To the American Soldier: Thank You.

Last night Michele and I attended the Theater Albany production of “Big River”. This musical is an adaptation of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I must admit that it has been about 25-30 years since I read either “Tom Sawyer” or “Huckleberry Finn”, so it was really all new to me. Here is how the night went and my opinion of the whole thing. Yes, my opinion.

Michele and I promised each other that we would always have dates no matter how long we are together. Last night was a date night. About a month ago we went to see Sarah in the Deerfield spring musical. They did “Hello Dolly”. There were some issues with sound and a few goofs but we were entertained nonetheless. They did a great job. This experience had me longing  for more sophisticated forms of entertainment. That weekend I went online and purchased tickets to see “9 to 5” at the Fox Theater in Atlanta for next Fall. Since that was a long time to wait I started searching for closer and cheaper options. I found the Theater Albany website and immediately saw the advertisement for Big River. I gathered Michele’s opinion and we were off. I bought the tickets and looked forward to it .

We left the house with Jake in charge of himself and Daphne, the Westie. I always wonder which one to leave in charge in these situations but Jake’s opposable thumbs seem to give him the edge. Jacob, left with pizza, Coke and hopes of hidden candy was happy to see us go. No control for at least four hours. Michele and I struck out to Harvest Moon. Our favorite little spot that provides a great atmosphere and wonderful service. While there, we learned that our favorite waiter, Bill, was no longer employed there. This was a great disappointment to us because Bill had become part of the experience. He was personable, polite and pretty much kissed our ass. We tipped him well for it. He would even go next door to the drug store and get ice cream so we could have our favorite desert. Brownie Bites. The waitress we did have was good and remembered us from the last time we were there. She was diplomatic and didn’t tell us the whole story.  Really it wasn’t any of our business.  Michele had the usual and I had had the Grouper Sandwich and Rohos. YUM.  A couple of adult beverages and we were off to the show.

The is no parking at the theater so we parked on the street. It was a rainy night so we had to scurry into the house pretty quickly. Yes, the house. Theater Albany is an old mansion that was turned into a theater in 1932. They added the auditorium  to the back of the house and use the rest of it as a box office and places to “be” before the show  and during intermission. Once inside I checked my phone to make sure it was on vibrate. This reminded Michele to check her phone. She looks into her clutch and yep, you guessed it, no phone. Now we had to wonder if her phone was in the Jeep or on the table at Harvest Moon. Guess who had to go out in the rain to the Jeep and check…..just guess. You are correct!! I found the phone on the seat where it was forgotten. I came back in to the theater and noticed there was wine for a small donation. Yes, I had a glass of white. I would have had another but it was showtime.

I won’t bore you with the whole show because you would rather read the real book. I can tell you that after a little of a slow start the whole thing got better and better. I was most impressed with the gentlemen who played “Jim”, the runaway slave. That man has a strong, powerful but still beautiful voice. He was the best singer in the show in my opinion. The second best, though not very far behind, was  a lady who sang an old slave song as they were captured and marched back to the plantation. Her voice was also powerful and beautiful. The scenery and music were all wonderful. I saw no bad acting and only noticed one mistake, a mistake I would have made. And I wouldn’t have recovered as well as that actor did.

I am no critic so I will not act like one. The sum of the whole thing is that it was a wonderful show and I was truly entertained, which was the point. I was surprised when Michele told me that all of these players were local Albany area folks. I just assumed that they were professionals from a large city. Michele and I had a great time. We ate good and were pleasantly entertained. Another wonderful date with a wonderful girl.

Apologies First

OK I’m sorry. I haven’t blogged since December 5th. I have only updated a few videos of Michele since then. But guess what. Things are about to change. I am retiring from my oppressive freedom-hating job and I will soon be free to tell you all kinds of stories. Stories that I promise will be of interest  to anybody in my “former” line of work. Once the glorious day gets here that I can unleash a flurry of scandal and lies I will be relieved. Keeping it all to myself and maybe only a few other close people  just isn’t cutting it.

Catching Up

As far as catching up goes, there are a few things and situations that are new. I guess the most glaring thing is that I am retiring. It’s finally over. I will be Mr. Mom. Not that I ever dreamed about being Mr. Mom, it’s just what’s fixin’ to be. The whole story behind all of that deserves a blog of it’s own.

Jake got braces last week. He is adjusting to them well. He is like every other teenager. He gets a little excited about the whole thing at first but when the pain hits the attitude changes.

Sarah is doing well and is getting better at swimming. She started last fall and has continued with a private team this summer.

Michele, my beautiful bride, is still the best thing since sliced bread and Cable T.V. She has been very supportive and loving during my trials and tribulations over the last year.

The most frightening that has occurred was that mom decided to have an aortic dissection. She almost died. I know a lot of people say that but when I got the call from Bill I could tell that he didn’t expect her to hang on long enough for me to get to Valdosta. Momma ,being the tough girl that she is , fought it through and has now recovered. As a matter of fact, she got results today that show her aorta has completely healed and there is no need to have surgery. Thank GOD.

That’s enough for the brief catch ups. Since I am at home now I will have more opportunities to blog and stay in touch.

I went to the doctor’s office yesterday to get back on track with my diabetes care and getting some tonnage off of my fat-ass. This was the first visit to this doctor so I didn’t know the process there because they all work differently. Just finding a new doctor in Albany was a challenge but I finally consulted my wife who directed me to this “group office”.

