A Middle Aged Southerner Living in Cleveland, OH

The Latest Paul Krugman Column

2012-01-27T07:25:00.000-05:00

A lot of railroads built in the 19th and 20th centuries were built on land given to them by the U.S. government. The facts ma'am just the facts. In spite of the nonsense that Mitch Daniels and those like him believe, no Ayn Rand super hero stepped forward in the 1800s and singlehandedly built The Transcontinental Railroad. It was a team effort.

Here's Paul Krugman's response to Mitch Daniels:

www.nytimes.com/2012/01/27/opinion/krugman-jobs-jobs-and-cars.html?ref=opinion

Random Thoughts

2012-01-26T09:42:00.000-05:00

I had acupuncture on Tuesday--back, shoulders and hips. I'd say it was a big success; the pain in all body parts that were punctured is much improved. I go back for another bout in two weeks. The doctor who performed the acupuncture is an internist, rheumatologist/acupuncturist and happens to be my brother-in-law. I'm a skeptic and may never have tried getting stuck with the thin copper needles, but Dr. Flagg is a terrific fellow and a stand- up guy whom I trust.

I want to go back to Louisiana to visit Baton Rouge and New Orleans and to see some friends. That's an important driver for me to take PT and undergo acupuncture treatments (not that it's all that bad). I want to be able to go someplace without it being such a big deal. I know I can do better!

On Monday I am visiting a physical therapist to see if I can improve my balance and stamina. Next month will mark a year since I've had a crisis. Nothing picked up in the PET scans and the MRIs of the brain have shown up no cooties. It really is time to try for a little more oomph and to improve my ability to walk in a straight line without listing or veering off course.

Deidre, Alicia, Deidre's daughter, and I went to Rockefellers last night for dinner. Deidre had trout; Alicia, a stuffed pork chop and I had a duck breast. It was all terrific, my duck was cooked perfectly, and I really enjoyed it, even though I knew my food may have been yelling "AFLAC!" only hours before arriving at the table. Rockefellers gave a percentage of last night's dinner receipts to Future Heights, a local organization to support and promote Cleveland Heights.

Among questions I have about Cleveland Heights: Why aren't there more minority police officers? I don't know that I've ever seen a cop of color in The Heights. I'm sure they must have some representation, but I've never seen a black man or woman in a Cleveland Heights police uniform. Or fireman or woman as far as that goes. I don't know; I've not seen personnel statistics, but neither have I spied many minority lawmen.

I hope you are well and happy. Thanks for coming by my blog.

American Rights? You Must Be Kidding

2012-01-25T09:04:00.000-05:00

Reason can be twisted and rights ignored because the athletes who play the big money sports, football and basketball and, who are abused, are overwhelmingly black and poor. If they weren't, congress would have moved long ago to strip the NCAA of their right to act like the secret police in some Third World dictatorship. Two nice pieces of journalism from Joe Nocera of The New York Times.

www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/opinion/nocera-guilty-until-proved-innocent.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

www.nytimes.com/2012/01/24/opinion/nocera-living-in-fear-of-the-ncaa.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

From My Son-In-Law's Blog

2012-01-20T13:22:00.000-05:00

MLK: “Everybody Can Serve”

by prespreacher

In recognition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday (January 15, 1929) and today's Martin Luther King Day of Service, I offer the following quote from Dr. King about servanthood

And so Jesus gave us a new norm of greatness. If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new definition of greatness.
And this morning, the thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love. And you can be that servant.

The Ground-Breaking Anticancer Program at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

2012-01-15T15:10:00.000-05:00

The Ground-Breaking Anticancer Program at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Thinking About What I Wrote In 2007

2012-01-15T11:14:00.001-05:00

My acquiescence of the early days didn't last long--it seemed so much like surrendering to the disease, like sitting around waiting to die. I won't say I've never been cowed into doing something I didn't want to do, but it's always shamed me--even when I was little and was intimidated by my brutal father.

But what could I do? What I did was read everything I could find on what a layman could do to improve his chances of living through and getting past cancer. While none of my doctors supported my enthusiasm for what a change of diet could do for me, I cut back, almost to the point of elimination, on red meat and sugar, began to meditate regularly, ate lots of green veggies and drank green tea by the bucket. Three books: Anti Cancer, Foods That Fight Cancer and The China Study, I believe helped save my life. If nothing else changing my diet made me feel like I was doing something, that I had joined the battle.

By the way, I was diagnosed as stage IV by that summer which decreased considerably my chance of living 5 years. I read recently that the author of Anti Cancer, David Servan-Schreiber once answered the charge that he promoted false-hope by saying he was only trying not to promote false-hopelessness.

Dr. Servan-Schreiber died in June of 2011. But it took twenty years for the cancer get the best of him-- Twenty years for the brain cancer that ordinarily kills in about ten percent of that time.

Anyway, we have another day and we have to decide how to live it. I believe I can remain positive for the rest of today. Hope you can to.

