Starry night on the prairie

Another long bus day. We left Passau at 8:15 after a bit of chaos getting off the bus. People got very anxious during the process. The ship had to change positions at the last minute which delayed everything. They didn’t announce what was happening and no one knew why we were running late.

We got off around 8:30. Our first stop was around 10:00 for a potty break. We then went to Pilsen for a tour and free time.

We found the best food of the trip so far at a little restaurant totally by chance. We had walked around a bit to find a place to eat. The town was pretty closed up since it is Sunday. I had chicken breast and Nicole had roast beef. Both were perfectly cooked and had wonderful vegetables to go with them.

We still had some free time so we walked into the big cathedral for a bit. Still had time so we found a little cafe and I had a cup of hot chocolate and a tort. Both were delicious. When we finished it was time to meet the group and walk back to the bus.

We rode about two more hours to get into Prague. What a city! Full of tall, old buildings side by side by side. We got to the hotel. They had streamlined the check in process and we quickly got our keys and got to our rooms. It took them over two hours to get our luggage delivered to us though.

Nicole went to the 5:00 walking tour of the city. I stayed in my nice warm room. Nicole was going to find someone to go to dinner with and I am skipping dinner as I am still very full from lunch.

We had sunshine for the walking tour of Pilsen but have a feeling that is the last of the sun we will see this trip as it is to start raining tomorrow and rain all day on Tuesday.

Tomorrow morning we have a three hour mainly walking tour of the city followed by an afternoon trip to Terezin, the infamous Nazi WWII concentration camp. I think the actual camp is closed for restorations and we are going to a museum instead but am not sure. Details are hard to come by on this trip.

Tuesday we have a tour of Mala Strana, another part of the city or it is a free day. We only have breakfast included from here on out so not sure what we will do for meals.

That is a bit disappointing as it will be hard to see the other guests that we have spent time with on this trip. Dinner was a time to get a chance to sit with someone new and get to know them a bit. I guess we can do that at breakfast but with all the free time I’m not sure how many we will run into at breakfast.

I would guess 75% of the group has gotten the virus that seems to be traveling with us. Sore throats, horrible deep cough, and lots of congestion. Nicole has had it and is getting better finally. I have a bit of a dry throat this evening and am feeling very tired. Trusting I am not starting to come down with it too. It will be a very long travel day home on Wednesday if so.

I will see how I am feeling in the morning to see if I join the morning walking tour. I am not a history buff and the guides seem to spend most of their talking time telling us the history.

Last night Nicole came up from the music after dinner and she was having an allergic reaction to something. She was beet red, hot, and had hives on various parts of her body. Luckily one of the other guests had some Benadryl and gave her some. That helped. One of the spots on her leg where she had hives turned into a bruise. Not sure I have seen that happen before. We have no idea what triggered it. She is allergic to shellfish so it is possible she got a bite of that somehow.

I still can’t quite wrap my head around the fact of how much WWII impacted them and the destruction it caused here. The configuration of their country borders feels very new. Not sure how they sort all that out.

Coming to Europe feels like visiting a big city in the US to me. It really doesn’t feel like I am in a foreign country. Most of the wait staff speak English – at least enough to take our orders and get us checked in to hotels. Most of the people we see look like white Caucasian’s to me. Not a lot of racial diversity.

This hotel room has a deep bathtub that is calling to me tonight. Soaking in a hot tub will surely make me feel better. Now that I have my luggage I think I will unpack a bit and then indulge in a hot soak.

We shall see how much I get out and about the next two days. If it is raining I will not see much of Prague. I don’t want to bring on whatever is going through the guests on the tour. Some look very miserable with whatever it is that is passing around.

Three more sleeps and we will head for home. Trusting the airlines have recovered from the outage last week and we will be fairly close to being on time. Our first flight leaves at 6:50 AM so will have to be at the airport two hours before that. Betting our transportation will leave the hotel around 4:00 that morning. We arrive in KC at 5:34 PM. If all goes smoothly I should be home by 9:00 Wednesday night.

These tours always make me realize how very privileged I am. It is fun to meet people from all over and spend time with them. There are a couple on this trip that I would like to stay in touch with. We shall see if that happens.

It has been good for me to sit down Love in Action for a couple of weeks. I trust by the time I get home I will find I am recharged and ready to deal with the passing out of the Go Bags and whatever that brings with it. I really haven’t given them much thought.

Grateful for another day of safe bus travel, grateful for the sunshine today, and grateful to have found a wonderful lunch.

This has been a quiet day aboard ship. I skipped the trip to Regensburg. It was sunny and almost warm here today and when Nicole came back from Regensburg she said the sun didn’t come out until it was almost time to leave and it was a cold walking tour, I made the right choice for me to stay behind today.

I did take a walk with one of the other guests to the downtown area of Vilshofen, Germany. It was a sleepy little village with not a lot of people out and about. It was a lovely walk though and felt good to be out in the sunshine. I had to take my hat off as I got too hot walking.

Tonight is our last night on board the Monarch Queen ship. We sail tonight from Vilshofen back to Passau and will disembark in the morning and head by bus to Pilsen and then Prague. I think it will take most of the day to get there as we are spending several hours in Pilsen.

Monday and Tuesday we will have lots of free time and for some reason no planned group dinners. That is a bit unusual but I am wondering if they found by this time in a group tour most of the people do their own thing and a group dinner is not worth it.

I went down to dinner but didn’t eat. I went around to a few tables to bid good bye to some of the guests that I had gotten to know a bit. We did run into one guest on this trip that had been on our tour in India and Nepal so you never know if you will see them again.

We are to have rain on Tuesday in Prague. Maybe the forecast will change and it will miss us. It is to be a high of 50 though so that is good.

We are being offered a 50% off coupon if we book another European River Cruise by the end of the year. We don’t have to take the cruise for two years. I would go on another River Cruise as I found it to be a very comfortable way to travel. This cruise got interrupted due to the low water levels and we ended up spending way more time on buses than originally planned.

This tour director was the worst one I have ever experienced. He was very disorganized and made lots of verbal mistakes as he spoke. When he announced the 50% off special he said on any Gate 1 Cruise. Someone from the audience quickly asked if he meant any European Cruise. He said well of course, that is what I said which is not what he said.

Onward and upward tomorrow. We check into our final hotel tomorrow evening and will be there three nights before we start our marathon travel day on Wednesday. It will be good to be home.

Europe is easy to travel in as you can country hop and not worry about immigration or customs. However, I never feel like I am really in a foreign country when I come to Europe as so many speak English and the culture is so similar to American culture. I also like that you can get here with only an 8 hour flight as opposed to say India where the flight was much longer.

I do want to go somewhere warmer if we travel again in November. I am not a fan of cold weather!

It has been a great adventure and I got to experience six more countries. They all began to look and feel the same to me although the languages changed some as well as the currency. We used four different types of currency on this trip. I was surprised that the Euro wasn’t accepted in all the countries yet.

I am mostly packed and ready to transfer to a different hotel tomorrow. We have to be on the bus by 8:15 so it will be a fairly early morning. I think they have 15 different departures happening after the cruise is over. Trusting the bags will all get sorted out and loaded on the proper buses.

Grateful for this experience to visit six different countries in Europe, grateful for this time with Nicole, and grateful to have gotten to experience a river cruise.

Good thing my iPad tells me what day of the week it is because at this point I have no idea. All the cities and sites are starting to run together and I have no idea where I am.

This morning we left for Salzburg by bus at 8:15. We rode until around 10:00 when we stopped at Moon Lake which had a nice restaurant, bathrooms and gift shop. We had a 30 minute break and then rode on into Salzburg.

The scenery on the trip was amazing. The fall leaves have peaked in color but are still hanging on. Lots of green pastures, rolling hills, and the mountains had a light dusting of snow on them – it looked like someone sprinkled powder sugar on them.

Our tour guide for Salzburg was the most delightful woman. She said she was our mother for the day and if we needed anything she would see that it got taken care of. Nicole asked to be shown a pharmacy and she remembered when we were downtown to point one out to her.

One of the things she said as she was describing some sort of Austria famous dessert was “you have to carry some time with you”. What a great way of saying be patient! She would tell a joke and then be the last one laughing at her own joke. She really made today fun.

I liked Salzburg. It is a town of about 150,000 people but it felt smaller than that to me. It is the site where most of the Sound of Music was filmed and our guide made sure to point out any spots we were in or close to and how it was used to make the film. It is also the birthplace of Mozart.

We had lunch at the Mozart Cafe. Not sure I would recommend it or eat there again. The wait staff was very busy and not exactly responsive. We walked in the same time another man from the tour did, tables were scarce so we invited him to sit with us. He was most impatient and rude to the wait staff and they mirrored back his attitude.

Nicole got the waiter to smile when we gave our order and I got him to smile when we left. I had a hot chocolate and the Austria famous dessert. Since we had been warned it would take 30 minutes to fix I ordered it with my cup of soup. I was served the hot chocolate quickly followed by the dessert. I finally got my cup of soup last.

Four other people from the tour came in and I ended up sharing the dessert with them. I really didn’t care for it and Nicole wasn’t impressed either. The soup was not what I expected but it wasn’t bad if I dipped the bread in it and ate it that way. Sometimes you pick a winning place and other times not so much.

I did find a pair of gloves and a hat to replace the ones I lost way back in Warsaw.

We saw the sun today! I had expected it to be really cold today but it warmed up more than expected and this afternoon the sun showed up. We saw a beautiful sunset on the way home.

Our cruise ship sailed today so we went back to a different city than the one we left from this morning. We are sailing now and will be in a new place in the morning.

I am not going to go on the tour of Regensburg tomorrow. It is another long bus ride and I need a day of quiet and rest to prepare for disembarkation and travel to Prague on Sunday.

Our tour guide said we won’t be sailing all the way to Regensburg but he really didn’t explain what that did to our schedule for Sunday. He is long on stories that have nothing to do with anything and short on tour details. I guess we find out when we find out.

I didn’t get much to eat at lunch so went to dinner tonight to get some more protein. I had about half of a chicken breast for dinner. It was well prepared and tasted good. I didn’t stay for dessert and I think they are playing some sort of game followed by a dance party. That will happen way past my bedtime!

We have one more full day on board and then Sunday we disembark and head to Prague. We stay at the same hotel in Prague for three nights. Wednesday we will have a very early departure for the airport to start our long travel day home. We fly from Prague to Brussels, then from Brussels to Chicago and finally from Chicago to KC. We should land early evening Wednesday. All that travel gets to happen in one very long day thanks to time changing backwards all the way home.

What an adventure this has been. I felt rested this morning and was able to keep up all day. I’m grateful I have learned how to practice good self-care and have slowed down when I needed to so I could really enjoy the trip.

Grateful to get to see the beautiful city of Salzburg, grateful for a very fun tour guide today, and grateful for this river cruise experience.

We got to cruise today! Found out last night that we will be cruising from now on. It is a comfortable way of getting from one place to another.

This morning we had to have our luggage set out by 7:00 and then be ready to leave the ship we were on by 8:00. We set our bags out about 6:45 and then went and had breakfast. After breakfast we went back to our room and waited until 7:45 to go to the lobby.

We walked from the boat we were leaving onto the new boat. Unfortunately our rooms weren’t ready so we had to wait in the reception room. Nicole went into the small town we were docked at but I stayed on the ship. It was only 40 degrees out and very foggy.

Around 10:30 everyone that had gone to town came back and we set sail around 10:45. We got into our rooms around 11:30 and then had lunch at 1:00.

At 2:00 we left to go to Melt Abbey which was a 7 minute bus ride from the dock. The Abbey was huge – we only saw about 1/10 of it. It is used as a school and a home for the monks. There were books written centuries ago as well as other artifacts. I guess they have quite a storage of other things too. The architecture of the building inside and out was worth the tour alone. The floor was inlaid and was stunning. The ceilings were masterpieces too.

We had a great tour guide that had a delightful sense of humor. At one point he was telling us about some guy that was given a goblet of poison he had to drink. When he touched the goblet it exploded and saved his life. The people felt it was a sign from God. The guide said if that happened today instead of the goblet exploding it would be the US mid term elections! Love this guy!

After the tour of the Abbey we rode the bus back to the boat and we set sail again.

Nicole is starting to come down with the crude that many on the tour now have. She has a slight temperature and a deep cough. She feels bad for a bit, gains her energy back and does well for a bit, and then repeats. Luckily one of the other guests had some NyQuill and Day Quill that she gave her. Hoping she can sleep tonight and feel better tomorrow.

We will look tomorrow while we have some free time in Salzburg for some decongestants. I forgot my Prilosec and need something for my acid reflux. My tummy doesn’t like all the foreign food I am putting in it.

We leave for Salzburg tomorrow morning at 8:00. We will have a two-hour bus ride to get there. We are to be back at the boat by 5:00 and the ship will sail to Vilshofen, Germany in the evening.

The high for tomorrow is to be 43 so it will be a cold one. We shall see what happens and if we have options to drop out of the walking tour and find someplace warm to sit in for a bit.

Our tour director is the worst one I have ever had. He mixes up the times, forgets to give us details, and is rude if you ask him a question. He has a huge group to herd and we are usually all in a state on confusion due to his mixing of times and places.

It is nice that we are finally able to experience the moving of the ship and not having to spend so much time on a bus. Tomorrow will be another long bus day with over four hours on it but we didn’t spend much time on the bus today. They only give us details one day at a time so hard to know what the next day will bring until it is here.

We sat with some different people for lunch. Two were from Canada and two were from California. We had an interesting conversation. I tried to talk the couple from Canada to let me have their PM in exchange for our President. They wouldn’t agree to that deal but were very proud of their PM.

Nicole is at dinner but I am skipping it tonight. I can’t eat three meals a day and if I eat too late I can’t sleep.

I’m ready to take a shower and go to bed early. I woke up early this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. I had slept too much yesterday. I am finally feeling rested for the first time in a long time. This trip has been good for my soul.

Grateful to see an Abbey and its beauty, grateful the ship is moving, and grateful for a fun tour guide today at the Abbey.

Thought of my dad today on this Veteran’s Day. He was proud of his service in the Army during WWII. He dropped out of high school to join the Army. It caused him life long lung issues. Thought of my sister Kathy too as she too served as a nurse in the Army just after she graduated from nursing school in 1972.

We were to have had a city tour of Vienna today. I went down to eat breakfast and got part way through it and all of a sudden had tummy issues again. I made the decision to stay behind and am grateful I did as I beat a path to the bathroom for a couple hours. I skipped lunch and finally felt better late afternoon.

I stayed in my cabin most of the day. I skipped lunch and took two naps.

I managed to eat some dinner and then Nicole and I and two bus loads of our new friends went to a classic concert. They had a 7 piece orchestra, 2 ballet dancers and 2 opera singers. It was a delightful concert.

It started sprinkling on us as we boarded the bus for the concert and was still sprinkling when we came out.

We found out this evening that after we board our next ship tomorrow, we will actually get to cruise for the last three days. We are cruising this evening to our next port. The ship goes rather slowly so the motion awareness is not too high but I do feel it. The engines are fairly quiet – there is a slight hum in the background.

Tomorrow we have to have our bags out at 7:00 and then we have to be off this ship by 8:00. We can’t get on board the next ship until 10:30 and our rooms won’t be ready until 12:30. We are going to spend the morning at a small town and then sit in the common areas of the next ship until the rooms are ready.

After lunch we are supposed to tour an Abby. I will see how I am feeling if I do that or not.

There is a bug of some sort going through the group. Lots of coughing, sore throats, runny noses, etc. Nicole has a sore throat this evening. So far I don’t have those issues – my issues deal with my tummy but that is fairly normal for me.

I enjoyed the bus ride through the city tonight to go to and come back from the concert. It is amazing to me how similar the cities we have seen look. Many were badly damaged during the war and have been rebuilt in the same architecture style. Hard to tell what is new and what is old.

This part of the trip has made me aware of how tired my body was. October was way too busy for me and I was running on fumes. This down time has been just what I needed. I know I am missing sightseeing but the stimulation of that is too much for me to take in. I will continue to pick and choose what I do for the rest of the trip and give my body lots of down time so I can come home rejuvenated and ready to roll.

Grateful for the beautiful music we heard tonight, grateful for a day of almost silence, and grateful we get to actually cruise for a couple of days and reduce the hours we have to spend in a bus.

It has been a drizzly, rainy day in Vienna. We had a side trip to the capital of Slovakia today but I stayed behind. It was a walking tour of the city for three hours followed by two hours of free time. I needed a rest and recharge day.

I had breakfast with Nicole before she left on the tour. I came back to the room and after she left I took a morning nap. While I was napping the guy came to fix our door. It was hard to get it open. He worked on it for a bit, left and then came back a couple times. I just laid in bed and let him do his thing. When he was almost done he came further into the room and set a can of something on the dresser. He turned and found me in bed. I think I scared him. He was very apologetic about coming in the room. I assured him he was OK and no worries.

I sent laundry out to be done today. They said it would take 24 hours to get back but to my surprise they delivered it back before lunch today. Wow, that was fast and easy.

I went to the lounge and had a cup of tea and found the library. You can take a book with you. I found one to read while I drank my cup of tea. Guessing it is common for guests to leave behind books they bring to make more room in their luggage for souvenirs.

At noon I went to the lounge again and had lunch. One of the ladies we have visited with before had stayed behind today as she is getting a cold. We had the nicest lunch while visiting. She was most interested in Love in Action and asked lots of questions. She used to be a flooring contractor so we had owning a business in common.

After lunch I came back to my room, wrote some emails and made a few phone calls. Nicole got back around 4:00 wet and cold. I was glad I had stayed behind.

They had an afternoon tea that we went to. Interesting selection of goodies and I ate enough that I don’t have to go to dinner tonight.

Nicole is off playing darts and is going to the group meeting before dinner to find out what the tour is like tomorrow. If it is a totally walking tour I probably won’t go again as it is to be rainy again tomorrow. I so much enjoyed a quiet day on the boat without many around. This may be my only opportunity to see Vienna but I will enjoy a quiet day even more.

We have a concert to go to tomorrow night so I will see the city then. We aren’t sure if the concert is before or after dinner. They don’t give us those details until the night before.

I saw a video of the square in Krakow where the shooting took place. They had a silent vigil over the weekend and I guess had more people in the square than ever before. I was with them in spirit as the shooting feels personal since we were just there.

I like river cruise ships much better than the big ones. I can manage the size much better, it is much quieter and lots less people. It has everything I want and need. It doesn’t have the food stations 24/7 but I don’t eat that much right now anyways. They have cookies and coffee and teas available 24/7.

I’m grateful Nicole found a group of other single women to hang with so I don’t leave her stranded alone while I stay behind. She had lunch with the group today and seemed to enjoy it.

We have eight more tour days and then the long day to get home. At least we get home on the same day we leave unlike coming over which we arrived the day after we left. Same travel time, just going back in time going home. The flight from Brussels to Chicago is only two hours according to the ticket.

I think the boat actually moves either tonight or tomorrow. We have been pretty much stationary to this point. We did move once to change positions at the port. I didn’t feel it move though.

Thursday we change to a different cruise ship for three more nights. Then we bus to Prague and have a couple more nights there. We depart a week from tomorrow from Prague to Brussels to Chicago and then to Kansas City.

Grateful all my clothes are clean again, grateful for a restful day on the ship, and grateful for this adventure.

This has been a mixed bag of a day. We only had one night in our hotel so had to set our bags out at 7:00 this morning. After we did that we went down to breakfast. I find buffet’s not too appetizing but managed to find some cold eggs and a roll.

We got on a bus and did a city tour of Budapest. Had a high energy, sweet tour guide for the day. We got off the bus a couple of times to see the sites up close and personal. We walked across the Chain Lock Bridge where lovers put padlocks on the bridge. Walked around the Synagogue and had a pee break at some memorial site. In Budapest if you pee, you pay. $1 to use the toilets.

The best part of the day was lunch. Two other ladies joined us and we found a delightful cafe and had beef stew. Nicole and I shared a plate. I also had a cup of hot chocolate that was the best hot chocolate I have ever had. It made up for the cup last night that didn’t have any chocolate.

