golf, luncheon and supper with the neighbors

These are pictures of the men installing our new metal roof. The hurricane in July had taken enough shingles that the insurance adjuster replaced the roof. He paid for a shingle roof, but we had already decided on this upgrade.

Evelyn to exercise while I got ready to go golfing. I went to fill the tank so Evelyn would have enough gas to get to Harlingen and stopped at Lord and Irene’s to use the coupon for a breakfast taco and coffee I had won at our park. Irene almost didn’t honor it because she said she hadn’t given them out for at least 4 years. I didn’t realize it was that old. I came home and found that the roofer had not come. He did later in the afternoon, alone, wailing that 2 of his Hispanic workers had not come in today. He finished most of the roof but promised to finish Friday. I got a call from Bob saying he could not go because his brother in MN had died. His wife was there to be with him. Armond and I went and I played well for 6 holes before falling into my regular rhythm. I did shoot a 50 for 9 which is a bit better than sometimes. We stopped at a golf cart store looking for a tube for one of my tires but found none. The owner discouraged me from using one anyway. We returned home before Evelyn who had gone to the CWC luncheon. She hoped to see Janice and return her glass pan but was disappointed when she never showed up. She came home and fixed medicine for the week when we return and then watched the final DVD of the Bible study that will be shown when we are gone. We had been invited to Rose and Armond’s for supper and went and enjoyed it. She had breaded chicken breasts, made a carrot salad, corn, and rice and mushrooms. They were all delicious and were topped off with a cherry dessert. They are 1 of 3 couples we have invited for meals that have ever reciprocated. 2 of 3 were Canadians. We have invited over a dozen over the years. Evelyn returned the DVDs to Donna and I came to the hall to post the pictures here and send an e-mail to Tom Newcomer. We spent the rest of the evening checking for things we might need to pack.

A blessed birthday

We were up early for some reason. Evelyn went to exercise while I waited for the roofers to arrive. They came and began work immediately. Before the day was finished, they were almost finished. They will return tomorrow. When Evelyn came home I made bacon and egg breakfast tacos to help use some eggs that won’t keep until we get back. We left here and went to the new Bible study that features the Beatitudes. It was a very good study. We came home and Evelyn decided to watch some of the videos Evelyn watches with her women’s Bible study on Thursdays. She watched all day and will likely be up to speed when she returns. The noise was steady all day as the roofers worked. We decided to have lunch late so I barbecued two remaining hot sausage links for sandwiches around 3. After that we rode our bikes to the hospital to get some masks to ear on our flight. She rode back home but I went on downtown to have the heels on her shoes repaired. She had broken them off last night on the asphalt of the parking lot after the concert. The man repaired them while I waited then I rode back home. Evelyn was still watching Bible DVDs. She was thrilled that they were fixed. I also talked with Randy Winston about his using our trailer to haul luggage on their skiing trip in March. I was worried we might take the keys to the padlocks with us. We had leftover soup for supper and then took a walk. We stopped in to visit a short while with our friend Fanny Crampton. She is a dear sweetheart friend from Manitoba. We came home, treated the white underwear and socks, and did the white laundry. During the day we were able to have a short conversation with Stacy. She became 48 today. It is just scary how time has rushed us along toward the end of our lives. It has been a very blessed life, especially since our entire adult family has come to know Christ as Lord and Savior. We also received Christmas presents from Olivia and really appreciate her thinking of us. We have only 1 and ½ days until we begin the trip of a lifetime. I think we are ready. Or nearly ready.

Evening concert

We were up as usual doing the usual. I called to make a T time for Wednesday and then met Evelyn at the park meeting. We didn’t pay much attention because we will be leaving Thursday. We came home and Evelyn did some laundry, leading to an ironing session. I had to go to my golfing partners to let them know the time we will go. Evelyn also went to Bob’s to select some of the paints he had. If we use what we now have, we will have to mix the colors to get what we want for painting the Texas wall plaque I want to make. The roofer came and began unloading wood to use on the roof replacement that will begin tomorrow. I told him when we would leave and wanted him to know that we will not complete our payment until he finishes. That could mean he has to wait until after February 18. He said he would be finished. We went to the hall for lunch of soup and hotdog. The park makes money on the meals, and I had promised the cooks that we would eat there once. We did and enjoyed it. We came home and Evelyn continued ironing before we took a nap. We are not completely cured from the bronchitis. We dressed and took Joe and Bonny to Joe’s Crab Shack for dinner (we had crawfish etouffee) but continued to the civic center for tonight’s concert. The man was very funny and quite an accomplished pianist. He was able to work local towns into songs, delighting the audience. We were home in time for the news and bed.

