good deed alerts

Well, all over West Virginia neighbors are helping neighbors as the power failure situation drags on. Last night there were still 78,000 people without power. They got over 100,000 online again in just one day.

In the past couple of weeks Fruth has donated around 50 gallons of milk and other groceries to people at Lee Terrace and Pastor Rick's food pantry. I gave Fruth Pastor Rick's number because I was unavailable to pick up some milk and other stuff they had. His church has a food pantry, an after school program and he feeds people here in the building as well.

I have been trying to do little things for Eddie in appreciation for him helping me in the power failure.

Lou went home last night. She finally had power and she was so happy. We had fun while she stayed with me. In appreciation she gave me a 32 inch tv that she wasn't using and even hooked up my dvd/vcr players and antennae box to it. I had 2 tiny tv's and one was hooked to the antennae and one to the dvd/vcr because I couldn't figure out how to hook it all into one.

Now I will wait for someone in the building to need a tv and I will give them away. One was given to me anyway.

Lou also took me to Shoney's breakfast bar yesterday and I had another fantabulous meat sundae. mmm mmm good. I bought her dinner at taco hell.

In related news, no good deed goes unpunished. I tried to help my mom out last week and she responded in her usual cutthroat fashion. Nothing new there. All I know is I helped her to the best of my ability. Nothing else I can do.

Emergency Help Needed in WV Now

Currently in West Virginia there is a power failure that started last Friday because of a massive storm.

I haven't seen a storm like that since I left Florida and had to shelter in during a couple of hurricanes (including Andrew) and one tornado. I had the misfortune to be driving in it. There was torrents of rain and sideways lightning and winds of a category 1 hurricane. The problem is that in WV, we don't have the infrastructure to withstand such storms. I saw heavy iron signs from railroad crossings in the road and sparks were flying under one stop light as I drove under it. It was one of the few that was working and many aren't working as yet.

Over 600,000 people were without power in the state. There are still around 200,000 without power because continued storms and the power necessities of a 100 degree plus heat wave keep blowing out the system again.

Many people can't work because businesses are without power. Many require cash. There are lines for gas because many stations don't have power. Bread, milk, bottled water, batteries and generators are in short supply and the supply is expected to dwindle. People are sharing their food and water and power as best they can and shelters are open everywhere.

If you don't live close enough to help then please donate to the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army because they are the two main charities in West Virginia who are here and ready and able to help as much as possible. The need is great. Power is expected to be out in many places until the middle of next week.

That is about 10 days with no power and people need helpl. The National Guard is out and the entire state has been declared a disaster area but people need food and water now.

Things That Make Me Happy (2012 version)

1. words with friends

2. my truck with Landau DNA

3. laptop

4. friends

5. Eddie

6. bi - pap machine

7. pretty days in the sun

8. swimming

9. spaghetti

10. Pepsi

The WORST Fireworks Ever!

I was on the waterfront in West Palm Beach. The first of the night's grand fireworks display went off and as I was watching the next one go up something fell into my eye. It hurt and I kept trying to blink it out to no avail. I was in misery for the whole display and the rest of the night.

Hoping that sleep would help I went to bed, but when I woke up the next morning the pain was just as bad and water would not flush my eye out. I went to work and went to get a friend. I told her I needed someone who was a mother to help me, otherwise I was going to end up in the emergency room. (everyone knows mother know ALL the best home remedies even though we were the same age)

She went and got a whole bottle of Visine and flushed my eye out with it. It immediately felt better. She said she flushed out glitter and soot. At least she got it out for me and I didn't have any permanent damage to my eye!

The Best Fireworks Ever!

Back in the eighties we were at the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta. This is when it was a HUGE affair with about 50,000 people in attendance and bands like the Beach Boys were playing. We came in town a few hours early so we could park right on the river and have great seats - which we did.

That night we were sitting there when they slowly positioned the barge on the river for the fireworks. They started right on time but about 5 minutes into the display one of the fireworks they shot up didn't explode and fell right back down into the middle of the barge. THEN IT EXPLODED! ABOUT 30 MINUTES WORTH OF FIREWORKS WENT OFF ON THAT BARGE AT ONCE. THE DECK HANDS HAD TO DIVE OFF OF THE BARGE INTO THE RIVER AND THE LITTLE BOATS AROUND IT HAD TO RESCUE THEM. THE EXPLOSIONS LASTED BETWEEN 5 AND 10 MINUTES. IT WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE.

THAT WAS THE BEST FIREWORKS DISPLAY EVER. (although hopefully it will never be repeated)

My Favorite 4th. of July

I met Bobby Jeffrey, my ex-husband.

I went to the Star Trek movie "The Search for Spock". I went by myself because I knew I would want to sit through it twice and none of my friends would do that. After the first movie I heard a loud crash behind me. Some guy sit in a seat and it broke sending him crashing to the floor.

A few minutes later I felt a tap on my shoulder. A man's voice said, "Haven't I seen you someplace before?" I thought to myself, "surely he could have thought of something more original than that to say." I turned around and to my surprise I HAD seen him before.

I said "hey, you're the guy from the bridge!"

He said, "So, that's where I've seen you, I knew that I had." We started talking.

