2014-06-13 Friday

Full Moon

I missed the Friday the 13^th full moon. The official full moon time was 4:11 Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time), Friday. For us in the U.S. EDT that was 12:11 a.m. this morning. From what I can tell, there were no weird are mystical happenings today.

Tonight the moon will still appear to be full. So if I remain awake I shall go outside and howl at the moon as if I were with wolves, who are one of my totems (“power animals”).

My Leg

The pain in my left leg has receded quite a bit today; by about 2 PM it was almost unnoticeable. My leg remains weak, but with the help of my canes I have been able to get around better than I have for a very long time.

Thus, I was able to wash to loads of clothes and one dishwasher full of kitchen stuff. Three bags of trash made it to the back of my CR-V, which after driving up to the gas station and purchasing five dollars worth of gasoline, I drove to the dumpster, heaved the garbage into it, and then drove in the opposite direction to the mail boxes.

98% of the mail was junk. The one exception was a letter from the department of the treasury informing me that they withheld another $204.15 from my Social Security check, which they credited to the Department of Education.  Since I already knew that as of June 3^rd when my Social Security was deposited to my checking account $204.15 short, I can rightly say that that letter was junk also.

Kitty Kids

I really must change my Habit of giving treats to the cats on demand. I am not concerned about the treats hurting them: the ingredients of the treats are as good or better than those in the dry cat food.

Alex and Midnight were on my desk together begging treats;
Midnight began to leap off just as I snapped this photo.

The problem is, all three Kitty kids gather around me and expect treats. We are down to our last bag of treats and I need to ration them. We won’t be able to afford more treats—or anything else—until July when my pension check is deposited.

There is an exception to that, of course. If the Department of Education refunds to me the more than $1200 that they had withheld from my Social Security check since January, then we will be in excellent shape.

Today I was able to access my account on the Department of Education website. The status of my request that the loan be discharged as of May 2003 continues to have the status under review.

Friday Funnies

If you have not visited my Nick’s Bytes Friday Funnies today, here are a few samples:

Please

2014-06-12 Thursday

June 12^th is special day for me: both of my sons were born on June 12^th four years apart. I remember each of their births as if it was just yesterday. They have both grown to be good men of whom I am very proud. Unfortunately, as most of you know, neither has any use for their dad.

What makes today even more special is that it is also the birthday of my grandfather, Nicholas Lawrence Temple, know to the readers of Nick's Bytes as TNT.

A Facebook post by my friend Pat in Sicily reminded me of why I am again writing this blog. It was a very nasty troll attack that almost drove me completely from Facebook. It began by the troll responding to my Facebook post lesson Pres. Obama during his trip to Afghanistan on Veterans Day by saying he wished that the President would be murdered in Afghanistan. That upset me to no end!

The troll then continued his attack on me personally with flame after flame. In case you are not aware of the definition of flamer in the context of the Internet—which neither the troll or his wife were—the Urban Dictionary gives this definition:

A person who constantly starts fights on forums or message boards, usually with many vulgar statements and outright lies attacking one individual or group.  

This flaming troll distracted me the point that I began defending myself against the flames which is neither my intent in writing on Facebook are my blogs. Even though I blocked the troll and his troll-wife from my Facebook account, he flamed again by accessing my pages via a mutual friend’s Facebook account. That was when I began considering deleting my Facebook membership.

Instead, I began to again write this journal blog. I am rather glad that I did. As a friend commented on this blog, blogging gives one the ability of writing much more depth and detail than either Facebook or Twitter. I just wish that I could follow the advice I gave Pat today via this graphic that I created shortly after the troll attacks. 

However, I can't. Being hated causes me an abnormal amount of spiritual pain.

 Tomorrow may also be a special day for some:

I, for one, do not believe that Friday the 13^th conveys bad luck.Cultural histories  confirm the neutral qualities of the day. On the other hand, I do see a potential for tomorrow being transmitter of good things.

