Classic Thanksgiving song for Fred and Alice

Happy Thanksgiving Alice and everyone!

Winter week

When I came home from rehab on Friday, I heard a robin singing. There are still a few robins around but this is the first time I’ve heard on sing in winter. Makes me homesick for spring.

Ran out of medicine over the weekend and along with cold, damp weather, it is making me sore and stiff. Hope I am improved before going to rehab tomorrow. I am writing this post trying to loosen my finger joints a bit.

My internet is very slow today. It must be molasses powered and the cold has it too thick to run through the wiring.

Will Comet Ison be eaten by the Sun? Stay tuned on Nov., 28 to see if it is a survivor or just junk food for old Sol.

TV and Flicks

The Book Thief

 

Turned cool here since the weekend; hoping for a short winter but it isn’t even December yet.

I used to ask “Ginger or Mary Ann?” but now at my advanced age I also include “Lovey” into the inquiry as to who was the best looking woman on Gilligan’s Island TV show.

Mark has a great video on his blog. Abe Vigoda was a star on the Barney Miller TV show in the late 70′s along with other superb actors with comedic roles. Jack Soo was my favorite and Steve Landesberg was also great.

There is a movie soon to be released which I want to see but I will wait until it comes out on DVD.

Have a good week!

Looses Laces: A poultice for your soul

Lyrics

It is 125 days until official spring which is on March 20, 2014.

When I was a school boy, Veterans day was known as Armistice Day and commemorated the ending of World War One. It has never been considered a major holiday by most Americans and nearly all businesses are open on that day. Exceptions are most financial institutions and government agencies. I wish more Americans would remember that freedom isn’t free; the price must be paid in blood, sweat, and tears.

Chris Christie as president of United States? I have a feeling the guy has many ghosts in his closet. Do you reckon he is a tea partier in disguise, a ringer? I’m thinking that is what it will take for a Republican to be elected if the Democrats have a viable candidate. Of course and so far, the Dems have talked up only Hillary and Joe. You remember Joe don’t you? Mr. Biden is our vice-president, in case he has slipped through the floorboards of your memory. Of course Obama Care could kill any chances of any Democrat being elected. This is going to be interesting and nasty election season until next November's mid-terms.

All is quiet on the home front. The boys are getting over colds and both are rambunctious. Mason will be walking very soon and Sammy is ready to talk if he will just go ahead and do it.

My favorite Halloween movies: E.T. the Extra Terrestrial and Nightmare Before Christmas. Yes, I know; Nightmare is a Christmas story but it mostly has Halloween characters.

Over the weekend I watched a couple of Jason Statham movies on Netflix. Lots of blood and killings but for some reason I am drawn to his characters; probably because he doesn’t talk much.

Have a good Friday and a great weekend, my friends!

Veteran's Day 2013

Lest we forget ...

Hallelujah

Lyrics

Another of the boys I grew up with died this week. He was my cousin and next door neighbor and we played together for years. He was only a year older than me.

How come store-bought canned soup has to be so salty and what are they trying to hide with all the sodium? In vegetable soup, all the veggies taste like the peas; might as well buy pea soup which isn’t quite as salty. Maggie is smart by canning her soup at home.

Yesterday at rehab, the therapist pushed my knee down until it was only a very tiny distance from the mat. The good part is that it did not spring back like it had been doing. The bad part is that it hurt like hell. Of course, I’m in it for the glory so pain is of no consequence.

PBS channel on Roku is airing Jimi Hendrix: Hear My Train A Comin’ beginning today. Jimi changed the concept of Blues and Rock music from the ordinary to the sublime. He is still being copied today. Check it out on American Masters.

Have a wonderful weekend, my friends.

Walk Away

My therapist started me on the long journey to walking again. Yesterday he took away my crutches and made me walk with my cane from the gym area to where Carolyn was waiting, about eighty feet (24m) I suppose. He wants me to use the crutches when walking from parking lot to gym and back but use the cane everywhere else except on uneven surfaces. It is very tough going and I tire easily but it is the beginning to an ending, hopefully a good ending.

