Story telling

Yesterday I drove Carolyn to the market on 107; she bought us another bushel of potatoes and a few tomatoes. She raised three tomato plants in flower planters this summer, and the fruit all ripened while she was sick or in hospital. They were the sweetest tomatoes I have ever eaten.
----
She went to the hair dresser today for the first time in a month; until she becamet sick, she went every Wednesday. She should be able to drive the car by next Wednesday, and I can stay at home, although I am able to get out and get a few photos while she is being beautified. I went into downtown Jonesborough, but it was mostly a waste of time. They have huge tents set up everywhere they can find a flat place that is big enough, meaning mostly parking lots. The town is hosting its annual Story Telling Festival, and thousands of people from around the world will be on the streets this weekend for the event. The greatest folklore and story tellers in the world appear on the stages for three days beginning Friday. There will be many street-booth vendors to go along with the many small shops the historic district has to offer. It is a fun place to spend the first weekend in October each year.
----
I went for my appointment with my heart doctor and I was in the waiting room and exam room for nearly two hours ... waiting. When I did see the doc, it was for just over one minute. I do not have another appointment with him for six months. Somehow, it just don't seem worth the effort for me to go.
----

Can you say "Third World Countries"?

Click to enlarge

Healthcare reform

I have learned from a source whom is usually reliable that Obama has already sold out on the public option for health insurance. In fact, he did so last January while touting the need for a government entity to compete with the private sector. The president met with leaders from the pharmaceutical and insurance industries and promised them he would not pursue the public option if they agreed to not oppose overall healthcare reform by sending droves of lobbyists to Washington to influence congress and if Big Pharma would cut drug costs by $80 billion over the next 10 years. The corporations seem to be keeping their end of the agreement, and have spent $20 million on ads supporting the reform. Now Obama must pay the devil his due.

If the above proves to be true, the president has misled a lot of people with outright lies. What else is new in Washington?!
----
Poor old Roman Polanski; his friends and supporters think he should be allowed to walk free even though he has admitted to and been convicted of drugging, raping, and sodomizing a 13 year old child back in the 1970's. A great director of films he is, but he is also a criminal whom fled the American justice system and took refuge in France. He should spend the remainder of his life in prison like an ordinary convict would probably have to do.
----
Let's see; today I have touched on the crimes of politics and those of Hollywood. I was thinking of doing a piece on ordinary religion (oxymoron?), but I will allow it to slide for a later date. Is that applause I hear?
----
On this date in 1939: Germany and the Soviet Union agreed to divide control of occupied Poland. The Germans took the west side of the Bug River and the Soviets took the everything to the east.

Transitions

Tarry some moments and hold my hand
upon this autumn bench we rest
Tell me of summers past
the happy and too the sad
I will cherish to see the little smiles
and share with you the frowns
as memories of all those times ago
sculpt lines upon your face

©2009 Ken Anderson
----
I am having a tough time with Carolyn's depression; she is much like I was when she was in hospital. I can hardly get her to leave the house, even to sit on the porch.
----
Today is mild temps and windy; this year has been one of extremes in the weather dept.
----
I did get some more work done on writing about my early years, from my first memories in 1947 up to the time I finished primary school in 1963. I was held back a year; I failed to understand why I should know the intricacies of Algebra. As a matter of fact, I failed it three times; ninth grade, summer school, and again in 10th grade; mothers are so persistent. It is fine with me if x wants to equal y, but I find it simpler to allow x to just be x. I finally managed to ace arithmetic in 11th grade.
----
Speaking of my mother, if she had lived another eight years, we would have celebrated her 90th birthday yesterday.
----

Quiet days

There is just not much going on in my life this weekend. Carolyn is getting back to a more normal life; she is doing some cooking and washing clothes, but she still tires easily. Time.
----
Another city employer is closing their factory and consolidating it with their headquarters unit in Pittsburgh, Penn. Two-hundred area people will lose their livelyhood from Traco, and more local businesses will be negatively affected. Meanwhile, old farts from up north and Florida are still moving to the area and keeping prices high. Some people whom have lived here all their lives are leaving for South Carolina and other places where housing prices are not so steep. Carolyn and I are still thinking of moving to North Georgia or somewhere in Tennessee or Alabama near Chattanooga. Sales taxes in Tennessee are too high; we do not have a state income tax, and the wealthy will not allow one to be enacted. Taxes on property, groceries and other necessary commodities are placing a big hurt on the unemployed and other people whom are living just above the poverty level. The poor receive aid from various government agencies and charities, but the near-poor can get no help.
----
One of my Flickr friends posted a photo of some Jack Daniels whiskey. He pays just over $26 for a 70cl bottle in London, England. Our local stores charge $33+ for the same size bottle. It is made here in Tennessee. Something is just not right!
----
On this date in 1939, Warsaw, Poland, surrendered after weeks of resistance to invading forces from Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union during World War II.
----
The Smoking Gun's Mugshots of the Week!

