Journal - The Next Step On Our Journey

Well, let me think now. I think I mentioned earlier that we were beginning our search for a new car today to replace my truck that got wrecked last week. I really had my heart set on getting another Explorer if I could manage it since I loved my old one so much. For the last several days I was searching online to see what was available in this area and was pleased to see that there were plenty of Explorers around. I already had it in mind that I would probably not be able to get a newer one than my old ’99 and that I might have to get one with lots of miles on it. Having those things in mind we set out today to visit our first used first lot.

In my online searches I had found a lot in Kearney that had two Explorers, both within my price range and both with lower than expected mileage. I had decided to make that our first stop. We got there and saw the two Explorers right away and both were pretty decent looking. The guy came out and asked what we were looking for and I said “I’m looking for these!” He went inside and brought out the keys and also the keys for a third one that he had on the lot. We drove the first one, a light blue ’98 with a dark blue interior. It was quite good looking but right away I thought that it did not feel very good on the road. It was kind of shaky and didn’t seem to have much power when I stepped on the gas and after a few minutes we started to smell something burning. So we took that one back.

2000 Dodge Durango 4x4

The next one was a green ’99 that was pretty much identical to my old one except for the color. We took it out and it felt much better on the road. It had some defects but nothing major. I was thinking that one would probably do, but I wanted to look further before making a decision. We took that one back and took a look at the third one he had. It was an old ’91 but it only had about 80k miles on it, which is amazing. I was pretty sure I didn’t want one that old regardless of the miles but we took it for a drive anyway. It was in amazingly good condition and we both liked the color too, white over blue. I didn’t get to drive it very far because it was almost out of gas. I was pretty sure I didn’t want that one anyway so we took it back after a short drive.

Durango Rear View

So after our third drive the guy came back out and asked us what we were thinking. I told him what I thought of each one and then asked him if he had any other SUV’s on the lot for around four thousand dollars. Just as I said that we were walking past a beautiful dark blue Dodge Durango and I said “Probably not this one huh?” He took a look at it and said “Yeah we’ve got that one marked at $3,988 and that silver one over there also for $3,988.” I was flabbergasted because it looked like it was probably a lot more expensive. He asked if we’d like to drive it and I said yes. Well, Joni and I got in and I think it was love at first sight for both of us. The color was exactly what I wanted and the interior was a beautiful cream colored leather and there was even some of that fake wood grain stuff on the dashboard. We pulled out of the lot and drove about two blocks and I told Joni “I love this truck.”

Love that fake wood grain!

So we drove for a bit and then took it back. I told the guy that I loved that truck and we spent a few minutes looking it over. It finally came time to talk about money so I told him I could give him $3600 for it. He said “Let’s go inside and see what we can do.” So we went in and he looked at some papers, although honestly I don’t think he was looking very hard, and he said “Yep, we can do that.” We signed the papers, handed over a check and we were off, me in the new truck and Joni in her car.

Journey and Carma

I love this truck! I miss my old truck, but this sure softens the blow. Is it perfect? No. Does it exceed my expectations? You bet. I got it home and spent the afternoon washing and waxing it, as I always like to do when I bring home a new car. Then I got out the camera and started shooting.

So, this is a 2000 Dodge Durango in one of the most beautiful colors of blue I’ve ever seen. It has a lot of miles on it but I think it has a lot left in it too. Everything seems to work, with the possible exception of the cruise control, which felt a little flaky on the way home. This is a truck that really looks, feels, and sounds like a truck. Oh, and it’s a four-wheel-drive, which is something I was really hoping to get. My old Explorer didn’t have that, which was okay back in Dallas, but not so good here in Nebraska. It also has a third seat way in the back, something else the Explorer lacked. Not that I have that many people to carry around mind you. It’s kind of neat though, and of course the seat folds down completely flat to make extra cargo space, which is what I will need more often. I think I mentioned before that Joni likes to name our cars. The old truck she had named Destiny, and our Cougar she named Carma. She has already decided to name the new truck Journey.

Now I will be hoping and praying that this will be a good truck for us. I sort of felt led to this truck, the way I felt led to the Cougar back in August. It wasn’t the truck I was looking for but when I saw it and drove it, it just felt right. And I didn’t run all over tarnation looking at vehicle after vehicle like I had planned either. Once again I am reminded that I can make all the plans I want to, but if God has something else in mind then I better be flexible. It’s a hard thing to follow His will rather than my own, but it always is the better way.

1 Peter 5:6-7 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. ESV

Proverbs 3:5-5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. ESV

Journal - One Week Later

So it’s been a week already since the big crash. It was a long week in some regards, but in others it seemed to go by pretty quick because there was a lot going on.

Last Wednesday, the day after the wreck, the calls began with the lady’s insurance company and with the insurance adjuster. I have to admit they moved pretty fast on it. I exchanged several phone calls with both of them for a couple of days and then it was pretty much settled. They valued my truck at about $3400, which was pretty close to the book value that I had looked up on the internet so I had no complaints there.

2014 Ford Escape

No no no, this isn’t my new car, it’s actually the rental I got. I picked up this 2014 Ford Escape from Enterprise on Saturday. I probably could have gotten it way back on Tuesday or Wednesday but since we still have our other car I wasn’t in that much of a hurry. Actually we didn’t need the rental at all but I thought we may as well since the insurance company was picking up the tab. When we first went into the rental place I figured they would just give me a little compact or something but when the guy took us outside to show us what we had to choose from I was pretty impressed. It was either this or a Chevy Impala. I picked the Escape because it’s closer to a truck than the Impala and also because it’s such a pretty color of blue.

Lots of Buttons!

So anyway I got to drive this around for a few days. The interior was pretty amazing and also a little intimidating. I think it has more buttons on it than my computer has. There are buttons all over the steering wheel and all over the central panel and it also has two view screens where you can look at various information. Kind of distracting actually. I drove this around for a few days and then we took it back on Tuesday. It was a nice car and all but not something I would buy for myself.

Anyway, I got my final call from the insurance adjuster on Tuesday morning and he told me that he had my check. I had to work at 2pm yesterday so he agreed to meet me at Walmart at 1:30. At the appointed time I handed over the title to my truck and he handed me the check and that was that.

So now it’s time to begin car shopping. I had pretty much decided right away that I wanted another Ford Explorer. I started looking around online and discovered that there are actually quite a few Explorers for sale in this area. Of course, the trick will be finding a decent one that I can get for $3400. It almost certainly will not be a newer one. My old one was a ’99 and if I can get another ’99 that will be fine with me. I am hoping to get a four wheel drive this time, since my old one was not. Now that we live in snow country it would be nice to have that. I don’t think that will be a problem since every one I’ve seen online has four wheel drive. Actually I’m starting to wonder how I ended up with one that was not 4WD since it seems like they all have it.

So anyway, that’s where we are right now. I don’t have to work today so we’re going to Kearney to begin the search. There’s a little used car lot I found online that has 2 Explorers so we’re going to begin there. Wish us luck! Better yet, don’t leave it to luck, pray for us!

Ecclesiastes 3:11 It is beautiful how God has done everything at the right time. He has put a sense of eternity in people’s minds. Yet, mortals still can’t grasp what God is doing from the beginning to the end of time. ESV

Journal - A Sad Day

Well, as some of you already know, last Tuesday, September 17th, we suffered the loss of a dear, dear friend: my truck, which Joni fondly referred to as “Destiny”. Yes, it was a tragic day. My 1999 Ford Explorer, which I have owned since 2002, met its end going up 2nd Avenue in Kearney.

First let me assure you that no humans were injured, but there was a rather violent collision that took the lives of two perfectly good American automobiles. I was driving up 2nd Avenue on my way to work Tuesday morning and just as I was entering the intersection at 33rd Street, a red car darted out in front of me. Of the two, I think my truck had more momentum going for it and was hardly moved from its original path, but I let it veer off the street onto the grassy lawn of a business that stands at that corner. The lady had been coming south down 2nd Avenue and was making a left turn at that intersection. There was a school bus on my side also making a left turn so that it was blocking her view of me, and my view of her. I never even saw her until she was right in front of me.

A sad day

After bringing my truck to a stop and turning the engine off (yes it was still running, what a trooper) I hopped right out and approached her car from the passenger side. I saw that it was a rather old lady inside, which gave me a moment of dread, but as I spoke to her through the passenger window she seemed okay: she was able to look me in the eye and tell me that she was okay. By that time a man had come out from a house nearby and together we got her out of the car. We decided to go ahead and do that because her car was full of the smoky gas from the airbags and she was clearly not seriously injured. I went back to my truck and, after digging around for a minute, found my phone and dialed 9-1-1. I told the operator that the lady didn’t think she needed an ambulance but the operator told me that someone had already called in the accident and the ambulance was on the way. Before I could even disconnect the call the ambulance was there as we were just a couple of blocks from the hospital.

