Catch Up

School has been over for a week now. I'm just starting to feel like a burden has been lifted. I can hardly remember living for the last 4 months. I was treading water as fast as I could, just keeping the nose above drowning phase. Many things happened during the last while. I know I neglected putting it all down, so as I remember what I've forgotten to pass on I will be laying it all out here. If it seems a little out of order, it probably is.

Mom - she's got Macular Degeneration and has been slowly losing her sight for the past year or so. Not a good thing for someone who loves reading, knitting, reading, tv, reading and, oh yea, reading. She's had to go in to the doctor about once a month or so where he would give her a shot in her eyes to try and stop the blood from seeping into the eye's interior and stave off the macular. It's not fun to be stuck in the eye with a sharp stick, but it sure beats the alternative - blindness.
Anyway, last week she went in for her shot and then 2 days later she was almost completely blind. Everything was totally clouded over, visually. She went back into the doctor who told her she had a spontaneous cataract form almost overnight. He knew, because he'd just seen her 2 days previously. We don't know if it will get better or if she'll have to have surgery. Gees Louise, if it's not one eye problem it's another. We're all hopeful that Mom will regain her sight. She's much too active and engaged to have this things bring her down.

I got an A- in my Creative Perspective class. Quite a surprise to me. It really varies from teacher to teacher whether you get a good grade or not. Last semester I worked my tail off, and never missed a class. The teacher gave me a B, which is what I expected. This class, I worked my tail off, missed 2 classes and turned in my last assignment a week late. A-. I was expecting another B. I am not complaining. This summer I am going to take one on-line class. It should be pretty easy. I'm ready for easy. I will probably also sit in on a Science Foundations class taught by my department chair and boss. It sounds fascinating to me and I don't have to do any homework. ha ha. After that I still have to take either Sculpture or Ceramics, Readings, and a travel class before I can graduate with my BS in Art. I'm so close! And I'm only 51. I've still got plenty of time, right?


We just got word yesterday that our house refinancing was approved. Hurray! Our interest rate will go WAY down.

Lisa is still teaching lessons and taking classes from ISU. She should be done with her coursework for her doctorate next spring. (One year to go!) Then all the writing and stuff. She and Tyler are doing very well.

David is still in school and may be done next December? I'm not sure, he doesn't tell me much. Emily and the babies are doing pretty well, I think. I wish they lived closer so I could get my baby kissing in, but I guess you can't have everything.

Andy graduates from high school in a little over a month. Boy am I ready for him to be done with that. So is he. He's on the golf team and back working at the cemetery. (Which I think is a great job for him.)

Joni graduates with her BS in nursing in July. She got her AS in nursing last July. Then, who knows what she plans on doing. I have a feeling she's not quite done with school yet. She took the LSAT test (I think on a whim) and may go to law school. She may also go on to an advanced nursing degree. Then again she may try to find a job (good luck with that one in this day and age).

Abby is out of school until next Sept. and is working at one job and will hear next week about another. Her grades came back good enough that she'll have 3/4 tuition paid next year. That along with working should take care of school costs. The photos she took of her ex-roomates wedding are wonderful. She's been busy editing them. She just told me today that she had someone else hire her to take photos for a recital poster. Word is getting out.


Mike is working 3 jobs, still. He quit one of them a couple of months ago but they wanted him back and Mike has never learned how to say no, except when I want him to slow down, exercise, or eat right, but that's another story.......