Is it any wonder I’m not crazy?
Is it any wonder I’m sane at all?
Well, I’m so tired of losing, I got nothing to do
And all day to do it.
Styx – “Too Much Time On My Hands”
So last week I got another letter from BCBS. The last letter I got a couple of weeks ago asked for my general health medical records for the last five years. The letter I got last week asked for records from my eye doctor for the last five years. Now why on earth couldn’t they have asked for both of those at the same time? Because they are being deliberately difficult, that’s why. I suppose they’re hoping I will just give up on the whole thing if they drag it out long enough. No such luck, BCBS, I got nothin’ better to do. Joni took the letter to the library today to make a copy. We’ll have to mail it to Doctor Hargrave in Dallas. Poor Doctor Hargrave, my file is absolutely huge and they’re going to have to mail or fax all that paperwork. I know they’ll be glad to do it, though, they’re good people.
I’m still working out regularly on the exercise bike, five days a week. My workouts are up to forty minutes and I’m starting to see some progress. My fat l'il belly isn't quite so fat as it used to be and my muscles are stronger. I’m not going to make my workouts any longer because I’m afraid I’ll start to get bored with it. Instead, I'll work on pushing harder. Also, I'm not eating as much junk food as I used to. In fact I don't really eat snacks at all anymore, only once in a while. Come to think of it, I usually eat snacks when I’m up late at night writing my blogs. I’ve got crackers and cheese tonight. I guess it’s easier to take care of yourself when you have lots of free time.
I missed the Big 12 basketball tournament games because I never was able to find out when they were being played. I have found out since, however, that Nebraska won their first round game, but lost in the second round to Texas A&M. Texas A&M went on to win the tournament. I don’t know anything about basketball so I'm confused about something. Nebraska was named Big 12 champions for having the best record, but Texas A&M won the tournament and was named Big 12 tournament champions. What’s up with that? I’m having trouble finding out when Nebraska will be playing in the NCAA tournament coming up later this week, so if you know please tell me. All I have been able to find out is that they are playing Northern Iowa in the first round, don’t know when, though. Oh, I also found out that Nebraska's Kelsay Griffin was named Big 12 player of the year or something like that. She really is good from what I can tell on the radio.
I had quite a mess on my hands today. I was messing around with some of my audio books and dropped a whole stack of CD’s on the floor, about fifty in all. It took me a good hour and a half to get them back in order again. That’s okay, it gives me something to do.
On a final note, my friend Benning, okay he’s Joni's friend from her online writing classes but he's been reading a lot of my book reviews over at “Reviews From The Deep”. Anyway, he said some nice things about my book reviews on his own blog, “Benning’s War.” Benning is very much up on today’s issues and if you like to keep up to date you should go take a look. And don’t forget to leave him a note to let him know yu were there. Bloggers like getting comments, it makes us feel validated.
Psalms 39:4-5 Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath.
James 4:13-15 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."
Showing posts with label exercise bike. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercise bike. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Journal - Superbowl Sunday
Well, here it is superbowl Sunday already! I’m looking forward to a really good game tonight, but let’s take care of some business first, okay? Business before pleasure as they say.
I called my BCBS agent Monday about those two letters I got. He laughed it off as a mistake, and I believed him. His name is Steve Kielbasa, by the way. I asked him if he’d eaten any good sausages lately, but he didn’t think that was very funny. Anyway, he took the information that was missing from my application and said he would send it along to the underwriters. I asked if I would have to wait another four weeks to hear something from them, and he said probably not. Back to the waiting game, though, for now.
Something else really perturbed me this week. The screen reader I’ve been using, System Access To Go, is going through some changes. I started using SA To Go because it was free, and once I got used to it I really began to like it. In my own opinion, it’s marginally better than Jaws. Friday, however, when I logged in to my SA To Go account, I discovered a really yucky synthesized voice that was difficult to understand. To get the nice sounding voice back, you now have to pay forty dollars. I thought that was kind of a low blow, but it’s still about 1,160 dollars cheaper than Jaws, so I decided to pay. I still didn’t get the good voice, though. Every time I log in it still asks me if I want to upgrade. I did get an email receipt and an invoice number for my payment and there’s a phone number on the receipt to call if you have problems. I have to wait until Monday to call, however, because they don’t keep hours on the weekend. Hopefully I can get that straightened out without any problem. What really worries me is what other features they might decide to start charging for.
Humm, I guess that’s about all the business I have to discuss. It’s been a slow week. I haven’t really been playing my sax lately. I’ve been spending most of my time browsing through the library’s audio book collection and writing book reviews like mad. I’ve been getting on the exercise bike pretty regularly for the last three weeks, so I’m feeling good about that. It always feels good to know you’re doing something that’s good for you, doesn’t it? Now if I could just start eating better.
Since Christmas, the weather has straightened out a little bit with temps in the 30’s and 40’s, but this week we have had another cold snap and more snow. Just a couple inches of snow, though, and no high winds to make it drift. I don’t mind that kind of snow as much. Sure can’t wait for spring, though.
