Not that Bob

Took similar trip 35 years ago, when China first opened up to outsiders. Expanded my horizons like nothing else in my life ever has. It was not at all modernized then. Plenty of Mao Jackets and Russian looking buildings. First event after landing was The Peking Opera. The combination of sleep deprivation and the uniqueness of the Opera made for quite a psychedelic experience.

One more thing. Do it now. NOW! Mom had a steady decline for several years. I made the mistake of thinking her decline would continue to be "steady" and "slow". I never considered that, added to her slow decline, there could be a sudden event that would not kill her, but would render her unable to communicate. I never considered that I would never be able to ask her where her Dad went when he followed General Pershing to France. What battles was he in? So many questions that will never be answered. Do it now, and by now I mean walk away from the computer and go charge up the video camera battery. Then call her and schedule a visit...now. Don't wait until "after the Holiday rush." Now.

Delicate, I would think, but worded properly, which is a strong suit for you, the feeling could be "I really like your cooking, particularly...". Don't know how you avoid the " before you die" part, but I'm confident you will figure it out. Mom made a recipe book for all us kids as a Christmas gift one year. Hand written in a note card box. Being the dumb ass I am, it didn't mean much to me when she gave it, but it is now a prized possession. I don't know if your mom has the strength to hand write all that. Maybe she could dictate to you...some quality time while collecting a treasure. Before her stroke I videoed mom giving the history of her life. She hated the idea of being "on camera" at first, but warmed up to it by the end. That, too is a treasure, and a valuable tool for figuring out genealogy that I never could remember.

I know that you know, but I can't keep it to myself. I started telling mom things. Obvious things like "I love you" (which was difficult because we were not a verbally affectionate family) but also less obvious things like, "You know that white cake with chocolate icing that you always make for my birthday? I really like that cake." Or, "Remember that cool Davy Crockett birthday party you had for me? That was the greatest thing! I still think about it and smile. You really worked hard on that." I started telling her things, but I didn't finish because, although she didn't die soon, she did stroke out and couldn't really understand what I was saying. At least it seemed like she didn't understand. Hell, maybe she had a greater understanding in that state of mind than she had previously, but selfishly I couldn't see that she understood. "Remember all those lessons you drove me too? Yeah, that was a lot of work. Thanks Mom. I really love you. You are a great mom."

Ha ha ha! You funny boy! '59 Les Paul. Ha Ha! You funny boy. Actually a good idea, so long as she gives it to me when she gets tired of it...you funny boy!

In the dark ages I tuned once a week at my guitar teachers house (Wayne Wood is an Austin legend and a hell of a nice man) which I guess he tuned to a piano...don't really remember. When I was older I bought a 440A tuning fork and tuned with that. Now we have electronic tuners. She probably already has one for her acoustic. I think it's a good learning experience to learn to tune to a 440A fork, but that's pretty old school. If she doesn't have a tuner you can get one for about 10 bucks and it is well worth it. An out of tune electric guitar, wailing away, makes fingernails on a chalkboard sound like Mozart. ...and that brings me back to the set up. With a good set up the bridge is adjusted to make tiny adjustments to the length of the string. The tuners only adjust the tension. Once the bridge is set up the tuners will take care of business, but if the bridge is not properly set up she will never get properly in tune and that's frustrating as heck.

No. If we win they act like it never happened. If we lose you never hear the end of it. No.

Go to Pro Audio Star and search Daisy Rock Guitars DR6320-B Elite Venus Vintage Ivory B-Stock. It's B-Stock (how do I get my original font size back??!) so it is probably used, but it is $205 and unless completely trashed should be a good guitar...and did I mention...get a set up. That will cost you another $50 plus strings.

Set up is a must. Also, different guitars have different "sizes" of necks. In general Fender has a bigger neck than a Gibson. Unless the daughter has large hands I'd go with a smaller neck which is called short scale. There are also guitars with necks that are even smaller. These are called 3/4 (three quarter) guitars. I learned on a Fender Duosonic which is a 3/4. Loved that guitar. Daisey Rock makes "girl guitars" which are short scale and some are pretty nice, but you gotta spend a little more to get the ones that aren't essentially toys. There are amps called "practice amps" which have some pre-recorded back ground music built in that helps the learning process. Again, whatever you get, get it "set up." It will make all the difference.

Several web pages that I have done business with in the past are not accepting the userid/password that has been established for months/years. Larger pages, like Amazon and paypal are okay. Smaller pages like a Christmas tree company that I used last year are rejecting. Any ideas, corrupted Windows?