So long Destiny

So anyway, some policemen were on the scene pretty quickly and began asking their usual questions. The lady decided to go to the hospital after all to get checked out and I subsequently learned from her insurance agent that she was fine. Then we were just standing around waiting for the tow-trucks. While we were waiting I took out my phone again and started taking pictures because I didn’t really know what else to do. Also, I suspected that would be the last time I ever saw my truck.

Coming home from Baltimore

Yep, I had my truck for 11-and-a-half years and we covered about 75,000 miles together. In all that time and all those miles she never let me down one time. Oh, I had the usual flat tires and dead batteries, but she never broke down on me or left me stranded anywhere. I remember the trip to Baltimore to pick up Joni and Adam and bring them back to Dallas where I was living at the time. That was a trip of about 2,700 miles round trip, and the return trip was with a U-haul trailer hooked up. My truck ran like a champ all the way. Joni called the truck “Destiny” ever since. We drove through a lot of rain on the way back too come to think of it. There were several trips from Dallas back home to Nebraska over the years, and of course that final trip when we moved up here in 2009. In 2011 and 2012 we made more trips to Omaha than I can remember to see my eye doctor. For a while it seemed like we were living in that truck.

Okay, I know I’m making a big deal out of dumb old car, but gosh darn it I really loved that truck. I really am thankful that no one was hurt. I know God doesn’t want us getting too attached to our earthly possessions but I suppose I needed a reminder of that. Each night before we go to bed, Joni and I read bible studies and passages from the bible. That night our bible study focused on how we should be willing to give up what we have. If you’ll indulge me for just a moment, I’d like to share the closing remarks from that study:

RESPONSE: Today I will live in the realization that people are more important than things.

PRAYER: Help me, Lord, to not be tied down by my possessions but be open to sharing what You have given me with others in need.

The main point was really more about sharing, but I think it applies pretty closely to my situation as well. I know I get too attached to my things sometimes and I should learn to be a little more fluid and flexible. That is something I’ll have to work on I suppose.

Matthew 6:19-21 19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ESV

Hebrews 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you. ESV

Journal - Even More Exciting News

Wow the blessings just keep showering down on us! In the last 30 days we got a new (used) car, and then I got the news from Country Extra magazine that they had published my story in their September issue, and now this! Can you believe it? I really never saw this coming! I’m still a little stunned! Oh wait, I haven’t even told you the good news yet, have I? Okay, get this:

When Country Extra sent me my complimentary copy of the September issue, there was a letter with it. It talked about things like how to order additional copies and that sort of thing and it also mentioned that IF my submission qualified for payment, a check would be mailed separately and would arrive in 4-6 weeks. I don’t know why some submissions would qualify for payment and others would not, and I had no idea if mine qualified, but I really wasn’t expecting anything further from them. Well, can you guess what came in today’s mail? Yep, it was a check in the amount of $250. The check is from Reader’s Digest so apparently Country Extra is owned by them. Having my story published was awesome but this is almost beyond belief!

God has just been so good to us and sometimes I have to wonder why. I just feel so unworthy. And, as usual, His timing is impeccable. When we got our car last month it needed brake work and four new tires. I was able to get the brakes done right away, and last week I got two new tires, but I was really wondering how I would be able to get those other tires before winter. But now I will be able to get them with a little left over. What a blessing!

Well, when God decides to send us a blessing, I suppose it’s best not to spend too much time trying to figure out why. I need to just be thankful, and perhaps try to think of some way that I might be able to help out someone else who may be in need. Come to think of it, I bet that’s something else God can help me with.

Luke 6:38 give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you. ESV

John 1:16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. ESV

Journal - Plentiful Harvest

Well here it is August already! Where has the summer gone? I just thought I would pop in for a minute today and show everyone how our garden is doing so far. We’ve had quite the plentiful harvest. Here are a few items sitting on our kitchen windowsill, ripening in the sun. Those red things are, yep you guessed it, tomatoes! The big round ones are a variety called “Better Boy.” They look like plain old tomatoes to me, but they are very sweet and delicious. The odd shaped one to the far right is a Roma tomato. We have four plants each of those two types but the Better Boys are far outproducing the Romas right now. We also have one “Pear Drop” tomato plant. It grows small tomatoes, something like an elongated cherry tomato, and they are orange in color rather than red. That one plant has been producing lots of little Pear Drops all summer and Joni loves them. I forgot to get some of those in this picture. On Thursday night we had to go to Adam’s school for an orientation so we dropped off some tomatoes at Mom’s because I know she loves fresh tomatoes.

The small green things in the picture are jalapeno peppers. I’m not that crazy about hot peppers but I thought it might be fun to grow some. We have four jalapeno plants in the garden and they are producing like crazy. We picked about 15 of them last week and there are at least that many new ones coming in now. Since we don’t really eat them ourselves, and since I know my brother Brad likes hot peppers, we took a bunch to his house the day we took our new car over for him to check out. Since then, we noticed that one pepper still on our windowsill has turned red. We didn’t know jalapenos turned red. Does that mean it’s especially hot?

Anyway, that big green pepper in the middle is a variety called “Giant Marconi.” We also have four of these in the garden and while they took a while to get started, we finally have several growing now. This was the first one to start and the only one we have picked so far. This is also a nice example of the species because several of the ones that are still on the plants are growing in curls, almost a complete circle in some cases. Joni calls them “Elfin Peppers” because they remind her of the curly-toed shoes that elves wear. I can’t wait to try this thing; it sure looks good!

Today, Sunday, I had the day off of work so we went in to Mom’s to bag up some sweet corn. Mike and Bobbi had some ready in their patch. Mom went out after church and picked a few dozen ears, then we all got to work shucking, cleaning, boiling, cooling, cutting, and bagging it. It’s a messy job but it’s a good way to spend time together as a family, and we sure enjoy having fresh sweet corn all winter long. It also kind of brings back happy memories of growing up on the farm. Grandma and Grandpa would come out and we would all work on an entire pickup-load of corn, spending the entire day at it. Today, we started at around noon and finished up by 4:30 or so and came home with 18 bags of corn to stock our freezer with.

This is what life is all about, isn’t it? Hard work and fellowship, and everyone sharing in the harvest. God has certainly been good to us.

John 4:34-38 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. 36 Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37 For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” ESV

Journal - An Exciting Day!

So today, August 8, 2013, was a pretty exciting day.

Adam and I both had doctor appointments today, Adam at 10:45am and mine at 11:00am. Pretty tight schedule I know, but we got to Adam’s appointment early and they took him right in. He got a good report from his doctor and we were out of there in no time so that we actually got to my appointment 15 minutes early.

My appointment was my regular 3-month checkup with Dr. Feilmeier. They took us in pretty quick there as well, as they always do. His assistant checked my vision and pressure and everything as usual. Pressure was good and my vision has leveled off at 20/25; that’s where it’s been for the last few visits and is no longer fluctuating. Dr. Feilmeier came in and checked me all out and said everything looks great. He actually said something rather touching today. He said “You’re my favorite patient, I’ll remember you for the rest of my life.” He sounded sincere when he said it too. You know how you can tell when someone is saying something off-handedly or when they really mean it. Well, that’s the kind of guy he is. I said “Likewise.”

So we were out of there in no time at all and went up to McDonald’s to grab a bite to eat before the most exciting part of our day. But before I talk about that I need to back up a bit.

Two days ago, on Tuesday the 6th, I was at work in the parking lot at Walmart. As I was walking down one of the rows picking up carts I noticed a car that had a For Sale sign in the window. Now, I see lots and lots of cars every day naturally, and For Sale signs are nothing unusual, but this one caught my eye for a couple of reasons. First, it was a really nice looking car, and second because the owner wasn’t asking an outrageous amount of money for it: the sign said $1600. Most of the cars I see with For Sale signs are either junky or have huge price tags on them. Now, I should mention that I have not really been looking for a new car, although ever since I started working last September I’ve thought it would sure be nice to have a second car so Joni wouldn’t be stuck at home with nothing all the time. Anyway, this car was a 1997 30th Anniversary Edition Mercury Cougar XR7. It looked very nice on the outside and since the windows were down I poked my head in and saw a very nice interior as well. It had 121k miles on it, but you know a hundred thousand miles isn’t what it used to be. My ’99 Explorer has over 140k on it and runs great. This car looked like it had been taken care of so I stored the phone number in my phone and went on with my work day until I got off at 6pm.

