by

Our Daily Thread 1-8-24

Good Morning!

I’m not quite back enough to begin everyday postings, but I wanted to update you all on something that needs mentioning.

My time in the hospital resulted in a lot of time for prayer and reflection, as well as some convictions from the Lord. First and foremost on the last one, my treatment of Kizzie, DJ, and Cheryl on the news thread. I acted poorly, let the politics of the day interfere with and harm our friendship and fellowship. This was a grave error on my part, and the Lord has convicted my heart on this. So yesterday I took the time to reach out to all 3 of these ladies privately, to apologize, and beg their forgiveness. All 3 have graciously accepted my apologies and offered forgiveness. For this, I thank them immensely, and the Lord for convicting my heart. Also, Cheryl really touched my heart by sharing some of her husband’s health struggles as well. When struggling as I am, it’s helpful to know that others understand what you’re going thru. She has also graciously accepted my invitation to return to us Wanderers, so you’ll be “seeing” more of her. 🙂

Now that all being said and done, I’ve one last thing to do on this matter here. Since my poor behavior and treatment of these 3 ladies was public, so needs to be my repentance and apologies. I owe you all an apology for my behavior, and I hope you will accept it and forgive me. I’m truly sorry to all of you for having upset our fellowship and relationships in such a way. Please forgive me.

This ongoing ordeal has focused me on the things of most importance, my God, my family, and the brethren and friends who matter most. You all are among the things most important in my life. You have offered up prayers on our behalf, daily in fact. You have lifted my wife, and ministered to her as she struggled, and I can’t thank you enough for that kindness. You have blessed us beyond measure, and we thank the Lord for you all. 

Hopefully, we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled routine very soon.

Again, thank you all, and may God bless you all.

In Christ,

Allen

333 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 1-8-24”

  4. Hey folks.

    You’re not gonna believe this, but the visiting nurse called the squad and I’m back at the ER.

    It appears part of my intestine is hanging out of my stoma. Waiting on some imaging to be done and the surgeon.

    I’m so frustrated.

    Allen

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  8. A 4th surgery, and another hospital stay is gonna be required. We’re really struggling at the moment. Things were improving, and now we’ve hit another wall. Please pray for Cheryl, she’s taking this pretty hard. I am too. I’m just at a loss for words at this point.

    Allen

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  10. Oh, AJ, I’m so sorry about this setback. Praying for you and Cheryl!Thank you for sharing your apology publicly. That took extra courage. Your apology is accepted and all is forgiven indeed.

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  11. Oh, I, too, feel a lack of words. The Holy Spirit has that supernatural communication when we don’t know what to think, can’t think, and have only deep pain over disappointment. I can only say that love is the overiding factor through it all.

    Art’s former choir director has been through many surgeries like this and has survived. I have prayed many times for Dorothy, too, and been amazed that the Lord has seen her through. He can do that for you, too, AJ. Dorothy never married so has traveled through it with only church family and caregivers.

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  12. Oh AJ, I’m so sorry (and yes, shocked) to hear the latest, prayers that this will be a quick fix and a very short surgery. :-( But how frustrating for you. Stay strong. -dj

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  13. The bulldozer started as t 8:30 and is still going at 5:30. It just urned off. Our yard and driveway will never be the same. I have not ventured out to greet the five men who worked on this project. Three inches of rain is expected in about two days. Georgia red clay will be the new feature to our lovely abode. If my neighbor complained about the measly underground cable previously installed, I wonder what she will say about this?

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  14. Aj, thank you for the above apology. So good to see God working in our fellow believers. Encouraging for me.

    I’m so sorry you had to return to the hospital. Praying for you and Cheryl. You both must be so discouraged. May God’s presence surround you both and His Peace, which passes all understanding, be on you.

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  16. Yes, thankfully it looks like I will be able to avoid another surgery, at least for now. I can’t tell you how happy that makes us.

    I may not even have to stay at the hospital.

    thanks for praying for us yet again.

    Allen

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  19. That’s great, AJ!

    Btw, wonderful header photo, too!

    The workers were trying to get sod laid before the heavy rains tomorrow but ran out. Guess we will have that horrible red mudslide on the drive unless they get ihe rest of the sod out early before the rain.

    I found out that whoever installed my neighbor’s yard plumbing used the wrong size pipe that was causing problems for all the neighbors. So thankful that all this required work is not our fault. But I will not sling mud her way like she did about the tiny underground cable that went between our yards.

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  20. Good news, AJ! Stomas are a challenge, specially in the early stages.

    Thank you for your public repentance. What a wonderful gift that God gave us a means of reconciliation, not only with Him, but with our brothers and sisters as well.

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  21. It is hard to publicly ask forgiveness or admit a wrong or mistake, but I think that most people appreciate that, and will think more highly of the person, not less.

