CHANGING TIMES

My younger brother and his two kids headed back to Virginia yesterday. My brother’s wife just started a new job so she stayed behind. However, the family will be back together for Christmas. We spent most of the afternoon on Wednesday at my mom’s house visiting with them. Later, when our son’s family got in, they first stopped at my mom’s house too to see my brother and his kids before coming over to our house. So, as of Wednesday night, we have the whole family together.

It’s amazing the changes that our fourteen-month-old granddaughter demonstrates each time we see her. Since we spend at least an hour together each week on Skype, we get a good glimpse of her growing up. However, that is nothing like actually being with her and participating in her ever-changing world. It’s amazing how much they learn in such short periods of time. Skype also makes it so there isn’t so much of a reorientation phase that we have to go through each time we see her. She is used to seeing our faces and hearing our voices. If you have family which lives a distance away, you might want to check into Skype. It’s free and it’s a great way to see the person you are talking too via a computer camera. The features are easy to learn too. I know people of all ages who use Skype or similar video conferencing software.

Well, this will be my last blog post of this calendar year. I will post again on January 2, 2012. If I find myself with extra free time, I might blog here and there. So I should say that this is the last scheduled blog post of the year. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and Christmas season. I also hope that the new year is a blessed one. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year; thank you for reading the blog!!

WASTEFUL

I hope you saw the report by Sen. Tom Coburn about the money wasted by the government this year. It seems to me that our representatives don’t have the same values and considerations that we have. As you read this partial list, I’m sure you’ll agree that our representatives spend our money in ways that we wouldn’t even consider. Far too many votes are cast in Washington in order to procure blocks of votes and political contributions. It seems that common sense and judicial spending is a low priority. It further seems that it is presumptuous of them to be called “representatives.” I’m not sure who they are representing when they spend like this.

• $75,000 to promote awareness about the role Michigan plays in producing Christmas trees & poinsettias.

• $15.3 million for one of the infamous Bridges to Nowhere in Alaska.

• $113,227 for video game preservation center in New York.

• $550,000 for a documentary about how rock music contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

• $48,700 for 2nd annual Hawaii Chocolate Festival, to promote Hawaii's chocolate industry.

• $350,000 to support an International Art Exhibition in Venice, Italy.

• $10 million for a remake of "Sesame Street" for Pakistan.

• $35 million allocated for political party conventions in 2012.

• $765,828 to subsidize "pancakes for yuppies" in the nation's capital.

• $764,825 to study how college students use mobile devices for social networking.

VISITING

Well, I didn’t end up hauling the canoe yesterday after all. Our kids took the van and handled things themselves. Instead, I went to my mom’s house to visit my younger brother who is visiting from Virginia. It was good to see him but I imagine I’ll spend most of my time with my own visitors: my kids. Especially with our oldest daughter going to Afghanistan next year for seven months, and being in pre-deployment training for six weeks before that, Eileen and I look to spend as much time with her as possible before she heads back. Each day visiting with her brings a richer visit but it also marches us a day closer to when she will be heading back. Furthermore, our son’s family arrives tonight and the entire family will be together. These are precious moment times for us.

The weather warmed up yesterday and I not only went for a walk but I went for two separate walks. With our oldest daughter here, there are plenty of opportunities to run, exercise, and walk. I generally don’t run unless something very big and dangerous is chasing me!! Even then I would have to hope to find refuge before the run was very extensive.

Eileen is taking a test (Tuesday) and I’m going to “run” a few errands with our oldest daughter. Our youngest daughter has a birthday party that she is attending. We’ll all meet back at the house later. Depending on the time and how tired I am after the errands, we might swing over and see my brother. Christmas will be here in a matter of days. I hope you will have some family around you and I hope this holy day season will be filled with many blessings.

READING

Well, I’m feeling quite a bit better thus far today. I woke up early, even before the alarm clock sounded, after sleeping pretty well. The computer says that it is 48 degrees out this morning so I don’t think I’ll venture out yet today. However, I do have plans for later today.

