Hello, I am new here

[islandboy]

The head nurse couldn't understand,
Why Jim was so glad,
When no flowers, calls or cards came,
Not a visitor he had.

The minister stayed by his bed,
He voiced the nurse's concern;
No friends came to show they cared.
He had nowhere to turn.

Looking surprised, old Jim spoke
Up and with a winsome smile;
'the nurse is wrong, she couldn't know,
That he's in here all the while.

Everyday at noon He's here,
A dear friend of mine, you see,
He sits right down, takes my hand,
Leans over and says to me;
"I just came again to tell you, Jim,
How happy I have been,
Since we found this friendship, and I took away your sin.
Always love to hear you pray,
I think about you each day,
And so Jim, this is Jesus checking in today."

[nChrist]

Amen! - Beautiful!

[islandboy]

This is islandboy checking in. I am moving next week and don't know how long it will take me to get back on-line. I have found a nice apartment, but all the deposits for utilities and getting moved in will take a while. So please bear with me I will be back to finish up the book review that I started and add some new items here. I am so very tired of packing boxes.   

I hope all of you survived the bad tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma.

[nChrist]

This is islandboy checking in. I am moving next week and don't know how long it will take me to get back on-line. I have found a nice apartment, but all the deposits for utilities and getting moved in will take a while. So please bear with me I will be back to finish up the book review that I started and add some new items here. I am so very tired of packing boxes.   

I hope all of you survived the bad tornadoes that swept through Oklahoma.

Thanks for asking. All of my family are just fine. All of the tornadoes missed us by at least 30 miles, but many weren't so fortunate. I am asking for prayer for those who have lost loved ones, those who are injured, and those who have lost nearly everything they own.

I'll be praying for you during your move.

Love In Christ,
Tom

[islandboy]

Well I am back. Moving is really hard and expenive, I thought I would never get everything mailed and now I am wondering If I will ever get everything unpacked. I had marked the boxs but still found surprises when I opened them. My apartment is big, but being on a main street the traffic is loud and never ends. But hey, I got something I could afford for the time being. I am enjoying my friends and family, but am making new friends everyday. I feel I made the right move as my mother needs me near. And I feel that it was something that had God's help through many prayers that I might succeed in this move. Florida to PA, is a long way, but I knew it would all work out in the end.
Getting here was one thing, setting up my apartment has been another chore. Buying used furniture. Being given furniture by friend's, I finally have the basic neccessities. Of course everyone asks me if I am crazy to leave FL for PA. I guess I am but duty to family called me, I knew I had to do it.
Don't have TV, but I have read a bit about whats happening in our government and its down-right scary. Keep praying and praising the Lord. May God keep you all safe until his return.

[nChrist]

Hello Islandboy,

It's great to hear from you, and I'm happy to hear that you are settling in. My son is about to move from Florida also, but not as far North (North Carolina). He was offered a job that he just couldn't refuse, and the area he's moving to is beautiful - with a much lower cost of living. He's moving to Raleigh.

I understand that PA is also beautiful - with a lower cost of living. I know it's colder there, but the humidity is also lower. I hope that you enjoy it. You and your family will be in my prayers.

Love In Christ,
Tom

[Soldier4Christ]

Moving is always a heavy task. One I've had many times and hope and pray that I don't have to do again.

With all that is going on in the Gulf and how it is starting to effect people all across Florida perhaps this move is a good thing for you for yet another reason.

[islandboy]

It is taking me much longer to get settled in than expected, plus family duty is hard work. Have been trying to help out in so many areas that I have about wore myself out. In addition to that I have been blackberry picking, canning beans, putting stuff up in the freezer, and trying to attend church. I had thought I would be back to writing here often but the delay is getting to me. But I must admit for the most part I am enjoying myself. I have been on a reading jag, reading several books a week. Have a small garden that is suffering due to lack of attention. But enjoy a lot of time with friends and family. I may get the hang of this yet. But moving is one of the most disruptive things a person can do in their life, more so when you move from one state to another.
Well, enough of my rambling on. Hope to get back here sooner than later. Glad to hear most of you are well and happy. I think moving out of Florida was a very good idea. Tom, glad to hear your son is moved out of Fl as well. NC is a nice State to live in.

[nChrist]

Hello Islandboy,

I'm glad to hear that you're settling in, and it sounds like you are busy in a good way. It's nice to be enjoying friends and helping out with the family.

My son has now been in Raleigh, NC long enough to know that he made the right move. They say that it's beautiful. I drove through a part of NC in the early 90's, and it was gorgeous. We spent the night once in Ashville, close to the mountains, and we are planning a trip for maybe in the fall.

On the home front, my daughter and her family have moved back to within just a few miles from us, so we can see our grandchildren as often as we want to. God has blessed us all.

KEEP LOOKING UP!

