August 14, 2014

A Birthday Breakfast and 
Visiting With Customers

August 14, 2014

 Today started with us getting up early to be at IHOP restaurant by 7:00 for a birthday breakfast for Jeff and Barbara's middle child.  We gave her a tennis racket, balls, and a tennis outfit.  She should be ready to go!  All of her gifts delighted her.  She got a stack of books, some clothes, LEGOS, and an electronic Battleship game.  Before coming to breakfast, her folks gave her a bike.  That is one happy birthday girl!

Besides Jeff and Barb's family, Barb's mother and sister, as well as the sister's little boy, and Ron and I were there.  We had a great time as we always do at these birthday gatherings.

The food was good but the family time was even better.

 Oh, I must mention that at breakfast I did very well hearing.  I was pleased.  When we arrived, there were few others there, but by the time we left there were many others eating and chatting, but I had done well with the hearing.  I know there is a lot of conversation that went on around me that I didn't hear, but I think most of what was said to me went well.

Before going to the office, I went back by the house to pick up a few things and then went to work.  Ron was out most of the day on jobs.  I was able to get a lot done.  I had taken a pattern and fabric and did a lot of cutting as well as sewing.  I am playing with scraps and a pattern I bought last winter.  I worked on eleven blocks at the office getting each about 1/2 way done. 

Much of my day was spent waiting on customers and chatting with customers.  I really did well with the customers except for those who didn't speak the same language that I do.  I could hear, but not understand them.  One customer asked about my hearing.  She wants to help her elderly father who is hard of hearing, but I have met him and don't think  he wants help.

One customer told me she recognized me from church but in talking we found that we sit on opposite sides of the church and I did not recognize her.  She shared a lot about her life and how she came to attend our church.  It was a wonderful testimony of God's plans being worked out in her life.  I really enjoyed our long visit.

I had just taken my lunch out of the refrigerator before she arrived and it was an hour before I returned to my office to sit down to eat.  Then, many interruptions caused me to spend over 30 minutes eating my little bit of lunch.  Following the lady from our church, a young man came in to see if we were hiring workers.  I told him we were not and got to talking to him and made several suggestions of where he might apply.  I was very impressed with him and hope he finds just the right job. If we had been hiring, I think he would have been at the top of my list.

So often people will come in with an attitude of, "you aren't hiring are you?"  This young man was clean, neatly dressed, stood straight, spoke up well, and answered each question I asked politely and completely.  He will do well in life!  I was so glad I could engage both of these people in conversations - the lady from our church and the young man seeking a job.  In the past, I would not have tried it.

The rest of the afternoon I had a nice flow of customers and a few interesting conversations.  Ron was still out on jobs, so I had to lock up.  Something about me locking up and getting my things to the car reminded me of the day I lost my hearing.  It was a Friday afternoon at the office and Ron was out sick.  My grandson was there with me and I had to have him take all phone calls since each one got harder and harder for me to hear.

I thought my hearing aid was going out and I was going to have to get a new one.  After our son picked up our grandson, I locked up the office and took my things to the car and turned the key.  I thought the car didn't start and tried again, but it turned out the car had started and I just couldn't hear it running.  It wasn't until it moved, that I realized it was running.

Even as I spent the weekend in my silent world, I never expected the doctor to tell me on Monday morning that there was no infection in my ears.  I had gone deaf and he was sending me to a specialist to find out what was going on.  In my wildest dreams, I never expected the loss that Friday afternoon to be permanent.

This afternoon I had an email from Cochlear and they were asking people to write to the Medicare people and encourage them not to pass the new restrictions that have been proposed that would eliminate one type of Cochlear Implant (the Baha) from being covered by Medicare.  The Baha is less expensive than the type I had done, but still it is out of the reach of many Medicare patients and is for those with less hearing loss than I have.  This is the future of Obamacare!  If it were not for my Medicare plan covering my implant (not the Baha type), there is no way our budget would have provided for me to have the needed surgery.  We all need to speak up and see that the many needed things Medicare is trying to eliminate, aren't dropped from our coverage.  There are several other things in this proposal.

God's timing allowed that my deafness happened when I had coverage that would pay for my needs.  I am thankful for that.

After work we went with Mom to supper at Jason's Deli.  I did not do as well with the hearing there.  They do have a TV set playing and that may be a factor, but it was very hard to hear while we were there.  The food was great, so it was worth it!  This was a very good day!