Life in Weyers Cave

We are in Jacksonville. David is settling affairs with his Dad's estate and I am diligently working on some two jobs, one programming and the other database manipulation. I am enjoying having less interruptions than usual, though working on the tiny laptop is a bit more tedious. Yesterday I got to see Bryan for three hours. It was a treat. I appreciate the fact that all of the kids are very gracious and helpful. I am so blessed. He brought David and I a trivia game which we will probably play tonight. If I get off the stupid computer. Tomorrow Dianna is coming up and will fly off to Idaho on the 3rd. Of course we are looking forward to that as well.

Allen came up with a new game, which we tweaked a bit. It is like 20 Questions, but instead of animal, vegetable, or mineral, the person in charge is thinking of a verb. It is difficult and uses a different skill set than 20 Questions. I find it very hard, but David is better at it than I. Yesterday, he came up with one. Most people do it on the bed or maybe in the bathroom, but it CAN be done anywhere. There is a distinctive noise that happens when you do it. It is considered inappropriate to do in public. Animals never do it. You usually do it alone. It usually requires something that you can buy in grocery stores, as well as other places (though some people do it without buying something to do it with.) You don't generally see people doing it, even in movies. Jesus never did it. Obama certainly does. It would be rather bizarre for someone NOT to do it. He also had "chewing gum". I stumped him pretty good with "lighting a candle", then gave him "swimming...

Allen stayed just over a week. It was so wonderful. David gets nervous having ANYone in the house, with the exception of my friend Martha. But this is the first time in years he didn't seem at all stressed having someone stay here. Allen worked hard cleaning and doing all kinds of chores, was always pleasant, always full of fun ideas, and in short, just a joy to have around. He and David both bought new cars. I'm not jealous, because I still love my Bee Box even if it is now four years old! Cathryn called and said she got a diamond from her boyfriend for Christmas. Fortunately, it was a Diamond brand bow and arrow. She still likes to yank our chain. They all do. Except Dianna, the perfect one. Cat now is on life number 13. She is in a box on the floor of the bathroom, but still jumps up on the sink begging for running water. Robyn in Georgia is selling Girl Scout Cookies. She called and talked me into Thin Mints and Tag-Alongs. Her goal is 100 boxes.

For those family members who haven't been home in a while, you can see the new house the Vans built for their son in the dip in the street. It is very nice. And yes, a beautiful sunset but too many stupid wires. The second shot is from our driveway facing west. For all you Utahns, it is good that our MOUNTAINS aren't so high to block such a magnificent sunset! And the car is Daddy's Christmas present.

Allen, David and I had a few small gifts to open this morning. We never did get up a tree or any decorations other than a few lights and wreaths in the windows and a Christmas flag outside. I got a small package yesterday which was a delightful suprise -- a CD of a singing family I have greatly admired in Charlottesville. I listened this morning and it set the mood for a nice day. Allen and I have been playing mystery games and I made some chocolate chip cookies for him. I just made the batter so he can have fresh hot cookies when he wants. I received a phone call from one of my customers - the one who always booms out "greetings and salutations" when he calls. He asked if I had seen the Mormon Tabernacle Christmas concert. I haven't, but he proceeded to tell me how hypocritical it is for Mormons to make a big deal about Christmas. David is in a throw away mood. Not good. Think samtsirhC.

I absolutely do NOT want to go out tomorrow in this mess. Our street has YET to be plowed even the first time and my little Bee Box is not a heavy vehicle. But tomorrow I am supposed to have the concert that was rescheduled from last Saturday -- at the Bridgewater Retirement Community. Apparently my picture was in the paper though I didn't see it. Tomorrow I have six tickets to the Harrisonburg High School production of A Christmas Carol but family doesn't want to go. They are good for the four or seven o-clock performance (unless they are rescheduled). Let me know if you want to go. I don't like ice and snow and stuff. I like being home where it is warm and cozy.

No, I don't think I shall go anywhere today. Allen left Fort Bragg yesterday at noon for what should have been a 5 1/2 hour drive. He got in at 6 this morning. Safely. But he never called or answered the phone and we were very worried. I finally went to bed at 2, David at 3. We are so grateful that he is safe that we decided not to kill him for not calling! He said at 2 this morning, when stuck in a jam for over eight hours, he tried to borrow a cell phone that got reception so that he could call. But he was planning on getting the other person to first say that it was the hospital calling. I think I would have really lost it at that point. That would have been worse than knowing nothing. We have had five people call from church making sure we are okay. David's asthma is terrible after taking a bag of salt across the street. Now he is going out to shovel five driveways with the snowblower. The street hasn't even been plowed yet, so the ambulance (or the men in white coats)...

