sunflowery's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Remembering What Matters Today was another beautiful day in MN. Though it clouded over and rained a bit this afternoon, our weather right now is sunny and perfect. Gas is at $2.99 a gallon with expectations of prices being raised $.20 or more. Bob is at the gas station right now and has heard more and more people complaining about the cost of gas right now. Yes, it's expensive and yes it's more than it's ever been, but I would rather pay a bunch of money for gas and be able to drive my car from my intact home to my intact job than have to deal with life the way the people in LA and MS and AL are having to. I've been watching the news and it's just heartbreaking. Why can we not get airlifts of food and water to the people that need it? Why can't we get more army/national guards into the areas that need help with evacuations and help? I feel so helpless. It's the same I felt after the tornado in Stoughton, except magnified by about a million. I wish I could drive down there with cases of water, diapers, and food just to hand out to people who need it. Instead, I continue on in my every day life as if nothing has happened. As if the world hasn't shifted on its axis and people aren't hurting, hungering, dying. I continue working, sleeping, eating, typing here, and packing boxes for our move. We are struggling in a financial crunch right now and yet we have everything. So what if we can't pay such and such a bill. We have electricity, cable, internet, 2 running vehicles, 2 computers, a cell phone, cats, and each other. We have hot, running water, cold drinking water, warm beds, clean clothes, and so much more. We are rich beyond belief. There is some hopeful news coming out of the destruction. Originally I wanted to write about our day at the fair on Saturday but in light of recent events, it seems so banal. We had a nice day but we were frustrated by people's lack of respect and manners. People treated Bob as if he were invisible. They stood in front of him at shows so he couldn't see, they stepped in front of him while he waited in line, they walked right in front of his chair and stopped and then swore at him when he almost ran them over. It was an exercise in patience and graciousness and we left feeling somewhat angry and frustrated. But looking back, we are just glad we had a day and the finances to do something so frivilous as spend the day at the fair. What we wouldn't give for others to be able to share the same. If you want to, click hereto see the photos I took at the fair on Saturday. I was also going to write about how we are going to spend this weekend at the MDA telethon. But, as happened last year, I think much more money is going to go towards hurricane relief rather than MD research. It's as it should be. MD is there and will always be there. There are people in the south that need help NOW. We will still be at the telethon, but our heart won't really be in it. It's an important cause to us and we want to raise money and awareness, but not right now. Not when there are such pressing, urgent needs elsewhere. I still haven't heard from Mobility for Indenpendence about how the fundraising went for a van for Bob. Seriously, with gas prices so high, it's actually kind of a relief that our current vehicles are not so large and gas-guzzling. But if you want to see the photos from that nigh, click here. Oh! I did call Bob's dad tonight. He and his wife live near Mobile, AL. We hadn't heard from him and to be honest, I didn't know if we would get a phone line or how anything was there. The phone rang 3 times and he answered, strong and sure as ever. He couldn't talk long, but he assured me he was fine and things there were OK. They had damage, but nothing like they have in LA or MS. What a blessing. We are thankful for their lives to have been spared. You know, Bob and I have often talked of moving to live closer to his dad...not so much because of wanting to be close to him, but more because Bob wants to get away from the snow and ice of our winter. We have seriously looked into moving to Mobile, Pensacola, and other southern locales. After this, we are thinking twice about those plans. Why would anyone want to live on the gulf coast of the United States after something like this? And we are only half-way through hurrican season. Lord, help the US get through the rest of the season unscathed. 7:32 p.m. - Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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