Poker Run

We were up earlier than usual for a Sunday morning. We had enough time for me to apply my “Touch of Grey” coloring to my hair. We were in fact early to worship, causing razzing from the people who arrange the chairs. The message went much better this week and we served Holy Communion for the last time until we return. For the past 3 weeks I have received the total of the offering because the leader of our worship had been removed from the “food pantry” position to which some of the money has been given. I was told after worship that we might return to the $65 for me situation. I am fine with that because I know the extra will go to help some people in the area. The man who will replace me for the next month has everything under control. I am pleased about that. We came home and I found an instruction booklet for the DVD recorder John Hamel wanted to borrow. Evelyn made a stir fry for lunch and we ate on the porch. After cleaning the kitchen we took a nap. We got up and went to the Poker Run with the bike club. This is an event in which we ride around the park 7 times, selecting a card each time around. The cards are put together into a poker hand. Evelyn had 3 aces while I had two pair. She won 5th prize awarded at the pizza party after the run. We came home and visited with Bob Schwinghammer. He needed to borrow coolers for the German dinner while we are gone. I have made a plan to play golf Wednesday morning while Evelyn goes to the CWC luncheon. We watched the NFL playoff game and made calls to our relatives before we leave on our adventure. We have a concert to attend tomorrow night.

weighing our luggage

We tried to sleep later this morning but had only limited success. We got up and continued packing our suitcases and took 2 of them to the hall to weigh them. We are allowed 50# but our suitcases weighed 35 and 31. We may add more things. We have 4 more to get ready. The space bags we have don’t seem to be very valuable. The large ones are too large for our suitcases. We waited for the technician to come and get the CPAP machine thinking he would take it away. Instead I sent it with him to be repaired because it will be paid for in March, making it mine. I have been using a mouthpiece to retrench my snoring but may develop sleepapnia in the future and may need it. We then went to the large flea market to get batteries for our watches. I also bought some socks and some correll cups to go with the ones at home. We were going to Walmart but came home because we were hungry. We finished the baked chili and had a salad before going to bed for a nap. I just seem tired much of the time. When we wakened we went to Walmart to return the large space bags. We also went to Sally Beauty for oil for Evelyn’s hair and went to Big Lots to get some snacks to take on our long flight to Argentina. We returned to have a BLT sandwich and prepared our medicine for next week. I also made some on line payments before blogging and going to bed.

A great family movie

We were up as usual except I was waiting for the young man to come to get my breathing machine. He promised to be here between 8 and 8:30. He never came. We ate breakfast and I went off to deposit the check from the insurance company into the bank. I also got a roll of quarters because I am still half heartedly looking for 1999 issues. I went to the recycle center to give the cardboard, copy paper and plastic/metal to them. I returned and dressed for out stint at the hospital. As volunteers we receive a certificate entitling us to a free lunch and we have some from years past. We used 1 and split it. The meals they offer there are huge and almost gourmet. We had Hungarian chicken paprikash as our entree. We worked until 4 because there were too many people at our stations. Evidently the supervisors thought we were not working today and had replacements. We had invited the man replacing me at Trail’s End and his wife for chili supper at 5 so we could go to the Baptist church to see a film, Fireproof. It was well done and was about a couple having marital problems. The marriage was preserved when they devoted themselves to Christ and each other. It reminded me of the principles featured in Marriage Encounter and Via de Cristo. Evelyn had made some “bread” bowls for the chili, but they had somehow stuck to the Pyrex bowls used to shape them. She had followed the directions to the letter but something went wrong. We came home alone because my replacement really had no need to talk about the services he will lead. We had originally thought he might want to go over some things. I am sure if I can do it he can too. We are planning to spend tomorrow finalizing our packing for the trip. We are in the final week of preparation!

malaria, dentist and study.

