August 31 - “Tiny little slider-burgers”

We welcomed back our pastor in church yesterday. He finished up his brief Sabbatical, a trip to Virginia to take Micah to school, and then a trip to Atlanta for a conference. Sometimes it’s good to have a return to the familiar. 

We had some guests for lunch. Kel and his whole crew came over. Kel grilled tiny little slider-burgers to go with the baked beans and mac-and-cheese. Good stuff. 

After lunch we adjourned to the TV. Double baseball Sunday. Astros were on one station. Little League World Series on another. Ezra didn’t want to go home. Gotta love it. 

The U.S. kids didn’t do so well. Curaçao soundly defeated them 11-2. The Astros did a little better. They won 6-3. Woohoo!

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16‬:‭9‬ says, A person’s heart plans his way, but the Lord determines his steps.

Father, thanks for the great day and church and for our lunch with the kiddos. Amen. 

August 30 - “MIA”

Well, I started a new jigsaw puzzle yesterday morning. Finished it by lunchtime. Not that I’m that awesome or anything. It’s only 300 pieces. But Chris thought it was a pretty one. 

After said lunch we went on a hunt. Some more of the clothes we ordered for our Alaska came in. That reminded Chris that we wanted to take our water shoes with us for the hot springs portion of the trip. Hers were no problem. Right where she left them. Mine, however, were MIA. Couldn’t find them anywhere. Walmart time. 

We did, however, run across a random satchel, the contents of which neither of us could fathom. Imagine our surprise when we opened it to discover some winter hats, snow gloves, and long underwear. Yep. That might be helpful. 

We celebrated the find by walking a few miles. Yep. On our indoor course. It was kind of fun, too. Neither of us walked with a definitive plan, so we almost collided several times. At least we got the steps in … 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭46‬:‭1‬ says, God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble.

Father, be with Seaside today. Columbus, too. Amen. 

August 29 - “Death-in-a—jug jug”

Did anybody see the moon eclipse? We peeked at it around 9:30, right before we headed to bed. It had just gotten started. Only about a quarter covered. We slinked back inside, joking that we should set an alarm for about 11:30 so we could see more of it. Chris nixed that idea. 

Sadly, however, the proposition was made out loud. That meant my body heard it. Now, my body is not very good at picking up non-verbal (or sometimes very verbal) cues. It heard. 

So, at exactly 11:48 p.m., my beloved body … woke up. Wide awake. And the first thing that came to my mind? Eclipse, of course. Sigh. Why fight it. I crawled out of bed. Chris didn’t move. Freddy didn’t even follow me. I was on my own. 

I stopped by my desk to grab my glasses and made my way out the back door. Now, I know you are all expecting some exciting twist to my story. Well … I saw the eclipse. About 75-80 percent covered. Yay. And I went back to bed. Sorry. No twist. The eclipse was cool, though. I highly recommend it. 

We started the actual day on slightly different notes. Chris headed to the backyard to water some plants. I eventually followed … after I located the ant spray. Yep. I was going on an ant hunt. 

I made my way from the backyard to the front and every spot in between. I used my steely-eyed vision (assisted by my trusty sidekick glasses) to locate those telltale piles of dirt. And then I greeted the evil little critters with a squirt or three from my bug-death-in-a—jug jug. 

Mission accomplished, I was still fired up. That’s the closest I have come to operating a power tool in years (see a previous post concerning bush-trimming, where use of the anxious power hedge trimmer was nixed by the powers that be. Read here, Chris).  

Anyway, to work off some excess energy, I decided to hit the exercise trail. I did have to move my rocking chair a bit to the side first, but the track was ready. I was off. You know? Walking two miles in a figure eight around the interior of your house is … different. Same sights. Same sounds. I did take the opportunity to switch up the direction of my walk numerous times. That helped. It also helped when Chris came in an and struck up a conversation. But through it all, I made the goal. Two. Took me about 50 minutes, but I made it. Oh, and for the second mile, I added the weight-lifting exercise Chris’ therapist has her doing. Whew! Long morning. 