Looking Back

2012-01-15T10:10:00.000-05:00

All things cosidered, I'd rather be in Philadelphia

April 2007

Several weeks ago I noticed a lump just below my arm pit when I was doing a set of weights. A golf ball seemed to pop up each time I dropped a dumbbell behind my head and pulled it back up. Once I showed my wife the lump, it was certain that I'd show it to a doctor soon after.

I have had one skin cancer after another for the last 25 years, but I never really understood that they could lead to the development of cancer internally, in one of the organs. I really don't remember hearing that from any of the dermatologists I visited but maybe I just didn't want to hear it.

Whether the skin doctors told me or not, I now have Merkel Cell cancer. An oncological surgeon removed one of the lymph nodes beneath my right armpit and the pathology lab came back with the identification. By the time the cancer was identified, I had been told that the lump probably came from a skin cancer; but I was betting on squamous cell, less aggressive and more common. According to the Internet, I would have had a seventy five percent chance of living five more years with squamous cell but Merkel Cell only gives me a one in two chance.

My daughter cried on and off for days and my wife dove into the Internet and continues to be ferocious in her search for information. To date, I have done neither. I did look up Merkel Cell to see what it is and what the odds are, but I don't particularly care to know much more about it. What good would it do me? I still would have only today. It will be some weeks before we even start the treatment regimen of radiation and chemotherapy and I don't want to use a lot of energy until then. I am going to take this a day at a time. If a doctor who I trust says do "that", then I will give my all to do just "that." I will take whatever pain the chemo and radiation give out and will fiercely cling to life, but I am not there yet. Today is sunny in Northeast Ohio where I live and the weather is at least a little bit warmer. Why should I surrender feeling good today and enjoy the sunshine less because I may be puking my guts out three weeks from now?

My wife, a wonderful woman who believes in taking direct action in most situations, kept giving me unwanted information, so much so that I had to ask her to stop. I understand her plight. She is playing the support role and, in a lot of ways, it is a more difficult role to play than mine. Neither of us can do much but it is my disease to face. She can only try to help--this for a woman who is psychologically built to stride into a situation and take charge.

Having control of one's future is always an illusion. But now I am certain that I do not have control. I am not praying to get well, only that I be given the courage to face this scary disease like the man I want to be. I believe I will always be granted enough courage to get me through at least one day. My part in this, besides doing what the doctors tell me to do, is to break up the future into small pieces, of such a size that I can carry each one for a day. I believe I can do it. I will record my attempt in this blog.

A Priest And A Rabbi Are Talking Over Glasses Of Wine...

2012-01-12T10:30:00.000-05:00

..the Priest asks the Rabbi, "Have you ever tried a ham sandwich or even fancied one?" The Rabbi answers "Well I have speculated about it but my faith forbids me from trying one. But father, have you ever fancied a nice night of sex with a good woman, I mean a really good woman?" The Priest thinks hard and answers, " Well Rabbi, I have sometimes wondered but my vow of celibacy prevents it from ever occurring." The Rabbi answers "Sure as hell beats a ham sandwich, doesn't it?"

Sunday In Cleveland Heights

2012-01-08T11:39:00.000-05:00

Climate change may be a myth but I don't think whomever is in charge of Cleveland's climate got that memo. Its well into January and we've had only two real snowfalls and just a few really cold days (below twenty degrees.) I hope this doesn't mean we'll have snow in mid-May. My Southern brain will be thinking it's time to plant tomatoes but my Northern body will instead be shoveling the walk.

Deidre fixed French-toast this morning. It was very good and I made a pig of myself; now I'm sitting in something near a coma, wishing I'd eaten only about half of what I did. I wonder: how would the docs bring you out of a French-toast coma? Play old Peter Sellers movies? The hilarious French accent and dialogue of Sellers' Clouseau would surely penetrate the thickest fog. I'm pretty sure I'd wake up laughing when Clouseau tries to capture the transvestite bandit but is overcome by his adversary. The first time I saw the inspector, dressed in women's clothes, yell with the Clouseau accent, "Hello Boys," to the French cops who were coming to his rescue, I about popped a stitch from laughing so hard. Or maybe use the blow-up parrot which was part of a seaman's disguise but kept deflating and any number of surprise attacks by Cato. "Not now, Cato! Not now!" I'm pretty sure that could bring me out of the worst French-toast induced comas.

I'm going to suggest to my oncologists that they try the Clouseau therapy. Right now I'm laughing just thinking about the sour look of non-comprehension on the face of my humorless and pompous radiation doc.

Now for something completely different: L.S.U./Alabama tomorrow night. Beating a team like Alabama twice in a season will be very tough. If L.S.U does it, they must be recognized as one of the greatest college teams ever. And an awful lot of players, first and second on the depth chart, are freshmen and sophomores. The team might well be better next year.

Deidre just called me with a license plate report. She saw 42ituss. I think that's a good one.

Deidre, my uber-wife, and I saw True Grit yesterday afternoon. Jeff Bridges played a convincing Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn, the drunken ne'er-do-well marshal that a stubborn14 year old character named Mattie hires to help her bring her father's murderer to justice. I liked the movie of the same name that starred John Wayne but I thought this version was the better of the two. I've never read the novel, and unless my brain starts working better, I probably never will.