After we ate we walked around the Hall for a bit and looked at all the things. There was a meat market with all sorts of meats that looked disgusting to me – lamb’s heads, boar heads, etc. One of the ladies knew about a treat called chimney cake. It was kinda like a donut but in an open shape. I had one bite and it was delicious. You can get them plain or filled with cream and different flavors. We had a cinnamon sugar one. It would be really rich if you added other things to it.

I wish we had had more time in the market as we really didn’t get to look at all the wares they were selling.

After that we got on the bus and were driven to Vienna, Austria. It was a long four plus hour drive with one potty stop that we had to pay $1 to use the facilities.

Crossing the borders to different countries is a breeze. We did go through security checks but didn’t get stopped.

We finally got to our cruise ship around 5:15. The check-in process went fairly smoothly and it didn’t take too long for them to bring our luggage to the room. Our room is a bit smaller than a normal hotel room and the shower is about half the size of a normal shower but lots of closet and dresser space. We get to stay here for three nights.

We had a safety meeting at 6:15. We sat towards the back and could barely hear the tour guide talking. We yelled for them to turn it up but nothing happened. When he would talk with the mic close to his mouth we could kinda hear him but he kept forgetting to do that.

I finally had enough and left. No use sitting and not getting anything out of it. I mentioned to the desk person we couldn’t hear and in five minutes told me all I needed to know.

When I got to my room the light to the door would come on but I couldn’t get the door to open. I went back to the front desk and someone came with me. He had trouble getting it open too. He said he would report it to maintenance.

I am skipping dinner tonight as I am not hungry and if something else was to go wrong I might explode. I am in time-out for a bit.

The housekeeping guy just came to the door to ask if I needed anything for the night. I asked for two more towels and got two bottles of water. ……. One of those types of days.

I didn’t sleep much again last night and know I am cranky due to lack of sleep. Two nights in a row I only got about two or three hours of sleep. I found it impossible to sleep on the bus.

I’m sure that if I can get a good night’s sleep it will be a better day tomorrow.

I am sending off a big bag of laundry I need done tomorrow so it will be back the next day. That should do me till I get home. I may need to have a couple shirts washed as I purposely left three behind in hotel rooms. They are way too big for me and I didn’t want to bother taking them home. I forgot I might need to wear them one more time on this trip.

Budapest is a beautiful old city. The architecture is amazing and I wish we could have had the time to go into some of the churches. We only had a three hour tour of the city and barely got to see the highlights. One could spend several days here seeing it all.

Tomorrow we are to go to Bratislava for a tour. It is a bus ride of 1 1/2 hours. I will probably stay behind. I am peopled out and need a rest day. Not sure I can handle being in a bus for three hours tomorrow. We have an even longer bus ride the next day.

We ran into a lady that was on our tour last year when we went to India and Nepal. How weird is that? She wasn’t one of my favorites from that trip but we talked for a few minutes. She is a nurse in a prison back east and takes three to four big trips a year.

I think I will take a shower and go to bed. Nicole is at dinner. We have met a few other women that she is having dinner with. I just couldn’t go tonight.

I will continue to practice good self-care and take care of myself and make this trip into what I need.

I am not at all impressed with the Gate One Tour Guide for this part of the trip. He is inpatient and almost rude when I have talked to him. Nothing is his fault and there is nothing he can do to make it right. Wonder why he is here then?

I am cranky and tired. Time to go to bed and wake up and remember how blessed I am to have this experience. I need to lower my expectations and get into the flow.

Grateful for a safe bus journey today, grateful to get to see Budapest, and grateful for a fun lunch.

This has been a long day on the bus. We left at 8:00 this morning and got to Budapest, Hungary a little after 4:00. We had three stops, the first for 30 minutes, the lunch stop was one hour and a potty stop for 15 minutes.

We started the day in Krakow Poland and had breakfast at the hotel before boarding the bus. We had lunch in Slovakia and had dinner in Hungary. We did a three country trifecta today!

There was a hard freeze last night and it was down right chilly when we boarded the bus. It was a good day to be inside most of the day.

Our first stop was at an old wooden church in Slovakia. The church is not heated but luckily the bathrooms were. The church had painted panels on the ceiling and walls that were beautiful. It was a simple church with not so much gold. They had just finished a mass when we got there.

We had lunch at some restaurant in Slovakia. I was impressed that they fed 40 people in under an hour and had a huge menu to choose from. I had a chicken thigh that was on a potato salad. I ate the chicken thigh but not the potato salad. The potato salad was whole, baby potatoes with all sorts of spices on them.

We got to the hotel in Budapest just after three big buses had unloaded. It was a bit of a wait to get checked in. Our room wasn’t ready and they asked us to come back in 10 minutes. Nicole went back after 10 minutes and it still wasn’t ready. They asked us to give them 10 more minutes.

This time I went up and the young man said the room still wasn’t ready. He asked if he could upgrade us to a suite with two bedrooms. I’ll take that deal any day!

Our room is big. The second bed is a pull out couch in the living room of the suite but that works. We are only here for one night.

We went down to the bar before our meeting was to start at 6:00. I ordered a hot chocolate. It took them about 15 minutes to make it and when I finally got it and tasted it I think they forgot to put in the chocolate. I took a couple sips of the whipped milk and called it good.

We went into our group tour meeting. So far I am not impressed with our tour guide. Tonight three or four separate groups all came together. The guide gave us our instructions for tomorrow. We have to have our luggage outside our door by 6:30. We are to be on our bus at 8:00 and will be taken on a tour of the city. We are to be done by 11:30 and then will be given some cash for lunch. The bus will pick us up at 1:00 and we will be driven to Vienna, Austria where we will get aboard our first river cruise ship. We will spend three nights on that ship and then be bused to another ship for three nights.

We had a buffet dinner after the guide finally shut up. The food was so so. I am not a big fan of buffets.

Not sure what the agenda on the boat will be. The boat will move once during the three day period but we will mainly be bused to our daily destinations.

The scenery today was beautiful. We went through some mountains – their highest point is a little over 8,000 ft. There was snow on the peaks but we didn’t get close to it. The trees were still showing their fall colors although the leaves are starting to thin out. The road was curvy in lots of places.

We had a great bus driver and he made driving and backing up the bus look easy and smooth.

We tipped the bus driver and our first tour guide when we arrived at the hotel in Budapest as we won’t be seeing them again.

The original plan was for us to board the cruise ship today and be on it for seven nights. They are continuing to experience a severe drought and the river is too low for the ships to cruise all the way. Gate 1 is trying to do their best to give us the experience without the cruise part. I am tired of buses but will have to get over that as I still have lots of bus trips ahead of me.

Had trouble sleeping last night and am a bit cranky tonight. Hoping a good night’s sleep will fix what ails me. My tummy was a bit upset today but I think it has finally calmed down.

Need to get my bath and get to bed. It will be an early morning tomorrow and another four hour bus ride.

Grateful for this chance to visit new to me countries, grateful how easy it is to go from one country to another, and grateful today’s long bus ride is over.

Last night at dinner I went down with Nicole so she could get a second glass of wine (my serving). I wasn’t hungry so wasn’t going to stay for the dinner. However, the two that sat across from us were fun to talk to and we got into a great conversation with them. I ended up sitting through the whole dinner so I could continue the conversation. Love when that happens.

This morning we were scheduled to do a tour of Krakow on the bus and then a walking tour of Old Town. Buses can’t operate in Old Town so we were going to have to walk back to the hotel, which is a 10 – 15 minute walk.

It was 34 degrees out this morning so I opted to stay at the hotel and not go on the tour. Nicole came back cold! I was glad I had stayed warm and toasty.

We walked across the street to get a quick lunch before we left on our afternoon tour. We ended up eating at McDonald’s. It was a bit slow but the food was hot and fresh.

Our afternoon trip was to Auschwitz’s, the largest concentration and death camp of WWII. It took about 1 1/2 hours of driving to get there. We had to stand in line for a bit to get in and then were met with a tour guide.

We started the tour and hadn’t gone too far when all of a sudden I got very hot. I felt like I was going to get sick. I decided I better turn around and not go any further. Our tour guide walked me to the exit and then went back to join the group.

I found a warm place to sit and wait for the group to come back. My tummy did its thing for a bit but there was a bathroom close. By the time the group came back I felt better.

We then took a short bus ride to another part of the camp and I was able to complete that tour. We saw the barracks where the prisoners were held. We also saw the bathroom barracks that they had to use. Imagine 100 holes back to back down a long row. There were three long rows of holes cut into the wooden bench. They were given about 1 minute twice a day to use the toilets.

We also saw the sleeping quarters where they slept 6 – 8 to a bed that were smaller than a king sized mattress. It was a humbling experience.

After we finished the tour, we had a long bus ride home. On the ride home we were told about the attack that happened in the Old Market this afternoon in Krakow. Some person drove through shooting and killed six people and injured 12 others. They are not allowed to have guns in this country except for hunting guns. So far they don’t know the motive or nationality of the person that did the shooting. They are very close to Ukraine so it may be somehow connected to the War that is happening there. Nicole was in that Market place this morning…….

It was a hard day. Seeing up close and personal the extreme cruelty that humans are capable of is challenging, to say the least. And to think we have not yet learned how to live with those that have different beliefs and the cruelty continues. And to think that many people do not know this occurred and while it was happening, did not speak up.

It is hard to know what to do with the images that are in my mind tonight. All I can do is pledge to live my life differently and to speak up to the injustices that I witness. I feel small tonight.

I have been surprised at the lack of racial diversity that I have seen in Poland. The very vast majority of people that we have seen are white.

Tomorrow we spend most of the day in the bus driving to Budapest, Hungry. We will spend tomorrow night in a hotel in Budapest and then the next day get on our cruise ship that I don’t think will be cruising.

This trip is proving to be an adventure……

Grateful for our safety tonight, grateful for those that work to tell the stories of the past, and grateful for my loved ones tonight.

We had an early start to the day as our bags had to be outside our room by 6:30. We got up at 6:00 and set the bags out on the way down to breakfast. We left the hotel at 7:30 and had a long day on the bus on our way to Krakow, Poland.

We stopped at a highway rest area. There was a McDonald’s but I didn’t walk over to it. We went into the petro store. They don’t sell Diet Coke here – I tried a Coke Zero but never again. I took two sips and had to throw the rest away. Gas is over $7 a liter of gas here. Not sure how they afford to drive.

Our first stop of the day was at the Jasna Gora Monastery where there is a Black Madonna icon. This is a very popular stop in Poland with millions of pilgrims from all over the world coming to see it yearly. We got lucky and it wasn’t crowded today.

We had a local tour guide take us into the chapel where the icon is. They were conducting mass and at the appropriate time we were able to walk up to the side of the altar and see the icon. They were still having mass but evidently expect tourists to go through during mass.

We were told that many that come as a pilgrimage walk on their knees as they approach the Madonna. Reminded me of the cathedral in Santiago, Spain where people end their Camino walk by walking on their knees into the Cathedral.

The outer part of the church was adorned with lots of gold as was the alter itself. I had seen another Black Madonna in Brazil. I liked that one better.

They have 100 monks who live in the Monastery. There were lots of nuns and priests coming and going. It felt like a sacred spot and there were plaques commemorating the miracles of healing that have happened here. Not being Catholic, I’m not sure I understood all of the meaning of the place.

A stole the Pope was wearing when there was an attempt to kill him was hanging by the icon on the alter. It still had his blood on it. I think he was the Pope that was from Poland and is still revered to this day.

It was a foggy day all day today. It felt like snow can’t be too far away. I swear I could smell snow in the air today. It wasn’t too cold if you weren’t in the wind.

We didn’t get a lunch stop today. I had a chicken stick that I ate as well as a local candy bar the tour guide passed out for us.

After another bus ride of a little less than two hours we got to our hotel in Krakow. About an hour after we checked in, Nicole left to go on the optional tour of a salt mine. I stayed behind and took a nap and went down and had dinner. There is a group dinner tonight at 8:00 but that is way too late for me to eat. I promised Nicole I would go down and get a glass of wine for her and then I will come back up to the room.

Tomorrow we have a mainly walking tour of the City. I am thinking I might skip that. A little before lunch we have an optional tour of Auschwitz. I guess that will take most of the afternoon as it is over an hour bus ride away. We have dinner on our own tomorrow night when we get back from Auschwitz.

Sunday we have a long bus ride to Budapest, Hungry where our River Cruise begins. I don’t think the cruise ship will be leaving dock but we will be using it as a hotel for three nights. After that we bus to another River Cruise ship and do the same thing for another three nights.

The countryside was beautiful with the fall colors. They have a lot of aspen trees whose leaves were shimmering in the light wind. It was mainly flat with a few small hills and valleys. I saw lots of farm land but no animals in pastures.

Smooth trip so far. Still haven’t found many others to talk to. I am not good with small talk and I haven’t heard any discussions get beyond that yet.

This trip doesn’t feel quite as foreign to me as the trip to India and Nepal did. Although you hear different languages being spoken, one doesn’t see a lot of diversity in the color of the people around you.

What a privilege it is to travel the world. We were told about their education system and healthcare system today. For a long time, their public schools have been regarded as much better than the private ones. College is free as is the public schools. Healthcare is provided through their taxes they pay. Maternity leave is paid for one year and then you can take a second year without pay and your employer must bring you back to your job at the same level and wage. If you have a premature baby, your paid time is extended for the amount of time the baby is in the hospital. Why can’t the USA get its act together and offer the same?

The hotel rooms so far look like I am in the USA. They even have wash cloths most of the time. Nicole went to the workout room yesterday and was impressed with what they offered. Hard to know I am in a foreign country over 4,500 miles from home.

I was surprised to see that they drive on the same side of the road as Americans do. I thought all of Europe reversed that.

More grand adventures tomorrow.

Grateful for a safe travel day on a bus, grateful for a quiet afternoon in my room, and grateful to experience a different way of living on this planet we share.

We went on a short bus tour of the city of Warsaw, Poland today. Learned a lot about its history and found out why it looks so modern. Most of the city was destroyed during WWII. They have done a wonderful job rebuilding and recreating the old while blending in the new.

I am impressed with how clean the city is. That seems to be important to them. People have been friendly and courteous to us. Traffic was tight in places but it doesn’t have the feel of being a city of over 1 million people.

We had a city guide today that had a wicked sense of humor. Our bathroom break was a Shakespeare break – To pee or not to pee – that is ………. I don’t think a lot of the group got his humor but Nicole and I were laughing most of the tour.

At one point we were at a monument that represented the plight of the Jewish people and their life in a Ghetto. They were at times given a chance to get out of it and they could bring one suitcase of belongings. Of course they were tricked and taken to the gas chambers but man did that hit me when I heard that again today. Our Detainees can take one suitcase of belongings with them as they are deported to a place that may well be their own type of gas chambers for some of them.

We ended the tour in Old Town as they call it. Found a delightful restaurant to have lunch in. I like that their food is mostly recognizable and not too spicy but is flavorful. We walked back to our hotel after lunch and spent a quiet afternoon in our room. There was an optional tour to see a castle but that isn’t really my thing.

We went to the hotel restaurant for dinner. I skipped eating as I was still full from lunch. Nicole had some soup and fries.

Tomorrow is an early day. We have to have our luggage outside our door at 6:30 and we leave on our bus ride at 7:30. We are going about 200 miles to our next hotel. There is an optional tour of a salt mine in the afternoon. Nicole signed up for that but I will get a couple hours of quiet time in the hotel.

It was a beautiful day here today. Our guide said that by now they have usually had their first snow fall of the season but so far this year no snow. I think it reached the lower 50’s this afternoon with bright blue skies. They told us it was most unusual to have a day like this so late in the year. It is to get colder as the week moves on but we are moving on too. Not sure what we will be running into weather wise as the trip progresses.

I got a quote from one of the insurance companies I am working with to get liability insurance for Love in Action. The only problem is for some reason it came in Polish and I have no idea what the numbers or words are. We tried several different things to try to get it back into English but no luck. I sent an email to the agent but the email bounced as the server was too busy. I will try to open the email tomorrow on a different server and see what happens. It might be interesting to see it in several different languages as our travels continue. I have never had that happen before.

Had trouble getting a text message to my sister go through. It finally went. Maybe their technology is at a different level than I am used to. I tried both via internet and my international phone service and both struggled. I am not a techie so have no idea what or where the problem is.

There are about 30 people on the tour. Most are couples but there are two single women plus Nicole and I. It is a big group but so far all have been on time. We haven’t found anyone to hang with but the tour is still young. One of the fun parts of a group tour is getting to meet people from all over. So far there has been no political conversations. Most seem to be very privileged retired white people and most have done lots of traveling.

Still processing in my head the results of the election. Holding my breath that the governor’s race goes to Cindy. It gives me hope that we can start turning things around. I wonder what it will do to the demand for Go Bags. Wouldn’t it be nice if that demand disappears? I can’t count on that completely but it will be interesting to watch what happens. Gives me a bit of breathing space to entertain the possibilities.

Grateful for this time with Nicole, grateful for a quiet afternoon, and grateful for the resilience of the human spirit.

We have arrived in Warsaw, Poland. The flight from Chicago to Munich was over nine hours long. We boarded early and then they were delayed about 30 minutes from departure. So we were on the plane 1 1/2 hours without going anywhere.

The service on the plane was good. Fortunately the plane was not sold out and we both had an empty seat next to us. That always helps. I didn’t hear any crying children either which is a plus.

I had a fun flight attendant. She was lifting one of the heavy luggage compartments and I asked what that did to her back. She said her back was fine but she was just back from being off from breaking her hand and her arm in a pickleball accident back in July. We talked about that a bit. Later in the flight I asked how her arm was holding up.

From then on, every time she saw me she said hi friend. I went to the back once to go to the restroom and she was on the other side of the plane and hollered hi to me.

When I de boarded she said “bye, my new friend”. I like when I can make a brief connection with someone.

We were an hour late getting to Munich due to the late start and heavy headwinds. We only had a two-hour layover and had a long walk to get through passport control and then to the new gate. Passport control was a breeze but it was a manual machine and for whatever reason I could not get it to read my fingerprints. There was no one around so we finally gave up.

Later on our walk we ran into actual passport control agents where they had me try my fingerprints again. She had trouble reading them too but took my picture and waved us through.

We ended up still having to wait about 30 minutes for our flight to Warsaw. That plane was packed to the gills. They made us check our luggage at the gate. I finally fell asleep on that flight and slept for most of the 1 plus hour flight.

We got off and by the time we got to the luggage carousel my bag was already coming down. Nicole’s came down shortly after that and we headed out.

No passport control or customs to go through. We found our tour group person and she took us to the bus that would take us to our hotel. We had about a 30 minute bus ride through Warsaw to get to our hotel. It looks like a clean, modern city from what we saw with some older buildings mixed in.

We were lucky and were able to gain access to our room immediately. It was nice to lay down on the bed for a bit.

I had worn compression socks and my ankles had not swelled up. But above the socks my knees and thighs and even up to my gut were swollen. Pick your poison I guess!

Nicole and I both took a two hour nap. Luckily we had set our alarms so we could get up for our group dinner tonight.

I got up and took a shower and put on fresh clothes. I feel like a new person!

It will be good to eat tonight. They fed us breakfast on the flight from Munich at some point this morning. All I ate was part of a carton of milk and two bites of a roll. I think I will feel better after I get some food in me.

Tomorrow morning our day starts at 8:30 with a bus tour of the city with some stops along the way. Neither of us signed up for the afternoon optional tour so we will have a free afternoon and evening. That sounds like heaven – a couple hours awake and I don’t have to be around people!

This grand adventure is off to a good start. All the flights were almost on time, our luggage arrived and we are settled in to our home away from home for two nights. All is well!

Grateful for a fun connection with a flight attendant, grateful for safe travels on our over 4,500 mile trip, and grateful food is next up on the agenda.

I am sitting on an airplane just outside Chicago. We got a late takeoff and are headed into strong head winds that will make our arrival in Munich delayed. We only had a two-hour layover in Munich so it will be a run for the hills type of layover to make our flight from Munich to Warsaw. Maybe there are enough on this flight that they will hold the flight for us.

Had trouble finding sleep last night. Was going over in my head what I had packed and tried to remember what I might have forgotten. I kept reminding myself that we are not going to a third world country and the places we are going will have whatever I might need.

