Bradley Update Blog

July 19 and still kicking

2009-07-19T19:59:00.002-05:00

Wow, I can't believe it has been over three weeks since I posted ANYTHING. I sometime wonder if anybody still looks at this. Then I look at the replies and I realize who still loves me! YES, this still makes me feel good to know people still are looking.
All seems to be going great everyday. It seems that life is so busy most of the time, I really forget who's still looking...
I have been going to Church with Megan the last two weeks and it has done two things for me. I realize again how important God is in my life. Even though I speak to him regularly, in Church is a good feeling. This Church she is trying is a little too energetic for me. I LOVE the preacher, but the group around the Church is TOO INVOLVED for me. I don't need a service that so many FEEL LIKE they need to speak out. I think confused or worried people are that way. I am sorry if you feel this is a necessary part of the service. I don't need the guy in front of me talking out loud and raising his hand the whole service for me to feel like I am communicating with God. HE is in me and HE is a part of me. That I know and That I appreciate! I love Him greatly for helping me out of the WHOLE I was in and I thank him for helping my family and friends overcome these obstacles. I don't think I would be here if He had not wanted me to still be here. My Love for Him could not be any greater than it already was, but my appreciation for Him HAS grown. YES, I thank him every day and I always will, but to see people in Church act like many of these people do is not what I need to see. I AM SORRY if this bothers or offends you. What I NEED and what THEY need is different.
Life is going great for me. I am a big user of FACEBOOK right now because I am coming up on my school reunion and many people in my class enjoy this. My girls know this better than I do, but I can communicate with people I have not seen in years (some of them I remember and some I don't). Can I lie and say this is my 20th reunion coming up? I would not be able to sleep tonight like that. Does 25 sound better? YES, that's a lie, too. It's kind of hard to say I am PROUD to have a 26 year old Daughter and I did not know Betty when I was in High School. Do the math. Is 25 possible? Tell me if it is... YES, this will be 30 years and YES I am still here to appreciate it! 2 years ago, I would have doubted it. Thank You GOD for allowing me to be here to enjoy SPOILING Max. Yes, I do it every chance I get! And , yes, I love every SINGLE minute of it!
I love you all so much and I am sorry I have not updated sooner.
If you have a chance, look at FACEBOOK. Megan Putonti (Yes, she is still and ALWAYS will be my Daughter) has pictures of Max on there and Tiffaney Bradley has some, too. Breanna has a spot on there, too.
Go back to you nap. I am sorry if I interrupted it in anyway.
Love you all always,
Mark 7/19/08

June 30 and still around to update this

2009-06-30T21:04:00.002-05:00

Another month has come and gone. All of life is great! Megan is living close to us and I get to see Maxwell quite regularly. This will continue until Megan tells me I come by too often. Only time will tell on this.
We really enjoyed the family reunion. Good to see these family members and talk about old times. They always tell stories that I don't know but I still enjoy listening to them. I always here something about how one of them carried me around. One of the benefits of being the youngest is they remember things that I was too young for. I was asked what I could remember about my Grandpa and I could not come up with anything. I was only 2 years old when he died and 12 years old when Granny died. I remember many things about her and about times when she was still here. I don't know if they carried me because they wanted to or because they had to, but I have always felt the love they all have for me.
I had an interesting thing happen to me today. A lady I know from work called me to talk. She was scared to ask, but wanted to talk in a personal mode. She asked about my recovery, how it went and how I dealt with it. I started talking but did not want to give too many details without knowing what was causing all of this thinking. It turns out, her Dad was injured by a bull when they were in a pen. It evidently kicked him several times real hard. It shattered his spine and the doctors had to put pins in it. She wanted to know so she would know what was ahead and how to deal with it. We talked for quite a while and I felt better about talking once I knew WHY. I tried to explain to her the ups and downs he would experience. Some days he will be up and the next he may be down. Sometimes, both in the same day. I tried to tell her the most important part was to keep his experience up. Once someone like that gets down, the improvements slow down. I really think the mind has a lot to do with it. I also told her that my HARD-HEADEDNESS helped me a lot because when they told me something, I just wanted to prove them wrong. When they said one year in a chair, I just wanted to show them that was not for me. I have people ask me a lot why I am always in such a good mood. I blame this on God. He is the ONE that helped me pull through all of this pain and disappointments and helped me learn to enjoy EVERY DAY.
Does anyone but me remember what next Tuesday is? It is a Holiday for me. 2 years are gone but I still wake up breathing every day. Thank you God for making 7/7/07 a special day for me and all my family and friends.
Yes, it has been over two weeks since I wrote here but I still check it every few days to see if there are any comments added. Several people at the reunion told me they still read it but rarely add any comments. My next event is my school reunion. It is on 8/8/09 and I am really looking forward to this day.
My love to you all.
Mark 6/30/09

Another week has flown by & I am still here, 6/13/09

2009-06-13T15:02:00.002-05:00

Well another week has flown by and here I am to tell you about it. Megan closed on their house yesterday so I had to spend my morning over helping everything get moved. They had boxed it all up and hired a couple of guys to move it all. Matt and I had to move the other things, like freezer, tool boxes and stuff in the garage. I am so glad I can help, but it is still not an easy task. Lifting things still get to me but I think that is why she hired these two guys. Before all of this, I would not let this happen, but now I realize what is best for me. Any way, my Grandson is going to be closer to us and Betty and I are just as happy as possible. Life is a great thing.
Work next week is going to be pretty severe. We have a Turnaround starting on Monday. These 9 or 10 hours days will become 12 hours long for the next two weeks. I can only hope everything we find is something we can deal with. I will be talking with many vendors over this time frame, but most of them enjoy hearing from me. Too many years of talking to them several times a week and getting to know them like I did always is a blessing. I learned many years ago, treat someone as you would want to be treated and the respect and trust you get back is well worth it. I know we all make mistakes from time to time, but deal with it and move on. That is what life is all about!
My family reunion comes up in two weeks and I am looking forward to seeing all of my kinfolks even though they pick on me because I am the youngest of the Grandkids. Now, this is one of those good things and they can make fun of me all they want. I still love them and appreciate them for being there for me and my family when I was down and almost out.
School reunion come up in about two months and I am looking forward to that, too. I have started communicating with several of these people and it brings up some very pleasant memories. Another opportunity for me to tell God how much I appreciate Him for helping me still be here !
My love to you all. Have a nice SAFE summer.
Mark 6/13/09

Sunday, June 7 and still around

2009-06-07T18:46:00.003-05:00

Yes, another week has flown by. School is out for most people and it is going to be a wonderful summer. Megan is supposed to close on her new house next Friday and is moving in on Saturday. I am so excited to have her and her family so close to us. Maxwell may be able to spend more time at my house! I am very excited about this. I took two days of vacation next week so I can spend some time with him. I am there on Monday and Tuesday. We will enjoy our time together. I will love on him and he will love on me. Life is such a wonderful experience.
I am supposed to find out something at work next week and am hoping for the best. Some things are just going to come out and we have to live with these things. All I know is that my work days are longer now than they were a year ago but I am still there right now. Smile and move forward.
I have a family reunion coming up in a few weeks that I am looking forward to. I always enjoy seeing my family and spending time with them, We have a room for Friday and Saturday night. We plan on getting there pretty early on Friday. We end up doing some "shopping" with several cousins. There are some antique stores there that are great to look through. Matt always hates this time and I know I would have when I was that age.
Also have a school reunion scheduled in August. I am also looking forward to seeing these people too. I really hope most of them don't know about my accident because I would rather not discuss it unless they want to know. If they ask questions about it, I don't mind sharing this information, but hate to be the one to bring it up. I sure don't want to pour this on someone that doesn't know. Many of these people are friends and they realize what me and my family went through. People tried to keep people informed of where I was and how I was doing.
Life is wonderful and I will enjoy my two days with Maxwell. I will try real hard not to spoil him too much but you know how Grandpa's are about these type of things.
Thanks for being one of those people that still checks on me here. I love you all so much. Betty and I went to the hospital last night to see one of Betty's friends whose son was hurt in a motorcycle accident. Seeing what they are going through only reminded me of what Betty had to deal with when I was there. I am always thankful for what God did for me and for us!
Mark 6/7/09

May 30 and still updating

2009-05-30T07:57:00.004-05:00

Another week has gone by and summer will be on us REAL soon. I got to spend the day with Maxwell last Friday while Megan went over to help with the graduation ceremony and activities. What a day we had. It is such an exciting thing to spend the day with someone that NEEDS you to be there. I love every minute of the day! And yesterday, Megan had come to Crosby to pay her new daycare funds and while she was on this side of town, called me to meet me for lunch. We had a nice quiet time and I got to love on Maxwell some more!
Work is an interesting thing right now. With all the changes that my company is going through right now, we are all just thankful we are still there. Rumor is that next week they will be deciding who is still needed and what cuts are going to be made. I can only hope and pray that they still need me. We hear there will be major changes as to how we do things around there, but we just have to hope for the best. Only time will tell us for sure but hopefully, God will help us through these times!
Betty is telling me many times how much I have changed since my accident. She is still convinced that my mind is not like it used to be. I do notice some things are different and I don't think as well as I used to but she says it's more than just that. She also says that others have noticed it, too. Hopefully, God will help me through these times and all will be OK. This may be a challenge He set up for me, too. It's funny that everyone else sees it, but I don't notice it.
I had a friend at work this last week that asked me how I was doing and was I at 100%. We talked a little about it but I did not go into many details about it. I have pains every day but they will always be there and I have adjusted to it. Are they major items? Not any more! I pay a lot more attention to certain things that I did not have to before. Walking is one of those things. I look at the ground more because something that is not smooth can cause major issues. Lift something heavy is always going to be an issue, too. If the item is already up and I don't have to bend to get it, I do much better. I still can't walk well while carrying something with weight. This still makes me limp and probably always will. I noticed that riding a bicycle is easier now than it was 6 months ago. It used to hurt to get my leg over the seat, but that has passed. Bumps in the road still hurt and probably will for quite a while. The doctor told me that a broken tailbone will always be a concern, but I deal with this, too.
It is just one of those funny things about life. As we get older, certain things bother us more than they used to, but most of the time these issues come on pretty slowly. Mine all come at one time so getting used to them was an adjustment in life and He helped me deal with it. It is OK because my friends, family and God all pulled together to get me where I am today. I am here to watch my Grandson go up and spoil him every time I can.
A great amount of love goes out to each of you and thanks for helping me pull through this. Smile every day because God loves each and every one of us and makes being here today a wonderful thing!
Mark 5/30/09

Tuesday, May 19 and still writing

2009-05-19T16:54:00.005-05:00

What an exciting week around here. I went to see my parents on Saturday and spent some time enjoying them. Matt stayed with Tiffaney so they could go see the new Star Trek movie. Both loved it! I did too by NOT HAVING to go... Enjoyed seeing my parents and enjoying the time with them doing little of nothing. We talked and visited about many things. I got to share with them that I have quit smoking. They were very happy for me and hope I can do it for good this time. It has been 2 weeks so far!
Betty, Breanna, Megan and Maxwell are in Florida right now. My niece had a "surprise" birthday party and Betty "surprised" all of them by showing up. She only told our nephew James that she was coming and he did a great job of keeping it quiet. Betty said everyone was surprised and they all got to see Maxwell, too. I know this was a quick trip but you have to take these adventures whenever you can. She made several things for Matt and me to eat off of while they were gone and I don't think we have starved yet so all is great. I think they are leaving tomorrow to come back but with Maxwell with them, we probably won't see them until Thursday. I know the whole group there was happy to see all of them. Life is a wonderful thing and you have to enjoy every minute of it.
While I was at my parents, I got poison ivy AGAIN. It seems like it is waiting for me when I get there. Sad part is I did not know I had it until Monday. Sunday night while I was asleep, my body went on it's on course and spread it around a little bit. That is OK because I can deal with it. God helps me learn a lot about life is some strange ways and I have to deal with it the best I can.
I spoke with a vendor at work today. He saw my family pictures in my office and got on the subject of family. He told me he got married in 1983 and loves seeing people that has one of those pleasant experience with their partner. These kind of things mean a lot to many of us. It is good to talk to someone like this that enjoys their spouse as much as I enjoy mine. We don't always see things eye to eye, but you just have to learn to accept certain things and enjoy life together.
I know I missed the time to see many people I love dearly in Florida and I remember Marlies from when she was about 12 or so and Christine was probably 10. It is amazing to see what wonderful people they have grown in to. I knew I told Betty the first time we were there that when we had kids, I wanted them to be just like these two. I think we did a great job of this because my girls have the same attitude about life and people as these two did. Another wonderful thing about life and family!
I am so glad that God gave me help to still be here and to enjoy every moment that I have here. When I get to talking about my situation, how I was, where I was and what I went through, I can only say Thank You to everyone who prayed for me and helped my family deal with these hard times. On one hand, it seems like this was a lifetime ago and on the other, it seems like yesterday. I am coming up really quickly on my "2 year" anniversary. Do I dread this? Absolutely not. I wish it did not happen, but feeling these pains everyday reminds me just how lucky I am.
I love you all so much and I am glad to be here to tell everyone about life. God has helped me appreciate every day and I thank Him so much for this.
Mark 5/19/09 and starting to warm up around here...

Monday, May 11 and still here

2009-05-11T19:12:00.002-05:00

Another week has gone by and life is great. Most people have come to hate Mondays but it is just another happy day for me. I had someone at work today ask me why I was in such a good mood on a MONDAY. The answer today is the same as every other day. I woke up breathing on my own and VERY happy about it. I had to babysit my Grandson last Thursday while Megan and Matt had to meet their inspector for their new house. He found several items that need to be addressed but that is why the inspector goes over everything. You have two kinds of inspectors like you have two types of painters or doctors or other job holders. Usually, you have one that is very thorough and reasonably priced or you have one that does as little as he can and charges more. Thank goodness they found a good one that cares. This took quite a while to go over things but I did not mind a little more spoil time! They made some recommendations back to the builder and had to wait for a reply. They accepted this request to pay ALL closing costs instead of a limit they suggested at first and they agreed to get another inspector at THEIR cost to re-evaluate these things. If this one finds the same issues, they will address them. They SUGGESTED using one they had used before but Matt said that they could not use theirs because he know what "friends" can do for each other.
The girls were all here yesterday to see their Mom on Mother's Day. Yes, I know, more time with my Grandson. My, how they PUNISH me!!! Just roll me in the briar patch again, anytime... Brea and Tiff really enjoyed their time with him, too. Life is such a wonderful thing and it was great to spend time as a family again. Distance causes some issues with this, but LOVE does bring you back together.
Work is really getting interesting right now. We hear "rumors" about how things will be and how things will "change" for all of us. The rumor we are hearing is that on Thursday, we will find out more about who stays and who doesn't. Yes, it is a rumor, but a decision is supposed to be made by the end of next week, so this Thursday is realistic. Four people in our group have signed up to leave "voluntarily" and the rest are curious how many there will be in the total. They changed our work hours to a nine hour day and work 8 every other Friday. One would think shorter hours would be great, but my "shorter" days are longer most of the time. I start earlier so that everything that needs to be done can get done, and then when it is time to go home, I have to finish several things in progress. These 9 hour days are 10 or more hours long and I still have to be there every other Friday. I think the only ones enjoying these shorter hours are the four that are on the "list". They leave on time because they don't have to worry about being listed as non-productive. The rest of us DO worry about that. Being on certain lists is not a good thing sometimes. All we can do is our best and hope somebody notices it and appreciates it.
I wanted to go see my parents last weekend but they were out of town to go camping. The second week-end of the month is the time for them but that is when Mother's Day was scheduled. I guess Hallmark did not realize when their group goes camping. I am hoping to get there this week-end, but I have not told them this, yet. I have most of the work on the trailer finished up with some small items left. The porch is all finished and looks pretty good. I think Tiff likes it, but she is like me and probably hasn't noticed it all, yet. The back steps need to be made but I can make them here and take them over and put them in place. The trim around the new door is still needed and the metal pieces for the door knob and lock need to be put on.
As you can tell, life is a wonderful thing that we are all here to enjoy. Smile and appreciate each day for the wonderful things it gives us. All we can do is make the most of everything we have and enjoy EVERY SINGLE MINUTE that God gives us. We are still here because He allows us more time. I thank Him for that EVERY day! Smile for me and love yourself because if you don't, how can others?
Mark 5/11/09

Monday, May 4, and still around

2009-05-04T17:47:00.002-05:00

Wow, time has flown by and I am still here to write an update. Life is great. Just smile and move forward. I had to babysit on Saturday while Megan and Matt looked at houses. She called in the afternoon and said she was running late and wanted to know if I needed her to come get Maxwell. HELLO! No, he was fine. It was my time to enjoy every minute so he could stay as long as he needed to. If this wasn't great enough, they found a house that they liked and put in a bid on it. She found out today that it was accepted! Wow, now my daughter, my favorite son-in-law and my grandson will be living in Crosby! I am so excited about this! Do I mind? Not even a little bit. I get to see Maxwell more and get to babysit more, too. What a time I will make of this. I thank God for keeping me here to enjoy these times.
I have not entered any data lately, so I thought I might put something here. I noticed there were no responses to my last posting. If that means nobody is reading it, I am OK with that. If someone reads and does not respond, I am OK with that, too. I ran in to someone that I had not seen in a while the other day and he asked how I was doing. As usual, I said I am good. He asked if I was 100% and I told him I was probably as close to it as I will ever be and I can live with dealing with pains. It has kind of grown on me and that all right with me. I know certain things still hurt and I TRY not to do these things. Sometimes, natural instincts kick in and I do it without thinking. Then, I feel the pains. Reaching for something still gets my right shoulder to hurt especially if its got some weight to it. Getting up from sitting on the ground is still tough, too. That's OK because they told me at the hospital that this was something I could not do. I put weight on my right knee the other day and it felt like someone hit me with a bat. Old habits die hard. I have to try to put my LEFT knee down instead. This is a hard thing to do since I am not used to it yet.
We have a family reunion coming up next month. I always get excited about going even though they all pick on me. I am not sure if they pick on me because I am the youngest Grandchild or because they love me so much. Really, I don't care why because I feel all the love. I used to hate to go to this reunion as a kid even though we always enjoyed it. I did not get to see my cousins often enough to really care back then. As a teen, the last thing you wanted was something YOUR PARENTS wanted you to do! Now, I look forward to these events. Yes, I still hear stories about how they carried me around and how they took care of me. That's OK because the learning I got from them has taught me how to be a better person. I still talk to some of them pretty regularly by e-mail. Just getting a note from them makes my day brighter. So, see, life is GREAT and I am still here, breathing on my own. I can deal with this!
Make the most of your day. Tell someone that you love just how much you love them. Even if they don't smile over the joy, it will make you smile. It will put a smile on my face just to know SOMEONE read this.
To all my cousins who think they can still put a knot on my head, stay away from the top front part. That spot still hurts when someone pushes it and that "hole" may never go away.
I love you all so much. Thanks for being the one or two that still checks up on me here. God is there and will help you when you need it. Trust me on this one! He was one of the many great things on my side almost two years ago. Family and friends talking to Him about me. How many prayer groups was I in? I don't really know, but it was just in the Houston area or in Texas. I know there was several in Florida, one or two in Tennessee, one in Colorado, one in Washington or Oregon and one in Chile, too. (Bet you didn't think I could reach that far) And you wonder why I think life is wonderful!
Mark 5/4/09

Tuesday, April 14 and still around

2009-04-14T20:07:00.002-05:00

I am doing OK these days. I spoke with some people at work today that were amazed that I am still around. I still hurt every day, but it is important how I deal with it. I had to climb a lot of stairs at work today and it hurts to do this. The amazing thing is that it hurts more to go up than it does to go down. Going down used to hurt more many months back and going up was never real pleasant, but coming down is much better now than it was. That is a good thing. Riding a bicycle is easier, too. It used to hurt more to get on one but it is getting easier, too. I still have to watch out for bumps in the rode but life is great that I can ride better. My pelvic area still hurts to lift up and over the seat but it hurts less than it did. Time is great to me.
I have been spending time working on Tiffaney's trailer. It seems like the more time I spend on it, the more I find that needs to be done. I replaced her front door last weekend and put in a new screen door, too. One thing I learned about trailers is that a standard door is too tall. I had to shorten the height on both of these. I was careful to get the right width, but it was either shorten it or cut out some wall. I figured the length was easiest. I spent most of Saturday working on these two items but they made a big difference in the way it looks. I have to go over there this weekend and put up the boards to decorate the porch. All posts are in place and so are the handrails. Just a little of work to make it right. More time spent on it but it will all be worth it in the long run. Every time I am over there working, I feel it the next day. Yes, I don't recover from it like I used to, but I wake up breathing on my own which makes it a great day!
All the girls come home to spend Easter Sunday with us and Maxwell got to spend some time with us, too. After that, we went to Betty's sisters (Pat's) house and spent some time with them, too. I was so tired when we got home, but I slept pretty well because of it. This is our tough week around here. Betty is on days this week. She leaves home around 5AM and gets home at 7PM. We have always had issues with this week of the month, but we survive and move forward. We have learned to deal with this. One thing about 12 hours days is they start early and end late, but you get more days off because of the hours put in. I remember working these long days for many years and they were never that easy, even though I was much younger then.
My company filed for Chapter 11 in January and things at work are a little tougher now. A letter came out today trying to find people to take a severance package. They compensate you pretty well, but I am not old enough to retire so I really don't have a choice. I could not imagine having to find another job so I will do what I can to be one of the people that gets to stay. If there is not enough people that "volunteer" to leave, then the company will have to choose some people to leave. They have a number of people that will have to go, but we really don't know how many it will be. It is set to be 3000 people company wide, but at our facility, we don't really have any idea. All I can do is hope that there are enough people wanting to retire that this package will appeal to. All I can do is my best and hope for this to work out. This kind of thinking gets to you over time, but I can just hope God is looking out for what is best for us.
He has taken great care of me this far. I guess He is the reason I have such a high outlook on life. God does this to you and it is a great feeling to have.
My love to all of you. If you are one of those few that keep up with me this way, thanks for your support and love you have shared with us.

Monday, April 6th and I am still kicking...

2009-04-06T17:19:00.002-05:00

Wow, another week has flown by and it, as usual, was a GREAT week. I spent last Monday and Tuesday spoiling my grandson and Wednesday through Sunday, I was working on Tiff's trailer. I have most of the deck done except for hand rails and all the skirting is done except I am about 8ft short on top holder. It is on the side near the back so you can't even see it missing. I have the longest hand rail done and one side of back steps is done, but I have to do this other side and two rails on front steps. Also need two smaller areas of street and backyard sides to do. I get there in middle of morning and come home at or near dark except for Saturday and Sunday. I left earlier on those days. Sunday, I did not have material to keep going. I have the wood for these rails except for I am one 2x4 short and I think I have enough of the vertical rails to get these done, but I was out of screws and did not feel like going back for more. I also have to build the front gate on the porch. I have a few ideas, but have not "designed" it yet. Also, I need to shorten the gate in the yard that is there and put in a post to secure it. The current gate touches the porch right now because this deck must be larger than the previous owner had. I came home each night so tired, but I noticed today that I am still improving. It does not hurt as much to lift my leg up so my pelvic area must still be improving. I rode my bicycle at work today and it was much easier to get on that it was a month ago. Therefore, I am still improving all the time. Could I run around the block? NO. I think running is out of the question! That is OK because I never liked it anyway.
Maxwell went to "day-care" for the first time today. I have not talked to Megan about it, but I am sure all went fine. This will be a new experience for them to grow in to, but with time, all will be good. I know Megan well enough to know how much attention she will pay to how this place is doing. Yes, she has a lot of Betty in her! Like Mother, like Daughter! She has a break in school in the middle of May and will keep Max at home for this time. She will probably still have to pay for day-care to keep from loosing his spot, but she would rather pay this and enjoy her time with Max.
My Mom and Dad came into town on Wednesday of last week to watch Max for the day and really enjoyed themselves. I knew they would have a great time. I did not get to see them while they were in town but them being here allowed me another day of work on the trailer. I really appreciated it! They were able to spend Tuesday night with Scott & Karen so they were close to Megan's on Wednesday. They had to be there by 6:30AM so this was their best bet dealing with the time. I am so glad they enjoyed their day!
I thought a few minutes ago that this was going to be a short entry, but once my mind starts moving, there is no telling where it will go. Every day is a GREAT one and I am so glad God allowed me to still be here "bother" you.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I love each and every one of you.
Mark 4/6/09

3/26 and still moving forward

2009-03-26T19:22:00.002-05:00

Time is just flying by, but every day is a good day! I have been trying to get Tiffaney's trailer ready for her to move in to. I had to do the plumbing (water and sewer) and run and hook up the electrical line. She is moving to Deer Park and they are so tight on everything, A electrical company had to be certified by the city to check everything. They told me a few things that I had to change out. I put the electrical wiring in 2" conduit and laid it on the ground. An electrical friend told me that it had to be buried or suspended. Their rule was it had to be 18" deep and I knew I could not dig a hole under the trailer 18" deep, so I had to pull it out and run it OVER the sewer line and suspend it from the trailer. This was pretty tough because the conduit was 10' long and with this wire in it, it was heavy. I ended up tying it to trailer until I could get the bracket on. Then I would have to untie it, move down and tie up the next one. I am not sure which was worse, tying and untying or getting around under the trailer. I know I don't move as well as I once did, but I did get it run. I also had to change out the existing outdoor plug because it had to be a GCFI plug. More fun, huh? Then the city approved plumber came out and told me the same thing about the water line. It would only have to be 6" under ground, but it got attached to the trailer, too. I had the sewer line run, but they had to make sure and adjust the slope. They are much better than me on this! If this was not enough, I had to get a porch built, too. She found the boards she wanted it made of and I put the legs about 4 ft. apart. These 1 1/4" boards she liked could not support the weight without bending. I had to get back under there and put in more supports to make it sturdy enough. I guess the boards on the old deck were good for something (building these braces). I did not get railings or edge boards on yet, but that is my goal for this week-end. I also have to build another set of steps for the backyard area so the dogs can get in and out. I also have to go and put the skirting on it, too. Are we having fun on this? It sure makes me hurt the next day and this moving around so low is not pleasant, either, but at least the low part is mostly over. I knew that me trying to do this would be better than paying someone else to do this. One of the things you just do to help your kids. On top of all of that, TODAY is her Birthday.
We had a deposition with the opposing lawyer a couple of weeks ago and he implied several things that I don't agree with. He seemed to think that part of the issue was with Shane. Shane questioned the roof we were on and they said it was OK and that people were up there a lot. This company did not provide us with anything to tie off to, either. Shane did not build this roof and he asked if it was safe. I don't know what more he could have done. This lawyer also thought I fell through a skylight, which would make it look like I made a mistake. So wrong on this, too. I think they were just trying to take some of the blame off themselves, but because of them, I had over $900,000 in hospital bills and thanks to Shane, I am still here. They blame him, but I give him the credit for saving me. He was, and still is, upset about it all. It has to hurt deep down to see a good friend go through all this. It looks like a jury will have to hear my story for these people to understand how it changed my life so much. This will not be pleasant for this company to hear, but that is just how life deals the cards sometimes. I know the first things to come out of my settlement will be the hospital and doctor fees and my lawyer fees. I know when a group of people here what I and all my family and friends went through, the money it cost us and the time we lost, 12 people will be there, feeling what happened. How do you make people understand how I had to withdraw money from my retirement to keep our family afloat? Plus all the miles put on many peoples cars and the parking and meals, etc. Do I need to hit someone with a broom handle to get them to understand how much pain I still feel every day? Walking and stairs still hurt every day but I have adjusted to it because it is part of life now.
Life is great because so many people were there pulling me along and that God made a difference in my life by keeping me around. And, if this weren't enough, I get to spend some time with Maxwell tomorrow and Monday and Tuesday of next week. Yes, I had to take some vacation for it, but this is all worth it! He will just smile at me and make my life great all of those days. So how can I say "Life is Great"? It is and I am here taking in my share of air each day.

