A new dream

I wanted to write this one down before it started to fade too much.

My wife and I were going to Florida for training.  We were battling outdoors at the time and I was sent for more training.  My father (who was like Superman) was concerned that we took the right path to our training.  He got out a map and named the road we were supposed to take.  The road on the map was number 65.  We were traveling through storms and the seas were angry.  The lighting was pretty bright for night-time stormy weather, like we could see through it.  I remember we were driving my classic Plymouth and I didn’t have any worries.  I knew my car was fast and strong enough to make the journey.  The path he wanted me to take was the path I was already planning to take, but I was grateful for the map he provided (it was pretty cool and in 3D).

Next we found ourselves in a huge school, either a high school or a college, most likely a college.  There was to be a great battle between myself my wife and some allies who were with us against some super-powered monsters that the general population didn’t know were even there.  I had powers similar to Super-Man as did my wife.  We were in a courtyard, trying to come up with a plan on where and how to properly defend without everyone else knowing about it.  I saw a person whom I recognized to have super-powers.  Somehow I knew he was new and didn’t know how to use them very well.  I also knew that he would initially try to use them for his own benefit.  Next thing I know is he is trying to pick a fight with us.  I remember telling him that he really didn’t want to do that and he came at me with his attack.  I flew to him grabbed him and took him to the school gym (which was kind of like an open air stadium actually.  While I was fending off his attacks, I was instructing my team to prepare that to be the place to make our stand.  I remember them covering over the basketball goals and other parts of the room to protect them.  The principal of the school (or the person in charge of the building at least), was hovering around asking if we were sure it was the right place for our battle and seemed concerned for his building.  I was filled with a supreme sense of confidence that we would be victorious knowing that we were filled with Superman’s powers, in addition to what was mine.  I felt invulnerable, super strong, super fast and I felt that I had the strength and knowledge to overcome anything that would come my way.  When I awoke, I was filled with confidence.

I had never had a dream like this before.  Amazing!

Big day today

Today we are holding an event celebrating Chiropractic’s 113′th birthday.  Here is my dream the night before:

We are organizing a big event.  (suprise)  My family and co-workers are running around in preparation of that event.  My dad and I were in a building that either was a Burger King or was catered by Burger King.  There were classrooms and classes being held in them.  I don’t recall knowing why we were there, but were either going to take a class or were waiting for someone in the classroom.  There were refreshments stacked on either side of the door.  My dad grabs a diet Dr. Pepper and I chastise him for it (diet drinks are really, really bad for you).  A family is helping out and leaves the building.  I notice a sign that states: blessed is the examined family because they are aware of their problems and can receive help.  This sign was made into two poster-size frames so that they hang side-by-side so you can read the message.  I dont’ know if that is significant or not.  My wife is building a replica of a beautiful mansion (that we have presumably visited and was for sale).  I remember the real mansion having some broken windows and been on the market for a very long time.  There seemed to have been aspirations of someday buying it and putting all that space to good use.  I remember it being well out of our price range, but its price kept coming down and our income kept increasing, so there was a hope.  The event we were planning seemed to be a fund raiser and that mansion was somehow involved.  It seemed right and a good thing to do.

Anyway.  Those were the things on my mind.  God is speaking to me.  I hope I can get the message from it that HE intended.  This wasn’t meant to be a dream blog, but I imagine I will continue to post my dreams from time to time, if only to have a place to jot them down.  If someone can make sense of it, feel free to let me know.  Look, I posted two day in a row!!!

To Blog or Not to Blog

I looked to see when the last time I posted was and, yowsers!!!  Why has it been so long?  Guilt.  Guilt about having other obligations.  Feeling that if I spent time posting on a blog, I am neglecting some other part of my life.  I decided that putting my thoughts down is actually a healthy thing to do and I’m going to throw caution to the wind.  I’m going to start by posting another dream.  This one is a little different though since I actually had the dream twice in the same morning.

We were staying at some resort-hotel.  We checked out of our room and were headed car-pooling to somewhere a few hours away with some of my extended family.  I remembered leaving something back in the room and went back to get it.  I couldn’t find my way back and ended up in the pool area.  Somehow I ended up in the pool.  There were a bunch of kids playing in the pool, kind of wildly.  The kids then knocked all the dry hotel towels off the rack and started throwing them in the pool.  I told them that they needed to stop and put the dry ones back on the rack.

