What a joke

I was up at 7 and went to the lake to walk. I took the computer too so I could schedule a payment on our credit card. I couldn’t get my air card to work. It was slow going because I have to check each receipt. I couldn’t make the payment because our credit union was having a security check so I had to come home to get some of the required passwords. I was home by 10 and finally changed one small item on the air card. I also pulled one tomato plant out before making my lunch. I continued working on the computer after putting a second coat on the damage to our wall. I also tried to make contact with a couple to go to the play with us on Wednesday but haven’t so far. I waited until 4 when the Cubs began playing on TV. By 5:30 I still hadn’t got a call to pick up Evelyn. I finally got the call and picked her up at the church around 9:30. She had developed a sore while in Atlanta and wanted to go to the “emergency room”. What a joke. Around 2 I went to the car and slept. She had not slept well all weekend and would have loved to go to sleep but had to wait for treatment. At 3:30 AM, I returned and was surprised to see that she was just ready to leave. The doctor had cut some of the area off and lanced it since it was swollen. A culture was sent to the lab to find out what it is. We were finally in bed at 4 and slept through until 9:10. At least I did. I dressed and went to church to get some rhubarb a man brought to me. I returned home and found Evelyn asleep. I worked on the computer a while and she wakened. We dressed and went out for lunch and filled the prescription she had been given last night. We were home by 2 and I watered the flowers outdoors before watching the Cubs play. Our neighbor brought us some creamed corn and biscuits for our supper. For some reason I felt bad and took a nap that refreshed me. We didn’t eat until 7:30. We used the biscuits to make tomato sandwiches. Some of our plants have been quite prolific. We spent much of the evening researching Merca, the disease she might have. We also watched a movie, “Kangaroo Jack” that was pretty funny.

First day alone

Friday was a relaxing day. I slept late and then went to the lake but didn’t walk. I tried to upload pictures to the blog but had trouble getting the WiFi to work. I must have spent half an hour trying and when I did make contact, it took quite a while before I could get my pictures into the air. I wasn’t home until after 1. It had rained early and also while I was at home. I also had trouble getting my air card to work. I had done something to it while trying to get the WiFi to work. I debated as to what to do in the evening and ended up going to see the Tourists play parts of a double header caused by the rain last night. I drove to Asheville and learned it had rained again delaying the game again. I arrived in the 4th inning of the first game and stayed until the 3rd of the second. Between games I saw Dallas. They had been helping do something for the Alzheimer’s organization. It was cool and I had not brought a jacket so I didn’t want to stay. It was good to see them and hear that they had enjoyed the play, “Real Estate”. We will try to go next Wednesday afternoon. I drove home and bought a milk shake like drink from Wendy’s. I went right to bed when I got home.

Pigeon Forge, TN

Some winter friends from Branson, MO celebrated their 50th anniversary in Pigeon Forge. We joined them only a couple of hours from here.

Bible study

Evelyn attended a Bible study at a friend,s home. She goes each fortnight.

concert

Each month the Haywood County Band gives a concert in Maggie Valley. The older gentleman played "Stormy Weather" for Lena Horne in an old movie.

bluegrass

We went to a bluegrass festival to benefit the local fair ground. We were entertained by Buncombe Overdrive, the Wilburn Brothers and some cloggers. The older man is one of the best in the area and his nephew is coming on strong

Blueberry picking

Some friends took us to Sylva and we picked 91/2 pounds for us. Look at the large cluster on top of the ladder.

Women of Faith

Wednesday is our day at the hospital so we just went to town before going for lunch. We were on duty at 12:30 but didn’t finish until 4:30. That is the time we are supposed to finish but have never stayed past 2:30. There was more business than usual. We were busy most of the time. We take snacks and drinks to the patients after their procedures--colonoscopies, shoulder surgery, and other outpatient procedures. We came home after picking up my prescription for metaprolol. The doctor had finally called it in. We changed clothes and went to walk around the lake. We won’t have time tomorrow morning. We finished our salmon from the other day for supper. We went to bed early again because we were tired. Thursday we spent the morning packing Evelyn’s suitcase for her trip to Atlanta. She left at 2 with 4 other women to attend “Women of Faith” conference. Of course we had to walk around the lake first. I had to go get my computer from Staples and bought some groceries for the next week. I came home and painted a spot on the wall where the bullet had come through and then left with Phil Loyer to play golf. It was sprinkling here but not at the golf course. We played until 7:30 and then he brought me home. I just watched TV and tried to learn some things about running the Dish TV. A sad note: The Cubs are done. As people say, “Put a fork in them”. They just can win games no matter what happens.

