Mornin' everyone.

It's surprising and sad to read about how many people know people who are hearing impaired. It's very frustrating for the individual and for everyone around them. A friend of mine got hearing aids a year or two ago that he controls with his iPhone, and he really likes them. Something about the timbre of my voice makes it difficult for many hearing-impaired people to hear me, which is frustrating for both of us. When my dad was alive and living in FL, I finally gave up on calling him on a regular basis, because the whole time, I'd be shouting and he'd just say "What?" So I wrote and mailed letters to him instead (he didn't do email). He never wrote back, but I knew my letters got read.

Henrun, thanks for the Mustang Sally update. I hope she keeps getting good reports from the doc going forward.

LaT, no, we don't need a Garmin to know that we're running. Many times, running 'nekkid' like that is in itself energizing

Sorry about the busted water heater, Enke.

Is that a sweep PR for you, Leslie?

Nice Zombied run, Twocat, and nice score with the new watch!

Congrats on a sleepful night (and a dry bed), Mike.

I took the last 2 days off from working out, mostly due to sleep-deprivation, but finally got up and out this morning for a quick 5K in 53F, post-drizzle temps. T'was nice.

Have a greta Friday!

Jay

HIya!

Sayhey, thanks so much for taking the time to share your experiences.  It really helps.  I appreciate being able to express my frustration here, as I feel it would be unfair to DH to "vent" close to home with folks we know who interact with him regularly.  I know some of you have met DH and will again in the future, but those encounters are not regular.  And I have let some of you know ahead of time before meeting him about this issue, just so you don't think he's being unresponsive to you.   I also know y'all care, witness the response we got when he had his heart issues.

So he had yesterday off to take care of HA appointment, a doctor visit, dentist etc.  I didn't hear from him all day, which is odd, as we will email each other a few times just to check in with each other.  Then, at 4:59, I get this: "Hi. Not having a good day. Sorry. Speedsters?"

I'll cut to the chase, which is that he was angry over the cost of the HAs, which he determined he did need.  (I think this is due in large part to wanting to keep his job.  He works with a number of women, and as you probably know, women's voices seem to be harder to hear as they tend to be in higher registers.)

After sympathizing, and giving him additional mope time, I finally told him: "Go tell Jodi about it."

<<Jodi is our 40-something friend in Rapid I mentioned a while ago.  She was diagnosed with brain cancer about 1.5 years ago.  Things have been good and she was on a Mayo regime until last week, when the meds caused abdominal abscesses that ruptured, landing her in ICU.  She's recovering, but obviously this is a setback. >>

A little while later, he thanked me for helping him get some perspective on the problem.    The fact that Jodi is a multi-tattooed, Harley riding straight talker certainly helped. ( Her sister told me just yesterday that she is still in the hospital and needing her rest; she knows this as Jodi kicks people out who are visiting when she wants to sleep. )

So, thank you all, most sincerely, and no need to comment--really helps to let it out a bit.

More rain this am; not used to that.  Rain in the am is an east coat thing, usually.  Ours tends to come in the afternoon, when I stuck at the desk.  So just a 5K this am.  Very pleasant, as the precip kept the temps under 80.

I did sign up for the 5K tomorrow.  It's a first time event, so I don't have any expectations except that it will make me run faster than I've been running for the past weeks.   And I hope (not expect) it will get me up and out in order to get in some miles ahead of the race.

As a thank you, I'll share a little Calvin & Hobbes with you:

grins,

A

Good Morning!

Like Carolyn, I'm so anxious for the relay. At this time next Friday, Debbie will be finishing up her leg and Paul will be getting ready for his. The excitement is brewing! 

I'll head out for a run after work, while David has his tennis lessons. He is in a community tournament this weekend. Saturday is singles and Sunday is doubles. I'll be watching him, but since there is generally alot of downtime in between matches - I'll get in a longer 8ish mile run at some point tomorrow.

Got up. Ran 6 miles. Then spent the day getting ready to leave for a conference. Not very exiting, but it is what I did.

Women's voices are harder to hear because of millions of years of conditioning to ignore sounds in that pitch range.