Everybody in my sphere are doing well. I hope you and yours are doing the same. Thanks for visiting my blog.

The Latest Paul Krugman Column

2012-01-02T09:46:00.000-05:00

Krugman's columns don't change a whole lot because the f_____g Republicans keep doing things that are anti-employment and anti-middle class. Here' his latest.

www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/opinion/krugman-nobody-understands-debt.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB

Why Govt. Decision Makers Shouldn't Be Allowed To Take Gifts From Vendors

2012-01-02T09:25:00.000-05:00

I was a salesman and a sales manager for a lot of years--until I got sick, in fact--and I spent a lot of money on customers, commercial and governmental. Never once did I do it out of altruism. I took customers on trips and bought their meals and took them hunting and fishing and on trips to manufacturing plants because I wanted to sell them construction equipment and, in the future, parts and service for that equipment. I was selling the best made product and represented the company with the best product support.

If I could persuade the customer to write in requirements that machines last for a minimum length of time and have a high % of up time, I would almost always win because none our competition could match what we could offer. Influencing the way the specs were written was the end-all, be-all of selling to government entities. Thus the trips and the lunches and the fishing expeditions.

www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/education/inquiry-into-school-officials-travels-paid-for-by-pearson.html?src=recg

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T19:20:00.000-05:00

I can't claim that 2011 has been a bed of roses--at least not the entire year--but all in all it has been great. Deidre's son's wife delivered a healthy and beautiful baby girl, Evelyn. She' a few weeks old and is doing well, but can't stand on her toes just yet--even though her mom and, to some extent, her grandma were dancers.

My daughter Elizabeth has finished her second masters degree and has taken a job as a psychological social worker. She seems to enjoy the work; she has a degree in psychology, an MSW and an M DIV from Columbia Theological Seminary. Education wise, she has a good foundation for the work she's doing.

I'm still alive which seems like a good deal even though my balance is off a couple of bubbles and my joints hurt a bit. That was a very wishy-washy sentence. What I meant was: Hey, I'm Still Alive!! April will mark five years since I was diagnosed as stage four. And I'm still here. Woo Hoo!

Deidre will soon start a program to earn a doctorate of management and is applying for jobs for which she may be over-qualified. These days it probably helps to be over-qualified for any job since a lot of folks, under qualified to over qualified, are applying for available jobs. Anyway, Deidre is tired of all the driving that goes with consulting and will enjoy having an office in one place and benefits. I am confident she will get a job, but it may take a little while.

Christmas was grand! Elizabeth, Andy and Katie drove here from Atlanta. Katie, if her mom and dad would have allowed it, certainly would have taken her turn behind the wheel--but since she is only three it was probably wise to keep her in the car seat in the back. Katie loves cars and tiny trucks; she is a bit of a fanatic when it comes to the movie Cars. I don't know whether she'll end up designing or fixing automobiles but she is interested in lots of technical things and seems to enjoy learning about how things work and are put together.

Tonight we're going to a party at a friends house. I'll see if I can last until midnight--ringing the old year out kissing on Deidre. That's the way 2011 started and it will be a good way to end the year.
Let's all have a terrific 2012! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Racist Tweets--You Can't Hide Class

2011-12-21T14:10:00.000-05:00

http://news.yahoo.com/racist-tweet-lands-univ-texas-college-republicans-hot-204930416.html

I came out of hiding to make sure as many folks as possible saw this story. What kind of scum balls are Republicans at the University of Texas, anyway?

Taking A Break

2011-12-11T20:44:00.000-05:00

I won't be posting for a while, feeling more than a little bummed. If I can't write something that is informative, funny or hopeful, best not to write anything at all.

Empathetic And Heroic Rats

2011-12-10T12:28:00.001-05:00

My daughter, Elizabeth, who is a psychological social worker sent me this from NPR. Surprising, isn't it?

www.npr.org/2011/12/09/143304206/cagebreak-rats-will-work-to-free-a-trapped-pal

Party Tonight

2011-12-10T12:11:00.001-05:00

Tonight we are hosting our annual holiday party. Lots of food, practically no booze--those who have been invited are like Deidre and me: we've got our quota of drinking in a long time ago. Food wise, we have gumbo, a shrimp mold and sausage pinwheels. Deidre, a cookie magician, (it's not bragging if you can do it), has baked nut balls, brown Lizzies, nut bars, and seed cookies. She is also preparing Tapas.

And some folks will be bringing a dish. I wouldn't let them tell me what dishes are on their way here because I want to be surprised. I'm hoping to be introduced to either hors douevers or desserts I've never tasted before. We're expecting between twenty-five and thirty guests. The number will be a little lower if it snows.

I'm thinking about buying a Roomba robotic vacuum. They're pricey but people tell me they work wonderfully, especially on pet fur. My friend, Steve, who lives down the street bought one and raves about it. He has cats--no explaining taste--and says the robot vacuum does a terrific job on the fur they leave behind. We have one cat, a rotund kitty named Boudreaux, and Watson and Belle. Watson, the Lab, sheds all year but especially in the spring, when he blows his coat. Anyway, I'm starting to think that a Roomba would be a good investment.

