Maybe 2015 is Our Final Year?

It is 0609. I got off of work at 0600 and I am already out of my uniform, in my pajamas and blogging. I must admit that I do like living this close to work. If I could just get moved to daytime hours everything would be ducky. I sure wasn't prepared for the cold last night (days would help that too). It got down to three degrees with a windchill of minus eleven degrees last night.

So, I went in as was planned (or so I thought). Human Resources had said that I was to return on the 30th and I had spoken to my Sgt. and we were both under that impression too. I found that "minimal staffing" means that is the minimum (only) that work. I thought that "minimal staffing" meant that it was the minimum number that COULD work not that it was the number of people they WANT to (or can) work. I think using the word "minimal" confuses that term. I further think it should be called "staff needs" or something like that. I guess it is my confusion but I am a big fan of the English language and I have learned many ways to manipulate the language in my favor over the years. When I was working on my Associates Degree in Journalism my minor was in English. Also, I have been speaking the language for most of my life. I know, by reading the blog, you may have concerns with that from time-to-time but, knowing the language and using it correctly and appropriately are not always the same thing. So, I guess, with me coming back, I caused a minor hiccup. The same problem would have existed tonight (New Years Eve) so I volunteered to stay home tonight. Someone was going to have to stay home tonight. I think I could have played the seniority card but that would be dickish and, for now because of all that has gone on over the last couple of months, I am more mellow and just decided to take the high road and let the others work. I get paid for the holiday but I will not get my extra COMP time by not working. I still will have enough COMP days to take an entire week off and, with my weekends being Thursdays and Fridays, it would work-out even better. So, I get New Year's Eve off with pay.

Had I known all of this confusion and turmoil would have happened I still would not have left Cha Cha to fight all of what she went through alone. There is NO WAY she could have done that. I honestly believe, had she not had me, she would have died. Maybe that is the god complex people talk about. It did not necessarily need to be me but she needed a bulldog advocate there with her.

Several odd things happened at work last night / early this morning - all between like 0130 and 0330. I saw a UFO fly right over my head. I am not saying that it was from another planet or that it was a secret test plane or anything but I am not sure what it was and that makes it unidentified. I shot some video of it on my phone but cell phone video in a dark sky, as it turns out, is not very good. It seemed like a helicopter but there was no sound. It hovered in the same spot over the subdivision that backs-up to our subdivision and I saw it from Lincoln Highway. I stopped right in the MIDDLE of the highway and shot the video. I did not radio it in because I would have felt like an idiot. So, I video'd it thinking that would be proof. But, the video stinks. Anyway, after hovering for awhile it headed northwest toward Rockford, IL. It did not go fast; it just seemed to be going about its business doing whatever it was doing and I was inconsequential. IT had several white lights (some flashing) but no red or blue or green lights. I have always wondered why, if these aircraft are from such far superior places than us, why do they still need lights? They are not as advanced as we think they are. Or, do they just use the lights so some moron like me will just say,"they had lights so they must have been a helicopter." If that is the case they should also figure a way to incorporate the helicopter sound for ignoramuses like me too.

A little later I saw what, out of the corner of my eye, looked like a big cow with antlers walking near me. It turned-out to be a giant deer checking things out. He was surprisingly close to me and didn't seem to be concerned that I was near him. I did not take out my phone to photograph him as I did not want to spook him and wind-up this those big antlers in my bootie. A few moments later I saw two foxes running around and then they went on the frozen water and jog away. Most of our "customers" are gone right now so all of these animals can move-about without people bugging them. Do the space men know that too? I did photograph the foxes but those pictures didn't come out very good either. Better than the UFO but still not great. I will post them in a day or two.

I just thought about this - I am on a three-day weekend right now. I guess that is pretty cool.

All of a sudden I am exhausted. I think I will go to sleep. It is 7:31 in the morning. Doesn't everybody go to sleep at 0731? I hope you have a great New Year's Eve (unless you are part of someone's minimal staffing somewhere) and your 2015 is wonderful. Thank you for stopping in. I wish could lie to you like all of the other media does and say, "we have some great stuff planned for you..." I think of things daily as I go along or as they present themselves to me. Like Cha Cha's crisis did. TTTNY (Next Year - which is also tomorrow)...MITM (out) TA!

I May Be a Bit Moody at Times

I openly admit that I am very Moody

I am feeling very melancholy or blue or sad or something today. I am not sure why but I do have several thoughts. My first thought is that it is because I am going back to work tonight. I do not dislike my job but I do dislike working from 2200 - 0600. I really need to find a day job before the end of 2015. That gives me what, like a year or something? I do not typically practice the New Year's Resolution superstition thing but this is my main resolution for 2015. I have a few other non-resolutions too now that I think about it. I will call them 2015 goals. Another thought for my being down occurs every month around this time. My cycle is at its crabbiest at the ends of each month. Why do you think it's call MENopause? I have many other theories too but these are the two that I feel are the most likely culprits. Undoubtedly, it is a combination of many different things.

You can tell it is resolution time based on all of the commercials on the boob tube.

Cha Cha and Splenda are gong to IKEA today. I hope that isn't being too optimistic but Cha Cha knows how she feels better than anyone else. She has been doing very well but going to IKEA is like walking the entire country of Sweden. I don't really know what they are looking for there but I will suggest they take the 4Runner rather than the Fiat. We took the Fiat there once and had to put the top down to get all of the stuff in the car. It didn't help that be bought a full-length mirror that day. I guess if something bad happens they are closer to Northwestern Hospital there than they are when they are here. I have been invited to go too but I have to sleep this afternoon for work tonight. That stupid merry-go-round begins again today. It is already 1042 and they aren't even dressed. They said they were going to try to leave by 1100 but that will not happen. They will probably barely get home before I have to leave for work.

We have two in the Chicagoland. We choose Schaumburg over Bolingbrook

I have begun playing Words With Friends again. I stopped when Jill was in the hospital. My time was pretty much consumed by what was going on there when I retired from all the games I was playing. I thought it would be unfair to the people I was playing against to make them wait days at a time. In retrospect, I probably should have kept playing as it may have been a good distraction while she was in surgeries or sleeping and such.

It is 1101 and Jill is sitting here with her coat n ready to go. No sign of Splenda yet. Jill says they may take the Fiat as she doesn't plan on buying anything big. Now she is saying they may take the Explorer or the 4Runner. The Jeep is behind everything else so it will be interesting to see which one they decide to use. There is a vacant house next to us; I wonder if we could just rent the three-car garage that house has? OMGoodness they are ready at 1113. They haven't left yet but are ready to go.

I asked Jill if she was nervous about all of the walking. She said they she is just going to take it slow and she can sit down whenever she needs or want to sit down. That sounds pretty smart. She goes back to work in six days and then on a business trip to Orlando shortly after that so she does need to get used to walking. I am not sure if I mentioned that we are going back to Northwestern Hospital on January 9th to have Jill's stent removed but, we are. She scheduled it on my Sunday (the real Friday) so I could go with her.

