Don't know how well it would fit there as most of it is written from the standpoint of a starship captain (like I said, I use Star Trek as framing device) reading about a famous 21st century American president (me obviously). Everything from his playing football in high school to events of the war that occurs during his second term in office (the military part of the fiction I threw i n). I also put in a part with an ancestor of the starship captain fighting in that war being summoned to meet with Admiral John S. McCain IV (the son of the recently deceased Senator John McCain). But I'll ask the moderators. Thank you.
Sounds very interesting. Just as an exercise you should pick up recent copies of SF magazines, ( I think they still make them) and see if you can't put your stories into frameworks you see in them and then just change the names, who knows.... Keep in mind what Robert A. Heinlein said was the only requirement for a writer: "You must write" and that Ray Bradbury said that the only sure method for a talented person to become a great writer was to write a million words. If you commit to 4000 words a day, which is what Jack London said was a proper writer's output, you will make that in well under a year. Good luck.
Three basic things to talk about. Starting with last weekend. We lest on the 20th to back to visit Amy's parents as she was singing a number at her dad's church that Sunday. We left Saturday morning to to go my dad's house (now mine) and help unload the bookcases that my father in law (Travis) and mother in law (Anne) built for me to put in the living room which Amy has designated as the "library". The bookcases are perfect! They fit perfectly and make flawless use of the space along the north wall. Beginning just inches from the outlet along to wall and ending just inches from where the hallway door opens into the room. Perfectly sized for different types of books. Paperbacks, hardbacks, oversized books, reference books. Everything has a place. I can't describe how much I like them and I made it clear how pleased I was to my in laws. It was also the best cooking my in laws have done for us during a visit in a very long time. I also located the push blade that goes on the front of my daddy's old Farmall Cub Tractor. I had wanted to restore the Cub for years and hopefully one day be able to drive it in the annual Pine Tree Festival Parade in Dierks. The Cub tractor currently sets in the garage up there with its sickle bar mower attached. But I have always wanted to display it with the push blade on the front instead. The last time we were up there I couldn't locate the blade and I was convinced someone had stolen it. It is lightweight enough that two people could probably load it in the back of a pickup though the only thing they could've used it for was for scrap metal. But during this last visit I located it. Just about 30 yards from where I thought it was. It has a huge thorn three growing up through the center of it so it couldn't have been stolen even if someone did come by and decided to (unless they brought a chainsaw). I've having Scott Lowery (guy who rents my land) move it to the garage so I can work on stripping the rust off of it before repainting it one day. I had worried that I would have to purchase an entirely new push blade which would've set me back more than 600 dollars. I also found out the land I'm interesting in buying just south of my dad and grandfathers land is a lot larger than I had expected. The land my daddy's farm is on was once part of a single 160 acre homestead. It is now divided to my dad's land (53 acres) that I own. About 47 acres that had belong to my grandfather that my middle sister owns and rents to Scott Lowery, About 20 acres that was owned by my dad's aunt that is now owned by her grandson and is rented to my dad's cousin. And my dad's uncles land of about 40 acres that is now owned by daddy's cousin that is rented to a former acquaintance from our old church who uses it solely to produce hay. My goal is to bring all 160 acres under my ownership or at least my owning and renting. But that isn't enough to one day build a farm to raise sufficient cattle for a self sustaining cattle operation. I need enough land to support about 400 head of cattle minimum. So I had thought about purchasing the land south of those four parcels to Caney Creek. My father in law (who worked for decades for Weyerhaeuser and knows how to read maps) was looking at a detailed map of the area and he told me that the land south of the parcels to Caney Creek looks like about 200 acres to him! That would be more than enough to build a viable cattle ranch on. Probably by a decent margin. Now I just need to find a way to afford to buy that land from Weyerhaeuser CHEAPLY and then hire a medium sized dozer to clear it for pastures, probably another couple of ponds and other improvements. It would be the job of the rest of my life and my wife Amy doubts my abilities to pull something like that off but I still like to think about it. All for the moment.