A poet I ain't

First a word of clarification. On Wednesday I mentioned I had put my poetry book on Shelfari; it is my book but it is the one sent to me by my friend in Poland. I only wish I could write poetry that well. My apologies if I misled you.
----
The roofers came out today and "fixed" our roof, but I doubt they did any good. Caulking around a bathroom vent on the backside of the house will probably not keep water from running down the frontside wall of my living room closet and into the basement. But then again, what do I know? I'm only a decrepit old electrician.
----
Our normal annual rainfall for this area is around forty inches, but my guess is we have had much more than that already this year, and flash flood watches are in effect again. Phooey! I was hoping to get out and about a bit this weekend, but I suppose it will not happen.
----
Not much happened on this day in history except that William Faulkner was born in 1897. He was a great writer.
----
A mule will labor ten years willingly and patiently for you, for the privilege of kicking you once.
~ William Faulkner

Happy Birthday, NIC

I was able to get out and make a few shots around the house yesterday, but nothing of importance. I like the early and late light this time of year with the soft air and long shadows. Even the mid-day sun has a lazy and fuzzy feel to it. Probably because the light is coming in at a greater angle to us living at 36 degrees north latitude, therefore passing through a thicker atmosphere.
----
On this date in 1957, the Brooklyn Dodgers played their final game at Ebbets Field in New York City. With their departure to Los Angeles and the move of the New York Giants to San Francisco, the city of New York was left with only one Major League baseball franchise, the Yankees. In my opinion, it was the era of the downfall of baseball as the great American sport. The Dodgers were my favorite team of the 1950's, but the westward migration took the magic from the game for me. I remained a baseball fan through the Roger Maris/Whitey Ford/Mickey Mantle period of the Yankees, but by 1965, I signed a divorce decree with professional baseball, although we had a torrid period of passionate romance during the Pete Rose era of the 1970's. It has become just another big business.
----
On this day in 1991, Dr. Seuss (Ted Seuss Geisel) died. He now resides in Whoville, spending his days picking stars off of Sneech bellies.
----
“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”
~Dr. Seuss

Wonderful Wednesday

Carolyn is doing very well this morning now that she realizes she is healing as expected. I will try to carry dirty clothes to the basement so she can wash them; she knows about mysterious white clothes and colored clothes segregation. My main task now will be trying to keep her from doing too much.
----
I just added my new poetry book to my reading list on Shelfari, an online book club. If people are honest about what they say they like to read, one can get a good insight into their personality. If any of you like to read, I will be very happy to have you as friends on Shelfari.
----
Computer operating systems have become too bloated and glitzy, and this applies to Ubuntu Linux, too. Seems like Microsoft, Apple, and Ubuntu are all trying to out do each other in the crap-that-looks-pretty-but-does-nothing-to-make-computing-safer-or-easier department. I hope the new Google Chrome OS doesn't fall into this same trap when it is released; if it is released.
----
Today is the first day of clear, blue skies we have experienced in some time, but there is a chance of T-storms later on. I always feel better on warm days such as this ... I think I may be coming back to life. Later, I hope to grab the Pentax and hobble out to the back yard and see if I can find anything to shoot. There is a bit of breeze so I will not mount the macro lens.
----
My friend Maggie has been posting a lot of photos from her trip across part of the Canadian plains. She has really grown in her photographic abilities since I met her on Flickr more than two years ago. She was very good then, but now she is great but too modest to admit it.
----
Mark (yankeepez) is doing some wonderful work, too. Here is a link to one of his latest black and white photos. It is art from top to bottom and side to side.
----
Carolyn said to say thanks for the birthday card, Alice. She has it sitting with the ones from the kids and beside the empty place where she would have put the one I forgot to buy her.
----
I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.
~Winston Churchill
----

Tired

Carolyn finally had her staples and drain tube removed; everything seems to be going pretty well. We stopped by Kroger on the way home and about 10 minutes inside was all she could stand.
----
Last evening I finally convinced Windows 7 to install on the computer and I will give you my 24 hour usage impression of the OS; unless you are buying a new computer with it already installed, it may be best to shy away from it. It is a whole new Windows with very little looking or working like XP. It does work much better with legacy programs than did the much maligned Windows Vista, but it still will not run everything that is usable on Windows XP. The only program I really need to run on Windows is Quickbooks 2005, and it did install ok but would give an error message after loading and then shutdown. I was eventually able to get it to work satisfactorily in compatibility mode, but it caused the OS to crash once today. I did run into one odd quirk on my old reminder program that I use to keep up with birthdays, appointments, etc. It will not operate in Win7 even in compatibility mode. The strange thing is, it works fine in Linux using W.I.N.E. compatibility. I am writing this blog from Win7, but will be tickled to get back to the user friendly Linux Ubuntu.
----
I hope to get back on Flickr sometime this week although I have but few photos to upload. I will try to get out this weekend and find a shot or two if at all possible; the burning desire is returning.
----