Without children in the house, it isn't worth it to decorate much. So much of the old magic is gone. It is time to make new, different, magic! Wednesday night I spent five hours wrapping Christmas presents for Salvation Army families. Thursday night we went on a Frontier Culture Museum Lantern Tour! Much fun! And afterwards, I was able to lead the next group through. They even trusted me with a lantern! This Monday night, weather willing, we will be seeing A Christmas Carol put on at Harrisonburg High School. Today we played in a Christmas Concert at the library. Tomorrow there was supposed to be one at the Bridgewater Home, but it is now put off until Monday. It includes the singers. We are being socked in by a storm of the decade and are being promised one to two feet of snow. It is coming down hard and last I heard, Allen was on his way here and was about 200 miles away. But the roads are bad and it will be mountainous driving so I hope he makes it safely and soon. No cookie b...

David and I ran down to Fort Bragg last weekend to bring Allen his car and computer. He looked wonderful and is always to great to be with. I appreciate that he is full of sincere gratitude for anything we ever do for him. There's not a lot else to say. He is on base, we went shopping and got a computer desk which he put together, went out to eat a few times, etc. He wanted to buy me some clothes and we hit the mall, but I am a stick-in-the-mud for whopping for myself. Sorry, Allen. As usual, I am happy to be home. But David's allergies to the cat are pretty bad so he is happier to be gone.

Most people love Outback because it has consistently great quality and service and is a fun atmosphere. David and I took our weekly date night last night and went to South River Grill (I love their Pecan Trout Salad) but there was a party going on. And lo and behold! There was a new Outback across the street. We didn't even know about it but it had been there a year. So we went in and there was NO LINE. It is much larger than a normal Outback and the owner said they haven't done much advertising so people don't know about it yet. But it is a new decorating scheme as well. We had a great dinner. One of the nice things about being married is always having someone to share with. Almost always. Well, you know what I mean. Tonight, it's Ruritans for me and grading papers for end of semester for him. In other great news, Allen is apparently on a C-5 over the ocean as I write this and will be back in the states soon, after being deployed over a year. He will be at Fort Bragg a...

I couldn't believe they didn't cancel Relief Society tonight, but I went . I drove Allen's four wheel drive Blazer. It was a messy wintry mix. But they played the ornament game where everyone brings an ornament and then the distribution is the game. I have a pretty pewter snowflake! I went to the Museum today and had a lovely second grade class early in the morning. Then it was cold and nobody else was there, so I came home. Allen is due to fly back to the states Thursday, if orders don't get changed and the fifty year old plane works. Crossing my fingers!

Friday night we tried out the new sushi buffet restaurant in Staunton (in the former Ryan's Steakhouse). It's $9.50 apiece, which is a lot for buffet. David and I don't really care that much for the sushi part, but there was tons of food on the buffet we enjoyed. Lots and lots of seafoods, some chicken and beef and pork, some fruits and salads, slim pickings on vegetables, and the desserts were - meh? That's okay, I don't eat desserts. There was one thing called "chinese vegetable" that looked like bright green cabbage that David couldn't chew through -- too rubbery. Most of the food was good, nothing to write home about though. I like the Wood Grill in Harrisonburg better, but I am partial to veggies. Today is Sunday and yesterday it snowed. I have heard that the average snowfall in the Shenandoah Valley is the greatest in the country, because IF it snows, the chances of it being funneled into the valley and just "dumping" are great. Yesterd...

I have a hard time justifying the cost of going out to eat. You can make the same thing at home for much, much less and be assured of what is in it. I like to cook. Still, going out to eat is one of those little pleasures we have in life. You can have things that just aren't possible to make for one or two people. Back when I traveled for a living and stayed in hotels and ate out every meal, I found it got old very quickly. When David is gone for two weeks, like he was recently, I ate home every meal and he ate out every meal. Yesterday I went out to eat with a friend at A&Ts Chicken for lunch. It's a mom and pop place behind the mall and the owner is the sweetest lady on earth. She always remembers your name and always asks about the kids. I enjoy the salad because I love the seasonings on the chicken. Then for dinner David wanted to take me out, so went to Jalisco's in Verona. I've heard of people bemoaning the local Mexican restaurants, but I love this one. There...

I went to a wonderful friend's home for Thanksgiving yesterday, with plenty of kids and turkey and love. It was very, very nice, but I miss my OWN kids and turkey and love. It's not the same. But I am grateful for the invitations and love everyone has shown me. I came home to a lake in my kitchen. I am so good about cleaning the coils under the fridge (we make jokes about how that is the first thing my mom checks when she comes in the house to see if I am being a good housekeeper). But I didn't know the new refrigerators want you to clean the coils by removing the back of the dadgum refrigerator! Seriously, you have to take OFF the back panel! Who knew? I do now. At least I got it fixed today and didn't lose any food. So I decided to console myself with the last little bit of Belgian chocolate in the house. But one bite and I gagged. It had gone bad. Belgian chocolate doesn't last that long. Okay, I had some cheaper Belgian chocolates that would last longer. But no...

