First Snow

Thank you all for such thoughtful comments yesterday…
amazes me how well we are able to get along regardless of
religious or non-religious beliefs – proof that it IS possible.
 What you all drove home yesterday was the idea that
 we all  believe in the simple celebrating of a joyful time of year,
that’s my AMEN. 
The first snow of the season fell yesterday morning..

The knock out roses have now officially been… knocked out.

 It’s a new day, all.  Make it a good one 🙂

Agreed!

   I saw this on Facebook this morning… and while I do not follow a specific religion or God and I consider myself more of a spiritual person who gives a damn about my fellow humans and animals, I agree with  a lot of what he has to say. The Idols we worship today, some of the things we choose to take offense to.. are cringe worthy.  Who’s driving this ship, anyway? …  So  If you’re so inclined, read below…

   AN UPDATE TO EARLY POST:…. the following statement is not true, you can visit snopes to see for yourself.. however it has been a widespread rumor, thank you Vickie B. for clearing it up… Apparently the White House refers  to Christmas Trees as Holiday Trees now.   False statement.  But…something  prompted CBS presenter, Ben Stein,
to write  the following…. .or didn’t.  Regardless, I agree. 

 ”

My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does
not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit
up, bejewelled trees, Christmas trees. I don’t feel threatened. I don’t
feel discriminated against. That’s what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn’t bother me a bit when people say, ‘Merry Christmas’ to me. I
don’t think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a
ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers
and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn’t bother me at
all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near
my beach house in Malibu. If people want a nativity scene, it’s just as
fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don’t like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don’t think
Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think
people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around,
period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an
explicitly atheist country. I can’t find it in the Constitution and I
don’t like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we
should worship celebrities and we aren’t allowed to worship God? I guess
that’s a sign that I’m getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who
are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we
knew went to. 


In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a
little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it’s not funny,
it’s intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham’s daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane
Clayson asked her ‘How could God let something like this happen?’
(regarding Hurricane Katrina). Anne Graham gave an extremely profound
and insightful response. She said, ‘I believe God is deeply saddened by
this, just as we are, but for years we’ve been telling God to get out of
our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our
lives.And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out.
How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we
demand He leave us alone?’ 

In light of recent events… terrorist attacks, school shootings, etc. I
think it started when Madeleine Murray O’Hare (she was murdered, her
body found a few years ago) complained she didn’t want prayer in our
schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible
in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal,
and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn’t spank our children when they
misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we
might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock’s son committed suicide). We
said an expert should know what he’s talking about. And we said okay.

Now we’re asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they
don’t know right from wrong, and why it doesn’t bother them to kill
strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it
out. I think it has a great deal to do with ‘WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.’

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the
world’s going to hell.
Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the
Bible says.

Funny how you can send ‘jokes’ through e-mail and they spread like
wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people
think twice about sharing.

Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through
cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and
workplace.

 Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on
your address list because you’re not sure what they believe, or what
they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us
than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit.

If not, then just discard it…. no one will know you did. But, if you
discard this thought process, don’t sit back and complain about what a
bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein”

Takes me back…

You know how sometimes you catch an old tune playing
and it brings you right back to a time long ago…
emotions fill you and you are transported. 
It’s true I don’t hear what I used to, but my memory is vivid
and I still catch enough of it to bring it all back  – a little miracle, 
if you ask me, a saving grace for someone who has always
adored music.  I am also grateful that I grew up in a time
when there were so many artists making great music
that can still be heard on the radio today…
One of my favorites…
turn up your volume and click past the ad – 
Lyrics below…
I guess you wonder where I’ve been
I searched to find the love within
I came back to let you know
Got a thing for you
And I can’t let go
My friends wonder what is wrong with me
Well I’m in a daze from your love you see
I came back to let you know
Got a thing for you
And I can’t let go
Some people go around the world for love
And they may never find what they dream of
What you won’t do, do for love
You tried everything
But you don’t give up
In my world only you
Make me do for love
What I would not do
My friends wonder what is wrong with me
Well I’m in a daze from your love you see
I came back to let you know
Got a thing for you
And I can’t let go
And though I only want the best it’s true
I can’t believe the things I do for you
What you won’t do, do for love
You’ve tried everything
But you won’t give up
In my world only you
Make me do for love
What I would not do