The three of our kids that are at home are going canoeing today and I’m going to haul the canoe down to the water and back in the van. I’m not actually going to go in the canoe. I’ll find a warm place, maybe have some coffee, and read my Kindle. Right now I’m reading “The Tehran Initiative” by Joel Rosenburg. I just finished “Locked On” by Tom Clancy. My next book to read is “The Craft We Chose: My Life in the CIA” by Richard Holm. This last book is written by the uncle of one of my brother-in-laws.

Speaking of reading books… how is your reading a chapter a day in the Bible going? In 2009, the year I was diagnosed with cancer, I wrote several blog posts dealing with “The Five Pillars of Spiritual Strength.” Pillar Two is read one chapter per day in the Bible, no matter what. If a day is missed then it is to be immediately made up the next day. Anyway, although I’ve read the Bible through many times, I decided to start on the one chapter a day with some of you. After starting on July 3, 2009, we are now in the book of Hebrews with just five books to go. Indeed, it has taken a while to get through it but at least you can just about say that you’ve read it through. If you didn’t start with us, I encourage you to start on your own. Many people read a few verses at a time for a while and then quit. Reading one chapter a day won’t overwhelm you and you can be one of the few who have read the Bible all the way through. It doesn’t matter how long it takes.

WASHINGTON

It’s late Sunday afternoon when I’m writing this. It’s not been an eventful day thus far. I spent most of the day, all but minutes in bed until mid afternoon. I just couldn’t wake up. I think the combination of the cold front, extra anti-nausea medication, and extra pain medication doped me up and out. That was a poor way to spend the first full day with our oldest daughter here. However, the women kept busy and probably didn’t even miss me!! Well, I’m awake now and the night is young!!

I really don’t have much for today but I wanted to make a comment about the new report of President Obama’s vacation. It is reported that his 17 day vacation will cost four million dollars. Couple that with the insider trading done by members of Congress; is it any wonder that there is a great disconnect between the ruling class of operatives in this country and the common folk? These Washington elites seem to live by a whole separate set of laws and rules. It’s amazing that they make laws and rules which govern us and hamper us but they also make sure they can operate their financial schemes without much impedance. Washington will soon be on vacation; that’s probably a good thing for us all.

CHRISTMAS BEGINS

The Christmas gifts are all purchased; all but a few are wrapped; there are gifts under the tree; and the outside Christmas lights are on each night. Yet, the Christmas season really starts tonight when our oldest daughter arrives. [Some might say to me that Advent is the beginning of the Christmas season, but that’s not what I’m talking about.] In a few days our oldest son’s family will be back here again, bringing us all together until after Christmas. We are blessed.

I’m not sure for how many years we’ll all be able to gather on Christmas. Jobs and families become more of a factor each year. As a matter of fact, we haven’t been back to Illinois to spend Christmas day with Eileen’s family since we left almost twenty years ago. Although Eileen’s family Christmas “get together” is on a day other than Christmas, we’ve only made one of those. The winter is not a good time for me to be up north.

There are many other families who will not be together this year for Christmas. I’m especially thinking of those who serve our nation and God in distant lands or faraway places. While we are all enjoying our Christmas time together, many Americans will be on duty someplace around this country and globe. My mind and heart is never far from them regardless of the time of year.

Well, in an hour or so (Saturday evening) our oldest daughter will arrive and thus will begin my Christmas season. A lot will happen in her life in the coming year before we hopefully come together again next Christmas. I hope that whatever starts your Christmas season has already occurred or is close at hand.

MOTHER-IN-LAW

So many people have trouble with their mother-in-laws. The sagas are heartbreaking and frustrating for those involved. I’m so happy that I do not have that problem. One of the most gracious and humble people on planet earth happens to be my mother-in-law. She (Eunice) has never tried to improperly interject herself into our marriage or family but she has ample wisdom for those with an ear to carefully listen.

These past years have been very difficult for her. First, her husband developed Alzheimer ’s disease and it was not gentle. For years it took its toll on the man she loved. Almost two years ago, he died. In a matter of months after his death, Eunice fell and broke her hip. She battled through a hard rehabilitation to only learn that the hip did not heal and that the surgery had to be redone. Last month she had the repeat hip surgery.