Many errands

We were up early and off to town to run errands. Evelyn weighed in at WW before going to have a waffle. I then cashed a check at the bank, went to Rite Aid to get photos of the granddaughter visit, shopped at the GO grocery, and bought a housecoat for Evelyn at Belk. We stopped at the pharmacy to get my drugs but learned that the prescription had run out. They are contacting the doctor and should have results tomorrow. We came home because we had some refrigerator goods and Evelyn needed to rest. She slept until noon. I made us tomato sandwiches for lunch, and we ate on the deck. It was a beautiful day again and we enjoy looking at the mountains as we eat. I watered the outdoor plants and trimmed some dead limbs from the tomato plants in the pots. I vacuumed and Evelyn mopped the floor. She asked for a new mop head so I went to Lowes to get one. I also cleaned the grill from yesterday’s dinner of salmon. Earlier in the day I had taken the trash and recyclables to the collection point and dropped off a check at the Lutheran church. We are members there even though we seldom attend there any more. Evelyn prepared stuffed bell peppers for our supper, and then we tried to prepare some materials for our Bible study we will lead during the winter. I may try to play golf tomorrow.

beautiful day

We slept late this morning and were wakened by our neighbor who had called the handyman to repair our wall. He had worked on another house and knew where there was a piece of siding. He put that on and patched the inside hole. I will paint it tomorrow. We ate oatmeal for Evelyn’s stomach and then she went back to lie down for a while. Around noon we went to walk around the lake before lunch. We have harvested some delicious tomatoes and had tomato sandwiches. Evelyn began ironing and doing laundry while I cleaned the carport. We have a party scheduled for September 12 and needed to clean the carport now for some reason. Evelyn then made a marinade for the salmon I grilled for supper. Our pistol packin moma brought us some strawberry shortcake for dessert. We watched some of the final episodes of the Closer on TV before going to bed. It was a beautiful day, not too cold nor hot and clear. We really enjoy living here in the mountains where it is cooler than many places we could have chosen.

Target practice

We finished packing for our trip and were on the road by 9. We hadn’t agreed on a meeting place, and we couldn’t get any phone reception while driving in the Smokey Mountain National Park. When we got to Gatlinburg, we got a message that we would meet at the Pottery restaurant in Pigeon Forge for lunch. We went to our motel first to check in. We had booked through Hotwire and were delighted at the room we had. There was even a balcony overlooking the Pigeon River. We met, ate and the left the women to shop while the men went to walk their dog. We went back to the room for a nap and Glenn and Lucy came to pick us up for supper. We drank a bottle of wine in our room before going to the Smokehouse buffet. It had more selections than Evelyn had ever seen on a buffet. We then went to the show, “Tennessee Shindig”. It was excellent and had a great testimony from one of the actors. The first half was country music like we expected in Tennessee, but the second was pop tunes from different decades. We got back to the before 10:30 and went right to bed. Sunday I learned that Evelyn had wakened around 4. I wakened around 6 myself so we dressed for church. We walked to a pancake house where we had a coupon for breakfast at one of the more than a dozen pancake houses in the town. We drove to pick up the Combs and drove to one of the theaters where we worshipped at the “Cowboy Church”. It was more of a show than a worship but featured many fine hymns performed by good musicians. We took our friends back to their room and left for home around 1:30. We thought we would explore the park, especially Cades Cove. I drove the 24 miles to the Cove while Evelyn slept. I was not feeling very well either so we decided to explore another day. I drove back down the mountain and nearly killed us twice because I was too drowsy. The Lord in His mercy protected us and we made it to a visitor’s center where I slept for about 10 minutes while Evelyn got some brochures. I felt worse after sleeping but did make it to Cherokee. We had not had food until we stopped at a restaurant run by Indians and shared a meal. I felt better but not great as we drove to the Lake. Evelyn wanted to walk and I wanted to do some computer work. Unfortunately I couldn’t retrieve the items from the external hard drive and got nothing done. I will have to get help with the problem. We drove home and I noticed some strange pieces of dry wall and a piece of metal on our living room floor. I called Evelyn and we looked around for evidence of ceiling damage but found none. Suddenly we noticed a hole in the wall. I looked outside and found one there too. We concluded that someone had shot our house while we were gone. We were going to call the police but decided to ask the neighbor, Doris, if there had been anyone target shooting or driving by shooting. When I went to talk to Doris she was shocked. As it turned out she had shot her pistol at a cat, inadvertently hitting our house. She was mortified and apologized all over the place. I made jokes about blackmail,etc. and confirmed that she could hit the broad side of a barn, but I would never tell anyone what happened if she didn’t want me to. Evelyn ribbed me about watching 700 hours of CSI, but couldn't identify a gunshot hole in the wall! She was the one who made the observation first. We watched a Steve Martin movie and went to bed. I was feeling better but she still had rumblings in the tummy.