We had Lane family Christmas Saturday the same place we've had it the last three years. At Amy's nieces' home in Hot Springs. It was just at the Christmas celebration last year that we had found out about Camille's (Amy's nephews youngest daughter) tumor on one of her kidney's prompting the surgery to remove the tumor and kidney and later the chemotherapy. Last year was Camille's first Christmas. Well this year was her first Christmas celebration. She was there along with the other 30 members of the Lane extended family. Her health is now considered completely cleared with everything well and her growth and stuff normal. She has a bit of an attitude. Loves to snap "NO!" at people over things she doesn't want to do. She won't have anything to do with me though they does know who I am and will point me out. Amy says its because she sees our pictures in the family albums a lot. Overall things went just about as good as one could hope. I didn't get too tired on the long drive up there and subsequent drive back. The weather was cool but clear and dry thought it rained on Friday and is raining even heavier today (Sunday). A pretty cold rain overall. We're about two weeks away from our next family Christmas together. At Amy's parents on Christmas Day and hopefully my families Christmas celebration on the day after though there is no guarantee my family will be meeting due to one of my sisters Covid-19 fears. She is a Type 1 diabetic with attendant health problems and her husband is in his 70s. All for the moment.
I'm excited about this weekend. It turns out my immediate family is getting together for Christmas after all. At my oldest sisters house in Texarkana. My middle sister's only child, her 37 year old daughter, her husband and their three daughters (whom I miss terribly) won't be there, and its possible my middle sister might not come as well but most everyone else should be there. Especially my oldest sister Debra's son and his four young children. Three sons and a baby girl that we've yet to see. His youngest son was just a tiny baby at last years Christmas celebration and spent much of the time laying on my wife (Amy's) chest and napping. It will be nice to see them again. Wish everyone was there but in light of events (virus) I can't really ask for anything more. It has been unusually warm here since Monday and is supposed to be warm on Wednesday as well but Thursday and Friday the temperature is supposed to plunge by more than 20 degrees in both highs and lows before it turns around again on Saturday. All for the moment.
I'm depressed. I found out that Randy Hughes, a former preacher for Liberty Hill Church of Christ died yesterday at the age of 71. I knew he had lymphoma and wasn't doing that well but I had prayed for him almost daily. I hadn't seen him in a number of years. I last heard from him when he messaged me liking a letter I had published in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. I'm really bothered by this. It is like 2021 is starting off the same way 2020 started out. Last year I prayed and prayed and prayed that Camille wouldn't have to have chemotherapy but she ended up requiring it anyway. And this year an even worse result with Randy Hughes dying. And unlike Camille, Randy Hughes will not recover from that. I find it troubling when I pray for something for someone else's benefit with completely innocent and honest motives yet God doesn't answer my prayer as I hope for. It makes me wonder what good my prayers are doing and that bothers me more and more. Especially as my prayer list is a long one. My sister Debra called today and she has Covid-19. All of us were at her house for Kitchens family Christmas last Saturday. So I guess I'll try to stay isolated for another 6 days to bring me up to the official two week quarantine period. Though I had already lost an aunt (in the nursing home) to Covid-19 this really seems to "bring it home". Last Sunday I was at Westside Church of Christ in Dierks. Marvin Hill turned 106 years old that day. And he has already had Covid-19. I would really like to visit him but until this disease is beaten back I know I won't be able to. Marvin gave me my first dog back in the 1970s. Blackie. Overall it was the best Christmas I've arguably ever had gift wise. I got a record player, a tri fold binder, a novelty Monopoly set (the White House race inspired "Divide and Conquer") and a Democrats vs. Republicans chess set. My sister Donna got me a really nice sweater and long sleeved shirt while my sister Deanna got me Seasons 1 and 2 of The Waltons on DVD. Last Friday when Amy, Annalee and I got back to Amy's parents house we took my shotgun down to the creek behind their house (Bear Creek) and fired off five shots of the Dragons' Breath Incendiary rounds that I got two packages of a couple of years ago at Christmas. I had always wanted to cut loose with the rounds at night so I could appreciate the plume of fire effect better. I fired the first round, Annalee fired the next two and Amy the last two. The light and sound was even more impressive than I dreamed of. I was surprised that Amy enjoyed it so much. She had worried that the recall would hurt her shoulder but that turned out not to be a factor. All for the moment.
