Some accomplishments

One step forward, two steps back....Trying to get my desk straightened away, I made some forward progress yesterday when Shari was here cleaning. But then I decided to bring up some of the stuff from my backseat when I came home from lunch. At least I did not stop at the mailbox to grab those papers! Besides Bible study papers, I also had the stuff from the political hob nob from a few weeks ago. The shredder was just smokin' as I ground stuff back into pulp. Getting that stuff cleaned up really made a difference in the appearance of my vehicle! Sunday I will leave the two plastic flower vases at church plus the cut off soda bottle that the vases were sent home in to prevent tipping. Clean!

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Shari, expected about 10:00 a.m., called about ten to nine to report she was at The Club, and wondered if she could come over to get started. Oops! I had to fly----get dressed, find the supplies, reload the Swiffer, grab the cleaning rags...When Shari got here, walking over instead of driving, she greeted me at the door and said, "You are as beautiful as ever..." which took me aback. I must have done something right in the 10 minutes it took to ready myself, including sticking my head in the kitchen sink to wet my hair! Thanks, Shari! She was in awe of the house, marveling at the colorful decor and the great view. The boom box in the river room played Italian music for her as she polished and dusted the furniture and bric-a-brac, while I listened to my radio programs in the bedroom. She knew I had to leave about 11:15 to meet my downstair's neighbors for lunch but assured me there was plenty of work to keep her here another couple hours. That rascal!!! When I got home from lunch, she was gone! Shari left me a note, written on a paper towel, saying she hoped I was happy with her work and that I would have fun with my sister. I called her and asked what I owed her and she said I owed her nothing. She said she enjoyed spending time in my colorful house, but finally said I could buy her lunch again some day. That won't do, I will find a way to compensate her!

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I just took a photo of the sunrise, hot pink as it broke over the horizon. Hopefully the shot turns out, looks at lovely as the real thing did. Today I should do some vacuuming and/or dust mopping as I think Justin is not going to make it. He has been quite busy holding down the fort while his father has been down state with Marian. One good thing that happened this week was the 'little house' in Brookstone that we bought in 2000 to live in while The Preserve house was being built, was sold. The deal is closed so this mortgage note will no longer color my credit report. Despite the fact that I legally had no rights to the home, because it was not refinanced all these years, my name still showed up as being on the mortgage note. Most of the time the home had renters in it and most recently, my former spouse. It is a relief to me to not have my name on this type of thing any longer. Whoo hoo!

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After I watched my radio program yesterday late afternoon/evening, it was soon time to venture toward the cabana to await Martie's arrival. She was bringing me a swimsuit for Kerry to use while here. The regular gang gathered at the cabana after I got there, even Jessica and Beckham. Earlier in the day, Jessica had brought me a sizable bowl of home-made chicken noodle soup and a piece of artisan bread to have for dinner. That was before I knew Martie was coming over. Wasn't that nice of her??? At the cabana she said, "I heard you laughing today..." as I had my doors opened again after Shari left. I just knew it, and I begged her not to have me hauled to the Happy Home! The regular radio host was on vacation so the other two guys had carried the show for four hours. At one point I was laughing so hard, my legs flew up in the air----well, almost!

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When Martie finally arrived, Maureen began rearranging the chairs for us but I finally persuaded them all that we would be sitting alone. Martie would not have been comfortable with all these strangers and such, let alone trying to eat with no table to lean on. We sat outside and chatted poolside until nearly 10:00 before we came inside and talked some more. She came back to life after having a slider, so evidently the sliders have medicinal value!

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Speaking of Danny, his toothache from last weekend seemingly has dissipated. He did not get it repaired or extracted, claiming it just stopped hurting. Marlena seemed to think his mom still covers him with her dental plan since he is not yet 21 but he said he to wait for his next paycheck before going to the dentist. I won't interfere but I think he is making a mistake letting the tooth go. I told him our gang talked about passing the hat to help him with his tooth ache. An exposed nerve does not go away....

