JOSH GROBAN

. I am so glad I won tickets and that I got to go! It was pretty darn amazing! So on Weds last week I left work at 1:30! The concert was at 7:30 but I didn’t want to take any chances with traffic etc. On my way home from Ventura I stopped in Moorpark and got Carla from work. (She carpools with her husband) and we came to my house. I changed into some jeans and touched up my make-up and hair. We chatted for a few with my folks and hit the road! We drove down to the Staples Center and found a Taco Bell nearby to get some dinner. After we finished eating we headed to the Center. We paid for parking and walked across the street. Once there none of the doors were open yet. We waited about a half an hour. Got inside around 6:30 and hit the bathroom, after the bathroom we paid $4 for bottled water so that we would have it and I hit the souvenir stand. I bought the “program” ( if you can really call it that, it’s mostly all pictures, and the last page is about his charity) and a hat. Then we went to our seats.

We didn’t have to wait too long before the opening act came out. His name was Elew. He is a solo artist. A pianist. He was a little eccentric but very good! He did not have a bench or any type of seat. He stood or kneeled for all the stuff he played, but he stood in weird stances! A couple of times while playing he stood and had his left arm in the piano playing directly on the strings and the right arm on the keys! Sometimes when he was playing he would jerk his head back and just leave it like that. But it was weird because he was standing kinda like in a lunge workout position, with the forward leg on the pedals and than was looking up! Odd character! But like I said, very talented. He played for half an hour and then was done. He had introduced himself and one song, but the rest of the 30 min he just played. Than there was 30 min for a set change. Mostly removing the piano and bringing in the chairs etc for the mini band Josh had.

So than around 8:30 there was a violinist and a few other “band” people on stage and they started playing some music…. Than JOSH came out! But he came almost from by where Carla and I were sitting! He ran onto this smaller stage that was set up close to where we were! Of course not expecting that I couldn’t get any clear pictures since I was already focused on the main stage! I started a video. He sat down at the piano and played/sang his song “Changing Colors” (which was one I downloaded the weekend before, so I am glad I did) but of course the piano was facing the other direction so the video is the back of his head. Then he walked around a chatted a bit, I had no idea he was so funny! He made a comment about how we paid a lot of money for the concert and he was going to work his a$$ off to make it worthwhile for us” Than told the people near the stage to be careful it was going to start falling on them. He talked about being born and raised in LA… etc than sang some more. After 2 or 3 songs he went to the main stage.

Than he was talking about how they rehearsed in a small studio in LA somewhere and how at the Staples Center it was so much more “technical” because now they had stairs for the stage. So he told us how his security team doesn’t like stairs because they are G.A.P.S (gaps) Groping & Access Points. He than put his hand up like he was a security guy talking through his mini microphone to the other security guys and said something like: “we have a gap at staircase #3, pregnant lady with a homemade quilt, she is going to smother him with love” OMG he was sooo funny! At one point he walked down the other aisle and was talking to this 10 year old girl and when he went back to talk to her again later she hid from him. He talked about how that side of the stage the crowd was much more touchy-feely than the side we were on (he said they were more the handshake type crowd) and how it was “a whole different type of “meet” (meat) on that side.”

He sang some more…. Before the show they had a text # up on the screens where you could text Josh a question to be answered during the show. So when he got to the questions he said that his crew looks at them ahead of time not him so that it is more exciting for his answers. The first question he got asked was something like “if you could leave something on the moon for others to find, what would it be?” and he said he would want to sing a high note into a jar and bury it in the sand (he acted it out too) but that he hoped it wouldn’t be found by some elderly couple and give them heart attacks (again acting it out) and then he apologized to the elderly couple for finding his high note.

The next ? he got was “what was his favorite Yo Momma joke?” He said that ? was going to force him to isolate/lose 90% of his audience/fans from the crowd. He said he didn’t want to offend anyone’s “momma” in the crowd and he could just see the tabloids now. How it would go on and on about him offending people’s momma’s! He kept going on… finally he said “yo momma so stupid when she heard it was chili outside she grabbed a bowl”

The 3rd card/? He got said Josh!!!! He commented on how the !’s definitely caught the crews attn. It said she had just graduated with a musical arts degree and could she sing on stage with him. He asked if she could “bring it?” She said yes, He came downstage grabbed her hand and ran her to the center stage (he commented about how the security team would hate having to chase him there) They got up on stage and he asked what she wanted to sing and she said she hadn’t really thought about it. He asked her if she minored in “awkward silence” He offered her his water bottle and she took it. Than he asked what she sang (soprano) and he found someone near the stage with a birthday and they sang happy birthday. She sang solo the beginning and he joined in later toward the end. They did blend together really well. Then she was kind of standing there after and he told her she could return to her seat if she wanted. She did, than he made a comment about how thirsty he was and how he wished he had some water or something ;-) He also commented on her height and how he was “singing into her bosom” and put his hand up like she was there still and sang “best duet everrrrr” He sang a couple more songs there on the center stage again and of course when he was facing my direction I was changing out my memory card so I couldn’t get any decent shots! UGH Josh, so uncooperative! Eventually he went back to the main stage again.