We were up in a cold drizzle, very light. We had both wakened far earlier than we wanted but went on with the day. Evelyn had searched for our immunization cards to no avail. I searched too and the Lord in His mercy reminded her where she had put them. I showered and ate breakfast and we left for the doctor as soon as Evelyn had come home and eaten hers. We wanted to take our first malaria pill in front of the nurse so she would sign our immunization card. We did and she did. We then went to Walmart to buy some Pyrex bowls to use for making bread bowls to serve our chili in tomorrow evening when we have guests. We came home and ate an early lunch of baked spaghetti and then took a nap. We were both really wiped out. We wakened and went to Mexico so Evelyn could have 2 more fillings inserted into her cavities. We were home in time to have dinner of the crawfish etouffee left from yesterday which was left from Monday. It was delicious. Anyone reading this who likes this dish but doesn’t want to drive to Louisiana to get it should consider finding a Joe’s Crab Shack and ordering it from their lunch menu. After supper Evelyn set up the chairs for the Bible study she was hosting, and I took the computer to the hall to use the wireless connection. I worked on Sunday’s sermon and was very pleased with the blessings the Lord gave me. I came home early and popped corn for the group of ladies because Evelyn had asked me to. When they left I blogged and we watched an episode of House before going to bed.

driving and dancing

I was up early and off to Llano Grande to lead the AARP class. I was there in plenty of time only to learn that 2 different starting times had been published. People drifted in from 7:50 and 8:30. I had them complete their own certificates to save time. I was pleased with the way things went and continued until Sherry, my team teacher, arrived. We worked together until 11:30 when I left to get Evelyn to go to the volunteer luncheon at the hospital. It was a great Mexican buffet with many wonderful desserts. There was a program concerning publicizing the offerings at the hospital, followed by a drawing for door prizes. Evelyn won a “wind up” flashlight that we can take traveling with us. I went back to the class and we finished around 3:30, almost 1 ½ hours early. I had invited Paul and Donna Zopfi to go to the Horseman with us since they live in the park where I taught. We went and had a great time dancing and drinking. There was a family of dad, mom and 2 sons 13 and 15 from Wisconsin. The kids played a bass guitar and a fiddle. We talked briefly with them, learning they were home schooled. That is all we learned but wanted to talk with them about curriculum. The boys did say they learned more than just music. We left around 7 and Evelyn drove us to Llano Grande to deliver our friends. We have made arrangements for them to take us to the airport next Thursday and pick us up in February. The trip is only a week away! Wow!

I am tux ready

The morning went quickly. Evelyn exercised while I went to the thank you breakfast at Tierra Santa. I had to stop at the doctor to cancel the appointment until later in the afternoon. They served a nice buffet of eggs and chorizo, etc. I then returned home to conduct the Bible study. We thought the class went well and was the last we have before we leave. The substitute will start a new study for at least 5 weeks. We came home to wait for the young man to deliver the tuxedo jacket. I took a nap waiting but he never came. We ate lunch and then watched some of Evelyn’s Thursday Bible study. We went to the doctor: Evelyn went to see Rolando and I went to see Pam in a different building. She saw him but after 2 hours I left without seeing her. I don’t think anything was necessary anyway. We left and went to the tuxedo rental store to learn that Armando (the young man who owns the tuxedo jacket) couldn’t find our house. We don’t think he even tried but did promise to come at 6 this evening. I drew him a map. We went to send a fax to our financial guy to check on our viatical settlement and then came home. I made several phone calls, one to ask the salesman to pick up my breathing machine. I came home, put on my tux pants and shirt, and waited for him. We got discouraged and began dinner. He did finally come and we took the jacket. He will rent it to us for the entire period of our trip for $35. It was a good deal for us. We finished our meal of delicious crawfish etouffee. We put the suits into our new hanging space bag and tried it out. The things certainly looked as if they would wrinkle. I let the air out and we will try it by laying it on the floor to keep things more flat. I have to teach the driver safety class tomorrow.

Biopsy results at last. Praise God for the results!

