A Dream

I dreamt that I took Lisa to a breakfast function at St. Adalbert's, my childhood parish. We parked on the 20th St side of the church building, in angled parking along the church itself - and nevermind that it was obviously nighttime (despite being breakfast) and that there is no such parking in real life, nor even room for it, on that side of the building. 

Inside was a bright, L-shaped room, with the vertical half of the L nearest the entrance, and set up for the buffet line, with seating along the bottom of the L. 

I got in line. Midway through the buffet was a stack of papers and pencils, and for reasons unknown you had to stop and write your name on a scrap of paper. I noticed the name that was being written by the man behind me. It was the name of my Godfather, but when I turned to greet him it was the face of Ted Turner, the old owner of CNN and the Atlanta Braves. But it *was* my Godfather, in name and personality. 

He offered me a job, a good one. I wondered, even in the dream, why he would wait nearly half a century to try and help me. 

Then I was seated a long table in the room,  Lisa and the family around me. 

There was a dramatic jump cut and I was somewhere else, home maybe, and my wallet had fallen out and I was missing all my credit cards and my driver's license. 

I knew, even in the dream, that this part of it was a dream, and moreover that it was the rare bit that could be tied directly to real-life concerns; before bed I had noticed that my wallet had fallen out of my jeans, and found and replaced it in its pocket. 

There was more, but the rest is lost in a haze. 

Lisa's Accident and a Heck of a Snowstorm

Thursday a snowstorm hit Milwaukee, starting at about 5pm and going well into the next day. It was heavy, wet stuff that was hard to shovel and very slippery to walk/drive on. Tree limbs were down all over the place. Total accumulation of snow in some areas: 10 inches. 

Unfortunately, Lisa had to drive home from work in that slop. In her own words: 

Spun out on freeway last night and ended up being hit by a semi. Walked away from it. Car, not so much. Now me and Dan are stranded with a flat. The good and back luck lately in our family so interwoven and complex it's mind boggling. Staying positive and reminding one another we are still so blessed.

That casually written post doesn't really hint at the close call she had. Although she refused to go to the hospital, it was clear that Lisa was both in shock and concussed - immediately after being hit she texted the family group chat "Hit by semi, Need Help, 911" rather than call 911 herself. (That was met with screams of horror by the kids)  She also thought an ambulance on the scene was a tow truck, etc.  But other than bruises and aches, and a concussion that has lingered for a few days, she walked away FROM BEING T-BONED ON THE DRIVERS DOOR BY A SEMI ON THE HIGHWAY. 

Thank you Lord. 

She arrived home in the back of a deputy's car, and we sat and talked about what happened. And then, at 12:58 AM. the storm knocked out our power. Over 3000 of our neighbors were affected, and it remained out until almost noon. Even then streetlights along a major road by us were out for literally sixty blocks well into the afternoon. 

And then, when in the AM, when I drove Lisa to a doctor's appointment, my tire went flat. May I point out that it was cold, and snowing, and I was already hours late for work. Oh, and I couldn't find parts of the jack so I had to bite the bullet and call roadside assistance. We pulled into a Hardee's restaurant lot and had breakfast while I waited it utter humiliation of needing another man to change my tire.

  

So, not the greatest 12 hour period. But we ended it alive, in one piece, and thankful for the gifts we have. So there's that. 

Here's to a better start to my birthday weekend next week!

A Word is Not the Same

 

Robert Blake

Robert Blake, the actor whose career stretched from The Little Rascals, to In Cold Blood, to the success of the TV show Baretta - but who is probably best known for being acquitted in the murder of his wife -  has died at 89. 

RIP. 

Flowers

Had some fun with flowers today :) I need to do this more often.  - Lisa

Update from one year later: 

I was offered the opportunity [to do some floral arrangements] recently and had to turn them down because I'm working too many hours. Hopefully I'll get back to it soon. Miss it. Maybe I'll make myself an Easter arrangement.  :)