I get sentimental this time of year. I have so many good things in my life that I've done nothing to deserve. Life. Sobriety. Friends. Deidre, my uber-wife, my wonderful daughter Elizabeth, my brother Clany, who has come through for me during my battle with cancer, my granddaughter Katie whom I love so much and who makes me laugh with her observations on the world. My son-in-law, Andy, whose only flaw that I'm aware of is being an Auburn fan, is a terrific young man. Alicia, who now lives only a few blocks away, has been a big support for her mom and me in 2011. I'm grateful this year that my brain still works at least a little. Isn't it odd that I can still write at least a skosh but my brain does not seem to function in many other areas. I'm thrilled that I still have a sense of humor--one needs one to live in a world run by the Republicans and by Fluffy Obama. Alicia, who now lives only a few blocks away, has been a big support for her mom and me in 2011. Life, what a gift!

I'll write tomorrow to let you know how the party went. Thanks so much for reading my blog. Enjoy the season!

Santa Clause Bond

2011-12-08T09:43:00.000-05:00

The house is quite pretty, all dressed up for Christmas. 99% of the credit goes to Deidre; she's been a dynamo of late. Several days ago I woke up from a nap to find the Christmas tree up and about half decorated. I tried to help but she shooed me away because, compared to her, I move in slow motion.

We are having our annual holiday party on Saturday night and all the house is looking Christmassy. Nutcrackers and Santa on the mantel, figurines of Santa around the house

Have you ever wondered how Santa knows whose been naughty and whose been nice? I wonder: Are the figurines equipped with secret cameras? That would be one way for Santa to know what's going on in disparate places like Amarillo and Bainbridge. And it would answer one of my big questions: What does Santa do the rest of the year? In this age of robotics, it surely takes much less time to build toys than it used to. If he can put secret cameras in figurines, he might well be in the CIA. "Clause, James Clause." That doesn't work, does it? Maybe his last name is really Bond--Santa Clause Bond--but he's never used his last name because he didn't want to blow his cover.

It would be fun to hear M telling Bond about the latest gadgets included in the sleigh's design--a cookie detector, perhaps. With the detector Santa Clause Bond could tell what kinds of cookies were left out at each house. He could then decide at which homes to stop and actually go in, instead of using one of M's gadgets to magically shoot the toys and gifts down the chimney in a way where they settle beneath the tree.

If I were Santa, I mean Bond, I would always go in a house where there were Brown Lizzies, like the ones Deidre makes. I would stop only sometimes for peanut butter cookies or brownies.

We have received about 25 yes's and I know we've invited another 10 people whose contact information was in neither Deidre's nor my computer. Anyway, we should have a good crowd. I'll cook gumbo and make a shrimp mold. Deidre has already been baking up a storm--she might have baked special disappearing cookies because each day there are a few more missing. We'll have nuts and chili dip and raw veggies with ranch dressing. Some friends offered to bring something and we've asked that they prepare their favorite dish, whether it be appetizer, veggie, dessert or something else.

I went to the opthamologist on the fifth. More tests are required but, from the results of the tests done so far, I'm beginning to think that there's not much wrong with my eyes. Maybe the problem is caused by the tiny dead zones in my brain. The lesions and the treatment for the lesions have left lots of damaged cells in my noggin. They show up as black specks on an MRI. The neurologist told me that anyone my age will have some specs show up--thus seniors complain of things like memory loss--but I have more than the average bear because the cancer and the cancer treatment killed many little gray cells. My condition makes the consistent connection between eyes and brain more difficult. So goes my theory.

Hope you all are enjoying Christmas, or whatever brightens the darkness in your religion. Thanks for coming by my blog.

Friday In Cleveland Heights

2011-12-02T09:37:00.000-05:00

It looks to be a chilly morning with sunshine. According to the forecast, the high will be in the low forties. I'll check later in the day to see if it's warm enough for me to go out and plant the tulip bulbs that arrived. I bought 300 bulbs, 50 of 6 different colors, at a special price from one of the Dutch companies that bombard me with catalogs this time of year.

Deidre bought a bed warmer that helps me sleep. It's not an electric blanket, which I've never cared for. The warmer goes on the mattress and the heat, which is adjustable, is against my back and hips, a very good deal indeed. My sister-in-law, the innovative Norma, had one on a bed when we visited her and my brother in KY.

Speaking of Kentucky, while we were there we visited Gethsemane Monastery, the home of Thomas Merton, and I bought a pretty Mexican creche for my daughter for Christmas. She collects creches. Alas, when she unpacked the box that contained the present, the baby Jesus was missing. The star of the scene was nowhere in sight. I called the Gethsemane gift shop and told the lady about my problem.

"I'm so glad you called!" she exclaimed. She told me that someone had pushed Jesus to the back of the shelf and he had fallen in a crack. In other words, he had fallen and couldn't get up. The lady promised to get Jesus in the mail and Elizabeth will get him in the next day or two. On the third day and all that!

