It is 7:00 in the morning as I sit down at my computer to write. I have two loads in the dryer, my camera battery is charging, I am thinking about what I need to do today as I prepare for leaving town, possibly tomorrow. There is a lot I must get done before I can even think of taking off.
Before I purchased my car I had to take the bus everywhere or depend on others to take me where I needed to go. Both modes of transportation are slow. Both modes of transportation require waiting on others. So I thought once I got a car I would be able to get a lot more done in a much shorter amount of time, leaving me with more time at home to get work done. That has proven to be a fallacy. The truth is I seem to be even busier then I was before. Now some of the activities that are taking up more of my time are by choice. I am now able to attend the Tuesday night prayer meeting at church which I was unable to attend before due to lack of transportation. And the past two Tuesday’s I have picked up a gentleman who is unable to drive due to a stroke he had years ago. But most of my car trips are doing stuff that before I would have just put off until someone could take me. So I really am getting a lot more done, just not on the computer.
I went to bed pretty early last night and so I have been awake for several hours. As I laid in bed this morning thinking and praying, I remembered the first few years of my life with AOCCCI. The first year Lee Grover was in charge. In fact when I first met Lee and learned about this project he had in mind, I really was not interested. I occasionally gave him some female advice when he asked, but that was the extent of my involvement and I liked it like that. Then in April 1996 the Lord began to speak to my heart. Keep in mind I was still very ill with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS) at the time, and this ministry did not even have a name yet. But there was no mistaking what the Lord was saying to me. Not in words, but to my spirit. Only weeks earlier Lee had come to the conclusion that his idea would have to be a Christian ministry, and now the Lord was telling me He wanted me to be a part of it.
The first 10 months of my involvement were a difficult time. During those months both Lee and I learned about the mind/body/spirit connection and I was healed of MCS. Before my healing I could only work a few hours a day, mostly typing. We occasionally took road trips, where Lee had to keep in mind my fragile health. We also talked on the phone a lot, as Lee lived in the Texas Hill Country, an hour drive north of me. Once God healed me of MCS a lot changed. I suddenly could do things I had never been able to do before, mainly because I now had energy and was not reacting to everything in my environment. I think the change in me was difficult for Lee to get use to. Anyway, I was healed around October of 1996 and after that our conflicts became even greater.
I will never forget the February day I received a letter in the mail from Lee. My mother was visiting me that week and I was living in a very small apartment at the time. The only private space in my apartment was the bathroom, where I suddenly spent a lot of time in prayer. The letter Lee sent me basically said God told him to resign from AOCCCI and at my convenience he would bring all the files and other information he had gathered. Though we had been in a lot of conflict, I was not prepared for this letter. I immediately went into panic mode. Since Lee and I were the only people working on this ministry, by default his resignation left me the one in charge. Lee had filed the paper work with the state, but had barely begun the work required to apply for non-profit status with the IRS. There was a ton of work to do and I had no idea how to do any of it. I had never taken a business or legal class in my life (unless you count sitting in on my mother’s law school classes whenever she didn’t have a babysitter for me). I had no idea what to do or even where to begin. On top of that, my mother, who was not a Christian and therefore never prayed, was visiting me. I could not share anything I was going through with her, she would not have understood. So, I started taking very long showers (private place where I could pray). My mom got tired a lot and needed naps, so I would go into the bathroom and pray during her naps. During the week my mother visited me I spent a lot of time in the bathroom praying. There literally was nowhere else I could go and close the door for privacy.
During that week of panic praying, asking God for help, Psalm 119:105 came to my mind.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”
The Lord would light my path one step at a time. First He gave me peace. He was still in control. I do not remember the very first direction He gave me, but it was enough to let me know exactly what my first step was to be. The rest of the week that my mom was with me was a time of calm. There was not much I could do until she left, so I just relaxed. As soon as my mother was out of town, I contacted Lee and in a few days he delivered several cardboard boxes of files to me. In the days, weeks, months, and years to come I would continue to seek the Lord for guidance and He provided me with all the support I needed to learn how to do what I needed to do. With the help of a pro bono attorney, I got the 501(c)3 papers submitted to the IRS just in time. Along with all the other legal papers that needed to be completed. God is good!
I have changed and grown a lot since 1997 when the Lord put me in charge of AOCCCI. In many ways I am a totally different person having grown spiritually in ways I could never have imagined. But I am still having to learn to follow God’s lamp as He directs my path one step at a time.