Another week has flown by & I am still here, 3/15/09

2009-03-15T08:49:00.002-05:00

It is amazing the things I can do and the things I can't do quite right. Tiffaney's trailer was moved to Deer Park and it needs the water, sewer and electricity all run. The plumbing stuff was easy except that I had to crawl under the trailer to do it. It is still a struggle to get on the ground and harder to move around. My hardheadedness helps me get this done, but the pain is still there. There is not enough room under it to sit or move easily. Most of this had to be done while laying on my back. Moving from one spot to the next is still difficult, but I had to do this instead of having Tiff pay a plumber his fee for it. The electrical was much harder! I put all this wiring inside 2" piping all on the ground. I found out after I had run it on the ground that it either had to be 18" under ground or off the ground, suspended from the trailer. I had to pull all of this wiring back out and attach it to the bottom of the trailer. This meant it had to run OVER the sewer line. This wiring is SO HEAVY. I could not lift it up to bolt it in place. At first, I used a block of cement and a small piece of piping to get it close and attach the holder in place. After this, I started using rope to tie each piece in place until I could get the holder attached. This worked out OK except once the holder was attached, the rope had to be removed before tightening the holder. The hardest part was getting this OVER the sewer line without messing this piping up. The ground under the trailer is hard, which is hard on my tailbone. When I was under there and needed something else to continue, I had to work my way out to get it. It was a long, time consuming progress, but I got most of it done in one LONG day. The last little bit at the incoming box was a challenge, too. I could not put it together to get length of piping, so I got it as close as I could and had to cut the pipe to the length I though was right. It turned out to be a little long so I had to cut it again. This time it was a little short. That's my luck, huh? To get this to fit, I had to remove the last bracket in to make it fit. Once it was right, I had to glue the last few pieces in place. I had a friend that is a state certified electrician come by and check everything to make sure I did everything correctly. He was impressed with the way it all came out and everything looked great. He checked and tightened all connections and said it was ready to go. Now I have to get a "Deer Park approved" electrician to check it AGAIN so power can be turned on. We have one scheduled for Monday but they want $350 to do it. I think this is an easy way for them to make EASY money, but they have to be "certified" by Deer Park to get the city's permit so power can be turned on. Plumbing is the same way, but we can't get a "certified" plumber to call us back. Until we find one, we won't have water or sewer either. Next, I started working on the porch. We (Tiff and I) took the old deck apart and started on it Saturday, but with all the rain we are getting, I could not go very far. It is supposed to rain again today, but the weather is supposed to be better tomorrow (Monday). We are not going to try to fight this rain today, so I know where I will be tomorrow. This is easier because I am upright instead of being under the trailer. Moving and holding these boards is tough, but Tiff is a lot of of help doing this.
Life is wonderful and, yes, I SHOULD NOT be able to do this stuff, but God has helped me to be able to do it. He is such an inspiration to me to allow me the ability to do these things! I guess that is why I am is such a good mood most of the time and able to do things that the hospital told me I would not be able to do.

Tuesday, March 3 and still around

2009-03-03T17:43:00.002-06:00

Well, another week has flown by and life is GREAT. I was on vacation yesterday and watched my Grandson all day. It was wonderful all day long. He was sweet almost all day. It was a wonderful thing to spend time with him. He would just look up and smile at me as he passed gas.... Typical boy, huh? I got to hold him most of the time and let him lay quietly and sleep some of the time, too.
I had to go to Huntsville on Friday and start getting the trailer ready for moving. Much of this I could do and part of it I couldn't. Getting down on the ground still hurts and getting up is not too pleasant either. We had to remove the water line, the sewer line and the wiring for electricity. The skirting along the bottom was really an interesting thing to do. It does not come a part very easily. You have to pull them away from the trailer, then lift them up to get them apart. We stacked them in my truck, one on top of the other. There was quite a few of them and they took up a lot of the room in the truck. All the piping was easy to load since it was light, but we had to tie the together so they did not blow out. Once the truck was full, we still had the porch to go. Shane was with me with his brother-in-law. Shane suggested we go to his brother's house to get a trailer to load the deck up. It was so big, we had to cut it into three pieces. It was still too heavy to easily load, but thanks to my "helpers", they did just fine. It is things like this that make me realize how hurt I still am. Do what you can and smile that I am still here taking in air. Tiffaney is getting excited about getting the trailer set up and fixed up so she will have her own place. She is a sweetheart to be around, but I think she really needs this location change. She will enjoy her own place and have her animals around to keep her company. We will really miss having her around her. She is one of those that does the things that need to be done. She cooks regularly and helps Matt with his homework, too. I don't think we will know how much we miss her until she is gone. Somehow, I need to get the porch re-built and the wiring and plumbing all still is needed. I think she will have to hire someone to put the skirting back on because it is too delicate and precise for me these days. The porches will be a challenge, but they are made of wood and I can do wood items.
Another good day is right around the corner as I get to watch Maxwell again on Friday. Betty will be working days and Megan and Matt will be gone so he is all MINE to SPOIL!
Life is great. Smile and thank God for allowing us time to enjoy everything. My love is sent to all of you that read this. Make life wonderful every day. I will write again real soon.
Mark 3/3/09

Monday, Feb 23 and still kicking

2009-02-23T21:07:00.003-06:00

Well, another day has passed us by and I am still here and PROUD to be here. I spent all last week with Megan and my Grandson and enjoyed every bit of it. It was a great thing to hold him and watch him sleep. I also enjoyed the times when he was awake just enjoying being held. Life is a wonderful thing and I really enjoyed our time together. He would just look at me with love and it makes me feel so good. Matt was off this weekend so I let him help Megan where it was needed.
I spent this weekend working on stuff around here. I broke our "not working" hot tub down and cleared the deck off. I started trying to move the deck, but it was too heavy to lift. I raised it up with my jack and placed 4x4's under it and tried to slide it. This did not work very well, either. Today, when I got home from work, I removed a few of the boards and cut the deck in to three pieces. It was still too heavy to lift up, so I slide each end a little bit at a time. Now all three pieces are moved out and the ground underneath it is pretty low. I have to fill in these holes for now, but our plan it to make the porch larger. Concrete will be put here some day soon, but I don't think I am ready for this just yet. First, I have to figure out where this deck will be put and get it set and back together. Sometimes, it is the little things that make life interesting. Once I get this set up, I can start looking at the size of the new porch. This means I have some dirt to remove and some re bar strips to put down. I do not look forward to all of this but it needs to be done so I can put my BBQ pit on it. Just think, two years ago, there was a pool and hot tub back there and now they are both gone. I have a lot of sand in place where the pool used to be. I guess the good part is that mowing is still pretty easy since there is no grass where the sand is.
I will be taking a couple of days of vacation at the start of next week to be with my Grandson. Megan has to go back to school on Thursday. Betty will be there Thursday and half of Friday and I get the other half. Then Monday and Tuesday, he will be mine to spoil! I am so looking forward to this.
Well, since today is my birthday, I had many friends call or send me cards or even a few e-mails. Tiffaney even took me out for dinner tonight while Betty was at Megan's. Certain people remember this day and that always makes me feel good. I think I turned 40 AGAIN... If my math is right, I must have been born in 1969 now. My driver's license has this date wrong. I guess when you let the state get there information from a birth certificate, they get confused.....
Life is great and I enjoy every day. Now I have Maxwell around to make me enjoy it that much more. YES, I am Grandpa now. Does this mean I am getting older? Well, YES I am but enjoying it every day that goes by.
I love life and love the people in my life! Every day that I wake up breathing on my own is a good day. Yes, we are coming up on my 2nd anniversary of my trouble, but July is still worth looking forward to living thru. I know my accident made my Mom's birthday pretty rough two years ago because it happened the day before her birthday. I can only hope she knows how much it meant to me to not call and wish her a Happy Birthday that year.
Life is wonderful and I will have a smile on my face tomorrow because I survived another year of happiness. My love is sent to all of you that still read this. I know some people read it and don't respond, but knowing that I am a dear part of their life makes me feel better. I don't care if you respond as long as you care about how I am and how I am doing.
Signed this time by "The Birthday Boy". Thanks for thinking of me and keeping up with how I am doing.

Monday, Feb 16 and still BOTHERING you...

2009-02-16T15:11:00.006-06:00

Yes, I am still here and YES, I am here to bother you some more. I posted some pictures of Maxwell and other members of the family. It so neat to look through the pictures and pick out good ones of each of us. I had several with my Mom in them, but did not have one of Dad. I guess he will miss out this time. I am SURE Megan has one but I did not get any. I was supposed to start baby-sitting today, but Matt had the day off because of the holiday. I stayed home and mowed the yard and piddled the rest of the day away. Don't tell Betty that I swept the floor OR emptied the dishwasher. One of those things that I do and never tell any one. I get to go spend the next few days holding my Grandson. Maybe I can convince Megan to take a nap or something. I am SO looking forward to this.
I noticed last week at work that it does not hurt as much to get on my bicycle. I guess this means I am still improving! Yes, God is still by my side helping me through all of this. I had to sit through our company safety meeting and, yes, those metal chairs still hurt my broken tailbone. Someone asked me if it would ever go away or is it getting better. I think it is better, but it is still not a pleasant thing to have. Please do try this one! Take my word on it. Not Pleasant!
Betty and I went with some friends to the Home Show yesterday. We walked quite a bit and it did not bother me that much. 6 months ago I would have had to take a couple of breaks because my pelvic area would start hurting. It is not comfortable, but the bad pains seem to be fading, too. They had a demonstration going on there of a Trikke. It is like a scooter, but has three wheels and no pedals. You control the speed by turning the steering wheel and leaning back and forth. It looks like it would be a great way to exercise but I am still afraid of these things. I did try a small ride of it and my pelvic area won't allow me to push too much and my fear of falling created another problem. I was a trick to get on. I was not sure which foot needs to go on first. My right leg is not strong enough to support my weight for very long, but I knew not to let it be up as I brought the second one up. Another one of those challenges. The girl trying to help me was not sure what to do. She asked me if my knee was bad and when I told her it was my pelvic area, she got one of those looks like she did not understand or could not comprehend my issue. I think with time and patience, this would be great exercise. Since I don't have much of either of those, I will just have to pass for now.
Life is a great thing and I am so glad you all helped keep me around to bother you! I thank you all for the love and support you gave me and my family through all of this. And Thanks to God for His help, too. Someone I know has a Birthday coming up. I think, like last year, HE will be Forty AGAIN. Good thing I don't count very well, huh?
Enjoy the pictures. I will try to change them out every once in a while. I am just glad the picture of me counting to four is gone and Maxwell will greet you for a while. It always amazed my that four glasses of tea can make you look like that. It was just iced tea brought in from New York.... (From Long Island, I believe....)
Mark 2/16/08

Friday, Feb 6 and NOW A GRANDPA

2009-02-06T08:02:00.003-06:00

We had a very exciting day yesterday. Megan had labor pains most of the day and at 3:55PM, Maxwell Vincent came out for all of us to enjoy. He weighed 8lbs and 2 ozs. It was a wonderful experience for us all. Many children come into this world screaming and crying, but not this one. He could definitely cry when he needed to, but most of the time, he was as gentle as could be. I am sure he got hungry last night after I left the hospital, but most of the time he was quiet and peaceful. I am also sure today will be one those days that he will let everyone know he is here, but he slept most of time yesterday. We all got to take our turn holding and loving on him and Megan had a few friends there to help out, too. A couple of people she is in school with came by and Kim, her best friend, was there, too. We have some pictures, but I will have to find Betty's camera to get them on here.
I am sure we will go back to the hospital today to enjoy his life some more. It is a wonderful thing to still be here to enjoy the use of my new name. Several people said that the name Grandpa is sure old fashion, but it is an honor for me to use it since one of the greatest people I have ever known was called that by me. My goal in life is to be the loving and caring person that he always was to me, except I HOPE to be around more often for Maxwell. My Grandpa lived quite a way away from us, but when we were around him, his love was always there. Even if you did one of those things that made him upset, he was very understanding and would use this experience to help you learn and improve from it. I am not sure if I can quite live up to the way he was, but I am going to give everything I have to try. Being a Grandparent is a wonderful thing! I know my parents have always meant the world to all of my kids and I am going to try real hard to be that way, too. Yes, there will be a lot of spoiling going on, but that is one of the special things about being Grandpa. I am ALLOWED to do this!
It really amazed me with how everyone in my family knew the hospital better than me. They knew how to get to this or that and I was completely lost most of the time. I spent many months there in my recovery time, but I did not get to walk around the halls like they did. I saw places where I was told I was, but I just don't remember it. Funny how life is sometimes. God protected me by keeping me here and allowing me NOT to remember some of those times.
I am so glad He loves me so much! He was a big SPIRIT in my life and I will always remember this!
My love to you all.
Mark 2/6/09

Saturday, Jan 31 and still here

2009-01-31T08:34:00.003-06:00

As always, I am here and ready to post some ongoing stuff. We are getting excited about next Thursday and the coming of my Grandson. This is all exciting for us. If Megan's water does not break before Wednesday, Feb.4, they will put her in the hospital and induce her into labor on the 5th. We will be at the hospital for this exciting time. YES, I will be called Grandpa AND really looking forward to having a new special person in my life.
I guess I was wrong again, as usual, thinking that no one stills reads this, but many replies tells me I am still a concern for many people. Respond or not, I will continue for a while longer. Betty and I went to Huntsville yesterday to do some stuff to the trailer to get it ready to move to Deer Park for Tiffaney to live in. I think I am doing OK until something like this comes along. Many things I used to do with no problem now hurt me. I TRY to forget these things, but reality sets me back in place! We brought the AC unit home and part of the rear porch, too. The BOZO that built this thing 5 years ago did a great job on nailing it together. He must have found a great deal on nails. Looking at the way it is attached to the trailer, he must have put 20 nails there. We took all the boards off of it and the stairs, too. The frame is still attached with the legs in place. I will have to cut or drill these nails from the wall to get it off. AND worse news is that, the front porch is much larger. The back one is 4ft x 4ft and the stairs were another 5ft long. The front one is 8ft x 8ft and stairs for it. The good part is, in Huntsville, there are more changes in elevation than there are around here. I still have to remove the skirting around it, too. That is never much fun but is one of those things that I get to do, too. The electrical and plumbing will be a big challenge, too. I used to be able to get on the ground and move around with no issues, but it is not like that any more. It hurts to get there now and I KNOW I won't be able to move as easy as I used to.
I had my first deposition scheduled for Wednesday of this week. We drove all the way to downtown and found out the other side's lawyer had cancelled it. This was wonderful of him. I can only figure this is his way of taking more control of the issues at hand, but what he doesn't understand is my pain is not going away with more time. My lawyer will be out of town until the middle of February so they will re-schedule this sometime after that. I know they will ask a lot of questions about things I don't remember because of the damage caused to my mind. It is that way on a lot of things. Things I used to do without much thought, now I have to focus on thinking them through. Only time will tell when this will be scheduled again.
My concerns right now are on my Grandson and I will deal with these pain issues as best I can. There were a lot of dear friends and family that still read this and many took the time to respond. It is nice to see that I still have people that care and worry about my progress. Some are friends and some are family, but what is most important, is that God still loves me and is doing His best to keep me here. This always means so much to me! He is the Greatest and my Love for Him has always been a good thing to hold on to. I was always a person that cared about many things, but He has opened my eyes to so much more. People ask my a lot of times why I am always in a great mood after what I went through and all I can do is mention the "train story" to them. I REALLY think I was on the track at one point, and all the prayers and love that my friends and family gave towards me, helped God to pull me away from this train. The horn was loud, so I know I was close when it passed.
Yes, my mind is not where it used to be and I have pains in my body every day, but I am still here to appreciate the love you send and I reciprocate by sending it back. Thanks for reading and caring! I love you all so much.
Mark 1/31/09 - another month is behind us!

Picture

2009-01-21T20:34:00.000-06:00

The soon to be proud grandpa!! :)

January 19 and still around

2009-01-19T17:31:00.003-06:00

Well, today is Megan's birthday. I remember where I was 26 years ago! It was a great day then and is a great day now. She is about 17 days away from having my first Grandchild. IF her water does not break before this, she will enter the hospital on February 4 and they will induce labor on February 5th. It will be a while before he calls me Grandpa, but it is one of those things to look forward to. I am so EXCITED about this. The doctor says she is doing fine, but getting around is getting harder and harder. I remember this when Betty was at this stage.
I am having to deal with our company filing Chapter 11 right now. With this down turn in our economy, this will be one of those things to deal with using time. At least it was not Chapter 7 so we are still moving forward. They are looking at jobs that everyone does and will measure each of our progress with this. We are supposed to be cutting 15% in our work force. My boss asked me how I am feeling these days. I talk to him honestly and tell him where I still have issues. It STILL hurts to get on a bicycle and rough roads still are a challenge, too. Climbing still is trouble for me because it was one of those things that I could do with no issue. Now it hurts to do it and I move a lot slower than I used to, but I wake up breathing every day, so it is a good thing. Bathroom issues bother me more than it did before but not having a gall bladder will do that to you. Smile and move on and deal with the issues as best I can.
I noticed that no one sent any replies to last few messages out, but my mind will not let me believe that no one is reading them. I understand that reading and replying are different. Some people read these notes and have nothing to add and I can live with this. Once my mind convinces me that no one is reading, I will stop writing here. This is one of those things that HELPS me deal with my issues.
Betty told me last week that I am not the same person that I was before. She said that my mind is not working like it did before and that she sees that it bothers me ALOT. I don't see this, but she does and is not afraid to tell me about it. I know I loose my temper easier than I used to. Sometimes I notice it, but sometimes I don't. Many times there is some information that I need that I SHOULD know, but now I don't know it. This is frustrating to me!
When I left the hospital, they told me that I would be in a wheelchair for one year and on a walker for two more. Well, last October is where my one year would have been. There is no way I could tolerate this, but they told me to expect it and learn to deal with it. Betty says that my determination to get better pushed me harder than they would expect. Yes, my pelvic area still hurts and I don't sleep as good as I used to, but that is OK as long as God allows me to wake up breathing.
I love life and all the help that everyone gave me and I thanks God for helping pull me out of this. I know this was tough on all of my family and friends, but most of those tough times I don't remember.
Life is great and God loves us all. Don't be afraid to talk to him in times of needs or if help is needed. He pulled me out of a bad spot and will help you too if you ask Him.
Thanks for reading this and keeping up with where I am and where I am going. I love you all so much!
Mark 1/19/09

Tuesday, January 6, 2009 and still here

2009-01-06T20:57:00.002-06:00

Well, the new year is upon us and life itself is great. The holiday season has past us by again and we had a great Christmas this year and a mild new year, too. I had a couple of guys retire from work last week and it was tough to tell bye and still wish them the best with their retirement.
I ran into some people yesterday that knew part of what happened to me, but did not have all of their information right and were concerned on how I was feeling. I explained to them when I feel pain and what causes it to get worse. I still have an issue with riding my bicycle at work. Getting on it is still hard and it still hurts my pelvic area to do. I also have to watch going over rough areas because of my tailbone issue. That is one of those things I will have to deal with for many, many years. My right pelvic will also hurt me for probably the rest of my life. Smile and move forward. God helps me with this and allows me to enjoy every day.
I got to a stopping point on my sheetrock work. The laundry room is all done and it was a tough thing to do because it is so small. Getting the lower parts was most difficult, but it came out looking good. Betty put a coating on the walls and applied paint to it, too. It looks great in their. I spent some time this last weekend putting some carpet that we had left from one of the rooms at the trailer. It was rolled up and put in the garage attic hidden behind all of the Christmas stuff. Once all of this was out, I got up there to see what was there and found this carpet rolled up. It was a pleasant surprise to find. Getting down on the ground was a challenge but is OK until I need something and have to get up to go get it.
As you can see, I can do things that I could not do a year ago, but I am no where near where I was two years ago. It is amazing what these sudden surprises can do for you and to you. They talked at work today about a guy at our Victoria plant that fell about 15 to 20 feet and died. When I heard this, I was so thankful that God was with me when I fell 25 feet and just had some major issues. Prayers and good faith pulled me through all of this.
Thanks to all of you for helping me here. I guess that is why I think life is great! Smile and move forward.
My new Grandson will be here in another month or so. I am so excited about this upcoming event!
Love to all of you and let God help you out when you need Him to.
Mark 1/6/09

Monday, December 29th and still here

2008-12-29T18:26:00.005-06:00

Well, Christmas came and went and was such a joy to spend great time with my family. It was a special time for all of us. Presents aren't the most important thing in life, it's quality time together that you can enjoy. We enjoyed spending the time together.
I ran into a couple of guys that I used to work with today. One of them, Ken, is retiring before the end of the year and this is his last week at work. Another friend, Stewart, now works for another company but still does business out there. He is there quite regularly. It was good to see both of them and we talked about some OLD times. One thing that got to me was they were both curious with how I am doing. I made a few comments about my pains everyday, but their friendship to me wanted more information. I had to explain what I can do and what I can't do, what creates pains and how I deal with it. It is a good thing to have these type of friends in my life. Stewart said when he saw me at the hospital, he thought it was over for me. I don't remember him being there, but he saw what my family was going through during this time and saw how I looked at the time. He was praying for me to recover but was not sure if I would. He was real happy that God was there with me and helped pull me through this situation. People that see me everyday know when I hurt and what causes it, but these guys only see me once in a while so they really did not know. One of them said that they could tell I still have a small limp. Most people don't see this because with time, they have just gotten used to it. I know that the limp is stronger sometimes than others. They were interested in what I was doing around the house these days. I talked about putting up sheetrock and they were curious how that was going. I do OK with higher spots, but the areas near the ground are tougher to do. I can't reach down like I use to do so I just take the time to sit down and do what I can. Problem with this is when I have to get up to get something or change the size of my piece. They understood how much this hurts and understood how hard it is on me. It never fails, those that know you the best, understand how you used to be and how hard it is to deal with these changes.
That is just part of life that seems to still be there. I smile every day and keeps my attitude moving forward. Life is good and my new name will be with us in a month or so. Megan is due the first part of February and from then on, Grandpa will be a great thing.
Love where you are and enjoy it while you can. Ask God for help when you need it. He was there for me and will help you out as much as He can.
12/29/2008 and probably my last post for this year.... 2009 is coming and all we can do is be ready for it.