    That’s what happened with Hubby, when he confessed, first to my parents and me, and then to our then-church, that he was a secret alcoholic. He was met with love and forgiveness, not judgment or disapproval.

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  24. AJ, brother, thank you indeed for having the courage for the private and public confessions, and you are heartily forgiven. I do know that the task you have had of being a sheepdog here hasn’t always been an easy one. We do all love you and appreciate you, and my husband and I have been praying for you and Cheryl and watching for updates these last several weeks–and I am very much hoping you can avoid yet another surgery.

    I have a crazy busy editing schedule over the next month (which is not typical for January), but I’ll be around here and there.

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  26. Please pray for us and everyone who is within range of this storm. Kim’s area is next to be hit as the storm travels toward us, and after us, then son’s coastal area. His classes are all to oe online tomorrow because of the expected storm. My Bible study group will be by Zoom only in the morning.

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  27. Another beautiful day here. We have had and are having snow. High winds in the early morning probably created drifts though snowfall is only a couple of inches (expecting about nineteen inches by the end of the storm) but when it blows, the snow leaves the fields and piles on the roads which can quickly make significant drifts. Husband is off down the grade to highway commission meeting.

    mumsee

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  28. AJ as border collie. I can see that. 🙂 I sincerely concur with all that’s been said by others on this matter. Good to see you, Cheryl.  … live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. 1 Thessalonians 5:13Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God (Matt. 5:9)

    -dj

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  30. AJ, my Bible study group prayed for Cheryl and you this morning.

    An inspector came to our house at 8 a.m., in the rain, to take photos of our mess and to let me know the county would take care of it. The rain has stopped so now I hear them trying to sweep away all the red clay puddles on the driveway.

    About 15 minutes after Art left home a tornado siren was going off for all three counties he travels through to get to his office. I asked the Bible study ladies to pray. It wasn’t long before the warning got lifted, PTL.

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  33. Existing times, Janice. Grab Toto (or in this case Miss Bosley) for your trip into the sky? Hoping it all stays calm going forward, relatively so at least. Glad the clay puddles and the other work will be taken care of by The (government) Man. I got the online results of the knee X-ray done yesterday in the office, no sign of fracture or any other abnormalities structurally, but that was anticipated, knee issues typically are soft tissues that don’t show up in X-rays.

    And the Xray says it’s my left knee, but it was my right knee that’s the issue and was X-rayed. I can see why they mark you up with crayons or whatever for surgeries, to make sure the correct limb or eye or whatever will be operated on. I had a smeary “X” above my first cataract eye and thought it was a bruise before I realized I needed to wipe that off a day or 2 later.-dj

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  37. We live in Dekalb, east side of the big city; the big city is in Fulton; and, the office is south of the airport which is in Clayton, about 35 miles one way, mostly driving around the perimeter. Without traffic tangles, about 45 minutes but used to be faster before we became Hollywood Jr.

    I am grieving my yard situation. I went out to toss my apple core under the Birthday tree for my little critter yard friends, and I think the bulldozer scared them all away. I can’t enjoy walking in the driveway. I know, I am having a pity party. Thr best part of today was the two hour prayer call with seven of us dedicated ladies whom I dearly love.

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  39. Janice, I was thinking about your walking track being messed up! They’ll put it back nicely, I’m sure, but until then it’s hard to see it, I know. How nice you leave apple cores for the critters. I’ll find partially eaten avocados and oranges in my yard from the fruit trees my neighbors have, the squirrels like to dine in my backyard. I’m thinking of a DeKalb County in Illinois where I visited while on a trip in those parts/ Chicago, etc. Saw the Lincoln home while I was there. And it was where the news chain I worked for (still do but it’s morphed into something different and bigger, of course) was based, along w/California — back when it was family owned and journalism was much different before the digital explosion. 😦 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeKalb_County,_Illinois

    -dj

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  40. Janice, it won’t take long to recover (says the woman who has had her yards torn up many times) I understand the shock and sorrow, lived it. But it will clean up quickly.

    mumsee

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  41. Our area had about seven inches of snow over the weekend, and through today and this evening we are getting a few inches of rain. The lights have blinked off and back on a couple times, because there is also a high wind out there.

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  43. another storm coming here tomorrow. I will be back to Bible study fellowship. Just finished the lesson on John 10

    Dj. I will have my knee and thigh X-ray tomorrow. Went to the foot doctor for arthritis in my foot but now needs another doctor for the rest

    jo

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  44. Good morning! As I ventured outside this morning, I could tell I was letting the raw psin dissolve and not focusing on the yard so much. Thankful for that. Also, thankful for your kind words here to console.

    I don’t have the energy to dig up sod and replant. I will have to reimagine that whole side yard. My friend said sodded yards do not have to be mowed as frequently so that will be good. Originally I had wanted a rock garden on that bank but that never happened. I am learning another lesson in not being too attached to things on earth.