Here is a brief history of the "guy from the bridge". He was a flagman who gave out roses and wore funny hats. One day I had to walk across the bridge and he asked me "if I wasn't afraid I would get raped or something." I coldly informed him that I could take care of myself. Later that week I was in another part of town and some guy went by me in a van whooping and hollering and hanging out of the passenger side window. It was him. We ran into each other somewhere else as well. I just seemed like fate kept putting us together.

After the movie ended he asked me if he could take me to dinner. He used the classic line, "I'll buy you a steak or anything you want." I told him steak was fine but I would rather have a hotdog. He replied that he was not a cheapskate. Again I told him I would just as soon have a hotdog and we ended up at my favorite hotdog place "Mecca Drive-in".

Then he took me home and he asked if he could see me again. I said "yes" and after a polite kiss I went inside.

The next day at 2pm (the appointed time) he wasn't there. At 5 after 2, I left and went to a friends house. About 15 minutes later my mom called and in a singsong voice said to me, "Bobby's he'ere." (you know the voice- the one for a boyfriend she entirely approved of)

I told her I would be right there. He was late because he had been getting us a roast chicken and a bottle of wine to take on our picnic.

We saw each other everyday after that. That weekend we went to "King's Island". When we got home my mom kicked me out for going away for the weekend with a man I wasn't married to. I called him and he came and picked me up. 3 months later we were married. 15 years later we were divorced.

Now it is 14 years later and we are speaking.

A Forgotten 4th. Memory

I remember standing behind my dad's wheelchair on the sidewalk outside our home in Huntington, WV. The fireworks from Camden Park which was about 3 miles away were plainly visible from our vantage point.

It was a lovely father/daughter moment.

It was his last 4th. of July celebration.

There are 19, which 2 will live

The Logan County Pound is a High Kill Pound. Call 304-752-1876. They are looking for foster homes and rescue groups to work with.

There's No Place Like Home

What a week!

I took part in a secret mission earlier this week. i would love to talk about it but I can't...under penalty of death....namely my own! I got the job done and I did it without too much interference from my heath or lack of it.

Is it bad that I prefer that some people think I'm lazy instead of sick? In my case, it is the way I approach certain people. It makes for peace in my world.

I got home Friday completely exhausted from my endeavors. I was ready to collapse and sleep for at least the rest of the day to recuperate. I kicked back on my bipap machine and played a few rounds of Words and was ready to go to sleep when the power went off in my building.

It had not even started to storm yet, or so I thought. Now a normal person would just go ahead and go to bed in that situation but if there is no power then I have no oxygen machine. So that means that I have to find power.

I had all my meds in my purse anyway because of the previously mentioned secret mission so I went to my truck and I was surprised when I went outside that the wind was blowing so hard that it took all my strength to walk to my truck. I thought for a second I wasn't going to get to my truck. That part was fun!

I made it to the truck and left to go see if Eddie had power. The stop lights were out at every intersection and it had just started to rain. By the time I made it halfway across town the rain was coming down in torrents and I could hardly see the road in front of me. One railroad crossing sign (the heavy iron ones) was down in the road and I had to drive around it and the stoplight in front of Eddie's house was throwing sparks all over the place as I passed under it.

I haven't seen a storm like that since I left Florida in 1995! The sideways lightning and unrelenting thunder and rain reminded me of a hurricane or even a tornado since I had been through one of those once as well.

I knocked on Eddie's door and he opened it and said, "What in the world? Get in here." I told him I had no power and he knows what that means for me so he told me to get some rest. (he also knew about my secret mission) He had company smoking in his living room so I had to go to his bedroom.

He told me his company was leaving and I told him to stop her because nobody had any business out in that weather. So they visited while I slept in the bedroom until she left a couple of hours later. I stayed the night. When I got up early Saturday I went home thinking the power would be on. It wasn't. So I loaded up all my frozen food and went back to Eddies. At this point I still thought the power failure was just in Charleston. I didn't know the whole state of WV was in a state of emergency.

I didn't find out about that until almost noon and I almost panicked because that meant that someone I had been helping was in severe distress with on one to help her. (back to my secret mission) I got on the phone and go someone to check on her. Her power was back on so everything was ok but she had no power the whole night. It was more of an emergency for her than it was me but I had no idea of her situation.

Anyway she's ok and I'm ok. I am completely and totally worn out though. I fully intend to sleep through tomorrow and maybe the next day as well. This little emergency would have been bad enough if I had been 100% when it started but I was already drained. Thanks to Eddie for making a bad situation bearable. It was hard on him because I tend to drain people's energy when I'm doing good. When I'm sick then it is a tough road for anybody around me. My health needs just have too many requirements for many people to tolerate.

There are lines for gas everywhere around here. People are panic buying. You have to have cash. The ATM's aren't working. Police, ambulance, firemen and national guard are everywhere doing what they can. The best think people can do is stay home and it is 100 degrees plus.

If it had not been for Eddie I would have had to go to an emergency cooling station. Some have power for people with oxygen machines and they are open around the clock. I am thankful to have him for a friend and I am thankful that he had the power and the inclination to help me.

I am thankful to be back home too.