I have had trouble with wordpress, which I learned also happened to my son and grandson. Grandson also gave me instructions how to avoid the same thing happening again, but since I am not a computer nerd like he is, I am saying bye bye.

You will find me at “Dumbfoudeder”, www.setty9.blogspot.com.

See ya.

I get a number of catalogs. Probably because I do occasionally buy from them, and the merchandisers share their mailing list with others. When they arrive in the mail I scan them briefly and then file them in the circular file. The other day I was going through one and stopped on a page showing atomic watches. I had heard of atomic clocks, but watches were new to me. One particular watch interested me to the point that I finally sprung for it. It was a talking atomic watch. Pressing various buttons would give the time, the day and month, and could be set as an alarm clock. Having a convenient alarm clock on my wrist would allow me to take naps that don’t go on longer than they should. It also automatically adjusted itself for changes in daylight saving times. And with a little help from the owner (choosing the time zone), would automatically set for different time zones. A few days ago the clock finally arrived with a mini textbook on atomic watches. It became evident that using an atomic watch required a rocket scientist. What was really a surprise was the size of the watch. The illustration in the catalog was of the dial straight on. It was just what I like. Big Arabic numerals and an analog display. Of course I realized that the watch was really of the digital variety, but with mechanisms to make it appear as an analog watch. The catalog didn’t show what I consider a side view of the watch. When I held the watch in my hand and noticed the thickness of it I figured I had been had. I would never have purchased it if I knew how thick it is. When I walk now I tend to lean to the left. Here is something like the illustration in the catalog:  Here is what wasn’t shown:  

I should have known that a watch with speaker, amplifier, radio, and the regular workings of a digital watch, and whatever else is needed to make it an atomic watch doesn’t come 1/8 inch high like some fancy watches that are illustrated in the catalogs. 

So now to the atomic saga. I knew before hand that atomic clocks get their time signal from a government bureau of standards in Boulder Colorado, and from the blurbs about them that they are constantly getting a radio signal updating the time to the closest second. Theoretically that may be true (and maybe not!), if you live near Fort Collins Colorado where the radio signal originates. I say “maybe not”, because reading between the lines in the mini text, it may be that the signal is only broadcast at one hour intervals. Anyway, for a watch you can’t get continuous updates regardless, because to receive the signal the watch can not be moving. Further, the signal is strongest at night so that is when the effort should be made to try and update it. Updating instruction consist of placing the watch face down on a nonmetallic surface, preferably a wooden window sill, and certainly not near any electronic gear. The 12 numeral should be pointed toward Fort Collins Colorado and be left over night. Next morning, by pressing one of the buttons on the side of the watch, a message tells you if the update worked. If not the instructions say to try another location. I don’t think that is constantly being updated. In between the times you choose to up date the watch, you basically have a thick digital watch. 

Battery replacement is something else. The text states that the owner should not attempt to replace the battery himself. It may be replaced by a qualified jeweler, and if so take along the text for the jeweler to use to reset the time. That is about three pages in the text. Or you can send the watch with a check for $15.00 to the manufacturer. But here is the real Kicker! In the battery replacement chapter is a chart giving approximate replacement frequencies. If one never uses any of the talking functions the battery last about two years. Five requests per day, one year, ………. twenty five requests per day, four months.  My suggestion, if the idea of an atomic watch interests you, is to go to www.time.org get the exact time to the second and set your regular watch. That is how the text tells you to check if your update worked, if you don’t want to use the talking function.  

Anyone want an atomic watch cheap?

I am not a New York Yankees lover and consequently, by association, had little love for Joe Torre. I really had no other basis for feeling as I did. Today, one day after he turned down the Yankees’ offer for next year’s contract, he spent over an hour at a press conference with New York media. My opinion of him has completely changed. His handling of the media in this interview showed him to be a first class person, and a man of integrity and also at times, humor.

If the interview is ever seen again on TV, I strongly recommend you make an effort to see it, or else be sure to read reports on his interview.

