Directions

Life runs easier when you read the directions. Most products that need assembly come with written instructions. I do not understand why people do not read them. By "people" I mainly mean men. Women are more practical and will invest the five minutes that are needed to understand what they need to do before they just jump in and start the project. Most men believe that their brains and intuition are better than that of the people that made the product. That is what accounts for backwards wheels and extra nuts and bolts. The lack of this skill starts in junior high school. If you did not read the entire chapter before you started to answer the questions, you spent an hour flipping back and forth to locate the line that had the answer. If you read the chapter first, you answered all the questions in 15 minutes and went outside to play.

Animal Shelter

Yesterday I went with a friend to the local animal shelter, North Shore Animal League, to adopt a puppy. This is a no kill shelter. I had never been to a shelter and did not know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. The building was new and each area was designated for the age of the pet. Older dogs were placed first, with the puppies being in the back. I guess this strategy allows every dog to be seen. The cages were all clean and there was no animal smell. All of the dogs in the shelter looked cleaned and groomed.  Pet stores have more of an odor. We woum
We wound ourselves to the back and I spotted a beautiful Golden Lab mix. She was 8 weeks old. We took her out of the cage and she was so sweet and playful. My friend decided that this was his puppy, so he started the adoption procedure. You have to fill out a long form and give references. My husband was listed as the first reference and they called him within the hour to validate the application. The whole procedure took about 4 hours but was well worth it. He brought the puppy home to begin a new chapter together. I named her Goldie. There is a saying about adopting a new pet from a shelter, "Who rescued who?"

Smiley Faces

I have a superstition. I am usually a concrete thinker but sometimes I resort to "magical thinking". I do this when I feel that I have no control over the situation. My superstition involves smiley faces. I choose a day on the calendar and draw a smiley face on it. Usually the date is months in advance. Some situations need time to straighten out. I just put a smiley face on June 1, 2016. My sister did this too. That is my target date for all things to be right. I know it makes no sense but neither does life. A few years ago, when my daughter in law was pregnant with my grandson, one screening test came out positive for deformities. My daughter in law was so upset. I took out my calendar and drew a smiley face on May 20, 2013. The baby was due June 15, 2013. I assured her that on May 20 she would be smiling. The test result turned out to be wrong but coincidentally the baby was born prematurely on April 18th. After spending a month in the NICU, he finally came home.....on May 20th. I stand by my smiley faces.

Take It From Here

This afternoon my sister comes home from Florida. She spent five days getting my parents back on their feet. If she had not gone down there, I think my father would have been in a hospital. She took charge and got him stabilized. She took him to the doctor, to dialysis twice and had two visits with a nutritionist. She cooked for them and shopped for them. She did everything in her power to get them going. I think she did a wonderful job. After today they will have to take the reigns and continue with the plan she set for them. Basically, it involves getting up, eating and walking. She knew it was time to leave when they said she was becoming annoying. That is a sign of their independence returning. Thanks, sis, I owe you one.

Pain Tolerance

I believe that women have a higher pain tolerance than men. That is why we are the ones to have the children. Yesterday my husband had a root canal procedure. It was his first. I have had four. He said that he needed me to take him there and wait for him. I left work, picked him up and took him to the dental office. He looked scared. I sat in the waiting room for about 1 1/2 hours until it was done. My husband walked out of the office and looked pale and shaky. He said he did not know how I had four root canals by myself. I told him that it was not a big deal. He thought that it was a "tough" thing to go through and he would not have been steady enough to drive himself home right after it. The doctor (a man) agreed. I told the doctor that I had two children without any pain killers so they both need to rethink the severity of a root canal.

Prayers

I have been praying for a few people this week. Two have had surgery. One will be having surgery. The other just needs to get back on his feet. The two that had surgery are on the mend and the future surgery will be early next year. My father is slowly getting back to himself after having some type of flu. I learned years ago that prayers need to be specific. I ask for what I want in detail. I try to cover all bases so there is no mistaking what I am asking for. I spoke to a family member in New England yesterday and she said that she does the same thing as sometimes when G-d answers prayers, it may not be exactly what we asked for. Twenty two years ago my mother in law prayed for something. Her husband was sick and she prayed to G-d to not make her a widow. He answered her prayer but in a different way. She died six weeks before her husband. She was 66 years old and never sick. She was never a widow.

Peace of Mind

My sister arrived in Florida and now I have peace of mind. She has taken charge and will set my parents back on the right path. She took my father to the doctor and other than a bad cold and lack of food, he is fine. Older people do not realize that if they do not eat, they will feel fatigued. I keep telling them that they have to treat food as if it is medicine. They would never think of skipping a dose of pills so why do they think they can skip a "dose" of food? She went food shopping for them and stocked their pantry. Today she will cook food for them. According to her, "rehab" starts this morning. Eating, walking and getting strong.