When I woke up, I dozed off and had the same dream again.  Weird, huh?

Look, I posted again!

I spoke at the local High School for career day on Thursday. They seemed to be a pretty bright group of students. It’s actually pretty sad that where health comes from isn’t taught in the schools. It really explains why so many people get hooked on drugs when they become adults. If you get to teach them young enough though, they understand.

I’m pretty excited that I may be getting some parts that I need for the Plymouth. The husband of one of my newer patients came in and said he heard I was looking for a turn-signal switch. I said that I was and he told me that he might have found one for me. The story is that there is some people in Iowa City that are converting 3 cars like mine (One the same year and model) to drag race cars. As a result they will be tossing a lot of parts that I need. I’m hoping for a washer fluid tank, a tail light, and … (I’m crossing my fingers) wheels! Right now I have 14″ skinny minis. I’m hoping that they have something better.

A New Beginning

Wow, I can’t believe I haven’t updated this blog since January. I really will be much better about posting. It’s almost like starting over. As busy as I have been, there really isn’t an excuse not to put some thoughts down from time to time. O.K. Enough of the pity party. LOL

Last weekend Akwife and I had a weekend to reflect on just the two of us. Just taking that relatively small amount of time to reconnect really has made a difference. I dared not dream that we could actually get closer, but we truly have. Our level of communication has seemed to reach yet another level. What surprise me was just how much of that spilled over into our relationships with our kids. I have had more patience with them. I have always tried to be the kind of parent that doesn’t sit back and bark orders. I strive to go to them, and talk with them face to face. I think they feel closer to me because of it. My daughter, K2 (age 8 ) is going through some obvious hormonal changes. Once daddy is there for her, her icy disposition melts back into my little girl. K1 (age 11), is also going through some changes. His body is much less of a boy’s. He has slimmed down a lot. His voice is getting lower. He’s starting to grow some fuzz on his lip. I’m finally starting to embrace these inevitable changes. He is getting to be an exceptional pool player. He can routinely beat me at video games. He will soon be better at the computer than me as well. Speaking of which… I have a patient who volunteered to take him under his wing (a Padawan, so to speak) and teach him the ways of the computer. He even gave him a computer to learn on. At first, he was hesitant. Now that he has been over there a few times, he’s starting to really embrace the idea. His potential is unlimited. I am so proud of him. A1 (age 6), is going through some rough times trying to decide how he fits in the order of things. I have tried to make sure I do some one-on-one time with him. It helps keep him from feeling the need to fight his way to the top of the pecking order (where does that term really come from??). L1 (age 1) is really starting to shine his personality through. He’s a natural daredevil. He’s a ham. I have been able to spend quite a bit of time with him due to Akwife going out of town for the weekend.

Well, that’s enough of an update for now. I don’t want to shock anyone with too much after my LONG hiatus. Begin again.

First of all, my apologies to anyone who is waiting to read another entry.  I have been busy.  With me around during Christmas, I learned that I need to spend more time with my children.  Yes, I’ve become one of THOSE dads!  So, what I’ve been doing is trying to make sure that any spare time I have, I can read to them, sit with them, just anything I can do to connect.  So, any time I have had to blog, I have felt guilty and put the computer down in favor of having a child or two (or three or four) on my lap.  That being said.  I really don’t feel more pressed for time.  Funny how when you get your priorities straight, things seem to fall into place. 

Ang had another birthday.  She gets more beautiful every year (we have been “dating” since 1989).  I’m trying to help her grow.  I have been leaning on her heavily to get our practice up and running.  One of the things I have been trying to do is to make some of the decisions and take some of the load.  Darn this male tendency to try to “fix” things.  If I don’t involve her in the process, she feels left out.  Somehow I need to keep a balance to take some of her load without taking too much.  I’m learning. 

My NBA team Houston Rockets are striving to disappoint this season.  They seem to have a great collection of talent but things just aren’t seeming to gel.  I am glad to have found how to listen to the games through the online radio broadcast.  This will be Gene Peterson’s last year and I will be sad to see him go.  When I used to be able to catch the games on television, I would still often turn off the sound and listen to Gene’s broadcast.  I wish Tracy MacGrady would go to see Dr. Rakowski.  I know that Dr. Rakowski would help him recover A LOT faster from his injuries compared to the care he is currently getting.  What the team needs though is a HEART TRANSPLANT.  Sad to say that the team I knew loving as CLUTCH CITY, has resorted back to CHOKE CITY.  They used to play well when their backs were against the wall, even seemed to thrive in those situations.  Now, no lead is safe be it, 10, 20, or 30 points.  The other team’s coach can say: “We’re playing Houston.  We are never out of this game.”  Sad indeed.  I’m happy to say that my own team doesn’t have that problem anymore.  We are all of one common goal: To help as many people as we can achieve health.  It’s amazing how much it holds you back when someone on your team isn’t there for the same reason.  Thank you God for sending me people who love You, and Your people.  Please lead us so we can thrive in spreading health.

Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes

The Mrs. is out of town this weekend.  We decided that it would be better for me to stay home with the kids rather than let us both go.  I tell you what.  It’s hard being Mr. Mom!  Having 4 children in the house that are little tornadoes wherever they go is hard to keep up with.  Can we get out the tent?  Sure.  I didn’t know that meant destroying the laundry room in the process.  Can we make peanut butter and jelly tortillas?  Of course you can.  Why does that result in both the kitchen and the dining room federally declarable disaster areas?  Playing with toys, picking a movie to watch… same result.  And I’m looked at like I’m from another planet that I suggest that they put things away when they are done with them.  When I suggest the notion of leaving a room in the same condition it was in when you entered it?  It’s like I was speaking another language.  There is no doubt in my mind that the most valuable job there is it to care for your OWN children.  It is a shame that we devalue it so completely in our society.  Can you imagine how changed this society would be if there was a sense of personal responsibility?  How about the idea of having to care for yourself without someone else cleaning up after you?  I know I’m sounding like I’m complaining, but really I’m not.  I wouldn’t trade my children for anyone else.  I am blessed to have my family.  I just am not mother material.  Good thing I’m the dad.  Maybe I’ll call my parents and thank them.

Square peg

Being on vacation is difficult.  Not because you don’t need the rest.  Not because you don’t want to spend time with family.  Not because you don’t want to tackle all the projects you didn’t have time to do before.  It’s because your family doesn’t know how you fit in.  My family is used to me working all the time.  Having me home for an extended period is like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.  You can get it to fit in, but it takes some creativity.  I realize that all the conflicts that I resolved, probably would have resolved without me.  The projects that I chose to do probably weren’t the ones my wife would have picked for me to do.  Now that the weekend is here along with our normal weekend routines, I seem to fit in again.  As much as I appreciate vacation time, I will be glad to be back to our normal routines.

I took the kids sledding yesterday.  I got the idea to take the kids out sledding to give Ang some time to do some kitchen remodeling.  Our town is so flat, this will be the first time they have gone sledding, even though we have had no shortage of snow this season.  The counter-top looks amazing.  She plans to seal it today.  Now all we have to do is put the new sink and faucet in.  Well, we need another hole cut before we can do that.  It only came with 4  holes and we need 5.  I’m so anxious to get this project done.  It’s kind of hard to eat at home when your kitchen is torn up. 

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas

Wow, it has been a long time since I have posted.  I actually took a week off from work for Christmas.  We shall see how the family handles it.  My eleven-year-old has already freaked out.  We have had two battles where I had to hold him down to stop him from fighting.  He has the same temper that I had when I was his age.  All I can do is love him and pray for God’s help.  At least both times, once he got himself calmed down, we got to spend some quality time together.  Hopefully that will be the last outburst and we can spend some quality time without.  Anyway, tonight is our usual Christmas Eve routine.  Our Church has 5 services and we are involved in 4 of them. 

My mother-in-law arrived yesterday.  Somehow we kept her visit a secret from the children.  They were so excited to see her. 

Merry Christmas to you. 

Dreams

I was playing softball in an indoor stadium.  Our team had a lead and it was the bottom of the last inning.  All we had to do was hold on.  Many of the other players had checked out to go celebrate.  I checked in at center field, hoping the ball would be hit my way.  When the pitch came it was hit to right field and I had to run all the way to the corner to get the ball.  He got a double out of it.  The rest of my team started to leave thinking we lost.  I told them to stay because they still hadn’t scored yet.  I then prepared myself to defend the next batter.  Weird, huh?

Oh, I had a patient that is on a High School swim team.  He just went through time trials, a couple of days prior to his visit.  He then asked if I could do anything to help him swim faster.  Next visit he reported that he shaved 4 seconds off his time.  I love my job.