Dancing the night away

We slept well again last night and were strong enough to walk before going to the Open Door. On the way we got cash from the bank and took some of Evelyn’s shoes for repair. There were many people serving at the soup kitchen today but no one to give the devotion. I did it and sang a verse from “It Is Well with my Soul”. We left early because Evelyn was not feeling well again and there were many servers. We came home and Evelyn colored her hair--I had used “A Touch of Grey” on mine earlier--and then went for a manicure because she has some nails that are shattering. They could hurt a lot if not strengthened. She came home just in time to talk with Stacy who was hanging some Mexican blankets she had ordered from Mexico. We had dropped them off in April when we went through, and she wanted us to know she was hanging them. We had a light supper and went to the ballroom dance in Clyde. We met several of our dancing friends and enjoyed ourselves. Evelyn felt ok most of the time but we left early when her hip began to hurt. We met a professor from WCU while there and talked with him and his wife about the Mountain festival the final Saturday in September. We came home and made arrangements to meet with the Combs for lunch in Gatlinburg tomorrow. We will stay in Pigeon Forge. We packed our medicine and went to bed. We want to leave before 10 tomorrow morning.

A planned respite

Wednesday we didn’t walk before going to serve at the local hospital. We ate lunch as usual and went to the 6th floor where we were sent home after about an hour and a half. I was unable to connect to the Wifi there and went to Lambuth Hall at the lake to try. No success there either. We came home and relaxed until supper time. After that we walked the lake since we hadn’t earlier and would not be able to tomorrow. We watched some TV and went to bed early. Thursday was the second night Evelyn had slept through the night. I was awake shortly before 6 and paid some bills on line until Evelyn wakened. We then prepared for her to go to her Bible study and me to go play golf at 10:10. I was a bit late and missed the twosome I was to play with but another came along and I played with them. I was horrid. I really can’t figure out why I am so terrible when I was getting better earlier in the summer. I had taken Evelyn to the house of the lady hosting the study and beat her home. I showered and ate lunch before she arrived around 2. She really was blessed at the study and was asked to lead one in September. We both napped a bit and then Phil came to play golf with me for the second time today. We planned to go to Iron Tree but called there and learned it was raining. We had a beer and some salsa before deciding to go back to the lake and play there. I had paid earlier and Phil paid before we played the back 9. I was still wretched. As a blessing it began to rain on hole 15. It was gentle and warm so we went on to 16. The rain picked up and drenched us quite well. That would have not chased us in but when 2 boomers went off, I quit. We scurried back to the car (getting drenched all the more) and came home. The gracious Lord did not allow any more lightning, but I was praying all the way to the car. Phil came in and we changed into some dry clothes before having pizza for supper. Evelyn had called his lady friend (also a friend of ours) who joined us for spinach salad and pizza. We talked until 9 when I had to try to call the Combs to make a rendezvous point in Pigeon Forge. I neglected to mention that we made reservations for us Saturday night in Pigeon Forge. Evelyn wanted to stay there and we booked through Hotwire.

Sleeping disappointment

We slept really late Monday morning and didn’t finish our walk until almost noon. We came home and had lunch later than usual. Evelyn’s stomach was not feeling well so she ate almost nothing. She lay down after lunch while I worked on the computer some, trying to upload some pictures to the drug store to have them printed. I couldn’t get it done. Evelyn made a simple but delicious blueberry dessert for our friends, the Bollingers. We had made plans to go to J. Arthur’s for the Monday night BOGOF. I had made reservations for 6:15. We went and enjoyed our meal. We shared one and asked that one be put into a carryout box. It must have been 20 minutes after we finished and were ready to leave before the dinner arrived. We learned later that it wasn’t even what we had ordered. We enjoyed the dessert and visiting although Phil wasn’t feeling well. We went to bed at the usual time and I slept through the night. When the alarm sounded at 6:45 Tuesday morning, I found Evelyn in the kitchen. She had not slept any during the night. I really worry about what causes that. She took me to the golf course where I met Phil and went on to walk the lake. We played 18 holes with another man from Maggie Valley. Phil brought me home where Evelyn had prepared a nice sandwich lunch for us. He left and we went to the wound care center for another treatment. Evelyn came out and announced she was not going to continue her appointments. I certainly hope the Lord heals her. We went to Best Buy where a nice young man downloaded the ATT update into my new computer. We went to the library and then downtown to pick up some beer Shirley had sent from Indiana for me. We came home and I convinced Evelyn to take an hour nap while I tried again to upload the pictures. Still no success. We finished the Quesadas from last Friday. Evelyn read some while I watched a rerun of the 1998 Alamo Bowl game in which Purdue beat Kansas State. We had been there in person. We were both quite sleepy and went to bed before 9. We prayed that Evelyn would be able to sleep through the night.