Okay, football! Colts versus Saints. I picked the Colts to go to the superbowl, but I really thought the Vikings would beat the Saints. Or maybe I was just hoping. I like Brett Favre a lot and I know he doesn’t have too many years left in him, so I was kind of hoping he could go to the superbowl this year and cap off his career on a high note. Colts versus Saints will be a good game, though. Since Favre is out, I’d like to see Peyton Manning and the Colts win this one. Should be a good game either way as they are both great teams.
Naturally, I always look forward to the superbowl, but it’s also kind of sad because it will be eight months before there’s another football game. I never developed an interest in baseball or basketball, so I just wait for football to start again. Wait, Wait, Wait, it seems like that’s all I do.
Okay, I don’t normally do this, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and make a superbowl prediction. Colts 27, Saints 24. See you next year, Brett.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
I called my BCBS agent Monday about those two letters I got. He laughed it off as a mistake, and I believed him. His name is Steve Kielbasa, by the way. I asked him if he’d eaten any good sausages lately, but he didn’t think that was very funny. Anyway, he took the information that was missing from my application and said he would send it along to the underwriters. I asked if I would have to wait another four weeks to hear something from them, and he said probably not. Back to the waiting game, though, for now.
Something else really perturbed me this week. The screen reader I’ve been using, System Access To Go, is going through some changes. I started using SA To Go because it was free, and once I got used to it I really began to like it. In my own opinion, it’s marginally better than Jaws. Friday, however, when I logged in to my SA To Go account, I discovered a really yucky synthesized voice that was difficult to understand. To get the nice sounding voice back, you now have to pay forty dollars. I thought that was kind of a low blow, but it’s still about 1,160 dollars cheaper than Jaws, so I decided to pay. I still didn’t get the good voice, though. Every time I log in it still asks me if I want to upgrade. I did get an email receipt and an invoice number for my payment and there’s a phone number on the receipt to call if you have problems. I have to wait until Monday to call, however, because they don’t keep hours on the weekend. Hopefully I can get that straightened out without any problem. What really worries me is what other features they might decide to start charging for.
Humm, I guess that’s about all the business I have to discuss. It’s been a slow week. I haven’t really been playing my sax lately. I’ve been spending most of my time browsing through the library’s audio book collection and writing book reviews like mad. I’ve been getting on the exercise bike pretty regularly for the last three weeks, so I’m feeling good about that. It always feels good to know you’re doing something that’s good for you, doesn’t it? Now if I could just start eating better.
Since Christmas, the weather has straightened out a little bit with temps in the 30’s and 40’s, but this week we have had another cold snap and more snow. Just a couple inches of snow, though, and no high winds to make it drift. I don’t mind that kind of snow as much. Sure can’t wait for spring, though.
Okay, football! Colts versus Saints. I picked the Colts to go to the superbowl, but I really thought the Vikings would beat the Saints. Or maybe I was just hoping. I like Brett Favre a lot and I know he doesn’t have too many years left in him, so I was kind of hoping he could go to the superbowl this year and cap off his career on a high note. Colts versus Saints will be a good game, though. Since Favre is out, I’d like to see Peyton Manning and the Colts win this one. Should be a good game either way as they are both great teams.
Naturally, I always look forward to the superbowl, but it’s also kind of sad because it will be eight months before there’s another football game. I never developed an interest in baseball or basketball, so I just wait for football to start again. Wait, Wait, Wait, it seems like that’s all I do.
Okay, I don’t normally do this, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and make a superbowl prediction. Colts 27, Saints 24. See you next year, Brett.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Journal - Audio Books and Football
Hi there everyone! I don’t have anything really important to talk about today. I do have a few minor things that I wanted to put down in the record, though.
I haven’t heard anything back from BCBS on the insurance. I’m not feeling too bad about that, though. Over Christmas I was feeling down and just wanted to get it all taken care of as quickly as possible. Now that I'm feeling better, I'm willing to wait again. I'm still not completely sure if this is the path God wants me to take, anyway. Joni filled out the application for me and mailed it in, and that’s really all I can do. Now I sit back and see whereGod leads me.
On a more exciting note, I have new audio books to listen to! Since Joni and I went to Minden and got our Nebraska I D’s, I was finally able to get a library card for the Kearney library. We went there last Wednesday to do that, and I took a look at their selection of audio books on CD. From what Joni says, and from what I could feelwith my own hands, they have a much larger selection than our library back in Carrollton. So for the last week, I’ve been enjoying searching through their catalog online. Their search engine is kind of tricky, not because I’m blind, but because it’s not organized very well, but I’m gradually getting the hang of it. I can find audio books online and put them on hold, then when they are ready to pick up, they send me an email and Joni can stop and pick them up on her weekly shopping trip. I haven’t had a new book to listen to for about a year so I’m pretty excited about hearing some new books and reviewing them for my other blog, “Reviews From the Deep.” In addition to the CD audio books, they also have audio books that you can download directly to your computer. Those are much more handy and the search engine for those is easier to use, but the selection is not quite as good. Between the two formats, though, I’ll have lots and lots of new books to listen to.