Our weekend

Over the weekend, I caught parts of a movie I'd not seen; Georgia O'Keefe was the title and it starred Joan Allen as O'Keefe and Jeremy Irons played photographer Alfred Steiglitz. I have yet to see most of the movie, but the parts I did see were pretty interesting. Joan Allen is wonderful actor and anything Jeremy Irons plays in is always better because of his superb abilities to capture the essence of a character. It was on Lifetime channel, and I suppose it will air again.
----
Saturday was a bit interesting in that Carolyn had to find out the hard way she is not able to do the things she is used to doing. She wanted to ride down to the river and buy some potatoes and corn from David Thompson, That part of the journey went along ok; between David's boys and myself, we were able to carry the produce to the Escape. Then she had the notion she wanted to go to the grocery store and there was no convincing her to not go. We ended up at Food City in Jonesborough, and we went in, she leaning on a shopping cart and myself hobbling along behind on my cane. After about 10 minutes of isle hopping and shopping, she said she didn't think she would even be able to get out of the store much less to the car, but she finally made it to and through checkout and back to the car. When we got home, she headed straight to bed and did not get up again until yesterday afternoon. I carried most of the groceries into the house, and JJ finally came to my rescue and toted the produce inside. Her birthday was not very enjoyable. We spent part of this morning shucking corn, and I went and got my shot which I missed Friday because I had no one to stay with her for the half hour occurrence.
----
I carried my camera with me while we were out Saturday; it was the first time it had been out of the drawer since mid-August. I made no photos, and I think I am losing the desire to do so. Used to, I would get out and walk around the house if nothing else, and I always managed to find a subject or two to shoot. With the knee gone completely crazy, it is too painful and very difficult with the cane. I suppose my photography days are over ... at least for awhile.
----
I am planning an early autumn bath at the creek. As soon I feel safe leaving Carolyn for a couple of hours one evening before the air tuns cool, I will head for the pool of still, black water which is fed by a small cascade. There I hope to sit immeresed up to my neck, and I will renew my contract with nature; I am beginning to lose contact with the spirituality of life, and do need to make ammends.
----
I may be offline for a day or so while I try to get some things sorted out, but will check in whenever possible.
----

Happy Birthday CAROLYN

I am taking a day off ...

Days are special

Avast freebooters! Capt'n Lame Shoe and cockswain Mud Salt 'ere. We and a few leagues worth of other sea knaves and wenches ere markin' "Talk Like a Pirate Day". It be best ye follow alike or ye mite earn a Jolly Roger run up a hole where they be no flag pole. Argh! Be warned! It'll be the hempen halter for all ye scurvy dogs who get catched by the King's lubbers; this tisn't the flibustler, ye know. So come on ye picaroons and scalawags; grasp ye duffles and up to the poop where extra rations of salmagundi and grog be prepared.
----
Happy Birthday to Fred and daughter Vanessa, and Happy Anniversary to Fred and wife Alice. Fred liked to keep things compact and tidy, so he arranged for all these special occasions to occur on the same date. After wiling away many evenings playing and losing deuces-wild poker with him, I believe he could use sheer will power to make these things happen. Before he passed more than 29 years ago, he was a special friend and I still turn to his wisdom for guidance.
----
The Smoking Gun's Mugshots of the Week!
----

Missing Mary Travers

I've been reading the name "Kanye West" for several days, so becoming a bit curious, I googled it this morning. Asshole? Probably. Do I care now that my curiosity is satisfied? No. Any kind of glamour award show is beyond my comprehension and always has been thus. Most of the music presented is bad, the singers are not very good, and I blame tv networks like MTV for destroying what was good about music in the first place. Example: Who was the first inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Michael Jackson. Has he anything to do with rock and roll music? Not unless bubblegum pop counts as serious music. Would he have even been considered as an early member of the hall of fame if not for his popular MTV videos? Not likely. My belief is that the unearned mega-bucks these actors and musicians reap should be reward enough, and this crap-tv is only placed in front of the public for more big bucks going to networks and movie/record companies.