Unless something comes up to change my plans, I intend to leave bright and early tomorrow morning where I will head towards Kerrville, Junction, and who knows where. My purpose is to go property hunting. I do not have enough cash to buy property outright but it is time to start looking. Through prayer, I know this is the direction I am to go. Before Lee resigned, the two of us took many trips in this direction and even considered two pieces of rural property which we were unable to purchase at the time. One piece of property was in Real County. The other was in Kimble County. This summer when I started asking the Lord where I should began my search for land, these two sites came to mind. I am convinced that somewhere in that direction, basically west of San Antonio off Interstate 10, is the property the Lord has waiting for me to discover. I have no idea if this property will be revealed to me on this trip or on another trip I take a year or more from now. All I can do is follow God’s lamp as it lights each step I take.
Please keep me in your prayers. Thanks.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
My First Car Trip
I took my first real trip in my new car this weekend. I had taken a few trips to Boerne (pronounced burn-ie), TX to see a doctor, but that is just a short 30 minute drive over the county line. Saturday a friend and I drove to Fredericksburg, TX and spent the night in a motel. The purpose of the trip was to attend the Renewable Energy Roundup and Green Living Fair. I had attended the fair one time 8 or 9 years ago, but my friend had never even heard of it before. Since the school she teaches gardening at just got a grant to install a rainwater harvesting catchment system, she wanted to go in hopes of learning anything she could on the subject. I wanted information on all sorts of issues concerning green living.
I cannot recommend the motel we stayed in but I can heartily recommend the fair. It would have been better if we could have attended on Saturday but I was not able to leave town until late afternoon.
9:00 am Saturday morning I had to run over to church and pick up my Angel Food order. If you are not familiar with Angel Food Ministries, it is a way to buy lots of meat and other food items at about half the price it would cost at the store. Today as I write, my freezer is full of chicken, turkey burgers, beef and pork. I also have a number of bags of frozen vegetables, plus a bag of potatoes and onions. I have been ordering Angel Food off and on for about a year now. Unless you are on a very specialized diet such as vegetarian or all organic, I highly recommend you check them out. If there is a participating church near you, buying a box of Angel Food can really save you a bundle.
As soon as had loaded all the food in my freezer, I threw my bags into the car and headed over to my friend Polly’s house. From there we carpooled out to the town of Garden Ridge where the Church Librarian lives for the annual Librarian Appreciation Luncheon. Polly and I have been volunteering in our church library for years now. Polly is 89 years old and has many limitations, but she is still a vital part of the librarian team. We work together and she is a close friend of mine. I have divided the work up between us so she does what she can physically do and I do the rest. It works out great. It is not often the Library team can get together as one group so when we do have meetings or special events, I always like to attend. It is often the only time I hear what other volunteers are doing, since we all work in the library at different times. Our meal was catered from the Olive Garden (yum yum) and it was a wonderful time of socializing and sharing. I must say I loved the gift all of us volunteers were given, a coffee cup that reads “Library Volunteers are the Greatest”.
Once our luncheon was over with, Polly and I headed back to her house. From there I immediately headed to my friend Margaret’s place where the two of us headed for Fredericksburg, TX. We took my car, more cargo room in the back and Margaret is a plant lover. We shared the driving duties. We arrived in Fredericksburg quicker than we thought we would, found our motel and then headed to down town (which was not that far since Fredericksburg is a small town. We snooped in shops and found a wonderful place to eat dinner, The Buffalo Nickel Bar and Grill, where we shared a wonderful salad (Pocahontas) and possibly the best burger I have ever had. It was not on a hamburger bun but special bread that made all the difference. I highly recommend this restaurant, especially if you are adventurous and want to try buffalo meat, which I did spot on the menu.
I won’t bother to mention where we stayed the night as I do not recommend this motel, but I will say I have been in worse. At least it was a safe place to spend the night. Early Sunday morning we visited a wonderful little church in town for worship and then headed to the fair. We spent the morning visiting booths, buying stuff, taking free information, and attended part of one workshop. For lunch, we bought an expensive hamburger at the fair. Margaret and I both are in agreement that we have had enough hamburgers for awhile. In the afternoon we attended a workshop titled Sustainable Rainwater harvesting Systems. He had some good information but we both want the book he mentioned at the beginning. We were unable to stay for the entire presentation and so I am now trying to track down the presenter, who lives near Boerne.
