ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY

Question Of The Week 9-7-14

WHAT THINGS DO YOU BELIEVE ARE IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO GO TO WAR OVER?

JUST THE FACTS

Okay I guess I have to face the truth. The pain is returning. The orthopedic doctor and my PCP say it is not going to get any better without the hip replacement. At least I had Tuesday, Wednesday and half of Thursday pain free. Next stop surgery consult. Excuse me while I cry a bit:(

Meanwhile I have been reading all about hip replacement surgery and what to expect after.  One interesting thing is that sex four weeks after the surgery is among the physical therapy list. Now I just have to find out  where I get my partner and will Medicare cover that?

HAND ME MY PANTS

Yesterday I had my Cortisone steroid shot in my hip at 10:30AM. They informed me I would be virtually pain free until about 4:30PM then the pain would return for 24 to 48 hours before we knew if it was going to work long range. The moment I stepped off the table I was doing a happy dance. I could get in and out of the car easily, walk up and down the stairs in my home, sit comfortably in a chair and change my clothes putting on my pants with ease!  

Needless to say my sister went along to be my support as well as my chauffeur and my photographer.

Well they lied to me. They said the pain would come back around 4:30 yesterday afternoon. I've been up all night waiting..... and NO MORE PAIN!  Just kidding about the all night part. I climbed out of bed this morning feeling great. Mild discomfort might describe what I feel if anything. Woohoo!

I have many to thank for prayers and well wishes. Looks like this is going to be a successful procedure for me to repeat every 3 months if needed and hopefully prolong the hip replacement. 

The second blown up photo showing the hip joint with the needle going in just below it. There is dye in the cortisone steroid that will flow up and around that entire ball joint during the coming hours.

As Ron always said, "Better living through chemistry.".

(Of course now I have no excuses to call for help. or to put off my housework and laundry, etc.  Maybe I should squeeze a little more sympathy from family and friends before shouting all this news.  LOL)

TOO MANY COOKS

Question Of The Week 09-01-14

ARE YOU A LEADER OR A FOLLOWER?

It seems to me that with the "Older Generation" there was a good system of leaders and followers.  For some reason it was okay to follow.  Now we all want to lead and I think that has caused a world of control freaks.  My parents had areas of leadership.  One in the workplace and the other in the home.  My Ron had a true sense of leadership in almost all things and had a bit of a problem with his "Baby Boomer" wife who also wanted to lead in almost all things.

We are wary of leadership and we always seem to have advice and better ideas to offer.  Is anyone willing to be a trusting follower anymore?

A WILL AND A WAY

Yes, if there is a will, there is a way.  I was selected for the ALS Ice bucket challenge.  I could not bring myself to dump ice on me no matter the cause that it would help but I did not want to offend the friend who gave me the challenge.  I came up with the idea of surrogates.  I picked a surrogate pour-ee, a surrogate pour-er and surrogate ice.  And I made my contribution to ALS.  I did not pass the challenge on to anyone else and now I am done and you are all safe from me. Have any of you taken the challenge? They say this crazy challenge has raised a ton of money for ALS research.

My art manikin prepares to make the pour.

And the female art manikin representing me receives the surrogate ice.

CAR 54 WHERE ARE YOU?

Question Of The Week 8-25-14

Have you ever been pulled 

over by the police and what for?

A TALE WITH A TAIL

Pinky was adopted with his brother Simon for our granddaughter Hope's 4th birthday. Hope is now 12. Their family moved to Kansas on May 21st and as soon as the 8  year old cats were allowed to go outside of their new home, they both disappeared in about four days. Simon returned with a limp and was taken to the vet for treatment. Simon would be fine.  The family kept watch for Pinky, to no avail.  They were all crushed especially Hope! 

After two months they had all given up on seeing Pinky again as it has been so long.  On August 8th Hope ran downstairs yelling to come quick. "Pinky is back!" and there he was!  He was super skinny but other than that in good shape and even has his collar on still . The family was so happy to have him back :-)

Don't you wish Pinky could talk so he could tell us his adventures and how he finally found his way home?   

Here is the video of Pinky's welcome home.

 

SUGAR BARE

Question Of The Week 8-18-14

If you HAD to change 

your first name, 

what would  you change it to?

(Ron actually had a shipmate who legally changed his  name to Sugar Bare.) 

PATIENCE REWARD

Jessi's photograph in the Butterfly Pavilion at the Natural History Museum LA

I am not fond of my first post for today and often I would simply delete it.  However then I might hear that a fellow blogger was getting ready to comment and had come back looking for it.  So......I will leave it, but in the meantime I will deposit this much more beautiful post to ponder.  My goddaughter Jessi took this picture in the Butterfly Pavilion and I could not believe the patience she had.  I was pointing willy-nilly clicking away and getting some very lame photos while she was doing just as her mother would have done, waiting for perfection.

RUSH ME TO THE LEFT

You all know that I do not get involved with politics.  My "About Me" on the sidebar of this blog says it best.  Yet as much as I try to  hold to my mostly conservative views, Rush Limbaugh is certainly the one person who will drive me Left. I avoid listening to his show but the internet caught my attention with this one.  In a time of crisis, sadness, reflection on mental illness and depression, he chooses to make it a political issue.  After making some fairly decent and respectful comments about the death of Robin Williams he had to turn it into a Liberal issue instead of an issue on mental health by saying:  

"He (Robin Williams) had everything, everything that you would think would make you happy.  But it didn't.  Now, what is the left's worldview in general?  What is it? If you had to attach not a philosophy but an attitude to a leftist worldview, it's one of pessimism and darkness, sadness.  They're never happy, are they?  They're always angry about something. No matter what they get, they're always angry."

