Dot`sThoughts

After reading Deni`s blog I kept remembering things that happened when I was working at our local hospital.

All my life I wanted to be a nurse. While still a girl Scout, I became a member of our First aiders-- took the course and passed it. I was just 16 at the time, but was very interested in Medical situations.

Back when I was only 10 years old, my brother was Hospitalized with osteomylitis and had an op on his leg. Doctors told my mother and father that if they didn`t remove his leg he wouldn`t live thru the night. But, My Mother refused. Her faith was so strong that she felt he would make it thru with his leg intact. Thank God that she was right as she never could have handled it if he had died. I can still remember the first time i saw his leg. He was in the hospitsl for over a year and when his second Christmas there arrived the Dr made arrangements to have my bro brought down to the salarium near the huge tree. They allowed my parents to bring us kids up to see him opening his gifts by the tree. he wasn`t able to get out of bed, but we didn`t care. We were just glad to see he was still there. When you are small and don`t see someone for over a year you begin to think they are gone for good.

When I asked him how he was, he said his leg looked awful. So,I asked him to show it to me. It had a long hole going from just below his knee down to the top of his ankle. It did look awful with many places having pusssy globs , other places looking red and bloody and you could see where the skin was trying to heal over the open deep empty space. You knew if you touched it the skin would peel of. It made my bros and sisters sick so they walked away, but even at that age of 10 yrs i already was interested in being a nurse.

I got a job at our local hospital a few weeks before I graduated from high School. I worked on what was all private rooms and called " The Gold Coast". I worked 3pm to 11 pm 6 nights a week. After I had worked there a few months with daily on the floor training I started being in charge when the only Nurse went down for supper. It made me feel important. I was just 18 years old and trusted with so much athority. I did everything a registered nurse was allowed to do except give a needle. I took charge of all meds for all patients and even did the counting at the end of the day. the Nurse signed her Initials after mine to make it legal. They were so short of Nurses back then and so there was just the one nurse working on that floor second shift. If there had been more Nurses, I would never have learned so much or been allowed to do all the things I did. Even special nurses had to come to me to get the drug cabinet or the linen closet door unlocked.

But there were some things that happened that were scarry. One time I was in the linen closet straightening up the shelfs when one of the special nurses noticed the opened door and shut it not knowing I was inside. Mechon was at supper and I had all the keys. I started pounding on the door and the special nurse said " Dorothy, is that you in there?" When I said yes, she asked where to find the keys to let me out. Told her in my pocket. I would never lay them down while I was in charge.

The spec.N called down to the head office, told them that she needed to get into the linen closet and couldn`t find the nurse. So they sent someone up to unlock the linen closet . Was I relieved as while I was in there noone was watching the board or patients.

Some nights after everyone was asleep it would be so quiet that I would play solitare while the nurse knitted-- both in the closet in case the head of nurses happened to come on our floor. had a tiny pack of cards. But I didn`t continue playing cards for long. I got bored and wanted something to do. So I started asking for permission to go down and either help on the childrens floor or on the floor where all the poorer patients were. They appreciated any help they could get. That floor had many beds to every room and there wasn`t enough nurses to do a good job.

On that floor was where I met the Nurse that had cared for my bro years before. She asked my name and then asked if he was related- told her yes, my brother. Well, one night while I was down helping her a dr came into the nurses station. Mrs jennings told me that was the Dr who had saved my bros live and she introduced me to him. She told him I was the sister of the lad he treated yrs ago. His reply to me was " I didn`t save your brothers life. I had done everything humanly possible and I knew I was going to lose him as there was nothing more I could do. It took someone much more powerful than I to save your brothers life". I never forgot his words. He would take no credit for himself.

Well, to get back to what happened on my own floor- lots happened.

One evening while I was alone on the floor I heard a patient yelling " Dautty, Dautty, get her out of here". He couldn`t say Dorothy and called me Dautty. I hurried to his room ( he never would use the buzzer, just yelled my name). There I found the patient from down the hall in just her johnny shirt and in his room. I tried my best to hold the gown around her as I hurried her down the hall to her own private room, past visitors on the way. You can just imagine what that was like. This patient had dementia, but her niece was head of nurses and refused to let us do anything to keep her safe in her room, nor did she want to spend the money to give her a special nurse. Another time I came out from helping another patient and peeked in her room to check on her like I was forever doing. She was nowhere to be found. I checked the bathroom, even under the bed and in the closet. Then I started walking down the hall checking each room as I went passed it. Finally I heard a noise coming from the small utility closet. When I opened the door, there she was hiding behind the large mop cart. Down the hall holding her gown shut again. When mercson came back from supper, I told her what happened and if something wasn`t done soon, this patient was either going to get hurt, or she might even follow visitors onto the elevator and leave the hospital. Thats when merchon called the patients Dr and he came and insisted she be contained in bed with the fishnet. Well, if we thought that would make our carinng for her easier, we were wrong. This woman would try to grab your hand when you were feeding her and try to bite you. I soon learned how to safely get the food into her mouth and pull my hand back real fast. We knew she had incurable cancer and when she got worse they finally got her a special nurse. merchon told me that she was going to go while she was at supper and I would have to help the sp nurse fix her up. I remember telling her " She better not". She was right. Still just 18 , almost 19 and here I was holding a dead person while her nurse washed her up. I heard Merchon`s footsteps coming down the hall. my one thought was Thank God! Now I can get out of here. Wrong!! All Merchon did was open the door and say " be careful Dorothy, don`t let her face touch the pillow or it will bruise it", then she turned walked out and shut the door leaving me there to finish helping. I will never forget how it felt .

Then there was this Priest- same one who called me Daughty. He didn`t trust anyone in white uniforms- Nurses or Drs. But I could give him his pills and he would take them for me. So, I started going to work an hour early even though I wasn`t paid for it. I did it to give him his afternoon pills so he received them at least twice a day. I could walk in with the day nurse and she would give me the pills right in front of him and still he would take them from me, but noone else. He was such a little man wearing his reddish purple expensive robe. It got so that merchon told me to drop whatever I was doing if I could and go to his room when he started yelling my name. He used to tell me that the nurses were trying to kill him with the pills. He was a sweetheart and it hurt knowing he was dying.

Then there was the patient who was bedridden who rang her buzzer. Merchon answered that buzz, came back and asked me to go see if I could figure out what she was upset over. She was saying " Please shut off my stove, my coffee is boiling over." I stood quiet and listened to find what she might be hearing, I hear a drip, drip, and went into the bathroom and shut off the dripping faucet. The patient smilled and told me Thankyou.

Then I remember this very intelligent lady who had been a teacher in the Albany Teachers College. We had her as a patient till she got quite bad. Then she had a private nurse. I had gotten permission from her nurse to stop and talk to her on my way down the hall when I first arrived. I had talked to her for weeks before this. This went on for over another week, when this one day as I reached her room, her Nurse put her hand up to stop me from entering. The nurse came out into the hall and told me that the patient had gone into a coma no more than I left last night. I asked her if she minded if I still stopped in to speak to her and she said ok. While I was talking to the patient she suddenly said "Dorothy?" in a questionly manner. I told her, yes it was me. Her nurse jumped out of the chair and started across to her while I just looked at her and shook my head. She never uttered another word and never came out of the coma. The Nurse said she was going to tell the patients daughter when she came back from supper. I told her to please never tell any of her Family that she called my name. She looked at me puzzled. I told her nothing would hurt her family more than to have spent all night there with her without a sound from her and hear that she spoke a workers name not theirs. I felt that would be a cruel thing to do to her Family. Yes, it sure hurt every time we lost a patient, especially one that we had been treating for a long time. You do start loving some of them.