When I got home I told Joni not to get excited but I had seen a nice looking car for sale. Joni followed my instructions very carefully and didn’t get excited at all (shya!) But I explained to her that I would have to see if Mom would or could loan us the money, then I would have to try to coordinate a day off with Brad so I could have him look at the car, then I would have to call the insurance company to see how much that would cost. A lot of different details to work out.

Well, I called Mom as soon as I had finished telling Joni about the car that evening, and she said she sure would loan us the money. First problem solved. Then I emailed Brad to find out when his next day off was. He wrote back a little later and said he was off on Thursday. Lo and behold, my next day off was Thursday as well. Second problem solved. So Wednesday morning at about 9:30 I called up the owner and asked about the car for sale. She said, “I think you have the wrong number.” Oops. I panicked for a moment before looking in my phone to see what number I had stored and I knew right away I had punched it in wrong. Phone numbers have a way of sticking in my head sometimes and I just happened to remember what was on the For Sale sign and I was a digit off when I stored the number. So I called the number and left a message on the answering machine and waited. In the meantime, I called my insurance company and asked about that and they quoted me about $26 a month, which is about what I was expecting. Third problem solved.

I worked from 2 to 7 that day and waited all day for a call back, but it never came. When I got home I called again and a man answered. I was happy to discover that I had gotten the right phone number that time. We talked for a few minutes and made an appointment for 1pm on Thursday. So that brings me back to our exciting day, today.

We pulled up to the man’s house at about 12:30, having finished our doctor appointments earlier than expected. The car was sitting outside and Joni got her first look at it and was more excited than ever. The owner, an elderly man named Buzz, came out and we talked about the car for a few minutes then he gave us the keys and we were off. I had asked him earlier if he would mind me driving it to Axtel so my brother could look at it and he had no problem with that at all. Oh, I also noticed as soon as we got there that the owner had reduced the price on the sign from $1600 to $1400. Everything seemed to be going our way.

So we drove to Axtel, a trip of 20 or so miles. The car rode great: the engine had a good feel, transmission felt good, the only problem was when I stepped on the brake it made the steering wheel shake. He had told me up front that he thought the rotors might be going bad, and when I told Brad what it was doing he confirmed that. We also noted that the car would need new tires before long. Other than that it checked out good. Brad checked out as much as he could without having a shop at his disposal and said it looked like a good buy. Just the words we wanted to hear.

We drove back to Kearney feeling very light-hearted. When we got back to the man’s house I told him we liked his car and would like to buy it. I said, “If I offered you $1300 would you take it?” He thought for about 3 seconds and said that he would. Honestly, I wouldn’t have fought very hard with him on that. So we went in and he signed over the title and gave us 3 sets of keys, took off his license plates and we were on our way with a new (to us) car. It just makes me giddy to look out the window and see two cars sitting in front of our house. And it’s nice! I don’t think I mentioned, it’s maroon with kind of a cream-colored partial leather interior. All the buttons and gadgets work, even the air-conditioning, everything except the cruise control, which isn’t a big deal. We like it very much.

I really wanted to include some photos, but I also want to wash and wax it before I take pictures, so those will be coming in the near future.

Rejoice with us in the rich blessings that have showered upon us!

Luke 11:28 But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” ESV

1 Peter 3:8-9 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. ESV

Journal - Visitors

Well, here I am back again! It’s about 3pm now and I just wanted to update what I started earlier. I got my potato salad finished and Joni and I think it turned out pretty good. The potatoes may have been a little bit overcooked but not too bad. At least they didn’t completely go to mush when I mixed everything together. Also the eggs I boiled this morning were undercooked and the yolks didn’t look right to me. So I gave the yolks to Sassie, which made her very happy, and I just used the whites in the potato salad. It’s in the fridge chilling right now and should be ready for supper. We’re going to have hamburgers and potato salad. Sounds good! Also, while I was waiting for the potatoes to cook I decided to whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies, something I’ve been wanting to do for a few days now. I usually take the easy way and instead of making a bunch of cookies I just throw the dough into a glass dish and make cookie bars or whatever you want to call them. So we’ll have something for dessert too.

While I was working away in the kitchen we noticed that we had some very pretty visitors out on the front lawn. Take a look at these!

This is actually the second time we’ve seen these colorful fellows in the yard. I snapped a few pics of them the other day but didn’t really get any good ones. Instead of trying to sneak up on them this time I decided to snap a few pics through the kitchen window and they turned out pretty good. When we saw these guys the other day Joni looked them up in her bird book and discovered that they are American Goldfinches. They’re very pretty aren’t they?

And both times that the Goldfinches have come around, there’s been 1 or 2 of these bright fellows with them. Joni couldn’t find this one in her bird book the other day but today found out that they are Indigo Buntings. These are much brighter and prettier than the typical bluejays or bluebirds that we usually get around here. Today we counted seven of the Goldfinches and two of the Buntings. As we watched them we discovered that the Indigo Bunting is a bit of a bully, often chasing the Goldfinches away as they found something to eat.

But all in all, they commingled reasonably well. Here’s a nice little group of them. The American Goldfinch is the state bird of New Jersey, Iowa, and Washington. They typically winter in the south from southern California down to Texas and Mexico, and even as far east as Florida. In the summer they head up to the northern Midwest and Canada to breed, but can be found throughout much of the US all year round. They also have a very pretty song. After listening to it from the internet we could easily identify their call in the yard.

The Indigo Bunting spends the winter all the way down in Central America but in the summer they can be found just about anywhere in the US with the exception of the Rocky Mountains and anywhere north and west of them. They are commonly referred to as “blue canaries” and I think that’s a fitting name as they are a small and brightly colored bird.

Matthew 6:25-26 Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ESV

Genesis 1:20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” ESV

Journal - Preparing for Summer

Well summer is very nearly upon us. In fact, we’ve already had one day at or near 100 degrees and a couple of other days that were very warm as well so you might say that summer is already here. With the change of seasons it seems like there are always plenty of projects to do around the house. This week I had Tuesday and Thursday off so those were my days to get some of those projects done.

On Tuesday I did a little more work in the garden. Last week we got tomatoes and peppers and strawberries in. We had already decided not to have a large pumpkin patch like we did last year, but I still wanted at least a few. So I got out the rake and cleared the winter leavings from another section of the garden. Then I got out the shovel and dug the soil in a plot about 6 by 8 feet or so. In there I planted six mounds of pumpkins. Actually I’m not sure if pumpkins are supposed to be in mounds but it seemed like the right thing to do. I put 3 or 4 seeds in each mound, the seeds having come from some of the pumpkins we had last year. We actually still have 3 of our good sized pumpkins from last year sitting around the house. I don’t think they’ll last much longer; they’re all getting soft spots on them now. Anyway, the pumpkins are in and hopefully they’ll come up again.

Thursday I had several items on my to-do list. I took the humidifier apart and cleaned it up and set it aside to dry. Then I gave the kitchen window a thorough cleaning. Our house is moldy and during the winter, where the moisture condenses on the window frames and glass, the mold grows. During the winter we wipe it down from time to time but don’t really give it a thorough cleaning. I had already done one of the kitchen windows a couple of weeks ago so today I got the other one.

After that I went outside to see if the mower would start this year. Last year it was very hard to start every time we used it, and even after it started we would have to nurse it along for a few minutes before it finally decided it was ready to work. I had been thinking about it earlier this week and thought the carb was probably pretty dirty and that’s what was causing it to run so poorly. I wanted to pull the carb off and clean it up but after watching a couple of videos online showing how to do that I decided it was probably not something I should mess with. Instead I just pulled off the cowling and the fuel tank and cleaned as much of the gunk out from under there as I could. There was quite a lot of gunk that has probably been building for years. Also the mice like to nest up under the cowling so I cleaned all of that out. I sprayed some carb cleaner around the carb and the throttle, drained out the last few drips of last year’s gas and put everything back together. After filling up with fresh gas and topping off the oil I gave the rope a few experimental tugs. It didn’t sound like it was trying to fire at all but after 10 or 12 pulls it started up. That was much easier than last year and more importantly it stayed running without having to be nursed. All in all maybe the cleaning did it some good but I guess time will tell.

So while Joni was doing a little mowing I came back in found that the humidifier was dry so I put that back together and took it downstairs for the summer. Then I sat down at the computer to do some typing.