Will write again soon. Thanks for visiting my blog.

City Revival

2011-11-26T08:49:00.001-05:00

Deidre and I did something similar to what's described in this column. She owned a house in Lyndhurst when we married that seemed to shrink when I moved my big self in. On a visit to Florida to see her dad, who lived in a house with lots of room, we decided to move into a bigger house and to move to the exurbs. It wasn't a successful move: nothing culturally going on; neighbors who didn't speak to us, especially after we put the Obama sign in the yard; and it was an hour into town. We didn't stay out in the boonies for four years. We were out there just long enough for property values to fall. Luckily for us, property values had fallen in Cleveland Heights too. We now live in a house from which we can walk to restaurants, museums, movie theaters and libraries. The lingering effects of the cancer and cancer treatments has put limits on my walking but I can still get around some. Walking a few blocks to the grocery doesn't take that much stamina. Our neighbors include a first violin with The Cleveland Orchestra, an accomplished painter, a self-employed architect and an 80 something year old who used to be a reporter in New York City. They are all friendly, helpful and fun to talk to.

This op-ed suggests others are having similar experiences. I hope you enjoy it.

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/26/opinion/the-death-of-the-fringe-suburb.html?ref=opinion

Violent Amish

2011-11-24T07:39:00.001-05:00

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/us/7-arrested-in-hair-cutting-attacks-on-amish-in-ohio.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB

As odd as it sounds, a vigilante Amish group gives me hope. If such a thing is possible, maybe Republicans can move up to the 20th Century. They don't have to leap all the way to the 21st, I just want them to leave the 19th behind. 99.9% of Amish are pacifists and 99.9% of Republicans are knot-heads. If one group can drift away from the norm why not both groups.

A Well Written Column By Paul Krugman

2011-11-21T22:16:00.000-05:00

Who was President the last time we had such a fragile economy? F.D.R. It's true that he did too little--it took the spending of WWII to create the jobs needed. Who is president now, in this economic debacle? Fluffy Obama.

It's just enough to make you weep. In both cases, the men named had Republican congresses to deal with. One strode forward, ready to fight for the good of the country. The other gave us Little Timmy Geithner and Lawrence Summers who strode forward to save the banks and to protect the rich crooks who screwed us like house cats.

I swore I would never again vote for a Republican and I intend to stand by my pledge. But it isn't going to be easy to vote for Fluffy. Maybe I'll have the flu on election day and just stay home.

/www.nytimes.com/2011/11/21/opinion/boring-cruel- euro-romantics.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB

Well, Duh!

2011-11-20T08:25:00.000-05:00

Surely this does not come as a surprise to anyone!

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/20/opinion/sunday/friedman-how-about-better-parents.html?ref=opinion

A Cool Saturday Morning

2011-11-19T12:18:00.000-05:00

My feet are cold. I'm wearing some beat up old moccasins that Belle has had her way with. I wish I were wearing socks. Yes, I could get up, climb the stairs, get socks out of the drawer and put them on. My feet would be warmer. The problem is that I don't want to get up, climb the stairs and get socks. On balance, I'm comfortable and don't want to get up. It's just my feet that are cold. Besides, if they weren't so darned big, it wouldn't be nearly the problem that it is.

Deidre and I have begun studying a foreign language each, she Spanish and moi French. She understands a good deal of Spanish, and placed in state when she was in high school. Her being fluent in Spanish will go nicely with the Doctorate of Management she's working on.

I understand more French than I thought I did. I was on a website a little while ago that features the news in several languages and probably I could follow about 15% of what was being said in French. (Actually I could follow more than that but could literally translate only 15%.)

My grandparents who lived a 19th- century-life up to about 1960 spoke only Cajun French. My grandmother was one of the most educated people of her generation and she only went to the third grade. My grandfather never saw the inside of a schoolroom. I think that's cool, from no school to a PhD (my brother) in three generations.

They never drove and, when I was six or so, I got to watch the construction crew planting power poles along the dirt lane that ran to their house. That allowed my grandparents to take part in the American addiction to television. I only ever saw them watch wrestling and a Cajun music show. They'd scream at one another--they always pulled for different wrestlers--and then dance to the music on KLFY out of Lafayette. That only lasted a little while. When Mah Mah got sick, she weakened quickly.

Mah mah and pah pah had a car but until they were older they rarely went anywhere that required them to use it. When I was a boy they traveled by horse and buggy. My maiden aunt drove them when they needed to go to the doctor or somewhere else in town.

My grandfather and my grandmother could have been the models for Jack Sprat and his wife. My grandfather was a tall string-bean-of-a-man who probably didn't have 6% body fat on him. She was much shorter than her husband and she had a great big bosom created by age, carrying four children to term and being forty pounds overweight. When she hugged you, you were hugged.

I don't think I was ever told what disease made it imperative that my grandmother move to town but move they did. The change probably added years to her life but the idleness of living in town killed my grandfather; he was a man who was still plowing behind a mule at sixty-five. He went from being a walking, talking piece of rawhide to a delusional old guy with a faraway look who rocked in a chair on the porch. After a couple of years, whatever he saw when he stared off into space became reality and he withered away.