Then he was asking for a couple in the audience who had been married longer than 15 years. He found a couple who had been married 44 years and invited them to the stage. Than found a single girl (wish it had been me) and took her up on stage. Asked the crew for the inflatable couches from backstage and poured the couple wine, he asked the guy what the secret to 44 years of marriage is and the guy said “ask her” and Josh said “ I think that’s the answer” He than gave the girl milk (even though she said she was 21, he sang to her she was getting milk anyway because “that would be career endingggg” if she wasn’t 21” than found some single guy to sit with the girl, he got milk too… and sang “Broken Vow” (which if you don’t know, and can’t tell from the title is a cheating/break up song) than said that was rude of himself and sang one of the Italian love songs. Than they went back to their seats.

After nearly 2 hours like that (singing, cracking jokes, and at one point introducing his band, etc) he finished and walked backstage. Than came back out in a different shirt (he just took off his jacket), he came out and was talking about Neil Diamond and sang the song “Play Me” (a Neil Diamond song) and than talked about how one of his most popular songs he didn’t have a gospel choir with him to sing along and so we would have to sing, and he closed with “Raise Me Up” He had performed for 2 hours!

We got home around midnight! I was pretty tired the next day at work… but it was totally worth it! I can’t wait until I know he is coming to town again (or somewhere I can get to, to see him ) because next time I am totally buying tickets and making sure I am in the floor seats near an isle so I can maybe talk to him, get more attn or something!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We Don't Throw Jesus....

 So today at church I was sitting behind a cute young couple and their cute little baby Tessa. I think Tessa is about 7month old..?.... She is darling! She is just big enough that they don't bring her in with her car-seat anymore but not big enough to stand on her own yet without holding onto something or someone. Anyway during sacrament at one point she was standing in between her mom and dad and was facing back towards me. I was smiling at her etc, and had my scriptures on my lap. She was reaching out like she wanted them. So I looked in the back where I had some pass-along cards and gave her one with the Savior on it. She was all smiles and showed her mom and dad and was looking at it. She was kinda folding it and I whispered to her mom "she is going to fold him and put Him in her pocket to always have" At one point she had kinda sat down and Jesus fell thru the back of the seat so I picked him up and gave him back to Tessa. Than she was standing again, lifted her arm and threw the card toward me. I reached down and picked it up and as I was getting it I heard her dad whisper "Tessa, we don't throw Jesus" It made me smile! I gave her back the card and I think her mom gave her a book, I am not sure what has happened with Jesus since....

I know that I love having Jesus "in my pocket" at all times! I love knowing that no matter where I am or what I am doing I can reach out to my Savior! He is always with me as long as I am willing to look for Him. He will never desert me, although I need to be careful to avoid doing things and going places He doesn't want to do/be! Life is good!

Slug-A-Bug

   So years ago when I was still working as an EMT on the ambulance I had several regular partners. I bacame good friends with many of them. One of my former partners Tim and I were both really good at playing S-A-B. We started making our own rules etc to make it more challenging. One for instance was that if someone was in the back with a patient the drive couldn't call any because it wasn't fair to the attending. (except from the back window you could frequently see some coming from behind that the driver didn't see yet... but still it was a rule) and I can't remember the other ones. Anyway than one day we were talking and came up with an additional challenge for S-A-B. since we would frequently be calling the same ones at the same time.... 

So most people know and play S-A-B where when you call one you have to say it's color to get the credit for it... so one day we decided instead of calling the color you would have to say S-A-B and another item that is the same color as the S-A-B you were calling. For example:

S-A-B -- Sky (for a blue one)

S-A-B -- Grass (for a green one)

S-A-B -- Blood (for a red one)

You probably get the idea now.... so it definitely brought a whole new level of fun to the game. Now on the spot you couldn't just call a S-A-B because you would have to think of something else too at the same time. Or we would think of something we could say if we saw a specific color one, like I would be thinking, "if i see a yellow one I can say sunflower" but than all I would see are black ones.  Well one day I was playing this version of S-A-B and I am not sure if it was with Tim or someone else but I saw a Best Buy "Geek Squad" beetle. I said "SLUG A BUG POLICE CAR" (I had thought of it early and was excited that I could finally use it) 

Well yesterday (or very recently) my sister posted this on her facebook:

Denise Slensker

Elijah called a slug-a-bug police car yesterday. It was the Best Buy Geek Squad bug. Too funny.