I like to listen to many differnt kinds of music, at least I did until my hearing gradually went bad from a close-call explosion, many overly loud rock concerts, and a lot of hi-volume listening at home and on the road. These days I have to crank it up just to hear it, much to the consternation of family and neighbors. Yep, I am just a crochety old man (and loving every minute of it).
----
Over the past few days I blogged some quotes from famous and not so famous American political and spiritual leaders. Actually, I did a lot of googling on this stuff and it seems the hell-fire and damnation spouters are gaining much popularity across the board in the less educated part of the US population, and also in parts of the educated middle class. Hatred does work in this country, and it is shaping more and more opinions each day.
----
Carolyn just got off the phone again ... with Bank of America. These calls and emails have been going on for a week now, many bank representatives have been informed of our plight, yet each and everyone of them claims there is nothing they can do. This last one she spoke with did give us a bit of hope, though. He was sympathetic and said an investigation would be undertaken, and that he would see that her account was credited with the amount of the two "missing" checks. I should know for sure by tomorrow.
----
The roofer was out to inspect our top-side for leaks. He will send a repairman back asap. Meanwhile back at the ranch, Tonto (not knowing the Lone Ranger had disguised himself as a pool table) racked his balls.
----
Tomorrow, dudes and dudettes.
----

Chwila

Chwila/Moment

A friend living in Warsaw Poland sent me a book of poems written by Wistawa Szymborska, a citizen of her homeland. It is a small book, at least in its physical size, and each poem is presented in Polish and translated to English; two languages side-by-side complimenting and agreeing, which in its own way is poetic. The poetry of this work far transcends the size of the pages, each poem is beautiful in simplicity and insight.

EVERYTHING

Everything -
a bumptious, stuck-up word.
It should be written in quotes.
It pretends to miss nothing,
to gather, hold, contain, and have.
While all the while it's just
a shred of gale.

Beautiful in simplicity and insight ...
Thank you so very much my friend Jola.
----

Mohandas Gandhi quotes:

I came to the conclusion long ago … that all religions were true and also that all had some error in them, and whilst I hold by my own, I should hold others as dear as Hinduism. So we can only pray, if we are Hindus, not that a Christian should become a Hindu … But our innermost prayer should be a Hindu should be a better Hindu, a Muslim a better Muslim, a Christian a better Christian.

My effort should never be to undermine another's faith but to make him a better follower of his own faith.

I consider western Christianity in its practical working a negation of Christ’s Christianity.

I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.
~Mohandas Gandhi
----
----
More quotes from the American Taliban:

















"We had lost the fight for the preservation of the white race until God himself intervened in earthly affairs with AIDS to rescue and preserve the white race that he had created.... I praise God all the time for AIDS."

"AIDS is a racial disease of Jews and Niggers, and fortunately it is wiping out the queers. I guess God hates queers for several reasons. There is one big reason to be against queers and that is because every time some white boy is seduced by a queer into becoming a queer, means his white bloodline has run out."
~J.B. Stoner
**********
"AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals. To oppose it would be like an Israelite jumping in the Red Sea to save one of Pharoah's chariotters."

"AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals."

"If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being."
~Reverend Jerry Falwell
**********
"The New York Times and Washington Post are both infested with homosexuals themselves. Just about every person down there is a homosexual or lesbian."

"All Latins are volatile people. Hence, I was not surprised at the volatile reaction."

"Your tax dollars are being used to pay for grade-school classes that teach our children that cannibalism, wife-swapping and murder of infants and the elderly are acceptable behavior."

"Homosexuals are weak, morally sick wretches."
~Jesse Helms (North Carolina Republican)
----

Wonderful Wednesday

More quotes from The American Taliban:

"Don't use the word 'gay' unless it's an acronym for 'Got Aids Yet'"
~Bob Dornan (California Republican)
****
"There should be absolutely no 'Separation of Church and State' in America."
~David Barton (Wallbuilders)
****
"Sodomy is a graver sin than murder. – Unless there is life there can be no murder."
~David Trosch (Founder of Life Enterprises Unlimited and a suspended Roman Catholic Priest)
****
"Behind this judicial wall of separation there is a tyranny of lies that will fall... I say to you, my friends, let it fall!"

"A good butt-whipping and then a prayer is a wonderful remedy."
~Fob James (Governor of Alabama)
****
"If you got to castrate your miserable self with a piece of rusty barb wire, do it."

"Hear the word of the LORD, America, fag-enablers are worse than the fags themselves, and will be punished in the everlasting lake of fire!"

"You telling these miserable, Hell-bound, bath house-wallowing, anal-copulating fags that God loves them!? You have bats in the belfry!"

"American Veterans are to blame for the fag takeover of this nation. They have the power in their political lobby to influence the zeitgeist, get the fags out of the military, and back in the closet where they belong!"