Tuesday, Dec 23 and still around

2008-12-23T08:15:00.002-06:00

Well, Christmas is almost upon us and the excitement is all around. I spoke in my last note about many people wanting to say Happy Holidays rather than Merry Christmas. I have been paying a lot of attention to this and I guess I was a little hard on the subject. I seem to hear Merry Christmas more than I realized. It is great that, as a group, we take this Birth of Jesus so highly. It is because of Him that we are all here. There was a sign at our Kindergarten that said "Here we still say Merry Christmas". This put a smile on my face when I read it.
I have been waking up in the morning with my back hurting more than usual. I don't know of anything that could be causing this, but I will deal with it. My tailbone is hurting more often, too. Another one of those mysteries when God is testing me to make sure i am still moving forward.
We will be getting together tonight with my family. My niece is in town and the family wanted to get together before Megan and Matt went to Dallas to see his parents. Mom and Dad will be here and everyone but Breanna will be there. Brea had a trip to Colorado planned to go play in the snow while school was out and this was the best time to go. We will miss her tonight, but as long as she is safe and comes home OK, we will live with it.
One of the things about me is my mind will not let me get too involved with the gifting issue. Betty took care of all the stuff for the kids and all I could do was pick up a little something for her. We are doing an exchange gift tonight, but my thoughts would not have been too popular so she took care of it. I am so lucky to have her in my life! Her attention to details just amazes me everyday. I am still here because of her attention to me while I was at the hospital. I will never forget it even though I did not know it at the time.
I want everyone to have a very Special Merry Christmas and let's all take time to Praise Jesus for being in our life. Feel free to talk to God if you need a shoulder to cry on. It is AMAZING just how help He is EVERY DAY. My love to you all.
Mark 12/23/08

Another week has come and is gone... Dec 17

2008-12-17T17:25:00.002-06:00

Well, this special time of year is upon us and the excitement is running all around. This is a special time of the year for many people, but some for other reasons than the Birthday of Christ. I think in OUR part of the world, it has become the giving of gifts. So many people focus on this. Sales start before Thanksgiving now and with our land in a state of recession, vendor's are fighting for every SALE. Happy Holidays is the common statement made by many people to AVOID using Christ's name. Once He smiles upon us, life has a different meaning. I get asked a lot of times why I am always in such a good mood. HE is the reason for this. Once you are down like I was, He has a whole new meaning. He was an important part of my life before my accident but now He is the center of My Life.
My new position at work seems to working out well, but I have more pains than I did before. I wake up in the mornings and my right pelvic area hurts. I am not sure if I am working it enough to strengthen it or if I am going too far as to make it hurt from this over exertion. I love life and I love waking up every day and will deal with this pain long enough to figure out which way it is going. Time will tell me sometime soon and then I will know what to do to help this matter out. I noticed this afternoon that I can climb ladders at work easier than I could six months ago. This tells me that I am moving forward I just need to make sure it is not too fast. I don't want to go back to where I was a year and a half ago, but I also don't want to stay where I am for the rest of my life, either. Right now, I am working with people that I did not know before and some I have not seen in a while. It is a great feeling to get to know these people and to realize how they see life in general. Trying to sort out all of this information I am taking in is some what difficult at times, but this is a challenge for my mind, too. I don't feel like I am helping this project out much, but the guy over it tells me how great I am doing. I am doing a lot of comparing drawings to data and trying to figure out if it is right or not and make changes to it to make it right.
Betty has, as usual, or house dressed up for this time of year. Getting the stuff down from the attic in the garage is a lot harder than it used to be, but I can still help a lot with it. Matt is big enough to get in the attic area now and I am closer to the ground to lift it down to Tiff. That is a great thing to be a part of. This makes our time during this month feel special. Betty has always been one of those people that enjoys celebrating His Birthday.
Life is great and I am here to bother all the people that I love. It is a great thing to be a part of.
My love to you all. Talk to God if you need some help dealing with problems or just a friend to talk to. He is there and will listen. He made my life more pleasant and can do the same for you. PLEASE don't go there the same way I did, but allow Him to be there if you need Him.
Thanks. Mark 12/17/08

Thursday, December 4 and moving on

2008-12-04T17:39:00.002-06:00

Well, another month is upon us. It is a time to celebrate for me. This week, one year ago, I had my last surgery and spent 6 days in the hospital. I am so glad that this is behind me and I can still breathe on my own. That is a great thing to have behind me. My boss looked at my backlog of jobs to do and was happy with what I have done lately. He asked me if I could help with the upcoming turn-around that is being planned right now. It does not start until August of 2009, but they want it completely planned out before the end of the year. This is one of those BIG things that I have not had a lot of experience with. I got to climb up a couple of towers to get pictures of stuff up there and put a job together to get the item taken care of. It takes me a long time to get up and down these, but I made it. My boss was not happy that I did this because he knows how I am and how I will push to do things. I told him I was OK with it even though I am slow at it. It does make my shoulder hurt, but it is progress that I can do it. One of my co-workers said he was so glad that I was able to climb again. It is not as easy as it used to be and makes me hurt, but making it is a feat for me. He and I talked a lot about how I was when I was down and he knew some of it, but had only heard a little bit of the truth. I talked to him and explained a lot of things in detail because I know him well enough to know he could handle it. It is tough thing to talk about when someone can't handle it, but since I lived through it all and know MOST of it first hand, I don't mind telling the story. He said he has noticed my mood and how I have such a good outlook on things. I went back to the "train story" that I have told before. (If you don't know my "train story", don't be afraid to ask...) I told him how when I first woke up that I did not know my wife and kids at first, but they tell me that they could tell when I did. I was so sure at that time that I could do anything. I just needed someone coming to see me to help me up so I could "escape". Of course, they all loved me enough to know better than to try this. I finally was able to get up on my own and try to walk out. Betty came in and found me passed out in a pool of blood on the floor. I just knew I could make it. The truth hurts sometimes and the floor does, too. This did not convince me I was not ready but the net bed they put me in helped get me around.
Some of these memories will be with me forever and I am proud to say that I remember a lot of them. God was with me then as he is now. He helps me daily to move on and move upward. My mind is not quite as good as it used to be, but I hope with time, I will be better there, too.
My love to all of you. Have a safe of joyous Christmas time this year. Just remember WHY this is a holiday. This is the time when our Great One was born. Smile and appreciate every day.
Mark 12/4/08

Tuesday, Nov 25 and moving forward as usual

2008-11-25T13:47:00.004-06:00

Well, I am doing OK for now. It seems like when I try to do things that used to be easy now hurt more today and even more tomorrow. That is OK because God let the sun come up and allowed me to be here to enjoy it. I am on vacation this week and that should mean I get to sleep late. Well, I am up around 5 to 6 in the mornings, but that is OK. It makes the days seem longer, but that is allowed, too.
I had two notes to my last blog. These replies always lighten me up. One of these was from a dear old friend of ours (Art). He introduced me to Betty many years ago and I still thank him for that. I have three beautiful daughters and one son. What a great feeling that is and a grandson coming soon. He will not be here for Christmas this year, but should be here by my birthday. The other note was from my cousin Jo. She was one of those special people in my life that helped in the way I came up (no, don't blame her for that because she helped with the good side of me). She has always been a special person for me to enjoy being around. I don't get to see here much anymore, but she is in my mind a lot. Growing up, you always look up to someone and want to be as great as they are. Her, and her sister, Lori, were a very positive influence on how I am today. I guess I love people like I do because of how they helped me growing up. Thanks Jo, and Lori, too, for being a special person in my life when I was still learning how you should be. It means a lot to me!
I went to Huntsville yesterday to do some work to our trailer there. Betty stopped by on her way back from Dallas for Megan's baby shower. She told me that she made a list of things that needed to be taken care of. I took my pressure washer up there for cleaning the green off the back side. Betty said it was about an hours worth of work. Four and a half hours later, I finished that project. The door needed some repairs, the screen door needed a handle put on and one light in the bathroom needed a "new switch". The door and screen were pretty simple to do. The light was another issue. It would not work so I took it apart to find out if it had power or not. As I was removing it, it come on and then went off again. The told me that it was not the switch. Power to it was OK. I re-wired it since that was where the problem seems to be and messed with the light bulb outlets and it worked when I left. My three or so hours there turned out to be all day. I left around 7:30AM and returned last night at 7PM. WHAT FUN I HAD! I can sure feel it today. My shoulder still hurts and I am tired all over, but I still woke up this morning. That makes it a great day, huh?
Sometimes, when people ask me how I am doing, I really don't know how to answer them. I take it as a general question and give the answer that I am thankful to still be here. I really don't think most people want the details of where I hurt and when I hurt. Someone at work asked me a while back why I was always in such a good, cheerful mood. All I can do with this is to tell why. It is a fact, the closer you are to the train, the brighter the light seems. I think at one point in my history, I was ready to board it and the prayers of family and friends kept me around. How can I not be in a good mood after that? Life is what we make it to be. Cheerful, pleasant and enjoyable. Every day is great as long as we wake up breathing on our own. If you are one of those people that has one of those "downer" moods, you need to allow God into your life and allow Him to help you make everything positive. Smile and move forward! Trust me, the shoe on the other foot is not pleasant. Appreciate what you have, smile and move forward. There are people here that are glad you are still here.
Make the most of your day. Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday and enjoy the people around you. They are there because they are a special person to you (or maybe because there is good food). I would say for you to not eat too much, but that would be a waste of effort to ALL of us. We always do it and ALWAYS wish we hadn't. Just smile and move forward. It will be OK to suffer like we do EVERY year....
My love to all of you. Respond or not, as long as you check in to see how I am doing, I am OK with that.
Mark 11/25/08

Tuesday, Nov 18 and still here

2008-11-18T20:22:00.002-06:00

Well, it has not been long since my last update, but I still check to see if anybody stills reads. Sallie sent me a reply to my last one and reading her comments always makes me feel loved and happy. I talked with several people that know me from work but are not there to see me daily. I speak to Randy on the phone pretty regularly and he is always so helpful to me. It amazes me that he recognizes my voice on the phone. We discussed how I am and how I am progressing. He does not hesitate to remind me just how lucky I am to still be here breathing and able to do a lot of the things I can do. Talking about it makes me remember just how lucky I really am. I have known Randy for about 4 or 5 years, mostly over the phone. I have met him a couple of times, but he is a jewel at his job. In my old position, I talked to him anywhere from two to ten times a week. Jennie is another one of those people I deal with over the phone, too. She also recognizes my voice. She is another one of those people that tells me regularly that I am one of the lucky ones. These comments always pick me up no matter where I am, but just to know they still think about how I am means so much. I have also met with her a couple of times, but mostly deal with her on the phone. She was concerned for me for next week because she would be off on vacation. I told her this would not be an issue because I am off, too. We both got a good laugh over it. I must have one of those voices that are easy to pick up on because Jeremy is another one who recognizes my voice. I am sure the phone system helps all three of them know where it is coming from, but to recognize a voice is one of those rare things.
Another thing I get asked a lot is how come I am always in a good mood. People don't realize how bright the light is unless you are real close to the train. It almost got me so everyday is great now. Smile and move forward. I have people tell me a lot that I am so easy and pleasant to work with and that is because I try to treat people how I want to be treated. Just after my accident, one of my co-workers told me I could have my old job back because there were so many people involved that were hard to work with. I never had this issue before and wondered how this would work out. So many told me that they were SO glad I was back. What should this tell me? I may be a little slow, but not THAT slow...
Life is good and life is great, but having special friends and family is always a great thing. Just think, in a few months I will start using my new name. Grandpa is one of those "old fashion" names that I am looking forward to.
My love to all of you that still read this. Whether you write back or not does not matter. In my heart, you are there in that special place. Until I decide to bother you again, I am still breathing on my own. May God be there for you as He was definitely there for me and my family. Makes this holiday season a special time for you and your loved ones.
Mark 11/18/08

Friday, Nov 14 and still progressing

2008-11-14T06:51:00.002-06:00

Well, some time has passed since my last update, but I am still here and still breathing on my own. This makes it a great day. My Dad's birthday came and went and so did Betty's. These days, as they should be, are special to them and are an important part of life itself and I am glad to be here to help them enjoy these days.
Dad and I went hunting a couple of week ago and getting around in this terrain is still tougher than it used to be. Climbing in to the stand is still tough, but getting down is harder. I am able to do it so this means a lot.
I am convinced that people don't look at my comments posted here much anymore, but that is OK, too. I have come to the conclusion that I write here to help me exercise my brain a little bit and to update my status to those that still read it. When I take Matt to soccer practice, I sometimes try to walk a little bit around the park. I can make it most of the way around the track before my pelvic area starts to hurts. I end up limping most times by the end, but I have to push myself to do it again next time. I notice climbing ladders at work hurts less than it used to, but I still can't go to far without some pain and getting tired. When walking, my right pelvic area is what hurts and climbing gets me in the same area. I guess this is the damage I did here when I fell. I hope with time, it will get better, but the progress is not going as fast as I wish it did. I guess I can deal with the discomfort as long as God let's me wake up breathing.
Well, it looks like winter is finally going to make it here. It is supposed to be down in the 30's this weekend and part of next week, too. I guess I get to find out just what cold weather will do to my pain level. If it causes problems, God will help me deal with it and move on with life.
I get asked almost every week about my outlook on life itself. People still don't understand why I always see the bright things in life and why I am always in a good mood. I guess if these people had to deal with the problems my family and friends had to deal with to keep me around, they would realize how much better today is than where it was 18 months ago. How bright the light is depends on how close you were to the train. Yes, it nearly hit me and I am still here to treasure EACH and EVERY day.
I am going to close this note for now. My love is extended to each of you. Don't be afraid to talk to God to help you get through any problems that are there for you and your loved ones. He listens well and will help you understand what needs to happen.
Thanks for wasting your time here with me.
Mark 11/14/08

Friday, Oct 31 and still around

2008-10-31T07:35:00.002-05:00

Another week has gone by and I am still here to bother you. This was a busy week around here but it is over. My week at work was busy but moved along with out any major issues. I woke up this morning a little sore but I kind of expected it. I did a lot of climbing at work this week. Many stairs and a few ladders, too. I still get tired pretty easily, but I hope, with time, it will get better. I still have to work hard to climb these ladders, but as long as they are short distances, I can do it. A lot slower than it used to be, but so many people say that I should not even be able to do it. I had several jobs at work that required me to climb to so I could see the work to be done. I am so glad that God helped me overcome this down spot and I may always have problems with certain things, but if I keep pushing myself, I will come out OK. Sitting on hard surfaces still bothers me but at least I can get up after it is over. I try to watch sitting too long on hard surfaces but my broken tailbone will bother me for a long, long time. Just smile and move forward.
Yesterday was my Dad's birthday and I KNOW I am in better condition this year at this time than I was last year. It is about this time of the year when I got out of the hospital. I was released the first time near the middle of October and had to go right back in for another week before I was released again. I was still in a wheelchair at this time last year and knew I had a long push just to be able to walk. Next I moved on to a walker and this was a big challenge for me. This was in November of last year and my last surgery was after Thanksgiving. This recovery has been a hard thing to deal with, but I just smile and keep moving forward. According to the hospital, I should still be in a wheelchair at this time. When I see people that I have not seen in a while, they are surprised I am doing this good already. My mind is not always where it SHOULD be, but this is another one of those things for me to deal with. I am one of those people that would just think things through as I was doing them, but now my mind will not help me do this. I have to spend more time thinking about a task and hopefully I will remember the little things that were always there for me. Memory is one of those things that I am still struggling with. Some people tell me it is my age, but that would happen more slowly than mine actually did. I sometime wish all was like it used to be, but I just have to be thankful my Family did not have to come together to put me in the ground. All of the prayers and talks with God helped me a lot.
I was able to see Tiffaney graduate college, walk Megan down the aisle at her wedding and to be here for her to tell me my first Grandson is on the way. In about three and a half more months, Grandpa will be my new name. This will be a tough time for them at first, but Betty and I have worked out a schedule to watch him when she is at school. She asks if this would be alright and we happily said YES, that it would be fine. My boss will have to deal with all the time I am off during March, April and May. I think Tiffaney is going to be able to help out in June and July while school is out for her. It will be OK and we will make it work out. Most of my Friday's will be spent there, too.
Life is good and life is great and I am glad I am still here to take in my fair share of air. If you ever needs someone to listen to you, try God, as he was there for me and my family and will help you out if you let Him.
All for now. More stuff in another week or so. Love to all of you.
Mark 10/31/08

Monday, October 20 and still here

2008-10-20T10:24:00.002-05:00

Another week has flown through our lives and we are still here to enjoy it. Betty and I went out of town for our anniversary. We spent the first night at Mom and Dad's. It was great to see them and see how they are doing. Bob and Carol (old friends of theirs that I have known for A LONG TIME) came and spent the night, too. We had a great time visiting and remembering things. Next, we went to San Marcos, to work on our trailer that my niece is living in. We did the work around the bath tub area. We had most of the stuff to do this already, but just needed to put it in. It was a little tough to do, but it looked nice when we left. Next, we went to Austin to see Breanna. We did several things around there for her while we were there. Some of these were small items and others a little more involved. We went to eat the night of our anniversary where she works. From there, we walked over to 6th street and walked down it. This much walking still hurts to do. I had to stop and rest several times but this wonderful woman understands this. We stopped in a couple of places for a little bit and enjoyed our night together. We walked part of the way back and Brea picked us up and took us back to the car. We got up Saturday and did a few more things before we left. We left there and went to see my cousin Shannon. We had not seen her in a long time and enjoyed our visit with her. She, like many others, was concerned with how I was doing and so glad to see us. We did not get to see Rob because he was away studying for school. From there, we went to see more family. We got to see Kelley and Michael and Bryar, too. We spent Saturday night there and most of Sunday was spent visiting. Kelley was so glad to see me moving around as well as I am. Michael just went through his second round of chemo and was not feeling so great, but it is so good to see him as cheerful as he could possibly be. Shortly after he met Kelley, we got to meet him, too. I fell in love with him and found out that he is such a special person. He was one of those people that is just great to be around. We left their house last night around 8PM, headed home. We made it back to our house around 1AM this morning. I got a great night's sleep and woke up this morning feeling great. If I had realized 27 years ago that this woman would still be a special part of my life, I would not know how to react. She is the strong part of my life that keeps me moving in the right direction. Because of her, I have four wonderful kids, friends and family that cares so much for us, and a life that is full of happiness.
We got the results back from my "head" doctor. It was many pages of stuff to go through. It told us both exactly what we both already knew, but had some information in it that were questions for us. He said parts of my mind work great, but there are some issues to deal with. The anger issues are going to be an issue that I will have to learn to handle better. But my thinking part seems OK. There are some memory issues that may or may not ever work right. My left hand is not as controlled as my right one, but this is a problem from my broken left shoulder. This also explains why my writing is hard to read. (Yes, even for me). Spelling problems is another issue that may work out over time, but it will have to be pushed. He also questioned my reading comprehension. I used to love to read Tom Clancy books, but now I get lost in just a few pages. He is a deep writer that moves around a lot. He thinks I need to start with a simpler writer but I get lost with Reader's Digest... May be over time, it will get better. I will just have to work on it and focus as much as I can to get better.
There was one note put in my last message from Harry and Gayle. It was good to hear from you and thanks for being one of those two or three people that still read this. I love you both so much and, YES, you better start getting ready for winter. You are probably already seeing freezing weather and snow is coming soon. Our two or three weeks of winter are still a ways away.
Be thankful of what we have and what is coming for us. God creates a lot of special things in our life and we just have to be thankful for each and every one. I love you all so much. Until next week, I'll close for now and deal with these issues and problems as best I can....
Mark 10/20/08

Friday, Oct.10 and still here

2008-10-10T06:41:00.002-05:00

Well, another week has gone by and all seems well. Hurricane Ike was kind to us on damage, but the gas to keep the generator running added up. We are all still alive and no damage to speak of so we are good.
I had some appointments with my "mind" doctor and some of the stuff he asked and made me do helped me to realize where I am and where I need help. Some of his questions made sense but others did not. He asked questions to see how you mind works and where it had issues. He probably found out some issues that I may understand later. Long term memory, I did OK on and he thought talking about my accident might be painful. I told him what I knew, but still to this day, I can't remember any of it. I can tell him what I was told, but that is about it. He, like my medical doctor, said it MAY come back to me one day. I don't count on it. Talking about what my family and friends went through is the hardest part. One of my co-workers died about 2 weeks back and it made my realize what this would have meant to all of you. I told this doctor that I was in many prayer groups from family and friends that meant a lot to me. I know I was discussed and prayed for in many states and even countries. The support you all showed me still means the world to me. Thanks for all of YOUR efforts to keep me around.
I know a lot of people still read this to keep up with how I am and where I am. I talked to a guy at work this week that had heard I was in an accident, but knew nothing about it. I went through the whole episode of what happened and where I was. When I went over my "pain" parts, it made him a little uncomfortable to know how bad it was. He, like me, said that God was there for me. This I know and will always remember. He asked about where I was with pains and problems and I had to explain a lot of stuff. Climbing and lifting are still my biggest issues. Sitting on hard chairs will always be an issue since broken tailbones don't go away. I can climb ladder at work, but not as fast as I used to. Walking still hurts if it is too far or on unlevel ground. I can reach the ground easier than in the past but lifting something heavy is still real hard. I thought my mind was doing OK until this doctor started questions I could not answer. It was all just to see how your mind works or doesn't work and how much you don't realize that isn't right. Sometimes things like this are hard to accept, but you just smile and move on.
Megan said her doctor told her that she is going to have a boy, so they are getting excited about all this stuff. In about 3 months I will be known as Grandpa and am real excited that God wanted me here for all of this excitement.
I would like to say thank you to the ones that still check up on me here. I love you all so much.
Mark 10/10/08

Wednesday, Oct 2 and still around

2008-10-01T17:54:00.002-05:00

Well, Hurricane Ike came for a visit and left his mark on us all. We were very lucky on this. We lost power at about 6PM on Friday night and the winds started showing signs of Hurricane around 10PM or so. When our power went out, there was not wind or rain. Welcome to our NEIGHBORHOOD! Finally, it was turned on last Sunday around 3:30PM. 16 days without power was tough to deal with, but some many others had property damage or auto damage from fallen trees. One of our shutters broke off the upper floor (actually, half of it broke off and the other half was still up there). Trees fell everywhere around this area. About 2 blocks away, two cars were smashed and many houses were damaged, too. God was definitely on our side with this one. A friend from work loaned us a generator since he did not lose power. We spent a lot of money on gas. The weather was helpful at first because a "cool" front came in right after the wind died down and night temperatures were around 60 or so and in the low 80's during the days. This help us through the first week and we got Paul's generator the next Thursday. By then, gas was available so getting it was not a real issue.
I am still getting better every day. My shoulder seems to be better since the doctor helped with it. Reaching the ground is still a little problem and slow, but I can get there and continue to get better. I still have a slight limp that may always be there, but unless you are looking for it, you would never notice it. Stepping over things is still a challenge and lifting something heavy is still out. That is OK because God is helping me to improve daily and to help me have a great outlook on life itself.
Finally, we have cable and internet service back so I can bother you all again. Harry and Gail sent me a note to my last entry and it is good to know they still monitor this. My love for you two special people is as strong today as it always was. Thanks for your concerns about how we survived Ike. I know others still check on this once in a while and I appreciate your love and concerns.
We have a special day coming up in a couple of weeks. That crazy woman of mine made me walk down the aisle and has been a wonderful wife to me for 27 years now. October 17th is a special day and it will always be a special time for us. She wants to take a trip to see some things around this wonderful state and to see some people we don't get to see very often. She how special she is?
My you all have a wonderful day! Me and God both love you so much. Yes, it has been almost a month since my last posting, but without power and internet, posting was a major issue...
Mark

Sunday, Sept. 7th and still here

2008-09-07T16:51:00.002-05:00

Yes, I am still around and still seem to be moving forward. My shoulder hurts less since the doctor took care of it. I still do some exercises with it and the pain is a lot less than it was before the doctor took care of it. I hope this lasts for a long time! Climbing and sitting still bother me, but I like to think I am still improving.
We are planning on going to see my cousin sometime next month. She lives in Ft. Worth area while her husband is going to school there. Betty called and talked to her last weekend and they decided that October was better for all of us. I have not seen Shannon in quite a while but I knew Rob was going to school to be an anthologist. He has quite a bit of time to get there, but steps in the right direction always helps out. I know both of their kids are off at college now, so moving forward is a good thing to do.
Matt has his first soccer game yesterday. He is back at playing goalie since he has a new coach this year. He was the assistant coach before so he knew how good Matt was at this position. We won this game 9 to 0. He stopped quite a few shots but we controlled the game most of the time. We had a great time there and went to visit my brother after it since it was near his home. We sat and visited with Scott and Karen for quite a while and really enjoyed ourselves. It was a great visit. I did have some issues at the soccer game because the ground is not level in all spots for drainage during rainy times. We had to bring drinks and snacks and carrying the drinks in an ice chest was tough on me. I had to carry the drinks and the chairs, too. I made it but not like before. It was always so easy for me before that you just don't think about the issues this fall caused me. I hope that one day I will be close to where I used to be, but I know "running" is out of the question any more. A broken tailbone will not allow this! It is like working on something low to the ground still hurts my pelvic area. I can sit on the ground to do a lot of these things, but it hurts to get there and to get up from. If I am there, don't expect me to get up too fast. I have to roll over to my knees and push up that way. I know this and have learned how to deal with this. It beats the heck out of the bed I was fixed to at this time last year and that was an improvement from the two months before that. I don't remember the first two months but I hear these stories.
Life is a great thing to deal with and when you are close to the train, the light is VERY bright. I think I was real close to it at that point in my life and I would like to thank everyone that was pulling for me. God listens to each of us and I don't really know how many prayer groups helped me out. Life is great because God takes good care of us.
I love you all so much. If you are one of those two or three people that still check on me here, thank you. If you respond, that's great, but if you don't, I still love you for your concerns for me.
Enjoy life and the pleasures God brings us all.
Mark 9/7/08