 So clearly Elijah likes Tim and my version of the game much better than the original! Isn't it funny how random it is that he said that? It completely immediately brought me back to the days on the ambulance when I read it! Anyway he is such a great kid! I love my nephews so much! i can't wait to see them! They have been gone since Mon but I haven't seen them since last Fri! Tomorrow my whole family will all be meeting up in Yosemite for a couple days of camping! Going to be fun! 

Here is another funny comment Denise posted this week from Elijah:

Denise Slensker

While driving a little farther up the street to get my 4 year old nephew Elijah to sleep he throws his voice and says "Donna (her name is grandma to him) Elijah's out". I laughed so hard I cried.

My nephews are the greatest!  I try to write down the things they say on my blog so they can be remembered for years to come! I don't write nearly as many as I can or should but it's fun when I do!  It's like they always say Kids say the darndest things!

Responsibilty

Ok so tonight I was at a friends house for a scripture study group. Afterwards I was there still haning out and chatting etc. We were having fun and I remembered this poem. i have loved it since I first heard it but it had been awhile and since I periodically scroll through my old blogs I decided to post it for future remberings again! I also learned as I looked it up that the version I know/knew is a condensed version of a longer poem, so I am going to post both....

The Parable of Responsibility


Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody were members of a group.
There was an important job to do and Everybody was asked to do it.
Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.
Anybody would have done it, but Nobody did it.
Somebody got angry because it was Everybody’s job.
Everybody thought Anybody would do it, but Nobody realized that Anybody wouldn’t do it.
It ended up that Everybody, blamed Somebody, when Nobody did, what Anybody could have done.

Unknown author of condensed version of Charles Osgood’s – A Poem About Responsibility.

HERE IS THE ORIGINAL VERSION:
 
 
There was a most important job that needed to be done,

And no reason not to do it, there was absolutely none.
But in vital matters such as this, the thing you have to ask
Is who exactly will it be who'll carry out the task?

Anybody could have told you that everybody knew
That this was something somebody would surely have to do.
Nobody was unwilling; anybody had the ability.
But nobody believed that it was their responsibility.

It seemed to be a job that anybody could have done,
If anybody thought he was supposed to be the one.
But since everybody recognised that anybody could,
Everybody took for granted that somebody would.

But nobody told anybody that we are aware of,
That he would be in charge of seeing it was taken care of.
And nobody took it on himself to follow through,
And do what everybody thought that somebody would do.

When what everybody needed so did not get done at all,
Everybody was complaining that somebody dropped the ball.
Anybody then could see it was an awful crying shame,
And everybody looked around for somebody to blame.

Somebody should have done the job
And Everybody should have,
But in the end Nobody did
What Anybody could have.

Charles Osgood

Dangerous waters

Ok so my sister Denise took our nephews to Disneyland the other day... she posted this today on her FB status about Isaiah:


Denise Slensker


At Disneyland on the Jungle Cruise my nephew (age 3) sees my arm resting on the ledge of the boat next to the water, but not hanging over. He pulls it all the way back into the boat. I put it back, he pulls it back in about 5 times. I asked him why he was pulling it back in..... "the crocodiles bite" he says... Awh he loves me and does not want me hurt
 
 
 
Isn't that the cutest? He is such a doll! I love my nephews so much!

Pimp my chair!

Ok so as most of you know, I have had several knee surgeries. I have thus needed a wheelchair for my many Disneyland trips as well as the occasional other event, (street fairs, zoo etc, basically anything requiring a lot of walking) and so I was blessed to have been given one from a friend. She had it from before her mom had passed away a few years back. When her mom was sick her dad had bought it used from a medical rental place and than she gave it to me. Here is a picture; (Note the stylish purple accent tape that doubles as a securing device for the arm pad)

So I have been using this chair for awhile now. For awhile I also had on hand a borrowed Rascal electric scooter from my grandma. It was my stylish ride for sure. it was nice because than I didn't have to rely on friends for my "power" to get around the park (or other locations) So since I have had to return the power chair i've been periodically checking on craigslist to see if someone happens to be selling one for cheap. Oftentimes people think it would be too expensive to replace the batteries etc and so they mark em cheap. The batteries cost around $200 for the pair depending on the size you need. (I know because I had to replace the batteries in my grandma's in order to use it) one day recently I found a post for a wheelchair that said $15 and it was in Oxnard. So I emailed in response to the ad and said that I work in Ventura and would come get it anytime if they had it avail. I even mentioned when I would be in the area etc. I didn't hear back for a couple days and thought to myself "how rude that they didn't even bother to tell me if they sold it to someone else" Than that night on my way home from work I got a call. They had posted it than went out of town and didn't check emails untill that day. (oops sorry for the false judgement) I was the first email he had received (and I had actually sent 2, although I am not sure when he got the 2nd in the list)   So we made arrangements for me to go over the next day after work. In the 1 picture in the post the wheelchair looked like it was newer and possibly in better condition than the red one I was currently using so for $15 I figured I ought to check it out.