There was one patient who asked me to stay with them when I went to their city for advanced nursing. His wife said It would be like the child they never had. They would get me a car to drive back and forth to The hosp., and his wife said we would go shopping and turn the bedroom into what ever made me happy. Trouble was I ended up getting engaged and since he had a daughter, I knew if I married I would become a wife and mother instead of a registered nurse. I had gone to the other Hospital, been showed all thru it, plus saw the nurses Quarters . But they were filled for that quarter and I would need to wait till the next Jan. to enter. Then I took my weeks vacation and started watching Walts little girl at my parents home. The head nurse that was that patients niece called me and told me to report to another floor when I came back. So, I called the hosp head and told him I was quitting. He called me 4 times after that trying to change my mind. The last time he added that he would see that I went back to the same floor where I had worked before. But by then Walt had asked me to marry him, so I recalled the head of the hosp to tell him I wouldn`t be back when my vacation was over as I was getting married. I married the orderly in Dec, so never went in Jan. I used to baby sit for this same Hosp head Nurse when i was in grade school and she wasn`t a nice person then either, but I did love the kids and her husband was a great father.

There were many patients that were special and many more incidents I could tell about. But, I have told enough to show how much I loved nursing. Even today, I still have a love for Nursing.

I can`t believe that I wrote in PolyEdit this morning and when company arrived, I clicked on save it in my Documents, or so I thought. But after they left I went thru my saved documents only to find it nowhere to be found. So guess it was sent off to no-mans land. I will probably find it some day in some strange place where it won`t ever open again.
Doesn`t it irritate when that happens? To answer myself- it sure does.
Rained most of the day and there must have been a lot of pollen of some sort because my alergy has my eyes and nose running and I
kept sneezing most of the morning. Almost as bad as walking thru the soap aisle in our grocery store. I skip that aisle unless I realy need something there. If I must get something from that aisle, I go down it when there isn`t many customers so I can go down it quickly. Nothing I hate worse than being in a grocery store and start sneezing. I buy the perfume free liquid detergent. Made a big mistake a while ago. I decided to use a coupon for a different kind of fabric sopftener dryer sheets. Instead of saving money, I ended up wasting money because the scent sent my alergy off. So, Thought the coupon might save me some money. Haahaa, joke was on me. At my age, I should know enough to stick to things that I know won`t affect my senses and send me off into teary land. Who knows, maybe I will live long enough to smarten up!!
Sure was nice seeing my older sister and her great hubby again. They live about 4 hours drive from me. My youngest sister was with them. So I received more Christmas gifts from them. Got another horse cup for my collection. This one is from the Appaloosa Horse Club-- their 2001 Awards Banquet cup. looks a lot like my brothers real Appaloosa horse. Also got a silver napkin holder with a Horse on it,looks like might be pewter, but not sure, plus got a winter scene floor mat. Oh, yes, they also gave me another Horse calendar for the coming year. That makes three new large horse calendars and none are alike. So, yesterday I spent time rearranging my steins so I could fit two more steins upon my shelves, now where do I fit this cup? No worry, as I always find a place. A neighbor gave me a upright horse statue that takes up 8" x 11" space on my Horse shelfs . It is brown with golden mane, hoofs and tail. I received two more horse blankets , one from a daughter, the other from a son and his wife. Just received a horse blanket in Sept. for my Birthday from the youngest daughter and her hubby. I Had a lighter one from a granddaughter a couple years ago and last christmas the neighbor gave me a second one like it. So I now have a total of 5 Horse blankets- different weights for different seasons. Want something to laugh about?? Years ago one of my grand daughters received a door poster from her step fathers Mom. Her bedroom door was too small to use it so she gave it to me. She said her Gram and Gramp agreed on giving it to me. So, to please her I put it on the outside of our bedroom door. It shows the horse in a stable with the top open and the large Horses head filling the top half. it has been there for 5 or 6 years at least and still looks pretty good. So, when you head for my bedroom you see the door looking like you are entering a barn. Last year the neighbor gave me a welcome sign with a horse that hangs from it. Over my garage is a large metal horsehead that a brother-in-law gave me years ago. He is gone now, but my house is filled with items he gave me for my collection. This year my youngest sister- was his wife- gave me an old Christmas post card with the post date North Pole 1900 on the back. She said she just found it and that he had bought it for me before his accident. Last year she gave me a horse head large workable stapler that her hubby had picked up for me. She told me that this would be the last gift from her hubby as now I had all he had bought to keep for my gifts. He will always be missed, especially his laughter and his fun nature. She lost her husband the year after I lost mine, only he was younger and healthier, but fell from a tree.
I have a large turkey cutting board that has a silver metal horses head on the top left and the silver tail off the top right. They used to find things noone else saw.
In my collection I have horse statues of all sizes and shapes and made from many things-- such as one from Pen.coal, blown glass, metal, leather, a plate with a horse made from St Helens ash, lamps, clocks, candles,wall pictures- couple of them I pained, Puzzles- one is shaped like a huge horse with 0ver 800 pieces. This one I used puzzle glue and hung it on the wall. It has the head, separate legs, tail etc all juting out- realy cut out like a real horse. -- I could go on and on. Have an expensive Bud 8 clysdale horse hitch with a large wagon, plus a cheeper one thats woth only $300. The expensive one is enclosed to protect it, but the other sits up on an open shelf. All too high for little hands to reach. I received more horse gifts, but think I have mentioned enough for you to get the idea of my collection that has been accumulated over many years. Even my organ is protected with a horse scene tapestry that once belonged to my youngest bro who we lost back in 1994. When I take that one off to wash, I replace it with another horse wall tapestry my Husband bought me years ago. My sister once told her friend that I had a house with a great tribute to horses. Of course I also resprayed the 8ft x 8 ft country farm scene that I painted on the doors to my garage. It has horses pulling a plow, pulling a surrey, couple in the barn amongst other country farm scene items. It has already made it thru two winters and hopefully thru this winter.
I am sure anyone reading this is already tired of hearing about Horses, and I only touched on a small part of my collection. But I do love horses.
I also got a set of minnie and micky mouse salt and peppers to add to that collection. Not sure how many sets I have now, was over 100 the last time I counted. When you have been married over 50 years, there were many years to get so much collected.
I sometimes wonder what my Kids will do with such a large horse collection-- they could give each child, plus grand and great grand child one to remember me by and still have more left. Oh well, let them worry about that. I`ll just contimue to collect and enjoy them for as long as I am able.
Well, think I should post this before it dissappears like the first written one did.

WOW, It has already been two days since christmas,
but since someone has showed up every day, it feels
like Christmas is still here.

4 more days and this year will be over.

Now, what did I accomplish this past year?
lets see,
I made the large 4 door cupboard for holding my yarn,
pictures and other items in the front room, then I
hit the dining room and there sits the long 3 shelf
( counting the top) case used for holding part of my
huge horse collection. Then off to the bathroom and
there sits the small sliding door cabinet plus the wood
standard that holds the paper, then there is the small
close-up table. Then I also lined all the bigger shelfs
on the tall plant holder to protect the varnish from
moisture. I also removed the two narrower shelfs that
were on each side of the shelf over
my kitchen window and made some wider ones to hold
more of my Bud Clysdale steins. Just received two more
this Christmas, plus the one I got on my Birthday- so
needed more shelf space. Oh, I forgot the carry case I
made for the floor steam cleaner and it`s attachments.
Then the steamer was defective and I had to send it back.
So, right now the case is filled with Comp Mags. and
woodworker for Women mags. I forgot the long hanging
planter with the bird house on each end. Gee, until I
started writing, I never realized I had done this much
this year. Thought I was done till next spring.

But a
daughter and her intended gave me an electric oil filled
radiator to heat my shop. So, now I can continue having
fun out there. Thought it was going to be a boring
winter- being stuck in the house for the next few months.
If I get good enough roads all winter to go pick up more
wood, I can continue to enjoy working in my shop.

I usually get a lot of crocheting done each year. But
just two hooded baby sweaters that zip down the back,
a stuffed toy, a baby blanket and a few other small items.
I did take time out to teach a couple girls how to crochet.
I usually make much more, but was enjoying my wood shop
to much this past year.

Now, wouldn`t have accomplished
so much if I wasn`t retired and living alone. But would
gladly have spent that time with someone, but it just wasn`t
in the cards. So, no sense just wasting away the rest of
my life doing nothing but sitting alone feeling sorry for
my self. That would only shorten my life from getting no
exercise.

