Tuesday, January 31, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 31, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR THE AMAZING TIMES WE LIVE IN.

Actually cooking hamburgers outside
on a coffee can - ain't modern
technology great?
Do we take for granted the amazing benefits of living in this era?


Check out this video for just a small reflection on a few of the miracle of modern technology...


...did the video take too long to load?  Are you watching on your iPhone?




TECHNOLOGY by Louis CK




rlw

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-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

-       http://gratitude-alittlegoesalongway.blogspot.com/          

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Monday, January 30, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 30, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR THE GIFT OF HOPE AND DETERMINATION.


This is my 'Looking Up' wall collage
 in progress I spoke of yesterday.
Had a phone check-up with my Cancer Head & Neck Oncologist re: Cancer remission follow-up visits.  She said it should be annually for 2 more years.  If I am feeling good and have no symptoms of the Cancer's return, I should check in for a 15 minute visit on August 31, 2012 and again August 31, 2013.   


Radiation every weekday for seven weeks
Barring the unforeseeable, she indicated that on the the 8-31-2013 visit, if everything looked good I "would no longer be her patient...have a good life."


So, how cool is that for a goal...maybe that is the day I retire also...just sayin'...


rlw




"All Day, Every Day...Count your blessings...."









-        Robert Welton: Twitter                     

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·        My Blogs              

-       http://sunriseandtime.blogspot.com/   

-       http://robertweltonremembers.blogspot.com/

-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

-       http://gratitude-alittlegoesalongway.blogspot.com/          

-       http://rwelton.hubpages.com/

        Write Your Own Hub


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Sunday, January 29, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 29, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR AN AWESOME SISTER.

Maybe not so much at first, perhaps.  On this day, 61 years ago, I lost my coveted spot as an only child.  I was now, one of two.  A fifty percent drop in Love Futures.  I had all the spotlight for three and a half years and now had to relinquish half the spot on stage. It took me years  to recover.


Despite my sister's innate talent for upstaging me for the next fourteen years until I couldn't take it anymore and ran away - to college, we have since become rather good friends, although still a bit competitive.


She got straight A's in school (maybe not, but that is what she would have everyone believe), and I did OK (whoa!!!...just noticed how the abbreviated spelling for OKAY is the same as the abbreviation for our home state of Oklahoma...like Twilight Zone or something - di di di di), but not quite that well.  This is a small enlightening example of the powers of creative writing with a glass of Merlot and the clock hands at midnight....


My sister never did anything wrong (when my Mom was looking) and I hardly did anything wrong, but unfortunately, but when I did, it was mostly when my Mom was looking.  My sister often would sweetly ask my mom if she needed her to do anything for her - like bake a cake or iron a blouse - while I was in the middle of a spanking or worse yet, a lecture for a minor infraction of some mysteriously socially unacceptable behavior that I obviously didn't understand.  


My Mom always made me have painful direct eye contact with her during all lectures, while my "cuter than a button" (what the hell does that mean, anyway) sister stood behind me, sweetly interrupting, to yet again, prove beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was indeed the golden child.  To not lose the dreaded eye contact with my Mom, I developed the ability to swivel my head 360 degrees rapidly, so I could glare the black-stare-of-impending death at my sister behind me and still get my head back around quickly. so as not to have my Mom notice and hereby extend the penalty of extended lecture time.  


Did y'all (dipping into my Okie roots) know that a picture of me exploding when she did that, is the basis for the most famous scene from the Excorsist?  


She had the First child to make my mom a grandmother.  I provided the First grandson.  She had three girls.  I had three boys AND a girl.  I got to be a grandfather, now she is about to be a grandmother...this should slow down the getting-old jokes.  How old do we need to be to stop the madness....


I did not spend my 61st birthday in a place that starts with the word PRUNE....just sayin'.  


However, I did spend my 61st recovering from months of Cancer radiation/chemo treatment with an encouraging JOKE card (that is how we spell LOVE in our family) EVERY SINGLE DAY from my sister (when a lot of friends stopped  checking in on me at all), wistfully looking at a huge poster of hundreds of hot-air balloons lifting off over the Napa valley and a gift certificate from my sister to me to take the trip when fully recovered.  At that time, I might not have seemed a sound financial investment, but she made it anyway...I couldn't let her down...so, I recovered and took the flight.


