My family will handle the rapids

Tomorrow morning, before work, I am visiting a nursing home.  My husband's aunt lived there for a while.  And on Monday, my mother has a doctor appointment.  My father said that the doctor will not be happy with my mother's deteriorating health.  Mobility issues and pain management will necessitate a move out of the house and into a home.  How will the idea of a nursing home be presented?   What steps can be taken to help her adjust?  What kind of support will my father have?  How can we prevent miscommunication?  And if feelings are hurt, how can they be healed?  How can we move her in the snow and wind?  We will need to cope with present issues and others that will arise in the future.

I need to resolve the misunderstanding with my sister.  As a friend commented, I should have called her rather than relying on a text.  Not very bright on my part.  And though we will never see eye to eye, we will always be very different, I need to heal this estrangement.  A higher power is in charge and I am instilled with peace.  I know there are many rapids in the river, but I also know that my family can handle them together.

Choices

Yesterday, I left the house at noon and drove to the nursing facility.  I toured the first wing which housed the memory patients.  It was what I expected...mostly women in wheelchairs off in their own little world.  The residents were finishing lunch.  Christmas trees were still displayed.  The rooms are semi-private, a small narrow hospital bed, dresser.  I can't visualize my mother on this floor.  The other wing was nicer.  The residents were up and about...reading, one was doing a puzzle.  The criteria to live in this unit is to know when to use the call button.

I drove from the nursing home to my parents' house.  When I got there, my mother's aide was just leaving and we chatted for a few minutes.  My mother had no pain medications and because she hurt so badly, she had great difficulty getting out of bed.  Her aide said that it was a bad day.  And the hospice nurse had gotten delayed and wouldn't be there for two hours.  The nurse arrived and my sister motioned for both my dad and me to be quiet.  She did not get a true picture because my mother did not mention that she is a shut-in and has mobility issues.  This information came out at the end.  However, it does not look like hospice can help.  The nurse suggested to make an appointment with the doctor and pain management medications.  Also suggested a hospital bed and a raised dinner tray.

I stayed for awhile after the nurse left and made dinner.  My mother could swallow the soft foods...mashed potatoes, peas and applesauce, whipped chiffon dessert.  However, she could not manage the meat, even though it was soft and tender.  Have to figure out what she can eat.  I will experiment with small curd cottage cheese and crushed pineapple, sugar-free yogurt and pureed bananas, the kind infants eat, and my mother's recipe, Yankee Doodle Soup.

I was not sure that my father could eat this meal.  I was afraid that it would upset his stomach.  I plan to go over to the house today, and will ask him how he feels.  My father enjoyed watching the local and world news.

The first order of business is get the pain under control so that mother is more comfortable.  and to get more help for my father.  He cannot manage any longer.  He has health issues of his own.  We need to weigh the choices and make the best decision for both my mother and dad.

A spring broke in my father's favorite chair.    We decided to move the chair from the den into the living room.  Only thing is that chair has flared arms.  We tried to move it out....wouldn't fit through the door.  My dad took the door off and by lying the chair on its side, and finagling this way and that we managed to get it free.  It looks nice, and it reclines and has a foot rest!

I will go to the store and buy some soft foods and then go to the house to talk with my mother's aide and check on my mother and dad.  I was up early, because lying in bed made my head hurt.

Weather suits my mood

It is raining and quite foggy which suits my mood.  It's as if nature is commiserating with me.  However, I do not want to give in to sarcasm and bitterness.  I do not want to be so objectionable that I isolate myself.

One of the marketing specialists from the nursing homes called me back.  I asked her if she knew my husband's aunt who had resided there for a while.  Not only did she know her, but is good friends with her daughters.  A connection in the sea of uncertainty.
I am going to tour the facility on Friday before work.

Breakfast was comforting, hot oatmeal with apples and cinnamon and steaming coffee.  I have an appointement for a tour today, and then will stop by my parents' house.  I don't know if the hospice nurse will discuss her findings today or write a report.  Surely not with my mother present?  And I want to take my parents a greeting card.

Wrong Turns

My sister cornered me last night and wanted to talk.  I told that I would talk after class but she said that she was going home. Once in her office she told me that my father had said that I was mad at her.  Suggested that I not bother my dad with such feelings, but call her.  She went to visit my mother to assess her condition, and has decided that my mother has several conditions indicating end of life.  So today, the hospice nurse is coming to evaluate my mother.  I don't know what my mother was told about this visitor.  I don't know if she will really care.  And we still need to decide the proper action to take.  24 hour care at home, a move to a facility.  As she says in the children's movie "Emperor's New Groove," "which one?  which one?"