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The weather is supposed to be glorious here most of the week so I plan to get some pool time in today before Kerry arrives, in case she chooses not to enjoy it with me. She has sun allergies so has to be careful. I told her, too, that I have tons of books she can choose from, "boring ones" as Jessica calls them, so she can read while I bob in the pool! Whoo hoo, I am getting so 'cited about her getting here!!!

The countdown continues....

.....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!

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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!

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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!

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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!

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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.

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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!

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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!!!!

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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!!!

Awaiting word on Marian

This is the most recent photograph I have of Marian, although not posed, taken at her daughter, Christina's, home August 14th. Her two granddaughters, Maya and Rayna, are standing in front of her, enjoying Maya's birthday presents from 'Auntie Em'. Maya fell in love with "The Wizard of Oz" movie last spring so when we were meeting for lunch at Ruby Tuesday's she kept referring to me as Auntie Em! I love it! Marian has had a serious set-back with her health and according to Tina might not be able to live without life support. Marian indicated that she does not wish to live that way so unless she can regain the ability to breathe on her own......

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My former spouse drove down to Davie late yesterday to survey the situation and my bro-in-law, Harvey, was awaiting word from him before making his plans for next week. Barb & Harv were planning a road trip around Lake Superior with some friends but that may change due to Marian's fragile state. Since we live in the same state, only about 6 hours apart, we used to spend time and holidays with Marian and Biff. Since the divorce, though, my visits downstate have been much fewer, especially after Justin left home as he was not a willing travel companion to see his aunt and uncle. He would see them at least once a year when they would come up here to visit Justin's father, though. I must say, I do not miss that driving to Ft. Lauderdale one bit! If I were to go to Key West, I would sooner fly than make that drive!!!

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As I was talking with Harv last night, I expressed my sadness for him, as he faces losing two sisters. His sister, Judy, died in 2002 of cancer, on Christmas Eve, at the age of 55. Marian just turned 62 in August but had her first heart attack at age 44, complete with by-pass surgery. She had multiple heart problems since then, too many to count plus other ailments related to her diabetes, depression, and most recently, a knee replacement in November of 2009. She missed her step-dad's funeral in February due to complications from her knee surgery---bed sores! Diabetes makes for slow healing of sores and wounds.

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When I saw her two weeks ago, she was walking without a cane! I remarked at how wonderful that was and Biff said, "Well, she has enough other problems...." Guess he was prophetic, perhaps not realizing what he'd said! His health is poor also, lung problems related to years of smoking and such, and struggles, too, for his breath. He is 61 years old, too young, really, to be an invalid. But what age should one be for being an invalid??? Prayers for strength for Marian and Biff, and the family would be greatly appreciated.

It's fun to just listen...

....to the sounds of the house. Rarely do I let my environ be quiet but I hear voices today, perhaps from outside, not inside my head, activity on the floors above mine, and the ice maker in my kitchen. Boy, I wish my ice cubes tasted good. Judy J. asked me last night if I changed the filter on my ice maker and I asked her "Where is it?". Guess that answers the question. Am I supposed to pull out my fridge, climb back there and try to find a filter? No! I can buy ice at the store and use that instead! Or suffer through wretched-tasty ice cubes---phooey!

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There, I turned my radio program back on for background sound while I write. The A/C has just turned on, adding that noise, which also means it must be warmer than 80 in here. I cannot wait to see what Kerry makes of my temps when she is here, I am prepared to have the A/C running for her visit. Outside it started out to be 71 degrees but since I woke up, has risen to 79. Good, heading in the right direction, but certainly too cold for water aerobics. It has nearly an hour before time for aerobics so if it gets about 10 degrees warmer, I will go out. Whether I get in the water or not, well, that's another thing!

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Yesterday was incredibly busy and whether you noticed or not, I did not post a blog at all for Tuesday! The early part of the day was spent at the big computer, putting the final touches on the church newsletter, sending it off, and printing a few hard copies in color for the select few who get them. After that, I wrote the newsletter for The Palace which went rather well considering I had no Board meeting information to report. Somehow or another our building and its business (at least I hope so!) gets done even when no BOD meetings take place. Silence can be frightening sometimes, and hopefully there is nothing going on that is being ignored by the powers that be. Somehow I managed to find plenty to say, as folks would mention things to me through out the month to be added to the letter, such as making sure the trash bags are tightly secured before throwing them into the bin. Common courtesy-type of things. And I included a recipe for Tomato Basil Pie, which one of my Facebook friends had entered in the county fair in Belle Plaine, MN, and won first place! I do not eat tomatoes but have eaten this type of pie twice here in The Palace. My mama raised me right, I used good manners and ate the slice of tomato pie....

