A New Year's Prayer

I didn't write this, but I found it and really liked it so wanted to post this for my family & friends as my New Year's message/prayer for you:

A New Year’s Prayer

May God make your year a happy one!
Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain,
But by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes;
Not by making your path easy,
But by making you sturdy to travel any path;
Not by taking hardships from you,
But by taking fear from your heart;
Not by granting you unbroken sunshine,
But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows;
Not by making your life always pleasant,
But by showing you when people and their causes need you most,
and by making you anxious to be there to help.
God’s love, peace, hope and joy to you for the year ahead.

Happy New Year to you all. I love you and thank you for being part of my life!

New Year, New Resolve

Pleh! I have eaten so much "junk" this past week (or so) that I feel like I am what I eat. JUNK! However, last night I had a very delightful dinner at a re-visited local restaurant. Back "in the day" it used to be called the Shorewood. It is on the shore of the beautiful (I say that tongue in cheek) Moore Lake in Fridley. Me and my friends used to frequent it for their after work happy hour and when we felt really fancy, we would eat dinner there. The food was always pretty good and the ambiance was nice. Then they closed her down. Reopened as "The Crab Shack". I ate there a few times and it was good, too, but had a very different clientel. Not my kind of people. Smokers. Bikers. Hard core. But, I still had lunch there on occassion with some friends, one in particular who had moved to Florida and would come back once a year to visit. But I digress. My dinner last night was lobster ravioli. Mmmmmmm...in a lobster garlic cream sauce. And to my delight, it wasn't a huge plate full, but rather six very gently placed ravioli and covered with the very nice sauce. Just enough to love it and not so much that I had to make myself sick eating every last bite. Very good. Followed by a slice of "Fruit of the Forest" pie at Nona's afterwards. Also very good.

So I think I am going to resolve to eat healthier starting Friday. I hope. I didn't go through the surgery and this year of discovering what it's like to not haul an extra person's worth of weight around for nothing. I need to jump start myself again and choose the right things to eat. No more crap in the house. So there I said it, and now I plan to stick to it as best I humanly can!!

Do you make New Year's resolutions? If so, wanna share? If not, well, that's good too. Just want to wish that everyone has a wonderful year ahead!!

There's no business like SNOW Business...

Oh boy! Whoever dreamed up this "White Christmas" in Minnesota sure knew what they were doing!! We got it. Lots of it. Snow the likes of which I can't remember having seen for a long time. It started out as nice, soft, fluffy easy to shovel snow. And now it's the THICK, HEAVY, WET and HARD to shovel snow!! But it sure makes for a good snowman!!

This beauty (which I hope will copy over to this posting) is about 8' 10" tall and was constructed primarily by my nieces and nephews today at my sister's house. With all that good snowman snow out there on the lawn, they could hardly resist! I also saw their two neighbor kids having a good old-fashioned snowball fight across the driveway from their opposing snow forts! It made me wanna put on some snow boots, snow pants and heavy mittens and go out and join them. I think I should have. How often do you get that opportunity?!

Christmas 2009 is now behind us, but the wonderful memories will linger on. Hope you all had a wonderful day and look forword to many more to come in 2010!

The Year In Review

I know it's kind of early for this, but these thoughts are what woke me up early this morning (around 5:30) and so I guess the only way to get them out of my head is to put them down in writing.

It's been a very complex year. Ups and downs and lots of in-betweens. A lot of things happened that I'd rather didn't, but a lot of wonderful things happened as well. I have always wanted to send out one of those Christmas letters telling everyone about the great accomplishments for my year, but either I didn't have anything to write about, or I just didn't take the time to do it. So, instead I offer this reflection on 2009:

I started the year just out of surgery (RNY Gastric Bypass on 12/19/08) and so I was at home recouperating and not eating anything other than liquids. Last Christmas was very different for me because I couldn't eat a thing - just smell the wonderful smells and dream about them. But, I know that I did the right thing in having the surgery when I did. It all worked out for me and I'm down 168 pounds now. It really is "A whole new world" for me!

Later in January is when the news came that I would be losing my job by the end of the year. Our jobs were being sent to India. The saddest part of that day was finding out that some of my co-workers were let go that day, never to return. Some were given a date of October 2 and the remainder of us were given a date of December 18. I had thought that given 11 months I would find something else after 31+ years of service to Target, but that was not meant to be. And so as of last Friday, I am unemployed (but hopeful).