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  47. a beautiful winter day here. So far, we have not received the promised snow. Hopefully today and tomorrow will bring a few inches because then we drop to below zero and the snow cover would help.

    I woke to twenty four text messages from twenty two daughter. She hates the guardianship because I am ruining her life. She is bored. I texted her some suggestions for fighting depression. She thanked me and loves me and so it goes.

    mumsee

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  49. Mumsee, I was wondrring the same and prepared to ask not, “Where’s Waldo?” but instead, “Where are the Wanderers?”

    i went out the door prepared to go shop at Publix when I saw a new crew of guys in the driveway. They said more rain is expected for tomorrow so they wanted to finish layingcthe sod today and take up the wheat straw bales they laid out yesterday. I have really felt invaded lately!

    At Publix I was putting a whole chicken in a bag and the bag split and the sealed raw chicken hit the floor. I have had split bags before in that meat dept. I informed a worker that they need to get rid of those bags. I did not want anyone else to experience that.

    Thankfully the sod is all done and the driveway is good to use as a mini track for walking.

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  52. i was under the assumption that because the sewer pipes are old in the neighborhood that was the reason. But as it turned out, it was because my neighbors had contracted with a company some years back to correct a back flow problem and the contractors put in smaller than should have been pipe. It was potentially going to cause problems like back flow for all in that line. Her problem pipe was right by the property line. The sewer line runs between our houses out to the manhole on our street and to the manhole on the street behind our houses. It was the side yard between my driveway and the neighbor’s yard that got dug up along with a portion of her yard. The newly installed sod runs up to the Birthday tree on one side. On the other side of the tree is all the raked up leaves that used to encircle the tree. Now the tree roots are covered by sod on the left side and by those leaves on the right. The former stepping stone path rocks are now all in a little pile by the tree😒 i told Art that is my new rock garden.

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  53. Wanderers been wandering. At least in my case, had a big port speech to cover, ran into some pals I don’t often see (a former reporter of ours and chamber ‘chief,’ they both worked on the staff of a former councilwoman-turned congresswoman-turned (now) county supervisor. Fun checking in and we gabbed for way too long after the event. Reminisced about the old newsroom days when one of our rather quick-to-anger reporters sometimes got into shouting matches on the phone w/Trump (yes, “the” Donald Trump), back in the early 2000s when the issue was problems surrounding a Trump golf course going in on our coastline. Trump once just hung up on him in a huff and then called our editor to complain, saying something like he was the “worst” reporter he’d ever met. Editor listened politely but I think Trump may have just hung up on him, too. :-) Shades of things to come. Well, the speech was a long story to write afterward, many-many issues covered; just got the “all clear” text from the editor so that’s done. The other port next door will have its annual state-of-the-port speech next Wednesday so I’ll get to do it all again. -dj

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  57. oh, just checking in. Stormy day here today. I had bsf and then went out for a sandwich next to where I was getting the xrays. Went in to the imaging place. The xray said, no we aren’t doing two appointments, which would be ridiculous, and did it all quite quickly. As I was checking out I asked if medicare covers mammograms and they said yes. And , of course they could fit me in so I went right back and took care of that. I knew doing it all at once is much easier.

    I was so tired when I got home that I took a nap. Fajitas for dinner soon.

    Life has been busy these last two weeks. I think Aj has inspired me to do all of the medical that I have been putting off.

    My daughters are now in Paris, having taken the chunnel over. Quite fun to see the pictures they put up each day.

    Jo

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  58. Well thank you Jo.

    it’s important we keep up with our health. That’s become apparent to me of late especially.

    So I had to go to the ER the other day. There was an issue with my colostomy stoma. The visiting nurse came on, saw part of my intestine protruding (about 8 inches worth) and called the squad. At first I was told a 4th surgery would be necessary, which crushed our spirits.

    Thankfully once the colorectal surgeon who did the surgery got involved, it was determined that the fascia(sp?) was intact and sealed, so there was no danger of waste leaking back into my body, they cut off the protrusion and sent me home.

    Thanking and praising God for that.

    Yesterday I went to the hospital wound care center. I walked in from the entrance to the office and back with just the walker, no wheelchair. About 1000 feet each way. That was a confidence booster. It tired me out good, but I was able to do it all on my own.

    They also removed some of the staples, and now its healed enough that Cheryl doesn’t have to clean it everyday. They said the visiting nurses should do it 3 days a week during their visits. A blessing and weight off of Cheryl.

    Things are improving slowly, but they are improving. Progress.

    So that’s where we’re at.

    Once again, thank you all for your prayers,

    Allen

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  59. it’s so good, again, to hear from you, Allen. Glad you were able to walk those lengths without a person helping. Add a few more steps each day and before long your strength will increase and your tiredness will diminish.