I'm so depressed. I ran over a dog, a puppy and killed it this evening just not far from the house. I was just going to the convenience store when it ran out into the road. I wasn't going fast at all but I barely saw it and never had a chance to use my brakes. I didn't hear it cry out but there was an awful noise when both sets of wheels hit it. At first glimpse I had thought it was a cat but when I circled back to see I saw it was a dog not much smaller than Murphy. I grabbed its tail and pulled it clear of the road then made a picture of it in the dark with my phone. Once I got back in the SUV I figured I could pull up by it and get a better picture with the headlights on. For some reason I wanted to at least memorialize the poor thing in some way. While I was doing so a man came from the house across the street. It was his dog. He said he had asked his wife to put it up but she hadn't. Then his wife came out and was crying terribly. Upset. Then their little girl just a few years old came out there as well. None of them seemed to blame me for running over the dog (Paws, because he had four white paws. He was just 10 weeks old). I apologized profusely anyway. I've run over dogs a couple of times before over the years and it has upset me tremendously. I hate to think of being the cause of an innocent animals death. Especially someones pet. The man said Paws was going to be his squirrel dog. A terrible way to end a day that aside from being too cold had been a decent one. I went to church this morning and took some treats for the old man Lynn whose two dogs come with him and stay in his truck. He has a large half wolf named Viola that I've been trying to make friends with and a German Shepherd puppy named Elvis. I gave them both treats and petted Elvis briefly. Viola still barks and snarls viciously at me but she'll take treats from my hand and licks my hand occasionally. Lynn is a stereotypical weird old guy who lives alone but he seems to have a pretty good heart. All for the time being.
It’s horrible to run over animals but not your fault if people don’t restrain them. Especially if it’s an impulsive pup.
Randy Hughes obituary LITTLE ROCK – A well-known educator, school administrator, businessman, basketball official and speaker passed away New Year’s Day. Randy Hughes, 73, of Maumelle died in central Arkansas, but left his mark in southwest Arkansas. Hughes was a native of Delight, where he played on 2 of the 3 undefeated state championship basketball teams, and earning basketball All-District and All-State. After high school, Randy attended college at Harding University and graduated from Henderson State College (now University) in Arkadelphia where he also met Karan Bowline who soon became his wife. He was also an athlete and leader at college: captain of Reddie Baseball team, president of Men’s Council, statistician for Reddie football team, member of Phi Lambda Chi, named to Who’s Who of American Colleges and twice earned Scholar-Athlete Award. In 1971, Randy and 2 others established Dox Sporting Goods in Nashville, which became a successful business and expanded to include a clothing store. His brother, Kenny, bought out the other partners, and they worked side-by-side for years until they sold the business. With an eye to the changing needs of the community, Randy then opened Hughes Printing, another successful business until it burned one Sunday during an historic fire that destroyed almost a whole city block. Randy was instrumental in establishing other local businesses in Nashville including the Sonic Drive-in and Tastee Freeze. Randy loved sports and was a basketball official for many years calling junior high and senior high basketball games and tournaments. Through Dox, he organized the first recreational softball teams and tournaments in Nashville. Serving as the first Nashville City Park director, he secured land and began the development of what is now Nashville Parks and Recreation. Randy changed career paths after the store fire and entered the education world as a teacher in Blevins. He earned a Master’s Degree in Education from Ouachita Baptist University and a Specialist Degree from East Texas State University and became an elementary principal (his favorite job) and then superintendent at Blevins and later at his hometown of Delight. During the years in Delight, he was involved in many roles in the community and was named “Citizen of the Year.” As superintendent, he was one of 25 Arkansans appointed to the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Commission for Education. Through his 25 years in education, he served as president of Arkansas School Business Officials, president of Arkansas Rural Education Association, and was president-elect of Arkansas Education Administrators Association before retirement. “In the school districts in which he worked or called ball games or preached, he knew everyone’s name and made each person with whom he came into contact feel valued and important. Randy touched many lives and was appreciated by pre-schoolers through professional adults as a man who had earned respect for his strength of character and authenticity,” according to a statement in the announcement of his passing. After retirement, he and Karan moved to Maumelle, and Randy became involved in jail and prison ministry and served as a volunteer prison chaplain at Ouachita Regional