JUST SOME POSTS

(warning - may be a sad one - I was told I had to do that by my daughters ) I am not really sure what this post is to accomplish. It is a bit of a catharsis for me. I hope it will be informational for some, possibly even inspirational for others that may be going through a similar event in their life (although I profoundly hope there would be no others going through what we are - I know there are) Sunday as we were getting ready to leave Florida for home, my wife started weeping rather uncontrollably . Being the tough macho guy that I am, I kept a stiff upper lip - for about 30 seconds. I HATE seeing my wife cry (or any other loved one), especially a sad, wailing, cry. I asked her what was wrong, but it was one of the teary events where you cannot even talk. She was brushing her teeth at the time, and between the toothpaste, toothbrush, and weeping - communication was not possible. So, I just was just there. Then I teared up myself. Watching her, a grown woman, RN, mother of six, an...

I am writing this on the morning of a departure. My wife and I are heading back home after the better part of a week in Florida. I had a business reason for coming, and with family here - she joined me. It is wonderful to see a daughter that we do not see nearly enough and to visit with a Mother/Mother-in-law as well. Yesterday between the day to day activities that must be done, I spent a large amount of time sitting in a lounge chair in a marvelous screened-in "porch" area of my Mother-in-Law's house. It was in the mid-70s to upper 70's while I was sitting, but with a fantastic cooling breeze most of the time, and a ceiling fan to fill in the lulls. The sky was a tropical blue with cottony clouds that cruised by with the lazy drift of a tube on a river. I was able to start and finish a novel yesterday by killing off the majority of it sitting in this splendor . I just wrote a comment on my sister's blog. This post is somewhat in response to myself for that com...

I know a lot of people are crying the blues today over the economy (and justifiably so in a lot of cases). However, you have all heard the statement made - "at least you've got your health", probably a million times. If you "have your health" and have remained relatively healthy, you probably ignore the statement or mumble a "yeah" and move on. The process of waste elimination is a pretty basic need. If you remember basic biology - taking in food and elimination of waste were signs of biological life. If you are a human, the waste elimination process has taken leaps of societal and hygienic improvements from Og and his lot heading for the other side of the bush. We now have restrooms, both public and private for the process. (where is this going?, you are probably asking by now). As most of you know that would be reading this, my wife is in a wheelchair. She is in it because she cannot walk any longer. She can stand for short periods, but does not ...

I knew my fan would be looking for another post. Since I am not "riled up" about anything and do not feel especially creative, here are some real headlines from the news: Alligator Accused of Starting Fire at Abandoned Pennsylvania School another reason never to let your pets play with matches! Outrage in France After Boy Locked in Bedroom for Seven Years six years, ehhh - seven, sacre bleu! ( unfortunately, this was a case of severe child abuse. NOT funny - I was commenting on the weird wording of the headline) Illegal Immigration Foe Fears Dead Goat Bearing Gang Sign Is Death Threat I was not even aware goats ran in gangs! I guess the guy ran with a baaaaad crowd . I wonder if the alligator was involved? Parrot Tattles on Cheating Lover Bird love gone bad? Chiropractor Treats Patients Using Time Travel Was he using time travel to treat them or was he helping them recover from time travel? (I really wanted to know this, but could not find the actual article) Nake...

I just took a chance on getting profoundly embarrassed . I added a widget that shows where my traffic comes from. I say embarrassed , because if in a week or so all I have are dots on my home town (and my sister's - I know she checks regularly) - I will be a bit ashamed. One always imagines changing the world with the multitudes of readers hanging on every word. Just waiting for you (me, in this case) to spread the wisdom and guidance that a well written word can bring. So, here we go. (hey, if you know people from other parts of the country, or world, get them to sign on)

This Saturday February 28 th is the first international Rare Diseases Day. I am not sure what will actually happen, but the day has been declared and so named to "focus attention on rare diseases as a public health issue". This is the first day that the event has been officially recognized in this country. There are also over half the states that have issued proclamations recognizing the observance. Why should I (or you) care. Well, in my case I am living with the facts and effects of a rare disease every day. My wife has a rare disease called Multiple System Atrophy, or just MSA . MSA is one of almost 7,000 diseases that are classified as officially "rare". To attain this designation the disease must affect less than 200,000 people. At this level of affliction, rare diseases do not get the medical, drug, or research attention of higher profile illnesses. However, with 7,000 different diseases, there are between 25 and 30 million people in the U.S. alone that ar...

As I told you in previous posts - I am worried for our country and its'/our future. But, as I said then, not for the same reasons most people are. Yes, I have severe worries about our economy. It pains me greatly to see the current government abandon the policies that have made this country great to adopt the failed system of socialism. But, that is not the point of this post. I just read where an " eminent British economist" said that we were doomed. "Why?", you might ask. Because IF the global warming continues (he missed the memo about how the earth has cooled over the past decade), IF the average global temperature rises 6 - 8 degree Fahrenheit , and IF the ice caps have significant melting (he missed that memo too - the Antarctic cap is thickening, but...), THEN there COULD be a massive migration of people the likes of which we have never seen. This would cause massive and extensive world wars as countries that were not too hot turned away those people f...