64 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 12-31-18”

  4. We went to Starbucks in the late afternoon. I had two gift cards that covered two peppermint mochas (for Art and Wesley) and a plain coffee with pumpkin bread for me. We are all pretty lively this evening due to our annual Starbucks outing. I barely beat Wesley at Upwards, ending up four points ahead of him.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Who is in the ER?? I am going to guess it is Rkessler….did you make it to work?!
    Oh Janice ya’ll had too much caffeine and I did as well. I stopped at Starbucks today after walking around the antique mall today…I am wide awake..but that chai latte was so good! 😊

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Happy Old Year!

    The photo above is the same muskrat shown drinking in its close-up the other day, but zoomed out so that you can see another one is napping on the bank behind it and to the left. I would never have seen the napping one if I hadn’t seen the drinking one first. But I thought it kind of cool to see two of them.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Re dates: I haven’t paid attention to whether more people say “two thousand and . . .” or “twenty . . .” We were quite used to 19__, but 20___ leaves a choice. But one of our elders mentioned a date tonight and he said “Two thousand,” so I thought, “Well, I’m not the only one!” I do think that the 2020’s will probably more naturally be “Twenty,” and that may be true for the rest of the century; we’ll see.

    But for now, good night. I didn’t sleep well last night (not till 4:00 or later), and so now I took a melatonin to reset my body clock a bit, and then tomorrow I can stay up till midnight, and the next day “reset” again, but earlier!!

    Like

  9. Good morning from a rainy Greensboro.
    If there’s something you need to do in 2918, you need to get to it.
    Somebody in Mountain Time in the ER?
    Report!

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Kim,, from yesterday. Two things.
    Thanks
    Having a full January is much better than having nothing to do.
    Trust me on that.
    Have a nice December everyone.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. I’m up early (but I went to bed early, again) and the heater is going. It’s cold in this house on these winter mornings.

    I remember my mom and I used to stand over the floor furnace in the hallway on early mornings to warm up. The 20-year-old central heat in this house seems to still do a good job of an overall warmup, thankfully, but I keep thinking about the skyrocketing gas bills I’ll be getting soon … 😦

    Well, at least the leak under the house is fixed. What next?

    I feel better than I did last night when I went to bed with some serious sniffles that I thought might be the cold that was going around. That means I get to go to work today. But we do also get paid this week so that’s a good thing.

    The cat’s playing with the drawstring on the hooded sweatshirt, she’s lively this morning and rather annoying. Cowboy’s still asleep on the dog bed in my bedroom and Tess went out back and was sleeping on the patio near the back sliding door until I opened it and called her inside. Now it looks like she may go back out again. Honestly, these dogs really were made for cold weather. They both used to love sleeping outdoors in their younger days before the local coyote scares.

    OK, time for a shower and then coffee.

    Last day of 2018? I guess it is. Fireworks tonight.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Chas, that would probably be, as NancyJ mentioned, Rkessler. She works there. The roads were closed for a while but must be open now so she could get to work.

    Like

  14. I usually say twenty eighteen.

    Unless it were a real emergency I will not take down the decorations until after New Years. I hate that the music channels quit playing Christmas music Dec. 26. I suppose it all starts so early now because of the merchants that people may get tired of it. It is too abrupt for me.

    I have a friend whose tree would take on some Valentine decorations, Kizzie. That would not be for me, though. I do know some people who keep their trees fully decorated, covering them in large garbage bags etc. and in rooms out of sight. One of the assisted living places, my husband jam group, plays at leaves their tree up in the social room year round. The decorations follow the holidays around the year.

    Liked by 3 people

  16. Stargazer flew at nine last night, CR at six this morning. The house is empty–except for the wonderful still sleeping husband!

    Today we take down the decorations because the best way for me to deal with the sadness of the children disappearing is to put my house back into order. I’ll be at work Wednesday morning and back to my normal routine.

    Except, I don’t know what that routine is.

    I’m going to spend January thinking and praying about what I should work on next. After six years–which you all well know–with Biddy, OC, and WWI, I’m at a bit of a loss.

    Peculiar.

    But, the last time I was in this “spot,” I went to work one day in January and my life became immersed in the above.

    So, we’ll see what happens next. Off to pray for Kim’s request.