Tuesday, Sept 2 and still here

2008-09-02T17:30:00.002-05:00

Today is another GREAT day. I woke up this morning, breathing on my own. This makes it a GREAT day! Things are going well for us right now. I finished the repairs on the porch and Shane came over and sprayed paint on it all. It really looks good. We had a little issue that morning, though. He was taking a load of wood to the dump and had a blow out and needed a ride. I had to go get him and take him to get a new tire. Before we could make it to the dump, it blew out again. This hour long trip took him about 3 to 4 hours. His trailer made it on three of four tires, but this was OK since he got his load off.
I ran onto an old friend and his wife on Sunday. They were not sure how I was and asked a lot of questions. I had to go through my list of pains and issues to deal with all over again. It does not bother me, but they were surprised I was so pleasant about it. Having pain and trouble is not something that gets me down as I am pretty used to it. People that see me pretty regularly know this and help me move on with life.
Megan seems to be coming along with my new grandchild. She is showing more and more all the time. This is an exciting thing for me and willing to get used to it. I am so looking forward in being called Grandpa. This is always an exciting issue to deal with.
Matt has soccer practice tonight, so this note will be short. I am still here and will bother you if I need to. Love to all of you.
Mark 9/2/08

Tuesday, Aug 19 and still moving along

2008-08-19T17:22:00.005-05:00

Every day is a great day! I had to go see the doctor about my shoulder yesterday. He, thankfully, said surgery was not the answer to my problem. He did tell me that the fall ripped a couple of tendons loose on one side, but gave me an injection of some strong steroids into the area and gave a prescription to rehabilitation. I was so afraid he would recommend surgery. I was so thankful this was not my best bet. I was not sure if I wanted to go back into surgery but if this was my best hope, I would not have had much choice. I just knew how much pain this would create and how long it would take to be back to "full" strength. Again, God is on my side and is doing a wonderful job of helping me move forward.
I had two comments posted to my last input. One was from Sallie. She is one of those people that responds every so often to let me know they are still watching my progress. This is always good to hear. The second one was from a friend, Jennifer, that lives in Tennessee. She and Rob are sweet, thoughtful people. She was excited for us to be Grandparents and was also happy for Tiffaney. Tiffaney will be teaching Physics to kids that have yet to pass their TASC test. This seems like it would be one of those things that a 5 year teacher could do better, but Tiff is one of those people that will push these kids forward as much as most people could. It is one of those about her. She is good at teaching kids as long as they will try. She, like most of us, loses patience with people who will not try. But she has a way of reaching these type of people very well. When she was in high school, she tutored some second graders that could not read. She has a way of pushing you without you knowing she is pushing you. When she was in college, she spent her spare time teach some kids that were "challenged" with life how to ride horses and enjoy it. She was everyone's favorite because SHE CARED about them. Most people that were there had to be there because of classroom credit. She did it as a volunteer and stayed with it for a couple of years. Life is a challenge every day and you just have to make the most of it.
Breanna is fixing to start her Junior year of college and seems to be doing good with it. She is like the other two and will push herself to be her best. Matt is going to be starting the 6Th grade next week. He is not real excited about going back to school, but he will be fine once he gets moving in the right direction. He is in the advanced math classes. I know all kids are different but each will excel in their own way. Megan got the news yesterday that she passed the exam for dental school. She had three chances to take this test, but passed it the first time. She was not sure how she did, but her studying paid off on it. It would have cost about $100 to re-take this test each time.
That is about all there is in life these days. I still hurt doing certain things, but that is the way life is now. I will do what I can and ask for help on some other things. Yes, Jennifer, I am very lucky to have these great kids in my life. I am not sure when, but I must have done something right when we brought them up. They are all blessed with intelligence and good sense about things. They are still young enough to know they are still learning things every day. This is a blessing that is great to have around.
I just want to add that Megan said the doctor thinks she is doing fine and that she can't be sure, but thinks the baby is a boy. I am sure this made Matt happy. He will be a great Dad!
I Love you all so much. Thanks for reading up on my progress and I am sorry I get so long winded when I start typing. Smile and move on with life. I know I do and I spend a lot of time just thanking God for keeping me around. It means so much to me every day!
Mark 8/19/08 and still enjoying being around to bother you...

Here is August and still going along

2008-08-10T07:16:00.003-05:00

August is on us and I am still getting better. The doctor said my elbow is a bone spur that must have broken in my fall. He said UNLESS is it too painful to live with, it should be left alone. He said they is a "liquid" area near this spot and the wound made from removal would not heal up right. He said some people have openings there that will not close up but always leak. I can live with this problem like it is. He was not too happy about my shoulder, though. He looked at x-rays of it and decided I needed to have an MRI done. I went yesterday (Saturday, Aug 9th) and had this done. The technician said the doctor will get these on Monday. I know that reaching for something with my right arm hurts, but I try not to do this too much. I am hoping surgery is not the answer, but if it is, I am comfortable with this doctor and will do whatever it takes to get rid of this pain.
I have the greatest of thanks to my next door neighbor. I had the shutters taken off the side of the house a few months ago and could not get comfortable on a ladder to put them back. The were repainted and have been waiting until I felt good enough to put them back. I was talking with Mark about them yesterday and trying to figure out who I could hire to do this. He said he would put them back on. He did a great thing for me because I knew better than to try this stunt. Heights still bother me but hanging off the side of the ladder was not something I would try. I can make it up a ladder, but it is not something I am comfortable with.
I don't know how many people still come here to read up on my progress, but I thank you all for being so supportive of me and my family. We saw Megan yesterday and she is starting to show and we are all looking forward to February. The first Grandchild is an exciting thing for us. We all call it "Peanut" for now, but she will want to know what sex she is carrying as soon as they can tell. She is one of those people that wants everything to be just right when the baby is here. Room will be set up just like it needs to be and all the stuff to go with this gender.
Breanna turned 20 on Friday. This was an exciting day for all of us. She is starting a new job right now and this will be a challenge to learn everything needed to move forward with it. She will push herself a lot to make this work out. Tiffaney's new job will start in a few more weeks. Teaching is one of those things that she does well. She will be teaching Chemistry and Physics to 10th, 11th and 12th graders at Deer Park High School. The good part of this is that these are elective classes that people take to learn more. It will not just be a group of kids that don't want to be there. This will be a challenge for her, but this is the kind of thing she enjoys.
My love to you all for reading this. I will post more information on my shoulder once the doctor decides what our best bet is.
Thanks for being here.
Mark 8/10/08

Wednesday, July 30 and still getting along

2008-07-30T22:16:00.004-05:00

Well, another week has almost past and I am still here. I had someone ask me today about my accident because she did not know about it too much. She asked if I had any lingering problems with it. I told her my right shoulder still hurts to reach for something and my right elbow still bothers me once in a while. I still have issues with my right pelvic area, too. I can reach the ground, but it is a lot slower than it used to be. I am also noticing that it hurts my lungs some to cough or yawn. I have learned to live with these issues and deal with the discomfort involved.
I had to go look at a job today and it was up on the third landing and had to climb stairs to get to it. This still gets to me after this much distance, but I can make it and STILL smile about it. I trained Walter to do part of my old job on Tuesday. He will do one part and I will keep another part of it for now. I change offices sometime next week and get into my new area. I will still handle the "rush" jobs in one area and do "regular" planning in that area, too. My boss asked if I could handle this for a while. I feel like this will be easier to do this than what I do now. Smile and move forward! I can live with this. I will only be correcting jobs that I planned in the first place. If there is a problem with it, I would rather correct them myself so I can learn how to do this better.
I got out yesterday and used my weed-eater in my yard. I also did the guy behind me's yard, too. He had shoulder surgery and can't hold a weed-eater, yet. All this effort made me tired, so I slept well last night.
I know there are still people that read this pretty regularly and most don't reply to my words. I can live with this and will keep trying to move forward. We had a meeting today at work and I still have problems with those metal chairs. My broken tailbone will probably be with me forever. This is not a pleasant thing to deal with, but thanks to God and the help he gave me, I will make the most of it. All is part of life and we just have to make it work FOR us.
Thanks for being one of those that reads this to find out how I am doing and my love to you for caring about me. Thank you God for the help and inspiration you have given me.
"Peanut" is getting bigger (this is the "nickname" that Megan gave to my new Grandchild). I am excited about this and can hardly wait until February is here.
I will see the doctor on Monday to find out how my right elbow is and what can be done to resolve the issues I still have with it.
Love you all, Mark 7/30/08

Thursday, July 24 and still breathing on my own

2008-07-24T22:12:00.002-05:00

Well, another week has gone by and I am still here. My shoulder is still quite sore, especially when I reach for things. I went and tried to help Megan and Matt repair things on their old apartment. Several things I wanted to help on would not work right. They did have some things I could do with some help. They had one light that would come on when the switch was flipped and my volt meter showed the switch was the problem. Next was the kitchen light. It was one of those fluorescence lights that just did not get bright as it should. Matt took this down and I was told the bulbs were new and still did not work right. Megan had to get some supplies from Home Depot so I told her to buy a new ballast for it. They did not have any of these so I told her to get a cheap light for a garage and I could make it work. I sat on the floor and disassembled one and re-built their old one. Poor Matt had to re-install it. Next, the bulb in the fan upstairs moved too much. I worked on it and got it tightened after a little work. Again, poor Matt had to re-install it. This reaching up still hurts too much to do. Next we started on the bathroom floor. They had done some of it but the small pieces next to the toilet and tub were still waiting for me. We ended up taking the toilet up so we would have to cut less tiles. This got the floor wet so we dried it the best we could and had to quit there because the flooring would not have stuck to this wet floor. One of Megan's friends from school was there to help Matt carry things. I was so glad for that. Justin and his wife, Brittney, were so much help to have around. I was so thankful Matt had this kind of help since I was not much help on carrying heavy things. My truck was filled up several times with stuff, so I guess my being there was not a total loss. All the stuff we did got my back to hurting. I could not move right for a couple of days, but it worked out OK.
I still have my doctor's appointment set for August 4th. This will be a week from Monday to check on my right elbow. I am a little scared about what he might find, but also excited that this might be a good improvement.
I will be training someone at doing my job starting Monday. After two weeks of training, it is his and then I will start training to take over my new position. Change is not always good, but this is something I am looking forward to. I know my pressure will be lower with less things that have to be done NOW. As a Material Coordinator, you are always rushing deliveries and hot jobs and when I came back from being out, they were glad I took it back. Now I will go to planning regular jobs that are not a DO IT NOW. I am so excited about this change. Now someone else can feel this "all the time pressure".
Life is great for me right now. Every day is great to wake up and realize just how great it is to have God there for you. Without Him and His help in my life, I think my life would be much different. I don't look for the day to see the grass from below. Thanks to all of you that helped pull me and my family through this time. I looked at some of my early pictures and they STILL bother me. Seeing myself in a wheelchair was not too pleasant, either. It makes me feel good to see how far I have come.
I love you all so much,
Mark 7/24/08

Monday, July 14th and still moving forward

2008-07-14T20:04:00.004-05:00

Yes, another week has flown by and I am still here breathing on my own. I have a doctor's appointment scheduled for 8/4/08 to have my elbow checked out. I have a feeling that there is another run with surgery ahead, but I don't get to make this call. I have started seeing the Chiropractor trying to get me shoulder working better. The pain is still there, but seems to be getting better as we move forward with this. My neck is hurting more but that is because so long out of spot did not help.
We had a great weekend and did several good things. We helped Megan move on Friday and Betty helped again on Saturday. I could not help like I wanted to because I can't lift things like I used to and don't walk as well, either. One of Megan's friends from school was there and helped Matt move the big stuff. I felt like I was in the way most of the time, but I was there trying to help as much as I could. On Saturday, we went to Dennis' 40th birthday celebration and enjoyed ourselves there too. From there, we went across town to see my aunt and several cousins. We enjoyed this visit, too. On Sunday, I worked on trying to get my porch ready to paint. Several hours of work Saturday morning and several more on Sunday and it is starting to get ready to go forward. I still have several days of removing paint to be ready to paint, but I can see the end is getting closer.
I hear it quite a bit from people telling me they read this pretty regularly, but most don't respond because they don't know what to say. I can live with this. They still read it because the love is still there. This makes me feel good to hear it.
Betty was looking at some of the pictures taken of me when I was "down". Some of these still hurt me to see them again. The wound on my back still gets my blood moving. I knew it was there at the time, but I do not really remember how bad it was until I see the pictures. This hole was so big and I get to see the pictures to see it improve. It was a long, drawn out process, but God helped pull me through it.
Tiffaney has a job interview tomorrow for a teaching job. The big test she had to take was a surprise to us all. She thought she did poorly on it, but she passed it. We were so proud of her. Only time will tell about how this interview goes. She has one of those personality that does great teaching. She was one of those great tutors when she was in high school and worked in college with "select" kids and taught many how to ride horses when most could hardly walk without help. This is one of those special talents that she is good at, helping other become better people.
That is enough information from me for this week. God will help tomorrow be a great day and allow me to enjoy my life ahead. One day, I hope most of this pain is gone but until this comes, I will smile and move forward. My love to you all.
Thanks dear God for keeping me here to enjoy my life every day.
Mark 7/14/08

July 7,2008... What a day this WAS

2008-07-07T17:26:00.002-05:00

Yes, my first year has gone past and I live life the best way I can. Certain things still hurt, but I wake up breathing on my own, so it must be a GREAT day. Most of the people at work did not realize what date I fell but once I told them, they were all happy I am still around. They knew it was around this day somewhere, but most did not know the date like I do. We had a great time yesterday. I cook some meat on the smoker and had some friends over from around the neighborhood. We also had some close friends over too because these people helped us out with things while I was down. Some of them mowed my yard and others helped with Matt. It really amazes me how much some people would do for you when you are down like this. Several months ago, one of my neighbors saw me digging in my front yard to find a plumbing leak and came to help. He knew I did not need to be doing this by myself and was just one of those people that wanted to help me out. We found the leak and he had all of the stuff to fix it. My PVC glue was dried up, but Bill had some. This is one of those people that God has brought in to my life and I am glad He did.
I notice that my right shoulder and right elbow are still quite painful. I still can not reach very well with my right arm and it still hurts to try. My elbow really gets painful if I put weight on it wrong. It is not at the pointed tip of the elbow, but about a 1/2" towards my shoulder. I can feel an area there that needs to be seen by a doctor, just not sure I am ready for surgery on it, yet. I know somehow I will have to go through this, but not real sure I can handle it, yet. I also notice that my pelvic area hurts if I walk too much. This pain is uncomfortable, but I have learned to tolerate it. Hilly areas really get to me because of the way your ankle is turned up, but I go slow and through it. Sitting on a hard chair still bothers me. They tell me that a broken tailbone will be there for a long, long time, if not forever. I have learned how to sit in most locations where it doesn't make the pain too much, but after some time, it still gets to me.
Yes, one year down and many left to go. You learn to do some things different and to not do other things. Live life and move forward. All is good, but live with the uncomfortable things. Love to all of you. Thanks so much for helping me still be here. Prayers and a common goal by all of you made this possible for me and my family.
Mark 7/7/08

Life is wonderful and I am still around (July 1, 2008)

2008-07-01T07:57:00.006-05:00

Yes, it is only a few days after my last posting, but sometimes life is amazing. Breanna is renting a house starting July 1 (today), but they gave here a key so she could move stuff in. Betty and I loaded up my truck and her car with stuff for Brea and took off. I had to go to Deer Park to see Betty's sister, Pat, to get a couch and chair and then to see Steve and Traci Scannell to get a bed. Then we topped it all off with MANY other things. Since it would not all fit in my truck, her car was filled, too. We covered the stuff in my truck with a tarp, but no matter how well it was tied on, the wind will find it. We were about 1/3 of the way there and since we had not seen rain, it had to come off. We did catch a little bit of rain on the way, but not enough to matter. While we were there, we did a lot of different things that we could, but there was not electricity on yet. It will be turned on today. While I am sitting in the living room, I see somebody walk by the front window. She came on it the front door and spoke to us. It took my a second to realize this, but it was my cousin Shelly. I had forgotten that she lives in Austin but that wonderful wife of mine did not. She made a few calls without me knowing to set all of this up. I had not seen Shelly since Grandmother's funeral and that was in January, 2005. Over three years! Man it sure was good to see her. She looks so good, too. I guess my wife realized how much I enjoyed seeing all of the Bradley family and the reunion, or maybe she just knows how I am about family. Shelly was saying how we need to get the Gray family together again. Shelly made several comments on how great it was to see me up doing as well as I am. She also asked questions about my mind and memory. I guess this is a female thing. She knew this was one of the things that some people suffer from after my kind of accident. She did not ask about where I hurt and this was great with me. I will only talk about what someone wants to know. I did not realize she knew much about my accident, but she stayed on top of things through this BLOG the Megan and Betty kept current.
I guess it still amazes me to know how many people kept up with me this way. Some I gets notes in this BLOG to let me know they follow it and some don't respond this way, but may send an e-mail to me. I noticed a week ago, two people responded and told me I was still on their minds. Harry and Gayle were special friends with my parents for many years and then they moved to Oregon or Washington or one of those COLD places in the north west area. The other one came from my Mom's cousin, Ann. Ann made one comment from the last one about me being a Grandpa. She knew exactly who I was talking about. She called him Uncle Cleo for years. I had never heard him use his middle name. I knew it, but never heard it. Ann knew the person he was and honored me by saying how great a person he was. He set the bar high for me, but I want to be the kind of Grandpa he was for us. That would be one of those special things that God allows us to be when we become a Grandpa. Yes, Megan, this is a VERY plain, old fashioned name, but has a lot of special meaning to me.
If you are one of the people that still read this, I love you. I know this is like an on-line update, but it allows me to talk about things and you can read or not and move on with life. Yes, I am still here to bug you if I get the chance.
My one year anniversary is only 6 days away. 7/7/07 could have been a bad day for everyone that knows and loves me, but God decided with my many prayers pulling for me, that I needed to be here. If you were one of those people that prayed for me or if I was in your prayers group, thanks for doing this for me and for my family. It will always have special meaning to me! I will probably post again on my anniversary day or somewhere near it.
Pray for someone who needs it because it works! I know most people believe this, but I love to send this message out. God was always a big part in my life, but His meaning means so much more to me, now.
Thanks for helping keep me around. With love,
Mark 7/1/08

Sunday, June 29th and still moving forward

2008-06-29T03:25:00.002-05:00

Well, we are back from our family reunion. It was a great event that Betty and I both enjoyed. It was great to see all of my Bradley kin folks. Most people there knew what had happened to me, but many of the finer things were not always known. I straightened out most of their "factual" stuff with what really happened. Most of them THOUGHT I fell through a sky light. This is what was told to Betty at first, but Shane went back to this place and looked at it. The sky light was CLOSE to where I fell, but it was not broken but the roof right above it had a big hole in it where it opened up with weight on it. The roof was not in good shape!
Many people of this family were very supportive of all of us here. Many of these cousins and my Aunt came to see me at the hospital. I do not remember seeing them, but they were there FOR ME. Janet said her and Karen sat is the room for a couple of hours and counted the freckles on my arms just to create conversation to me. They knew I could not respond or open my eyes, but they did this so I could HEAR their voices. Several others told me they came by, too. Most of this I did not remember, but their support for ME AND MY FAMILY was great. Several others have been reading this BLOG and loved being able to follow my progress this way. Many told me they checked it EVERY day. This group of people also said so many prayers for me. God listened and helped me come back. The hospital told me I would be in a wheel chair for 1 year and a walker for two more years. My one year anniversary of the accident in almost here, but I am without the chair and the walker. This is another instance of God pulling me up. One cousin that I was hoping to see could not make it this year. Jo, if you see this, I still need a hug! Lori told me that you wanted to come so you could see and talk to me, but sometimes things work out that way and we have to keep our head up and move forward. The notes you send me have always meant so much to me. I never really had a sister, but as close as we were as we grew up, you and Lori always helped me out by keeping me "out of trouble". You two were like sisters to me then and I will always remember this! Yes, this family only gets together like this once a year, but the love is always there! So many of them were pulling for me. These thoughts helped pull me back to life. It was not just family people praying for me, but they were a large part of my recovery. Many people made me happy when they told me how good I was moving around, even though they know what still hurts on me. Larry said he would check my BLOG every day and was very appreciative of having these updates on my progress. Kay and Johnny told me that Megan was so good at writing what was going on. I have heard this before and it means so much to hear it again. She has always had a way of expressing things in words and puts these thoughts together so well.
Another note that I shared at the reunion was a surprise to all that were there and congratulations come on this news too. I gave them all my new nickname that I now have. I am going to be called Grandpa soon. Megan is going to have a baby in February. All of this time, I thought there was a good reason Gods helped me out like He did, but I thought it was to see Tiffaney graduate college and Megan to get married. These were both great events I was thankful to be here for, but this new piece of news made me SO HAPPY.
Life is good and life is great! My Grandpa set a FINE example for me to follow. He was always the sweetest person with the most patience of any one I have ever seen. My Mom was excited about me using her Father's name, too. I was hoping for this reaction, but was not real sure.
Thank you God for pulling me through all of this and allowing me to be here for all of these important events. I have pains every day, but I wake up breathing on my own. This makes EVERY DAY a great day. My right elbow seems to be getting worse so a trip to the doctor seems to be due. I can not take this pain for too long. It usually will hurt for a week or two, but goes away before I do anything, but this has been present for a couple of weeks and seems to be worse than before.
I am so sorry this is so long, but I had a great week-end and loved seeing all of these people. Until I write another update, I love you all so much. If you were not mentioned above, it is not do to lack of love to you. I just did not want to write a book here. Thanks to all of you for your support towards me.
Mark 6/29/08 at 4:15AM and I AM GOING TO BED NOW!!!