I know that my parents and those I love cannot live forever.  I look at the photos from last summer, and see how quickly circumstances can change.  I am at peace that I have helped my parents as much as possible to date.  And I will continue to enjoy their company until the end.

I am grieving, but cannot go around with tears in my eyes and a sad face.  I have never lost my parents before, so am learning as I go. I probably will make several wrong turns before the crisis is over.

Nose out of joint....

Snow and ice here today.  School closures and delayed flights.  Didn't matter to my daughter as she had no school anyway.  However, she is having a time getting home from visiting her sister.  The flight was delayed and then delayed again.  So when I texted her to ask her ETA she answered back "Never!"  How well I know the feeling.  A four hour delay in Ft. Lauderdale coming back from San Jose.

Got a call from my sister last night, but happy to say did not budge an inch and gave as good as I got.  However, the sister called and got the doctor's number and has arranged for a nurse to come and evaluate my mother tomorrow.  Very kind of her...she will let me know the time.   Received a text at work about the evaluation..  I called several facilities, spoke to one marketing specialist and will tour the place tomorrow.  Left two other messages.

I will not talk to my sister about my mother's care when I am training.  It is upsetting and I can't focus.

My sister upset me so much that I teared up at work in front of my coworkers.  Nice!  As my coworker said to tell my sister, "Since you want to take over this project, I will step back and you can make all the arrangements."  However, she infuriates me and I told my father so.  I noticed she was over at the house, but did not stop by.  My sister is not so concerned about my mother as worried about my father.  And she does not see that when one separates a couple who have been together for 65 years, that both will pay a toll.

My original plan was to talk to various skilled care facilities.  Then with the help of a doctor or nurse prepare my mother and father for the move.  Let them get used to the idea.  Then expedite the move and help both adjust.  Is my nose out of joint?  We discussed this at work and perhaps it is.  But my father cannot say no to his favorite daughter (my sister) and I am the only advocate for my mother.

Sister also said that my brother wants to be in on the decision.

Hospice Care

My dad called this evening concerned about my mother's care  My mother's back has been hurting for the past three weeks, making it difficult to move or eat.  And she is sleeping a lot.  Her doctor has suggested placing her in hospice care.  So the four of us need to decide about a facility.  My brother and I are  supportive of my dad's decision...will help in any way we can.   I would never have foreseen a back problem as the cause of putting my mother in a nursing facility.  I am not the only one with family issues.  A good friend is dealing with his brother's cancer, his son's and wife's illness.  He said that he knows God only gives us as much as we can handle, but that he has reached the top.  And yes, I would say he has.  I jot him a note every day, and hope that some day when he has time, he will read them.

Perspective

On facebook, yesterday I saw a photo of the ferry heading across Lake Huron from St. Ignace to Mackinac Island.  The surface of Lake Huron was covered with ice.  The cold will help the ice form and hopefully next  month, there will be an ice bridge from the island to the city.  Someone will spud the ice to check the thickness.  And if it is thick enough, Christmas trees will be planted to mark the way!  And then the residents can go back and forth on their snowmobiles!  So if you ask a Mackinac Island resident what the coming of the ice brings, he or she will tell you freedom.  Now living it the city, bad driving conditions such as snow or ice, generally mean that I am homebound until the storm abates.

I decided to forego the drive to the river and rather go to a small park near my house to take photos.  The creek that runs through the southeast part of the city goes through the park and it is only a half mile away.   Good thing too, because I got there to take photos and discovered that the SD card was still in the tablet.   So home to get it.  I got a photo from the top of the bridge, and then went down the bank (had a twig in my coat hood) to get a photo of the creek.  The cold seemed to drain the rechargeable batteries after the two shots.

Creek running through the southeast section of the city

A Small Glitch

Not far from the house is a park along the river.  I can cross the river by a series of footbridges.  I drove to the park today with the intention of taking photos.  It didn't go quite as planned as the SD card was jammed into the adaptor.  A friend asked me if I was "cross"   This was a glitch and I can try again tomorrow.  Have to be conscious of the time outside though as it is very cold.  The clipper coming down from the north has brought low temperatures and below zero wind chill.  