Left my house at 8:25 this morning and went to Nicole’s house. Had some heavy rain in places on the drive up. The clouds were beautiful to watch and luckily it didn’t rain all the time.

Nicole’s husband Geoff drove us to the airport. We walked right in through the security lines. No wait at all. The workers all seemed to be in a good mood which set the trip off on the right foot. The guy that checked my ID said he had a problem – when I questioned what he said my ID was wrong as there was no way I was that old!

After our very short security lines we had lunch and then went to our gate. We decided I would ask if I could use the pre boarding privilege. They told us they accept any who ask. It was nice not to have to rush to get on the plane and we were able to take our time and have lots of room for our carry-on bags.

We had a three hour layover in Chicago. Got on this plane at 5:00 and didn’t take off until 6:45. Long time sitting for the plane to move before an eight almost nine hour flight.

I am attempting to get liability insurance for Love in Action for our new storage space. The insurance lady sent me an email asking all sorts of questions about Love in Action and wanted me to type out a response. Since I had time I called her and we talked through the answers. Much easier than answering via typing. She is going to work on the application and said she would probably have more questions but the rest of them should be easy to answer via email. I haven’t heard from the other agent yet but he told me it would be a couple of days.

We land in Warsaw sometime their time tomorrow afternoon. We should be able to get checked into our rooms when we get to the hotel. We have our first tour group meeting at dinner tomorrow night. Hoping I can catch some sleep on the flight. Sometimes I can and sometimes I can’t. I think the time difference will be seven hours but not sure. The bed will feel mighty nice tomorrow night though.

I can’t keep the agenda in my head as to what we will be doing and going. There is something about names of places that don’t stick with me. I’m glad I have an agenda packed away that I can look at each day that will give me a bit of a clue where I am going and what I will be seeing. History and geography just aren’t my thing.

Wherever we go and whatever we do, it will be an adventure!

Grateful for this time with Nicole, grateful for the magic that happens when you fly to an international destination, and grateful I can manage without a lot of sleep.

This has been a busy day. I got up early to make a phone call with someone that knows insurance. I may need to find general liability insurance for Love in Action for the place where we might be getting storage and workspace. He gave me a couple recommendations and is forwarding the information to someone he knows that might be able to help me. I have sent a couple of emails about the insurance but nothing is settled yet.

I went back to bed for a bit. I had trouble falling asleep last night and needed some more sleep.

I went to Emporia and had lunch with Jason and Michelle. That is becoming a regular habit for us to have lunch together weekly – I like that!

Stopped and got my hair cut at Great Clips and then stopped and filled the car with gas and then headed home. It rained on me off and on all the way home.

Have been doing lots of little things to get ready to leave tomorrow. I hadn’t heard back from Costco about the cheesecake I need the week of Thanksgiving so I called. I’m glad I did as I was told the bakery manager had a baby and didn’t check her emails. Wonder why they don’t have someone do that for her? Anyways the general manager told me to send him the information and he would take care of it. Sure glad I called and followed up or we might not have had cheesecake for the Detainees Thanksgiving treat.

Called a utility company about a dividend issue that has been pending for months. They had sent me an email about it but sent it to the wrong email address. Not sure I know what they want me to send. The lady is to talk to her attorney and try to get a clarification. I may have to go to my attorney and send an affidavit of information – that is the best I can do. We shall see where this goes.

Got the Pen Pals figured out for Love in Action. We had a couple new requests come in and I needed to get them all sorted out. I think I have them all covered except for one and I will keep him a bit longer. He is a bit harder to manage and I don’t want to dump him on someone else yet.

Stopped by the Detention Center and picked up a package I had sent there by mistake. Got a chance to talk to the Captain for a hot minute and shared some information about one of the Pen Pals with her. She seemed to be aware of him. I trust her completely and know she will do what she can about his situation.

I have started packing. I needed to do some laundry and it is almost done so I can finish that task. I am using packing cubes for the first time. I hope they all fit when I am ready to close up my suitcase. If they do, I think I will like using them. It will keep things much better organized in the bag. We do have to change hotels several times this trip which is always a bit of a pain. I didn’t make a list so hope I don’t forget something. I am not going to third world countries so know if I did I can easily replace it on the trip.

Need to figure out a way to make my black carry on bag stand out. Most of the bags that come down the luggage wheel are black. I will probably throw some colored duct tape on it and hope it sticks. I had done that on my other carry on bag and after eleven years it still has some remaining on it. But that bag was metal and this one is cloth. I will carry it on but there is always a chance that they will gate check it. We have some short flights on the trip and those can be dicey about allowing you to carry on bags.

Have a new backpack for this trip too. It is much smaller than my other one. If I find it is too small I can always switch back to the bigger one. I found the bigger one too big to carry for our day trips while on the trip.

Still need to sort pills and figure out what toiletries I am taking. My pill box is for 14 days and I will be gone 16 so need to sort that out too. Travel days are four of the days so I think I will be OK with only 14 days worth. It gets confusing knowing when to take pills when you skip ahead six to eight hours in a day.

Starting to get a bit excited about the trip. I’m sure I will be more excited when I head to KC in the morning. Too much to do yet today to give the trip much emotion. It takes me what seems to be a lot of work to get away. Every big trip I wonder if it will be my last big trip. Who knows?

I am grateful for international phone service and for internet that will allow me to keep up with emails, etc. One doesn’t feel so far from home when you can still connect relatively easily. It still blows my mind that you can board a plane and within hours (sometimes many hours) you can be in a totally different part of the world when you get off the plane. It still feels a bit like magic to me.

I am ready to set things down that I have been carrying here and allow them to sit for a bit. I know when I come back and get over the jet lag that things will feel differently to me and I will be eager and ready to pick some of them back up again. Some may stay in permanent time-out!

I tend to carry more than my share of things. It is a life long habit to pick things up and I have been working hard to break that habit as it no longer serves me. I slip occasionally though and find myself weighed down with things that are not mine to carry. It is nice to leave all behind once in a while and then consciously choose what to pick back up when I return.

Grateful loops are closing so I can release them, grateful tomorrow our grand adventure begins, and grateful for time with Jason and Michelle today.

This has been a quiet, stay at home type of day. I only went outside once and that was to unload the dog food and cases of water that was in my car that I had gotten several days ago. Grateful that project is taken care of. Our new back door is handy for that job as I can pull my car up close and not have to use the steps to get in the back room.

I mopped the kitchen floor on my hands and knees. It had been a hot minute since I had done that job. I found lots of dirt! Yuck! Realized I need to replace the kitchen mat that is below the kitchen sink. It has more than served its useful life. I found one on Amazon and got it ordered before I forget.

Wrote some more thank you notes and sent a couple needed texts and emails. I am getting closer to being ready to leave Tuesday.

Tomorrow I need to go to Emporia and get a haircut. I am going to have lunch with Jason and maybe Michelle. I don’t think I need to stop and get anything for the trip. Although something might surface between now and then. I need to remember to go by the post office and get Love in Action mail as well as deposit a check at the bank.

I do need to take care of a couple of Pen Pals and an insurance issue with Love in Action tomorrow. I sent some emails to see if people are still interested in being a Pen Pal and I haven’t heard back from them. I will try a couple more people tomorrow and see if I can find some people to handle two Pen PALs.

I still need to type up a list of phone numbers for Kathy. I like leaving the electric company, gas company, water department, internet, and Hulu information for her just in case. I also need to leave some passwords with her in case Netflix and Hulu decide to require her to sign back in again. She watches a lot of TV and I don’t want her not to have that available.

Tomorrow I will do another load of laundry and then pack. I am anxious to see if my new suitcase is about the same size as my other one. I have had the other carry on bag since my walk on the Camino in 2015. The old has gone lots of miles with me but the wheels have lost their rubber and it is hard to push and pull. I hope I remember what I am looking for if my bag has to be gate checked.

It has been nice to have another quiet day at home. I feel myself slowing down and finding all parts of me. It feels like it has been a while since I was able to do that. When I get consumed with a project, it is easy for me to not allow myself to stop and breathe.

My website buddy got the changes made to the website. I need to type up a list of some small changes I want made but that can wait till I get back. He put on a temporary notice that the Go Bags aren’t available until December 1. When he takes that down he can make the other small changes.

I am working on releasing all of Love in Action while I am on vacation. I need a break from it so I can come back with renewed energy and motivation. I am so grateful we have a plan in place to make the next set of Go Bags come together in an easier fashion for me.

One more day and then I leave on my grand adventure. It is probably a good thing I won’t be around to hear the election results as they come in. I’m not sure my nervous system can take it. I truly hope change is in the air. Although I know that even if the Democrats take the House and Senate the real type of change that needs to happen won’t. We need to rebuild our systems from the ground up and make them work for all the people – not just the rich. That type of systemic change isn’t on the horizon yet.

Grateful for a quiet day at home, grateful for a clean kitchen floor, and grateful it is only two more sleeps before the adventure begins.

Happy Halloween! This day is full of memories for me. Craig and I got married in 1979. We got divorced on April Fool’s Day. Hard to forget both of those days!

I had gotten some candy at Walmart that had some sort of juice/jelly candy that was a bit hit. I’m glad it all got taken as it didn’t look good to me. I also had full sized starburst, skittles, etc. Many of my little trick or treaters said you got the good stuff! I think I had about 40 of them. It is after 8:00 so I turned out the light. Sometimes they knock anyways but we will see what happens tonight.

This has been a very quiet day for me. I took the whole day and did absolutely nothing. I took a chair nap and read most of the day. My soul needs to slow down a bit from all the rush and busyness of the last two weeks. It was hard to think about much today and I knew that if I tried to do something it wouldn’t go easy so why try.

I did get a very generous check today for Love in Action. We now have enough money to get supplies for up to 200 bags if needed. What a relief that is. Now I won’t worry about funding for a bit. I have some incredible friends that give so very generously.

I guess I did go to the bank and made a deposit and dropped the thank you notes off at the post office. And I did three loads of laundry, put fresh sheets on my bed and got the clothes folded. That is my complete day!

Tomorrow I need to write some notes about being gone. I like to leave Kathy some written instructions in case the internet goes down or Hulu wants her to reverify the account. I also need to leave phone numbers just in case.

Monday I will do laundry one last time and then pack. I sure hope I have what I need. I think I do. Can’t imagine what I would need that I don’t already have. The temperature over there is low 40’s in the evenings and mid 50’s during the day. Sounds like winter clothes and layers to me. This will be the first time of using my new suitcase. Trusting it is about the same size as my other one as I went 60 days on a trip with the other one and did OK.

I have to be in KC by 10:15 Tuesday morning to start the adventure. The first day is always a long one with the travel. I think we have to do four different flights to get to our first destination of Poland. Fingers crossed that all goes smoothly.

I keep hearing things may pop in the Middle East the day after the election. We will proceed on schedule and deal with what ever happens. I typically don’t live in fear and don’t let it stop me. Anything can happen anywhere you are.

Sitting with many memories in my head tonight. Seeing all the little ones in their costumes and remembering days long gone of my kids and their costumes. What a fun day for the little ones and a great example of how we should be living. Ring the doorbell and get candy without a reason.

Grateful for the big check that came today, grateful for a chair nap, and grateful for a full day of rest.

Taking a break from writing thank you notes by hand. I haven’t written this much for a long time – I have 24 done and five to go. I think I can, I think I can!

This has been a quiet day at home. I didn’t leave the house. I needed a day like this. Am working on the pile of paperwork on my desk and attempting to get it all cleared up. I was way behind on thank you notes and that was my main goal of the day. Almost done!

My website designer came over and we talked about what changes need to happen to the website. I am trusting that he will be able to get them done on a timely matter. I have to have the request for the Go Bags on the website in a timely matter so that project can fly. We shall see if he comes through.

I got the month end report almost done. Just need to add final financial numbers to it. I did some work on that earlier so it won’t take me long to add that information. I hope my numbers add up – some months they do and other months not so much.

Nicole and I talked on the phone today. I need to be at her place a little after 10:00 next Tuesday so we can head to the airport by 10:30 and start this grand adventure. I will get this paperwork done and then I can turn my focus and attention to packing for the trip. I haven’t had time to get excited about it yet.

Tomorrow I need to get some cleaning done. I realized after the house got emptied out yesterday how dirty it is. I can’t leave all of that to Kathy to work on. I always like to clean house before I leave on vacation so I come home to a clean house. I will need to do laundry tomorrow and wash my sheets. Love climbing into bed when the sheets are freshly laundered.

Have a couple of new Pen Pals that I need to assign before I leave. One of them is in a stuck victim place. I may keep him for a bit to see if I can help him get out of the head space he is in. He has had a double trauma happen to him and I can’t imagine how hard it is for him right now. However, he is struggling and is making the situation worse for himself. Can’t say that I blame him but hoping I can help him find a moment of relief.

I have three more full days to get all my stuff done and get into the headspace of travel. What a month October has been for me. I think I existed on mainly adrenaline the whole month with the seven work days. What a relief that the first step of the Go Bag project is in the bag. Once I finish up the thank you notes, I can let that project rest until I get home mid November.

I need to remember to take a deposit to the bank tomorrow. We had some left over quarters I need to deposit as well as someone gave me a cash donation yesterday.

I haven’t started making a list for the trip. I need to start capturing my thoughts about it as they happen along with the rest of the little things I need to do before I leave town. I did sign up for international phone service so I will be able to stay in touch via text, calls and emails while I am gone. Guess if I forget something I can always reach out for help.

Can’t believe it is the end of October already. This month has flown by with all the focus on the Go Bags. It will be interesting to see what December brings.

I haven’t given a thought to Thanksgiving yet. Usually by this time I have my list done and most of the groceries in the house. Think I will put off any thoughts about it until after my trip. Not sure what I want to do this year yet. I will probably cook but at this moment that doesn’t sound fun. Maybe it will feel differently when I get home from vacation.

Daylight savings time ends Saturday night. It will be weird for a bit having it get so dark so early. I sure wish we would pick a time zone and leave it the same all year. It is hard on my body when we change times.

Still sitting with a full heart from all the people that showed up to help with the Go Bags project. As I wrote out the thank you notes, I could picture the person and send them my deepest gratitude for their help. It was an amazing thing to see all the people show up with open hearts and willing hands and they all worked hard getting things done.

Grateful for a quiet day at home, grateful the thank you notes are almost done, and grateful for all the helpers this month.

And the first set of Go Bags are packed, stored and I have my house back! Five volunteers came today and helped sort, count and bag the leftover supplies. One of them was young and she did all the carrying of the totes to the storage shed and carried a bunch of filled backpacks to the car of the lady that is going to store them for me.

While we were working the house got hot. I opened the front door to let some fresh air in. We were in the middle of things and a lady came in the house. I had never seen her before. She asked who is in charge. I identified myself and she handed me a $50 bill. She turned to leave. I asked her name and she said she lives in Manhattan but was raised in Chase County. One of the other people here knew her – I guess they went to school together. She said her name but not sure I captured it. The person that knew her knew her maiden name but not her married name. I will have to see if I can find some information on her so I can send a thank you note.

Did I say I have my house back? Oh my, is it dirty though. I haven’t been able to clean much for the last six weeks as I couldn’t find the floor. Guess I know what I will be doing before I leave on vacation.

When i walked the Camino de Santiago in 2015, one of the things I learned on that walk was how to ask for help. At the end of the day one of my biggest challenges was to find my room for the night. I had pre-booked them and was given a rough map of the town that showed where I was going to be spending the night. I learned early on to find an elder of the community and ask for help finding it. Not one turned me down. Each person I asked took my hand and guided me to my bed for the night. They would then kiss both of my cheeks and wish me Buen Camino and act like I have given them the honor of a lifetime to help me.

Asking for help has served me well these last two weeks. Everyday I needed volunteers I had four, five, six, and even 11 people show up and graciously do whatever I needed them to do so we could get this project done. Not sure I could have done it alone.

Not sure how I will ever pay the people back that helped me though. A thank you note doesn’t seem like enough. I also feel like I have made some new friends. I trust when they have a need they will reach out to me.

My living room feels big to me this afternoon. After living with totes in it for six weeks I had forgotten it really is spacious when it is set like normal.

My desk is still piled with things I need to sort through and deal with before I leave next Tuesday. I have lots of thank you notes to write out too. It is time for the month-end report so need to write that up too. I did call Costco and asked about cheesecake the week of Thanksgiving. They recommended I send an email to the bakery manager and have them set 12 aside for me. I sent the email but haven’t gotten a response back. I will have to remember to follow-up Monday if I haven’t heard back from them by then.

I took the Trick or Treat bags up to the Center this morning. I also took them the razors we had to pull out of the toiletry kits that they wouldn’t allow in the Go Bags. I gave them a man’s and a women’s Go Bag so they can develop a property sheet list for when I take a bag up to check it in. I also gave them the name and phone number of a friend that has agreed to do transports if the need should come up while I am gone. Stopped by the bank and made a deposit while I was out and about and went over and paid my water bill.

Tomorrow I get to turn my attention to cleaning up my desk and taking care of all the things so I can leave on vacation and be caught up. I hope I have freed up some brain cells now that the Go Bags are done so I can start planning for vacation. It has been hard to think about it with the Go Bag project on my mind.

I am one tired puppy. I think I have been running on adrenaline the last two weeks. I am so grateful I have vacation next week and can relax and let all this project go for a bit. Nicole is so good about taking the lead on our trips. I get to follow the leader for a change and totally relax.

Still sitting in amazement of all the people that showed up to help me out these last two weeks. Some of them came several times. I would not have gotten it all done without their help.

Grateful the Go Bags are complete and the leftovers are stored, grateful I got my house back, and grateful it is almost time for vacation.

Day six work day is in the bag – literally as we filled 100 Go Bags today. Oh my! I am one tired puppy again tonight. I am ever so grateful for the helping hands that made this possible. I had six wonderful volunteers today that made quick work of stuffing 100 Go Bags.

Tomorrow more volunteers are coming to help sort and count the leftovers so I will know what needs to be ordered for next go round. The sweat shirts and sweat pants are a mess and need sorted by size. The rest of the things need counted and then bagged so I can reduce the number of totes we have to carry to the storage shed.

I can put seven Go Bags in one tote so I can store 84 of them in my house. A friend is going to take the other 16 and store at her house until we get the storage place. Then I will only have the rack with 12 totes in my house! Hallelujah! Kathy and I are tired to moving totes to get to things in the house. My house is going to fill big after tomorrow and the totes are all moved out.

It will be so good to have everything counted and stored tomorrow. Then I can set this project down until I come home from vacation and start getting the bags in the hands of the Detainees that are being deported.

We still have no idea when we will need the next set of 100. It could be early to mid December or it could be next year. I have no idea what the demand for them will be. I want to set things up so if we have to move quickly for the next set we can.

I look forward to getting more of my brain back. I have been so consumed by this project that I haven’t done much else the last month or so. It will be so good to set it down and free up some brain cells for a bit. My vacation timing is perfect as I need to get totally away from this project and come back fresh and ready to go again.

I woke up early this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. I got up and did some things to get ready for the work day. Got tired again so went back to bed and took a morning nap. I’m grateful I did. My body almost gave out of me this afternoon. It is tired!

Got my water bill from the time I did over 75 loads of laundry. It was about $15 higher than normal. Much cheaper than paying $350 to take everything to a laundromat. I need to remember to get the water bill paid before I leave on vacation.

Didn’t make it to the bank today to make a deposit. Maybe tomorrow I can do that and take the water bill in and get it paid. The water bill is the only bill I have that I have to write a check and either deliver it or mail it. Last time I mailed it, it took three weeks to get there.

Haven’t done anything else today. No plans to do anything else the rest of the day except move totes around. My bed is covered with back packs. May have to sleep on the couch tonight. I have about half of them put into totes and placed in the storage rack. Maybe I will find the energy to do the other half of them. Then again, maybe not.

Just loaded up the back rack with filled Go Bags. We ended up doing 112 bags today. We were over achievers today! Thankful a friend will take them and store them for me. I may not have a bed to sleep on tonight. I’ll have to weigh moving them all off or sleeping on the couch. Right now, the couch wins!

What a day! It is amazing watching women work. They figure things out and work together. I had trouble getting them to stop and take a water break. Man, what would I have done without help?