We left the fair a little before 2pm and headed to the Wild Seeds Farms. They raise wild flower seeds and much more there. They have a butterfly exhibit and Margaret was in paradise. We both spent money there and the back end of my car was filled with plants blocking the rear view window. If you are ever in the area the Wild Seeds Farm is a must stop. It is a wonderful place to visit and they do sell sandwhiches. We just got something to drink.
In October they will be tagging Monarch Butterflies which pass by on their migration path to Mexico and Margaret plans on trying to plan a Saturday field trip for her young students (pre-K through 5th grade).
After we left the Wild Seed Farms, we headed back to San Antonio. It was a quick trip, but educational and fun.
I cannot recommend the motel we stayed in but I can heartily recommend the fair. It would have been better if we could have attended on Saturday but I was not able to leave town until late afternoon.
9:00 am Saturday morning I had to run over to church and pick up my Angel Food order. If you are not familiar with Angel Food Ministries, it is a way to buy lots of meat and other food items at about half the price it would cost at the store. Today as I write, my freezer is full of chicken, turkey burgers, beef and pork. I also have a number of bags of frozen vegetables, plus a bag of potatoes and onions. I have been ordering Angel Food off and on for about a year now. Unless you are on a very specialized diet such as vegetarian or all organic, I highly recommend you check them out. If there is a participating church near you, buying a box of Angel Food can really save you a bundle.
As soon as had loaded all the food in my freezer, I threw my bags into the car and headed over to my friend Polly’s house. From there we carpooled out to the town of Garden Ridge where the Church Librarian lives for the annual Librarian Appreciation Luncheon. Polly and I have been volunteering in our church library for years now. Polly is 89 years old and has many limitations, but she is still a vital part of the librarian team. We work together and she is a close friend of mine. I have divided the work up between us so she does what she can physically do and I do the rest. It works out great. It is not often the Library team can get together as one group so when we do have meetings or special events, I always like to attend. It is often the only time I hear what other volunteers are doing, since we all work in the library at different times. Our meal was catered from the Olive Garden (yum yum) and it was a wonderful time of socializing and sharing. I must say I loved the gift all of us volunteers were given, a coffee cup that reads “Library Volunteers are the Greatest”.
Once our luncheon was over with, Polly and I headed back to her house. From there I immediately headed to my friend Margaret’s place where the two of us headed for Fredericksburg, TX. We took my car, more cargo room in the back and Margaret is a plant lover. We shared the driving duties. We arrived in Fredericksburg quicker than we thought we would, found our motel and then headed to down town (which was not that far since Fredericksburg is a small town. We snooped in shops and found a wonderful place to eat dinner, The Buffalo Nickel Bar and Grill, where we shared a wonderful salad (Pocahontas) and possibly the best burger I have ever had. It was not on a hamburger bun but special bread that made all the difference. I highly recommend this restaurant, especially if you are adventurous and want to try buffalo meat, which I did spot on the menu.
I won’t bother to mention where we stayed the night as I do not recommend this motel, but I will say I have been in worse. At least it was a safe place to spend the night. Early Sunday morning we visited a wonderful little church in town for worship and then headed to the fair. We spent the morning visiting booths, buying stuff, taking free information, and attended part of one workshop. For lunch, we bought an expensive hamburger at the fair. Margaret and I both are in agreement that we have had enough hamburgers for awhile. In the afternoon we attended a workshop titled Sustainable Rainwater harvesting Systems. He had some good information but we both want the book he mentioned at the beginning. We were unable to stay for the entire presentation and so I am now trying to track down the presenter, who lives near Boerne.
We left the fair a little before 2pm and headed to the Wild Seeds Farms. They raise wild flower seeds and much more there. They have a butterfly exhibit and Margaret was in paradise. We both spent money there and the back end of my car was filled with plants blocking the rear view window. If you are ever in the area the Wild Seeds Farm is a must stop. It is a wonderful place to visit and they do sell sandwhiches. We just got something to drink.
In October they will be tagging Monarch Butterflies which pass by on their migration path to Mexico and Margaret plans on trying to plan a Saturday field trip for her young students (pre-K through 5th grade).
After we left the Wild Seed Farms, we headed back to San Antonio. It was a quick trip, but educational and fun.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
My New Wheels
I have been pretty busy the past few weeks. There have been the typical projects, such as getting a newsletter out, my church library volunteer work, prayer meetings, etc. But on Thursday, September 3 a new chapter of my life began, I bought a car-like SUV.