I still have a couple more windows that I would like to clean up today and I also thought I might try making some potato salad today, something I’ve never made before. And that’s everything I had on my to-do list. It’s only noon now so that’s not too bad. I’ll still have to relax this afternoon which is good because I have a full shift at work tomorrow.

Today is Brad and Cindy’s 27’s anniversary! Happy Anniversary guys!

Mark 10:6-9 But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” ESV

Ecclesiastes 3:22 So I saw that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for that is his lot. Who can bring him to see what will be after him? ESV

Journal - Starting the Garden

So today we had a pretty good day. I had the day off so we decided to run a few errands and it was a beautiful, warm, sunny day for it.

First we had to go to the bank in Gibbon to take care of a little business. While we were in there, Mom just happened to stop in on some business as well. She was working so she couldn’t stay long and we had more stops to make as well so we only had a brief visit.

From there we headed to Kearney. First we needed to drop off our aluminum cans at the scrap-yard. Aluminum is going for sixty cents a pound right now, which is a pretty decent price. We always save ours up and had about 8 large garbage bags full so it was definitely time to get those up there.

After the scrap-yard, we stopped at the post office to mail off a package to Joni’s mom. Just a little something Joni wanted to send her for Mother’s Day.

Then it was off to Hastings. No, not the town of Hastings, the store in Kearney that sells books, music, movies, games, electronics, and other neat stuff. Hastings not only sells stuff, but they also buy used items so I’ve been taking up some of my old books and CD’s and movies and also some of those audiobooks that have been piling up in the basement and trading them in for store credit. When I have enough credit I’m finally going to get a new TV. Hastings has exactly the one I want, a 32-inch LG widescreen. I’ve been making several trips to Hastings and after my visit today I only need another $40 of credit to get that TV. And I’ll have it in plenty of time for football season!

From Hastings we went on up to the mall where Joni wanted to look around the garden center they’ve set up out in the parking lot. We had already gone to Walmart’s garden center last week and got a few things to start our garden with, but we had both been wanting to check out the mall to see what they had. Well, let me tell you, the garden center at the mall beat Walmart’s garden section hands down. The mall has a huge selection of everything you could want: every kind of flower I’ve ever heard of and many that I hadn’t, more varieties of tomatoes and pepper than I knew existed, and all kinds of herbs. They even had eggplant! Who eats eggplant? Well, we had a lot of fun looking around and picked out several items. Joni got some flowers including some really beautiful pansies, and we picked out two different kinds of tomatoes, and we got some green pepper and jalapeno pepper plants. Everything came in little trays of four plants each and were $2.19. Not bad at all. I think we spent about $28.00 or thereabouts. Oh, I almost forgot, I got a strawberry plant! Can’t wait for those to grow! So Joni used her garden money left over from last week and we put in a little of our aluminum money.

By then we were both ready to head home. We stopped by Long John Silver’s to pick up some lunch, using more of our aluminum money, and went on home and ate. We love Long John’s but don’t eat there very often as it’s a little more pricey than other fast food places. Kind of a rare treat.

After we ate we changed clothes and headed out to the garden to do some planting. But I’ll have more about that later.

Isaiah 58:11 And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. ESV

Journal - A Couple of Things

A couple of weeks ago at work the topic of peacocks came up. An odd subject yes, but when you spend many many hours with the same people a pretty wide variety of discussions can arise. One of my fellow cart-pushers is Lyle and, like me, Lyle grew up on a farm. We had actually been talking about snakes when he mentioned that his folks had kept peacocks and guineas on their farm. This piqued my interest because Grandpa Pete and Grandma Gladys had peacocks on their place when I was a young boy, and while I never thought much about it back then, I have since wondered why they had them. I asked Lyle if peacocks ate snakes and he said he wasn’t sure but he thought that snakes didn’t like the sound peacocks make and thus stayed away.

From there, the conversation turned to other topics but the peacocks have been in the back of my mind ever since and today I finally got around to doing a little reading up on them. Peacocks, or Peafowl, are the largest members of the pheasant and turkey family. They originally came from the middle-east, primarily India where they are the national bird. They were brought to this part of the world and were something of a status symbol for the wealthy but eventually became more commonplace. According to what I read, they do indeed eat snakes as well as many types of bugs and are often kept on farms or ranches for that very purpose. Isn’t it interest that 30 years after the peacocks disappeared I finally found out why Grandma and Grandpa had them. I say “disappeared” because I don’t really remember what happened to them. It seems like after Grandma died in ’82 I just don’t remember them being around anymore. It just goes to show, you learn something every day.

In other news, I finally made an appointment to go to Omaha and get my fake eye. That will be on April 2. I had assumed this would take at least two trips to Omaha, one to get measured or whatever it is they do, and then another to have the finished eye inserted. However, I found out that this guy does it all in one day. I’ll see the doctor in the morning, he’ll make the eye right there that day in about 3 hours, then we’ll go back later on so he can put it in. I’m sure we can find something to do in Omaha for 3 hours while we wait. I keep calling this an eye but, as I may have mentioned before, it’s really no more than a lens or a covering. I have an eye-shaped implant in right now and that will stay. Since my surgery the implant has been covered by a clear lens, something like a very thick and hard contact lens. That lens will be removed, it just pops out like a contact, and will be replaced by a similar lens that will painted to match my good eye. Since the implant is attached to my own muscles, it moves with my good eye and so the prosthesis will move with it giving it what I am told will be a very natural look. Anyway it will be good to finally have that done.

Habakkuk 3:17-18 Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. ESV

Isaiah 25:1 O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. ESV

Journal - A Period of Rest

So I haven’t been writing much lately, except for audiobook reviews that is. Now that I’m working it gets harder and harder to find the time.

I’ve been at Walmart for almost 5 months now. Hard to believe it’s been that long. I’m still enjoying the job although I confess I’m tired of working in the cold. I can’t complain too much though, we’ve had lots of nice days in between the cold snaps. Just yesterday it went over 60 degrees and I worked in a long sleeved t-shirt. More cold this week though and some high chances of snow. My feet and legs rarely bother me anymore although there are days. In general I think I’m a lot healthier than I was 5 months ago: thinner, stronger, and sleeping much better at night than I used to. I always feel pretty tired by 9pm each night even on my days off.

I spend my days off taking it easy for the most part although I have been doing a lot of cleaning up in the basement. On each of my off days for the last month or so I’ve been spending an hour or two in the basement going through stuff and seeing what can be thrown out and organizing a little. I’m amazed at how much stuff we’ve accumulated since we moved into this house 4 years ago. We had very little in the basement at first, but now it’s getting full. I dread the thought of ever having to move again. Anyway, I talked in my last Island Earth post about cleaning out the carpeted room a little to make space for a little recording studio down there. Well, Joni and Adam came through for me and got that whole room in ship-shape with plenty of space for me to set up in.

Other than that there really hasn’t been much going on. Kind of a nice quiet period for us. I saw the eye doctor back in January and got a good report on both eyes. He said I can make an appointment for my prosthesis whenever I’m ready but didn’t pressure me at all, which I appreciated a great deal. I’ve been dragging my feet a little because I haven’t really felt like making more trips to Omaha and I know Joni doesn’t either. I guess I’ll need to get that done before too long though. Around June or July my social security benefits will run out and I’m assuming my Medicare will go with it. I should be eligible for insurance through Walmart about that same time but who knows what it will cover or if I’ll even be able to afford it.

And I’m still putting in some work on Audiobook-Heaven. My audiobook listening time was drastically reduced when I started working but I still get in a couple of hours a day and instead of 3 reviews each week I’m down to 1. Still keeping it going though, which I’m glad of. I put a lot of time and work on that and I would hate the thought of having to abandon it. Also something kind of cool happened a couple of days ago. I got an email from a person who introduced herself as a translator for a Czechoslovakian sci-fi magazine on the internet. She was asking if they could translate one of my audiobook reviews into Czech and use it on their site. That sounded pretty cool so I said yes! Don’t know when that will go live for sure but she said she would send me a link when it does.

And that’s about everything that going on around here. Like I said, kind of quiet, which suits me just fine.

Exodus 33:14 And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” ESV

John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” ESV

Journal - Recovery

Well, the days since my surgery have passed by in a blur so I hope I can remember all the pertinent details.

The day after surgery, Wednesday the 12th, I woke up pretty early, about 6 or 6:30. You’d think I would have slept in. Well they had given me a pretty strong pain killer, one that I’ve used before for painful eye infections, and it has an odd effect on me. They make me very drowsy but at the same time I don’t really sleep very well. So anyway I got up early and ate a pop-tart, which settled on my stomach pretty well after the nausea of the previous day. I messed around at the computer for a couple of hours and then was ready to go back to bed. I slept for two hours, got up for two hours, then back to bed for two more hours. Other than that I don’t really remember much about that day. Joni ran to Kearney to pick up some eye drops that I needed for my left eye and I got those started.