Godsends… all of you

   So I put my story out there yesterday with hesitation, because on so many levels I feel blessed in this world. I did not want to come off as a whimpering  woe-is-me but I was desperate for information.  Just a day later I am now a member of HLAA  –Hearing Loss Association of America –  the nation’s leading membership and advocacy organization for people with hearing loss.  It is an international, non-sectarian, educational organization of people with hearing loss, their relatives and friends.  I will receive their monthly magazines full of information for people like me, plus I have three chapters to choose from here in Connecticut where I can get new information about products and research and developments while  interacting with others who have dealt with the same hearing loss issues.  It’s a beautiful thing.  And I have to wonder, why was I never told of these resources by the three different hearing specialists I have seen throughout the years?   It took the blogging community to bring these resources to me.

  I’ve also heard success stories from other bloggers who have had the cochlear implant surgery and would do it again, it has been that good of an experience for them.  A friend here in town who reads my blog reached out to her relative and got information for me on another implant, and so I’ll do research on that. Some of you have suffered hearing loss too, and we’ve laughed together over the daily annoyances that make up the life of a hearing impaired person… You HAVE to laugh, really.

Example:  Just yesterday I went grocery shopping.  I got into a long line to check out, and apparently the one next to me opened up and the store clerk was calling me to come on over to her line.  I didn’t hear her.   She then began waving her arms REAL BIG and I saw the waving and looked over… she pointed to her empty line exasperatedly, but by the time I saw her waving, others had too and jumped in.

 Sometimes the check out person or a restaurant worker or a gas station attendant or the mail delivery person joke around with me in casual banter that you all are used to.  It’s a part of everyday interaction. A word of advice that you didn’t ask for…. ENJOY those little interactions.. they warm your world, believe me.  I can only hope my responses are appropriate, because most of the time I can’t hear it and I’m winging it.  Sometimes… the reaction from the other party is one of a silent, odd look… and I know I got it wrong.

  Restaurants are a nightmare, as are any social functions where there is any background noise whatsoever… meaning any social function whatsoever.  I don’t join friends for a drink or a social outing anymore because I won’t hear the conversation, and I don’t want people I care about to have to repeat themselves over and over.  It’s easier to just stay home.   At the Dog Days events, I no longer work the adoptions table because with all the barking dogs and crowds of potential adopters, I cannot hear the interview I’m supposed to be giving.
 
Jane, a blogging friend of mine, knows my woe.  She said this after my post.. and I laughed out loud.  THIS is what I want for Christmas… “I think we should get T shirts that say DEAF on the front and DEAFER on the back!!   

  I want to thank each one of you for commenting kindly on that post, for sending vital information that I did not have before, for commiserating, for the camaraderie, for being there.  I had no idea when I started blogging, what an important community it would  turn out to be. Thank you, thank you –  I feel as if a shroud has been lifted. Ok, maybe it’s still stuffed in my ears, but I’m no longer blind to the opportunities. I have resources. 

 

     

Well that sucks

   I visited my third hearing specialist this morning, and I wish I could say I walked out of there with a renewed hope for some restored hearing.

    My journey began in my late twenties, when a ringing in my ears had arrived and never left.  After MRI and CT scan and various other tests,  it was established that I was losing my hearing but nothing more significant was occurring, so that part was a relief.  About 15 years ago I met with a world renown hearing specialist who  sold me a $6,000. pair of inner ear hearing aids, state of the art, that he was sure would give me much relief in the world, and I believed him.  When I put then in my ears and he began writing on a piece of paper I instantly began to cry, because I could hear the scratch of the pen on paper.  My husband teared up a little too.. and we walked out of his clinic thinking we had solved my hearing loss issues.  Shortly after, I discovered  not only was the inner ear aid extremely annoying and alittle painful, it was not giving me any clarity in speech, just a whole lot of LOUDNESS, which I didn’t need.   After a month or two of trying to make it work… and this is what that specialist told me to do…. give it time… I realized it really wasn’t doing a damned thing.  So I tossed them aside and moved on.

