Future plans

An article on CNN caught my eye a month ago, and I mentioned it on the blog. Thanks to everyone that e-mailed me privately about their future hopes, objectives, and desires. I feel that goals, plans, and aspirations can include many things. They can be large or small, long-term or short-term. They can be kind gestures, long-term goals, personal achievements and travel destinations. It made me think about the future but more importantly to focus on enjoying the present.

Like I said, I would post mine later. I have two lists, one for specific goals to be accomplished during 2010 and one for long-term goals. For me, I find that if I don’t have goals written down they are not likely to happen and life leads me rather than me leading life. This will  be an evolving list, but it's a list.

Camp / fish on lake in Alaska with HB   
Hike the Chilkoot Trail again this time w/ HB   
*Many many road trips with HB
Many many road trips with HB 
 *Share as much time as possible with kids, girls,  and grandkids
*Get to understand biological family better
See Death Valley with HB    
*Hike portion of PCT (Seiad to Mt. Ashland) 
*Put a geocache on Hooper Peak 
Take grandkids on trips with HB  (road, kayaking, fishing) 
Go on motorcycle trip with HB  
See the Great Wall of China with HB  
Search out unique geological experiences with HB
Find a volunteer program to support with my time  
Write a book 
Make another list.

* means the summer of 2010
HB means Honey Bunny (Sandi)

Jim

MRI

We went in for the MRI tonight, I asked when they would have the results. I expected them to tell me 6 weeks. Well come to find out they will have the results tomorrow and in the system by wednesday.

So hopefully we will be hearing something by the end of the week.

Ill update via e-mail.

im to tired to give this a title so you figure it out

My 'graduation' acknowledgement tonight

Click on the title.

Sandi's Good Idea

Let's try to get everyone to say when they CAN meet. Make your connections give you at least 5 different weekend that work for them. Then we can match dates and get the greatest common factor. The sooner we can get these dates, the sooner we can make a plan. Sandi (and Peter says) By the way. Florence is good, but a bit far for some perhaps; and a bit cool for others.

reunion

http://www.loonlakerv.com/oregon-coast-weddings-locations-family-reunion-sites.html

Just a suggestion. We've already paid for a vacation house in Florence for the weekned of the 30th. Bianca's 21st Bd. Florence is a lovely little town.

LET'S KEEP TRYING!

OK, it looks like we hit a major snafu. Let's try this again. As I see it, neither of these dates work. If we choose either date, we'll be missing a very large block of the family either way. Let's try anther weekend. Let's try to chime in early on a suggested weekend. WE CAN DO THIS, KEEP TRYING!

This we know: Chuck, Lisi and anyone close to them can't commit to any date, but we know they will come if they can---it's the larger (connected) family groups that have so many obligations that have the most difficulty. Karen and I, and other 'independents' have more open schedules. The reality is, it's up to the busiest of us- the big connected families, to arrange these dates (sorry). So get on it! By the way, Karen and I really want to see each of you- even the black sheep. (I think it's our sister Glenda this year)

long walk off a short pier.

Well not quite. im not Jim ;) I did think about going for a swim, then i used common sense.

I got to get away for awhile today. I have been looking forward to going up to Donner Lake for 4 years. Driven past it many times, but never gat a chance to stop. So i decided that i would take the trip today.

Donner Lake is about 35 miles west of Reno, which I thought seriously about going to, but thought best to save that for a better time.

The lake is at 6800 foot elevation. The weather there was BEAUTIFUL, as you can tell. I just hung out by the lake and enjoyed the mountain air.

I really do love this are, only problem it is California.

Emigrant Lake link

Click the title.

Emigrant Lake for the reunion?

I'm going to suggest Emigrant Lake for the reunion. If you click on the title it'll take you to a link that tells more about it. I've taken my class to the waterslides there before, and we've always had a great time. I'm thinking of doing it again if I can put it together as an end of the year field trip. It's really close to Ashland and just before you get to the lake there's a KOA. Since it's a good halfway point for everyone it would entail equal amounts of travel for all that choose to come. BJ, it's only about 15 miles from the Rogue River campground but there's more to do that is closer. I'm thinking the first part of August???

Click Here for Reunion Discussion

I took the boys fishing today. The girls stayed home and did a craft project. This is Noah's largest Trout he's caught so far- 17.5"! We weren't even sure if they could fish, it's the first day the pond has thawed enough to get a hook in. Noah is 14 years old, and still likes hanging with grandpa!