Grateful for six sets of extra hands and hearts today, grateful the first set of Go Bags are stuffed and ready to go, and grateful this first step is almost put to bed. Actually it has my bed so maybe that is true on two level! Ha!

This has been a stay-at-home day but it was a mental one for me. I needed to figure out the layout for tomorrow’s work day. It is one of those days that I was over thinking things. I finally sat myself down and told myself to let it go. After that I was able to set up a flow for the day that I think will work.

We are going to start with putting together 30 Go Bags for women. I think I will do 15 Medium and 15 X-Large. I have no idea what the demand for sizes will be.

After we get those done, we are going to put together 70 Go Bags for men. 40 will be Medium and 30 will be X-Large. Again, have no idea if that is the right ratio. We will start with that and then put more of different sizes together if we run out of the correct sizes.

Man, I hope it goes smoothly. I think I have it broken out so we won’t run into each other doing our part of it. We shall see what happens.

I finally got a few little things caught up. I feel like I am running two weeks behind on my desk work. I responded to the new Pen Pal that requested help finding an attorney and funds to be put in his commissary account. Those are the two things we are not allowed to do. I don’t know if I will hear back from him or not.

I posted a list of the people that have signed up to accept packages and then sort, wash, fold and return them to the new storage place when we need them. I asked them for their address and phone number. Those that don’t respond, won’t get put to work. I think I have over 25 people volunteer which is way more than I need. How wonderful though that I have a lot to choose from to put into play when needed.

Oops, just saw another item I almost to forgot to set out to put in the bags. Better get my list out and double check that I didn’t forget something else.

Got two more checks in the mail as donations today. Always a good day when that happens. I will have to run to the bank in the morning and deposit them.

I have lots and lots of thank you notes to write. One of my goals before I leave is to get them all caught up. Maybe this weekend I can get that done.

I had asked for some more volunteer to come Thursday to help count all the left overs and help move the totes to the shed. I think there are five people that have signed up for this last minute request. How lucky I am that people are so willing to help.

Have spent most of the day in my head. I don’t like days like that. I feel like I am missing life when I do that. I am not present to what is when I am running tasks in my head. Hoping after Thursday I can get grounded again and stay grounded.

Some lady from the Rapid Response Team called me today. A family had contacted her and have a loved one in Chase County. She wanted me to put funds in his commissary account. I had to tell her we didn’t do that and then she wanted to know what we did if we didn’t do that. I gave her our website address so she can look it up. I did help her understand how family members can schedule visits and send emails. I haven’t heard back from her so hoping that met the family’s needs.

Man, what a project this has come. I’m grateful this first go round is almost bagged. I learned so much about the project and what is manageable and what is not. I’m glad I did it the way I did it as I can give others reasonable expectations of what a task I am asking them to do is like. I am so grateful for the volunteers that are so willing to help. I am thinking next time will be much easier and then as we continue, it will become clockwork easy.

I am ever so grateful I got these out of the way before I left on vacation. It would have been hard to get them all done when I got back, especially with the Thanksgiving holiday in there. Now I can go away and know that they are ready and not carry the project with me to Europe.

Still have lots to do before I leave next Tuesday. I haven’t made a list – maybe I could relax more if I started writing things down so I don’t forget something. It has been hard to even think about the trip until this Go Bag project is completed.

Grateful for a rest day today, grateful for those that are coming tomorrow and Thursday to finish part of this project up, and grateful I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

This has been another whirl wind day. I left the house around 11:00 this morning. I stopped at the bank and deposited some checks and cash.

Stopped and filled my car up with gas when I got to Emporia and then I drove to KC and stopped at Costco. We had run out of candy yesterday and I needed a couple more bags to finish up the Detainee’s Trick or treat bags.

After a quick stop at Costco, I went to Nicole’s house. Nicole and I went to Chili’s for lunch. Service was efficient and the food came out quickly.

It is always a good day when I get to spend some time with one of my kids. We had a nice visit during lunch.

I went to the Memorial Service for a high school classmate. It was like a trip down memory lane to watch the slide show the family put together when they showed the “old” pictures. There was one of Ginny at our High School graduation and one with her two brothers that was taken when Ginny was in Jr. High.

I got to hug her brother Bill and then afterwards I saw one of Kathy’s classmates and got to hug her. Kathy’s classmates two older sisters were there as well. I also got to talk to Ginny’s older sister Jo for a minute after the service.

The trip home afterwards was full of memories for me and the miles flew by – kinda like the years have flown by. I was home before I knew it!

Have worked on finishing up the Trick or Treat bags. I only need to do about 20 more and that project will be complete. I don’t have to have them at the Center until Friday but I might take them up tomorrow just to get three more boxes of stuff out of the house. I am running out of places to stash things.

I haven’t looked at the laundry that was done today by a work team. From the reports I got they had a productive day and it went well. I so appreciate the two that stepped up to lead the charge today and carry on in my absence. They had three helpers and were done by 4:00.

Tomorrow is a free day – at last. Feels like I haven’t had one of those for a bit. I will be busy getting things ready to pack the Go Bags on Wednesday. Still not sure how I am going to set it all up but have a plan in my head. I’m sure I will be on plan F before the day is over.

I put up a request for some helpers on Thursday. I need to get a count of all the leftovers so I know where we stand on supplies. There is the possibility of needing to put together another 100 bags quickly in December and it will be easier to get a count now. I want to combine totes as much as possible because I need at least 10 empty ones to put the completed Go Bags in. I know I will have five from the blankets alone so I think it will be possible. We have a lot of leftovers though which is a good thing.

Man it will be nice when Thursday is over and most of the totes are out of the house and the 100 Go Bags are filled and ready to start handing out when I get home from vacation. This project has consumed me this month.

Had some tummy issues today for a bit. I’m glad they waited to hit until I got to KC. There aren’t a lot of bathrooms on the highway. It finally calmed down. I think I need to try taking one of the new pills a day even if I don’t think I need it. Maybe that would stop them from happening instead of me reacting when they do.

I am very behind on thank you notes and responding to Facebook comments. I have had over 25 people now volunteer to accept boxes of supplies and they will wash them up and deliver them to our new storage place. I need to respond to each of them and make sure I have the information I need from them so I can make that happen. We won’t need that many people each time we do the Go Bags but this way no one will get burned out doing it every month.

Feeling a bit like not all of me got home today. I am not grounded and am feeling very scattered. I’m grateful tomorrow is a quiet day and I can go slow and easy and get ready for Wednesday.

Grateful for a safe trip to and from KC, grateful to see old friends, and grateful for the love and life of Ginny.

Another work day in the bag. This was number four of six. Note to self – never do six work days in two weeks again!

We had a beautiful day to gather and accomplish three tasks today. I think there were 11 that came but not sure I ever counted for sure. Most were people I had never met before which I find exciting.

Our first task was to prepare the trick or treat bags for the Detainees October treat. I guesstimated wrong and will need to pick up another big bag of chocolate candy to finish them off.

Our second task was to fix the hygiene kits. We had to remove the paper that said what was in them as we altered the contents. We took out the dental floss pick in the ladies and added five bandaids. For the men we had to remove the razor, shaving cream, dental floss pick and the paper and add five bandaids.

Our third task was to put duck tape stripes on the backpacks so the staff at the Center can easily find them when they are hanging in the property storage room.

We accomplished all that in less than two hours. We got started a bit late but had some good conversation with lots of questions answered about the Detainees.

I trust everyone left feeling like they had helped with the Go Bag project and their time was well spent. It is nice to have those three projects completed.

I still haven’t put my house back to order yet. I took a chair nap as I was wiped out again. I will work on the house tonight and try to find hiding places for things and at least make a path for the women coming for the fifth work day tomorrow. I won’t be here but I need to make room for them to be able to come in and get the totes full of clothes they are washing and taking care of. Right now I don’t think they can get to them.

I will need to leave around 11:30 tomorrow for KC. I am meeting Nicole at 1:15 for lunch and then going to the memorial service for a high school classmate at 3:00. I will come home after the service.

Tuesday is a rest day thank heavens. I will need to get organized for the fill the Go Bag day Wednesday afternoon. Haven’t figured out the logistics of that day in my head yet. I will need to lay things out and see how we are going to do that project. My biggest concern is where to put the filled backpacks. I will combine totes and create some empty ones but we have a lot of extra supplies and I won’t have as many empty totes as I would like. I can take totes out to the shed when we are done but can’t store the backpacks outside as the toiletry kits will freeze. I will get it figured out, just can’t quite imagine it in my head yet how.

I put a post up last night asking for volunteers to sign up to receive boxes of goods and then wash and fold them and return them to me. I have lots of volunteers already – many more than I will need. That is a good thing so if we need to do 100 – 150 bags a month, I can rotate who receives boxes and no one will get burned out. I haven’t had time to respond to the individual responses yet and probably won’t tomorrow either. Maybe Tuesday I can find the energy to do that.

Three different people today gave me donations for Love in Action. We have raised over $1,000 this week with donations that have come in counting what I got today. That assures me we will have the funds to order what we need for the second go round if the need is there. That will make going on vacation more relaxing for me.

I have lots of things I need to take care of before I leave a week from Tuesday. Thankfully after Wednesday I don’t have anything on my calendar so can focus on getting ready to be gone for over two weeks. Still haven’t make a packing list – trusting I will remember the essentials.

If I can make it through Wednesday, I will be grateful. I am sore and tired tonight. I have lifted way too many totes this week and last night my back started yelling at me. I trust after Wednesday it will quiet back down once I get everything put where it needs to go. Luckily my travel suitcase is a carry on so I won’t be lifting much on vacation.

Might be an early bedtime tonight for me. I am tired! Unfortunately when I take a bath and lay down I seem to wake up and gather some energy. I can sleep in a bit tomorrow if needed since I don’t have to leave until 11:30.

Sitting with a full heart at how much energy complete strangers and some dear friends brought today. They worked with a smile on their faces and cheerfully and willingly did whatever I needed done. It would have taken Kathy and I hours to accomplish all that. It was a great example of an on-line community coming together to serve the greater humanity. I am humbled.

Grateful for the willing hearts and hands of the women that came today, grateful three more projects got completed, and grateful I only have two more work days to do.

This has been mostly a quiet day at home. I did take a deposit to the bank and went to the gym. Other than that, I have stayed home. Haven’t accomplished much. I took this rare day as a rest day.

Two women from Newton and Peabody came and brought a whole car full of sweat shirts, sweat pants, leggings, and T-shirts. Oh my! We had a lovely conversation and then they filled my porch with their donations. They also gave me a nice check.

I spent some time this afternoon finding places for the donated goods. I now have a pile of bags in my bedroom. I have run out of totes. We will use the things they brought to fill the Go Bags and leave the items that are in totes where they are. The ladies that brought the things had laundered them and marked the bags with the contents. It will take some sorting but it makes sense to use them first before the items in the totes.

After we are done filling the bags Wednesday, I will need to count all the leftovers to see where we are for our next round of bags. Looks like for most things we will have close to what we will need for another 100 bags. I know I will have to order more backpacks, blankets and toiletry bags but most of the bigger items we have lots leftover.

People are so incredibly generous. I also received a big check in the mail today. I now have enough funds to purchase what we might need for our next set of Go Bags. That was easy!

Tomorrow a big group is coming to fix the Trick or Treat bags and do a couple projects to get the Go Bags ready to be filled on Wednesday. I will need to spend some time tomorrow getting ready for that. I have to bring a big table in from the shed and more chairs. I think we have 12 volunteers coming. The work will go fast! It may warm up and be loud in here too!

Monday I am going to KC for a memorial service but the work day will proceed. My deep appreciation goes out to those that will carry on without me. Wednesday is the day we fill the first set of Go Bags. Man, it will be good to have that done. Have no idea where I am going to put them but will figure that out sooner or later.

Maybe I can have a couple days of rest and relaxation before vacation after Wednesday. The Go Bags have consumed me this month.

I typed out a long post about where we are with the Go Bags and what the next steps will be. I went to copy it so I could post it and I hit cut by mistake. Luckily I had printed it for some strange reason so I can retype it easily. Still not sure why I felt I needed to print it but am grateful I did.

There is so much up in the air that I have no idea when we will need more Go Bags. We have the possibility of needing up to 150 or even more per month. But with the election, change might happen. I didn’t order lots of things as I just don’t know when we will need them. Luckily all my suppliers are quick getting material to me and I can replenish and turn another 100 bags out fairly quickly. I may order some of the smaller items just so I know we have them on hand – some of them take a bit longer to get here.

I’m tired of moving totes from place to place. This project is a big one! But, with many helping hands it is getting done! A brilliant friend text me this morning and suggested next go round I ship items directly to volunteers who will receive the goods, sort, wash and fold the items and then bring them to the storage place. Absolutely brilliant! That solves several of my issues at once. I worry about people getting them to me in a timely fashion but so far this project has run very smoothly on moon beams, pixie dust and trust. No reason to doubt it now.

Anyone have a crystal ball that can help me know how many bags we will need and how soon? I am going on vacation, letting that question sit, and will know when I know and that will be when I need to know! Easier said than done to let go and allow but that is all I can do.

Wonder what the rest of the world is up to? I feel like I haven’t come up for air for the last couple of weeks and have no idea what is going on outside my little bubble. Guess if something big happened, it would break through and I would become aware.

Last night I went out to roll up the window in my car. I happened to notice the moon. There was a beautiful moon bow all around the moon. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

We are almost to the end of October and the trees have not reached full fall colors yet. No wonder I struggle sometimes keeping up with the calendar. This is not normal!

Sitting with a full heart of gratitude today with all the support and help I am getting. I don’t think I have ever experienced it to the level that it is happening right now. Ever so grateful for it.

Grateful for the huge donation that came today, grateful for the wonderful conversation with two beautiful women today, and grateful the first part of this project is almost completed.

This has felt like a Saturday to me. Not sure why but every time I opened my iPad and it tells me it is Friday I do a double take. Now that the day is over, maybe it will remain in my brain that it is Friday. Not sure why my brain is a day ahead of myself.

Took a box of donated goods that Love in Action can’t use to the Chase County Food Pantry today. Good to have one box out of my way. We used a few things that were in the box but most of it were things we couldn’t use. Grateful I didn’t have to throw them away and the Food Pantry would take them and see if anyone can use them.

Four ladies showed up at 2:00 so we could go to the laundromat and do another work day. All that have shown up so far have been so excited and eager to help. We loaded up what needed to be taken to the laundromat and headed that way.

We washed a huge load of socks, the leggings and some t-Shirts and more sweat shirts today. They matched the socks from yesterday that didn’t get dry enough then. I took the things for them to bag a pad of paper, a pencil, a charging cord and a business card together in a baggie. That little project is all taken care of.

When the clothes were washed and dried they got everything folded. Over the last two days we must have washed over 300 pair of socks and we didn’t come out with an odd sock. That is pretty amazing.

They helped bring everything back to the house and then our day was done. I feel like I have made lots of new friends as a result of the work days. Everyone comes with willing hands and a smile on their face and leave the same way. They energize me with their contagious, positive energy.

Tomorrow a group from Newton is coming to drop off some sweat shirts and sweat pants. Luckily they also washed and folded them.

Sunday is the day we are putting together the Trick or Treat bags as well as a couple of other little projects that need done.

I am one tired puppy again tonight. These work days feel like work to me although it is fun to watch the people that come enjoy and converse with each other. All have asked lots of questions about the Detention Center and what we are allowed to do. The main point of the work days is to give people a chance to feel some ownership of the program. I think it is accomplishing that mission. It is also getting lots of things ready for the Go bags.

If we have to do another round of Go Bags I have learned a lot about this round and know what I need to do differently next time. I can’t have my house this cluttered again. It is really effecting Kathy and myself. Neither of us like clutter.

Hoping the storage situation gets resolved and I will have a place to move the totes to. I will space out the ordering of things so I only deal with a few boxes at a time. Do what I need to do with them to get them ready, and then take them to the storage place.

Still need to figure out how to get people boxes of things to wash up at home without having laundry days. It would have cost several hundred dollars if I had paid to take everything to the laundromat to wash up. But I don’t think I can do 100 loads a month washing everything up myself again. I have some time to figure this part out.

The work days are a value needed thing to continue too. Hoping with the new space we will have more room to work in and they will be easier to manage. I have a better idea of how long it takes to do things now and can plan better accordingly. This go round has been one big lesson for me.

I will burn out if I try to do it the same way that I did this time again. I am grateful I have a long vacation coming up and can step away for a bit. I will come home refreshed and ready to go again if we need to put together another 100 bags quickly.

I need to reorganize the house for the work day Sunday. I have 12 volunteers coming so we will be crowded. I think I have it planned in my head how it can work. Now I need to move totes to create the space so I can make that happen.

Got the pictures posted from the ribbon cutting ceremony. They got some good pictures of all of the equipment. I am grateful that project is completely finished at long last. We started it last March.

Three more work days and this project will be completed. Then comes the job of taking them up to the Center one by one to get them where they need to go. It will be interesting to see how that plays out and what the demand for them will be. Maybe it is a good thing I don’t know the answer to that. It is a bit daunting to think we may need at least 100 bags a month. One step at a time, if we do I will deal with that then.

Grateful for helping hearts and hands today, grateful we are halfway done with work days, and grateful I get a day off tomorrow.

Another successful work day completed. Five ladies came today and helped get three totes of clothing items washed, dried, and folded. They matched over one hundred pairs of socks!

We started our work day with lunch at the Grand. It was nice to have some time to visit before we got busy doing laundry. While the laundry was running, they wrote out over 50 thank you notes for me so now when I need to send one, all I have to do is address the envelope and off it will go. Maybe I can keep up with thank you notes now.

We spent $30 doing six loads of laundry today. Man! Prices are much higher since last I did laundry at a laundromat. How do poor people afford to do laundry?

We all had a good time and got to meet some new people today. I so appreciated their work and effort. Many hands make light work!

I still need to put things away from today. A few of the socks and sweat shirts didn’t get all the way dry so need to take care of them. I have another group of volunteers coming tomorrow so need to get my act together and make sure I am ready for that work day.

I came home tired! I took a chair nap when we were done. I was wiped out. Had trouble sleeping last night.

Haven’t done much else today. I was going to clean house this morning but my house is so full of totes I can’t find places to clean. It is dirty but I guess the totes can just cover it up for a bit longer. One more week before we fill the back packs and I can reorganize things and get to the dirt.

Still wondering in my head how much space will 100 filled Go Bags take up? Trusting it will be a nice day that day and they can be set on the front porch until I figure out where to put them. I will consolidate the leftovers into as few of totes as possible and move them to the shed. I can’t store the Go Bags in the shed as they will have the toiletry kits in them and I don’t want the liquids in them to freeze. It will all work out – one way or another.

I got a picture in the mail today from one of the Detainees. I will post it on the Love in Action facebook page. It is amazing! And to think all he had to work with was a golf pencil with no eraser. Talented person!

Tomorrow afternoon is another laundry day. I have five more volunteers coming then to get it done. Saturday will be a free day of sorts. There is a group from Newton coming with a big donation of pants and sweat shirts. They were kind enough to wash them up so they are ready to go! I look forward to meeting them.

Sunday is another work day with 12 volunteers coming. Monday is another laundry day but I am going to KC to go to a funeral. Two other volunteers will lead the charge that day. Wednesday next week we put together the bags.

My life should free up for a couple of days until I leave on my trip November 3. I have the things I need to get organized for that. Better start making myself a list of things I need to get done before I leave.

If the Go Bags are popular and we go through 100 a month, I am going to have to find some volunteers to take over part of it. Not sure I can keep up doing this monthly. People have been so generous with their time but the work behind the scenes to get things ready for the work day is time consuming. Now that I know what I am doing, maybe next time it will be easier for me to plan.

I have a very full heart tonight. The volunteers bring a new energy to the project and re-energize me. They ask lots of good questions about conditions at the Center and are willing to do more. I extend my deepest appreciation to them.

Grateful Day 2 of the work days is successfully completed, grateful for the beautiful note I got from a Detainee today, and grateful for a chair nap this afternoon.

This has felt like a long day. I did get some sleep last night and even slept in this morning.