Now that I have a way to heat my shop, Oh what will I
find to make next. Suppose I could start making the
close-up tables for Christmas gifts next year. Or maybe
a new trellis for my flower garden. Or ????????
Can`t think what else might come in handy? Sitting around
doing nothing gives me too much time for thinking. Thinking
can feel lonesomeness much more. Keeping too busy to think
makes those long days seem shorter. Funny how days that seem
to hang on forever, suddenly seem to short when you have
a lot you want to get finished and wish you had more hours
in the day to finish them.

Last night after all the days with so much company, I felt
exhausted and went to bed around 9pm, got to sleep by ten pm
and awoke this morning at 2am and never could get back to sleep.
Hopefully I will sleep more tonight, but never get more than
4 hours a night. Was onlt 2 hours till the Dr put me on the
c-pap machine, now get up to four some nights. So, it has
helped me the past 1 1/2 years. I am still hoping to start
sleeping longer.
Well, guess I`ll go enjoy reading others blogs. There are so
many interesting writers in the blogs. Sometimes I leave a post
but some I just enjoy reading.

Here it is Christmas Eve already. Soon we will be starting another new year. But, first we need to finish this year
Yesterday was my Anniversary date and I started the morning feeling a bit down. Then a granddaughter stopped in to give me a beautiful boquet of cut flowers-- she said to brighten up my day. Later two daughters plus this granddaughter stopped in carrying Mc Donalds food which everyone ate at my table with me. Later one of the Daughters invited me over for a big Christmas dinner with her and her Family- (my grandson and two great grandsons and their mom, a granddaughter and a great granddaughter and another great grandson,and her friend, plus one of Walt`s nieces ) well in all there actually were 11 of us. After eating there was a lot of gift exchanges.
I received a lot of nice things. Even an electric oil-filled radiator to heat up my shop so I can continue enjoying working out there in my wood shop during this cold winter. No Mother was ever treated better than the way my kids and their families treat me, and I`m not talking about the gifts. I am so blessed. More of my children and their families will show up today and I will see the rest of them tomorrow. Do have a grandson and his family living in Germany that I received a Christmas card from, another grandson and Family living in Florida that also sent me a card, then more family in N. Carolina that will phone me on Christmas- every year without fail. ones in germany, Florida and N. Carolina are from my step`s kids. All these grandchildren have stayed close. I also hear from most of them over the net. Wonderful how close we can stay with family and friends with the computer. The one who invented it deserves much thanks!!
Well, to get back to yesterday-- Later that evening after most of the neighbors were in bed, my dog started barking up a storm. She never barks without a good reason. So, I went out onto the porch to see what was upsetting her. I found her doing her best to dig out the frozen ground to get at something under the small building that sits beside my side porch. Not knowing what I would find there, I grabbed the long handled snow shovel and started sliding it around under the back of the building. Our on a run came a possum. Before I had time to grab my dogs chain, she was running around barking at the animal. My daughter next door heard me yelling at Sassy- my Border Collie. She came over on a run to see what was the matter.
I had finally got ahold of the end of Sassy`s chain and was dragging her towards the porch. I was holding my breath as the dog chain was wound around the possum and I feared I might also drag it to my porch along with my dog. Luckily with some shaking upward, the chain finally slid over top of the animal. Then my daughter helped me pull Sassy up the steps and onto the porch.She weighs over 50 pounds which is like 150 when she braces her body not to move. Used to just carry her when she refused, but getting to large now. Could lift the 50, but her body is too long to handle now. Finally put her inside and tried to get the animal to leave so Sassy could be rechained outside. My daughter asked what kind of animal it was- told her a possum. Then she asked- is it dead, told her no just playing possum- pretending to be dead for safety reasons. Sassy seems to prefer staying outside so far this winter. Well, the most that possum was willing to do was to open its eyes and stare at us, but not to unwind and take off. Nothing seemed to work. tried tossing water near it, snow at it, even a tiny board didn`t get her to move.
Then a neighbor drove in his driveway and came over to see if he could help. He also thought it was dead till I told him not to get close as it was just faking. After almost an hour, it finally left my driveway and the last we saw of it was it going around behind my garage. My neighbor used his flashlight and checkled all over my yard to be sure it was gone. So, I eventually was able to rechain up Sassy and head myself off to bed.
I always said there was never a boring time around here. Have had lots of wild animals around the past few years with most of the forests being cut down for building. Had a huge moose a few years ago and I got his picture laying in the small grove of trees across the road from my house,- he walked slowly down our road like he lived here. Couple months ago was the white turkey, another time was a small fawn, a snapping turtle, a long fat iguana, always too many squirrels trying to get to my bird feeders. So far I outwit them. Had a chipmunk in my cellar way last summer and am not lacking for having skunks every year. I finally closed up around my garage and shop to keep the skunks and wild cats from living under there any more. Am sure I am forgetting some of the wild animals that are showing up. Seems like we never know what might show up next. I live about 3 miles from the Adirondack mt. and I am sure the lit up ski center with all it`s commotion probably helps sending the animals our way, plus the trees on my empty lot and the ones across the road are some of the wooded areas left for them to hang in.
Well, guess i will go and check out my e-mails.
Hope everyone finds much to be happy about this holiday.
I have a cousin whose husband is critical and the Dr says it could be anytime. So know her Family won`t be as lucky. For them and all others in that position, I wish them a much happier new year.
Wishing the very best to all my wonderful blogger friends and Thank you to each and every one of you for visiting my blog and leaving your appreciated messages. Thank you and please visit often.

