Bfth's Boring Blog

It's a time to think about Halloween.  It's' a time of think about the time change (which is this Sunday morning).  And it's a time to remember Sandy. It's been 2 years and still the name Sandy means only one thing to so many people:  destruction.  Destruction of homes and destruction of life as we knew it.  It was not just a storm; it was a Superstorm.  Sandy washed cars and houses into the bay.  Keepsakes gone and memories clung to. Two years later and the destruction is still visible.  The pain is still acute.  Progress has been made, but so much more still needs to be done.  The Jersey Shore still needs to be restored. Two summers have come and gone since Sandy.  The summers are different now.  Not just because of beaches still being closed or the constant sound of construction.  The landscape will be forever marked.  Houses elevated and houses that remain "as they were".  And of course the missing houses; the gaps that remain where once s

I was a guest speaker today (Sunday, 10/26) at my church.  Here are the passages read and my mediation. Leviticus 19: 15-18 19:15 You shall not render an unjust judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbor. 19:16 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbor: I am the LORD. 19:17 You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. 19:18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD. Matthew 22:34-40 22:34 When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 22:35 and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 22:36 "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" 22:37 He said to him, "'

Yesterday was a day of small disappointments that really got me down.  Nothing major, yet sometimes the emotions trump the logic in me.  Yesterday was one of those days. The biggest disappointment is that my father will not be coming home next week as I had hoped.  That is NOT to say that he's not getting better.  He is so much better than he was when this diabolical infection took hold.  So much better that I am already starting to block out the horror that it was when it began 6 weeks ago.  Back then I knew it was going to me a long haul.  In my mind I set a date of the end of October as when he would be home.  Now I have to accept that October is ending and he is not yet ready to be released from the care center.  Not that he isn't getting better; just that his wounds still need to heal and this process is very (VERY) slow.  I SHOULD set a new date in my head of Thanksgiving so that I won't be disappointed, but my brain is saying Veteran's Day.  I hope I'm n

I've always thought that I was a pretty good daughter in law. It helps that I have a pretty cool mother in law.  (No nightmare stories here...actually the only nightmares I have about my mother in law is that she might fall and break something again.  I'm too far away to physically check in with her as I'd like to.)  But I had an EPIC fail yesterday...I missed my mother-in-law's birthday. Now I could throw my husband under the bus.  After all she is HIS mother.  Or I could point out that I did make sure that my son sent her a birthday card (which arrived towards the end of last week).  Or I could make the excuse that my life has been so crazy lately (my father is still in a "care center" recovering from a serious infection, my son has a big project due for class, I've got a full time job AND I'm speaking in front of my congregation on Sunday).  But let's lay it on the line.  I messed up.  (To be fair so did my husband.) As I said, I've

My dad is entering week 4 of the "care center" (aka nursing home).  While he is so much better than he was 6 weeks ago when this nightmare began, he still has a long way to go.  (Lesson learned:  infections can come on fast, but a serious one takes what seems like an eternity go away and even after that the "side effects" can take even longer to fade resulting in months of recovery.  Something I never anticipated and was definitely not prepared for.) Yesterday my dad moved into a new room.  He originally had a roommate, Mario, but Mario got "kicked out." (That's a good thing...at least I hope it is.  I wanted him to be able to leave because he was healthy enough to go, not because his insurance/Medicaid would no longer cover his care.  The truth is it was mostly because of the later, but I hope the former came into play as well.)  As much as I loved Mario, it was nice to have a "private" room.  But we knew a roommate was inevitable.  Wha

I'm generally a nice person.  (Honestly!  Truly!)  I'm no angel, but I would like to think that I'm easy to get along with.  My personality is not "pushy" and I generally go with the flow. But there is one area where you don't want to mess with me and that is family. I stand by my family; I will fight for my family.  You DON'T mess with me! Ever since my father got ill I've been keeping an eye on his care.  I'm not unreasonable and I'm not demanding; I just want to make sure that my father is getting the care he needs to get better.  I'm not going to complain about the food at the hospital or the rehab center; that's NOT what he's there for.  (Does anyone expect the food at these places to be gourmet?  Some days it's good, some days it's not.  It's not unlike life.)  I AM going to complain when he is not getting the quality of care that he needs and/or that we were promised when he was moved from the hospital to

This summer/autumn I have been particularly lucky to reconnect with people who I haven't seen for years.  I don't know what it is, but the stars must have suddenly aligned.  It's not just one particular set of people either.  I’ve been lucky enough to meet up with some people I knew in high school (and not just people who graduated with me), college and relatives from as far away as Australia. It's been a truly wonderful experience. These meetings "forced" me (in a good way) to get out of my comfort zone.  Something that we should all do more often.  They weren't always convenient with my "regular" daily schedule.  But for once, I threw the same routine out the window.    I put away any preconceived notions and just got to know these people as they are. (As opposed to how I once might have imagined them.)  Time that I thought might be dull and boring, were fascinating.  The time flew by.  With every meeting, I wished for more time. Nowh

A new month already! Where did September go?  (I know my month was "lost" in a maze of work, hospital/rehab center visits, a myriad of obligations and limited and precious family time.)  We are in the "heart" of autumn now.  The days (and nights) are noticeably cooler.  The colors vibrant as the trees seem to be ablaze, the pumpkins are plump and orange, and pots of mums dot many a neighbor's doorstep.  (Sadly not mine.  I've killed too many over the years and October also seems to be a windy month with any containers of mums that I haven't killed blowing over on their side and making a general mess.)  The air is full of the scent of apples and cinnamon, as well as the occasional bonfire. Most importantly, it is now "allowable" to put up Halloween decorations, at least according to my son.  In his book of holiday rules, Halloween decorations should not go up until at least the last week of September. (Purchasing decorations and costumes, h