An old friend whom I had not seen in ten years or longer stopped by the house a few weeks ago. Carolyn was pumping gas and spotted him and next thing I know he was ringing my doorbell. Hoss Fly (Larry Hoss) and I had a good and long reminiscing chat. We were drinking buddies from back in the day and it was goo9d to remember some good times and even some bad times. When you are drinking a lot, even the bad times seemed like fun. I know Alice will remember him.

As I stated when the Affordable Care Act was passed, it isn’t worth a hill of beans without the public option. As it now stands, if you don’t have a job you still have to pay for insurance or do without. If the public option hadn’t been sold out just to get the law passed, it would have provided care for people without the means to pay at, least for awhile. With the unemployment rate at 7.3 percent (August numbers), there are many still without insurance. If it comes to eat or buy insurance, which would you do?

Keep on Truckin’

Free Birds

Sammy and Mason dressed as hippies

Happy Halloween!

Happy Birthday Colleen where ever you are!

Another month come and gone and I still can’t walk without crutches. However, today I am supposed to try holding onto a counter and hobbling a bit with my cane. I don’t think I am ready but my best effort will be forthcoming. My knee is still at minus twelve degrees from straight  which is discouraging.

Sammy met me outside after my rehab Tuesday. It tickled he and I both when we saw each other. He’s my buddy. He and Mason will dress up in costumes Friday evening and go trick-or-treating.

Haven’t fallen any more although I am having a recurrence of shingles. Just one spot on my neck but it itches, is sore, and burns at the same time. It also hurts deep down in my flesh. Always something, it seems.
I’ll get a head start and remind y’all to set your clocks back an hour this Saturday night. It’ll be dark early for the cold months.

Can’t wait until Thanksgiving. Hope we can have a good meal on that day.

Winter winds

Lyrics for Four Strong Winds

Catching up a bit. Last Friday I managed to fall off the bottom step of the porch and onto concrete walk, gravel, and Smiling Buddha. My head hit Buddha and the rest of me hit on my left side and away from the new knee. Buddha is fine and still smiling; I have a knot and small cut on my forehead where my hairline used to be. I was on my way to rehab and they took it easy on me after I told my story. The therapist made up for it Tuesday; I had appointment with knee surgeon for a checkup and rehab had me come into their clutches 30 minutes beforehand to make sure the leg was as straight as possible. After the surgeon visit, I went back to rehab for another hour and one-half of hard work. When I was allowed to escape, I felt terrible; sore and weary. Prior to this, I always felt better after exercises than I did before. I don’t go back until next Tuesday.

The boys have been over the past two Sundays and they are growing and learning so fast. Sammy can talk some but would rather jabber in Sammy-speak. Mason is starting to fight Sammy when he is bothering him; going to be some fine rumbles pretty soon.

We had a freeze last night and tonight is supposed to be our first hard freeze if last night wasn’t already one. I went to doctor for checkup and could not wait to get back home to my warm house.

Living on these crutches is very bothersome; it wasn’t terribly bad before surgery when i was resigned to using them for a long time but now that I can foresee a future without them makes me want to throw them down and walk like a man.

For anyone interested in rock n’ roll history, Amazon Prime has a documentary movie titled Sound City “Directed by Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters), SOUND CITY tells the story of rock n’ roll’s greatest recording studio, and the musical magic it continues to inspire.”
I recommend it as a must see for all true rockers. I could not find it on Netflix but outtakes can be found on Youtube.

Wish you were here ...

Did humans create music or did music create humanity?

I hope your days are filled with the joyous music of living.

Happy Birthday, Alice

The first time I saw Alice was in December, 1973 when I went to work on maintenance at the local Texas Instruments plant in Johnson City. I quit a good job as construction electrician in Rome, Ga. to be a part of a new plant which was involved in producing electronic and electromechanical devices. Working close to home was the big draw for me. I met Alice’s husband Fred about a month before she and I were formally introduced. Come to find out that both Fred and Alice were from Morehead,  Kentucky which is only a few hours drive from Johnson City. However, they transferred to J.C. from another T.I. plant in Austin, Tx.; they were homesick for the hills too, I suppose. Alice and Fred soon bought a house in J.C. and began raising their little girl, Vanessa, in a new environment.