Winner Explorer, Winner Explorer

It is 1121 and they are leaving - I am very impressed. They took the Explorer for you at-home players.

I am going to end now and get some things done here before my sleep and Thursday begins; I wish my weeks always began with my Thursday. Two-day work weeks would be amazing. I would work two 20 hours days to get five-day weekends every week. Have a great your Tuesday. Thank you for slowing-down for a few minutes. I will blog sometime tomorrow. Most of it will probably be complaining about being back at work. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

The Happiest Blog on Earth

I may reconsider giving up drinking

Today is my Sunday (sort of). I go back to work tomorrow night. I am not dreading going back to work but, does anybody really look forward to going back to work? I work two days and then get my regular two-day weekend. I do not really have to go back until January 3rd because, since I work for a state facility, the 30th, 31st and 1st are holidays. With my seniority I could take these days off, but, since I have burned so much of my sick time and vacation time and COMP time I decided to go in and earn back a couple of those COMP days. It would be nice to have another fours days off but I will just settle for my two-day weekend. We are looking at maybe going on vacation and I will need the time to use then.

After going to see the Mary Poppins stage show and then watching the blue-ray of Mary Poppins (and all of the bonus material on the disc) last night we are thinking about a Disney World vacation. We went when the kids were young and Fabio doesn't really remember much of it. I think Disney World will be a lot different with grown children than when they were very young. It will still be crowded crowded crowded. Now Jill is reading Mary Poppins too and she says that the Banks family has four kids in the book instead of two as in the film and the play.

Just so I remember - Cha Cha is having her stent removed on January 9th at Northwestern Hospital. That is a Friday so I will not have to use a day off since my days off are Thursdays and Fridays. I love spending my off-time in waiting rooms.

Yesterday I posted the photo of all of the 1980's film alphabet. It will take up a lot of space but a promise is a promise and I don't have much on my mind anyway. Just in case you didn't see it I posted the picture again. Cheat if you want to because there are no prizes; it is just for fun. Here are the answers...

A. Airplane
B. Back to the Future
C. Coming to America
D. Dirty Dancing
E. E.T.
F. Flight of the Navigator
G.Ghost Busters
H.Honey I Shrunk the Kids
I. Indiana Jones
J. Jumpin' Jack Flash
K.Karate Kid
L.Labyrinth
M.Mannequin
N.Nightmare on Elm Street
O.Octopussy
P. Princess Bride
Q.Q. The Winged Serpent
R. Rambo
S. Short Circuit
T. Teen Wolf
U. Untouchables
V. Vice Versa
W.Weird Science 
X. Xanadu
Y. Youngblood
Z. Zelig

If you got L, M, Q V and X correct I am very, very impressed! I think I would have gone with Quest for Fire. Who in the hell has heard of Q. The Winged Serpent?

Jill seems to be feeling really good today. She is in the kitchen now singing, whistling and humming Let's Go Fly a Kite. She is not whistling, humming and singing all at the same time - THAT would be impressive! It is weird that me going back to work tomorrow seems to really have perked her up. Coincidence? Is she happy that I will be gone? Were the doctors just that smart that they knew that the recovery (at least the part where she'd need my assistance) would take EXACTLY this amount of time? See what we are saying about the doctors and Northwestern?

Now she is talking about going to Disneyland instead of Disney World. What about Hong Kong, Shanghai, Paris or Tokyo?

Alright that is enough out of me for today. I will blog again tomorrow but my mood may be more subdued. I would like to thank you, as always, for kindly stoppin-in to sit a spell. Have a great Monday? Yep,  I just checked and it's Monday.  TTTTuesday... MITM (out) TA!

Matt's World, Matt's World, Bloggy Time, Excellent!!!

The Marx Brothers, George Burns & Gracie Allen and Jack Benny all performed here

I said I would blog to day so here I blog. I don't really feel like it but I said blogged that I would so I must. I never said I would blog well though.

Last night was fun. We went to see Mary Poppins at the Paramount Arts Center in Aurora. It was as good of a performance as I have ever seen. It was every bit as good as anything I have seen in Chicago. Now that I think of it the best productions that I have ever seen anywhere have probably been at Disney World and Disneyland. It does not seem fair to include those places though because they have entire buildings built exclusively for some of their productions. Disney has a much bigger budget than these theater companies too. Cha Cha got the blue-ray disc of Mary Poppins for Christmas; I am excited to see that now. I have seen it before but it has been quite awhile. We really liked Saving Mr. Banks and that made me watch the show last night with a different understanding and appreciation. Jill says that the stage show we watched last night must have followed the book a lot more than the Disney film did because there was a lot of differences. One of the main differences (spoiler alert maybe?) was that Mary Poppins quit working for the Banks' family twice instead of once like in the Disney film. It did seem a bit long-winded at times. I am embarrassed to blog that I thought the show was a bit long-winded at times. When intermission began I stood up and put on my jacket. I thought maybe they didn't have an intermission and the show is over; I was wrong. It was only half-time. After the show we went to dinner. It was a fun night.

We did not make it to the casino though we did walk through one of their lobbies coming back from the restaurant to the car. We had to go in and see Garth Algar's Mirthmobile. You will probably remember the car mostly from the opening scene of Wayne's World. In my opinion that is also one of the best rock songs ever written. I am not sure if it is the real car from the film but, if not, it was made to look exactly like it. It even has the non-matching wheels, the correct license plate and there is a pair of drumsticks on the dashboard. It would make sense that the real one would be in Aurora, Illinois since that is where Wayne and Garth lived and performed their cable access show and a casino could probably afford to purchase it. Cha Cha says she wants to go back and go to the casino. That really surprised me. I did not think she liked casinos. Apparently she likes to play slots. I am more of a blackjack and Texas Hold'em guy. I like where there is a little skill involved so that, when I lose, I can beat myself up just a little more.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Cha Cha did pretty well walking last night. From the restaurant (Ballydoyle Irish Pub) back to where I had parked the car was about four or five blocks. She was a bit winded but just a week ago or so she was having a difficult time walking across the street. I won't feel so stressed going back to work Tuesday knowing she is doing this well. Just a week ago I would have still been worried. Now my only worry is that I remember everything I do at work.

I think I have blogged myself into maybe going back to the casino today. Wait, it is Sunday right? Sundays are probably busy casino days. Maybe tomorrow? That will be a celebration of my last day off before going to work for two days before my two-day weekend. I am still sleepy most of the time; I think I am way behind on my slumber. People say that it doesn't work that way (you get behind on sleep and you have to catch-up) but I KNOW that it has been working that way on me. I will catch-up more now that I am confident that Jill is doing better. Maybe I will turn on The Golf Channel or a meaningless football game later today and nap. I watched some of The Ryder Cup the other day - what a snooze-fest. That sounds amazing, actually. The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

Answers Tomorrow?