"Not only is homosexuality a sin, but anyone who supports fags is just as guilty as they are. You are both worthy of death."
~Fred Phelps (Westboro Baptist Church)
****
If the above people are going to be in Heaven, please reserve me a seat on a hot rock in Hell.
----
It seems Obama is willing to continue the Bush administration's so called Patriot Act. I wonder what the Republicans are giving him in return for his support of that hateful piece of totalitarian legislation? It certainly isn't viable healthcare reform.
----
On the home front, Carolyn is doing ok. Her surgeon wanted to see her today, but the office refused to make her an appointment until the 22nd. We are trying to keep her wound clean and the dressing changed, but the skin around the staples and the drain tube is looking very angry. I hope they do not become infected before they are removed.

I have again delayed my knee replacement surgery for a few months. I am seriously becoming tired of using a cane; it has been several months since I was able to go without it.

The problem I had with Bank of America's ATM is ongoing. Carolyn has tried several times to to call the local branch, and finally got through to them on Monday. They told her she would have to make a physical apperance at the bank so they could talk about her problem. I emailed the the national customer service department and they told me there was nothing they could do but give me a number to call. Carolyn called it and it only gives her the account balance. That leaves us without two of her customer checks totalling $636, no way of getting the money for them, and my debit card has been sucked up by a machine. Looks like it would be a simple matter for the local branch to mail the checks and card to us, or send us a letter letting us know they have them. This has been ongoing since Sept. 7; after 10 years with BoA, I think it is time to look for an new bank.

A note: BoA uses Brinks to service the atm machines, so it is a good possibility those missing checks are in some foreign country or in another city such as Atlanta.
----

Just words

Due to lack of free time, some of the stuff I am posting was written months earlier.
----
Ten of the movies that were/are popular which I do not like:

1. Goofy musicals: South Pacific, Daddy Long Legs, etc. Paint Your Wagon was good because of Lee Marvin's acting and despite Clint Eastwood's singing
2. Anything with Hugh Grant in it sucks
3. Terminator (Terminator 2 is much better)
4. Monster Sci-Fi (Attack of the Killer Tomatoes and Attack of the 50 Foot Woman being exceptions)
5. Gone with the Wind
   
6. Teeny-bopper flicks (Although it may be considered a teen movie, American Graffiti is one of my favorites)
7. Most vampire movies
8. Most Frankenstein flicks (The Boris Karloff original was great as was Young Frankenstein)
9. Most John Travolta movies (Barbarino in the tv seires Welcome Back Kotter was the high point of his career)
10. Most Jimmie Stewart movies (It takes a good supporting cast to make up for his bad acting)

----
The American Taliban

The following are quotes from the American Taliban. These people are respected in their faith and message by many American Christians and politicians. Do you want to spend eternity with them?

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war. And this is war."

"Not all Muslims may be terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslims."

"Being nice to people is, in fact, one of the incidental tenets of Christianity, as opposed to other religions whose tenets are more along the lines of 'kill everyone who doesn't smell bad and doesn't answer to the name Mohammed'"
~Ann Coulter
**************
"With all due respect to those dear people, my friend, God Almighty does not hear the prayer of a Jew."
~Bailey Smith
**************
"Yes, religion and politics do mix. America is a nation based on biblical principles. Christian values dominate our government. The test of those values is the Bible. Politicians who do not use the bible to guide their public and private lives do not belong in office."
~Beverly LaHaye (Concerned Women for America)
**************
More tomorrow.
----
The Administration is saying the recession is very likely over; it probably is in DC, but the rest of us have to live in the real world.
----

Dear Mr President,

Dear Mr. President,

Please do not waver concerning the public heath care option. Let it be just that; an option. Our basic freedoms are built on options, and without this particular one, the people will have no say in healthcare. It will boil down to the same old same-old with providers having the last word. For them, it is about money only. Keep your promise of real change that you made to all Americans. Compromise on the public option is only superficial change.

Sincerely yours,
----
I sent the above email to the White House a few of days before President Obama's "You Lie" speech at Congress. In return, I received a "rally the troops" form letter the day before the address. I immediately deleted it, as it did not contain an invite for me to become an official and well paid advisor.