Correctional Facility in Malvern and then at Cummins Prison in Grady. “As a servant of Jesus and loving people, he always expanded the lives of those around him. He made things larger by showing genuine personal interest in individuals, regardless of their situations. He was a valued member of every community in which he lived or worked, ” the statement said. The statement added, “Throughout his life, Randy’s heart was always pointed toward the Lord on whom he depended. Randy taught classes and preached at several small congregations in southwest Arkansas spreading the good news of Jesus Christ. He loved church history, and he and Karan journeyed to many places to visit sites that he learned about. He treasured his time studying the Bible and traveling to various cities to attend Bible Lectureships or hear good preaching or on mission trips. More than anything, he loved that he had studied with and led others to the Lord. He was a humble and gentle soul who had a true servant heart. Randy Hughes lived a life of significance.” Unquote. Randy was born March 4, 1947 and died January 1, 2021. He is preceded in death by his parents and one brother, Kenny, and a brother-in-law, Donald Holmes. Randy is survived by his wife of 50 years, Karan; two sons, Toby and Hayden (Tarah); a sister, Carolyn Holmes and a brother, Howard (Dottie) Hughes; four grandchildren Hunter, Hannah, Macey, and Lincoln; nieces, Missy Hale, Kim (Richard) McClain, Jana (Jon) Howard, Jamie (Jarrod) Lowery; nephews, Mitch (Cindy) Hughes, Jade Hughes and several great-nieces and nephews and cousins and a host of friends. Memorials may be made to the Carla Wilmon Scholarship Fund at Harding University or to the American Cancer Society or the charity of your choice. A memorial service will be planned for this spring. Arrangements are under the direction of Latimer Funeral Home.
Just found out that Marvin Hill, who turned 106 on Dec. 27th and that I referred to wanting to visit in post #106, died at the age of 106 yesterday. So obviously I'll never get to see him again now. I am planning on going to his memorial service on Monday. He is being buried in the same cemetery that my great grandparents, one of my aunts and various other family members are buried in. I know it's a good thing to honor a man by attending his service that had such a long life but I would so much rather have met with him again before he died instead. Now that will never happen. Seems all I do is write about tragedies. All for the moment.
Found out a couple of days ago that my first cousin, Scott Kitchens has kidney cancer. He had his right kidney along with the tumor removed on Tuesday in Little Rock. I heard he was going to come home yesterday. It will be some time though before he gets the results of tests. He and his family have always been close to mine given my uncles family always lived close to us (and in the early days actually lived just across the road from my parents house). His son served in Iraq in disarming IEDs and was killed in a motorcycle shortly after returning to the United States back in summer of 2005. I've altered my daily prayer to include him of course. We went to the Marvin Hill visitation and graveside service on Monday of course. It was a nice one. Given he had lived such a long and full life there were virtually no tears. All I could tell was about how he had given me my first dog in the early 1970s (Blackie). I found out he killed a Buffalo a few years back when he was 99. He was always big on traveling to Colorado every year to go hunting. The guy married to Marvin's niece, Coach Richard Johnson was there of course. He was the defensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Dierks. And he went to church at Liberty Hill Church of Christ for many years and taught the main adult class there. He told me though he couldn't tell me this 36 years ago but I was his favorite player at Dierks. He sounded really sincere and I've got to admit that it made my day. In separate phone conversations this last week with two of my sisters I found out our grandpa (daddy's father) was a mean drunk when he was younger. I knew he drank though apparently he largely stopped when he got older when I knew him. Put's his tolerance of his younger sons (Scott's father) drinking in an entirely new light. On Sunday I had a great day at church. Brother David Bailey's sermon was very good and I got to do the closing prayer. And I didn't mumble or stutter any. After church I went out with Lynn to his truck and gave both Elvis (his German Shepherd puppy) and Viola (his immense half wolf dog) some dog treats. Both took them eagerly. For some reason I wasn't too cautious and reached through the window to pet Elvis after he took my treats. Surprisingly, Viola made no move to bite me though she growled some. Then Viola leaned up and bumped her nose against mine! A far cry from a few months ago when she used to hang her head out the window of his truck and snarl viciously at me and snap her jaws. Since we didn't go up to Amy's parents last weekend and Camille birthday party is on Sunday we're going up this weekend. We plan to work at the house as well. Probably throwing away stuff from the back porch. The only regrettable thing about the upcoming overnight trip is that I'll miss seeing the Tampa Bay/Green Bay game. I'm hoping Tampa Bay wins of course. All for the moment.