None of the fish have been eaten.  The woman at the fish shop told me to use a 5 gallon bucket and add 1/2 cup chlorine bleach to it.  Soak the rocks and other aquarium pieces for 1 or 2 days until the angel hair algae is dead.  Then rinse the pieces and add enough dechlorinator for 50 gallons.  Fish are extremely sensitive to soap and chlorine, so I have to be absolutely sure that there is no chlorine on the rocks.  

An Interesting Day

I was surprised to see snow on the car this moring as I got ready to go to work.  It was expectedly quiet as today was Inauguration Day and a National Holiday, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr  Day.  Many businesses and schools were closed in observance of the holiday.  Never too early though to get ready for Valentine's Day, boxes and bows need to be made, paper collars stapled to keep roses from breaking, chocolate, cards and bears displayed.  Fortunately, I was not upstairs in the attic or in a windowless room because around 10:30, our store along with others in the area lost power.  It didn't come on, DTE told us that 20,000 people were without power, no idea the problem nor how long it would be out.   So we started making the collars for the roses...150 of them.  It was interesting, a woman came in and asked if we were closed, about 1 1/2 hours after the power went out.  She observed that it might be a bit hard to browse in the dark.  Just at that moment, the lights came back on.

Fish update...All the fish survived the first night!  The catfish did not eat the groupies or the blue fish, which is called a gourami--a truly beautiful fish.  I am having a problem with hair algae, nasty stuff really, so stopped back at the fish store to buy a clown pleco to gobble up the algae.  I also couldn't resist a male and female rosy barb.  And since my net is missing at the present, bought a new net.

Winter Playground

A Photo Uploaded From a SD card

 
 
 
 
 
              
I took two photos on this cold January Day.   I  managed to get home before either the camera or I   froze!  Unfortunately, the other photo had a ring in the middle!

Learning new things

Today I headed out into the cold with my camera to see if I could get some photos.  My intention was to play with the SD card and the Transformer Prime, and figure out how to upload them to various sites.  At first the camera would not go on.  Now, I prefer rechargeable batteries for the camera as I've discovered that I can take more photos.  However, time was of the essence and I didn't know where they were, so decided to use disposable batteries.  I played with those for awhile, and then figured out that the camera would not go on, because I was trying to turn it on with the wrong button.  Once I got it on, the screen displayed a "low battery" message  I finally found three batteries that would work.  I would have liked to go to the pond at the school, but I was limited on time as I had to open the flower shop.  I found a nice youtube video that told me about SD adaptors and micro SDs,  how to insert the card and most importantly how to find the photos in the files.  I watched it twice.   By some miraculous occurrence, I discovered that the photos were under the  heading 100NVTIM in the gallery, and from there, it's a piece of cake to upload, providing that I use one browser for photos and another for writing script.

Moving on....After work, Iwent to the fish store.  It turned out that the flourescent bulb was black at both ends and burnt out, an easy fix for the associate at the shop.  And as long as I was there, I decided to purchase some fish.  I had one lonely catfish, and feeling sorry for her, I bought her 2 friends.  The 3 catfish ate all my other fish.  Explaining this to the young man at the store, he suggested that I buy some groupies and a blue fish.  The groupies are fast and the blue fish is big, so hopefully they will not be sushi for the hungry catfish.

Very dear

I can't stop thinking of Kenny and Scott who passed this week.  Kenny and his sister were my best friends until my dad built a new house and moved our family.  We spent countless hours jumping rope and playing Red Rover.  Now he is gone, after fighting a brave battle with lung cancer.  And cancer claimed Scott too, at the age of 42.  He had taught for 18 years at the middle school near our house.  This summer, he was diagnosed with esophogael cancer.  He was in treatment and teaching, but died suddenly this week, leaving all who knew him in shock.  Shaun died from injuries in a plane crash.  I understand he was considering the purchase of a plane to fly to his cabin in Ontario.  And Autumn, my daughter's friend, was struck by a car crossing the street, and Peter, my friend's son died suddenly and accidently.  Too much to absorb in too short a time.

