Legacy of Giants

We stand on the shoulders of Giants. Our accomplishments did not begin in a vacuum. Something provided the spark. A word, a chance encounter with something, familiar or unfamiliar, set our face in the direction we have chosen. The platform the giants had created encouraged education, provided mobility and assured political stability. So here’s to the parents, the teachers, the ditch diggers, the bridge builders, the citizens, the lawmakers, the military and all who protected and expanded our freedom -- the giants who nutured the environment in which we might flourish.

Start looking for rainbows

Start looking for rainbows.

I picked up a prescription the other day. After a hearty greeting, my pharmacist gestured toward his head and asked if I'd seen all the women in Decatur " with that kind of hair." At that point, his assistant came round the back counter and a great conversation began. Each of them have seen lots of rainbow heads -- some at their counter and many more out in the community. They were flabbergasted by the trend they were seeing. She had even seen a guy with blue "highlights" in his short hair.

I haven't seen these women but I told the crew it was my fault. I've had a lot of women walk up and ask me, "Can I get that done in Decatur?" I always mention the pink streaks of October and assure them someone can, certainly, manage the look.

As I think back, I remember a day when a guy brought his girlfriend over to one of the feeding stations to ask for help feeding her feral cats. She explained that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was concerned that she wouldn't have the energy to go to feed her cats. It turned out hers are neighborhood cats which she could easily lead to a closer location. (Cats live where they live but they will travel to eat.) As she kept talking, she admitted that one of her concerns was losing her hair. I told her about Leigh Ann's stock of wigs and commiserated with her about the look of most wigs before I suggested she might try a "breakout" look. She went away laughing at what she might try -- "If not now, when?" She may have been the first convert.

I don't suppose these are are all patients opting for rainbows but it occurs to me that people used to shave their heads to show support who may have decided streaks are easier -- and warmer. I guess I'll have to start looking around. There may be groups of supporters wandering around with all sorts of "hair."

Paige really knows how to set a trend! Bless her heart.

Snow on Tornado damage

Watching the trees shed clumps of snow in the sunshine, I understand how we romanticize the beauty of a new snow.

Henryville and Maryville, Indiana, look no better for the snow that fell overnight.
There is no veil for the devastation of war or weather.

Got a house!

We've signed a contract on a house in an area known as Decatur South Shores and the owner has accepted our offer. It was the best space we'd seen and is in our price range so we're lining up workmen and supplies. Closing in 30 days? The house needs a kitchen and windows. Unfortunately, the frames of the 3 lovely, large double windows with transoms below, have taken a beating and must be replaced. All the windows need to be caulked and a couple of window sills need to be replaced.

We took a contractor with us to look at the house before we made a bid. I had hoped to get the kitchen measurements that day and spend a few weeks shopping and designing that area. I remember holding the tape but, somehow, not all information was written down. Because the floor plan was not published, Kendall has been trying to floor plan and room plan on Google Sketch-Up with the measurements she does have.

This was a 3-bedroom ranch on a full (poured) basement with high ceilings to which a bedroom, bathroom and "family room" were added on the back which is how the kitchen ended up in the middle of the house (no windows). The mother-in-law room has the MINE! closet – a must walk into closet. The closets in other rooms are ample but this is MINE! The bedroom with the smallest closet will become the laundry room. The other front bedroom has space for Dan's brought-back-from-Florida furniture, his computer and his talking book paraphernalia. And, in a one story house, he can still be far enough from house noises to study or read uninterrupted. Kendall will get the original back bedroom where she will have room for cherished pieces though she wants her papasan and bookcases in the basement space she's creating for herself. I think she’s planning a “little house” down there. She has decided we should move our old refrigerator to the basement because, after all, that’s where the basement stove is going to be (among the old kitchen cabinets, I assume).

We will start work on the kitchen and "family room" floors as soon as possible. This will involve pulling up carpeting and tile and evaluating the sub-floor before we lay new floors. The rest of the house has hardwood floors which will be beautiful again, when refinished. The bedrooms need new doors. When I responded to Kendall's call, I started down the hallway and noticed Kendall's hand and arm (to mid forearm) waving at me from under one of the bedroom doors. On investigation, we found there was, also, “air space” between the top of the door and the frame. It turns out all the bedroom doors had been cut for high water. (Nobody has carpeting that high.) One door didn't latch because it was too small for the frame. What a mess they'd made. We can save the door on the linen closet. It's short but not so noticeably so.

