Restarting after the tragic loss of my 15 year long thread elsewhere. Got to start somewhere. Annalee blew out the engine on her Honda Pilot and the repair cost was estimated at $5,000 which we didn't think was worth it given the number of miles it has on it. Amy and I aren't in a position to help her buy another vehicle but Amy's two sisters are going to cosign for her a loan to buy a nearly new Jeep Cherokee with only 10,000 miles on it. Until she gets her vehicle she is going to drive our truck that we got from dad when he died February 24th, 2017. We carried the truck up there (about a two hour drive) Thursday evening after Amy got off work. I drove the truck while Amy came along in our Santa Fe. We took Murphy with us. Amy always wants to see Murphy and Murphy loves seeing her as well. Murphy just turned three years old. We got her around the end of October 2016. I remember because we had just moved into our fourth house in Augusta shortly after Trump was elected. We had told Amy that if we moved into a larger house we could get a dog. We hadn't had a dog since Nay Nay died in 2014 while we were living in our second house in Augusta (we had had Nay Nay for about 7 years and she was estimated to be 14 years old at the time of her death). Murphy was envisioned as being Annalee's dog but she bonded strongly with me when I was recovering from the two surgeries on my right foot (flesh eating bacteria infection) in February and March of 2016 and the amputation of the great toe on my left foot the week before Christmas in 2018 (unusual infection in a large blister on the tip of the great toe). I used to lay back in the recliner about the same time every afternoon, Murphy would hear the recliner and come jump in my lap and nuzzle me for about half an hour. We've been very close ever since. Friday night I went to a Sr. High football game at my last school. I saw several former players and school employees but I left early as it was colder than I anticipated and I developed a headache. No matter as I get in free anyway. Given its approaching Halloween, Amy put our DVD of "Hocus Pocus" on. We didn't see the movie when it was in theaters but we developed a real liking for it over the years since. I think it is a vastly underrated movie. I missed the New England Patriots game against the New York Giants on Thursday while we took the truck to Annalee's but I kept apprised of the game as much as possible. I was glad of course to see the Patriots win 35-14. It is my fervent prayer to see the Patriots have a perfect season 19-0. I felt robbed of that in 2007 when the Patriots were upset in the Super Bowl. It isn't that I historically have any special affection for the Patriots. But I do want to see history made. I get tired of everyone waxing over the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins. And I really liked the Dolphins for a number of years. All for the moment.
Correction: The amputation of the great toe on my left foot was the week before Christmas of 2017. The amputation was an outpatient procedure but I had to come back to the hospital after only a day at home as Amy thought the bleeding from the wound was excessive. And it turned out that the amputation hadn't removed the infection after all. It was deep into the bones in my foot and my surgeon had me stay in the hospital for more than three weeks receiving a steady dose of two different antibiotics through a PIC line (Peripheral Inserted Catheter) and I couldn't be sent home for that. So I spent Christmas and New Years in a long term care facility. One of the gifts I got for Christmas in 2017 was a new Bible that I had really needed. I made it a goal since then to read a chapter or so of the Bible per day (sometimes less if I encounter a really long chapter). Thus far I've managed to continue that. I've read I think all of the New Testament including Revelation twice. I think I'm getting better at understanding more of Revelation than I used to. There are still long stretches of the Old Testament that I don't think I've ever read before like parts of Numbers and Lamentations plus various of the more obscure minor prophets. But I'm making progress. I try to read parts of the Bible basically at random making a note of the sections I've read before.
An old entry from my original My Diary that I think was in spring of 2010 after we had moved back to Norphlet after a year living in nearby Strong. Last week, Annalee and I encountered four female puppies that seemed to be staying around the fieldhouse. All looked several months old and seemed well fed. But Annalee started playing with them and basically fell in love with them within about 15 minutes. She named the mainly white one with brown on it's head that appeared to be the groups leader "Sunshine". Another all brown but with black streaks puppy that was considerably more cautious and reserved than the rest she named "Lucky". There were two black and white ones she named "Cutie" and "Sweetie Pie". "Cutie" was far shyer than the other three and would only play with Annalee after the others moved away. I didn't want them following us home but they did and Annalee was in tears wanting to do something for them. So I sent her with a large pan of food and she lured them back to the fieldhouse. I figured they would be better off there. But the next day I noticed the woman down at the end of the road was feeding them and the four puppies have been down there since. I hope they stay there as they'll be safer from cars and stuff. Still, I wish we could've kept one of them. All for now.
