A catch-all, catch-up post
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A joke among the family (and nowhere else) is an adaptation of the Muppet Show joke involving talking houses.
“My wife’s not feeling well,” one house says to the other.
“What’s the matter?”
“She’s got the eyeball sting!”
This is uproariously funny to Hallie and Travis (the original punch line is “she’s got the shingles”). I wasn’t laughing earlier this week, though; I had the real eyeball sting. It was some sort of conjunctivitis in my right eye.
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Among the many great things that happened today, this morning featured my wife telling me “I’m enjoying our lives right now.”
She’s right. We had a great weekend, with a fun housewarming party yesterday, a number of family bike rides, and a kids’ party or two. The weather has been beautifully sunny and also beautifully stormy. We’re in a good spot, that’s for sure.
We’re very, very fortunate to have the friends and family we have. Y’all rock!
Kelly was out at a volunteer function last night, so for the first time in probably years I plopped down in front of the TV and channel-surfed. I was appalled at the crap that was on television: it was all just so dumb. Until I landed on PBS, that is.
The American Experience program The Presidents [self-playing Flash] was on and last night it featured Franklin Delano Roosevelt. For two hours I was captivated learning about his life from the time of his birth up to his becoming President.
I knew he was a great man but had no idea just how great he was until this documentary showed me. America was lucky to have a man like him during such troubling times in America.
I bought a five-pound bag of Jolly Ranchers at BJs a few months ago. They mostly languished untouched in the pantry until one day Kelly packed them in my bag and I hauled them off to work. They’re now a big hit with the office, though even five people aren’t enough to put a dent in a five-pound bag of candy.
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I went to the prosthodontist yesterday and received the skinny on the mouthpiece. The mouthpiece is made from a mold of the patient’s mouth, then sent to a technician who builds it to fit. The appliance looks exactly like the picture on the Wikipedia page, with two little piston-looking things holding the jaw slightly forward. The dentist says it extends the jaw to 2/3rds its maximum.
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Tomorrow I visit a local prostodontist for an initial consultation to discuss how a mandibular advancement device (a fancy name for a mouthpiece) might help with my mild sleep apnea. This custom-made mouthpiece is designed to prevent my jaw from sliding back at night, blocking my airway. Its a good, inexpensive first approach to correcting my apnea.
Actually, the cheapest and easiest approach is to try a sports-type mouthpiece. I ordered one of those the other day for 25 bucks. We’ll see if that is enough for a restful night.
Two weeks ago we drove up to Charlottesville for my nephew’s birthday party. As we pulled into a truck stop north of Rocky Mount for a kids’ bathroom break, I was struck by how desolate it was. There were maybe two trucks parked on the sea of surrounding asphalt. The lady behind the counter never looked over her newspaper. Rows of flashing slot machines pimping pre-paid calling cards sat empty, waiting for truckers who never arrive.
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Another busy but fun weekend was had. I spend a good chunk of it doing yard work and cleaning gutters. I made a trip over to the old house Saturday afternoon, where I chatted with the new owners before fetching what brought me: two plants from the side yard that used to belong to my grandmother. I hauled the hydrangea and azalea plants to our new home and planted them in the side and front yards.
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You know those blinds I ordered the other night? They shipped this afternoon.
Amazing.
