The Silver in All

Okay,... silver lining in the market strife. I'm no longer the only loser when it comes to not having much put away in their Roth IRA. Suddenly, my time in the nursing home just became more interesting. I can hear it already, "Oatmeal again?! Why if the market could have held, I would have been eating lobster in some pub off the coast of Maine! Okay, maybe not lobster,.... but I would definitely be in some pub off the coast of Maine!,... or Michigan! Yeah,.. most assuredly Michigan." Then I remember that money and stuff is just on loan. Apparently, unlike Wall Street today.

Got to spend some time on the court tonight working with Hannah's basketball team. It brings back how much I really enjoy coaching and working with kids. After Hannah's diagnosis, it was one thing that I thought I would never have again,.. time with her on the court - but then I found myself (watching players run the wrong direction, passes being thrown to the middle of nowhere) enjoying it more than ever. It wasn't so much the basketball, as much as it was basketball with Hannah.

The Non-Decaf Venting

Foto Friday bets are off! I just finished writing a paper for my college course, and if I never have to look up APA format again, I will be okay. If there were a top ten list for things that absolutely suck when your in your forties it would be this:

10: People in the 30's!

9: Having a college loan.

8: Still using furniture from your college days.

7: The fact that I know what life is like without a computer.

6: Paying for water.

5: A paycheck that doesn't read "infinity" in the net column.

4: Belts in your closet no longer fit, but you can't get rid of them (just in case).

3: When someone says, "Wow,.. really,... you're in your 40's?"

2: Everything hurts longer.

1: Still having to write a college paper!


The bonus to being in my forties,... I made it this long, I might as well keep going!

Peace and Prayers

Get Your Gaming Face On

Hours of baking, hours of selling,...now came time for the payoff!

From the moment Hannah began her cookie and lemonade stand, the goal was clear:  Sell, sell, and sell some more. 

Then purchase something special for the kids in the hospital who are fighting cancer.  Something that would make things seem a little less bad.  Is that grammar used good or well? 

 I think my English teacher is going to seek me out and break me down like a sentence diagram.

Today was finally the first step towards the end of  all her hard work - it began with a cash recount.  "Dad I have a total,"  she announced to me as I watched the Bears game.  

"Ya, that's great,... talk to me in 15 minutes,"  I didn't mean to seem so flippant, but it was Da Bears! 

a moment of silence please due to a bad call by the ref on a 3rd and long situation that would have clearly put the Bears in great field position to win the game in overtime  (once again just another clear sign that societal gambling pressures affected yet another referee and the calls made in a game to determine the outcome).

Once we had the money counted and recounted, and my grief passed as I chanted the mantra of "it's just a game, it's just a game," we headed off to Best Buy to make our purchase of the Wii. 

 

Why the Wii? Why not movies or board games or PSP games or tiny ponies?  After going through many hospital stays, we wanted something for everyone - from the smallest child to oldest adult.  Something that everyone could play without knowing much about it.  If you've ever tried the Wii, you know exactly what I'm taliking about.  It's interactive without the emphasis on active. You have to move, but the movement can be grand or slight - perfect for someone who needs to be hooked to a poll lined with various chemotherapy drugs.   The other great catch is,... you don't have to guess where the R3, L2, square, X, circle buttons are on any given controller.

When we arrived at Best Buy we went directly to the first manager we could find and explained what we had hoped to purchase with our money, but needed direction as far as hardware.  With the help of one of the sales guys, we quickly rounded up 2 consoles, extra numchucks (sounded a little violent, but it's a Wii World afterall), a charging station, and two extra controllers with mini games!  We opted to not purchase extra games from the store because some wonderful people had offered to locate games for a reduced price for us - thus Hannah simply brought her pad of paper to research games.  With her left over money she feels fairly confident that the kids will have some pretty cool games to play.

The shopping experience behind us, we rode home discussing the next step of spending the remaining money on games and planning the trip up to Bronson.  The kids however had other things in mind:

"Can we get a Wii for Christmas?"

"Can we just open one game up and play a little tonight?  You know, to make sure they work."

  What a wonderful gift everyone has given to the children who battle cancer.  You made it possible by supporting, helping, and sharing in the vision of Cookies for Cancer Kids.  