The store has been very quiet.  The mall across the street, the restaurant and drive through coffee counter, the coffee shop next to us furiously busy.  Trying to figure which kind of perishable product to bring in.  The customers have been challenging...the few that come in.  I finally figured out that the lady who came in carrying a planter, wanted to exchange it for a planter in a round ceramic container.  Unfortunately, we do not have any in the shape she would like.  And obviously, the person who started the conversation with "I've been having a bit of trouble with my credit card," had spoken to someone else at the main store.  After spending time with him and writing an order for tropicals, roses, candles, and plush, the credit card was invalid.  And the young man who called three or four times to place his order with the card message Dear X 3, 875, 321 090 because that is how dear she is!

Haiku

The store is quiet
Just me and the curious mice
Need some excitement!

Demanding money
More puzzle books and shampoo
Feeling resentful.

Holding a secret
Heavy weight on my shoulders
Wishing I could tell.

Crazy, busy day
Flowers, chocolate, cards and bears
Love you, Valentine!

No wifi today
No email, blog or facebook
So disappointed!

Nail holes on the wall
Painted green with a rose leaf
Hidden evidence.

I would rather know
Mean, nasty and genuine
Than phony niceness.

A restraint order
Fear that something will happen
Teenage violence.

Across the parkway
Latte, mocha, java place
Steaming to your car.

Winter's Gift

                                               
                                                                Winter's golden gift
                                                        The city bathed in sunlight
                                                            Cold, yet heart warming.
                                                      




                                        

Of Potatoes and Other Things

Last night,I thought it would be great fun to eat chips with the hamburgers that my husband was making.  So I washed and sliced potatoes, sprinkled them with olive oil and salt and popped the cookie sheet into the oven.  My coworker told me that olive oil smokes at a lower temperature than vegetable oil, and before long the house was awash in smoke, the mini dachsund was shivering and shaking.  We ran the exhaust vent above the stove the bathroom fan and opened both doors to try to air out the house.  When all was said and done, I had a puddle of olive oil on the bottom of the oven and a smelly house.  I ran the self clean feature on the oven.  It was still too hot last night to wipe clean, so this morning before work I took a sponge, (which I had to throw away) and cleaned up the soot.  There are light bulb gremlins at work in the house.  The brand new oven bulb is not working nor is the flourescent bulb above the aquarium.  However, on the bright side, I somehow have internet access at work, miracle of miracles.  After all the whining, I think I might be over the worst of the sinus problem.  I got my w-2 (saw how little money I made last year) so we should be able to file income tax returns soon, when all the forms are in.  My daughter is going with her friend to talk to a counselor about the friend's boyfriend.  He is acting bizarre --so strange that my daughter is afraid of what he might do.  Her friend's mini dachsund bit her finger last night, and the finger is swollen and stiff.  Depressed that I have to start building up stamina from the very bottom, yet again.  I hung two pictures and a silk spray at work.  Otherwise, it has been quiet.  Valentine's Day is four weeks from today.

In Loving Memory

                                       
                                                   
                                          Kenny (55), Pete, Shaun (63), Betty,
                                  Scott (42), Autumn (23) and  Peter (23)                                                          

                   With each gentle breeze, twinkling star or wave upon the sea....

                                                       we shall remember.

With Deepest Sympathy

The other day I awoke to the news that there had been a small plane crash in Florida.  The pilot died in the crash, but a passenger survived although he had severe burns.  Last night, my daughter told me that one of her math teachers at the middle school had lost his valiant fight with cancer.  This morning, I was searching online for his arrangements, when I  read the headline, "Professor Dies from Injuries Suffered in Plane Crash."  I was shocked to learn that the passenger taught at the university in the city where I live.    My deepest sympathy to the family and friends of both young men.

And He will raise you up on eagle's wings
Bear you on the breath of dawn
Make you to shine like the sun
And hold you in the palm of His hand.

Trying to Get Better

I am trying to get well.  I am forcing myself to take it easy and sleep when I can.  I am using a saline rinse and breathing steam from a pan of boiled water.  I sit at the table with a tent over my head and breathe in the vapor for a few minutes.  I need to get better so that I can visit my mother.  My father told me yesterday that her back hurts causing her much pain, and that she is putting too much food in her mouth, causing her to choke.  So, I need to expedite the recovery process.  Today, I vacuumed, swept the kitchen, cleaned the aquarium and threw in some laundry.

Trust

The bouts of coughing exhaust me.  I am happy when I have peace for a few minutes--a bit of time to recover and regroup and get ready for the next spell.   And though it seems much longer, I have only been sick one week.  Will I ever be well again?  And I worry.  I worry about my daughter and her friends.  One of her friends ODed over winter break.  I have known her since she was a baby.  Problems with her boyfriend.  And I am holding a secret that I cannot share, because if I did share it, I wouldn't be trusted ever again.

