NANCY IS RECOVERING

She wouldn't let me post her photo in the hospital unless I posted a before photo to go with it.

She walked twice today, the second time further and felt better than the first. She still has a lot of pain due to the severe cutting for the operation. The wound is draining well and had very little today. She used both of the units of blood that she had donated for the operation and her blood is in good shape. She exercises with the trapeze on her bed.

ONE HIP DOWN ONE TO GO

Today Nancy had a successful hip replacement on her left hip. Had to get up at 4 to take a 20 minute shower, left at 5 for her 6 a.m. appointment with surgery started at 9:30. After post-op recovery she was placed in a really nice room at 3 p.m. She had a lot of pain med coming into the room but was lucid and told all the nurses in recovery about her family so they came in the room recognizing her son, John and daughter, Victoria and knew my name. We stayed with her until after she ate at 5 leaving her about 6:30 so she could get caught up on her sleep.

Her doctor was very positive about the surgery and she was not in a lot of pain when we left but had hit her morphine button a couple of times. She was sleepy.

We had a good time with my daughter, Kathy and her good friend Carol, this weekend at home. Kathy got to meet Vicky and her son Clifferd when they came out to pick up Nancy's car Saturday. They only had time to tour the house and visit a minute or two with Kathy before going back to Granbury. So I now have my car to use.

Nancy went to SS with me where we learned more that we wanted to know about early Judges including Gideon and his son who killed 70 of his brothers to take charge. One younger brother lived to challenge him. We attended church with two baptisms and four young people coming into the membership. Our graduating senior, Emma Bennett was honored with gifts. One was a prayer quilt that I got to tie a prayer knot for. Nancy made a hominy casserole for the pot luck dinner that went over well.

TWO DOLLAR SCAM

This morning in the mail I got a flyer from the Ford dealer in Eastland. I scratched off the place and was a winner. I called and they said I was a winner but had to pick up my prize today. Because we didn't want to cook lunch and I like to eat at the China Cafe, Nancy and I decided to drive to Eastland to eat and pick up my prize. Prizes included a new F-150 pickup, four-wheel cart, iPhone, and up to $1500 in cash. I guessed that I would get $2 in cash and that was what I won! Two of the new $1 coins that do not have In God We Trust on them. I should have thrown it back and asked them if Obama had taken over Ford as well as GM, but I did announce loudly that the coins didn't have the phrase on them. The flyer had pictures of green back cash that does say In God We Trust. I should have made them exchange the coins for greenbacks.

We saw a rattlesnake in the road at the creek going out but I think I missed him with my wheels.

WET KANSAS WEEKEND

We spent Thursday and Friday driving to Olathe, KS to celebrate Nancy's youngest son, Ernie's 50th birthday. We spent Thursday night in Perry, OK and Friday morning drove to Stillwater to show Nancy where I spent a lot of early years. We drove from Main street up Elm street. When I was 6 and started to school in Stillwater, we owned a home at that corner with a new home next to the corner. Both have been replaced with businesses. My Aunt Ruby's mother, Mrs. Lauterdale, owned a home a block or so up Elm. My grandmother Percival, my mother's mother owned a home a little farther up the street and I think that it is still there. We drove to OSU and drove south on Hester street. The rooming house I lived in is still there. The fraternity I pledged but didn't get to join due to money problems, Sigma Chi, has a huge building on the edge of the campus across from Theta pond that was there when I was a little guy.

We got to Olathe about 4 and left at 6:30. Ernie drove us to Kansas City to the Jazz, A Louisianna Kitchen to hear his son Jeramy, who was playing bass guitar in a four man Jazz group. Nancy and I had Cajun Stirfry. Ernie's son-in-law Clint had a plate of crayfish. Jeramy got to eat with us during a break. The music was great and the food good. We got home at 10:30.
John and Carol were visiting also. They celebrated Ernie's birthday Saturday, a day early and left to help move a granddaughter from Arkansas to OK.

Ernie's daughter, Amy is married to Clint. She is a high school math teacher and can relate to Valerie. Nancy has another granddaughter, Jacqui, who teaches math in FW. Amy and Clint came to celebrate Ernie's birthday Sunday and brought their dog, Pudge, who is huge. He is black lab but must have some Great Dane. He is a pup 9 months old and played with the two little dogs of Ernie. His nose was even with the table and when his tail wagged it cleared everything off the table. The birthday cake was a cheesecake, but Suzy, Ernie's wife had a great Chocolate cake we ate Saturday and I ate again Sunday. We had great food. Suzy made blueberry and pecan pancakes Saturday morning and Eggs ala Goldenrod Sunday morning. Ernie grilled some great steaks for his birthday dinner.

We left this morning and drove to Oklahoma City to spend the night. On the news they had a really bad hail storm in NW OkCity last night. There are storms in NM headed towards Halsell Hill tonight. With all the weather we have not driven in any heavy rain. Ran the wipers on slow a little this morning but the clouds broke up and we had some sun but the high temp in OK City was 76. We are looking forward to getting to HH tomorrow.

CATCH UP

I took Nancy to her eye doctor in Weatherford Friday and we ate brunch at Ihop after. Saturday I went home to prepare for Sunday School. Sunday a small class looked at the first three chapters of Judges. I pointed out that Judges covers the period between 2200 and 2050BC, about 150 years. The stories tell about the Israelites fighting wars and having periods of peace during which they forgot what God had done for them and followed the sexually oriented local gods where sex was considered part of their worship services.