All-in-all, the president's speech was anticipointing; I hoped he would either make a commitment for the public option or toss it out of the "reform" package. I still do not know where he stands as he is still trying to use the diplomatic middle of the road approach when some good old political arm twisting is called for. A weak president has no real negotiating prowess; Jimmy Carter realized that hard fact after it was too late. Obama is beginning to look like an overwhelmed leader whom is ready to advance to the rear. The office of president has become too big for a mere politician to successfully control.
----
The first real impact of autumn's impending arrival greeted the hill people with nippy temps this morning. Kids awaiting the school bus were wearing lite jackets and sweaters, and I was a little chilly during the night. I hate such nights; I need an extra blanket to be comfortable, but I'll be damned if I will allow a bit of discomfort to make me hit the cold air to hunt for more covers. Shivering is a good thing.
----
Carolyn is doing ok with her surgery recovery but the back/leg problem is wearing her down. Vicky has twice done laundry for us, therefore I am still ignorant of the colored clothes/white clothes segregation issue.
----
May you find peace over the rainbow ...

Sunday Blues

Anything the administration does now will be a victory for Republican minorities; those are the ones with the most money flowing into their coffers from the Big Medical influences. Obama fired an opening salvo and immediately retreated. By not sticking by the people, he allowed the ultra-right wing hate groups to win not just a battle but an entire war. This is the "Real Change" he promised us? No, just more political bullshit to get elected. If he allows this opportunity to bring meaningful change for a broken system to go by the wayside without a public option, I will do everything I can to see he does not pull more than four years as president. I know I can do but little to stop the insanity, but try I surely shall. The United States of America needs very much to be brought into the 21st Century and retake its place along side other free nations whom place the welfare of their citizens above corporate earnings. It will not happen, and the decline of America will take one more giant step toward total dominance by Big Business. Much of America's corporations are now owned or controlled by other nations including communist China, and they are the one's supporting the Republican Party.
----
Bosch, a German owned company and one of my town's remaining large industrial employers, is closing the doors to its plant. Just one more step in the transformation of this small city from industrial based economy into a large nursing home for the influx of wealthy retirees. The rest of us be damned.
----
Carolyn finally got out of bed long enough to sit in the office chair for more than an hour. The original problem of the extremely sore leg remains.
----

The homefront

Things are cruising along on the home front. I am now the head nurse, cook (such as making bologna sandwiches), room cleaner, gofer, and spiritual advisor (my favorite roll). I have actually been pretty ill myself for the past two days; some of it is probably hangover from all that has gone on in the past two weeks, some from an RA flareup I am having, and I may have caught a bug at hospital. The surgeon's bill came yesterday, and the amount was pretty shocking but not unexpected; it certainly did not make me feel better. Chris and JJ ran some errands for us yesterday, saving me from having to do so. Jerry will be over today to help out where ever he can; he helped me bring Carolyn home from hospital Thursday evening.
----
Our grandson Jeremy came in from Atlanta yesterday for his girlfriend's grandmother's funeral. He was able to stop by and see Carolyn before heading back to Atlanta. I had never met Courtney's grandmother until last Christmas. Because she was old and in poor health, at least one of her grandchildren had rejected her and would not allow her to see their kids. Courtney brought her grandma over to our house from the nursing home to have Christmas dinner with us, and JJ's friend's children were here and she enjoyed her day with us. She has been back in the nursing home ever since, and died Wednesday at the same hospital where Carolyn was. It has all been very saddening in many ways.
----
I am going to see if I can convince my patient to get out of bed and move around a bit. I'll have to try to force her to eat a banana as a potassium suppliment; her activities so far have been limited to going to the bathroom many times.
----
The Smoking Gun's Mugshots of the Week!
----

9/11

Carolyn is back, and she now has very loose bowels, probably from all the laxative she took when she thought she was constipated; it is keeping the both of us hopping. Other than that, she is doing very well. She was up and down so much last night neither of us slept much, but she made up for hers this morning.
----
Folks, your encouragement and well-wishes have meant a lot to us. Carolyn said to tell all of you "thanks", and I am very appreciative of you.

She is home! After a 12 hour wait, I was able to bring her home; she came through the front door at about 10:00pm.
----
More tomorrow.

Carolyn is doing well. Sweet Alice stopped by again to see her; the grapes were delicious, my friend.
----
Thanks everyone for your support during this crisis; I consider each of you as family.
----
----
Just heard from Carolyn: The surgeon came in and is putting her on a more substantial diet. If she can have a bowel movement, she can come home tomorrow. She will be limited to lifting nothing heavier than a cup of coffee for the next four to six weeks. I cannot see her ever going back to work. I suppose I will have to relearn my limited cooking skills and figure out how to separate the white clothes from the color ones. Life is very complicated.