Tomorrow is our first of three laundry days to get things washed up for the Go Bags. I must have spent two hours today trying to decide what to wash tomorrow. My problem is that every item has four piles and they can’t be combined. But some of the piles are not big enough for a load themselves and some are too big for only one load. We have separated things by sizes as it was easier to do with the tags on them to read the printed tag on the garment. Most of the items have all white items plus colored items that have to be separated to be washed.

I don’t want to wash medium and XL together as then we will have to separate by sizes again. I have over thought this way too much today. I finally figured out what to wash each of the three days and have pulled some items out to wash at home. I did three loads today and think we can get the rest washed at the laundromat in three days.

Man, I tied myself up in knots trying to figure this out and it really isn’t that complicated…. Oh my tired brain tonight!

I am also trying to find somethings for the volunteers to do while the washers and dryers are going. We don’t need five or six people to sit around and watch the washers and dryers go round and round. I think I have found something else for them to do for each of the three laundry days. That will help the time feel a bit more productive.

This evening I went up to the Detention Center. They held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new exercise equipment that finally came in and got installed. One of the county Commissioners was there as well as the Sheriff and most of the top dogs of the Detention Center. They served sandwiches, chips and cookies afterwards.

The Center gave me some wall hangings with love as the theme. They also gave me a card that the staff signed as well as each pod had written thank you notes. I wasn’t allowed to take my phone back with me but they took pictures and will share tomorrow.

I found out this morning I could bring some guests. I sent notes to three people but only one could attend. The one that came was the one that gave me a sign from the Universe that this project should happen. When I first posted about the possibility of raising the $6,000 someone local wrote she was against it as the county makes lots of money off the jail and they should use their money to buy the equipment. The lady that came tonight wrote how she supported it and felt it was important that the Detainees be able to exercise and have the equipment to help them. She started the fundraising off with a very generous donation. The funds came in and it happened. I was grateful she was able to go tonight and share the experience with me.

After the event was over I went up to the Grand and went to the watch party for the Hamilton/Marshall debate. The debate went about how I expected it to go.

There was some discussion afterwards amongst the group. One of the locals running for state representative was there and he spoke about the need for rural representation. Some lady was there that is a single issue Republican and she talked a bit. I had to leave during that. My inner detector was going off and I decided I didn’t need to stay to listen to that.

I need to get to bed and get some rest. I have a group of five coming tomorrow. We are going to meet at the Grand for lunch and then come to my house and pick up totes and go to the laundromat. Trusting that all the washers will be available and we can get eight loads of laundry washed up. I washed up some socks today that will need to be matched up. We are also going to write thank you notes so they will be ready for me to send out when donations come in. It will be nice to have visiting time with them during lunch.

Friday more volunteers are coming for another wash day. I finally figured out today what we are going to wash each day so I won’t have to go through that again.

Found out the memorial service for my classmate from high school that died last Saturday is next Monday. I have another wash day scheduled for that day. It so happened that the two board members for Love in Action had volunteered to work that day so they are going to take the lead for me that day so I can go to KC and the memorial service.

Next Wednesday we will put the Go Bags together and the first 100 bags will be ready to start going out when I come home from vacation the middle of November. I will be grateful to move the totes to the shed when we are done Wednesday. I am tired of the clutter in most every room of my house. Maybe that is why I couldn’t think today – when my house is cluttered my mind doesn’t work as well as it should.

Tomorrow is a new day. I am trusting I will be more alert and ready to go tomorrow than I felt like I was today.

Grateful the exercise equipment is installed and the Center found it important enough to celebrate it, grateful the lady that gave me the sign from the Universe to proceed with the project was able to share the experience with me, and grateful I finally figured out what to wash when.

I don’t think I got more than one hour of sleep last night. I would lay in bed for an hour or two, get up and read, go back to bed, rinse and repeat all night. I am one tired puppy today.

Met Jason and Michelle for lunch. Always a good day when I get to spend time with some of my kids.

A lady from Lawrence called while I was eating. I should have had her call back as it turned into a long conversation. I didn’t catch her name or who she was with. She had gotten a tip that the Chase County Detention Center was busing a load of Detainees to the Wichita Airport so they could be deported. She wanted me to go to the Center and get pictures of the vehicle transporting them;

I told her the Center has a transportation team that transports Detainees to Wichita and KCMO daily, sometimes several times a day and this was not a note worthy event.

We talked a bit and I told her about Love in Action and the things we do. I told her we were partners with the Center, not an enemy. She was amazed at all the things they have allowed us to do.

Still not sure what she is doing or why she thought that was an event that needed recorded. She tried to talk me into calling one of my team and having them go to the Center to take pictures of the vehicle’s license plate. I told her I didn’t have that type of team.

At the end, she asked me if she could keep my number and call me again. Not sure who gave her my number and why she would call again but sure, you have it. I can’t make it go away. Weird conversation.

Went to the Friends of the Library Book Sale and worked as a volunteer from 1:00 -3:00. We weren’t very busy. I sat at the cashier table for an hour and then traded places with someone and worked the floor for an hour. Since I got to work the floor, I was able to shop while I worked and found a bag of books to bring home for $3.

My car tire pressure light came on just before I got to Emporia today. The pressure was high enough I felt comfortable driving home. I stopped at Dieker’s and had them check it. They took the tire off and it was OK. They did tell me I would need new tires soon. When I get back from vacation I will need an oil change and I will order tires then. I appreciate how good of care they take of my car. They didn’t charge me anything for today. Small town service still exists.

Came home and did nothing. I fell asleep in my chair, I would wake up and tell myself to get up and couldn’t find the energy to do so. I finally went to bed but of course once I laid down, I couldn’t sleep.

I will go to bed early and hopefully sleep the clock around and catch up on my sleep.

Tomorrow I have to go to the bank and deposit a nice donation check I got today and get some quarters for the laundry days. I also have the ribbon cutting ceremony for the piece of exercise equipment to go to at 6:00. Not sure who all is coming to that. Hoping to get some pictures to post for my donors to see.

I also need to make lunch reservations for Thursday. All the people that are coming for the first laundry day are going to have lunch before we get to work at the Grand. It will be nice to have some gentle conversation before we get busy.

Thursday and Friday are both laundry days starting at 2:00. We will attempt to get the socks and underwear all washed up. Have one more laundry day next week to finish things up. I have been washing sweat shirts and almost have two totes of them washed. One advantage of not sleeping is I can get a lot of laundry done. Still have two more totes that need done.

Found one of my high school classmates had a heart attack and died Saturday. Ginny was one of the students in my class that started first grade with me. I had lost track of her over the years. If I can make it happen, I will plan on going to her memorial service. Her brother who posted the notice today, said plans haven’t been confirmed yet. If they wait a bit, I may be out of town on vacation. Hopefully I will get to go. We shall see what happens.

Guess as one gets older you start to out live your classmates. I remember my mother and aunts talking about losing classmates every year. Sign of old age I guess! We only had 30 in our class, 20 of which we started first grade with. I think we have lost at least 7 or 8 of them by now.

Another reminder not one of us knows how many days we have left. I need to fully live each day as if it may be my last one. Leave no stones unturned, as they say. I really need to find someone that would be willing to carry on Love in Action if something should happen to me. I really would like to see it carry on if I had to stop leading it.

Got our updated agenda for the trip. It doesn’t sound too bad. We will spend three nights on one cruise ship and then bus to another one and spend three nights on a different cruise ship. Much better than changing hotels every night. We have some sightseeing and a couple nights before we get on the first ship and I think we will be spending two nights in one hotel and then one night in another one. I haven’t studied the agenda much as I have trouble retaining that type of information. I don’t need to know until I do.

Still haven’t spent too much time thinking about the trip. I have some things I need to get organized before I leave. We will finish up the Go Bag project a week from tomorrow. That will leave me five full days to get myself organized so I can get away. Nothing like leaving things till the last minute.

My brain has been operating on about 50% capacity today after my night of little to no sleep. I knew better than to try to do anything when I got home today. It has been a quiet afternoon and evening of resting and being quiet.

Grateful for time with Jason and Michelle, grateful for a sack of books for my winter time reading for only $3, and grateful for a local gas station that takes good care of my car and me!

The first work day for the Go Bags is complete. It is amazing how fast eight women can get things done when they get busy. We managed to get all the underwear, socks, bras, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and back packs sorted and tags cut off. We filled five trash bags with packing plastic and tags.

It took us a little over two hours to get it all done. We did take a short break but worked hard for two hours. I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me if I had tried to do it all by myself.

Next up for the Go Bags is the first laundry day Thursday. We will get the socks washed up and maybe some of the underwear. Not sure how much will fit into four regular washers and two big ones. We will take some sweat shirts to use as fillers in the washers as it is not recommended to wash socks only in a load.

Have two totes of socks to wash, two totes of underwear, two totes of T-shirts plus some leggings and lots of sweat shirts. We have three wash days to get it all done. We shall see how much we can get done. I will probably start washing sweat shirts as we have over 100 to wash and we won’t get all them done. I am more concerned about getting the smaller items washed and folded.

Not sure I want to be the one that matches all the socks but they are at least sorted by sizes so that will help. We will launder things by size so we don’t have to read the tiny tags to know what size we are working with.

I am one tired puppy tonight. I did a lot of lifting of totes today and moving things around. I kept busy keeping the seven helpers busy and keeping the trash bags moved when they were full.

Two of the people that came I had never met before. It is so fun to put a face to a name of the members of Love in Action. I got a chance to visit with one of them but then it got busy and I didn’t get to visit with the other one as much. I trust they all had a bit of fun while they were working.

Tomorrow I am working at the Friends of the Library Book Sale from 1:00 -3:00. I will go early or stay late and get a couple bags of books for me. Depending on what position I work during the sale I might be able to shop while I work. Sometimes I work the cash table and I don’t get to shop if I work there.

Wednesday is the ribbon cutting for the new piece of exercise equipment at the Detention Center. I’m excited to see it in place.

Thursday and Friday are wash days. It will be good to get things washed up and ready to be packed into the Go Bags a week from Wednesday.

Today went about the way I expected it to go. It was hard for me to guesstimate how long it would take. We had a good two hours of work for them to do. Conversation flowed and it felt productive, at least to me.

I need to do my personal laundry tomorrow. I will have to sneak it in between loads of sweat shirts. Wonder what my water bill will be for this month. I did 24 loads washing blankets and another 20 loads washing sweat pants.

Had to open the windows this afternoon to cool the house down. This morning I was running my little space heater. Eight working women warm up a room quickly!

I missed my big country house today. We would have had so much more room to work. We made do today but it was a bit tricky at times. I did get everything cleaned up after everyone left and that went fairly quickly. First time I have really missed the big house in over two years.

May be an early bedtime for me tonight. I am tired. Didn’t feel my best earlier but made it through. Didn’t make it to work out today but got a good workout during the two hours work time. My back is a little sore tonight from lifting all the totes.

So very grateful for the helping hands today. Oh my goodness, it would have taken me a long time to get all that done alone. People are so generous with their time and effort.

Grateful for the helpers today, grateful the tags and packaging is off and the items are ready to be washed, and grateful for mostly a rest day tomorrow and Wednesday.

What a beautiful fall day out today. I could live somewhere where it is like this all the time. Perfect light sweater weather.

Kathy and I went to Hartford this afternoon to go to a Celebration of Life gathering from a guy that we grew up with. He was several years older than we are but his sister was a year older than me and a year younger than Kathy. We attended the same church and did a lot of things as families together.

It was like attending old home week. Several people from our childhood were there. We got to talk to a few of them and then we came home. We didn’t stay long but it was nice to see those that we were able to see.

We stopped at Walmart on the way home so I could get a few things for tomorrow. Came home after that to watch the Chiefs football game.

Had trouble finding the right channel. Man, it is not easy these days to find what you want to watch. We finally found it and then something happened to my TV and it paused. Could not figure out how to unpause it and I gave up and turned the damn thing off. I don’t watch TV much and find it more and more confusing to find what I want to watch. Not worth it! Damn, I am getting old and cranky.

Kathy has it on so she keeps me updated. I am a very casual football fan and even when it is on I really don’t watch it closely.

Tomorrow is the first work day for the Go Bags. I went out to the shed and brought in a table. I am going to set up two work tables tomorrow and hope for the best. I think there are six people coming plus Kathy and I. We have lots of things to cut tags off of and take out of plastic bags. Have no idea how long it will take – guess it will take as long as it does.

Haven’t gotten the house cleaned yet but it is hard to clean with all the totes sitting around. I will wipe down the bathrooms in the morning and call it good.

Tuesday I am working a short shift at the book sale. I will go to town a bit early so I can buy a bag or two of books. Wednesday is the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new piece of exercise equipment at the Detention Center. Thursday and Friday and two more work days. Geez, it will be a busy week.

Got an email from the original company I ordered no strings Hoodies from. The last email from them told me my items were out of stock and they didn’t know when they would be back in stock. They said they would cancel the order on the date that I was to receive them which is mid November. The email I got today said they shipped 10 of the 100 items I had ordered. Geez, now what? Will they cancel the other 90 when I receive these? It will all resolve sooner or later but am sure grateful I found another company to deal with and won’t have to deal with this company after this all gets cleared up.

The sweat pants and hoodies/sweat shirts have taken more of my time and energy than anything else in the Go Bag. Not sure why that was the case. Grateful I found a reliable supplier and can reorder what I need and it will arrive within less than a week and at a cost I can afford.

Glad it is time to get started on the Go Bags. It feels like I have been consumed with this process for months. It really hasn’t been but it feels that way. It will be fun to meet all the people that are coming that I have never met. And it will be nice to see some friends that are coming that I haven’t seen for a long time.

Grateful for childhood memories and friends, grateful the work days are here, and grateful for a calendar to keep me where I need to be this week.

I went to El Dorado this morning to pick up a collection of socks a group had done for the Go Bags. The meeting was in a very warm, meeting room.

I got there and went in at 10:30. There were a handful of people there that were busy getting themselves organized for the meeting. I stood around for a few minutes without anyone saying anything to me.

I finally went up to the man that appeared to be in charge. I introduced myself to him. He gave me an agenda and told me at what point he would call on me.

I finally found a chair and sat down as more and more people came in. No one said a word to me.

The meeting started around 11:00. It was a typical business meeting with lots of side conversations happening. Interesting to watch. When it got to the point on the agenda where I was to be introduced they said something and then I stood and gave a brief presentation about Love in Action and thanked them for their donation of socks.

The meeting went on for a bit until the pizza arrived. They took a break for the pizza. Several people gave me cash to add to the cash they had given me with the socks and thanked me for what I am doing. One lady came over and gave me her contact information. I am to call her when I have something for her to do. She doesn’t do Facebook as she doesn’t trust it. I gave her the website address but she wasn’t sure she could find it.

They came back after break and finished up the meeting. Two different women came up and introduced themselves to me. Both are members of Love in Action. One in particular seemed glad to meet me. It is always fun to get to meet personally the supporters of Love in Action.

I gathered up the donations and left after taking the picture of the man that was in charge of the group holding a package of socks.

It was a most interesting meeting for me. The people that were there are dedicated people working hard for their cause. Doing what they have been doing for a long time. Most in the crowd were my age or older. There were a few young faces but not many.

At one point one of the people that is running for office asked what to tell people he runs into while going door to door that ask for a ride to the polls. Most got a deer in the head lights look on their face. One finally told him to tell them to call their precinct chair. I wonder if people know who that is. I have no idea who my precinct chair is or what that person does.

He also said he is discovering a whole lot of needs our rural, elderly people have. I wonder what he will do with that information?

I felt most of the meeting like I was on a completely different timeline than most in the room. At one point I looked down at myself to make sure I was still here. I felt invisible.

These are good people, working hard. But what a reminder to myself that the way we have been doing things no longer works! We have got to start doing things differently if we expect different results. How easy it is to overlook the most basic of needs to get people involved like a ride to the voting booth.

Not sure I am finding the right words to describe what I felt and witnessed today. I have never felt so out of place and out of alignment with the people in a room before. And I am on their “side” if you will. Non were rude or mean or purposely ignoring me. They were locked into their “agenda” and I don’t think saw me.

Makes me wonder how often I do that. I get so tied up in doing what I am doing that I miss the obvious and simple ways that I could have built a connection with another human. It was a great lesson for me today.

Maybe it was a timeline difference. Maybe it was a build connection with those within reach lesson. Whatever it was, I felt it to my most inner core. It really had nothing to do with the people that were there and more about the Universe talking to me.

Has anyone ever experienced something like this before? Would love to chat if you have.

I did think today on the way home about how do I reach people that don’t do Facebook. What media reaches people these days? There are fewer and fewer newspapers left and who reads them anyways? Does anyone still listen to the radio? If one isn’t on Facebook how would anyone know about Love in Action and even if one is on Facebook how would I reach them? There is still a part of the population that doesn’t spend time surfing the internet. No wonder we have stopped connecting to each other. We don’t have many common connecting points anymore.

It has been an interesting day on many levels for me. Lots of learning points and things to think about. Love when that happens. Who knows what direction I will course correct after today. Really felt the disconnection of society today and the changes that have to happen on many, many levels to rebuild us into something that works for all.

I did appreciate the socks and the cash I picked up today. We have enough socks to give each Detainee two pairs and still have lots left over for our next round of Go Bags when they are needed. The cash was probably enough to pay for doing the laundry at the laundromat on our three wash days.

My mind has been busy since I got home today. Lots of things for me to digest and think about. When I expect it the least, the Universe fills my soul with questions and opens my eyes to possibilities and change. Wow! It was kinda a mind fuck day.

Grateful for the donations of socks and cash, grateful my eyes were opened in a new way today, and grateful for a beautiful, fall day.

This is my last empty space day for the next ten days. I haven’t had ten days full on my calendar since I can’t remember when. Trust everyone will offer me some grace if it gets bumpy.

I have taken full advantage of an empty space day and kept it empty. I haven’t even gotten dressed. Enjoyed a chair nap! Have done absolutely nothing all day and don’t plan on doing anything the rest of the day.

I am creating a point within to return to briefly during this upcoming busy stretch. Sometimes taking a pause during a busy day and returning to a peace point can help regulate my system and keep me above neutral.

Tomorrow I have to be in El Dorado around 10:30 to pick up a big sock donation. I told the lady that is arranging all this I would stay for their social hour after their meeting in case they wanted to ask questions. This is a group of Democrats that are meeting and am guessing they have a busy agenda since we are in the middle of election season.

Sunday I am going to a Celebration of Life for a family friend from years ago. Monday is the first work day. We will be opening all the packages and cutting off tags so everything is ready for step 2 on laundry days. Tuesday I am working at the Friends of the Library Book Sale. I need a sack of books for myself so will either go a bit early or stay a bit late and get a bag. Wednesday is the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new piece of exercise equipment that Love in Action paid half of at the Detention Center. Thursday and Friday are laundry days. Saturday a group from Newton is coming with a load of donated items. Sunday is another work day as is next Monday. Geez! I did it to myself. Man it will be good to get the Go Bag project wrapped up though for round 1 of assembling the bags on Thursday. Kathy and I have a plan for the totes when all the bags are assembled.

I turned the furnace on when I got up this morning. I have run my little space heater all afternoon. My bones are cold and I am having trouble getting warm today. I probably should have gotten dressed and put heavier clothes on. Too late in the day to do that now. I will enjoy my cold pajama day a bit longer!

I really need to stop and make a packing list for my trip. With these busy days ahead the time will fly by and all of a sudden it will be time to pack and go. I picked up some long underwear at Costco Wednesday so I can dress in layers. It will be a bit colder there than it is here. I don’t like to be cold but I would rather be cold than too hot. I can still function when I am cold but not when I am too hot. Guess I am not going to third world countries and can pick up things if I forget something.

It was nice to see the sun out today, even if it is cold out. It only reached the low 50’s today and it has been windy. It is to get back up in the 70’s in a couple days. Maybe it will stay there for a bit so we can all enjoy fall.

It was good for my soul to take a full day of rest. I would think of something I could do and let that thought go. Somedays I can relax into the empty space and somedays I can’t. Today was one of the rare days where I could enjoy the empty space and give myself permission to sit and be without any expectation of anything. Maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks.

