Greetings from El Reno

I have been in El Reno, Oklahoma for seven days taking care of things for my mom, who is in the skilled nursing facility for awhile. She is doing much better, but not well enough yet to live alone in her house, even with visiting nurses. She is well enough that she wants to write her own letters, read her mail, take care of "business" and paperwork, AND she is mad today at the therapist who gave her questions to answer about presidents and capitols of states, and things she said were "third grade stuff". She has a bone to pick with them about several things. She wants juice with her pills and will NOT accept water. I say? I say, "give 'em hell, ma." She is funny, cute, smart, determined, and practices standing straight and decided that one doesn't have to lean over the walker to walk, but can just touch it a little for a assistance. She is one wonderful lady.

The weather is 80. I enjoy it while I'm driving my brand new Buick Lacerne (s?)which is about as close to a Lincoln as I can imagine. I have decided that you know you are in a small town with you get to your destination before the seat belt alert starts ringing. My mom is blocks from her home, her church, and Wal Mart, and one block from her doctor's office and the hospital. Amazing. My cousin Gene from Minnesota was visiting here for two days, happened to come to see mom and found me here instead. We had two lovely dinners out and I really enjoyed the company. He helped me buy a new stove for mom's house so we won't have to use matches and gas ever again. Thank God. Lots of steps forward we have taken since January when she was sick in the hospital!

I am on first name basis with the clerks at Wal Mart while I lay in supplies into my mom's drawers. I will be back in a month. She misses me already. And I wish I didn't have to go home tomorrow morning at dawn. But I do. Life must go on.

Have a great day!

Buffalo Bill at the Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City 

Cold to Warm

On Wednesday morning I leave for Oklahoma to visit my mom in the skilled nursing facility. It has been really hard emotionally for me to handle the fact that she is there, and I am constantly concerned about her care there. I know they do their best, but "nursing homes" as they are called, are just not good places to be. I was very sad to have to see her there.

While I am in Oklahoma, we are selling a house that she owns and it is my job to go to the close and handle the business end of it. I'm just hoping that all turns out okay. I am a little nervous about this trip and don't know why exactly. I hope that I get to visit with mom a lot, get her more clothes if she needs them, get her errands done and still find some time to rest myself. I may find out when she will be able to return home, and will schedule a time to meet with her doctor. The last trip, when she was in the hospital, was much harder than this will be, so I am hoping to have some time to relax a little.

One thing I will not miss is the cold weather we have had this weekend in Boston. The house seems drafty, and I am just plain cold! I realized going out to the car tonight, that my whole body hurts with the cold. It will not be nearly so cold in Oklahoma, so I am looking forward to that.

George and I have had a good time this week watching the Olympics and I will be sorry when they are over. Seeing all those snow sports in such a cold country as the Italian Alps makes me shiver. Right now, I'm routing for SPRING!

Have a great day.

Dell Inspiron 6000 

My New Laptop!

Wow. I can't be happier about this. For three days last week, I surfed and researched and talked and talked some more. I decided I really wanted a new laptop so I could stay connected even when I am away from home. I looked at all kinds of models, and started thinking of a low-budget one, priced about $500. Ha! It wasn't long before I was throwing around gigs with the best of them, and on Friday I called Dell for the fourth time, and ordered a new Inspiron 6000 Notebook with extra memory (1Gb), extra big hard drive (60GB), extra special screen resolution (WUXGA 1,900x1,200 native resolution), and the 3 year warrantee on everything, including damage by dropping or spilling--egads!

It is a beautiful thing and I can't wait to get it. I decided NOT to force the issue by paying extra for next day delivery, so I will not have it for my trip on Wednesday to Oklahoma, but that is ok. I was watching the ca-ching of the register, and as it was, all my extras added up to more than I thought I was going to spend. Somehow, from the barebones prices quoted on my first call to the amount I ended up with---well you wouldn't know it was the same system! I told the salesman on the phone that I had learned a lot in two days of laptop shopping, and I was spinning off the terms with the best of them by our final conversation. Then it was just a matter of spinning off the numbers on my credit card and...voila, a new, beautiful, silver and white, fast and powerful laptop computer on its way!