Fabio just left for work and everybody else (Cha Cha, Splenda and Splenda's boyfriend Andy) are still asleep. Jeff and I are the only ones stirring here. Jeff is currently in the backyard barking. I usually let him out early in the morning (0600 - 0700) to do his business and if he barks I immediately make him come back in. Then, after 0900 or so, I feel it is safe to let him out and, by then, if he barks I think people are generally awake. It is 0931 now and he is out barking with the neighbor dogs (his friends). I really wish they would learn to play poker. The barking stopped - maybe they learned poker that quickly?

Have a great Sunday. It seems like Comfort Sunday to me so far. I talked about Wayne's World and Back To School and Uncle Buck have been on in the background, one after the other, while I have been writing. Not cinematic genius by any means but takes me back to the 1980's (my wheelhouse). TTTT (my last day of being a caregiver)...MITM (out) TA!

If I remember I will let you know all of the answers to the 1980's Film Alphabet photo tomorrow. 

Cha Cha Can Drive Again!

The building that leads to the "boat" that never leaves the dock

It is 0812. This is the latest that I have started a blog in quite a while (other than the days that I was blogging once or twice or thrice a day during the tour of the Midwestern hospitals). I have been up for a couple hours but I had things to attend to.

We leave for Mary Poppins in about two-and-a-half hours. We are picking Splenda's boyfriend Andy up at the train station and then having lunch. The show doesn't start until 1500 so we may go to Hollywood Casino for a bit before the show. That is really weird since I wrote a lot about my poker chip "collection" yesterday.Just a blog coincidence - I swear! I do not have a Hollywood Casino chip. YET!  I have not been to that place since it was actually on a boat. For some reason it was okay for casinos to be on boats but they were illegal to have "on land" in Illinois. It must have been the same in Missouri back then because I remember my friend Randy and I playing some Texas Hold 'Em in the bottom of a boat on the Mississippi River in Missouri once. I never realized that I was riverboat gambler until right now. That gambling on boats thing was a joke since most of the boats never even left the dock. I think they changed that because the Illinois, Indiana and Iowa boats, for instance, had a difficult time going out on the rivers in the winter. Maybe the casinos liked people out on the water because the gamblers could not leave. As long as you're on the boat what was there to do? Gamble, of course. Illinois changed it's definition of a riverboat to "a self-propelled excursion boat or a permanently moored barge." How convenient to just be able to change the definitions and rules of things so they become legal. Louisiana changed their riverboat gambling rules after Hurricane Katrina so they only have to be located "adjacent" to a navigable waterway now.

I am going to  miss Driving Miss Cha Cha (I will get over it LOL)

After the show we are going to dinner near the theater. I guess this is my last hurrah before going back to work Tuesday. LOL -"hurrah" is very close to Harrah's (casino). Cha Cha can officially drive now since she is off her strong meds so, I guess she no longer needs me. She still has no stamina and she still has pain but, in an emergency she can drive now. Considering I work nights when she will probably be sleeping she should be alright. Also, I work only five minutes from home and am in a vehicle most of the time I am at work so I could get here quickly in a real pinch.

I am going to get into the shower so I can beat the rush (I will refrain from making a double entendre here). I may blog again tomorrow depending on whether I hit it really big at the casino. Who am I kidding? I will blog tomorrow. Have a great Saturday and Saturnight. TTTT...MITM (out) - All-in!

Ashes and Dust

It is funny how, when the kids were young, they were up at 0500 at the latest Christmas morning. Yesterday they woke up at 1000 and one of them had to be prodded for that. Good thing we live in farm country and have a prod. Christmas is over and now people are going to try to figure out what resolutions to make for the new year. I make resolutions every day that I fail to fulfill so how am I supposed to have a todo list for an entire year? I will not make any resolutions for 2015; is that considered a resolution?. I will just continue to have my daily goals and a few I will accomplish and many I will not. I do have many things that I will try to do this coming year and I will blog about them here as they arise as usual,

I am exhausted but, I think this is the only day in, I cannot remember how long, that I do not have anything planned by me or for me. Sometimes I am unaware of the things that are planned for me until it is required that I perform them; I am sure there are hidden things planned for me.

We had a pleasant Christmas yesterday. My parents came over and we had a nice turkey dinner and then opened gifts and then played poker. We played Five Card Draw and Seven Card Stud. We have played poker the last two nights. You don't hear about family poker nights very often. It is different playing poker with people who don't play poker a lot. It is also different playing poker when the chips do not represent real money. You will take many more chances when those chips are merely a combination of clay and plastic and not backed by cash used to rent them. I have poker chips for most casinos that I have played poker or blackjack in; most of them are dollar chips because who wants a $500 souvenir sitting in his jewelry box? I am not sure why I have saved them. I also have sand from most beaches that I have visited. Those are in bottles and bags in the basement - they would not fit in the jewelry box. I guess maybe I AM a hoarder like Cha Cha says?

I have this one too. Not sure why

I just got curious and now I have that box in my hands. It isn't actually my jewelry box but I have a box for some of these odd mementos. I forgot about some of these things that I have. I have two $1 poker chips from Playboy Atlantic City. We went there on a family vacation when I was 18 and it was legal to gamble there at 18. There is no more Playboy casino in Atlantic City. These are metal in the center and clay/plastic composite surrounding the smaller metal inside. I have metal coins (they looks like medals actually) from The Luxor, Caesars Palace and The MGM Grand in Vegas. I have composite/clay/plastic chips from: the The Sahara, New York New York, Bellagio, Hard Rock Casino, The Luxor, The Taj, The Wynn Casino, Treasure Island, The Venetian, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage, Paris, The Fremont, Binion's... Who says you come back from Vegas (and Atlantic City) broke? I need to go back out there and spend some of these. My favorite poker chip is one that one of the kids (I think it was Fabio) made me when I was playing a lot of Texas Holdem. He (or maybe it was Splenda?) took a poker chip and wrapped it in white paper and tape and it reads "Matt's Lucky Chip" on it. I would use that as a card marker sometimes. This box has a lot of stuff I forgot I had in it. There are LOTS of foreign coins in here from all over the world too. I forgot that I had collected all of this. I also have some of those $1 U.S. gold coins with the different Presidents on them that they tried to start and a few Sacagawea's too. And a real piece of pirate treasure that I bought at a flea market. Who knows if that is what it really is but it is that to me I guess. Hey, here is the scorer's pencil I bought and used at the old Yankee Stadium. Wow, this is like a box of treasure. Maybe I should bury it someplace? When I die and somebody finds this box they will think I was so much more interesting than I really am. Myths and legends live longer than people so I suppose I can accept that. Memories last forever. Everything else are all just ashes and dust!

It always amuses me when I do not have a clear idea of where the blog is headed before I start writing. I never know where it will go. Scary when I am the one behind the wheel keyboard huh?