I couldn't go down with David for this, his fourth trip to Florida, because I have too much work here. So I am alone this Thanksgiving. I am full of gratitude, though, for the wonderful life I have. I am grateful for my church, my faith, my husband, each of my four outstanding children. I have had the opportunity this year to really appreciate my siblings. And I love my mom so much. I am grateful for the medical miracles that have made it possible for me to conquer, or at least control, my diabetes, my arthritis, my headaches, and my gout. I have had many invites to Thanksgiving dinner and am grateful for my friends. I am never alone. I am grateful for a home in the Shenandoah Valley, for all the critters in the yard, for my volunteer opportunities and being allowed and able to do them, for my humble little business with computers, and for go-to geeks (cough, cough, M) that help me when I am out of my league. Everyone has problems, and nobody would trade their problems for someone...

Of all the things I have been upset with my husband over the last 28 years over, the fact that he seldom buys me gifts is not even on the list. I personally much prefer it if every few years he or one of my four wonderful kids find something that is so "me" they can't pass it up and give it to me, whether a holiday or not, than having them all feel that they must buy a gift for every holiday just because it is traditional. I hate waste, and hate the fact that most of the stuff in my house I would like to get rid of but it all has guilt trips attached. I also hate buying gifts for people when I know the gifts will sit on a shelf and be a burden. As for giving money - I just can't get over the tacky end of that. Especially for an "exchange" like Christmas -- I give you twenty dollars and you give me twenty dollars back. How lame is that? Maybe for newlyweds or graduates who have more expenses than they can handle. But certainly not for Christmas and birthdays....

The dentist put the crown back in yesterday. It fell out again today. David has the H1N1 virus. He is supposed to be going to Jacksonville - um - yesterday? Maybe tomorrow? It depends on how bad his lungs get. He's been sick since Monday. I feel fine. Doctor thinks I am immune. The advantages of being a 56er! I am three months older than David, so I have the immunity and he doesn't. Go figure. Famous last words. Tomorrow I may post from my sickbed. I have processed and posted 9055 names in the database. Many, many long hours. Fixed two computers this week. They were freebies, though. And Happy Birthday tomorrow Bryan!

Yesterday I went back to the dentist -- again -- and he took new impressions and we sent off for a new crown on #14. This will be lucky number seven. Yup, seven crowns on this tooth. And two root canals. On the same possessed tooth. He put on a temporary that fits great and for the first time in months I can actually eat something. The other side has a big molar missing so I can't chew there. Oops, make that past tense. This dentist is going to shoot me. The temporary fell out. Geezle, wheezle. I think he is going to fire me as a patient.

7:30 was serving breakfast at the District Ruritan Training meeting. Then work at home. I have THREE computers I am presently working on. Plus I am still working on editing the 85,000 names for the database conversion. I am 12% of the way through this. It is certainly mind-numbing! 4:00 was a chili cook-off at the local Methodist church. It was a fundraiser for a ministry for families of inmates. The wife of an inmate spoke and wowed the group. She was well-spoken and really made a fine case for the ministry. Plus the chili was good. But not as good as the miniature cream puffs (David liked calling them profiteroles.) More computer work. 7:00 Recorder. I haven't been for a month so it was good to be back. I had to play soprano tonight so I pulled Gail's out of my bag. What a great instrument! I hit the high notes so sweetly and it was spot on for all the notes! As I got home there was a call for me, one of my newer customers. He is a recorder player from Lynchburg, but I never...

My sister and cousin both say they have it too: the Martyr Complex. We all do everything for our families and sit back and do nothing for ourselves. This is absolutely NOT in any way a veiled plea for money. Just sanity. I drive a lot and enjoy my car radio and it breaks from time to time; it just won't turn on. Then an hour later it works fine. It also randomly changes stations on me. Crutchfields is local, and there is an open box special on a Sony with a USB port that I would really like for $150 installed. I have the money, have David's blessing, and would spend the money in a heartbeat for my kids. So why can't I do it for myself? I'm still really grateful for Tammy making me buy the LL Bean jacket so many years ago for myself, forcing my hand with a gift certificate. How did we get this martyr complex thing (and why don't our kids have it, except possibly Dianna?) Certainly my boys have no trouble spending money and Cathryn, although frugal and getting through...

I had the new crown put on Monday a week ago, then left the following Tuesday for Florida. On the way down, the tooth chipped as I was flossing it. Because of the location of the chip, I have been unable to eat solids without pain for the last week. The dentist saw me this morning and wanted to just give me money back. Aagh! And I LIKE this guy. This is the SIXTH crown on this blinking tooth. I told him we're for going for solid gold, which can't crack or chip, right? And seven should be the charm. Anyone know a good tooth exorcist? Ah yes, the funeral and visits in Florida all went well. Everyone behaved themselves considering the stress. David's mother surprised me with her strength. I think she will be doing fine. She has found a very, very nice assisted living facility. I only wish they had both moved there several years ago. David will be making two more trips down there in the next month. This has been a huge burden on him and his mother hasn't decided exactly wha...

