Hurry up and wait

This morning I ran late leaving to attend Bible study because of getting the newsletter finished and e-mailed to the church secretary. The morning "mail" brought the article from the preschool teacher but none from the others I had requested reports from, so I had to improvise. Not too hard to fill in as long as I have a tidbit or two to work from. Fortunately, I had popped in at Pioneers before choir rehearsal, heard part of the talk about rockets, and then "heard" the rocket launch later on. Thump!, as it landed on the roof of the church. I knew it, I even asked Sara, wife of the demonstrator, what happens if it lands on the roof, and she just shrugged. What happens? The ladder is gotten out and someone must start the climb! Just as exciting for the kids as the launch itself is the retrieval from the roof!

Some of the Pioneer group listening to the presentation by a rocket builder, prior to the launch. One little boy listens from the back as he is facing away from the speaker.

*

As it turned out, upon leaving home this a.m. for Bible study, my gas tank was lower than I like for a longer ride facing me. I called the church to let them know I was coming and Bonnie assured me they would be watching for me, and even said if I ran out of gas, she would come and get me. Now, is that not the sweetest thing?? I arrived only five minutes late and they did in fact have a seat for me. The subject matter was prayer and what a great topic it was. Pastor Hoyer, through the lesson, reminded us how we fail to make use of our "wireless" connection with the Lord, going to Him as an after-thought or only when we want something.

*

At the close of the class, we took turns going around the table with our prayers, aloud, something many Lutherans are unaccustomed to doing. Some were fluid, some not so much. When it was my turn, I thanked the Lord for giving Judy R. a good report following her cancer treatment (6 months cancer-free!!!) and also asked for Him to watch over Lynn K., our pastor's wife, as she presently battles breast cancer. Rejoice with me over Judy's good news! I pray that some day I will be offering prayers of thanksgiving for Lynn being cancer-free, as well!

*

On my ride back, I called Mom once more to tell her something I had forgotten to tell her as I drove over to Victory. Through the web of Facebook, I had been contacted by a young lady I knew at First German, who found me through another FG alumna. Cathy wanted to tell me how she regretted never telling my mom "thanks" for teaching the girls to sew back in their Lutheran Pioneer days. Wow! How fun to get a thank you and acknowlegement this late in the game, but how special as well! I wrote back to Cathy and told her mom was still with us and that I would share her message. She had gone on to do much sewing in her life, making wedding and bridesmaid's dresses, and other seamstress work, and wanted to tell Mom 'thanks'! We sometimes never know the impact we make on other people's lives .....

*

When I arrived home again and started my computer, I had a message on my g-mail indicating my "contacts" list was not available, that Google was working on the problem. This means that I cannot send off the rest of the newsletters to the homes for a while, at least, not until the problem is corrected.

Just because I took a day off

"I have words left over", as Justin would say. I forgot to mention how yesterday I had the opportunity to spend some more money, but not nearly nearly as much as I could have. So, does that mean I saved money?

*

In the spring I had gotten a booklet from the Jacksonville Symphony where I have not renewed my season tickets. The booklet showed the ticket prices for the upcoming "Carmina Burana" event to be around $450+ each and I very sadly told Justin there would be no concert for us. Yesterday I got an e-mail from the JSO promoting another concert and thought I would take a look at the schedule, etc. to see what was happening during the time Linda J. is here. Sure enough, there was "Carmina..." I clicked through the page to see what price they were. Long story short, I was able to get three tickets for less than half of what one ticket would have run. I must dig up that booklet to see what that was all about, breaking our hearts like that!!! But, now, we are healed! I sent Justin an e-mail with only a link to "O Fortuna" for him to click. He sent me a message late last night saying he had just gotten home and read the e-mail. His message, non-paraphrased, was: "Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you!!!!!" He knew exactly what that meant, which is what I love about my boy. You are most welcome, my dear!

*

He has since contacted me again today to ask about getting the new book by Glenn Beck, "Arguing With Idiots" as a shared book. He wants to trade me for one he has that I wish to read. Of course I agreed! Think I might even head to the bookstore yet this afternoon, or perhaps before choir tonight. The previous Beck book is lying on my dresser and I will give him that book, too, as I am about done with it. My messy bed and desk are starting to get to me which means I must be feeling better....The entire passenger-side of my bed is piled with books, magazines, catalogs, mail, and church materials. My spirit was willing (to deal with this stuff) but my flesh was weak. I chose sleep over sorting!

