Got me thinking...

...after I accidently came upon a game show I thought was long gone. I was waiting for a movie to begin so tuned in ahead of time. There, believe it if you will, was "The Newlywed Game". Not an old version either, but a seemingly present day show. Who knew? I know some people do very much enjoy the Game Show Network, including Betty S., but I found it appalling.

The host, a black woman, was asking the ladies the typical questions they do on this show. One of the wives said she makes a list of chores for her husband and he is sometimes slow with completing his list. Really? These are newlyweds supposedly and she is making him a list of chores? Like she would do for her kids? Horrifying!

Advertising and TV shows more often than not present men as idiots or mindless goons to be treated as children. Makes me put my mad face on to see that. What does that tell children about their dads? No wonder they do not respect adults and act up like they do. I get upset when I see "Everybody Loves Raymond"---he behaves like he is Debra's fourth child OR he is treated as though he is. Which is it?                        

This afternoon I got word that my friend's husband was taken to the hospital with a mysterious pain in his calf. It turned out he has a blood clot. Karen's spouse is a runner, training for a half marathon and is physically fit. No explanation as to why he would develop a clot, but he's got one. 

Another of my friends, a lady with whom I used to scrapbook, recently moved to her hometown where her husband is serving in the Navy. Russ has had a couple of strokes, has no strength on his right side and has difficulty speaking. He has been hospitalized for three days so far, undergoing tests and such. He is extremely frustrated that he cannot communicate adequately, but can form some words. 

Kim and Russ just moved this summer to a new home in Pensacola, did some redecorating, plus had a pool dug. Just now getting everything situated and this happened. I don't think he is more than 45 years old, with two young kids at home. Thankfully Kim's parents live in the same town to help out with the kids while she is at the hospital with Russ, whom she always calls 'my prince'. He is no Ray Barone, not by a long shot! 

Today the nurse made her go home and freshen up. Hint hint, I guess...So many folks are offering their prayers and good wishes for Russ and Kim, as she is quite concerned about her husband. Love to see this type of outpouring of Christian love and concern for this lovely family. Mine have been added to those of the others, for healing for Russ, and comfort for Kim. 

Catching up on some things

Wednesday night Justin and I were at The Club for Trivia Night. This time no one fought to buy him dinner or drinks except me. We started out sitting with Bob, Bill, and Nancy, enjoying the buffet with them. Again I had wanted the tapas menu but it was not available, so I think I am catching on to the routine. No tapas menu on buffet night!

Once the game got under way, we moved back over to The Palace Team table where we again ended up in 2nd place by a sizable amount. We won't be able to play if it's offered in December as Advent begins and I won't be going over there. I guess that was my big finish---2nd place.

Bob thanked me again for inviting him to join us for ThanksLiving. He has plans to dine with Bill and Nancy, who have sort of adopted him, and he them. Bob was telling Justin about how I know everyone and what's going on around the place, and Justin said, "I know...she is like an ambassador!" Bob had to laugh because that is what he calls me. Justin knew that so fed him the line. Funny! Bob told me he wants to take me to eat at The Club after I get back in January and I think that will be just dandy.  My guess is that Bill and Nancy will come too. I make him clean up his langauge around me, just like my neighbor, Randy, had to do!

Kindly notice the blue lantern hanging next to my chimes. It was a treasure found at the Victory yard sale, even though I was determined to NOT find anything...I got it washed up and Justin hung it where my other wind chime used to be, the one that kept falling down in pieces. Then, Stephanie got me a new one and it didn't hold up either. I wish better for this one!

Justin is gone to a birthday party at the house he used to live in a few months ago. Tomorrow his whole gang is going to a football game in Tallahassee. Friends from the Tampa area are joining them for this game. I am unsure exactly which teams they are going to watch but some of them attended Miami and some FSU. Hmmm...So, anyway, Justin will be spending the night in Mandarin and they will leave from there in the morning. 

He made a pasta dish on Tuesday night while I was at a Building Committee meeting but we just don't care for it. Too strong a flavor or something, perhaps the shallots, not sure. I added a can of golden mushroom soup in an attempt to fix it. He tried adding some pork we had in the freezer but that didn't really help much. I might use the pork in baked beans instead for my dinner tomorrow night. 

Earlier I was at my desk to work on the church newsletter which was pretty far along already. But, alas, it somehow was unsaved when the computer did a reset (I vaguely remember it doing that in the middle of the night) and my work was gone. I tried to sit here and put things back in but it's too late at night for thinking. That's why I am writing my blog!