    It was 32° and now is 36°. Tomorrow we are supposed to have tornado producing storms. Prayers appreciated!

    Speaking of medical tests, has anyone had experidnce with Lifeline Screening for strokes which may develop in the future?

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  61. I have never had those tests, Janice. I thought I would be finished with the medical tests I need, but that is not so. I am glad you can walk that much, AJ. I remember once being only able to sip a bit of soup and being worn out. Little by little our strength is built up. I guess that is true spiritually, too.

    We are back to normal winter now. I don’t appreciate the cold, but it is, oh, so beautiful.

    Prayers for you in the bad weather. Praying for safe travel, too, when needed for you and yours.

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  62. This wanderer has been wandering his hometown, seeing and doing things he never did in his youth, mainly because some of the museums did not exist 45 years ago.

    Got some great photos of wildlife at a nature preserve yesterday. Tucson uses reclaimed water for parks and such, and where we went is a man-made wetland for filtering the reclaimed water. We saw a bird we’d never seen before and tried to get a photo, but without a zoom lens it might not be clear enough. I wonder if Cheryl has ever seen a vermilion fly catcher. Beautiful bird.

    https://www.birdbaron.com/vermilion-flycatcher/

    We also saw quail, several kinds of ducks, and a roadrunner, but no coyotes.

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  64. Good morning, all. Another beautiful day in the neighborhood. We did not get the forecasted snow, though the mountains probably got some. Now we wait to see if we go into the deep freeze. Supposed to get up to thirty today, then drop to nine, with tomorrow going up to twelve and down to minus ten. Sometimes they are accurate, often they are not but we prepare as we know it can happen.

    Finished Job today, good reading.

    mumsee

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  65. So good to hear that progress, AJ, continued prayers that you will you progress and come around quickly 🙂 Well, now I have another format going here. Harbor commission online this morning in a few minutes, we’re still getting cold (for us) temps, high surf and lots of wind blowing in again the the latter part of this week. I saw where climate change folks think someday there will be no more snow. But that’s the climate change folks, able to predict the weather 100 years in advance. Not that the weather isn’t changing, but … But God. -dj

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  67. Peter, I’ve only seen photos of that lovely bird. What park did you go to? Did you see the Sonora Desert Museum, and is it still worth visiting? (I went once, when I was about ten, and made a mental note to go back someday. Photos I’ve seen says it’s still a good place, but I haven’t been in nearly half a century, and that was my only trip to Tucson.) I’m now making tentative plans for my first trip to Arizona in twenty years, and birding is definitely part of it.

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  70. DJ – How did you make your smiley face with this new formatting stuff? I can’t see a way to do that.

    If you are using a phone, that could be the difference. Not sure about on here, but Facebook seems to be different on a phone than on a computer. (I am on my laptop.)

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  75. Good morning. With the new format I have to capitalize the beginning letter in a paragraph. That is difficult to remember.

    I got on my new desktop computer for a few moments earlier. I need a lot of time adjusting to anything new. Many security issue screens popped up. I bought something from Norton for 99.99 to help with privacy. Art is not here to assist so it is a painful experience so far. Maybe after tax season he will have time to help.

    I need to scoot out to thef store before the storm hits.

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  76. Good morning, all. Looks like we got the needed snow and temps are dropping. Supposed to be eleven now with a feel of minus two. Dropping to minus 18 tonight feeling like minus twenty four. Potential power outages seem to have been averted from heavy wet snow but we are currently warm. Thank You, God.

    mumsee

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  79. Who is the “I” @ 9:30? Good article, or at least the first several paragraphs so far.

    After reading that, <a href=https://wng.org/cartoons>you can see what the editorial cartoonists came up with this week.</a>

    Well, time to leave sunshine and (relative) warmth. On to Texas where it’s supposed to be in the single digits by Monday morning. Then back home where there will be a foot or more of snow and sub-zero temps. Glad I brought the winter coat along just in case.

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  83. Now will someone tell me how to separate my text into paragraphs? Adding spaces doesn’t work. And I’ve hit the paragraph symbol above, plus the other thingies and nothing seems to make sense in how to format a normal break in the text. … -dj

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  87. I see a section that says, Type / to choose a block. I type on top of that and it makes a paragraph .n my phone..

    Then when I want to end the paragraph, I type / and hit the forward key.

    The same phrase appears and I type the new paragraph over it. I have to go back and replace the / with a period at the end of paragraphs

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  88. Let’s see if this works. :) I used to use :-) (with two spaces between that and the previous or next thing) and that would work.

    Hitting enter once brings me to a new paragraph.

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  95. I think I got it.

    I was hitting the shift key when trying to go down to a new paragraph — I think sometimes the key strokes you use for texting, FB messaging, etc., are different and can cause messages to send rather than to shift to a new graph.