Love In Christ,
Tom

[islandboy]

Well Here I am back again. Finally got settled in. Been making new friends and visting with many old ones. Doing hobbies and trying to attend church often. My apartment is working out well so far, getting bills paid but ran out of food money, had to go to local food pantry to stock up on food. Winter is coming on fast, we have had many cold nights and several frosts. So soon I will be staying in more and trying to stay healthy and warm. PA is really cold in winter. Seems I am doing better than expected in getting used to the weather up here. I got lots of warm sweaters and coats, long johns and boots. It is almost Thanksgiving. Been making lots of homemade soups and stews and breads. It is interesting how you can get used to eating the same thing all week long when you don't have much money. Got into drinking a lot of hot tea and coffee on cold days. See how I do when it is -15 below with 4 foot of snow outside. LOL 
Just wanting to let you all know that I am getting back into spending more time here and hope to come and spend more time here real soon. Thanks for your comments Tom, always good hearing from you. Senting a shout out to the rest of my friends here that I have missed talking with. God Bless all of you.

[Soldier4Christ]

Hello islandboy,

It's great to see you here. I know what you about the money not going far enough these days. It's really great that there are food pantries available for those times. It does help to not have to choose between bills or food. 15 below? It has gotten colder than that here before but I'm praying it doesn't. If it does I will certainly be hibernating. We've already had a number of nights with frost but most days have warmed up enough to be able to shed our coats for a few hours. We will be getting some new energy efficient doors and windows in our apartment soon. We're just hoping they are able to get them done before it gets much colder.

[nChrist]

Hello Islandboy and All,

We just got back from North Carolina just a few minutes ago. We are both worn completely out, so I don't know how much posting I'll do today. We had a really nice visit with our son and got to see many pretty places. Raleigh, North Carolina is a beautiful place. Our stay couldn't have been nicer till my back gave out and that was just yesterday afternoon. Wonder of all wonders, all of our air connections were on time with no problems at all. We even had more than adequate time at our connections both ways. I'll have to say that there were no National Lampoon moments.   

The weather for the entire trip was mild and beautiful. It was low 70s during the day while we were out doing things and seeing the sights - perfect short-sleeve weather. Islandboy, I don't think that North Carolina winters are nearly as harsh as PA. My son said that he expected high 30s and low 40s for most of the winter days and a little cooler at night. There's a lot of ups and downs with heavy grades in North Carolina, so I would guess that a snow or ice storm would just about shut them down. My son would even have a hard time getting out of his driveway with ice and snow. We did quite a bit of just driving in beautiful parks and got to see a lot of old historic sites and homes. This is one of our favorite things to do, so we had a really good time.

Islandboy, thanks for the best wishes, and I extend the same to you. I especially hope that you get settled in good before any rough winter weather.

In the meantime, God Bless you and KEEP LOOKING UP!

Love In Christ,
Tom

[islandboy]

Glad to hear you had a safe trip and got out to see the beautiful countryside in NC, Tom. I used to visit in Lorenburg, NC when I was still married to a snakehunter. We took trips up every Spring so they (other snake hunting friends) and us, could catch them as they came out of hibrination. I did not hunt the other wives and I went shopping or sunned ourselfs by the pool at motel. However, I always loved the country roadsides that were filled with wild leeks. The smell of leeks (onion) was in the air and the farm fields were plowed and planted. Reminded me of PA, but the weather was a lot warmer.

Pastor Roger, I don't know if it will get to -15, but I really hope it does not. Was suppose to drop to 25 degrees tonight then go back up tomarrow into 40's. This will be the first winter in PA for me in more than 24 years. Stocking in food and supplies so I can avoid going out unless necessary. Hope you far well this winter and stay warm.

[nChrist]

Hello Islandboy,

I've had cultivated leeks and like them. In fact, I like just about any kind of onion. My stomach doesn't always like them, but they usually don't cause me much of a problem cooked. I especially like them as added flavor to a large number of dishes.

You were talking about your temperatures there. That's very harsh, and I hope that you have the proper winter clothing. Please do try to stay warm. I can only remember a couple of times in my life that I had to deal with temperatures below zero, and I didn't have the right clothing. People don't prepare for that kind of weather here because it's so seldom.

In the meantime - KEEP LOOKING UP!

Love In Christ,
Tom

[islandboy]

Hope all is well with everyone here. Are you all ready for Christmas? Getting used to the cold cold weather here in upper Pennsylvania is really something else. Temps been dropping way below freezing and getting blasted with winter storms is not my idea of fun. I like the snow, but the cold is a bit harder to deal with. But I am learning how to cope with it all.
The weather cannot decide if it wants to rain or snow or do both. We got lots of snow then it rained and warmed up and towns along rivers got flooded really bad and we got more snow and ice.
One night there was a really loud roaring noise on the main street at 1:00am. I looked out to see what was going on and a big front-end loader was dashing down the street clearing off the snow by dumping loads of snow into dump trucks. I watched it zip up on sidewalks within two feet of store windows and zip around signs and hydrants getting every scrap of snow. Once the edge of the bucket caught the curb and some deeper snow and it tipped up on two wheels leaning toward the store windows. Somehow it landed on all four wheels again and got the job done. I hope the fact of praying it did not topple into the windows helped. When it moved to my side of the street I could not bear to watch. If it was going to hit my building I would find out soon enough without watching the action. Luckly it did not and I went to sleep in peace.  I Wish you all a very Merry Christmas. God Bless and tidings of Great Joy, to each and everyone.