I sometimes have supper or lunch at an eating Place called Paneras Bread. It may be a national chain. Maybe my readers have heard of it. I always go for the Take Two menu. It consists of choosing two items from a choice of three – soup, half sandwich, or half salad. My choice is always the French Onion Soup and either a half sandwich, or half salad. Today I decided to have supper there. I seldom look at the choices on the big board behind the ordering stations since I know what I want., Today I did. One choice is:

I told this story to Jennifer and Jim and they thought it warranted a post in my blog. It has the same flavor as some of my other posts. Thus the title ” More of the Same”.

This is my picture taken just recently. Last Saturday I was doing my shopping at Meijer’s.  After my purchases were scanned and put into bags and on my  cart, the checkout guy asked if I needed help getting to my car. Well! my gosh how did I get into the store and walk the whole place to do my shopping? So I can’t walk the cart now just a bit heavier back out to my car? What gives, do I look that feeble?

 So Sunday I take Karen out for lunch and order a fish entre with a salad. When the salad arrives and I start to cut up the lettuce into biteable size, Karen asks if I want her to cut it up for me. This is depressing. Do you think a face uplift might help?

A week ago today I had the procedure which exposed the titanium implants. It was a simple process and didn’t involve much cutting of tissue. After the implants were exposed the doctor screwed in some round gadgets which I assumed the denture was going to be attached to. Not to be, these gadgets are called healing abutments. Their purpose is to prevent the gum from recovering the implants as the gum heals.

 Today, 195 days after the extractions and placements of the implants, I went to Dr Huizinga for the next step in the process. He unscrewed the abutments and threw them away, and got out the final gadgets. I don’t know what they are made of, but they are expensive!!! These are screwed in and then tightened with a torque wrench. NO KIDDING. A tiny little wrench with a dial face on it and markings to determine the proper torque. The next step is to place disposable plastic discs over the posts to prevent the acrylic cement that comes later from adhering to the gums. The gadgets that are eventually to be embedded in the denture are then snapped onto the posts. The doctor then drills recesses in the denture where the gadgets are to be cemented in. Finally, a terrible tasting stuff is placed on the gadgets and the denture is put in my mouth and held firmly in place until the acrylic cement cures (five minutes). A few more adjustments and cleaning of excess acrylic from the dentures, and I was sent on my way. This is for sure –  the dentures won’t come loose without a lot of effort. I went out for lunch and chose something that would give the set up a good test. The test was more or less satisfactory. I have got some getting accustomed to these things, but I feel eventually I will be pleased with the outcome. Certainly better than partials with nothing to hook onto!!! Dec 13, 07, one year later, I will post an update on the final evaluation of the whole process.

This may be of no interest to my readers, but seeing it’s been a while since my last post, here goes.

I was scheduled today to have a balance evaluation as a step in trying to solve the vertigo problem. The evaluation took about  2 hours. I was told beforehand that it could take even 3 hours. The doctor quite early in the exam came up with an answer and decided that some of the testing was not necessary. His evaluation was that I had BPPV of the right ear.

After a few preliminaries and  reviewing my remarks on a list of questions I had to answer, the real testing began. I was fitted with a special head piece that transmitted signals to the doctor’s computer which registered my eye movements, as I was to follow moving dot without turning my head. I think I passed that part of the exam OK..

I was then asked to lie down on a table, still with the gadget on my head and turn my head to right side and left side, and finally backwards so that it tilted down below the edge of the table. That testing was able to cause me to experience the dizziness which was diagnosed as BPPV. I then had a series of test involving blowing warm air and cold air into my ears. That test caused some dizziness, as it was supposed to do, and I guess I did OK on it. Finally, I was given a hearing test. The hearing test determined that I have lost some hearing of the very high pitched sounds, but the doctor said if I seem to hear regular conversation OK, to disregard getting a hearing aid.

The good news is that the remedy for BPPV is quite simple and pretty effective. In fact, I could if I chose, try to make the correction myself. I am going to opt for the remedy involving a doctor conducting the maneuvers. The basic problem is that some very small crystals in my inner ear have become displaced. By tilting my head in several different positions, several times, the crystals can be made to tumble back where they belong, and no more BPPV. After the first treatment if vertigo should occur again, I can have the same treatment done, or even try to make the correction myself.