Vicki and JJ did laundry last week, and I have a whole drawer full of my FTL bloomers, so I should be good for awhile.
----
I would love to run for president on a "Clothing is Optional" ticket. Most porn would be a thing of the past if everyone was already naked. Of course I would always wear clothes in public, but I sure would like to see you sans clothes.
----

Tuesday doings

Carolyn was up and with assistance went to the bathroom this morning. They are wanting her to have a bowel movement, but like her, I feel there is nothing in there to come out. She ate nearly nothing last week, and has had nothing since going to E.R. Friday. What little she did eat she could not keep down. They did remove the tube from her stomach; it was placed there through her nose to suck out any air and back-flow from her intestine, and was beginning to irritate her. Physical therapy people are supposed to work with her today because of the original problem, a sore leg which is refusing to cooperate. She is to also have an x-ray; I suppose to see if there is anything in her bowels. She is becoming frustrated and you know whom is catching the brunt of it. Ah, well.
----
My eyes are borderline today; I did not sleep well last night. Later I must try to repair a snafu at the bank; I went there yesterday to deposit some checks through the atm and it took my card, accepted the first check, and when I inserted the second one, the infernal machine crashed. I would like to say it was using Windows OS, but I think Bank of America uses Linux OS on its servers. I am now without a debit card, there is not enough money in the bank to cover payroll, and I am about out of groceries. Carolyn usually buys her groceries at Kroger, but I will probably go to Food City as they have more close-in parking, and I won't have to use a handicap spot. I have four more checks to deposit, and a little cash which should cover everything for a few days. I also need to get my shot; I missed going Friday and they were closed yesterday. I probably will not visit Carolyn until after the girls have gone to work this evening.
----
Chris bought me a cup of Starbucks coffee on Saturday, and for decaf, it was pretty darn good. It was the first of that brand that I've ever had; being a cheapskate I have always refused to pay their price for a cup of coffee, but I will have to say it beats hell out ot the garbage that McDonalds purveys. I still will not pay Starbuck's price, but if you ever want to buy me a cup, I will happily accept. Black and sweet.

Sermon

----
The above scan is one of the reasons I so much dislike organized religion. It is a parking ticket from the Johnson City Medical Center where my Carolyn is recovering. I dearly appreciate the work these people did to save her life, but stupidity of this sort is beyond reason. When I went into Carolyn's room today, I told her I would most likely get a citation for parking the Escape in a spot reserved for clergy. When I left to come home, this piece of yellow corruption was sticking under the wiper. I didn't park in that particular spot to cause trouble, I parked there because there was nothing else available. It was Sunday afternoon, and as always on Sunday afternoons, the parking lot was full. There were a couple of places open, but they were so far back in the sticks I would have needed to send for a taxi to get to the hospital entrance. The hell of it is and in that part of the lot where I parked, there are more areas designated for preachers than there are for handicapped people. I decided my visit with my bride was far more important than scallywag preachers visiting unfortunate sick folk once each week and making $100,000 a year to do so. I found one of several open places and parked, and even at that, it was not one of the closest open ones to the hospital entrance. I placed my handicap placard on the mirror for all to see, and went about my business. I can forgive them for riding around in their little Japenese pickup trucks, but I cannot forgive them for for crass stupidity. Not only is it immoral for hospital security to perform such an act to a crippled person, it is also unconstitutional to do so. The hospital accepts federal money to care for indigent patients, and that fact makes it blatantly wrong and unlawful for them to put the wants of religion above the needs of the people. Separation of church and state is still part of our sacred constitution, and I will do everything in my puny power to see that it not is tread upon so carelessly.

Why raise such a stink over a mere parking ticket? There is nothing mere when it comes to American people exercising their right to be free, and that means whenever possible I want to be free of persecution by religion. I observed some of the "clergy" walking to and from their cars, and not a single one of them sported even a slight limp, wheras I was on a walking cane and limping in a kind of pain none of them have had to endure for very long if ever. Do they know what it is like to walk on a leg where the knee bones literally rub upon each other every time the joint is moved? Do they know the pain of shoulder bones rubbing together from the pressure of putting just a little bit of weight on a walking cane? Most probably do not but I am sure they would gladly pray for me, especially if I tithed in their elaborate temples of self worship. Do you know what they did as we passed one another walking? One smiled and spoke to me while the other three either ignored me (I am hard to ignore at six foot five inches tall, weighing 260 pounds that I will admit to, and carrying a disreputable looking cane with a warp in it that appears to have been forcefully whacked against someone's head), or they averted their eyes from an old cripple. Maybe they did not like my Pink Floyd ball cap?

We handed this country over to the whims of the Moral Majority and the excesses of Big Business; look at what it has begotten. If politicians are fearful of stepping up and fighting for our liberties, then we must do so ourselves. This is my fight for my liberty.
----
Carolyn is doing much better; she is very sassy. I may have to whop her up side the head with my cane. Thanks Alice for stopping by today and for the fruit basket. Your visits and caring are always most welcome. Computer fixed?