Some philosophical thoughts that I've put together recently. In so many ways I love my country (U.S.A.) but I absolutely hate what it has become. I often get depressed and worried when I look at how things in the U.S. are going nowadays. The Trump Admin. and the reactions to it are not exactly helping matters but my feelings had started before January 2017 I believe. <Mod Edit> I greatly fear that my country in particular and the world in general is spiraling into the kind of nightmarish chaos envision in "The Second Coming'. A world of vulgar, profane, repulsive decadence and decay attempting to cloak itself in the supposed virtues of fairness, tolerance, and equality. A world that doesn't treasure self discipline, self control, and self sacrifice but instead lauds self expression and celebrity. A world that places more value on the satisfaction of the basest and most carnal desires than it does on children. A world that obsesses over rights while neglecting responsibility. A culture that confuses liberty and license. A culture of rampant commercialism and radical individualism. A culture that demeans character and exalts something called "attitude". <Rule 6>
Our trip last weekend to see Annalee and retrieve our pickup went well. We were able to start back early enough that despite the shorter days now and stopping once for gas we made it home well before dark. I wanted to be certain of getting back before darkness began to fall because of the huge number of deer standing out along the roadways on the way to and from there. At full speed stopping or taking any kind of evasive action to avoid a deer is difficult and it is very surprising how much damage a deer (even a small one) can do to most modern vehicles. Annalee finally got her Jeep Cherokee. We took a ride in it while we were up there and I drove it for a few miles. It certainly has all the bells and whistles. As I explained to both Amy and Annalee you know you're getting old when your child has a better vehicle than you do. I don't begrudge my girl a nice vehicle of course. Just hope she takes care of it and gets many years of good use out of it. Fortunately she won't be driving it very far ever day. She lives only 5 miles from the hospital (she is required to be no more than 15 minutes away when she's on call). While Murphy had a great time seeing Annalee and an even better time seeing Brandon, Annalee's boyfriend she was happy to be back home on Sunday. Unless there is some kind of emergency we won't see Annalee in person again until Thanksgiving at Texarkana at my oldest sister Debra's house. So hopefully we won't see our baby again until Thanksgiving. My second oldest sister Donna lives near Debra's and her daughter, son in law, and their three daughters should be there on Thanksgiving as well so we'll pop on over and see them too. It has finally turned definitely cooler. Not a major issue during the day yet but I hate the bathroom being chilly when I take a bath in the evenings. And our small space heater we had in there last year has decided not to work this year. We'll be going back to Annalee's parents house a week from Saturday. We're going to stop by daddy's house (ours now) and do what little clean up we can so I'll be looking to pick up one of the portable electrical space heaters we left there. There should be at least one or two. Until then we'll probably just endure the chill. Our house is all electric so the only heat we have is the kitchen stove and the window unit air conditioner units operated in heat mode which is extremely inefficient. I've finally decided that I've completely read the entire New Testament during my last two years of daily Bible reading efforts. I've tried to read passages randomly mixing Old and New Testament but inevitably the New Testament gets finished first. I've stressed reading Revelation straight through though. I've done that twice in the last two years or so seeking to gain more understanding of it. I think I've gained some insight but I know I'll never "get" all of it. I'm now in the Old Testament focusing more on Chronicles and Kings. I've just about knocked out the prophets both major and minor. I'm happy the Patriots are 7-0. More than one third of the way tom goal of seeing a 19-0 football season. Of course there's a long way to go. Their defense is just amazing. Which makes me even more a fan of Bill Belichik. Gotta love the man for seldom smiling. I love that quote from Star Trek John Calicos (Kor) in "Errand of Mercy", "I don't trust people who smile too much" All for the moment.