Mail problems

We walked in the cool of the morning and returned home where I prepared blueberry pancakes for us. We didn’t eat them until after 10. We then went to work chopping and mixing vegetables for our salsa. We were able to use 2 of our home grown tomatoes. We also worked on making Cajun shrimp potato salad. I peeled the potatoes because Evelyn doesn’t like to use the peeler. I received a call from Vonnie, the woman who forwards the mail from Texas, saying that the local post office here complained to her about some of the mail she had forwarded to us. I wrote a note and talked to the letter carrier about how strange it was that they had delivered many forwarded pieces of mail but were complaining now. He said he would look into the problem. One piece of mail not reaching here is a check from an annuity withdrawal I have been expecting. We ate lunch and had an intense discussion about what I had told the letter carrier. We both rested in the afternoon (we had eaten late) and then went to a benefit for the local fairground. It featured (what else) bluegrass music by 4 different groups, the final being the Crowe brothers who have appeared on the Grand Ole Opry several times. There was also a group of children cloggers and a raffle offering many prizes. We saw two of our widowed and widowered friends at the concert. We praise God for their finding each other after losing their first spouse. I also got a call from the Schwinghammers confirming our plans to attend the Wurstfest for 3 days in early November. I will call and book our rooms tomorrow.

2 days in August

We have walked every day this week. Thursday was hot for most of the day, but we were inside during the morning and early afternoon. Evelyn was in charge of the devotion for the LWML meeting at Fat Buddies. She chose to use a part of the Woman to Woman broadcast from July 4. I was needed to run the computer so the ladies could hear it. After coming home to rest a bit, I talked Evelyn into walking 9 holes at Lake Junaluska. A single lady who had moved from Finland in 1972 played along with us. It began a short rain when we got to green 4 and Evelyn ran for shelter. She stayed there until the ranger drove her to the car in his cart while Tula and I continued the round. I parred hole 1 and went to pot from there, scoring 3 snowmen. We returned home for the evening and went to bed quite early because I was exhausted.
Friday was a bit cooler and busy. We had to work at the Open Door from 11 to 1. We went to the Wal-Mart plaza where I had a Geek try to fix my problem with the new computer. I can’t get on line with it even using Wifi. I thought he had fixed but couldn’t get my air card to work when we arrived home. Evelyn had to go to the wound center again and had to have her wound trimmed again. This causes her much pain. We drove to Asheville, met our friends, carried out some Quesada’s and went to the Arboretum for a picnic. It rained while we were there (but we stayed dry) and stopped before we left for the baseball game. It was another very good, quick game and we were home by 10:30. Being with friends and having activities takes Evelyn's mind off her painful leg. We were both tired from the busy day.

More welcome rain

We walked very early in the cool but humid morning. It had rained yesterday afternoon and again during the night making the temperature fall. It was a glorious cool day all day. We finished and went to the dermatologist to see about getting Evelyn a prescription to stop her itching. We had some left from her radiation back in 2002 but wanted to be sure it was safe to take. He said it wasn’t for itching at all even though the radiologist had given it to her for that purpose. She still has nothing. While in the office, we saw that it had begun to rain again. We ran to the car and came home for breakfast. Evelyn ironed our hospital clothes while I called to get tickets for matinee at Flat Rock Playhouse. They were sold out for the afternoon but had some tickets for the evening performance. I didn’t want to go then but Evelyn did, so I placed the order. We had to dress and go to the hospital where we had a bowl of vegetable soup for lunch. We went to the 6th floor and I tried to get the new computer to log on to the Wifi there. I couldn’t get it to work. I don’t know what is wrong with the thing. I called Jackson National who said my withdrawal check had been mailed July 15. It has not been forwarded here yet. I also called Pacificare to ask for a form to use in making a claim for my eyeglasses. I was on the phone quite a while without the desired results. The nurses said there was little to do on the floor and suggested we go home. We ran out to the door! We came home and rested for the evening’s activities. We also read Rod Woodson’s induction speech from last Saturday. He was a football player in Fort Wayne, Purdue and in the NFL for 17 seasons. It was a surprise and blessing to read his speech. He gave a bold witness as to his faith in Christ and what He had done for him during his life. We were both moved because we remember him as a questionable young man. We praise God for the Holy Spirit’s moving in Rod’s life. Evelyn cooked some green beans the Greene’s had given us last night and ate some pasta leftovers from Sunday before leaving for the play. I also received a compilation of my high school classmates from Kay Frakes, also a classmate. She had asked each of us to send a summary of our lives 2 years ago. About half of those asked responded, and it was fun to read the accounts. One classmate wrote 10 pages about his life as an air force pilot. We ate and left for the play, “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” around 6:30 and made it in plenty of time. The singing was very good although none of the songs were recognizable, but the sets were fantastic. They moved in and out of the stage area and were sometimes covered with a beautiful scrim. We didn’t arrive home until close to midnight.