Sunday, 6/22/08 and I am still breathing

2008-06-22T11:42:00.003-05:00

Another week has come and gone. This is OK because I am still here and still breathing on my own. We went to a wedding yesterday of one of Megan's friends that I have known for so many years. It was good to be able to see a lot of people that I have not seen in a while. Several people there asked me how I was and how my condition is improving. It feels good to me to know that there are so many people in the world that care about others. My accident was not a secret so many people know a little about what what happened and how close I came to being gone. It still scares me when I think about how close I really was. Thanks to so many people praying for me, God helped me to still be here.
Today is my brother's 50th birthday. I called him this morning and talked to him a little bit before his cell phone kicked off on a signal. I also got the opportunity to call his daughter, Jennifer, today, too. She and her wonderful husband, Tommy, seem to be doing well. Tommy is trying to get into medical school and seems pretty high on his hope to get in. This is a difficult thing to get in to, but with the attitude he has on this subject, he will be good. I know a lot of people try to get into this, but people with his drive and determination are our best answer.
We have been trying to do some repairs around the house lately. It really amazes me how hard these things are to me. I used to be able to do these things so easily, but now my body can't take this much stress any more. I am hoping this will come back with time, but certain actions and movements still hurt. My right shoulder seems to get most of this pain. I do not have the reach I used to have, but my determination to succeed will keep me moving forward. Certain things are not going to work right. I can not work off of a ladder anymore. Heights used to not bother me, but now, as soon as I get off the ground, I get nervous. I think this is God's way to make sure I don't re-create my problems. I will hire someone to do the things I can't do and move on with life. Another one of God's wishes! Be safe and be myself.
Betty wants to know what I want to do to mark my one year "anniversary". I guess she thought I wanted something to do special to mark this time in my life. You loose several months of your life, pains that won't go away, things you can't do anymore and my kiss with near-death and she wants to celebrate it? I mean, that this was an important day in my life, but I don't remember most of it. The way Shane tells the story still gets to me. When he got to me, he thought I was ALREADY dead. I was not breathing or moving at all. Then, I started coughing so he knew he needed to get an ambulance. I guess the coughing was from my broken ribs puncturing my lung. I don't know because I was not alert enough to tell you. I thank God EVERY DAY that he was with me and knew what to do. Do I need to CELEBRATE this date? All I want to do is to thank God from the bottom of my heart for sticking with me through all of this.
It's funny, Shane also told me that he called me "Mr. Safety" all day because I was worried about gloves and glasses to protect us. If I could have found a cloud close enough, I would have been tied off to it, too. Safety has always been an important part of my life and don't know how I could have ever figured out this old roof would not hold my weight. I can only thank God for making this fall such an important part of my life. I was always a big FAN of His, but it is so much stronger today because of this incident. I ran into a guy at work this past week and he was so glad to see me walking and doing so well. I explained where my pains are and what makes them worse, but he told me I was so lucky to even be able to walk. I realize this quite regularly and am thankful I am still here. Only God and many friends and family members praying for me got me through all of this.
If you are one of the people that still reads this, I wish to thank you for your time and your concerns about me. I think most people have quit reading this in the last few months and some will check on it every once in a while to make sure I am still writing. I keep saying I need to stop, but then I hear people are still looking. My inputs have gotten down to about once a week now, but that is because I don't take the time to explain the places that still hurt just like they did last week.
It is all part of life and 7/7 is just ahead. Should I "celebrate" the fact that God decided to leave my on this planet? For the bottom of my heart, my love to each and every one of you that still reads this. We have a family reunion next weekend near Fort Worth, so I will not be writing again until AT LEAST next Sunday. All of my family wants a hug from when they see me. This makes it a GREAT day! I am so glad they were all behind me on this.
Mark 6/22/08

Saturday, June 14th and still alive and moving

2008-06-14T21:53:00.004-05:00

Well, another week has gone by and I am still here. All is good for me so far. I took a couple of day off of work this week to get some stuff done around here, but it is not an easy task for me, yet. I can tell you one thing, I sleep well at night after days like these. I took the shutters down and tried to re-paint them. I picked out a nice shade of green or so I thought. When I painted the first one, it was a LIME green. They were a dark forest green and I thought some a LITTLE lighter would be good, but I have yet to figure out WHY they have this color. It was not even close to the shade on the paper sheet and I could not imagine anyone every using this color. Boy, what a mistake I made picking this shade out. Betty said she wanted them black instead. I painted the first coat of them but they still need a second coat. I also have been working on the posts along the front porch. I replace about 2 feet on the bottom of each a while back, but never finished them before my accident. It is a lot tougher on me now to get these right, but I am working on it. One of Tiff's friend's husband came over and did some work on Friday. He spent some time filling holes with caulk and a lot of time removing old caulk and replacing it with new. I knew better than to get to some of this using the ladder. I am not real comfortable with that yet. I know if I lose my balance and fall, my broken tail bone would let me know. If it was real bad, my pelvic area would be a bad thing to re-break. Off the ladder is the best thing for me right now.
We had a memorial service today for Betty's brother, Russell. Her Mom and one sister flew in for this and the were two brothers and one sister there. Bill had two of his kids there and Pat had two of her sons there. All four of my kids were there. Megan and Matt left from there to go to Dallas to see his family for Father's Day. Breanna came into town for being there and made it special to me since this is Father's Day. I would say, with all the family, there was probably about 20 people there. Some had some good things to say about Russell. It is great to hear these stories from the past and we will all remember him as a sweet, loving person. I had only met him two or three times, but he was always so nice to be around. Now his is with his father and with God. If it is your time to go, what better place to be there with God. RUSSELL, OUR LOVE WILL ALWAYS BE WITH YOU.
I feel like someone has beaten me with a bat after these last few days have gone by. I used to be a lot better at this stuff, but now it all hurts. But, at least I don't have to live with these LIME green shutters.
To all the Father's out there, have a great day tomorrow. I told the girls and Matt that I already have my Father's Day gift because I am here and walking with only a very slight limp. How could I be happier? Not possible!
Love to all of you. Your friend for life.
Mark 6/14/08

Saturday, June 7 and still moving forward

2008-06-07T08:49:00.002-05:00

Another week has gone by and I am still here. I had two replies to my last entry and it makes me feel good to know people that I love are still checking on me. One was from Sallie and Scott Keaton. They have always been checking and responding. The second one was from my niece in Florida. She wishes, like I do, the distance between us was not so large. The price of gas makes this trip so hard and airline tickets are outrageous because of fuel prices, too. She wants to come see us and I would love to have here and her family here. This is one of those people that has always been special to me. I think she was about 12 when I first met her. Her and her sister were always so well behaved and polite. I told Betty that when we had kids, this is how I wanted them to be. Seeing kids behave like this was a good thing for me to see and learn from since I was so young at that time.
I ran into a guy at work last week that I have not seen in a while. He was real concerned about how I am feeling and was glad to see my improvements. He followed my progress through this BLOG and was glad that it helped people like him keep up with my progress. He was concerned that I might not ever make it back or ever be able to walk again. He wanted to hear what actually happened in my accident. I don't mind telling the story but try not to talk about it unless someone asks. Not everyone can handle these details and it still gets me to think about it too much. Many people know some of the details, but the facts about it really brings their thoughts together. It always makes me feel good when people are concerned enough to talk to me about it. This guy heard I fell through a sky light, but I did not. The sky light was close to where I fell through at, but the building we were on had a weak spot in the roof. I don't get on roofs any more and heights still bother me, too.
I am still here because God wanted me to be here. I thank him for that all the time. I appreciate everyone's concerns and prayers for me. I don't know how many prayer groups I was in, but the count is not the important thing. The concerns for my health and future is the important part. If I was part of your group prayer, Thank You from the bottom of my heart!
The Bradley reunion is only a three weeks away. I am looking forward to this event. The concerns and prayers from this group was great. There are many of my "family" members that followed my progress in this BLOG, too. I hear from many of them from time to time and I know the prayers were there, too. I look forward to seeing all of them again.
Love to you all.
Mark 6/7/08

Another week has come and gone... May 29

2008-05-29T17:52:00.002-05:00

Here we go again. Another week has flown by and I am still here breathing on my own. This makes life great! Boy, we sure had a bad rain storm last night. Several people told me that we got 2 inches of rain. We needed that around here.
Betty's brother passed away on Wednesday. He fought it as much as he could, but they knew this was coming. It does not make things better, but it is life as we know it can be. His wife is donating his eyes to someone that needs them which is a great thing to do. I know it was not an easy decision, but it will be good for someone to see again.
My poison ivy is getting better, but it hangs on like it knows how to do. It wakes me up during the night when it itches. I try to apply more medicine to it to help, but it is not pleasant. Me and poison ivy don't get along together real well, but, it like many other things, is something you live with. This is a good thing for me to have life to put up with it.
My pain seems to be getting better as time moves on. It does not hurt as much to climb stairs as it once did, but ladders and I still have an issue. I can get up them with pain, but don't balance as well as I used to. That is OK, too, because I am here to deal with it. Lifting something heavy still is pretty painful and getting something off the ground is still a hard process to work around. That, too, is something I am glad to be able to deal with. My memory is still suffering from all of this, too. I don't remember things like I used to. Names are my worst problems, but numbers are not as easy to remember as they used to be. Oh well, I told a group of guys at work today that if I look at them like I don't know them, don't be afraid to tell me who you are. This is tough on me still. At work, I have to write everything down that needs to be done or it won't get done. I work off this list all day. Sometimes, my 10 hours day is much longer because I work slower on things than I used to. I hear from many people every day that I am one lucky person to still be here. This I do realize! I can just hope my mind will come back to where it used to be, but that is just a little of hope from me. Only time will tell for sure.
Sitting still hurts to do. Anyone with a broken tailbone understands this better than anyone else would. This is something that will be there for a long, long time, if not forever. I have a foam pad at work that I sit on and it helps a lot, but any other time I sit some where else, it hurts if I stay too long. My right should still hurts daily, too.
Would any one out there like a case of poison ivy? I will share it with you if you want some of this painful agony. Some people don't react with this as bad and I can only tell you how lucky you are.
Today, God is with me as He usually is. He helps my mind realize just how LUCKY I am to still be here. If you are one of those people that still reads this, I love you. If you only see it once in a while, I can live with that, too. This is an important part of my recovery to know people still care. Please tell God how important Russell was to Betty and to his family and He will lead him down the right path towards happiness.
Love to all of you. Mark 5/29/08

Wednesday, May 21 and still moving

2008-05-21T19:49:00.003-05:00

Another week has gone by and I am still here. Yes, I am writing an update on life and still here to enjoy it. Certain things are a lot harder than they used to be, but will a little time and patience, all moves forward. I went to Mom and Dad's last week end and was trying to help them clear out some vines that are growing out of control. It is a lot harder to do these things, but I can still be some help. Mom was so worried that I was doing this because she is afraid I will get hurt doing it. I have to think about what I am doing and takes steps to be prepared for the task I am taking. I was pulling a lot of these out of the area and she was afraid I was going to fall. I keep one foot back in case something gives more than expected. I know better than to let myself fall or cause other problems. This is how God helps me stay alive! There is no way I want to go back through this again. I could not put myself or my family and friends through this again. I realize how hard it was on everyone else. Yes, I have the pains from all of this, but you guys had the real problem to deal with. As a matter of fact, I ended up with poison ivy from pulling all of these vines down. It is all over both arms and I remember now how allergic I am to it. I can stand not scratching it when I am awake, but had a real problem during the night. I tried Ivy Dry at first, but it did not seem to help. Now I stay covered in Calamine Lotion. As the blisters bust, the lotion soaks it up and allows it to dry without spreading. It does not look good, but it will go away with some time.
Betty had to make a trip to Arizona because her oldest brother is about to die. They are giving him about 10% chance to live. All of his internal organs are shut down. He was taking some medicine he ordered from Mexico and it caused his liver to fail. His is in a coma so she went with her brother, Bill, to see him before he is gone. She was thinking a trip now or one for the funeral and she wants to tell him she will pray for him. I realize what his wife is feeling right now. I am glad she decided to go while he is still breathing instead of waiting. She feels bad about the whole situation and realizes how close SHE was to this.
A took a week of vacation this week since Betty was on her long change, but this incident changed how things were going. I told her that she needed to go be with her brother because SO MANY people were there for her when I was there. This kind of effort means so much to the person having to deal with the issue. We all need a shoulder to cry on once in a while!!!
Make the most out of life while you can and enjoy every day because God wants you to. Dearest Russell, we are saying prayers for you and your family. God will steer you down the right path for your future. He loves you now and will love you when you get to heaven. Good luck my dearest brother-in-law. Takes God's hand when he reaches out for you. He will take care of you from here on out if that is what he decides is best for you.
Mark 5/21/08

Thursday, May 15 and still going ahead

2008-05-15T18:37:00.002-05:00

Another week has come and gone. I am still here and still posting my progress. I am doing OK and still have pain everyday. That is part of life and I can move ahead with that. I am going to see a doctor next week and have my right elbow checked. It has really started hurting more each day. I have a spot on it that is real sensitive to contact. I guess we will have to see what the doctor thinks about it. I guess I hit it pretty hard when I fell and the pain will not go away. I am hoping he can tell something about it. I am hoping it will not need surgery, but only he can tell me. I noticed that it seems to be larger in size than the other one. I really don't want to have it operated on if this is possible, but the pain is a real problem. I still have pain with my shoulders hurting when I reach for something and tend to forget this long enough to reach for something and feel the pain. My broken tailbone hurts a lot of times, but this I will have to live with. I have been told that this will be with me for a long, long time and may never go away. Hard chairs really hurt to sit in. I am not sure which hurts me more, my broken tailbone or my semi-fixed pelvic.
I had a comment to my last entry from some friends of ours here in town. Sallie told me that her, Scott and Noah are still reading and appreciate the fact that I am still adding to this BLOG. These kind of comments mean so much that people are still concerned with how I am doing and following my progress this way. I know many people read up on me here, so I will keep writing so everyone knows. I hear it so many times about my positive attitude on my pains and had someone tell me the other day that they noticed that I limp a lot less than I did a month ago. Another one of those comments that lift me up.
We went to Matt's soccer tryouts on Tuesday night and ran into a friend I have not seen in a while. His daughter used to play soccer with Breanna. I am not sure how long it has been, but he knew nothing about my accident. I told him my story as best I could and he said he was sorry from what I went through, but was so happy I am able to walk. Getting up and down the bleachers at the field still hurt me, but I go through it slowly and overcome the pain. Betty and I talked to a another Dad that has a girl that was friends with Megan. He knew what happened to me and was surprised I was moving at all. He is one of those great people in this world that is always so kind to people. If you did not know it, you would never guess he is a lawyer. He has such a great outlook on life and deals with things so well. He is one of those people that is good to be around. He coaches the soccer team above Matt's age group and said that if Matt does not make the team, he will try to bring him up. This would be great because Matt plays goalie best. Matt's coach's son also plays goalie so Matt never gets to play it with this team. So many parents have told us that he is a much better goalie than the other kid and wonder why we don't complain about it. What would this do other than make the coach upset at him? I say it would be a waste of effort on our part. We will deal with whatever decision is made.
Life is great and all we can hope for is good news from the doctor. Whatever he needs to do to make me better is something I will deal with. I am hoping I do not have to miss any work over this, but will deal with this decision and hope God knows what is best.
Love to all of you and thanks for putting up with my "complain" session. Send some love to God as he loves you, too.
Mark 5/15/08

Sunday, May 11 and all is great

2008-05-11T08:49:00.002-05:00

Well, another week has come and gone. Today is Mother's Day and I would like to wish all of the Mothers out there a great day. What does it take to be a great Mom? Love and attention are great starts, but there is more to it than that. Not only do you as a parent have to be a corrector, but being someone that you kids are comfortable with and are good at talking too. I had great parents that were always there for me, but more than that, my Wonderful wife is, too. This is a key to having great kids in this world that are not only good to be around, but one that is willing to help others, too. That has to be one of the key things my parents taught me. If you have a teenager or pre-teen, this may seem like a difficult chore, but consistent and there always mean so much. All kids make errors in life, but you have to help them see the errors, but also teach them how to repair the problem and to never do this again. This is a very important part of growing up. To this day, I have always been comfortable talking to my parents about almost anything. I know that I had problems as a kid, but my parents did their best to help me learn from it and how to become a better person. I thank them for making me the person I am today!
My therapy is going well. I still hurt after each session, but feel like I am improving. Just remember, don't put something heavy on the floor or ground and expect my help to get it. My right shoulder still hurts daily, which makes no sense to me because I broke my left one. I guess the impact on my right shoulder is from my fall when I landed on it, but did not break it. My pelvic area still hurts daily but seems to be improving, too. My right elbow hurts when I put some weight on it wrong. They did not find any major problems with it, but I can feel where the sore part is. It is not on the tip of the elbow area, just slightly above it towards my shoulder by about 1/4" from the point of it. I can feel a spot where there is a small gap there. I don't understand this, but have learned to live with it. I try to remember not to put pressure there, but sometimes I forget.
Another positive note is that I got a reply to my last blog note and it was from an old friend that I haven't heard from in a while. Jennifer and I worked together several years back. She is one of those sweet people that you enjoy having around you. I enjoyed having the pleasure to know her and her husband, Rob. Now Jennifer has kids and is living in Tennessee. She is one of those people that told me to keep this writing up because she keeps up with my progress this way. Hearing things like this always lifts me up. I know my story is not a pleasant one, but because of God, I am still here and still improving.
I wish to send my love to all of you. Thanks for reading up on my progress and responding if needed.
Mark 5/11/08

Tuesday, May 6th and still moving along

2008-05-06T20:48:00.003-05:00

Well, another week has gone by and I am still improving. It has been a little more than a week since I wrote anything here. I thought that I should stop writing, but I get notes from people telling me they still follow my progress here. So, thanks to you, I will keep writing my progress. I had two comments to my last entry. One was from Harry and Gail. They are good friends of my parents that we have known for a long time and I did not realize they knew what happened. I was good to hear from them and made my day to see there note. The second one was from my cousin Shannon and all of her family. It seems like their life is progressing along, too. This was another one of those notes that was special to me.
I have noticed that stairs are getting easier for me. I can make them now without having to depend on pulling myself up the hand rail. I can make it up without using the rail. Please don't get behind me because I am still a little slow, but I make it and feel good about this. Ladders still hurt a lot to go up. I have to climb these at work once in a while, but as long as it is only a short distance, I can make it. I am tired when I pull myself up, but coming down is much easier. If it is too far, I don't even try it. I know that no one wants to see me create any problems.
Rehabilitation is going well. I seem to push myself a little harder each time and can tell it later on, but I am no where near where I was before all this happened. That is OK because God decided I still need to be here. I have people ask me why I am always in a good mood after all of this happened and all I can say is that this is something God made of me. I tell people that it depends on how close you were to the light when you saw it. I think I was real close and the stories I hear really make me realize this. I am still scared of this event when I think about it. I enjoy telling people what I know of all this, but too much gets me. I realize I will probably have these pains for the rest of my life and I can live with it.
Life is moving along for us and I wake up every day breathing on my own. This makes it a good day!
Love to all of you. More of my progress report next time. This is short and sweet, but this is how I am. No, I'm not short and not always sweet, but still BREATHING!!
Mark 5/6/08

Saturday, April 26 and still here...

2008-04-26T23:07:00.004-05:00

Another week has flown by and I am still alive and moving well. Rehabilitation is going OK, but I hurt after each session. I think this means I am improving, but it is sometimes hard to tell. My right shoulder hurts more than it has lately and I don't find any of my work out exercises that cause pain when I am doing it. It hurts now to reach out to something with my right arm and I don't know why. This must mean something, but I am not sure why.
I went to see my old cub scout troop graduate to the boy scouts on Tuesday. My friend Keith is running the troop now and he seems to handle this well. There were some people there that were glad I was able to make it and talked about the scare they all had when I was down. They said many prayers for me. Those combined with all of my other friends and family members prayers that were pulling for me. I was not real sure they even knew about my accident, but Keith and Sheryl made sure everybody knew where I was and how I was doing. I got several hugs from some of these parents and the support they showed made me feel good. I helped these kids for over a year and got to watch these kids grow up some. It made me feel good to see them make this transition in scouts.
On Saturday, we went to see one of Megan's friends get married. Jamie's Dad talked to me about his concerns for me after my accident, too. We saw many people there that we had not seen in quite a while and this was good, too. Some people looked familiar, but some I could not remember their names. Betty helps me here all the time. She knows how my mind works and doesn't work. I am not sure how she knows, but she does. My memory, especially with names, is not like it used to be. I am hoping with time, that it will come back better. Only time will tell for sure.
I noticed over this last week, that I don't limp as much as I once did. As a matter of fact, I only limp when my body gets tired. If I do too much, my pelvic area lets me know. I would like to think rehabilitation is helping here. I still have pain when I climb up ladders and down them still hurts, too. I know my ability to do stairs is improving, too. I can go up stairs to my bed room with little or no pain and I don't have to use the hand rail. I am slow going up and down, but this is good to me. If I could just figure out how to make my broken tail bone quit hurting, I would be much better off. It still is hard for me to reach something on the ground and if it weighs much, there it stays. I know better most of the time not to try to lift anything heavy. The pain is not worth it!
So as you can tell, I am still getting better, but still have a ways to go to be "me" again. God is helping me here and will work with me to get better. I am so thankful to Him for this assistance. He is still trying to help me improve my temper, though. I don't realize it, by Betty tells me. If I try to get to something and can't, I still get angry. Sometimes I see this and sometimes I don't. If I am looking for something, my mind does not help here and I will loose my temper trying to find it.
If you are one of the people that still read this, I want to say thank you for still caring. I keep thinking that I should quit writing here, but people tell me once in a while that they still read these. Some are friends and some are family. This is my way of telling you where I am and how I am improving and to point out some of my faults as I see them or get told about them.
Thanks for being there for me in love and prayers. It means the world to me and this will always be a part of me.
Love you all so much,
Mark

Monday, April 21 and still moving forward

2008-04-21T20:40:00.002-05:00

Another week has gone by and I am still here, breathing on my own. I still have a limp and sore on movement but I am still moving along. I had a guy from work wanted to buy one of my motorcycles this weekend. It was hard for me to get some work on it, but I was able to put it back together. Kick starting it was hard and very painful. I could not even lift enough to help load it. Thank goodness there is a ditch for the truck to back into. It is the little things in life that make you appreciate being here still. I got tried out working in the garage cleaning up some this weekend, too. It is amazing how quickly I tire out. Sometimes I wonder if I will ever be good enough to do some of this stuff. What is strange about this is that my wife knows how I am doing. She realizes by my actions that I can not do most things I used to could do and will come help so often.
The house needed to be washed this weekend and Brea do it for me. She knew I could not and should not do it. Most of it was up high and I knew I couldn't do it. She did a great job on it, but she got tired while doing it. It made a lot of difference in the way things look. It is so great to have people that look out for me like this.
I still have problems at work, too. I ride a bicycle at work a lot but have much pain getting on it. My pelvic area does not like raising my leg up high enough to get over the seat. It hurts to get on it but I can ride as long as I don't try to go too fast. Even using a truck at work hurts to get in and out of. At least my truck has a step board on it so I can get in easier. Some people look at me sort of strangely when it hurts to get in and out. It is hard to explain the pain involved.
I am going to rehabilitation three days a week and I feel like it helps, but am in pain after each session. Some of these exercises hurt when I do them but I have to keep trying them to get better. I will walk up to a machine and have to lower the weight from where it is for others, but I can live with this.
This is how life and God are treating me. Some say I should be angry, but I am glad to be here taking in my far share of air!
Love to you all,
Mark 4/21/08

Saturday, April 12 and still here...

2008-04-12T21:52:00.002-05:00

Another week has gone by and I am here again. My doctor was a little concerned on my progress being made. He was upset that I quit going to therapy because of time. He told me that I will not fully improve if I don't go and let them work me further. It is hard for me to get there before they close without leaving work early. I will explain to my boss how important this is to my doctor and for my health. I have to go do this to continue to improve. I have to make this an important part of my week and spend time there to get better. I always knew that it helped, but I did not see it as a problem not getting to go. He asked me if I wanted to be like I am for the rest of my life. This was an easy question to answer. He knows I will probably never be back where I was, but I can get rid of some of my problems by working on them in therapy. This is what I need, another person in my life that cares about me and how I am doing. My boss will just have to understand how important this is to my future. That is one of those things I have to be thankful for. A boss who cares about how I am and won't have a problem with this little bit of time missed by leaving a little early.
I saw one of my neighbors out building a batting cage for his son and could help a little bit, but I could not do much for him. I could tighten the nuts but could not raise the bars for him. It is so aggravating to me to not be able to do the things that I used to could do, but that is how I am now. Less helpful and more bothered with this. I know I am trying to get used to it, but it is a tough "pill" to swallow. My parents knew this. They had someone come in and build their front porch, even though Dad and I built the back one before my accident. He knew that WE could not do it since I am not a lot of help on things like that. He did tell me what he was doing so I would not get upset about it. I hate little things like that, but I just have to accept them and move on with my life.
It is like work. There are so many things that I can't do yet, but the guys I work with know this and handle it with out much concern. Their main goal is that I am there tomorrow. I know this and have come to the realization. Part of me wants to be fully back, but God is helping me work on these things a little at a time. I am so glad He decided that I still need to be here on this earth. I know this was his choice and I can only Thank Him over and over for this chance.
I wish to thank all of you for reading this and following how I am progressing. I am here because SO MANY of you prayed for me. I don't even know how many prayer groups I was in, but it was evidently enough to keep me here. I still get scared when I read the BLOG for the early days. I did not know any of this at the time it was happening, but I still bothers me, now.
Thanks to all of you for the kind thoughts and prayers that were sent for me. You are part of the reason I am still here and able to write my notes as I go.
Love you all so much. More information sometime soon.
Mark 4/12/08

Tuesday, April 8 and still moving forward

2008-04-08T20:20:00.002-05:00

It has been over a week since I put anything in, so I thought I might add some information. It has been a good week, but I still have some issues. I can walk stairs now without having to pull myself up. It still hurts a little bit, but is getting better. I noticed that my handrail at home is loose from pulling myself up the stairs on it, so add fixing it to my list of things to do. I will be able to fix this with time and a little more healing. My limp is getting better, too. I don't limp nearly as bad as I once did but I do limp a little still. With the damaged to my pelvic area, I am lucky to even be able to walk.
I did some work around here this past weekend. I spread mulch in the flower beds up front. Filling the wheelbarrow was some pain, but I was able to do it. Lifting it up was OK too because it was already up. Bending down and lifting something on the ground still hurts but the handle are up so I was able to do it. Dumping it was a little painful, but possible. The hard part was getting to the ground to spread it out. I tried working on my knees but that did not last very long. Then I started sitting down to spread it. This was OK but I had to get up too often. This still hurts to do. Sitting on my broken tailbone is not pleasant either. That is OK, too, for now. On Sunday, I had a tree cut down. I was not any help there. I could move the little limbs but it hurts to get to them. I knew better than to think I could do much. So thankful Shane does this so well. He worked on it for several hours before it was piled up. It was a dead oak tree but the wood was still good. He took some of it and I kept a lot of it, too. This will work good for BBQ! I hurt some on Sunday from my mulching on Saturday and put Shane, his brother in law and my son in law to work to do this. This time last year I would have been all over helping. My life has changed and now I am convinced I can't help on certain things. If this wasn't enough, my front yard was wet this afternoon. I checked out my water meter and had a line leaking. First, I had to find the line, then find the leaking part. I used a shovel to dig a hole but I can't lift the grass chunks like I once could. I would cut a piece and fight with it the get it out of my way. Bill, from two doors down, came over to help. He did a lot of the deeper digging that I can not do and his wife, Cathy, kept telling me I should not be out there at all. We got the leak fixed and tomorrow I have to fill the hole back up if it is through leaking.
So, as you can see, my life is working on coming back, but it will take some more time. I know I can not push myself too much, but a little here and a little there and I hope to one day be me again. I know God is working with me to help me be better. There are some things I know better than to try, but over time, I will be fine. Running may be out of my life forever since the pounding of my feet on the ground hurt too much. I can ride a bicycle better now. It still hurts to get on with lifting my leg over the seat, but I ride one better than I did a month ago. I hope to be able to do this without pain, but this will take time, too.
I would like to thank all of you for sticking with me and the love and prayers you send me. This means so much to me to have this support.
With my love to each of you for reading and caring. Let God be there for you like he was for me. Don't be afraid to talk to him about a problem or just an issue you need help with. Until next time I update this, I am out of here again. Another week of happiness is ahead for us all. Thank you God for keeping me here!
Mark 4/8/08