I cannot believe how both actors look exactly like these two

I am watching the film Rush again while I write this. I am so surprised how much I like this film. This Ron Howard fella is pretty good I guess. One of the main characters, Niki Lauda, has just spent a month in the hospital after a crash. They also just stuck a tube down his throat all the way to his stomach without any anesthesia. He was racing 42 days after his disfiguring crash. They wanted to do that tube thing to Jill while she was in one of the hospitals (I think it was Kishwaukee Hospital) and she asked if there would be sedation or she would be knocked-out or anything. The nurse said they could not offer any meds for that for some reason (I cannot remember why) and that was the only time that, through the whole two months in and out of hospitals, that she freaked out. They did not do that procedure. I think it was shortly after that when the ambulance took her back to Northwestern Hospital. That scene in the film makes me know that Cha Cha made the right decision in saying "No." It shows me how badly she was when she is still going through lots of stuff two month later and this dude was in a fiery, disfiguring Grand Prix crash and he was only in the hospital for a month.

Alright, I have to get on with my day. I have another load of dishes to do before we dirty some more; this will be load number three. I want to go on vacation for every holiday for the rest of my life. I very rarely get what I want though. Have a great day!!! Thanks, as always, for being here. Tomorrow is Mary Poppins day but, you know, I will blog before we country mice head to the big city. I wish I could quit sneezing. TTTT..MITM (out) TA!

Merry Christmas, I Must Say!

They should have been called The Nostradamustones

Before I forget - Happy Christmas! I hope you and yours have a great holiday. I will wish you a happy new year when it comes that time. I don't think it's fair to lump two well-wishes into one wish. I want you to have the two separate wishes you deserve.

Jill is really sad and frustrated and discouraged. She goes back to work in two weeks and she doesn't feel even close to ready. She is still not cleared to drive so how will that work? I know she works from home about 70% of the time but, since she hasn't been in to the office for a couple of months, I bet they want to see that she is still alive and she didn't have a drone or a cyborg or something replace her on the planet so she can just hangout in the Bahamas all the time. Two weeks is a long time so maybe she will be good-to-go by then.

How come The Flintstones celebrated Christmas? They were supposed to be alive during the Stone Age which would be B.C.. How can they celebrate Christ's birth "Before Christ?"

I am sick of Facebook and all of these "it's been a great year, thanks for being a part of it" posts. It makes a sort of a slide show of your photos. I have not and will not look at mine but I imagine that is has nothing to do with me. Most of my posts are telling you that my blog is ready. The photos I use generally have nothing to do with me other than what I have written about from day-to-day. My photos probably make me look far more exciting and interesting than I really am. Starting in January I am going to be far more selective with the photos I use to tell you the blog is ready. Next year I will look really cool.

It looks odd not surrounded by snow doesn't it? 

Yesterday I said I would tell you why I fell asleep in bed beside Cha Cha and I woke-up alone. It wasn't because I was snoring or she was too hot or I was farting or anything, She just couldn't sleep and came downstairs. I guess everything isn't about me after all. Probably only 97% is.

There is a show called A Christmas Story on TBS. It must be a marathon of all of the episodes because it seems to be running all day and all night. I cannot believe I have never heard of this television show because there are lots and list of episodes scheduled today. How many seasons did this show run? I recognize the mom from the film Slapshot; she was topless in bed with Reg Dunlop (Paul Newman). She played Hanrahan's wife. There is a commercial on now for Cougar Town (irony?). I am proud to say I have never seen that show and never will. I thought there were no commercials when they showed this show on TBS. There should be Ovaltine, Lifebuoy and Red Ryder commercials if they are gonna have commercials. When LeBron James was on The Cleveland Cavaliers the first time Fabio and I drove there to see LeBron and Shaq play. It must have been 2009-2010 because that's when Shaq was on The Cavs. The house where they filmed the exterior scenes for this movie is there so we saw that. It was as exciting as you imagine it was seeing a house from the outside (they have a museum there too but they were not open when we were there). The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was better.

It's as signed as signed can be you know!

One of Cha Cha's Christmas presents would not have happened had she not been in the hospital. While we were in the ER in Dekalb before she went to Northwestern Memorial Hospital via ambulance for the second time Martin Short was on The Tonight Show promoting his new book I Must Say. Jill has always loved Marty (as have I but she REALLY REALLY loves him). I decided then that I would get her that book for Christmas. I managed to get an autographed copy (people in the book biz call it "a signed copy"). It is nice to be in the podcasting and blogging businesses and have the big-time Hollywood connections sometimes. It's also cool to happen into Barnes and Noble and find a signed copy for sale on the shelf - the last signed copy. There's a bit more to the story but it is better in person or via voice. Maybe if we ever do another Dirty Laundry Podcast I will talk about it. If you see my, and you care and want to know, as me - I will tell you.

It is only 0639 and I am already tired. My parents will be here at 1300 and I need to clean the kitchen, set the table and start cooking. The turkey is in the oven already, of course. I hope you have a great day and don't shoot your eye out. Speaking of shooting an eye out - I have to go back to work in five days. I hope I remember how to get there. TTTT...MITM (ho ho ho). TA!

Hey, Hey, Hey It's Fat Macaroons!

Maybe he's rethinking that now

I bet Tommy Smothers is loving all of this Bill Cosby stuff. I read that Sammy Davis Jr.'s 65-year-old girlfriend is now saying Bill Cosby raped her too. I don't think she used the word "rape" but, reading her account of what happened, I would call it rape. She is like the twentieth woman to come forward against Cosby. If you're interested in the Tommy Smothers / Bill Cosby feud you can read about it here. I have always been fascinated by their fight for some reason and I have read this article before (maybe a year or two ago I think) so I am confused by the date of the article. I read it right after Cha Cha and I went to see The Smothers Brothers in Elgin, IL and I know that was at least three or four years ago. The Daily Mail site must just have the day's date at the top from when you are on the site. If you look at the comments at the bottom they are from previous dates and it does say that it was published in September (see, there are my detective skills at work). I still think that must have been a republishing. After all of Cosby's great shows (I Spy, The Cosby Show, Fat Albert & The Cosby Kids, The Bill Cosby Show, The New Bill Cosby Show...) and a few decent films this is what he will be remembered for. If he did this, and it seems to me that the evidence is overwhelming that he did, he deserves to be remembered this way. He was a predator!

Cha Cha is still getting frustrated and tired quite often. She is not in much pain anymore though she does have some discomfort once in awhile. What she went through was a huge ordeal and it will take her quite awhile to completely heal. I would be frustrated too I am sure.