Grateful for a day of rest, grateful for my calendar to help me keep track of where I need to be when, and grateful for a furnace and space heater so I could warm up my bones today.

This has been a day of laundry. I did two loads of my personal items and then have been washing sweat pants for the Go Bags. I have the last load in the washer. I started them last night. I have lost count how many loads I have done. I had over 100 pair to wash.

I went to the Court House this afternoon and voted. I think I was number 31 to vote. No line, no wait, in and out quickly. Connie asked me to tell everyone to come vote!

Last night I got an email from one of my Pen Pals. She was letting me know she was ready for another one if I had one. She also offered to do any spread sheet work if I had some that would be helpful for her to do. She is in a remote place doing a winter job and got assigned a desk job that doesn’t keep her busy.

I sent her my donor list that I comply every month and she is going to do a spread sheet for me so I have an annual total by person. Since I am a 501(c)3 this year, I have to send a letter to all that give $250 or more in January, 2027. This will make it easy for me to know who did what. Wow! What an angel. Helping me with a problem before I could even ask. Love when the universe works that way.

The Detention Center is going to host a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new piece of exercise equipment that has arrived and is put together. It is going to be next Wednesday. I need to ask if I can invite some guests to come with me. There are a couple that really helped make that project happen and I would love for them to be part of it. Grateful that project is completed and is in place.

Unloaded a couple more boxes. We filled the back of Kathy’s car up with cardboard that she will take to be recycled next time she goes to the gym. Still have six more boxes in my living room and will have four boxes of sweat shirts soon. I still have ten totes left but I need to save some for the completed Go Bags. Hoping I can consolidate some of the supplies into less totes and have room for the Go Bags to be put in totes. Not sure how many Go Bags will fit in a tote.

Working with a place for storage. They can’t give approval just yet for me to use their space. I will continue to work with them and see if we can come to an agreement of some sort. Guess I will learn to live with totes in every corner of the house for a bit.

If the weather warms up a bit, Kathy and I are going to clean out the storage shed and see how many totes we can put in there. The only thing that can’t go out there is the toiletry kits and the completed Go Bags as they will have a toiletry kit in them. The rest of the things can go out there. That will free up my floors.

Am still working on the schedule of things each work day will be doing. Have lots of volunteers coming and I want them to feel like their time was well spent. I hate volunteering and feeling like I wasted my time. Trying to come up with some extra projects that need done while I have lots of hands to do them. I think I will ask some to write some thank you notes out. Then when a donation comes in, all I have to do is sign it and put it in an envelope and mail it. That would save me a lot of time throughout a month.

No plans for tomorrow. Saturday I have to go to El Dorado to pick up a big sock donation. Sunday I am going to a Celebration of Life event in Hartford. Monday is our first work day. We will be opening and sorting all the clothing items.

Hoping that voting will slow down the unwanted texts and calls I have been getting to remind me to vote. Some guy called last night and tried to talk me into volunteering to phone bank. I told him I had my hands full right now with the Go Bags project. He pushed a bit and I hung up on him. Everyone gets to find their own path. I don’t appreciate people assigning me a path to walk.

Lately I have felt a great resistance to any request that people ask of me that feels like a demand. I get an immediate yuck feeling when I hear someone demand something from me. Not sure what turns a request into a demand but I can feel the difference. Weird, I know but demands are not sitting well in my soul right now.

Grateful the sweat pants laundry is done, grateful for the privilege to vote, and grateful for an angel that helped with a solution to a problem I hadn’t thought about yet.

We lucked out with the weather last night. The heavy stuff went around us. We ended up with some rain but not the big amounts that others around us got. It has been a misty, cloudy, wet day.

I left for KC at 9:00 this morning. Had a quick and smooth trip up. Went to Nicole’s house and gave her my passport so she could check me in with the tour group. She kept my passport so she can pre-check us in for departure flights the 3rd.

I met a lady at Costco that had a box of donations for Love in Action. We made the transfer of the box from her car to mine. I then parked my car and went in to get some things. Parking was at a premium for some reason today and I had to park in the south 40.

Got the few things I needed and a few more things I didn’t know I needed. The lines were long at the check-out but they moved quickly.

Went to Chipotle for lunch and then came home. Traffic was heavier coming home. I had to check a couple times to make sure it was Wednesday and not Friday. Not sure why there was so much traffic at Costco and on the road home. I was lucky that I didn’t run into heavy rain on my trip either way. This morning on the way up it was misting but never had more than that all day.

Kathy helped me get my car unloaded when I got home. I took a short chair nap. I turned my little heater on and found a blanket. My body is not used to it being low 60’s during the day. My bones were cold!

Am working on getting the sweat pants washed up. The sweat shirts will be here early next week and we can use those to put in with the socks and underwear to balance out the loads. I am a bit concerned that the medium sized sweat pants are too small. I just opened another box of them and these are bigger size Medium than the first box. I will use the smaller ones for the women and the bigger ones for the men. I haven’t looked at a pair of men’s medium sweat pants in a long time but compared to the XL they are tiny. Oh well, they are what they are and they will have to do. It will be almost impossible to fit each recipient perfectly.

My class for tomorrow night was canceled which didn’t hurt my feelings. I now have a free day tomorrow. Yay! I need to take a check up to the Detention Center and pay for the 170 phone cards that will be given to the Detainees for their Christmas present. I also need to go advance vote.

In the midst of a tough boundary lesson from someone I got to know a while ago. What they are asking for is impossible for me to provide and their story is becoming a bit hard to believe. I had crossed some boundaries with them some time ago and now know why I need boundaries in place. Some lessons are hard for me to understand until I have a painful life lesson. Think I got this one now! At least this time!

I need to spend some time tomorrow finding my living room. My couch is covered with what I bought at Costco today plus the contents of the box of goods that was donated. I am almost out of floor space from all the boxes that are in it. I’m grateful that we start the assembly process of the Go Bags next Monday as I am running out of bandwidth to cope with the clutter in my house.

The good news is I don’t need to clean my living room as I can’t find the floor to do so! Wonder what things look like behind the boxes that have been sitting in here for a couple of weeks? Don’t look, don’t care, don’t tell is my new motto.

Got an email from the company I had ordered the Hoodies from. The refund goes into a “wallet” they hold until I use it for other merchandise. Although I can request a full refund once my order is cancelled which it has not been yet. I will request a refund and am not going to reorder them in a different color. Their customer service has been impossible to reach. The lady that was to have called me today to resolve this situation cancelled the call without an explanation. I don’t want to do business with this company any more even though their prices are very low. I guess you get what you pay for and I am backing away. Betting it takes a couple months to get my refund.

Sitting with my feelings about the state of the world tonight. Two situations popped up for me today that drove home the real ramifications of what our immigration policy is doing to real people. I need to allow myself some time to allow my anger to be heard and then find a way to let it soften me so I can continue to do what I can to help those in need. Damn, it doesn’t feel like enough some days!

Grateful for a safe trip to KC, grateful to get to see Nicole and Geoff for a hot minute today, and grateful I know how to feel deeply and then let it soften me.

Woke up at 4:00 and couldn’t go back to sleep. Got up and did a few things. Went back to bed around 6:30 and managed to find some more sleep. Sure wish I could fit it all into one sleep, instead of two. I am grateful though, that I managed to get a second sleep.

Have just about given up on the company I ordered the hoodies from. They sent me an email and wanted me to approve a substitution but the link to approve it didn’t work. I tried to call them yesterday but no luck. Today I tried again and left a message. Found out the link only works for 12 hours. Say what? They are to put my money in my wallet. Not sure what that means. If I can get a full refund I will take it and give up on them. If it is sitting somewhere that it has to be used for different merchandise I will order the replacements and see what happens. Learned my lesson about dealing with a company like this.

On the other hand the company I got the sweat pants from turned out to be a great company to work with. The pants are excellent quality and came quickly. I ordered sweat shirts from them today in case I can’t get the hoodie order to go through. I went to the bank and sent them the funds.

They did inform me that shipping rates have almost doubled due to the diesel fuel costs. The sweat shirts are still less than $8 each. I can’t beat that price elsewhere. This way I know I will have what I need to fill the first 100 backpacks. If I get the hoodies, they won’t be here till the middle of November. I will use them for the next Go Bag round.

I know I have some hoodies and sweat shirts coming from a group in Newton that is doing a collection for us. Not sure how many they will bring. We will use them all, eventually.

Trying to decide if I should start washing up sweat pants. We won’t have time to do them all with the limited number of washers and dryers. Maybe one of the wash days we can go to Emporia and a larger laundromat and get them all done at once. I am running short on cash and it would be cheaper to do them at home but it will take a bit of time. Decisions, decisions. I will sit with it for a bit and then decide what to do.

It got up to the mid 90’s today. Yikes! There is a cold front coming in tonight that will bring a chance for severe weather with it. I welcome the cooler temperatures and trust they will chase away the heat of the summer.

I went to Emporia this afternoon. Kathy had gone in this morning to pick up a prescription for her and for me. But Walmart didn’t have the one for her she wanted and she forgot to get mine. I went this afternoon and got the one Kathy really needed and mine. Picked up a couple other things I needed and came home. Wasn’t in the mood to do much shopping.

Tomorrow I am going to Nicole’s at 11:00 so she can do something with my passport for our trip. I am meeting someone to collect some donations at 11:45. I will go to Costco and pick up a few things, have lunch and then come home. Tomorrow late afternoon someone is to call me about the hoodies so I can get that sorted out.

Thursday I have a social media class to go to in the late afternoon. Saturday I go to El Dorado to pick up a sock donation. They have over 100 pairs of socks for me. That will supply our next round of Go Bags. Yay!

Still need to write up the information that will be put on the website for the Go Bags. I need to get it to my website guy before I leave so it will be up and going before the first of December. I am trying to limit how much I write but keep thinking of things I need to put on it. Not all Detainees are eligible – if they came in via the US Marshall Service for some reason they can’t get one – the Us Marshall rules, not mine. And if their family has provided them some goods to take with them, they can’t have a Go Bag. I know this will confuse people but guess it is what it is.

The Center and I still have to work through all the details of me taking a bag to the Center, having them inspecting it, and getting it to the detainee that is going to be deported. Not sure if the Detainee gets to see it before they arrive at their final deportation destination or not. I’m sure the first couple will be weird and then we will find a rhythm and routine to it. It will be interesting to see how many request one.

I have spent lots of Love in Action money this month. Our bank is almost dry. The good news is the November and December treats are funded and the first 100 Go Bags are funded. I have extra stamps on hand so won’t have to spend money for those and we are down to 5 Pen Pals so not many messages are getting sent right now so that program won’t cost anything for a bit. This project has run on trust and faith and I have to trust and faith that when I need funds to fund the second round of Go Bags the funds will appear.

I won’t know how soon to start that fundraising process for a bit. I am concerned that with Christmas, the funds will be dried up for a bit. We shall see. I would love for the mid terms to change policy and the need for Go Bags goes way down. There is a chance we won’t need another 100 Go bags for some time if that happens.

I’m excited for the volunteer work days to get here so we can get this project wrapped up. My living room is full of boxes and with the sweat shirts coming will have even more in it. Not sure where I am going to fit the volunteers when they come to work.

Grateful Kathy got her needed medication on the second try, grateful the heat wave may finally be over, and grateful for the collection of donated goods that I get to pick up this week.

Happy birthday Mom! 97 years young today. She always looked younger than she was. Wish I could know what she looks like at 97. I got to talk to her last remaining sister Marylyn today. Almost like a visit with mom!

Had a phone call this morning. A sweet lady who is very familiar with nonprofits and runs a huge nonprofit in KC gave me permission to call her and ask her some questions about Love in Action. She helped me understand the ramifications of applying for grants and the various types of grants. She breaks things down in a way that I can understand them and patiently answers all my questions. What a treat to get to visit with her and I am grateful she is willing to share her time with me.

This afternoon I had a phone doctor’s appointment. We were going to do it via Zoom or the doctor’s office equivalent of Zoom but it wasn’t working. I guess their system had an upgrade this morning and less than half of the calls went through as scheduled. We were able to talk via the phone and that worked. I got a few questions answered and was pleased with the action plan we put together. We will chat again after my vacation the end of November.

The sweat pants I ordered last week came in already. They will be perfect. The medium size looks small to me but the XL look good. The bank had scared me a bit as they were concerned this company was a fraud. Grateful they came through with flying colors.

But the company that I ordered the no string hoodies from sent me an email today and let me know the hoodies are out of stock and don’t know when they will be back in stock. They are to refund my money in a couple of weeks. I don’t like that it is going to take that long to get the money back but it is what it is. I will be grateful when the money comes back.

Now I get to look again for no string hoodies. I have almost decided to just go with sweat shirts instead. The same company that I got the sweat pants from has sweat shirts at a very reasonable price. I may go ahead and order them tomorrow from them. I want to sit on it overnight and then place an order tomorrow.

The sweat pants and hoodies/sweat shirts have been the biggest challenge of the Go Bags for me. If I can find a reputable supplier for both, I think that is the way to go. The pants got here quickly and I can order as few as 96 at a time. Think I will call it good and go with them.

If I knew where the detainees were being deported to, I would add a hat to the Go Bags but some are going to hot weather countries. I have no way of knowing where the detainees are being sent when I drop off the Go Bag. Adding a hat would add to the expense yet again. I will sit with it and see what my intuition guides me to do.

I need to take a check for $1,700 to the Detention Center tomorrow so they can order 170 phone cards for our Christmas gift to the Detainees. It will be good to get those ordered and know the Christmas gift is taken care of. Still need to talk to the Sergeant about the November cheese cake. I will need 17 of them so will need to get them ordered from Costco before I leave on vacation. I still have a bit before I need to take care of that. Sometimes she is a bit slow to get back to me.

Several people have donated the $90 they got from the payout for their prescription plans. That was generous of them as I know their prescription costs for next year will cost them way more than the $90 they got to offset them.

Have several thank you notes to write. I started them this morning while I was waiting on the call with the doctor’s office but didn’t get them finished. Got another donation today to add to my list of notes to write.

Got the plans set for KC Wednesday. I am going to Nicole’s house at 11:00 so she can do whatever she needs to do with my passport. Then I am meeting a lady at Costco at 11:45 to get a box of donations. After I meet with her I will go in Costco and get a few things, stop and have lunch and then come home. It will be a quick trip to KC.

I really need to make a packing list and make sure I have everything I need for the trip. The next two weeks are busy and I won’t have time to think about it then. Best take care of that this week while it is still relatively calm around here.

I have a prescription that needs picked up so will try to remember to get that Wednesday on my way home from KC. I need a few groceries so will make myself go in and get them too while I am in town. That way I can stay home a couple of days. Saturday I have to go to El Dorado to pick up more donations.

I would like to get my house cleaned before the work days begin. My house is so cluttered right now it is hard to clean. Maybe the volunteers won’t notice the dust and dirt with all the boxes. It would be embarrassing though if they move boxes and find dust bunnies.

This heat wave is finally suppose to break this week. I am so ready for fall temperatures. It may rain on Wednesday when I go to KC. Guess I will deal with whatever happens on that short trip.

Formulating plans for Love in Action for when I return from vacation. So many variables going on it is hard to know what direction to go. If the election results are favorable I wonder what that will do to ICE and the number of people being deported? I won’t know until December how fast the Go Bags are going out and I don’t want to resupply until I know we will use them. Do I write for grants not knowing how many Go Bags we will need? I guess if the election results don’t change anything, I will know to go full speed ahead when I come back from vacation.

I talked to my mentor today about my succession plans. There may come a day in the future where I don’t want to do this anymore. She told me about that process and that it can take a year or more to close down a 501(c)3 if I can’t find someone to run it. I have to find a similar nonprofit to give the assets to. Another thing to explore on another day.

Reminder to self to stay in the moment and take things one step at a time. Solutions present themselves when I need them if I slow down and allow them to come in. Staying present keeps me out of monkey brain and keeps things manageable.

Grateful the sweat pants came in today, grateful for the phone call with Aunt Marylyn, and grateful for a mentor that freely gives her time to help me.

11 years ago I walked into Santiago Spain after walking the Camino, I walked approximately 500 miles from Saint Jean Pied de Port France to Santiago. It was a grand adventure for me and I proved to myself I can do hard things. 50 days alone in a foreign country where I don’t speak the language and am not normally a physical person. Sometimes you gotta get out of your comfort zone and live big and take a risk!

This has been a quiet day at home. I did get my laundry washed, dried, folded and put away so can’t say I didn’t do anything today. But, that is about all I did. I would think of things that need done and think, no, not today. Sometimes I can get something done in the evening. We shall see if that is the case today.

Tomorrow I have two phone calls scheduled – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Have a feeling I will be tired by the end of the second one. I am looking forward to both of them though and will get some new information about Love in Action and about myself.

Wednesday I am planning on going to KC for part of the day. Have some donations to pick up for Love in Action and take my passport to Nicole so she can do something for our trip.

Thursday evening there is a class about social media I would like to go to. Saturday I have to go to El Dorado to pick up a bunch of socks a group has collected for the Go Bags.

My quiet weeks are coming to an end for a bit. The following week we start working on the Go Bags. I have six work days scheduled so will be busy doing those and getting ready for the next one in between work days.

I am looking forward to reclaiming my house floor space. I have had boxes and totes on the floor for the last three weeks. When my house is cluttered, my mind has trouble settling and quieting. It will be good to get them moved and my floor space freed up again.

Have been sitting with my memories of the Camino today. To this day, I still don’t believe I did it. It turned out to be the best adventure I have ever taken. So many life lessons that continue to be explored and understood even today. Wonder how many times I have said to myself “If I can walk the Camino, I can do …..”

It is finally going to cool off later this week. Maybe summer will finally give up and allow fall temperatures to be dominant. Hope we have a long fall and not dip down into winter temperatures too soon.

I attempted to read the news today but it all felt distorted. I had trouble relating to most of it. I also realized today that if there is a blue wave in November and the Democrats can have more of a say in policy, we are still in for a very rocky road due to the war and the high debt. Things cannot change very fast and then there will be an election in two years. People will blame the Democrats for not righting the ship and will vote red again.

Beginning to really understand the limits of our politicians and our system of government. We have got to fix what is really broken or just a shift from one party to the other won’t help anything.

Grateful for a rest day, grateful the laundry is done, and grateful it is almost time to start putting together the Go Bags.

I posted this on my Facebook wall today and want to include it in my blog. I’ll write more later tonight.

October 11, 2015 I completed my 500 mile walk across northern Spain from Saint Jean Pied de Port, France to Santiago, Spain. It was the most amazing challenge I have ever taken part in.

I learned so many life lessons on the trail that I still think of and have become a part of who I am today.