I can't wait. Besides all the plans I have to keep better records, maybe write a book, play some games, watch DVDs, listen to music, keep up with Ebay sales and being able to email on the road,...I just plain love the looks of this one. I also bought a pretty red quilted bag to carry it it.

Oh, this is nice! I'm excited, and it feels really good!

Have a great day!

Dave's flowers 

The Storm

George and I survived the storm. Actually, survived is about the right word, since I came down with a flu-like symptom that I thought was food poisoning, but then had the same symptoms at work on Tuesday and had to leave early. It makes me dizzy, with headaches, and stomach grumbles and just general malaise. I'm sitting it out at home today and hope to be better soon!

My friend Dave died of lung cancer on Sunday. He had fought a gallant battle for almost two years, and had learned how to ask for help in getting to his hospital and doctor visits. He was an accountant, and every bit of his skills were needed to keep up with medicare payments, pharmacy charges and insurance billing. He even had to fight to keep his apartment and get reduced rent rates. Even though you get very sick, and have to deal with the sad facts, they don't make it any easier on you.

He was a lovely, dignified man, and we enjoyed having him here for Christmas Dinner. He was my "coffee buddy" at work, and we had a lot of fun and many laughs. He was a great supporter of my Ebay efforts and never seemed to tire of my talking about sales and jewelry, even though he had probably little interest in such things. He was just great, a really good friend, and I am going to miss him.

The picture here is of flowers that he sent to my home in appreciate for rides to the Doctors offices, since Dave lived alone, and did not drive a car. God Bless You Dave!

A Nor'Easter Rolls In

All day yesterday, as we heard the weather forecast for a blizzard today, George and I thought that we could still get to church today. I studied my Sunday School teachers book, and prepared the lesson. Today is a different story. The snow is blowing sideways, and the forecast is for the heavier snow to come about noon today, and pile up to 12 inches. That isn't exactly something I want to be driving in on the highway today. So, we decided to stay home. Church is probably going to be canceled, like many others, but we haven't seen it on the list of closings yet.

I talked to my mother last night at the living center, and she sounded fine, although not exactly "with it". She is tired, and seems ready to lie down most of the time. She said she watches TV a little bit. She said she is a lot stronger, so that is very good news.

George and I are facing another postponement of the church Hearts Party, because we scheduled it on a day when someone else had dibs on the fellowship hall. So I have to straighten that mess out by email tomorrow.

Seems like a good day to go back to bed.

Have a great day!

A conversation with my Mom

This blog might turn into a conversation about my mother and her recovery from pneumonia, but that is what I am thinking about, so that is what I talk about. I was able to have them bring her to the phone in the library of the nursing center last night, and I called promptly at 6 p.m. I hear "Hello!". It is my mom's strong voice. I was much relieved! She said that they never seem to run out of fruit cocktail, that they have that at almost every meal; that she had a delicious root beer float that afternoon; that she has almost too many visitors; that she walks crooked and they don't know why; that she had a nice bubble bath--all good things.

When I left Oklahoma, my mom and I said a prayer together, in which we said that we would ask for help finding the "good" in this place, and not concentrate on the "bad". I was very concerned about my mom losing interest or becoming depressed. She has had such a busy and full life in her own home. She said, "Did you hear about the nurse?" I said "no." Mom said that she ran into a nurse who refused her the juice she wants to take her pills, and she held her ground and refused to take the pills without it. The nurse got a supervisor, who brought the juice. Mom won. Hurray for mom!

Mike sent a big basket of flowers which made quite an impression. They are bright orange, pink and red carnations, a flower my mom likes because they don't die fast. I happen to be allergic to lilies and once was almost brought down by a bouquet of lilies that someone sent to my room when I was recovering from surgery. So, carnations seem to be the best choice to us. Thanks to Mike, mom has a really bright spot in her room. They also brought in a TV. Mom said the "man" came to ask if she wanted a TV, and she responded, "Well, I'd like to watch the news!". She is so alert and savvy for 96, it is not hard to see why I'm just crazy about her. The book she was reading when she got sick was the biography of Winston Churchill that Mike gave her at Christmas. She made a grand slam at the bridge table three weeks ago at the senior center. She is an amazing woman. I love her so much.