Since that time, she has been doing remarkably well. She returned to the surgeon earlier this week to learn that the hip is healing well and all of her restrictions have been lifted. She is free to walk without a walker or cane. She is very happy about that. For an 85 year old lady, her physical and mental capacities are inspiring. Another inspiring aspect to all of this is the way that her kids’ families have helped her through all of this. It is a testament to the type of people that Eileen’s parents raised.

So, it’s good to know that Eunice is back on her feet and ready to live many more full years. She’s a wonderful mother-in-law and a wonderful person. Oh, I know another wonderful mother-in-law…it’s Eileen!! - - - Isn’t that right daughter-in-law?!!

VISION

The Bible teaches us, “Without vision the people perish.” [Prov. 29:18] In this case, vision refers to Divine guidance or prophecy. Certainly without Divine guidance we would wander and be aimless like a ship without a rudder. Vision helps us see where we are and where we are headed.

Most of the aspects of our lives need vision too, not just our spiritual lives. We especially see its need in raising children. Too often parents coexist with their children while making corrections as they go. However, they’ve never really formed a vision of how they want their kids to turn out. It takes courage to be a parent and to make parental corrections of the children. With a well defined vision as a backdrop, the task becomes easier because the parents are working with a map of how they want their children to turn out, rather than just administering to the kids on a moment by moment or crisis bu crisis basis.

An artist has a vision of how he wants his painting to turn out before he makes the first stroke of his brush. Especially in parenting, a vision is necessary to really parent. Otherwise, we are merely co-existing with our children or babysitting them until they leave the nest. The world has a vision of how it wants to turn our children; we need a vision for our children so as to navigate this world safely and righteously.

TIMES HAVE CHANGED

Oh my, how times have changed, and how they continue to change. There is the controversy of Pittman, NJ where the Knight of Columbus put up a sign in town that reads, “Keep Christ in Christmas.” Besides those words almost becoming a slogan these days, it seems odd that anyone would object to keeping Christ in Christmas. After all, Christ is the essence of the very word “Christmas” and without the celebration of Christ there would be no Christmas…or would there be?

Christmas continues its radical transformation into a time for Santa, holiday trees, and gifts. Ever increasingly, Christ is just thrown in there somehow for some. Of course the big offense in Pittman, NJ is that the sign hangs on city property. Thus it is being viewed as government sponsored promotion of religion. The sign will have to be removed.

To emphasize the point, the opponents of the sign have their own sign to put up on private property. The sign reads, “At this season of the Winter Solstice, may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.”

Oh my, how times have changed!!

GOOD SAMARITANS

Did you see the news video of the “Good Samaritans” who lifted a vehicle off of a child in China? It was a great act by a group of bystanders but I’m not sure it was an act of “Good Samaritans.”

The Good Samaritan in the Bible was not just merely a bystander. He acted when others would not. Specifically, he acted when not even a priest and a Levite would act. Although Jews and Samaritans had nothing to do with one another, the Good Samaritan stopped and tended to the presumed Jewish man who had been robbed and beaten. Furthermore, he paid for his extended care. The Lord urges us to do likewise: To tend to those that others won’t tend to. That is a much bigger message than helping some unknown child or person.

It’s good to remember the full context of the Good Samaritan and to not be so quick to label commendable people as Good Samaritans. We would all help lift a car off a child or help one of our own race or religion. However, Christ’s message is to also help those we would not normally associate with or be inconvenienced to help. By the way, this is the same thing that Christ did for us. He is the ultimate Good Samaritan who comes and heals us no matter how unworthy we may be, heals our wounds, and then cares for us paying the debt for everything.

The bystanders in China did a very wonderful and highly commendable act. However, I’m not sure they rise to the standard of Good Samaritans.