For the past several weeks I have been reading—studying—the book Fire in the Head: Shamanism and the Celtic Spirit. For anyone interested in the ways of shamans and/or Celtic history, culture, myths, and spirituality,  this is a marvelous book that I highly recommend.

For the ancient Celts, it was not the combination of Friday, Thirteen, and Full Moon that would make the day special. It was that the light of the full moon was said to make fairies more active in lives and affairs of humans, often bringing good fortune.

With the arrival of Christianity, the fairies, who were seen as neither viewed as good or bad by the Celts became all bad. Thus, the beginning of the superstitions about the full moon and Friday the 13^th (Jesus was crucified on Friday; 13 people attended the Last Supper in the Upper Room).

I have one final item to share: the delightful and potent prayer that I received from a friend in this morning's email:

~ Healing Prayer ~

Take my higher self

and every aspect of my being

To the very first incident

that caused these issues to start.

Let go of all of them

Hold the space open for

me to fill with all good.

I ask my spirit to dissipate all negative thoughts

and behaviors quickly without

and within, no residue

or echoes left behind.

I am filled with love

and gratitude

I am surrounded and loved

and protected in every way.

Please help us:

we are in great need this month

2014-06-11 Wednesday

Rain has begun to come down again. It seems to be getting harder by the minute. I feel for the grounds maintenance to have been cutting grass and trimming during the lull in rain. I remember my college summers when I worked as a Greensman on Louisville’s Shawnee Golf Course. If I were cutting a green when the rain began, I would do my best to complete the job before moving to shelter. Usually, my clothes ended up soaked. When the rain stopped and the sun began to shine, it seemed that steam arose from my wet clothes as they dried.

Shawnee Golf Course: one of the greens for which I was responsible

Having my toenails from yesterday was a wonderful experience. Considering my initial Veterans Affairs medical appointment for toenail trimming was last February, were extremely long. So long that my right big toe punched a hole in my house slippers. And, the only shoes I could get into the go outside were opened-toed sandals. The podiatrist who trimmed my nails did an excellent job. Because I am diabetic, she will return on a monthly basis not only to check my toenails, but the condition of my feet. I wish I had known about these service years ago.

I wish the rest of me felt as good as my toes feel. I’m still almost constantly nauseous. The only thing that helps is a teaspoon of baking soda dissolved in a glass of water and drunk. My left leg remains painful and weak. There are a lot of shores that I have been unable to do, including washing clothes, putting dishes in the dishwasher, general cleaning, and fixing myself good meals. I have plenty of food; I just am unable to get to it.

The Kitty Kids have been quite happy since I was able to purchase their favorite wet cat food and treats on June 2^nd. Unfortunately, the food will not last until the end of the month and as of right now I have only about $15 in the bank. 

Sugar with her favorite treats

Alex with his favorite treats

Midnight would prefer to run and play than eat treats. (Not all the time, of course)

I am unable to pay my electric bill. Today I finally got to talk to someone at Louisville Gas and Electric. She told me that I cannot make any arrangements now but must wait until after June 17th (when the payment is due) and I receive a “disconnect notice.” That makes absolutely no sense to me. I would much rather make arrangements now without risking having my electricity and thus my oxygen got off.

My hope in all this financial shit is that the United States Department of Education will refund me all of the money they have taken from my social security check this year once my disability is recognized. Of course, I don’t really expect that the bureaucracy will do that with lots of negotiation. I have tried several times this week to reach the D.O.E. by telephone and on the Federal Student Aid website without finding out anything. ‘[SIGH]

One final comment: I have been having extreme difficulty breathing the past couple of days. Between that and my weak leg, I have spent most of my time connected to the CPAP, sleeping.  It isn’t that my blood oxygen level is low—the pulse oximeter read 95% most of the time—it is that I have difficulty breathing through my nose so I’ve breath through my mouth. I have been doing that almost all of my life. I suppose it has to do with the allergens I have been exposed to in the many river valleys in which I have lived.