Remember that replies in this thread are welcome. As long as there are not personal insults of course but that's board wide.
May 2004 A good day. Paid for my internet class in Arkansas History today. It is part of filling my teaching certification requirements. I then went up to Dads and helped him chop down thistles in the field. It was hot tiresome work. But eventually I convinced him to put the bushhog on the tractor to deal with the largest concentrations. Dad seemed in good spirits though the work was exhausting to him Annalee had a great time at Little Red School House today. Tomorrow is there end of the school year picnic. We are going by there for about an hour with her before going to my Dads and to church later in the evening. Annalee enjoyed her next to last day at Little Red. Two of the boys that haven't played with her lately pretended to be monsters and chased her around the playground. J.R. and Isaac. Isaac has always been the boy she liked the best. We are preparing Harmony Cemetary for the decoration next Sunday. Two of my grandparents and my mom are buried there. Dad asked me to make a talk at the pavilion before the noon meal. Normally, his uncle Hollis would make the talk but isn't able to this year given his recent death. I was called back to the school I'm teaching at this fall yesterday. They had alot of paperwork for me to fill out. Such as registering for the Arkansas Athletic Associations Coaching Clinic. The school pays my fee and hotel room for the four day conference. I also met there new principal and alot of the senior high football players. The head coach said that in addition to being defensive coordinator I'll be coaching the offensive line. He seems to have alot of confidence in my ability. Its hard to believe I beat out 12 other appllcants for the job. Some of them with years of coaching experience as well. Of course, my ambitions are limitless. I figure that if we kick ass for at least two years while I'm there and make some noise in the playoffs, I'll have a great shot at a head coaching job in another school soon. All for the moment. May 19, 2004 #16 Dayton Kitchens Actually I'm considering abstaining from the TrekBBS for three more weeks after my ban is up. That way once a full month has passed with no warnings it will be alot more difficult for me to be banned again. Clean slate so to speak. Today not too much happened. We took Annalee to her end of the term picknick at Little Red. She sat with a little boy named Joey. I then went to my Dads. I had planned to work at the cemetary but Dad and Debra were finished so I went back to Dads and helped him attached the bushhog to the tractor. We then attacked the thistles head on. Scoring major victories over the loathsome weeds in the Northwest fields. While the thistles will grow back, Dad and I will be waiting for them.........with the bushhog. Dad wasn't feeling well though. He had leg cramps until nearly 2 in the morning last night. I slept exceptionally well. Last night I dreamed I was coaching my football team. I can't wait for that first moment when my team goes onto the field. I'm sure it will be the seventh grade team given their games are before the Junior High and the Senior High is a night later. I will be involved in coaching at least 21 football games this fall. Ten Senior high. Seven Junior High, and four Seventh grade. Of course I could coach in up to 27 depending on the playoffs. Well all for the moment. May 21, 2004 Dayton Kitchens A pretty decent day. Annalees last day at Little Red School House. Her teacher hugged her when I picked Annalee up this afternoon and told her how much she would miss her. Annalees report card showed steady progress over this last year. She grew 2 & 3/4 inches since last September. About average I suppose. I sent my payment for the second year of the NTL program to the State Education Dept. today. I hate sending that large a check through the mail, but I had the Education Dept. sign for it. I also got my Praxis II score for my coaching test back. I passed. I really was surprised. I didn't have much time to study for it and took it the day after driving 7 hours to and from an interview so I was in strung out shape when I took it on April 17th. I must say I'm experience growing anticipation and nervousness concerning my new job. I'm sure I'll teach history just fine. The coaching is what is causing the nervousness. I mean, no one is going to come observe my history classes (except during my once a semester evaluations) but there will almost certainly be a couple of thousand people at those games to see what my defense and offensive line does. And alot of those people will think they should be the ones coaching. When one of my guys blows a coverage, misses a block, or doesn't make a tackle how many people will there be wondering why the school didn't hire one of the experienced coaches who applied? I'll just do my best. I hope Amy and I have another baby in the near future. Amy isn't too old I suppose. She will be 34 in September. I love Annalee with all my heart and I love watching her grow and learn, but I wouldn't mind having a second daughter. Amy of course wants a boy. I really love babies. I wish Amy and I had been able to get married three years earlier and have a couple more kids by now. Can't turn back time though. All for the moment. May 22, 2004 #26 Dayton Kitchens Not much to report today. Amy went with a lady she knows from work to Texarkana so I took care of Annalee today. We went to the park though Annalee didn't care for the heat out in the direct sunlight. Got to see the season finale of Andromeda though. Its pretty good. And the season finale of JAG last night was great. Goodbye to Clayton Webb! Tomorrow is the decoration at Harmony cemetary. I still haven't totally decided upon what I'll say. Perhaps something from Ecclesiastes Turn!Turn!Turn! I must say I don't care for Wordforge all that much. On the upside, most of the American members are vehemently pro-American similiar to what TNZ used to be. But the real downside is that there is very seldom serious discussion in the Red Room. Even posters who aren't as despised as I am seldom generate much in the way of reasonable responses and arguments. It seems even the most innocous of posts generated nothing but flames and arguments. All for the moment.
