Incredibly Random Thoughts on a Winter Morning

Winter leaves so much time to think.  Good or bad, I find myself sitting in the house this morning with myriad thoughts running through my head, often several at the same time.  As much as I miss my time at Afton Station, I value this free time as an opportunity to expand my field of vision and come up with some new insights and ideas of my own.  Here are some of the thoughts floating in my head right now;  some will be put to use, some will simply remain interesting possibilities, and some will touch me.   Very few have anything to do with Route 66, but that can wait until warmer days.

Actually, my first revelation IS about Route 66 and Afton Station.  My partner (ex-husband David) and I have come to an agreement about charging a small fee to see the antique vehicles at the Station.  It will be a voluntary (for tax purposes, you know) $2 per person (kids free).  It will not apply to the Route 66 room where I sell things, but just for a visit to the two showrooms where the cars sit.  I'm not thrilled about this, since we've prided ourselves on being a FREE attraction for 10 years, but all the heating/cooling/gasoline/security bills cause me to lose a tremendous amount of money every month, so it has become a necessity. I just hope the $2 fee will not be a burden to anyone.  And remember, it's optional.

I just read an article about research being done on a tiny artificial kidney the size of a coffee cup which, some time in the future, will replace the big, bulky kidney dialysis machines and will free so many of us from the need to alter our lives by sitting for dialysis three times a week for at least 3-4 hours each treatment.  Unfortunately, it will be quite a few years before this happens, but what a wonderful thing it will be!!!!  I hope I live to see this miracle.  It will change so many lives.

Also on the subject of dialysis.... since so many of  my fellow patients acquired their kidney failure as a result of diabetes, I now know more people with missing limbs than I've ever known in the past.  Through these friendships, I've learned that a person with a missing limb is... well... just a person with a missing limb.  No big deal, except of course to the person him or herself.  For this reason, I found that this little video which moved me to tears, and I'd like to share it with you.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E8umFV69fNg.

Finally, vis a vis a report from one of today's local TV weatherpersons, if snow is falling but melts before it hits the ground, shouldn't that called RAIN?  Just askin'....