We looked at the US for the past 150 years that got us back to the year 1860. We had the Civil War and periods of peace, then the major wars WWI and WWII and the periods of peace where we pursued pleasure. At the present time the largest business in the US is pornography on the TV and Internet. And we have again forgotten God. What happens? In the past God punished the Israelites by being conquered by their enemies. The stories may have some interest for us now. In Judges deliverers came to help the people. The class wondered if Glenn Beck's telling us that we need God back in our country is what we need to hear to change from our present path.

In the natural world, my yard is now blooming with blue bonnets in the back yard and gallardia in the front yard with rock daisyies scattered all over every where plus a lot of yellow flowers. I will wait until they seed to mow. I got .65" rain Sunday night. The storm was centered at Admiral so my planting there got watered. Lydia said she didn't get any at Cottonwood. I looked tonight at the storm total today and it was all around me but nothing near.

Nancy and I will head up into Tornado Alley tomorrow and stop in Perry, Ok then Friday go to her son, Ernie's home in Olathe, Ks. The weather forecast looks good for the time we will be there with the bad weather over tomorrow.

KIWANIS JOKES, RANGER FAVOR AND WIRELESS PRINTER

Tuesday was Kiwanis business meeting but we got Dale Bishop to tell a couple of jokes. One was an Aggie joke he had heard as a blond joke that I won't repeat, but I liked the one about the tomcat that died and went to Heaven. St. Peter said that we haven't had any tomcats but what could we do for him. He said that on earth his master would never let him sleep on the furniture and he had to sleep on the hard floor. He would like to have a nice soft pillow to sleep on. St. Peter said he guessed that they could do that. The next day five mice showed up. Peter said that they didn't have any mice but what did they want. They replied that on earth they were always being chased and would like to have some roller skates so that they could run faster. He agreed. The next day he goes by the tomcat who really looked completely happy. He asked him how it was going and he said never did he expect such a great place with a great bed and meals on wheels.

Tuesday night retired Texas Ranger Bob Favor and his wife came to the Meet the Author event at the Library. He told some great stories that aren't in his book. He told me that the write-up on him in the Livestock Weekly sold books all over the United States.

Wednesday morning I drove to Granbury to take Nancy to the high rated orthopedic surgeon, Ajai Cadambi, in Fort Worth. He took some more X-rays of her hips and her right knee and said both hips were in bad shape at the joints but she had strong bones. The left hip had lost all flexibility and the right was rapidly deteriorating. He recommended hip joint replacement on both starting with the left one. Surgery is scheduled for May 25. They recommend you giving blood to use during the operation. Nancy went to the Carter Blood Center on Hulen, after finding the one on Forest Park had moved and Hulen was on the way home. She gave one unit and will give another when she goes back in May 21 for pre-op.

Today I helped her install a Lexmark wireless printer that we can both access from the wireless router in her home. It worked with no problems. I had anticipated all kinds of problem after trying to use a wireless hookup on my laser printer at home and couldn't get it to work after Mark and I spent one whole day calling tech support and finally taking it back for a refund.

With all the time in the doctor's office I have almost finished IN SIX DAYS. Fifty essays by PhD scientists from all fields who believe evolution is impossible and accept the six day story of Genesis as literal and accurate. I can't understand how any knowledgeable scientist can believe in evolution when scientific facts completely discredit the whole idea. If they can't believe the Bible they should try the space alien as a better answer.

BUSY WEEKEND

Nancy and I had orange cinnamon rolls and coffee with Bobbe and Yvonne Friday morning. We then ate at Pam's Too while a very small shower came through and messed up the windshield of the car. I then drove to Halsell Hill, took a short nap and got on the Ford tractor. Of course it wouldn't start. I thought it was a battery problem, ran battery cables from the pickup. Still wouldn't start. I then checked the gears and it was in gear. I put it in neutral and it kicked right off. Of course this was after I had filled the air tank and aired the tires. I drove it to the garage and aired all the tires from the compressor there and mowed the outside of the lawn where there are a lot of dead limbs on the ground. I then mowed one trip out the front gate and back through the other one.

Saturday morning I took a letter to the mailbox. The weather was perfect after a shower left 0.02" in the gauge, so I walked two miles. I had read the Cross Plains Review and had two places that I needed to go to. Admiral Cemetery was having a work day starting at 8:30 but I had just planted the graves so decided to go to the Cottonwood Historical meeting that started at 10. I enjoyed hearing the stories of the old-timers that lived there as kids, left and have come back. I have lived here 26 years in July and longer than most in attendance. But not growing up here I am not considered an old-timer. After enjoying the pot-luck lunch I went to town to mail a letter and pay Lawrence. I came back, got my nap and at 3 tried to start the Deere riding mower. Of course the battery was dead. I jumped it but it wouldn't start again, so back to Lawrence to buy a new one. I finally got started mowing at 4:30 and mowed for an hour. The lawn looks like a bad haircut because I mowed around the gallardia Indian blankets that I could see just starting to bloom. I left other wild flowers so it is odd looking.

I spent Saturday night finishing composing the April Flame for the church. Because it had no photos this time I printed only page one on the ink-jet to get the red Flame banner and printed all the other pages on the laser printer. It is a lot faster. It is tricky but I remembered how to load the printed copies to print the odd pages on the back and it worked a lot faster than having to use the ink jet. I made the pdf copy and emailed it.

This morning I took 8 copies to the church and will take another 10 tonight when I go back for Bible study. We had a good SS class with two visitors and finished Joshua. I told the class that our worship of science has replaced the gods that Joshua warned the Israelites not to worship or God would abandon them.

Last night Nancy's three grandkids took her to Montana's to celebrate Mother's Day early because they wouldn't be there next weekend. Everyone at church asked about her and I told them that her legs are hurting too much to come this weekend but she will visit the orthopedic surgeon next Wednesday to see what can be done to get her back in shape.