Okay, let’s talk football. I’ve never been a fan of basketball or baseball, but I love football. That means I spend the whole year anticipating the upcoming football season. This year was a little hard for me, however. The games aren’t as much fun to listen to, as they are to watch. I did get some enjoyment from listening to the Nebraska Cornhuskers’ games on the radio, those guys know how to do it, but the TV announcers are just no good. I never noticed before how little the commentators talk about what is actually happening on the field. All that aside, I have been enjoying the playoffs. Since I didn’t pay that much attention during the season, I was surprised to see the New York Jets as a wildcard team, and even more surprised to see them beat the Chargers. They have to play the Colts next, though, and I don’t think they’ll do it. Also, it was interesting to see all three teams that Brett Favre played for in the playoffs this year; the Green Bay Packers, who lost their wildcard game; the Jets who are still alive; and, of course, the Vikings who I think will beat the Saints and play against the Colts in the superbowl. I like Peyton Manning and Brett Favre equally, so I don’t really know who I will route for in the superbowl. Should be a good game though.
Last Sunday, Mom stopped by and brought food. Yay, I love food! She brought her famous German chocolate caramel bars, and her even more famous ham balls. Oh, and she brought Aunt LeeDel’s bread. Every Christmas, Aunt LeeDel makes banana bread, cherry bread, and pumpkin bread. She didn’t get to come for Christmas this year because of all the snow we had, and apparently it was even worse up in Sioux Falls, where she lives, so she mailed the bread to Mom, and Mom delivered it to everyone. The ham balls are gone already, the brownies are close, and the bread is about half gone. You’d think we never eat around here!
I’m still getting on the exercise bike, but not regularly. I’m trying to do better about that and this week I’ve done pretty good; every day so far. I downloaded some new karaoke music to play my sax with, but I haven’t realy been playing very much. I miss the Christmas music. Also I’ve been busy with audio books.
Well, that’s what’s been going on. Oh! I almost forgot, Bobbi's husband, Mike, had hip-replacement surgery last week. We visited him in the hospital last Thursday, the same day we went to the library. He’s home now and recovering so remember to pray for Mike!
See ya next time!
1 Samuel 12:23-24 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.
I haven’t heard anything back from BCBS on the insurance. I’m not feeling too bad about that, though. Over Christmas I was feeling down and just wanted to get it all taken care of as quickly as possible. Now that I'm feeling better, I'm willing to wait again. I'm still not completely sure if this is the path God wants me to take, anyway. Joni filled out the application for me and mailed it in, and that’s really all I can do. Now I sit back and see whereGod leads me.
On a more exciting note, I have new audio books to listen to! Since Joni and I went to Minden and got our Nebraska I D’s, I was finally able to get a library card for the Kearney library. We went there last Wednesday to do that, and I took a look at their selection of audio books on CD. From what Joni says, and from what I could feelwith my own hands, they have a much larger selection than our library back in Carrollton. So for the last week, I’ve been enjoying searching through their catalog online. Their search engine is kind of tricky, not because I’m blind, but because it’s not organized very well, but I’m gradually getting the hang of it. I can find audio books online and put them on hold, then when they are ready to pick up, they send me an email and Joni can stop and pick them up on her weekly shopping trip. I haven’t had a new book to listen to for about a year so I’m pretty excited about hearing some new books and reviewing them for my other blog, “Reviews From the Deep.” In addition to the CD audio books, they also have audio books that you can download directly to your computer. Those are much more handy and the search engine for those is easier to use, but the selection is not quite as good. Between the two formats, though, I’ll have lots and lots of new books to listen to.
Okay, let’s talk football. I’ve never been a fan of basketball or baseball, but I love football. That means I spend the whole year anticipating the upcoming football season. This year was a little hard for me, however. The games aren’t as much fun to listen to, as they are to watch. I did get some enjoyment from listening to the Nebraska Cornhuskers’ games on the radio, those guys know how to do it, but the TV announcers are just no good. I never noticed before how little the commentators talk about what is actually happening on the field. All that aside, I have been enjoying the playoffs. Since I didn’t pay that much attention during the season, I was surprised to see the New York Jets as a wildcard team, and even more surprised to see them beat the Chargers. They have to play the Colts next, though, and I don’t think they’ll do it. Also, it was interesting to see all three teams that Brett Favre played for in the playoffs this year; the Green Bay Packers, who lost their wildcard game; the Jets who are still alive; and, of course, the Vikings who I think will beat the Saints and play against the Colts in the superbowl. I like Peyton Manning and Brett Favre equally, so I don’t really know who I will route for in the superbowl. Should be a good game though.
Last Sunday, Mom stopped by and brought food. Yay, I love food! She brought her famous German chocolate caramel bars, and her even more famous ham balls. Oh, and she brought Aunt LeeDel’s bread. Every Christmas, Aunt LeeDel makes banana bread, cherry bread, and pumpkin bread. She didn’t get to come for Christmas this year because of all the snow we had, and apparently it was even worse up in Sioux Falls, where she lives, so she mailed the bread to Mom, and Mom delivered it to everyone. The ham balls are gone already, the brownies are close, and the bread is about half gone. You’d think we never eat around here!