Thursday was uneventful as far as I can remember. My stomach was getting back to normal but I was still kind of drowsy and listless from the pain pills. I think that was the last day I needed any pills though, it wasn’t hurting much. I managed a shower but couldn’t put my head under since I was still bandaged up.

Friday it was back to Omaha for my follow-up appointment with Dr. Feilmeier. He removed the bandage from my eye, which felt really good. It was a tight pressure bandage with a thing wrapped clear around my head to help hold it in place. He took a quick look and said everything looked as it should. It was a quick visit and we were on our way home. I was supposed to call my boss and let her know when I might be returning to work but I didn’t. I was still undecided as to what to do about that. The doctor said I could go back as soon as I felt up to it and I really didn’t know when that might be. That evening I showered and was able to wash my face and hair. That felt pretty good too.

Saturday and Sunday were bad days. I felt really depressed and just didn’t want to do anything. I tried working on a couple of audiobook reviews I needed to do but that didn’t go well. I watched parts of a couple of football games on Sunday but neither one was very interesting. It was just a bad couple of days. I think I spent most of those days playing a game on the computer since that was the only thing I could find that would occupy my mind for a while. I put on the Sunday night football game and that was a good one; a pretty exciting game. I started feeling kind of normal again during that.

By Monday I was feeling better but I don’t really remember what I did that day. Oh, I finally called my boss and told her I would try a short day on Thursday. I told her I couldn’t work Friday because I had to see the doctor again but if Thursday went okay and the doctor didn’t see any problems on Friday then I would resume a normal schedule on Saturday.

On Tuesday the 25th I woke up feeling really good and I had a pretty productive day. Joni and I went to Kearney and did some final Christmas shopping. After we got home I finished those two book reviews I had been working on and wrapped some Christmas presents. We have a couple of windows that leak pretty bad in the winter so I got those washed up and taped up the seams like we always do in the winter.

Wednesday was even better. This was the day we were supposed to get our big blizzard. I woke up that morning with an itch to clean house. We made a quick trip into Kearney to pick up a few cleaning supplies. I think we got back home at about 11:30 and the snow was just beginning to fall in earnest. We had picked up lunch in Kearney and brought it home so after we ate I started working. I washed dishes and straightened up the kitchen and then vacuumed. After that I broke out the Clorox wipes we had picked up in Kearney and disinfected the house. We’ve had an unusual amount of colds and sickness so far this season so I really wanted to try and stem those a bit. I wiped doorknobs and light switches and faucets and handles and knobs and buttons and surfaces in the kitchen and bathroom. It felt good to do that. I think a cleaning ritual like that can wipe away sickness from your mind as much as from your house. All that time it was snowing like crazy and school had let out so Adam was home early. By Wednesday evening I was already having second thoughts about going back to work the next day and had all but decided that in the morning I would just call in.

Thursday morning there was a lot of snow on the ground but I saw that the plows had already cleared the roads so I figured I didn’t have a very good excuse to stay home. Getting out of the driveway was a little rough, but from there on it was okay. The parking lot at Walmart was a real mess as I had supposed it would be and it was a hard day. Lugging those shopping carts around is hard enough, but dragging them through the snow is much worse. The cart machine we use can normally push 20 carts at a time, but in the snowy mess we were only getting 6 or 7 on each trip. Even then it kept getting stuck and I would have to pull and pull on it to keep it going. In the meantime, every time I managed to get some carts out of one of the racks in the parking lot I was scooping out the snow and chipping the ice away to make the next trip a little easier. Luckily it was a relatively slow day or we wouldn’t have had enough shopping carts. All of the reserves sit outside and were buried in snow. I worked from 10am to 3pm that day and I was definitely ready to go home. I’m glad I went though because one guy called in leaving only three of us. With three we could get by on a normal weekday, but it was such slow work in the snow we were having a hard time keeping up.

Which brings us to today, Friday. I saw Dr. Feilmeier at 11am this morning and he said everything looked fine and we made an appointment for one month. On the eye chart today I breezed right on down to the 20/20 line with no trouble and got 2 out of 5 letters on 20/15. Oh, we had called ahead of time to make sure Dr. Feilmeier made the trip from Omaha and obviously he did. He said the interstate between York and Grand Island was very bad and traffic was crawling though at 15 or 20 mph. I had noticed on Thursday when I went to work that the interstate was closed, and it was still closed when I went home. So I’m going to enjoy the rest of my day off and tomorrow will be back at work. Hopefully the parking lot will be in better shape by then.

Job 1:21 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” ESV

Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

Journal - The Big Day

We left for Omaha at about 9 or 9:30 on Tuesday morning. Joni decided to take Adam with us so she wouldn’t have to sit by herself while I was in surgery. We normally stop at York for a bite to eat on the way to Omaha, but I wasn’t allowed to eat anything past midnight of the day before so we drove straight through with just one quick rest stop right before York.

Surgery was not at the hospital this time but at the surgery center on the lower floor of the doctor’s office on Dodge Street. We got there at noon, in plenty of time for my 12:30 appointment. At around 12:30 they took Joni and me into a room where we met with Dr. Hodges. She did a pretty good job of explaining exactly what would be taking place during the surgery and patiently answered our questions. I’m not really sure how long we were with her, probably 15 or 20. From there Joni and I had to say our good-byes as she would not be allowed back into the prep area.

One of the nurses took me back into a small locker room and gave me a rundown on everything that would happen prior to surgery. Then she gave me a pair of scrub pants and a gown to change into and left the room. I got changed and put my clothes into a locker. The key was attached to a safety pin, which I was instructed to pin onto myself somewhere after I had locked the locker. When I came out they led me to a bed and got me situated. I was hooked up to an IV, heart monitor, and blood pressure cuff while a few drops were put in my eye. During all this the anesthetist and head nurse were talking with me and asking questions and so forth. Dr. Feilmeier stopped by to say hi. I was kind of wondering if I would see him and was glad when he stopped. Nice to see a familiar face. I may have mentioned this before but he’s a pretty good guy. Last Saturday when I got the bad news, he had been about to leave the room but when he saw that I was having a hard time with it he came back in for a few minutes and actually consoled me.

Anyway, the next thing I knew they were wheeling me to the operating room. Just like before there was absolutely no sensation of falling asleep at all. One minute I was wide awake, and the next it was all over and I was waking up in the recovery room.

There was a Pepsi waiting for me, Joni had brought one in shortly before I woke up. They had me sit on the edge of the bed for a few minutes to drink that and eat some crackers. They said I would need something on my stomach for the pain pills they were about to give me. I put on my shirt and shoes but instead of changing back into my jeans I just wore the scrub pants out. They’re not much different than the lounge pants I wear around the house. Anyway, from the time I woke up I almost felt like I was being rushed out. Before long we were back in the car and headed home. It was much later than I had expected, around 5 o’clock.

Shortly after getting back on the interstate I threw up. They had given me a bag for that just incase so that was a good thing. I had planned on getting something to eat as soon as we left but I wasn’t hungry. The bad part was that I think I threw up my pain pills before I got the full benefit of them. I had more but didn’t want to take them on an empty stomach and food was out of the question for the time being. I was in a little bit of pain all the way home but it was manageable. Right before York I had another bout with nausea but was able to fight it down that time. I suppose I dozed on the way home but I’ve never been able to sleep well in a car or bus or airplane.

I guess it was about 8pm by the time we got home and I felt like I was ready to try eating something. I had been thinking about it on the way and had decided some Ramen noodles might be gentle enough on my stomach. Joni made me some but I only got two bites before I started to feel sick again. I didn’t throw up though and finally just ate some crackers, which went down just fine. Then I was able to take some pills and I guess I went to bed shortly after that. It’s only been three days but some of the details are already hazy.

It was a busy day. In retrospect I guess it would have been better to stay overnight in Omaha. I didn’t realize we would be getting out of there so late and I also hadn’t expected the nausea since I haven’t had that problem before. But it turned out okay and I have to admit that it was pretty nice to come home to my own bed after such a day.

Journal - Surgery

Okay so I had my pre-op physical with no trouble. These pre-ops are really not much of a physical at all. All he did today was check my ears, nose, and throat, take my blood pressure and that was about it. Last time there was also blood work but I guess that was not required this time. The Dr.’s office in Omaha faxed them some instructions on what was needed. Oh, my weight today was 174! I bet it’s been twenty years since my weight was that low. I weighed in at 190 to 195 for a long time. Pushing those shopping carts around is doing me some good.