.....and Rush Limbaugh is saying WHO is angry???

I have just returned from the West Coast and saw my goddaughter happier than she has ever been in her life.  As much as I regret it, I know she will never return to Oklahoma.  It was also a privilege to meet her happy co-workers and friends. Polite in the horrible traffic jams, kind to grocery store clerks and waiters and waitresses.  Calming my angry comments that erupted by the fast paced, crowded, drought ridden and bankrupt state. It would be a  horrible inconvenience for me to live on the west coast because I would have to buy my grocery bags or bring my own and learn things like tolerance for a woman with a grocery cart in the middle of an intersection trying to be a toreador while a motorcyclist (her imaginary bull) was simply trying to  pass through.

This is not a political statement it is simply a statement that we have wrapped too many issues in politics that actually have nothing to do with the governing of our country but with simple kindness, tolerance, understanding and freedom.

MAKING THE SELECTION

Sorry these pictures are out of order.  This batch is the ending and then the first batch follows.  I could not get them back in the correct order.  Just an added note since I missed my "Question Of The Week", I will ask this now.  Did  you miss me?

Natural History Museum and Butterfly pavilion. Jessi the patient photographer.

A fun night out on the town at The Blue Cow Kitchen.  See Jessi's friends in reflection behind us.

Back to Oklahoma for my only celebrity sighting.  Former Governor George Nigh.

Rest stop with brother and sil before heading back home.

Restaurant gave me this huge bag for my left over salad.  It should be big enough for all my left over memories of a wonderful, wonderful trip.

Trip to Los Angeles.  Few pictures selected to share from the multitude and hoping they will tell the story of a grand adventure. Could not post in order.  Starts here then ends back at the top.  Hope you can figure it all out.

First stop Oklahoma City to spend night at brother and sil's B&B

Priority after arriving in LA was drive to San Diego to Ron's memorial at Ft.Rosencrans Military Cemetery.

Taking a break from harrowing ride on hwy 5, we had lunch in Long Beach at Gladstone's on the pier. See Queen Mary in background.

Visit to Jessi's workplace The Academy.  Amazing place.

The observatory especially great because I had seen Rebel Without A Cause the week before.

UP UP AND AWAY

I will try to keep up with your posts.  My comments are closed on this post:)

MOWING THE SLOPES

Question Of The Week 8-4-14

Is there one 

of your responsibilities 

you wish you 

could get rid of?

Love to mow but not the slopes or hills.

CELEBRITY NOT FORGOTTEN

R.I.P. Mama David April 17, 2009 to August 1, 2014

Obituary

Mama David was born on NOL-NOC Estates on April 17, 2009.  She was born in a chicken nest box and shared two mothers with her three other siblings.  Her feline mother, Miss Hissy and her chicken mother, Elenore Hen.  Her name David was chosen because of her closeness to one sibling that was very large and David was very small so they were named David and Goliath.  Because there was a wrestling match for mothering these kittens between biological feline mother and adopted chicken mother, they were featured in a story in COUNTRYSIDE MAGAZINE, Sept/Oct 2009 issue. It is rare for kittens to be born in a nest box surrounded by eggs.  

Mama David was struck and killed in a hit-and-run accident on the road in front of her home on August 1, 2014.  She was preceded in death by her mothers Miss Hissy (a beautiful Maine Coon cat) and Elenore Hen (a lovely Silky mix hen). She is survived by her Significant Other, Darth Vader, (residence unknown) and children Olive, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewy and Yoda of the home. Mama David has other grown children that are scattered over the area and unaccounted for. 

Mama David will be greatly missed.

SECOND FROM LEFT

This is my TBT post.  My maternal grandparents with my mother (Elizabeth, second from left) and her siblings.  All are gone.  How can that be? I wonder about them all the time and I continually start to pick up the phone and call my mom. Plus I see them in my brother and sister, my children and all of my cousins. My grandparents were passionate bird watchers so the bird house in the background is appropriate.

HAVING THE RIGHT

Question Of The Week 7-28-14

You are visiting in the home of a friend.  You glance at a letter on the desk and see that your name is mentioned.  Do you ask  your friend about it? Do you read the letter?  Do you forget about it and go on?

WHAT'S FOR BREAKFAST

Olive and Princess Leia did not show up for breakfast.  I found them dining elsewhere.  This was what was left of their breakfast.

Did the cats kill this snake or did the chickens or the guinea fowl?  Regardless I love my critters!!!

This is a copperhead.  The cats were eating remnants of a copperhead snake!!!

VENGEANCE IS MINE

I immediately made a paste of Adolf's Meat Tenderizer and applied it to my foot then wrapped with a dry wash cloth so I could get around. Then I hobbled back to the scene of the crime and beat the already dying wasp to death.  There was no excuse for the wrath I used to annihilate this poor creature and even less of an excuse for the pleasure I felt in doing so.
 

NEW TRICKS

Question Of The Week 7-21-14

What is  

something  

new you  

have learned 

to do 

recently? 

(And they say you can't teach an old dog new tricks!)

WE NEVER WALK ALONE

I have been eager to re-start some exercise before heading for California.  My doctor still does not want me to ride my exercise bike yet but did release me to do some easy walking.   Yesterday I took a stroll around the property.  I had a feeling that I was not alone.  Slowly I turned to find that I had accumulated this entourage.

"Why is she walking?  The golf cart must be broken."

"Don't worry about it, just stay on point."

"Hope there is food at end of this journey and that we get there before the chickens."