I am in Florida with short spurts of computer time and lots of emails to go through. Of course a lot of the last few days has been waiting or just being put aside for a while. I have had some trouble with the hotel computer connection. No computer for Dubby! How horrible! The viewing and funeral went off smoothly. David put together a very nice powerpoint presentation and eight page book with lots of pictures of his father's life from the time he was born. They were remarkable. All of the guests were amazed and pleased to get such great insights into this multi-faceted man. He had served in the military so there was a flag ceremony at the graveside that is very beautiful and brought everyone to tears. I have never been particularly close to any of David's family, but it was wonderful to have Bryan and Dianna come up for the funeral. Bryan adopted a big sister Louisa a few years ago and she came as well. Louisa is awesome. She doesn't have a birthday, which is very convenien...

Yesterday morning I got up bright and early after a lovely night's rest, voted, finished packing, and drove the entire way from the Shenandoah Valley to sunny Florida. The trip was uneventful. I have already realized a few things I have forgotten since I have had a few things on my mind: my camera, some pantyhose/kneehighs. I finally got a crown on poor little tooth #14 on Monday and for the first time in months could eat on solid foods (I still can't eat solids on the right side of my mouth with the missing tooth and can't even start the process there until January). I really like the dentist (in Staunton). He told me to floss it a lot. So I took the floss in the car. Little chunks of glue have been breaking off and coming out. But one big chunk came out and I think part of the blankety-blank crown came with and now there is a space between it and the tooth in front big enough to put a car key in. Now everything is getting caught in it. Luckily I have lots of floss. Poor l...

As I drove into the parking lot at church this morning my cell phone rang. Father-in-law had passed away at about 8:30. Sister-in-law Carolyn was there and had asked that Mother-in-law Addie not be told, but that husband David take Addie down to the hospital so Carolyn could break the news to her. I don't know how that went. I went in to church, where the chorister was sick, so I conducted music. The first song, of course, and upbeat song "Welcome, welcome, Sabbath morning, let us rest from every care." One of my counselors was missing as was one of the two teachers and the other counselor left early and I had to come up with the last minute sharing time and closing exercises. There was a very out of control ten year old visitor. We played Simon Says and when we said Stand Up he purposely sat. He was unarguably the worst behaved child we have ever had in primary, but fortunately Sister Wright was beside him and she can handle any child. I snuck out such as I could to get ...

This morning I spent four hours with a Board Meeting for a nonprofit I serve on. Tam, how do you do this for a living. Whoa! I brought my flying bee hat and was class clown because, hey, it's Halloween. It was much appreciated. But I was a good girl and kept it under my desk most of the time. With all the extra stress I am under I can definitely feel that I am significantly more ADD with 200 thoughts a minute streaming through my mind. But I am working diligently on the database project and got five thousand names worked through today and shipped off, the first of twenty modules. I found a couple of ways to make it go faster and faster as well as more efficient. I enjoy working on it because I can have beautiful music or "conference" on in the background and it helps to calm me down. I also got a few big boxes out this week and can see a little more of the garage. Yup, there IS a garage out there. I promise. I went to a small Halloween party tonight here in Weyers Cave...

I'm not talking much because I keep the blog positive, but am going through some tough personal storms right now. My husband is with his father-in-law in Jacksonville as he fights passing away from leukemia and pulmonary stenosis. My mother in Raleigh and I are disagreeing about the best way to help my unemployed brother who has moved in with her. I know I need to put Faraday to sleep and don't have the heart to do it. The strength of my faith, my church, my wonderful family, and my tremendous friends are really helping in these tortuous times. Thank you all. And for those who are sitting quietly on the sidelines praying, thank you as well. You think I don't know you exist, but I do. Because you see, I'm praying, too.

Allen and his new friend in the Seychelles. and this little guy doesn't look like he will turn out too well -- a picture I took with my cell phone from the back porch but you can see he isn't all that far away and looking straight at me. A little fox that lives in the back yard. Quite cute, actually. I love that we have so much wildlife around here.

These pictures of David's Dad. He was born in 1923. The last one of course has his granddad and David and his two sisters when they were young. Always fun to see old photos!