*

Some of the dusting got done yesterday and I might do a bit more today after Justin is done vacuuming. One act would defeat the other. Joanne was telling me about her incredibly high electric bills at the beach, not on JEA like most of Jacksonville is, but a re-seller power company. She told me she sets and keeps her thermostat on 75 (ugh!!!!), has no TV to watch but is home so little that it does not matter. In my opinion, then, set the thermostat higher and it won't run. My suggestion to her was ask the owners if she could have an A/C man come and run some tests on it because she said it just runs and runs. I hope they say she can, or even if she hires them herself, just to see if there is a problem with the machinery. One of the first floor Owners here told me yesterday that his electric bill is usually around $300 a month, with now four people living in his house. He not long ago married a woman with two sons and I can only imagine the number of electrical devices they have making the dial spin on HIS electric meter! This is the man who plays the Jimmy Buffett music so loudly outside.

*

Oh, I just knew it! The heavens have opened and giant drops are falling into the river, none on my windows thus far. Well, I guess if the rain continues, a nap will be in order to rest my eyes. Much reading has gone on here this a.m. which usually makes my eyes tired. My sleep was good last night so this cannot be the problem. I dreamed about CHRISTmas and the coming celebrations, even my niece, Tina and her family were here.....HEY! What a great idea!!!!

Multi-tasking at its finest...

....but perhaps this remains to be seen! As I am writing this moment, I am also listening to a sermon on-line about the disciple of Christ, Matthew, while also watching Fox News from the corner of my eye as notable folks are speaking to the UN. I do not want to miss the any of the blow by blow reports about this, especially when Qaddafi gets his turn to speak. He might be stiff and sore this a.m. after sleeping outside in a tent! Wait, he is accustomed to that....he did, in fact, sleep indoors at the Libyan Embassy since no other hotels or rental agencies wanted him in their establishments.

*

"Jesus calls me, calls us, called Matthew, first to His side and then to His service.." I like that! Jesus attained "rock-star status" among the Jews, people hanging on His every word, but then called a tax collector to serve Him. (From the sermon)

*

Today Justin is coming by after work to do some things for me, as he actually did forget all about coming on Monday. I was not so angry this time as I was still a bit weary and appreciated having the late afternoon and evening to myself. I'd had a full day with Bible study, lunch, and an extended meeting with Pastor so I did not entirely mind being snubbed once more by my son. When I called him at a little after 5:00, he was genuinely sorry that he forgot, and I genuinely forgave him. Today will work out better, but not a moment too soon since I got crazy with some popcorn in here last night and made quite a mess under my desk!

*

"You (Matthew) are the perfect disciple because you are not perfect, and you admit it. I will make you perfect..." "called to be first a disciple, one who learns, and then as an apostle, to go and tell the Good News"

*

Tuesday night I met our usual group for dinner at Aron's Pizza, and it felt so wonderful to be back in routine again! Leann had been feeling poorly for weeks now but made it out for dinner, plus Linda H. and Judy J. Linda and Leann will be attending the same Bible class as the one I attended last night, only they will go on Wednesday in Keystone Heights. Mike C., with only Debbie S. and me in his class, got through the entire section, but not in an hour. Mike has the Sunday Bible study, again on Tuesday night and then in Keystone Heights on Wednesday.

*

Tonight is choir rehearsal and possibly dinner, although I cannot remember if it this week or next that we are gathering for one of our friends' birthdays. I am awaiting the word on this from Kathy B. I was a bit groggy when she told me about it so it might actually be next week. My nose will be held as I must venture into Ted's Restaurant (Turner/CNN/Fonda fame) because I would never set foot in there otherwise. Oh, the things we will do for our friends.....

*

Still I am waiting for a couple things for the newsletter although the secretary asked if she could have it early to make copies before she leaves for vacation. Um, I will certainly try but early is a relative term! I can make copies if need be but must admit to being a little rusty at doing so. Another option would be to print them at home but would eat up my ink cartridges something fierce. I will do the best I can, that is all.

*

Last week I paid my last installment for the painting project on my building. Once more a big 'ouch!' to the checking account but certainly the building looks and feels a lot nicer. It will be nice to know if our values have begun to appreciate again or not. None of the units for sale have sold, with several of them being on the market for over a year. My assessment from the County does not reflect any decrease, however, and am wondering if a contact to the Assessor's office would be in order. I should ask around to the others to see if theirs went down any. It certainly would be lovely to pay less property tax this fall!

