4-24-06
This has been a crazy week!
The cruise with Jason and Eric went well. I had my usual 200 ice cream cones. Ha! Especially fun was watching them para-sail together. The driver of our boat thought it would be funny to drag the boys through the water a bit, and then let them go. The boys were laughing out of control. That night, I had to take a sleeping pill. Apparently, I was talking in my sleep, and wasn’t that coherent. The boys caught on, and were harassing me for a long time…saying things like there were bugs in the bed, and that I was falling off the bed and over the balcony. They also said that I had an accident (if you know what I mean?). That was a crazy night!
The last day of the cruise was extremely stressful. I told Eric that he had 1/2 hour to say goodbye to his friends on the ship, and that he had to be back in the cabin at 12:00 AM, which is the curfew. Well, about 2:45 AM, we had the ships’ security, Wayne, Jimmy, Jason, Steve, Aaron, and myself looking for him. I finally saw him strolling down the hall (knowing that he was in trouble). I had three emotions. The first was, relief. I was so glad to know he was ok. The second was, anger. I was so mad that he disobeyed. The third was, disappointment. I have had a few bouts with him about disrespect, but this was the last straw. I had to go down to Jimmy’s room and talk so I could cool down. By the time I got back to my cabin, he was asleep. The next morning we had a good father/son talk, however, there are going to be penalties. I’ll talk about them next week.
Later, I was informed by Donny, that my father had fallen down again. He was on a walker, but that was not stable enough. I have always worried that having a cane, a panic button, or even a walker, wasn’t sufficient. Don’t worry though, he’s ok! We are going to get a good evaluation on him this week.
Until then, may the force be with you!
Jay
4-16-06
I would love to wish everyone a Happy Easter. I hope you are all doing well. It’s also Jimmy’s birthday, and we are going to have a party for him tonight. Right now I am in Galveston, Texas, on the cruise ship Rhapsody, sitting on the balcony.
I feel much better this week, last week I was a little overwhelmed with a lot of different things. But, with a lot of prayer and positive thinking, I pulled through and I am feeling really good. Two of my boys are with me, Jason and Eric. They are real characters, but a lot of fun. We all miss Kandilyn, Marcus, Isaac the cat, and Ice Man the bird.
I’ve been thinking about, especially on this day, the Gospel of Jesus Christ and how it brings joy and peace in our lives. I heard a saying that goes – “The gospel is a great way of living, and a safe way of dying.”
Actually, the gospel is the lifestyle of peace – a way of thinking, a way of being, and a way of doing. I hope we can all remember how blessed we are. Most importantly, to remember that we have all been saved because of the resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ.
Thank you to those who are reading my journal, I hope it is interesting for you. I appreciate the comments you are leaving, and look forward to continuing to share my thoughts with you.
Have a great Easter!
Love,
Jay
4-10-06
It is the 10th of April. It seems time goes by so fast!
This has been a crazy week! Kandilyn left for a few days to see family and relatives, so the boys and I decided to have some good ol’ crazy fun. We also included my father in our activities (he is just like a kid). We had a great time, buying BB guns, looking at cars, eating out, and hanging (or chillin as the boys say) at the house. I think we are all burned out!
Kandilyn came home early, and got upset…she thought a tornado hit the house. Ha! Anyway, I felt bad, and started cleaning. I’m really good at doing my chores when she is home, but when she leaves for a few days, it seems I lose energy. We are back to normal now (whatever normal means?). The kids seem to be happy when there is an order to things, and some structure. I was raised differently. I had order, but my lifestyle was sporatic. I was on the road so much of my life, and my schooling was mostly home study and tutors. This has caused some friction at times. My way of dealing with the everyday-ordinary things of life differs somewhat from that of Kandilyn’s, however, we seem to work things out, and try to maintain some sort of stability.
I am concerned with my inability to handle stress lately. I get a lot of headaches, and I carry tension in my neck. My posture isn’t great either. I look for diversions like documentaries, food, and piano playing to help me deal with pressures. It used to be drums, football and karate that got me through the strain of things. It seems that I can’t get things done. Maybe it’s because I’m getting older and want to enjoy life more, but there are calls, errands, appointments, honey-do’s, etc. that seem to be harder to do than before. I guess that’s life. We all go through it. We have to take the good with the bad.
I once read that “If there is no solution, there is no problem.” A general authority of our church once told me, “For every worry under the sun, there is a solution or there’s none. Now, if there is one, hurry up and find it. But, if there isn’t one, never mind it! (Le Grand Richards)
A good psychologist told me, “Worry is nothing more than negatively anticipating something bad to happen.” It’s true…worry doesn’t help anyone. I heard a motivational tape on ruminating, and it said…If there is a problem or challenge, we first have to: A- Acknowlege the fear or concern, then C- choose if we want to ruminate and cry over spilt milk. Or do something about it. If the second is our choice, then we T- Take action and go after it! This little formula is called A.C.T., and I like it a lot.
Well, until next week, remember what Mother used to say: “This too shall pass!”
~ Jay
