[cripple1]

This is.. I dunno. An introduction to me, I guess? But it's more than that. It's also a thank you to everyone I've dealt with and met here.

I found this community in 2012 and became a member pretty soon after that. I'm a paraplegic, and I have been since I was 2 years old. I was pushed from the 6th floor of a hotel building in Long Beach, CA. I survived something that I had no business surviving, and since then my life has been full of complications, surgeries, and just pain in general. The only thing that ever seems to take me away from everything... The pain, the complications.. All of it.. Is music.

Before I found Head-fi, I was only listening to music. Not really hearing it. Just listening to it. And that was adequate for my needs. Until things got more complicated, what with insurance screwing me out of surgeries I absolutely needed for quality of life and survival in general. Scar tissue was growing into my stomach and stopped me from being able to digest any food. I was essentially starving to death, unable to do anything but lie there. The only thing that kept me sane was a set of AudioQuest Nighthawks that were provided me temporarily until I was finally given the surgery I needed 4 months later.

Soon after that, I needed a new wheelchair. Insurance refused to pay for anything short of a hospital style wheelchair. I couldn't use that to get around or get to work. But then I met the owners of Hi-Fi Pig. They organized a raffle and a few audio companies stepped up to offer prizes to help raise the money I needed to get the chair that I needed. There were prizes from Kralk Audio, Flare Audio, Mitchell&Johnson, and even Brian May of Queen submitted an autographed picture as one of the prizes. I got my wheelchair pretty soon after that. If it wasn't for this community.. The audio community in general, I wouldn't have had the quality of life I needed to live my life the way that I could.

There are so many more examples that I can give. The kindness of companies like @Audeze and Flare Audio kept me going through my cancer when I had to have my leg amputated. Now I'm in a situation again. My spinal cord is completely disintegrated and detached because of some County doctors negligence. I've been bedridden for over a year and half with my spine this way and a metal rod in my back that is broken in 3 places and that's digging into my flesh from the inside out, and looks to be nearly bursting through my lower back where you can see one of the broken areas pressing against the skin from the inside. If I didn't have my Mobius to listen to music on.. I would have lost my mind.

So thank you.. Thank you to everyone who has made my life a little easier. Thank you to everyone who has made my life a little more bearable. And thank you to you all here at Head-fi. If it wasn't for this community, I would have given up a long time ago.

I'd also like to thank @PETEREK . He's a good guy and helped me in the past with a few things I needed made and was just cool to talk to in general.

I hope this wasn't the wrong place to do this, or a little to.. I dunno. I just wanted the community to know that they're all appreciated.

 

[serman005]

I have been dealing with a life-threatening illness of my own for some time and there are moments when I just feel I can't go on. This morning was one of those times. Reading your post kicked me in the butt and reminded me that there are lots of people dealing with difficult health issues all over the world and that I need to just suck it up and carry on. Thank you!! Best wishes and good health to you. Thanks for the post.

 

[Matez]

I hope this wasn't the wrong place to do this, or a little to.. I dunno. I just wanted the community to know that they're all appreciated.

Hi! Welcome to Head-fi.org and sorry about your wallet!

P.S. Stay strong, don't give up!

 

[cripple1]

I have been dealing with a life-threatening illness of my own for some time and there are moments when I just feel I can't go on. This morning was one of those times. Reading your post kicked me in the butt and reminded me that there are lots of people dealing with difficult health issues all over the world and that I need to just suck it up and carry on. Thank you!! Best wishes and good health to you. Thanks for the post.

I'm happy that you got something outta this. Life is a difficult thing, but if you surround yourself with the right people.. It becomes that much more bearable, no matter what the circumstances may be. Good luck and good health to you, man.

 

[cripple1]

Hi! Welcome to Head-fi.org and sorry about your wallet!

P.S. Stay strong, don't give up!

Not really new to Head-fi. I've been here a while. Just wanted to thank the community for the support you've all provided me. By the way, that Noir hybrid cable was something I was looking at just last night. It's outta my price range, but man is that some beautiful work.

Anyway, thanks for the support @Matez . I appreciate it a lot!

 

[435279]

Wow you have had a tough run of it, I just don't know what to say other than:

Stay strong, keep fighting and enjoy the music.