My Anniversary Day, Dec.23rd, 1951

Today my mind has traveled back to one of the most important dates in my life, the day I married my wonderful husband Walt. It was such a beautiful day.We had a double ring, double marriage along with my Sister and her husband Walt. Yes, we both married men with the first name of Walter. Glad the Minister didn`t get the wrong womans first name with the wrong Walt. :) Since I was oldest, I got to walk down the aisle on my Fathers arm. Walt had asked my oldest brother to be his best man. My maid of Honor was a friend I had met when I first started working at the hospital.We had been friends at work for over a year before I started dating Walt. We had been dating for almost a year before either my friend ( later maid of honor) knew who I was dating. neither of us knew it was someone who once was related to her. I knew he was married and divorced over 4 years before I met him. What surprised my friend and I was that his first wife was her older sister. That never came between my friend and I and she ended up happy to be in our wedding. Over the years her parents and I became close. You see The grandparents had raised Walts daughter since he was in service over seas at the time. He came home on a furlough to find his wife in his apt bed with another man and his daughter living with her grandparents. Thats when he got his divorce. When he came home from service
he moved into his in-laws home with his daughter . He was an orderly at the hosp where I worked and thats how we met.
We dated together for a year before getting married and thats how
I got to meet his daughter and her grandparents. .
After our Marriage we took his daughter to live with us.The grandmother was so afraid she would never see her granddaughter again since they were the parents of his first wife,
but both grandparents were so happy that I insisted their granddaughter should keep her closeness with them.They used to tell me how much it meant to them to see their granddaughter with me.The Grandmother once told me that she was so happy Walt had found a good mother for his little girl and she hoped that hank ( her daughters next fellow) would also find a better mother for his little girl ( another of her granddaughters).
Walts little girl ended up living with her grandparents after her
grandmother caught her daughter holding a pillow over the babys
face and heard her saying - now I`ll never have to hear you cry again. She was almost 4 years old when I first met her and after our
mariage she came to live with us. . Today I visit my Maid of Honor in a Nursing Home. She is almost blind and can hardly walk and it hurts to see her in that condition. We still keep the strong love bond between us. I wanted to go to the cementary today, but they don`t plow it out and it is a long distance from the road to way back where Walt is. Way to far for me to shovel and the snow is crusted over so can`t safely walk there. Last Christmas my oldest Daughter walked thru the high snow and ended up with her legs all black and blue from her knees down her whole leg from
falling thru the hard crust. I was doing pretty good today until a brother phoned about a friend of his. That is she is your friend when she wants something then if she can`t control you, she starts telling lies about you to get even. Walt warned me about her, but I didn`t listen. I always give everyone the benefit of the doubt. Well the time came when she wanted to be rid of my brother- she asked me to tell, or I should say, she ordered me to tell him to stop contacting her, both on phone and on the net- She grew up near us, but has lived in Texas for many years. When I told her I would not get involved and if she had a problem with my bro she would have to handle it herself and leave me out of it. She got mad at me and stopped contacing me.Then over a year later she came to town, phoned me about a tape she had sent me as a Christmas present years before she got mad.She said she wanted to borrow it to make a copy for another friend who lived in my town and would return it after. Then this person where she was staying heard her conversation to me on the phone. She phoned me later to tell me that she never intended to make a copy and had gone to the mailbox and mailed the tape to her own home address in Texas. Then she told a couple girls that she got mad at me for calling her some real filthy names. luckily those girls knew me and knew I never use that language. Another friend said the friend from Texas always used that language. Well, my brother just heard that this lady from Iexas was in the hosp in very dire condition. I told him I couldn`t get into her as this was my day and I already had more on my plate than I could handle and so wasn`t up to listening to his excuses for all she had done. She alienated all my family the last time she was around and ran this same bro into the ground everywhere she went. She became like apossession he couldn`t have and all the family was tired of all the lies.
He used to cry on everyones shoulder over how bad she had treated him.Now she makes excuses for her actions. We have a cousin whose husband is seriously ill and the dr says it could be anytime. Trying to change the subject on the phone withmy bro, I told him I feel sorry for the granddaughter in Texas and for her friend here she had also hurt and wish she had made things right with her, but right now my heart is for our cousin and what she is going thru. He got mad again, and I told him Family comes first with me. He got mad and slammed down the phone. He has treated others this way and so isn`t as close to the rest of our family.I have felt sorry for him living alone since our Mother passed away in 1995 and have done my best to be there for him to help.He doesn`t make it easy for anyone to stay close to him. One other time, I told him he had to stop trying to control what others think and stop running everyone down or someday he would find himself all alone. he told me please don`t be mad at him as I was his only mainstay. Then here he is again acting like only how he feels is important. I told a sister a while ago that I didn`t know how much more I could take from his attitude, then I get worried about him and here I am taking more abuse from him over the phone. He will stay away for a few days, then show up acting like nothing happened- no appologies as he is never wrong
or if he should say I`m sorry, he will repeat what he does all over again.
So, how sorry was he??? I have never slammed a phone in anyones ears.
he is good at it. So, While I was holding up as strong as I could incase any of the kids dropped in, he managed to bring everything crashing down around me. Then one of my granddaughters showed up and that gave me the strength to calm down and visit with her. Then two of my daughters stopped in bringing food from McDonalds and we all ate together. They stopped , knowing it was my Anniversary and that was so thoughtful of them. I had just sent my bro home with a bag of gifts this morning. I try my best to make Christmas nice for him. On his birthday in Nov. I gave him a gift card for staples. I do more for him than anyone, but you just can`t dissagree with him without problems. Today just wasn`t a good day to start his acting up. I know I can`t ignore him as I am the one he depends on but there just are some days when my plate is already way too full to listen to him. He has a very negative attitude and he is far to quick to run others down. I have watched these people do lots for him and I once told him it was time he started appreciate it and showing them he appreciates it. It`s like the old saying " Never bite the hand that feeds you.
Well, now that I`ve got this off my mind,maybe the rest of the day will be a little bit easier to handle.
One of my daughters is having her large christmas Dinner tonight and has asked me to join them. So, that will help pass away part of the day. This way she doesn`t need to spend Christmas eve or Christmas day over a hot stove and can sit and visit with those who show up. Her whole family and possible my oldest daughter and her family will be there.

The neighbor across the road brought me over a present yesterday which I opened today. She gave me a wrapped gift inside of a box with a Bear on it. When I opened it today, inside was a beautiful brown metal Horse with gold trim on the main, hoofs and tail , just beautiful. It stands about 11 inches tall on a base about 3 1/2 inches across.
Now that I have calmed down a bit, I need to stop writing and call them to say thankyou. They are the same ones who got the hay for the dog house. Very nice people. If I ever needed them I know I could count on them to be there for me. Everyone should have neighbors like them.
I don`t usually let people get me down like my bro did today,
but he just connected with a day when I was already feeling down. I usually can control my feeling so they don`t show.
Was just going to close out when the same grandddaughter showed up again. She just gave me a beautiful boquet of flowers- she said it was to brighten my day. So, I stopped to put them into a vase. Always said I had a wonderful thoughtful family.
In about three hours or less I will be over at a daughters for a large meal. She is a good cook as are my other kids. Sent my sister an Anniversary card and if I get home early enough I might also call her.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night- or day as it is here.

I was reading this trivia in an e-mail and thought they were interesting to keep. So, I decided to post them here :
In George Washington's days, there were no cameras. One's image was either sculpted or painted. Some paintings of George Washington showed him standing behind a desk with one arm behind his back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on how many people were to be painted, but by how many limbs were to be painted. Arms and legs are "limbs," therefore painting them would cost the buyer more. Hence the expression, "Okay, but it'll cost you an arm and a leg."
--- As incredible as it sounds, men and women took baths only twice a year (May and October)! Women kept their hair covered, while men shaved their heads (because of lice and bugs) and wore wigs. Wealthy men could afford good wigs made from wool. They couldn't wash the wigs, so to clean them they would carve out a loaf of bread, put the wig in the shell, and bake it for 30 minutes. The heat would make the wig big and fluffy, hence the term "big wig." Today we often use the term "here comes the Big Wig" because someone appears to be or is powerful and wealthy.
--- In the late 1700s, many houses consisted of a large room with only one chair. Commonly, a long wide board folded down from the wall, and was used for dining. The "head of the household" always sat in the chair while everyone else ate sitting on the floor. Occasionally a guest, who was usually a man, would be invited to sit in this chair during a meal. To sit in the chair meant you were important and in charge. They called the one sitting in the chair the "chair man." Today in business, we use the expression or title "Chairman" or "Chairman of the Board."
--- Personal hygiene left much room for improvement. As a result, many women and men had developed acne scars by adulthood. The women would spread bee's wax over their facial skin to smooth out their complexions. When they were speaking to each other, if a woman began to stare at another woman's face she was told, "mind your own bee's wax." Should the woman smile, the wax would crack, hence the term "crack a smile." In addition, when they sat too close to the fire, the wax would melt...therefore, the expression losing face."
To give credit to the place where I received it from, below is the siteArca Max.:

Go to source: FREE Ezine from ArcaMax, Inc.

Here is a little joke to brighten your day:

Doctors Office
A gorgeous young redhead goes into the doctor's office and said that her body hurt wherever she touched it. "Impossible!" says the doctor. "Show me."The redhead took her finger, pushed on her chest and screamed, then she pushed her elbow and screamed even more. She pushed her knee and screamed, likewise she pushed her ankle and screamed. Everywhere she touched made her scream. The doctor said, "You're not really a redhead, are you? "Well, no" she said, "I'm actually a blonde. ""I thought so," the doctor said. "Your finger is broken!""