    Liked by 5 people

  17. I chuckle at some typos. Such as Chas @ 6:58 and the year being 2918. That gives us 900 years to get things done 😉

    As for saying the date- I don’t mind the “twenty” folks, I just didn’t like the “twenty o one” thru “twenty o nine” that I heard a lot. I’m sorry, but the letter o is not zero.

    And the former math teacher at our school would tell you that “two thousand and nineteen” is a math problem, not a number. She can be picky.

    Liked by 2 people

  18. We weren’t ready to move on at church yesterday. We sang;

    * Angels We Have Heard on High

    * O Come All Ye Faithful

    * Hark! The herald Angels Sing

    * God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen … and, the one we can’t get enough of,

    * Joy To the World! The Lord Has Come!

    Liked by 5 people

  19. Donna, I like your church:

    I was sitting around on this last day of 2018 with nothing to do.
    So? I decided to post this: I wrote it at another time but didn’t do anything with it. Hence, the lead in. I decided not to change anything.

    I woke up this morning at about 3:00. Couldn’t go back to sleep. I started thinking about another “If”. Where “misfortune” likely saved my life.

    Background
    When I got a job at the Army Map Service, (Sept. 1963, GS-5) we moved our trailer from Spartanburg, SC to Fairfax, Va.. When I was promoted to GS-7, we bought a small house in Falls Church. That was in 1965. In 1972 I was a GS-11 and we bought a split-level in Annandale. But I kept the house in Falls Church. I rented it out because I figured that my parents would need a place to live some day.
    It happened. In 1992, we moved them from N. Charleston to our house in Falls Church. (That’s another story)
    Anyhow.

    I was driving my van from N Charleston to Annandale. It was August 1992 and it was hot on I-95. The van was fully loaded with their stuff. The speed limit on I-95 in that stretch of road in NC was 70 mph and I was doing about that.
    Suddenly, a truck swerved into the right lane and cut me off. I hit the breaks and went off the road to the asphalt siding. I didn’t completely stop, but slowed to 5-10 mph. I was shaken and drove slowly for about 100 yards, then started pulling back onto the highway.
    Just as I started picking up speed, I heard a loud noise and the car started swerving. I was still on the side.
    I stopped and got out to see what was wrong.
    I had a flat on my right rear tire.
    I pulled over, unloaded the van to get to the spare and tools. I changed the tire. As I was reloading the van, it started to sprinkle. Just as I got into it, there was a downpour. I drove to a Cracker Barrel in Roanoke Rapids and cleaned myself up, but it was crowded and I went to a Waffle House across the street for dinner.
    I went home didn’t think anything more about it.

    Years later, after I retired, I happened to be thinking about that event for some reason . Then I thought, “Suppose I had blown that tire doing 70 mph? There would still be parts of me on I-95.”
    I see Psalm 34:7 at work here. It was weird and I’m certain my angle had something to do with it. .

    Liked by 6 people

  20. Morning! We are in white out conditions and it is oh so lovely!! As I look out of my window I can see the dark tree trunks of the pines through the dense white of snow! Today I shall be playing Christmas music…it just seems fitting still 🎄 We shall be staying in today and I need to find a lantern to fill up with white lights…thanks Kare for the idea!

    Liked by 4 people

  21. Dreary day ahead for me at work, having to write an obituary for one of our port labor (and community) leaders of many years whose death appears to be imminent. 😦

    Liked by 1 person

  27. I already play the “what if” game. I long ago decided that if I get stuck behind a slow-moving vehicle, God is protecting me from an accident further down the road. Getting stopped at every red light is frustrating but if I stop and think I am being protected by being stopped, then I use the time to breathe. Now, if you are an idiot in the left lane going 20 mph below the speed limit with cars backed up behind you and completely clear ahead of you, then move over or I will flash my lights at you.

    Liked by 4 people

  28. We are staying in today, but heading out this evening to our friends’ for games and food. It should be fun, but I don’t look forward to the drive home (about an hour). Maybe we’ll leave at 11:30 so that we’re off the main highway before the drunk people start driving. Saskatchewan has a terrible record for drunk driving. I just don’t get it.

    Like

  29. Well, we have a rainy, gloomy day here, and we’ll have to see if either of us is “up for” staying up till midnight. Our younger daughter really gets into it, and it might have been the year she was 21 (and thus could have champagne with us instead of the sparkling cider) that her dad took a late nap and got up about 11:00 just to humor her. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  30. Good morning! Yes, I was the culprit in the ER on mountain time. Tonight will be my third shift in a row since the roads opened. I have stayed up here to avoid the possibility of road closure. I will head home after 3:00 am, when my shift ends. It is supposed to be snowing, so might take a while. I’ll have 2 days off, then back up for 2 more night shifts.