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Much of the heat is off, so to speak, regarding getting my house ready for company as I have enlisted the help of this lady I met at aerobics. She is older, works part part-time for the owner of The Club, and has an elderly lady that she escorts to Bible study and luncheon once a week. Shari wants more work but so far has no clients and mentioned that she does house cleaning, anything, to earn money. Shari lives in a Habitat for Humanity house and is extremely ambitious and a true joy to be with, full of pep and wit. She had given me some of her business cards to share with folks who might need some elder care, and I decided to call her (since I skipped aerobics!) to see if she would be interested in cleaning my house. I hate to leave all the work for Kerry, right? I can just see Kerry and Shari jousting for position with dust mops and Swiffers! It is mutually beneficial to Shari and to me so Friday is the day she is coming.

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Justin forgot to bring a change of clothes along to work with him on Monday so he did not come to do my list of jobs I had for him. He won't walk around my house in his work clothes, no matter what, he always showers and changes his clothes before going to work or even visiting here. His list will remain until he can get here, stuff that neither Shari nor I can or will do. If he cannot tackle the entire list before Kerry comes, much of it can wait until her visit is over, and then Lynn and Linda's visit is over...I am going to have the most excellent September!!!!!

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In the afternoon, I decided to head to the Island, as I had to pick up a scrip from Wal*Mart. Because I had called ahead, the order was ready and I walked in and out with little damage. Nearly I bought the boxed set of "House" DVDs offered at the check-out area but resisted since I am not sure Kerry is a big fan. That reminds me, I must ask Justin to bring his portable DVD player for her to use in the guest room. Since it was after 2:00 pm, it was Happy Hour at Sonic so I headed over to get my Route 44 Diet Coke at half price. Kerry will get a kick out of that, too, when she is here. Oh, I can't wait....Anyway, with my drink in hand, I went to Great Hang Ups where Dee was already at work matting my water color project. She had several vignettes ready for me to view and while I was there, she kept working and rearranging the remaining pieces for my approval. With other clients coming in, and ad salesmen, and the phone keeping things busy---before I knew it, the clock read nearly 5:00 pm! I had to fly! Judy J. was picking me up for dinner and Bible study at 5:30 and I was not even home yet. I passed our 'old' office and saw Justin's car there so pulled in to say hi. He was waiting for his father and very sadly told me he had a couple more hours of work to do yet that night. Getting ready to close the Brookstone house which is a good thing but a long day for Justin.

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I did a quick turn-around once home and got myself downstairs to wait for my chariot to arrive to collect me. My Bible study material was in the car so I grabbed that before jumping into Judy's. At first she wanted to go to Cracker Barrel but I mentioned Panera for the mac 'n cheese for me, and Judy loves their chicken with strawberry salad. We dined el fresco which was a delight and then went to church. Since the kindergarten is no longer using the room, we can use it for our Bible studies. No sense in cooling the Fellowship Hall if the classroom building serves us well. Pastor handed out the packet for our last night of Communicating Christ, and it turned out to be one page, front and back. The title page "Church Membership" and the reverse was for filling out our information. Since only one of us is not a member yet, Tyler was the only one needing to fill his out. There was a short segment on the video about what it means to be a member of a congregation, what God asks of us, the congregation, and what we as members expect of each other. Very nice wrap up. Tyler is being baptized on Sunday, confirmed, and going to the Lord's Supper. I wonder if I will cry...hey, I already did when I heard about this the first time! He is former Navy, and unbaptized. The Lord brought his wife, a WELS girl, still active-duty, into his life and now look, he is going to be a member of our church!