Please

We are in serious need.

2014-06-08 Sunday

Today was another day of nausea and left leg weakness. This not being able to walk is becoming a real bother. Twice today I pissed myself trying to make it to the bathroom. Somewhere I have one of those and hand-held urinals, but I can’t stay on my feet long enough to find it.

I have had difficulty getting to the kitchen to prepare my meals. This evening I did something that, considering I don’t have enough money to pay the utility bill this month or additional food for the Kitty kids at me, was really dumb. I ordered and had delivered a pizza, which will provide three meals for me and which I do not plan to refrigerate. (Anything to stay off my feet).

Again I have been napping a lot today. I regret taking a late afternoon nap that lasted until after 8 PM because I miss my time to telephone my mother. I attempted to call her after I woke up, but it was evidently too late and she was already asleep. Not being able to talk to her saddens me; at age 91, I won’t have that many more opportunities to talk to Mom.

The Kitty Kids have been real darlings today. Even Alex allowed me to nap through their 5 PM dinnertime. Sugar is unhappy that we are again out of kitty cat treats; however, she finally ate the dry cat food I offered her in their stead. With my limited mobility, Midnight no longer follows the into the bathroom but is now is there ahead of me, awaiting my arrival.

That’s it for this Sunday. I completed tomorrow’s Nick’s Bytes blog post late this morning. So I shall now meditate, attempt to massage my leg, and go back to sleep.

2014-05-31 Saturday

My bum leg this weak today, so I’ve not been able to move around as much as I would like to move around today. I was able, however, to prepare two excellent meals while sitting on the folding chair I keep in the kitchen.

Breakfast consisted of the last of my bacon strips and my last two eggs in the carton. With the final bit of orange juice and coffee—I have plenty of coffee—breakfast was a feast!

Dinner consisted of the last four frozen fish sticks. I wish I had a salad to go along with it; however, even the minced fish of the fish tasted yummy.

I can scarcely wait until Monday when my pension check will be deposited in my account so that I may do some shopping for the Kitty Kids and me.

I have been attempting to take a photograph of Midnight’s posterior past two days. Late Wednesday night as Midnight stood on my stomach looking at Alex who was curled up on my legs, I began to question whether or not what I thought was her vagina might not be testicles. Whatever it is, it is solid black and quite hairy. So, yesterday and today I have been trying to photograph midnight’s rear end so that I may share a photo with my Internet friends who are much better than I am in determining cat gender.

Normally Midnight is always sticking her ass in my face. However, each time I have attempted to photograph her posterior in the past 48 hours, she has turned toward me instead of away from me, which is the direction that I want her to point. I wonder if she is doing this because she perceives that I want to photograph what is beneath her tail.

Of course, Alex is always willing to pose.

I posted the May Graphic Wisdom on Nick’s Bytes earlier today. So I’ll close this Journal entry with a few of the wisdom graphics that touched my soul.

Please

2014-05-30 Friday

Late this morning I was going through stuff in the bedroom. I keep telling myself that when I find the energy, or, Veterans Affairs allows me to have a housekeeper again, I’m going to organize all of that stuff. That is not going to happen so I must continue to do things in 10 to 15 minute blocks of time with resting and having my leg elevated higher than my heart.

Anyway, I found a huge wad of all sorts of electrical cords and connections. Coming out of the wad I saw my long missing heating pad. “Ah,” I say to me self, “I can apply warmth with that the next time my back feels as it did the other day!”

There was, however, one rub: the long cord attached to the heating pad was buried throughout that huge ball of electrical stuff. So, I spent about 75 minutes this afternoon untangling the cord of the heating pad from all of the other cords. I am proud of my success.

Now, when I have the time, I shall work on separating the rest of the stuff from its entanglement. Some day. Maybe.

I published my Friday Funnies on Nick’s Bytes today. Here are the few of my favorites:

Ya'll have a grand weekend! 

I'll be back tomorrow, God willing and the electric company doesn't turn off my power.