Now, didn`t that make you feel much smarter??
---------------
Now for what happened that was a bsd experience.
Boy what a scare we had yesterday. My brother and I went to Bj`s- a wholesale place about an hours drive from my home. After we left there we headed off to visit some friends on our way back home. Shortly before we reached their street some man in a truck suddenly jumped out in front of us from a side street, ignoring both the stop sign and the fact that there was oncoming traffic. There was a car coming from the other direction at the same time. My bro manged to step on the brake real fast turning the car a bit towards the other side of the street while the oncoming car must have seen what happened as he ( or she) drove that car over as far as he could to the other side of the road to give us more room. . The truck darted out so fast and took off fast and I was holding my breath waiting for the loud noise of the crash. God sure must have been with us as we never did crash, but there couldn`t have been more than a quarter of an inch between the front of my bros car and the rear of that truck. It took us a few minutes sitting there before we felt calm enough to drive on to our friends home. There were no trees, nor any high snow banks at that corner so he would have seen our car clearly. I don`t know where his mind was, but it sure wasn`t on his driving. I am also thankful there was no car brhind us or it might not have been able to stop as fast as we did. That man almost caused a three car accident and he wasn`t driving alone as there was someone sitting in his riders seat beside him. I saw that person lean over to look back to where we were still sitting. Later we noticed his truck in a driveway just a short distance up the road, so he wasn`t going far . Who knows, maybe they were arguing in his truck, or maybe he was under the influence of alchol or drugs, or some meds can cause mind blurring. either way he shouldn`t have been behind the wheel of any vehicle.
I went thru a bad accident back in 1995 when a truck was speeding down a road and crossed the road and hit me head on into the left front of my car, breaking off my left wheel, pushing the car under the dash into my knees cutting them both. Luckily I was going slow as I intended to turn into the Grocery store parking lot that was only about 4 car lengths away. But, going so slow getting ready to turn right into the parking lot just allowed the truck with it`s speed to shove my car packwards so much easier. If I had been traveling faster the impact would have been even worse and I might not be here to tell about it. Didn`t cut my knees seriously, but was hard walking with the pain for a few weeks while they healed and for me to recover from the concusion hitting my head had . Plus the impact threw my head into my side window, bounced off and hit the window again causing me to lose my eyesight for a few hours. That was the second time I went thru the fear of losing my eyesight as the first time was caused by lightning striking close to where I was standing hanging up baby diapers onto the clothesline.
They had to use the jaws of life to open my car door to get me out. So, guess that helped make me expect to hear and feel the crash this time. Memory keeps those thoughts in your mind after such an ordeal. My car was totaled and with the Ins. money I was able to buy the car I still drive today. I am glad my Bro didn`t have his car destroyed yesterday due to the carelesness of that dangerous truck driver.

Here it is only 6:40 pm and I feel like it should be time for bed. Thats what happens when I get up so early. Awoke around 4:30 and couldn`t get back to sleep. So I removed my c-pap mask, turned on the TV, grabbed my Diagramless puzzle book and sat resting on the bed till about 6:30. Then decided to get up and feed my dog.
Today is one of those tired days when not much got accomplished. Sorted thru some things and carried all the extra wrapping paper and extra gifts back upstairs. Then my youngest son dropped by and I had him carry the heavy box that still had more of the heavy plastic in it. FirstI decided to pull out and make a couple smaller rolls off the large roll. That I rolled up on some of the empty cardboard rolls that used to hold Christmas Wrapping paper. That made the smaller rolls easier to carry up stairs. That will allow me to cary some down from the attic side whenever I need some. I had used some of the huge roll to cover one side of the side porch and part of the front of it. This helps to keep so much cold air from entering the house every time the door is opened. I also used some to completely cover the front of the log shed to keep out any snow or ice so the logs won`t get wet. A couple years ago I decided to remove the heavy log carrier off the back porch before the weight ruined the porch. So I built a small shed that has a high leg foundation under it made with the 4x4 outdoor treated boards. . I wanted it the same height off the ground as the porch and tight to the side of the porch so I could walk out onto the porch to retrieve the logs without ever leaving the porch.
I have a Ben Franklin in the living room that burns the logs. Even though I haven`t used it in a couple years, I still have the chimney and pipework cleaned and ready each fall in case the winter storms cause outages in our electric power. This way I can still keep warm even if the furnace can`t run. Furnace runs on oil, but needs electricity for the power to run it. The Ben Franklin has it`s own chimney separate from the furnace chimney. I feel safer that way. my son took my long heavy chain up onto the roof and used it to be sure my chimney was clean. Walt and I had added the chimney cover to the top of the chimney with the screening closing in the sides on it so no birds could ever build a nest in the chimney in the summer and also the squirrels can`t get near it.
Every summer I remove all the logs and check them good for any bad ones and remove them. They seem to keep well in the shed as they did in the large log holder.
Many times I almost removed the Ben Franklin as it is a large one and removing it would give me lots more room there. But, I always end up deciding to keep it there as it gives me security.
Won`t be long before I will be shutting off the Christmas lights on the side porch so they will have time to be cooled down before i go to bed. I never leave them burning when I am not home.
I think it seem harder removing the decorations than it does to put them up. Every year I decide not to put up a lot to take back down after Christmas, but then I think of all the grandkids and great grandkids and end up doing more work. Thats what being a Mom, Gram and Great Gram does to me. Does anyone ever do all that work for themselves? Don`t we usually do it for the pleasure of others? I put out the sleigh with Santa and all the raindeers- each has it`s own name on it, you know, Dancer, Prancer, Donner and Blitzen and so on. And each has a Christmas light on it. that was a few days ago. Then I moved it a bit yesterday and knocked one of the raindeers off the board. So, now I need to refix that one. I had already heated a nail ( using pliers to hold the nail while heating it over the kitchen gas stove flame) to make new holes thru the plastic on many of them and used the drill to drill new holes thru the wood for the screws and bolts to go thru. Now, I need to do more work on it. First year I have set it out in years as I needed to do the repairs.
Oh Well, at least the kids will enjoy it for at least this Christmas.
I`m trying to stay up later at night so I can wake up later. Wish I could sleep for more than 4 hours at night. But, shouldn`t complain as before the c-pap machine I was only getting 2 to 2 1/2 hours sleep every night for years. Funny how your body can keep operating on so little sleep. I have sleep apnea and used to scare Walt when I would stop breathing during the night, but the machine forces the air in while I sleep. Should have been tested before so I wouldn`t have scared Walt, but I never told the Doc as Walt never told me till shortly before he died. He used to shake me and I would catch my breath and start breathing again is what he told me. But this one night the shaking didn`t work so he started slapping me on the back thinking thats how Doctors get a newborn to breath. It did work, I awoke with him hitting me and he was never a hitter. I honestly thought it was from him getting less oxygen till he explained why he was hitting me. Then he got worse and I completely forgot about myself till over a year after I lost him. So, been on the c-pap machine now for about 2 years and it seems to be helping. Must be since I am still here, right! As they say, life could always be much worse, so I am still one of the lucky ones to be able to keep doing things I enjoy. Hope I can for many more years.

Over the years I have handled many more things while being a Wife and Mother. Worked in a dept store- working up to Manager of my own Dept. after just 3 months, ran a bike shop - could build a bike from scratch wheels and all, plus do repairs , ran a grocery store, was a Cub Scout leader for 15 years, also a Scout Badge councelor and a trainer for new Leaders, plus scout summer camp worker, and I also was raising 8 kids at the same time , ours and his from a former marriage. Running a home also had many problems that I had to learn how to handle while Walt was working. I was never one to say "Wait till your Father gets home, I took being a parent seriously- as much my responsibility as their Fathers, Well, actually more my responsibility as I was with them more. The Bike shop and Grocery Store were on our property so it left me home with the kids.Walt worked a 40 hour week, and sometimes on Saturday. He worked days all except for 5 years.
Here are some of the home jobs that I handlesdover the years.

I learned how to prime a pump to get it working , how to adjust an oil furnace, how to thaw out water pipes, put in a window and loads of other things thru my over 50 years of Marriage-- all due to necessity.