In the afternoon we became cheerleaders of sorts. We were cheering on the thunderstorm that was threatening. It made a lot of racket, and even eased in with the darkening skies. But in spite of all that promise, no rain. Nada. Zilch. I thought sure we would get some. After all, Chris did her part. She watered the grass …

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13‬:‭8‬ says, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Father, thanks for you for the chance to witness firsthand amazing parts of your universe like the eclipse. Amen. 

August 28 - “CH Day”

Well, it was Thursday again. I know. Seems like it happens at least once a week. But this time we were back in home group mode after being on pause for Chris’ surgery and for our Virginia trip. We have a window here of several weeks before we leave for that really cold trip coming up in October. So we are back in the saddle agin fer a piece. 

But that also meant Thursday has become CH Day - Cleaning House Day. I was up kinda early, so I managed to get in the dusting and sweeping and cleaning one bathroom before Chris got up. I waited on the loud stuff (ie - vacuuming) until I saw the whites of her eyes. 

Of course there was still plenty to do once she was up. She added watering the back yard to the list. She also gave me an intensive tutorial on what it means to fully clean a bathroom. Gee. Did you know it’s more than just flushing the toilet and calling it a day? Who knew?

We also spent some time with old pictures. Basically, we just  verified that the photos still on the picture cards from the camera were also copied onto the computer. Just an extra layer of backup. All was good. 

We did run into a snag, though, when I tried to move pictures from my phone onto the computer. For some reason it just wasn’t happening. I finally determined that it was above my pay grade. Maybe another day …

So … last night we officially welcomed back our home group Bible study. Good to see you guys again (Especially good to know I have a Slug Life buddy. Me and you, Helen!). 

‭‭Colossians‬– ‭3‬:‭1‬ says, So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Father, thanks for the folks in our home group. Bless them. Amen. 

August 27 - “Traffic cop …”

Well, yesterday was Chris’ “Final”Physical Therapy appointment. Why the quotation marks, you ask?  Weellll …

See, she’s already scheduled for 10 more, pending the doctor’s orders and Medicare approval. She sees the surgeon again next week, so I guess it all rides on his approving of her moving on to strength building. Here’s the funny thing … assuming he OK’s the ongoing PT at the appointment on Tuesday, she has a PT appointment already scheduled for Wednesday. What’s so funny about that, you ask? The appointment is for 7:30. That’s 7:30 A. M.  Chris is not exactly thrilled. 

While all that excitement was happening inside the physical therapy suite, I was plodding through my walk routine. Two miles again. I figured up my path. I basically have a quarter mile indoor track, if I walk on every wood floor-looking surface. I am beginning to learn where all the offices are. Maybe I can get a job there someday, directing indoor traffic.  Hmm. Traffic cop …

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭22‬:‭37‬-‭39‬ says, He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. , This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Father, be with Chris as she anticipates this next doctor visit in particular. Amen. 

August 26 - “Piling trip stuff”

OK. Chris has finally entered full-on Alaska trip preparation mode. How do I know that? She has started piling trip stuff on the bed in the spare bedroom. Of course, we’re still waiting for the winter clothes we had to order yesterday to arrive. And last-minute emails have slowly begun to seep in between us and the travel agent or us and the Winkles and the Huntley’s. I guess this one is getting real. About five and a half weeks to go. 

We both tried to get in touch with our exercise side. Chris walked a little around the table, and then went through her considerable regimen of strength-building exercises. 

I didn’t get nearly so exotic. I just did some plain old walking. Of course I did switch some things up. I moved around some furniture and developed a kind of double figure eight course. Ended up walking two segments (one in the morning, one in the afternoon). Total distance finally hit two miles. Whew! Felt like I was gonna wear a path in our office rug. But exercise … check. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭100‬:‭5‬ says, For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever; his faithfulness, through all generations.

Father, thank you for Chris’ attention to detail about this trip. Amen. 

August 25 - “Searchin’ for longjohns and leggings”

Chris was back at it at physical therapy yesterday. She said the therapist really stretched the arm, too. Actually, she arranged it so Chris was stretching the arm herself with her other arm. Ouch. 