Perfect end of the day

Only a few moments ago did I come in from the pool area where my neighbors were gathered, enjoying the lovely evening with gentle breezes. Most of the folks brought their wine bottles out with them and I had my can of soda. If Miss Chardonnay had not come by with her leftover sushi made for lunch at Koko's, I might have missed all the fun outside. Not only did she give me sushi, she also brought me a lovely tall blue vase complete with four gerbera daisies, artificial but gorgeous nonetheless. She told me I could throw them out if I did not want them, but, of course, I want them!

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There were about 8-10 of us around the table, the number fluctuated as folks came and went. We had quite the conversation about dentists, with suggestions being made to 'pass the hat' to help Danny pay for his dental work. Not sure if that will pan out but I was quite interested in hearing how he was doing. My sympathies go to him, since I know quite well what he is going through. Everyone has dental stories and all have good dentists but none of them do pro bono work. There is a place in Green Cove Springs where folks can go for free care but they line up at 6:00 a.m. and get a number to be seen by the dentist. If only one volunteer dentist and assistant show up, only the first few in line can be seen. I am worried about Danny, as I told the gang, "He is my bread and butter" maker!

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Well, I think I should not have any typos or other problems with my keyboard, now that I have cleaned it. With some frequency the keyboard is wiped as I am bit neurotic about dirty keys but today I took the pressurized air can to it and holy cow, what a mess! From the looks of it, I should be nearly bald-headed and be quite hungry from all the crumbs accumulated on the desk. It was downright gross! Most of the crumbs appeared to be from bread but some were orange which means Cheetos....unbelievable. Disgustingly so....No wonder I found ants not too long ago.

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Well, I am having a glass of green iced tea with agava sweetener and I gotta tell you, it's not my favorite. Maybe I made it too strong, used four bags in the Mr. Tea maker, choosing that many was compared to the recommended "3 to 5", which means four should be just right. That didn't happen but I drank it anyway because I should. It truly is an acquired taste, to be sure. Guess I could use more of the sweetener which might help with the bitterness. People who drink tea really like the sweet tea from McDonald's so maybe I should try that some time. Others say the canned green tea falls short but I do like the Arnold Palmer tea which is mixed with lemonade. The only thing with that is, the lemonade adds calories. Humpf!

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This a.m. our Monday Bible study resumed with our study being "ID-ing Worldviews" . We barely tapped the surface of this subject matter and will be taking next week off due to Labor Day. That is too bad because Kerry will be here and I would have loved for her to share in this group, the study portion and the lunch portion, too! We enjoyed our Longhorn's reunion, although our guy who managed the place, Mark, who has left the company. Rats, now we have to break in a new manager! We sure will miss him, he always took time to come greet us and made sure we were well taken care of. But those wonderful chicken tenders-----ooooooh, so good!

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Originally I had planned on going to the pool as soon as I got home from lunch but the clouds had moved in. No sun, no Kim. After leaving Longhorn, I had to circle back to church because I forgot to collect a bouquet of flowers, donated to Timmy's gravesite by Terri T., who was not in church Sunday. She had requested them for their wedding anniversary and knew she would not be there to claim the bouquet, so she sent me a message that I should take them. Very nice, I appreciate it greatly. The previous bouquet on the marker was quite crispy and charred from the sun, in serious need of replacement. I adjusted the little black fence around the tree, snapping the connections back together, which I would guess was bumped by a lawnmower or something. I might ask Justin to go with me someday and re-do the fence all the way around.

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Late this afternoon Justin let me know about his friend's sister's boyfriend had a serious motorcycle accident this weekend. He is in ICU and wearing a halo to support his neck which has broken vertebrae. In addition he has other bones broken and road rash from scraping along the pavement. This happened while Justin was away so he does not have all the details but does know the fellow has no health insurance and is self-employed. Now what?? His girlfriend said she wants to have a fund raiser to help with his bills and such, and I offered Justin my kitchen and equipment if he wants to make stuff for a bake sale. He neither accepted or declined, just sort of was irritated that Bill won't wear a helmet. Not sure if that would have affected the outcome or not, but Justin is correct, the riders should wear a helmet, and drivers their seat belts!