Saturday is expected to be a hot day, in the 80's. That will feel so good to me. We have had a few days of sunshine, and what seems like many more with winds and dreariness. I have the doors open when it's not raining so the house is aired out nicely. It might also be a bit damp but when it's windy, it keeps the damp from settling. That's my story and I am sticking to it!

Fun in the classroom

This morning I had the opportunity to again pitch in to help with crafts in the classroom at our church's preschool. At first I was going to have to decline since Justin was expected to be off work and would attend Bible study with me at Victory. But, then, his work schedule was changed and he was going to be working so I told Michael I would be there. And then, Justin's schedule changed again, and is off, but it's too late now, I'm going to preschool!

I just love the look on Betty's face as she watches the kids do their painting with Q-tips. Both Judy's table and Betty's were working on the same type of project while my groups worked on lunch bag turkeys. I had to re-work some of them because their helper messed up stapling the turkey heads to the bag (me!!!). "Oh, Miss Kim..." They have a nice system of keeping the kids moving from 'center' to 'center' to complete the various items. 

This is almost looks good enough to eat! 

The thank-you gift from them was a bean-coated candle holder. We volunteers were not required to help with this project, thankfully, because it looks complicated! Lots of glue, mixed dry beans and corn shaped in a plastic cup, with the candle stuffed down into it. Cute!

Some sort of sad news

This is a recent photo taken of Mickey the stupid dog, as Justin so lovingly called him. He was given to Timmy for Christmas in 2000, after I gave in and agreed to having a pet. Justin was going to get a kitten, his pet of choice, but the one we were going to adopt did not work out in time for Christmas. He later did get Boots and enjoyed him until Justin went to college. Boots now lives with the Lawcock's, our church friends, and they love having him in their pet family.

But, anyway, back to Mickey. He was born in September of 2000 so when we got him on Christmas Eve that year, he was about three months old. Timmy loved him, I have video tape of him running around in the front yard chasing that dog. On Christmas morning, Mickey fell into the pool and my former spouse had to fish him out. Yeah, I know....

That dog was nothing but trouble. We were warned by our friends from church, the Roys, about the barking and yowling, but we were committed. And should have been committed for trying this pet business!!!  Using baby gates, we coralled Mickey in the pool bathroom and would let him out on the patio for his potty. A good deal of time and effort was exerted to clean up the concrete after the dog. Sometimes he was outside the enclosure, but the fear was always that he'd go running off. We had plenty of trees to tie him to but that Houdini of a dog could escape.

He barked in the house, he barked in the yard, he barked on the patio, even if he wore a barking collar which was to shock him when he raised his voice. Numerous electric collar sytems were purchased to keep him from running off. While he was on the patio and not barking, he gnawed on the legs of our furniture...our expensive furniture. But Timmy liked him....

Then, only weeks after getting the dog, Timmy died, and that was that. No real training or anything happened with the dog other than scolding. Mickey would ignore the shocks of the collar and go running around the neighborhood, with neighbors calling to report our dog in their yard. We'd have to drop what we were doing at work and go round up that stupid dog. One time, Michael, our 'house boy', had to chase Mickey all the way around the pond in the neighborhood, and when he caught him, told me he was never doing that again!!

After our separation, Mickey went to live with my former spouse. Justin would still get to enjoy time with the dog, even being the official dog sitter when his father was out of town. More than once Mickey was hit by a car or hurt in some other way (our former employees even finding Mickey tracking mud into their nearly completed homes under construction!!). 

Justin would come home with stories about that 'stupid dog', and how he is regularly being taken to the vet for one malady or another. Ever since Mickey chewed through a cord and got shocked, he had a drooling problem (ask me again why I don't want pets!) and had to take medication disguised in food items. Ugh! When his father was married, a couple more dogs were introduced into the mix, the dustball looking kind, which Justin would also have to dog sit. Fun fun fun! I always said that if that dog had not been Timmy's dog, he would have been gone a long time ago. 

A couple weeks back, Mickey had to be put down, which Justin found out on Facebook. He had some sort of cancer and had lost weight, so it was time. At the age of 13 calendar years, 70+ if counted in normal dog years, he was put to sleep. I felt kind of sad, but mostly because he was Timmy's pet. Sort of the end of an era...

