.....for Kerry's arrival! She sent me an e-mail early this a.m. to report she is packing all her belongings into a duffel so she doesn't have to pay the luggage fee. Oops! Now how will we do all that shopping I intended at the resale shops? Well, I can solve that problem right quick because I have so many extra pieces of luggage and totes bought when in WI when I have either over-bought or had to bring something back with me that I did not carry, such as Justin's suit! He, too, likes to travel light but then I would end up bringing stuff back home for him. No worries, now the luggage will find it's way back up north!
*
The weather is supposed to be glorious, mostly sunny and hot during her visit week. Yesterday I posted the weather report from the Accu-Weather in Facebook, remarking that I was not crazy about the low temps near 70, but others long for that day. This is something I simply cannot grasp! My electric bill for the past month is back down to $50, which is substantially less, by 100's, than what my neighbors pay! It is so strange to know this, how amazingly different are our personal tastes. Jessica told me she keeps the air temp cool for sleeping, so she can use her heavy comforter. What? Their bill is in the two hundreds each month, oh my!
*
In a couple hours Shari will be here so I should really get busy with her list of things to do as I will be out of her hair part of the morning and into afternoon. Shari gets here around 10:00 a.m. and I am invited to lunch at La Nopalera at 11:30 with Tracy, Cassidy, and MamMa from downstairs. After that I am picking up a swimsuit from Martie at work which Kerry can use while here. And then, I tackle the desk to see if I can possibly get some of the stack reduced. This is my personal mission, as I like to make that a goal when I have company coming! I will have company from tomorrow through the 21st, save for four days between the visits. Whoo hoo!
*
When Lynn and Linda are here, we have a full schedule for starters. They arrive late on Wednesday night, Lynn's birthday, so will sleep first. Thursday is Bible study at Victory and then we will have to shop 'n cook for a dinner at my house that night, cooking Paula Deen recipes. Butter!!! At first I was going to make ribs but then I remembered that Paula hawks Smithfield Hams on TV, so might do that instead. Lynn is making a key lime pie and Linda was toying with mac 'n cheese, I think. I had better get people thinking about what to bring so we have a nice variety. Friday evening is a Mystery Dinner at church. The weekend we will do some pool time and of course, church on Sunday. Monday is Bible study and lunch with the ladies, and Tuesday late afternoon the ladies will leave me. I will have to go to bed with the covers over my head the next few days after all the company has left because I will be so sad!
*
As of this a.m. there is no new information regarding Marian. My former spouse drove back to OP last night for a closing, but is going back to Davie tomorrow, I understand. My sis-in-law, Nancy, her kids, plus Sharon, and a friend of Marian's, Marcia, are driving down. Harvey and Barb are flying as it worked out he had vacation starting Sunday anyway. He had to cancel his previously planned trip with friends. (Two years ago next week, I had gone to sit with Grandpa (Arno) this week when John and Mona went to West Point for a special event for JR, and no one was available to stay with him. H and B were on their trip with the same folks that week. That worked out great because we had a surprise birthday party for Lynn that year, who had turned 60!). Christina called me from the road yesterday and thanked me for being here, to help disperse the information as it comes in. I guess that is all I can do to help, under these circumstances. As of yesterday, Marian's passing was imminent, but last night Justin reported that his father said she was breathing on her own. I hope that lasts, but she has heart disease, lung disease, and kidney failure, not good.
*
On a similar note, Pastor Hoyer offered a prayer at Bible study for a 13 year old member of the congregation, Hannah, who is near death from a brain tumor. She had been having chemo treatments and such, but now it seems the cancer invaded the lymph glands and is affecting her spinal chord and other areas of the brain. Only the day before she had lost her ability to communicate and was extremely frustrated, trying to tell her parents things. Pastor is comforting the dad who is being attacked viciously by Satan, making him think what is happening with Hannah is his fault or something. That is the work of the devil, to be sure, and the father is a newer Christian so I am glad the pastor is there to help him through this. Parents always feel everything is on them, and it simply is not!
*
Oh, there on TV is Brian Kilmeade, going golfing with President W!! They are fund-raising for a scholarship program for the troops' children, Patriot's Day Golf Tournament. Brian never played before so has been having lessons for 4 days so he won't be embarrassed in front of the world! There are reportedly 172,000 dependents of our military from these most recently wars against terrorism. My nephew, JR, will be in the USA in October for a period of time, before his deployment to Afghanistan in November. The man golfing now has two artificial legs, having lost them to an IED in the war. He said earlier that every day he puts on his legs instead of shoes, so has a constant reminder that he lost his legs in the war. BUT, he is out playing golf with W!!!!
*
Every morning, generally speaking, I post a Bible passage garnered from a daily e-mail sent by Pastor Hoyer. There are about two dozen or so somewhat related passages for morning and evening, and one serves well for my waking-up posting. One day I posted something other than a passage and one of my "friends", someone I have never met, wrote later saying she missed my daily passage. Another person wrote a different day thanking me for starting her day off right with the uplifting Word. So, I had better not write postings about the crumby economy anymore, at least not first thing in the morning!!!