Unhappily, Fred died in 1980 and I thought Alice would move back to Morehead where most of her close kin lived but she decided J.C. was her future and the city and community are fortunate she stayed.
I have known Alice for forty years and she has been a blessing in mine and my family’s lives. Happy Birthday, Alice. I hope we are friends for forty more of them.

Happy Birthday, Jeremy!

My favorite pic of Jeremy and made by Courtney

I have so many great memories of my grandson Jeremy that it would be difficult to write them. I definitely remember the first time I saw him when he was only a few days old. So small he was and no one could keep their eyes from watching his every move. When he was older, I remember him running and playing with new Christmas toys outside Dot’s house, one weapon of which was a plastic ball bat which he swung with authority. Later in school he played basketball, football, and baseball. He was a very good baseball player and won his league’s Golden Glove award once or twice. When he was playing third base, not many grounders or hoppers got by him. Then came high school and his interest in girls and other things which teen boys like replaced his love for playing baseball. Now he is grown and in his early thirties and doing his thing his way. He not only talks the talk but backs it up by walking the walk. From all of us back in the hills which I know you love as well as do I, granny and me wish you a very happy birthday and we want you to know we will be forever proud of you.

We love You,
Granny and Paw

The hills are alive

Not much going on here in the hills. Leaves are slowly losing green pigment and their true colors are showing. Between the fifteenth and twenty-fifth should be the best time for color at mid-elevations in the mountains. Damn, I wish I could walk!

Do every day Americans really pay any attention to what is going on in our elected government unless it directly affects them in some astute way?

The Senate is holding hearings on Social Security disability fraud. Some law firms are alleged to be nothing more than disability factories who buy doctors and federal judges whom will approve every case sent to them. Some doctors even come to lawyer’s offices and do a ten-minute evaluation on people whom claim to be physically or mentally unable to work. One firm in W. Va. is under fire at present in the hearing along with the local Social Security claims office which seems to be corrupt. I imagine the investigation is nationwide and that the fallout will be big. S.S. fraud is costing the taxpayers hundreds of millions each year.

Is Bernie Sanders the only decent Senator In Washington, D.C.?

Some birthdays this month and I hope I don’t forget the particular days. Jeremy, Alice, and JJ are celebrating; hope I haven’t forgotten anyone.

Have a great weekend, my friends!

Greg and Cher

"Borrowed" from Mark's blog.
Cher and Greg made a good duo in their short career together.

Rolling on the River of Time

Not much happening on the home front. The boys are growing faster than I dreamed they could. Seems like my grand kids were babies forever. Well, they will always be our babies.

I have missed several birthdays and anniversaries in the past ten days. The 19th was the anniversary of of my late friend’s birth; Happy Birthday, Fred. That same day was Fred’s and Alice’s wedding anniversary and it was also their daughter’s—Vanessa— birthday. Happy Birthday, Vanessa. Happy Birthday to my Bride who was born on the twentieth.

Tree leaves, like the season itself, are slowly changing color. Tulip poplars in my yard are turning bright yellow and brown.

The knee is coming along slowly and the angle to being straight is minus twelve degrees. The therapists are now going to work the knee until I reach my maximum pain threshold. That should get the leg close to zero degrees within a few weeks. I hope to be walking a bit with a cane by Christmas. They have me doing more exercise at home; it is time consuming and sometimes exhausting but I need much more leg strength and overall endurance. I have been off narcotic pain pills for a week; I didn’t use one before rehab yesterday. I may try to drive the Escape in about another week.

After rehab yesterday, we ordered take-out cheeseburgers from The Cottage. It was about 5:30 pm and I was able to see and talk with some of my pals from the days when I was a very frequent visitor to the drinking and dining delights of the place. It did my heart good to see these guys and shake their hands. It was only a minute before the old days were brought up and lost memories came back for me. Sony, Wayne, Mike, and Phil: I was happy to see y’all once more. Bill would have been there but like myself, he is recovering from knee replacement surgery. I cannot understand why they have aged so much but I am still the same as i was in 1985. I was a regular at The Cottage from 1974 until the mid nineteen-nineties.

