Originally, each post from this month appeared on its own separate page. They were combined here in February, 2022.
Posted Monday, January 3, 2005 at 10:45 p.m.
Joe went to a youth lock-in at the church New Year’s Eve and didn’t sleep the whole night. On New Year’s Day the three of us got together with some friends for a buffet lunch and some fun conversation. Joe fell asleep there, then slept some more at home later.
With Joe gone on New Year’s Eve, Wendi and I had the opportunity for a romantic dinner. We started with some frozen appetizers (mini egg rolls and mozzarella sticks); then for the main course we had sirloin steaks with sauteed onions and mushrooms; baked potatoes with sour cream; broccoli in cheese sauce; and Meier’s Sparkling Spumante (non-alcoholic) to drink. For dessert, we had Football Sundae ice cream, which consisted of chocolate ice cream with peanut butter ribbon, and dark chocolate fudge filled mini footballs. Talk about rich! Wendi couldn’t finish all of hers, so I ate the rest of it (like a dummy).
I (Charlie) woke up at exactly the stroke of midnight, coughing and choking. Fortunately it only lasted a few seconds. It was stomach reflux from eating that rich Football Sundae ice cream after the steak dinner Friday evening.
I decided not to let this happen again, so I slept on the love seat in the living room, covered up with a blanket and with my head propped up on two pillows, until 4 a.m.
At 4:01 a.m. I checked the website to see if my PHP scripts had made the proper changes at the start of the new year. I was delighted to see that everything was just fine!
On Sunday, January 2 at about 2 a.m. Shadow knocked the electric wok off the top of the refrigerator, and it clattered to the floor. A few minutes later, Stormy escaped the bedroom and hid under the love seat in the living room. I gave up and moved the adult cats’ food into the bathroom, where it remained until morning.
On Monday, January 3, Stormy woke us up at 3 a.m. She had been mild-mannered all last evening but now roamed about the room making her “Rrrrr” sound and waking me up every few minutes. Wendi never did get back to sleep. We both got up early, at 5:20 a.m.
Sunny has been an easy-going “gentle giant” lately. He used to hiss at me and bop me up the side of the head with both paws, but now he is relaxed when I hold him. And he is a cuddler too! The only problem with him is that he follows you into every room, even (or especially) if you don’t want him to.
Wendi was baptized Sunday morning at the 8:30 a.m. worship service. Everything went fine, and people congratulated her afterward. Joel Bradshaw, our youth minister, was the one who baptized her.
Today’s weather featured a wintry mix of snow and sleet, causing nasty, slippery conditions for motorists and pedestrians alike. It took me awhile to clear the snow off of the car before picking Joe up at school.
Posted Tuesday, January 18, 2005 at 4:00 p.m.
Five mornings in a row—from Friday the 14th through Tuesday the 18th—our thermometer read exactly zero degrees Fahrenheit when I checked it at about 7 a.m. Had I not seen it at six below zero on December 24, I would wonder if it was capable of displaying subzero readings. Thankfully it wasn’t any colder! Folks in Embarrass, Minnesota had to endure 54 below on Monday.
This winter’s weather has been weird anyway (then again, when isn’t Wisconsin weather weird?). Before Christmas we had bitter cold; then just before New Year’s we had mild weather. Just into January there was an ice storm, then a foot of snow fell from January 4th through the 6th. Now instead of the customary cold wave following the snowstorm, we had several days of mild weather followed by strong thunderstorms and temperatures in the lower 40s. Much of the deep snow melted, causing flash flooding in some areas. Right after that came the severe cold wave. Go figure!
Oh well; spring is only two months away.
Joe’s birthday was Monday, January 17. First thing that morning, Sunny, our big orange cat, walked up to Joe holding a dead mouse—the first mouse killed by any of our cats!
For dinner we had round steak (on the broiler) with sautéed onions and mushrooms; hash browns; and canned corn. At 7 p.m. we sang “Happy Birthday” to Joe; then he blew out all 16 of the candles on his cake at once, and we ate cake and ice cream.
Posted Friday, January 21, 2005 at 9:45 p.m.
Joe’s birthday was last Monday, but the party was held this evening. There were 11 of us in our tiny house! We served five frozen pizzas, a “junk mix” consisting of several types of snack foods, and plenty of soda pop. Activities included Gamecube games (Donkey Konga and Super Smash Bros. Melee) and a snowball fight. Of course, there was cake and ice cream and some presents. Everyone had a wonderful time! Three of the boys stayed for a sleepover.