Thanks

Carolyn was much improved as of last evening and her kidneys seem to be ok. She had a little bit of fever and they were doing antibiotics in her vein. She is not allowed to eat or drink; all she can do is wet the inside of her mouth with a soaked sponge and and then spit out the water. The hospital will be caring for her at least for two more days. I will speak for her and for myself and say we appreciate the beautiful thoughts all of you have sent our way. She has a very good surgeon and I found it in my heart to forgive him for being a Georgia Bulldog sports fan. The personnel at the hospital have been great, as were the ambulance people.

When she arrived at the E.R., her blood pressure was 68/29; she was very close to a system shutdown.
----
I went to bed at 11:00 last evening, and slept until 8:30 this morning; the first good rest I've had in more than a week.
----
The Smoking Gun's Mugshots of the Week!

9:30 am- am trying to get Carolyn ready to go to E.R.

10:00am--waiting for ambulance

11:15pm--Just back from hospital. Carolyn had emergency surgery at 7:15pm. A large hernia was repaired and a piece of small intestine was removed and the intestine ends reattached to each other. She was back in her room at 9:30pm and all seems to have gone well. The main concern now is her kidneys have about shut down; hopefully they will begin working normally again but it is wait and see. I am well but tired and sore.

Carolyn is still down and now dry eye and allergies are again working on yours truly. Golden Years ... Oh, Yeah!
I'll be back as soon as I can see to write.

Impulse

Carolyn is still not up and about; I think depression has set in. I try to be as positive as I can be without seeming to be more of a doofus than I am normally. I have to go out for errands that she usually does on Wednesdays.
----
My friend from down the street dropped by yesterday; Mouse and Carolyn went to school together and he helped her secure a cleaning contract with his ex-employer. I have known him since 1974 when we both worked for Texas Instruments. He is now retired and very bored.
----
Jerry went to the grocery store for us Monday evening. Unlike Carolyn, he bought just what was on the list. Carolyn is an impulse shopper; if it says "sale", it goes into her cart. I will have to go to the store and buy a few more bananas; we eat a lot of them. I also want to find some Clementine oranges; a friend in Texas turned me on to them and I became hooked on the small jewels.
----
I know this is moot, but ...
Concerning my question of a few days ago: "If Jesus were to walk into the room and tell you a lame joke, would you give Him a noogie?"
If a man were to walk up to you and introduce himself as Jesus Christ, how would you react? I suppose most people would probably try to get away from such a crazy person as soon as possible. Really though; what does Jesus look like? According to Scripture, he ascended to heaven in the body of a man on day forty after his resurrection as was witnessed by his Eleven Apostles and recorded. If you think he looks like the iconoclastic depictions of him that are in bibles, books, and even churches, you are probably wrong. These "likenesses" of him mostly come from the works of renaissance artists, and they based his features on what they saw around them; European men of their time. From archaeological research, it has been found that on average, middle-eastern males whom lived at the time of Jesus had rounder faces than did men contemporary to the artists, and were not as tall in stature. If a short, round-face man approaches you and introduces himself as Jesus Christ, ...

I suppose it best to be nice to everyone we meet, because we never know whom that person may really be. Not nice to everyone actually; even Jesus was pissed at money changers, and I think politicians, bloggers like myself, Fox News people, and tv evangelists should be open for verbal abuse at all times. The following quote from Bill Watterson's Calvin pretty well sums my feelings: "It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning."
----

Sauce

Carolyn is a little better this morning, but took a dizzy spell and had to lie down. I keep telling her she is becoming dehydrated and she keeps ignoring me. All I can do is try.
----
On September 1st, 1939, Germany invaded Poland and a fire-storm of world war began that would eventually kill more than 50 million people, mostly non-combatants. Every person on earth whom has been alive since that day has been affected in some way by the tragedy. The hell of it is, we have not learned that this massive violence is futile, but we have found out how to do it better and be even more inhumane.
----
I hope my kids don't read Craigslist; some dude has placed his parents up for sale or trade. The asking price is $155. Our kids would not hesitate to put us up for sale, but would probably ask substantially more than $155 and would take a lot less.
----
Some senators are promising that government-run health care will not be an option. Again; what is the use of doing anything to reform unless real reform takes place?
----
Is Obama on the space shuttle; he sure isn't being heard of from Washington. But wait! I bet he is doing undercover work with lawmakers to get a comprehensive health care refrom law passed. Atta boy, Barack! This will be my second "atta boy" for you Mr. President; receive ten and you will get a "Well Done" commendation on faux parchment paper with a simulated gold seal attached. But remember, one "aww shit, Barack!" will cause forfeiture of five "atta boys!", so watch what you say and do.
----