    We have had so many skiing injuries…broken legs, etc. I will be happy to have a break from splinting and crutch teaching.

    Liked by 4 people

  31. On how to say the date: I generally say ‘two thousand…’. It makes more sense, as we started off, nineteen years ago come midnight, saying ‘two thousand’ and for the single digit years 2001 to 2009, saying ‘twenty one’ etc. would not have been accurate. I will occasionally use ‘twenty…’ if I have a need to be brief in my communication – in healthcare one’s speech gets quite clipped – but I generally prefer the other.

    Like

  32. Kare, my family owned some land up in northern Arizona that we bought to resell, but ended up moving to when my dad retired. We drove up for a couple of days (pulling our trailer) at the end of the year one year when I was about 13. We drove back to Phoenix Christmas Eve, and Dad was concerned about getting an early enough start to avoid “drunks on the road.”

    Dad ended up taking a turn wrong. (To explain, lay a Y on its side with the base of the Y facing left and the base forming the road you are turning onto. Cars turning left onto it are supposed to take the “bottom” of the angles, and cars turning right onto it–coming from the other direction–are supposed to take the “top” angle. Well, Dad didn’t see the turn correctly or something, and he ended up aiming for the second angle–and went off the side of the road.) We ended up going off the road and landing on the top of a steep slope, with the trailer jack-knifed against us and, I suppose, keeping us from rolling. It was an extremely precarious situation. We three kids were in the back of a pickup converted with a “shell” over it, and a window to the cab that could not be opened. Mom knocked on that window and indicated we should sit right where we were. She and Dad came around the left side (I assume they did; I don’t remember the details, but had Mom come around the right side, she would have risked having the vehicles rolling onto her, and I don’t think she could access us that way anyway.) They opened the back and told us who to come, and how.

    I remember it being rather scary, but I suspect it was far more so for Mom and Dad. It was dark and we kids couldn’t really see what was happening until we went off the road. Mom and Dad would seen that they were leaving the road for a hill, and would have thought it likely we would roll, and that we would all die or be seriously injured. And they would have known, in getting us out one by one, that the thing could still topple and anyone in it (and especially in the process of climbing out) would be injured or killed.

    But we all thought it weird and ironic that the accident the police officers came to that New Year’s Eve was that of a teetotaller in a one-car accident. I do think we might have had angelic help that night, that the pickup and trailer jack-knifed just right to hold us at an angle and not roll. I have no idea how long we waited there to be towed out, but somehow the vehicle, the trailer, and the people were all OK. I think the hitch was damaged, or at least Dad drove the rest of the way home slowly, with his flashers on, because he wasn’t sure of the safety of all of it. But that may have been more a precaution than anything, I don’t know.

    That was probably my most memorable New Year’s Eve ever, though!

    Liked by 3 people

  33. It has been a good year, although the first part of the year it seemed like everything was going awry. There were no brilliant successes, but rather solid satisfaction.

    The first eight months of my year were fraught with suspense. The strike in the autumn of the previous year had made everything uncertain. It wasn’t until August that it was confirmed that I would be able to have the remote northern placement I had applied for. Not only did I get to go to Nunavut, but I went to the one community which I would have chosen had I been able to pick one.

    Second sibling and family had no sooner moved in with my parents than Second in-law and Second both lost their jobs. Second needed the time to spend with her children, but Second in-law needed to support his family. They tried building a business, but business wasn’t very good. But in October, Second in-law found a full time job. It isn’t a very high paying job, but he seems content at being able to work again.

    I went skating this morning, perhaps the last for a while, as it is supposed to rain later today. As I was putting on my skates, my father was sitting in the other chair, having a bit of a breather. He had cleaned the ice, as there had been some snow over night, and then he had been skating. He had got a new pair of skates, as his last pair of skates was about fifty years old (purchased in the 1960s) and the leather at the toes had gone soft. He and I were reflecting on his year. Just six months ago, he lost his toe, got an infection, and then developed pulmonary emboli. Now, he is skating on a new pair of skates.