More welcome rain

We walked very early in the cool but humid morning. It had rained yesterday afternoon and again during the night making the temperature fall. It was a glorious cool day all day. We finished and went to the dermatologist to see about getting Evelyn a prescription to stop her itching. We had some left from her radiation back in 2002 but wanted to be sure it was safe to take. He said it wasn’t for itching at all even though the radiologist had given it to her for that purpose. She still has nothing. While in the office, we saw that it had begun to rain again. We ran to the car and came home for breakfast. Evelyn ironed our hospital clothes while I called to get tickets for matinee at Flat Rock Playhouse. They were sold out for the afternoon but had some tickets for the evening performance. I didn’t want to go then but Evelyn did, so I placed the order. We had to dress and go to the hospital where we had a bowl of vegetable soup for lunch. We went to the 6th floor and I tried to get the new computer to log on to the Wifi there. I couldn’t get it to work. I don’t know what is wrong with the thing. I called Jackson National who said my withdrawal check had been mailed July 15. It has not been forwarded here yet. I also called Pacificare to ask for a form to use in making a claim for my eyeglasses. I was on the phone quite a while without the desired results. The nurses said there was little to do on the floor and suggested we go home. We ran out to the door! We came home and rested for the evening’s activities. We also read Rod Woodson’s induction speech from last Saturday. He was a football player in Fort Wayne, Purdue and in the NFL for 17 seasons. It was a surprise and blessing to read his speech. He gave a bold witness as to his faith in Christ and what He had done for him during his life. We were both moved because we remember him as a questionable young man. We praise God for the Holy Spirit’s moving in Rod’s life. Evelyn cooked some green beans the Greene’s had given us last night and ate some pasta leftovers from Sunday before leaving for the play. I also received a compilation of my high school classmates from Kay Frakes, also a classmate. She had asked each of us to send a summary of our lives 2 years ago. About half of those asked responded, and it was fun to read the accounts. One classmate wrote 10 pages about his life as an air force pilot. We ate and left for the play, “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” around 6:30 and made it in plenty of time. The singing was very good although none of the songs were recognizable, but the sets were fantastic. They moved in and out of the stage area and were sometimes covered with a beautiful scrim. We didn’t arrive home until close to midnight.

more wound problems

We couldn’t walk this morning because we had to go with John and Lisa Greene to Sylva. We picked blueberries at a farm they knew about. We drove 30 minutes to get there and spent about 2 hours picking. Evelyn tasted 1 and thought it was too sour. I didn’t taste even 1. It was not too hot but humid, causing it to be almost uncomfortable in the sun. We picked 9 ½ pounds at $1.50 per pound. We drove back to Sylva to eat at a Mexican restaurant featuring a great buffet. We were following them but lost track of them and followed a different car off the wrong exit. I quickly returned to the expressway and drove to Sylva. We didn’t catch them but did get to the restaurant shortly after they did. We did enjoy the buffet. John drove Evelyn to the wound care and Lisa took me home to get our new computer so she could transfer files from my former computer into my new one. She worked on that for a couple of hours until Evelyn and John arrived. We continued working while they packaged blueberries and snipped green beans. We finally left at 4:30 and came home. They planned to come for pizza at 6. We stopped at the pharmacy to ask what medicine could be making Evelyn itch so much. The pharmacist may call tomorrow with an opinion. I made Evelyn lie down and I put the pizza on the stone, washed some spinach, chopped red onion, bell pepper, mushrooms, and chives for our salad. They didn’t arrive until 6:30 but Lisa went right to work while we ate. She spent over an hour on the phone with ATT trying to install my air card with no results. They left and we worked on our blueberries, washing some but not others, putting them into bags and freezing them. Evelyn has developed another sore on the underside of her leg. She had to have more of her leg shaved off before the treatment. She was hurting, and her leg was still throbbing at bedtime.