I am very GRATEFUL for the good fortune to have her as my sibling.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Sharon Kay...... 







note:.......while Sharon is  expecting her first grandchild (Congratulations Erica/Travis), I am expecting my third (Thanks Ian/Jen)...but who's counting).....

rlw


-        Robert Welton: Twitter                     

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·        My Blogs              

-       http://sunriseandtime.blogspot.com/   

-       http://robertweltonremembers.blogspot.com/

-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

-       http://gratitude-alittlegoesalongway.blogspot.com/          

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        Write Your Own Hub

 

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Saturday, January 28, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 28, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR BEING IN THE GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT ARE SATISFIED WITH THEIR LIFE.

"One-third of all Americans feel dissatisfied with their lives (100 million people)."  USA Today
Ian, Kyan, Zak, Grandpa


How sad it would be to be dissatisfied with the way your life was and feeling helpless to correct it.  Worse than being dissatisfied about how your life was going would be to not change anything and at the end of your life be unhappy with the way it turned out.


How do we choose to invest our irreplaceable time? 


"Time is the coin of our lives.  Spend it wisely, lest others spend it for you."


We have the power to control much more of our life's results than we think.


rlw


I am having the Time of My Life and am very Grateful.



Friday, January 27, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 27, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE MY OLDEST SON BECOME A FATHER.

There will be many more posts coming down the road on the theme of my thankfulness for each of my outstanding children. 

That said, this one is for Ian.  Happy Birthday!  He is expecting his third boy next week.  28 years ago, he was the gift of my first child that changed me forever.  For that, I am eternally grateful.  He changed me as his children have changed him.


“When you squeeze an orange, orange juice comes out — because that’s what’s inside. When you are squeezed, what comes out is what is inside.”


rlw

Thursday, January 26, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 26, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR A PATIENT MUSIC TEACHER.


Not wanting to start at the raw beginning and work my way up to Twinkle-Twinkle Little Star when I first started learning how to play the electric bass..I was able to set my own direction and have now learned to play about 20 rock songs with another 10 nearing completion.


I am changing direction next month to restart my lessons from the beginning - learning how to read music...so much out there to learn and I can pick everything up much faster if I learned this new foreign language.


Listening to people that know how to read music is like listening to ancient Greek to me and it has become obvious that  although it may sound like I can 'talk the talk' when I play the songs I know - 'I can't walk the walk'.  Memorizing my music will help keep the Alzheimer dogs at bay but would be better if I knew what I was talking about.


I am very lucky to have a skilled teacher that played for 30 years in rock bands before getting his BA degree/with honors in Music from Sacramento State.  Very patient.  I am thankful to discover him and that he didn't make me play 'Twinkle Twinkle' before 'Smoke on the Water'.


rlw



Wednesday, January 25, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 25, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR MODERN TECHNOLOGY.

...or at least the 2012 version.  Thirty years from now (wouldn't that be a hoot if I was still here to read this) this statement will cause much snickering and laughter, like reading a letter from the past talking about the modern conveniences of a wringer washer and a horse and buggy.  


The current ability to record and preserve family archives far surpasses what was available to previous generations.  My generation dug through trunks of yellowed  letters and fading black and white photos, attempting to piece together family history.  So many ordinary, but great people with grand stories of adventure and accomplishment, kindness, heroism, love and generosity faded into obscurity, never to be found again, because their exploits and memories were never recorded.


The ancients did a far better job, handing down from generation to generation, memories captured in song, dance and wall art.  Some families have a family historian.  Most don't. My sister is ours.  That said, I suspect we have more information on our fathers and father's father, than we do on our current generation.  


My mom's version to record that for me was an inherited giant plastic tub full of old photos, letters, half-started notebooks, old report cards, etc. I am forever grateful for her foresightedness to keep it from Goodwill and the public dump.  


Scraps of seemingly ordinary paper, are mementos and instant memory enhancers to be treasured, not necessarily forever, as some items may mean nothing to my children and my grandchildren, but certainly for me in my lifetime.


I have a few observations about life, some stories to tell and even bits of perceived wisdom I wish to pass on to my children and their children.  As it fairly recently occurred to me that I may not live forever, to impart my message personally, I embraced the technology enhanced version of the family memory plastic tub.  Kind of like preaching from the grave, in  a darkly humorous way.


Note: I love my inherited plastic tubs, and I may never get to the bottom of them in my lifetime, as I most often, fall apart a mere two inches into the pile. Each time I open it I am able to look at my personal family history, as seen through my mother's eyes.  Like an archaeological dig, each inch of memorabilia in those cursed (with much love) tubs conjures up years of memories, smiles and tears alike. Like in a dark magical time machine, I am transported back into time to relive times I thought were long forgotten.