The year 2009 brought with it many deaths in my close circle of friends and family. First one of my best friend's, Nona, lost her husband and I lost a dear friend when Byron passed away in February. My dear friend Sandy lost her mother "June Bug". Later in the year my friend Linda lost her battle with cancer as did my Uncle Wayne and my friend Connie's sister Grace. We also lost family friends Gordy and Bev, a husband and wife who passed away within weeks of each other. My brother-in-law's mother Paula also passed away. A co-worker's father passed away. It was a bad year in that sense but they will all be remembered forever.

Cancer. I hate cancer. It enters a person's body and invades their life. Several friends/family were diagnosed with various forms of cancer in 2009. My friends Terry and Yvonne, my sister Trish, one co-worker's sister and another's mother-in-law. Several friends and family that had been previously diagnosed continued their battles including my sister Sandy, my dear friend Nona, my pastor/friend John and my Uncle Bernard. Many of my family members participated in the "Relay For Life" in Delano, MN this last July to help raise money and awareness of cancer. We had a great time and plan to do it again this year. In the meantime, constant prayers are sent up for those battling this terrible disease.

It wasn't all bad - there were a lot of wonderful times in 2009! My daughter Chelsea and her boyfriend Chris came to MN for a visit in February (yes, February). Chris got to walk on water across our frozen lakes. They came back again in September (no walking on water that trip). I was fortunate enough to be able to go to Seattle to visit them and meet Chris' son Mally, along with a bunch of their friends in October. We had a great time and I intend to go back when there isn't as much rain!! Chelsea is really keeping herself busy! She is enrolled at the University of Washington and she continues to serve several families as a Nanny, a private chef for one person and occassionally acts as a server at a local restaurant. All this while maintaining a family life with Chris and Mally! She wears me out, but I am so proud of her I could burst!

In September I had the opportunity to go on a road trip with my sister JoElla to visit my brother Rick and his wife Roxi in Indiana. I had been awarded $500 in books to donate to a school of my choice, and I chose the school that Roxi has taught at for many years. While I was in town I was able to meet the Principal and a couple of students who would benefit from the new books being added to their library. I also made friends with Bayleigh, Bitsy and Mousse (their dogs and cat).

My sisters and I had our annual "Sister's Weekend" in October. We had a great time revisiting a resort we had stayed at previously. However, the bad part was our sister Sandy was unable to be with us. She had just had a procedure on a cancerous tumor and didn't feel up to joining us. She was with us in spirit and we made several calls to her to make sure she didn't miss out on the fun! Hoping that next year she will feel better and can join us.

And finally, we added a new member to our large and ever growing family! My nephew Collin and his wife Krista gave birth to Colton in September! I was able to meet him over the Thanksgiving weekend. He is adorable and a great addition to our family. The love just continues to grow in my family!!

It's been a long year, sometimes exhausting and at times exciting. Emotional, thought provoking and requiring a lot of reflection. When you live it day-by-day, you seem to just go through it, however if you look back on all that has taken place, it's amazing to me that it's all been done in just one year.

I wish each and every one of you (and those who don't read this) a very blessed and eventful new year. As you go through what you will go through, I wish you joy, strength when necessary and much love!! Let's hope 2010 has more ups than downs! God Bless!

Day One/Won

Stardate 12/21/09. Woke up late (finally). Prepared for transit to torture chambers (Fitness 19). Arrived at said destination early. Initiated cycling routine (rode the darn bike). Embarked on mission of pain with designated humanoid ("my" Anthony)to flex, stretch and generally displace muscle mass. Results: felt great, however anticipating extreme difficulty in completing normal functions tomorrow.

Returned to place of residence and proceeded to morph into a couch potato. Watched Maurey Povich determine the fate of several men who provided DNA for a "baby daddy" test. Slept. Ate. Played Boggle on POGO. Watched Dr. Phil talk to girls about bullying. Wanted to go to the nearest Middle School and spank a few of them mean girls, but chose instead to take another nap.