Hot day

We walked before church, dressed and drove to Emmanuel Lutheran in Asheville. Our former pastor Greene preaches there on Sundays. We made plans to go with him and his wife Lisa to pick blueberries next Tuesday after which she will come here to help me prepare my new computer. We then went to an Italian restaurant that we have BOGOF coupons for and were delighted. We, as usual, had at least 2 meals left over and brought them home. We had thought we might go to a musical performance at 3 but were both too tired. We took a nap instead. I tried to work on my new computer but found few instructions. Perhaps Lisa can help me straighten things out on Tuesday. We stayed home in the AC because it was quite hot this afternoon. Perhaps we will get some rain early this week. I have had to water the plants for the past 3 days but prefer rain water. We had a light supper and then watched a family movie, “Tuck” on the Soap channel. I didn’t know there was such a channel. Most of the advertising was for Soap Operas coming this next week. We have some errands to run this next week and some volunteering.

A shower in a bag

Up early to walk in the fog again. It was worse today. We went to the small local pharmacy afterward to get my new statin prescription which I should have got yesterday. It is called pravastatin. He is starting me on 20 mg to see if my legs begin to ache again. If not, I will take 40 mg in September. It reminds me of the dentist who keeps putting those little wire tools into the mouth, pulling up harder and harder until it hurts. Then he begins work. We came home and Evelyn made the peach pie she had begun. We had a light lunch a bit early ( I finished the boudin from the girl’s visit--yummy) and Evelyn finished her taco from last night. We then took showers--mine as a regular event and hers with her left leg in a large garbage bag. We tried to make it as water repellent as possible by taping it closed with duct tape. I remember having to do the same thing when I had my losing fight with an 18 wheeler back in the early 90s. She got some water in the bag but not much on the wound. We then took our sleeping bag to Canton where there are large washers. We washed it and then brought it home to dry. We had planned to go to Asheville for the Shindig on the green, but Evelyn has been having stomach aches for a couple of days. It was also a bit hotter than we wanted to endure while watching the performers so we stayed home and watched “Get Smart” with Steve Carrel. It was stupid but did have some funny parts. Earlier in the day I went to Best Buy to get the new notebook computer I had laid away this past Monday. I got it and an external hard drive to back up my files. Meanwhile Evelyn had watched a movie that was good starring Albert Brooks and Merrill Streep. We had checked it out of the library and both enjoyed it. There was a movie on each side of the disc. We had brought it home to see “Looking for Humor in the Muslim world” but liked “Defending Your Life” better. We had hoped to find something usable for our Bible study on Islam we will lead in Texas next winter.

A great ballgame

We walked early again--through a dense fog. We could not see the lake when we began and barely when we finished. It is almost always foggier over the water than elsewhere. We came home for breakfast and a shower. Evelyn couldn’t take one because she had to go to the wound center. They have told her to keep the wound dry. She has to wear a compression stocking as well. She came home and we had lunch. I called Norris’ and told them we were going to the baseball game tonight, and they could meet us there. I vacuumed the floors while Evelyn made a ground turkey taco salad for our supper. We ate half of our serving and drove off to Asheville, arriving after the game started. Dallas and Karen were there, and we enjoyed the game with them. The game was very good too. We were late getting home and to the local grocery where we had to stop for some final condiments for Evelyn to use in making a peach pie. We went straight to bed for the night.

wearing self out

We were up walking by 8, finished by 8:30 and off to the doctor by 9:20. I dropped Evelyn at the church for her Bible study and talked with the doctor. He noticed that since I had stopped my Crestor, my cholesterol had elevated to 243, but my legs ache much less. He will try me on a milder statin to see if it will help me in both categories. He said the X-Ray of my hips showed no problem but the bursitis is still there. I took the prescription to the pharmacy and went home to get my golfing equipment. I went to the golf course and met Phil for 18 holes of golf. It was somewhat warm but the humidity was low, making it tolerable. Evelyn had a good study and then helped package some supplies for the ministry to Ghana. I didn’t get home until about 4:30 and found Evelyn chopping vegetables (normally my job) for broccoli salad. We had an earlier than normal supper of bratwurst, and then I showered. I was really tired and took a short nap while the news was playing. I slept through the weather, the only thing I really want to see. We spent the evening watching a DVD of a study of Islam. We plan to use it as a Bible study when we are in Weslaco this winter. We also watched part of a movie since we have free HBO for 3 months. I went to bed early.