Visiting Amy's family at DeQueen this weekend. And today, Saturday we drive up to my daddy's (now mine) house to work a little and inspect it. Amy bagged up four large backs of trash which I carried out roadside. I unloaded four small plastic boxes of books and magazines that I had gathered up back at our house in Smackover plus some extremely large oversized books that were simply taking up space at our house. They'll be fine at daddy's. I also picked up a handful of old magazines at daddys as well as two of my Praxis II guides for secondary physical science. I'm thinking about studying hard again and retaking the test so I can expand my teaching certification. Though to be honest after teaching 6th grade science for two years I really don't want to go back to it. I would much rather teach history from now to the end of my career. My hair had gotten unusually (for me) long so I went to see my regular barber. He cut it for free as he said it wouldn't be the Christian thing to charge a man for a haircut who is going through hard times. That was really nice and I appreciate it. Though I'm worrying I'll have to find a new barber soon. He is 82 and his hands shaking when he was trimming my mustache unnerved me considerably. Too close to my nose for comfort. Oh well. It got unusually cold at our house on Halloween night so we slept under an electric blanket. Fortunately we have a small electric space heater for the bathroom which kept it pretty comfortable. Up at daddy's I recovered two of the larger electric space heaters we used last year. I figure that if at least one of them works we can keep the most important parts of our house at a tolerable temperature even if it turns extremely cold this winter (20 degrees or so is what we call "bitter cold"). Arkansas continues to slog through yet another miserable season. Don't know when Razorback fans will have some relief. All for the moment.
Not much new over the last eight days. My bus driving certification card finally arrived today. Some two months late. Last Saturday I spent most of watching a BattleBots marathon. For some reason I enjoy the battlebots matches a great deal. Until they invent battlemechs I suppose it will have to suffice. I even turned to that from a MASH marathon. Given it was Veterans Day weekends, there were MASH marathons on two different channels. When in doubt I often watch MASH. Arkansas fired their head football coach. Chad Morris. Two games shy of two seasons. The shortest time at the university for a head coach aside from interim ones. I hate to see the states flagship program decline to the point it has. As Wally Hall the noted sportswriter for the Arkansas Democrat Gazette put it, "without football, Arkansas would be just another land grant college tucked away in the hills". My dream of seeing an NFL team with an undefeated 16 game season (and playoffs to go 19-0) is by the wayside. I was rooting for the Patriots but of course the 49ers went down Monday night as well and that as they say is that. Amy and I are really planning for Thanksgiving. My sister Debra called us yesterday to mention various plans for Thanksgiving. To me it has been butt freezing cold. Oh I know that in the 20s doesn't phase lots of people but for me, especially as I've gotten older its a bigger deal. And very hard to stay warm in this house we live in now with very limited heat sources. All for the moment.