I’m still getting on the exercise bike, but not regularly. I’m trying to do better about that and this week I’ve done pretty good; every day so far. I downloaded some new karaoke music to play my sax with, but I haven’t realy been playing very much. I miss the Christmas music. Also I’ve been busy with audio books.
Well, that’s what’s been going on. Oh! I almost forgot, Bobbi's husband, Mike, had hip-replacement surgery last week. We visited him in the hospital last Thursday, the same day we went to the library. He’s home now and recovering so remember to pray for Mike!
See ya next time!
1 Samuel 12:23-24 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Journal - Nothing Special
Well, there really hasn't been much going on, but I’m going to try to do a little writing today anyway. I was kind of enjoying all the blogging I did in December, so maybe I can get something jump-started here. Nothing very exciting, I’m afraid, but there are a few things I wanted to note for the record.
I haven’t heard anything new from BCBS about the insurance. They called a couple of weeks ago to let me know they were forwarding my application to the underwriters for approval. Another BCBS agent keeps calling me to see if I want to add any dental or cancer coverage to the policy. I probably will need to, my monthly cost has to be $256 a month, but I won’t know how much I need until I find out exactly how much the medical part will be. I hate all this waiting, but I know God wants us to have patience and allow Him to do things in His own time. I’m trying!
People keep telling me that this has been the coldest and snowiest winter Nebraska has had in a long time. Thanks a lot people! We had those two blizzards toward the end of December, and none of the snow has melted away yet. We’ve had lots of sub-zero temperatures, with wind chills as low as thirty below. Then we had another little storm last Wednesday. Not much snowfall this time, but lots of wind that made new drifts. Sounds like the snow will be here for a while, it’s not expected to go above freezing at least for the next week.
Wednesday morning, just before the worst of the storm began, Joni and I went to the courthouse in Minden to get our I D’s switched over to Nebraska. We still had our Texas ones. We’ve been putting that off for several months so I’m glad to have it done. One less thing hanging over our heads. Still have to get the truck registered though, and get our Nebraska license plates. Probably won't do that until February, though, it cost $56 to get our I D's.
Last week, my mp3 player quit working. Not good! That’s what I use to listen to audio books, and without it I am lost. Luckily, the prices have gone down a lot on those lately and I got a new one for $40. It has twice as much storage as my old one, too. My new one has an fm radio, like most others, but I can actually switch back and forth between the radio and the player. I never quite figured out how to do that on my old one.
And speaking of radio, I was flipping through the stations the other day and came across the local oldies station, KKPR. I heard Hall & Oates and John Cougar Mellencamp. The oldies station is playing music that was popular when I was in school. Those are not oldies and I am not old! Well, at least they have the decency to call them “classic hits” instead of coming right out and calling them “oldies."
Let’s see, what else? I think that’s everything I wanted to mention. I think I might be going stir crazy. I don’t like going out in the snow, it’s so hard to get your footing when you can't see the shape of the ground, or the snow that’s piled on it.
Okay, that’s it for now. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you later, okay?
Romans 5:3-4 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
Romans 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
I haven’t heard anything new from BCBS about the insurance. They called a couple of weeks ago to let me know they were forwarding my application to the underwriters for approval. Another BCBS agent keeps calling me to see if I want to add any dental or cancer coverage to the policy. I probably will need to, my monthly cost has to be $256 a month, but I won’t know how much I need until I find out exactly how much the medical part will be. I hate all this waiting, but I know God wants us to have patience and allow Him to do things in His own time. I’m trying!
People keep telling me that this has been the coldest and snowiest winter Nebraska has had in a long time. Thanks a lot people! We had those two blizzards toward the end of December, and none of the snow has melted away yet. We’ve had lots of sub-zero temperatures, with wind chills as low as thirty below. Then we had another little storm last Wednesday. Not much snowfall this time, but lots of wind that made new drifts. Sounds like the snow will be here for a while, it’s not expected to go above freezing at least for the next week.
Wednesday morning, just before the worst of the storm began, Joni and I went to the courthouse in Minden to get our I D’s switched over to Nebraska. We still had our Texas ones. We’ve been putting that off for several months so I’m glad to have it done. One less thing hanging over our heads. Still have to get the truck registered though, and get our Nebraska license plates. Probably won't do that until February, though, it cost $56 to get our I D's.
Last week, my mp3 player quit working. Not good! That’s what I use to listen to audio books, and without it I am lost. Luckily, the prices have gone down a lot on those lately and I got a new one for $40. It has twice as much storage as my old one, too. My new one has an fm radio, like most others, but I can actually switch back and forth between the radio and the player. I never quite figured out how to do that on my old one.
And speaking of radio, I was flipping through the stations the other day and came across the local oldies station, KKPR. I heard Hall & Oates and John Cougar Mellencamp. The oldies station is playing music that was popular when I was in school. Those are not oldies and I am not old! Well, at least they have the decency to call them “classic hits” instead of coming right out and calling them “oldies."
Let’s see, what else? I think that’s everything I wanted to mention. I think I might be going stir crazy. I don’t like going out in the snow, it’s so hard to get your footing when you can't see the shape of the ground, or the snow that’s piled on it.
Okay, that’s it for now. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you later, okay?