Back to exercise. I rode to the pharmacy to get a refill of my Atenolol and returned to get Evelyn at 8:45. We left for McAllen and stopped at Staples to buy some ink cartridges before going to the endocrinologist. She confirmed that the nodules on the thyroid were benign. I wanted to make complaint about the poor communication but was not to do it. We prayed a prayer of thanks to God for His mercy and goodness. We left there with instructions to get more blood work and drove to the Saturn dealership for a carwash. Then we went to Joe’s Crab Shack for lunch. We had a free appetizer with 2 entrees and had chicken tenders. Our entrees were fish and chips (we ate those there) and crawfish etouffee (we brought that home)
We also tried to find small space bags for travel but didn’t find them at Dollar Tree. We will have to go to Walmart to get them. I also went to the tuxedo store to ask the young man to get me the coat he had promised. He is to deliver it tomorrow so he won’t have trouble with his boss. He has some that he owns privately. We came home and Evelyn went to get a permanent. I stayed here and cut the grass before watching my neighbor make tomato cages for us. I didn’t intend for him to have to do it. I watched the video for tomorrow and dumped e-mail. Evelyn came home, beautiful, and watered the garden. We went to Walmart and bought several space bags for the trip. We ate a salad for supper and then watched tomorrow’s video presentation for the Bible study. I also received a call inviting me to a breakfast at Tierra Santa. It was their way of thanking those who volunteered a last week’s party. I got on line and ordered some space bags from their website but will try to call and cancel the order because I don’t think they will get here before we leave.

Godspell

We went to worship, and I was once again blessed to serve Holy Communion. There were 58 in attendance. The message was too long and complicated, mainly because I had not taken time to make consolidations and revisions in the verbiage. Ironically, the only comment I received (aside from Evelyn’s) was very positive. We came straight home and found the insurance adjuster waiting for us. He had inspected the roof and agreed to replace it with a new shingle roof. We had already decided to have a metal roof put on and he said that was fine but could only pay for the shingle replacement. That was more than fair. He also gave us an adjustment for repair to the master bathroom since we had noticed some spots we had not seen before. I was willing to wait for the roofer to tell us if they were the result of a leak, but the adjuster insisted on paying for the repair. We were blessed and thanked God for the adjustment amount of $3,591.36. That will more than cover the new metal roof upgrade. Joe and Bonny picked us up just before noon, and we left for McAllen. We stopped at the local Quiznos for lunch because it would be faster than some other places. We arrived at Nicki Rowe High School at about 1:45. The cafeteria was full of people waiting to attend the play, Godspell. We had to wait for more than 10 minutes while they filed into the auditorium. We had to sit in the back row but were happy with the seats. This is quite and event. The tickets went on sale a 8 AM 2 months ago and were sold out by noon. The students are very talented and devote many hours of rehearsal for the 8 performances. Their efforts paid off. The production was just great. Of course the story of the life of our Savior is very moving. We loved it. We came home and packed in for the night. We had popcorn and talked with Tom and Luanne about packing for the trip. Oefingers also called for a visit. Evelyn talked with Stacy about her full life of service. We are getting excited about our trip. We still have much to do.

Fun golf and party day

We were up early getting me ready for the fun day of golf. Evelyn went back to bed and then did laundry and ironing. I rode the 30 miles to the course with the Schwinghamers and Jack Roberts, one of the people responsible for our friend’s truck being towed a few weeks ago. The day began overcast and muggy but ended hot and muggy. It tired many of us out, especially me who should not have gone out to play anyway. It was fun and had some quirks: one hole required putting with a driver while another required putting left handed. Another featured using wooden putters. There were other quirks too. I was tired and lay on a picnic table when finished while most were having a beer in the clubhouse. We returned home and I took a shower before taking a piece of particle board to see if Bob could cut the shape of Texas out of it. He can but had another piece of siding he would rather use. I will let Evelyn choose what she wants to use for our wall hanging. I returned home and we went to the hall for the pizza party. To our amazement the pizza was delicious despite being from Peter Piper Pizza. The party also features all the beer, wine, and sodas we want. Since I can’t drink beer while taking antibiotics, and my dues pay for some of these parties, I packed up the amount I thought I would have drunk and brought it home. We had a good time visiting with Bob and Theresa. We came home and both took a nap that we needed. We just snacked for supper, and I worked on tomorrow’s service. We also prepared our medicine for next week and even the trip. We figured out we will be gone 28 days and leave in 11 days. We also packed a few more clothes and went to bed again at the regular time. Evelyn also talked with Emily for quite some time during the evening.