I went to meet the guy (I can't remember his name now, I think it may have been David so I'll just call him that) So I went to David's house after work. The wheelchair was out front. on the phone he had told me it was a little rusty because his kids had played with it and left it outside. It was dirty but didn't actually look that bad. It did look really small so I sat in it to make sure my big ol booty would fit and it does. He said he wasn't sure where the foot rests were but I didn't mind. I gave him the cash, put it in my car and drove home. That night after I got home I used a small can of Clorox disinfectant that I had and sprayed the entire thing down. The seat and back padding, the wheels, brakes handles etc. Everything. After all I don't know what it may have been exposed to when he used it for his mother (I think that's why he said he had it) This is what the chair looked like at the time I purchased it:

So after I had gotten home I decided to do a little research to see how much my chair was worth. David had told me that after he had already posted his ad he saw some people selling the same chair for close to $400. He said that he hadn't realized it was worth that much more ( I wouldn't have paid that much personally for it, partially bc I don't have that much, plus even if I did I had a usable wheelchair already, in fact I probably wouldn't have even looked at that ad) He even said to me that if I didn't need it, or it didn't work out or something I could sell it for more and make a profit off of it. (funny that he would say that, I think a lot of people pick up and get stuff from the "free" postings and immediately post and sell them for profit) Anyway I looked up the model #, it is an Invacare 9000sl  and if you look here on the Invacare site Invacare you see that through them directly you pay $925 for the chair! Oh my gosh did I get a bargain! Not only that but on their site you don't even get the legrests! Maybe that's why David didn't have them! (By the way I have since done some research and for about $30-$40 I can get some leg-rests I just havent ordered any yet) Which even buying those I still got a heck of a deal. But like he said used from most sites I was seeing more like $225 ish for them.

So I was looking at it and was thinking how it's all black, and basically looks like a lot of other wheelchairs. When you get off a ride at Disneyland it's going to look just like some of the other chairs there. I knew it still needed to be cleaned up. I knew I had a secret "rust removing weapon" that I had used with success on my bike. I was thinking about my options and decided to do some painting. I decided I would in essence "Pimp my Wheelchair" I am sure you have seen or at least heard of the show "pimp my ride" where they take a beat up vehicle and give it a make over. They clean it up, give it boosts, fix any technical or mechanical issues and give it a complete upgrade, So I was thinking how I could upgrade my wheelchair and make it look different from the rest. The wheels! That was the key. So one night I was at Wally World (aka Wal-Mart) and was looking at the spray paints. My favorite colors are purple and blue. I saw some colors I liked but most were kind of darker colors which I knew may just blend in against the black. Than I saw a color called "watermelon" it was a pink color that I really liked. Look on this page in the box under "summer" here: watermelon I knew it would be the contrast I was looking for against the black and was going to buy it. Than I noticed some spray paints that said "for plastics" and I looked at the regular paint cans they said they spray wood, metal, yada yada, and more... but even in the fine print on the back it never specified plastic. So I didn't buy anything that night. The "for plastics" colors were few and far between and mostly dark. unless I wanted yellow. I guess it would've given me a contrast! I decided I needed to check in to the "plastics" colors at Home Depot or another specialized store.

I also in the meanwhile spoke to my co-workers, I learned that if I didn't want to purchase a "for plastics" spray paint I would need to purchase a plastic primer spray paint. They said the "for plastics" cans had some sort of different chemical composition so that the paint will stick and not flake off. With the primer than the paint will stick to that. So I made a trip to home depot. They had "for plastics" colors in hot pink, hot yellow hot green etc. I decided again that although I wanted contrast I didn't want to stand out tht much! I got a paint primer and was looking at colors. I was looking and there was a purple plum like color I liked, and a blue than I saw a color that kinda caught my eye. I looked and it was called "Lagoon". The home Depot sells "Rustoleum" brand paints. So I has not only more options than Wally World but the colors were completely different. I didn't see one similar to my Watermelon color I liked :-( The purple I liked was kinda light colored and I wasn't sure. I kept going back to the Lagoon. I was talking to my mom on the phone and explaining to her about it and she said "if you like it get it" I was still hesitant. Than she said "ok do this: get the color the 2nd shelf down 3rd from left" that was a black or really dark color and wouldn't work, but it was right above the Lagoon. I told her that it was a dark color but the Lagoon I was looking at was 3rd and 3rd shelves! She said "that's what I was going to say but changed it to 2nd". So I bought the Lagoon!

