe a bottle of Jack Daniels would help me figure it out. Just kidding.

Love and miss you guys. Love, B. Nice

April 12, 2023

Hi you guys. Welcome to my blog where I talk about my present. I presently have some house guests here, and they’re helping me big time! Like my friend in front of me here, who’s typing for me. I need all the help I can get from friends.

It’s pretty cool because one of the people visiting is an interior designer. He changes things up big time. It’s amazing how the energy changes in a space when you move things around. Then it got me thinking, Man, someone like me really needs something like that. I mean, I don’t move around much, so my world is 3 or 4 feet around me. When someone creates something nice, something new to look at, it really makes a difference in your world. I mean, if you’re a normal person, you’d probably walk right by what’s been changed. Does any of this make sense?

Anyway, I just thought I’d share that with you. It’s important to have an aesthetically pleasing environment around you.

On another note, physical therapy has been very strange. I seem to have developed a list to the right. I’m always leaning to the right. It’s very bizarre because on my first brain operation I would lean to the left. Maybe God’s trying to tell me I should have been a Nascar driver. You know what really helps is if you have a mirror in front of you, you can self-correct. What I think is normal is definitely not normal. I list so much to the right I have to force myself to the left. You don’t self correct and it’s brutal. And then I have to try and walk like that. Have you ever tried to pat the top of your head and rub your stomach? That’s what it’s like. Anyway, we gotta soldier on, right?

I’m going back to hang out with my friends. Love and miss you all. Love, B. Nice

March 22, 2023

Hi everybody. Welcome to my blog where I talk about my present.

I was reviewing the mini documentary I just finished. Julia B. who was the filmmaker that did it, she did a great job. I basically wanted to do the documentary because I wanted to show everyone that even if you’re messed up like this, you can still give back, you know, do something cool and creative. What I didn’t mention in the mini documentary was the fact that I’ve realized that my whole life has gotten me ready for what I’m going through. For example, my running career taught me how to be patient and deal with pain. My photography career taught me how to automatically keep one eye closed and look at the world through one eye (remember, my eyes work independently and are cross-eyed). My two marriages have taught me never to ever ever trust another woman again. But, on a more serious note, I’ve done a lot in my life. Just look at my blog about the past. I’ve done a lot so I don’t mind being like this, the way I am. Let’s just call it a forced retirement. In a way, it’s kind of cool. On a creative level, it’s made my life more interesting. I definitely see the world in a new way. And I try to express it in my photography, in my art.

There’s one other thing I’d like to talk to you guys about. Now, if you’re like me, and you have a traumatic brain injury, you should have a good therapist to talk to. It’s amazing. I was never supplied with a therapist. I mean, come on. I have a brain injury. My brain’s been damaged. It should be a no-brainer (excuse the pun), that I should have a therapist. I finally got one, but I did it myself. There’s also a local politician who’s helping me in finding a therapist that will be covered by my insurance. I just find it amazing that a person with a traumatic brain injury has to do this himself, not all by myself, but people like friends and relatives have been helping me. I mean I can only talk to my dog so much. And the main reason I need the therapist is that my dog is talking back (just kidding).

The last thing I’d like to say is, if you’re like me, don’t give up. You’re gonna have good days and bad days. I mean, the other day I had such a hard time trying to walk with the walker, but the following week I did great. So I can often be discouraging and the next week encouraging. It’s up and down, and there’s really no explanation. Just keep going forward.

I’ll talk to you guys next week. Love and miss you.

B. Nice