Determined that I must not continue in this pattern of behavior tomorrow. Will set the alarm (oh, but for 7:00 maybe) and will attend the meeting of displaced team members at local Panera Bread shop. Will then proceed to visit with one of my best friends and perhaps have lunch with her. Will not take a nap. REPEAT: Will NOT take a nap tomorrow!

(This mission, which I didn't request to take, will be very interesting!)

Let the Bullseye Ban begin

It's official, today was my last day at work. I'm paid through tomorrow, but I took it off. I had my official final meeting with HR. Received my official separation papers (and a thick stack of legal documents to read over). Officially handed over my team member ID, company issued credit card and phone card to my boss. Had my official happy hour send-off with a few choice co-workers (and, yes, I even drank 2/3 of a Mike's Hard Lemonade). So I think that's official. I'm done. No need for any of my family or friends to shop at "the evil Red" any more!!

I feel kinda good about it. It seems odd to say, but I do. The way they treated me and others in my situation over the last 11 months has been horrendous. If anyone thinks this big corporation had any 'down home' Minnesota-nice in them, you are sadly mistaken. Granted, there are a few people in management there who are really nice (my old boss Dawn for example), but the ones that I have dealt with directly were not helpful, not supportive and didn't appear to give 2 craps about those of us on the chopping block. This is probably why it feels good to be going.

So anyway - next steps for me include relaxing, visiting California, relaxing some more. Maybe buying myself a Kindle (as a sort of 'retirement' gift for me). And then maybe look for the perfect job. My brother wants me to move to CA, my daughter wants me to move to WA, I want to have someone tell me what the future holds so I know what to do. In reality, I need to take a few steps back, survey the situation and figure out really what I want to do. I can't rush this decision. I feel like I'm too old to be making drastic changes in my life, but at least the finding a new job part of it has been thrust upon me against my will. The other changes or non-changes are up to me.

Wish me luck. And pray me through! Thanks!

One Year Progress Report

It's official (sort of). I had my one year post-op with the surgeon. Not MY surgeon, mind you. He has some how slipped into oblivion. I haven't seen him since the day of the surgery when he wrote right on my tummy - marked it with "RNY" and his initials. This is a precautionary step to prevent him from doing the wrong surgery, or from some other doctor finding me in his OR and trying to do surgery on me. Isn't that scary that they have to write on you to make sure? But, I digress.

I saw the "other" surgeon who I have been seeing for my post-op appointments all along. He said all my blood work was good (except that my glucose was a little high, but not terrible and my A1C was 6.2). He was pleased that I have lost 168 pounds (and so am I) and pleased to hear I have been exercising. My status went from "Super-Super Morbidly Obese" to just plain "Obese" - which I guess is encouraging! My BMI went down by over 35 points and I've lost 65% of my excess weight. That is according to what the insurance companies want me to weigh (131 lbs) which he said he does NOT want me to weigh. So all in all, things are good! I don't have to go back for 6 months.

I'm celebrating my surgiversary on Saturday by having an "Ugly Sweater Party" with some friends and family. Wear an ugly sweater and you may just win a prize!! It also would have been my parents anniversary (cough-cough) and is also my friend Jan's birthday. And it's the first official day of my unemployment! There is lots to celebrate! Party on, Garth!!

Is it the weekend now?

I'm losing track of the days. Only because I had last Monday off (to do the Project Homeless Connect thing - see previous post) and then worked at the store Holiday Helpers event Tuesday morning. Then, well, it snowed Tuesday and Tuesday night so naturally I had to call in a "vacation/snow" day on Wednesday. Worked all day Thursday..I mean I was there all day. Today I had a shopping event for a nursing home we work with at "The Evil Red" and that took me into lunch time. Went to work for a couple hours and had to leave early so I could get some help hauling 3 more boxes of my personal effects to my car. And now, here it is Friday evening.

Tomorrow I am working out with "My" (Shared) Anthony. This will be the 3rd time. The trouble is, I haven't had time in-between visits with him to get into the gym. So I feel like a slug. That will change, however, as I only have 3 days of work left. Later tomorrow I am going to the play in Anoka followed by a late lunch/early dinner with friends. Sunday is the cookie bake (really, it's a cookie decorating party) at my sister's farm. I just watch - the kids do the decorating! I have Monday off and no big plans. Then I work Tu-We-Th and that's it folks!!