He was a tough and seemingly fearless guy--I once saw him grab a cottonmouth by the end of its body and whip him against a post that held Pah Pah's porch roof up. The snake showed his fangs to the wrong guy.

Well, that was quite a digression. All I meant to do is let you know that Deidre and I were taking up a new endeavor.

I hope you are well, happy and joyful. Thank you for stopping by my blog

Treat For Dog-Lovers

2011-11-16T10:29:00.000-05:00

I love Labs. They're just so darn sweet.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBwyh2Sboj0&feature=player_embedded

An Article About Health--With Facts!

2011-11-16T10:13:00.001-05:00

In this, the age of the ideologue, it's easy to find someone spewing crap to support a position, even when what their saying clearly conflicts with gathered data.

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/14/opinion/krugman-vouchers-for-veterans-and-other-bad-ideas.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

This Just In...

2011-11-15T13:48:00.000-05:00

Nurse just called, the MRI showed no cooties in the brain. So, I continue to be cancer free.

I did my calisthenics. Twenty five minutes, trying to improve my balance.

Tuesday

2011-11-15T12:50:00.000-05:00

Deidre and I drove to Springfield, Kentucky this past weekend to see my brother Clany and his sweet wife Norma. We had a good time; got some good visiting in and I got to meet my great niece. The lay of the land around Springfield, not too far out of Lexington, reminded me of Middle Tennessee where I lived for three years. Six inches below the top soil is a layer of limestone and the surface is dotted with rocks of about ten to twelve inches in diameter. A funny guy who I knew in Tennessee farmed on a small scale and he used to swear that the rocks would burrow up to the surface at night when no one could see them. I don't know whether that's true, but he would clear a few acres using his backhoe and farm truck and three weeks later rocks would once again be at the soil's surface.

It has cooled off and the rain has returned. The forecasters are calling for temps below freezing by week's end. Someone told me recently that this year has been the wettest on record. I don't know whether that is correct but it has to be close. I saw a deer the other day that was sporting a pair of gills. It's been wet!

Our cable bill sneaked up and climbed to $125 from $70 without me noticing. I talked to Deidre about it and we decided to cancel the service and not replace it. The young man who was on the other end of the phone line was astounded that we would think about living life without cable. Except for Masterpiece on PBS and football, we rarely watch television. Certainly, we don't watch enough to justify $125 a month!

I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to watch L.S.U. games but I figured I could get them on the radio. I grew up listening to sports from the air waves and prefer baseball on the radio if the announcer is good. Vin Scully, Jack Buck: they were poets who happened to apply their artistry to the description of sporting events.

It turned out the cable provider called and made us an offer we couldn't refuse: $39 a month for a year and a guarantee that the monthly charge would only go up $5 a month for a year after that. The way things are changing, in two years live stage productions will probably be available. See "Henry V" or "My Fair Lady" in the living room by the fire. Heck, I'd be willing to pay the $125 a month for that.

I'm recovering from the trip to and from KY and still have a few aches and pains, but mostly I'm doing okay.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.

The Red, White And Blue Where The Ones With The Most Green Rule

2011-11-10T08:08:00.000-05:00

From Tom Friedman who should be emperor!

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/opinion/friedman-india-and-america-two-peas-in-a-pod.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

From Yahoo News--Not Class Warfare, Just The Truth

2011-11-08T06:48:00.000-05:00

http://news.yahoo.com/remake-america/

Monday Morning

2011-11-07T12:23:00.000-05:00

The good weather continues; it might even be a little bit warmer than it has been.

I restarted my exercise program today. After walking and doing steps for twenty minutes, I did some curls and whatever the exercise is called where one bends over, supports oneself with one arm on a sofa or table or bench and do reps with the other arm--dumbbell down to full extension of the arm and then back up to the chest. Finally, I sat down and did essentially a one-armed military press, one arm after the other. I struggled to get to ten reps and, when finished, I looked at Belle, who was sitting on my lap, and said, "You didn't think I'd make it, did you?" Then I cracked myself up by saying, "Neither did I." Don't know why I laughed so hard at that but I got a grand giggle out of it. Belle did not laugh.

The Greeks continue to kick around the decision about what to do about their debt. I'm beginning to believe that Obama and the U.S. Congress has infiltrated the Greek political system. All the Greeks need is Little Timmy Geithner to clean things up. I bet the banks would be in favor of putting him in charge. I wish someone would do something. The U.S. economy and stock market will have a hard time going forward while worrying about European debt. What we have now is 2009 light.

And since we're talking political B.S., check out Paul Krugman's column:

www.nytimes.com/2011/11/07/opinion/krugman-here-comes-solar-energy.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

Sunday; After L.S.U./Alabama

2011-11-06T12:32:00.001-05:00

It is another lovely day here; bright and sunny with low humidity through which the colors really stand out.

It's been so long since I've had a drink that I have no idea if there is now an over-the-counter remedy for a hangover. If there is, I imagine the drug stores in Baton Rouge will have to refill their inventories because I know a whole lot of alcohol-aided celebrating was going on last night after L.S.U. beat Alabama. L.S.U. students seem interested in getting looped and making out. (Does sound good, huh?)