I am now going to check the TV and see if my Tennessee Vols will be shown. The team they play today is no match for them but I still gotta watch if they are on.

Summer days

Autumn falls

Our first real autumn day this year in the hills; cool temps with high overcast. About time to put the flannel sheets on the beds; for some reason Carolyn doesn’t like them but they are much warmer on chilly nights. I dislike cold weather about as much as I dislike tea-partiers.

I need to adjust the seat a little higher on the exercise bike; the new knee is trying to go knock-kneed and that is a big no-no. I hope to get a pic of me riding the machine, hair blowing in the wind as I virtually cruise the back roads of my memories. I probably need to wear a crash helmet for such voyages.

Sammy or Mason has lost my cap; I’ve had to leave home twice without it. The suspects are admitting nothing.

Both boys attended the fair back in August. Sammy wanted to loiter in the animal section and Mason didn’t care as long as there was something going on around him.

Tomorrow is back to the therapist and then to have blood work done.

Happy Wednesday!

The people we meet along the way

The first time I saw ‘Mary” was one day while returning to my room at rehab. She was in a wheelchair in front of the nurse’s station with her arms raised in the air and moving them much like a 60′s flower child at a “Dead” concert. She looked to be in her thirties and had long and straight brown hair. Her eyes were closed as if she were lost in some far-away place. Carolyn and I got by her and went on to my room, neither of us paying the young lady too much attention.

A few days later while I was waiting for lunch to be served, I was shaving with my electric Norelco when I heard someone entering the room; it was Mary. I was shaving my left cheek and she wheeled her chair up beside me and began making circular motions in the air with her left hand. I stopped shaving and she said “check the other side; I just shaved it for you”. I was taken aback when she continued “I’m a witch, you know?”. Carolyn was there and we all talked a bit about witches and witching in general. I almost forgot about the shave when she again asked me to check my cheek to see if it was shaved. I rubbed my fingers over my skin and the whiskers were still there but not wanting to disappoint her I put on my best “amazed” look and told her they were gone and i thanked her.

Next time and the last time I saw Mary was in the rehab gym. Carolyn and I had just wheeled into the room when Mary again came up beside me. She looked at me and said “I would marry you sometime”. Again I was surprised at the brief statement but sputtered that I was flattered by her words and that she would be a fine woman for any man. It was one time when my spouse had nothing to say for a few minutes. Before Mary could say anything else, her nurse found her and wheeled her away. We found out a few days afterward that her daughter had taken her home later that same day.

Not much of a story but Mary is someone that Carolyn and I will always remember. I hope she heals and that she will always keep doing good deeds and saying the right words; the world needs many good witches.

———————

Tomorrow is surgeon checkup and Friday is appointment with my regular doctor. Knee is still very sore and the leg will not straighten more tan what it was two weeks after surgery. I am disappointed and losing my belief that I will ever walk again.

Worshday

Obama and Congress: Use the money earmarked for killing people in Syria to help help America's poor and middle-class. We need affordable healthcare, decent education possibilities, and jobs that pay enough for us not to need food stamps and government aid. Choose peace -- choose people.

A hard weekend of work on straightening knee. I have to go to out-patient therapy each day this week; those guys work with the patient and not with a clock. At Quillen, each therapist was allotted only forty-five minutes with each patient. When that time was up, the therapist went to a different person and left us to get back to our room as best we could. In reality, each patient receives only about two hours of therapy each day and if it is not targeted therapy, much of that time is wasted.

I am saying a heartfelt thank you to all of you who have stayed the course with me during this time. Jeremy, Alice, Jola, Maggie, Sandy, Mark, Robin, Kalpana, and to any others whom my weakened memory has neglected; I love all of you.

Special appreciation to my dear Bride who was with me nearly everyday of my stay in Quillen and who sacrificed her own health to make mine better. Thank you Carolyn; I love you very much.

Have a great Worshday, my friends.