HAIRCUT

I generally go to “Cuts-by-Us” to get my hair cut. I don’t know if it is a national chain or regional one. I take my chances with who cuts my hair as I don’t make an appointment. I just walk in and get the next barber/stylist in rotation. I suppose if I ever got a really good cut or a really bad one that I’d change my ways. One advantage of having a different one each time is that the person cutting my hair doesn’t really get to know me. It seems that when one used to get to know me he/she keeps cutting as long as she has something to say. I’d rather they just cut my hair. I’m just that way. If my hair is getting cut or my teeth etc. are getting worked on, I’d rather they concentrate on the job at hand rather than let their mind be divided onto some other subject. Anyway, I was sitting there getting my hair cut, my mind was a thousand miles away. I then looked into the mirror and saw a bunch of white hair on the shoulders of my cape. I was surprised. I don’t really see my hair as being white. But sure as I watched, white hair continued to gather on the cape. I looked at my head and still saw more of an auburn color that I’ve had since my hair turned from red decades ago. When I got back in the car and then when I got home I looked closely at my hair. Sure enough it is much whiter than I had noticed.

I suppose there are many things in life like that. Age and attitude come to mind. They seem to slowly develop and take their place with our bodies without our permission and often without us noticing. While there are some things like age that we can’t do anything about, we can certainly do something about the attitude we carry. One of the greatest gifts we can give our children, grandchildren, and society is to age with grace. Some people inwardly resent growing older and the changes that age deals us. Nevertheless, we can choose our perspectives and attitudes regardless of what happens to us. We may not be able to control everything that happens to us but we need to remember that those events don’t come with an attitude. Attitude is something we actively or passively choose to attach to the events… and we should choose our attitudes wisely.

WEEKEND WRAP

Well, the after-effects of the night out to the parade have been better than I would have predicted. It had already been a bit of a tough several days and I thought I’d pay for the night air adventure although I felt warm most of the time. I’ve learned that even if I am warm enough that the cold atmosphere still has a kick of its own. So, today (Sunday), not only do I not feel the adverse affects from last night but I feel better than I have in the last several days. I’m not sure why but I’m thankful.

Lindsay and her parents went home today and will be back soon for the rest of the month. Our oldest daughter will get here at the end of this week. This is also the last week of school before Christmas break. Eileen will especially enjoy the break as she has had an extremely busy school year thus far.

Not only is she busy with teaching school, being the head of the math department, and committee work but she had an extra heavy load in her master’s classes. Eileen’s finals were last week and Eileen says this is the most relaxed she has been in a while. She has one more semester for her master’s degree. She doesn’t think these final classes will be as burdensome for her and I hope she is right.

This week begins several weeks of being very busy and full of family. It will be great and we are looking forward to it. I hope your holidays are filled with family and good cheer too!!

CHRISTMAS PARADE

It’s more than enough sometimes to fight the effects of Gleevec. Fighting the effects of cold weather makes the battle even less fun. It’s just a fact that cold weather and I do not get along too well. It seems to me that this time of year ought to have a little chill in the air but I’m not too happy when it does. It seems that days which are cold all day long for a few days are better than the days that are cold in evening and night and then warm up in the daytime. I like the warmth but it’s the temperature drop which gets me. I resolved to get out in it a little more than I did last year in which I was a bit of a cold weather hermit. Anything below 60 degrees is rather cold weather to my arm. I’ve been getting out in it but the hermit is calling to me. It’s been a tough couple of days. To make matters worse is that Lindsay and her parents are here.

I usually pass Lindsay around to share the love of our thirteen-month-old granddaughter. However, this weekend I’ve passed her around quickly to give my arm a break. I also haven’t been picking her up as much. I don’t like that but it’s a matter of self preservation at this point. I was in bed quite a bit today (Saturday) through the day. Again, that is not desirable especially when Lindsay is here.

Tonight (Saturday) marks the last event our daughter will be doing with her band. It is the Pensacola Christmas Parade. However, our daughter will still be at work when the parade begins. Eileen and I will pick our daughter up from her work at Kohl’s and drive her as close to the parade starting point as possible. Her band is at the end of the parade so we hope to get there in time for her to do her drum major thing. Then Eileen and I will park wherever we can find parking and hope to see her march in the parade. It will be on the cold side tonight, in the low fifties. This will not only be our daughter’s last band event but it will be my last excursion into the cold for a while.