*

The sun has broken through the clouds here and it seems as though the fog is lifting little by little. The air temperature is 80 at this moment and the humidity, obviously, is high. I hope Justin made the trip across the Buckmann safely this a.m. on his way to work. Late afternoon Tuesday I had a phone conversation with my friend, Rosalie, in Houston. She recently turned 75 and is busy as ever, with her husband, Hal, now around the house, as she put it, "24/7"! Hal is turning 70 years old soon and for his birthday is getting a brand, new hip! She told me that Pastor Schuppe is coming to their church to lead a Bible study but they will have to miss it because of Hal's hip surgery. Oh man, I wish there was a way for them to see each other....bet they will!

What else are we missing???

Since I am not at the top of my game and must concentrate on the newsletter with a deadline which looms, I am incredibly thankful my friend, Dolly, sent this to me today. I could not have said it better myself, nor could I have said it better than Joni Mitchell did in her song, "For Free". Here's the link for that song, too. Do not pass it by, because, "What else are we missing"?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmzN1p5q2sY&feature=related

(click on this link to bring it up)

Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later: The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

6 minutes: A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes: A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.

45 minutes: The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money, but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

1 hour: He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

Findings:

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days earlier Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the Metro Station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste, and people's priorities. The questions raised: "In a common place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?"

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.... How many other things are we missing?

To see Bell’s performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnOPu0_YWhw

Too pooped to party!

Here's the plan: I will sit at this desk long enough for a decent length of time to pass before I allow myself to get comfortable for the night. If I lay myself down too early and fall asleep, the entire system is out of control! I would much rather battle weariness at this point than in the early morning hours. However, those hours do allow for some lovely sunrises....hmmmm......It seems that after my busy day and feeling pretty "normal", my fever has come back slightly and my eye lids feel hot. I liked it better when I felt reasonably well this earlier part of the day!

*

Soon summer will be officially over in Florida and I fear not getting any more pool time. My neighbors told me last night that the repairs on the adult pool will not be completed for a month which means the water will never heat up enough for me to venture back in. Our air temps have been in the high 80's with extremely high humidity, but this does nothing to warm the water in the teen pool to a tolerable level for me. I toyed with the idea of asking my doctor, House, to send me for physical therapy again at Brooks Rehab because then I could join as a member and enjoy their aqua therapy pools and hot tub. Martie and Chris had joined once upon a time but neither of them continued with it. The cost is insignificant for an annual membership, and quite close to my home. We shall see, although I truly do miss "riding my bike" in the pool on a near-daily basis, and my knees miss it too!

*

My day began a bit later than I liked but that was mostly due to the late night TV viewing again last night. Not football this time, the Emmy Awards. Most of the programs I am totally unfamiliar with but the movie my "group" watched here, "Grey Gardens", received several statuettes. The Emmy's wrapped up around 11:00 pm and I snooped around the stations to find something for which to fall asleep. Besides a "Law and Order: CI", I found again, "Roseanne". Oh, now I can find out what happened with Dan, etc., falling for another woman and leaving his family. Wow!

*

Dan came to the door with the baby, Jerry, dropping him off after visitation. Roseanne kept slamming the door in his face until Dan finally got himself squeezed in. He wanted to talk to her, but they could find no quiet zone where big ears were not around, so they were on the porch, in the cold. He apologized up and down to her, for hurting her so badly, (she said, "It nearly killed me..."), for messing everything up with his "wanderlust" (my word of choice). She told him that yes, he did hurt her and their family. He swore he would never do that again, that she meant too much to him, and so on. He seemed sincere. She finally forgave him and agreed to go for a ride in the car to warm up. One thing they never mentioned was how the money she won had affected their lives at this point, although they had sworn it would not. Money changes everything....I should write a song! While they were in the car, they got a phone call that Darlene, their daughter, had gone into premature labor. Long story short, the baby nearly died due to respiratory problems....Okay, this was too much for me when I am supposed to sleep. Martial problems and a child dying, nope, time to find something else to watch. If only it were so simple as changing the channel.

Feeling better but still sick?

