Living Life

Jesus, Me, and the Kitchen Table

Joy in the Crazy Journey

Wow! Today is the first day in over week that I have felt really good!  Praise the Lord for HE is good! So even though it is Saturday, I went in to the office for a couple of hours to get caught up.  The ice and snow caused us to be closed a couple of days and the other days I either didn’t go into work because of feeling so bad or only went in for a very short time.

Had a great time at the office – it just felt good to get caught up – like a load off my shoulders. Maybe I can breathe now!  Or more likely, I won’t get in trouble for not having my time accounting and contacts report completed in time. Richard was with me – so that made it even sweeter. He listened to music on his iPod while I worked and listened to the Praise and Worship channel on iTunes Radio.

So then we had to go to Walmart.  Hadn’t been there in a while (yeah!) – not my favorite place to go.But we did find a parking spot – not an official one – but one that worked, thank you Lord! In wen went to discover that there were no little blue hand-held baskets at either entrance.  I asked several associates about them and no one had any idea where they all were.  I find it hard to believe that all 80 baskets were being used. But anyway, there were none! So I went back out to the van and grabbed a reusable shopping bag.  Back into the store.  We went around and grabbed most of the times we needed. Bigger items that don’t fit easily into the bag, we put them between my feet on the foot rests of my chair.  A lady I know approached us and gave me a big hug.  I recognized her as someone who used to work at the meat market in town.  She shocked me because she said, “You are amazing” I told her thank you and that it was the Lord.  She then said, “I am just soaking up energy from you, is that all right?”  I told I supposed it was because if she was getting anything good from me, it must be Him (Jesus(!  She told me she now works at Walmart and to let her know if we needed anything.  A little later we checked out.

The next stop was McDonalds for a hot chocolate!  Then onto KFC for our supper. On the way home I decided to drink a little of the hot chocolate.  I got a couple of sips, but something seemed amiss.  Once in our driveway I noticed the edge of my seat cushion on the wheelchair was wet – really wet.  Then I noticed that the entire font of my shirt was soaked – with …… you guessed it: hot chocolate!  Gee, how did I do that, I wondered.  I discovered later there was a notch missing out of the top of the cup.  W/hen I took those sips, it poured down my shirt!!  Of course, I felt nothing as it was happening.  Joys of paraplegia – no really – it would have been wet and icky feeling!  Fortunately I had on two thick shirts so it wasn’t hot on my skin.

So next we are putting away the groceries and notice the milk we purchased, is all squished in on the sides.  Somehow the cap was not sealed all the way AND there was a leak in the bottom of the jug.  So now there is milk on the table — and probably milk in the van because it was not in a bag.  Lovely, LOL!

But in spite of all these little things I came away laughing.  That my friends, is the joy of the Lord.  I remember a time when those little things would have frustrated me to the point I would have been fit to be tied!  But thanks be to God for a day I felt good and for giving me His joy!

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It’s All About the Stripes

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Once upon a parking lot, there were many cars and trucks,  each one driven by all kinds of people. Each person found a place to park. Well just as there are very unique people driving all kinds of vehicles, there are different kinds of parking spots too. That’s where the stripes come in.

You see, some people have problems walking, others can’t walk at all, others have heart and lung or nerve problems– and much more! But what about the stripes?

Well, all parking spots have stripes. Let’s say you are at a grocery store. You have a handicapped plaquuard because you have back problems.. You pull up into a regular handicapped spot. You’re good! But what is regular? These are the spots with just 2 regular stripes like any other spot, along with the sign that designated it as handicapped parking.

But let’s change it up a bit. Now a person in a wheelchair comes along. Most vans that are wheelchair accessible have a ramp that opens out on the passenger side.that means the only safe and accessible spot is one that has wide stripes out to the side. For these vehicles the stripes need to be on the right of the parking spot. The left side is okay if the spot can be backed into. Sometimes but not always, these spots are designated with a “Van Accessible” sign. If no spot like this is available these people usually have to wait until one is vacated or shop somewhere else. That’s because they can’t even get out of their van and be assured they can get back in.

Yet another kind of spot has narrow stripes to the side. These are for people in walkers. Without these stripes it is hard for these people to get in and out of their car.

Sometimes people use a family member’s parking plaquuard and park in these spots. The other day I was at CVS and came out to leave. A man was using the RedBox DVDS rental kiosk. He had pulled crookedly into a handicapped spot because it was right next to the kiosk. It wasn’t raining or cold. So as I was leaving he got in his car and started backing up. I had to honk to avoid him hitting me.

As a wheelchair user I will even park in a regular parking spot if there is one on the end of a row with stripes to the right.

So once again, parking is about the stripes. And if everyone pays attention and is honest, maybe more people can find just the right spot.

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