The second is good old James Taylor, for those who know him, and I'm not really sure why this got the tears flowing . . . but it did. Maybe the lyrics, maybe the harmonies, maybe the memories it evokes . . . maybe all three LOL! Anyway, I hope that one or both of these videos evokes the love in you too, because YOUR love flowing through YOU is a blessing to all humanity. Thanks so much for BEing YOU so magnificently :)
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Two videos
I have been moved to tears twice today, so thought I'd share these "heart" songs with YOU :) The first is called "One Prayer", and it'll be pretty obvious why this evoked my heart opening . . .
The second is good old James Taylor, for those who know him, and I'm not really sure why this got the tears flowing . . . but it did. Maybe the lyrics, maybe the harmonies, maybe the memories it evokes . . . maybe all three LOL! Anyway, I hope that one or both of these videos evokes the love in you too, because YOUR love flowing through YOU is a blessing to all humanity. Thanks so much for BEing YOU so magnificently :)
The second is good old James Taylor, for those who know him, and I'm not really sure why this got the tears flowing . . . but it did. Maybe the lyrics, maybe the harmonies, maybe the memories it evokes . . . maybe all three LOL! Anyway, I hope that one or both of these videos evokes the love in you too, because YOUR love flowing through YOU is a blessing to all humanity. Thanks so much for BEing YOU so magnificently :)
A Few Pics
As promised, having my camera with me all the time means there will be a lot more spontaneous pics to share here with you, but firstly, the usual health report . . . since the last update the blood transfusion Mum received actually resulted in a significant decrease in her angina attacks, but the reprieve only lasted a few days before she woke in the early hours of the morning (Monday 12th) with numbness & severe pain in her left leg. The doctor came immediately, gave gave her a shot of morphine, and called an ambulance to take her to hospital, where she has been ever since. She had a clot in her left leg below the knee, and because none of the doctors thought she would survive another amputation, or any sort of surgical procedure to remove it, she was put on an intravenous drip of Heparin (a blood thinner) to hopefully dissolve it without surgery.
And, thankfully, we have had some success. Circulation did begin to improve almost immediately with the Heparin, and after a couple of days they were able to detect a pulse on her foot again, and the pain had reduced considerably. When I saw her last night, she said they were thinking of sending her home this Thursday despite the fact that she still found putting weight on her foot (to get in and out of bed into the wheelchair, etc) quite difficult as it still felt numb, and that it was a bit painful as well, so I guess we just wait and see what unfolds. I did manage (despite significant resistance LOL!) to get a pic of her yesterday, and as you can see below, she is actually looking pretty well.
Mum always loves it when Phil & Shellie's Jacaranda tree flowers, and because it is looking glorious in it's full bloom at the moment, I took the pic below to share it with her, 'cause we just don't know if she will get to see it in person this year.
And while I was there, I had to take a pic of their new blinds. No doubt about the quality, which matches the price well LOL!, and with summer just around the corner, it will make a huge difference keeping the scorching afternoon sun off the verandah.
And, thankfully, we have had some success. Circulation did begin to improve almost immediately with the Heparin, and after a couple of days they were able to detect a pulse on her foot again, and the pain had reduced considerably. When I saw her last night, she said they were thinking of sending her home this Thursday despite the fact that she still found putting weight on her foot (to get in and out of bed into the wheelchair, etc) quite difficult as it still felt numb, and that it was a bit painful as well, so I guess we just wait and see what unfolds. I did manage (despite significant resistance LOL!) to get a pic of her yesterday, and as you can see below, she is actually looking pretty well.
Mum always loves it when Phil & Shellie's Jacaranda tree flowers, and because it is looking glorious in it's full bloom at the moment, I took the pic below to share it with her, 'cause we just don't know if she will get to see it in person this year.
And while I was there, I had to take a pic of their new blinds. No doubt about the quality, which matches the price well LOL!, and with summer just around the corner, it will make a huge difference keeping the scorching afternoon sun off the verandah.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Never Alone
Now this is a record . . . two updates in the same day. But I just had to put this video up here after a "twitter" friend in the US shared that her son-in-law's new song was number 10 on Billboard. I'm still waiting to hear back after asking her if he simply penned the song, or plays in the band that sings it, Lady Antebellum, or both. She had sent me the link to a YouTube video of it, and yes, it really was a fabulous song called "I Need You Now", but after watching a few more of their videos, I found one that strummed even louder on my heart strings, called "Never Alone", and decided I just had to share it with you :)
And wouldn't you know it, watching/listening to this video evoked a warm and fuzzy memory of another favourite "You're Never Alone" song written and sung by Rick Price, and so, after a quick YouTube search, there it was . . . or, thanks to the capacity to embed Youtube videos into Blogs, here it is LOL!
And wouldn't you know it, watching/listening to this video evoked a warm and fuzzy memory of another favourite "You're Never Alone" song written and sung by Rick Price, and so, after a quick YouTube search, there it was . . . or, thanks to the capacity to embed Youtube videos into Blogs, here it is LOL!
Phil's Birthday
Yes, you are reading correctly, if you've noted that this update was submitted less than a week after the last LOL! I have a good reason though - we celebrated my brother Phil's 53rd birthday last Tuesday, and although I remembered a little late to grab a pic (the cake was already cut) there was still time to grab a few moments of that time onto video to share with you all.