Another Sunday is upon us

2008-03-30T12:07:00.003-05:00

Here is it, another week gone by. Life is great to me. I just know certain things are not to be done by me. This is getting easier to accept now than it was a month ago. Changing light bulbs used to be easy for me, but no, they are a problem now. I have to get a stool out to do them. When you are as tall as me, these should be much easier than they are. The reaching part is what gets me to hurting. I got out and mowed yesterday and the effort made me hurt yesterday. The flat part goes OK but the slope of the ditches make me fight more.
I got a message for my cousin Jo since my last note. She is one of the many that still watches my progress. She was always one of those kind of people that helps watch out for me. Many of you do this and I always appreciate the thoughts and prayers. I started to quit writing here, but several people like to know where I am and how I am doing.
Work is going OK, too. There are many parts of it that I can not do, but most of them out there know this and help out when asked. I told one of them that I needed someone to climb and look at a job and that I could do it, but would be out for a couple of weeks in pain. He told me NOT to climb up there. He would make sure this got done. The last thing he needed was for me to be out again! Another guy at work talked with me about an issue and we had discussed it before, but I did not remember any details. I apologized for my mind not being like it was before my accident and that I am only about half of where it was before. He was OK with this because me, at half of where I was before, is better than others at full capacity. This made me feel good to hear this. I have known him for many years and for him to have this much faith in me helps a lot.
Betty is talking again about me going in and having my mind capacity checked. There is a doctor that the hospital recommended that does this. She wants it done but I am afraid to find out the truth here. I know it is not where it used to be, but someone telling me the truth may hurt a little bit. She will line this doctor up for me and figure out what needs to happen from there. She also wants me to go back to the hospital physical therapist and find out this information, too. Another person hurting me with truthful things I may not want to know. The truth hurts sometimes! I am still here because of her so if this is something she wants, off I go.
I am trying to find out what needs to be done around the house to fix it up for us to move out. I know there are a lot of things that I can't do, but we will hire someone to do them. A little bit here and a little bit there and then, we can look forward to where we are and how we need to be.....
If you are one of the people that reads this, Thanks. Even if you only look once in a while, I am OK with that too. You people are all part of me now. I love each of you more than you realize. I am still here because of these feelings.
Thanks and may God be with you as needed. It means the world to still be here breathing on my own...
Mark 3/30/08

Easter Sunday 3/23 and still moving along

2008-03-23T19:55:00.002-05:00

Wow, a beautiful weekend this was. All is going good for us. Life is still here! I went to the rodeo in Houston on Friday night. We went over to look at the show animals, but most were already gone. I did not realize how much effect that much walking would do to me. I limped around the area most of the time, taking more rests than I was wanting to. It amazes me how much my body can not take something like walking. All I can say is at least the escalators were working because the ramps would have made it this much harder. I was still feeling the pain the next day. I wanted to work in my garage, but I just could not do much. My pelvic area does not seem to be improving as fast as the rest of me. My shoulders still hurt to reach them out, but I don't use them like this very much. One day I will realize my body is not going to be where I think it should be.
Betty told me last week that we better start looking for another house because I still have some trouble with the stairs. She thinks if this is this bad now, where will I be in 5 years. I don't like to think about things like that, but she let's me see reality. I am lucky to still be here and breathing, but wanted to be back where I should be. This may never happen and I guess I should realize this. I got outside and washed vehicles today and just cleaning the tops is not as easy task and the lower parts still hurt my pelvic area. I guess I will have to adjust my mind to where my body finds reality and learn to live like that. I know my sleeping is not getting any better either. I just don't sleep as good as I used to. I tried to blame it on our bed, but we bought one of those sleep number beds about a year ago, so it must be ME. I try to keep my chin up, but it is hard not to be down over this.
I am still here and have so many people that love me. This always means so much to me every day. I am still here breathing on my own because God and prayers to him decided this was best for me. Thanks to all of you people, friends and family, for all the support you have provided for me and my family. So, I am still here to bother anyone that needs to be bothered! Just let me know if you need some of this and I will provide to you all I can... I hope this all makes sense but sometimes I talk in circles because my mind is not where it should be either...
Love you all so much,
Mark 3/23/08

Tuesday, March 18 and still going forward

2008-03-18T19:41:00.002-05:00

Well, today is Tuesday and I am still alive and improving. Life is great for me, but pain is an everyday thing. Maybe I tolerate it better, but it still bothers me. I can still feel it on stairs. A broken tailbone is never pleasant to have. I still have one pelvic area that hurts with every move. Maybe I am more tolerant than I used to be because I don't get down about it.
I got to talk to a couple of people today that I have not seen in a while. One was at work and one on the phone. Both made me feel good even though one of them did not know about my fall or the time I spent trying to recover. I also had a discussion with one of the people in purchasing. She was running behind and was going to be off the next two days. She was stressed out but handled everything well. I makes me feel good to know people that deal with my type of stress load, too. I know some days are so full of things that must get done and deal with them as well as I can. I leave work every day with the thought of knowing I did as much as I could. I deal with so many people every day. Some are in our facility and some do business with me. I have learned to treat people with all the respect they have deserved. You treat them right and they will usually do the same to you. I would like to think I was always like this, but I don't know for sure. My mind is still trying to figure some things out and HOPEFULLY is improving day to day. Betty tells me quite regularly that my mind is not all there. I need to hear this even though it sounds depressingly. I have to know how I am doing from her point of sight. My mind thinks I am OK, but she will tell me where I really am. This is one of the MANY things about her that I love. The last thing I need at this point is to be lied to. I can really tell my mind status when I see someone I know but can't come up with their name.
It still hurts me to ride a bicycle but I ride one at work. It hurts to get me leg up and over the seat, but will not get better by not doing it. Climbing and reaching still get me, too. I know this limits me on my work because these are a "normal" part of my job. I have friends out there that care enough about me to help or at least offer to help. This is part of my life, now. I have to be thankful to God for helping me stay in this world. I love you all and hope I did not bore anyone with information that is unhelpful.
Mark 3/18/08

Sunday, March 9 and still moving along

2008-03-09T17:17:00.002-05:00

Another week has passed us by and I woke up this morning breathing on my own. That makes it a good day! All is going well for me. I still have pains every day and may have them for the rest of my life, but thanks to God's help, I am still here. I got out in the back yard today and tried to do a few things that my body is not ready for, yet. I have a small wooden walkway that I built SO MANY years ago. I need to work on it some and just trying to move it hurts. I will learn someday that I can not lift anything heavy that is on the ground or floor, but my mind seems to think I can. Therefore, I try and it proves what is right and what is wrong. I just have to keep trying to improve or I will never be where I think I can be,
I had a message from Janet in my last entry. She is one of my older cousins that shows me how important my life is to so many. It always means the world to see her write me some words of encouragement. She made a comment about our minds and how taking some time off of work effects it. She is so right on this one. My mind is not the same as it was before and I HOPE it will be someday. Betty tells me quite regularly how my mind is not all there, yet. So many things used to be easy for me to remember, but now they are not. Names and numbers seem to be the worst of this. I was never real good at names, but once I learned it, I was OK. And numbers? Tell me your phone number and I would usually remember it. That is not so true anymore. I have to really push myself to come up with phone numbers that I call a lot. If this number has been with me for a few years, I am OK for the most part. I have numbers at work that I call a lot and can't seem to remember them, yet. And, if that were not enough, I have a hard time remembering someone's name to look it up. One thing about me that has not changed much is may attitude towards people. I always wanted to be one of those people that was easy to get along with and enjoyable to be around. For the most part, that is still there, unless something sets me off. This happens a lot more now than before. Sometimes, it is the simple things that will do it to me. Like putting something in the dishwasher. If this item won't fit it easily, the trouble begins. Or, like getting a trash bag out of the box. If I can not grab it in a couple of tries, the box is torn open so next time this won't be a problem. Somehow, I have to get over all of this, but it will be a hard thing to do.
Life is going good for me most of the time, though. We went to the Houston rodeo last Thursday night and all the walking made me so sore that I was limping when we got back to the car. This still drives me nuts not being where I want to be, but I will have to make adjustments and move on. Life is great because so many people still love me so much and care about me. This always means so much to me.
I went in a couple of days ago and re-read my blog notes from early after my accident and this still scares me still. I realize that I am so lucky to still be around for every one to love on. The notes did not sound as if I would still be around but thanks to all the family and friends pulling for me, I am still here. The love and support came from so many different people and directions. Everyone worked with God to bring me back to life! Thank you so much for caring and reading about all of this for me. And one more thought, yes, Janet, I am your younger cousin, but am VERY PROUD of that. It is one thing about being the youngest in my generation of the Bradley family. So many there have stayed in touch and it always means so much every time I get an e-mail, card or even just a thought. I love you all and will be there in June to bother EVERY ONE of you!
Passed on with great love and thoughts to you all.
Mark 3/9/08

March 4 and still going forward

2008-03-04T18:11:00.003-06:00

Well, another month is upon us and the weather can't decide if it wants to be warm or cold. Sunday was short sleeve weather and today a coat was needed. Welcome another winter month in Houston!
I went to physical therapy yesterday and could sure feel it today. This tells me that I am moving forward but not as fast as I want to. I work out harder and harder every time I go. Some of these exercises sting muscles when I work out so I know I am going in the right direction. My pain seems to be getting better but my pelvic area still hurts every day. I still have problems lifting things that are heavy but this will work out well in the long run. Betty went to San Marcos on Sunday and Monday and brought have a truck bed full of stuff. Unloading it all was a work out but, with Tiff's help, it all went to the garage.
I broke down the pool on Saturday and Sunday. I moved it into the back yard in small pieces and will work on getting rid of it, too. Many of the poles are long and will be hard to get rid of, but with time, it will all be gone. It was not used much this past summer because of my accident and not used much the summer before. It was nice to have once in a while, but lately was not worth the effort put into keeping it right.
Work is going OK. Some days are better than others but as long as I am learning more about what needs to be done, the better it is. I had to carry a 2" valve today and had to struggle with it with every step. I used to be able to carry these much easier but this will come back over time. I deal with so many different people every day. Many people recognize my voice over the phone, but I still tell them who it is, just in case. It is a nice feeling to have so many people that depend on me to do my job right and many others that help me find the items I need. It is a great feeling to have this type of relationships with people. Many of the people I work with hate my job but I don't. Several others are just glad I am back to take care of certain responsibilities.
I am here and moving along with great thanks to God and the special way he treated me. I know I will still be working in the right direction for a while, but with His help and your support, all will work out for me.
I love you all so much. Stay in touch with me and talk to God when you need his help or support.
Mark

Tuesday, Feb 26 and still moving along

2008-02-26T17:34:00.002-06:00

I has been over a week since i wrote in an update, but this finds me doing OK. I went to rehab once last week and it went good. It makes me hurt some the next day, but this tells me I am moving forward. I can live with this. Every day I wake up breathing on my own its a good sign! I plan on going to rehab tomorrow to move some more.
Betty and I went out of town this past weekend to see some family on my Mom's side. My Aunt and Uncle along with two cousins, one wife and three second cousins, too. It was a great time even though it was quite a drive to get there. Life is so much different there than is at home. Getting somewhere and time seem so important here, but there, these two items are much less important. It has always been like there. I think this is one of the things that mean so much to me when I visit. We sit around a lot and enjoy visiting with each other. I think it was three years ago last time I was there. This was Betty's first visit there. It is like when I see my family on the Bradley side. I get so excited inside over seeing people I have not seen in a while. Then, if this was not enough, I got several birthday cards from many special people. Nora sent me one as did Linda Kay. I also received one from Mom and Dad, too. I got some in e-mail from several others that knew when it was. All of this attention used to drive me nuts, but these days, it is good to be remembered and here to enjoy them. Most of these notes have so much meaning in these words that are included. This makes me feel great. I even got two special notes from several friends that meant well, too. One was from my first girl friend that has known me forever and is friends with Betty these days. This girl was special to me in the 6th and 7th grades. We have stayed in touch since then. The other one was a girl I knew from when I worked in the lab at work. She was a student co-op working with me in my last year there. She has a super sweet husband and two special children that mean the world to both of them. They live in Tennessee but she said she was coming to town to see her parents in Galveston. I did not realize she knew about my accident, but Betty said she told her. So, see, getting older is not always a bad thing. From my point of view, having another birthday was the greatest gift God could give me. I love you all so much. Don't be afraid to ask God for help when you need it. He is the One that kept me here.
Mark 2/26/08

Saturday, Feb. 16 and moving along

2008-02-16T07:50:00.002-06:00

Hard to believe, another week has gone by. I am doing OK, but still have pains. These pains seem to be getting better slowly, but moving me along in the right direction. Work is going OK. Some days are worse than others, but I think most people out there are glad I am back. Certain things that are part of my job were not getting done and now they are. I have to deal with purchasing people several times a day, but I work with them as well as I can and I think they like this. I am not one of those people who makes no mistakes and God has helped me realize this and I move forward with my life. I try to give people what they need without it becoming a problem to someone else. Sometimes this does not work out that way, but when I can, I try to be easy to work with. I would like to think I was this way before, but I don't know for sure. My mind does not know how I was or who I was, but I like to think that is how I was. So many people kept up with my progress in life through this BLOG and most loved having the information so easy to get to and current. I can only give credit to Betty and Megan for keeping this information updated. It really scares ME to go back and read a lot of this information. To realize where I was and how I was, I can only thank all of you for the effort and prayers put towards me and my recovery. I hear it a lot of times where people tell me that they were praying for my recovery. You just don't realize how great this makes me feel. Many people were involved in my ability to still be here, but the person that was with me when I fell, did the most critical part to save my life. Thanks Shane for that. I know this was not easy to deal with at the time, but I am still here because of you and your ability to make the right decisions for me.
I went to physical therapy yesterday and I can feel it this morning. My recovery was not moving along as I thought it should be, so I decided to move this bar forward again. My shoulder still hurts when I reach for something and my pelvic area hurts to get up and moving. I know with time, I will be ME again. God is a great help to me to get me there. This physical therapy makes me tired, but that is part of me getting better. I have many things to do around the home that I am not able to do right now, but when I am, look out. I was told in the hospital that I would be in a wheelchair for about 6 more months, maybe up to a year and then on a walker for another year. I guess these people did not know me or who I am. God helped me become stronger everyday. My hard headedness would not let me wait for these time frames. I think my doctors realized where I was and how I was doing and let me keep moving forward as my body would allow. He told me not to push too fast or I would end up back where this all started. I knew this was a bad place to be and would not go back if I could help it.
Just a little note to anyone still following me to express the amount of love I have for all of you and thanks for praying for me. I am still here because so many people knew God would help me. I love you all so much!
Mark 2/16/08

Every day has good times and bad times... 2/9/08

2008-02-09T09:40:00.000-06:00

As a general rule, I am feeling better as each day is upon us, but there are those things that don't work out as expected. We went to San Marcos on Friday to do so work to the trailer and I have found MORE things that don't go with the new me. We had to put a new floor tile in the bathroom and it hurts to be on my knees to kneel on them or sitting on my butt (broken tailbone makes this unpleasant). Then on top of that, I have to reach to the ground to set the tiles. My body does like like doing things like this that aren't pleasant. I put some of the tiles down, but Betty took over when it came to cutting the tiles for fit. I don't have the strength or patience for this right now and that bothers me a lot every time. I think that my short temper gets moving when I can't do something that I always done. My wife knows this and is real key to where I am on it. I did not have this bad of a temper before and I am not sure if this is a bad effect of my fall and another was God stepped into my life to make me become a better person in the long run. I just need to try to control it better. I am sure once I am fit to do a lot of things, this will go away, too, with my help to push it out.
Well, we have a big day come up soon. I will be turning 40 AGAIN on my birthday. I think this is the eighth time for this to happen. (One real one and then seven more REAL ones, too). I am usually one of those people that don't make a big deal off of birthdays, but this year I am going to celebrate the fact that I am still here. I am planning on sticking around for a while, so I can be here to bother people. We all have to good at something, right?
There were two replies to my last note. One of our friends, Sallie and Scott, sent there best wishes and thanked me for keeping this going. I did not figure many people read it too much, but I guess I was wrong. Thanks for that note. I know how many people care about me and my progress, but progress in not a "daily" change anymore. I am moving along in the right direction, but the steps don't change much except over larger times. There was also a note from Sarah and Nicholette sending me sweet thoughts. Sarah was worried about the ladder climbing I did at work. I did OK on it and did not go up too far or every feel like it was a problem. It really pushed my upper body to do more than usual and was tired later from this, but I need to see what I can do on this without causing any issues. I will not do anything that creates any issues with my body because I don't want to start all of this from the beginning again. This is not something I would every wish on anybody, but where I was at first, I was one lucky person to have so many people praying and wishing well for me. I think that is the reason I am still here! God listens to concerns of people that need his help and I have found that I had SO MANY.
I love you all so much and sorry the updates are not daily anymore, but the same story every day would get old, too. So I figured once or twice a week would be a well needed update for me. I am only away from you as far as your mind let's you be. Take care and more information on me as I think of it... It you want a personal comment, my e-mail at work is a little different than it used to be. I am there Monday through Thursday of most weeks and it can be sent to me if needed. My new address is:
msbradley@lyondellbasell.com. One of the things that happened while I was down, is that our company was bought out by Basell and this is the new name they decided on.

Tuesday, Feb.5 and moving along

2008-02-05T19:54:00.000-06:00

Well, week one working my old job went by with out any major problems. It was a busy week for the most part, but I did OK. I got to see a lot of people that I have not seen in a while and most knew what I went through. Most were able to keep up with me on this site. A new shift started on Monday, so I saw more people that I had not seen for quite some time, too. I had a job Monday morning where I had to climb up a ladder to get to. My wonderful wife was not happy about it and my boss was a little concerned, too. I made it up about 20 ladder steps without any issues. It was hard to get up, but the coming down was better. I thought the coming down would be my problem, but it wasn't.
After lunch today, I got into a conversation with two guys that I recently met (new hires in my old work group). We had a good talk but they asked about why I was so tender at times. I gave them the whole story as I know it. They, like many others, were surprised that I was walking and actually still alive. I know I am one of the fortunate ones in life and God helped me out so I could stay here for a while longer. I know my wife is going through a lot of concerns for me right now, but with time, my body will adjust and she will get used to me as I improve. I know I still have a lot of pains, but He lets me breathe EVERY day. For this, I am thankful. I am not taking my pain medicine every day, but I take it every once in a while. My tailbone still hurts and my pelvic area is still sore, too. I do not try to lift anything with weight from the ground. There are certain things I know not to do to push myself in the wrong directions, so I work around these and move forward.
I will close for now as I am and hopefully with keep moving in the right direction. Keep your prayers moving in the right direction and ask God for help if needed. He is the Great one that helped everyone save my life. Thank you all for being there for me. I love you all so much.
Mark 2/5/08

Wednesday, Jan 30 and all is good!

2008-01-30T17:35:00.000-06:00

Let's see if this works better today. I entered some information yesterday and the Internet failed before it would send. Let's see if today is better.
Work is going OK as long as I remember my cans and can'ts. Part of my job is looking at all jobs, but not climbing limits this a lot. I have some help on these types of jobs so it is going to be OK until I am better. I have MANY people at work that are glad to see me back and the job is busy, but I don't get so tired this week versus last week since I am busier. I have talked to many people that wish me well and glad I am still alive. We agree with this saying. This will get easier and easier as time moves along, I just can't rush my body in this recovery.
There was a comment from my cousin, Jo, in the last blog. She is another one of those people that is exciting to hear from. She, as most people do, wishes me good feelings. Her words have always been one of those things that lifts my spirit. She regrets missing the wedding, but sent good notes about the pictures. She is one of the many people in my life that I have always looked up to. It is not just cause I am the youngest in the generation, but I have always felt that way towards her. Her sister, Lori, made it to the wedding and she has this effect on my life, too. We were always so close to them when I was growing up since they lived close. It is funny, I have these feeling to so many people these days. My family on both sides were always close, but I value these feelings more, now. I think God changed me a lot in this way and it is a good thing to feel. I am a better person now and people mean more than before. I would not have thought this was possible, but He has helped me GROW! I can't wait until I get to see all my family at the reunion this year. I am so afraid my feelings may so up more than usual, but I can handle this. This is the new me that helps spread love all around.
I love all of you so much and look forward to seeing everybody in the coming days, weeks and months. Please stay strong in God as He is very strong and helpful when needed. I am here because of all my family and friends talked to Him for me when I couldn't and now He is a major part of my life. Thank you for helping me in this way because it helped me still be here.
Take care of everything and ask for His help if needed.
Mark 1/30/08

Saturday, Jan 26 & all is good

2008-01-26T13:35:00.000-06:00

I finished my first week of work without any major problems. I had some troubled remembering some things, but it will come back with time and patience. My boss came by and asked me how it was going and how I was doing. All is OK so far. He asked me to help out more next week. I am going to try to work my old position as a trial run next week. This will be a good experience for me to see how I am doing and how I will handle this. Several things I had going have fallen apart since I last looked at them, but with some time, they will come back around to where the need to be. I am looking forward to seeing how I will do at this. My boss is curious on this matter, too.
Other than that, I am in still in some pain, but moving in the right direction. I wake up in the mornings and my lower back hurts. It does not like being still for this long and then moving again. Once I get moving, it settles back down to tolerable. I can live with that one until it is better. Up and down (stairs or chairs)still bothers my pelvic areas but this will work out with more time and effort. The doctor said this would be with me for a while so it is something I will have to get used to.
This is all I have for now. My God be with you where He is needed. Don't be afraid to ask Him for help if needed. He was at my side for the longest time and will help you, too, if needed. I love you all so much.
Mark 01/26/08

Tuesday, Jan. 22 and all is going well

2008-01-22T17:29:00.000-06:00

My first day back at work went OK. It is different than what I am used to, but it was good to be back. I had many people tell me that is was good to see me back and others tell me how bad they missed me being there. All these things makes me feel good. Doug Cutsinger (temporarily doing me old job) told me that I could have it back ANYTIME. He hates this position and I love it. I can only test myself in some things before I am ready for it, but a couple of weeks and I should be ready for most of it.
I entered the web site for the wedding pictures wrong. My mind does not work as well as it used to, but I will adjust to make do. The pictures can be seen on "www.www.janinestoddard.com". I spelled the last name with an A instead of O on the last message. Hopefully, this will help you get to it.
All I good for me right now. I have more pain than usual, but I will make it out without too much problem. Thanks to the help God provided to me makes everything good! I got an e-mail for my cousin, Kay, at work today. Her words always brighten my day. Janet (another cousin) sent a reply to my last BLOG and she is another one of those people that lifts me up. The other reply in my BLOG was from Megan, giving me the web site correction that I included above.
I love you all so much. Let God help you out where needed. All you need to do is ask Him for help.
Mark 1/22/08

Thursday Jan 17 and all moving fine...

2008-01-17T09:22:00.000-06:00

Well another day is upon us and I am still here. I am sore from rehab, but this is part of my life, now. They were a little concerned about my pain so they cut back on some of the workout. There were two messages to my last log. One was from Sallie and Scott. They are some good friends here in town that keep me in their prayers. This is always a good thing! The second one was from Janet, my cousin. It was good to hear from her. She always sends me uplifting notes as she is one of my older cousins and is always looking out for me. Being the youngest Bradley in my generation has some up and some downs, but I will take ALL of it. There is nothing like people that want the best for me!
The wedding is over, but the pictures from it and the reception are on the web. This lady taking them actually got many pictures of me dancing with Megan AND you can't tell that I am not good at it. Megan was in tears over it and I almost was. There is nothing like you child's wedding! If you would like to look at the pictures, they are located on "janinestaddard.com" and find the spot to look at pictures from the past (I think it is under "galleries" and view recent weddings). It is on the top right side of her web sight. I know there are MANY there! We made it to #380 before may pain was too much to continue. I was told there is about 500 of them. Janet looked at them and said these were beautiful. The event was ALL special! If that wasn't enough, Megan has a Birthday on Saturday, January 19th. Imagine where we were 25 years ago! She doesn't remember it, but Betty and I do!
Reality sets in next week. My 2007 vacation is over after next Monday. I will be at work on Tuesday, Jan. 22. I have had so many people tell me they wish they had this kind of time off of work, but believe me, it was not all that much fun. They pain and suffering was only part of this. Not knowing where I would end up was a big challenge. Just watch what you ask for!
I would like to thank EVERYONE that had taken the time to say a prayer for me and any nice things that were said were also appreciated! I am still here because God was not going to let me leave this world yet! Between Him and that wonderful woman I married so many years ago, I can breathe on my own and walk with a slight limp for now. Stairs are still a chore to get up and down, but these are getting easier, too. I will only get back to where I need to be if I keep pushing to get better.
Thanks to all you you people that are reading this and a special Thanks to God for becoming such an IMPORTANT part of my life. It is a new meaning of LIFE itself and He is now a much bigger part of it!
Love and kisses to all of you,
Mark 1/17/08

Wednesday, Jan. 16 and all is good

2008-01-16T06:42:00.000-06:00

Another day is upon us and I am doing OK. The doctor yesterday said that my swelling under my breast was not an issue to worry about. He said men get these all the time and it is not a major concern to life or health. This means that I will deal with the pain and nobody has to cut on me again! This was some sort of good news for me. This doctor (I saw Red Duke for this) said if we remove this piece, I will have an indent spot on my chest. As long as their is no major life threat, I will deal with it!
I went to rehab on Monday and they worked my pretty hard. I was sore yesterday from it. I still feel a little pain in my legs this morning and have to go back this morning for more. They think I will get mad over this but I am sore because I am moving forward. They are helping me get better by moving along like we are. I can live with this kind of progress!
May God be with you all today. He is a wonderful feeling to have on your side. Bless Him and Bless you all. Passed to you with the greatest of love!
Love, Mark 1/16/08

Saturday, Jan 12 and moving right is key

2008-01-12T11:03:00.000-06:00

I went to rehab again yesterday. I woke up this morning hurting. They are working me in the right direction and I love this. I was told when we finished that I would probably be sore and would probably be mad at them for this. They are so far from the truth on this. Feeling pain that is there because I am moving forward is a good thing to have!
My wife is putting Christmas stuff up and I can hardly move the containers. This does not slow her down, though!
I was listening to music this morning and heard a song on one of my Lonestar CDs that really made me think about life. It was a song written as converse to God and made several comments about "Thank You God for taking care of me". This song made me realize why I am still here! God put the effort needed towards me. He is why I can breath today and this song really spells it out in plain terms. So, if you have not seen it enough from me, I would like to say "THANK YOU GOD FOR THE EFFORT YOU PUT TOWARDS KEEPING ME ALIVE". Usually, songs don't make me cry, but this one came close because of the closeness to my situation.
I am alive and doing OK. I get to go see a group of doctors on Tuesday to find out about the swelling in my right breast. Leave it to that wonderful woman I found so many years ago! She found the doctors that will be able to handle this situation and know what to do to get me where I need to be.
As some closing thoughts, if you His help, ask God for it. He took such GREAT care of me and will do the same for you if you just talk to Him. I love you all so much. Hold my hand as we reach towards the future. Believe me, it is a great feeling.
Your friend for a lifetime,
Mark 1/12/08

Thursday, Jan 10 and moving along is good....