I walked in and was greeted by two ladies who started me on the process. Not too long after that I was summoned to booth #2. This nice lady started the dreaded paperwork we all know we hate when you go to a new place. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that this lady just got my driver’s license and did all of the work herself.  So far, I am impressed. Their computer system went down so I did get to hear a few complaints about the new system but I was sympathetic because I have been there and done that.  After she discovered where I worked she became more light an talkative because she knew one of my old Albany coworkers. She asked why I was there and she appeared  to  be  entering this into their system. I was not surprised that she collected the  copay at this time because I have experienced this at other offices. It seems that some folks will pull a doc-and-dash. That part of the visit was relatively quick and painless.

I waited a very short amount of time and was called back by Ma-Kettle. “It’s a little air-ish out there ain’t it?” Air-ish is a southern term that means it’s too cold for short sleeves but not cold enough for a real jacket. I understood that. She gets my weight and takes my blood pressure and shuffles me off to a exam room where we find the nurse. The nurse is covered in blood but in relatively good spirits. She is more concerned that it is on her white shirt and wants to make sure she gets it out. We then have every employee in the place consult her on how to accomplish this. Southern women love to give advice on laundry and cleaning. Ma-Kettle left me there as she pursued my nurse down the hall filling her ears with valuable advice.

After a change of clothes and a better attitude acquisition my nurse reappeared. She logged onto the computer system asked me why I was there and what could they do for me. I explained all of my issues to her and she dutifully typed all of this in the system. Then she was gone.

I waited for about five minutes and then a young man came in and announced that he was a medical student and he needed to check me out first. We did the old listen to your heart and lungs deal and I laid back for the gut pushing. He wanted to know why I was there. He typed this in the system and he was gone only after he voiced his dismay about my previous doctor’s care.

Next it was the doctor. Guess what. He wanted to know why I was there. I told this story again and received a look not unlike a dog hearing a distant siren.  He listened to my heart and lungs and also pressed on my belly reminding me how big it is. He then gave me a little lesson on how things work around there. It seems they are a training facility and he could not prescribe the meds I wanted/needed. He would need to talk to the doctor. He explained he was just a resident. Somebody shoot me please, it will be quicker.

The resident and the med-student return excited that they have obtained permission to give me a script for the meds I needed. I had to remind the good resident that he had stated earlier that he wanted to get blood from me. You see, I am old hand at doctor’s offices. I knew to not eat that morning because every new doctor wants blood. Even though I had to remind him of this he did remember that he wanted it.

I was ushered to the lab where they are not allowed to bring their personalities to work. The technician did a very good job but I still don’t know if she has a voice or any blood of her own for that matter. Lucky for her she didn’t ask me why I was there. That would have been a Fox News Headline. I would have acted a fool.

I made a new appointment and I was gone. All in all it not a bad visit. I met about 20 new people. They all know my life story. Maybe I’ll get a Christmas card from my new friends. We’ll see.

A scheduled visit to the dentist yesterday turned into an apparent attempt by the dentist to look for even more wealth in the base of my jaw. Let me explain. Jake and I got our teeth cleaned about six weeks ago which was way overdue. Jake emerges from the hygienist torture chamber without a blemish on his dental record. I was not so lucky. Although the young lady was very vocal about how well I had taken care of my teeth over the years I was still informed that a return visit would be needed to repair a rear molar the had previous damage from a very nasty wisdom tooth in some years past.

So today I arrived at 0800 as instructed and was met by the doctor in the waiting room. He told me there were some electrical problems with the lights and he also had a water leak in the ceiling. His mind was not on my mouth. The only time I ever wanted a man to be focused on my mouth and I was upstaged by recessed lighting and a bad flange. Why me? The dental assistant started to take me back to the chair of pain when she stopped in mid gallop because the dentist was in the attic so the access ladder was down in the hallway. We navigated that and I had a well earned seat. Then, the illusion started. He placed a tissue in my  mouth and my right lower jaw got numb. I thought, wow, things have come a long way in dentistry, no shots!!! After a few minutes the work began. I saw the dentist with some large tube. He was sticking it in my rear tooth where the trouble was and once again I thought, wow, this ain’t nuthin’!!   After 5 minutes of that they left. Again, WOW!!! That was it? I’m tougher than I thought.

As time went by my jaw and tongue got increasingly numb. I had the audacity to think “they should have waited a little, I’m just now getting numb but it’s all over”. Boy was I an idiot. They came back. And boy did they show me. He proceeded to drill in my mouth with what I thought was a Black and Decker 3/8 power drill with a 20 foot drop cord. He drilled like there was some Black Gold or Texas Tea in there. Wanting to give Jed a run or his money. Let me tell you folks, when you are already surprised about this process it doesn’t do your confidence any good when the dentist breaks a sweat and starts shaking his head. When he stands up for traction you know your are getting screwed in the wrong end. Not so much pain, just the thought of a 1/2″ masonry bit coming out of my throat if he slipped. This went on and on. When they take a break and tell you to rest your jaw you know your are in for a day.

They finished and I was grateful.   He made comments like,  “That was tougher than I thought is was gonna be”. No shit. It was a damn sight tougher than I thought it was gonna be. I’m not really complaining about my doctor, he did just fine. I guess it’s my messed up grill and my ignorance of  what really goes on when you get a filling. It’s my fault for avoiding the dentist for so many years. It was apparently time for me to get back in the game. This is one game where I’d like to ride the pine.