So here were my new supplies: the Bar Keepers Friend being my secret rust removal weapon! In fact just to be funny since I don't drink I thought about naming this post "Bar Keepers Friend" since I don't drink. But the focus of the blog is the chair not the cleaning supplies I used. And here are some more "before" pictures of the chair and it's stages of being cleaned etc:

I did start by obviously removing the wheels, than the seat and backing. While doing this I realized that this is a model of wheelchair where the arm rests flip up/back so that it is easier to transfer patients/people to/from the chair. Those were always nicer as an EMT because if the patient was sitting on a sheet you could slide them right over instead of having to either lift them over the arm rest or from each side transfer the patient towards their feet and over or however onto your gurney etc. Anyway it's a nice feature! I also noticed the handles on the back for your "pusher" are adjustable! You can move them up or down to I guess help based on their height. I don't know where it is set versus how much it goes in either direction, I left it where it is. But now I know if needed i can move them! So than I also realized (as shown in a picture above) that instead of having to completely tape off the rubber on the wheel I was able to pop it off the rim! Sweet! Especially since the painters tape didn't like sticking much to the rubber and it was a pain trying to round it to match the rim! I cleaned them first and got all the dirt out of the small edges of the "spokes" etc and let them dry. The next thing I had to consider was whether or not to paint the ring that as the person in the chair you use to wheel yourself around. I was looking at it and it is bolted on at regular intervals to the rim and I decided it was going to be more of a hassle to remove and replace it than to just spray it. (now I kinda wonder if I should've taken the trouble, I will explain why later)  so I obviously started with the paint primer... here are some more pictures of cleaning and primeing:

So than obviously I had to paint both sides of the wheels. I wiped down the seat and back for the chairs. they are made with that fabric that is thick kinda canvas like but kind of like what you find on outdoor furniture. Anyway its not soft like cotton clothing but its not rough either. It is very durable. I thought about busting out the sewing machine and making covers for them, but decided that might be going a little overboard. ;-) Besides I can still do that later. I may do something for the back that I can slip over and snap on or something that way it is removable for washing etc.  So than once the primer was dried for both sides, or at least dry enough to paint some color, that's what I did:

 

But I must warn you, those pictures are not very accurate. They make the color look too blue. It is actually kind of a dark teal color. You can kind of see it better from the Rustoleum website here: Rustoleum Lagoon or on this picture from my phone

So than I left those to dry. Later as it got darker and the wind started to pick up I brought them inside to finish overnight. The next morning instead of leaving it all in pieces I had to put it all back together. Easier than it sounds let me tell ya! The rubber wheels popped right off the frame with a little single flick of the flatheaded screwdriver. But it was a heck of a time putting them back on! As I tried to stretch it around it would pop off the other side. So finally I did part of it than zip-tied it in place so I could keep working it. But I was still having trouble getting it back on. Finally I put the wheel on my legs, and with my feet pulled on the rim and with both hands stretched the tire until it basically popped on, but it was difficult because I was trying not to smash my fingers in between in the meantime. So a few times it seemed once I almost had it I messed it up because of my fingers. Need less to say I eventually got them both back on. but not without some battle wounds :-( My arms were so sore the next day because of the muscles used for the pulling. Also the zip-ties kinda scraped the paint where they were used and rubbed the rim. It may not have happened if there had not been as much mositure in the air when I did it and/or if they had more time to dry, But the spots were fairly small. I mostly kind of touched them up with a similar colored Sharpie, that at first seemed really closely to match but ended up not really being a close match afterall! Plus a few spots mostly on the "push yourself around" ring thingy there were some spots the paint ended up a little heavy and so there are basically like "drops" of paint in those spots, so because those also take more time to dry some got messed up and show little white spots (the primer) So that is why I was saying maybe I should've removed the ring and left it black. Plus I wonder how it would look if I had. I have thought about using a fleece, leather (or fake) or other fabric that won't fray and wrapping it kind of like you would a steering wheel. but I haven't decided yet. But that would possibly also make it more comfortable when pushing yourself (myself) If I do that I will either pick a black or if its a fabric a fun fabric that coordinates. I think the leather or "pleather" (pretend-leather as I like to call fake leather products) would probably be best if I use anything since it won't get all dirty and if it gets wets etc it won't be as bad.

One last thing that I did was spray the small plastic knobs that cover the bolts for the wheels with just the primer. So that instead of black they are white in the center of the wheels. As I put the chair back together despite its slight paint mis-haps and mistakes I love the way it turned out! I think it looks incredible! Defintitely worth the time and effort and approx $15 I spent in paint, cleaners and brushes for the details of the cleaning. So for about $30 I ended up with this:

Funny thing is after I was all done my mom said: you didn't paint the small wheels!  Oops.. I didn't even think about that! But I like the way it turned out, and I didn't have any extra paint anyway so i am not going to worry about it! I think the small wheels might be overkill anyway! 