For my entire adult like I have used alternative transportation. During my college years and pretty much through the 1980’s my main form of transportation was my bicycle. It was good exercise, got me most places I needed go, and was reliable. The rest of the time I either carpooled or took the bus. When I moved to Texas I found myself sick with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and unable to work. By the time I was awarded disability I was too sick to even care about a car. In 1996 God healed me but my economic situation was such that a car was just not a financial possibility. Though San Antonio Texas has a good bus system, it is not perfect and does not go many places. When I broke my foot last year the situation became even more difficult for me. I now was unable to walk to bus stops, which made getting around very difficult. Thankfully, my church came to my rescue and several folks started providing me transportation to church, the store, and other places I needed to get too. They were really a blessing.
Recently my economic situation has changed and I am now able to afford a car. So this past summer I started researching exactly what type of car I should get. If God had never called me to AOCCCI, my automotive needs would be totally different, but God did call me to this work and eventually I will no longer be living in one of the largest cities in the country. With that in mind I wanted a vehicle with good ground clearance and space inside. At the same time I did not want a vehicle that was so large it would be more car then I could handle, would be a gas guzzler, would be unsafe and/or break down often, or a color that would create a solar oven affect. So I spent a lot of time studying the different choices and praying. I went out and checked the possibilities for blind spots. Several friends told me I was wise for doing that and if they had done the same thing they would not have purchased the car they now owned because of the blind spots. So for anyone considering buying a car—do not forget to check for blind spots. You need to be able to see out of it when driving.
Another prayer request I had was for help. This was the first car I have ever purchased and I knew I needed some help or it would be easy for a car salesman to take advantage of me.
God answered both of my prayers. My friend’s husband has the gift of car buying. He has purchased many cars in his life and knows how to play the game well. He is a godly man and we prayed for God’s guidance in the car I should get. He also knew what to look for. Larry saw things I never even noticed. He also knew information I was ignorant of such as one dealership I had looked at also ran a car rental agency. He suspected the car I had looked at had been a rental and when he asked, the salesman confirmed it had been. In the end, with Larry’s help, I bought at very good price a 2006 Toyota Rav4. I do not believe I could have gotten a better car at a better price. Larry talked them down to $18,500 out the door (includes the TTL).
Of course after I signed the last piece of paper and wrote a check for the full price of the car, I had to follow Larry home to his house, in the dark, in my new car. Both of us would have been in a lot of trouble if we didn’t show the car to my friend (Larry’s wife
). When she saw it she promptly said, “I want one”, which Larry replied, “she what trouble you have caused”.
Now that I have wheels, I am not stuck here in San Antonio anymore. Though money is still being raised for property, I can now start the process of looking. AOCCCI does need donations before property can be purchased, but we also need your prayers. Like buying a car, I have never purchased or even seriously looked for property. So your prayers are very important.
For my entire adult like I have used alternative transportation. During my college years and pretty much through the 1980’s my main form of transportation was my bicycle. It was good exercise, got me most places I needed go, and was reliable. The rest of the time I either carpooled or took the bus. When I moved to Texas I found myself sick with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and unable to work. By the time I was awarded disability I was too sick to even care about a car. In 1996 God healed me but my economic situation was such that a car was just not a financial possibility. Though San Antonio Texas has a good bus system, it is not perfect and does not go many places. When I broke my foot last year the situation became even more difficult for me. I now was unable to walk to bus stops, which made getting around very difficult. Thankfully, my church came to my rescue and several folks started providing me transportation to church, the store, and other places I needed to get too. They were really a blessing.
Recently my economic situation has changed and I am now able to afford a car. So this past summer I started researching exactly what type of car I should get. If God had never called me to AOCCCI, my automotive needs would be totally different, but God did call me to this work and eventually I will no longer be living in one of the largest cities in the country. With that in mind I wanted a vehicle with good ground clearance and space inside. At the same time I did not want a vehicle that was so large it would be more car then I could handle, would be a gas guzzler, would be unsafe and/or break down often, or a color that would create a solar oven affect. So I spent a lot of time studying the different choices and praying. I went out and checked the possibilities for blind spots. Several friends told me I was wise for doing that and if they had done the same thing they would not have purchased the car they now owned because of the blind spots. So for anyone considering buying a car—do not forget to check for blind spots. You need to be able to see out of it when driving.