When the pump wouldn`t run, I learned how to open the plug and prime it. I learned how to put my ear on the check valve and listen to hear if it was opening and closing properly. When it quit on me the first time, Walt was working, so I phoned my dad and over the phone he would tell me what to try. I was a good listener and after that time, I always knew what to do. I learned how to use soapy water on all the pipe connections to see if their was an air leak somewhere. After many years we finally had to drive down longer pipe further into the well as the water was low that year. After we added on the city water due to the old pump being rusted. Last summer I bought a new pump, a new cold water tank lining and new point and pipe. My three sons pulled up the old pump and point and drove down a new one for me. The chemicals in the town water didn`t agree with my stomach., so I wanted to get the well water workinmg again.
Then when Walt was night watchman for about 5 years I had a furnace that quit and wouldn`t run. Again, there was my faithful Dad telling me how to get it running again.
I learned how to pull out the nozzle and electrode assembly and how to adjust them correctly. On the old furnace there had to be only a 3/32 inch space between the end of the nozzle and the end of the electrode above it, plus the distance between the two electrodes had to be just between 2/16 to 3/16th of an inch apart. So, I always knew they were set right as I would recheck them with a ruler every year when we replaced the new nozzle. But, I never played around with the air adjustments. The flame was the right size and color when that winter started so it should have been alright. But, for some reason it must have changed. One time Walt adjusted the air and he had it too much and he blew some of the pipes off the furnace. I heard it upstairs and it scared me so much that I rushed down cellar to be sure Walt was ok. I knew he had cut the air too much so all the fuel wasn`t burning and that was allowing the fuel to build up so it blew when it lit. I had stopped checking the furnace after walt retired as I figured let him do it. He would still have me come check with the ruler to be sure he had the nozzle and electrodes placed correctly, but that was just when we replaced the nozzle as we put in a new one every year. The furnace was just getting too old and we needed a new one. Today, I wonder if we would have had the Carbon monoxide poisioning if I had kept checking the furnace after he retired. I will never know.
I remember how the old nozzles would get clogged and you had to remove them and clean them. That usually only happened when the fuel supply got down too low. Today, I never clean them, I always buy a new one and I never let the fuel burn to the bottom of the tank as thats when it cloggs. .
My Dad never acted like he was tired of my calling him. If what he suggested didn`t work, then i would call him back and he would tell me something else to try. If that didn`t do the trick, he never let me call more than 3 times before he would say " let me know if that doesn`t do the trick and I`ll drive up and help you. But, he never had to make that half hours drive as I was always able to get either the pump or the furnace working using his advice. I always considered my Dad a very smart person.
We also had water pipes that ran thru the crawl space under the addition we added on for a larger kitchen. They would freeze up every winter and I would need to crawl under with a blow torch to thaw them out. There wasn`t enough room to turn over under there so in order to work you had climb onto a chair and pull yourself thru on your back to crawl thru that small cellar window going backwards. Now if you ever tried climbing upward and going thru on your back, you won`t know how hard that is to do. Would have been easy if could have climb thru on my stomach, but on my back was terrible hard. You see, we just removed the glass window from the frame on that end of the house to go under the addition. It always frooze overnight and Walt had to leave for work so early that he didn`t have time to thaw them. I was always afraid of catching either my hair or my clothes. Noone would even have known where to look for me as I had to do this and have the water running when I got the kids up for school.
Well, one winter Walt went to the hosp for an op and while he was gone I used a pointed metal bar , think it was called a long handled ice pick which i used to knocked out the metal window frame and a small area of the cement blocks to make an opening to allow heat from the cellar to go under the addition. No more frozen pipes.
Then there was the years that I begged for a window in the boys bedroom and couldn`t win. Finally I decided a way to win. I went to Grossmans ( they used to be our local wood place). I asked the fellow for a paper, pencil and a ruler to measure one of his windows. He gave me the paper and pencil and took a new tape measure off the wall for me to use. After I measured the window I wanted, I asked him if he could put a hold on that double window for me to pick up after my husband got home from work. Then I came home, got out my coping saw and Walts drill and upstairs I went. First it was to drill a hole large enough for my blade to fit into, cut out the sheetrock, then cut out a section of the 2x4 wall framing, then remove that section of insulation, then drill and saw out a section of the outside house framing, and finally thru the outside house sheeting. I finally had an opening cut out the exact size of the window I had measured. Then I went just far enough around the inside opening to put in a box framework to slide the window into and I cut the piece of the 2x4 that I removed into a size to give a section for added support under the window box frame.
Then when Walt came home that night I told him he needed to drive with me to Grossmans to pick up the window for the boys room. He looked at me and said no. I told him he better give in this time if he didn`t want it raining and snowing into the house. He said " What did you do now?" Told him I had the opening all ready and just needed to pick up the window and slide it in and tack it in place. He told me it probably wouldn`t fit. He got a surprise as the window fit perfectly. I had made sure the window corners were square and that my opening was also square. So I was sure it would fit. Sure made it a lot cooler in the hot summer when there was a window to open. A few years later Walt and I removed the larger window from the girls room and replaced it with one that opened with a screen in it.
Took me years before I ever went against Walts wishes, but where the kids were concerned I did stand my ground with what was best for their health. I finally learned that the way to get something done was to get it started while he wasn`t home. That way he had to either let me finish it or help me do it.
Too bad I didn`t learn this years before and we might have had a better home years earlier.
He was easier to win with after he realized I knew what I was talking about. You see he didn`t come from a family where his Dad showed them how to do things. His Dad could make chairs from trees, but he was too big a drinker to be a good father. I was luckier to have parents there to help. Walt built our home with the help of a brother-in-law. But, no matter what he did, he kept thinking he couldn`t do much. I was always trying to proove to him that he was a lot smarter than he gave himself credit for.
Life is only as good as the hard work you put into it. Nothing comes easy. If you wantsomething you must be prepared to work for it. That was the way I was brought up. And I taught my kids the same thing so everyone of them is a hard worker. I am lucky as I have great kids who would do anything for me. I am proud of them all. Even my youngest Daughter who became a Prison Guard. Not my type of work, but have to respect her choices.

Snow, snow & more snow. Guess I should be glad the sleet didn`t last very long . Easier shoveling snow than chopping thru ice and easier walking in the snow than sliding on the ice.
I remember a storm back in jan. 1994 when we had snow, covered up by a thick layer of ice, then more snow, more ice and more snow and a third layer of ice. Couldn`t open my garage doors as there was too much ice in front of them. Walt and I were too sick to do any shoveling or ice picking. We thought we had the Flu. While we were sick, my younger bro passed away. We spent our days at his home trying to help his wife and kids. It was quite hard trying to help without getting too close and making them sick also. A couple weeks later we started feeling much sicker. Then one day I awoke where I had fallen asleep on the couch and dragged myself off to the bedroom. But when I got there I found Walt in a semi coma. It was early morning and I heard my sons car starting up next door at my daughters. I ran to the door, yelled to him to get his sister and hurry as I needed them. Daughter called the ambulance while I kept working on Walt to keep him breathing. No more than he hit the Hosp. he went into a full coma. We all stayed at the hosp the first two days. The third day Walt came out of the coma. Later on he told me that when he saw me standing over by the window he thought I was an Angel standing there. He thought I was dead on the couch when he went off to bed and he didn`t care if he lived or not. The Doc had wanted me also in the Hosp, but I refused to leave Walt`s room till I knew he would be ok. The third night I agreed to come home for the night as long as one of the daughters remained at the hosp to let me know if her father had a set back. My youngest daughter came home with me- she drove me home and insisted on staying over night with me. The next morning when she woke up, she told me she had migranes before, but never one like this. Thats when it all came back to me. Before Walt and I got so sick, I was trying to convince him that the furnace wasn`t running right, but he said it was ok. One of my sons stopped in shortly after we awoke, so I asked him to go check the furnace. He came up stairs asking me to come look at it. I was so weak still that he walked down the cellar stairs ahead of me so I could lean on his shoulders while climbing down the stairs. When I got to the furnace and showed my son how to unlock the door ( Walt had replaced a broken latch). When he opened that door, the soot was so bAd that there was only a small opening. I had my son turn off the furnace and I called a furnace man to come clean and adjust the furnace. When the repairman arrived he told me that he was missing the end of his program and he better be back home in time to see his other program. Right then I wanted to tell him just where he could go, but I knew our lives depended on me getting the furnace fixed, so I kept my mouth shut. After that I found a new furnace man and when our fuel co. called the next year about cleaning, I told them I had someone else more dependable to do it for us. Actually the new one was an old school friend that used to live across the field from where I grew up and him and his bro used to hang out at our home. He retired and today I have his son cleaning both my furnace and the one in the house next door..
As you probably have guessed by now, we never had the Flu, what we had was Carbon Monoxide Poisioning. Walt spent three weeks in the Hosp and all that time the Docs couldn`t figure out what had made him that sick that he almost died. Now, I knew what it was and thank God the Hosp hooked him up to oxygen as soon as we got there. They also had him hooked up at home and in the Ambulance on the way to the hosp. Everyone knows that oxygen is the only help for Carbon monoxide poisioning.
Not one year has gone by since that year without us having a furnace man clean and adjust our furnace. We bought a new furnace as soon as we could afford it and I still have the new one cleaned and adjusted before each heating season.
I never want to feel that sick again. I Thank God for letting Walt live and for giving us 8 more wonderful years with him. One thing that helped us all was knowing we thought we were losing him back in 1994 and he made it thru and we had the pleasure of spending those 8 years more than we ever thought we would have. But, I think the carbon monoxide caused even more damage to his lungs and made the emphazema much worse. He had worked in the mill for over 37 years and we felt the chemicals caused the lung disease.
While I was spending the first two days staying at the Hosp., my youngest son and one of my brother`s son`s chopped thru the three thick layers of ice using an long handled ice cutter and an ax and made it possible to open my garage doors. They also cleared out enough of the driveway for my car to drive out. The fourth day I drove my car to the hosp, but was still too sick and found it very hard driving back home that night. So, after that I let one or another of my kids drive me down and back.
All of my brothers kids showed up at the hosp. to help my kids when things were at their worst. Just lost their Dad and still they came to be with my kids when they almost lost their Dad. Shows how close that younger bro and I always were and how close our kids were to each other.
Family is everything thats truly important.