Monday morning while Murphy was tethered out front two dogs came running by and when she barked at them they both attacked her. They battered her pretty badly thought without cutting her noticeably. I jumped up and ran outside yelling while their owner who was driving a pickup pulling a trailer that the dogs were apparently chasing stopped and yelled at them as well. Unlike her fight with the Great Dane from up the street back in May (Daisy) Murphy seemed traumatized by the encounter with these two dogs. Of course she broke free and attacked Daisy while Daisy was being walked by her owner while against the two dogs (including an Australian Shepherd) Murphy was securely tethered and had limited ability to maneuver. Still I remember how when she fought Daisy she came back into the house holding her head up like she was proud. When I brought her in after the fight with these two dogs she promptly lay on the floor and wouldn't move. She was trembling in fear for awhile which was heartbreaking. She acted scared and depressed much of Tuesday though she did go back out on the tether for a good while. She seems much more like herself today. She woke me up this morning with her usual nudging and nuzzling. Like I've said before. Thanks to the end of daylight savings time, she often wakes me about 7:00 instead of 8:00. I went to Church Sunday night of course. I normally go with Amy to church at First Baptist on Sunday morning as long as we're in this area. I go to the Norphlet Church of Christ on Sunday night so I can take the Lord's Supper. I believe we're supposed to take the Lord's Supper every Sunday. Unfortunately due to waiting until well into this year to star t going to church again I'm only on track to take the Lord's Supper a little more than 26 times in 2019. An average of every other week. That isn't too bad I suppose. Still no word about a job. Though there is one I applied for as a head football coach up near where we used to live that would be a godsend. All for the moment.
Just getting over being sick the last three days. An odd kind of illness this time. It started Friday with severe acid reflux that kept me from getting enough sleep. It progressed Saturday night to acid reflux so bad that it actually cause me to vomit sever times Saturday and Sunday night. Missing sleep for several nights in row had really weakened me as well as not having much taste of food during the last several days too. I've slept on the sofa the last two nights so I wouldn't disturb Amy. I'll probably go back to the regular bed tonight. I was happy to see New England win Sunday of course. My throat still hurts badly and sounds badly from the acid I suppose. I guess it can only get better. I couldn't make it to either church service on Sunday unfortunately. All for the moment.
Our Thanksgiving went well thought I didn't really recover from my illness until the day afterwards. I got to see all three of my sisters on Thanksgiving plus two of my brothers in law and four of my nieces and nephews along with their kids. Saw my nephew Ben's baby boy (Lane) for the first time ever. He is such a sweet little boy. Amy (my wife) held him for hours and of course she loved every minute of it. I was still ill on Thursday so I didn't eat much. A couple of deviled eggs and rolls was about it but it was more than I had eaten in awhile. Friday we woke up and Annalee had had to go into work and assist on yet another brain surgery. Amy suggested we get ready and go eat breakfast. I knew where Waffle House was down the road so we ate there. I ate the largest meal I had eaten in more than a week. Scrambled eggs, toast, sausage, and milk. Annalee got out of work and met us there. She very graciously paid for our breakfast. While we were eating a black guy pulled up in a pickup outside. He had the largest bulldog in the backseat of his truck that I had ever seen. At least 250 lbs! In the back of his truck he had 6 puppies that he was selling for 300 dollars each. He had already sold three of the original nine. The puppies were simply adorable. Amy went out to pet the grown male and the puppies. She adored them. The puppies had the coloration of silver labs but you could see their bulldog heritage in their heads and faces. Sadly Arkansas finished yet another depressing 2-9 season with a 24-14 loss to Missouri. And Dallas performed poorly on Thanksgiving Day losing to Buffalo. Along with the Patriots losing Sunday night to Houston 28-22 my long football weekend was an utter disappointment. I think I enjoy Thanksgiving a lot more than Christmas. I like distinctly American holidays and there isn't the hassle and complications of gifts on Thanksgiving. All for the moment.