If you google BPPV, there will be a number of sites which describe the condition and the remedies. I won’t have my treatment until the lab sends a report to Feenstra, and then he asks me if I want to go ahead with the remedy. Of course my answer will be yes. I hope this doesn’t take as long as getting a working set of false teeth, which by the way I get the little posts put on tomorrow.

Yesterday as I was deciding what to do for the devotions at Raybrook Nursing Home, I thought I might try getting the residents to join me in the prayer after reading a devotion from Max Lucado’s booklet “Grace for the Moment”. I had tried this once before and found it not very successful. The residents seemed to not be aware of what I was expecting.

On this day, after I completed the devotional material, I announced that we would have a communal prayer. All joining in either verbally or following along in their mind, as we said the Lord’s Prayer together.

There are two dining rooms. The PA system is heard in both rooms. The microphone is in the room where the more handicapped diners eat – the ones that require meal mates, also, the ones not likely to follow me verbally in prayer.

I got down to somewhere around “forgive us our debts”, and my mind went completely blank. I just stood there with the mike in my hand, saying nothing. Fortunately there was one lady who was saying the prayer verbally, and I heard where she was, and joined in to end the prayer.

I am probably not going to get invited to the next banquet honoring the volunteers.

If anyone knows of a widowed CPA who likes to dance, has plenty of money, and is about 70, please put me in touch with her.

Up until about the middle of 2003 when Dorothy started going down hill, she took care of all the finances. Then I started taking over and have been ever since. That is why the advertisement above.

I have been buying downloaded music from Wal Mart through a feature of Windows Media Player. I pay for each download $.88 with my Visa account. Therefore, on most every bill from Visa will appear a purchase, which I notice as I scan down the bill looking for any thing that might be phishy. Well, this month I saw an entry for Wal Mart Internet ISP and didn’t recognize it, and the amount as relating to my download purchases. I got on the phone to Wal Mart and asked about the charge. I was told it is for my Internet Service Provider, but as I explained to the chap, who must live in India, I use Comcast not Wal Mart. This interchange took quit a while incidentally. At last he got the message, and recommended I contact their fraud department. Which I did and got a young girl who must have been born in the USA. I explained to her the situation and she said OK I will credit your account for the $9.94. On reflection, I asked, “could there be more of those billings?”. She looked and found that there were up until the first of 2007. Her records don’t go any farther back, but she credited me for four more $9.94’s. Then I thought how long has this been going on. I went back to all of my paid Visa bills, which fortunately I was smart enuf to save and found I have been paying that charge since early 2004. I contacted the fraud department again and told them that this has been going on for roughly three years. I was told to send the back bills and I would be credited for the payments.

Now, I feel a little guilty about this. How did they get my credit card number, and why didn’t I do something about it much earlier. Well the answer to the latter is that I saw the other Wal Mart charges and didn’t recognize a difference in how the charge was described until they just recently identified it as ISP charge. For the former, I am beginning to get a hint of what happened. Every year when we wintered in Florida I would have to start up a new dial up service. Mostly it was AOL but sometimes Earthlink, another Netzero, another Juno, another PCPEOPLE, and although I can’t remember doing it I must have subscribed to Wal Mart ISP and forgot all about it. So it wasn’t fraud, but I paid for something I never used so I won’t refuse their refund when it comes.

That is that, now I get a bill from Comcast for cable and internet and a note saying, don’t pay this bill it will be charged to your bank account, I thought my Comcast charges were being paid with my Visa account, and sure enough I went back and found that I was paying with Visa.

 So to add to the narrative, some time ago I was a day or  so late paying my Visa bill and got charged a whopping penalty. I vowed from now on I will pay it practically the day it arrives. Which I did this month, but when I went to Family Fare to get postage for the bills I was mailing to Wal Mart,  I noticed a flier on the bulletin board saying we have run out of two cent stamps, and it occurred to me that I mailed my check to Visa with a 39 cent stamp.   

Do you see now why a CPA in the family would be a benefit?