Wednesday, November 12, 2025 – Day 456

Wednesday, November 12, 2025

Good morning,

I bit the bullet yesterday and got my vaccines, two of them anyways, for the upcoming winter season of sniffles, sneezes, and soup. I got the flu shot in my left arm and the pneumonia shot in my right—trying to share the pain equally.

Well… there’s nothing “equal” about it. The pneumonia shot felt like getting jabbed by a rusty nail, while the flu shot was like a polite tap on the shoulder. My right arm is now staging a protest and my left arm is just sitting there, smug and bruise-free.

My arms are key players in my nighttime gymnastics routine—rolling over, sitting up, reaching for things, and occasionally flailing and inadvertently hitting Cindy. Usually, there’s a little grunting soundtrack to go with each movement, but last night it was more of a moaning symphony and Cindy was in the orchestra pit section and constantly having to hear it. Sorry Honey.

And then there was the added joy of needing to pee four times during the night. The silver lining? I have my trusty bedside urinal within reach, so all I have to do is plant my feet on the floor and let ’er rip. No leaky hoses traveling to the bathroom.

My sister Maria turned me on to a sleep app called Sleep++ that interprets your rest and gives you a “sleep readiness” score. My scores are all over the place (see photo), which makes perfect sense. The respirator wakes me up throughout the night, so I’m usually awake for about 45 minutes now. Before ALS, I slept like a rock. Last nights readiness score was a big fat goose egg. I came close to two hours of wake time and it was throughout the night (another photo). Nap time is on the agenda for today.

Speaking of ALS taking things away, my voice continues to fade. It’s thinner, softer, and raspy—so I have to concentrate hard to pronounce each word and work to get it out. Otherwise, I end up blending words together into a brand-new language. Cindy calls it “Andy Speak.”

Case in point: I once meant to say “going commando” and somehow said “going Comanche.” Cindy just about fell out of her chair laughing. If I can still get laughs out of my mistakes, I’m calling that a win.

I was thinking about sign language yesterday. For about five minutes, I thought it might be a clever backup plan… until it hit me that ALS would eventually take that, too. Even sign language speakers wouldn’t be spared as hand muscles weaken and fingers lose coordination. ALS really doesn’t miss a chance to mess with the human body. It’s the lunch room bully, always stealing something from you and inflicting pain and humiliation.

So I’ll keep using “Andy Speak” for now. It’s not pretty, but it’s mine…and at least it keeps Cindy entertained.

Have a great Wednesday.

Love you guys!❤️

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