I just got back from a new client. An couple my old with kids grown and gone. I walk in the back door in nice neighborhood. There is a tennis court and a swimming pool and lovely little garden area. The owner comes up in a golf cart from his daughter's house next door. There is a big kitchen with a tiled floor and big island and computer area, lots of bedrooms and formal areas as well as informal areas, decks, porches, gardens, a big master bedroom, it all kind of runs together. There is a children's bedroom with toys all over. While we are there, the daughter comes over with 2 year old granddaughter on her golf cart from next door. They play with the toys while we work on computers in the office. In retrospect there is a television. But I loved the idea of the three generational family flow of the house. The love, the dad coming in and out, loving bantering, it was such a great place. I want to live next door to my kids and drive my golf cart back and forth. (By the way, they...

I'll save the more embarrassing ones for blackmail.

I love talking to people from all over the world at the museum. Yesterday the weather was ideal. The chickens always love me and come running to me, often when I don't even call. I love sitting against the brick heated wall because it feels great on my arthritic back. I love the sense of history and thinking of the great sacrifices our ancestors made to give us the freedoms that we have. It is ironic that the greatest thing they ran away from is the excessive taxation on every aspect of their lives as a way of controlling them. I love working with Gottfried, who was born in Austria and whose father fought in Hitler's Army and died in a "camp". I am pretty good at NOT talking politics and steering the conversation away from politics at the museum, but naturally it will come up. The other thing that comes up a lot is training children and child discipline. It is so fun to get away from technology although the manual labor sometimes isn't so great. No bathrooms, non-...

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Kelly R gave me some Friendship Bread starter. Grrr. It is a little ziplock bag with a yeast mixture growing in it accompanied by a page of instructions. You feed it and squish it and ten days later you add to it, divide it in four parts, make a loaf of bread with your part and find three more victims. I lose. My bread was bad enough to give to the birds. Do they do this anywhere else in the world? Or is it just a Shenandoah Valley thing? David is gone for the weekend to teach in DC so I am a widow yet again. But there is something to be said for the peaceful classical music and hot peppermint tea and getting things put away. I made another trip to Allen's closet yesterday. Little by little I am weeding away my garage. Sigh.

Where does the time go? On Tuesday I had a great day at the Museum. Several people came by that I knew and I had lots of Germans come. Rosa came by - she is the inspiration for the German house. She grew up a block or two away and worked there for years and I wear her costume. Bryan used to volunteer with her. When she heard I was Bryan's mom she was delighted and her face lit up! I decided to name one of the chickens Joan Rivers because she will not shut up. Ever. She talks incessantly. And Jezebel once again ran away and made me chase her EVERYWHERE rather than go to bed at night. David went down to his parents last week to clean out the shed out back. He said most of it was old books and papers from many years of his dad teaching. He had forty bags of garbage for his sister Becky to take to the dump. I was surprised at how little he came home with. He took the van down but it was only about a third full. And in fact most of that was the empty boxes he had gone down with. NOT tha...

Faraday, the mystery cat, has her "places". She likes to be inside a box best. Her latest "place" is now right in the middle of the kitchen table. She has never even been allowed on the table, but I have heard her jumping off of it as I walk in the kitchen and find cat fur there ... But now when I walk in the kitchen, she glares at me defiantly and says "go ahead, make my day!" when I threaten to make her get off. She is 15 and thinks she can get away with anything. Go figure. She has for years insisted that we give her only running water to drink, and is verbal about making us turn the water on the instant we walk in the door. There are times when she is pretty adamant about what sink it comes from. She has just recently changed that. Now she is wanting water with fresh ice cubes in it. She is diabetic so she drinks a lot. I guess I just don't know about cats.

Since Cathryn talked about her kitty I thought I could post about mine. This is Gerda. Her latest trick is to sit on the rail right by the front door of the German house because she knows I will give her a handful of wheat when I walk by and she won't have to share it. She and her sister Greta are the friendliest kitties and like to be picked up the most. They are always the first to come running to me when I call out "Here kitty, kitty, kitty!" Greta likes to come in the house so I can throw her out the window.

Cathryn remarked that I have become more politically active lately. Hmm. I have always considered myself politically active, but since it annoyed David I have tried to keep a low profile. Because he earns most of the money here, I don't contribute money to campaigns. I don't have bumper stickers or yard signs because of him. But I have always studied the issues, talked with others, voted, written lots of letters, and met with politicians when I can. It still annoys David and I still try to keep a low profile. But it is even more important to me since it is evident that my children will not enjoy the freedoms we have had. Let me be clear. Politics/arguing annoys David. Not so much WHO is saying WHAT, just the fact that there is disagreement going on in any form. David does vote and in general we agree on who to vote for. I, on the other hand, was raised in a political family. My earliest memory is my father explaining the Nixon/Kennedy election to me in 1960. I was a "Buckl...