Romans 5:3-4 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
Romans 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Journal - Year End
Well, the excitement of the holidays is subsiding, and just as I expected, I have nothing to write about. Or maybe I just haven’t been in the mood. I’m really not in the mood even now as I sit here typing, but I want the record to show what’s been going on the last few days. This probably won' be very interesting to anyone other than myself, just your basic "did this, saw that" kind of stuff.
We were supposed to go to my brother, Brad’s, house for Christmas, but we got another blizzard on Christmas Eve and got snowed in. That was okay, I kind of like spending Christmas at home. Since we had planned on being at Brad's for dinner, we hadn't bought anything to make a dinner of our own. Luckily, we had the ham and all that other food that the church gave us, so we had a nice ham dinner for Christmas. Okay, I guess luck didn't really have anything to do with it. It was just God looking out for us again. The three of us had a nice day. It's fun being snowed in when you don't have to worry about getting to work and stuff.
On Saturday, we were still snowed in because we live on a farm and there's no one to clean our driveway. We had some pretty big snow drifts. We really wanted to be able to get out on Sunday though, so Joni and I got in the Explorer and basically bashed our way through the drifts until we were out. We drove in and out of the driveway about six times to make sure we had a good path through the snow.
Sunday was Adam’s fourteenth birthday. He had mentioned that he would really like it if Brenna could come over for a while to have cake and ice cream with us. Apparently he likes having a sister. So we went to church Sunday morning, then picked up Brenna and we all had lunch at Runza. If you don’t live in Nebraska, you probably don’t know what Runza is and I pity you. After lunch, we went to Mom’s house for a little while. She made Adam’s favorite, a jello poke cake. Our plan after that was to come back home for more cake and just hang out for a while. We were supposed to meet Brenna's grandparents in Minden at five o'clock so they could take her home. But, well, we got stuck in the driveway as soon as we pulled in. Joni and I dug with the snow shovel for a while, which did absolutely no good because the snow was all packed up under the truck, until finally, one of our neighbors drove by. He saw we were having trouble and stopped to lend a hand. He had a tow chain and had us out of that drift in no time. By then it was time to go drop off Brenna, but she and Adam had a good time. They seem to get along really well with each other. They can just sit and jabber back and forth at each other, then 45 minutes later you come back and they’re still jabbering at each other. Anyway, Adam had a nice birthday, and I had a good day too even though we got stuck. This was the first time I got to spend some time with Brenna without a lot of people around and I discovered that she’s pretty funny. I also found out she has double-jointed thumbs just like me.
There hasn’t been much excitement this week. I have some sore muscles in my shoulders and back from shoveling snow, but I still got on the exercise bike. I haven’t been on it for a couple of weeks and decided it’s time to get back in the habit. Last week, Joni and I filled out that application for the BCBS insurance and mailed it in. This week they called and said they are forwarding it to the underwriters. That’s encouraging in a way because at least they didn’t just reject me offhand the way Aetna did. This morning I had an appointment with an eye doctor that the Commission for the Blind set up for me. There wasn't much point to it, except I found out there’s no infection in my left eye. That kind of surprised me and I was a little encouraged by that. Then we went to Brad’s for lunch. That was our Christmas make-up since everybody was snowed in.
So that’s what’s been going on. It’s the end of the year, and I feel like I should write something deep and meaningful, but it’s just not happening today. I’m not all sad and depressed anymore, like I was at Christmas, I’m just not in the mood to write. It has been an eventful year, I'll say that much. And I’m looking forward to the challenges that the new year will bring. I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but I’m still hoping that I’ll be able to see again by next Christmas. If you’re listening, Santa, that’s all I want next year, and don't feel like you have to wait until December to deliver.
To you, faithful reader, I wish nothing but happiness and prosperity for you in the new year, and remember, keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars.
Happy New Year 2010!
Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
We were supposed to go to my brother, Brad’s, house for Christmas, but we got another blizzard on Christmas Eve and got snowed in. That was okay, I kind of like spending Christmas at home. Since we had planned on being at Brad's for dinner, we hadn't bought anything to make a dinner of our own. Luckily, we had the ham and all that other food that the church gave us, so we had a nice ham dinner for Christmas. Okay, I guess luck didn't really have anything to do with it. It was just God looking out for us again. The three of us had a nice day. It's fun being snowed in when you don't have to worry about getting to work and stuff.
On Saturday, we were still snowed in because we live on a farm and there's no one to clean our driveway. We had some pretty big snow drifts. We really wanted to be able to get out on Sunday though, so Joni and I got in the Explorer and basically bashed our way through the drifts until we were out. We drove in and out of the driveway about six times to make sure we had a good path through the snow.