Oh yeah, the gratitude for technology part...I have undertaken a "Ginormous" task of scanning and digitizing thousands of family paper photographs...yes, grandchildren, we actually temporarily preserved our photos and memories on pieces of paper...into my hard drive and onto cds and posting online in blogs and videos.  That too, will surely become ancient and archaic soon enough, the buggy whips of our generation. 


It is highly likely that Facebook will become this generation's family album.  That is where I now go to get updated pictures of my grandchildren and to see my sister/brother-n-law's  latest worldly adventure.  Thank God we are sheltered from the boring family-room slideshow our our in-laws last camping vacation...


To step it up a notch, this old guy (64 and counting) has a spate of on-line blogs and a couple of YouTube channels to preserve my bits of perceived wisdom, advice and partially-fact-filled remembered stories.  I don't know if I have done a better job of plastic tub stuffing (I still do that for my children however - they each have their own legacy tub), but I am embracing the new technology.


I have an online blog:  Robert Welton Remembers, a record of some of the myriad of stories that make me who I am.  I have recently started putting them into printed booklets - five or so stories at a time...yes , yes,  I am still victim to the printing on paper thing...can't escape it.  For my grandchildren and beyond, we may never get a chance to be around each other like multiple generations living under the same roof, where everybody interacted with Grandpa.  Mine live a few thousand miles away.


So, to end a short story gone long...today I created a new video channel. Whereas, my thirteen year old daughter could have completed this task in a few minutes...I struggled with it for hours.


ROBERT WELTON REMEMBERS on YouTube.  Now, my grandchildren can see me and hear me and have a sense of who I was, perhaps bring me a little closer to their heart.  When I am no longer on this side, perhaps those that knew me might check into the legacy from time to time. I know if my Mom had done this, I would likely visit daily.  Just sayin'.


This first post is lovingly dedicated to my sister, Sharon, our family's grand Poobah historian.  If you want to know our family's history from a hundred years ago, she has it.  If you want to know about a camping trip my sister and I went on 50 years ago and experience the overwhelming sibling love we shared around the campfire, click on the link above.

rlw


-        Robert Welton: Twitter                     

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-        Robert Welton: LinkedIn          

 

·        My Blogs              

-       http://sunriseandtime.blogspot.com/   

-       http://robertweltonremembers.blogspot.com/

-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

-       http://gratitude-alittlegoesalongway.blogspot.com/          

-       http://rwelton.hubpages.com/

        Write Your Own Hub

 

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Tuesday, January 24, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 24, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR GOOD FRIENDS FOR MANY YEARS.

From a FRIEND I've known for almost 50 years...how grateful I am...we should all be so lucky.


To all my FRIENDS


Be the kind of person, that when your feet hit the floor each morning, the devil says "Oh, Crap, He's up."

Life is too short to wake up with regrets.

Love the people who treat you right.

Forgive the ones who don't, just because you can.

Believe everything happens for a reason.

If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands and don't let go.

If it changes your life, let it.

When you are mad, take a few minutes to think before you act.

Forgive quickly.  God never said life would be easy.  He just promised it would be worth it.



A real FRIEND walks with you when the rest of the world walks on you.


rlw

Monday, January 23, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 23, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR THE RESULTS OF TODAY'S VISIT TO THE DENTIST.

I hate going to the dentist.  I don't hate the dentist, just the whole needle in the gums thing.  Part of the discomfort is baggage from my youth, when our family dentist killed his family and burned the house down.  I was also friends with the son.  I was seven.


Although modern dental technique is far better than the parent holding you down, telling you it will be over soon, I still get apprehensive when I know I have a bad tooth.  When I was about to start the 7 weeks of radiation, I had to get all my dental work for the next year caught up, because they couldn't work on my mouth until I had completely recovered from the chemo and radiation (almost a year).  Had a root canal , two crowns and misc. cavities fixed..took a while to get it all done...and then I got to start my chemo/rads.


That said, the largest tooth I have on my lower jaw on both sides (had all my molars pulled already) has been hurting  a bit and was sensitive to cold air and water...One can only eat like a rabbit with the front four teeth for so long...so my lovely bride made me take the appt and I went in this morning.


The segue to gratitude is thus:


I had the obligatory x-rays (which I have been avoiding, as I have already been exposed to more radiation through treatment and ensuing CT/PET Scans than the survivors of Hiroshima).  


The dentist came in and asked why I was there.  I told him about the teeth, the discomfort, the sensitivity to cold, waiting for words like extraction, root canal, fillings, etc. to burst from his mouth.  Instead I heard "Mr. Welton your teeth look fine, I can't find anything wrong that requires attention.  You might want to consider having your crown replaced in 2013 or 2014. Your gums a a bit inflamed in a few spots, however.  I recommend you rinse your  mouth out with salt water regularly.  See you in a couple of months."