The entry for Friday

I was up and off to see the nurse practitioner about my chest. She confirmed that I had congestion in my left lung and tested me for flu and staph infection. She also gave me a shot in the butt and drew blood for some reason. She advised us to not go volunteer at the hospital so I rode on to there and told the coordinator. She asked if we could come back for some safety training review and I agreed to come at 2:30. I came home and ate a quick breakfast before leaving to get the dingbat from MN that had stood me up yesterday. I arrived as the plane landed, stood at the bottom of the descalator, and never saw her get off. I searched the airport and finally had her paged. There she was right in the middle of the place. I swear the woman has some sort of demonic powers. We loaded her luggage and left for home. I asked if she wanted to stop for 15 minutes to get some essentials and she agreed. I tried to hurry her but she wouldn’t cooperate and stick to essentials. We were 35 minutes in the grocery despite my telling her how bad I felt. I put the things into the grocery cart, told her where I was parked and loaded the items into the car. Where was she? I went back into the store and she was in yet another line buying more items. I was furious and frustrated with her. I went to the bathroom and promptly peed all over myself as a result of the anxiety I felt. I finally got her into the car and took her to her mobile home. She announced that she hoped she had her key and if she didn’t she would have to go to the office to get one. She did have the key but it was in her carry on bag (not her purse) and was now under the groceries. I unloaded the groceries as quickly as I could. She tried the keys in the front door to no avail but did manage to get into the back door. I carried everything in while she turned on the power and plugged in the refrigerator. I said an abrupt goodbye and left fuming. I hope she never calls for another favor. She gave me $20 and $5 more for the traffic ticket I got waiting for her yesterday. She never apologized for running me over there twice either. I came home (now 12:30) and had lunch. Had we planned to go the hospital, we would have been eating at the time of our scheduled arrival. We went to the meeting at the hospital and then picked up Evelyn’s blood work to take to the endocrinologist who finally made an appointment for Monday at 9:45. We came home and took a nap until 4. We had half a sandwich and went off to prepare for the dance. We had to set things up, arrange sodas, prepare the cash boxes and pop corn. We didn’t get to dance much because we did have lung problems but had a good time and learning experience. We don’t have another dance to run until January 23--the German fest dinner. We went to bed a bit later than usual. I have to get up early to go play golf tomorrow morning. What fun! And rain or drizzle is predicted. Whee! Not to worry, however; it seldom rains here.

Losing my temper

I was up working on the computer and showered before going to the exercise room to get the car. Evelyn had taken it to go to her monthly weigh in with Weight Watchers. I had to go to Harlingen to get Lois who had called yesterday saying to pick her up tomorrow. I should have just waited and made her call when she landed. The original message I got weeks ago said she would arrive Friday. Wednesday she said tomorrow (meaning today)--and afternoon to boot. I learned the hard way that there is only 1 flight from Minneapolis-- in the morning. She never got off the plane. In fact she will come tomorrow. She called at noon, after I had asked her to call last night, and I lost it with her. She is not very smart, and I should not have lost my temper with her. I had run some errands to return some items not needed before leaving for Harlingen and returned another to Walmart on the way home. I was very hungry and helped heat the enchiladas left from last Friday’s dinner. Evelyn also made a salad. She went to bed after lunch, and I did too after checking to see that my credit union account could be accessed again. It can. I slept but snored so vigorously that Evelyn had to leave the bedroom. I didn’t wear my plastic snore suppresser. We wakened and I continued trying to straighten the shed. I was able to throw many things away and will give some things to one of the Hispanic workers tomorrow. After supper, I rode to a friend who just returned from burying his estranged wife in Minnesota and gave him some of the motor home lights and bulbs we had left from our motor home days. He talked a bit and then I returned home to work on next Sunday’s message. I was very satisfied with the progress. I had to do it tonight because, barring rain, I will be playing golf all morning on Saturday.

Mexican dental fillings

After exercise we removed the remainder of the Christmas decorations. I had removed the lights between 8 and 9, so when Evelyn returned, we put the nativity scene, star and tree into a storage bag. We then left for Mexico. Evelyn got a pedicure while I tried to catch up on my daily Bible reading. She finished just in time to get to the dentist for 4 fillings. For some reason the dentist did only 2. In the meantime I went to see my friend Victor, the pharmacist and bought medicine for our cruise and an antibiotic he recommended since I am coming down with what sounds like Evelyn’s bronchitis. I started taking the medicine even though I made an appointment for 8 Friday morning with the nurse practitioner at the doctor’s. We ate a late lunch because we didn’t get home until 2:30. Evelyn needed to rest so I worked on clearing out the shed. I have tried to sell many items at flea markets in the park but have given up. I will throw or give away many things useful in motor home living. We are over half finished but wore out before finished. Perhaps we can finish tomorrow. We walked to see Schwinghammers and learned they had a great time with Hamels at the hockey game last night. We were unable to meet them at the Horseman tonight. I also made arrangements to ride with them to the golf outing Saturday. We have to pick up Lois tomorrow morning instead of Friday as we had planned.