More treatment for the unhealing wound.

After walking we ate breakfast, and then Evelyn cut my hair. None of the scissors we have work very well, but we can’t find the good scissors with the purple handle we had for years. We dressed to go to the hospital to work and had our allotted lunch. Evelyn, despite knowing the outrageous price, ordered a cup of soft yogurt. She was 50 cents over the 3.50 allotment. That would be ok if it weren’t for the exorbitant price they charge for the yogurt. She went to the wound center while I went to the 6th floor to work. I was able to connect to the wifi system and just played around between delivering snacks to people coming out of surgery. Evelyn returned with a compression bandage and some other medicine. She has to return twice each week for 3 weeks until the wound on her left shin is healed. We left the hospital around 3:15 because I saw a severe storm coming over the mountains to the northwest of us. We made it to the car in a soft, warm rain and came home. It wasn’t raining here but had put down half an inch. The storm itself went north of us and hit Asheville and other areas very hard. The winds were hurricane strength. We were following the storm when we drove east around 4:30. I went to the Lenscrafters store and picked up my new glasses. We talked with a black woman who had belonged to a cult called the Way, headquartered in Rome City, IN. This was a town we passed through often. We talked and tried to witness to the truth of the Trinity but don’t think she was led to believe. We were very amicable in the conversation. We went to supper at Long John Silvers because we needed to eat fish. While there Dallas called to say the game we were going to attend with them had been postponed because of water left from the storm. He invited us over to their home for cheese and wine. We went and visited them for over an hour. We really like to be with them. We came home, stopped at Ingalls grocery, bought some grapes and salmon from the west and came home. We went to bed shortly after.

missed appointment

We walked around 9 and then spent about an hour at the hotel uploading some pictures. We didn’t return home until almost 11. We spent some time talking with Doris before coming in for lunch. Evelyn decided to mop the tile surfaces while I went to Doris’ to use her phone. I had to call the IRS to talk about mailing a payment for our back taxes. We owe $842 instead of the $11,000+ that they originally said we owed. Evelyn also watered the plants outdoors. I also called Canton about a Laundromat with machines large enough to hold our sleeping bag. I found one that will work. I also tried to call John Greene to see if he wanted to play golf this afternoon but got no answer all day. I came home, and we both took showers. We also stripped the bed linen for washing and remade the bed. She also did some other laundry. During the late afternoon it poured rain making it impossible to play if we had planned to. I also received a call from the doctor, reminding me that I had missed an appointment this morning. They graciously made another for Thursday morning at 9:30. After supper a sudden wind blew our trash can lids out into the yard. We heard a thump and had to pick them up. Strangely, it didn’t rain anymore then. I watched the Cubs while Evelyn did some repair sewing in the evening.

End of a great visit

We are outside the Atlanta airport. We had a beautiful drive and were there in plenty of time to be checked in. The bags were overweight but some eliminations helped them pass.

Four great cooks browsing in the Kitchen Store in downtown Waynesville. They were still looking for souvenirs.

Playing in the park

The girls swing in the park at the lake. I am glad Elizabeth didn't go any higher. I remember from my childhood playground experiences that it is possible to wind the chain around the top bar, creating a problem for both swing and swinger.

A family surprise

We were up to go to get my blood draw at 9:10 and then to the dermatologist to have him look at her wound that has been healing since June 22. He is mildly concerned and he wants her to go to the wound center in the hospital. They should call to inform us of an appointment within a few days. We went on to town to look for a Laundromat where we can wash our sleeping bag. We could find only 1 and it had washers too small to hold the bag. We just brought it back home. We heated our no-nothin soup for lunch and then worked on making a pasta salad for tonight’s potluck. I did the chopping while Evelyn did the seasoning and cooking of the pasta. She was able to rest some before going to the Ribbe’s for the party. There were 14 people there and we knew 2 of them. We had a great meal and then played a game. She had written scenarios as if from an Ann Landers column but gave us only the final question for us to answer. After we did, she read the scenario. The answers were sometimes quite funny when matched with the story. We left around dusk and walked around the lake. Karen Norris called and we made plans to meet them at the Tourists’ game Wednesday. When we got home, we found some squash on the porch. We assumed they were from the Bollingers and called their home thank them. We had to leave a message. We also talked with Emily and learned that Pieder may take a job in Crane, IN. We think this is where Evelyn’s nephew, Justin works. Perhaps we will see more of them in future summers.