I was supposed to have a CT scan on my legs on Tuesday to check the circulation there but the pre procedure lab test showed my kidney function was not what it should be and that they couldn't do the test. I'm supposed to see my heart doctor next Friday. I heard that taking Metformin for diabetes might cause reduced kidney function. Amy had her liver biopsy on Thursday. We stayed at Annalees the night before. Surprisingly they only gave Amy a local anesthetic and while she was in recovery she was in absolute agony. She said it hurt worse than any of her kidney stones ever did (she had several of those). A guy who might end up as our building contractor in the remodeling of my dads house is planning to come by and look at it on Tuesday. Toward that end Amy and I are going up there tomorrow after church to do some quick clean up of areas I know he'll have to look at such as the old bedroom in the center of the house that we jokingly call the "crazy kid room". I'm sure he'll have to look in there because its one of the two rooms with one of the major breaker boxes in the closet. I'll be glad to get an estimate about what this project is going to cost us. Because once the bulk of it is complete Amy, Murphy and I can move in there effectively permanently. All for the moment.
I just found out that former head football coach at Strong Jerry Langston is in the hospital with Covid-19 and is in bad shape. I worked under him for two years at Strong and many have said he still speaks highly of me. He was one of the best bosses I ever had. He has always been more than willing to give me good job recommendations in the past. I've always liked him a great deal and now thanks to this accursed virus not only is his life in danger but I can't even go see him. It seems this entire last year or so has been people dying that I care about. I'm not sure how I can stand it. I can (and do) pray for all these sick people but over the last year it seems the success rate of my prayers has not been that great. Glad we're on the last day of January. The month of the year I hate worst or nearly worst (along with August)is over . Maybe February will be better. I was sick at my stomach at about 6 this morning and felt pretty puny a big part of the morning so I didn't go to church. Hope that has passed. Amy has mostly recovered from her liver biopsy at least. All for the moment.
Pictures I made of "Paws". The 10 week old puppy I ran over on January 10th. I've always thought every pet should be remembered in some way even if it wasn't mine. Like Annalee said when our first dog (who was still a puppy), Dixie was run over and killed in spring of 2006 (something I blame myself for as I was the one that put her outside that afternoon), anyway, Annalee said "Every dog should have a funeral".
Haven't updated in a few days. Last Saturday we went to Annalee's to stay overnight and take her out to eat for her 21st birthday. She enjoyed it of course. I slept better up there than I have in ages. On Sunday morning Amy and I drove on up to Augusta for services at Augusta First Baptist Church. The church we attended for 6 years or so and still have many friends at. It was enjoyable. I wanted to leave the area early enough to get home well before the Super Bowl started but that didn't happen. I missed half the first quarter but there wasn't any scoring anyway. Get this, as we were preparing to leave Annalee's my oldest sister Debra called me. She said she had a question. I figured she was calling about my recent and upcoming medical tests. Or asking about Amy's liver biopsy. Or asking about my disability benefits. Or even asking about our efforts to restore daddys house. She asked me about Star Trek. She said she had seen Star Trek and Star Wars and liked Star Trek better. She said she and my second oldest sister Donna had watched Star Trek on NBC in the late 1960s when it first came on and she wanted to know what kind of science fiction series came on before it. I was stunned. All these years I thought I was the only one in our family that ever liked Star Trek. My mom and third sister (still older than me) had absolute disdain and loathing for it but I never dreamed two of my sisters had watched the original series when it came on and liked it. I later called my sister Donna and related the conversation to her. She confirmed that she and Debra had watched Star Trek when it first aired. She said momma didn't like them watching it because she thought it was scary. Donna said she was scared by several episodes (like "By Any Other Name" where Warren Stevens played the Kelvan leader who led he takeover of Enterprise and they reduced most of the crew to those small dedocohedron foam blocks). I would never have dreamed of that. It is amazing that I'm 53 years old and finding out new things about my immediate family that I would never have dreamed of. This was a bigger surprise than recently finding out my grandfather (daddy's father) was a mean drunk. I had known that he had drank a lot in the past but I thought he was the "happy, jovial drinker" kind of guy. Not that he was mean spirited and that grandmother wanted to divorce him but she didn't have the