Like mother, like son

Last night, as I mentioned, we enjoyed the sight of the full moon. All day long it was cloudy, and in the afternoon it began raining. Once Justin got home, showered, and dressed, he went to get my car filled up with gas for me. He goes to the Gate Station to do so as he 'earns' Jaguar Dollars for every 10 gallon purchase. He sees to it that I have gas in my car---such a good boy!

                  

While he was gone, a relatively short jaunt just over the Doctors Lake bridge and back, I reheated our leftovers so dinner would be ready when he got back. Everything was heated up, the table was set, and no Justin. At one point I went to the kitchen door to listen for him to lock the car door so I could hit the button on the 'wave to reheat my reheated food. 

                     

Just then my phone went off---it was Justin calling!  He said, "Like mother, like son...I was talking with the ladies at the gas station." What a hoot! He said, "I know you were wondering where I was so long..." and I asked him how he knew I was standing at the kitchen door. I did have to reheat the food once more as I had him stop at the Walgreens to get Diet Coke, since it cost too much at the Gate Station. At least the rain had let up!

Sunrise on the river this a.m.

My friend who lives a few blocks to the south of me took this photo and shared it on Facebook this morning. I state this in case you wonder where the dock came from. Owene was a teacher of Justin's years back at St. Johns and for a while hung out at the pool. Did not see her much this sesaon so she must have found somewhere else to go for her lap swimming. 

I can count on Owene or my neighbor on the property, Sharon, for helping capture amazing sights along the river. We have a full moon presently which is at last free of the clouds and is shimmering on the water. Hopefully the rains are over for the rest of the week. Justin worked the last part of the day in the rain, soaked through two shirts, and ended his shift by injuring his thumb/nail by jambing it against the car when trying to free his phone from his wet jeans pocket. I know, a freak thing, and wham! 

He thinks the nail split (goosebumps up and down my arm thinking about that!) and it is pounding like nuts this evening. Ice was not his friend and he has wrapped it with bandages to protect it. Somehow he will have to try sleeping with his arm over his head to keep the blood out of his hand. That should be comfortable...poor guy!  

When relatively small things happen to us, like the time I had an infected hang nail and was seemingly crippled by it, I wonder how in the world I would survive something serious happening to me. What a bunch of wimps we are sometimes. I do not wish to find out, however.

Saints Triumphant!

The second Sunday in my favorite (one of my favorites) time of the church year, End Times. Oh, those deeply meaningful hymns...Sadly, our congregation did not sing "Jerusalem, the Golden" today, which I guess would be because we have no one to play the piano or ogan for it. The hymns from the Supplement are not in the MIDI, though I was sure one of our members had loaded all that several years ago. Hmmmm....anyway, I wanted to sing it and know I can't without sobbing. 

We did sing "For All the Saints", four stanzas worth, before the MIDI stopped. I don't know if all the stanzas aren't loaded or if the operator just cut if short. I made a noise when it stopped playing, and Terri patted my leg to comfort me. I wanted to sing some more!

                          

After worship four of us went to Chili's, a lesser number than usual. Terri had to go to work, Justin was at the football game, and Michael had a meeting. He is dog sitting for his brother and family while they are off camping in GA. Michael wears many hats! 

When I got home, I tuned in to the Jaguar game where they started out in a favorable position. This, however, proved short-lived, and they lost to the Cardinals. It was downright embarrassing at the end, oh my. I guess last week's victory was a fluke, just enough to please Gretchen. 

While I was worshiping, eating, and watching football, my family was enjoying special worship as well at my home church. First German was celebrating the 140th anniversary of its current structure. A former pastor, Joel Otto, was the preacher and a former teacher, Carl Nolte, was guest organist. The Lancer Singers from MLHS added their voices to that of the church choir with special anthems to "join the full throng". The church band played as well, not an orchestra because of not having stringed instruments. 

I saw photos on Facebook posted by Pastor Hoppe, including one where my family is seated at table in the gymnasium waiting their turn to eat. Three of my sisters are there, my niece, her hubby, and the three little boys, plus, of course, Grandma K! I was so tickled to see this picture, and others taken inside the church proper, where Pastor Schaefer presented a slide show history of the building, etc. Everyone was in their appointed pew! This made it easy for me to pick them out.

In the afternoon, I watched the Packer game on the iPad (they lost, too!) and on the laptop tuned into the anniversary service from the Seminary. It was great, it was lovely, it was well done, it was significant. And, I saw people I knew in the choir and in the congregation. 150 years for the Seminary and 140 for the church building. A really good 'heritage' Sunday!