      The next specialist  experience was about eight years ago. He could DEFINITELY help me, hearing aids had advanced.  I wanted to believe him too… so I went through the testing again and bought the newest and best digital hearing aid available.. just one this time because I was now deaf in the left ear, no need for an aid.  I explained that I needed clarity, not volume, and he said the new aids gave much better clarity.  $3,000. later, I walked out the door with a whole lot of loud noise….. but no clarity.  After a few aggravating weeks I went back.  They said I needed to give it more time.  I did.  All it gave me were headaches.  Put back in the box after three or so months, I gave up once again.

     Years passed, and my husband has an ear/nose/throat doctor for his ear wax issues. He has talked to him regarding our frustration with my hearing loss and once again … “How does she manage without hearing aids, send her in, we can definitely help her.”    Skeptical, I was, of course.  But I made the appointment.

     That was this morning.  I sit down with him and he looks in my ears and down my throat and up my nose and takes my medical history. He asks all the questions I’ve answered before and then he sends me to the booth for my third or fourth hearing test.  The woman giving the hearing test says… now, repeat the word to me when I say it to you.  I tell her I will not hear the word she is going to say, what would she like me to do when I don’t know what it is?   She says “Why are you taking a hearing test if you can’t hear?”… I say.. I’m here because I am significantly hearing impaired and YOU people are supposed to know why I’m here. I did not put myself in this booth.  She laughs and says.. OK lets try it.

   Of course, I fail magnificently.  New Specialist comes back into exam room afterwards with results and says… “WOW, you are significantly hearing impaired, how do you manage? Jeez, do you read lips? “

um, yes.  I told them this when I walked into their office, as I do everywhere I go, so that they will look at me directly when they are talking to me.  

 Is it me, or is this whole thing just a little… unprofessional… or something.   I mean, this is what they do for a living… deal with people who have hearing loss, right?  Their reactions, although they were friendly, were a little.. odd? Juvenile?   Maybe I’m being too sensitive.

  Anyway.. the verdict.  ” I have nothing that will help you.  Hearing aids should not have been sold to you before, because they will not help the type of hearing loss you have.. you have total speech recognition loss and also volume loss.”    So basically I blew $10,000 on hearing aids that were never going to help me decipher conversation in the first place.  Insurance doesn’t cover hearing aids, in case you didn’t know.  Yeah.. because it’s not deemed a life threatening situation, it’s not covered.   It IS life altering, I’ll tell you that. 

  I ask Specialist No. 3 if there is anything on the horizon I might look forward to someday, and he says point blank … “No”.    Just that.   Awesome.

   The one suggestion he has is to have a consult with a cochlear implant specialist.   Now, I’ve heard of them and I’ve seen them, it ain’t pretty, but if it would restore my hearing I might consider it someday. I found out the chances are 50/50, and the noise you do eventually hear is not natural noise.  You have to retrain your brain to decipher the NEW noises you would hear, if it actually works.  I don’t think I’m up for it.  I told Dr. No. 3 I didn’t think I could tolerate the hardware on my skull and in my ear, and he said… “well then I guess you’re not desperate enough…yet”.   

  More awesomeness.

  *sigh*    I drove home today with mixed feelings.  I already knew most of what he told me, because for years I’ve been telling audiologists that their aids were not giving me any improvement and they were just poo-pooing my rejection of their products.  Turns out I was validated, I was right.   The attitude of Dr. No. 3 was a bit off putting, for lack of a better way to describe it… but maybe I just didn’t like the news he was delivering.  I do think he was being completely honest, if nothing more helpful.

  So that leaves me with the same hearing loss frustrations I have known for a while, no definite answers and only one new direction I can take that is pretty drastic with no guarantee.    I’m writing about this today not for your pity, because there are so many worse things that can happen to a person and so many people who suffer from this and much more difficult ailments.     My purpose for putting this out there is to ask any of you if you have experience, if a relative has experience with this surgical procedure, and what their success rate and comfort level has been.