Anyway, I was a little rushed earlier so there were a few things I didn’t get to go over.

The surgery I’m having is called an Enucleation. You can look that up online if you’re curious. I read about it and what they do is kind of gross. Basically the eye is removed and replaced with an implant. The implant will be attached to my eye muscles so that the fake eye will move and track with my good eye. I’m told that once the prosthesis, which comes later, is inserted it will be hard to tell that it’s not a natural eye. There’s another type of removal surgery called Evisceration where they take out the muscles and everything so I guess this one is better.

When the doctor first dropped this on me I cried, but now that the surgery is scheduled and some plans have been made I’m feeling a little better about the whole thing. I suppose I’ll feel even better tomorrow afternoon once it’s all done.

So let’s see…surgery is at 1pm tomorrow. We have to be there at 12:30 so I can have a little time to talk to the doctor. Oh, I didn’t mention that, did I? Dr. Feilmeier will not be doing this surgery, it will be one of his associates, a Dr. Kathleen Hodges or something like that. I’ve never met her. I wish Dr. Feilmeier could do it but I understand that this is not his specialty. Anyway, I expressed a desire to meet with the doctor before the surgery so that’s why we need to be there a little early. Dr. Feilmeier told me that he can handle my follow-ups.

We don’t have to stay over in Omaha for this one; it’s an afternoon surgery and the first follow-up appointment won’t be until Friday, which we’ll have to drive to Omaha again for. If all is well up to that point my next visit will be with Dr. Feilmeier when he comes to Kearney next Thursday.

I can’t eat anything after midnight tonight. By the time we leave the surgery center it will be at least 3pm. I guess I’ll be pretty hungry by then. Last time my surgery was early in the morning so that wasn’t so bad.

After I got the news this morning I called my boss at Walmart to explain the situation. I told her about surgery tomorrow and that I will most likely not be able to work at all this week and beyond that I don’t really know what to expect. I was very frank with her and told her that I would understand if they needed to hire someone else and get them working. I am, after all, only a temporary employee for now and we’re getting into the busy season here. She told me that they had just been talking about this earlier (since I have already missed a couple of days for trips to Omaha) and they had decided that they think I’m a good employee and will be willing to work with me on this. Pretty good news seeing as how I’ve only been there a little over two months.

I said before that I am a thinker and planner and I suppose that’s my lesson for today since I have apparently not learned it yet. We can think and plan and fret and worry until the cows come home but it’s all for nothing. God will do the thinking and planning for us and, if we are wise, we won’t have to fret and worry at all. I have to keep reminding myself that He can see the whole picture while I only see a little bit of it.

Well, that’s all I can think of for now. I’ll probably be writing more this week since I’ll have a lot of free time on my hands. Good thing too because I need to catch up on my audiobook reviews.

Keep the Faith, good people, and keep us in your prayers.

Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. ESV

Psalms 20:7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. ESV

Journal - More Eye Trouble

So on Monday I had a short shift at Walmart, 10am to 3pm. When I woke up that morning my eye was still sore and there was a noticeable spot almost directly on the center of the eye. Also there was a lot of redness around the eye. If you recall from my last post this was my left eye, the one I can’t see out of. Throughout my five hour shift that day my eye started hurting more and more and by the time I got off at 3:00 it was hurting quite a lot. While driving home I had to put on my sunglasses because the light was bothering me, something I haven’t had to do in a long time. My left eye has no light perception at all, but even when one eye is blind the eyes kind of work and react to things together.

As soon as I got home I took some Aleve for the pain and called Dr. Feilmeier’s office in Omaha. They scheduled me for an appointment for the next day, Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Dr. Feilmeier confirmed my suspicion that the eye was infected. He also confirmed what I already knew, that this was a particularly aggressive infection, having come on and advanced so quickly. I’ve had lots of eye infections but this one did come on rather suddenly. He put me on Trifluridine drops, which are specifically for the herpetic infection that I typically get and also Zymaxid, which is a more general type of antibiotic. He said he wanted to see me again on Saturday. Thinking this was an odd day for an appointment I questioned him and he said he was on call that day and would be seeing patients in the morning. Apparently his office keeps someone on call every weekend and it happened to be his turn. He also mentioned the possibility of coming in for surgery sometime to have my useless left eye removed completely. I didn’t like the sound of that very much but agreed to give it some thought, although frankly I wasn’t thinking about it very seriously and was more focused on getting this infection taken care of. Obviously this infection posed no direct threat to my vision but there is always the possibility of an infection moving from one eye to the other.

Wednesday I was off again, which was good. I had another short shift on Thursday and a long one on Friday. As we get nearer to Christmas business is picking up at Walmart so even the typically slow weekdays are getting kind of busy. I was still taking Aleve regularly during this time to keep the pain under control and so wasn’t really feeling it much.

On Saturday it was back to Omaha. Dr. Feilmeier said the infection was no better and maybe even worse. Since it wasn’t responding to the eye drops he took cultures of it. At this time he told me that we should get that surgery done as soon as possible, preferably early the following week. That really floored me as I had really thought I would have plenty of time to think that over and get my mind wrapped around it. It makes a lot of sense to have that eye removed; it will never see again and it will probably just sit there and cause me problems for as long as I have it. Also getting it removed and having a prosthesis put in would improve my appearance a lot although I’ve never been much bothered by that. It makes a lot of sense logically but still it bothered me a lot that I would be losing a part of myself. There was still a small part of me that was hoping for some medical breakthrough that would allow them to fix that eye someday. A longshot I know, but there it is. Having the eye removed sounded very final to me.

Well, that decision was taken out of my hands. This infection was very serious and Dr. Feilmeier was afraid it would go completely through the cornea and get inside the eye, which would cause even more serious complications. It needed to be done, and it needed to be done quickly. He said someone would get in touch with me early the following week to schedule the surgery.

Sunday I worked 12 to 5 and it was bitterly cold and windy. I did okay though. I had my overalls and a sweatshirt and coat. I wore my boots with thermal socks, kept my hood up to protect my ears, and had a neck warmer that I can pull up over my mouth and nose. My hands got a little cold, I may need better gloves for days like that, and by about 4pm my toes were getting cold, but I made it through. Oh, I also had some hot cider in a new thermos that I had bought just for the occasion. That helped a lot.

Today, Monday, I am off again and sure enough, they called at about 9:30am. I had been thinking they would want to schedule me later in the week, maybe Thursday or Friday, but no, they want me in on Tuesday, tomorrow. Wow. Completely discombobulated once again I asked if it could be later in the week and the nurse said she would check on it and call me back.

I took a few minutes to talk to Joni about it, and my mom, and to calm myself down. After that I figured it was pointless to fight the inevitable and we may as well get it over with. I’m as ready to do it as I will ever be, I only put the nurse off because I needed a little time. This has all happened so suddenly and I’ve never been very spontaneous. I like to think and plan.

Not much later, Dr. Feilmeier called me personally to urge me to get this done quickly. I told him I was okay with it, I had just needed a little time to think and talk with people. So it’s on for tomorrow at 1pm.

This afternoon I have to go to Kearney and get another pre-op physical. I called the Doctor and they can get me in at 2:30. In fact, I need to go get ready for that so I’ll sign off for now and hopefully write a little more later.

Psalms 118:8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. ESV

Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” ESV

Journal - The Holidays Begin

The week of Thanksgiving was kind of a long one. I worked full 8 hour shifts Tuesday through Saturday and a 5 hour shift on Sunday making it my longest week at Walmart to date. Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty busy as expected with lots of people doing their last minute shopping for Thanksgiving.

Thursday was pretty slow, also as expected. It was kind of an interesting day to work though. Us cart pushers carry walkie-talkies for when they need to call us in for carry-outs and there was lots of chatter and buzz all day about he Black Friday preparations. Since it was slow I got to go in and walk through the store a little bit now and then and it was interesting to watch some of the preparations. They moved lots of the usual racks of goods, mostly clothing, out of the store and put them outside in the lawn and garden area which was by this time empty. So there were huge areas of the store that were completely empty in preparation of the special sale items that would be moving in later on. As I understand it, the big empty areas would contain special sale items with plenty of extra space for queue lines for those wanting that particular item. I only worked until 5pm that day so I didn’t get to see very much of the sale items being moved in. Walmart began Black Friday at 8pm Thursday night so I was gone before the rush began.

