Because I Must

I am going to post this blog shortly.  First I must write it.  I'm going to write it because I must.  You see, if I do not write it and post it, it just won't get done, so I must do it.  It is a good thing to post a blog regularly if I want you to follow my blog, because I understand that it is frustrating if you come to check out my new blog and there is the same old one staring you in the face, over and over again.  I've run into that myself with some whom I had hoped to follow.  So, here's my blog today (as if I posted one every day, hahaha).

Not only should I post a blog regularly, but the blog should be something of interest to you.  Now, there's a problem.  That's right!  The problem is that I don't know what interests you.  That being true, then I must rely on the style and manner in which I post it, i.e. the use of words, the choice of phrases, humor or shock, etc.  Now, I'm not the most motivated sometimes and then I just do as I'm doing right now.  I'm typing and knowing not what I'm about to say.  Oh, I'll check it out before I post it and maybe it will pass my test and then be posted.  "Hurray" if I do, and "oh well" if I don't.  Then I would try again later.

Continuing with the assumption that I will post this blog, let me say, "Don't do like I do.  Do as I say."  Somebody's gotta do it right.  It might as well be you.

Let me also say that I hope you will check out my website.  I have a new domain.  It is, http://www.janwell.com.  Why Janwell?  Well, just go to my website and I'll tell you.  Go to my store and my other website, http://www.landjspecialties.com, and have fun shopping.

I'm Not Lazy - Just Tired!

I don't know where I heard it the first time, but I've heard it many times since. Maybe, the most I've heard it is from my own lips. "I'm not lazy. I'm just tired." I used to think I was lazy because I had no reason to be tired, but still I didn't want to do anything and what I did was like pulling a locomotive along behind me. Well, at one point in my life, the doctors discovered a medical condition that attributes to extreme fatigue. That doesn't sound as bad as lazy, and besides if there is a medical condition connected to it, it seems to be more excusable.

You know, I'm not so sure that any ailment causes me to be so fatigued. Oh, I know that there are conditions that cause extreme fatigue, but I'm just not so sure that, that is the case for me. Besides, I have something else to blame my "fatigue" on now. So, if I'm pressured about my frequent sluggishness, I can choose to say that I have been diagnosed with a condition that causes me to be extremely fatigued, or I can blame it on something that may be more acceptable - I'm an old man now, at least by the standards of most young whipper-snappers.

As it is, you just never know. If I feel like doing something, I may do it and if I don't feel like it, I may not. Just don't ask me why?

There aught-to-be!

We just celebrated our Senior Adult Ministry at the church and I was just thinking...."there aught to be a distinction between 'young adult' and 'senior adult'. Well, I guess there is. It's called middle-aged. But, that sounds like someone who is torn between the two classes. Their fading youth pulls them away from their inevitable older age....for a while. Then their certain destiny of old age yanks them back from the ranks of the young. Sometimes it literally 'yanks their back' and reminds them that they are no longer young.

I've noticed that these 'middle-aged' people are usually not happy to announce their age. If you've noticed, the youth will proudly say, "I'm 16", or "19", or maybe they are pround to say, "I'm 21", or even "35". Also, it's noticable that the aged are proud to say, "I'm 65", or "75", and with much more pride you may hear someone say as they have a broad smile on their face, "I'm 85", or with a much more frail voice, "I'm 95 years old today!" It's that gap between 35 and 65 that seems to be hard to define. Maybe we could make it more precise and say between 40 and 60. They are not young adults and they are not senior citizens. Oh, they may run with the young and the wild,...for a while, or they may get a senior discount at their favorite resturant, but they are 'middle-aged'.

I have a suggestion. Let's say that after the teen years, a person is a young adult through 29, a sophomore adult from 30 to 45, a junior adult from 45-60, and a senior adult from 60 to whatever. For greater clarification, the Senior adults are silver senior adults from 60 to 75, gold senior adults from 75 to 90 and beyond 90 the senior adult is a platnium senior adult. I think those who are struggling with their middle-age will have an easier transition to their senior adult position if we adopt these standards. If anyone has problems beyond the scope of this designation, well, they just need more professional help than I can offer. Sorry!

While searching the internet, I found this which may help clarifiy senior adult status: You might be a Senior Adult if:

Everything hurts, and what doesn't hurt doesn't work. The gleam in your eye is from the sun hitting your bifocals.
Your little black book contains names that only end in M.D.
Your children begin to look middle age.
You finally reach the top of the ladder and find it's leaning against the wrong wall.
Your mind makes contracts that your body can't keep.
You look forward to a dull evening.
Your favorite part of the newspaper is "Today In History."
You turn out the lights for economic reasons rather than romantic ones.
You sit in the rocking chair and can't get it going.
You knees buckle but your belt won't.
You're 17 around the neck, 42 around the waist, and 96 around the golf course.
Your back goes out more often than you do.
You get excited and your pacemaker makes the garage door open.
The little old grey haired lady you helped across the street was your wife.
You sink your teeth into a steak and they stay there.
You have too much room in the house and not enough in the medicine cabinet.
You know all the answers but nobody asks you any questions

I may be having a little trouble adjusting to my status, but you see, I'm an exception. I am 66 years young but I don't look it. If you don't believe me, just ask my wife. Neither do I feel like I should be 66, and you know, 'you're only as old as you feel," so I don't mind being a little exceptional. No, I'm OK. It's just all those other aged people out there that are having a time adjusting that I am concerned about. (Is anybody laughing! Watch it!)

Where does time go?