    See? Again I wanted to hit the shift key and then the return key. … -dj

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  102. Must not be too cold out at minus two with the wind blowing to make it seem colder. My youngsters are outside listening to Adventures in Odyssey on the radio.

    mumsee

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  103. Hair cut, glasses picked up.

    I was going to run another errand but realized at mid-afternoon on a Friday it was as good as “rush hour” and I didn’t want to get snagged in that.

    It feels so strange to be wearing glasses again, having trouble getting used to it. My vision is so clear without them — but a tad sharper with them, admittedly — that I keep wanting to take them off.

    They told me at the doctor’s office that these were created using AI technology which they just got trained on, so I was one of the “lucky” ones to get the first round of glasses made with that. They were very excited about it.

    My hair stylist, I think in her 30s still, but maybe around 40 now, told me even she’s having to use “readers” now.

    -dj

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  104. A chorus of owls accompanied Abby and me on our nightly walk through the neighborhood tonight. I was just thinking I hadn’t heard the owls much this year, but they were active tonight.

    -dj

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  108. Oh, yes, happy birthday to you, Kizzie. You share my dad’s birthday.

    We have a difficult time with that traffic, too.

    Bummer about the frozen pipes. My TN daughter is a bit concerned about that in the days ahead. We are getting to bitter cold, too, but our houses are generally insulated quite well here, since it is the winter norm.

    The older I get the less I want to be out and about it. I have to go for the month after eye appointment on Monday and it will be well below zero and windy. I cannot wait for the appointment, however, as I cannot see perfect without glasses and have two different strength readers for reading. One is for books, close up and one for the computer. I will be very happy to have glasses again and leave behind the dizzy feeling I often have. I can’t imagine the suffering of those not able to get glasses now or in the past. Or cataract surgery, etc. Thankful for the medical missionaries who bring such things to others.

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  111. Good morning, all. A beautiful day here at -16. The pipes are fine, the two put a space heater under the house near the pipes and that took care of the problem. We are also supposed to be used to this weather and housed accordingly but with one thing and another, this is a recurring problem. Glad they took care of it.

    Today is also grandson’s birthday, the one living here. He turns five.

    mumsee

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  114. Happy Birthday Kizzie!

    Oh, I just saw a feed on Fox News from Spencer, IA, my mom’s home town and where we would hunker down on our visits. Good old Spencer,. Looks like Vivek is speaking at the gathering there. Go Iowa. Chilly but sunny out today, just about to have the morning coffee.

    Love Saturdays, even when it’s just folded into a long weekend.

    -dj

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  115. “Chilly but sunny” referred to LA, not Spencer, surely 🙂

    I still tend to hit that shift key when I transfer to what should be a new graph.

    Fingers are hard to train.

    My dad was raised on a farm just a little ways from Spencer, kind of a non-town and I am not remembering the name right off the top of my head.

    -dj

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  117. Good morning!

    Happy Birthday, Kizzie!

    / Wind is crazy here, so trying not to work outside. I see a couple of my goats are beginning to spring. No one should kid before the middle of February, but they seem to be doing it early. 

    We are supposed to be down to 9 on Monday. I had wanted to go see my daughter in Hobbs, but when you heat with wood, you stay home when it is super cold. :(

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  119. Happy birthday, Kizzie!

    We are visiting my sister and our son and DIL came down with the little boys. Having fun despite the -38C weather. So very cold – windchills are up close to -50C. It’s hard to walk a dog at that temperature – Koot stays pretty warm usually but this cold is hard on his feet.

    We spent lots of time at the Sonora Desert Museum just over 10 years ago. We really enjoyed it and saw saguaros blooming!

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  122. Picked up a recommended product from the hair salon (“A Curl Can Dream”) and then drove up to the old Farmer’s Market near Hollywood to grab the last of their air-tight containers for Christmas packing-away. Lots of traffic out today.

    Editor friend sent me a column from the LA Times about the driving test nightmare. Apparently the one you sign up to take via your home computer is, actually, easier — fewer questions and prompts to help you pass. I think I’m in that part of the class and may have to do that one. 🙂 But new DMV manager has pledged to make things more reasonable, everyone’s complained about these weird tests.

    from the LA Times columnist:

    ___________________________

    ~ … — Warburton, 76, of Santa Clarita went to renew his license the first week of January and was told there was no record of his pre-registration in the computer system.

    “Not off to a good start,” he wrote in an email.

    But after the registration problem was solved, Warburton passed the vision test, so things were looking up. Until he moved on to the knowledge test.

    “As I began the test, I heard the woman on my right complaining vociferously to a worker that she had failed the test three times in a row,” said Warburton, a retired marketing industry copywriter.