…we just got back from the parade. Our daughter got there before her band began its trek in the parade. We caught up with our son, daughter-in-law, and Lindsay. We were at a great spot where we were blocked from the wind and among the people. I felt like I was overdressed for a while. The people in the parade threw massive amounts of candy, beads, and stuffed animals. Plenty of stuff came our way. In fact, during the parade our sons were tossing items to little kids in the back of the crowd. We did save back a stuffed animal for our daughter who was in the parade and some items for Lindsay. We had a great time. This is a big parade as you can imagine since our daughter’s band didn’t even begin until the parade was in progress for over an hour. We’ll be back again next year!!

CHRISTMAS SHOPPING

I had a few errands to run Friday afternoon. I wasn’t the only one out and about. The Christmas shoppers were everywhere. Although I didn’t like all the traffic and I sure don’t like being among large crowds, Christmas was definitely in the air. I went into a few stores and the shoppers were busy perusing all sorts of things. It was easy for me to just watch since we have our shopping finished. When I was in Best Buy, people were lined up to get new cell phones. The store even had chairs for the waiting shoppers to sit in.

As I drove back home, I thought about how Christmas shopping has become so involved and expensive. I also recalled the Christmas stories in the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Times have sure changed since parents made their kids’ gifts in their spare time and after the kids went to bed throughout the year. I wonder what kids (and us) would do today if gifts were so simple. I think it would be a shock to many of us. It would sure be a shock to our stores too and it would undoubtedly hurt our consumer based economy. It’s basically two weeks before Christmas; I hope you have time to find the true meaning of Christmas in all the hustle and bustle of Christmas shopping.

DUST

There are some things that I just don’t get. Some of the environmental policies of this nation rank among them. Thursday, the House approved legislation that prevents the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issuing new rules regulating farm dust. It may seem that the House has far more pressing issues to deal with but the EPA is notorious for issuing rules which devastate business and industry. Everyone wants a clean environment but a proper balance needs to be struck.

So who would oppose legislation that keeps the EPA from regulating farm dust? I mean, after all, the farmer plants in dirt!! Well, the bill was passed on a 268-150 vote. What?! 150 members of the House voted against the measure? They’re in favor of the EPA regulating farm dust? That seems weird to me but here is something even stranger: The Senate will likely not take up the measure as the Obama administration has already said it would veto the bill. So farmers, be prepared; the EPA may strike you again.

NEUROLOGIST APPOINTMENT

As the weather turns colder and the holidays rapidly approach, I’m quite uncertain how I’m going to take my pain medications. I could take them like I used to, minus the Lortab, but that leaves me too groggy much of the day. As you may recall, I already fight fatigue from Gleevec, my anti-nausea medications, and from anemia. Grogginess and fatigue make it hard to live the way that I think that I still can. Especially with all the kids home for Christmas, I want to be as energized as possible.

In what seems like a bold move to me, I canceled my neurologist appointment today. It was scheduled for December 27^th. I say it’s bold because he is another outlet for very strong pain killers. Yet, that’s the very reason I cancelled. He prescribes drugs that are a lot stronger than I’m willing to take at this point. Well, it’s not that they are too strong; it’s that the side effects the neurologist is willing for me to endure are a lot more than I’m willing to endure. If it gets to the point that I’m willing to endure more, I can get the goods from my family doctor. One more thing…when I canceled the appointment, I had to leave a message on a machine. Although the neurologist is a nice guy and seems to know what he is doing, he too has poor office management. I’m tired of going to such impersonal places. I don’t expect them to sing “Happy Birthday” to me like the dentist’s office did, but they never seem to answer the phone; I always have to leave a message.