Finally a diagnosis--bronchitis

It was drizzly as predicted when we got up. Evelyn went to exercise while I got some pages copied for our study. We came home, ate breakfast and went to the Outback. Evelyn led and did a great job. We came home for lunch after Evelyn washed her hair. She heated some charro beans for me and hot dogs for her. We cleaned the kitchen and she went to curl her hair. She lay down for a nap after promising to go to see the doctor to check her lungs. I had a complicated errand to run. I had won 4 tickets to see the local hockey team by calling the radio station to win the contest. Since Evelyn dislikes hockey, I spent much of the day trying to give them away. All the Canadians in our park had signed for the welcome back party as did we, so they didn’t want them. I tried Canadians from another park but finally gave them to friends of ours from Wisconsin and Minnesota. In the meantime Evelyn went to the doctor at 2 and was not back at 5. I went to the hall and found I was late for the free dinner. I just went back to the kitchen and put some chicken breasts into a carry out box, picked up 2 small ice creams and went home. I ate one of the breasts and finished our white zinfandel before coming inside to brush my teeth. I fully intended to ask our neighbor to take me to the hospital, thinking Evelyn might have been admitted with pneumonia (even though we got inoculations against it 2 years ago). When I came out, she was home. She had waited nearly 2 hours at the walk in clinic and then went to have a chest X-ray. She also had to get a shot and then went to the pharmacy to get 2 more prescriptions and a machine to administer one of them. It was a breathing machine, Pulmo Nebulizer, that is to loosen her stuffed brochial tubes. She has bronchitis. We learned how to use the machine by watching a DVD included in the instructions. She has to use this 4 times each day.. I also made an appointment with our dentist in Mexico for tomorrow at noon. She also wants a pedicure. It is good that we have removed most of our Christmas decorations because we won’t have much time tomorrow. I also went to a construction site and picked up a couple of pieces of 5/8 plywood to use for a shelf and a plaque I want to cut into the shape of Texas for a wall plaque on which to hang some Texas trinkets that Evelyn bought as tree ornaments last year. They are too small for that.

Finally a diagnosis--bronchitis

It was drizzly as predicted when we got up. Evelyn went to exercise while I got some pages copied for our study. We came home, ate breakfast and went to the Outback. Evelyn led and did a great job. We came home for lunch after Evelyn washed her hair. She heated some charro beans for me and hot dogs for her. We cleaned the kitchen and she went to curl her hair. She lay down for a nap after promising to go to see the doctor to check her lungs. I had a complicated errand to run. I had won 4 tickets to see the local hockey team by calling the radio station to win the contest. Since Evelyn dislikes hockey, I spent much of the day trying to give them away. All the Canadians in our park had signed for the welcome back party as did we, so they didn’t want them. I tried Canadians from another park but finally gave them to friends of ours from Wisconsin and Minnesota. In the meantime Evelyn went to the doctor at 2 and was not back at 5. I went to the hall and found I was late for the free dinner. I just went back to the kitchen and put some chicken breasts into a carry out box, picked up 2 small ice creams and went home. I ate one of the breasts and finished our white zinfandel before coming inside to brush my teeth. I fully intended to ask our neighbor to take me to the hospital, thinking Evelyn might have been admitted with pneumonia (even though we go inoculations against it 2 years ago). When I came out, she was home. She had waited nearly 2 hours at the walk in clinic and then went to have an X-ray. She also had to get a shot and then went to the pharmacy to get 2 more prescriptions and a machine to administer one of them. It was a breathing machine, Pulmo Nebulizer, that is to loosen her stuffed brochial tubes. She has bronchitis. We learned how to use the machine by watching a DVD included in the instructions. She has to use this 4 times each day.. I also made an appointment with our dentist in Mexico for tomorrow at noon. She also wants a pedicure. It is good that we have removed most of our Christmas decorations because we won’t have much time tomorrow. I also went to a construction site and picked up a couple of pieces of 5/8 plywood to use for a shelf and a plaque I want to cut into the shape of Texas for a wall plaque on which to hang some Texas trinkets that Evelyn bought as tree ornaments last year. They are too small for that.