Now that's a pretty good question! Where does time go? Does it go to the disposal? How about the storage closet? Maybe it just goes off leisurely meandering down a path that seemingly leads to nowhere! I really don't know where time goes but I do know that it goes somewhere fast. It's already been a month since my last post. It doesn't seem like it though. Seems like just a week or so ago. Really, it seems like just the other day I resigned pastoring and started on this senseless road of retirement, but it was over two and a half years ago when that happened. Why, I remember celebrating my 40th. birthday not long ago (really 25 yrs. ago). I expect that somebody will call me 'old' any day now. Old? Who, me? Did I hear that cashier at the resturant right. The other day when I was making an order, did she say 'senior'? Look, I've had it. I quit. I'm not playing the game anymore. If you want to be old, just go ahead and be old, but just leave me out. I'm going up to the mountain tomorrow (Signal Mtn.) and I may just stay. No, wait. Maybe Fred will let me go to his cabin up on the other mountain (not sure of the name of it) and I wouldn't have to worry about people up there. Wouldn't have to worry about paying a light bill or a water will either. Just me and a few snakes, turkeys, rabbits, and squirrels I'm sure, and maybe a bear. Yieks!! A bear! You never know about these Tennessee mountains. Can anybody help me if I call you? Oh! Wait! There's no phone service up there either. What if I fall down and can't get up? I mean, you know, a man like me might need some help. I don't get around like I used to. And I may not hear the growl of the bear. OOOOOOh! What if I don't even see it. It has to be close before my eyes will focus clearly, you know. I can't run very fast nor very long anymore either. Something has happened to me in the past few years. Ummmmmm! Maybe, I'm not quite ready to quit the game. I think I will stay in the race, but don't try to tell me how to do it. I've been around a lot longer than some young whiper-snappers have and I'll just take care of myself, unless I need somebody. OK, let me get off that subject and move on to the blog I intended to post here today. Oh, my! It's getting late. Past my bedtime. I gotta go for now. Maybe later. Yes! I'll try again later. Soon! Bye for now.

What's wrong?

OK!! What's wrong? Nobody but my oldest brother has made any comments on my last blog. Is it because it's too cold outside? Or is it because Barack Obama is hoping to be president of the US? Or perhaps it's because the subject "Church Teachings" is just tooooo hot to touch!!?! Ooooh, just kidding!! I know, we just got out of the Christmas holidays and then the New Year celebrations, trips, and so much going on. But I can't wait any longer. I've got to post another blog or somebody may think I've died and gone to heaven. Now, that's what's wrong with my posting frequency. All those things I just said. In other words, I have no excuse. Well, maybe just a little bit of an excuse. I mean, if it were a matter of life and death, I would have found a way to post another blog, and another and another. But I'm making up for my slackness right now. See? Here's a blog.

Hey! You won't believe what I'm listening to right now. I have another window open on the Internet and I am listening to Casting Crowns. You younger folks will know who I am talking about but for the sake of some of my peers, Casting Crowns is the name of a modern day Christian singing group. Actually, I really do like their music. Maybe it's connected with the idea that when we get old enough we don't worry about what others think about us as much as we used to. Somebody may think that I have gone off the deep end but who cares. It's time for me to enjoy retirement. Right? By the way, peers. Just listen to the words if you can't take the music. They really are saying something. I don't think their music is bad either.

Let me get a little more serious now. I finally got around to seeing my doctor yesterday. You see, Sunday I was fine, but Sunday night I was bothered with a feeling like a cramp in my leg, actually in my hip joint right in front of my body, like right in the groin area, and I had a tough time trying to sleep. When I awoke Monday morning, I couldn't hardly walk. I was limping. But I stretched, laid flat on my back on the hard floor for about 10 mins., walked and worked with my leg as best I could during the day. It got a little better but then at night time it got worse. Now, it is new years eve and I am in pain. Since I have a 24 hr. hot line to a nurse, I think she is in Atlanta, I called her just about midnight. I know she probably thought somebody was high as a kite calling to celebrate new years, but after she asked me all the questions that would verify that I was not 'loopie' and I answered them correctly, I explained to her my problem. To make it short, she suggested that I take a hot bath. Well, I could do that and I did. That did make me feel some better, but the next day was New Years Day! Now, the tradition is that us men get together and go somewhere just to cook breakfast, talk, sing, have dinner or whatever else we feel like doing. Now understand that we usually go to some camp or some place in the mountains etc.

I'm about to get side tracked here. Let me get back. So, my leg got worse that day and I drug it around like a log attached to my body. (Almost!) Just ask Fred, Curtis, Rick, Eddie, Mike, Jason, or one of the several others that was there. Man! I couldn't even lift my leg off the floor at one point and most of the day not over an inch without pain.

Let me make this short. OK? I got better before going to bed and slept fairly well. Saw Dr. Sims Wednesday. He scheduled me back today so I could get a
?sonogram? or whatever you call it. (I'm in a hurry - haven't got time to check my spelling) Dr. Sims thought maybe it was a ?femoral? hernia. (Again, I'm in a hurry) Can you believe that. I won't know the results of the exam until maybe Monday or Tuesday. Anyway, I feel great at this present time. I can lift my leg, walk without limping, and kick the devil in the teeth. Ha! Gotta go now. I'm in a hurry. I don't know why, but I am.

Now that you know what is wrong with me (or if you are still uncertain, I can come in for counseling most anytime) let me know what is wrong or right about you!!

If This Is Too Risque.....

Speaking of Proofs of the existence of God, does this count? I just couldn't resist the temptation to post this. Oh my goodness! What's wrong with me, posting something like this on my blog? I do not drink anykind of alcoholic beaverages and do not encourage you to do so either. This may be too risque, but I'm going to blame it on the medecine that I am taking. You know it has all kinds of side effects.

Moving on....... Maybe this website is not quite as risque: http://www.johnettenapolitano.com/. I'm still trying to decide if her music is OK. What do you think?