A COUPLE OF BIRTHDAY THOUGHTS

When I found out that I had cancer there were several things that instantly flooded my mind. Besides the prognosis, family considerations, and treatment options, I thought, “I didn’t even last as long as my father did.” He died of lung cancer at age 53. I uttered words similar to that after I got hurt in practice. After learning that my injury was career-ending, I felt as if I had let my deceased father down. He started the practice and he and my mom put everything into it to make it work. After more than two decades, health issues led him to sell the practice to Eileen and me. I didn’t even last six years at the helm before sustaining the career-ending injury. Anyway, similarly, I was initially afraid that I wasn’t going to live as long as my father did either. I was fifty years old at the time of my diagnosis. I turned fifty-three yesterday and it looks like I will surpass the age of my father. Not only do I think of him at various times including his birthday, I think of him on my birthday too.

Speaking of my birthday, I had a dentist appointment yesterday. Our youngest daughter commented to me on me having a dentist appointment on my birthday. I told her that is just the way it worked out. She wondered what the dentist’s office would say. I assured her that they wouldn’t even notice. I got to the dentist’s office and the receptionist greeted me with “happy birthday” instead of hello. Everyone else in the office told me happy birthday too. After my teeth were cleaned, the hygienist told me she would go get the dentist and be right back. Then she came back and said she needs to sit me up first. Then the dentist and all her staff came into the treatment room and sang “Happy Birthday” to me. They also gave me a cute birthday card with a Starbucks gift certificate in it. I suppose they’d be a little suspicious if I scheduled another appointment on my birthday next year!!

GONE TOO FAR

We all know that sexual harassment is not a good thing. In the workplace, true sexual harassment can be an anguished nightmare. Nevertheless, did you hear about the two school kids who are facing sexual harassment charges?

The first child is nine years old. What was his offense? Well, “a substitute teacher overheard him tell another student a teacher was cute.” Therefore he was suspended for sexual harassment.

The second child is seven years old. He was being choked by a bully and so the kid kicked the bully in the groin. Now sexual harassment charges are being leveled at him.

Good causes are often hurt by taking that cause too far. Life thrives in balance and so do the measures we take to protect society. It seems that we have lost our balance and good sense in too many situations. The cause against true sexual harassment is hurt by frivolous cases like these. Once again, society’s guardians have gone too far.

SANTA CLAUS

Did you hear about the second grade teacher in New York who told her students that there was no Santa Claus? Not only that, she told them that the presents under the tree are put there by their parents. The parents and grandparents of the children are quite upset and are trying to reestablish Santa in their child’s mind. One grandmother said, "I think this is awful. If it happened to my granddaughter, I'd tell her [that] her teacher made a mistake, and there is a Santa."

Although we never told our kids there was a Santa, nor did we pretend there was, I still don’t think it is the teacher’s place to break the news. I’m not sure why we think it’s good to start a young child’s life out with a blatant lie perpetuated by parents, but most people go along with the Santa gig. Of course with religious symbols being increasingly banned and even Christmas trees now being called Holiday trees, I suppose it all fits to support the Santa Claus theme.

The article didn’t say what would happen to the teacher. The superintendent said it was being handled internally. I suppose that is the world we live in. It’s okay to teach homosexuality and such to second graders but don’t tell them that Santa isn’t real. In my view, neither subject is the job of a second grade teacher.

MEAT PROCESSING

The deer meat processing went real well. My brother has the right gear to expedite the process and keep the labor light. We brought a couple of chuck roasts to his house that have overstayed their time in our freezer. Eileen and my brother cut the venison and the two roasts into chunked strips which were then put through the meat grinder on the coarse setting. Then all the meat was mixed together and run through again on a finer setting. My brother then put an attachment on the grinder that enabled us to fill packaging bags, a little over a pound per bag. In no time we were finished and on our way back home to put the meat in the freezer. We had spaghetti with the meat today; it was very good.

Although we don’t really like the taste of straight venison, we do like it if it is mixed with pork or beef. We only get a deer every couple of years. On the other hand, every year or so, we get part of a cow from one of Eileen’s brother’s and his wife. After it is processed, we bring it home in a very large cooler. That generally keeps us supplied in beef for a year or more.