Where did last month go and how did the first 11 days of Dec. start passing me by? Seems like I am not getting anything done, yet I can`t remember even one day when I just sat and loafed.
yesterday I had planned on wrapping more gifts and start getting some of the decorations up. Then my youngest sister called. She asked what I was doing. Told her I was running around like a chicken with it`s head cut off and going crazyand accomplishimg little. She said OH, No, I was going to ask you to go out for to a restaurant for lunch with me and then I had a few stores I wanted to hit. She sounded a bit disappointed, but told me we could do it another day. So, I told her I could also do with time away from the house for a while and asked what time. She said whenever it was convienient for me-- told her any time- she said how about in about an hour so you can finish what you are doing. So, we left my home about 11:30 and never got home till almost 5pm. She told me " I`m a rotten sister with all the stores I want to hit". Told her thats fine with me as she often hits some stores that I don`t see except with her. First place she hit had lots of sweets and other gift items-- so I ended up getting a pkg. of 6 different sugar-free jelly and jams, plus some sugar-free caramel topping for my brother to finish up his Christmas gifts. Sis bought him some sugar-free candy and the choc topping- also sugar-free. Then since her van was parked in front of another store, we decided to go in and browse around, both came out with a couple warm pj`s. At first sis looked at them and thought-- how warm those would be, then she decided they might be too warm for sleeping. Then dummy me said" Bet they would be nice and warm at night while sitting at the computer". Hers is in her bedroom. Well, that clinched it and we both ended up spending in that store also. Then she went to a large department store for kitty litter. Well, you probably already guessed it!! More money spent. I ended up finishing the grand children and great grand cjhildren`s gifts. Plus I bought myself a new glue gun, plus a bunch of foam brushes as I always need them for something it seems. Was just looking for 2" wooden rings which they didn`t have and ended up with the rest. Then I picked up some of those Russell Stover choc. covered marshmellow santas. I just can`t resist them. But I did take 4 of them over next door to my D and her intended. Needed to go over anyways to thank him for all his snowblowing while I was gone. A family friend showed up earlier yesterday morning with his truck and plow. I had already used my small snowblower and did from the side porch to the garage , plus an area out back for my dog to travel. Well the friend did the rest of my driveway plus D`s nxt door. problem is with his plow, he always ends up with some packed back in front of the garage which I later redid. And the snow ended up covering my first three steps on my porch. Had to shovel to get off my porch. But, he sure saved me a lot as I have a large driveway. He just does enough for me to get my car out, then my D`s friend widened it the rest of the way. I am so lucky to have such nice helpers.
By the time I got back from shopping with Sis, I was tired. Actually I was tired after the earlier snow blowing and the front path and in front of the mailbox that I shoveled out. I really didn`t accomplish much last evening.
So, this morning I awoke about 5:30 and spent the next 4 hours just wrapping gifts. WOW, my family keeps getting bigger every year-- 2 more new great grandkids this year. After bending so long over the bed wrapping, plus all the carrying gifts down from upstairs to wrap, I needed a rest.
That never lasted for long. Just long enough to get my comp warmed up, check all the e-mail that came in-- all 42 of them ( some from going off so early last night). Then was feeling chilly, so thought it was a good time to do more cookie baking to warm up the kitchen without running the electric heater so much. . Ended up making two more batches-- one was sugar cookies, other was peanut butter cookies. Already had 2 batches of double choc ones--- 1 batch with pecans, one without any nuts as have a grandson who doesn`t care for nuts, and better for some of the littleer ones. Seemed like the kitchen cooled of and got chilly in no time after the oven was turned off. Then a bro showed up and he was in the argumentative mood. he has this old friend who got mad at him and all the family and became a big pain to everyone. Luckily she lives in Texas. She got mad at me when I refused to do what she asked. I was to tell my bro to stop calling her and a lot of other things. I told her I don`t tell others what to do or think, except when was raising my kids and then it was necessary. She told me I had better do as she said. Walt said she was one who had to control everyone and would cause trouble for anyone who didn`t obey her wishes. Oh, How right he was. Well, I still told her I was not going to tell my bro what to say or what to do and if she had a problem it was up to her to tell him, not me.
Well, that was over 3 yrs ago and suddenly my Bro told me she phoned him and wanted his home address so she could send him her picture with her daughter and little granddaughter. Personally, I think she is just trying to get back in good with him for a place to stay next summer. Two years ago she stayed at my sister-in-laws home, but my sister-in-law told me never again. Then she used to stay at another friends home, till her husband kicked her out and told her to get back to Texas. He had good reasons. So, after all her rudeness and even borrowing something from me and instead of returning it she shipped it to her home in texas. i can do without her type. Now, my bro got mad because I told him i wasn`t interested in taking any more hurt from her. He will do whatever makes her happy and eventually she will want him again out of her life. only thing this time, she won`t be able to involve me, so he will be on his own. She will be nice till she gets what she wants from him, then she will toss him out of her life again. he is a glutton for punishment, but I can`t let him drag me down with him again. Took too much out of me the last time. She is also a great one for telling lies when she gets mad. I used to tell my kids " Don`t lie to me, yes you might get into trouble by telling me the truth, but that is nothing compared to the trouble you will be in if I later find out you lied to me. Truth is very important to me. I think it is an important character to have. I am not talking about those half truths someone might tell to keep from hurting someone, but those out and out lies said just to cause trouble for others.
Well, Guess I had better stop yapping and fix something for supper as can`t take those darn cholesterol pills without food. Can`t take the statins as they make my legs get so weak I can `t walk without hanging onto walls. So, Doc put me on Welchol-- 6 of those huge pills a day-- 3 breakfast time , 3 at supper time. So, Now I have to eat breakfast and my evening meals whether I am hungry or not.
Think I will just take one of those small Italian tiny sub rolls, add some tomato, lettuce, thin sliced ham, and cheese and top it with submarine dressing- a seasoned oil. That should be enough.
So, I`m off to eat. Finished adding the decorations to the kitchen window and door glass, rest will need to wait till I feel like climbing upstairs into the attic side. Maybe tomorrow.
well, here I am back again. I kept the post on the "everNote" to post later and was getting ready to go on line to post when my phone rang. It was my daughter-in-law from N. Carolina and she always talks at least a half hour or more. She just hung up a few minutes ago. So, Now I am about to eat that tiny sub so i can take my pills, but wanted to post this first. Earlier i had stopped to chat in messenger with a friend from Washington. Guess i better post fast before someone else either phones or shows up. Don`t think anyone will show up now as it is almost 10pm. Tomorrow is another day. Hope to finish the decorations then.

