Happy Halloween!

I got off work a little early today and jumped into the traffic to ride out to Virginia to see the kids get ready for trick or treating! Lucas was so excited he could hardly stand it. Jacqueline really had no idea what was going on and was overwhelmed at times. After a quick supper of cereal it was time to donn the costumes. First Darth Vadar (Lucas), then Storm Trooper (Richard) and finally Tigger (Jacqueline). I said I thought she should have been Princess Leia or at least Padme, just to keep it all in the Star Wars family! We took a couple of quick pictures then they headed out for trick or treating with neighbors and I headed home.

Tomorrow night a bunch of us are going out to dinner after work for my birthday, which I'm excited about. This weekend my brothers family is having a birthday party for me. Next weekend I am going for my first ever facial and manicure with my friend Michelle. It's nice to be here with family and new friends to celebrate my birthday.

I hope you all have a safe Halloween!

Happy Birthday Nana!

On Saturday, 10/06/07, Nana aka Rosemary Deily (my brother's mother-in-law) celebrated her 80th birthday with her family and friends! It was a very cool shindig and a good time was had by all. Her daughter Terry Geck flew in from San Francisco (as a not so surprising surprise...ruined by her husband telling Nana Terry had her ticket!). And her grandson Kevin got a ride up to Great Falls, VA from Duke to go to Nana's party (a big surprise!). And one of Nana's college friends, Susie was there too. It was alot of fun and very interesting to listen to these two octogenarians sharing stories of going to parties, meeting their husbands, raising their children, etc.

Nana's family all put in together to buy her a huge portrait of the entire picture taken this summer at the beach. It was beautiful. And, apparently, in this age of the digital picture, the portrait was actually pieced together from several shots so that everyone's eyes were open and facing the right direction, etc.

I made Nana this box of greeting cards for her birthday. It was really nice when she called me to thank me again for them a few days later. She is such a sweet lady.

Other October Birthdays in my family include my kind and wonderful Aunt Rosemary, my Uncle Candy, my cousin Bert, my godchild Meridith's daughter Eva. Hmmm, I hope I'm not forgetting anyone else!

And 1 week from today, I will be 42!

Monday 10/1/07

Back to work today and except for a brief period of fatigue in the afternoon, it was business as usual. My friends and my patients were glad to see me, and I felt the same way about seeing them. Glad to be feeling back to normal. Going for labwork in the morning to make sure everything has cleared up with the infection. I certainly feel like it has, finally.

So, the title of today's blog refers to the date 3 weeks ago today. That Monday was the first day that I realized I did in fact have a uti and that i needed to get some medical treatment for it. I called in late to work so I could wait to hear from my doctor and go pick up my prescription to start it before I went to work.

While I was waiting to hear from her, I went online to read the paper at Nola.com, which I do everyday to try to stay informed about happenings at home. The 'headline' of the online newspaper stated that Jefferson parish sheriff Harry Lee had been hospitalized over night and was in serious condition. Harry Lee had been fighting an aggressive leukemia. This news saddened me. Harry Lee is a local political legend/icon. When I lived in Metairie, La., I used to joke that I lived in Harry Lee Land. When I returned home after work I came online to check email and the newspaper again. As I was sitting down I wondered if I would find news of Harry Lee's death when I opened the online newspaper. And there it was, the headline "Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee Dies". This is one of many articles about Sheriff Lee if you are interested in reading about his life and political career. I actually read a good biography of Sheriff Lee: Wild about Harry: A Biography of Harry Lee by Deno Seder. You can still find a couple of copies over at Amazon.com, including one signed by the author that someone is trying to sell for $99 as a collectible!

Later Monday evening after I had eaten supper and was relaxing watching some tv, my dad called. He told me that a good friend of ours had died over the weekend, Sherry Nunez. Sherry and her family had been friends with my family for as long as I can remember and even before that. She had been ill recently. When I visited home in July I heard about it from my dad and from another of her relatives, Joan Nunez, an old neighbor of mine whom I visited while doing my Katrina sightseeing. Sherry and her husband Ronnie were die hard Saints fans, and therefore were there with me week after week for the torture we call New Orleans professional football. Our families had also vacationed together, and I taught her daughter Melissa back when I was a chemistry teacher. I know that her illness had been difficult on her family, and I know that her death has been even more difficult.

I realized when I started this post that it has only been 3 weeks since her death. I can remember vividly what the world was like for me 3 weeks after my mother died. I was still in a state of shock, walking around pretending everything was ok, trying to figure out how to make it ok. It is my firm belief that weather death is preceded by a short, long or no period of illness, it is still devastating and you are never prepared for it. So despite the fact that she had been ill, I know her family is still dealing with their feelings on a daily, and possibly even still hourly basis. The same goes for Sheriff Lee's family. Here and now 3 weeks later, they are still dealing with their feelings, and will be for a long time to come. I am keeping both of these families in my prayers.

I will try to post again soon. Til next time . . .

Going back to work tomorrow

Well I'm finally starting to feel like myself. I am going back to work tomorrow. I am going to try to catch up on my blogging during the week even if its just a bit here and there.

I watched the kids today for a couple hours. We made some halloween decorations from construction paper, simple, handmade, fun! Lucas loves decorating :)

Blog soon I promise!

Sidelined...

So yah, I haven't had a chance to blog anymore since I tried to start again on Sunday. My nuisance of a bladder infection has turned into a full fledged kidney infection. I'm home from work, resting, drinking lots of fluids and taking all my medicine like a good Chris should. The weather here has turned oh so fall like, highs in the mid 60s, lows in the 40s, and here I am stuck inside.

I'll be feeling back to normal soon enough. And I'll have alot to catch y'all up on once I'm up to it. Here's hoping the rest of you are starting to feel the pleasant effects of fall.

Long time no blog . . .

Yes, I know, I've been a bad blogger. LOTS going on in life in all areas. So much I want to share. And I will. I've been a little under the weather and just really exhausted after work the last week. So since I'm not going to major blog catch-up all at once, here's a preview of some of the blog topics you will be seeing soon: death of a friend, death of a local political legend, visit to the national air and space museum stephen f udvar-hazy center, happy birthday nana, card project, in search of a pool. So yah, there's lots I want to share with all of you. Lots of pics to share as well. I hope to be back online later tonight to start working on that list of topics. Blog soon . . .