I have worked very hard updating a computer lab for the last two days, expanding from six to ten computers. It is in an old house that was wired professionally about a year ago. there are eight in one room and two down the hall in another room. I bought four nice used computers with 1 mb RAM each for $150 apiece from Computer Recyclers. This is a great deal, since they are usually $175 for the 512 RAM but they know me and their mission is to support schools. One didn't work so they quickly changed it out. They have XP Professional, which is good, because the others have XP Home. One acts as a server and you can't access XP Home with more than five other computers so we will need to be moving the server to one of the new computers. I had some trouble with damaged LAN cables. A lot of scootching around on the floor (boy, was I sore yesterday!). Intermittent problems. I am worried about the electricity draw on this old house. I replaced some surge strips that had their lights out....

I bought a $20 hard drive for a broken laptop and put it in yesterday and reloaded the OS. Once again, with XP Home, since it is a Sony and I didn't have a Sony disk, it is now demanding a hundred dollars to continue running. The drive was a 20 gig, the largest I could find. The computer isn't worth the $100. I have learned Microsoft doesn't care about a workaround on this. I need to ponder the solution. This computer was donated for me to fix up and has the name of a local family to give to when it is decides to behave! Linux? Hmmm All they want is to go on line, watch DVDs and write stuff. I haven't done Linux before but this might be the time. Jezebel -- fried hard drive with valuable grandkid pictures and NO BACKUP! These things make me cry! It was on a nice UPS, but plugged into the phone line. ZAP! It took out the hard drive and some of the four 256 sticks of RAM. I have it running on one stick of RAM and have a new used drive and have loaded the OS, but sadly wi...

I keep seeing so many cases of the Golden Rule being a piece of bunk, I thought I'd write about it. Because it is, after all, my blog, and you can click to another page. But hear me out. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Obviously, you would add the caveat "in the same situation" -- you would give a baby a bottle but wouldn't want one yourself. But more than that, people are so different in their needs and their wants that it renders this rule pretty useless. David was at a command station with his ham radio yesterday. An older couple prattled on endlessly not realizing that what David wanted most was to be left alone with his radio. They thought they were being friendly, but he found it annoying. Today at the dog show some of the Ruritans wanted to serve large portions, others small. Some wanted to cut the sandwiches, others said that was too much work. Some wanted to close right at 1:30 to get home, others wanted to stay open a few minutes longer. S...

No, I did NOT say Rabbit, Rabbit today, even if it is the first day of the month. But I did go to my 8:30 BNI meeting, then a phone call to a client that lasted an hour, and a 12:00 board meeting, then bought four computers for Skyline Literacy and delivered them (setup tomorrow), and came back home to attempt a fix on an uncooperative computer and do some paperwork. Another board meeting at 7, and putting together lunch for Saturday and Sunday for the Ruritans sponsoring 100 people at the annual dog show. I have two clients to visit tomorrow and lots of egg salad and macaroni and cheese to make. So I'm busy without being overwhelmed and life is good. "Friends are the chocolate chips in the cookie of life ."

This blog is primarily to keep the family updated since they are so spread out. But lately I have been talking to each of them pretty much every day since David's Dad is not doing well. So I haven't really needed to post as much. I have had lots of errands as well as smaller jobs and am trying to keep my schedule open for an emergency trip to Florida. Each day has been very productive. Today I spent five hours at Skyline Literacy working on their computers. I have had nothing but trouble with Carbonite backup service and the customer service continues to ignore any pleas for assistance. Skyline renewed, and got confirmation of the payment, but Carbonite won't run because someone thinks Skyline still owes more money. I took Carbonite off and put on Mozy. I haven't used Mozy, but hear it is good. I have Carbonite at home and have constant problems as well. I have to reload it each time I reboot the computer. Again, customer service is useless. Sad, because it is so close...

When I went to recorder practice yesterday, I had totally forgotten that I had a Renaissance Faire in Salem (two hours away) today from 12-3:30. Aagh! I had to find the costume and pull it out (all of the pieces) and find an extra men's costume here since we had a last minute drummer - er, percussionist. Jeff S picked me up at 10 and we drove down together. Jeff is a remarkable character, a former percussionist for the Miami Symphony and outstanding conversationalist. He works with fundraising for nonprofits and knows a little about everything. We are really blessed to have him in the group. The two hours went by quickly. But it was raining -- a LOT of rain. Okay, not as much as Atlanta. It mostly drizzled at first and then got gradually heavier as the day wore on. And it was cold. I was grateful my costume was made of wool. Jon, who got the men's costume, was glad that there was an extra layer for him as well! We got to the park and there were a number of small 10-12 foot squa...

We got home at nine tonight after a long drive leaving just after 8 this morning. It was nice being with the kids. I appreciated the time with David's parents and the opportunity to say goodbye. But it is always so nice to be home! Since the children knew I missed them so much, they got me a lovely, little fuzzy gerbil and left it in the hotel room. Sadly, it escaped. I put out peanuts for it and was able to catch it when it ran out from under the couch. So now I have another mouth to feed and take care of. Allen, Bryan and Dianna are going to go to Disney together on Friday. Cathryn is back in Fairbanks, a bit too far to make the trip. But I know she is glad to be home out of the heat. We stopped at a Pirate restaurant in Elkin NC on the way home. It was really well done and I highly recommend it. Now back to broken computers and playing recorders and yelling at chickens in German!