It is Christmas Eve. Our immediate family is all together; Splenda arrived last night at about 1900. I checked the definition of "immediate family" and no one should be offended by exclusion of that term. Depending on circumstances the "immediate family" can change. We have lots of presents wrapped but the tree is not decorated yet so they are lying off to the side waiting for their stage to be set. The tree is up but has nothing twinkly or shiny on it yet. We wanted to wait until we were all here. Now we have to wait until we are all awake. So far it is just Jeff and I who are stirring. I do believe he would help me decorate if I let him. I took him for a walk and now I am blogging and watching my favorite Christmas movie - Gladiator. Yes, this is the 347th time I have watched it if you must know. I slept in the same bed as Cha Cha last night. It was the first time we have slept in the same bed since her health fell-apart. I am a snorer and didn't want to disturb her so I found different places to lay my head for the last four fortnights or so. She also sleeps with the window open even when it is 20 below zero outside and I prefer a more moderate temperature. She says I do not snore that bad and, if I do, she can put her ear buds in. However, when I woke-up very early this morning I was alone in bed. So, she was either too hot (you know that ain't never gonna change) or I snored too loud. It may have been something else too I imagine. I will guarantee it is a combination of the two though. I will investigate and report at a later blog.

Tomorrow is Christmas. I bet you knew that since my last paragraph began with "it is Christmas Eve." My parents are coming over at 1300 on the morrow. The turkey dinner will be ready when they arrive. We will probably open our gifts before they get here in the morning or maybe even tonight so a lot of the mess is already gone. I am not a 100%  traditionalist with Christmas. I am more of a go with the flowalist or an as the mood strikes usist. The weather experts are talking about some snow tomorrow; one to three inches. It sounds like it may hit slightly east of my side of the MIDDLEwest though. East of Chicago more like around Indiana. Fabio really wants snow for Christmas but then he wants it gone the next day. I want snow in Indiana and then none here ever again.

Saturday is when we are going to see Mary Poppins. Fabio is not going with us because he didn't ask off of work or try to get somebody to switch shifts with him. I have a feeling is just didn't want to see Mary Poppins. I think that it may be that he just didn't want to ask for the day off. He is more of a go with the flowalist than I am. He has no problem speaking-up when he wants to but he picks his battles. Believe it or not I am a lot like that too. I grumble and complain a lot but I generally don't make a big deal out of something until it has festered and stewed inside me and then I usually make myself look like an ass. I have a lot of festering though now since I am much older than him so I look like an ass quite often.

Yesterday I made my house-famous Say Brainless Don't You Know Where Coconut MATTcaroons Come From treats. I may have to shorten the name if I ever take them to the masses. I made them bigger than usual this year and only drizzled the chocolate down one side of each for two reasons - maybe not everybody likes the chocolate and, you do not have to get your fingers chocolaty holding the mattcaroons this way. In the past I put a little red and orange (red plus yellow) food coloring at the very peaks so they looked like volcanoes but we didn't have any red food coloring. I bet the stores are all out too because of the big cookie-making that happens this time of year but, if I find some later, I may add that touch post-production. That is if they are not all gone by then (I cannot stop eating them - I am a jolly fat elf). It takes a few extra layers to make all the trips I have to take tonight.

I have leisurely written this and it is already 0905 already. Jeff and I are still the only creatures stirring. Have a great Christmas Eve. I will be back home here before sun-up tomorrow morning so I should be able to blog after I remove my kerchief and cap. Thank you for stopping-by and reading the blog. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

Life is a Juggling Act and I Plan to Keep My Balls In the Air

Seriously, what else have we?

I am seven days and 19 hours from finally going back to work. I can tell Cha Cha is getting sick of me. I am sick of me most of the time so I am surprised it has taken her so long. Imagine being me and not being able to leave. I think I must be tolerable in small doses. Maybe I am great when you are on pain killers or under anesthesia? I am good in disasters. Cha Cha is at about 60% physically and about 52% mentally; she is still depressed with not feeling like she wants to feel. We did more walking than usual yesterday trying to build her stamina and, while we were walking, she was fine but, when we slowed-down, she was exhausted. I am not pushing her; she is deciding what she can and wants to do and I just go-along for the walk. There were a few times when she would wait in the car as I ran the errands. She really wants to build herself back up but, it does not make sense to push it so far that she slips back the other way.

Splenda will be home today and we are very excited. It is probably about eleven hours before she gets here but, other than Jill getting better, we have not had much to look forward to over the past couple of months. That makes me wonder, "what have we had to look forward to?" I know we looked forward to her getting discharged from the hospital - that was a huge one. We look forward to her feeling well; we're still working on that one. Splenda coming home - scheduled. We looked for our date night at I Love Lucy - that one went okay but, had I known that she was going to be fresh out of surgery, I never would have planned that one. Christmas and Mary Poppins and then we have little to look forward to again. We will make more things to look for; I am not trying to sound sad or maudlin just MATTer of fact. If you seriously think about why we are really here it is simply to create great memories; what else do we have if you really think about it? There is a reason that you may forget to pay a bill or forget to tie your shoes but you still remember that vacation you took 20 years ago in great detail.

Things like this latest episode with Jill has made it apparent that I need to get my priorities straight again. I have been pretty good at making memories for most of my life but I have slowed-down with doing that. This whole thing has been a sign to readjust and get back to prioritizing properly. Life is a juggling act and I plan to keep my balls in the air. (patent pending, copyright, trademark)

The other day when Jeff and I were creating memories by getting his rabies shot and a couple of other shots and a thermometer stuck up his butt I found some humor in something so stupid. After I got his papers proving that he was current I went to the County Health Department and got his new rabies tag (he is good for three years now). When I got there the receptionist got on the phone and called someone and said, "I have someone out here for a dog tag." Until that point I had never really thought about where dog tags got their name even though it is pretty self-explanatory given their title. That made me laugh out loud. I will never wear my dog tags again without thinking about that.

I am still having a rough time sleeping well. I have been writing this off-and-on for about 140 minutes and it is 0541. I have never been a good sleeper but my world is topsy-turvy. When I go back to work next week I will be about 19 minutes from getting off work right now; I HAVE TO find a daytime job. I wonder if there are any talk show host gigs open; I am qualified and highly skilled for that. Except for the fact that I am not good looking. Aren't we ready for an ugly talk show host who makes us feel better about ourselves and the way we look? I see that Arby's is hiring. Of the many jobs I have had in my life I have never worked at a restaurant. I love to cook and I am great in the kitchen yet I have never done this. Maybe I love to cook BECAUSE I have never worked in a restaurant? I wish I could just write for a living. I like doing this and thinking about you while I do.

Enough of my blathering. I am going put on my cap and take a long short winter's nap. Thanks for stopping-by. I hope you and yours are doing well. I always wish that but don't always say it. I wonder if I will continue to write seven days each week when Jill is back to being her 100% and I am back to work. I think I may - it does me good to get some things out so, thank you for that too. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

A Few Set-backs?