Sunday was Adam’s fourteenth birthday. He had mentioned that he would really like it if Brenna could come over for a while to have cake and ice cream with us. Apparently he likes having a sister. So we went to church Sunday morning, then picked up Brenna and we all had lunch at Runza. If you don’t live in Nebraska, you probably don’t know what Runza is and I pity you. After lunch, we went to Mom’s house for a little while. She made Adam’s favorite, a jello poke cake. Our plan after that was to come back home for more cake and just hang out for a while. We were supposed to meet Brenna's grandparents in Minden at five o'clock so they could take her home. But, well, we got stuck in the driveway as soon as we pulled in. Joni and I dug with the snow shovel for a while, which did absolutely no good because the snow was all packed up under the truck, until finally, one of our neighbors drove by. He saw we were having trouble and stopped to lend a hand. He had a tow chain and had us out of that drift in no time. By then it was time to go drop off Brenna, but she and Adam had a good time. They seem to get along really well with each other. They can just sit and jabber back and forth at each other, then 45 minutes later you come back and they’re still jabbering at each other. Anyway, Adam had a nice birthday, and I had a good day too even though we got stuck. This was the first time I got to spend some time with Brenna without a lot of people around and I discovered that she’s pretty funny. I also found out she has double-jointed thumbs just like me.
There hasn’t been much excitement this week. I have some sore muscles in my shoulders and back from shoveling snow, but I still got on the exercise bike. I haven’t been on it for a couple of weeks and decided it’s time to get back in the habit. Last week, Joni and I filled out that application for the BCBS insurance and mailed it in. This week they called and said they are forwarding it to the underwriters. That’s encouraging in a way because at least they didn’t just reject me offhand the way Aetna did. This morning I had an appointment with an eye doctor that the Commission for the Blind set up for me. There wasn't much point to it, except I found out there’s no infection in my left eye. That kind of surprised me and I was a little encouraged by that. Then we went to Brad’s for lunch. That was our Christmas make-up since everybody was snowed in.
So that’s what’s been going on. It’s the end of the year, and I feel like I should write something deep and meaningful, but it’s just not happening today. I’m not all sad and depressed anymore, like I was at Christmas, I’m just not in the mood to write. It has been an eventful year, I'll say that much. And I’m looking forward to the challenges that the new year will bring. I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but I’m still hoping that I’ll be able to see again by next Christmas. If you’re listening, Santa, that’s all I want next year, and don't feel like you have to wait until December to deliver.
To you, faithful reader, I wish nothing but happiness and prosperity for you in the new year, and remember, keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars.
Happy New Year 2010!
Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Journal, Birthday Wrap-up
Sooo, what’s been happening since my birthday? I’m glad you asked! It seems like all kinds of things are going on.
First, let me wrap up the birthday thing. I got my new socks and am enjoying them a great deal! Also, from Adam I got a Husker t-shirt that I am told looks very cool. From Joni, I got a pair of Husker lounge pants. This is mainly what I wear around the house and I definitely needed a new pair. Oh, and the angus burger was good, but not, THAT, good. I still like the Whopper better. The Coke glasses from McDonald's are nice though, they feel much heavier and sturdier than the ones they had years ago.
Okay, on to my health. I talked about the bad time I was having with my asthma. I had gone to the doctor the day before my birthday. She gave me some medicine that was very affordable, even without insurance, and I’ve been feeling very good since. The pills she gave me, however, are a steroid and you can’t take them for very long. I took my last one on Wednesday so we’ll see what happens. Actually I should be okay for a while yet; she also gave me a free sample of Advair, and now that the steroids are gone I’ll start using that. I’m still working on the insurance thing, but the blizzard kind of shut things down for a couple of days and I'm still waiting for a call back. I called a Blue Cross, Blue Shield agent because I heard they don’t deny for pre-existing conditions. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
Did someone say blizzard? Yep, I guess I did. It snowed pretty heavily for most of Monday and Tuesday. Lots of gusty wind too. I'm not sure what the final tally was, but they were calling for 12 to 15 inches of snow and I'm pretty sure we got at least that much. I loved blizzards when I was a kid. Laying in my nice warm bed at night, listening to the wind whoop and holler outside, knowing the snow was really piling up. That kind of stuff loses its magic a little when you get older, but this one came close. Tuesday night I lay in bed listening to my first blizzard in about 15 years. I think I got a little of the magic back because I knew I didn’t have to leave the house the next day. Also, I could hear my wind chime. I didn’t talk about my wind chime yet, but let's just say it's a very special chime that I hadn't heard since I was a child.
Aside from that, I’ve been spending my time listening to books and exercising. I’ve been putting in about 30 minutes a day on the bike, although I took a few days off when I wasn’t feeling well. Also I’ve been practicing my Christmas music a lot. Some of the songs I got turned out to be kind of difficult so I’ve been working hard on them. I think they’re coming along pretty well though, and I should be ready for the 19th. Which reminds me, Stacy, (Brenna's mom), told me that Brenna has a violin recital on the 19th. Wouldn't you know it? The recital is at 2pm though, and supper here at the house isn't until 5:30, so I think we can make it. Frankly, if I had to choose, I'd probably go to the recital. Our party could always be rescheduled.
Busy, busy, busy! And still a lot to look forward to. The 19th will be a fun day and, of course, Christmas is almost here. In the meantime I’ve got my exercise bike, and my blog, and my saxophone. Not to mention an insurance policy to track down. With any luck, this will be my only Christmas as a blind man. But I can’t get too far ahead of myself. One day at a time, one day at a time.