So, that is it from the homefront today. A big snowstorm heading for Boston this Saturday, so we postponed the Hearts (card game) Party at church for a week. I'm planning a quiet weekend of making jewelry and enjoying some creative moments.

Have a great day.

Catch Up

I leave again for Oklahoma to see my mom on February 22 for a week. I am counting the days and she is too. I haven't been able to talk to her, since they have to bring her to a phone, and her condition is such that she sleeps, rests, eats, and has her physical therapy. Phone time isn't included in her schedule I'm afraid. It is worrying and I am trying hard to find a place in my life where I can leave my worries behind. My friend said that when she took care of her aging parents, she found that the prayer and humor got her through. I will remember hugging my mom when she was holding a banana, and getting banana all over my glasses. That was a laugh we both shared.

In the meantime, I catch up with work, with bill paying, with house keeping, with jewelry making, and all the other aspects of life which are there--no matter what. Anyone know any good jokes?

Have a great day.

Mercy!

I just returned from Oklahoma where I spent five days at Mercy Hospital with my mother, who has pneumonia and had two heart episodes brought on by lack of potassium--a very dangerous situation indeed. She was transferred to a skilled nursing facility near her home, and I was without the internet while I was visiting her there. She is better. Neither of us was happy about her living in a facility for the time being, and both of us shed tears. But we lived through it, and her job is to work with the physical and speech therapists for two weeks and then I will go back to spend another week with her. Letting go and letting someone else take care of her was very hard for me. I hope and pray that she will be ok.

Living with the internet was almost impossible for me. If I have any "free" time, I like to commune with my friends on Ebay, and check my listings, etc. Not having any email or access made me feel very cut off. George and I are shopping for laptops so that won't happen again.

The weather is lovely and sunny in Oklahoma. The problem there is lack of rain. The grass is dry, the weather is dry, and there is no rain in the forecast. The farmers are hauling hay to the fields for the cattle and we saw many trucks with hay bales on the back. It is a disaster there if they don't get rain soon. And fire is a real threat. No smoking outside any facilities or stores, with signs of High Fire Alert all over the place.

I am home, where I hope to get a home-cooked meal for the first time in 9 days, and get a little rest as well as catch up with things at work.

Have a great day.

Much relieved!

I talked to the nurse at the hospital who went to my mom's room and helped her get the phone. My mom sounded MUCH stronger and better than yesterday. I am so relieved. She is such a trooper! The nurse said that she hadn't been my mom's nurse for much more than an hour, but it was her impression that she is "sharp as a tack." That's my mom.

Worried

It has been awhile since I wrote a blog entry and for that I am sorry. I'm busy at work, and when I get home, I get busy with jewelry and Ebay selling, and talking to my friends. I now instant message with two other beaders and it is so much fun to learn and offer each other sugggestions, encouragement and lots of compliments!

My mom is sick again. She was doing so well, and Tuesday was even out in the back yard, but she said she felt something in her chest and...now she is in the cardiat unit at Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City. After some soul searching, I decided to fly out there. I looked at airfares to see what the costs would be. From Boston, with short notice, it is about $700. I found a flight from Manchester NH to OKC for $279 yesterday, leaving on Sunday, and I grabbed it. At that low price, I can afford to go there again on Feb. 22 when I have another flight scheduled. Two trips is better than one I figure, and we all hope that mom can pull out of this. She is in a good hospital with good care, and I am turning the rest of it over to God. I am going to work today, and wish I could fly tomorrow, but...I decided to wait one more day. I hope I made the right decision. It weighs on me.

Sometimes I think that we just have to do the best we can, and bumble through, and try to do the next best thing.

I promise to write before I go, and also from Oklahoma.

Have a great day.

If you want to find me, here I am at my jewelry worktable. 

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Let's play more Hearts.