It is 0244 and I cannot sleep. I am sad or depressed or something; I sure am moody. If you have read the blog for awhile you know that I feel this way every 28 - 30 days or so toward the end of the month. I hope I reach MANopause soon. At least I have never had to MATTstruate. I am tired but I cannot sleep. I will probably try again in a bit. I am watching one of the best movies of all time - The Godfather 2. I am sure you know this but this film gained Robert De Niro an Academy Award for  playing Vito Corleone; the only time two actors had won the award for playing the same character (Marlon Brando had won for The Godfather). Did you also know that De Niro was turned down for the role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather? Maybe I can never sleep because my head is so full of useless information that it doesn't have room to hold a dream? I need to purge some of the useless stuff I have in there.

Jill had a few minor set-backs health-wise yesterday but we believe she is back on track. We are learning lots of things about how to deal with what is going on with her. We know lots more than most doctors we have encountered over the years. Most of us know about our own health better than any doctor could; it's like knowing all of the idiosyncrasies of all of those junker cars we had when we were younger. We had a lot of growing/learning pains when we first discovered she had Crohn's Disease back in 1983 or 84 . Actually, I cannot remember when we knew exactly what she had but we knew she had something wrong with her way back then. Isn't it funny how you don't see many junker cars anymore like we did 30 years ago?

They spoke loud & clear since you are gone

It is 0305 now. Maybe I will go lie down again and see if I can sleep since it just said "INTERMISSION" on the screen of The Godfather 2; it must be a good place to pause the movie and a sign from the slumber gods. The film gods were speaking to me. I will continue this later.

I saw where Dish Network dropped the Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network because they could not come to terms with them contractually. What a thoughtful holiday gift for their customers. What will that lame-brain Elizabeth Hasselbeck (insert many other names here too) do now? We have DirecTv and we are very happy but I would be even happier if they did that too. It would open-up a couple of spots for something that isn't hateful like the Puppy Channel or the Kitty Channel. I am not sure if we even have those Fox channels and I don't even care to look. It is funny to me that Fox is so progressive, cutting-edge and liberal with a lot of their programming and yet so regressive, antiquated and conservative with other programming like their news programming. They should change their name to the Yin and Yang Channel. How will these people survive without this "fair and balanced" news coverage he blogged sarcastically? I guess Fox is trying to bullying Dish back by threatening to raise what they will charge for their sports programming. Maybe they should have Kim Jong Un broker this deal - he gets things done. Okay, now it is 0316 and I am really gonna break here.

INTERMISSION!!!!!!

I slept for a couple of hours until Jeff decided he needed to go outside and began barking. He usually barks only when he hears other dogs barking near-by so that is probably what happened. I know he instigates as much as he follows the other barking so I have to accept it for what it is. I wish they could just shut-up and get together and play poker once in awhile.

Splenda comes home tomorrow for a couple of days for Christmas. Jill and I are very excited. We are also excited and very proud that she made the Dean's List this semester. We are all going to see Mary Poppins on Saturday. It does not look like Fabio is going with us; he failed to ask off of work so he has to work. Maybe he chose not to ask. Do 18-year-old guys want to see Mary Poppins? It disappoints me greatly. Lucky for him I am not Michael Corleone because look what happened to Fredo when Michael became disappointed.

When I was shopping Saturday for all of the last minute stuff I typed (by voice) some things in my Inkpad App on my phone: "I hate shopping on the Saturday before Christmas. I have an excuse this year; I have been in and out of hospitals for the past couple of months. Not that things would have been different had I not been."

I could not believe how many people were wearing camouflage clothing while shopping. Were they taking breaks from their deer hunting?  Did they tell their mates they were hunting and they went shopping - sneaky. Just so they know - the camo doesn't work inside stores. I found it funny that they were also inside Target! Did you know that John Cazale, who played Fredo, was dating Meryl Streep when he died? Their story, while he was dying of lung cancer, reminds me a lot of what Cha Cha and I have gone through during her illness. Ours is having a happier ending though thank goodness.  **John Cazale, who played Fredo, was in The Deer Hunter though I remember more plaid than camo** 

Every photo I found was just like this one - customerless

What is the deal with MATTress stores? In my town in the MIDDLE of nowhere surrounded by cornfields we have at least eight or nine mattress stores. I am talking about stores that sell exclusively mattresses and their accessories. These places have to be a cover for something I think. I never see anybody in these places. Are they bookies? Are they a tax write-offs (someplace to show a loss for the fat cats)? A front for the mob? I did not see any lines outside of those stores on Black Friday. I should get a job at one of these places. I could take naps to demonstrate the products, I could... Okay never-mind I cannot think of other things to do. I would have lots of time to blog and work on my novel I guess.

Okay, I hear rumbling upstairs now so somebody is awake (must be Cha Cha since Fabio was up until 0400 killing zombies or Nazis or something). Have a great day. Thank you for stopping-by. Only two more blogs until Christmas. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

Will This Stop Being a Medical Blog Soon?

I have no idea who E. J. Cossman is / was

I slept pretty soundly last night; for the first time in about two months. I am not a very good sleeper anyway but everything that has happened over the last couple of months has exacerbated that malady. I guess I got about six hours of mostly uninterrupted sleep last night. My nose isn't quite so stuffed-up this morning though I do feel some sinus pressure in the back of my head. I will not be completely convinced that I am over whatever hump I was climbing until I have two or three good days. I hope that happens before I have to switch-back to sleeping days instead of nights in either seven or eight days; kind of some confusion on that one at the moment.

I started replacing the front porch lights last night but it got dark before I got the second one completely done. So, now I have to do the other one in the cold snow. One of the lights got smashed so they need to be replaced. I am not a guy who does cosmetic stuff to the outside of the house in the MIDDLE of winter.

Jill is still going back-and-forth with the hospital/surgery center that ordered and performed the liver biopsy that lit the fuse for all of these problems of late. Most of the bills that we have received, and there have been lots of VERY HIGH bills, have been handled fairly by the insurance company and the medical facilities. The one for the liver biopsy, however, was not paid by the insurance company so Cha Cha called and told them that we are not going to pay it. They said they would go back to their client and let them know. Many doctors since the biopsy have told us that they cannot even understand why this procedure would have or should have been ordered. We are trying to be civil because we don't like to get ugly or unreasonable. People suing and litigating are some of the reasons that the prices are so high and the insurance and medical people are so cold and crass sometimes we believe so, why add to that? Be part of the cure (ironic huh?).We also found out that Rush Copley still does not have the results of that liver biopsy they performed. We recently learned that they sent it to Rush Presbyterian (the university) in Chicago because they cannot figure it out. The people at Northwestern are not concerned about Jill's liver because we have the paperwork with all of the lab work information they did and everything seems like it is going well. Night and day between Northwestern and everybody else we have dealt with. The hospital here in our town is good but they are small and not equipped to handle many of the things that we have experienced. They know that and, as soon as they got out of their league (at least in our case), they sent us to someone who could help. Hospitals are a lot like people in that some have bigger egos than they should and cannot admit when they are wrong or need help; I have been guilty of that in the past but, with age, comes experience and humility. I want to be better in the my next incarnation.