Crotchety

Everything seems accentuated.  Smells and noises are intensified.  I wonder how people who are chronically ill manage to keep a pleasant personality.  I want to talk to my husband about sprinkling smelly deodorizer in our room.  I dislike it at the best of times, but even worse when I am hacking up a lung.  And what about the driver who manages to get his car up to 25mph in a 45.  And the young woman at the self scan aisle in the grocery store who used one hand only to unload her cart.  The man at the restaurant who was leaning against the window with his feet sticking out the booth into the aisle.  Isn't there a law that diners need to put their dirty shoes under the table?  However, you will be pleasantly surprised that I adhered to my resolution and have neither killed nor lambasted anyone!

My Friend

My long time friend lives in a Group Home because she is unable to live by herself.  We met a long time ago when she became part of the church music group.  We have been friends since, although there was a period of three years when I lost touch with her.  She was in a nursing home and it took me some time to catch up with her.  Every couple months I treat her to lunch and then we wander over to the grocery store.  She buys chips and soda.  I treat her as she has a cash flow problem.  I have to set limits on how much money I spend, as she has no natural inhibitions.  Lunch is not enough.  Pop and chips are not enough.  She wants to add  a word search book.  It's very frustrating for me, because no matter what I say, the conversation comes back to haunt me.  Once, I told her before lunch my day's budget, and the entire conversation was about if she had  an inexpensive lunch that she could then buy the chips and soda.  Yesterday, she talked about how she needed a word search book as she is supposed to rest her knee more.  She will tell me that she is depressed and that we should go out.  She is a good manipulator.  I don't want to hurt her feelings but I don't want to feel used either.  I need to stand firm and once she has spent the budget for the day, not buy her anything else....even if she is disappointed.

Not Feeling Well

On Saturday, my husband started coughing, spiked a fever and felt weak.  He has been suffering with the flu ever since.  I had bronchitis and and an ear infection in November and though the antibiotics changed the characteristics of the cough, I have been bothered by a very deep cough since and pressure in my ears.  My boss heard the cough and said, "That does not sound good, Miss Healthy."  So on Sunday, when the cough escalated, I figured that I was getting the flu too.  I worked on Monday, but as the day progressed got sicker and had a temperature of 102 degrees.  I felt like death warmed over.  I saw the doctor who diagnosed a virus and gave me a prescription for a cough suppresant, which wouldn't you know, I left at the clinic.  I've been sleeping all the time and popping ibuprofen.  My daughter has a sore throat and cold symptoms.  

The "New Normal"

So you are not confused, I will explain about the flower shops.  There is the main store which includes the gift and card floor, a flower cooler, design room, delivery service and greenhouse, and then a smaller satellite store (8 miles away from the main store to the west), which has a flower cooler, cards and gifts.  The store is small, 1000 square feet.  I work at both stores....Sunday and Monday at the main store and Thursday, Friday and Saturday (alone) at the branch store.   Now one day, while I was at the branch store, I met a woman and her daughter.  She had brought a dishgarden to have some fresh flowers added.  Unfortunately, I couldn't help her, because the store was in the process of being refitted (from a photo shop) and we did not have the cooler installed yet.  Hence we had no fresh flowers.  She told me that her mother's wake had been the previous day, and that she and her daughter were getting into the "new normal"...that meeting me was part of the process.  I am not waiting for my life to get back to normal, but I am trying to adjust to the "new normal."  I miss my daughter since she has moved to Florida.  My husband has a cough and is coming down with a cold.  Even when he feels well, he is not inclined to do much.  Consequently the work will fall on me.  My old dog is getting more arthritic and won't be around much longer.  I will have to consider putting him down.  Clothes are piling into huge mountains as the part for the washer won't be in until Tuesday or possibly Wednesday.  And the situation with my parents...my father's test is on Wednesday.  I am dealing with my circumstances as "it is what it is" and getting upset about it or ranting and raving will serve no useful purpose.  If my  mood gets too dire, my son will say, "Here Mom! Have some chocolate!"  You can tell the kind of day I've had by the amount of chocolate I eat.

The Greenhouse at the Main Store

Main Store...Here I come!