golf in 55 degrees

It was cold and drizzly when we got up this morning. Evelyn went to exercise and I had to call AARP to order materials for my driver safety class January 14. We came home and prepared to go to Tierra Santa Golf Course. We had volunteered to cook lunch for the golfers on winter Texan appreciation day. It was too cold for Evelyn, however. She dropped me off and went to run some errands at Walgreens to buy supplements, deposit money, pick up my sandals and other things. I stayed but didn’t cook. Some golf employee barbecued hot dogs and some of the waitresses and I put them into buns and inserted them into small individual sacks. I did this until noon and then ate one of them. I also had a beer (the golf course and the local sponsors furnished everything) before looking for Evelyn. I was to tee off at 1:07 and needed the clubs I had left in the back of the car. She was there in plenty of time, and she ate a hot dog and some chips before I left to play. She went back home and I went off with 2 of the slowest golfers I have ever seen. They rarely had their clubs ready and one of them never knew when to hit his ball. Soon 2 other 4 somes were stacked up behind us. I couldn’t take it and after 4 holes I went ahead of them, played 2 holes alone and joined another 3 some to finish out. I played poorly before joining the 3 some but improved enough to par the final hole. The course is one of the most plush in this area. Evelyn was waiting for me when I returned but went back to the car while I had another beer and some chili. There was entertainment in a tent all day and I hoped we could dance a bit. It was too cold for her and not good for her chest congestion. We came home and packed in for the night. She had made a Ruben sandwich soup similar to one we had eaten at Schlotsky’s Deli last week. We agreed it was not as good but admire her creative spirit. We watched the video presentation for tomorrow’s Bible study and planned a teaching approach. We agree that this study is really too much in scientific depth for most of us to understand.

2 pleasant surprises

We were off to worship and were blessed to find 61 in attendance. There were even 8 people new to the park. After the service I learned that I have received a raise. I will be given all of the collection money instead of $65. It was a nice surprise. I had another surprise in that the lay minister who will replace me while we are on our trip came down for the winter. We talked a while and I sent him an e-mail of some of the things he might be able to use. We came home after church and Evelyn put some enchiladas in the oven for my lunch, and I went to Church’s Chicken to get her lunch of a 2 for 1 2 piece combo. We ate and then I made Evelyn take a nap. I checked the bathroom sink and found the hot water line now leaks. I tried to tighten the fitting and added some mighty putty. That seemed to work at least for a while. We packed for a short while and then went for a bike ride before coming in for the evening. I made popcorn for our meal and we watched 2 movies before 10. I tried to order some medicine for myself because I will run out before we leave but can’t get any until the 17th. I will have to get a month’s supply from the local pharmacy.

fixing plumbing problems

We normally sleep in on Saturday but not today. The handy man in the park said he would come at 8 to work on our bathroom sink. He was an hour late because he forgot about the pancake breakfast. When he got here, we had trouble turning the water off completely but finally succeeded. He couldn’t stop the leak so I had to ride my bike to the hardware store for the fitting. I brought it back, and he put it on and it seemed to work. In the meantime, he removed the stopper from the sink and cleaned a frightening amount of gunk out of it. No wonder the water would not drain from the sink! He also looked at a new faucet set I had but found it would not work on our sink. I grilled hamburgers for lunch and we ate them on the porch because it was quite warm. Afterward we took a nap and then began repacking some of the Christmas decorations that are inside the house. We will leave the outside ones up until Wednesday. Around 5 we went for a bike ride. Near the end I saw Bob Schwinghammer sitting in his driveway and stopped to enjoy a beer with him. He is an interesting talker and is animated with his hands. We go dancing with him and Theresa frequently. I came home for hot dogs Evelyn made and then worked on another order of service. Evelyn wrote some notes to some friends and we went to bed. I could not even stay up late enough to see the finish of the Colts football game.