That is Jeff on the right keeping us safe

I just let Jeff out for his morning constitution. I think he worked as a prison guard or worked in Berlin in one of his previous incarnations. Every time I let him out in the back yard to do his business I realize his first order of business is securing the perimeter of THE YARD (or The Wall as he might call it). He immediately goes to the south gate and systematically walks around the entire perimeter of the fence. Some days he will stop to do his business (his business being doing his personal business) but he knows it is business before business.

Christmas is only four days away. My parents are coming over for Christmas. Jill still needs to stay close to home as much as possible; she gets winded easily and most everything she needs if she has problems is here. On the 27th we are going to Aurora to see Mary Poppins with the Sock family (Jill's bother, our sister-in-law and our nieces) and Jill's sister Heather. We are also going to dinner as a group. Jill will continue to get the door-to-door treatment of getting dropped at the door. I normally would do that anyway but she cannot pull the "that's okay I will walk" routine now.

I don't know why this thought just came into my melon but, what if three or four families who had people who were ill (like Jill is) went-in together and purchased an apartment together near Northwestern Hospital (there are other great hospitals in the city too) so they would have it there when needed for hospital stays or follow-up appointments? When everyone was healthy it could be rented-out at a reasonable rate to people who were in the situation Jill and I were in with the commuting or worse. We could also divide the year among the owners and we could just stay down there whenever it wasn't being used by customers. I know its sounds like headaches and potential problems and probably lots of money but it would be nice to help others. I just checked and they are expensive. Northwestern Hospital is at 251 East Huron in Chicago and I just found some condos for sale at 100 E. Huron so, it is doable. In fact, there are lots for sale near the hospital. Of course, they are pretty pricey. The four I found ranged from $2.8 million for 4 bedrooms 4 1/2 baths 3230 sq. ft. to a 2 bedroom 2 1/2 bath for $940,000.. I see there are many others all over the city. I could just win the lottery and do it alone I suppose. Now I know why Ronald McDonald House has those change bins at the drive-up windows. If you decide to steal this idea please give us an opportunity to get in on it with you.

Now I have to go out and finish those porch lights. Thanks a lot for slowing-down to take a look at me (still have The Eagles' documentary in my head). Have a great Sunday without the sun in my neck of the MIDDLEwest. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

A Certain Aire of Savior Faire in the Merry Old Land of Blog

This guy is Peter Sack too (no ball & chin joke inserted)

Well, we didn't go see Interstellar yesterday. I figured I would tell you about it today but I kind of feel it inappropriate to say much about it since I haven't seen it. I would bet my life, mainly because I am tired and would welcome the rest, that there have been people who have reviewed films without seeing them before.

I turned on the television this morning and the weather was on. The box was tuned to the Chicago NBC affiliate. It used to be known as WMAQ but, now that we are dumber than we used to be, it is only known as NBC5. Anyway, the name of the weather guy on the station was Peter Sack. What is his MIDDLE name Richard? His wife's maiden name is probably Johnson.

Sometimes I will write part of the blog and save it and then come back and finish it later. Lots of times I will write stuff and forget that I write them and then find them later and just delete them. This next paragraph I wrote on December 16th and just found it this morning when I went to write today's blog. I figure I may as well publish it because it seems wasteful not to use it when I went through all the trouble of writing it and everything. I will make it blue because it will be a flash-back segment and I cannot use a soft-focus like they would on television or in film.

No wonder it's so bright when I sleep

Yesterday I wrote one of the many notes that I have written at various times. The one from yesterday was written when I woke up in the MIDDLE of the night in the notebook that I always keep next to me while I sleep. I wrote "brightness w/total. Darkness w/eyes shut." I am so happy that I mentioned that in yesterday's blog because my life-long friend (well, from when I was in 5th grade anyway) Kevin Donka sent me a private message suggesting that maybe I was writing about things even being bright when my eyes are closed. Anybody who knows Kevin already know this but "HE IS A GENIUS!" It was actually just one sentence written on two lines by a guy who was still half glazed-over. "Bright with total darkness with eyes shut." Kevin mentioned he has the same issue with total brightness with his eyes shut - must be a trait of brilliant minds (we're enlightened). 

Jeff would kill me wouldn't he?

As of yesterday Jill has still been getting slowly better. She still gets very tired and winded quite easily. She has some pain in her guttiwuts now and again. I think she is in pain most of the time but she is used to it and it is manageable. Most of my issues are in me gulliver (golova). I never realized that the use of "gulliver" in A Clockwork Orange was in reference to the Russian word for head (golova). In fact, many of the words Alex and his droogs spoke, are from Russian. Just when I thought I knew everything I could possible know I realize I was wrong again. Now I know that I am usually wrong too; I already knew that one actually and that will never change.

Okay, that is enough for now. I have to get showered and get Jeff over to his "a clip clip here, a clip clip there, to give his roughest claws, that certain aire of savoir faire" in the merry old land of blogs! In my case it is more like a sniff sniff here... While I wait for him to be done I will probably get the rest of our holiday prep done. I am happy that everybody is in better moods and nicer this time of year and that we are "allowed" time to spend time with our loved-ones but I hate this time of year too. I will stop there because that could go on for another four blogs and would serve very little purpose. Have a great Saturday and Saturnight and thank you, as always, for stopping by. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!

Crabby Matty and the Holiday Blues

Today I get the distinct pleasure of taking Jeff to Geneva to get his rabies shot updated and then tomorrow I get to take him to get groomed. I am living the dream. I should definitely play the lottery while I am on this lucky streak.

Yesterday sucked. I hate shopping. I do it about five times every single week of my pathetic life; you'd think that I would be used to all of that shopping. I am good at it but I am good at a lot of things I dislike doing. I am good at laundry. I am good at cleaning the kitchen. I am good at pumping gas. I am good at cleaning leaves out of the gutter. I am good at complaining. Maybe the shopping was so bad because of the mere 150 minutes of sleep I got Wednesday night. I have worked my way through most of the Seven Dwarfs over the last 45 days or so. I have been: Sleepy, Sneezy, Doc, Dopey, Happy and most definitely Grumpy. I think the only one that I have not been has been Bashful.

There was a really good part of shopping yesterday though: Cha Cha did pretty well while were out. She is still getting pretty tired but not quite as quickly. That didn't make her shop any faster. We FILLED the cart at Target and then she went and sat while I checked-out. That was after we spent an hour at Menard's. That is actually REALLY good for her compared to just last week.

I am crabby and exhausted. They say the first step in recovery is to admit it. Own it. Christmas is less that a week away - maybe I have the holiday blues. Maybe I just miss my facial hair. I also got my head hair cut pretty short. It's always a good time to go hairless (that just means LESS hair not WITHOUT hair in this case). Today is my little brother's 50th birthday - maybe knowing that my YOUNGER brother is 50 is bugging me? It's not that one; I have never really put much concern in age numbers. I just think that I am sensitive and moody.