Psalm 98:4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
First, let me wrap up the birthday thing. I got my new socks and am enjoying them a great deal! Also, from Adam I got a Husker t-shirt that I am told looks very cool. From Joni, I got a pair of Husker lounge pants. This is mainly what I wear around the house and I definitely needed a new pair. Oh, and the angus burger was good, but not, THAT, good. I still like the Whopper better. The Coke glasses from McDonald's are nice though, they feel much heavier and sturdier than the ones they had years ago.
Okay, on to my health. I talked about the bad time I was having with my asthma. I had gone to the doctor the day before my birthday. She gave me some medicine that was very affordable, even without insurance, and I’ve been feeling very good since. The pills she gave me, however, are a steroid and you can’t take them for very long. I took my last one on Wednesday so we’ll see what happens. Actually I should be okay for a while yet; she also gave me a free sample of Advair, and now that the steroids are gone I’ll start using that. I’m still working on the insurance thing, but the blizzard kind of shut things down for a couple of days and I'm still waiting for a call back. I called a Blue Cross, Blue Shield agent because I heard they don’t deny for pre-existing conditions. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.
Did someone say blizzard? Yep, I guess I did. It snowed pretty heavily for most of Monday and Tuesday. Lots of gusty wind too. I'm not sure what the final tally was, but they were calling for 12 to 15 inches of snow and I'm pretty sure we got at least that much. I loved blizzards when I was a kid. Laying in my nice warm bed at night, listening to the wind whoop and holler outside, knowing the snow was really piling up. That kind of stuff loses its magic a little when you get older, but this one came close. Tuesday night I lay in bed listening to my first blizzard in about 15 years. I think I got a little of the magic back because I knew I didn’t have to leave the house the next day. Also, I could hear my wind chime. I didn’t talk about my wind chime yet, but let's just say it's a very special chime that I hadn't heard since I was a child.
Aside from that, I’ve been spending my time listening to books and exercising. I’ve been putting in about 30 minutes a day on the bike, although I took a few days off when I wasn’t feeling well. Also I’ve been practicing my Christmas music a lot. Some of the songs I got turned out to be kind of difficult so I’ve been working hard on them. I think they’re coming along pretty well though, and I should be ready for the 19th. Which reminds me, Stacy, (Brenna's mom), told me that Brenna has a violin recital on the 19th. Wouldn't you know it? The recital is at 2pm though, and supper here at the house isn't until 5:30, so I think we can make it. Frankly, if I had to choose, I'd probably go to the recital. Our party could always be rescheduled.
Busy, busy, busy! And still a lot to look forward to. The 19th will be a fun day and, of course, Christmas is almost here. In the meantime I’ve got my exercise bike, and my blog, and my saxophone. Not to mention an insurance policy to track down. With any luck, this will be my only Christmas as a blind man. But I can’t get too far ahead of myself. One day at a time, one day at a time.
Psalm 98:4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Journal - Busy Week
Whew! It’s been quite a week, so I thought I would take a few minutes to describe it. This probably won’t be very interesting to read, this is mostly for me. Someday, I will enjoy reading back over these posts to see what was happening in my life when I was blind. So here’s a recap:
Saturday, November 21: Joni, Adam, and I rode to Kearney, (pronounced car-nee), with Mom to watch Brenna play volleyball. Her grade doesn’t play against other schools yet, it’s really more of a practice with a short scrimmage at the end. I’m discovering that my daughter is kind of shy. That will present a challenge because I’m not very talkative either. I got to talking to Mom about how I’m finding it hard to get any exercise and found out she had an exercise bike in her basement that she wasn’t using. So when we got back, Joni and I loaded it up and took it home. I found out how much out of shape I am because the next day I was sore just from carrying that darn thing.
Sunday, November 22: Went to church today as usual. Pastor Mike gave a really good sermon about being thankful. It’s so easy to get caught up with all the things we want or the things we wish we could do, that we forget to be thankful for what we have. It’s always good to get that reminder. Also, Kylie, (my sister Bobbi’s daughter), turned 15 on Saturday so today was her “family party.” We went over for a little while and had cake and ice cream.
Monday, November 23: We didn’t have anywhere to go today, so Joni spent the morning and early afternoon cleaning. We aren’t expecting any company, but she always gives the house a thorough cleaning for the holidays. I’m not much help with that so I played the saxophone for her while she worked. I got in the mood early this year so I’ve been working on some Christmas music. Later on, I took a short spin on the bike. It's one of those that you can work with your legs or your arms so it will be a good workout.
Tuesday, November 24: Back to Mom’s today. Aunt LeeDel came down from Sioux Falls on Monday, and Uncle Butch drove over from Crete just for the day. We always enjoy their visits, and today was our only day to see them since Butch only came for the day and LeeDel drove back home Wednesday morning. Also, Kevin and family arrived from Arizona at around 6pm. We all had supper together then went over to the school to watch Kylie’s play. It was a one-act of Alice in Wonderland and Kylie played three different parts. She’s so talented!