And since this post is sooooo loooooonnnnngggg  here is a quick before after photo line-up so you don't have to scroll to compare:

Green-ish Thumb

So on june 14, 2009 I made a post about some fruit trees I had purchased. See here: trees and here: fruit So since that time I have increased my "garden" last year I added an avacado tree. I thought I had written a blog about it but I cannot find it at this time if I did. Anyway this year I added 2 tomato plants, 3 pepper plants and most recently a dwarf apple tree! I am so excited. For the most part I haven't had too much fruit come from my trees other the "fruit" link one. I got a couple more small ones like that, but not much else. Everytime it looked like I was going to get a lemon it died off, fell off got picked by a bird or small child or something. I really don't know what happened but I never got any lemons. Than someone told me it is usually not for 3 years before you really start to get any fruit.... Well here are some current pics from my plants:

 

So I am sorry I am not very good at arranging photo's and writing on the side of them etc. maybe next time one of my blogger friends and I are hanging out they can show me how to do that. I can adjust the size and move them, I can go left center or right with them but as you can tell with the tomatoes and the peppers I can't get 3 to line up together! Ugh Anyway I am not having much luck yet with the avacado tree, and the apple tree is new to me. As far as the tomatoes, mandarins and lemons, they are all over the place on their respective plant/trees. The peppes are only growing on 1/3 plants so far, but they are small pots (for now) so yeah....  that's my green thumb experience thus far

Side of the Road

  Ok so since I have a commute to and from work (about 37 miles) I spend nearly an hour each way in traffic on the freeway. (To me the back roads take just as much time if not longer so I just prefer to keep it simple and be able to drive faster) So I have noticed things sometimes while I am driving on the side of the road. Or more often in the center divider. For about 2 weeks straight I saw a "Sam's Cola" 2 liter bottle, or maybe it was the "Shasta" 3 liter. Either way it was there in the center and I would see it and think " I am surprised that didn't burst when it landed on the freeway", or how did it manage a "soft" fall so that it didn't burst?  I wondered how it got there? Did it fly out of the bed of a truck? It is fairly "heavy" so you would think it wouldn't fly out. But how would it fall out of a closed vehicle? Or since this was before June gloom came around I would think " I can't believe it's not popping with this heat" Anyway eventually the bottle disappeared. 


Than in another spot on the freeway one day I noticed a flattened basketball. At first from a distance I could tell something was in the road but it was oddly shaped and kind of dark in color and I didn't know what it was! Than (it was super heavy traffic that day) as luck would have it I was traveling slow enough to see it and identify it. I could even see it had black marks across it like it was dragged across the pavement or was ran over when it popped or something. But the weird thing about the b-ball was that there was a dead bird (actually looked like a duck) next to it. So was this a murder-suicide? Did the bird get hit playing b-ball on the side of the freeway? Did one "die" before the other? It was completely random. I mean first off why would there be a duck near the freeway to begin with. Same as the soda bottle did the ball fly out of someone's truck or car? It was random and again it was there for several days. Not as long as the soda but for close to a week at least! The other random thing about it is, not just how does it get there and why, but how does it get removed? 


I frequently see clothes. I guess there is some randomness to that, but it is more common so it doesn't surprise me. But the thing with clothes is I wonder if they came off someone who was in an accident at that spot and left behind by the EMS personnel? Or I think about whose clothes they were, and are they missing that item of clothing now? Are they wondering what happened to their favorite _______? Or lately with a different route I take so that I can go to Aqua Aerobics after work on Tues/Thurs nights I have seen a pair of shoes/boots. Those make me think of the homeless people I constantly see in Ventura. I think, if a homeless person were to walk down that particular area they could get some free shoes. But either they don't feel the same way or they are not walking by that spot.


Well I don't know if anyone else puts as much thought into random items on the side of the road as I do. In fact some people are not even as observant as me. I sometimes wonder if my being observant will someday be a benefit to someone? What if someday I notice something that would solve a crime, or maybe (hopefully not) I will find a body or a baby (again hopefully not) but it could happen. I always get nervous when I notice a dark bag on the side of the road. But I am the kind of person that if I ever see anything suspicious I do call the local police dept, 911 or the Highway patrol.  I have called them in the past too and I will continue to do so! Anyway sorry this post is so random, maybe it makes you think I am weird or gross or something but it's just another insight as to who I am. I am observant and I like to think, so sometimes things I observe will give me a random thought process! 

Surgery

  So I am now just a little over 2 weeks post-op. I had my 3rd knee surgery (in 4 years) on Thurs May 12th. They went in to scope the knee and see what they could find. They knew there was what seemed to be a detached meniscus tear but unsure what else. Nothing else really showed in the mri. In fact that detached tear was missed by the radiologist and the surgeon the first time around when looking at my scans. I went into this surgery feeling really good about it. I was optimistic and ready for it. I was hopeful. I know a large part of that optimism was from my Heavenly Father. I had received a Priesthood blessing from my home teacher and a member of my bishopric a few days before surgery. In that blessing I was promised to be "healed completely" some other words in the blessing were "courage, strength, faith, endurance, patience, peace and calm, physical and mental readiness and strength" and can you hear words like those knowing they are coming from your Heavenly Father through His messenger and not be optimistic? It made me cry and in fact I am starting to tear up now writing about it. There is so many promises and blessings our Heavenly Father gives us if we are willing to accept them. I wasn't afraid for surgery. I was not nervous or anxious. As everyone would ask me if I was nervous I said no. It was a comforting feeling.
   