Cha Cha wants to see a movie tonight but there isn't anything I want to see. I do like going to the movies though. I will go and watch whatever she want to see. Interstallar looks pretty good. I really really do like Matty McConaughey. I like Anne Hathaway a lot too. Of course, that movie isn't playing in our one-horse country town. I may be going to Geneva more than once today - for the rabies shot and for a movie. The Goodrich Theater might be considered Batavia though? They have earlier films there too so we could go at 1155 or 1445. If we go to the 1155 show we could have dinner at 1500 like we old people like to do. I guess I had better get dressed and get the dog to get his shot so I can come back and then go back again. Who knows maybe she just wants to see the The Hobbit Babble of the Hog or whatever it is called? I have some nice, warm and fuzzy news about that Hobbit film and what I wrote about it on Monday but I have been sworn to secrecy (at least as far as the blog goes). If I get the okay I will blog about it but, in the meantime, if you see me and ask me I may fall asleep and talk about it in my sleep for you to overhear.

Okay, have a great day and I promise to cheer-up. I think I just have those care-giver blues or whatever they call them. I pray to become an idiot so I am not so moody; I just care too much; yes, that is a bad things a lot of the time. TTTT...MITM (out) TA! See how moody I am today I almost forgot my manners; thank you for being here. You are my reason for the season. TTTT (again)...MITM (out again) DOUBLE TA!

Taking Some BIG STEPS with Cha Cha Today?

Not as much fun to smoke as they were a just days ago

Pope Francis continues to amaze me. Did anybody think that the United States and Cuba would ever patch-up their ridiculous differences? Since all of the problems have been bad in the Middle East for so long the tag team of Fidel and Raul Castro and Cuba have not really been discussed as much as they used to be talked about here. We have worse enemies. I am Catholic by marriage so I think I can speak on this MATTer with some expertise. I had to take some classes to get married in their church so I am a Catholic-in-law or something. Now I won't have to sneak Cohibas across the Canadian border. That will take a lot of the fun out of going north of the border. I always have codeine to fall back on though. And, wash that down with some Cuban rum. The best part with that is that, when I fall back, I won't feel it. Somehow people will have a problem with us being friends with Cuba again and it will all be President Obama's fault. I do not watch the news because I try to remain positive and news is rarely positive. I see an interesting feed on the internet and I read that - that is my news. Cha Cha watches the news - she is my barometer on the world.

Jill dressed very nicely for the hospital didn't she?

When Cha Cha was in her third fourth room in Northwestern Memorial Hospital (on the 12th floor right after she got moved from her corner suite on 13 after one of her surgeries) she was doing pretty poorly. Out of her window directly to the south were two other hospitals across the street. One day I asked one of the orderlies or technicians or whatever he was what those two hospitals were across the street? We had guessed that one was the womens' hospital and one was the children hospital. We were correct but we had thought the children hospital was the women's and visa versa. When Jill was in the nice room up on 13 I brought in a pair of binoculars because of the great Chicago view. She had noticed that there were lots and lots of stuffed animals and balloons on the ledges by the windows in the one so we guessed that one was the kids' hospital. We later figured, when we found out that was they women's hospital, that maybe those were there because of births of babies? You have lots and lots of time to kill (pun slightly intended) and the binoculars helped. When she first asked me to bring then in she asked, "what if this turns into a Rear Window thing?" I said, "at least you are in the right place if it does."

Tomorrow is my younger brother's 50th birthday. We have all of his Christmas and birthday stuff ready and, as usual, I have not gotten it to the post office yet. That is one of my many many tasks today. Of course, there is: the laundry, grocery gettin', cleaning the kitchen as usual... Today I am finishing our Christmas shopping and getting that box in the mail. Maybe, so it gets to Honolulu in time, I should get on a plane and fly it on over. Cha Cha is still banned from driving by her team of physicians but Fabio is still here to be her chauffeur. Also, I am off work to "care for her" so I guess I will stay here and the package will just have to arrive late. I think if it were on time it would stop my brother's heart. He lives in paradise; I think he will be okay for a few extra days.

Cha Cha just said that she thinks she wants to try and go shopping with me. There were a lot of "thinks" and tries" in that sentence. I feel that is a great idea. The shopping will be done inside where it is warm and we need her to start building her endurance. She always slows me down when we are shopping anyway but, I have nothing to be in a hurry for right now. I am always going 50 different directions at one time and it is probably slowly killing me; I NEED to slow down a little more. I am at least half-way done with this life; who am I trying to impress?

We have been watching a lot of Netflix over the past few weeks. What else do you do when you're on bed rest? Or a personal valet of someone on bed rest? If we ever record another Dirty Laundry Podcast we have LOTS AND LOTS to talk about. The last show we recorded was posted November 3rd - wow. We have been watching History of the Eagles in pieces over the last couple of days. If you're into music, even a little bit, and are MIDDLEaged or beyond you will love this rockumentary. That is not fair - anybody can like The Eagles - young or old. It is three hours long but it is broken into two parts; they cleverly entitled them Part One and Part Two. We watched a thing about George Harrison last week that I had DVR'd which kind of got us into this music mood I think. Music has always been a huge part of my life; I think that is true for most people one way or another. iTunes makes lots and lots of money on us liking music. There are lots of messages that mirror all of our lives in History of the Eagles. Their journey together really makes me wax poetic but I have always been a sentimental sappy soul.


I heard that Ringo Starr will finally be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He is the last Beatle to get into the HOF as a solo artist. Joan Jett is getting in too I am not sure of the criteria to get in but I am sure it is political somewhere. We saw Jett in concert right here in town at Corn Fest; luckily they got her then. I bet her price will be going up now. They have had lots of big bands here for that yearly festival. I saw that there is only one performer who is in the R&R HOF three times. Eric Clapton is in for: Cream, The Yardbirds and his solo stuff. On a side note from this Eagles movie Bob Seger looks like Philp Seymour Hoffman (when he was alive).

I have started reading the Stephen King book that I had gotten half-way through about a year ago. I could get lots of that read on the flight to Hawaii; I am still trying to convince myself that I need to make that trip. I have resumed working on my novel again. I know I have made comparisons to this situation and It's a Wonderful Life times and me refocusing things and not sweating the stupid stuff is the same thing George Bailey discovered - most of the things that we place so much importance are not important at all. That is because it sincerely is like It's a Wonderful Life for me.

Wow, I had a lot on my mind today. I am not sure if today's blog flowed or if it is even able to be understood but I feel better somehow and I thank you for that. I believe there may be something in there you can appreciate. I sincerely thank you for continuing to stop-by even if it is just so I you can keep-up on Cha Cha's condition. Don't worry I won;t be like that mother in The Sixth Sense and keep her sick. I know that is sort of a spoiler from a 1999 film but you should have seen it by now! The eight-year-old star is 26-years-old now. Okay, I am really gonna end now. TTTT...MITM (out) TA!