 

[cripple1]

Wow you have had a tough run of it, I just don't know what to say other than:

Stay strong, keep fighting and enjoy the music.

I definitely will, man. Thank you so much.

 

[gazzington]

Keep fighting on my friend. Thinking of you here from the uk

 

[cripple1]

Keep fighting on my friend. Thinking of you here from the uk

Much appreciated, man. Best wishes to you as well

 

[ricksome]

cripple1: I can't speak for anyone but myself >>>> If you need financial assistance to get through some health related issues, please post some thing here. I don't mind meeting you over at a go fund me page. I hope what I posted is not against Head Fi rules. Even though I am speaking for myself, I believe that others will help out. God Bless !!

 

[cripple1]

cripple1: I can't speak for anyone but myself >>>> If you need financial assistance to get through some health related issues, please post some thing here. I don't mind meeting you over at a go fund me page. I hope what I posted is not against Head Fi rules. Even though I am speaking for myself, I believe that others will help out. God Bless !!

I really appreciate the sentiment man. As far as needing things.. Since the HiFi Pig raffle for the wheelchair, I have everything that I need. At this point its just about the time that its taking for insurance to get its ass in gear and get me my surgery. It has been a year and.. 7 months, I think? And I've just been bedridden all this time. Can't work anymore. Can't really do much at all except try to enjoy the things that I do have. I've been living off of SSI for a long time now, if you can call $700-$800 a month living in SoCal.

At this point I'm just trying to collect gear that I can enjoy while I'm stuck in a body that no longer feels like it's mine.

Anyway, thank you again Rick.

 

[ls13coco]

Music sure is powerful, but it seems from what you've said that the community is too!
I hope things start straightening out for you real soon. I've been having the roughest go of my life this year, but I've been humbled by your post to always count your blessings. Music has also helped greatly this year, which I will try to use as my excuse for all the related gear purchases this year.

I haven't looked, but have you done reviews on here? I feel like some people and even companies would be into the idea of sending you products to use and review, which I would sure love to do if I was by any way in your position.

Cheers sir.

 

[cripple1]

Music sure is powerful, but it seems from what you've said that the community is too!
I hope things start straightening out for you real soon. I've been having the roughest go of my life this year, but I've been humbled by your post to always count your blessings. Music has also helped greatly this year, which I will try to use as my excuse for all the related gear purchases this year.

I haven't looked, but have you done reviews on here? I feel like some people and even companies would be into the idea of sending you products to use and review, which I would sure love to do if I was by any way in your position.

Cheers sir.

I'm sorry to hear you're having a rough time man. I really hope things can turn themselves around for the better for you. I'm jealous that you are able to get new purchases at all. I can't even work anymore, what with the cumulation of damage that I've received over the last 6 years alone, and I'm only in my 30's.

Reviews... I've done one or two here on Head-fi, but not too many. I used to do reviews for Cypher Labs before they went outta business (I love their gear and regret having to have sold all mine), and I've done 1 or 2 guest reviews for Headfonia (actually some of my first, so they seem really scatterbrained when I look at them again), but I don't really have the technical know-how to warrant people sending me their gear like that. All I can really do is tell you how things sound to my ears, sans the science. That will, more often than not, make for a biased review, which is a little misleading.. Fun to do, because I like wordplay and writing, but misleading nonetheless. But hey, go ahead and check out some of the stuff I've written and you can decide for yourself. Haha.

Again, hope things get better for you. Good luck and best wishes

 

[baskingshark]

Sorry to hear about your illness and take care.
I've had a few close relatives that are struggling with cancer, some endstage cancers even, so i know it definitely ain't easy for you.
Music will be a soothing balm.
All the best and will keep you in my prayers!

 

[cripple1]

Sorry to hear about your illness and take care.
I've had a few close relatives that are struggling with cancer, some endstage cancers even, so i know it definitely ain't easy for you.
Music will be a soothing balm.
All the best and will keep you in my prayers!

I appreciate that. Thank you. Hopefully your relatives are able to make it through without too much loss. I made it. But it wasn't easy. And I lost a leg in the process. So I know how much it sucks. Best wishes to you and your relatives