money. My immediate family and I have always been close knit but it is amazing the revelations that I keep getting about them I enjoyed the Super Bowl immensely. I had hoped Tampa Bay would win and I figured they had a real chance but I would never have predicted they would blow Kansas City away like that. Well, my next big football events will be the draft and when the first NFL magazines come out in late spring. I had the stress test on my heart on Tuesday. While long and tedious it wasn't particularly bad. I went to my regular doctors appointment on Wednesday and got the results of various tests from the week before. First the good news: My A1c level (long term blood sugar) has dropped to 7.1, down from 8.1 last November. In fact it is the lowest A1c level I've ever recorded. My cholesterol level was down as well. And I've lost three pounds. Now the bad news and it is legion: My blood pressure is skyrocketing. Reasons unknown. My calcium level is dropping. My thyroid level is way too low. My doctor said it looks all the world like I'm malnourished. Not enough protein. All she could suggest was a multi vitamin. I haven't seen the kidney specialist yet (nor do I have an appointment yet) but she was reluctant to change my medications until I do. Lots to consider. The temperature here is dropping rapidly and it is projected to be below ten degrees for the low on Monday. I put more antifreeze in the pickup and some in the car but Amy's SUV looks fine. I hate this cold weather. I was having enough trouble staying war when the lows were in the 30s. Amy and I had long considered flying down to Dallas next weekend for out 23rd anniversary trip. We were going to fly from Little Rock to Love Field and stay in a Hotel a couple of nights. We were mainly going to shop and eat at some nice places. But the price of the return tickets skyrocketed and we decided we couldn't justify the expense just for a 23rd anniversary trip. So instead we're going to spend a night in Hot Springs. I'm planning on eating some lobster and I have several places in the area. I've never eaten lobster before and this fits in with my vow over the last year or so to try more foods. All for the moment.
My daddy died four years ago today. Four years on and I still miss him. As do Amy and Annalee. I was at the Augusta city park letting Murphy run on her tether when I got the call from Donna. And it still seems like every day a new memory or new revelation regarding daddy comes to the forefront. Hopefully the ungodly cold and icy winter weather are gone for this winter. The cold weather shot down two more of our 23rd anniversary plans. The bad roads kept us from going to Annalee's, leaving Murphy there and then driving down to Hot Springs and spending the night after shopping. As yet another plan on Saturday we tried to drive to Texarkana but the partially melted roadway was ungodly rough. Too rough so Amy suggested we turn around at Magnolia and come home, which we did. Ironically we came back through Stephens and Camden and stopped at the Stephens Dollar General and unbelievably found many of the things we needed and wanted. The library was closed on Monday so Amy and I went to Little Rock to pick up some round wooden tray she needed for one of her craft projects she does for other people. We took the opportunity to go to Red Lobster where for the first time in my life I had lobster (and scallops). I had never eaten either before. It sure was expensive but we simply ordered one entree and split it. Surf and turf. Amy ate the steak where as I had the lobster. We split the scallops. Both were better than expected. Amy said she was proud of me. Eating lobster and scallops was part of my self improvement thing that I've been working on for the last year or so. And I've added Bell Peppers to the vegetables I'll eat so I'm back up to 9 different vegetables which (for some unknown reason) has been my goal. My goals of smiling more and being more pleasant is off to a much slower start. Unbelievable that this time last week the low temperature was in the single digits while the highs was only in the teens. Now the lows are just under 50 with the highs over 70. I'll take that any time. All for the moment.
Not much to report lately. Murphy has gotten loose a few times recently due to problems with her old harness. And then her new harness suffered a failure. I'm fired of the physical strain and mental stress of chasing her down (though it wasn't to bad the last couple of times). And with how those soft snacks allowed me to make friends with Lynn's half wolf dog Viola, I decided that mainly those same treats could help me with Murphy. A few years ago, a guy who goes by the name @ed629 over at wordforge.net suggested how I could modify Murphy's behavior even once she was grown. So I've started using his suggestions when we go talking (with her on a long leash) and it seems to be working well. Looking forward to time springing forward this weekend. It will be nice where if we leave for Amy's parents after Amy gets off from work that we can make most of the trip before dark. Though I might not think that when the temp exceeds 90 degrees or so. All for the moment.