2008-01-10T15:15:00.000-06:00

Well, Thursday is here and all is good. Rehab called me on Tuesday and asked why I quit coming. I explained to them my insurance would not pay for it any more. They called AETNA to find out and all is covered with a small copay. I got to go back on Wednesday. It felt good to get this back in my system. I was real tired yesterday after it, but it was a good tired! I get to go back tomorrow!
Betty tried yesterday to call the doctor that did my lung work and he is no longer at the only number we could find. This was a little discouraging but you know my wife would not give up. She remembered his name, but could not locate him. She called me this morning to let me know that she scheduled my an appointment for next Tuesday for the Thorastic clinic doctors to take a look and make a determination about what needs to be done. It is getting sorer every day. It seems more swollen today than it did on Tuesday. EVERY ONE needs someone like Betty on their side. I have lost count of how many times she has saved my life!
I called a couple of guys a work today that I have not talked to in a while. I did not tell either of them who I was, but they both knew right away. We had good conversations. Most people want to have the time off like I have had, but this was not a pleasure trip! I am ready to get back in the "work routine". I only have about 10 days left! I will be so happy for a couple of weeks, then reality will hit.
If you need help for something, ask God for his help. He will help you out as He did for me! Don't be afraid to ask! I love you all so much
Mark 1/10/08

Tuesday, Jan 8 and all is good...

2008-01-08T18:39:00.000-06:00

Another day has come and gone and I am still alive and kicking. I have been without pain medicine for most of today. I took one this morning, but none since. My doctor's appointment was another one of those good/bad episode. He like the way my back looked since he is the one that fixed me, but would not look at or comment on my swollen chest area. It was "out of his league". If there ever was a doctor that is hung on himself, this is him. He is great at his job, but can't discuss anything with patients. He should only treat people who can't talk! He has a great nurse. I don't know why she is still there.
Two people sent messages to my last BLOG. One was from Sallie, Scott and Noah Keatons and the second one was Megan. She is back from her honeymoon and had a lot of catching up to do. Her comments made me feel real good. School started for her yesterday so life is back to "normal" again. I also got two phone calls today from two guys from work. Both wanted to know how I am doing and am I ready to come back to work, yet. It was good to hear from both of them but Paul had to make sure that I knew LSU won last night. We were both pulling for them to win.
All is good for me on this end. My broken tailbone is hurting me more than usual because of the lack of medicine. It still hurts to bend over or get up or down, but I am moving in the right direction. God has gotten me this far and is helping me get all the way. He will help you to if you ask Him for help.
Love to you all,
Mark 1/8/08

Monday, Jan 7 and all is well

2008-01-07T15:17:00.000-06:00

Well, today is Monday and all is going fine. Talk about good news and bad news all at the same time. The doctor said my infection is down. Last time we were at his office, my rate was 107 and this time is was only 13. He said anything below 15 is good. He gave me anti-biotics for another 3 weeks and said I can quit then. He was a little concerned about the swelling under my right breast and sent us to see my plastic surgeon. He was not in the office today but the nurse understood my problem. I was scheduled to see him next Tuesday but she moved me up a week so he could look at this spot. So tomorrow, I get to go back downtown for another appointment. I guess this is better than waiting until next week. Hopefully, this doctor will have an idea on what we need to do. This doctor today was not happy about this spot, but his specialty is medicines. He suggested getting someone to look at it SOON. Hopefully, something can be figured out so this problem can be handled. More on this tomorrow I guess.
I love you all so much
Mark 1/7/08

Sunday, Jan 6 and moving along

2008-01-06T17:25:00.000-06:00

Well, another week has flown by and I am still alive and well. My pain is still here but I did a lot to help out today. We started putting up Christmas lights and stuff from the front yard. I know better than to think I can get in the garage attic to put it up, but that is where is all goes.
I have a visit with my medicine doctor tomorrow morning. I had to have a blood test done last Thursday, but I am sure this will tell me I still have a long ways to go. My stomach still hurts and I will talk to this doctor tomorrow about it. I am sure that this is from the infection still inside me. My back is not hurting as much but it still hurts to bend over or lift anything with much weight to it. Stairs are still a challenge for me, too. Getting upstairs to my bedroom is still a work out for me. Getting up and down in a chair also still hurts. I did ride my bicycle around this morning. I went farther than I usually do because I want to get better and this is the only way this will work for me. My insurance stopped paying for my rehab appointments so I have to work myself somehow.
God is there for me when I need him! He has done more for me than I ever thought was possible. He will help you too if you ask Him for help.
I love you all so much,
Mark 1/6/08

Jan 2 and all is OK

2008-01-02T19:48:00.000-06:00

Well, the new year is upon us and things are going well. I am still in pain, but am moving along in the right direction, I hope. I had to pull down Christmas lights today. The bottom floor was a real chore, but the second floor was MUCH MORE difficult. I can not get on the roof to get them, so a fishing pole with a hook on it did a lot to help. I also rolled up some extension cords and put up the ice chests from the wedding. This was quite difficult, too. When I originally decided where these would be stored, I never thought I would be in this shape! The biggest one was quite a chore for me to get it where it needed to be. I am doing much better today that I was a week ago, so these items where difficult, but possible. Mark next door helped me out by putting the ladder up for me. I carried it out for the lights thinking I could use it, but this turned out to just be a dream. I thought if I could get on the roof, the top lights would be easy. My mind does not think things through like it used to!
Betty went back to work today. She is pretty sick from this cold she has picked up but as much as they did for her when I was down, she went in. She ended up leaving a little early because of this cold. They were very helpful to her on time because of my condition. They understood what she was going through and felt it best for her to be with me when she could. People like this have a lot of concern for others! I met her boss right after I got out and he is one of those special people. I guess we are very lucky people to have the bosses we have over us.
All is well and moving along for now. I still have a long ways to go, but will only get there with effort and time. I have to push myself without over doing anything. Life is a great thing that God has helped be here for. He can help you, too. Don't be afraid to talk to Him. He will help you solve these problems!
Mark 1/2/08

Jan 1, 2008 and all is goiing to be good

2008-01-01T09:49:00.000-06:00

The year year is upon us and we have to make it work for us. I am still in a lot of pain, but my goal for this year is to get better. I will really have to work myself back to where I need to be. This is not a resolution for me, but more of a goal I need to achieve. The only thing I can do is work towards it. The only thing is I can't rush it. Work is just around the corner for me and I have to be ready by then. My list of things to do will get done when I feel good enough to take them on! One step at a time. God has helped me get this attitude towards my recovery. I have too many good things in my life to look anywhere else. This new year will be much better than this last one!
The wedding is behind us and we have to move forward with our lives and goals for this new year. Things will slow down for my wonderful wife now. She did so much between me and this special time for my wonderful daughter and son-in-law.
It was good to see everyone that made it to the wedding and missed those people that couldn't make it. That is how life is sometimes! God has a way of knowing what is best for each of us. Make this new year an exciting time in our life and let's all move forward to a better time.
Let God help you find what is best for you. He is a great help to you if you talk to Him. May He help you anywhere you need Him.
Love to all,
Mark 1/1/08

Larger Family Now 12/30/07

2007-12-30T20:46:00.000-06:00

Wow, what an event this wedding was. My wonderful wife did an excellent job putting all of this together. Matt's family were great teammates, too. The reception hall was so neatly decorated and the food was excellent, too. Betty did most of this part with some help. Matt's parents did a great job on the things they took charge of,too. They did an excellent job on the rehearsal dinner and took care of the beer and part of the wine for the wedding. This morning they bought all of these people breakfast, too. I knew Matt was a great kid but his ENTIRE family was great, too. I met some from New York that knew all about what I had gone through and they acted like they had known me for years. Others in Matt's family was from up north, too. A bigger family is usually a good thing to add but these were some of the greatest people I have ever met. They made us feel like we are part of their family and they are part of ours!
I had many family and friends there too. Lori (my cousin) came with her family from Brenham. It seemed like seeing her and Gary had been too long. Great as usual and their kids have grown into fine young adults! Also, Kelly and Michael came from the Denton area. She is great as usual and I have always been close with him. My parents were there and I think they enjoyed seeing the events very much. My brother and his family were all there, too. Jennifer and Jake played an important part of the wedding, too. Many friends were there and several other family members on Betty's side, too. Her sister and her husband were from Florida and there two girls (Marlies and Christine) that I met when they were young girls were here two. They both brought their daughters, too. Amanda (Marleis's daughter) has always had a special place in my heart as her mother did when she was that age and up. Christine's daughter is Ema and is much younger and has not gotten to this point yet. These two mothers were 11 and 9 or 12 and 10 when I first met them. The love we have today was very strong at first, too. They have always been special people to me!!!
The clean up of the hall was quite a deal. The party was over at midnight, but the clean up and moving of stuff went much longer. Many people were very helpful on this. My brother would not let me lift anything. I was trying to help out, but he was caring for my future. My best friend, Bruce, was helping, too. When they say best friends are for life, they knew how we would be over the years. Before long, my wife sent the old drunk helpless person to the hotel. Kelly and Michael drove me, little Matt and my Mother in Law there. It was about 1:15 or so and Betty showed up at the hotel about 4 in the morning. Our day today was a busy one too. All the sorting and unloading was another episode. Most of the stuff was stored at Betty's brother's house over night. We loaded my truck and little Matt and I went home to unload everything. Betty stayed at her brother's house and counted the linens and glasses and dished that were rented.
What a weekend! It was good to see all the friends and family members! I would like to thanks God for allowing me to be here for this! He, as usual, made my day and my life very special. If you need His help, talk to Him. He is a good listener and a good helper, too!
Mark 11/30/07

Friday, Dec 28 and all is good

2007-12-28T22:56:00.000-06:00

We had a rehearsal for the wedding tonight and it went well. It is really going to be an exciting event! We had a nice dinner afterwards, too. Matt's parents did a great job putting all of this together. There were a lot of people there. They opened this up to immediate families that were in town. My parents and brother and his family were there along with one of Betty's brother and two sisters were there, too. One sister (her favorite one that is from Florida) had most of her family here, too. This sister (Margie) and Betty have always been close and are so much alike it's not funny. She has been with her husband for many years. This sister married a Bradley way before I knew Betty.
This was really great action on Matt's parents to open this up to these family members. Matt's family also had a lot of people there, too. His sister and her husband and several other family members, too. I think the world of Matt's sister and her husband is a great person, too. This is my first opportunity to meet his parents since I messed up our last opportunity with my accident. We were supposed to meet with them on the day that I fell and started this episode of pain and fear of life. The great part is they are all family to us now.
My pain is still hanging on but seems to be less intense. My back hurts me more now than is has in a while, but my incision is not as bad. There is still swelling there that itches most of the time and it hurts if someone bumps it, but we are only hoping the infection is getting better. I have to see my medicine doctor about this in a couple of weeks (Jan. 7, I think). Wonderful. Another blood test to find out how my level is doing. I still hate the needle used to take blood, but it is all for the better to find out how we are doing. Hopefully, they can get what they need in the first try.
I was able to walk Megan at rehearsal without a limp! Not only that God has kept me alive, but allows me this sort of pleasure, too. I am really hoping I can do this tomorrow with out shedding any tears, but don't bet any money on it. This is not a safe bet! My first born is just doing her part to make our family bigger! How am I suppose to handle this? Only God knows for sure!
May God be with you as you need him. He has changed my life and can help you if you ask Him for help.
I love you all.
Mark 12/28/07

Dec 26 and all is going well

2007-12-26T10:46:00.000-06:00

Well, the Christmas holiday came and went great. I tried real hard to stop taking any pain medicine starting yesterday but was in so much pain over it. I took some over the counter medicine last evening at Betty's brother's house because of the pain. In rehab this morning, Rod told me he could tell my pain and suggested that I keep taking the prescription Ibuprofen that the doctor gave me because of the pain I am in. I got home and took it. They worked me pretty good today, as usual.
My family all gets together tomorrow night. Jennifer (my niece) will be in town and it will be good to see her again. Jake and Allison will be here, too. We will not have much going on because Betty is focusing on wedding stuff right now. It will be a good time by all. We are really looking forward to this wedding, but most people are questioning the reception being for adults only. I guess some people just don't understand what this event is about or maybe that their kids are exceptions to this rule. Some people just don't understand all of the plans my wife has put into this event. There will be a very few kids there that are in the wedding OR very close and invited by the two getting married. We are not trying to hurt any feelings over it, but it is one of those important parts of the whole process.
It makes me feel good to hear the comments and concerns from so many people on my progress. I guess this is why God helped me still be here. My life was not over and He and I did not want it to end! My family and friends helped a lot on this, too. Just another opportunity for me to tell everyone how much I love you all.
May God be with you today and any upcoming times you need Him. Don't be afraid to talk to Him. He is the greatest!!!
Mark 12/26/07

Merry Christmas to all 12/25

2007-12-25T08:59:00.000-06:00

It is Christmas morning and we all doing great. My girls are all home for this wonderful holiday. We are all blessed with Christ's presence in our lives and really enjoying our time together. They girls found some old home made movies and are all enjoying watching each other from many years back. This one they are watching now had Breanna when she first learned to walk real good and then it went to see Brea in her first "acting" role. She was in first grade and she was great back then, too. Who would know how big a part this would play in her life many years later? She really got into the drama scene in high school and ALWAYS enjoyed it. It is so good to see these old films and great memories it brings back. It was good to see the girls all from this far back. The one that they are watching had Megan and Tiffaney walking around in New Orleans with Breanna trying to keep up. Megan got a DVD recorder for a Christmas gift and is going to put these films on DVDs. There are so many films for them to watch. Every one is laughing and commenting about their actions back then.
I went to work yesterday and had a great day there. I got to see a lot of people from my past and enjoyed my time there. I had many people asking about my accident and what I went through. It makes me feel good to have so many friends that kept up with me and my progress. My pain is doing OK today, but I am feeling a little pain from my broken tailbone. My wound is doing better but still hurts me if have to get something off the ground or lift much weight. God is sending me in the right direction to fully heal up. There is only 4 days left until our big event takes us into our next step in life. We are all SO excited about this event. I am so glad I will be well enough to walk Megan down the aisle at HER wedding.
Life is great to us all. I have said a prayer for the Keaton family today. They are fighting the flu right now. They deserve God's help to get over all of this. I wish you all the well that is possible. Good luck with it. The flu is never much fun!
May God be with each of you today and help us all celebrate the reason for this holiday season. Christ's birthday is the reason for all of this quality time together with family and friends. Enjoy each other and cherish your time together. That is what makes this time so great.
Love you all so much!
Mark 12/25/07

Sunday, Dec 23 and extremely happy

2007-12-23T08:41:00.000-06:00

Now I have a good question for you to think about and respond to if you want. What does the statement of "being the luckiest guy in the world" mean to each of you? That is me!!! There are so many things for me that are going well. I have the most wonderful person in the world taking care of me EVERY day. How could I have known 26 years ago that I had met this person? Only God could help me in this way!!! We have three wonderful daughters together that are all special to me in their own way. It amazes me to see the wonderful women they have grown into. Again, God's help on raising these girls has been great, as usual. If the three of them was not enough, we were also blessed with Matt, too. At 11, we still have a lot of work ahead of us, but God will help us make him a pretty good guy to have around, too.
I get told every day that I am SO LUCKY to have lived through this accident. Again, God was on my side to make sure I was here for it all. I know there were nearly 2 months of my life where they were not sure I would make it or not. That wonderful wife of mine and God pulled me through all of this. I also know my girls all did their part to help me, too, even though this was hard for all. Reading about all of this first part makes me shiver. I know this was hard on all people that were involved. I do not remember any of this first part because I was in God's hands and He was protecting me DAILY. I can only imagine I was not the best patient in the hospital, but the nurses all said I was a great patient. Enough sweet talk to them and someone would help me sneak out. This is the crazy part of me talking there. All I know is that I just wanted out. I tried one time. They left me alone once while Betty was running some errands and I figured out this was my chance to go. A nice little scar on my head proves I was not all there! When Betty returned, she found me on the floor in a pool of blood, passed out from the fall. I thought I had this escape figured out but God made sure I stayed where I needed to be. After that, the hospital put me in a bed surrounded in net. I could see the zipper holding it together, but could not reach it. Again, God was the one in control of my life and I could not be more thankful for it.
I hear stories from many friends and family members that tell me how bad I was looking, but that they were all glad I was still alive! This has been a tough six and a half month run for me and I am not all well over it yet, but I am still following God's plan to get better. I have the opportunity to spend a nice Christmas with my family and then get to WALK my daughter done the aisle for her wedding. I know there will be many people there that I have not seen in a while and many more that have said they wish they could, but can't. I do understand all of this and God has helped me to accept this. The event is going to be a nice time for all of those that can make it and we are all looking towards this happy moment. I can only hope this marriage is as good for Megan and Matt as it has been for Betty and I.
I am feeling OK this morning but still have some pain. It is hard to explain to anyone just how bad I feel and can still feel happy about it. This does not click with some people but I think most understand where I am in life. Now, back to my original question. How can anyone understand that I am not the lucky guy in the world right now? I can walk with a slight limp and breathe my own air without help. I think the term "luckiest" may be an understatement for me right now. There is too many people in this world, both here and in many other places pulling for me. I hope you all understand how important you are in my life. It does not matter who you are or what kinship you are to me. I have people that are cousins pulling for me. I have people that are in Betty's family pulling too. (Yes, these are members of MY family, too). I have so many people here in town pulling for me and people that are friends of friends or family pulling, too. I have met so many people that I did not even know before this accident that are pulling me through this, too.
I know this accident make me long winded, but you just have to understand how important life is to me now. If you read all of this, you are a special person to me. If you only read half, you are still special to me. If you just think and pray for me, you are up special to me, too. You must understand, I Love You ALL so much. You have been an important part of my life and I am so glad you cared enough for me to help me work through this.
On my last note, I want to wish all of you a Very Merry Christmas. Please think about why we all have this Holiday. Jesus was born on this day and we all have to remember, He is the reason for all of this special time. Don't be afraid to thank Him for all of your happy times and ask Him for help if you need it. It really does work!!! I am still here because of His help towards me!
Love to all,
Mark 12/23/07

Saturday, Dec 22 and all is OK

2007-12-22T21:31:00.001-06:00

Well, time is just going by getting close to the wedding. We have a wonderful celebration come up soon to celebrate the birth of Jesus. My family will have a wonderful time on Monday night and again on Tuesday morning. We will meet with my brother & his family and my parents on Thursday night once Jennifer gets to town. Then we have a rehearsal event on Friday night getting ready for the big event on Saturday. We are all getting so excited for this event.
I am doing OK as of now. I am still sore from everything and seem to be walking with a slight limp, but it will be OK. I get to go back to work on Monday and got a phone call on Friday telling me this was good to go forward with. Rehab worked me out pretty good on Friday but that is how this is supposed to work. They are doing their job to make sure I can do all that is necessary on my end. No pain, no gain!
I had two more replies from my last entry. One was from Sallie and Scott Keaton again giving me some words of encouragement and some support to Betty for all she has done for me. The other one was from Sheryl, another dear friend I met through Matt's Cub Scouts. She was always a dear friend to me and her support through all of this has been great. She can't make it to Megan's wedding but has a neat poem for me. This means the world to me. She is another one of those people that is in my life because God wanted me to know her. She has always been this kind of person! She always lifts me up, as do the Keaton family. I am so lucky to have people in my life that are this way! Family and friends make every day special. I am just so lucky to have people like this around me!
God has saved me and is putting SPECIAL people in my life that help me in so many ways. God will help you too if you need His help and ask Him for it. I would like to thank everyone that reads this note and tell you all how much I love you! I am still here because there were so many people saying prayers for me in so many places. Your efforts towards me have made me a different person. I have feelings today that I did not have before because of all of this. Thanks again to all of you!!!
Mark 12/22/07

Wednesday night and all is great!!! 12/19/07

2007-12-19T20:18:00.001-06:00

I knew people still read my words of thought but it really makes my day to see replies. Two of these are from family members (cousins are a great thing to have and I love them all so much). Jo offered many kind words as usual. I am sorry you will not be at the wedding, but you won't see how bad my dancing really is. I am sure someone will tell the truth on me... Another note came from Janet. More kind words here, too. I know you will be working that weekend so you won't see my dance either. Another one that can't talk about it at the reunion. I am sure someone with tell you about it, though! The third reply was from some special friends (the Keaton family) here in town. The notes they send are always good to read and always lift me up in this time. I knew people read these notes but seeing replies is special for me. My last three notes I put in did not have any replies on them and one on the fourth one. I am not mad at anyone over any of this at all. I know people read my words and feel good for me to be getting better and STILL breathing!
As far as work goes, I return on Monday. Our plant has a rule that you can't go from sick time straight to vacation without coming in for work at least one day. This is a good rule to have and I don't mind it a bit. My boss told me that Monday may be a short day because it is Christmas eve. I don't care if I have to work all day, just that I get to come back. My vacation days will start after Christmas day and go until I run out of days. These were scheduled in October and November but I was not there to use them so they carried on until I could use them. Our department had their yearly lunch today and I went. It was good to see all of my friends again. It made me feel good and I got a lot of well wishes from many people. Many of these people were excited to see me, too. I got many hugs from so many people. It really makes me feel good to have people remember me and realize what I went through and understand how lucky I am to still be alive. God took good care of me and made sure I was here for all the times I have coming. I thank Him a lot for this gift.
I went to rehab this morning, and as usual, they worked me pretty hard so I can get better. That is part of the reason I still go there because they want me better just as much as I do!
May God be there for you if you need His help. All you have to do is understand Him and talk to him. He made a lot of changes in my life and I am very proud of these changes.
Thanks to all of you that read this and it makes me feel good to know how many people really care for me in this way. Thanks to all that helped me in prayers and good thoughts. It will always mean so much to me EVERY DAY!!!
Love to you all,
Mark 12/19/07

Wednesday, Dec 19 and all is good

2007-12-19T07:17:00.000-06:00

Well, Wednesday Dec. 19 is upon us and all is going OK. I am in a lot of pain in my back this morning but you get used to it after a while. I went to see my plastic surgeon yesterday and he was pleased with what he saw and took my stitches out. He said I was good to go back to work but would not issue me a slip for it because it needs to come from my main doctor, which is Dr. Dickson. Last time I saw Dr. Dickson, he told me that my return to work would come from this plastic surgeon. Left says right and right says left... I went by Dr. Dickson's office and he is out until Friday but they gave me a number to one of his workers. I talked to her yesterday and she said she would take care of this but it has not arrived, yet. I talked to my boss yesterday and told him what was going on. He said it would all be OK and would work out with no problem. Our company has a rule that you can't go from sick leave straight to vacation so I will have to go to work on Monday to start everything in the right direction. Being away for a week or two is OK, but when it turns into 6 or 7 months, it is rougher. I am so glad that I still have a job to go back to and they want me back, too. Working in a chair will be hard for a while with my broken tailbone, but it will work out just fine with time.
I have rehab this morning and if, as usual, they work me right, I will be sore over it. I guess that is why I like this place. I have a wedding to walk at in less than two weeks!!! The highlight of all is to see one of your children get married and to get to participate in it, too. Megan wants me to walk her down the isle AND dance with her. I can't dance good on any day, but I will give it my best!!!
Love to all of you that read this and may God be with you. He saved my life and I will ALWAYS remember this. If you need his help, all you need to do is talk to Him and ask Him for help.
Have a lot of people coming in town for the wedding. Many of these people I have not seen in a while and am really looking forward to it. My brother's daughter (my niece) is coming from up north and two nieces on Betty's side are coming from Florida. I am excited about all of this.
Great news! I just heard from my boss and they finally got my return to work! Looks like I get to work on Monday! This is exciting to me!!!
Love you all,
Mark 12/19/07

Sunday, Dec 16 and doing OK

2007-12-16T11:36:00.000-06:00

Well, today is Sunday and I am still alive and in pain. My stomach hurts when I move. The doctor said that there is nothing they did to cause this even though it started a few days after my surgery. I need to go see an indigestion doctor to find out what the problem is. Also found out yesterday that my insurance is not paying much towards my rehab bill. Betty will call the insurance people tomorrow to find out what is going on. I guess I will have to stop using rehab because I can't afford to pay for it right now. Between our part of medical bills and all of these ambulance services that charge out the nose, we don't need MORE added to it. It looks like I owe over $200 for last month (November). It looks like I will be doing my own rehab unless Betty can get somewhere with this issue. This is a sad situation because the rehab people are doing a lot towards me getting better. I am sore every time I leave there, but that is a good sore. I just hope I can do it here without going too far with it. I will try to follow with what they had me doing. That is the only way this will work out for the best. I go back to see the skin doctor on Tuesday. I am hoping he will pull out these stitches and allow me to return for work soon.
Tiff walked on Friday for her Graduation. It was really a neat feeling for us. Breanna took off today for a week in Colorado for skiing and other fun stuff. She will be staying with a very good friend of ours while she is there. And to top all of this off, we are now thirteen days away from Megan's wedding. This is a busy month for us, but with Betty in charge of it all, it will go just fine.
All is going well for us right now. I am walking better than I was a week ago. I still have a slight limp but it may be there for a while or maybe forever. My main doctor said it will go away, but only time will tell.
May God be with you today if you need him to be. He came through for me and will for you if you ask Him for help. Don't be afraid to ask Him for help if you need it.
Love to you all,
Mark 12/16/07

Tuesday, Dec 11 and all is moving right...

