October 31 - “Two success stories”

Chris’ cancer follow-up appointment went well. All markers and exam points looked good. She and Sherry the nurse practitioner compared skin cancer surgery scars. Two success stories there. 

We did some more investigating on a possible river cruise in Europe. Sounds very strange to even say that out loud. We got so far as to email Belinda, our travel agent. We’ll see how it plays out from here. 

Last night we went to the fire department annual awards ceremony. I did the opening prayer and the benediction. Along with the usual recognition of retirees and swearing in of new hires (with a family member or special friend pinning on their badge), and honoring those who earned promotions, several meritorious ribbons were presented. Perhaps the most well-known rescue recognized went to the crew who rescued the teenagers stuck on the Pleasure Pier roller coaster. Our neighbor Jonathan Cook was presented the award for firefighter of the year. Always a great time to reward the hard work these guys put in every day. I’m really proud of them. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭23‬ says, Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns.

Father, be with our fire fighters and their families. Keep them safe and help them to be … happy. Amen. 

October 30 - “Drumroll here …”

I got started early on clean house day. I mean before 8. Chris hadn’t even made her appearance as yet. Got the floors all swept first thing. Then after she joined me, the vacuuming came next. I gotta admit … the sweeping did tweak my back. Very weird how that sweeping motion gets me, but the back and forth of the vacuum cleaner is not as bad. Oh well. All done before 9. Well, I was. Chris was still cleaning bathrooms. 

We received an email from KayLynn. Sounds like it is time to schedule our next adventure. The email compared two cruise lines that provide … drumroll here … European River Cruises. Oh, and I almost forgot. The cruises are designed to go to a series of Christmas markets. Decisions, decisions, decisions. 

Home group was more of an Alaska Trip Report Time. The group wanted to see our pictures, especially the ones of the Northern Lights. And since we love showing them off … win, win. 

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭13‬ says, He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.

Father, help us find the best river crossed for our next adventure. Amen. 

October 29 - “Let loose LOUD”

We had a very quiet morning. Honestly, I took a pretty good nap at my desk. Chris did some more laundry. And she also did some exercises. And therein lies the story. 

Apparently, while I was lost somewhere in dreamland, she decided to do the hip exercises where she gets down on the floor. She has avoided those particular exertions because frankly, she couldn’t get herself back up. Aaaaand … that almost happened. 

She got down without too much trouble (at least until the last “few inches of so”). But when it came time to rise, she had a bit of difficulty. She said that she called out to me for some help, but obviously her “screams” were more like whimpers. I never heard a thing. She was plenty determined, though. She managed to make use of her weak left arm and that up-and-coming bum shoulder to get herself up. I guess I’m proud of her? I did kinda chew her out, though. I insisted that she let loose LOUD if it ever happens again. 

After lunch we took care of a pretty important task. We went over to the Methodist church and voted. Fortunately there wasn’t much of a line. Someone told Chris that on Monday the line stretched outside and around the building. Guess that’s a good thing. But I’m glad our line was just a few people. Go vote!

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6‬:‭18‬ says, Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.

Father, thank you that Chris managed to get up on her own. Help her continue on her strengthening regimen. Amen. 

October 28 - “Bing! Wide awake”

I had one of those dreaded steroid nights. I got the steroid shots in my thumbs. Apparently done off that juice leaked into my blood stream. It was well after 11 before I even turned off the light and gave up on crosswords. Then my allergies kicked in and I could barely breathe through my nose. No idea what time I finally dozed off. And then … 4:15 a.m. Bing! Wide awake. Legs twitching. OK. OK. I gave up and got up. 

We had to make a Walmart run, of course. We’re still trying to catch up our pantry from our Alaska adventure. Part of the run was kinda just that - a run. Well, OK, a walk. We both needed to stretch our out-of-practice legs. So we killed two birds with one stone, I guess. And I saw one of the fire fighters there shopping. Three birds?

Speaking of out-of-practice legs, for some reason my feet spent the day inside my shoes … throbbing. One of my regular pills is supposed to help with that, but it was almost as if that guy didn’t show up for work. Oh well. Tomorrow’s another day. We’ll see how they do then. 