How can this be? It is possible to feel better without feeling wonderful, right? In fact, my sleep allowed a decent night's rest so I could go to church this a.m. Bible study was still going on when I finally got there, with good attendance. I was glad to offer my support to Mike C. as he gets his feet wet leading the class for us. Pastor was conducting the parenting class in the other building while Sunday school was going on.

*

Janet had dressed a table with a pretty cover to encourage folks to sit down, as at the Ladies' Group meeting it was brought up that no one sat down Sunday for fellowship like they used to do when the preschool was still there. What? There has to be at least 10 tables with chairs set up in that room now and no one was sitting in them??? Oh, that is just too much! The card tables formerly used for this are used elsewhere now so it is not possible to make it just like it was before. Janet did the next best thing by dressing a table. I did not stick around to see if anyone sat down or not! This is going too far as far as doing things "the way we used to do it"!!

*

After I had gotten dressed this morning, I began to feel weary again so sat in the family room to watch the news before leaving. The Tuesday evening Bible class covers the same study so I knew it was okay to miss part of it. Once I headed to church, Kathy B. called to see if I was on my way or staying home. Nice! When I arrived, I posted my items on the bulletin board, now in the fellowship hall, and got myself stationed in the back of the church to begin the greeting and attendance taking. Much to my delight, our dear member, Kathy R., came to church today after many months of being away. A group from church, her hubby and she included, had gone to eat at Athens Restaurant but sadly, I had to pass due to my illness. That is how you know I am sick, when I refuse dinner invitations! Whether the gang "encouraged" her to come back or if she came on her own, I was just so happy to see her in the flesh, as compared to Facebook only!

*

Kathy B. played the pre-service music which was wonderful, including "When Peace Like a River" which I piped in on, softly. "It is well, it is well...it is well with my soul"....We used the Divine Service II this a.m. and Kathy played the parts not included on the MIDI. All went well, no problems. Like I said to Pastor after church, using these other Orders of Service keeps us on our toes. Sometimes we get so accustomed to doing the service one way and not really absorbing the wonderful message in what we are doing. The joy of liturgical worship and being able to change it up a bit. The message and intent is the same, even if the melodies are different or new.

*

The sermon series is from the book of James and has provided for very timely messages. I had to chuckle right off the bat because before church began, Janet brought me a gold ring which had been left by the sink in the bathroom. She said I could track down the owner, because "you know everybody". Well, I might not know who lost a ring, but I sure can find out! The reading from James starts out talking about not showing favoritism in the church, such as asking the person with the "gold ring and flashy clothes" to sit up front, while the shabbily dressed has to sit on the floor. Here I am, holding a gold ring and wearing a brightly colored blouse!!!! Not in the front, though, which is a relief! Janet asked me about it after church and I assured her I caught the joke. Even Pastor mentioned it as we stood together at the door to greet after church. Glad we can find some humor once in a while! I think I was set up!!!

*

Judy J. asked me to have lunch after church but, believe it or not, I declined. By this time I was bone-tired and ready go lay down at home. Darwin asked me to place service folders in the mailboxes of those absent today, something new we are starting, and I did that quickly before heading for home. Momentarily I toyed with stopping to get a burger or something to have for lunch, but I still was not feeling much like eating anything of substance. Once home I did reheat some leftovers, as I promised Joanne I would eat real food, but could not eat all my food from Koko's. Right now some pork chops are defrosting on my counter and I might, just might, make those for supper. Later, much later!!!

*

Earlier I knew I felt hot inside but still had the afghan Lynn made for Timmy wrapped around my legs and feet to keep me warm. The air temp in the house is around 82 above zero (I have since opened the doors to let a breeze through!) so I should not be chilled. After a great deal of digging around, taking a trip down memory lane, I finally located our thermometer. It has been years since it was used, last time for Justin, I am sure. After shaking it down, I stuck it in mouth and walked around while the temp climbed. I was correct---although very hard to read, the temp showed nearly 100 again, as it was yesterday. My eyes and mouth are hot but my extremities cold.

*

More water, more juice, more soda (Mom asked me yesterday if the doctor mentioned my soda drinking in relation to the infection....he did not) and cool foods are the modus operandi for me so if the chops get made remains to be seen. My spirit is saddened by the game losses of both the pro football teams I support, the Packers and the Jags. I tried to listen to the Jag game on the radio but had a hard time following along, probably because I was so tired already. One thing about the cranberry juice---it makes my teeth feel furry!