Another prayer request I had was for help. This was the first car I have ever purchased and I knew I needed some help or it would be easy for a car salesman to take advantage of me.
God answered both of my prayers. My friend’s husband has the gift of car buying. He has purchased many cars in his life and knows how to play the game well. He is a godly man and we prayed for God’s guidance in the car I should get. He also knew what to look for. Larry saw things I never even noticed. He also knew information I was ignorant of such as one dealership I had looked at also ran a car rental agency. He suspected the car I had looked at had been a rental and when he asked, the salesman confirmed it had been. In the end, with Larry’s help, I bought at very good price a 2006 Toyota Rav4. I do not believe I could have gotten a better car at a better price. Larry talked them down to $18,500 out the door (includes the TTL).
Of course after I signed the last piece of paper and wrote a check for the full price of the car, I had to follow Larry home to his house, in the dark, in my new car. Both of us would have been in a lot of trouble if we didn’t show the car to my friend (Larry’s wife
). When she saw it she promptly said, “I want one”, which Larry replied, “she what trouble you have caused”.Now that I have wheels, I am not stuck here in San Antonio anymore. Though money is still being raised for property, I can now start the process of looking. AOCCCI does need donations before property can be purchased, but we also need your prayers. Like buying a car, I have never purchased or even seriously looked for property. So your prayers are very important.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Nation's Banking Crisis Hits AOCCCI
We have all heard about the banking crises in our nation. Big banks have had to be bailed out. Smaller banks have been taken over by the FDIC and turned over to more profitable banks. I never thought the banking crisis would affect me personally, but it now has.
I didn’t think I would be affected by a bank closer because my personal finances are with a small credit union. Credit Unions are different then banks in that the members of a credit union are the owners. Every year I get a ballot in the mail so I can vote for next year’s trustees. Though there are many similarities between banks and credit unions, there are differences. And a major difference is credit unions are less likely to fail because some idiot or idiots are in charge.
I am not just responsible for my own finances though. I also manage the finances of Alpha Omega Christian Communities For The Chemically Injured (AOCCCI). This is not a job I want to keep and have been praying for years that God will send me a bookkeeper or accountant, but so far that prayer has not been answered.
Years ago I opened a Non-Profit checking account at Guaranty Bank here in San Antonio. It was the best deal at the time. Most business checking accounts come with lots of fees. The non-profit checking account has much lower fees and none if a balance of $200 (at the time) was kept. A really good deal.
I first heard that Guaranty Bank was having problems last month when it was mentioned on the news that the bank was looking for a buyer. Well, over the weekend BBVA Compass Bank. The only thing I know about Compass bank is they have branches around the city. I did look at their web site and do not see any special checking accounts for non-profits. Hopefully they will honor the terms of the non-profit account. If they do not, well I will deal with that issue when it arrives.
If you subscribe to Healing God’s Way, AOCCCI’s free online newsletter, you should have received a newsletter last week in your email box. If you did not, please let me know. I know one person did not because it bounced. Fortunately I am in contact with this person and have her current email address. So I was able to go correct the address in the newsletter mailing list. But most folks who change their email address I never hear from again. If your email becomes no good, and you do nothing about it, you will stop receiving Healing God’s Way. Please let me know you are changing your email address if and I can make a change to the mailing list. Or at the bottom of the newsletter is a link that will allow you to make the change yourself.
If you are not receiving Healing God’s Way, you can sign up on the web site. It is free.
I never did solve the problem I am having but I did figure out the problem is with a specific template. So I started over in developing a new template. Not happy with what I created last week but I got a newsletter out, which was most important to me.
Update on my car shopping. I have test drove a few vehicles and am close to making my decision. I have been praying a lot about what exactly God wants me to buy. I expect to buy something in September.
I didn’t think I would be affected by a bank closer because my personal finances are with a small credit union. Credit Unions are different then banks in that the members of a credit union are the owners. Every year I get a ballot in the mail so I can vote for next year’s trustees. Though there are many similarities between banks and credit unions, there are differences. And a major difference is credit unions are less likely to fail because some idiot or idiots are in charge.
I am not just responsible for my own finances though. I also manage the finances of Alpha Omega Christian Communities For The Chemically Injured (AOCCCI). This is not a job I want to keep and have been praying for years that God will send me a bookkeeper or accountant, but so far that prayer has not been answered.