    Then Warburton flunked, despite having dutifully studied the DMV’s driving handbook. He swears some of the queries were arcane — almost as if they were created as trick questions —and useless in determining anyone’s ability to drive safely. For instance: As you approach a blind curve on a winding mountain road, how far away should you begin honking your horn to warn oncoming traffic?

    “Cripe, what kind of question is that?” Warburtron asked, telling me he threw his hands up in frustration. “I answered 100 feet. The correct answer was 200 feet.”

    Warburton took the test again and passed, barely. But the experience left him in a lather, and feeling sorry for DMV employees manning the daily conveyor belt of human misery.

    “I saw several other seniors near tears,” he said. “I was literally shaking when I left the DMV with my new license in hand.”

    I could fill a book with tales like this one …

    … ~

    _______________________

    Well, the good news reported in the column (columnist has written on this topic several times ever since he hit the age requiring he take it as well) is that the new California DMV director is pledging to shake things up and deal with this process and, specifically, with how this test is formatted.

    -dj

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  123. My Adorable’s friend, a new driver, said the questions were really strange, too, asking for situations no one had ever seen in a car, describing situations that didn’t make logical sense, and which have nothing to do with driving an actual car.

    One always asks, “Why?” And who benefits from such an odd test?

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  126. More:

    ~

    As for test questions, more than 20 have been removed from the rotation. One asked what a driver should do when seeing a road sign that says “NEV USE ONLY” or “NEV ROUTE.” Readers had complained to me that they didn’t know what NEV means (Neighborhood Electric Vehicle, or golf cart), or couldn’t imagine the issue comes into play often enough to waste space on a license renewal test.

    Another question, now removed, had asked: “What is another name for the hand-to-hand steering method?” I’m still not sure why anyone would know or care. Also shredded was a question asking the minimum manslaughter sentence for killing someone while evading police pursuit, and another that asked what the punishment is if you “evade a law enforcement officer performing their duties, but no bodily injury occurs.” ~

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  127. good morning all. Another beautiful day here, about minus seven currently. When I got up at three thirty, I noticed my dad was up and in his chair, waiting for the day to start. I turned on tennis for him and went back to bed.

    mumsee

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  131. husband took the children to church. He also takes daughter her groceries and meds at this time.

    son in law’s car was iced over and though he started it, opted not to take the small folk out.

    mumsee

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  134. Good morning / day at church (I wound up staying 2.5 hours afterward chatting with a couple different people). Looks like our home group will start up again in February, which is good – I’ve missed it.

    It’s a beautiful day here, sunny, but chilly (topping out at 61, we’re in the mid and low 40s at night). A rather major gas bill last time, but the comfort is worth it.

    -dj

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  135. My church is starting up the Discipleship small groups (home groups like you called it, dj). Most meet at night so I won’t be a part tut his season. Kickoff was today with a gathering to discuss and discover with a chili cookoff contest. I wish Art was available to attend.

    Kizzie, I will try to find something on Soul Care from the church, but off the top of my head, I’d say it is a time to read Psalm 119 and reflect on its wonderful message about God’s loving care for his children. It is a time to reassess where one is at on one’s walk with God, and to recommit to being more intentional with spiritual disciplines. We were given journals to use while reading Psalm 119 to write down daily reflections. We are reading eight verses daily, but I am off track on that and have read more.

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  137. Janice – Speaking of chili cook-offs, our church has started that as a once-a-year event. The first year, my friend Jenna was very pleased with her chili recipe, sure that she would do well and maybe even win. Unfortunately, she thought it started at 6:00, but it had started at 5:00, so she was too late for it! 

    This year’s winner was a man who was saying that he had accidentally put too much sugar in, and hoped people would like it anyway. I guess they did!

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  138. Thank you for the explanation in the video, Janice. Reassessing our faith periodically is a good idea. I have been thinking of that myself, not because it is the start of a new year, but because of a recent situation and huge disappointment.

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  139. I guess it would be more accurate to say “reassessing how we live out our faith” or something similar. The way I worded it kind of sounds like reassessing the faith itself, but that is not how I meant it.

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  140. Here we are in Texas where it’s supposed to be warm. I guess this 10 degrees and 1/2 inch of snow are getting us ready for Missouri, where it’s -10 and a foot of snow.

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  141. Kizzie, yes, that is a good way to word it. I do like this focus each January.

    Peter, our son was at Baylor several years back when everyone was snowed in for a week. You really don’t expect that in TX! We got iced in for a week at Hilton Head one year and that was a hundred year event.

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  143. I like that January tradition as explained in the video too, Janice. Good idea.

    Walked Abby in the cold (but not as cold as Iowa) and am glad I have yet another day off tomorrow. “No (working) Monday” is always a good feeling. Busy week following that when I go back, however.

    -dj

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  144. good morning. Forecast now calls for 5 degrees tomorrow night.

