Monday Monday, can't trust that day...

Nah, really, not too bad for a Monday, all things considered.

I took some much needed mental time off. Promised myself on Thursday morning that I'd do nothing concerning my father until today. While I did sort through and organize his stuff on Saturday, it was more along the goal line of reclaiming my house than organizing his stuff. And it felt good to get it out of the way.

We put the gazebo up yesterday. That's always our "It's officially summer" event. We usually set up a small patio table in there, a couple of resin chairs, a couple of chaise lounges, some citronella candles, and we're golden. This is where I typically spend my Fridays off, when the weather is nice. I can carry a small 13" television out there, my portable DVD player and my knitting. There's no world around me when I'm in this turd mode! Often Mary will come over and sit with me, as she's off on Fridays during the summer as well. The problem at this point, though, is that we had a couple of weeks in early May where the weather was beastly hot and humid, but in recent weeks, it's been quite cool. We had heavy rain, ferocious winds, and hail on Saturday. We didn't have much of a winter and often, when that happens, we don't have much of a summer, either.

I read an article about an hour ago that Ben Roethlisberger, QB for the Pittsburgh Steelers (and youngest QB to ever win a SuperBowl) was injured in a motorcyle accident. They describe the scene as having a "...pool of blood" and they've indicated that he's gone in for surgery. He apparently rejects the validity of any argument for wearing a helmet. Must be when you're a 23 year old SuperBowl winner, you really believe you're invincible.

Have you ever heard of John Edward? I've been watching his show on WE (Women's Entertainment) a lot lately. This guy claims to be a psychic/medium and brings messages of love and hope to people from "the other side." Often the messages are powerful, and sometimes they just are in the form of something like "Hi." But at the end of every show, he tells his audience to "...appreciate and validate now so that you don't need [a medium like him] to do it for you when it's too late." His show is thoughtful, humorous, and touching.

So what does someone like me see in a show like this? Not really sure, to be honest with you, but the more I see of this guy, the more I believe in what he claims to be, believe it or not. And even if he's not what he purports to be, I always take something away from his show with me. I saw a show this past weekend where he encouraged a woman who had been "disowned" by her mother to bring closure to herself, not necessarily to mend the relationship, but to evict the poison from her own heart and give her a chance to move on. He suggested even writing a letter. She did just that. I think it's time I did that, too. If you get the chance, check him out. On DirectTV, it's channel 260.

Speaking of mothers, Lisa's mother was taken to the ER this morning and transferred down to Scranton to the hospital where she had her carotid artery and heart surgery last year. So far everything seems fine and normal, but they've admitted her and will run tests to ensure that her heart and carotid arteries are functioning properly. Apparently her sugar level is a bit out of sorts, too (she's an insulin dependent diabetic). We're waiting for word on that -- and Lisa is very worried. It's her Mom, after all. I'm glad she spent two hours on the phone with her Mom just yesterday morning. I think she's glad, too.

More as we learn it...