That was back before free agency. That was when a player played for the team that drafted him until he retired. Let me give you a little more history of the Dolphins. In a two year span the Dolphins had a 32-2 record. And it was the ‘73 Dolphins that had the NFL’s #1 offense and #1 defense. A feat that will never be touched. The ‘72 Dolphins also won their last 10 regular season games with Earl Morrell, a backup QB. Griese broke his ankle in the 4th game of the regular season against the Chargers and didn’t return until the playoffs. The ‘72 Dolphins also had 2 running backs to gain 1,000 yards that year. Pretty impressive for a 14 game season. The Dolphins ended up with nearly 2800 yards rushing that season. And if you can answer this question I will be impressed. Why was the ‘72 AFC Championship game played in Pittsburgh? I mean the Dolphins were the #1 seed with a perfect 14-0 regular season record. Now to really blow your mind. The three players that started and are responsible for free agency and the now mega salaries were on the ‘72 Dolphins. After the ‘74 season the World Football League’s Memphis Southmen offered the Dolphins’ Larry Czonka, Jim Kick and Paul Warfield $1 million each to play for them. They were the first team players of any sport to surpass a 7 figure income.
Because prior to 1975 home field was based on rotating among the divisions and not on season records.
Finally nearly fully recovered from the series of illnesses that began a week before Thanksgiving. I had a regular doctors appointment on Monday where I listed to my doctor all the various problems I'd had the last couple of weeks. She thought I might have a small ulcer in my stomach and is running some tests but otherwise I'm fine. I've lost 14 lbs. in the last two months and my blood pressure was the lowest it has been in ages (124/80). She prescribed some cough syrup to deal with my persistent cough. Still no new job information. I'm getting worried though I know I'm supposed to pray and worry not. Amy is still driving herself crazy over the Lane family Christmas get together for this Saturday. I'll be happy when it's over too. Annalee has been really lonely lately and despite how much it will raise her rent and the inconvenience she is thinking of getting a dog. If she's lonely now I can only imagine how she'll be if her boyfriend manages to join the Marines and leaves for California and then who knows where. At least her work is going well. All for the moment.
Today would've been my dad's 91st birthday. Unfortunately he died rather peacefully in February of 2017. My second oldest sister put up his picture and a notation on Facebook. Amy is taking a day off from the library tomorrow to cook and prepare for the Lane family Christmas on Saturday. Given that the library usually has only one person a day come in I don't suppose its any great loss to the community. I'm going over to this guys house that I know from church. He offered me $500 to help plant 1,000 trees on his property. I doubt I'm up to it physically given that I'm not accustomed to hard physical labor anymore but I want to at least try. I need the money of course and I want to at least make the effort especially since I'll be seeing all of Amy's family the day after. I'll pray of course. A male dog that wants to breed Murphy has been dogging her (so to speak) for the last two days whenever she is outside on the tether. Murphy lunges at him and snaps at him. Barks occasionally but he won't take the hint. I think its good for Murphy to have some kind of socialization with other dogs which she doesn't have enough of. All for the moment.
Had Lane family Christmas (Amy's family) today at Hot Springs at her nieces big house. But everything was overshadowed by other news. We found out that Amy's nephew Trevor Hooker and his wife's youngest daughter Camille, (less than one year old) has a massive tumor on one of her kidneys. She is in Children's Hospital in Little Rock right now. The tumor is larger than the kidney it is growing on. She is going to have surgery this next week to have the tumor (and kidney) both removed. Again, she is a few months under a year old. This is her first ever Christmas. I'm requesting prayers from all the Political Forum members with any religious beliefs and the well wishes from those without any. No baby should have to suffer so. All for the moment.
Hope all goes well for the little one. Can’t pray as I’m not religious but the good wishes of a heathen may help.
Camille's surgery is scheduled for tomorrow though it could be pushed back to Tuesday. Also, she started walking yesterday.
Camille's surgery began about 7:30 this morning and apparently went well. The doctor said that there was no apparently spread to the lymph nodes or anywhere elsewhere but of course they'll have to wait for the pathology report to be sure. Given those fact that were not anticipating administering chemotherapy at this time. Sounds like the news is as good as it can reasonably expected to be at this time. Camille was all smiles before she was taken in to surgery.