Here I was freezing in my shop when I should have been working on Christmas presents with so little time left to do them.
But I had asked my uncle for plans to make the table like he made for my brother and his wife. He had no pattern, but they gave me the table my Aunt was using to paint her pictures on. They told me I could take it apart to make a pattern if I wanted to. I did remove 4 screws, but none of the nails. Above is the result of my project. One picture - in front of my frig/freezer - shows the table closed up-- takes very little room to store it when not in use. Closed it is only 2 inches thick. The other picture shows my table in the open position. The table top splits in the center and each side drops down- one half onto one side and the other half drops down on the other side. Larger ones could be made using the same pattern idea. I made sure to cut out one extra of each piece to keep for a pattern . I am hoping to be able to make more next spring and summer to use for Xmas gifts next year. Need to get playing the organ more this winter to help keep my arthritic hands moving better. Exercise is the best thing to keep them bending. They are getting to be quite crooked, but as long as they work, I won`t complain.
Beside it is my computer chair with the coverlet that I crocheted quite a few years ago. The head is a pillow. It has arms, hands are like mittens so you can put your hands in them for warmth. Has legs and shoes hanging from the bottom. The coverlet is large enough to wrap around me on those chilly nights in this kitchen. Actually there is a neck between the wrap around and the head, but there was no way to keep the head upward to picture without it falling down, so I dropped it down a ways. Excuse the blue pillow in the chair, should have removed it so the whole colors would show, lots of different colors all thru it. Good way to use up lots of those small balls of yarn left over from other projects. Broke off the tail-bone years ago and need a pillow with the center on the back removed so my spine doesn`t touch. A specialist told me not to have the bone pieces removed unless the pain became unbearable as I could lose way too much spinal fluid and not be able to walk again. So, I have put up and gotten somewhat accustomed to the pain as it is worth it to be able to get around and do things I enjoy. After 0ver 15 years, I am used to it. It`s a pain having to carry a pillow to sit on every where you go, but the alternate would be much worse.
No9w that this table is finished, guess i better get more done inside the house. Must admit that the housework gets done, but not as good as in the winter. I do so much better in the fresh air outside.
The home Theraphy phoned me a while ago, letting me know that the 6 months are up and I am eligible to buy another new face mask for my c-pap machine. Ins. will only help pay for it every 6 months. Getting one before the 6 months is up each time I would need to cover the entire cost-- much too expensive that way. Thats good as the present one is starting to make my nose sore. Should have it in about a week. One of these days I should call to have the machine checked out as haven`t done that in over a year now. My Doc asked me if I was still using it every night like I should. Told him yes, unless we have a bad thunder storm. He asked why I didn`t use it then. I told him I didn`t want to be asleep with a full face mask if the power went off during the storm and the machine stopped working. He said, he had never even thought of something like that happening. So, guess he learned something new.
Well, it is only 4pm now and getting so dark I need to turn on a light to see my keyboard. Guess thats a sign that I should getup, go empty both the washer and dryer and finish moving things around here in the kitchen if I intend on getting the tree and decorations up before it is time to take them down. I`m off!!!!

Was in the middle of too many things at once.
Remember the old saying " too many hands in the pot spoils most things.
Well, they need to find a saying for when their are not enough hands to handle everything or all the pots at once.

Started the day feeling chilly in the kitchen where my computer sits. So, I decided to start making cookies for Christmas. Only problem was I was working with carpenters glue, tiny finishing nails and a hammer, plus a couple of corner squares when I started feeling chilly.
Yesterday I worked in the wood shop. Part of what I did was to make the rest of the decorations to add to the top doors on the large cupboard I had made for holding yarn buns and other such things. I had bought some decorative edging which I cut to make frames around the center decorations that I had made on the scroll saw and tacked to the center of the 2 top doors.
Well, I had glued the 2 corners of each short piece of edging together to form a rectangle and was waiting for them to dry. The scrolled design would sit in the center of the rectangle in the two top door center.
So, I then mixed up the cookie batches and put the first two trays into the oven. That gave me under ten minutes to get back to the rectangle. I first had to pound 3 tiny finishing nails into each of the 4 sections, one at each end and the third on the oposite side in the center of each section. , then spread some glue to the back of the rectangle. Then the fun started. The timer went off so I removed the first batch of cookies and set them to cool for a minute. Then I positioned the rectangle onto the doors where I wanted it and stated to pound in the tiny nails to hold it in place till the glue dried. While I was pounding in the 2nd nail, 2 other nails fell out into my plush rug where they were well hidden. While I let go of the rectangle one side wasn`t glued tight enough and fell. Of course it landed glue side down onto my blue rug. That white glue sure showed up on that blue rug. So, I again had to stop to get something to remove the glue with.
Then, back to remove the cookies , place them on a cookie rack, and refill the pans and put them into the oven-- 10 more minutes to wait while they baked.
So, back to the front room to finish nailing that last board in place. Well next I had to find the small nail punch that would fit those tiny nails in that small indented place so I could finish pounding in the nails without leaving marks on the wood.
Then off went the timer again. Back to the kitchen to remove the 2nd batch of cookies from the oven- one more minute to cool, so that gave me enough time to finish with the nail punch. ( Well, was more like 3 minutes).
Then back to the kitchen again-- remove these cookies from the pan and place them onto the cookie racks to cool.
Then there were 4 more narrow edging pieces to connect into a square for the other top door. Pounded in the tiny nails a bit and got the corners glued and set to dry a bit. Dropped more dough onto the tins to use up the remainder of the dough. Then in the oven went the last of the cookie dough and another 10 minutes to work in. So, I turned over the last rectangle to spread glue onto the back. Then back into the front room to start nailing the rectangle onto the other top door. Managed to get most of the nails pounded in enough to hold the 4 pieces of the rectangle so it wouldn`t move and off went the oven buzer again.
Back to the kitchen to remove those pans again and set them to cool.
Then finally shut off the oven. Head back to the front room to finish pounding in the nails using the punch.
Nothing worse than trying to hold and pound in those tiny 1/4 th inch finishing nails with hardly any head on them. But, it is finally finished and so are the cookies. I froze the cookies in the frig for Christmas. That way I am not so temped to eat them since I love those Betty Crocker Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies. One of my favorites. I did chew up two cookies while working.
Now I am deciding whether I want to add any other decorations on the cupboard. In my mind I can hear my old High School Mechanical Drawing and Design teacher saying, "now don`t add to much or it will look overloaded". So, guess I will wait a few days and think it over before making up my mind for sure. Isn`t it funny how you can remember things a Teacher told you over 50 years ago. Well, I graduated in 1950, and had those subjects in my second year of high School, so 50 + years ago. Some Teachers are just so good they know how to make their words realy sink in and she was one of them.
I also have other projects started . I awoke about 2:30 am this morning, couldn`t get back to sleep. So removed that darn face mask for the c-pap machine and put on the TV to pass away the time. Then decided I should get some of the Christmas crocheting done. So, I crocheted till around 6am and then gave up and got up. Thats when I ate breakfast, fed my dog and tossed out some old bread for the birds. Still need to refill the empty suet hanger and probably by now the thistle and other feeder needs refilling again.
Another project I have started is a small table that folds up to put away when not in use. My Uncle gave one to my oldest bro and his wife and I liked it so off to his house I went last week. Asked for his pattern. he didn`t have a pattern, but my Aunt told him to get the one she uses for her picture painting and let me take that one home for a pattern. My Uncle also said I could take it apart to make a pattern if I wished to. I did remove 4 screws, but I didn`t need to take more apart as that was enough for me to get a pattern. Yesterday I cut out all the boards for the legs, and the boards for the two sections of the table top frame, and the 13 of one size slats and 6 of the other size slats for the table top sections and the support boards to hold the legs together. To make the slats I had to cut the boards down to about 3/16th inch thickness. I now have everything cut out to make the first table. But hoping to be able to varnish it before bolting and nailing it together. Also still need to drill for the bolts and nuts needed. Then need to see if I already have the correct sizes bolts or need to buy some, plus more small finishing nails needed to nail on the slats, but this time can use some a speck longer. If I have good luck with the first one I might make more for the Kids.
So, could use more hands to get everything finished, but I`ll manage one way or another. Never say can`t, so thats encouragement for me to accomplish it. Still waiting to get my car back from the Garage where I am having another undercoat added and some small rust spots touched up with hopes of making it last a few more years.
Finally got my furnace fuel delivered yesterday-- $469.71 worth - 191.8 gallons. Hope it lasts a long time, but that`s probably a joke that I won`t win. :)