Wednesday, November 25: Went to Mom’s yet again! Today was our big gathering with all four of us kids, spouses, and all the grandchildren. The house was so crowded! It was a little intimidating because I knew I couldn’t move around through the house without tripping over everybody, so I mostly stayed in one chair all day. I had fun though and Brenna was there so I got to talk to her a little bit. After supper we went over to the church to take family pictures. There just wasn’t room in the house to do that. Mom got her picture of us four kids, the first one in 22 years. It was such a special day but I was totally exhausted when we got home at around 8pm. It’s kind of hard work to listen to so many people all at once!
Thanksgiving Day: Today we stayed home and had our traditional holiday with just the three of us. Joni’s turkey was delicious as always and everything else was great too. We had so many things to be thankful for this year that we hardly knew where to begin. God has been very good to us, fulfilling all of our needs just as He promised He would, and then some! After the kitchen was cleaned up we all just lazed around the house and watched a little football. It was really a nice, relaxing day.
Friday, November 27: Well, another Thanksgiving come and gone. Things are returning to normal, which means it was a pretty quiet day. Had turkey sandwiches for lunch, (one of my favorite things about Thanksgiving), then I took a spin on the bike. I’m up to 30 minute workouts already and no sore muscles. After that, it was time for the Nebraska vs. Colorado game. It was on TV today, but I still prefer the radio because they’re better at explaining what’s going on. And Nebraska won! Go Huskers!
So that was our big holiday week! It sure was great spending some time with the family, but I’m glad the holidays only come around once a year! Seriously though, I am so thankful for all that God has given me. I hope that you are too, and I hope you'll take some time this holiday season to remember those who don't have families, or homes, or turkey dinners. You may not be in a position to help them financially, but we can always pray for them.
Look out Christmas, here we come!
Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Saturday, November 21: Joni, Adam, and I rode to Kearney, (pronounced car-nee), with Mom to watch Brenna play volleyball. Her grade doesn’t play against other schools yet, it’s really more of a practice with a short scrimmage at the end. I’m discovering that my daughter is kind of shy. That will present a challenge because I’m not very talkative either. I got to talking to Mom about how I’m finding it hard to get any exercise and found out she had an exercise bike in her basement that she wasn’t using. So when we got back, Joni and I loaded it up and took it home. I found out how much out of shape I am because the next day I was sore just from carrying that darn thing.
Sunday, November 22: Went to church today as usual. Pastor Mike gave a really good sermon about being thankful. It’s so easy to get caught up with all the things we want or the things we wish we could do, that we forget to be thankful for what we have. It’s always good to get that reminder. Also, Kylie, (my sister Bobbi’s daughter), turned 15 on Saturday so today was her “family party.” We went over for a little while and had cake and ice cream.
Monday, November 23: We didn’t have anywhere to go today, so Joni spent the morning and early afternoon cleaning. We aren’t expecting any company, but she always gives the house a thorough cleaning for the holidays. I’m not much help with that so I played the saxophone for her while she worked. I got in the mood early this year so I’ve been working on some Christmas music. Later on, I took a short spin on the bike. It's one of those that you can work with your legs or your arms so it will be a good workout.
Tuesday, November 24: Back to Mom’s today. Aunt LeeDel came down from Sioux Falls on Monday, and Uncle Butch drove over from Crete just for the day. We always enjoy their visits, and today was our only day to see them since Butch only came for the day and LeeDel drove back home Wednesday morning. Also, Kevin and family arrived from Arizona at around 6pm. We all had supper together then went over to the school to watch Kylie’s play. It was a one-act of Alice in Wonderland and Kylie played three different parts. She’s so talented!
Wednesday, November 25: Went to Mom’s yet again! Today was our big gathering with all four of us kids, spouses, and all the grandchildren. The house was so crowded! It was a little intimidating because I knew I couldn’t move around through the house without tripping over everybody, so I mostly stayed in one chair all day. I had fun though and Brenna was there so I got to talk to her a little bit. After supper we went over to the church to take family pictures. There just wasn’t room in the house to do that. Mom got her picture of us four kids, the first one in 22 years. It was such a special day but I was totally exhausted when we got home at around 8pm. It’s kind of hard work to listen to so many people all at once!
Thanksgiving Day: Today we stayed home and had our traditional holiday with just the three of us. Joni’s turkey was delicious as always and everything else was great too. We had so many things to be thankful for this year that we hardly knew where to begin. God has been very good to us, fulfilling all of our needs just as He promised He would, and then some! After the kitchen was cleaned up we all just lazed around the house and watched a little football. It was really a nice, relaxing day.
Friday, November 27: Well, another Thanksgiving come and gone. Things are returning to normal, which means it was a pretty quiet day. Had turkey sandwiches for lunch, (one of my favorite things about Thanksgiving), then I took a spin on the bike. I’m up to 30 minute workouts already and no sore muscles. After that, it was time for the Nebraska vs. Colorado game. It was on TV today, but I still prefer the radio because they’re better at explaining what’s going on. And Nebraska won! Go Huskers!
So that was our big holiday week! It sure was great spending some time with the family, but I’m glad the holidays only come around once a year! Seriously though, I am so thankful for all that God has given me. I hope that you are too, and I hope you'll take some time this holiday season to remember those who don't have families, or homes, or turkey dinners. You may not be in a position to help them financially, but we can always pray for them.
Look out Christmas, here we come!
Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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