When Hannah does make the trip to Kalamazoo to present the gifts, it will be because she had the support of her friends, family, and community - Thank You so very much.

Next year - Cookies for Cancer Kids will begin anew.  The mission will be the same, the goal will be set higher, and the cookies and friendships,... fantastic!

In the meantime,... it's going to be pop tab collection for the Ronald McDonald house.  With your help and the collection of tabs, the Ronald McDonald House (located across the U.S.) provide families like ours with 

- home-cooked meals, 

- private bedrooms for families, 

- arts and crafts activities, 

- non-clinical support, 

- an extended network of support and connection to families going through similar experiences, 

- a warm, comfortable alternative to costly hotels, 

- and most importantly,... a chance for your child to experience the healing process with other children.

Foto Friday

Hannah's playing basketball for Trinity Lutheran.

Breaking Barriers

"Ummmm,... what's that?"  a mild-mannered student was attempting to make the teacher-student connection with me as I ate a pretzel during our 'snack time'.  That's right - I said snack time.  It's equivalent to the water cooler time you hear about in the business world,.. only I have to monitor healthy food intake along with appropriate behavior when it comes to the mingle.

"It's a small, fat pretzel," I gave her a straight answer, even though in my mind, I had ideas of making something up just for the fun of it.  

Then came the awkward stare, followed by silence.  

"Yep,... that's what is alright.  A pretzel,"  I wasn't sure where the conversation was heading, but I felt that a destination should be reached quickly.

Finally, her stare broke as she muttered an, "Ahhhhh, I thought it might be."

"Yep,"  I felt a need to repeat myself, all the while thinking How long can this continue? 

With a bob of the head, it was over,.. she walked back to her desk to complete her snack time.  I went back to grading papers and munching on the remaining pretzels.  I'm sure it's moments like this that would make our President's words (echoed by my superintendent) of Every Child, Every Day ring true.

Happy Snack Time Everybody!

Making the Call

It's official,... there's no one willing to give the cancer survivor a break on a Wii (even after telling all of them that she would be purchasing systems for other cancer children in the hospital).  Maybe it's the economy,.. maybe Hurricane Ike's to blame,.. maybe it's the desperate need to show a profit in the retail industry,... because I refuse to believe that people can't lessen the profit margin in order to help out someone doing good.  The closest I got to help was a manager at WalMart offering to let us know when a shipment of Wii's came in, along with giving us the low down on what accessories would be needed to go with what games.  

The plan is to hit the stores on Sunday and pray that Jesus wants to come with us - directly from church to the mall.  It's time to put a smile on some faces at the hospital.  After all, that's what it's all about.

Time Phlew

Still Alive!,... it's just been the beginning of school.

I went from a nice,... s l o o o w,... relaxing ,... summer,..... directly into chaos. Two kids in sports, two adult classes, back to school nights, orientation, reorientation, parent conferences,.... the new motto in our house seems to be "HAVE YOU SEEN MY _________?"

Hannah's hand (not pictured at the right - it's just a sample hand) doctors - Shin and Bishop are considering the removal of the three smaller bones that run across the base of her hand. The theory behind this is to free up more movement of the wrist, allowing her to get to neutral (which she hasn't been able to do yet) and gain some more strength and movement.

Both doctors discussed this and we are also seeing a Dr. Shaughnessy, who will give his opinion on the whole thing. We will know more after our November visit.

In the meantime, Hannah's playing basketball for Trinity and enjoying her time back on the court.

Foto Friday

Why walk to and from the showers when you have a V-Rod.

Bells Pull Through

Day 480:

The Jenna Mimmina concert went over smashingly! Hannah worked two shows and brought in just around the $350 mark for Cookies for Cancer. We couldn't have been more excited for the opportunity and the money raised for kids with cancer. Now that the drive is officially over for this year (with the exception of a few local business offices that may partake in some delicious cookies), Hannah's going to focus her efforts on the purchasing for the children's oncology floor. Thanks to the Baking Bells , Lakeland Continuing Care, Hannah had plenty of cookies for sale. We hope to have some photos for Friday of the event - we just have some "logistical digital configuring" to cover (no,.. I did not just make up that phrase).

As promised, and because I was unable to be at the concert and cookie sale, here's just a few of my favorite bike shots from the Harley 105th.