There are no words...

 to adequately describe what the outpouring of love, kindness and prayers from you, my readers, mean to me and mine.  I am convinced that I am blessed with the very best group of people in Blogland.  Not only am I honored, but I am humbled as well.

My youngest son and my daughters have stepped up to the plate and are taking care of all the details.  God has richly blessed me with my children who do what needs to be done in spite of their broken hearts.

Duane and I had talked some time ago about what to do should the unthinkable happen.  There will be no funeral, according to his wishes.  His ashes will be scattered at a place that had special meaning for him. My children are planning a get-together for friends and family at a later date to be held at a local park.  Duane would have liked that.

I need some time to come to terms with life without my son.  I am not abandoning ship, but will return.  Your kind words, thoughts and prayers have eased the grieving process.  May God bless you, each and every one.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Vicki  

Thank you all...

 from the depths of my heart for your kindness and prayers for my son and my family.

My son Duane fought the good fight but in the early hours of this morning his poor damaged heart gave out.  His passing was quick and painless.  We are thankful he suffers no more.

I will be away for a time while I deal with the loss of the good son and the good man that he was.  Knowing he is safe in the arms of our Lord brings me peace.

Update

First, I want you all to know how much it means to me to see the caring and support and prayers offered for my son. I am truly grateful and humbled. Thank you and may God bless each and every one of you.

My son was transferred from our local hospital to the best hospital in our State where he is receiving excellent care.

He tested negative for Covid.

He is being treated for fluid in his lungs.

At the time a couple of years ago when he had a stroke, there were found arteries that were blocked and three stents were inserted. Those are still functioning perfectly, but the need for several more were now found and more stents were added.

Duane underwent surgery last evening to remove a blood clot in his leg. This morning finds him alert and able to answer questions put to him. An Electrocardiogram is scheduled momentarily. The doctors are closely monitoring his heart.

Duane's Aunt has worked at this hospital for years and is able to translate 'doctor speak' for the rest of us. My youngest son keeps me informed.

We realistically do not expect Duane home any time soon. There is not a quick fix for his heart condition. But we are all keeping the faith and going forward with positive attitudes. He is in the best possible place for receiving the best care.

Thank you all.

Attention Prayer Warriors

 My oldest son Duane has had Covid for the past couple of weeks.  Although he tested negative a few days ago, his condition has deteriorated.  He has trouble breathing and he finds it difficult to eat.

His brother and sister just arrived to take him to the hospital.  They will keep me informed.

I have always been honest with you, so I will admit to being scared.  That's why I am calling for the big guns.  If you are of a mind to remember him in prayer,  my family and I would be grateful.

Out, Out, Damned Shot

My friend 'Red' sent me this link.  It is worth your time to watch.

https://www.bitchute.com/video/InH89amCpy7S/

 

Still Stacking

Some number of years ago when I retired, there were those who said I would be bored. They were wrong. These days sometimes don't seem to have enough hours in them to do everything I want to do. I suppose it might help if I was able to move faster than a herd of turtles. :)

I have been working on sorting out my dehydrated foods to see what I have enough of and what I need to do. And because storage space is at a premium, I am turning some of it into powders. There is a small mountain of bags of dehydrated food in the middle of my kitchen table that I will run through my coffee grinder tomorrow.

My youngest son knows I like to make a pot of ham and beans using ham bones, so he brought me the one from his Easter dinner that still had quite a bit of meat left on it. I cooked that along with the one I had left, added carrots, celery and onion to make 13 quarts of ham and beans. Normally I would can that, but until I can lay my hands on more lids and jars, the freezer was the best choice.

Meat prices are going up, so I have been buying more than usual lately. Nine pounds of chicken breast went into the freezer. I ordered a turkey on this last grocery order. The delivery guy who shops for my groceries knows that I can lots of meat so he always gets me the largest turkey he can find. This one was over 18 lbs. It wouldn't fit in the space left in the freezer. So today I slow roasted it all day and took the meat off the bones. In the morning I will cut it into bite size pieces and that way the meat will fit. No complaining here. I am thankful that over time I have been able to fill my smaller chest freezer to the top.

Anyone living in or near a city might do well to get ready for more unrest. The protesters are daily marching at the courthouse in Minneapolis where the Floyd trial is in session. There have been well publicized threats and promises of violence should the verdict not be what they want.

And yesterday there was an officer involved shooting in a suburb just north of the City. I will not comment on the right or wrong of it because I don't know for sure what happened. But it was enough to bring out those who first tried to take over the local police station and when that failed, moved on to a local shopping center, breaking windows and looting businesses. The last report I heard was that the governor has called in law enforcement from all over our state as well as the National Guard. This will not end well.

Seems like every day the crazy gets worse. If we are not ready to feed and protect our families, now might be the time to take care of that.

Pray and prepare, my friends. Pray and prepare.

This and That

This post is mainly me checking in to let you all know I haven't fallen off the edge of the earth. Because I live a simple, quiet life, sometimes there isn't much to report.

The dehydrating of vegetables from my last grocery order is finished. I have been going through the dried food on the shelf, determining what can be used as is and what needs to be put to better use in powdered form. I am working on that this week and this will give me more shelf space which, as you know, is at a premium here in my little apartment.

My next grocery order will be delivered Thursday. About a month ago the store was out of frozen skinless boneless chicken breast, so I am trying to get some this time. I have some freezer space so I am trying to fill that in.

Canning supplies are still scarce as hen's teeth in my area. Once a month I order lids and jars, so far without success. But hope springs eternal. :)

Looking back over my records, I see that an average amount of a twice monthly grocery order ran in the neighborhood of $120. I am in the habit of ordering multiples of most items in order to build up my food storage. My last two orders have been about the same amounts of food as previous orders, but boy howdy, have the prices ever gone sky high. My order two weeks ago and the one for this week have increased in cost of around $100 each. I don't see any sign that prices will decrease any time soon. I am still ordering what I can to increase my food supply, for it is a near certainty that prices next month will be even higher.

Oldest son has been working part time at two local restaurants. One of the restaurants tested employees due to a virus outbreak. Duane tested positive. He is now about half way through a 10 day quarantine. So far the symptoms are like those of a common cold. We are praying for a complete and swift recovery. In the meantime, Mom is baking chocolate chip cookies this afternoon to cheer him up. I think that the inactivity of not being able to work might be harder on him than the illness. To his credit, he has never been one to sit on the couch when he could be working.

The news reports are not looking good. Everywhere you look there is something nasty happening. Crime rates are rising everywhere, much of it due to the defund the police movement. 'Cancel culture' is doing it's level best to erase anyone who doesn't buy into their insane ideas. Others are busy working to get us to hate our neighbors. And there seems to be an elected official on every street corner determined to turn us into obedient servants and to gain more money and power for themselves.

I guess the ornery runs deep in me, for I refuse to comply and I refuse to give up on the country I love. I still believe that there is more good in this world than there is evil. And I am convinced that God is still in charge.

Keep on preparing, my friends, and keep on praying. Things may get more ugly before they get better, but we will win this one. Have faith!