    God knows what he is doing when he foils our plans. Amy got 4 more littles as emergency placement last week. That brings their current family count up to 9.

    Please keep Amy and Jeremy in your prayers as they continue to walk the path God has for them.

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  145. Such good work they are doing, Rk, like M &M Nest.

    Neighbors had a sprinkler going on the sod yesterday. We don’t own a sprinkler or hose. I carried a little watering container out there to get the corner that seemed dried out.

    J

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  146. good morning here, as well. Up to five degrees and expecting nine. This should be our last cold night for a while as temps rise to the teens to thirties, with snow.

    mumsee

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  147. Hi all,

    Praying for all of you with the cold weather, it only got down to 45 here last night. whoops, I need to go turn the heat back on.

    I have been reading this thread, but finally realized that you are were still posting on the old news and prayer thread, so I had to go catch up. My girls are back from Paris and London and very tired.

    I am preparing to head to North Carolina this week. It will be colder there this week. So glad that God told me not to drive.

    Jo

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  148. Not as cold here as everywhere else, apparently. Won’t even “break zero” in much of Iowa today. Now that’s cold. (Had to smile when one of the weather guys on CNN mentioned Lake Okoboji & Spirit Lake — my extended-stomping grounds in years past when I was much younger — saying it’s where he spent much of his childhood.)

    It’s sunny here this morning, still on the chilly side. Neighbor with the knee surgeries now is down with a very bad cold, she’s been sick all weekend, so I may pick up some of that chicken tortilla soup from the deli at the market that I like so much to drop off, that is the best soup! But I will wait for her husband to get back from the doctor’s office, she normally shouldn’t be alone but she’s so sick and told me she is in her wheelchair in the kitchen close to their sliding back door so she could get out if she had to and has her phone handy; I told her I’m off today and so just call if she needs me for something …

    -dj

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  151. Kevin, haha, remember I flunked. Probably not a good person to ask.

    However, looking at the latest notes I jotted down as I’m going through the book *again,* I have an entry that says:

    Hand OVER hand steering — (for) low-speed turns, parking, skid reversals

    Seems like hand-TO-hand steering is simply for turns? Is there another “term” for that? No clue.

    I’d say I’ll get one of those big “INCORRECT” red “X’s” if I take the test a second time knowing no more than I do now.

    -dj

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  152. Hey all.

    Sorry for not updating you all. I had a rough weekend. There was an issue with my right side nephrostomy tube from the kidney. The line got kinked and wasn’t draining properly. In fact the output from the right side was minimal.

    This was causing pain, which I just chalked up to a pulled muscle from PT. But then the pain started causing issues with my breathing. I was unable to draw a full breath at times. I would get half a breath in, the pain would hit, and it would make me gasp and and wheeze. It wasn’t all the time, but several times an hour. I didn’t sleep well as a result. Cheryl said I wasn’t myself, I had a slight fever at times too. I just felt wiped out, even more than usual.

    The nurse came in at 9 this morning, listened to what was going on. She knew what it was and checked the tubes, found the kinked part, and repaired it. Since.she did, no more pain or breathing issues.

    Such a relief. After the nurse left, I slept for like 4 hours, mostly uninterrupted. Upon waking I felt so much better.

    So there’s your update. 😀

    Thanks all for your continued prayers. Love you guys and gals,

    Allen

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  155. Glad that got worked out, AJ! How is Cheryl doing? I am glad you got some peaceful sleep after that ordeal. God is acting on all the prayers behind the scenes. Thankful for visiting nurses.

    I just saw on Facebook that an author I follow has those tubes, too, from her kidneys. She is on chemo and is facing five weeks of daily radiation. I am praying for her, too.

    I am almost a year out from radiation and still have some side effects going on. I have stopped going to PT and need to crank back up on the exercises I let slide whilerr on vacay. PT lady sad eighteen months to recover from radiation in general.

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  156. Janice,

    Cheryl is pressing on. The role of caregiver for someone with all my issues is a difficult one. She appreciates all the prayers on her behalf and is thankful for them.

    A couple of things have been taken off her plate, which is a blessing and has eased her burden. Hopefully as things continue to improve, so will her burden be lightened.

    Praying for you and you’re continued recovery. Cancer treatments take a rough toll on the body. Do what you have to in order to get back to normal.

    Prayers, thanks, and love,

    Allen and Cheryl

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  158. Those radiation treatments etc. can take a lot out of you for quite a while.

    I am glad you have a nurse who comes in, Aj. Nurses go to school for quite a while. Expecting everyone to be able to do the same job seems quite a stretch for me. I am old enough to remember when such things were not expected. It is sad, IMO.

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  159. We are at -6, expected to get down to 0. What?

    then expecting two to eight inches snow tomorrow.