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Another topic for discussion tonight was many of us receiving Past Due notices from the accountant who is in charge of our finances for the building. What? Past due? It is not even the end of August yet and already our September fees are considered late? We realize it was an error, of course, but I did dial the number on the statement and let them know I was not in arrears. But it sure did make me double check exactly what day it was! Only a few more days until Kerry gets here!!!

What a lazy day it's proven to be!

When I arrived at Victory this a.m., Pastor Hoyer greeted me with the words, "Oh, Kim, you braved this rainy weather to come across the bridge today!" It was drizzling but certainly not enough to deter my trip to Victory...what? I heard him tell someone else that overnight to morning they had gotten over 2" of rain! Wow, that was what he was talking about. In my sleep, I vaguely recall hearing rain against my windows but it did not seem overly 'damp' outside when going to my car. Not 2" worth, anyway. We have not had sunshine for two days and I am really feeling funky through and through because of it. No pool time at all since last Sunday late afternoon, either, with the full schedule, etc. Yet, if it had been clear skies, sunny, and hot, I would have made the time to be out there! The surfing is reported to be fantastic with the passing storm in the ocean, so bravo for those riding the waves and those bobbing in boats outside my building on this blustery, now rain-free day!

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Justin is on his way home, stopping overnight Saturday at Grove's mom's house in NC. He sent me a number of text messages and even an e-mail greeting me this a.m. when I turned on my computer. Yesterday afternoon my sister-in-law, Mona, called me and we had a nice chat, our first since I was home in June. She was less than impressed with Justin's adventure to DC, saying it was totally opposite her politics. She was not aware this was a non-political event, but it is hard to tell from what the media writes. "Reports" would be a real stretch. Anyway, it was merely a coincidence that she called me as I had news regarding Marian, whom I heard through the grapevine, via Mishicot, that Marian was in the hospital again. Her daughter, Christina, in Palm Coast (here we go....) had posted a prayer request on Facebook for her mom as she was having serious heart troubles again. Marian's sister, Nancy, let Marcia know in Mishicot, who contacted me. Somehow or another I had missed the prayer request earlier in the day and was glad Marcia e-mailed me. Immediately I reached out to Tina to find out the scoop, but in the meanwhile, Nancy wrote me via Facebook chat to ask if I knew anything. I told her I was awaiting word from Tina. Biff evidently had seemed quite short of breath when talking on the phone which alarmed Tina and somehow she had gotten time off to go down south to see her parents. I gave Mona as much info as I had regarding that situation.

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When Mona and I get on the phone, we make it count, and somehow I managed to change my clothes for the funeral, and drove over to Publix on the way to church, without missing a beat. Fortunately I had showered earlier in the morning (during one of the gospel songs at the event) and should have dressed in my good clothes right away---duh! Part of our conversation was regarding what Allie was going to pursue for her field of work once out of high school next spring. She likes kids so was thinking of being a teacher or working in a day care. Mona said she has to keep reminding herself that Allie in 'only 17 1/2" and shouldn't be expecting grown-up thinking from her just yet.

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My fridge holds lots of leftovers, from Carrabba's and Longhorn, the funeral on Wednesday, and the one on Saturday. Tonight might be a good night to have the Carrabba's because I hate to have that before I am going to be around people, due to the garlic. I can brush and rinse really well in the morning and be fresh for Bible study. Afterwards will likely be more Longhorn....hmmm....I could take my leftovers along and have them reheated for my lunch! I just finished my little container of green beans brought home from last night's funeral dinner, with the bacon crumbles in, Suzanne's recipe. Pastor raved about those beans and I told him I would share the recipe, but have to clarify a few details of it with Suzanne first. The way it is with these type of things is actual measuring rarely takes place, more like a little of this and a little of that. We will figure it out and see if Lynn K. can reproduce it for him.

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Twila and I were talking at the table yesterday that is was 5 years ago now that we were on the Mediterranean cruise with Jean and her family, sailing from Barcelona. It was on this trip that I spotted my dining room light fixture but the lake house did not call for such a thing. However, only a year later, living in the condo, it did beg for such a thing. Justin searched those streets in Florence relentlessly in search of the shop, hence missing the church where Michelangelo and other famous folks were interred. And tomorrow, he is coming over to help me polish it up before all the company arrives!!!!