2007-12-11T14:59:00.000-06:00

I am doing OK as of now. I am still in pain from my surgery. The plastic surgeon took out the staples but left the stitches this morning. I asked about being released for work and he said I need to be healed more before he can do anything. I see him again next Tuesday. I see my regular doctor on Friday morning before we go to San Marcos. Hopefully, he can answer some questions about my stomach pains. I am hoping my surgery moved everything inside too much and that is why I am sore and that there is not a problem other than this. This pain is bothersome every time I move.
I started my physical therapy today. They worked me pretty good and in the right direction for me. The doctor gave approval for me to start this. They are aware of where I am and where I am heading. I have a wedding coming in a few weeks that I have to walk Megan down the aisle. I am so excited about being able to do this. I was afraid a while back that this would be a problem but my hard-headedness and determination will make this happen. We also have Tiffaney's graduation to watch on Friday. Life is full of joys for me right now!
Thanks to all of you that read this update and know that I am slowly getting better. God is a great gift for us all. He is leading me just where I need to be going. He will be with you too if you ask him for help.
Love to all of you,
Mark 12/11/07

Monday, Dec 10 and all is good

2007-12-10T15:41:00.000-06:00

Well, my pain is slowly fading back. I still hurt with certain movements, but a lot better than it was last week. I went to start my physical therapy today, but they can't take me back without approval from the doctor. I called the doctor last week and never got a call back and the therapist sent him a FAX this morning and have not heard anything either. Having a great doctor is two sided. You get the best for treatment but too busy for the extra stuff. It will probably be February before I get something saying I could start this week. My therapist is just being protective of my future. I can't be mad for someone looking out for me!
My next doctors appointment is tomorrow for the plastic surgeon. Today, the doctor I saw was for "internal medicine". He is great one to see for this. He explains everything in detail and is great to deal with. He was a little concerned about one of my levels he saw on a blood test but was concerned that my surgery may have caused it to look high. Another blood test today to tell him where I am and which way I need to go. He told me to stay on the anti-biotics until we know for sure. This test today will tell him if the current medicine is working or needs to changed out. The plastic surgeon I see tomorrow is good, too, but he has an accent and I can't understand everything he says. He is another one of the good ones that knows how to take care of his patients. I think the infection is under control or he would not have closed me up so fast. I am sure he is not ready to take out my stitches, but I can hope he is ready. I will know tomorrow for sure. I will also ask him while I am there about when I can return to work. He or my main doctor will make a decision on this soon. Most people want time off of work, but after six months off, I just want to go back.
I think this is enough for today. May God be with you if you need him. He is willing to help you if He is asked. He was a major part of me still being here. His actions and those doctors and nurses he put on me to make everything right, went well. If they were doing something questionable, my dear wife was there to help them fix it. Four days left until Tiffaney's graduation and 19 days until Megan's wedding. These are part of life's reasons why God left me here. I could not miss these things! I know there are more things in my future that I don't know about, yet, too.
I would like to say thank you to all of our friends that came by last weekend and a special thanks to Bruce Walters for the special gift he presented to me. Best friends are special friends to have. If you have one, let them know just how special they are in your life!
Love to you all,
Mark 12/10/07

Sunday. Dec 9 and all is Good

2007-12-09T10:20:00.000-06:00

Well, our yearly party came and went well last night. We had a smaller than usual turn out, but with all we have had going this year, it was about what we expected. Many invitations went out last minute, so it is understandable. I got to see many people that I have not seen in a while and a few that were expected, never came. Do I feel any less because they did not come? No way. I feel bad to not see them, but this is one of those things you just take and move on. There were only three people from my work here and that is understandable, too. Many good friends came to see us and the girls all had friends here, too. Several people in that group I do not see much of anymore, but it was sure good to see them all. Thanks to all that did come to see us. It was appreciated greatly!
I am feeling OK this morning. I know my daily pain is getting better, but I am still sore and get tired pretty easily, too. I am hoping the doctor has good news for me tomorrow. It seems like I am moving along. I go back to see the main doctor the following week. One of them has to tell me where this journey is taking me and what my progress is looking like. The one that filled my hole is tomorrow and the one that took the metal out is next week.
Betty worked her butt off trying to get ready for last night and everything was great. I know for the past four days she worked on all of these details. Now this party is gone, the wedding will be moved up the list of things to do first. That is the way she is. She is a dedicated person to the project at hand. Tiffaney's graduation will be this Friday. A quick trip to San Marcos for that event. We are so excited about it. Somewhere in all of this, there is Christmas shopping to do, too. We are going to be one of the ones getting all of this done last minute! Too many other irons on this fire!!!

Saturday, Dec. 8 and all is Good

2007-12-08T08:19:00.000-06:00

I guess you have to notice things around you better than I do. I was never very good at that, but now I am probably worse. I woke up this morning and I did notice that my pain is getting better or I have learned to tolerate it better. I think I is just getting less! I still have problems getting comfortable when I sit and I tired too quickly if I don't sit. My body has a long ways to go to get back to where it was, but don't give up on me. I am determined to do this over time!
Tonight is our adult Christmas party that we have every year. We started to not have it but we enjoy it so much seeing all of our family and friends from many times. We see people from present to past. Some of these people we only see this time of year and that is OK, too. They are still in our lives! This wife of mine has been busy for days getting everything just right for this. We will have a good time but she will be SO tired. I usually try to help but I am not much help this year. I try but a lot of the things I usually do, I can't do. Just wait my dear, I am coming back and will make your effort to keep me alive well worth it! Next week, we have Tiffaney's graduation. Another child of mine graduating from college. This is a great thing for us but more things to do to get ready for it. We are only weeks away from Megan's wedding, too. Betty will put so much time and effort in to this to make it all flow so well. I do not know where this woman gets so many minutes into every day. She is just one of those people.
So as you can all tell, it is busy around here, but it is also so well organized and planned to fall certain ways. I just thank you all for being there for us as we have had a difficult time this year but will come back like we should. I love everyone who reads this! May God be there for you as He has been for me.
Mark 12/8/07

Friday, Dec. 7 and all is OK

2007-12-07T12:13:00.000-06:00

Another day is upon us and I am still here, alive and kicking. My pain is still here but after a while, you just get used to it. I get a little strong with my comments with my new condition upon me. My mind gets going and before you know it, it's all written down. I hope I did not make anybody upset with my "inside" comments I made yesterday. I did not want people to think that because I have not heard much from them that I did not like them. That was not my intention at all. I know people have their own lives to keep them busy and just keeping me in their thoughts is great. I don't have to hear from you, as long as God does. I sometimes get caught in my own little world. I am sorry I act like that, but it did open my e-mails up.
Love you all and thanks for pulling for me, today and yesterday.
May God be with you as he is needed. All you have to do is ask Him to help and He will.
Thanks to all,
Mark 11/7/07

Thursday, Dec 6 and all is good

2007-12-06T06:40:00.000-06:00

It is so good to be home again. I have had two nights now sleeping in my own bed and it is great. I am doing OK now, walking with a limp on my right side. My pain is still there and HOPEFULLY will start dissappearing soon. I am only hopeful that this last surgery will do that for me. I got a note from Megan that one of my cousins, Shellie, was trying to post on this site and could not get it to work right. Megan sent me the note. It is good to hear the comments she made towards my recovery. It is always nice to hear that people are behind you! It is always a positive. Thanks Shellie for keeping up with me and my progress. It always makes me feel better to hear from everybody. I get messages from family on both sides and that is wonderful to me. I was told yesterday in an e-mail that is it sad that I had to go through something like this accident to wake people up as to what is important in life. As sad as it sounds, it is a true touch to your feelings. But, accident or not, family is family and always mean the world to each of us. You love each of them as a part of you because they are a part of you. That is what makes families so important in our lives. The sad part is, you really find the depth of friendship in your friends. Some people I always considered a friend have really stepped up during this crisis and others that I thought were real close have just disappeared. I know a lot of people that throw in verbal sayings and that always mean so much. And others don't express themselves so well, but mean well. I understand this, too. I am one of those types of people in a lot of ways. This accident makes you learn a lot of things about people in general. It also makes you realize what is important in life. Family is family and they mean the world to each of us. We are not always as close as we could be because of distance, time and other matters, but they are still family and you always have love in your heart for them. And friends are friends and always will be friends. It is just you can learn a lot about them during a time like I had. It is God's way of teaching us what is important in life. He has taught me so much and I thank Him for holding my hand through all of this, to help me heal and be there for others. I hope I never know anyone who has to go through what I went through or what it put my family and friends through. It is sure a hard way to learn what is important.
Sorry I got so wordy this morning, but this situation has made me that way.
I love each of you for who you are and what you are to me.
If anyone needs it, Betty's e-mail is "bradbet@gmail.com" and I read notes that are sent to it for me or about me. They always mean so much!
God will be there for you, as he has been there for me, if you ask Him for his help. He helps me in so many ways to become the person I am. I am still here for all of you to talk with anytime. Love to all of you!!!
Mark 12/6/07

Tuesday, Dec 4 and Mark is home!!!

2007-12-04T17:22:00.001-06:00

My trip of the hospital is over AGAIN. Surgery went longer than expected, but that is OK if they got all of my infections out before closing. I am in a lot my pain now that I was in before but they took a big piece of metal out of me. This took a big hole to do and I will survive this too. The doctor told me I would be in on Monday and out on Tuesday but he never thought about the doctor that had to fill in this hole. This doctor had to make sure the infection was cleared out. As long as this was done, I am going to be OK. I will suffer a little more pain to get better. They will let me know how I am doing overall next week at my doctor's appointment.
I had some visitors come see me while I was at the hospital. My nephew, Jake, came and stayed for a few hours and my parents came early in the week and contacted by phone after that to make sure all was going well. Two guys from my Dutch oven group came by on Friday and it was a good surprise to see them there. I was waiting on surgery call and looked and they were there (Jerry and Jerry). Thanks to ALL of you that came. My family all took their turn to see me, too. That makes everything better!!! Plus my 2nd cousin, Sara, came from Dallas and spent Saturday with me with her daughter, Nicolette. It was good to see them again, too. I also had several good friends take the time and call me, too. It means so much to know that so many people care about how I am.
There were several replies to Betty's input that meant a lot to me. Sallie sent one in from her family. They are always keeping us in their hearts and that means so much to me. Jenn also sent me one. I am SO LOOKING FORWARD to seeing you later this month. I am sorry I was in such bad shape last time you were here, but thanks for coming when you did. I don't remember seeing you but to know you were here, still means a lot to me. Three special cousins also replied! This means they are still looking out for me. Debra Jo sent a lot of special words to me and Betty, showing that she still is pulling for me. Karen also sent a lot of words to say that I will be OK and to keep pushing myself. She also gives a lot of good words to my wonderful wife, too. Then, Janet had to add to wonderful thoughts for us all, too. She seem to understand what Betty is going through with me. I know this is not an easy thing to deal with me like this, but this wonderful woman just keeps on going. I am sure thankful I have her on my side through all of this. She keeps my head on straight and moves me in the right direction to get better. Without her, my reason for being here would be lost. She is the most important thing in the world to me and I need to tell her that MORE often.
Well, December is finally here and what an exciting month this is around here. We have our Christmas party this weekend. It starts at 7PM for adults only. Then, about a week later, we have Tiffaney's graduation. I think it is Friday the 15th. Then we have the BIG HOLIDAY and then less than a week later, Megan is getting married. I have to be walking good by then and have to dance with her, too. Watch a month around here!!! My wife is trying her best to stay on top of it all, but this will really be a test for her. If this weren't enough, I had to be sick during this time, too. I am hoping the doctor will let me go back to work soon, but only time will tell on this!!!
My God be with you all and ask him for His help if you need it. He has been there for me so many times that I know He will help you too if asked. I love you all and sorry I get so wordy. I just have so much to say to everyone!
Love you, Mark

December1

2007-12-02T00:00:00.000-06:00

Mark had surgery on Friday as planned. It did not come until 4:30 PM. All day without eating.....the morphine was the only thing keeping him company!!!! I went to decorating the hall, at the place where Megan's wedding will be held in 20+ day's. One less thing on my plate!!!! Mark's surgery went as planned. They reattached his muscle and what little fat he has on his hiney and then used staples to join all the skin together. Then put a little temporary blood vacuum inside the wound that will come out Monday. If everything looks good on Monday he will be able to come home. I'm sure they will give him something to replace the morphine since he has become quite fond of it. At least he was able to move a little more today than yesterday. Progress,one day at a time. Matt is a district play off soccer tournament this weekend and Mark sure wanted to attend, so I went to 2 games today (missing 1) to pick up our wonderful friends Ian & Liz from Scotland (Andrew's parents)at Hobby Airport and transport them to the other airport. Andrew is the soccer trainer for Crosby that lived with us the last two years that we have kinda adopted. He was very helpful with Matt, when school started and Mark was still in the Hospital. Tomorrow, one more game in Sugarland. (1 tie, 2 losses- still proud that they made it to district). I helped Mark get ready for bed tonight- he has no patience, he was washing his hair in the sink when I got there......It really make you appreciate a good old shower when you can not take one!!!! I got home about midnight....This Thanksgiving meant so much to me. I am so blessed. I had all my wonderful family Mark's parents and Andrew(this was his first Thanksgiving)at the house and the girls all helped cook. I usually don't say the blessing, but I had so much to be Thankful for. The kid's argued, Mark had to get on to Matt, Tiff's turtle walking around the house, all the dogs. The simplest things, I enjoyed just watching, my family. I wasn't stressed trying to keep every thing hot, or worried about my cooking not coming out right. Because, I know, that God has blessed us, and what is important in life. As we all start the Holiday season.....take time to count our blessing and remember to tell your family and friends how much they mean to you. Just, as I am right now. Thank you, ALL for being here for me and my family.....for Mark. We sure are blessed!!!!

Hospital Update

2007-11-28T21:07:00.000-06:00

Mark did not go into surgery until 2:30 on Monday. He was admitted into room 506 Jones pavilion Memorial Herman Hospital. 713-704-8506. We thought that it was going to be just the one night. The orthopedic surgeon said it would be one night. The plastic surgeon had his own agenda. Today (Wednesday) they went in and re cleaned the wound and the skin around it. This took about 4 hours total and must be pretty painful. Mark is back on Morphine........you know how I feel about that. Hopefully,he won't get too messed up on it and won't remember stuff and make phone calls at all hours of the night!!!!! Friday, they will either go back in and clean it out again or start the repair job. Depending on what it looks like. So, I guess he will not get out of the Hospital until Monday or Tuesday of next week. Mark is in good spirts but is totally board. Me, I feel as though I am reliving August....going back and forth to the Hospital and trying to work and be a mom to Matt. Thank goodness we still have friends that are praying for us and help us get thru this. Pray that Mark can leave the hospital with NO wound Vac and NO I.V antibiotics..... They are really concerned about infection. Hopefully,this hospital stay will be the last. Love to all. Betty

Nov 26 is FINELY here...

2007-11-26T04:19:00.000-06:00

This is early in the morning and we are fixing to go to the hospital. Today, we will be in for my surgery this morning. I will not have access to a computer today, so Betty or Megan will update with some text and let you know how it went. Say a prayer for me so everything goes well. God and I talked about this yesterday and will talk again this morning.
Love you all so much.
Mark 11/26/07 4:20AM

Saturday, Nov 24 and all moving right

2007-11-24T10:34:00.000-06:00

Well, we had a good Thanksgiving around here. The girls all came home for the holiday plus my parents were here, too. We had a great time!! It is good to see all of these people together. It makes the holiday well worth all the effort put together by all.
We had to get all the Christmas decorations down yesterday so Betty could start putting things around the house. We knew this needed to be done before my surgery on Monday. Shane was here and provided a great big help. He handed everything down from the attic in the garage and Betty put it were it could sit until ready to bring inside. I tried to help some, but I am not much help right now. This is one of those things that drives me crazy, watching people do the stuff I USUALLY do. I moved some of this stuff and can tell it today. Shane had a million things to do around his house but this is typical of him. That is the kind of friend that I need! It was funny to hear him say the things I usually say about the amount of Christmas stuff we have. My wife does not decorate our house like most people do. She has stuff all over the house. I am used to it by now, but have really come to love the way she does it. I think we have as many trees in our house as all of the neighbors together. That is just the way it is around here!!!
Betty told me that my brother-in-law, Herb, is home from the hospital and is on quite a bit on medicines right now. He is one of those people in this world that has a hard time dealing with times like this, which puts more pressure on his family. I know what he is going through right now. I put my wife and kids through this, too. It is a hard thing to deal with, especially at this time of your illness. You want things to be right, but no matter how hard you try, they are not like you want them. It is hard to adjust to this change. Herb, my prayers are with you right now and I hope you get better. You are one of those people that deserves this!!!
Well, I will close for now and hope you talk to God today. He will help you out where needed. Don't be afraid to ask Him for help!!! I love you all so much!!!
Mark 11/24/07

Happy Thanksgiving, 11/22

2007-11-22T07:22:00.000-06:00

Sometimes, I feel like I am wasting time putting stuff in here about how I am doing and then I look back as see some comments added that make me feel so good. Yes, another day goes by without a headache and I have pains throughout my body that come and go, but this is part of life. I am so lucky to just be here! Rehab is going well, but is off the schedule for next week. Once I get back up, I be there bothering them again!!!
Looking at the responses from yesterday really makes me think about my life. I know I am SO FORTUNATE to just be alive AND walking with a slight limp. One of these comments is from Sallie. Her and her family are one of my inspirations. Their prayers are always there and always good for me. I know her and her family support what my family and I went through. I know this time was hard on me, but I think my family and friends suffered just as much, if not more. I slept through most of the bad parts where they had to worry about whether I'd be here tomorrow. This was tough on everyone! It just means so much to hear it every time and from everyone. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. It means so much to me. As far as I have heard, they moved Herb into rehab, but I haven't heard anything lately. I will check on him and let you know something soon.
The second note was a real uplift for me too. It was from Becky. They live right behind us and are special people. She is one of those people that lifts you up with her thoughts and prayers. Just knowing that she follows my progress like this really makes my day better. Thanks for your thoughts and concerns for me. It means so much to me.
I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving holiday. Take the time to hug all those people that are in your life. It is an important step in life to show those you love that you do love them. Please take the time today to talk to God. He is in your life and will help you when he is needed. He is the reason I am still here! The inspirations all of my friends and family give me are so uplifting.
I will be taking a slight road backwards next week with my surgery (Monday), but as Paul told me earlier this week, I am too hard headed to let this take me back without responding positively. This may sound bad in a way but it was not meant that way. I knew what he meant and took it as a compliment! Friends do this for you. Say something in one of those ways that uplifts you in a good way.
Thanks to all of you and sorry this got so long. I can only blame all of you for keeping me alive to write like this. Again, THANK YOU for everything you have help me realize was important. It means a lot to ME! I Love You ALL So Much!
Mark 11/22/07

Tuesday, Nov 20 and moving along

2007-11-20T16:42:00.000-06:00

Well, we went to the doctor this morning. He is still concerned with the infection in my sore. He said he will not know more until the metal is out and he can see it better on the inside. He told me last visit that he could fix my tailbone issues, but this time he says there is nothing he can do to it. Sometimes I wish they would listen to themselves talk. I guess I will have this sore, broken tailbone with me a while. He also said the anti-biotic may be around for a while, depending on the infection status. This doctor was so busy today. His office was nearly empty last time we were there, but today was much different. We had a 9:45AM appointment, arrived at 9:30AM and saw the doctor close to 10:30AM. All the chairs in his waiting room were full and more people outside in the hallway. He is one of the good ones, but this is a little too much to deal with every time. I guess we will see how it looks next time we go see him after the surgery.
May God be there for you today if you need him. He is very helpful for those that ask him for assistance.
Love you all,
Mark 11/20/07

Monday, Nov 19 and all is good!!!

2007-11-19T20:03:00.000-06:00

It is Monday night, Nov. 19. All is good around here. Another night without a headache or Imitrex. This was a good sign again. There was no doctor's appointment today. I found out on Sunday that it is for Tuesday. We are going there tomorrow for that. Hopefully we can get some information that is helpful.
Rehab went well today. They worked me pretty hard and I left tired, but that is great. While I was at Matt's soccer practice, I walked a lap around the park with Tiffaney. It was another good turn for the day! I can get tired and feel good about it. This tells me a am moving in the right direction!!!
May God be with you anywhere you need his help. He saved me and will do the same for you. Don't be afraid to ask for His help if needed!
Love you all.
Mark 11/19/07

Saturday. Nov 17 and all going well

2007-11-17T09:20:00.000-06:00

Another night without a headache. This is 15 days now and about 7 days since I took any Imitrex. Life is great! This is good news for me!
I woke up in a little bit of pain again today, but that is normal for me. I only have 9 days left until my surgery is scheduled. I get to see the skin specialist on Monday to evaluate my infection. Hopefully, it is getting better and he can close easily. I am hoping to get back to work sometime soon! That is a great thing!
My rehab is going OK. Friday they worked me out pretty good. We did some leg and arm workouts. Hurts doing some of them, but progress is coming my way. LOOK OUT!
I plan on doing something productive around here today. Betty was working in the garage for the wedding. I tried to help, but am more in the way I think. I am going to ride my bike around the neighborhood and maybe some exercising of some sort. Only time will tell what happens next!!!
I love all of you that take time to read this. It means the world to me to know who you friends really are. My God be in your corner today if you need him. He is a great thing to have on your side!!!
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. If you have to go anywhere, please BE CAREFUL.
Mark 11/17/07

Wednesday, Nov 14 and all is great

2007-11-14T06:27:00.000-06:00

It is Wednesday and all is good. I had another two nights go by with out any Imitrex or headache. This is a good thing for me! My back is a little sore this morning, but I am doing OK getting out of bed. I am staying up later and getting up earlier which will help with my overnight soreness. We worked out good yesterday at rehab. I always feel good when I leave there so we must be moving right. I get a good work out without going too far. That is always good! I have another rehab work out today. I had to move Monday's work out to Tuesday because of my doctor's appointment on Monday.
I had lunch yesterday with a group of people from work. Many of these people have not seen me in a while and it was good to see them again. It is always good to know that they miss me and want me back out there. I can't wait for that to happen. We'll just have to see how my surgery goes in 11 days.
Everyone have a good Thanksgiving week. Be sure to tell all of your family how important they are to you. That is important information to know. It meant a lot for me to hear this so many times.
All have a great day and allow God to help you anywhere you need assistance. His support and assistance is great to have.
Love, Mark 11/14/07

Monday, Nov 12 and all is great

2007-11-12T13:17:00.000-06:00

It is Monday and all is well. Another night goes by with out a headache or Imitrex. That is a great thing! I rode my bicycle yesterday around a little bit of the neighborhood and have no problems! Yes, I rode it with out training wheels. That is good, too.
My doctor's appointment went OK this morning. This was with the internal medicine doctor. My appointment with the skin surgeon is next Monday. This doctor seems content with the progress I am making. He re-newed my antibiotics for another month. He is curious how much metal will be removed during my surgery, as it was not in his notes. I think it is just the piece in my back and the pieces on my front will be left since there is no infection around them. I also had to go down and have a blood test done so he could monitor how my infection is doing. Hopefully, all is going right with it.
Enough news for today! I am still feeling pain in my back, but this will be OK for now. I love you all. May God be with you as needed. Take care.
Mark 11/12/07