Right now I am especially appreciating the wealth of support I have been getting from family and friends. First I want to tell those of you who have commented how much I appreciate hearing from you. Penny and I have been getting several phone calls a day from those who say they will take us where we need to go, do grocery shopping for us, whatever.  These are the riches one can gain as one goes through life.  And they mean much more than the material things, when crunch time hits.

 

The good news for today is that they have removed the iron maiden brace from my body and I am FREE again!. Took a shower this morning.  What a simple pleasure. It will be weeks until the fractures are healed but in the meantime, by being careful, I can have fairly normal movement. They won't let me drive until they take another look at the busted verterbrae in acouple of weeks. That I am looking forward to.  You see, I am Penny's transportation as well as my own, so we have had to draw on the kindness of others to tote us around.  I have had 6 doctor appoitnments this week already.  Penny has had three.

 

But this is not written as a complaint. It is just recognition that I am really one lucky fellow to have these riches.

If you haven't been seeing comments from me in your blogs, I think I have an acceptible excuse.

 

On Friday the 13th I fell backward down a flight of 10 steps and broke my back.  Actually, broke two vertebrae between the shoulder blades. It was very exciting for those in our section of the condo. I was pretty noisy about it and everyone came out to try to help me where I was laying on the landing with my feet up the stairs. The EMT guys were there in 5 minutes, called for more help when they saw where I was and my size. So, 4 big techs got me boarded (immobilized) and carried me down two more flights to the ambulance.

 

I was in the hospital two nights and they have me in a brace that is kin to the iron maiden. Looks like I will be wearing it for about 6 weeks.

 

I am now (carefully) mobile.  I have a cane (even got cane use training at the hospital).  They controlled the pain with medication the first three days and I have little pain right now. But I am now dependent on family and friends to get to the medical appointments and other errands. How I hate being dependent on others!!!  But how grateful I am that so many have offer to take me anywhere, shop for me, etc.

 

It is not that I am trying to match Penny and Gene Hameroff in this organ recital. I would be most happy not to be the physical wreck star of the month.  But, when you live long enough, these medical misadventures happen.

My friend Jerry brought me an article in the New York Times that proves it is never too late to succeed at writing. Harry Bernstein has a succcessful memoir, "The Invisible Wall" about his youth in a poverty-stricken street in an English mill town. And he is 96 years old!

 

His writing, as reviewed in the New York Times, is "in a forth-right voice and with heart-breaking details about his family's struggles to survive.

 

He is being deluged by reporters and has received a cavalcade of letters.

 

That is impressive enough,; but the thing that grabs me is that he says he still has a lot to say. Indeed he should - in 96 years there has been a lot of living for him to draw upon.

This posting has nothing to do with late life or health matters. However, the story is so bizarre people have told me that I have to post it.

 

Our 18-unit condo is on a small lake in Bloomingon, IL. We have a vast back lawn that goes from the building down to the shore of the lake. This lake is actually a city park, although they do nothing to maintain it.  And it is home to a host of huge Canadian geese. They mainly eat grass, so the are out there by the dozens squawking and pooping and generally being a nuisance and health hazard

 

Comes Spring and the mating season starts. All day all night honking and chasing each other.

 

The front door to our section of the condo is on the side of the building away from the lake and two of the geese have decided that they are going to nest right near our front door. And they have become extremely aggressive. When we leave the place to go to get our cars, twice the have flown up at us, beating their wings at our heads. And they are fearless.  They laid a couple of eggs by a shrub near the front door, so I threw them away, hoping that would discourage them. To no effect.

 

Now, these geese are a protected species. Why, I don't know.  It isn't because they are endangered.  Their numbers here have grown exponentially in the last five years. This means there is literally nothting we can do to them physically to drive them off. We have talked to Blooming Parks and Recreation people. They can't or won't do anything. We have talked to the State of Illinois environmental people In Springfield. They have problem with geese down there and can't solve them.  We have talked to the mayor of Bloomington who is coming by to check it out. We have checked with a dog handler who has border collies that patrol the geese at the nearby golf course - but he isn't interested in using the dogs on our geese.

 

About all that we have been able to do is use a super soaker with some ammonia in the water.  When I squirt their faces they run away a little bit come right back.

 

Argggggggh!!!

 

This is ridiculous. We have to take a cane with me when I leave with Penny and be prepared to swing at them so we can get to our car.

 

If any of you have ideas for a solution, wow,, would we appreciate it.

 

I am deeply touched and warmed by the reponses you have given to my last couple of postings. It is heart-warming to know that we  have come to regard each other as friends and allies.

 

When I started Late Life Crisis I had no idea of the sense of community (and family) that would derive from it. So as our circle of connenctiosn grew, it inspired us to keep this blog going. We appreciate the constancy of our "regulars" in the comment column.

 

God bless you - and much love from

Pete and Penny

At this point in my life - and with my state of heatlh - I have been reflecting on what the focus of my existence should be. It is human nature to be looking ahead.  We do so to prepare ourselves for the future.  We do it in ancticipation.  And some times we do it in dread of a future event.

 

But things change when one knows that what is ahead might be nearer than we wish. So, I am thinking about the way the animal kingdom dealls with life.

 

The answer is they live for the moment. All that exists for them is what is happening now - what is in front them and around them. And they make the most of it. That, my friends, is not a bad mode to be in for those in my position.

 

So, this is the way I am now living life. I am seizing the day. I am concentrating on the now and making the most of it. I am not borrowing potential trouble from the future. The great news is that it is working for me. My days are full and satisfying. I have appreciation that I am still able to function as well as I ever have.

 

The result is that my morale is excellent. .

 

And every day is a treasure.