How often are the storage tanks tested to see if there actually are differing grades within? I can see a guy trying to cut corners by filling all his tanks with the cheapest grade, especially if he has just been tested and knows the monitors won't be back for a year or so.

Every blues harp player since Little Walter has spent his career trying to sound like Little Walter. None succeed. If I need a pick-me-up I put on "Juke" and the world is a better place.

Is anyone watering their lawn right now? I seriously doubt it. I thought that was where much, if not most, of the water shortages came from.

3:59 pm update says 8.

https://floodstatus.lcra.org

Remind the wimminz they gotta have those clear purses. Thanks bin Laden.

Take the shuttle.

...still can't do shit.

Ain't no name on those Rontgenograms. HIPPA can't do shit.

Depending on how much "wealth" he has, SSDI may not be an option. Title II (SSI) is sort of like medical insurance. SSDI is Title XIV and is more like "welfare". Just roughly speaking.

Glad you asked. Everything seems within "the law", but they bill the absolute maximum allowed. For example, my CPAP machine was billed in monthly installments to my insurance. The total cost of the machine was, and I don't remember exactly, about 2-3 times what the cost was on a CPAP webpage bought outright. I'm sure the DME and insurance (or Medicare/Medicaid) have an agreement, but It just rubbed me the wrong way that they were charging way over "retail". It's like paying window sticker price for a car, plus a significant mark up. They email me asking if I want mask replacements every quarter. That is what "the law allows", but I don't need replacements that often. With a minimum of care the masks should last much longer than the replacement schedule "recommended" by the DME. Again, I am sure it's all within the insurance/DME agreement, but this is part of the reason that insurance and medical expenses are so high. Most people don't pay attention, and/or "do whatever they are told by a medical professional", so up go the expenses. Just my 2 cents. Don't want to get too cloak roomish.

I use Monitor Medical. You will have to ask them about insurance. I think all DME's are thieves, but they do provide refills by mail.

With this type of event, there is a three month "waiting period" to see how much recovery he will have, so he will definitely have to hold out for 3 months. Then, if after the three months he is granted benefits it will still be another two months before benefits start. He will get a "lump sum" paying from the date of onset, but he still has to finance himself until he gets benefits. This is true with, or without a lawyer, and the lawyer will probably take a good chunk of the lump sum, plus possibly more. The application papers look intimidating, but are pretty straight forward. Just get the papers and answer the questions to the best of your ability. Nobody goes to prison for making an honest mistake on the application. Shoot me a PM if you want.

Beethoven 6th, von Karajan Axis Bold as Love Procol Harum. Salty Dog

1958...I know it's prehistoric for most posters here, but I believe 1958 began the post D. X. Bible status of The Longhorns as a nationally recognized team. Lifted from Lou Maysel's "Here Come The Texas Longhorns": "As he looked forward to the Oklahoma game, for which his Longhorns were a 13 point underdog this time, Royal sounded like a man with an obsession about ending The Sooner's streak of six straight victories and nine in the last ten games with Texas. "The only way anybody's going to beat Oklahoma is to go out there and whip 'em jaw to jaw...Texas has to develop a football tradition. It had one once but lost it. When we get one, maybe we can stop that blood-letting at Dallas and turn it into a good show." ...Royal chose that spot to send Lackey back in, and on the first play he faked a handoff, turned and lobbed a jump pass to Bryant for the touchdown that tied the score...The Texas stands erupted when Bryant made the catch although the Longhorns still had to make the winning point. Lackey kicked it while Blanch held the ball and the signal of the referee touched off more celebration. OU still had 3:10 in which to retaliate and Boyd raised the Sooner hopes by racing 27 yards to the UT 44 when he found no one open for a pass. However, Lackey made a one handed interception on the next play and Texas had the victory that Royal has often looked upon as the pivotal one of his early years at Texas...The victory touched off...elation in Austin which was such that the plane bringing the Longhorns back home had to circle for 15 minutes while policemen moved several thousand fans back off the (air) field to safety." Note that Bobby Lackey threw the tying pass, kicked the winning PAT, and intercepted the Sooner pass that sealed the victory. He was my first Longhorn hero, along with Rene Ramirez. I would have been a little kid celebrating and greeting the team at the airport, but my mother was so excited that she was speeding and got pulled over for a ticket while driving us kids to the airport in our '57 Studebaker station wagon.