    Husband is off to Boise for a lung inspection. He took son from Spokane (and his dog) and daughter in law from the other side of town (and three of her six dogs) because that son, her husband, is in North Dakota where it is cold. Her water pipes froze and they have little heat so she is going to her folk’s house by Boise.

    mumsee

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  162. Just caught up on this thread from the weekend. We travelled down to Calgary to see my folks, my sister and our grandsons and their parents who also travelled down. 

    It was -37C the whole way there with windchills of -42C (-35F & -44F). The last few days have hovered in those temps, but the drive home today warmed up to -27C at times (-17F)

    Thankfully the roads were bare and dry (except for intersections which were icy)

    It was good to see my dad and stepmom again – it’s been quite a while. Also catching up with my sister and trekking across the city to go to IKEA and to an antique/vintage store was very fun.

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  163. So glad to read you are home, AJ. Nephrostomy tubes can certainly be a challenge. I think they are only temporary for you? I have seen people who have had them for years and they had become routine. Not ideal but doable.

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  164. Good morning! It’s cold here. We had a lot of rain overnight and now ice glazing on the roads is expected. Art could not be held back from going to the office. 😦

    i went to get a few supplies from Publix. A sick child was in the buggy ahead of me. It’s hard to give grace to the Spreaders.

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  167. Buggy. Just made me chuckle as we call them carts here. I think my daughter’s family is finally getting used to that. :)

    Another cold day here with the windchills like kare was out and about in. We were yesterday, too, and may be today. Finally got a new prescription for glasses and would like to get those ordered.

    The cataract surgery has good and bad in it. Everything is brighter, for sure. I have changed nearsightedness for farsightedness. That is a challenge in its own right. Glasses will help with most of it. Right now, none of my vision is good. So glad to have vision, however!

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  169. Good morning! I am not sure how cold it got, as I was sleeping like a baby.

    I am so glad to hear your report, AJ. I’m glad you got it figured out. Home care nurses are so very important! I was fortunate to have nurse friends that I could send pictures of his staples, etc, and ask “is this ok?” We continue to pray for you and Cheryl as you work through this recovery time.

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  170. Thinking it may be time to call in hospice again. He has many of the seventh stage symptoms.

    And at husband’s lung doctor appt, they saw a spot on his lung.

    Prayers appreciated. We have peace and joy. Need wisdom.

    mumsee

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  177. Glad you are safely back, Peter. It sounds like a really good trip.

    Sorry to hear your news, Mumsee.🙏

    It’s supposed to feel like -5° with windchill tonight. I went for a walk wrapped in a cocoon of layers. The wind seems stronger in our part of the neighborhood. On another street it felt warmer and calmer.

    I was on a prayer call for two hours today. I am so blessed to be with the God selected ladies who are bonded together in Christ.

    Tonight I am cooking our new favorite, Thai Inspired Creamed Chicken Over Rice. Comfort food for a cold, cold evening.

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  184. Prayers for you and Mike Mumsee, and for God’s healing hand to be upon Mike.

    Also for the situation with your dad. That’s some hard stuff all at once. Asking God to lift you all.

    Allen

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  185. Roscuro,

    Nice to see you. 🙂

    My nephrostomy tubes are supposed to temporary. In fact I saw the Dr. today and he’s pleased that the output from my remaining drain and the nephrostomy is decreased. He says this is good.

    Also, so everyone knows, I’m scheduled for surgery sometime Thursday the 18th. They’re putting me out again, the Dr. will start with an IR procedure, inject some dye, and see if the leaks have repaired themselves. Then if one or both sides are good to go, they will remove the nephrostomy tubes and drain. It could be all 3, just 2, or even just 1. I could also end up.with needing to keep all for a while longer. Obviously you all can guess what I’m praying for, but this is in God’s time, not mine. It would be really nice to go down a few bags though, and would be another burden off of Cheryl without daily tube flushing. I’m hopeful, yet trying to not get too excited lest I be disappointed.

    So once again I ask for your prayers on Thursday. This is the next step on this journey.

    Thanks,

    Allen

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  190. Praying for a goodbye-and-farewell tubes surgery, AJ.

    Praying also for Mike and mumsee.

    Looks like I missed a race last night.

    Today it’s off to the state-of-the-port speech (this one at the “other” port). It’s being live-streamed but is the kind of thing that’s good to show up at in person, plus gives the photographer someone to talk to during down times if needed, but she’ll be in and out more quickly than I will.

    Rain is (finally) in our forecast — this weekend. That also means a car wash gets done for PJ (Pandemic Jeep).

    Meanwhile, our dental insurance (through work) seems to be crashing and burning, with dentists everywhere (at least in CA) dropping it, including my long-time beloved dentist 😦

    There is a reason:

    California Dental Association files legal action against Delta Dental of California — Adjustments in 2023 include significant fee reductions for many providers, increased administrative burdens

    😦

    -dj

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