 

I sort of wanted to just sit at the park this morning, drink coffee, and watch the sun come up, but I thought I ought to run a little too, so I went to the park, ran a couple laps around the pond (total of 1.3 miles) and then I sat on a bench with my coffee and watched the sun come up over the hills.

 

I couldn't run much further than 1.3 pr my coffee would start getting cold.

Everything about Dave's post makes me 

The Hub and I don't see retirement in our future.  I suspect we will have to work, at least part-time, almost to the bitter end due to the drain on our finances ad retirement accounts associated with the issues of 5 years ago.  But that's okay.  We survived, we didn't lose our home, we still have each other and life is SO GOOD now.  And yes, the cost of medical insurance is part of the reason.  We spend over $700 a month for The Hub for insurance, and I am SO blessed to have insurance through my work.

No workout this morning.  I have been having a hard time getting up early enough to work out before work. But it's core/ST I need to do, so it'll either be after work today or tomorrow morning since we're doing a night run tomorrow.

And Tet - Last year I started half an hour behind the last runner, this year I started about 20 min behind as I don't want anybody to feel they're being pressured to hurry up or the sweep will get 'em.  However, next year I think I'll try starting 5-10 min after and see how it goes.  When I got to the last aid station, I was only about 10 min behind the last 2 runners.

Okay - My desk is tilting to one side, there are so many files that need attention.  Have a good weekend, friends ~~

 

 

 

The Hub and I don't see retirement in our future.   And yes, the cost of medical insurance is part of the reason.  We spend over $700 a month for The Hub for insurance, and I am SO blessed to have insurance through my work.

 

 

Tell me about it. I don't work enough hours to qualify for health insurance, and DH is 71 and on Medicare. I'm paying $835/month with a $5,000 deductible and no dental. My surgery to have those cancer spots taken out was $1,900 and with the "health insurance rates" we got a $530 break. The rest is all out of pocket since it's the first claims I've made on my deductible. It is very frustrating to fork out over $800 a month to be covered in case something catastrophic happens. So yes, having insurance as part of a job package is a huge bonus. You guys are very lucky.

And since I'm ranting, I'm going to complain about the weather too. I signed up for a 10k tomorrow morning which starts at 8:00 AM and has several waves. I'm in the 4th wave. It's supposed to be 75° and very humid by 8:00 and a lot of this course has no shade. Plus, the finish line is near the start so we get to watch the elite runners come through before we even take off! Very disheartening...

Ok, I'm all better now!

Happy for those sleeping through the night (and not wetting the bed), running pain free and enjoying a nice cup of java while watching the sun come up.  And prayers for those with problems that make mine look silly to even complain about!

I'm halfway through my 12 yards of bark. Took a break to hang out with my grandsons while their mom ran some errands.  We had a popsicle and talked about what we were going to do this summer. Life is good when you're 3, 5 and 6 years old!

Well good grief, I can't wait to retire. I can retire with full benefits (traditional pension) at 60 and I'm counting down the days. I might actually work till the following spring, because it'd be much more fun to walk out that last day on April 30 rather than October 31... just sayin'. Alaska's old defined benefit pension plan is pretty rich by most standards, and I fully realize how fortunate I am to have it. DH on the other hand will probably be working in some form or another for a few more years. After all, he is younger than I am .

Amy, I hope Dan is able to figure something out on the HA issue. They are crazy expensive. And looking at used bikes is a great place to start. Most people with nice bikes take very good care of them, and then they want to upgrade or try the newest frame or whatever so the nicer used bikes are usually a very good thing.

I took today off work and have been mostly wasting time, but hey, it's my day off and I can do that, right? Heading out for a run now, probably just 6-7 miles cuz I want to get back and work in the garden. It's soooo close to being done! Then I need to plant some things in pots for the deck, like flowers, spaghetti squash (we love how it looks and it's yummy), tomatoes and peppers. Our deck gets pretty hot, so it's the next best thing to a greenhouse, which I do not have (but wouldn't turn one down if offered....).

Hahaha I just read Tammy's post. Yes, that is awesome! (and good for you, Mike!)

I sure hope you're enjoying the game, Amy, because I ain't.