I added and re-added and to the best of my knowledge, I counted 4500 cards.  After completing the inventory sheets, I needed to refresh the cooler.  Replace the medium stem rose bouquets, clean long stem peach roses, change the water in the spray roses and gerbera daisies, and switch out the statice.  I made several trips to the dumpster and swept and vacuumed the store.  I washed out vases and flower buckets.  I sold two bags of red rose petals.  A young man is proposing this evening.  My first purchase of the day was by a woman who bought bracelets to ward off the "evil eye" in Turkey and wanted one from our store.  I sold two planters and took three orders.  One was going to Clearwater, Florida, and wouldn't you know the order got truncated and the shop called to clarify.  I sold two dozen roses and some lilies.  I sent an arrangement of carnations and a rose to my mother and dad and I bought 2 candy bars....Godiva solid chocolate.  And happily tomorrow and Monday, I will be at the main store!

Flower Shop and Ali Who types by walking on the keyboard

Keeping Busy at Work

This morning, I still had three huge boxes of greeting cards to count.  But before I could tally them, I needed to make space to move the boxes out from under the shelves in the closet that serves as an office.  This meant I needed to assemble a card rack that rotates. Thankfully,  the card display came with seven pages of directions.  I really don't like the screws with hexagonal heads that tighten with a wrench.  Trying to get a grip hurt my fingers.  And even though I read that the three plastic sheets should be fitted together with the bigger hole on top, I somehow managed to put the thumb tacks into the smaller hole first.  It seems sturdy enough and provided 72 card pockets--enough to almost empty the box.  This display contains birthday cards for specific family members, thank you cards, wedding, anniversary and retirement cards.  And after getting that box out of the way, I had room to count.  I was glad that I didn't have to get up from the floor to make an arrangement or answer the phone as it would have taken a while.  I put that box away and started on the next.  By the time I finished, I knew I needed another method.  So I positioned the last box on the counter, stood on a mat, and counted away. I don't have the final tally, but would guess I counted 2000 cards or more.  Tomorrow I will total the figures for each price point.  During the inventory, I decided to make a hot cup of cocoa.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered that I had disolved mini marshmallows in hot water!  No wonder It tasted terrible.rt5555555etyggv This last is my petite gray cat saying hello!

Inventory time

It is that time of year...time to take inventory at the flower shops.  So today I took stock of the vases.  After, I tallied a box of greeting cards by price point, thankfully not by occasion and price point.  Moving on to the wall, I tallied, let me see 9 pockets down 36 across with 1-14 cards in a pocket.  Tally and count.  And so it goes.  Tomorrow I should be able to bring it to closure, by tallying the last two card boxes.  The big boss, the president of the company stopped by to check out two leaks in the new cooler.  Actually he was on his way to purchase a vacuum cleaner for the main store.  But as long as he was there, he helped me market.  He lowered a wreath on the wall.  Situated Bridgewater candles on several shelves, placed red vases in the window, as Valentine's Day is six weeks from today.  He had me order 3-4 arrangements and we got six.  "How many did you order?" he asked.  "Three or four,"  I told him.  On the way home, I stopped to put two big bags of clothing in a drop box.  The little door wouldn't close, so I got the windshield scraper out of the car and gave them a little push.  Success, the door closed!

A French Truffle Kind of Day

This afternoon, my daughter and her fiance left for a new adventure some 1200 miles away.    My daughter had ambivalent feelings of course...sad to leave but happy to start a new life. Her two sisters shed tears for this sister who will live so far away and is to be married in August.  My husband and I are depressed and saddened too, but doesn't a parent hope that their child will soar up in the sky as if she were a kite.  I took down the Christmas decorations to keep busy and distracted, and because with everyone gone, but my youngest daughter, Christmas is truly over.  I am worried too about my father who will have some tests.  And so, it is a French truffle kind of day.  I sat down at the computer, brought the gift from my son to the table, and have now munched down my fourth chocolate truffle.

Chocolate Fountain!

Wishing you a healthy, happy 2013!

Happy New Year to all!  I've thought about New Year Resolutions for a couple minutes.  Of course, there is the weight thing.  I could stand to exercise more and lose 25 lbs!  I could practice hapkido for 20 minutes every day!  However, these are old and boring!  So, this year, I am going to try to be a "gentler, kinder" person and to think of others.  I will keep you apprised of my endeavors.