I've already realized that when I am not working I am going to have to force myself to get up at a reasonable time (like I have a choice, my body rarely allows me to sleep past 6:30 any more), get showered and get dressed and DO SOMETHING productive or I shall become a 400 pound couch potato. I was pretty impressed with my productivity on Wednesday, however, I didn't get showered/dressed until around 2:00 - just in time to go out and shovel the steps. That can't become my norm.

So I'm accepting any and all suggestions on how to motivate myself off the couch. I know the usual: go to the gym, go shopping, to the library, volunteer, but is there any other valuable tid bits? Please note that I will accept them, but not necessarily follow through with them. I just want to see if anyone is reading!

Deep Thoughts

Well, probably not so deep but profound.

I just came back from Project Homeless Connect and again it made me feel a bit overwhelmed. Picture a large ballroom type room filled with chairs set up facing each other in pairs. Now picture 1,400+ people in black T-shirts sitting in one of the chairs facing an empty chair, waiting for it to be filled by a total stranger who, by the way, happens to be homeless or near homeless. When they meet, they become instant friends and the person in the black T-shirt helps the other navigate through an area a couple city blocks long that provides them with medical care, eye care, dental care, help with housing, employment, legal issues and something as simple as getting a pair of boots for the Winter. That's what I did this morning. I wore the black T-shirt and helped "Jan" get a voucher to get her state ID card for free, we got her a pair of reading glasses and she was seen by a doctor who gave her some anti-biotics and some meds for asthma and she also got her H1N1 shot and a tetanus shot. Then we had lunch together and talked about our plans for the Holidays.

This is the 2nd time I've done this and it really makes you realize how fortunate you are. Yes, I will be unemployed in a couple weeks, but I still have a nice home, transportation and the hope that I will find another job. So many out there are not as lucky. Please say a prayer for the homeless and under-employed people living in poverty in our country. So many of us are just a few paychecks away from something horrible happening to us. No one deserves to live on the street or go to bed hungry each night, but so many do.

On the brighter side, I am preparing for my 2nd appointment with my new trainer. I didn't hurt as bad as I thought I would after Saturday morning's session, so that's a good thing. Hope I can say the same after this one!!

Tomorrow AM I will be helping with the special shopping event at the store for the Seniors and disabled. Then I have to go back to the 'real world' and work again! Oh well, can't all be fun and games now, can it? :o)

The Ranks of the Unemployed

Well, I think it's official. I will be unemployed as of 12/18/09. Today I got the turndown for the last job I was able to interview for at my company. With only a little over 2 weeks left, I know that is not enough time for this place to accept my application, interview and hire anyone! So my 31+ year relationship with them is now over. It's kind of like leaving your spouse, except lawyers won't be involved (most likely)! I am going to take some time off, go to CA to visit family and friends and decide what I want to be when I grow up (again). Don't cry for me (yet) because I'm looking at this as a door being forced open for me!

I signed up for a trainer - joined my sister's gym and now have her same trainer. She likes to refer to him as "MY" Anthony, and now he'll be "MY" Anthony as well, or maybe "OUR" Anthony. Nonetheless, I did a trial run with him on Monday night and my arms are still sore today! No pain, no gain, right? I am seeing him again on Saturday morning and hope I'm still able to walk on Monday because I'm volunteering at the Project Homeless Connect on Monday. I volunteered there earlier this year and it was wonderful - it's a bunch of different agencies all in one place to provide services for the homeless population. I gained a whole new respect for them last time and sure this time will be the same.

And this weekend is going to be fun and full of adventure too! Training with "MY" Anthony Saturday morning and then off to training for Project Homeless Connect, followed by a reunion lunch with my friend Terry, his wife Cathy and a bunch of people we used to work with. Sunday I am attending a luncheon/play with my "Fourever Friends" Carlene, Sandy and Nona. It's our Christmas tradition! And finally Sunday night my niece, Marissa, is spending the night while her folks get a much deserved overnight break. I used to babysit Marissa when she was still a baby (she's 15.5 now) and we used to watch COPS together. Wonder if she still wants to do that?? :o)

SO that is all the news that I have for now. Thanks for your continued support and prayers for my future career, and please pray for all those who are battling cancer: Sandy, Trish, Terry, Nona, Pastor John, Yvonne and so many more!! Thanks!