    Liked by 7 people

  34. I have so many friends discussing their “word,” for the year. Reading Roscuro’s comment above just reminds me again, all I want to be is thankful–today, tomorrow and so on.

    I haven’t touched a Christmas item beyond the boxes. I think I’ll take a nap first . . .

    Liked by 2 people

  37. All this pressure on having a “word” for the year. I can’t take it! For many, many years my word, my breath, my prayer, was, “I just want peace in my life”. Last year I felt I had achieved the best level of peace and I needed to just get happy with the peace I had.
    So, my word for this past year has been “balance”. I wanted balance in my life. Guess what? Balance doesn’t exist. Even a ballerina up on pointe isn’t completely balanced. She is constantly adjusting to stay in position.
    We are doing “vision boards” next week as leadership at work. This terrifies me! This is opening my soul to my coworkers! What if I put something on it and it doesn’t happen? What if it does? What are my deepest dreams and desires? Can I be transparent enough to let others know? These people see me almost every day. You guys just get what I write.
    I started writing down words. Peace. Balance. Abundance. Enough. Happy. Family. Security. Relieved. Accomplished. Satisfied (there isn’t much on Pinterest regarding satisfaction except to say if you are satisfied you are a loser and need to go on to the next goal). A friend mentioned Boundaries. Hmmm. I have spent a year and a half in Sunday School studying that. Yes, I can see where I need more boundaries.
    The Youtube videos on vision boards suggested putting places you would like to go and focusing on how you would FEEL once you accomplished something. Happy being the feeling to aim for. So, I chose beaches and mountains for vacation goals. The common element? Water. Being near water soothes me. Crashing waves or gurgling streams, or rushing rivers.
    Here’s the problem. Except for being woefully underfunded in my retirement account, I am happy, satisfied, and have everything I need and most of what I want. Do I just print a sack of money, some Monopoly money and a bank account number on my vision board?
    The pressure is real. I have about 7.5 hours to figure out what I want next year.

    Liked by 1 person

  38. Kizzie @ 12:11 – If you mean that I would get the impression of the mayor barking like a seal, you’re right. If you mean something else, then I have no idea.

    Kim @ 4:47 – I haven’t thought of or heard that song in a long time.

    Liked by 1 person

  39. Peter – Yes, that’s what I thought of, too. 😀

    For anyone who doesn’t know what we are talking about, #4 in that article I linked above – “Biblical Archaeology’s Top 10 Discoveries of 2018” – says “Governor of Jerusalem’s seal impression”. I immediately thought of the governor of Jerusalem doing an impression of a seal. 😀

    Like

  41. My vision board would mostly have stuff I love on it. Not necessarily what I want/expect/need to happen in the next year. I would just do it for myself and try not to care what the others think (I know, just about impossible). It would have palm trees, lots of blue and purple, pretty things, old shabby chic things, my doggoes, but I would not put any expectations on it. It’s none of their business. I’d maybe add my favourite Bible verse and some other words that ‘inspire’ me, but with no explanation. Hope that helps a bit, Kim. I’m sure glad we don’t do that at my work, although it could be hilarious because my coworkers are quite sarcastic about things like that.

    Liked by 3 people

  43. Kim – I don’t like the idea of those vision boards. I’m not against people having goals, but as Christians, we submit those goals to God and ask for His will to be done. I have some specific things in mind that I would love to see come to pass, sort of my fantasy of the future, but I submit that to God and ask for His will to be done. His will may even be more wonderful than the little fantasy I have in my mind!

    As for satisfaction, to me that is close to contentment, and the Bible says that contentment with godliness is great gain. “Losers” would experience neither true satisfaction nor contentment.

    Hubby often read articles for leaders or business people, and so many of them talked about setting goals – one-year goals, five-year goals, etc. He could never manage to do that, and it made him feel like some kind of a failure until he gave up that idea, and realized that as long as he continued to follow God’s leading, he was doing well.

    Is there any way you could get across on your vision board that you are finally content after years of struggle?

    Liked by 3 people

  47. Kim, I am confused by “What I want next year” is confusing because you don’t know whatg will come up.
    I would suggest:
    1. Walk through whatever door is open.
    2. Don’t do or say anything that you will regret next year this time. (That could happen in one of those “getting to know your” discussion groups.)
    e.g. There are things I’ve told the Lord but not my best friends. The lord forgives, friends will remain friends, but won’t forget.