On the Road

Karen and I are off to see the kids in Colorado. Right now we're in Grand Junction, CO. On the drive today we got out and enjoyed a walk down the main street of an old mining town, Helper, Utah. This poster was on the door of one of the buildings. It's titled 'child miner'. Just a kid with a pipe & pick. There was almost no occupied building, just a lot of old buildings, circa late 1800's, with updated facade to various times. 70 today in Grand Junction, just beautiful. We'll reach our destination and our grandchildren tomorrow.

Family reunion

Are we planning a family reunion this year? We for one family needs to plan around family trips, kids vacations and Bianca's 21st BD.

Living as if they had only one day left

I just ran across an interesting article about what I queried everyone about. The article inspired me to add to my list. The last thing on my list now is 'Make another list.' It's interesting to read the comments at the end of the article. Click the title.
Jim

Broken Hearts

What Bon and Sandi were speaking of ("emotional intelligence" and "love held back") it reminded me of all the people I've read about, or known who have died of a broken hearts. Do you suppose there is a relationship to people getting sick from depression, anxiety, stress etc. What about these rich guys who end up in prison, then get sick. What was that Enron guys name? Then Madoff, he ended up in the hospital soon after his incarceration. Just recently, and elderly couple I know, died within two months of each other! Happens all the time. Do you know anyone like that? I think there's a lot to 'the joy of the Lord is our strength' kind of disposition. Think about it, how many people do you know who have died of broken hearts?

Susan Davis

Chuck and I got togeter with Susan last night at Mitches place. For someone that just had a major surgery, she looks real good. I think the last time i saw her was in 92 ish.

She will be here for 2 months, so hopefully she will be able to spend some time with Chuck. she has a busy schedule on her hands, so we will see.

What is LOVE anyway?

As an attempt to contribute to this blog- per Jim's hopes for the family's involvement. However, not wishing to overwhelm this blog by being too wordy. Here's a subject I think is relevant to everyone; You can click on the title to see these thoughts.

WHAT IS LOVE?

Have you ever thought about it? What is love? What actually happens when two sets of eyes meet and they 'fall in love'? Is there something physical, or is it something spiritual? What is the actual mechanism that triggers this feeling of 'being in love'?

If you watch much TV, you hear it all the time, “I just don't love him anymore”, or, "mom, I think I'm in love". When you hear something like that, shouldn't it provoke questions like, what has happened? What actually ceased or started, that was there or stopped in their relationship?

Love is often defined as an emotion, an action; a.......

Sorry I've not been as active.  I'm just popping on to say that I love you all, turned in the last of my work for Japanese Thought, got an 85% on my term paper (whoever wants to read it, email me and I'll send an attachment in my reply) and an A-  that the professor hadn't gotten a chance to post, but he sent me an email letting me know my grade.  So, 3/4 classes for the semester are done, and the 4th 1/2 way done, and a 4.0 average so far.

I'm bushed.  And I'm probably going to take my last English class next semester, just to get it out of the way...

Kids are doing well.  Athena had her open house last night.  I forgot to take the camera with me, so I didn't get a picture of her mission project, so I'll have to take a picture of it once it gets to come home again.  She worked really hard on building her model.

Merlin also decided that he wanted a "boy haircut."  So he has short hair nnow, which he likes.  I knew that waiting until he was ready for and wanted one, instead of fighting him, would pay off.

Good night family.  We love you.  Those that are not so healthy, I'm looking forward to you feeling better.  Those that are healthy, stay that way please.

today

was a busy day. we had our last PT visit today. now one of the challenges is to get Chuck to cooperate in continuing on with the things that she gave us.

after she left the VA nurse came and did an evaluation and checked out what i was doing. :)

one of the things that she asked chuck was "what is your goal?" he said to start driving again. She made the comment that that probably wasnt going to happen. then asked him his realistic goal. he really had no comment.

so the plans are that we will finally have a dietician come in and go over his diet and help to do meal planning.

they are also going to have a psychologist come in. she could see that there are some mental issues there. why ? who knows for sure. and how to treat them.

i did talk to her personally about some of the things that i have that concern me. she told me that what i was doing was the only way to handle things sometimes. i really dont want to be specific on the blogg. what she told me was a reiteration of the same things that Suzi told me also. Thanks Suzi.

chucks eye app

we are trying to get his MRI to a earlier date. as per the eye Dr. his vision is 20/25 and he sees color very well.

so far this is what the Doc is saying. this refers to what is know as 3rd nerve palsy, he dosnt think that there is a tumor or damaged gland behind his eye. The damage may of been a result of his lack to maintain his BS and his mini strokes. I think that one led to the other. But thats just my thought.

here is some reading.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1198462-overview