We were so glad we'd asked them to stop working on the house. We have no idea what they might have done with the woodwork (mopboard) they'd pulled off and piled and strewn. The kitchen had begun badly and they had made it worse. It's okay though. We would have replaced it anyway. Kendall and I have all but come to blows over the kitchen -- design, cabinets, flooring, colors -- but I went to the right lumber yard today and brought home a design and sketches. Of course, when I arrived, papers in hand, Kendall was sure she'd been using the wrong measurements. Oh, well. The sketches will give us a starting point for the next round.

When we've finished, we'll have a kitchen with a floor, real cabinets, a dishwasher and the stove will be at the end of the room with the exhaust fan. Our refrigerator doesn't require an exhaust fan as theirs must have. The "family room" will have become the dining room and the "dining room" (north end of 27' living room) will be our computer area.

Wish us luck. Lots of work ahead and none of that can start until we've got the keys.

A BUTTERFLY'S LESSON

A BUTTERFLY'S LESSON

One day, a small opening appeared in a cocoon; a man sat and watched for the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.

Then, it seems to stop making any progress.

It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could not go any further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly: he took a pair of scissors and opened the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a withered body, it was tiny and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would open, enlarge and expand, to be able to support the butterfly's body, and become firm.

Neither happened!

In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a withered body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and his goodwill did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening, were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings, so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life.
If we were allowed to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. Never been able to fly.

Birthday greetings

This was my morning greeting from Paige.
Once a year we celebrate
the fact that you were able to make
another trip around the sun....
Happy Birthday....Mater
Your work here isn't done

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!! :d Most funny birthday song ever! :D By The Arrogant Worms!
www.youtube.com

Days of Cinnamon and Ginger

Days of Cinnamon and Ginger

Kendall has left for Arkansas where her friend is throwing herself a birthday party. Paige will be in early tomorrow. I’ve made the trip out to the CCI to have my “sunburned” (radiation burned) back salved and bandaged. I caught a chemo nurse once and a nurse at radiation once. Tomorrow is Saturday so, if Paige doesn’t show up early, I’ll be visiting the vet’s office. The reception crew has volunteered for back duty -- “Anytime after 7:30,” they said. Isn’t this fun!
Actually, this is much more fun than the past 3 weeks have been. For three weeks, I’ve fought nausea. Everyone, cheerfully and enthusiastically, offered advice. This would have been helpful (I hope) if this episode had been a usual side effect. It wasn’t.

I was not lying around, or walking around, feeling nauseous and did not need the compazine to settle my stomach. My problem had more to do with swallowing but it was not the swallowing problem the community was ready to treat. Everyone wanted to break out that expensive bottle of medicine the doctor had prescribed. Yes, the “sunburned” esophagus was a problem but only because it made swallowing past the bubble much more painful. Ever try to swallow past a bubble? That’s how I felt during most of the past 3 weeks. Ugh!

Everyone was afraid I’d get dehydrated and, because I wasn’t eating properly, would lose weight. Because I have a really bad gag response (to which my dentist will attest), I was having problems with everything. I tried the thoroughly chilled Ensure and the ersatz Ensure but that tasted awful and, if I could swallow it, would not stay down. Vanilla milkshakes were soothing and really cool and could be sipped through a straw for an hour or so. Chicken soup seemed to be the best substitute for food. I call it a substitute because I was spooning up oriental noodles in chicken broth, not the sort of soup I’d have usually called chicken soup.

Hard cinnamon candies and ginger chews helped get me through the first 10 days. As directed, I took compazine before I went for radiation and then popped a ginger chew to suck on to keep my stomach in some state of equilibrium. Fortunately, I had only 4 days of radiation during this time. Finally, I had to have something that my system identified as food. Chicken doesn’t do it for me so Kendall and I bought cube steaks which she smothered in a ginger broth. Ah, ginger broth. Wonderful stuff. As I began to gain some strength, my brain began to work again and I realized that the pressure I was feeling, the pressure which was contributing to the stomach and esophagus problems, was my own fault. During those days of diagnosis, I was told I had diverticulitis. Somehow, during the weeks of treatment, I’d forgotten to baby my condition. Now, I can’t say whether I had a side effect of treatment or of non-treatment. I do know I feel better and am eating. And, do I have plans for this weekend!