I’m happy to report that my surgery and recovery are going better than expected.
Oddly, after surgery, I’ve been dealing with a chronic case of the hiccups. They have been going on and off for three or four days now. You may remember I’ve had this issue before, but without surgery. Sure, it sounds funny, but after a while, the diaphragm gets really sore and it’s not a laughing matter.
I was told my surgeon was very open about praying with his patients when asked. So, I asked, and he said one of the nicest and sincerest prayers I’ve heard.
For some reason, I like to weigh myself before and after surgery at home before I leave for the hospital. This time, I gained an extra eight pounds. I guess that’s from the hardware installed in me as well as the IV. It really can’t be food or water since I hadn’t had much.
Most of my life, I’ve been hesitant about anyone helping me with anything, much less asking for help. But Keith 1.5 (who’s trying to upgrade to Keith 2.0) is becoming more accepting of help (and taking the advice of U2). I found that I’ve been denying friends and loved ones an opportunity to serve and an opportunity to bring joy to their lives. It’s been great having an old friend drive me to and from surgery and witness my church’s small group (full of retired people who are just waiting and wanting to serve) deliver food.
I pushed myself the day after the surgery by driving BoyGeeding to his soccer game. Furthermore, I drove to DaughterGeeding’s softball game a half-hour away.
To be continued….
Posted inPersonal|Comments Off on Bag of Randomness for Wednesday, April 19, 2023
Today is my friend Jimi’s birthday. As a kid, he would remind everyone that it was his birthday, and it was easy to remember because it was the day Lincoln (Abraham, just in case you were wondering) got shot, the Titanic hit the iceberg, and the day before taxes are due. Sadly and unpredictably, it would also become the day his father will tragically die from falling multiple stories while on the job. Today is also my surgery day. Jimi hardly ever tells me he loves me, but last weekend he indirectly told me by saying enough bad stuff has happened on his birthday and I shouldn’t add to it.
While the ex and I haven’t buried the hatchet, things have cooled down. She will sometimes ask me to help drive the kids to and/or from practice if there’s a conflict, and has sat next to me the last couple of games. We don’t talk about much (there’s a lot I want to talk to her about, trust me) but at least the kids don’t have to look for their parents in two different areas.
I’ve forgiven her for a lot of things, but not sure how I can do so for her breaking up our family or alienating the kids from me.
The ex and I have coordinated a little bit regarding the transportation of our kids and my surgery and recovery.
I’ll be honest, I’ve become more scared as the surgery date approached. I’m sad I’ll wake up from surgery without any family there and scared of going through the recovery alone. Sure, I was able to handle things after my neck surgery just fine, but it’s easier to get around and do things with a bad neck than a bad back. At least it’s an opportunity to build on courage or something like that.
When I was a kid growing up in Mineral Wells (shout-out to the police officer from there who’s a regular reader) I didn’t take the bus to school, but would ride it a lot for sporting events. I have a lot of good memories of riding in school buses, and it was a unique way to bond with friends. That came to mind as my son went on a field trip yesterday. Due to logistics and how their charter school manages things, the only time they ride a school bus is for field trips. So, once or twice a year. A part of me thinks my kids are missing out. I’m also trying to imagine how uncomfortable a two-hour ride in one of those things would be for me nowadays.
I’ve been trying to find another book to read. It will be a good tool to use to pass the time as I recover. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to stick to history and biographies, sports or politics related, switch to something motivational, or find something spiritual. I finally landed on Phil Jackson’s book, Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success. Yup, the Zen master of basketball. It hits all the marks except for politics, but I could tap the brakes on that for a bit. I forgot he’s the son of a preacher. It will be interesting to learn how and why he moved from Christianity to the Zen life, as well as to get some nice Jordan, Shaq, and Kobe stories.
Posted inPersonal|Comments Off on Bag of Randomness for Friday, April 14, 2023
If you haven’t given ChatGPT a try, you should before you start falling behind. It’s easier than you think, you just need some writing prompts. Here’s a Twitter thread that should get you started – 10 essential ChatGPT prompts to future-proof yourself. But here are a few examples of what you would put in it:
“Explain [insert topic] in simple and easy terms that any beginner can understand.”
“Analyze the writing style from the text below and write a 200 word piece on [insert topic]”
“You are a customer service representative dealing with a customer upset about a late delivery. Write a 100 word apology email offering a 20% discount.”
“I am interviewing for [enter position]. Can you give me a comprehensive list of questions interviewers will ask me during this interview. Also provide brief answers to each question.”
In case you are wondering what ChatGPT is short for, it’s Chat Generative Pre-training Transformer. Now, go impress your friends (or enemies).
If you think my writing style has improved (people at work have recently complimented me) my secret is using QuillBot to rewrite sentences. It has extensions for both Chrome and Word.
Meanwhile, in Arkansas – The application form you must fill out to be considered for a post on state boards and commissions includes this question: “What is an accomplishment of the Governor’s that you admire the most?”
Three seasons just doesn’t seem like enough, especially when you compare it to the number of seasons The Clone Wars and Rebels had – Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 3 Coming in 2024 – The third season will close out the fan-favorite animated series.
Gregg Popovich is 74 years old, so I doubt he’d do this, but I wonder what his chances would be if he ran against Ted Cruz. Pop was more than just a basketball guy, he graduated from the Air Force Academy and served five years.
Current law in Kentucky requires seized firearms to be sent to Kentucky State Police, which auctions them off. Most proceeds go to police departments throughout the state. So, what’s going to happen to the gun used in the Louisville shooting? It will be rendered inoperable, get a warning label, and then auctioned.
