Monday, August 30, 2010

...things along the way

life has it's ups... and downs...
[as in Newton's 3rd law of motion...]

so I can't expect that my path to financial stability...
won't have it's set-backs or difficulties to overcome...
and after all, it is in the "overcoming" of difficulties...
that we grow and mature as human beings, through the grace of God...

God gave us free-will and lets us harvest the bounty of our choices...

however much He might wish that we had chosen a better path...
He allows us to go the way we choose...
always ready to help us if we turn to Him...
but will not interfere if we stubbornly choose to ignore His instructions...

so as I maneuver the "rowboat He sent for me"...
there are some nice surprises... and some not-so-nice ones...

a recent nice one came when I went to get my hair cut on Friday...

my stylist has been cutting my hair for about 25 years...
and last winter, she cut her price for me down to $25...
because of my financial situation and long tenure as her client...

there was this big basket of tomatoes, squash etc. on the table...
and she encouraged me to take whatever I could use...
as her garden was producing far more than they could use...



so I did !

the zucchini was great and so are the tomatoes!



my lone plant, set in the front to catch sun that doesn't make it into the back...
has produced a few so far, but obviously, the best is yet to come...


another good thing happened today...

I needed a copy of my 2008 Federal tax return, because I misplaced my copy...
so I called my tax preparers & got a message that they would be open in 15 minutes...
since it was the only regular office day this week, I went over...
and was pleasantly surprised when M, who had done my taxes for over 20 years...
opened the door and welcomed me inside...

she not only made me 2 copies of my Fed and State return...
one for me to keep in my files & one to use for the mortgage restructure...
but she gave me a sheet with all the W2/1099 info on it...
saving me the hassle of contacting all those issuers for duplicate copies...

then she wouldn't charge me for the copies... how good of her...

of course, there have been a few, not-so-nice moments...

I spent $40 at the chiropractor, but I still have some real back pain issues...

my bed is "deflating" quicker & I need to get someone to come deal with it...
[it wouldn't surprise me if that's where the back pain is coming from...]
but I haven't got money for a service call...
so I've been "waiting", a plan that obviously needs modification...

so I called them and armed with some actual trouble-shooting techniques...
I'll be "testing" for leaks when I get home...

it took me so long to get back to them...
because the person I spoke with when I first called months ago...
was not really helpful and gave me the run-around...
rather than specific tests to conduct for leaks...

so what was a not-so-good thing may turn into a good thing...
'cause having my soft, supportive bed back...
& sleeping all the way through the night again...
then waking up pain-free, will be a very good thing...

back to the not-so-good...

now I discover that the HUD company may not be able to work with me...
because I'm not in foreclosure on my 1st...
so I have to call back tomorrow to talk to someone else there...
and the lawyer's office will also be "getting back" to me tomorrow...

so as I work on bailing out the rowboat...
'cause the water's seeping in...
I'm grateful for the rowboat, as well as the bucket I'm using to bail with...
believing that if this boat starts to go under...
there will be a tree to climb into, a roof to climb onto...
or a hovering helicopter to gather me up...

God is good... even when we make stupid choices...
and don't follow instructions...

2 comments:

Mousie and Christy's Mommy said...

So many of the lessons we must learn in life come with hard realities. As you deal with these realities may you begin to understand all that the Lord wants to teach you. As always, my faithful prayers during this difficult time.

catsinger said...

...thanks, M&CM...