I’d show you pics of the actual surgery, but it’s gross.  TMI for now.
It is what it is.

Tea, anyone?

Are you a tea drinker?
In my effort to get healthier and rid myself of the acid reflux issues
 that coffee aggravates,  I have become an herbal tea person.
Yesterday, my friend Lynn sent me this link after I
showed her a new tea I was trying… and I almost
dropped my proverbial tea cup. 
 
http://foodbabe.com/2013/08/21/do-you-know-whats-really-in-your-tea/
Ugh. I have some of these in my cupboard..
now going in the garbage.  
It’s amazing what we don’t know about what we’re putting in our mouths. 
*sigh*

Alfred Hitchcock would approve

Today is football Sunday here at This Old House….
where the men are men and the women are useless.
 
 
Unless they’re serving up a plate of cranberry meatballs
or crackers and cheese with pepperoni, please. 
 
Now I like football, I watch it when my team is playing
(Go Patriots!!)
but hour after hour gets a bit redundant and what’s left of my hearing
is in jeapardy with all the hooting and hollering that goes on in that cave. 
 
So a walk with the dog(s) it shall be…
and a little admiration of the one thousand common grackles that have decended
at the feeder outside my kitchen window. 
 
I’m guessing this kind of encounter inspired good ole Alfred Hitchcock for
his movie, THE BIRDS. 
 
Did you see Anthony Hopkins in the movie..Hitchcock?  
He’s one of my favorites, but in this movie he was particularly wonderful. 
Amazing, no? 
 
I personally believe the common grackle is  one of the most beautious birds around.
If I could convince one to stay as a pet, I’d be tickled all the irridescent
colors these birds show off –  they literally glimmer – 
why they got such a common name is beyond me. 
 

 Seriously looking dude..

 

Woods Walk

The Mr. has cleared some beautiful walking trails
behind this old house – part of these trails were the original
“road to town” back when horse and buggy were the method of travel. 
Our fall here in New England has been glorious and we’ve been
walking the woods, reveling in it’s golden hues and the scent of moldering leaves…
(is that a word?)
That particular scent reminds us both of our childhood and the wonderful
memories that this time of year invokes. Is that true for you too? 
 
 

 This is part of the original road that leads down into the woods…

There are still stone walls remaining from the past two centuries,
when cattle and horses and sheep grazed these pastures, now full of second growth trees.
 
 

 Swamp maples have the most beautiful colored leaves…(below)
a red orange yellow glow like no other…

 ..and the fungus among us is extraordinarily beautiful if you look beyond it’s name.

Another shot of the road less traveled….
Your truly hiding behind one of the majestic trees…
Here since that road was a major thoroughfare, I’m sure…
When you see a tree this large standing in the middle of the woods,
you know it once stood alone, allowed to take in all the light and water so 
that it could mature to this size.  The small second growth trees all around it give that away as well.
 
Heading back up out of the woods to This Old House, the sky last night
was radiant…
 
 

Blogger issues.. again

I have been unable to leave comments on many of your blogs
for reasons only blogger may or may not know. 
For some reason, I can type my comment, but once I click on option,
like Google account, to leave the comment, it disappears instead of publishing.
This has been going on for about a month now. 
Anyone having the same trouble? 
Anyone get it resolved?
UGH!
So, I’m reading your posts, just not able to say so. 

A little whine and art on All Hallows Eve

Can I admit to you here that I am just a little sad that my
own little trick-or-treaters are now grown and
not doing that stuff anymore?
I miss the dress-up, the crunching leaves under feet with flashlights in hand
while little sneakered feet pad up to the door with candy anticipation
and wide eyed curiosity at who will answer the door and what will be
put in their plastic pumpkin.

Since I’m not getting my kiddos ready for halloween festivities
 today and we don’t get many trick-or -treaters out here ..
I took a drive to the only art store in this part of Connecticut, about 45 minutes away,
and wallowed alittle in paint brush purchasing pity.
This mural is on the side of Blicks Art Store in Plainville, CT.
I love it!