Blessings Counted

We’ve had some pretty bad weather around here lately.  Not the worst we’ve ever seen locally, and since we’ve also been elsewhere, not the worst we’ve ever experienced.  I could have easily handled the 3-6 inches of snow we expected.  The 15 inches we did get, not so much although it was powder.

But we managed, as we always do, in part because we have some nice neighbors who help with the snow.  The youngest son next door is about 20 and he owns an ATV with a plow.  He zips around the neighborhood taking care of sidewalks and other snow he finds.  The neighbors across the street have a big snow blower.  They also chip in.  Still, we were snowed in on Thursday night.  So, I went out to try to clear about six feet from the end of my car to where the driveway meets the street.  I got half of it done at night, and started again Friday morning, but the driveway apron was another story.  The municipal plow came through and the driveway apron was icy.

I started, but decided I couldn’t complete it in time for my daughter to get to work or for me to keep my doctor’s appointment.  So, we cancelled both, and I soaked away my aches in the tub for a while.  The folks across the street showed up and finished the job.  I thanked them, and offered to add to the kids hot-chocolate fund, but their mom turned it down, saying they were just paying a kindness forward.

It’s great to have nice neighbors who think of you.

Speaking of people who think of you, our daughter-in-law is from Bulgaria.  We visited there after she married into our family.  It’s a very interesting place, with lots of history.  We met her family, all of whom seemed lovely, and treated us wonderfully well.  Over the weekend, her grandfather told her he was worried for us after the storm, and if he had our phone number, he’d call us (a third of the way around the world) to make sure we were okay.  Isn’t that a lovely thought?  Our daughter-in-law pointed out, however that it wouldn’t be very practical since we don’t speak Bulgarian and he doesn’t speak English.

So, in the past few days, we’ve received kind thoughts from across the street, and around the world.  Two weeks ago, my sweet wife got me a new camera.  As it says on the t-shirt, “Life is good.”

Things I Know

In addition to being copyrighted 2009-2017, sisyphusproject.org is also copyright 2018.  Happy New Year.

Here’s how to think about what a long life 94 years is.  Rose Marie, the singer, comedian and actress probably best known for her role as a comedy writer on the Dick Van Dyke Show, died recently at the age of 94.  She started her career as a child in vaudeville as a singer.  She sang for three U.S. Presidents, the first of whom was Calvin Coolidge.

Between the two of them tonight’s Mega Million drawing and tomorrow’s Powerball will total at least $801 million.  If you’re wondering what you’ll do if you should happen to win both, you probably don’t have to concern yourself.  The odds of two events happening is calculated by multiplying together the odds of wining each of them.  So, the odds of winning Mega Millions tonight and Powerball tomorrow night are roughly one in 85,800,000,000,000,000.  That’s one in 85.8 quadrillion to one against.

If I should win both, I will still jump on my bed.