I've been here in Florida since Thursday and haven't had a moment to myself. But I really don't know what is happening to my time. Yesterday I spent a lot of the day just sitting at Grandpa's while David took his mom around for errands. I tried to fix his computer. He has AOL on there and it can really do a number on a computer. You can't use the IE browser at all and if you use the AOL browser it closes after a few seconds. But at least I got a virus checker on there (it was suprisingly clean), sped it up a bit, and it worked with Google Chrome (but oddly, not Mozilla). Bryan was the first to leave yesterday around three in the afternoon. I went back to the hotel for a few minutes around six to take Dianna back to her car and work out some banking issues. There in my room was an empty gerbil cage. Apparently the kids had decided to buy us a sweet little furry present and leave it in our room. Aww.... Then Dianna left. We stayed at the Grandparents until about 8:30....

Only Dianna would go to church with me, but we got there and the church was closed. I don't know if they are renovating it or it is stake conference, but it was a blessing I missed. I haven't head the kids singing either. That is my favorite, so I am sad about that as well. We were supposed to take pictures yesterday. Cathryn's pants were old and quite beat up so we went to try to find her some decent picture-taking clothes. It was tough because she is pretty anti-everything, but we finally found a blouse and decent pants that she looked great in and she agreed to wear it for the pictures. We went to the grandparents and took the pictures. Grandpa talked for about an hour (?) about his youth and I think we all enjoyed it. He is a good story teller and his voice wasn't faltering, so we weren't being polite. We really enjoyed it. We went out to eat at Cracker Barrel without the grandparents. Then back to the hotel - it was about 9, and split up. David needed a break s...

When we were in the hotel room last night and the knock on the door was followed by "Housekeeping," David walked over and answered. In walked Dianna, 12 hours earlier than she had told us. She was very proud of herself for pulling this one off. The children are all now much more worldly than when they were when last together nearly three years ago. In fact, there were times that "bawdy" almost worked. But they were giggling and tussling and enjoying it so much, I felt like the odd man out. I never wanted it to end. Grandpa is enjoying the company and we are getting a lot done and cleaned out. We see even more how much easier it would have been had they moved to Virginia years ago. But David and I both agree we really don't like living in Florida.

The drive to Florida was fairly uneventful. We had a lot of rain, some traffic, a few accidents. We noticed that Georgia looked a lot different. Interstate 95 in Florida is known for having been under construction for the last 28 years (at least). But this time, when we got there, well, there must be a barrel blight because all of the orange and white barrels were gone. There was just one little 29-mile stretch of them. All I can think is that the recession is bad enough that they had to muse them for homeless shelters for dogs. lol David and I are staying in a hotel with a little suite so we have a kitchen and the others are at the hotel next door. Allen got in an hour or so after us, and Cathryn not too long after that. As we checked the kids into the hotel, Cathryn had to demonstrate her devil sticks and other juggling paraphernalia, much to David's dismay. He hates it when they roll around on the floor like little puppies, but I enjoy it. The obvious joy they felt at being toge...

I spent the entire day yesterday loading the car, trying to remember everything I have wanted to bring or send each of the kids as well as all the things we need to do together, food, music, etc. I was really beat when David got home just after 5. He packed and we left to for Florida. We drove until after 11 and are now holed up somewhere in the middle of North Carolina. I woke up early and he is still asleep. We are on the way down to be together with his entire family. It is always a stressful time. I am hoping this will help everyone refocus on life. It is my Humble Opinion, that the most important part of the gospel is to teach people to treat each other with love and dignity. I think deep down most people agree with that. It isn't to make money or get the biggest home. So why, when faced with a death, does it bring out the worst in people? Why the tempers, backbiting, taking offense, etc? Often everybody starts sticking their hands out like a pinata is about to be broken? (No...

When my Grandpa Gretz died, it was a sad time, but family came from far away and it was so nice being together, something we hadn't done in years. At the dinner after the funeral, we remarked how nice it was and we should get together for something other than funerals. My Grandma Rickey was at the dinner, from the other side of the family. We talked about how Grandpa had suffered and she quietly said "I have all my affairs in order." That night she went to sleep and never woke up the next morning. It has been many years now since that, my last trip to Cleveland, my homeland and city of my birth. My cousins and I have grown far apart. Now I am preparing for a trip to Jacksonville. Allen will fly in from Djibouti, Cathryn will make it down from Alaska, and the other two will come up from southern Florida. the first family reunion in nearly three years. David's father was hit with stage four acute leukemia with no warning at all. He has been given the time and ability ...