    Liked by 3 people

  48. Well, I was going to plan a party for the opening of the metal box but worker (when I asked about it) texted back that it’s huge and is “obviously” something from the former furnace/heater system that was in the house.

    Bummer.

    Really thought it would fund my tile porch roof or even pay for the kitchen remodel Kim and I had planned. Sigh. Oh well. Guess all that goes on the vision board (which I don’t have).

    Wrote the obituary but it’s on hold as the person lingers 😦 And it’ll need some things filled in along with a ‘live’ voice or two once the inevitable happens. Tomorrow I have the “early” holiday shift so have to make a bunch of cop calls (for 3-4 counties I believe) starting at 7 a.m. Not something I look forward to, but let’s hope nothing happens that needs to be covered in any big way — I suspect I’ll be dealing with the obituary as it is.

    Liked by 2 people

  49. I just gave wifi extender I had here — still in the box — to neighbor boy who wanted to tap into my wifi with his iPad as he doesn’t get a good signal in his bedroom. I’d bought the extender a couple years ago when I was having issues also in my bedroom, but then got a stronger router so it was never needed.

    The other kid, who caused all the ER, police visits late yesterday, was there and the family was having a heart-to-heart, kept apologizing to me for being bad neighbors but, of course, they aren’t at all — just have a problem family member. It’s life.

    They’re going to bring over a plate of their spicy barbecue prime rib and homemade tamales for me later.

    Liked by 3 people

  51. I detest those group-building exercises. Let me talk with people, eat with them, maybe even play a game just for fun (with the side effect of getting to know them a bit), but I would despise any workplace attempt at trust walks or the like. And my goals and dreams for the next year aren’t anyone’s business unless (1) they’re work related or (2) I choose to tell people. Let workplace friendships happen naturally (or not) because we work together, not because somebody is trying to oversee it and make it happen.

    That said, what are my hopes and dreams for the next year? A book contract on at least one book or series, a couple of articles accepted for publication, an updated website/blog, being settled into our condo, and having a “spot” at church (CE committee is what I have mentioned to leadership). I’d also like to take a trip to see friends in Nashville and a trip to see my goddaughter in Minnesota, both after we are settled and it’s warmer. To see at least two or three siblings and their families. But only God knows what the year will bring.

    Good baby photos. 🙂

    In wildlife photography: one new mammal species (it can be something I have seen but not photographed, such as skunk or opossum, or something I’ve neither seen nor photographed, such as bobcat); one or more fawns young enough to have spots, ideally at close enough range to see whiskers in the photos and fawns six weeks old or less; birds, at least one nest, in use, in a species I haven’t seen nesting; wood ducks (in breeding plumage); at least six species of spring warblers in close enough range to be decent shots; bald eagles (I’ve gotten shots, but not with my most recent camera); good flight photos of three new species.

    Liked by 1 person

  52. OK, I have to agree with Cheryl, the “group building” things aren’t my favorite (at all).

    Journalism is definitely not the type of job where that’s ever used, though 🙂 We’re much to cynical.

    Liked by 1 person

  53. But for the coming year … I’d like (need!) to re-connect more with Bible study and my church. A friendship or two needs work.

    I feel so tired anymore after work (and often get out so late) that evening church home groups seem unlikely. Daytime study groups conflict with work. …

    I’d like to psychologically move away from concentrating on the house … What was needed is done, the rest is mostly cosmetic, things I’d LOVE to do, but things I can’t really afford at this point (and maybe never, unless that metal box under the house … ). More time re-connecting with the dogs who were really somewhat neglected over the past couple years as I was so preoccupied with house projects that kept coming and coming and coming in waves, with very few breaks.

    Liked by 1 person

  62. Happy New Year to all of you.

    My A&P instructor had us do a little get-to know-me thing that I felt was useful. He handed out a paper with different columns, and divided us into 2 groups, facing each other in chairs. He would flash a word on the screen, and you had like 3 min to come up with a definition, and find out pertinent facts about the other person. I am not exactly a social butterfly, so it was helpful to remember “mom of 4” or “works at the mexican restaurant”. It just gave some common ground to start a conversation.

    Liked by 2 people

  63. It’s a new year!
    I think we just continue on this thread.

    For the new year? I don’t plan. I just deal with situations, that’s all.

    But happy New Year to all.

    Liked by 3 people

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.