I suppose Ohio State students are also interested in booze and sex, but there's all those cars to burn and police officers to keep busy after a big win. One has to have priorities.

I read some idiot on Yahoo sports who said that the Southeastern Conference really isn't that good. They are just great self-promoters. They might be; Lord knows they have a lot of anti-S.E.C. propaganda to combat, but there isn't a third team in the country that could have stayed close to either L.S.U. or Alabama last night. And then there is that thing about winning most of the BCS national championship games...

Deidre took a bad fall last night. She was running across the basement floor in her socks when her foot slipped on the tile and she went out of control like a sports car after a blowout. I heard her cries of pain and hurried down the basement steps as quickly as I could on my sore knees but was pulled up short when I saw her sprawled on the floor.

She would not hear of going to the E.R. She self medicated with ibuprofen and acetaminophen.

That may have been the right decision because nothing seems broken or sprained this morning. She has a badly bruised right debehonkus (as Elizabeth called behinds when she was little) and a tender lower back. But, I think amazingly, she seems to have done no permanent damage. Of course she could be jiving me to avoid the E.R.

My good friend, Steve, came over last night to watch the first half of the game with me. I also taught him how to make gumbo. He did a great job; the soup was rich and tasty and went down well during the game. We ate brown rice with the gumbo.

Next Friday we're going down to KY to see my brother and Norma, my sister in law. I've had to cancel on him twice, once because I fell down some steps and another, earlier time just because it was during a period when I was struggling.

Norma is from Honduras and can cook like a champ; The Advocate, the Baton Rouge paper did a special on her because she is such an accomplished chef. I wish you could taste her refried beans, her homemade tortillas, or one of several chicken dishes she's made for us. Talk about good! They're tasty enough to make you see God. I am very much looking forward to getting to eat her cooking again.

It's going to get cold before we know it. Know where your Long Johns are in case you need them. Thanks for coming by my blog. I appreciate it. Do have a happy and healthy day that is full of love and joy.

Wednesday

2011-11-02T11:28:00.000-04:00

It's a bright and sunny day, chili but beautiful. The colors of the last few flowers standing jump out in the low humidity.

Speaking of flowers, did I tell you I won a Cleveland Heights Community Improvement award for my landscaping? I generally think those kinds of awards are a little bit funny but I do like that a neighbor thought enough of what I did to nominate me. I think it's a bit ironic that I won such an award for doing something that I enjoy as much as gardening.

Our friend Sue down the street won a TLC award. That's for homeowners who have made big improvements and who keep up the homestead like a champ. Her whole front yard is a perennial bed and rarely does a branch need pruning or a tuft of grass need pulling. I have some variegated Iris that she gave me.

Next year my garden will take some work. Several areas will need to be thinned out and the beds will have to be mulched in a big way. I do hope I feel good enough to give the garden the attention it deserves.

Given that I am content most days in Cleveland Heights, I rarely miss Baton Rouge. But this would be a good week to be down there. I'll bet parties are springing up the way tomatoes do in the spring. The Tigers of L.S.U. play Alabama Saturday night for what I believe will be the national championship. I'll bet the gumbo is hot and the beer is cold. I haven't drunk any alcohol for more than 29 years but I still can eat with the best of em--and gumbo goes great with a Barqs. I still have friends in Baton Rouge who tell me the joint is starting to hop. GEAUX TIGERS!

I Wish There Was A Store Here So I Could Boycott It

2011-11-01T13:14:00.000-04:00

news.yahoo.com/pregnant-mom-says-sandwich-arrest-horrifying-214407004.html

Hope You Had A Happy Halloween

2011-11-01T11:41:00.002-04:00

I'm not sure why I quit blogging, perhaps because of a feeling that no one cared a bit about what I wrote. Then today, it occurred to me that it makes sense that very few would give a damn what I wrote. I'm not Socrates.

I started blogging years ago, after I got sick. I decided to use my blog as a kind of journal and writing about certain events, ideas or feelings helped me come to terms with them. It's one thing to say I'm going to die soon and jut my chin out to prove that I'm brave. (You know what I mean if you go to lots of movies.) Saying out loud that I'm going to die (with or without a chin jut) is different when I I examine and meditate on that statement, to roll it around until I'm comfortable with and accepting of the idea.Writing makes me think about what I'm putting down on paper. Anyway, I am going to do my best to put down at least five posts each week.

We are taking Belle to the groomer in a couple of hours. Her fur is much too long and she looks like some little nesting owl peering out of a broken bale of wool. And the longer fur collects burrs and seed pods and, alas, odors. She'll be spic and span come this afternoon.

The two best college football teams play this Saturday night. Neither of the teams, Alabama nor L.S.U. would lose to any other team in the country and it's a shame that one of them will probably get knocked out of the B.C.S. championship game. The great Yankee Hope, Oklahoma, lost but there's still Stanford and, God help me, Boise State. The computer part of the rankings would have to be overwhelming for the S.E.C. to have two teams in the championship game, because the regional bigotry that kept the S.E.C. out of games in the past that they deserved to be in, still colors national sports journalism and voting today.

