Loss of another dear friend, a family visit and pain.....

You have heard me mention Brother McDowell on my blog from time to time. He is one of my older friends I have treasured through the years. He and Ike were the two older men I went to with questions and problems. They were both very wise and for some reason, they both loved me and my children. His dear wife died a year ago so now his four lovely children are having to deal with another devastating loss. His oldest daughter worked with me at Elite Personnel and I had found her several jobs even before then and I'll have to say I love her dearly. As a matter of fact, I have loved this entire family for many, many years. They had his Memorial this past weekend and I was sad I couldn't make it but I did listen in and I think Dwight is glad I didn't make it since I lost it three times just listening in. It was because of the two songs they sang plus the wonderful story of his life. He will be missed.
 
On a positive note, Douglas, Jessie and Page came home for a short weekend visit. They had to go back yesterday but it was SO good having them here. This is a picture of two of the fish Douglas and Dwight caught up at Falls Lake Saturday afternoon. Dwight wanted to take his boat up to see how the motor was doing. He has been working on it off and on this past week. They saw Tony and the kids up there because he had taken his to see how it was doing since Dwight worked on his motor too.
Evidently, it runs in my family since this is a picture of Sid, Jr. I snatched from Facebook. He evidently went fishing at the lake that day too. He really looks good here. He has been very thin since his major surgery a few years ago so it is good to see that he has put a little back on. I love the next two pictures.
 
One is of Hiro and the other one is Page and Hiro.  Notice Hiro in his "thunder shirt". It is a snug little vest that is supposed to help him not get sick on car trips. It works pretty good even though he did get a little sick right before they got here. This is him riding in the car with Jessie holding him.

This is a picture of the beautiful tulips Jessie bought this weekend. She said they were on sale because they were old but who cares? They are gorgeous. Thank you Jessie - you know how much I love fresh flowers and I really appreciate them. They still look great.
Brian has been doing a lot of work around his house. New paint, new deck and lots of trees being cut down. I love the color since it is one of my favorite shades of green. Kelly called Saturday night and she and I got to crying because she mentioned that it was last year at this time that Ennis had been with all of us. That was the night we had over 20 people in the house because so many had stopped by and some decided to stay for dinner with us. I am losing all of my dear older friends and it makes me sad. So - now to the PAIN.  I decided several months ago that I wanted to get off of the oxycodone I've been taking for about 20 months now.  My surgeon referred me to a Pain Management Clinic where I was met by a doctor and then was referred to the other part of the clinic to see if I was a candidate for bio-feedback. After a three hour question session, it was determined I am a perfect candidate.  The first thing they tried was switching me from one medication to another which backfired since I almost stopped breathing several times and ended up spending the next 24 hours in the emergency room. Then they cut the amount I am to take in half. That has been pretty rough.  It was very disappointing to be told the pain might not ever get any better than it is right now.  I've had a hard time accepting that this might be as good as it gets. I will have to deal with a new reality but I am still determined to get away from the strong drugs.  I wrote an email to the many wonderful brothers who prayed so hard for me during the surgery and radiation.  I asked them if they would do the same thing for me to be successful in this. One of the things I've noticed since I have cut back is my legs aching like a toothache.  On a positive note, I have enjoyed my Bio-feedback. I will close with this gorgeous picture of the pier down in Southport taken at sunset. I love that area and would love to get back down there one day soon. The last time my friend Mimi visited me, we went down and I purchased tons of delicious items in the antique shops. I think the last time I went to Southport was when Dwight and I went down to Oak Island to visit some friends. I really do like that area.