As has become my custom during her therapy, I walked around the building’s interior. Numerous times. I was just watching the time Chris was scheduled to be out. As it turned out, my watch measured two miles. That’s a lotta steps. 

On the way home we stopped at Academy. Still looking for some of that cold weather gear for our October trip to Alaska.  Wicking shirt for me (whatever that means. Something about being a wicking base layer under other clothes). We also got a gaiter to keep Chris’ neck warm. 

Next we stopped by the bank. They are gonna get sick of me. Sadly, there has been no response yet on the whole account dispute. They still revert to the promised 7-14 business days window. She did send an email to her superiors and requested an update. I reminded her that $3000 was a lot of money to us … And that the bank IS insured by FDIC. Don’t think it helped. 

Back home we had lunch of leftovers. Then we ordered some longjohns and leggings and hiking pants online.  Our good ol’ local Academy doesn’t carry that cold, cold weather stuff. At least not yet. Man. I’m glad I live on a tropical island paradise. 

‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬ says, For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself. 

Father, be with all our kiddos as they head back to school. Amen. 

August 24 - “Porch Goose??”

Great worship yesterday. 

Our worship pastor’s son and daughter, along with regulars Corey and Krissy and Brennan, led the singing part.  Kel was still on his sabbatical, so the teaching was done by the youth pastor from a nearby church. Always good to be reminded that we worship the same Big God. 

Back home we were greeted by Corey and Janell. They just adopted one of those porch geese and wanted to introduce us. But it was a trick. They really wanted to show off their boogervilla bush. It is blooming like crazy. 

I warned Corey that it was a trick. Anything to get you close enough for it to grab you and stab you with those massive thorns. I advised cutting it down and burning it. Janell was thinking more along the lines of tying it to the fence. Nope. That would involve getting within striking distance of those thorns. At least chop off the branches hanging over the sidewalk. We’ll see. 

Meanwhile, let’s go back and admire that Porch Goose. Looks like it’s dressed for Halloween already. A little early, but hey … it’s a goose. What do they know?

I did some walking in the afternoon. The Astros game was getting more and more out of hand (they blew a 6-0 lead), so I hit the indoor walking trail. That would be the figure 8 path through our office, kitchen and dining room. Went for 28 minutes. Didn’t help the Astros any, but maybe it burned a few calories. 

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬ says, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

Father, bless Jesse and the worship team for their efforts at church. Amen. 

August 23 - “No power tools”

Back in the yard. This time I had free rein over that Attacking Wisteria. Well, almost free. Well, Chris was watching my every move. No power tools (Sorry, Hedge Trimmer. He was sad. Felt very disrespected). All done with hand clippers. And not even hand hedge clippers. All I used was Tree Branch Loppers. One offending tentacle at a time. And after finishing that bush and one other, I was tanked. Oh. And I found out that when Chris says, “We’re done,” she means, “You’re done.”

After lunch and two bottles of water and some Gatorade to fend off the dehydration, we cooled down enough to … go back outside. Chris sat where she could watch the Bird Wars. That would be the ongoing battles to take and/or defend the fresh water in the bird bath. I watched for a few minutes, then went over to the swing. Gotta keep those legs moving, you know? 

After getting cleaned up, we touched base with a few things concerning the upcoming Alaska trip. Mainly, we wanted to confirm our cold weather gear with the tour company. Of course the first attempt bombed. The email didn’t go through. So I did the next best thing. I asked our travel agent. Still waiting to hear back from her. 

‭‭John‬ ‭1‬:‭14‬ says, The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Father, thanks once again for keeping us from getting dehydrated working out in the heat. Amen. 

August 22 - “A brief reprieve”

Chris watered the grass. I helped move the sprinkler. That’s as far as we got at working some more in the backyard. I’m still gonna chop all over that evil wisteria, though. Just a brief reprieve, that’s all. 

Oh, so why the reprieve? A friend of ours from Washington State (formerly of Galveston) was in town. She called and asked to get together for some coffee. She also wanted some help scattering some of her husband’s ashes in the ocean here. It was great talking to Kathy, and I think the scattering went well. 