The pro-abortionists are happy with the healthy care bill. No complaints there. The pro-illegal aliens are fine with it. The trial lawyers are happy. There were a lot of people at the rally saying nurses and doctors were against it. The insurance companies were clearly saying they were thrown under the bus. Meanwhile, the President is saying the bill does not provide abortions, does not reward illegal aliens, has the medical community behind it, and won't make anyone switch insurance companies, and will make sure everyone gets the health care they need and it won't cost a penny more. And no death panels. Why the disconnect? Planned Parenthood read the bill. They know abortions are covered. The ACLU is getting what they want. The illegals are getting the free health care. The lawyers aren't getting a lick of torte reform. And the doctors and nurses and insurance companies are getting thousands of pages of new laws and red tape that will increase their workload and decrease t...

I had the awesome privilege and experience of being able to go with friends to Washington DC yesterday to attend the grand daddy of all tea parties. We met bright and early and carpooled up there. I was really grateful not to have to drive! We stopped at one of their relatives' homes near the Vienna Metro station. We walked the mile or so to the station and then waited in line for an HOUR to get the tickets to get on the Metro. Everyone was patient and happy to be there. Then we were packed into the train and took the half hour or so ride in, under the river, and to the end of the line. We got out, paraded up Pennsylvania Avenue with our signs, and made it over to the Washington mall. Once there, we "hung around" for a few hours, there were songs, speeches, flags, people handing out literature, people selling pins and shirts and other paraphernalia, and lots of flags. Many people were dressed in colonial costumes. The mood of the crowd was incredible. So much for the ...

I went to recorder practice this morning and all was well. Came back and worked on a computer. I had scheduled to pick up stuff from the Red House to take to the rental closet on Wednesday. It looked like rain, so we canceled. Then it didn't rain, so we were going to do it again, but halfway down there it was raining again so canceled again. So we rescheduled for today at 2. Luckily the mice hadn't gotten the mattresses. Unluckily the birds had. But I would rather clean a little bird poop than try to fix a hole! The movers were the people from across the street, eager for a few extra dollars. They had a 1966 Ford truck with little wooden panels up the sides. It took an hour to try to fit everything in, but by George, they did. A couple of dressers, an entertainment center, king bed and springs, end tables, dinner tables, mirror, and half a dozen kitchen chairs. I started to drive the half hour to the rental closet and noticed my radio wouldn't work and phone wouldn't c...

In my recent post about the flu, I inadvertently used the word Gatorade. This was a slip since I was thinking of how Dianna is in Florida with all the alligators. Of COURSE I meant Powerade, which is a far superior product. I would never buy or advise others to drink Gatorade. My humblest apologies to those I have offended.

When I started going to Dr Waligora nearly ten years ago, he got in my face and said "You are diabetic. You aren't pre-diabetic, you aren't mildly diabetic, you are diabetic. You always will be, and you can't make excuses or exceptions to it. Face the facts, you are diabetic, and then we can take it from here." I cried. I tried to prove him wrong. I was in denial. I did all the things someone does when they lose a family member. My "normal" lifestyle and eating were gone forever. How could I NOT mourn? Eating, particularly eating junk, is a social thing. I started reading and studying. I learned about the end results of diabetes - dialysis, loss of vision, loss of limbs, etc. Even for "controlled" diabetes, I learned that every single time your sugar goes high, you do slight damage to yourself. It is FAR better to eat just one bite than it is to eat a piece of cake and then try to balance with insulin. I learned that simple carbohydrates are po...

I enjoy my customers very much. Especially repeat customers. Last night I worked for Mo, a retired Spanish teacher, and her husband Brad. He is into spy equipment, bugging, spying on others' computers, hidden cameras, lockpicking ... all kinds of things like that. Funny, nobody is safe, are they? It makes me all the more aware that the best way not to get caught doing something wrong is not to have anything to hide in the first place. Still, his craft is fascinating. I am thinking of making "the Hive" where I keep track of my customers and the information on their computers so when they call with questions it is easier. "Oh, yes, you are on XP and use GMail and I told you a year ago to get new memory." I could send out emails sometimes saying things like "It's not your imagination, AOL is really flaky lately" or things like that.

Tomorrow is 9-9-9. How cool! I worked at the museum and got TREASURES today! Jerry the blacksmith gave me a handcrafted S hook. Sally was going to give me Shepherd's Pie made with lamb, but it wasn't ready. Jay and Gottfried made sausage and sauerkraut -- quite wonderful! And Jo King (really, that's her name) in the gift shop gave me a tiny piece of fudge. My friend Barbara came and fixed the loom and I am going to start weaving when I am there. The rats got another chicken. This time it was Paris Hilton. She was everyone's favorite, except for maybe Tina Turner. She was so friendly, that she would lie down in your arms upside down like a baby. With the cat gone, the rats are even more out of control.