I am thankful I lived long enough to have the PERFECT dental visit after requesting one for existing problems.  If my saliva glands were working, I would have whistled.

rlw

Sunday, January 22, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 22, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR KNOWING WHEN TO SAY THANK YOU.


"If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness.  It will change you mightily."   - Gerald Good.


"Saying THANK YOU is a learned response by many people.  It just comes naturally.  It is automatic.  The next time you say 'Thank You', pause to see if you really mean it, or if it was automatic.  It is OK if it was a natural response (it is certainly better than no response) - take a moment and actually FEEL thankful!  It will be an awesome feeling." - Paul Taubman


To all my friends and family - a sincere Thank You!  I have a wonderful life.


VIDEO - WHAT AM I THANKFUL FOR?

Saturday, January 21, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 21, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR (RELATIVELY) UNLIMITED PHYSICAL AND MENTAL CAPABILITIES.

I had not thought of this one until today.  Our espresso maker (an extremely vital part of our daily lives) decided to go  live in  small counter-top appliance heaven.  Laundry, lunch, etc. went way down on the day's  'To Do' list and off to Target we went to replace this necessary kitchen tool.


We have had them for many years and know how they work and sometimes how they don't work (had two blow up - spewing hot water and coffee grounds in a 4' circle...now there is a clean-up task you can get enthusiastic  about at 5:30 am, when all you really want is a good cup of wake-all-the-way-up coffee).


New cappuccino maker worked well.  Sat down in my favorite wicker chair with my mom's wool blanket in it, cat curled up in my lap - everybody else asleep. Hate to wake a sleeping cat, so I thought I would glance through the new coffee-maker instruction manual.  I was curious, as it was about 12 pages long - really, how many pages do you need to show: pour in coffee, load coffee grounds, turn on, watch espresso come out - and drink?  Aaahhhh - it was the multiple language version - 2 pages each.


However, this caught my eye:  #8 on the 'READ THESE FIRST BEFORE OPERATING ESPRESSO MAKER' page:


"WARNING: Not intended for use by children or persons with limited physical or mental capabilities."


Got me to wondering, could that be the reason I had two exploding coffee makers?  naaah


rlw

GRATITUDE - January 20, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR A WARM, DRY PLACE TO SLEEP.



It sounds like a simple little thing, but I don't have conscious thoughts about it much.  Until it rains with the temps in the high 30's and the wind gusting up to 40 MPH.  We don't have a mansion nor a hovel.  Some have a cardboard box down by the river.  This is not a night I would want to be out in the elements.  I am especially grateful for the home I have.


rlw

VIDEO: SOMETHING TO BE THANKFUL FOR

Thursday, January 19, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 19, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR BEING IN CONTROL OF MY LIFE.


Cohasset, CA 1979
"Take control of your life.  Take control of your gratitude.  When you feel gratitude, you experience it.  When you express gratitude, they feel it.  


Every day you have choices.  You can share how well you are and lead by example."


Paul Taubman




VIDEO:  COMPLAIN LESS



Wednesday, January 18, 2012

GRATITUDE - January 18, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR GETTING TO BE 64.


Hair Styling by Sarah
When I get older losing my hair,
Many years from now.
Will you still be sending me a valentine
Birthday greetings bottle of wine.

If I'd been out till quarter to three
Would you lock the door,
Will you still need me, will you still feed me,
When I'm sixty-four.

You'll be older too,
And if you say the word,
I could stay with you.

I could be handy, mending a fuse
When your lights have gone.
You can knit a sweater by the fireside
Sunday mornings go for a ride.

Doing the garden, digging the weeds,
Who could ask for more.
Will you still need me, will you still feed me,
When I'm sixty-four.

Every summer we can rent a cottage,
In the Isle of Wight, if it's not too dear
We shall scrimp and save
Grandchildren on your knee
Vera, Chuck & Dave

Send me a postcard, drop me a line,
Stating point of view
Indicate precisely what you mean to say
Yours sincerely, wasting away

Give me your answer, fill in a form
Mine for evermore
Will you still need me, will you still feed me,
When I'm sixty-four. 

Monday, January 16, 2012

GRATITUDE - JANUARY 16, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR A BIT MORE TIME TO MOLD MY LEGACY.


A knock is heard on the green room door.  "Almost time Mr. Welton, almost time." (the 'green room' is where the actors gather and prepare before their entrance on to the stage).