Amy and I finally had our long delayed "anniversary trip" this last weekend. After Amy got off work in Friday we left to drive to Annalee's. We left Murphy there and went to the Bear Grill in North Little Rock for supper but it wasn't nearly as good as last year when Annalee took us there for Father's Day. We came back and spent the night at Annalee's. On Saturday morning we ate at IHOP in North Little Rock and then left for Hot Springs. I wasn't feeling all that well after we left IHOP but I persevered. Turns out the used book store I had hopes of visiting in Hot Springs apparently wasn't there anymore so that was the first big disappointment. After awhile we managed to check into our room at the LaQuinta Inn. We ate at the Blue Monkey Grill next door and Amy suggested we go to a movie. We went to see Wonder Woman 1984 which we enjoyed far, far more than either of us expected. I ate so much for supper and then M & Ms and coke at the theater that I nearly got sick when we got back to our room. Fortunately that didn't happen. After my stomach settled down we spent some time in the big jacuzzi tub in our room. We both enjoyed it a lot. The tub was just the right size for the both of us. On Sunday of course we headed back to North Little Rock to pick up Murphy and head back to Smackover. All of which came about all right. All for the moment.
Bad news all around. I'm suffering from Stage 4 kidney disease. Kidneys only working at 20% efficiency. Apparently the doctor can see dialysis in my future. I'm supposed to have a biopsy on my kidneys on April 12th. Amy is terribly upset but what can you do? Aside from more exercise and a better diet there isn't much I can do to improve things. All for the moment.
My kidney biopsies have been put off until April 16 which has caused all sorts of complications to mine and Amy's planning. Not to mention that starting Friday (one week prior to the biopsies) I can't take any painkillers that might serve to dilute my blood. So I can only hope I'm not hurting much during that week for any reason. I met with a plumbing contractor yesterday at daddy's house and he made me a great offer to fix the plumbing there that I agreed to. But now there is a much bigger problem. It turns out that how daddy put in his septic tanks at the house might be against regulations and thus prevent the rural water association from approving the installation of a new water line there. It could cause a laundry list of complications. I have seriously fears that I will never be able to get daddy's house fixed. Or at least that if it is possible that it turns out to be way too costly. At least I've three pretty good nights sleep lately.
Leaving for Sherwood (Annalee's townhouse) before my kidney biopsy on Friday morning. Not looking forward to it but it can't be avoided. At least I'll get to see my two oldest sisters on Friday. And of course Amy and Annalee will be with me. Murphy will get to see Annalee again of course which is a good thing from her perspective. I'm hoping and praying I get a good nights sleep tonight so I'll be well rested for the drive up. I'm annoyed that I haven't gotten the 48 back issues of Reader's Digest that I bought on Ebay. They were supposed to be here days ago. So much of what I learned about the world was through the Readers Digest. And I still have a book I ordered that hasn't come in yet. It is called "Abundance" and looks at,..well I can't really describe it. It might be called a book about "optimistic economics" which appeals to me in more ways than one. I've been going over one of the two football coaching books that I bought recently "Blood, Sweat, and Chalk". It has a chapter each about the evolution and creation of 14 different offensive and defensive formations. With the addition of the two books I now have 20 different football coaching books which I always thought would be at least a formidable looking football coaching library. Now all I have to do is find another coaching job. Hope springs eternal. My plumbing contractor has been working on daddy's house and seems to have made some solid gains. He sent me some pictures the day before yesterday. All for the moment.
I felt for your wife having the liver biopsy. When I was a slip of a girl doing my nursing training, we used to do liver biopsies in the ward. (I didn’t, but the residents did) we didn’t consider how much pain there would be, despite the local anaesthetic.
Well, no good news when it comes to my kidneys. The early results from the kidney biopsey seems to indicate that their function has deteriorateed even more than expected. The specialist is likely to recommend I start some form of dialysis as soon as possible. Though he did point out that there are "different types of dialysis" and that I might be able to do home disalysis for a long time. No matter what mine and Amy's lives are going to change. I went to the hospital in Hot Springs last Friday for the Kidney biopsy and then had to go back to the same kind of hospital in in North Little Rock on Saturday after I kept getting sick at mu stomach. They detected a far lower oxygen content in my lungs so they insisted on draining my lungs and revaluating them. Amy is going to have to return to Smackver tomorrow so she can go back to work at the library while I might to stock at the hospital for days while the mess with my insurance is workedout. That depresses me a great deal. I suppose when I'm able to leave Annalee will drive me back south to meet Amy. This seems like a fairly elegant and reasonable solution. All fo the moment. All for daday.
