Information Is Power

Information is power. Information is also comfort. For the last week, I have been thrust into a world I was not ready for. The world of "Preemies". It was uncharted waters and I was totally unprepared for it. I feel most comfortable when I know the answers to the questions. If I do not, I make it my business to find out. Thanks to the internet, I now have a wealth of preemie knowledge. I know the correct terminology for everything that is being done for my grandson. I know what to expect. I know what are considered normal preemie issues. Having this knowledge sets my mind at ease. He is doing well and moving along just as he should be, but every time a new procedure is done, I need to research it. The internet posting boards are a god send. I read hundreds of posts from others that have been in the same boat we are in and there is such encouragement knowing that things will turn out fine.

Not Broken, Just Bent

I still correspond with some of the people that attend my lectures. They like to keep me updated on how they are progressing in life. Each one of them is special to me, in their own way. They all have a common bond, though. They are people that have gotten off of the track and need to find their way back. Yesterday, I heard a song that Pink sings, titled "Just Give Me A Reason". There was one line in it that hits home when I think of my students. The line reads, "We're not broken, just bent". That line sums up so many people. There is nothing in their lives that is so far gone that cannot be straightened out. Being "just bent" means that in some way you are off kilter and with time can align yourself back to the way you were. Broken means you have given up and feel that you can never heal. One of the new lectures I am writing is titled "Life Through Lyrics" and I will include this song in the booklet. It makes a wonderful point.

Brain Game

I watched a wonderful show last night on the Discovery Channel. It was called The Brain Game. It is going to be a weekly series. Other channels are copying it, in their own format. The premise of the show is to teach us how our brains work. Obviously, not too well. It seems that we have certain instincts that are in place to protect us, since we are really only animals, in a broad sense of the word. Last night's show was on memory and recall. There was a staged crime with about 10 witnesses. No one saw the same thing, although each person swore that they had total recall. No one picked out the correct suspect in a line up and memories faded almost immediately. We were shown how our eyes filter important information and the time lapses between actions and interpretations of those actions. It was mind boggling. I will be watching this show routinely now, as I learned so much last night. One thing I learned was to never be so sure of anything in life, because the mind does play tricks on us.

Starting Three

Today marks the first day of the third year I am writing this blog. I started it on a whim. I just wanted to see if I could write a daily journal of my thoughts for one year. After the year, I was going to print the blogs as a keepsake for my children. My goal was to never miss a day. So far, the only days I missed were when Hurricane Sandy shut down my electric. I  missed only three days then, when I could not find a computer that had an internet signal. I did not know if I would have anything to say every morning, but I guess that life writes itself. My life has changed from the start of this blog. My second son got married and two grandchildren were born. I put my feelings and opinions on paper and when I read back on some of the days, I smile. I will keep writing as long as my fingers can type. I never thought that anyone would read my entries, but so far this blogs has been read over 27,000 times. That alone, makes it worth writing.

Progressing

My little grandson is still in NICU and progressing nicely. I will be visiting him later today. Soon I will be going off to work. He is already at his job. His job is to eat, sleep, breath and grow. He has been doing it well so far. He has the eating, sleeping and breathing skills, but he is still figuring out how to gain weight. As of last night he lost 6 ounces, but that is normal for all babies. He has wonderful co workers (the NICU nurses). I am so grateful for them watching over him 24/7 and attending to his every need. We all take too many things for granted. This week, I relearned what I already knew. Family is number 1.

Dining Al Fresco

I saw the strangest thing this morning. I was walking Shelby in my backyard and noticed a squirrel. He was standing in the center of my yard eating a bagel. He was holding an entire bagel in his two paws nibbling on it. The bagel was almost as tall as he was. I did not want to startle him as it looked like a delicious cinnamon raisin bagel and he seemed to be really enjoying it. He looked at me from the corner of his eye and realized that he needed to move. He grabbed the bagel with his two front teeth and hopped onto the fence. He then walked the distance of my yard and jumped down to the other side. He pulled the bagel next to the house and stood it upright again and resumed eating. I wanted to take a picture, but it all happened so quickly. I guess if you live in New York it doesn't matter if you are a human or an animal. Nothing hits the spot like a good bagel.

Back to Work

I am returning to work after being off since Wednesday. As Murphy's Law would have it, my lead receptionist is off this week, on a cruise. That makes my return doubly hard. Not only will I have to do my job, I will also have to do hers. As I was lying in bed last night, I was trying to come up with a plan of action for the day. I was making a mental list of the order of what I needed to do. Hopefully it will work as planned and I will have last weeks work cleared up by later this morning. If not, oh well. It will get done, when it gets done. One lesson I learned last week was that family is the number one priority. Everything else will be done in due time.