Ever Get A Song In Your Head And Can't Get It Out?

After spending four days in the house during the flooding rains of Thanksgiving, when the weather broke, cabin fever was in the race for the front door. Now, with twice as many days of almost perfect fall weather for the next ten days, my cardio walks have increased past the midway mark of the pivot point scale of zero to 10. Today, was one of those days when it was just a delight to be out walking.

 On the return trip to the parking area, I got a chance to sit down on a bench and look at the skyline of downtown Dallas some eight miles in the distance. The air was clear and bright and the outline of the buildings was sharp and crisp for a change.  As I sat on the bench listening to the sounds of the lake and watching planes take off over downtown from Love Field, ATC had the airports back on their normal flight approach from the north.

 Then eureka points began to  spring forth in those moments of content and white noise. My brain was once again thinking and it felt good. Like a computer printer, item after item was popping across my nerve endings like pages in the printers collection hopper. The top item was a bit of a revelation and I had to stop and think about that for a minute before thinking to my self that the EP was very much correct. It has been 10-years since I have decorated for Christmas. Ten Years! The second EP that popped up was that although I had not decorated like I once did, the memories of when I did were still deep in my heart and will always be there, whether I resume decorating for the holidays or not.

That thought genesis lies in the fact that there has been so many pictures taken at the dam and spillways, the past week,  the association of water over the dam had triggered that EP. As the afternoon passed and the joy of being out in the midst of nature, suggested to me that there were red grapes and a banana in my tote bag in the car, and that the return trip home would be paused long enough for a short list of staples needed from the grocery store.

On the way to the grocery, first it was a whistling, then it was singing the lyrics to the old
Tom Leher's Lyrics to Polution 
I could not get that song out of my head. You can probably figure out hold many years it's been since I bought that old 33 1/3 LP. My Lord! where has the time gone?

Clear Skies of Downtown 8-miles in the distance.

The seagull was grabbing the minnows just below the water's surface.

Father, Forgive Me For I Have Sinned

Today was one of those "go to the doctors" days. Why I schedule appointments so early is beyond me. To even make matters worse, the scheduled appointment that I made in the office for my future visit is 40-minutes earlier than today's appointment. Go figure. There was good news to be found during today's visit. It seems the new medicines are working like they are supposed to work. I got to see the  chart with the latest run after the pace test. It was very obvious that something was working well as the graph showed a marked decrease and that is the results the doctor and I were trying to achieve. 

When I was called to come get the vitals done, starting with the weigh in, I stepped up on the scale  and said to the scale: "forgive me Father for I have sinned". Since the last visit, I had been out to eat with my brother, went off the sugar wagon and had some donuts---and some killer double chocolate ice cream---and, oh! least I forget, the dutch apple pie. I figured that if I had been to confession in real time, three hail Marys and three Our Fathers would not be enough to cover the atonement for that list of no-nos. In all fairness, the dutch apple pie with  double chocolate a la mode was really good.

After bidding farewell to the doctor, nurse and receptionist, I headed back toward the pharmacy. We are under a Winter Storm Watch for a sleet and freezing rain event beginning tomorrow and going through Monday so I really wanted to get my errands done and get home and pray that no one looses power from any ice bringing down power lines. I have a fire place but have not used it in so long that I would not want to use it if the heat did go out. Maybe I should have a chimney sweep come check out the chimney again.

The wait at the pharmacy was right on cue. The technician said it would take 20-minutes to re-fill the script and that's exactly what it took time wise. Next stop would be K-rogers.  I always spend a bit more at the grocery. It's just one of those things that I don't even worry about anymore. I am still taking weight off for the most part, despite the extra pound gained at the doctor's office. Of course, we didn't do the less three pounds deduct for clothing, shoes, jewelry, etc.,etc. It's taken some wrangling to keep the health in eating, but for an old man, I've done very well. Of course, now you have to watch everything because you don't want a Type II diabetic to sneak up on you. Still, I do reward myself for sticking to my healthy life style diet.

Forgive me father for I have sinned. It's been three weeks since my last confession. I'm Presbyterian by the way. And, of course, before someone gets their knickers all out of sort, I am not making fun of  my Catholic friends and family. There could be a full length novel on religious cross-overs in the written text don't you know.

This image is available from the author through FeaturePics. Just click on the image and order this great graph royalty free.

Just A Few Old-Man Philosophies

My cardiologist is fine tuning my meds again for a number of reasons but the biggest reason comes as a result of my weight loss from the cardio walks and  regaining the strength  again to ride my bike. Also,cutting out all sugars and eating much more garden style without being a vegan or total vegetarian has really helped..Do you know how many ways you can cook chicken? It's amazing. The cows would be happy in the Chick-fil-A commercial.

My appointment today was way to early for me. At one point in life, I was a big morning person, but throughout the years--especially in retirement-- I have been know to wake up, take my scheduled meds and go back to bed until the sun is much higher in the sky. But, early voting started on Monday and I wanted to vote after the visit to the doctor.

At the polls, I voted for 2 Republicans, 2 Democrats. The rest of the voting went to Libertarians and Green Party. I voted for one amendment and against all the rest. Not, specifically because I liked the candidate or the ideal but more because I have been unhappy with the  leadership, the work being done in congress and the basic attitudes inside the Beltway. So, like my old history teacher hammered into my brain years and years ago (the talk of term limits was being discussed even then for you 20-30 something readers) you do not like how things are going in the political arena, you vote the bums out. Yes, I know.....your voting isn't going to change a thing. Well, what you have to understand is that this is a joint adventure. And, there are plenty of others that are thinking that way, too. That's why the political pundits have their  half-moon table discussions following up-set elections as a moderator ask the question: what happened, do you think? Democracy is still the best system in the world. Yes, I still did my pumping-arm action and yell, as I left the polls. "Oh, that felt so good!" This year, there were something like 8 or 9 pages of people voting and 7 or 8 pages of amendments. So this year, it really did feel good!

Here is another little thing that changes my vote at the polls. If your candidate called me on my house phone during the year, your candidate lost my vote with that call. Ain't technology, great? It's a two-way street folks. I signed up years ago for the "do not call" list. I know, there are loop-holes for organizations and others. Here's the thing. It is a DO NOT CALL list. The government advertised it as a DO NOT CALL list and that is what it means. You call me, you get no money, you get no vote! You get the dial tone as a bonus. Of course, 90% are robo calls but they understand that dial tone!

Early Voting Is Officially Underway

Those are holes from a pellet gun or worse!

A key lock on a railing at one of the scenic overlooks at the dam.

The two out-of-pocket pictures come from things I noticed on a cardio walk after the voting and waiting on the pharmacy to call that my scripts are ready. It was a perfect fall day, warmer than normal.