‭‭James‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬ says, Blessed is the one who endures trials, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Father, bless Stuart. Keep him safe on the job. Amen. 

October 27 - “Ever the vigilant knucklehead”

We started our long doctor appointment day with a blood draw for Chris’ upcoming cancer appointment. At least that’s what we thought. Come to find out, the hospital’s computer had glitched and was only printing out labels about once every 45 minutes or so. Guess it was having a hard time getting going on Monday. 

We finally left there and went across the street for my thumb arthritis appointment. No problem checking in and inserting my credit card, but … the printer was lagging, so I couldn’t get a receipt until the end of the appointment. Hmm. Same glitch, same Monday Blues, I guess. 

I got to see an actual hand doctor this time instead of the usual physician assistant. Totally different vibe with her. Very professional, and certainly knowledgeable. She explained the three surgical options and gave us a referral to her partner who does the surgeries. 

In a nutshell, one surgery fuses the joint so you can’t use it any more. That would cause loss of strength and more wear on the other joint that is having trouble already. 

A second surgery cuts out one bone and puts the other one in a sling. That results in a significant loss of grip strength. The second option is an actual joint replacement that works just like a knee replacement. Of the two, I think I’d pick the latter. This doc did give me the injections as well. Lots to consider. 

After some lunch we headed back to the clinic for my regular follow-up with the cardiologist. 

Older lady (older than me) wheeled in by a caregiver. The aide left her there. Suddenly the lady called out for the aide to stop. Ever the vigilant knucklehead (er … gentleman), I jumped up and raced after the aide. To my consternation, that aide must have been working her power walk. I didn’t catch her until she was outside in the parking lot. She assured me that she would call the patient right away. 

I had just started back to the cardiologist office when my phone rang. It was Chris. I just knew that I had been called back to a room, so I started running again. As it turned out, I didn’t need to. The patient had just misplaced her phone, but found it. 

And of course not two minutes after I sat down, I WAS called back. And here is the scenario. I was panting from my sprint to the parking lot and back. Of course the very first question from the tech? “Any shortness of breath?” Now how was I supposed to answer that? I just laughed. 

Sure enough my blood pressure was way higher than usual. She did give me a chance to catch my breath, and took it again. It was still elevated from my usual, but I guess she was satisfied. I think she wrote down both numbers. I remember wondering what the doc would have to say about that. 

It eventually came down quite a bit. Apparently not enough though. He still insisted that I need to have a sleep study. Great can’t wait. Sarcasm here. 

We stopped by the lab to have Chris’ blood work drawn for her cancer appointment later in the week. She went right back, only to find that the orders were in the system. Fortunately, they were able to contact the office and get them taken care of. 

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭41‬:‭10‬ says, Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.

Father, thank you for our very long day. Please work out all these medical details. Amen. 

October 26 - “A Buc-ees Comeback”

We stuck around for church yesterday. Josh preached from Proverbs 31. That’s the passage about amazing wives. Of course he had to mention his awesome mom. 

In the spirit of sticking around, we decided to stick around after the second service and go to lunch with the family. The exotic restaurant of choice? Slim Chickens. They have a pretty good menu. All the chicken strips or chicken sandwiches everyone else has. Also on the menu are chicken salads and their signature chicken and waffles (with waffles in the shape of Texas). But their pies’ de resistance’ was their fried okra. Nice and crispy, and a huge serving. Any place that serves crispy fried okra is ok in my book. 

Speaking of food … we stopped at Buc-ees in Waller. Not to eat - for gas. We were treated to a few specials there. First, the gas was 20 cents a gallon less than we paid in Waco. Woohoo!  

Then, as we walked in the door, who should be standing at the checkout counter but Haley Luza and her son Rory. They were on their way home from visiting relatives in College Station. Haley was commenting on how long it has been since she had seen her sister. She asked Rory, “When was the last time we were in College Station?” Without missing a beat, he quietly replied, “Today.”  Great answer, Rory. Great talking to you guys!

But about the food. I grabbed one of their newest offerings. Cinnamon pull-apart bread. With lots of icing. The good kind of icing they used to have on the cinnamon rolls they discontinued long ago. I wasn’t really hungry, but I had to try this one. Yep. Buc-ees has made a comeback. Excellent!

