Back to Blogging!

Let's just say I gave up blogging for Lent!

How y'all are? I'm doing fine. A little rough around the edges, as usual, but all in all, fine!

Life in Nashville has been typical. Weather sucks. We had about two weeks of spring, and it actually hit 84 last Tuesday, then the cold and snow flurries on Friday. What flowers and trees that were blooming or delicately leafed out are now brown and wilted.

Work is ok. Some days I want to scream, some days I do scream, some days I run! Today was a run day. I left the office at 11 am. The Nashville Sounds Triple-A baseball team has some Wednesday noon games on its schedule again this year. I always try to go, since it really is less crowded and it breaks up the week nicely. It was stormy this morning but cleared up about 10:30, so I thought a fine afternoon of baseball would be my lot. WRONG! It stormed and blew through the afternoon and the game was finally cancelled at 1:15 without starting. So I came home, read email and "rested my eyes" a bit. The Nashville Predators NHL team started it's playoff series at home against the San Jose Sharks tonight.

My friend Vaidas joined me for the game. He is a true Lithuanian and is a great friend. So we watched Nashville battle back from a 4-2 deficit to tie the game with 50 seconds left. One 20-minute overtime went by, another started. Sadly, at the 9-minute mark, San Jose scored the winning goal.

The officiating was horrendous the first two periods. They called a hooking call on San Jose and a simultaneous diving call on the Preds. Now how can you have both? You get hooked strong enough to have a penalty called, you fall! Opposing players also skated to close and hit knee-to-knee accidentally. The Preds player was ejected from the game. WHY??? It just was sloppily called game and I hope Toronto makes some changes to the officiating tandem of Peel and Van Massenhoeven.

So just got home and am a bit wired. I have been getting a sore throat all day, and it is a bit burny now. I took two Vitamin C tablets. And have been doing the Zicam thing. Anything else to stave off a cold? Otherwise, my health has been great except for a bout with poison ivy or oak a few weeks back. Even had it around my eyes, so I had to take a trip to the dermatologist. He gave me a shot of white goop (steroids) and two creams...one for around the eyes and one for everywhere else. It seems to have done the trick, but I do have a few spots left in places that are strange... Still losing some weight. I put on, I take off. Now that the weather is (was) nice, I've been walking and working in the yard. So I really need to hit my benchmark I laid for myself...250 by July 1. Please send all the encouragement you can...prayers will help too! The doc said if my pressure stays down and I lose the weight, my blood pressure pills I have been on since 1982 will be history!! WOW! I gotta do this!

Last night I sent a general email out to a lot of my friends and family to verify their email addresses. I received tremendous responses back. Even some from people I hadn't heard from in awhile. I am so glad to be back in touch with all of you.

Also, for your enjoyment, I have created a picture blog. It is a companion to this site and it's address is www.mbellpics.blogspot.com

Tomorrow is Chinese Day. Every Thursday my friend Suzanne and I go to Pacifica Pan-Asian Restaurant on Church St in downtown Nashville. A wonderful couple, who go to St. Joseph's in Madison, own and run it. It's not a buffet, but has great food. Since I feel this cold coming on, I think it'll be Hot and Sour Soup, Moo Goo Gai Pan and Veggie Delight, with water to drink. Hope I get a good fortune. My friend Dave knows I am a little wacky on fortune cookie fortunes, so he gave me A Fortune Collecting Journal. It has the Chinese Zodiac in it, along with pages to paste your fortune onto, and to list the date, source and significance. Thanks Dave...I love it!

To my friend Jon, hope you are having a good day. I am looking forward to seeing your project for me. I know it'll be great! I just hope I don't have to change anything you've done. But knowing you, you pretty much know my style and I know you'll create something wonderful. Hopefully you'll get my package I sent you with the hockey stuff Thursday...(I'm trying to create a Predator fan!)

To all my other readers, thanks for being so faithful and patient. Some folks have said they have left comments, but I have not received any. Please leave some comments and then email me to let me know they are there and I can check for them. If this system isn't working, then I'll have to start yelling at someone.

So, it's on to Thursday, but some sleep first! Keep safe, keep happy. Hope you are having a wonderful Easter week! Christ is risen! Christus resurrectus est! Christos anesti!