All the world's a stage 
and all the men and women merely players
They have their exits and their entrances
And one man in his time plays many parts...'As You Like It', Act 2, scene 7


We all hope for the maximum amount of time to prepare for the big scene in which we depart the stage.  Some are thrust into the final act without proper preparation.  Others, like me, have had ample warning, and are fortunate to see to it that they have few regrets, as the sun sets.  


Should the 'almost time' not turn out to be 20 years as I fully expect, I am very grateful for the time given to effectively communicate to those that are close to me that I love them and almost equally important, to get out what I have to say, where little pieces (jokes, stories, remembrances) of who I am may live on into eternity.


My blogs, my picture projects, my YouTube projects, etc. are intended not only for myself in the now (who doesn't enjoy remembering the great parts of their life), but also for my family, my children and my children's children to know a bit more of who I am/was.


"Most people die with their music still locked up inside them".  -Benjamin Disraeli


rlw


SONG:  Live Like You Were Dyin'




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-       http://robertweltonremembers.blogspot.com/

-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

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GRATITUDE - January 15, 2012

I AM GRATEFUL FOR A SENSE OF HUMOR.


It has been said that humor is derived from tragedy, not from joy.  I don't quite know how to describe it with more sugar on it, but that theory seems to be true.  

Why do people laugh when a woman walks into a spider web and freaks out, a businessman slips on a banana peal or a couple dancing at a patio party accidentally fall into the swimming pool?

The humor is not in a child celebrating a birthday (other emotions, just  not humor), but becomes a gut buster when the child slips and falls face first into the cake.

Given the large variety of physical challenges I have had in the past few years, a sense of humor has helped me deal in a positive manner with "uncomfortable circumstances."  Some of my favorite funny stories deal with radiation, sight and hearing impairment, etc.  I surmise that a sense of humor about ourselves is an effective defensive mechanism that wraps a magical force field around as a means of protection.

Here is a sad funny story about a deaf man.  Ask yourself, after reading it, if you thought it was funny...

I am that deaf man.  I can't hear worth spit...too many nights at rock concerts, standing in front of the speakers, etc.  So, to appease my families constant frustration over me asking "say again?"...I got hearing-aids (helps a little but doesn't fix it by a long shot).  They allow me to now hear that people are actually talking to me, but I still can't understand the words.  Low sounds work best (thank God for Bass guitars).  

Six-month audio check after getting the hearing-aids last week.  The test was to see if there was any further degeneration or improvement in my hearing.  So, I take off the hearing-aids and go into this soundproof room (which, is funny in itself, as in reality, it could be any room for a deaf person), they hook me up with headphones and close the big thick door, observing me through a large double pane window.

So, the experiences was like this:

"Mr. Welton,we are going to conduct a series of tests with sounds and words to measure the status of your hearing."  

The first set was words.  An auto-man computer voice made in Czechoslovakia would say random words and I would repeat back what I thought I heard.  Most of it was guess work.  Window pane was actually cellophane, etc.  I did not score so well.

The second set of tests was to test me on my ability to hear sounds at different frequencies; like the noise our refrigerator makes when I have failed to close the door securely...my wife can hear it clearly from the upstairs bedroom, but I can't and I am only two feet away.  

I was directed to raise my hand whenever I heard the sound.  I am settled in, closing my eyes, so I can concentrate and nail this set of tests.  Fairly soon I heard a faint buzzing sound.  I raised my hand.  a few seconds later I hear a high pitched squeal.  I raised my hand.  Then came a series of high pitched sounds, very faint, but I could hear them.  They were in a fairly rapid succession, so I pumped my hand in the air to keep up with the test beeps.  I was feeling good about this one.

"Mr. Welton, Mr. Welton!"

Yes?

"Describe what you are hearing."

A series of high pitched squeals, some faint some stronger.

"Mr. Welton."

Yes?

"We haven't started the test yet."

The advantage of the sound proof room was suddenly clear.  I wasn't so I would be distracted by other noises.  It was so I couldn't hear the technicians laughing their butts off at the sight of a little bald guy with a ponytail, in a sound proof room pumping his hands in the air at imaginary sounds before the test was actually started.

That is humor.

rlw




-        Robert Welton: Twitter         

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·        My Blogs              

   

-       http://sunriseandtime.blogspot.com/   

-       http://robertweltonremembers.blogspot.com/

-       http://robertweltonanotherdayinparadise.blogspot.com/

-       http://gratitude-alittlegoesalongway.blogspot.com/ 

-       http://rwelton.hubpages.com/

        Write Your Own Hub