So I was scheduled for surgery at 12:30 and told to arrive at 10:30. So my mom and I got there a little early and went up to my office and I showed her around and she got to meet several of my co-workers. Than it was time. We went and checked in and went to the pre-op area. After a bit they brought me back i got in my gown, cap and booties. They gave me an iv with antibiotics and my mom came in. We were waiting to go to the pre-op holding area where I would see the surgeon and anesthesiologist etc right before going in. It was getting to be after 12 and so my mom left because she had a 12:30 appt for a facial nearby. She decided instead of waiting anxiously she would try to relax a bit (and it was free). So she left before I was even taken to pre-op holding. I waited there for quite a while and it was sometime after 1pm when I was finally taken there. I got to see the anesthesiologist and was still waiting for my surgeon and asked the nurse if we could call my mom to see if she was back yet to come in. She said "sure just a minute" but never came back by for me to call. Dr Schatz came and talked to me and I even told him I was ready and optimistic. So it was almost time. My mom still didn't know I was going in an hour late and I didn't want her worried that they had me in surgery longer than expected and she had asked about me. So they brought her in (gee thanks nurse for calling her) luckily Dr Schatz was nearby and got to meet her and know who she was before surgery. They took me in. I remember them giving me the oxygen mask and that's about it until I was being woken up in the recovery room.

I was still in and out of it in the recovery room and they were trying to reach my mom, the nurse was calling my number and not listening to me that she needed to call a different number. I vaguely recall Dr S. coming in and asking him how it went and he said it went well. If there was more said than that I don't know.  By this time it was at least 4pm and I hadn't eaten since 10 the night before! As I was waking up I felt like I needed to pee and the nurse brought me a bedpan but than I couldn't go. I still felt like I needed to go. They asked me if I knew how to use crutches and I said yes. She was telling me to wake up because they physical therapists leave at 4:30 and they needed to make sure I knew how to use them. i told her it was my 3rd knee surgery and she was still asking. Finally I was waking up enough to be a little more cognisant and my mom came in. They listened to her about the crutches! They helped me get dressed and I was sitting. I got some apple juice. I was so thirsty! After some time when I was actually starting to really be awake they let me go to the bathroom. Then I was in a wheelchair and they were making sure I wasn't nauseated or anything and I was feeling ok. They had given me more juice and some crackers. I was starting to nibble a little on the crackers and they took out my IV. (they wanted to make sure I was feeling ok before they did) and then after they took out my IV I started to feel sick. I even dry heaved once! Oops! But I really did feel ok when I told them I did before they took it out!! So I was able to have some water and my stomach settled enough that they were ready to discharge me. I left the hospital at 6pm! It made for a long day. I was pretty sleepy from the anesthesia all day and mostly slept until around 8am the next morning.

Dr Schatz told my mom (and gave her the pictures) that when they got in there for the scope they found several things going on. There was a small tear in my acl (which is the graft I got with my last surgery) there was a lot of scar tissue that needed cleaned out, there was some tissue or something on the back of my knee-cap, there was some other tissue or something in there towards the back of my knee that was preventing me from being able to bend my knee properly. She didn't mention to me whether he said he found the detached meniscus tear, but if it was there I am sure he got that too! So despite nothing really showing up in the MRI I had a lot of things going on!

One of the cutest things was when I got home from the hospital and got myself to the front door Elijah asked me "why you have different skin?" They had scrubbed my leg from mid-thigh all the way to my toes for the surgery! So my leg and foot everything was orange! It was kind of funny. He is one observant little guy! The next day I used a washcloth to try to get rid of some of the orange coloring. On Fri I went with my mom and nephews to Costco. We got some pizza for lunch and I used the electric cart to get around for the little bit of shopping we did. We were only gone like an hour and half. That was enough activity for me that day. Than on Sat my family went to the street fair. I was in the wheelchair but that wore me out too. Sunday was church and I made sure my leg was up on a chair or something all day. By Sun evening I was starting to hobble around at home without the crutches. Just a little bit though. On Mon my dad had a Dr appt they remembered about sort of last min so I was basically home alone. I hobbled around crutch-free most of Mon too! For the little bit of getting around I needed to do. I went to FHe that night and on Tue returned to work.