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭3 says, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves.

Father, thank you for the surprise chance to ruin into Haley and Rory. Bless them and John and Lexie. Bless that family. Amen. 

October 25 - “Showing off”

We finally got to show our first array of Alaska photos. There were so many, though, that we either raced through a lot of them or skipped them altogether. Those northern lights that spiraled and twisted and swirled never cease to amaze me. 

Zak and Lindsay and her sister Lindy were around for a lot of the day. Lindy had dance at the same time as AnnaGrace, so it made sense for them to stick around. 

Luke’s birthday party was a massive, all-sports tournament at a local park. Like 30 or 40 kids. The cake was a huge chocolate chip cookie with icing splotched on top. Really good 

From the park we went to a place called Shorty’s Pizza. Really good food. Even had some fried pickles. Thanks for that experience, Christi. And Happy birthday, Luke. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭19‬:‭1‬ says, The heavens declare the glory of God, and the expanse proclaims the work of his hands.

Father, thank you for Luke. Keep him growing in you. Amen. 

October 24 - “Where is Keene?”

We took off for parts somewhat north once again yesterday. I have to be careful how I word things since we have been about as north as a tourist can get up in Coldfoot, Alaska. This “north” is not nearly that far. Just to Waco and then to Keene for a football game. Where is Keene, you might ask? Best I can ascertain, it is somewhere southwest of Fort Worth near Cleburne. Thank you, Apple Maps. 

After the required stop at Buc-ees for lunch we continued on. Actually we got there in time to get a second breakfast. Chris had a brisket and egg taco. I had a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit (my favorite food from there since they stopped serving the cinnamon rolls. But I did see that they now have pull-apart cinnamon rolls served hot).  Next time. 

We got to the Waco Vaughan Estate in plenty of time to rest up. As family started arriving, we found out that AnnaGrace was going to a girls’ night with Lindsay and her little sister. Zak was taking her place, though. In fact he drove us all to the game, but he had to pick up Caleb first. Caleb had been to his girlfriend’s volleyball game in Round Rock, and he had been dropped off at a Walmart near her house. That part of the journey was easy enough, but we then had to deal with a lot of traffic. Whew!

The game was an exciting one. Carry and KayLynn were there. So was Caleb’s girlfriend, Chaselyn. Actually there was a really good crowd for having to drive an hour and a half. 

But back to business. It took well into the fourth quarter. But the good guys ended up winning 76-30. Proud of our linebacker. 

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16‬:‭3‬ ‭says, Commit your activities to the LORD, and your plans will be established.

Father, thanks for watching over us on our drive, and for taking care of the guys on the field. Amen. 

October 23 - “A Files”

We spent an hour or two working on our Alaska files. Well, I mean compiling our photos into one folder so we can actually show people and know where they were all taken. Fortunately, our Aurora guide already compiled a lot of them into a video slide show. There are still a lot more that I would want folks to see, though. Especially the ones where the lights are moving across the sky. Can’t wait to show them off. 

Last night Ezra had another baseball game. This one was none other than the league championship game. Fortunately, the start time was 7:40. Way better than 8:30, like the one Tuesday. In a squeaker, the Rockhounds (AKA The Good Guys) pulled out a mercy rule win 11-0. Ezra’s highlight? He took a hit in the patootie to get on base. Way to take one for the team!

‭‭Ruth‬ ‭1‬:‭16‬ says, But Ruth replied: “Don’t plead with me to abandon you or to return and not follow you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”

Father, thank you for watching over the kids in the baseball game. Amen. 

October 22 - “Covering bases”

Chris’ surgery saga continues. She managed to peel off the bandages so she can take a shower. She was pretty excited about that. Still watching that blood pressure though. 

Bill pay day. At least some of them. Of course they are never-ending. 

I received an email from the U.S. government last night. No, I haven’t been flagged for anything (at least not that I know of). Apparently they have already approved my passport renewal application. They said I could expect it around October 28, but it could be as much as four to six weeks. How’s that for covering your bases? Chris hasn’t heard anything yet on hers. I guess I’ll have to do my international traveling alone. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭24‬:‭1‬ says, The earth and everything in it, the world and its inhabitants, belong to the LORD.