1. I can do hard things. Before the trip I was a confirmed couch potato. Walking 8 – 12 -14- 18 miles a day was unthinkable. Guess what? I did it!
2. One step at a time. When I would think at the beginning of the day I had 18 miles to walk I would get overwhelmed and almost accept defeat. I learned not to focus on the 18 miles but on one step at a time. If you keep putting one foot in front of the other, one step at a time, eventually you walk 18 miles.
3. Spending 50 days in a country where you don’t speak the language by yourself is possible. I learned spoken words are only one way humans communicate. With a little patience and trust, one can figure out how to get their needs met without words.
4. I learned to ask for help. One of the bigger challenges on the trip was finding my room for the night. I had pre booked rooms and was sent a hand drawn map. Some places don’t use addresses like I was familiar with. I learned early on the walk to find an older person and ask for help. It never failed that they would look at my map, take my hand and walk me to my destination, even if it was 20 minutes from where they were. Once we arrived they would kiss me on both cheeks, bow and wish me a Bien Camino and act like I gave them the honor of their lifetime. People are more than willing to help another human out if we only ask.
5. I learned I like spending time with myself. The first quarter of the trip was quiet and it was rare to run into another pilgrim walking. As I got closer to Santiago it was rare to find some space without others. I learned I like the quiet spaces better. I learned I need lots of alone time to process life.
6. I learned how when I anticipated challenges, it was easy for me to make them bigger than they actually are in my head. If I could stay present to what is, things were manageable. My brain does me no favors when it anticipates all that could go wrong and takes me out of being present where all is well.
7. I met some life long friends on the trip. I also met some people for only an hour or two that have stayed with me since. If one is open, the right people appear if one is open to allowing them in. It doesn’t matter if they stay the rest of your life or just for an hour, they can make a difference in your life that will remain with you forever.
8. I learned how to practice self-care. Yes, I used a taxi or a bus for about 45 miles along the way. Somedays that is what I needed to take care of myself due to blisters, heavy rain, heavy traffic, etc. Being flexible with your life plans allows one to continue the journey. Taking care of oneself is more important than the ego talk of having to take every step without assistance.
9. To this day, I still can’t believe I did it. This was so far out of my comfort level and what I thought I could do before I set off.
10. I had the help of many people that were state side during my walk. Many sent healing energy and good vibes of confidence to me. My blogging history started with the Camino and my preparation to walk it and has continued to this day. Sharing my life story with others has opened me in a way that I never dreamed possible.
11. There is a thing called Camino angels that happens. I think the same can be said about life. I believe in angels that show up and help you when you need it most, even before you think to ask for it. I had that happen several times on the Camino and it has continued to happen many, many times since. One has to be open to it though and accept the help.
12. Life can be simple. The Camino taught me how silly having 100 choices of clothing pieces is. On my walk I had four shirts and four pants. Two each for hot weather and two for cold weather. One doesn’t need more than that. Since the Camino I have simplified my wardrobe considerably. It makes decision fatigue less daily for me.
13. I only took a carry on bag for a 60 day trip. I no longer own a full sized suitcase and always go carry on. We have/take many more things through life than we really need. I have embraced the philosophy of traveling light and also embrace that as living light and owning much less than I did before the walk.
14. This walk was the beginning of my international travel desire. I learned I like life experiences that take me out of my comfort level much more than I like material things. I learn more about myself when I push myself out of the box that surrounds me that is comfortable.
15. Take risks. Choose adventure. Choose to live fully all that is out there. Simplify your life. Live fully in the present and know that all is well.

Not a good night for sleep. I don’t think I got more than one hour of sleep all night. Finally gave up around 5:30 and got up. Did some laundry and finally went back to bed around 8:30. Got a phone call around 10:30 that woke me up. Grateful for the two hours I did get at last. Man, it makes for a long night when I can’t sleep.

I went to Pioneer Bluffs for a short bit this afternoon. I listened to Jeff Davidson sing. It was 90 degrees and I got hot so came home. Annie Wilson was up next but I needed to come home and cool off.

They didn’t have a very big crowd while I was there. I hope the crowd built as the day went along. It is disappointing for the volunteers and staff to work that hard and not have many show up.

I had a bierrock from one of the food vendors. She had put big pieces of cabbage down and then added the meat. I didn’t eat all of it as it was huge. I mainly ate the meat part and just a bit of the bread part. I think I like mine better – i chop the cabbage up fine and mix it in with the meat.

Came home and am finishing up washing the last five loads of blankets I had left. With the sweat pants coming in I knew we wouldn’t need the blankets to fill in. Only need to fold the last two loads of them and then all 120 blankets will be washed and ready to go. Debating if we need to fold them differently so they are more compact. If we have time we will do that. If not, we will make do with the way they are folded now.

I need to have Phil come over and clean out my dryer vent. The blankets had lots of fuzz balls. I had to use a moist microfiber cloth after every load that was in the dryer to wipe out and pick up the fuzz balls. I can’t remember ever needing to do that before.

I guess I should wait and see how the sweat pants do. Not sure if they will leave lots of lent behind or not. Have a feeling I will be washing up sweat pants as I don’t think we can get them all washed on our wash days.

Yesterday I wrote that I had a full week after the back backs are done before my trip. I realized this morning that isn’t true. We are filling the backpacks on a Thursday and I leave the following Tuesday. I best get myself organized this next week as it is my last free time before the trip. I think I have something scheduled for everyday starting the 18th. Yikes! Good thing I get to go on vacation and rest.

Cleaned out my office supply drawers last night. Found three almost full packages of staples – that should be more than a life time supply. I need to share one or two with someone. Also got my filing box caught up and cleaned out. Good to have those little projects completed. I have a few more drawers and cabinets I need to clean out. Not sure why I thought to do these last night but am grateful they are done.

I have two phone meetings Monday. I think I am going to go to KC on Wednesday. I have a box of Love in Action goods that someone collected I need to pick up. I also need to take my passport to Nicole so she can do something for the trip with it. While I am there I will stop at Costco and pick up a few things that are on my list.

Ran into a couple today that we follow each other on Facebook but they were not aware of Love in Action. It made me realize I need to figure out a way to reach people that are not on Facebook. How does one do that these days? Newspapers are not read by many these days. I don’t know many that still listen to the radio. How does one spread the word? I will have to sit with this and see if anything comes to me.

Got the 2026 income tax book from AARP in preparation for tax season that will begin in February. Training is the middle to the end of January. I will see how thick I am in Go Bags and if I have the time to do taxes this year. If I need 100 plus bags per month I may not have time. We shall see what happens.

It did feel good to get out and be around people today. I was grateful there wasn’t a big crowd. It was a tad hot though. Guess better 90 than 30 which is another KS possibility in other years. I saw a few people I knew, but not many.

Looking forward to a quiet day at home tomorrow. I need to do some rearranging of boxes. Trying to figure out the work space we will need for the first work day. I move boxes from place to place and struggle to find the space I need. This little house doesn’t have many places to stash things and get them out of the way. If the weather is good, I can use the front porch although it is rather full of empty totes and six totes full of blankets.

Grateful for the beautiful music I heard today, grateful the blankets are all washed up, and grateful for a day of rest tomorrow.

Kathy and I loaded up the dogs and took them for their vaccinations. Both behaved fairly well and tolerated their shots and the car ride. Roxy got some ointment for her red and dripping eyes. I got some flea and tic medication for the two dogs and one cat. It cost almost $400 to get out the door. Yikes!

Haven’t done a darn thing else all day. I fell asleep in my chair for a bit this afternoon. It has been one of those types of days. I decided to let Love in Action rest today and I did the same.

Tomorrow I might go to Pioneer Bluffs for their fall event. It is to be a nice day and I would love to see some people. I need to push myself to get out more and interact with humans. I seem to have become a hermit and don’t get much face-to-face connection with others.

The world energy is so chaotic that it takes all I have just to keep myself grounded and above neutral. It is hard for me to hold my center when I am out and about. Maybe since most of the activity is outside tomorrow it will be a bit easier. The good news is if I find myself sliding down, I can leave at any time.

Monday I have two phone meetings – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The rest of the week is fairly open and quiet. I will probably be washing up sweat pants for a couple of days if they get here as anticipated Monday. I want to hold some of them to use when we wash up the socks and underwear. I think they will balance the loads better.

This feels a bit like the calm before the storm. After next week I have two very busy weeks with all the work days. Then I only have a week after that until my trip. Best enjoy the quiet while it lasts.

I do need to go to KC one day next week. A lady has some goods for Love in Action for me to pick up and Nicole needs to see my passport so she can do something with it for the trip. I’ll have to check with the two of them and see when it would work for me to come. I always have a running list of things I need from Costco so can make a stop while there and take care of those things.

I can’t believe it was almost 90 out today. Summer is definitely holding on. I read there is a cold front coming in next week with the possibility of a light freeze. The weather patterns are certainly changing. Wonder what the winter will bring?

I saw the announcement that the government is going to show a firing squad execution. They show executions almost daily but those executions are of innocent people being killed by government officials. I do find it interesting that the man they are going to show is a minority. Geez, what a surprise – right?

I keep feeling some weird vibes about what is coming over the next 90 days. I can’t imagine some of it as it all feels so out of control and out of bounds. Trusting that it will result in some people waking up and realizing what is happening. At some level none of it feels “real” anymore.

Grateful for a quiet day, grateful for a chair nap, and grateful for a day of rest.

Broke down and turned the A/C back on last night. It warmed up to the mid 80’s today so grateful the house has been cool this afternoon. Wonder when summer will let go?

Went to Emporia late morning to get a blood draw. My TSH is low at .5. That is the bottom of the range I am to be in. For the first time my T4 was high. I sent a note to my endocrinologist and she is going to have me lower my Tirosint and do 112 daily instead of alternating it with the 125 dose. I appreciate that she gets back to me quickly.

I only have a one month supply of the 112 on hand so ordered three more boxes. I want to make sure I have it for my trip. I ordered it from a lab in Alabama which is where they make it. It is much cheaper that way. They don’t accept insurance so the cost doesn’t go against my deductible. It is $154 for three boxes which will last three months. The local pharmacy was charging me $80 for one box three years ago. Wonder what they would charge now?

Kathy called in a prescription to be filled earlier this week. When I was there yesterday picking up another one for her they told me they had just received it but it wasn’t ready. As I was driving home today I got a text that her script is ready now. We have to go to Emporia tomorrow to take the dogs to the Vet. One of us will run in and get it while we are in town.

I had only ordered 25 women’s toiletry kits and needed 30 so I ordered another case of them. They came in today. The two cases of backpacks that I discovered on sale for half price didn’t arrive yet. I don’t understand how shipments get separated but I am guessing they will show up tomorrow.

I had ordered some rolls of colored duct tape that we will put strips of on the backpacks to make it easier for the staff at the Center to find in their locker. They came in today along with some scissors that I ordered. We will have several people cutting off tags and I wanted to make sure we had plenty of scissors. For some reason my supply was getting low.

The sweat pants are to arrive Monday. I think I am going to have to wash them up myself as we don’t have enough laundry days to get it all done. I may save some to use when we wash socks just to balance out the loads. I read where you aren’t supposed to wash just socks and underwear in one load by themselves. I will have a bit of time after the laundry days to get the sweats washed up but it will be cutting it close. How many pair of sweats can be washed in one load? The things I am learning.

I held back five loads of blankets that need washed so we wouldn’t run out of things to wash on the laundry days. Guess I can go ahead and get those washed up too. I hadn’t found the sweats pants when I made that decision. My master plan keeps changing as facts change.

I might try to add a laundry day to next week to get a start on the sweat pants. I will see if they are individually wrapped or have tags on them. If not, I might add a day and get most of them washed up. The laundry mat in Cottonwood only has four regular sized washers and two double sized ones. I’m thinking maybe five or six pairs of sweats pants per load? That is 40 per wash day.

I still need to go to the laundry mat and find out how you pay to wash a load of laundry. Do they still use quarters – lots and lots of quarters? Good thing the bank is close in case I will need more!

Got some thank you notes written and in the mail today. Have a couple email thank you notes to send and then I will be caught up again. I have written more thank you notes this year than I have ever before. I guess they are a bit old fashioned but if people are going to be generous enough to send funds for Love in Action, they deserve a handwritten thank you note. It bugs me when I send a donation and never hear back or get a form letter of some sort.

I need to find someone to audit my books. Most of the grant applications I have looked at require a copy of the most recent financial audit. Anyone know someone? My records are rather elementary. I’m not sure if I start before we became a 501(c)3 or after. We didn’t have our own back account until after.

Anyone else feeling the weird energy? Man, it is disruptive to me. Kathy and I have both noticed it. Things are getting ready to boil over I have a feeling. The next 90 days are going to get very interesting. I keep reminding myself to stay grounded and keep my focus on love and not worry about the stuff I have absolutely no control over.

Grateful my endocrinologist is easy to reach and responsive to my messages, grateful I listened to my intuition and had my TSH checked, and grateful I can be flexible and change my plans to get things done for the Go Bags.

Neither Kathy nor I found much sleep last night. Something is up with the world energy and we are both feeling it.

I went to Emporia late morning. I needed a haircut and some things from Walmart. I went to Great Clips. Not sure about the cut – it feels weird to me. I will see after I shampoo and brush it. She worked fast — only took about 15 minutes. She didn’t shampoo it first. About half the price of the other place. Maybe I will adjust and get it cut monthly instead of every two months. We shall see how this works out. I am not too picky about my hair. But then again I have had perfect haircuts for so long that maybe I am and just didn’t realize it!

Went to Walmart and picked up a prescription for Kathy. They were a bit backed up. She had another one but they didn’t have it ready. I wasn’t in the mood to go back and stand in their line again after I paid for my groceries.

I finally remembered to buy some curling ribbon that we will put on the Go Bags to designate sizes. Yet another little project to take care of some time in the future.

Got what I needed and came home. I didn’t get all on my list but I got the urgent things. Not a good day for me to be in a store.

My tummy was a bit weird this morning. When I got home I remembered to take one of the pills the gastroenterology doctor had prescribed. Within 15 minutes I was feeling much better. I do need to remember to take them. I can take up to four a day but so far have only needed one. They have to be taken at least one hour after I take other medication and I can’t take any other medication for four hours after I take one. Hard to fit all in that type of schedule.

Got a post made about the phone cards. People have responded and several donations have come in. I will need $1,700 for the phone cards and another $400 for the cheesecake for the November treat. I want to bank enough for the next 100 Go Bags if they are needed quickly. I am hoping by the time I leave on vacation the first part of November the funds will be here and I won’t worry about things while I am gone.

Nicole got a notice today about our cruise that may not be a cruise. The Danube River is very low due to the extreme drought they are having. The tour group is to let us know their alternate plan in another two weeks. So far, it doesn’t sound like the cruise part will happen.

Not sure how they bus us from place to place as we were to have traveled by boat during the night. We will see what the alternative agenda is and then decide what to do. We can get a refund if the cruise doesn’t happen.

Travel is always an adventure and it sounds like this trip may have some additional adventure to it.

Getting a strong intuition that things are going to get very interesting in the US the closer we get to the election. I have a feeling if it looks like the Republicans will lose control of the House and Senate some shenanigans will happen. Not sure it is a good time to be out of the country but maybe it is the perfect time!

These times are certainly bringing out truth and the best and worst of humanity. Those that are remaining silent are as complicit as those on the front lines. I guess it is good that one knows where others stand and can make decisions about relationships one wants to have. But how will we ever build a bridge between? Guess that isn’t my job – my job is to stand in love and allow others to do what they need to do. Love will win but thinking it is going to get much messier before that can happen.

I need to go back to town tomorrow and get a blood draw to check my TSH levels. It has been a bit since I had them checked and I have been on another new medication for a couple of weeks. From what reading I did, this other new medication can cause my TSH levels to get wacky so need to check on them.

Friday I take the dogs to the Vet for their annual check and shots. They usually tolerate them well. Sometimes the wait in the waiting room can be stressful if there are other dogs in there. Trusting we will have an easy trip this time.

No plans for the weekend. I may go to Pioneer Bluffs Saturday afternoon for their fall event. It always sounds like a good idea until it is time to go then I likely will change my mind. I am becoming a real homebody these days.

Got notice that the sweat pants I ordered have shipped. It will take them a few days to get here. May need to schedule more wash days as it will take many loads to wash up 96 pairs of sweats. Trusting that the quality will be acceptable as I haven’t found a second vendor as a backup.

Got two loads of laundry done today and put away. Washed the sheets on my bed but haven’t gotten it made up yet. Best do that soon as I am tired and may want to go to bed early. I disappoint myself when I go to bed and remember I haven’t put the sheets back on the bed. Takes part of the joy out of climbing into a freshly made bed away.

Grateful I remembered to get curling ribbon today, grateful for a hair cut, and grateful the new pills seem to calm my tummy.

I haven’t had too much of a reaction to my vaccines I got yesterday. My arm is a bit sore but not bad. Have been tired and low energy today and not very hungry but no fever or body aches. I will call that a win!

I finally found a vendor for men’s sweat pants. I have spent hours looking and kept coming up short. I finally found one that will make an exception and sell to a nonprofit. The price is less than $8 a pair! I had to go to the bank and wire them the funds. Trusting all will be well and the product will show up in due time and be of acceptable quality. Dang, this one has been hard! It will be a big relief when they show up. I fear I may need some more laundry days when they do though. How many loads will it take to wash 96 pair of sweat pants?

I helped Kathy get the empty cardboard boxes off the front porch and into her car. She took them to recycling this morning. I will have one more big load of cardboard for her to haul off when I get the backpacks and toiletry kits out of the boxes they came in and when the sweat pants come in. I am waiting to take the toiletry kits and backpacks out of the smaller boxes ntil we work with them as they are easier to lift in the smaller boxes than they will be in the big totes.

I took a nap this afternoon. I got two sleeps last night but still felt sleepy today. I was up from 4:00 – 6:30 am this morning. Managed to get two more hours of sleep after that but it never feels the same when it comes in two patches instead of straight through.

With the pants coming in at less than $8 a pair and the hoodies for a little over $4 each, I have the price of a Go Bag under $35 if I have to purchased everything. Somehow that feels a lot cheaper than $50 each which is what I had first guesstimated. Then with all the donated goods that are here and are coming, the price will be even less. I think I have enough I could order the makings of another 100 Go Bags if we go through the first 100 quickly. Not sure what we will do after that but I don’t need to know the answer to that right now. So far, this project has come through with every idea that has come up and we have always had enough funds when they were needed.

A week from Saturday I am going to go to a meeting in El Dorado and pick up a collection of socks. The lady coordinating it said they had a lot of socks. Another group from Newton is doing sweatshirts and leggings – they are shipping them to themselves and are going to wash them up for me before we meet up to hand them off. How sweet is that? Yet another lady is coordinating another drive of some sort, I haven’t heard an update from her.

I am having a phone conversation with a lady that understands all the rules and regulations for nonprofits on Monday. Once I have that conversation and get some of my questions answered, I will be making some changes for the donors. I will also start writing some grant proposals. I need to understand all the ramifications of what a grant does to our fundraising needs and how that changes things. I never anticipated having to raise $35,000 to cover 1,000 Go Bags. When I met with this lady before I ever became a nonprofit, she warned me this would happen.

I had misplaced my debit card sometime earlier this week or the end of last week. When I couldn’t sleep last night I got up and searched my purse and found it. Grateful it wasn’t lost – just misplaced. I was out and about Monday and had to charge the things I bought on my credit card I carry as a backup.

Tomorrow I need to find someone to cut my hair. It is about a week past needing one and I have to stop and get that done. Dang, I miss my guy that has cut my hair for the last ten years or so. Having to go in and trust a stranger and tell them what I want makes me cringe. Oh well, it is just hair. It grows and can be cut differently the next time if I don’t like it.

Friday I take both dogs to the Vet for their vaccines. Roxy was limping yesterday but it seemed better today for the most part. I will talk Kathy into coming with me as managing two big dogs is a handful – especially if there are lots of other dogs in the waiting room.

I need to write up the request form for the Go Bags so my guy can start working on it so it is ready to go the middle of November. The Go Bags can’t go anywhere unless people request them. Not sure how the website works and how I get notified but we will figure that out. Good things others know about these kinds of things.

Feeling relieved that I finally nailed down a supplier for the sweat pants. Finding stringless pants was much more of a challenge than I had expected it to be. I am very pleased with the price and will be a bit anxious until I actually see the product and know that the quality is acceptable. Everything I have ordered so far has been good so I need to let it go and trust!

I tried to watch TV for a bit yesterday and finally turned it off. The election ads are out in full force. Most of them are so full of outright lies and mistruths that they are hard to watch. My inner bullshit detector goes off when I hear a mistruth. Both sides are equally guilty although I think one side is more extreme than the other. My nervous system couldn’t take any more of them and I had to turn them off. Wonder if I can find some movies or something to watch for the next 30 days or so. Can’t take any more of those ads.

Grateful I didn’t have a bad reaction to my shots, grateful for an afternoon nap, and grateful I found a vendor for the sweat pants.

This has not been the easiest of days for me. Feel a bit scattered and ungrounded. I did manage to sleep some last night but still feel tired.

Went to Emporia a little after noon. I had some things I needed from Walmart and I was scheduled to get my flu and Covid vaccines at 2:00. I found what I needed and then headed over to get my shots. They were able to take me a bit early. The lady did a nice job injecting them. Wonder if I will have a reaction this time? I got the Moderna shot this time and in the past I have reacted to those. The Pfizer ones I never react to. I am free all day tomorrow in case I do.

I was going to stop and get a haircut but I needed to come home. Wasn’t feeling it for a haircut today.