At work they spoiled me! They were glad to have me back (which is a good feeling) they made sure I didn't carry anything. I had a crate put under my desk and I brought in a pillow to put my leg up on the crate. When i would get up for something someone would tell me to sit back down. They all kept asking if I needed my ice bag filled or water to drink etc. At one point I was coming back from the bathroom and Erik was asking what I needed and telling me to sit back down. I told him I had to pee and he says "we'll bring you a bucket" no thanks on the bucket but nice gesture! So it was cool. On Weds I brought in a cane instead of the crutches and again was basically yelled at if I was up for anything. By Thurs (1 week post-op) I was hobbling around the office without the crutches or cane either. But was still under scrutiny if I was up from my desk for basically anything.

Towards the end of that week I was starting to stretch out the time between pain pills and on Fri didn't take any during the day. That night after work I was starting to hurt a little bit and was thinking I would be ok and went to bed and woke up a few hours later and took a pill. Sat I went to Costco, I had my cane and since I was using a cart decided to walk for the few items I needed, I only went where I needed to go but after the trip (about an hours worth) I was getting pretty sore/uncomfortable. I came home and iced my knee for a little bit before going to the Temple. Again I used my cane and not a wheelchair and so between the two (both being the most activity since surgery) I was pretty sore that evening but not too bad.  I used the polar care ice unit and took it easy.

This week on Mon I went to Disneyland. I did use a wheelchair and was somewhat sore intermittently throughout the day. But overall it wasn't too bad. I did take some pain pills but mostly just in case.  The rest of the week I was at work. I was getting around and walking more. Was starting to sit in my chair more without the crate/pillow support and actually keeping my knee bent more. I wasn't getting yelled at for being up and although I would still get the occasional offer of help I was pretty pro-active in taking care of my own needs. Weds I had a mild scare when I sat down at one point and got a sharp kind of popping feeling in my knee and it was uncomfortable after that... Than on Thurs it was still a little weird and at lunch I was sitting with it bent normally and not thinking about it started to bring my leg back past a 90degree angle and felt a weird pulling sensation on the top part of my knee. Again was uncomfortable that day. So on Fri was my post-op follow up appt.

I saw Dr S for my appt. He asked how it was going so I told him. He bent it up on the table and felt around to see if I was having pain issues. there was a little tenderness but nothing like pre-op stuff. Plus I am still not completely healed yet. I told him about Weds and Thurs and asked if that was normal, it may have been slightly that I was doing too much, but he said especially with the Thurs thing he said with the scar tissue that I had in there before the "pulling sensation" is probably my tendons actually moving through my knee where they couldn't before (but should've been going) He said that I am progressing very fast and very well and that I would still take some time to completely heal but to continue to increase activity as I feel comfortable with. He said that I most likely wouldn't need physical therapy because my motion is really good right now. He also said that he could schedule me for another follow-up in a few weeks if I really felt it necessary but he didn't think I would need it! He said that I had a lot of reasons to have needed the surgery and it was a good thing we did it. He said since I wasn't making any follow up appt that if I do have any questions or problems t just "pop in" and see him. (I figure if there is anything I can call first) Things are really good!

Its nice to know that I am on the road to a full recovery. I am sure that I will always have to use a little bit of caution and like he said it is still going to take some more time for full recovery. I am going to start slow with increasing stuff I am doing. I mean I know I am not ready to climb Mt Kilimanjaro or anything, but I can start swimming to strengthen it, and get to where I can start biking more, and stuff. I went to a wedding yesterday and than the reception and by the time it was getting dark out I was uncomfortable. So I know I am not superwoman. I still need some help. Tonight 2 lil "monsters" came crawling into my room growling at me and so I was "scared" and got up onto my bed to get away, walking on my bed not such a smart move yet. But I am ok.  I just have to remember to take it easy! Its awesome knowing that in the next few months I can hopefully start walking Disneyland again and not have to be pushed around. But again I need to take it slow. I will miss the wheelchair lines though with the crowds!

Two Mirrors

Two Mirrors






I have two mirrors

I see every day

I look in two mirrors

As I go my way



I look in the bathroom

I see every flaw

I look in the bedroom

I’m a Daughter of God



In the first I wash up

As I start my day

It’s when I get clean

And wash the dirt away



Then in my room

I’ll dress in nice clothes

Make-up and perfume

A smile starts to show



The mirrors never change

They both look the same

Same shape and same size

But one has a frame



Its just my perspective

What I see from inside

A Daughter of God

Has nothing to hide



In one I see mistakes

And look in my eyes

I fill with a hurt

I want a disguise



But once I’m all clean

True beauty does show

Heavenly Fathers perspective

I feel my eyes glow



I know my true worth

Where I come from

No reason for doubt

That first mirror is dumb



The person who leaves

All ready to go

Is the real me

My fears no longer show



One mirror is a trial

I need to overcome

Each step like a mile

Far away I will run



When in the bedroom

The mirror shows me hope

Faith in my Savior

How far I can go



I look in two mirrors

As I start my day

One shows my fears

One washes them away



Renee Conaway

5-24-2011