Then it was Black Friday. I thought this would be a terribly busy and miserable day, but as it turned out I was wrong. Since the sales all took place during the night, it was pretty much over with by the time I came in at 8am Friday morning. The sale items were gone and all the regular merchandise had been returned to its proper places.

Saturday also turned out to be a bit on the slow side, another surprise. I guess everyone got their shopping done on Friday and decided to stay home. Saturday is usually the busiest day by far.

Then I had my short day on Sunday and was ready for a day off on Monday. It was a rough week even though several of the days I worked were slow. My legs, which have been toughening up and doing pretty well were definitely ready for a rest.

On the week after Thanksgiving I returned to my usual schedule of about 32 hours. That would have seemed like a nice break after the busy week of Thanksgiving, but I started getting sick early in the week. Tuesday and Wednesday were short days but I wasn’t feeling very well at all. By this time I knew that I had a sinus infection based on my symptoms. I had Thursday off and still wasn’t feeling well. I was starting to try and figure out when I could make a visit to the doctor but on Friday and Saturday I started feeling much better and decided it wouldn’t be necessary.

On Sunday I had a much needed and anticipated day off. My sinuses were feeling fine by now but I woke up with some soreness in my left eye, that’s the one I can’t see out of. I didn’t think much of it. It wasn’t really painful, just sore.

More on this later.

Matthew 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ESV

James 1:2-3 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

Journal - Walmart Wanderings Week 6

Well I haven’t written for a while, have I? I keep telling myself that if I would just write a little a couple of times a week then I wouldn’t have to cover so much ground each time and I would be better able to remember what I’m trying to write about. Time just gets away from me, especially since I started working again.

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been working at Walmart for 6 weeks now. The first few weeks were pretty rough, as I have mentioned, with my legs being pretty sore all the time. During the last couple of weeks though, they have finally been catching up with the demand I’m placing on them. While I’m at work they don’t really bother me at all. As long as I keep moving that is. When I take my breaks and sit down for a few minutes then they hurt again when I get back up, but it only takes a minute for them to loosen up again. At home in the evenings they really tighten up on me and it hurts to walk but even that is getting better.

On the weekend of October 20 and 21 I started feeling a cold coming on. I was hoping to just get through Monday and Tuesday and then I had the day off on Wednesday. Well, I did get through and sure enough on Wednesday I felt pretty miserable. Unfortunately, I still felt pretty bad on Thursday and I had to call in sick. Thursday was one of our coldest days yet and I knew it wouldn’t be a good idea to work in the cold all day when I was already sick. But after two days of Joni’s chicken-noodle soup I was ready to go back on Friday. I expected kind of a rough day on Friday but I actually felt pretty good that day and on Saturday as well. So I got over my cold without too much trouble.

I think it was that weekend that I started noticing a red spot in my eye. That didn’t concern me very much because that same spot gets red now and by the next day it’s usually gone. This time, however, the redness didn’t go away and by Tuesday I decided I better call the doctor. This was October 30. I called Dr. Feilmeier’s office in Omaha to find out what day he was coming in November and they said the 8th, more than a week away. I told them what was going on with my eye and the nurse said I should really get it checked out as soon as possible, but instead of asking me to come to Omaha, which is kind of what I expected, she offered to call the Kearney Eye Institute and see if someone there could get me in. She called me back a bit later and said she had gotten me an appointment with Dr. Vaughan, the same doctor who did my glasses back in July, on Thursday, November 1. That was fine with me as it saved me a trip to Omaha.

I saw Dr. Vaughan on Thursday and the report was good. There was no sign of any infection, and the sutures all looked okay. I had been thinking that one of those sutures came loose again and an infection was starting since that has happened before. Dr. Vaughan said the redness was because my eye is very dry. With cold weather coming on, the air is getting more and more dry all the time, and now that I’m working outdoors I’ll probably feel it even more this winter. Dr. Vaughan recommended some lubricant drops, commonly called “tears”, which you can get over-the-counter. Joni and I stopped at Walgreen’s on the way home and picked some up, both of us thinking that we had really dodged a bullet that time.

So all was well until Monday evening, the 5th of November. At a little after 5pm on Monday, one of Dr. Feilmeier’s assistants called from the office in Omaha. She said that Dr. Feilmeier had just seen the notes and results from my visit to Dr. Vaughan and he wanted to see me right away, as in the next day. I was so flabbergasted that I didn’t even think to ask her what Dr. Feilmeier had seen that got him so anxious. She wanted me to set an appointment for the next day but I honestly couldn’t think what to do. I was totally caught off-guard and I was supposed to work the next day and everything. I finally told her that I would call back in the morning. Mind you, I already had an appointment to see Dr. Feilmeier in Kearney on Thursday the 8th. Well I though it over for a couple of hours and finally decided I would have to go. Dr. Feilmeier hasn’t let me down yet and I trust him.

On Tuesday morning I called his office and told them I was on my way. Then I called in at Walmart yet again and we got ready to go. Dr. Feilmeier wasn’t in until 1pm that day so we didn’t have to hurry too much, but it was Election Day and I wanted to stop by and vote on our way out. The polling place for our area is about 7 miles east of our house so it wasn’t really out of the way that much. Also, up until this year, I have never voted before and really wanted to do it this time. I had wanted to in 2008 but didn’t get registered in time. We left the house at about 9:30am I think, stopped by to vote, and we were on our way.

This post is getting pretty long so I’ll cut to the chase. Dr. Feilmeier said pretty much the same thing Dr. Vaughan had said a few days before. We weren’t there very long and were back on the road heading home. In some ways it felt like a wasted trip, but some things are worth being extra careful with, and one of those things is your eyesight. So I have to keep putting those tears in my eyes several times a day, but everything is fine and my eyesight is still good. Today was my day off so I got to relax and do some fun things, which I will be writing about soon.

Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. ESV

Matthew 14:31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” ESV

Journal - Snow and Rain

Last Friday I went to work at 10am prepared for a day in the cold. I had on my new jacket with a lighter jacket under it, my new gloves, and I wore my boots for the first time. I wasn’t sure how my feet would like the boots so I took along my shoes just in case. I don’t remember the temp but I’m pretty sure it was still in the 30’s when I arrived and never made it out of the 40’s all day.

I felt cold when I started out but it didn’t take me long to warm up. I hadn’t even been there an hour before I took off my inner jacket. At around 11:30 it started snowing but it was just tiny little flakes. After a while the snow turned to a very light rain. My jacket kept me perfectly warm, in fact maybe too warm, as I got pretty sweaty as I worked. It also kept me dry from the rain. My gloves got pretty wet from handling the wet shopping carts but it never soaked through and my hands stayed warm and dry; also a little sweaty though. I ended up wearing my boots the whole day and they felt pretty good on my feet so no problems there either. Also they never seemed to get wet at all so maybe that spray stuff works okay, although as I said the rain was very light. All in all it was a pretty good day and I only had to work until 3:30.

On gameday Saturday I had another 8 to 5 shift and it was cold again so I dressed the same. Just as on Friday, I had to take off my inner jacket after about an hour. I was a little distressed when my right leg started hurting quite a bit after I had only been there for an hour. The next seven hours were looking mighty long, but I went inside and got a bottle of Aleve and took one at about 9:30 and that seemed to tide me over. I ended up taking another one at around 3 that afternoon. But with God’s help I made it through the day. My hands were fine in my gloves and my feet were still feeling pretty good with the boots.

On Sunday we made it to church in the morning. I just barely had enough time to rush home and wolf down a sandwich that Joni made for me while I was changing and then I was back out the door again for a 12 to 5 shift. It wasn’t quite as cold this day so I didn’t bother with the second jacket and I wore my shoes again. I had got to thinking the night before that even though the boots felt okay on my feet maybe the extra weight was what finally got to my legs on Saturday. That may be the case because I felt pretty good all day Sunday. Also on Saturday night I finally broke down and put some Icy-Hot on my calves. Joni had been trying to get me to do that but I’m always so wary of putting stuff on my skin. It turned out to be okay though and maybe that also helped my legs feel better Sunday while I worked.

And today was my day off. We had a nice relaxing day and my legs are feeling pretty good. On Tuesday and Wednesday I have my first back-to-back 8-hour shifts so I’m hoping things go okay. Tomorrow I’m supposed to work 10 to 7 but I may have to leave a little before 7 so I can get home before it gets too dark. The scheduler and the other cart-pushers all know about that so that won’t be a problem if I need to leave early

Through all of this I’m spending a lot more time in the car of course. I always keep the radio tuned to MyBridge Radio on 99.9, which is a contemporary Christian station. I’ve found that to be a nice little pick-me-up before and after work, something to help me keep my focus on God. It’s music and uplifting stories and things like that and on Sundays they air a sermon from our very own Pastor Mike at E-free Church that I can listen to as I drive to work.