Years ago I opened a Non-Profit checking account at Guaranty Bank here in San Antonio. It was the best deal at the time. Most business checking accounts come with lots of fees. The non-profit checking account has much lower fees and none if a balance of $200 (at the time) was kept. A really good deal.
I first heard that Guaranty Bank was having problems last month when it was mentioned on the news that the bank was looking for a buyer. Well, over the weekend BBVA Compass Bank. The only thing I know about Compass bank is they have branches around the city. I did look at their web site and do not see any special checking accounts for non-profits. Hopefully they will honor the terms of the non-profit account. If they do not, well I will deal with that issue when it arrives.
If you subscribe to Healing God’s Way, AOCCCI’s free online newsletter, you should have received a newsletter last week in your email box. If you did not, please let me know. I know one person did not because it bounced. Fortunately I am in contact with this person and have her current email address. So I was able to go correct the address in the newsletter mailing list. But most folks who change their email address I never hear from again. If your email becomes no good, and you do nothing about it, you will stop receiving Healing God’s Way. Please let me know you are changing your email address if and I can make a change to the mailing list. Or at the bottom of the newsletter is a link that will allow you to make the change yourself.
If you are not receiving Healing God’s Way, you can sign up on the web site. It is free.
I never did solve the problem I am having but I did figure out the problem is with a specific template. So I started over in developing a new template. Not happy with what I created last week but I got a newsletter out, which was most important to me.
Update on my car shopping. I have test drove a few vehicles and am close to making my decision. I have been praying a lot about what exactly God wants me to buy. I expect to buy something in September.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Newsletter Problems
The Apostle Paul suffered a lot during his earthly life, but there is one hardship he never experienced, the hassles of dealing with tech support. I discovered several months ago for some unknown reason I suddenly could not save anything when trying to put a newsletter together. I never had this problem before so I was stumped. I use a web based service to create my newsletters. When I discovered the problem online chat was closed for the day so I sent an email. Several days later I received an email asking me what browser I used and I promptly responded. It took a week to get a response from them, but basically nothing was happening. So I finally contacted them using the online chat support. After an hour chatting, the tech said he would look into my problem and email me. I never got an email. So today I once again logged on and clicked on chat support. I spent one and half hours with chat support. This tech discovered my template had a bunch of extra codes, but never gave me an answer as to what caused the problem in the first place. I was able to save items in the template a few months ago and now suddenly I cannot. Why? In the end he said he and others needed to clean it up and he promised to email me later. Well, as I write this the chat support is closed for the day and I still have not received any emails from them. I went and tested my template and it still will not let me save. Needless to say, I am very frustrated. Believe me; I want to send out a newsletter. But until this problem is solved I cannot create newsletters.
On March 13, 2008, while walking to a bus stop, I twisted my left foot on a broken brick. An MRI would reveal I broke my navicular bone. A year and a half later I still suffer residual problems from that injury. I have always been baffled how I could fracture my foot just walking. Well, this past Saturday after praying with a friend I hung up the phone, got up out of my chair, and walked towards the kitchen. I have no idea what happened but somehow my right toes caught on something and I am now lying on the couch with my foot propped up on pillows. It is swollen and very colorful. I went to an emergency walk-in orthopedic clinic today. The doctor said he did not see anything on the x-rays but said sometimes a hairline fracture will not show up for a few weeks. I have a follow-up appointment with the doctor who treated my left foot last year. Hopefully by then all the prayers being said for me will be answered with significant healing.
I really do not have time for all these problems. I am in the market to buy a vehicle. I have been researching exactly what I want to purchase. Last week I spent several days visiting used car lots with one purpose in mind. I wanted to narrow down my list by sitting in vehicles to check for blind spots. I have driven a few cars over the years belonging to my friends. They had no trouble seeing out the windows, but I did. Of course, in every case the friend was much taller than me. I did cross several vehicles off my list, some for a variety of reasons. Hopefully by the time I finish my online research and am ready to start test driving, my toes will be much improved. Somehow I don’t think a dealership would want someone wearing a medical shoe and on crutches test driving their cars.
