No Longer A Tornado, Barely a Whirlwind, Maybe a Dust Devil

It’s 03:00 in the morning and I have been awake since 02:00! As I was lying awake I realized that I hadn’t made an entry for awhile. I used to make entries at 02-03 in the morning on the “old” OD but that was because I hadn’t been to bed yet, not the other way around. Thinking about that also made me realize that I am no longer the Tornado I used to be. I chose that name when I began OD because I was working 3-4 jobs, taking care of a high maintenance husband, was the sole caretaker of my mother and my kids and grandkids were all living close so I was with them a lot.

Now I am retired once again, one son, my mother, and brother are in heaven, one son is in Alaska and the other in Kansas City. I only have one grandchild still living in the same town as I. The rest are scattered over Kansas and Nebraska. So I don’t see any of them except Zach on a regular basis.  My birth family is all gone now. Hubby Don isn’t all that high maintenance. As long as he has a fishing rod in his hand or a TV in front of him, he is happy.  Having been a widower for 10 years, he likes his own cooking (Oh my! That’s another story!) better than mine. I’m ok with that. I have never enjoyed cooking. His late wife didn’t cook at all and they ate out most of the time.

I haven’t decided which I like best, having too much to do and not enough time to do it or not having enough to do and too much time. With too much time on my hands, I tend to either get bored and/or start feeling sorry for myself.  I spend some time on church activities but I’m not able to attend the activities in the evening because I have night blindness and can’t  drive to those. My church is 14 miles away, round trip. Don will only go to a few select ones, about 2-3 a year. I am thinking about volunteering at the local food bank but just haven’t done it yet. I was going to volunteer at the care home where my brother spent his last days. My cousin and Don’s aunt are living there now. However, my brother’s widow volunteers there almost every day and we get along much better if we don’t spend a lot of time together.

I am continuing to pick Don’s grandkids up from school each day and really enjoy that. Reese always talks my leg off. I get a kick out of listening to the stories of his day. He is always so enthusiastic. Ashton is still a little shy but I’m realizing that maybe it’s just that she can’t get a word in edgewise! LOL!

I took some things over to Devorah to sell at her garage sale. She is the single mother we have been helping. She doesn’t have a lot to sell so I’m afraid she won’t make much.  I guess every little bit helps. Her teenage daughter makes earrings and had several pairs to sell. Devorah raises plants from cuttings and was going to try to sell some of them.

I am going to a birthday party for one of our congregation today. She turns 90. I went to school with her kids and she is a good friend. Her daughter and husband own the historic Elgin Hotel here in town and it will be held there.  It’s just a block away from my house.They have restored the hotel into a beautiful place. One of the TV News stations did a story on it this week. They also did a story on the bakery that is owned by our minister’s family. Their last name is Lee so it is called the FamLee Bakery. http://www.ksn.com/news/local/main-street-kansas/main-street-kansas-town-of-marion-embraces-two-local-bakeries/1011601758 

OK, I’m wide awake now and so is Don so I guess I had better start my day. After all, it’s 03:30 now!