Isaiah 26:3-4 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. ESV

Colossians 3:1-2 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ESV

Journal - Cold Weather

So I had my day off on Monday and I was definitely ready for it. As I mentioned previously, my feet and legs were pretty sore after my first few days on the job.

Tuesday I only worked from 10 to 3:30. I wasn’t feeling too bad when I started but by the end of my shift I was getting kind of sore again. I’ve discovered that weekdays at Walmart aren’t all that busy, especially in the morning. That’s nice because at least us cart-pushers get to take a little break in between runs to the parking lot, unlike Saturday when you pretty much have to keep going all the time. The slower pace is good if you’re sore but I can see where those days might drag a little once I get over the soreness.

Then on Wednesday I had another long 8 to 5 shift. The day started out cold so I wore jeans and a jacket but by noon it had warmed up pretty nice so I changed into some shorts that I had taken with me. I think I took my jacket off by 10 or so. Even on a slower day it doesn’t take long to get warmed up. Much of the talk among the cart-pushers this day was about the cold weather that was supposed to be coming in Thursday through the weekend. I was asking everyone what they like to wear for cold and/or rainy weather and got some good advice. Even though the pace was slow that day I was still pretty sore again by the end of my shift. My feet are holding up better but my calves have been really hurting. I can’t tell you how good it always feels when I finally get out to my car and sit down for the drive home.

Thursday I was off but Joni and I needed to go in to do the grocery shopping. I didn’t really feel up to going but I also needed to pick up some cold weather gear. I picked up some warmer socks to wear with my boots and a stocking cap, which I may or may not wear and also some good winter gloves that won’t get all wet if it gets snowy. I got a warm jacket that I hope will be waterproof enough to wear in snow or rain. It’s not as heavy as a winter coat but it’s big enough to wear layers underneath. I think that will be better so I can add or remove layers depending on how each day is. It also has a hood I can pull up to keep the cold wind off my neck and face. I also got some of that water-proofing spray for my hiking boots and I hope that will keep them reasonably dry in the rain or slush. It sounds like most of the guys like to wear winter coveralls for really cold days so I may get some of those at some point. Walmart has them for about $50 so I guess that’s not unreasonable.

Anyway, we finished our shopping and came home and had some lunch. Then I water-proofed my boots with two coats of that spray. It was indeed much colder today, only about 55 degrees as I write this at 3:30 in the afternoon. I should be all set for the weekend though with expected highs in the lower 50’s. Tomorrow I have another short day, 10 to 3:30 and then a long 8 to 5 for gameday Saturday. I hope my legs are feeling better by then; that could be a long day.

All in all I think this is a pretty good job. It’s physical, but not at all stressful like working in a kitchen or an office. We’re pretty much left to ourselves outside with nobody looking over our shoulders all the time and even on a busy day like gameday Saturdays the pace is quick but not hectic. I’ve been told that when it’s rainy or snowy or just plain cold we’re allowed to stay inside the cart bay in between runs to the parking lot. The cart bays are on each side of the building, north and south, and that’s where we bring the cars up from the lot. There’s about a four foot high roll-up door where we push the carts into the building so I guess we can just duck in there to get out of the weather when we need to. That doesn’t sound so bad and in the meantime I sure have enjoyed working out in the warm sunshing. I come home each day with my face all sunburned even though I’ve been wearing my hat. I’ve learned that you can burn a lot faster in an asphalt parking lot than you can in your garden. But like I said before, I spent enough time in the sun this summer so that the burns are always faded by the time I wake up the next morning.

Psalms 90:17 Let the favor[a] of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands! ESV

1 Corinthians 4:12 We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; ESV

Journal - On the Job

So last Wednesday I had orientation at Walmart. Me and two other new hires started at 1:30 pm and we basically spent four-and-a-half hours filling out papers, touring the store, getting talks from various managers and learning about the company history. We were there until 6pm. The other two are overnight stockers so I’ll probably never see them again. That was my official start day and I’ll get paid for that time.

I had Thursday off because it takes a couple of days for them to get all our information in the computers and get us activated.

On Friday I had a full 8 to 5 shift. This whole day was spent in the training room completing a whole bunch of training modules on the computer. I didn’t count but I think there must have been about 20 modules which took anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes each. This was all general training on things like safety and customer service that all employees have to complete. Each module had a short quiz at the end that had to be passed with at least an 80%. I passed each one the first time through except for the very last one I did. I had to take that one twice because by then I was tired and had a hard time focusing. But I got them all done in a day.

Saturday was my first day actually working. One of the managers took me outside and introduced me to the cart pusher that would train me. When I interviewed for the job I had asked if there was enough work as a cart pusher to keep a person busy all day, thinking that there might be a lot of downtime when you would have to find other things to do. She assured me that cart pushing was a full time job, and on Saturday I learned that she was right.

At slower times there are two cart pushers on duty, one covering each side of the parking lot. Saturdays are busy, and yesterday was a game day making it doubly busy. During busy times like that there are actually two pushers on each side and since I was only training there were actually five of us working and we were busy trying to keep up with it. It’s pretty amazing how quickly those carts can pile up.

So anyway, I learned how to gather carts by hand with a rope that allows you to handle 10 carts at a time, and I also learned how to use the mule, which can handle 20 at a time. A mule is a battery powered cart pusher that pushes a row of carts from behind. You can operate it by remote so that you can stand at the front of the row to steer them. That thing is pretty cool and fun to use.

By lunchtime my feet were already feeling sore. I’m just not used to being on my feet that much. Also my hands were starting to feel a little raw. The mule saves a ton of work but it’s still a pretty physical job. You have to stack the carts on and then unstack them, plus with a full load of carts you really have to throw your weight into them to steer the thing. On my lunch break I picked up a pair of those fingerless weight-lifting gloves that a lot of the cart-pushers wear, and also some cushioned inserts for my shoes. I had intended the inserts to go in my boots, which I will be wearing through the winter, but I decided to try them in my shoes for now.

Well, it was a pretty long day. I worked an 8 to 5 shift and by quitting time my feet and legs were really hurting. Also my face and neck were sunburned.

I got home in plenty of time to eat supper and then settle down for a nice Husker game. It turned out to be quite an exciting game! Nebraska was down 20 to 3 early on and I have to admit I thought it was going to get ugly. But in the second half Nebraska rallied and ended up winning 30 to 27. Wow, that was a great game! I wish they would play every game like they did in the second half of this one. Next week will be a real challenge with Ohio State, who is looking pretty good this year. Periodically throughout the game I was getting up and stretching my legs and by the end of the game I was feeling almost normal again.

Today we decided not to go to church. I really didn’t want my job to interfere with that and I told them I couldn’t work Sunday mornings, which they didn’t seem to have any problem with. Once I get acclimated to the job I don’t think it will be a problem. I got up this morning feeling pretty much normal again. My feet and legs felt good and my sunburn had faded. I only had to work 12 to 5 so that was good. Another 8-hour shift might have been bad. It was much less busy today and there was actually time to take a short breather in between cart runs. I wore shorts instead of jeans and stayed much cooler, plus I wore a hat to keep the sun off my face. I also took a jug of water so I didn’t have to keep running in to the store to use the drinking fountain. It was a much better day. By 5 my feet and calves were getting sore again but not near as bad as yesterday. The inserts I put in my shoes helped a lot and the gloves keep my hands from getting sore.

Tomorrow I am off so it will be good to relax and rest up for my next shift. On Tuesday I have another short day and then a full day on Wednesday. I should be ready to go again by then. This job is going to get me in shape, that’s for sure. Today I got a lot of advice on how to dress for rainy and/or cold days so I’ll need to do a little shopping before long.

So my first two days on the job were hard, but good. I could grow to like this job I think; we’re left alone in the parking lot for the most part and the work is not complicated. And no office politics, which will be nice.

The fact that God prepared me for this job is not lost on me. Without keeping toned up with the exercise bike these last few years I don’t think I would have lasted out the day on Saturday. And a summer of yard work and gardening put some color on my skin so that my sunburn didn’t bother much at all. God knows I don’t like cold weather so maybe we’ll have a mild winter? Huh God? Huh? Well, we’ll see about that. Whatever comes my way I know that I can face it with God on my side.

Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” ESV

Luke 12:22-23 And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ESV