On March 13, 2008, while walking to a bus stop, I twisted my left foot on a broken brick. An MRI would reveal I broke my navicular bone. A year and a half later I still suffer residual problems from that injury. I have always been baffled how I could fracture my foot just walking. Well, this past Saturday after praying with a friend I hung up the phone, got up out of my chair, and walked towards the kitchen. I have no idea what happened but somehow my right toes caught on something and I am now lying on the couch with my foot propped up on pillows. It is swollen and very colorful. I went to an emergency walk-in orthopedic clinic today. The doctor said he did not see anything on the x-rays but said sometimes a hairline fracture will not show up for a few weeks. I have a follow-up appointment with the doctor who treated my left foot last year. Hopefully by then all the prayers being said for me will be answered with significant healing.
I really do not have time for all these problems. I am in the market to buy a vehicle. I have been researching exactly what I want to purchase. Last week I spent several days visiting used car lots with one purpose in mind. I wanted to narrow down my list by sitting in vehicles to check for blind spots. I have driven a few cars over the years belonging to my friends. They had no trouble seeing out the windows, but I did. Of course, in every case the friend was much taller than me. I did cross several vehicles off my list, some for a variety of reasons. Hopefully by the time I finish my online research and am ready to start test driving, my toes will be much improved. Somehow I don’t think a dealership would want someone wearing a medical shoe and on crutches test driving their cars.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Frustrations
Life is full of frustrations and mine is no different. For the past year I have been dealing with computer issues. I finally broke down and got a new computer earlier this year, which I thought would be the end of my problems. I was wrong. This computer uses Vista, which means the software I used to use to create web sites not only will not work on this computer but is not even made. At this point in time I have no idea what software I should buy. To be honest, I would prefer someone who loves to make web sites volunteer to take over that job. I really don’t have the time or energy to learn new software and redo the web site from scratch.
If you have any advice on what software I should consider, I would appreciate hearing from you.
But that is not the only frustration I have had to deal with. I have been using an online service that provides me with everything I need to put together a newsletter and send it out. I have been having problems with the site. The latest issue occurred just the other day when I tried to put a newsletter together. When it is time to put a newsletter together I have a template I use to cut and paste the different sections into the newsletter. For some reason when I hit the save button, what I had just pasted into the newsletter disappeared. This kept happening so I finally gave up and emailed the company. This newest problem has yet to be resolved but I sure hope it is soon.
If you regularly watch the weather reports you might have heard Texas is in a major drought and experiencing record heat. Well, I presently live in San Antonio Texas and I can assure you it has been one of the hottest summers I have ever lived through. How hot? Well, yesterday marked the 30th day this year we have hit 100F (38C) or higher. In fact we had a record of 102F (39C). In 1998 we hit 100F (38C) or higher 36 times which is the all time record. Honestly, I will be surprised if we do not break that record as there is no relief from these hot temperatures. One reason it is so hot is the soil is done dry. This drought is said to be worse than the five year drought Texas had in the 1950’s. We have had very little rain in the past 23 months.
So if you are one of those people living in the Northeast part of the United States where summer appears to be passing you by, come to San Antonio, Texas the tourist capital of Texas. There is plenty of stuff to do on vacation here and there is plenty of hot weather for you to enjoy.
If you have any advice on what software I should consider, I would appreciate hearing from you.
But that is not the only frustration I have had to deal with. I have been using an online service that provides me with everything I need to put together a newsletter and send it out. I have been having problems with the site. The latest issue occurred just the other day when I tried to put a newsletter together. When it is time to put a newsletter together I have a template I use to cut and paste the different sections into the newsletter. For some reason when I hit the save button, what I had just pasted into the newsletter disappeared. This kept happening so I finally gave up and emailed the company. This newest problem has yet to be resolved but I sure hope it is soon.
If you regularly watch the weather reports you might have heard Texas is in a major drought and experiencing record heat. Well, I presently live in San Antonio Texas and I can assure you it has been one of the hottest summers I have ever lived through. How hot? Well, yesterday marked the 30th day this year we have hit 100F (38C) or higher. In fact we had a record of 102F (39C). In 1998 we hit 100F (38C) or higher 36 times which is the all time record. Honestly, I will be surprised if we do not break that record as there is no relief from these hot temperatures. One reason it is so hot is the soil is done dry. This drought is said to be worse than the five year drought Texas had in the 1950’s. We have had very little rain in the past 23 months.
So if you are one of those people living in the Northeast part of the United States where summer appears to be passing you by, come to San Antonio, Texas the tourist capital of Texas. There is plenty of stuff to do on vacation here and there is plenty of hot weather for you to enjoy.
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