A few years ago, George and I started attending the annual Hearts Party at church that they hold around Valentine's Day. Since I was not a Heart player, I was slightly intimidated and wanted very much not to make a fool of myself. This feeling was accentuated by the fact that at the end of the evening, they crowed a King and Queen of Hearts, (people who had the lowest scores), and they announced the Joker...the person who had the highest score. They make these announcements of the winners in church and I desperately did not want to be announced the next morning at the church service as the "joker". I was so desperate, that it almost sorta ruined the fun for me.

I won't go into the long version here, but I played so well the second year that I attended, that I was the Queen of Hearts. It was incredibly lucky, since I am not an experienced Heart player. The third, fourth and fifth year of this event, the job of hosting this event has fallen to me by default. So, I made a few new rules: the evening would start earlier, at 7 p.m.; the evening would entail only three games instead of four, so we would be out of there long before 11:00 p.m., which was way too late for most of us; and there would be NO Joker. Woohoo. No one has to be recognized to the congregation as the worst card player of the evening. The person who had the highest score could leave merrily on their way knowing that their misfortune (or just stupid card playing) would not be announced to the whole congregation in the morning.

These were very good changes, and everyone likes them. Typically, about thirty people come, and this year it will be held on February 11th in the church fellowship hall. People bring delicious snacks and desserts, and we always have a really good time. George and I will set the tables and make up the score sheets and get out the Moon Hat the the person wears who "shoots the moon".

We are going out Saturday night to play Hearts at our friend's house. Pizza and cards. And a little much needed practice!

Have a great day!

Say yes to more time off

A few months ago, without me asking for it, my hours were cut from 40 a week to 30 a week. I get off Wednesday afternoon at 2:30 and I have Fridays off. There is a hit to the bottom line, that is for sure. My paycheck positivly creaks with lack of grease. However, I have come to look forward to each week more because there is a lot more time for what I really want to do--be creative.

I quickly learned that having a day off each week does not mean that I do more housework--although there is some time for that. Usually I spend Fridays creating new jewelry and listing jewelry items for my store in Ebay: Sparkleandcharm. This can take up most of the day, and in the afternoon I go shopping for supplies, or make something good for dinner. It is amazing to me how much time running my Ebay business takes. I spend almost one whole day each week, as well as at least two hours each day. This is not always selling, mind you, I wish it was. There is a lot of noodleing with listings, improving on pictures, writing to my friends, surfing to other sellers and buyers to do "research", and talking with my jewelry group. And, of course, there is always the purchasing from other Ebayers for beads and findings. I am always happy to support one of my buddies on the Bead Hive, the Ebay jewelry group that I enjoy so much.

We recently had four days off, and to show for them, I have a well organized beading area, a few new bracelets and necklaces, a new polymer clay area in the kitchen, and a few polymer heart pendants that are almost "sale" quality. I have been encouraged by my friends remarks that they think my polymer roses and hearts should be selling right now for at least $20. Nothing like a compliment to make you run for the work bench.

Tonight, after work, it is back to the clay table to perfect my polymer hearts. There is someting to be said for working shorter hours when I get to spend more time working at what I really love to do.

Have a great day.

George is in Hawaii so i had time to work with polymer clay. My first necklace. It looks rather elementary, my dear. But...maybe I'll wear it to the Hearts party at church. It is sorta cute...completely home-made. 

I went to K-Mart today for some beading organizers, and found this velour throw. It seemed like just the thing for Thunder to sleep on so that she wouldn't keep coming to my computer chair for a nap. She loves it. I love the color that matches her beautiful orange coat. 

George goes to Hawaii -- again

George left at six o'clock this morning for Hawaii on a business trip. He is coming back home on Sunday. Three days in paradise. Doesn't seem long enough to me, so I urged him to stay longer if he can. And I gave him my shopping list for fresh-water pearls, which they sell, and which I can make some lovely jewelry.

Kitty and I are alone and it is a long weekend. I should have time to make lots of pretty items for my next show, clean the house, and still have time left over to play Everquest and read a book.

Have a safe trip George!