Father, thank you for the quick response on my paper. Help them to get Chris’ done, too. Amen. 

October 21 - “Pictures Perfect”

Indoor work yesterday. Chris was restricted to no lifting or doing anything that might cause her blood pressure to rise. Kinda tough when her blood pressure was 145 over 57 just after waking up. 

I helped get some clothes to washing. Then I tried to get our Alaska photos and videos all situated in one spot. Much easier said than done. I managed to get the Google Photos file all downloaded to our external hard drive. 

However, when I tried to download my phone pics to the same place, the computer just wouldn’t cooperate. My fix for that was to put them onto the thumb drive we have for backing up stuff. Plenty of room there … we have never even attempted to use it. 

Next step was to get the pics off Chris’ phone. Nope. Wouldn’t cooperate to transfer directly to the computer.  It took me a bit to remember how the flash drive worked, but I got the ones off her phone and onto that thumb drive. Whew!

We watched a particularly harrowing episode of Ice Road Truckers. Let me put it this way. I’m just glad we didn’t see that one before we agreed to get on that road. 

Last night we made our way into Texas for Ezra’s playoff baseball game. The game didn’t start until 8:30. That’s for a bunch of 8-year-olds. On a school night. The good guys won 10-7, but the game didn’t end until 10:53. Kind of poor planning, if you ask me. And now they have to do it again on Thursday for the championship. 

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭10‬ says, For God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you demonstrated for his name by serving the saints — and by continuing to serve them.

Father, please give Chris some peace to keep her blood pressure down. Amen. 

October 20 - “Oil on water”

Chris has her skin cancer surgery yesterday. She has a spot on her face that they have burned off several times and it keeps coming back. This guy described this type of cancer as “oil on water.”  Instead of sinking deep roots, it spreads out. 

Because of that tendency, the doc marks the offending territory with a permanent marker (so, yes, Chris had a little round circle tattoo on her cheek). Then he slices off a section of the skin and sends it to lab. Meanwhile we sit and wait, usually up to 45 minutes. 

Oh! I forgot. Right after he finished, he handed her over to the nurse (Amazing lady. She had all the pre-surgical instructions memorized). She grabbed the numbing shots, which … hurt. 

When the doc made his incision, there was some residual blood (thank you, blood thinners). So the nurse was suddenly called in to work her magic with cauterization.  That provided another jolt of pain, but it only lasted a second or two. 

While she was finishing up,  the doc took the skin sample to the lab. Back to waiting for us. 45 minutes to an hour was the estimate. And our designated worry assignment? If they didn’t get it all, they would go back in and cut some more, continuing until it was gone. And all that waiting before they even did the closing and stitches. Yay. 

Well … after an hour the news arrived. All was clear. They moved on to phase two: carving the circular patch of missing skin into a triangle, and pulling the skin together, and somehow hiding it in her face’s natural laugh lines. Yep. That’s what he said. My first thought? Wonder if that’s what really happened to The Joker - a face stitching job gone bad (or would it be “gone good”? How about “gone smiley”?). I told Chris she now has to keep a perpetual smile on her face to hide any residual scarring. So if she smiles a creepy smile at you … she’s not really possessed. 

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭13‬:‭6‬ says, Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth.

Father, thank you that Chris’ surgery went well. Help her get some rest. Amen. 

October 19 - “Sheared”

Well, that third big sycamore branch is officially down. I went out yesterday and gave it a tiny tug. The whole thing came crashing down. It’s amazing how that tree has weathered at least one tropical storm, but this is the first time it had shed significant branches. 

Fun day at church yesterday. Lots of visitors, and a lot of them stuck around for dinner on the grounds. I especially enjoyed chatting with an 81 year old guy who lived in Alaska for three years. He “flew security” for the region. No further explanation, but it sure intrigued me. He also used to play in a band that traveled all over that area back in his younger days. 

After lunch, we went over to Suzann’s house. She’s our barber. My turn for a shearing after letting my hair and beard go bushy in Alaska. Sure feels lighter up there. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭68‬:‭19‬ ‭ says, Blessed be the Lord! Day after day he bears our burdens; God is our salvation. Selah.

Father, thanks again for Suzann. Bless here. Amen.