I went to a rheumatologist this past week and got shots in both knees. Cortisone is good stuff. I also went to a dermatologist and had a few spots burned off my arms and neck. And last, but not least, I saw a neurologist.

Dr. Smith, the brain doc, is the one who doubled the amount of Keppra I was taking, thus reducing the number of balance episodes I was experiencing. The original dose of Keppra caused me to lose my balance, so it seemed counter-intuitive to me that more of the same med would fix the problem. She explained that the smaller amount of the drug wasn't reaching the deepest part of my little gray cells and I was having mini-seizures, which contributed to my loss of balance and to the holes in my memory. I think she must have been right because my symptoms have improved. Now, if I only could do something about how sleepy the Keppra makes me. Oh, and I wouldn't mind being able to Roto-Rooter my sinuses. Their fullness make me lose my balance and sometime stagger in full stride.

Halloween last night: A van full of non-neighborhood kids rushed the house and all got to the front door at the same time. They almost ripped the storm door off but, in the end, only damaged it. We made it through but I'm still not quite sure why the grown, pushy women without costumes or make up were Trick-or-Treating. Seeing those overweight gals with scowls on their face shove a plastic bag at me and growl, "Trick or Treat," in a voice a couple octaves lower than any Cleveland Browns lineman was intimidating. I gave them extra candy so they wouldn't hurt Deidre or me.

I did so much enjoy seeing Katie in her Mater costume. (Mater is the wrecker from the Disney production of Cars and Cars II. She was very excited last night because her dad was going to take her today to buy a DVD of Cars II.)

I really like Skype--technology made for grandparents who live away from children and grandchildren.

Jeshua Cottontail

2011-11-01T09:20:00.000-04:00

I am a pretty old guy but I still like irreverent humor. That hasn't changed much since I was in the seventh grade, when some friends and I tried to get a referendum on the ballot that would have put Zeus in God's chair. We didn't try very hard, mind you, just intensely enough to irritate the nuns

www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tyLQIKl97Es

Courage And Commitment I Can Only Dream Of

2011-10-23T09:18:00.000-04:00

Two things: This kind of bravery is beyond my understanding and the government of Sudan must be a real cesspool.

www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/opinion/sunday/kristof-the-man-who-stayed-behind.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB

Don't You Just Hate It When They Have Numbers To Prove It

2011-10-20T06:57:00.000-04:00

I'm a big believer in using statistics to govern and to form policy. It might not be as much fun as screaming that Obama is Hitler but you get a lot better information and results.

www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/opinion/occupy-the-classroom.html?ref=opinion

I'm Back

2011-10-15T13:29:00.001-04:00

Sitting in front of the fire, Watson curled up at my feet.

It's been quite a while since I've made an entry--ain't it funny how time slips away.

My friend Germaine did, in fact, come to see me and Deidre, and while I can't speak for G, Deidre and I had a great time visiting with her. G is a neurologist and a gerontologist. We didn't do too much, mostly because I'm a wuss and didn't have much get-up-and go. We ate out a couple of times, stopped at Mac's Backs, the well known used bookstore on Coventry, and went down the street to see a neurologist who had a big impact on her decision to become a neurologist and gerontologist in the first place. Joe Foley is the now retired neurologist who took time to talk to Germaine some years ago. She acted as if I'd said Elvis lived down the street when I mentioned Joe's name. Joe's son Steve and I are close friends and it was fun to see Joe with an admirer. Everybody likes to be appreciated and that might be truer when the person admired is 95, soon to be 96.

The radiologist at Lake Health did the lumbar puncture and, although there are a couple more tests to go, I got a call from the nurse yesterday who assured me it didn't look like more cancer. That's a good thing, a very good thing. The puncture itself was no big deal either. Like a lot of things the doctors do to me, the initial shot of anesthesia was the worst part. I'm going to go back to the rec center starting next week. The sinuses on the right side of nose hurt a lot but my balance is actually pretty good. I wish I understood why it (my balance) varies so much. Of course what I really wish is that my balance was always grand--save the wondering for something else.

Deidre is home from going to a meeting with a friend and from shopping. She is making her famous--and it is famous for good reason--apple sauce. I really do like it. Deidre makes the sauce with Melrose apples, sugar and spices. She leaves the sauce a bit chunky so the apple sauce has heft to it. I tell you, women who are smarter than I, who look great in a a pair of jeans and who make chunky apple sauce are few and far between. I'm glad I have one in my life who lets me hang out with her.

I've been paying more attention to my investing of late. I found an electric utility stock that seems to be undervalued, pays a 4% dividend and gets 95% of it's power from renewable sources.The stock could go up or it could go down--I am in no situation to recommend it--but I am going to buy some just because of how the company is run. It is a U.S. leader in sun, wind and nuclear power generation. That's the way I think we should go and I'm going to put some money where my mouth is.

Have a fine weekend! Thanks for dropping by. I hope your life is full of love and joy.