BOOK REVIEW

WAITING FOR THE MOON


By Kristin Hannah

A book review by Don Meyer

The year is 1882. A young woman with severe head injuries is brought to the home of a doctor who lives in a remote area on the coast in the state of Maine. He is still reasonably young himself, but is no longer in practice. Furthermore, there are several emotionally disturbed individuals, including the doctor’s mother, living in the house with the doctor.

Even in modern times, in a fully equipped operating room, it would be problematic that the young woman could be saved, but this is not even an 1882 hospital. Nonetheless, the doctor had been a renowned surgeon. And he is resolved to save this individual’s life.

There are a number of complications, not the least of which is saving the woman’s life. She has no identification, so no one knows who she is or where she came from. She wears no jewelry, so is she married or single? Whether she lives or dies, who should be notified?

Then there is the issue of the doctor himself. It seems that he has some strange power that frightens him. That may be why he is no longer in practice, even though he is far from what would considered retirement age. And why are all these emotionally disturbed individuals living with him?

This is a story about commitment, and it is truly astonishing how the individuals in this fictional story respond to the responsibility, even when it is to their own detriment. This is a story that ultimately glows, and I cannot think of a more appropriate description. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I think you would, too.

How many legs you suppose this guy has?

Proof of global warming

ODD BUILDINGS

When I was growing up, buildings were rectangular things, designed for utility, not enjoyment. Some architects, at least, have changed that notion. The following (and there will be a second batch) are examples of interesting, even beautiful, if not strange ideas. And these are the more tame ones; wait 'til you see the second batch.





























Cartoons:

FORGOT SOMETHING!

Well, fi yuo intsisn!

DOCTORS AND MORE DOCTORS

We start with something that I thought was funny. I was sitting in the doctor’s office the other day, waiting to be seen, and looking at a Time magazine. The article had to do with the current census, and there was a comment that occasionally someone will write in the space for RACE -- “Human”. Well, yeah!

Now, what was I doing in this doc’s office? That’s a bit more complicated. A couple of weeks ago I had my semi-annual visit to see my V.A. doctor. As a vet, I get my prescriptions there, and the Veterans’ Administration insists on looking out for my welfare, despite the fact that I get perfectly good care from my “civilian” M.D.s. So I humor them. This day my V.A. doctor asked me if I wanted to see one of their neurologists about dropping one of my medications. “No, I’ll see my own doctor about that,” I replied.

Knowing the V.A. would bug me about this until the issue was resolved, I did call my personal physician, who referred me to a local neurologist, and that’s where I was in paragraph one. “Why do you want to drop this medication?” the neurologist asked me. “Well, I don’t necessarily do,” I said, and explained the circumstances. It turned out that there are a number of possible options; not just keep it or drop it, and one option is to change medications. But he warned me that, as with most all medicines, this alternative had side effects. “Like what? I asked. Well, this one would make me cranky and irritable. Oh, no! I’m cranky and irritable enough as it is, and Cliff would never put up with it. So I’m sticking with the old one. Enough.

Humor -

Mujibar was trying to get a job in India

The Personnel Manager said, 'Mujibar, you have passed all the tests, except one. Unless you pass it , you cannot qualify for this job.

Mujibar said, 'I am ready.'

The manager said,

'Make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink, and Green .'

Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said,

'Mister manager, I am ready.'

The manager said, 'Go ahead.'

Mujibar said,

'The telephone goes green, green, and I pink it up, and say, Yellow, this is Mujibar.'

Mujibar now works at a call center.

No doubt you have spoken to him. I know I have.

Edgar Mueller Super Artist

I know we've seen other examples of this "Chalk Guy's" drawings, but I couldn't resist.
Hard to believe that these are drawn on a FLAT sidewalk surface. Watch your step!

A permanent reflection.

Sittin' on top of the world

Come on in -- the water's fine.

Open wide!

Hang on, folks. We're going over the rapids!

Just what we need for the Fourth of July.

Schlurp!

You'll see what he does with this one.

Now how do you suppose those cars were able to park there?

He spent five days, working 12 hours a day, to create the 250 square metre image of the crevasse, which, viewed from the correct angle, appears to be 3D. He then persuaded passers-by to complete the illusion by pretending the gaping hole was real.

DEFINITION

cantankerous |kanˈta ng kərəs|
adjective
bad-tempered, argumentative, and uncooperative

Well, that’s what I thought, so when I received a $10 off coupon for The Cantankerous Fish, a nearby restaurant, I was just a bit leery. Online reviews were generally glowing, so I asked Cliff if he would be interested in joining me. He was. We did.

I must say that the restaurant turned out to be most cooperative, indeed. Cliff had the Seafood Sauté (Shrimp, Scallops, Dungeness Crab, Garlic, Steamed Rice, Sauté Spinach, Wine Lemon Butter Sauce), and I had the trout stuffed with crab meat. The latter turned out to be donald stuffed with trout stuffed with crab meat.

Perhaps all those marine animals were uncooperative in being brought to the dinner table. We thought it was delicious.

Fun -

I Have a Degree in Liberal Arts; Do You Want Fries With That?

A hangover is the wrath of grapes.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance.

Stupidity is not a handicap. Park elsewhere!

BLACK, WHITE, AND SHADES OF GRAY

I thought you might get a kick out of these old black and white photos that were sent to me.
The comments are mine.

Early Canadian freeway

Gee, ain’t this a nifty rest stop?

Okay, who has the right-of-way?

The modern way to water the crops

Wow! these new buses are great!

Pollution? What pollution?

Gee, this is better than the rides at DisneyLand!

Fun --

They call it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken.

He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless DEAD.

A picture is worth a thousand words, but it uses up three thousand times the memory.

I smile because I don't know what the hell is going on .

SEE YOU ON MONDAY!

ON MY OWN

I have driven the car a bit in the past few months, but yesterday we tried something different -- additional. I came out of the house, not in the wheelchair, but using my walker. Unlocked the car, put the walker in the back seat, and then drove over to the library.

Typically Cliff has taken the scooter out of the van, and brought it to me. Yesterday I climbed out of the car, retrieved the walker, hobbled to the back, and unloaded the scooter -- all on my own! Cliff was watching me carefully, but even after I returned, put the scooter back, and closed the deck (that was the hardest part), I did it all without falling down! Ta Da!


Humor --

* If there’s no chocolate in Heaven, I’m not going.

* As you grow older, your secrets are safe with your friends because they can’t remember them, either.

* I would be unstoppable -- if I could just get started.