How Quickly Summer Passes

So often I think about something to write and then go on to do something else. Then, when I'm ready to write, the "mood" is not there; the Muse has left the room. So, today, when the thought of blogging came across my mind, I decided to just do it. No earth-shaking thoughts to record, I decided I had gone long enough without tending to this blog child.

It has been a while since I posted. I have kept up with my food plan, and with my weight loss. I have not weighed in two weeks, but I can tell I am still on track. The last time I weighed I had lost a total of 65 pounds. I was wearing a size 66 pants and now am loosely in a 62 and flirting with a still uncomfortable 60. I can no longer wear the clothes I was wearing in May. So that's all to the good!

During the rush to trade in clunkers for cash we went to Little Rock to check out the "Car Wars" at War Memorial Stadium. Linda's car, a 1990 Lumina, had developed transmission problems and she was afraid to drive it. So we went to see if we could get cash for it on a trade-in on something better. We went to a tent staffed by Crain Hundai and test drove an Elanta. Very nice. Bells and whistles galore. And available to us for $350 a month (way over our budget). So we looked at other cars, and then the salesman came over with the bad news...our Lumina did not qualify for the Cash for Clunkers program. It had originally been rated at 20 mpg which was the cut-off line for the program.

So we left, sorta disappointed, but happy we had not gone into debt for another $23000. Linda really wanted something used, not new. She also wanted it to get better mileage and wanted it to be red. Yep. Red. So I laughed when the salesman called the next day with a 2007 Ford Focus with 14,000 miles on it. It was red. And we ended up getting it. Even though it did not have "Drive" the Lumina had 1st, 2nd, overdrive and reverse. So I drove it to LR in OD and we traded it in.

Linda has been very happy with her new wheels, and is getting out and about on her own more than she has in a long time. This is, of course, a big help to her ego and to my spirits, too.

She also qualified for her Social Security disability status, so she will now have some monthly income of her own and can make her own car payment. All to the good.

Weight loss--I tend to overestimate how much I have lost, but I feel I am close to the 350 pound mark. I have applied to our insurance group for coverage for lap-band surgery. They will meet September 23rd to discuss my case (among others). IF they approve the coverage, then we will need to begin the process with the surgeon, find the money for the co-pay, and try to schedule around my various commitments so I am not having surgery during Christmas, NSN events, etc.

And speaking of NSN (National Storytelling Network), Linda and I are planning to attend the National Storytelling Festival the first weekend in October in Jonesborough, Tennessee. There is a 3-day NSN Board meeting following, so it will be a week away in the Smoky Mountains of Eastern Tennessee for us. We are looking forward to the trip, if not the expense of it. Linda and I both told at the Arkansas Storytelling Festival in Little Rock last month, and had fun doing it.

It is too bad that we will not have time to drive up to Boston to see our Laura, Kyle, and Abby who just passed the 9-month mark in her life. They keep us updated pretty well with photos, videos, and blogs. We are looking forward to seeing them again at Christmas!

When I started this I wasn't sure where it was going. If a trooper was following it I wouldn't have been surprised to have been pulled over for wandering all over the place. But I'm happy to have made this entry. I'll do more. It's good to have the Muse back in the building!