Tomorrow afternoon I’m off to the Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway with a couple of friends. This is a nationally known race and features drivers from all over the country. It’s the last race of the season. The race will be in weather that is sunny with temperatures in the 70’s. I think I learned my lesson about the cold weather, regardless of how well I’m bundled. Although I’m feeling better now, I’ve not felt well since that night. Live and learn!!

RACE REPORT

By the time we left the racetrack, the temperature had dipped into the upper thirties. No worries. I was “bundled” and ready. I would do my arm a little differently if I was going to do something like that again. I had too many clothes under my heavy neoprene arm sleeve. It made the sleeve too tight. With my arm already hurting before we even went out, all that pressure didn’t help any. When we got back to the car, I got out of it right away. As for the rest of the “bundle” effort, it worked great along with a thermos of hot drink. I think I enjoyed being outside in the elements and prevailing as much as I did the races. Although the races were filled with wrecks and went late into the night, I had a great time. We left the last race early. I let my other two companions know I was ready to leave when they were, and they were.

I didn’t feel so good Friday morning and spent most of the day in bed…but I’m sure it had nothing to do with being out in the cold last night!! In an hour (Friday evening), I’m going over to my brother’s house to process some deer meat. A friend gave me deer meat that he had recently packaged and frozen. I thawed it on Thursday and Eileen did all the preliminary work on it. Tonight we run it through the grinder and such.

BUNDLED UP

This blog post will leave some of you shaking your head. You won’t be alone. Many in my household are shaking their heads including me! With this kind of weather, cold nights, I am one of the last people you will find outside for any reason. However, tonight (Thursday) will be different. I’m going to Five Flags Speedway to watch the races. Although it will be warmer than it has been the past few nights, it is still too cold for me.

I will be going with a couple of guys who are also hunters. They have given advice on how to stay warm and have even loaned me gear. Yesterday I bought a pair of fleece lined thermal underwear. I didn’t know they made such a thing. I will be well bundled with some mighty fine gear, wearing some contraptions I had never seen before. Most importantly, I have a plan for my arm.

First, I’ll have heat packs wrapped with elastic bandages next to my skin. Next will come my “nuclear” shirt. This is a very expensive but very warm shirt that I got several years ago. I will then put a neoprene sleeve on my right arm that Eileen made several years ago out of a heavyweight diving suit. Then will be my thermal shirt and then another heavy shirt. I will then wear a hooded light jacket and a heavy down coat. For my right hand I will have more heat packs and ski-grade gloves. Of course it’s important to keep the core of my body warm so it doesn’t deplete blood from my extremities to keep it warm. I’ll also be using hunting gear to keep my neck and face warm.

This may seem like overkill to some for temperatures that will be in the forties. However, it is not for me. Will all of this keep me from hurting by the time I get home? No, not at all. When the sun goes down this time of year, there is an atmospheric change or something that hits my arm hard. I’ll get a little more used to it as the season moves along but I know I’ll still feel its full effect tonight. So, I’ll be very much bundled up and see how it goes. I hope I’m not left with my head shaking wondering what I did that for!! Oh yes, there is one more cold weather precaution I’m taking tonight. I’m driving. If I get too cold, I’m heading to my vehicle and turning the heater on!!

BUYING

Black Friday and Cyber Monday have passed for another year. It appears that sales were strong and signs point to a good Christmas retail season despite a very tough economy. Although I’m not one to venture out to stores on Black Friday, I did partake in a couple of Cyber Monday deals from the comfort of my chair. Even though I like to support local businesses, there is a point in which the price and convenience of shopping from home take precedence. I’m sure many of you feel the same way.

Regardless of where we shop for Christmas gifts, I hope we stop and think about what we’re doing. Obviously, there is the “reason for the season” which really goes without saying. Additionally, we should examine what we are trying to do with our buying? Are we trying to buy happiness, curry favor, or advance love with the person we are giving to? Are we so desperate for certain unfulfilled emotions that we will empty the bank in an attempt to secure it? Well, I hope our gift-giving is a whole lot simpler than that and I hope that we remember that “stuff” is not what creates true happiness. There’s a saying which bears keeping in mind: "You can never get enough of what you don't need to make you happy."