Back to the routine

We slept late because Church begins at 10:30, and we were tired from the past week. The pastor was on vacation and we enjoyed the message from the replacement. We also had Holy Communion where we are reminded of the sacrifice Jesus made for our forgiveness. We came home and ate leftovers for lunch. I spent the afternoon trying to learn the new remote control while Evelyn slept for an hour. She did waken during the night and needed more sleep. I stayed awake but have developed a habit of waking around 5 and have trouble getting back to sleep. I did get to talk to Emily for a short time and learned that she had arrived home and slept from 11 to 11. I had hoped to watch the Cubs play but couldn’t get the channel. When Evelyn wakened we put much of our extra bedding into some space bags and took them to the attic. We decided to walk again around 6:30 and returned home for popcorn and a movie. We have 3 months of free HBO, etc, so we watched Mama Mia. We also made plans to go to some friend’s house tomorrow evening. I published this and went to bed after the news.

End of a marvelous granddaughter visit.

Saturday we were up at 6. We went to Burger King and got breakfast sandwiches for us to eat on the road. We made good time and arrived near the airport by 11. We were able to let the girls play in a park for 30 minutes before going to Subway to buy them something for lunch. Evelyn had packed some sandwiches for their supper since the airline would probably not serve anything more than a snack. We unloaded the 2 very heavy suitcases, took a picture, and said tearful goodbyes. We had to leave, partly because of the heavy departure traffic and drove toward Roswell to visit the Georges for a short time. We called to let them know we were coming and then decided to stop for lunch first. Tom thought we were coming for lunch, but we had decided we needed some fish. We stopped at the Red Lobster near the La Quinta we normally stay in. We arrived at their house just as they were finishing. We stayed a short time because Stacy was at a job. We talked computers with Tom. Peter talked with us for a while, but Olivia wouldn’t come downstairs to say hello. We left there around 3 and drove home. I got sleepy and Evelyn drove after her short nap. We got gas in GA and a Sonic fruit smoothie in Franklin but came on home. As I was getting a beer, I lost my balance and fell in the shed. I may have a bruise on my left wrist tomorrow. I watched the Cubs on TV and called Dish to see why I couldn’t get the Big Ten Network. I learned that the person who registered lied that I could get it. I had to purchase the sports package but that was still cheaper than I had been paying for Direct TV.

A busy last day

Friday morning was clear, so the girls and I disassembled the tent as it began to sprinkle. We just made it before a heavier rain began. I ended up folding it by myself but was helped in taking it down. I couldn’t have done it alone. There was a lot of cleaning up to do from the party but was finished by noon. The girls wanted to continue souvenir shopping so they took me to the Lambuth Inn. I spent the afternoon loading pictures to my blog. I have to go to a Wi Fi location because my computer is too slow. I was just finished when Emily rushed in telling me that they wanted to go to Mast General store which closed in 25 minutes. We arrived just 2 minutes before they closed. They rushed down to the candy department and made a small purchase. We walked around the downtown area and then went back to the lake to play miniature golf. We wanted to get back here by 8 so Emily could pack. She had one suitcase packed so I took it to the car. I swear it weighed more than the allotted 50 pounds. We all tried to get to bed early because we had to get up early tomorrow morning.

Staying away

Today was another big day. After breakfast I left the house around 10 so I would not be around during the tea party. I drove out to Verizon in Hazelwood to talk about their plans for our telephone and air card. Their deal sounds better: more anytime minutes, unlimited nights and weekends, and DSL speed on the air card. I have to call ATT to find out if there is a penalty for dropping them. While there, Lisa Greene, optometrist, came in and took me to Best Buy to meet her husband, John. It was their 20th anniversary but she took time to help me find a deal on a Toshiba notebook. I tried to pay by credit card to learn it had expired. I knew it would but thought it would be good until the end of the month. We called Citi and was told the renewal card had been mailed June 26. I don’t know where it is but was promised another would be mailed to NC instead of TX. I had to lay the computer away but will buy it on tax free day next Friday. It was raining but I walked to the Wal-Mart next door looking for ProActive for Andrew. They don’t carry that brand so I got none. I went to Sally beauty and found a nice magnifying mirror for Emily. It was still earlier than the party started so I had to kill time until 4:30. I went to see how our former friend, Cathy, was doing. She was working in an almost empty showroom and said the store would be a catalog store now. We had prayed about her job last summer and it lasted for almost a year. They have financial obligations and need a job. I couldn’t mess around any longer so I came home. I arrived just before the party ended. When everyone left, we all went to Iron Tree and rented 2 carts to play golf. We played 7 holes before we were rained out. The girls hit some good shots, but Emily did well. We came home and finished the pizza we brought home last night before going to bed.