Time to Think

In view of the events I wrote about in last night's post, here is what my kids and I learned happened to the young man who took his own life.

He was troubled -for sure. Had some issues with drugs and had been on house arrest. But about two weeks ago, he was observed apparently by a parole or probation officer as being "under the influence" and this was a breach of his parole/probation so was placed in the prison in a county adjacent to ours. He was incarcerated there about a week and even though he was supposed to be under a "suicide watch" he still managed to hang himself in his cell. And, to add to this issue, it is the second time in a two-week time span that an inmate in this particular jail -also while under "suicide watch" managed to commit suicide there.

One question I have now is what do they do when inmates are incarcerated and have a "suicide watch" in effect? Apparently, not too much actual "watching" - or so it does seem.

On a very positive note here - my cousin whose wife had a heart transplant done a week ago -Monday of last week that was - all reports coming to me about her, about the transplant, etc are still running very, very positive. As a matter of fact, the update I received late Monday afternoon was such that there is even a possibility she might be discharged as early as TODAY! Is that incredible news or what?

What's ahead for me right now? First off, I absolutely have to get my fat lazy behind totally in gear and write up the newsletter about our upcoming family reunion on my Mom's side that will be held the last full weekend of July. This task is something that is imperative I get done and get it done soon - like last week, actually! Ok, since I am already behind -well, anyway - I just gotta get moving and do it, and that's all there is to it too!

I'm still a tad miffed with many of my relatives -pertaining to the above mentioned reunion - because I sent out a bulk e-mail message about 2-3 weeks ago now asking each one of those cousins to please send me a reply so I would know then that the e-mail address I am using for each one of them is still working. I also asked them to send me their current snail mail address too so I can update my regular address book and so far only 7 or 8 family members responded to my request. In addition, because of the problems we're having maintaining this particular reunion, I also asked several key questions as to what each one thinks could/should be done to try to keep the reunion alive and only three family members gave me ANY feedback in that respect. And that whole thing there really does depress me greatly because it seems to indicate to me that the majority of the family has lost interest in keeping connected.

And that idea, to me -is just plain sad!

The weather here the past couple days has been very pretty - sunny, bright and nice except that it has also been a bit on the cool side. Now, I don't especially like it when it is super hot and very humid -so much so that it feels like everything is just crushing you and you are going to dehydrate completely from sweating so profusely. But I also don't like it when it is cold either! The past two days, I have been wearing a cotton cardigan sweater over top of my tee shirt although I have also been wearing shorts too. Strange combination there - shorts, tee shirt and a sweater, isn't it? Last night, sitting here typing, I could feel a really strong draft on my legs and feet but couldn't figure out where it was coming from. I'd closed all the living room windows, bathroom and kitchen ones too. THe doors were also all tightly closed as well. I mentioned being so cold to Mandy - who was on the couch with two blankets over her, reading the latest Jodi Picoult book she just brought home last week. She said she even noticed the heavy draft too. THen she asked me if I'd checked on the window in my room - if it was open or closed. I went out to my room and lo and behold, one window there was open - with a nice big screen in it which I immediately took the screen out and closed the window.

I told Mandy when I came back in and sat down that my room was actually colder out there then than it was back during the winter when the temps outside were well below zero. My bedroom in the winter gets very little heat to it because the radiator in that room rarely works at all and if it does, it usually only heats to about luke warm, if that. So, that should give an idea how doggone cold it was out there last night! Today, I spent the bulk of the afternoon on the couch shivering as I could not seem to get my feet and legs warm at all! But tonight now, it doesn't seem to be affecting me that drastically. I'm not really warm here but at least I'm not shivering and shaking from the cold so that's progress.

Maya - always in search of some new thing I guess as are most 3-year-olds -found something today and there is trace evidence now on her little cheeks of her face that she located from someplace in the bathroom something no little kid should be messing with - someone's razor! She either got in the bathroom by some older sister living the door ajar and also, leaving a razor within Maya's reach in the tub or Maya found a pack of razors under the sink and removed one from that pack and tried her hand at shaving. If she found them under the sink, then she knows more about things that are stashed away under there than I do but what I can't figure out is how she got the idea to use it on her face? She's never in the bathroom when her dad does his daily shave routine -none of the rest of us in the house shave our faces - at least not to my knowledge anyway - so where did this prior knowledge of shaving come from then? You tell me!

And that pretty much outlines what's been happening here, what's been and still is on my mind for the past twenty-four hours. Hope your day and your time went by in a better fashion that did mine.

And now -time for those old nasty Bushisms!

For Monday, July 2, 2007 we have this one:
"After standing on the stage, after the debates, I made it very plain, we will not have an all-volunteer army. And yet, this week - we will have an all-volunteer army. Le me restate that." - Daytona Beach, Florida; October 16, 2004

For Tuesday, July 3, 2007, there's this:
"I thought how proud I am to be standing up beside my dad. Never did it occur to me that he would become the gist for cartoonists." - Quoted in Newsweek; February 28, 2000.

And with respect to both those quotes, all I can do is sit back and say "HMMMM!"