jriva

Vicki,

You've just learned my "cooking" secret. Get yourself a binder and fill it full of take out menus and labels off ready made meals you can buy at the supermarket and call the binder your cook book. Been working for me for decades. Life is too short to spend it in the kitchen unless cooking, too you, is an art form you really enjoy doing.

Jean

Janice,

Finding the "right" purse is such a big deal to me that I've often thought about making my own. I just can't find what I want so I settle for the second or third best choice. So, you are not alone in this..................

Jean

Hi Clark,

I love your list and I agree, it's easy to get hooked on reading them.

We have about 25 things in common---especially 18 through 21 and 38 plus an assortment of other stuff. Your observation about the Catcher in the Rye gave me a smile, remembering back to when I read that book.

Jean

P.S. How come you've got two blogs? You got a split personality you forgot to put in your 100 things list?

Hi Kimberly,

I can't resist asking..... If your husband hates his name so much why in Sam Hill doesn't he just go down and get it legally changed? Life is too short to live with something (or someone) you don't like. Short of doing that, tell him to come live up here in the north. Shorting a formal name like his, for every day life, is more common than not.

Jean

Hi Lin,

You're list was not boring at all. You've lived an interesting life. We have quite a few things in common, but thing I'm most jealous of is your 1976 Bicentennial experience. I collect bicentennial stuff and I was so geeked up that year that I even made clothing out of 1976 theme cloth.

Jean

P.S. Your garage being picked up on Tuedays made me laugh...so is ours.

Linda,

You sound like the kind of person I'd like as a friend and we have lots of things in common. The one that stands out the most right now is that we were both slated to be teachers, but didn't follow through.

Jean

Hi Michael,

Welcome to the blog community. You came in with a roar! I was laughing so hard at you list that tears are rolling down my cheeks. I'm not sure which number I like best: your reason for putting down the toilet seat or you not peeing on an electric fence again. Thanks for sharing your personal trivia with us. I think we'll all know you a whole lot better now.

Jean

P.S. Your wife is a lucky woman!

Hi Pam,

You're not going to believe this, but 38 of your things could have been or were on my list! Think we really are related.

Jean

Hi Cyndi,

These lists are fun! Yours completely surprised me. I pictured you very prim and proper and girlie.

Jean

Kimberly,

You are a scary person!

Jean

Hi Clark,

Man, this is scary stuff! Any way you can get a second opinion from another heart doctor? I can understand your anger all too well. My husband has the A-fib condition, too. He's had the conversion three times and his two doctors don't really recommend a forth and are relying on the "wonderful" world of chemicals. He's still A-fib and they are letting it ride that way. Keep us posted....and if you need a virtual hand-holder, to keep you from punching out the doc, let me know. I'm available.

Jean

Hi Janice

I'm a ring losser too. I solve the problem by not buying rings over $20. If one gets lost, no big deal. My real wedding band sits in a box and I wear a $15 one. They look so good now days, who can really tell?

Jean

Pam

I understand where you're coming from. I see my husband sitting in a wheelchair and without that part of his life he valued the most---his speech---and I can't help but wonder why some of the survivors who've had the light, wake-up call kind of strokes don't see how truly lucky they are. I think of our CEO typing with a pointer attached to his forehead and what he said in his moderated chat about only 25% of survivors are making the most of their potential and I'd like to start knocking some heads together. I know it's part of the acceptance process for survivors to feel sorry for themselves, but a few have prefected that into an art form.

Jean

Sam,

I laughed so hard over this story, I almost wet my pants. I know exactly what you mean about the 80s. I feel the same way about the 70s when I was out crawling around the clubs. We all have some fun, sowing-our-wild-oats kind of stories to tell and sharing them is what friends do, so keep them coming!

Jean

Cyndi,

It hard enough to deal with a dying parent (I've lost both of mine) but to also deal with a parent in denial at the same time is almost more than we can bare---'been there, done that' too. You'll get through this. It's going to be one of the hardest things you'll ever do, but know that you are stronger than you think you are. However, if you have to cry or show your emotions in front of your dad, please don't be afraid to do that. It will help break him out of that denial shell he is in and that is not a bad thing for him and the release will help you, too.

I will continue to keep you in my thoughts.

Jean

"Despite my thirty years of research into the feminine soul, I have not been able to answer...the great question that has never been answered: what does a woman want?"

Sigmund Freud

Barbara,

If you love your three sons and your husband, you will NOT stop your aspirin or Diovan without your doctor's approval! What if you don't die as a result, but instead you make your situation even worse? You don't want that! They don't want that! I'll bet they wouldn't want you to die either!

According to your back posts, your stroke was only in September. That's really a short while in stroke time. A lot can improve in the coming six months or a year. Please give your rehab time! Please give some thought to going on (or changing) anti-depressants. There's a lot of them on the market, and some work better than others. You're only 44. That is too young to give up hope!

Try and make you feelings known to someone who can help---a doctor you trust, a friend, someone in the family....I know it's hard with aphasia. But you can write. You can also come back here and vent as much as you need to about your situation. You are not alone!

Jean

Hi Cyndi,

I just popped in to let you know that you and your family will be in my thoughts in the coming days. It is not an easy situation to be in and all of your feelings are perfectly understandable.

In time you will make peace with your doubts about God and you'll probably find your way back again. In the meantime, you are doing the best you can, being a caring daughter, and that is all anyone can ask of you.

Jean

Hi Kim,

I'm glad your communication skills are coming back again! That is wonderful to hear. I was right then... I told you that I suspected that you really enjoyed entertaining people with your writing and that blogging was the perfect format for you to try. Stroke or no stroke, I believe strongly in the therapeutic value of writing.

Jean

Hey, that's a neat Valentine! Thanks on behave of everyone here at Strokenet.

MBA: Jean

Hi Steve,

It's about time you set a good blogging example for the troops. Glad your procedure went well.

Jean

Hey, Clark!

Thanks for giving me something to laugh about today. The part about two people flirting with you, was priceless and it brought a flash back about a guy flirting with me not too long ago. He practically had to draw me a picture---it had been so long ago since that had happened to me that I didn't recognize flirting. It's amazing what a little harmless flirting can do for the ego. (No wonder my husband is so popular where ever he goes.)

Jean

Hi Clark,

The next time the 'dark one' is looking over your shoulder and whispering negative thoughts in your ear, pick up a lightsaber and pretend you're Obi-Wan Kenobi fighting Darth Vadar. If you're not a Star Wars fan, then pretend you're the Lone Ranger or Dick Tracy. Just don't sit there listening....fight back and tell the 'dark one' to go to hell!

Jean

P.S. Anti-depressants help too. If Don wasn't on them, he'd be fighting the stroke demon, too. He had his bouts with depression before the stroke.

Hi Vicki,

We're going to have a BIG house for all of us who want to run away from reality. Maybe we can all time-share in our Witness Protection Program house.

Jean

Hi Janice,

Some people might say it means you think you got a raw deal out of life by comparison to other, but I say your dream just means you should have jumped up and demanded that the damned waitress be fired on the spot.

Jean