CATCHING UP

I got an email wondering whet happened to my blogging and didn't realize I hadn't posted since Oct. 9. I have posted a report on the Rodenberger tombstone to Lou's blog and posted photos on that blog today to show the tombstone in place. I also sent copies of the photos to people at TWU to let them know that she was recognized as a regent and had a TWU plaque in place. Her father's stone has a Methodist circuit rider plaque and we thought Lou should have a plaque also.

I want to thank Sue for being there doing the installation because I was in Granbury taking care of Nancy last week. Kathy and Keith came in this weekend and while Keith was sharpening the blades on the Deere mower, Kathy and I went to look at the tombstone. I will also post a photo here.

Nancy is recovering well from her hip surgery. The doctor keeps her on coumadin for four weeks to insure that blood clots don't form. She will be through with that this week. She will be able to ride in the car soon and we will get back to Halsell Hill soon and I can get back to Kiwanis. I have been home every weekend because Nancy's children take care of her and have taught SS except for the surgery weekend when I ended up in the hospital and had my colonoscopy on Sunday Oct. 3. I am healing from my fall and pulling the ligament in the my left leg.

WALKING WEEKEND

I left Nancy with her granddaughter this weekend and came home to 10 days of mail and bills. Took me a while to sort through all the stuff. I went upstairs and worked on paying bills. I got the plumber to come install the new kitchen faucet and instant hot water dispenser. I used it for my tea this morning. I ran to town just before 5 to cash my LW check and pay some bills. I saw the rotating barber pole and stopped to get my hair and beard trimmed before Ray went home. It was one of the first times I have stopped when there was no body else in the shop. Ray is having a tough time since his wife died and said he is having a problem eating trash food all the time.

Kathy and Val came last night. Val got on my computer and mapped out a four mile run up FM 2228 to practice for the marathon she is working on. We visited and turned on the attic fan to cool the house down. This morning Val took off running and Kathy followed and walked back with her. I walked over 2 miles up past Spring Mesa gate. I got back to the house just before our visitor from TWU who is working on Lou's paper for her research project. We had lunch together and after a nap Kathy and Val went with me to the Cross Plains community Cancer Walk. I walked with the American Legion group wearing my vest and cap for the first time. We bought memorials to Lou and came home so I could work on my SS lesson for tomorrow. We did watch the first half of the A&M Arkansas game before we went to town.

STUMBLEBUM

Tuesday I went to Walmart to buy some Zicam for the cold I caught plus some groceries. I had a couple of bags in my hand and was walking too fast, didn't see the sidewalk step-off and fell flat on my face. My felt hat helped cushion the blow but my face hit the pavement so that my glasses cut my nose and my sunglasses hit the pavement and popped one of the lens out. Several people came over to help me up and told me my nose was bleeding. I felt like a dummy, got up and got to the car where I looked at my nose in the mirror and there was a slight cut. I used a tissue to clean the little blood and drove back to the house. There Vicky used her football trainer skills to clean up the blood, put a small bandage on my eye, bandaged my knee that wasn't bleeding but was scraped.

This morning in the beautiful weather I walked for 30 minutes up and down the road to the highway. I counted my steps to calculate the distance. Using my military pace of 5 feet every time my right foot hit, I counted 132 so I can calculate the distance. I can walk to the road and back in 5 minutes. I walked again tonight before supper for about 20 minutes. Then being a true stumblebum I tried to help close the recliner Nancy was using and used my left leg that cramped like the Devil. Vicky got me a couple of Alleves and it was all right after a supper of sweet and sour pork that Vicky made. Nancy directed me to make a lemon pudding with fruit salad to put over the cake that Yvonne brought yesterday and was beginning to dry out.

I am sure that a good night's sleep will make everything well. The Zicam is working for removing the cold symptoms. I should be healthy for going home for the weekend so I can teach SS.

ONE TO GO

I had the colonoscopy this morning and finally got released from the hospital even though one doctor wanted to keep me because of my creatin score. I explained to her that I have had that number for 12 years but she insisted I talk to my family doctor and then released me after 6. Nancy missed her time to be released and will come home tomorrow. She is under the prayer quilt that the Methodist church gave her several weeks ago and the prayers have been answered. She sent it down for me to use before I went for the colonoscopy and it worked for me. Prayers are amazing!

TWO IN HOSPITAL

I came to Granbury to be with Nancy through her hip joint replacement surgery. She is doing great. Today she walked again on her new leg and then got a good day's sleep after they kept waking her last night.

What we never expected was for me to go down to the ER and am now in a room one floor down from Nancy. Yesterday I woke up early and when I took my morning sit on the pot I found blood in the stool. I ate breakfast, washed dishes and took my computer to the hospital to stay with Nancy. Her son John came in. When Nancy's lunch came she sent us to the cafeteria to eat lunch. After lunch I again went to the pot and passed a lot of blood and what looked like clots. I considered driving to Abilene to my doctor and hospital but Nancy and John convinced me that I would be better off going to the ER here and checking myself in. After a lot of conversation with the doctors about my situation I came to the conclusion that my normal routine of straining to have a BM may have ruptured a little spot. They suggested that I needed a colostomy that I had told my doctor just Monday a week ago during my annual checkup I wouldn't have until I saw blood in my stool. I had never had any before. Now that I have seen some I have agreed to one because they can schedule it tomorrow and I can go back with Nancy to her house and help take care of her starting next week. Her daughter Vicky had planned to work from Granbury next week to be with her mother during the first worse week of healing. She has offered to help get my car back to Granbury and use her mother's van to get her home. She will go home either tomorrow or Monday. I am guessing she and I both will go home tomorrow.

Today John brought Nancy down to my room in a wheelchair to see me. Then this afternoon Vicky brought me some causual clothes to replace the open back hospital gown and I got to go up to Nancy's room and visit her. The hospital required that I ride in a wheel chair but I went. I walked from the door of the room.

Right now I am taking the required two liters of MoviPrep that is moving my system to prep it for the colonoscopy tomorrow. And I am chapped!