House dedication

We were back to the normal morning routine. We ate breakfast around 9 and cleaned up the kitchen. I worked on creating a house dedication service to use at Don and Janice’s for tonight. While Evelyn was making us fried rice of what was left from our pork chop dinner, I went to the handy man’s house to see if he could come to find the leak in our bathroom sink. After discussion, we decided he should come tomorrow morning. I came home, ate lunch, dressed for the hospital and rode my bike there. I stopped at the doctor’s office to inquire about Evelyn’s tests, but they were closed until Monday. I went on to my assignment without Evelyn and told the admitting director she wasn’t coming. I was going to replace her but a young high school girl came by, and I enticed her into going so I could remain with my friends. We had a very busy day helping people who were leaving, especially many mothers with their babies. There were a minimum of 7 released. I left there and rode home, changed clothes and left for Rio Hondo. Don had some men pouring concrete at their house. Don and I went to get beer and returned to their new home for a cheese dip, charro bean, rice, enchilada and tamale dinner. We then retired to the living room for the house dedication service I had made up. I was displeased with it but did enjoy the Christian conversation that followed. Our meal was topped of with a cheesecake dessert. We left there around 9:30 and came home to go to bed.

Proof of aging

Needless to say (so why say it?) we slept very late this morning--8:45. Evelyn made it until after 9. She slept through the night without any coughing spells. I walked to the hall and made 3 phone calls and returned home to find breakfast cereal in the bowls. Evelyn was ravenous and ate 2 bowls. She normally can’t eat 1 bowl. She cleaned up the kitchen and went back to bed. I went to the hall trying to find someone to play golf with. No one that I found was willing or able to go, so I came home and went alone. I went to the Palms at mid valley and walked the front 9. I was so tired when I finished I could hardly get home. When I arrived at 5:30, Evelyn was heating the pork chop dinner we had brought from the Texas Roadhouse last Tuesday. It was very good but not as good as the pulled pork we had at the restaurant. We were both very tired but had to stay up so we could talk with Tom and Luanne about some new shore excursions he thinks we should schedule. Evelyn went to bed shortly after 8 but I had to stay awake to take the call. I also called Don and Janice to make sure she was well enough to entertain us tomorrow night. I also wanted to make sure they know that Evelyn is sick. Evelyn wants me to lead a dedication ceremony for their new house but needed their ok. Tom called and we agreed to go on the excursions he has recommended. We also talked over many of the things we would need on the airplane, etc. They have had many visitors in their trailer and are just as tired as we are.

New Year's Eve 2008

I got up and went to unlock the cupboard where the exercise videos are kept. I came home and got the computer to take to the hall to use the Wifi to upload some pictures to my blog. I finally got it to work. I returned home to eat the spaghetti Evelyn had baked for lunch. She had spent the morning ironing and baking the lunch. She then returned to bed while I worked on the Sunday service. I went to the hardware for some drain cleaner, then to HEB for some jello, then to Wal-Mart for Press N Seal. I came home and heated some beef stew for supper. I dressed and went to the New Year’s Eve worship. Evelyn stayed home trying to feel better without coughing. When I returned home, I took the snacks Evelyn had made to the hall where we had signed to sit at table 8. The people were all sad that Evelyn couldn’t come. I came home and watched some TV before retiring. This was the first New Year’s Eve in quite some time that we haven’t danced on this date. I did watch the report of a man who had killed a woman in Harlingen and then drove to the Weslaco Wal-Mart where he drove into the door and ran several shoppers down before being shot and taken to the hospital. Perhaps we will see him Friday afternoon. Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve 2008

I got up and went to unlock the cupboard where the exercise videos are kept. I came home and got the computer to take to the hall to use the Wifi to upload some pictures to my blog. I finally got it to work. I returned home to eat the spaghetti Evelyn had baked for lunch. She had spent the morning ironing and baking the lunch. She then returned to bed while I worked on the Sunday service. I went to the hardware for some drain cleaner, then to HEB for some jello, then to Wal-Mart for Press N Seal. I came home and heated some beef stew for supper. I dressed and went to the New Year’s Eve worship. Evelyn stayed home trying to feel better without coughing. When I returned home, I took the snacks Evelyn had made to the hall where we had signed to sit at table 8. The people were all sad that Evelyn couldn’t come. I came home and watched some TV before retiring. This was the first New Year’s Eve in quite some time that we haven’t danced on this date. I did watch the report of a man who had killed a woman in Harlingen and then drove to the Weslaco Wal-Mart where he drove into the door and ran several shoppers down before being shot and taken to the hospital. Perhaps we will see him Friday afternoon. Happy New Year!