After some lunch we made a quick Walmart run. We needed some of those $45 bananas they sell. Not that the bananas cost that much, but that’s all we went for, and the bill for the bananas’ cart buddies was $45. Just like usual. 

The rest of the afternoon we watched a Hallmark movie and some Little League World Series baseball. Great afternoon. 

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭19‬ says, Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.

Father, walk with Kathy as she nostalgically remembers her time here in Galveston. Amen. 

August 21 - “Attacked!”

First things first … Social Security checks showed up. Whew! Now we can pay some bills. 

We attacked our overgrown yards. Started early. Before 8 a.m.  Even then, it was HOT. 

Front and back mowed and edged. Used the blower to sweep up the excess. Well … until Chris showed up with a broom and dustpan. Finished up the old-fashioned way. 

Next I grabbed the electric hedge trimmer and headed to the back. There was a two-fold reason for that (in spite of the fact that Chris questioned why I wasn’t gonna use the hand clippers).  

#1 - the hand clippers take way too much energy. 

#2 - The wisteria literally attacked me when I was mowing. Seriously. It was like I was trapped in a cartoon. 

As I attempted to pass underneath with the lawn mower, totally minding my own business, those creepy, long tentacles reached out and grabbed me. First it was my arm. Then my shoulder. Then a leg, then they ganged up on me. Several wrapped around my neck. The more I struggled, the more tentacles gripped me. Tighter and tighter. Another one. And another. Whichever way I moved, there were two more … no three! Aaaarrrgghh!

And you want to know the funny thing about this entrapment (other than the obvious cartoonish struggle I was frantically engaged in)? Through it all I kept my hand on the lawn mower so it would not stop, as if somehow the noise that tiny small engine was making would frighten the alien branches away from me.   It did not. 

Now do you see why I am determined to attack that creature with a power tool? (Oh. Did anybody notice that I switched verb tenses? That’s because Chris put her foot down and forbad me from working any further in the 90 degree heat. So I was put off until today, assuming my body can handle two days in a row).

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭113‬:‭3‬ says, From the rising of the sun to its setting, let the name of the Lord be praised.

Father, thank you for those silly social security checks. That’s a little more peace of mind. Amen. 

August 20 - “Hmm. That’s interesting”

OK here we go again. 

PT for Chris was first on the docket. Well, unless you count the fact that I couldn’t eat anything. I had one of those fasting bloodwork things. Checking to see if I’m a diabetic, I guess. The results have all come in, though. I’m well within normal range in just about every category they could come up with. No idea what all the categories mean, but I got the Chris Seal of Approval. 

I also had an X-ray of my sore shoulder. Aside from the weird positions that were obviously designed to find just the spot that is tender, it only took a few minutes. 

That still left time for me to walk for a little over 20 minutes. I finished up just as Chris was coming back into the waiting room. 

Our other stop for the day was Randall’s. We got a text that one of Chris’ prescriptions was ready for pickup. And I needed a few of the over the counter meds that I take. We almost missed it, but on our way out we stumbled across a very special sale going on. The Monday Madness fried chicken special was being extended just for this weekend. Guess what we had for supper last night?

Social Security direct deposit was due yesterday to come into our new account. But … the deposit was not there. So we went to the bank … again. The teller had no idea what to do. Her tell for when she is stumped is,”Hmm. That’s interesting.” I gotta say, this whole saga has been more than “interesting.”

The only advice she could offer was to wait until one or two o’clock to see if it came by then. Meanwhile, she suggested we try calling social security and make sure they have the right address.  They’ve been sending our deposits here for around 8-9 years. They know where to send it. The bank manager (currently on a cruise) told me any direct deposits would automatically be directed into the new account. Sounds easy enough - naught but a carefully crafted stroke of the keyboard. But the deposit was not there. So I waited. One p.m. Two p.m. Maybe today … 

‭‭John‬ ‭13‬:‭34‬-‭35‬ says, I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Father, please help our bank and now our social security situation get straightened out. Amen.