I will be a fast talker today

Remember how I wrote yesterday about having to be "up in the night", probably from adding water to my diet? Well, last night was a long, wretched one for me. I had gotten home about 9:00 or so after having a wonderful time with some church friends at Gator Dockside in Oakleaf. I got my bedtime soda ready and settled in for the night.

*

I was pretty worn out from my busy day, which had included an early breakfast with Chris N. at Cracker Barrel and then a nice lunch with Justin at Bono's. After lunch he and I went to Wal*Mart for a few things including picking up some scrips. His car was at the shop getting an oil change and we showed up right on the button as to when they said it would be ready. It was fun spending even these couple hours with Justin in person, instead of just over the phone or instant messaging. He is coming here Monday to help me with a few things, when he is done working. We shall see....

*

The afternoon was spent at the computer and then resting before my night out with Jim, Janet, Lonnie, and Renee. I was the fifth wheel, although Janet scolded me for saying that. Sorry.....We were also expecting another couple but they were not 100% to make it, and did not. I had a Monte Cristo sandwich, my first since Bennigan's went out of business and it was delicious! Eating only half, of course, because it is quite a sizable portion, and leaving all the fries.

*

Anyway, back to bed....I watched the end of some program, cannot even remember what was on TV, and then turned on reruns of "Friends" to lull me to sleep. I remember hearing the entire first program and part of the second before falling asleep. At 1:30 a.m. I was jarred awake by a large noise, which I figured was coming from outside as some of the neighbors were enjoying the pleasant weather into the "wee" hours. And so began the every ten minute walks to the bathroom almost the entire night! Soon came the sharp pains on my left side, sort of like a back ache, but something told me it was not. No matter which way I laid, it did not pay to even try to be comfortable due to the constant getting up. My fear was that I would be dehydrated because I had not even consumed as much liquid as was being eliminated. After a certain point, I quit flushing in between trips for fear of causing a disturbance in my downstairs neighbors' quiet. For some reason, besides heavy footfalls, toilet flushing noise travels in my building.

*

In attempts to distract my brain from feeling like I had to go, I watched "Roseanne" for hours, seeing some episodes I'd never before watched. She kept mentioning having four children (I came up with only three in my mind....) and that they had so much money. What? They were always struggling for money when I watched it. It seems that Roseanne had a late in life baby, Jerry, and had won the lottery, getting 108 million dollars! Where had I been??? One episode just tore me up, though, and I should have turned the channel, but there just was nothing else at 3:30 a.m., you know? Dan, her hubby, had been in CA taking care of his mother who had surgery and seemed to have fallen for the mom's nurse. Oh great! Through the course of this episode, everyone kept saying they thought Dan was "one of the good ones", was the "last guy you would expect to fall", and "he is tearing up the family". When the series ended in the "wee" hours, he had packed his bags to find out what he missed in life by marrying early and such, but somehow had not quite left town. I will be interested to find out how this plays out, but I do not want to stay up all night just to watch it!

*

This a.m., after it seems I may have slept about 3 or 4 hours total, I got the phone book out to call the walk-in clinic on Kingsley to check their hours. After showering and getting myself, slowly oh so slowly, dressed and fixed up, I headed to the clinic, sample in a brown bag. The nice nurse at the desk told me my sample was no good, they needed a fresh one, if I could go. Go? I have not stopped going!!! They were nice at the clinic, with only one young mom with a small child there, and before long I saw the doctor. He kept calling me "ma'am", which is fine, and actually spent some time with me besides telling me I have a kidney infection. He asked what I do to keep myself busy so I told him, and then he was tired!!!

*

My orders were to get the prescription filled, drink lots of cranberry juice and water, and get plenty of rest. I was so weary I could barely hold up my head so resting is not a problem. Last Thursday night when we had our "Breakfast for Dinner" themed event, Martie had brought cranberry juice to serve. She had meant to take it along home as it was hardly touched but forgot it. Sure will come in handy for me this week as I take my medicine, drink my juice and water, and rest. My thoughts are that I will be able to attend church tomorrow but we will see how tonight goes. The doctor said that I should see results in three days, but I was hoping for today. Only a moment ago, Justin sent me a text message saying that he loves me very much and hopes I feel better soon. Now I do feel better, because he sent me such a lovely message in the middle of the day!