Puppy wake up

6/29/07 Friday
We didn’t close the door to the puppy room well so they pushed it open and came happily in to wake us up. I walked through my fog to let them outside then came back to put some clothes on. Cherie got up as well and cooked some pancakes to start the day off.

Went online to check the mail and Sharon instant messaged me. We talked about Wayne so, upon learning how down he is, I gave him a call. When I figure out the label thing you can link on these names but until then let me explain a little who Wayne and Sharon are.

Wayne is the veteran with MS I found in the homeless shelter. I got him in the VA’s homeless program, foodstamps, approved and in public housing, fought Social Security for three years to get his disability, enrolled at the Zeph Center where he has a case manager to help him out, and involved with the MS society. This plus just being there to be a friend and someone he could talk to. Now he is fighting to get his lump sum payment that Social Security awarded released from the Ohio welfare system which has held his check for ten months now without releasing a dime to him. I called him and explained he needs to do everything in writing cause he could call till he was blue in the face and absolutely nothing will happen. I wish I was still up there.

Sharon is another survivor of traumatic brain injury. Hers’ was sustained when her husband (ex husband now) beat her with a pipe. I met her at the public housing projects Wayne was originally placed in. We helped her out anyway we could. Gave her rides to the store and even gave her driving lessons in our car so she could get her license. When she was beat and hospitalized by one of the crackheads at the apartment complex we moved her to a new place. I also had pushed Wayne through Welfare bureaucracy to get him moved to a safer place.

So that is our start.
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Been outside working. Got the fence poles unloaded. Was very careful as the last thing I need is to get hurt. One of the fence posts punched a hole through the side of the wheelbarrow. It’s a cheap wheelbarrow so the metal is thin. I’ll hammer it flat so there won’t be sharp edges to cut myself on.

I had to motivate Cherie to work around the house. She’s gotten to where she stays on the internet for hours, not getting much done. She will be upset I wrote of this but I trust that I will be able to say she has disciplined herself to keep this under control. The internet is a lure to us all including me, going a step beyond television, which I refer to as Zombievision. There is a lure there that captures many. The lure is you can find anything at all that interests and thus captures you. Self discipline is a hard thing to develop and it must be used constantly to keep it sharp.


Here is a picture of some weeds I needed to chop down just to access the trailer we now use as storage. I had to start using the wrist brace on the left hand as well. Now that the carpal tunnel pain is up there on the right I use the left much more. That aggravates the carpal tunnel syndrome the doc said I had on that side as well. The back pain level is high as well, especially after lifting those fence posts.

I will be going into town today to pick up some grass seed. It is my hope to get a lawn going and thus reduce the weeds and burrs that get tangled in the puppies fur.

Janie just stopped by with Jab (the other Steve) and a feller by the name of R.L.. I had met him before when we went to the charity skeet shoot at Windwalker. Jamie goes “You remember R.L. don’t you? He was at the shoot”. I don’t remember him or anyone else specifically with the exception of Steve, and that is because he has been out here since. I remember going to the shoot and meeting lots of people but specific names and faces were lost the moment I left. But I shook my head yes on the basis of remembering being there. That’s the way I have to play it all the time. Don’t want to offend anyone.

So we gave R.L. the tour and I cut off some spaghetti squash to give him. Showed them the corn that’s layin down, taking a nap from the storm. Then Janie urged me to show them my woodcarvings, which I was happy to do. The plaque was the first thing I showed along with the pictures of the wreck. Then I showed some of the other stuff that is not yet finished.

From there Janie wanted me to show them what we are doing with the house so I took them to the living room where they could see half done and half not yet touched. That really brings home the difference a coat of paint makes. Jab has a dog house that he says is insulated and called a dog apartment so I think it may be more than one unit though I am not sure. Anyway, he is replacing it so asked if we could use it. I am sure it will be a good thing to have, especially as the puppies grow so I said I would be glad to accept it.

Nuts! I forgot to ask Steve when I could come and help him figure out his E mail and stuff. I’ll call him later but I’ve been meaning to call him for weeks now. R.L. knows someone with a tractor who can come and cut these weeds down. That would be great.

Cherie has gone to the chiropractor now so I need to get moving as well. I want to run into Midland and pick up some grass seed as well as dig up some of the monkey grass at Steve and Janie’s along with that ground cover vine they have.

Jan and Wally (If I remember the names right) from the Sunday school department are coming to visit at six tonight so I’m clearing out some space in the living room. They are bringing a pizza so it would be nice to have a place to eat it. We’ve been just eating on the bed till now but ya can’t do that with guests, or at least shouldn’t

If I keep writing I’ll never get there so that’s it for now.
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Tricia, one of my regular readers, let me know in the comments that there had been a story on NBC Nightly News about a national guard soldier who suffered a traumatic brain injury in Iraq. I had missed the program because we are unable to get NBC out here except on rare occasions so I just went online to see it. This soldier didn’t get his injury in an explosive blast like most do over there but when his vehicle overturned. His problems are pretty much like mine though I don’t fly off in fits of rage like I used to. It renews my desire, no it enforces my desire to bring understanding and awareness of brain injuries. When I went to look for the story I saw that ABC had run a story on a teenager who suffered a rare level of amnesia after falling on the soccer field. Another brain injury.

The visit with Wally and Jen went well. I only had one quick slowdown but other than that I was sharp. They brought some pizza, banana nut bread, and one serving of tiramisu they ordered with the pizza. We sat and got to know each other as we ate. They heard an earful as I recounted some of the unusual life I have experienced. It started when Wally asked when we found the Lord. That was in prison in 1975. We told of how we had fallen in love in bible college, moved to Toledo, gotten divorced because of the drastic personality change when I fell out of a tree breaking my back and neck, and got back together seventeen years later.

There were lots of other things we talked about including how the Sunday school group could help us out. That was a little bit harder question to answer. I jokingly said they could buy me a tractor. That set them back a second or two but it was fun, at least for me. We gave them a tour of the place including a trek out to the garden. I opened up about my doubts and questions concerning God as I don’t hide much of anything. It was a good visit and mostly was nice to see Christians actually reach out and go out of their way to talk with us. A marked contrast to what we didn’t experience with a church much closer to home.

I’m tired so will call it a night.