"Lost And Found.................... &.............Thanks Big And Little"

Good Morning;

So last night I went to Whole Foods and Starbucks double checking to see if my Independence card was there....it wasn't. I went back to the shed by 10:00 pm. tired, sore, (I did something to my right ankle and/or foot yesterday and it is stiff and swollen....which may work in other places of one's anatomy...but is not good news below the knee....lol). It cooled off rapidly and much more than I thought it would, and I woke up cold and with my foot aching about midnight, thinking it was near dawn. I had been laying on top of the sleeping bag, that's how warm it was when I fell asleep. The rest of the night until about 6:00 am. I could not get either warm or comfortable. I finally fell into a deep sleep about then and slept through both of the alarms on my phones, waking about 11:00 am.

Between the lateness and the swelling in my ankle, my trip to Walmart is postponed until...??. I e-mailed my caseworker with apologies and we will be in touch next week.

Trying to fit a boot with my foot in this shape makes no sense. If it is worse tomorrow, I'm going to the ER and if it is no better tomorrow and Friday, I'll be heading to JAI with a double reason.

(The first is to ream someone out concerning the referral to the Neurosurgeon....remember!)

Ok, I'm back.

I just went to the Giant and did some shopping for Rachel and I for our Thanksgiving weekend together at Jenn's. The cashier I had hoped to find, Carol, who knows me and Rachel, and who usually handles the checkout procedures with my card was not there. When I asked about her to the young lady taking care of the self serve registers, my face must have shown my extreme disappointment and dismay and she asked what was wrong. I explained the situation and my hope to find Carol, (who normally works on Wednesdays), and that she would be able to input the number with out having the card in hand, trusting me due to our friendship.

The cashier, Ugochi, says to me, "No problem, I see you every day too and have punched in your card also....I'll do it for you". I was so overcome with gratitude and relief I could not stop thanking her, almost to the point of embarrassing her. My face again must have mirrored my happiness and the release of tension and stress to such and extent that she grinned and almost burst out laughing.....lol! (And I DO have a pretty good 'poker face' when I am actively trying to conceal emotion or reaction.....lol.)

I picked up some things to make the special dishes I know Rachel likes, (and she has Champagne tastes!!), and went through the process of checking out and then over to the special register for the self serve checkouts and she keyed in my number and I entered the PIN. Just as we finished the transaction and I was again thanking her and packing my bags......the head cashier Joetta comes past and asks if I got my card yet....she said they found it yesterday, after I had called and stopped in inquiring about it! She went into the office and handed it to me, after confirming my name, saying she thought it was my card. I am more well known there than I thought....lol! I know 95% of the employees by sight, and about 50% of them by name, (because they wear name tags), not thinking that more than 4 or 5 knew my name, (because I don't wear a name tag...lol). Then I realized that they sell the Jewish Times there and it must have gotten passed around back in February when my picture was on the cover....lol!

I am heading to Jenn's in about half and hour to put the food in the fridge and freezer and to maybe shower and hang out while they are all gone. Maybe I'll head over to the coffee shop later, maybe I'll just hang with the Cable and the remote, and head out to the shed before they get home, (they are doing Thanksgiving today at Tom's mom's house and tomorrow at Jenn's cousin's, (with the whole clan on the Irish side of her family). Me... for my Thanksgiving I'm probably going to hang out at Jenn's tomorrow after they leave and have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich carved into the traditional shape of the holiday meal with the turkey shaped cookie cutter......LOL!

(I am open to a better invitation though....lol)

If the laptop is at their apartment I may be back with some more thoughts on Thankfulness and Gratitude and the past 2 years writing this blog...if not, I'll be back her at the library Friday morning before Rachel comes over to Jenn's.

I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving, and express my appreciation for all the comments and e-mails that have been sent to me offering advice or ideas, compassion and concern, and just regular old Hellos.

When you take a minute to consider what you are thankful for tomorrow, don't forget to offer up a prayer for, or extend a hand to, those who are not as fortunate as us.

Yes I said us, and include myself among the fortunate. There are folks out there with much more than I, but also with much less. What I lack in the material is compensated for by the people who I have met and reconnected with over the past 2 years.

Especially give a though to the homeless veterans out there. It is a crime the way this country treats those who placed their lives and their minds on the line for us. If you feel so inclined, checkout the link in the column at the left for the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans to find out what you can do to help.

Happy Holiday, and God Bless

Later.......................Dave

(anda special thanks to the person who invented Spell Check......Oy vey...what is wrong with my fingers today...............LOL!!)