Posted Tuesday, January 25, 2005 at 1:30 p.m.
I (Charlie) was hesitant to post any of this because normally I don’t (that’s why there is no category for this entry, and it ended up in Leftovers). But frequent changes in personnel, especially in God’s house, can be quite upsetting to many, including our family, so I felt obligated to report on it this time. I waited for the shock of Joel’s resignation (see below) to settle down before making this post.
Mitch Beswick is the new Director of Administration and Communication at the Roxbury Road Church of Christ, where we attend. The congregation voted to accept him to the new position on December 5, 2004.
Joel Bradshaw resigned as Minister of Youth and Family on January 11. He and Jen are already praying and looking for another place to serve the Lord.
As a family, we are sad to see Joel go, since he was quite close to us, and especially to Joe. We will continue to pray for him and Jen, and we intend to keep in touch.
Posted Tuesday, January 25, 2005 at 1:46 p.m.
We received a phone call from my sister at 6:21 p.m. on Friday, January 21. My mom (Joe’s grandma) is in the hospital with congestive heart failure.
She was reportedly doing somewhat better on Sunday, but she took a turn for the worse on Monday. Her blood pressure and heart were unstable. We were told that “they are not calling for family to come yet,” which implies that this may be an option, should things get much worse.
Update, 8:10 p.m.: Mom is doing better today. They gave her blood on Sunday, and she was eating today. However, she is anemic and her heart is still beating irregularly at times.
Posted Monday, January 31, 2005 at 10:12 p.m.
In my December 23, 2004 post I described the problem we had with our furnace. So far since then, the furnace has not failed us, but we are getting help from the Weatherization Department of Community Action. Two men were here on January 11 for an Energy Audit which took about two hours; they determined what appliances should be replaced and what other work needed to be done, to decrease our energy usage and cost while improving safety and comfort.
On January 26 two guys were here to replace our kitchen stove; the oven is producing excessive carbon monoxide emissions (1,900 parts per million; 100 is considered safe). They were unable to replace the stove because of a bad gas valve which must be fixed first.
On January 31 we received a new refrigerator to replace the one we bought, used, when we got married in 1982.
A new water heater as well as some work on the furnace are slated for this coming Wednesday.
Posted Monday, January 31, 2005 at 10:20 p.m.
Since Wednesday, January 26, Stormy is now spending all of her time out in the house with the other cats. I mixed the rest of the Kitten Chow about 25% into the Cat Chow, until it is used up. I also moved her litter box to the top of the stairway leading into Joe’s room, so all of the cats can use it.
Posted Monday, January 31, 2005 at 10:28 p.m.
The entrance to our basement is an old-fashioned floor-level door in the mud room; it was an outdoor entrance before the mud room was built years ago. On Sunday, January 30 at 8:02 a.m. I found Sunny meowing, with his right front paw caught in the basement door; he was heard howling at around 7 a.m. and must have been stuck there since then. Gently I tried to pull him free but failed, afraid to pull harder lest I might injure him. Finally I lifted the door, and he slowly walked away. There was no damage to the paw, and soon Sunny was okay.
Posted Monday, January 31, 2005 at 10:36 p.m.
Wendi has been experiencing a lot of congestion lately, and her voice has been hoarse off and on for several weeks now. On January 26 she started on an antibiotic; the doctor suspects an infection. So far she has seen little or no improvement.
We have been renting a wheelchair through Medical Assistance until now. Today Wendi learned that Medical Assistance has approved the purchase of the wheelchair! She also received a new Bible in the mail, from a friend.
Posted Monday, January 31, 2005 at 10:43 p.m.
This is a follow-up to the January 25 post about my mom (Joe’s grandma) who is 81 years old and is currently in the hospital with congestive heart failure.
By Saturday Grandma was out of intensive care, but the test that shows the congestive heart failure had actually gotten worse. Dr. Griffith, who is caring for her in the hospital, told my sister that he didn’t expect her to get any better.
Today she is not eating or drinking. She appears to be giving up. She sleeps and then wakes up moaning in pain. But when they ask her if she is in pain, she answers, “No.” Grandma appears to be “slowly dying,” but she could still hang on for days, weeks or even months yet.