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Ethel and Darwin were sitting near us, as were Judy C., Judy J., Twila, and me. Darwin pointed out that it was nearly the entire gang that took the Alaskan cruise in 2007. Sue was sitting at the table behind ours so we had well over half of us around the table. Ethel says they wish to take another cruise and I am guessing they want me to put it together (gulp!), thinking this time of going through the Panama Canal. I told them my vacations now will be to see my mom which they understand but the thought of the Caribbean is awfully enticing! I would so prefer that to Alaska, let me tell you! And we really did have a great time, even though I was cold. Really?

The age of electronics

The score is 10-6, Tampa, and the Jaguars just kicked the ball away to end the first half of the game. There was already one lightning delay and just as Scobee kicked the field goal, it lightninged again. Last week was an extended rain delay, but thus far tonight, no rain. Earlier this evening, I thought I would go right to bed because of a beastly crying head-ache, but I had taken an Advil-look-alike while still at church and had a pina colada picked up at the cabana when I came home from the funeral. Danny was fixin' to close up shop as only four people were there, and no one having dinner. He had another tooth ache, his second tooth situation this summer. Always on a weekend, don't I know that feeling!!! I offered him my penicillin but he had some at home and his dad has pain medication but I hope that holds him until Monday. Evidently he's seen a dentist already and he cannot find anyone to extract the offending tooth. The dentists want to save the teeth, of course, but he cannot afford to save it and cannot afford to loose it, not even 21 years old yet! Poor guy!

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Since none of my buds were out there, and I was not feeling too hot myself, I took my drink upstairs to watch the Jaguar game. Once situated here and 'calmed down', my head settled down too. I am sure it was from the crying at the funeral for Mary this late afternoon, where I did well most of the time. The "....and he shall wipe every tear from your eyes...." always gets me, and add to that the closing hymn of "In Christ Alone", and I was wiped out. As we ate our funeral luncheon, or dinner, in this case, the ladies were talking about how much that hymn has packed into it, in a nutshell, as it were, like John 3:16 is for the Gospel. When we sang, I did great through the first three stanzas, and then Pastor had us stand for the 4th one, and I struggled valiantly. ".....no fear in death..." It's true, there is no fear in death, because of what Jesus did for us!

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Another hymn sung was "Amazing Grace", which I sang for the third time this week, and the second time today. Toward the end of the Restoring Honor event, a whole team of bagpipers and drummers, associated with a fire department, played "Amazing Grace" as those gathered sang, and I sang from home. The first part of the day was spent watching the event on Facebook which streamed it live, plus watching it on C-SPAN while instant messaging with Linda who was on a speaker phone call with her sister, and I was being text-messaged by Justin. Whew! All the electronics were smokin'!!! Justin did not send many messages during the actual event but did beforehand and afterward. I kept him posted though on the number of Facebook users on-line watching the event, which was up to nearly 130,000 people at one time. He estimated that there was about 400,000 people there but I guess we will not know for sure until Monday. The area where Justin was standing, along the reflecting pond, forward from the Lincoln Memorial, holds 200,000. That area was full plus an additional lot off to the side which holds another 200,000 people. The 'news' people are reporting "10s of thousands" which is extremely modest because the other numbers are the ones provided by the Park Service, who do this all the time. No politics today, only honoring the troops, and earning over $5 million for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation---whoo hoo! http://www.specialops.org/

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After the main portion of the program was over, three different musical groups performed as the attendees were departing, or stayed around to listen. Facebook showed folks lining up to sign the ginormous American flag that had been carried by a mess of people so I asked Justin if they were signing the flag. He sent a message back saying they were heading to the museum instead. A bit later I got a single word text message from Justin which said, "Butter". That's all. Immediately I wrote back, "Say 'Hi' to Julia", because I knew he was at the Smithsonian standing at Julia Child's kitchen. He and I just loved that movie, I saw it with him at the theater where he kept giving me the elbow when something reminded him of me! A minute later came this picture mail from his phone to mine, which I then forwarded to my e-mail, and then saved to my computer. I love electronics, Advil, and pina coladas!