Happy Birthday to me

Well....another year has gone by....one good thing about having a birthday at the end of the year is I always feel that a new year will bring something new. (Profound eh!)

Judy (an old friend from Belle Plaine) sent me an email wishing me a happy 39th!...ha...at one time I thought THAT was old...now I would take it in a second. When my dad was my age I was in my final year of high school. He certainly never slowed down, and worked hard every day on the farm, fixing canvas for the combine and the swather in the winter, milking cows every morning, cleaning out the barn (well I usually did that!). No barns to clean anymore....however sometimes I would prefer to do that. Glad I don't have to milk cows....tried that...Dad could milk two while I did one. (and with my now broken finger....that would be VERY difficult).

I am lucky to still have a job cause I can't afford to retire on what I would make. Everybody talks of retirement....ha...I doubt that they ever really figured out that they could never live off what a pension pays. My idea of a pension is...pay me what I am making right now...and tell me not to come to work...forever. That I could live on. Anything less...forget it. I'd be lucky to pay my utility bills. One needs to invest in real estate or something that has long term equity. A lesson I learned too late. Or better yet....win the lottery!! Yeah I know...that is NOT a proper retirement plan! Especially with MY luck!

So...I get Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday and Happy New Year ALL AT ONCE. I'm supposed to soak it all in cause that's it for the year! I can't believe how fast the years go by. Summers used to last forever when I was a kid.

My mom said..."if it wasn't for that glass of wine...you'd have been a new Years baby!"... yeah right....her idea of a glass of wine was a communion glass!
My friend Martin took me out for prime rib tonite....and Mark D. took me out for breakfast. That was nice. Thanks guys!

What my finger looks like today

Boxing Day

I was surprised this morning when I got an email from my youngest daughter Lori...whom I haven't heard from in a long time. She sent me a couple of pictures of her playing her cello in a concert on Dec 1.

Merry Christmas 2

Well...one of the Superintendants told me I was supposed to be at work on Christmas day...so I showed up. I couldn't get in with my pass card but the supt. let me in and I checked my email, and did various things until about 11 am when the Staffing Supt showed up...and asked...what I was doing there. Turns out I didn't have to be there at all. So I went home.

I called Ken Waiting and he & his wife invited me to spend Christmas with them at Ken's Parent's place in Olds. They made a great meal...and the their kids had a great time. They both got digital cameras for Christmas and were doing a good job of documenting everything in site. Jim Waiting (Ken's Dad) runs a tractor dealership in Olds...and lives on a very nice 1 acre site in Olds.

Thanks for everything...it was nice not to be alone at Christmas!

Merry Christmas

Had a great meal at my friend Martin's last nite. Barb really knows how to make a turkey!. Thanks so much!

morepics

Pics

biweekly evaluation

Well the doc says that there is only 11mm of deviation and that is acceptable...so..will see him again in 2 weeks. He thinks I can take off the steri strip and start to move it a bit. (Easy for him to say). It still is like....apart....!!!!Oh well...it looks like the tendon is going to be a problem. Maybe I can play the guitar better this way heheh.

On a Horse for the first time in 20 years

Yesterday I went to visit my former work partner Ken Waiting and his family. Took some pictures of his family for them for Christmas, and rode Zoie's (Ken's daughter) horse. So...I'm not as agile, or light as I used to be, and soon found out I couldn't vault onto the horse using the saddlehorn, like I used to. God knows I didn't try the Roy Rogers flying rear mount that I did as a 16 year old. After about 3 times around the coral I knew I had been on a horse. I can't believe how quick you can get stiff on a horse.

Nexus fingerprinting

Well..got my stitches out on Monday the 10th. Then Tuesday had to go for a Nexus interview. They have this real cool digital fingerprinter. They need pictures of all 4 fingers of each hand. It lites up when the pressure is correct. I had to take off my bandage. Lucky the tip was ok...or I'd have been out of luck. They also scan your retina. supposedly it will speed up air travel between US and Canada. But I was warned not to screw something up on any declaration or I'd be banned forever...and NEVER get another one! It kinda was very uncomfortable pushing on my broken finger...but I didn't want to wait and come back.

No stitches out today

Well the doc didn't want to take out the stitches today....Monday!! Ah it still hurts and I can feel it moving...like crepitus bone grating...ahhhh! At least it doesn't look infected.

Opened this up

Ok...today I opened the blog up to anybody. Maybe that will encourage those who hesitate to open Gmail account. (It's free what the heck!)

I got my Blizzak tires on the Olds today. I'm glad I have a garage. -20ºC. It was a hoot trying to get a glove on the hand with the broken finger. I had to cut the finger off (the glove that is!).

I also washed my little Dodge to prepare for winter storage. That car sucks in the winter, heater isn't great for the windows.

Damn it hurts when I bump that finger!

Blood Pressure Meds are FAT FERTILIZER

This is too important not to share.
Click Here

New "Foodsaver" system

I got the "Foodsaver V2490" today. Holy cow...I should have had this years ago. This thing will save food for years. You can get canisters to save things such as soup etc. Wine bottles, mason jars. You can get a marinator, and marinate foods in 20 min rather than overnite. London drugs had them on sale today $149.00. AWSOME deal!. I've seen them up to $300.00 at Wholesale sports. I'm going to get some more canisters. You can also get lids that fit right over jars and coffee cans. Foodsaver.com

Changed dressing

Took off the long finger splint, had to soak it for half an hour in some boiled water with povidone iodine. It is pretty swollen, and there is a part that wasn't sewn up, that leaked a bit. They gave me an antibiotic mesh and a 4 sided splint to put on. It looks relatively good, no infection. Still hurts like hell....especially when I bump it.

New Duties

Looks like I'll be trying to vaccinate people with the Mumps vaccine starting on Monday. (Monday to Thursday SDR rotation). Look out...I need a real big needle!

Next day PAIN

Well....the ring block has worn off, and it definitely hurts this morning. I'm gong to see how long I can go without pain meds. I hate that stuff, and it makes you constipated. Trouble is I have to take antibiotics too, which further upsets the digestive system. Maybe I can use this as an excuse to lose some weight!

Broken finger

Well...I was getting ready to do an early shift change call. I just put my stuff in the ambulance and was getting out. For some reason, I guess I was a little rushed and slammed the door before my left hand had left the door jam. The door actually closed on the index finger of my left hand. OUCH!. So, we booked the unit out of service and bandaged my finger, and waited for my partner to come in. Then we went to the PLC hospital and had it x-rayed. Yep....fracture of the second phalynx in the middle, no joint involvement. So the Dr. stitched it up...using a ring block (thank God!) and put a splint on it. He said it would take at least 4 weeks to heal. So...I guess I'll be on light duty if they can find some during December.

ACOP stuff

Well...I finally locked in my first ACOP competency profile. What a pain in the ASS this procedure is! Too many unknowns. AND too redundant! I don't know how we got ourselves into this mess!

Brutal 2 nites

Just getting home from a brutal 2 nite shifts (days wern't bad). 9 calls on the first nite, 5 on the second. 14 hours can get a little long. I start doing stupid things like putting the lifepak back without turning it off, ahahhh! We need more amublances in this city especially at 22 stn.

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GMO FOODS a MUST VIEW

GMO Foods

Me and my drums

Me and my BMW 650 GS

First Blog

Well...found this site...and now I'm posting something...whoopee!