A health report first, though. Since the last update, Mum has seen a heart specialist, spent a day and a night in hospital while being transfused with two bags of blood, and survived an Echocardiogram (Echo). And, after all that, she is definately feeling better than she did before it all, so it seems all worthwhile . . . though the specialist who did the Echo immediately made an appointment to see us on Monday to explore some avenues we can take to improve her health and quality of life. Thanks, as usual, to all of you who have been sending your love and support :)
OK, here's that video. A few moments in the life of Phil Ackland on his 53rd birthday. You will see Harley there (Phil's son) getting into the chocolate cake, and Mum looking pretty well and doing a few wheelies in her wheelchair. Phil is the main focus naturally, despite the knife waving at the end and the warning (blocked out by some Benny Hill music) not to put it on YouTube (LOL!), and I even managed to get a few seconds of Alison (Phil's mother in law), who usually avoids camera lenses like the plague :)
Incidentally, I took the video above on my new phone, a Nokia N97. My Telstra plan expired, so it was time to look for a new phone and a better plan than the one I had had with Telstra ($80/month for a phone & $80 worth of calls). After a couple of weeks of research on what was available with all the features I wanted on it, it came down to choosing between the Apple iPhone and the Nokia N97, and . . . after reading one comparison after another that indicated the N97 was superior in just about every way . . . and the fact that iPhone were behind in production and there would be a wait of a month or more . . . and the fact that Vodaphone (whose coverage has now reached 96% of the population) had the N97 free on a plan that included 1GB data, 100 free text messages and a cap of around $550 worth of calls - all for $80/month . . . the choice was very easy :) With it's 5MP camera sporting quality Carl Zeiss Tessar optics and twin LED flash, it will mean that I have a camera at the ready for decent pics far more often than I used to, when it meant lugging around a bulky camera bag to do so. (Anyone want to buy a Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ-18??? It's a fabulous camera LOL!) Anyway, here'a a pic of the N97 . . . ciao for now :)
A health report first, though. Since the last update, Mum has seen a heart specialist, spent a day and a night in hospital while being transfused with two bags of blood, and survived an Echocardiogram (Echo). And, after all that, she is definately feeling better than she did before it all, so it seems all worthwhile . . . though the specialist who did the Echo immediately made an appointment to see us on Monday to explore some avenues we can take to improve her health and quality of life. Thanks, as usual, to all of you who have been sending your love and support :)
OK, here's that video. A few moments in the life of Phil Ackland on his 53rd birthday. You will see Harley there (Phil's son) getting into the chocolate cake, and Mum looking pretty well and doing a few wheelies in her wheelchair. Phil is the main focus naturally, despite the knife waving at the end and the warning (blocked out by some Benny Hill music) not to put it on YouTube (LOL!), and I even managed to get a few seconds of Alison (Phil's mother in law), who usually avoids camera lenses like the plague :)
Incidentally, I took the video above on my new phone, a Nokia N97. My Telstra plan expired, so it was time to look for a new phone and a better plan than the one I had had with Telstra ($80/month for a phone & $80 worth of calls). After a couple of weeks of research on what was available with all the features I wanted on it, it came down to choosing between the Apple iPhone and the Nokia N97, and . . . after reading one comparison after another that indicated the N97 was superior in just about every way . . . and the fact that iPhone were behind in production and there would be a wait of a month or more . . . and the fact that Vodaphone (whose coverage has now reached 96% of the population) had the N97 free on a plan that included 1GB data, 100 free text messages and a cap of around $550 worth of calls - all for $80/month . . . the choice was very easy :) With it's 5MP camera sporting quality Carl Zeiss Tessar optics and twin LED flash, it will mean that I have a camera at the ready for decent pics far more often than I used to, when it meant lugging around a bulky camera bag to do so. (Anyone want to buy a Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ-18??? It's a fabulous camera LOL!) Anyway, here'a a pic of the N97 . . . ciao for now :)
Monday, October 5, 2009
Flying High
My main reason for submitting this update is to share with you my experience of taking (finally LOL!) my 50th birthday present hot air balloon flight (see this Blog entry, here), but before I get into that, a health report is in order. It appears that Mum's heart is still very fragile, and sometimes even the littlest thing, like going to the loo, or eating a meal, can tire her out and bring on the beginnings of an angina attack. On the positive side, she is still able to manage other activities that she really enjoys, like going and getting her hair washed at the hairdresser (which is pretty much a two hour round trip), or going out for lunch or afternoon tea at my brother Phil's place.
As usual, any and all positive thoughts and love sent her way are greatly appreciated :)
OK . . . on to my balloon flight. For those that don't know I did attempt it on my actual birthday last December, but the second flight of the two they always have was cancelled due to a wind change during the first. And, so, I've been waiting for the right time to attempt it again. As it happened a good friend that I have made up here, Saddhen, and his wife, Merrily, also wanted the hot air balloon flight experience, and we decided to share it on the 23rd September, which was the Winter Solstice, and therefore an auspicious time to do so. I took my camera, but decided to take only videos in an effort to share more of the experience with you than I thought I would be able to do with still photos. I then did some simple editing, converted the resulting .mov video to a YouTube compatible .flv video, and uploaded the finished product to YouTube, as well as including it here (below) in this Blog update. Hopefully, you will get a taste of the experience, but please don't expect a Hollywood epic LOL!.
As usual, any and all positive thoughts and love sent her way are greatly appreciated :)
OK . . . on to my balloon flight. For those that don't know I did attempt it on my actual birthday last December, but the second flight of the two they always have was cancelled due to a wind change during the first. And, so, I've been waiting for the right time to attempt it again. As it happened a good friend that I have made up here, Saddhen, and his wife, Merrily, also wanted the hot air balloon flight experience, and we decided to share it on the 23rd September, which was the Winter Solstice, and therefore an auspicious time to do so. I took my camera, but decided to take only videos in an effort to share more of the experience with you than I thought I would be able to do with still photos. I then did some simple editing, converted the resulting .mov video to a YouTube compatible .flv video, and uploaded the finished product to YouTube, as well as including it here (below) in this Blog update. Hopefully, you will get a taste of the experience, but please don't expect a Hollywood epic LOL!.
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