I got some inner containers to help sort things in the big totes I am putting the Go Bag supplies in. Two of the new inner containers are short and the rest are tall – not sure how that happened.

Worked on sorting the stuff that goes in the totes a bit. Took the totes with the blankets in them to the front porch. If it gets cold, it won’t hurt the blankets at all. Haven’t figured out where to put the toiletry kits and back packs. Kinda want to keep them in the boxes they came in for a bit longer as they will be heavy if I put them in the totes. I am out of room in this house though.

Made labels for the totes and got most of them on the totes. Now I can find what I need easier. The inner containers work for a couple of the items but not sure they are big enough to hold the different sizes of other items. I am trying to limit how many totes I have but may need to make a tote for Medium T-Shirts and another one for XL T-Shirts.

Not sure why this hasn’t been an easy day. I am limiting what I expect out of myself today as a result. No use pushing when it isn’t needed. Trusting tomorrow will be a better day and I can get more things done.

Stopped at the post office to get the PO Box mail. Got five hundred stamps today and a nice check. People are so generous. 100 of the stamps came in an envelope from someone that didn’t identify themselves. They put my address as the return address. I won’t be able to send them a thank you note.

I need to clear some clutter out of the living room. I brought in some totes and haven’t found a place for them yet. The porch is getting cluttered now too. I need to help Kathy take a bunch of boxes to recycling and clean up part of the porch clutter. Two more weeks before we start putting things together. I can do this, I can do this…..

Still working on reorganizing the back room. Instead of organizing, what I really need to do is get rid of things. Maybe I need to get cranky and start throwing things away. For some reason, it is easier for me to throw things away when I am cranky. I’m not too far from being cranky so maybe I need to step over the line and go for it!

Nothing on the calendar until Friday when I take the dogs for their vaccines. Roxy was limping today. Dang, those critters are eating away at my budget. The older they get, the more they are falling apart – kinda like Kathy and I.

Hard days remind me to be more grateful for the easy ones.

Grateful I got my vaccines today, grateful I am finding ways to get things better organized, and I will be grateful when this day is done.

I found sleep last night and slept in this morning. I would be happy if I could do that every night.

I am working on cleaning up the back room. It feels cluttered to me. I’m sure part of it is because the front room is full of boxes and it is bothering me. The new totes are to be tomorrow and I can clean that up a bit.

Found the tote of clothes that had come in for the released detainees Go Bags. Figured out I can use the pants that came in with inner strings for the released detainees. Whew! That feels good they won’t be wasted. So grateful the mistake was caught when it was so we won’t get lots more of them.

I am in a throw away mood so it is a good time to clean up the back room. I have lived in this house for over two years and if I haven’t used something, I don’t need it. I will continue to go through everything and figure out what I can get rid of. I have lots of paper goods and need to figure out a way to store them better.

I am going to October to a meeting of the Democrats of Butler County to pick up a sock collection. I guess they were very successful and have lots of socks for me and they are expecting more to be brought to the meeting I am going to. I sure appreciate groups that help us out.

Tomorrow I have to go to Emporia for my flu and Covid shots. I need a few groceries so will pick those up while I am there. I have nothing on my calendar for Tuesday in case I have a reaction. I didn’t last year so hoping that will hold for this year too. While I am at Walmart I need to look for something that will work as dividers for the totes. Some of the things like bras will all fit in one tote but I need to divide the two sizes.

I have some rearranging to do when the totes come in tomorrow. I ordered another 16 so should have enough to get everything in its place. Still waiting on hoodies and sweat pants so will need to save some totes for them. How many totes does it take for 100 hoodies? How many for 100 pair of sweat pants? I may need more totes yet!

I have felt a lot of restlessness today. It is one of those days that it has been hard to settle and I have no idea what is behind it. Giving it lots of room and space and stopping occasionally to tune in to see if there is a message of some sort in it. Sometimes there is and sometimes it passes without me knowing what it was.

Grateful I figured out a use for the inner string pants, grateful for all the sleep I got last night, and grateful for all the socks that have been collected.

Finally got sleep after 4:00 am this morning. Slept in a bit but not enough. I am tired this evening.

Took care of some odds and ends at home but it was mainly a do nothing type of day. I did manage to get my laundry done, folded and put away. That is my success of the day.

I went to Matfield Green this afternoon to see an artist that has a studio there. She does my favorite Flint Hills scenes and had some beautiful work. Matfield had several different artists that had open studios today.

My tummy started yelling at me so I came home after the first stop of the artist tour. I am glad I came home as I had to run to the bathroom for about an after I got home. Finally took something to slow things down. They worked but am feeling drained this evening.

A group from Newton is buying a bunch of things for the Go Bags. They are going to ship them to themselves, wash them and then bring them to me. How sweet is that? The generosity of people continues to amaze me daily.

But she discovered that the sweat pants I had placed on the Amazon gift registry has inner strings. I had asked the site if they had draw strings and they said no. What they didn’t say is they have inner strings and those are not allowed either. They don’t have much elastic in them as they depend on the inner strings to be pulled to hold them up.

I took a pair over to a friend of mine that used to do tailoring. We tried to figure out a way to remove the draw strings and put in a piece of elastic and sew it in place. Without knowing the size of the waist of the person that will be receiving the pants she didn’t think that would work. Dang it anyways.

I haven’t opened some of the other packages of them so will figure out a way to return them. Man, this can get frustrating. I trust one of the two vendors I found no strings sweat pants from that deal with institutions will work with me and I can figure out a way to order them from them. I may have to order way bigger quantities than I expected but I have funds if that is necessary – to a point anyways. Project for Monday!

Got a phone call this afternoon that was challenging. It is a family matter. Still sitting with it and trying to find some grace and compassion. The situation she called about is out of my hands and up to a company to decide what they are going to do. I will wait till the company makes a decision and go from there. I will accept whatever decision the company makes. Another frustration of the day though.

I was looking at the bulk order site. I had only ordered 24 women’s toiletry kits and I need 30. I decided to go ahead and get another case ordered. While I was on the site I found some backpacks that will work for the women on sale for half price so I ordered two cases of those too. We will need those sooner or later and might as well get them at that price. I need different colored backpacks anyways and this will help solve part of that problem.

This has been one of those days! I feel bad for making the wrong choice on sweat pants and grateful someone caught it. I guess you can hold two opposite views at the same time! I will figure out the return thing tomorrow and get that process started. Grateful it was discovered before I took them to the Center and attempted to have a go bag pass inspection.

Problems seem to come up and so do solutions, just not always on my time table. Another lesson in that today! Both frustrating situations are not something I can solve today. I will do some energy work and release both of them and let them go!

Starting to feel a bit boxed in due to the extra clutter in my house. I might try to move things around a bit and open some space back up. When my house is cluttered, I struggle to settle and quiet my mind. Surely I can last a couple more weeks though. I have a solution coming for that issue to – again not on my preferred timeline. Thinking there is a lesson from the Universe for me today. Guess I don’t have to like the lesson – just need to learn from it.

No plans for tomorrow. Monday I have to go to Emporia and get my flu and Covid vaccines. I have a few groceries to pick up while I am at Walmart. The rest of the week is empty space so should have time to handle the returns and continue to explore the institutional orders and find solutions for them.

A month today Nicole and I leave for our trip. I think I will pull out the travel itinerary and spend some time reading that. I need something positive to look forward to. Time seems to be flying by so it will be here before I know it. So grateful the Go Bags will be done and ready to start passing out when I get back.

Going to spend some time releasing bad vibes from today. Nothing happened that can’t be overcome. I just need to let go!

Grateful the lady caught my error in the sweat pants today, grateful I listened to my tummy and got home before it went crazy, and grateful I found some backpacks for half price.

Another night of hard to find sleep. I did get some but not enough. I did manage to take a chair nap this morning. The house felt cold so I dug out a heater, found a blanket and curled up on my chair. I managed to find some more sleep. Yay!

I went to Emporia to run errands. I stopped at the bank in Cottonwood Falls to deposit some donations for Love in Action. When I got to Emporia I parked and then dropped some thank you notes at the post office to mail. Walked on down the street to Bobby D’s and met Jason for lunch. We had a nice visit and lunch.

After lunch I went to the public library and sent a two page fax. I found a vendor for men’s sweat pants without draw strings but you have to fill out an application before they will accept you as a client. I may not have a big enough order for them to bother with me. We shall see what happens.

I had to get permission from the Detention Center to have the pants shipped directly to them as the vendor won’t deliver to a home address. The Captain graciously granted permission. Now I wait to hear from the vendor.

I headed to Cottonwood Falls. I stopped and got some ice and then came home. It was good to get those errands done.

Kathy and I brainstormed and I think have come up with a way to make each backpack more easily identifiable for the detention center. I had ordered assorted colors at the Center’s request but was shipped all the same color. I think if we put three strips of colored duct tape on them – two on the front and one on the back, it will make the bags easy to identify from a distance, will not catch on anything like the conveyor inspection belt at the airport, and can be removed easily when the Detainee gets the bag.

I need to call the Captain or the Sheriff and make sure I can put duct tape on the bag. They may have a policy prohibiting it. If they do, I will come up with plan B.

I have spent most of this week figuring out ways to get the cost of the Go Bags as low as possible. If the contract comes through for the sweat pants, I will get the cost of each bag down to $32 for the men and $34 for the women. I had originally projected $50 so am pleased with the “bargains” I have found. I would like to get them to the point where 3 cost $100 and I am almost there.

Right now I have bought in bulk for 100 bags but if I get storage space I can up that and save even more. I don’t have the space for more than 100 at a time right now. Should know soon if the storage space will be available and then I can order the next round of supplies.

Still working on the schedule for the work days. I want to make sure I have enough work for the volunteers to do so the drive to come will feel worth it. I hate when I volunteer somewhere and don’t feel it was a good use of my time. It is hard to predict how fast things can get done. Some people will be lightning speed and others will be turtle speed. All will be welcomed and appreciated. Just want to make sure I can keep them all busy, regardless how fast or slow they are.

Am working on washing up another 30 blankets today. I think I will save the last tote of them in case we need something to do for one the wash days. If the sweat pants come in, I won’t get all of the things washed up on the work days and won’t get to the rest of the blankets. But if they don’t, I might need more wash to do on a work day. Balancing all the in case situations is running through my head all the time. Trust people will offer grace if my plans don’t go as anticipated.

Good news is I have until the first of December to get this all done. I can always schedule more work days if the hoodies and pants come in on time and need washed up.

It is a perfectly beautiful fall day out today. The humidity and rain has finally broke and we have had cool temperatures and sunny skies all day. I’m not sure it reached 70 today. Feels and smells like fall today. My body was cold this morning as it is not used to these cooler temperatures.

Did some more digging about grant information. I need to find out the consequences of accepting grants and fully understand what that does to fund raising responsibilities before I get too far ahead of myself. I know there is some requirement about how much you can accept and then how much you have to raise in smaller donations. I really had never planned to be a permanent fund raiser but if the Go Bags go out as they might, it looks like I will spend more of my time raising funds somehow or another.

It is easy for me to get ahead of myself and step out and not fully investigate all the pros and cons. I am attempting to do my due diligence and not make more work for myself down the line.

Felt good to get some things taken care of today. I have a tendency to procrastinate and not get things done timely. I even managed to call the Vet today and schedule the dog’s vaccinations. I almost feel caught up. Now I need to make myself do some housecleaning or not!

Feeling like I finally climbed above neutral today for the first time in a bit. I’m not quite back in my peaceful valley but it is close. When i can step back and allow myself to take things one step at a time and allow myself grace I will be back in my valley.

Have felt like I had lots of loose ends lately and it does feel good to get some of them tied up. Maybe it will free some mental space for me. I am not as good as juggling lots of little details at the same time as I used to be.

Grateful for lunch with Jason today, grateful I am caught up with my thank you notes, and grateful for the sunshine today.

Rain, rain and more rain. Flood warnings up all around. Think I will stay in where it is dry. I did wimp out and turned the A/C back on. It was so humid and hot in the house without it. Kathy was struggling to breathe and both of us had trouble sleeping last night – I think because of the heat and humidity. I have felt cold this afternoon with the air on. Guess I am hard to please.

Have spent all day washing blankets. I got 120 of them as they came in a box of 24 and I needed 100. I can do 5 at a time in my washer. When I take them out of the dryer I have to use a slightly damp cloth to wipe out the dryer of the lint balls. I think I am about halfway done. Good time I have lots of time before they will be needed. Wonder what my water bill will be this month with 24 extra loads of laundry?

Have spent the rest of the day finding bulk suppliers for the last two big items which are the hoodies and sweat pants. I found one for the hoodies and ordered them. They are coming from China and with the war and fuel situation I pray the items I ordered will arrive. Shipping costs were high but even lots more if I had them come by air. Most of the bulk items I got were made in China and I am satisfied with the quality so took a chance on the hoodies.

I think I finally found a supplier of sweat pants for the men at a price of under $10 a pair. It is from a bulk suppliers that mainly sells to institutions but also will accept a nonprofit. I have to fill out an application to become a customer and if accepted can order sweat pants for about $9.00 a pair including shipping. I will get that filled out and returned to them and see what happens.

If that doesn’t work I found a supplier that only sells to prisons and I can check and see if the Detention Center will order them for me and I reimburse them.

Did some number crunching on the cost of the Go Bags and if Love in Action has to pay for everything in the bag I have the cost down to around $35 a bag. I am exploring grants to write and needed the exact cost of a bag. That cost gets offset with donations of goods.

Found a couple of grants that sound like Love in Action might be a match for them. I need to do some more investigating to understand the ramifications of accepting a grant and what that means to fundraising responsibilities. Since I am a 501(c)3 there are requirements I need to pay attention to. I really didn’t think we would ever get big enough to need grants. However, if the Go Bags go out at the rate of over 100 a month, I think we might need some grants to help offset the cost. My donors are incredibly generous but with the way the economy is, I don’t want them to hurt themselves by giving too much.

I got a very generous check in the mail today from a new donor. She wrote the nicest letter with it. She mentioned she liked how we treat the employees at the Detention Center as well as the Detainees with dignity and respect. Her check funded the hoodie order with funds left over. People are so incredibly generous.

Went to the bank and deposited a check. I need to make another trip and deposit two more that I got today. I will wait till the rain stops though. Went to the post office to check my new PO Box for Love in Action and found two checks waiting for me. That made the trip to the post office fun! I also stopped and dropped off a check for my water bill.

It has been a quiet day at home for the most part. It feels good to have the laundry to do as it feels like I am getting something done. I went down the rabbit hole of sweat pants providers for a long time. Most of the sweat pants are sold with draw strings and I can’t use those or pull the strings out and call it good. I persisted and hope I found a supplier.

When it stops raining I need to help Kathy take two car fulls of cardboard to the recycling bins. I don’t think it will all fit in Kathy’s car alone. I still have nine more boxes in the living room that might have to sit for a bit. I did order some more totes so maybe when those come in I can get rid of the boxes. Not sure where I will put the totes though. Good news is I hope to have a storage place lined up soon and can move things out of the house.

My plan is to only keep the full Go Bags at the house and keep all the bits and pieces at the storage place. The place also has a nice work area for future work days. If we get to use it, we will transfer things to it on our work days. The volunteers will pick up the laundry things here, wash them up and then we will take them to the new storage space. Hoping we can assemble the bags in the new space. That will make it much easier. I will find out the 16th if it is a go.

I haven’t seen it rain for several days in a row for a long time. We got lucky and didn’t get 11 inches like they did in western KS. Most of the time the rain came straight down. This afternoon it is blowing a bit and going a bit sideways. Grateful I don’t have to get out in it.

No plans for tomorrow. I may run down to Matfield Green Saturday. They are having an event I would like to go to. I always think it is a good idea to go until it is time to go and then most of the time I change my mind and stay home. We shall see what happens this time.

Next week is full of empty space. I am getting my Covid and flu shots on Monday. Have lots of time to recover if I have a reaction. Last year I didn’t have one so hoping that will be the case this year too.

This has been a mental busy day for me. Working on the plans for each of the work days in addition to searching for cheap sweat pants. I need a written plan for each of the work days as a starting point. I’m sure after each work day I will adjust the following work days tasks of things to do. It is hard to know how long it will take people to sort 100 pair of T-shirts into sizes and cut off tags. How long will it take to open 75 toiletry bags and remove three things and add several things? We shall see what happens! Good news is I have lots of time until December 1, even with being gone for 16 days of that time.

Grateful for several generous donations today, grateful for the A/C and how quickly it removed the humidity from the house, and grateful I am almost halfway done washing blankets.

Got some sleep last night. I woke up a couple of times but was able to go back to sleep. Still feel like I could use more sleep but that usually happens when I sleep more than normal. Maybe tonight I can sleep again and not wake up feeling tired tomorrow morning.

Had a wonderful Zoom conversation with an immigration attorney. She is going to edit the conversation and then it will be posted to the Love in Action Facebook page. It lasted an hour but worth the time to watch it when it is posted. She showed a book of the immigration law that is 2,500 pages thick and has been added to since. Geez, do you think we could make it more complicated?

I learned a lot during the conversation. One thing I knew but realized even more, is just how complicated immigration law is. Add to that the various interpretations of the law and current policy. We seriously need immigration reform in this country.

The items I ordered in bulk came in today. My tiny house feels a bit crowded. I got some of the things put into totes but I still have 14 boxes of things I am going to leave in boxes for now. The boxes got wet so may change my mind as I don’t like the smell of wet cardboard.

I am impressed with the quality of the items. They were much cheaper than what I can buy anywhere else and I was a bit afraid that the quality would reflect that. I don’t think it does.

I thought I had ordered the backpacks in various colors but got all the same color. The Sheriff had asked me to do various colors so they could find them in the property closet easier. I may have to get some stickers or do something creative to help him find them. I could tie bows on them or something like that to help them out. Anyone have an idea how to make a bag stand out that could then be removed from the bag when it is no longer needed?

Trying to figure out how many of the things we can do in one wash day. I have three wash days scheduled and I know we can’t do all of them in three days. How many washers do you need to wash 150 pair of socks? How many for 150 pair of underwear? Oh the things I am thinking about these days.

I think I can do a sock, underwear and bra day, I might throw in some T-shirts for each load. When I googled it, they recommended not doing just socks as they can escape into the abyss. No wonder my head is full these days! The things I am learning. Then again I have never needed to wash 150 pairs of socks at one time.

Another day would be to do the rest of the T-shirts. They recommend 20 – 25 T-shirts per load if that is all you do. We could match and fold socks while waiting for the T-shirts to wash and dry. Oh my, how much fun will it be to match 150 pairs of socks. What have I gotten myself into?

I still have blankets, leggings, sweat shirts, hoodies and sweat pants to do. Oh my. Thinking I will get the blankets washed up early myself as I know it is going to take lots of loads to do 100 blankets. On one of the wash days, the volunteers could fold blankets while we wait on the washers and dryers.

I found a bulk place I can order 110 hoodies with no strings for a little under $5 each. I don’t think I can beat that price. I’m trying to decide if I can trust the quality. I am feeling a bit better about that after seeing what I got today. Most of the items I got today were from China. They won’t arrive until the first part of November as they will be shipped from China. I will have time when I get home from my trip to get them washed up before we start passing out bags December 1. They will be easy to add to the bags or I could have another couple of work days to help get them washed and added to the bags.

Still haven’t found a cheap place for men’s sweat pants without strings. The cheapest I have found is just under $10 a pair. Someone is doing a collection of them. I will wait and see what they come up with. I may need to act soon though, as shipping can take a long time as I found with the hoodies.

If absolutely necessary, we can give them a bag without pants or a hoodies but I sure would prefer giving them a change of clothes. Good thing I started this early so we can work through these issues.

Need to order some more totes. I have 16 but that isn’t enough to put everything in them. I am thinking 8 more will do but we shall see. Sure wish I knew how fast we would go through the bags so I knew how big to build my supply. My intuition is telling me it will take a couple months for the first 100 and then the next 100 will go quickly. That may be a good thing so we can ease into this project a bit. I have the funds to order the next 100 which covers everything except the hoodies and pants and a few of the little things we are adding.

Trying to think of a place I can hide 14 boxes until our work day. Five of them are blankets so will work on getting those washed up. I have them in my living room right now and I know myself well enough to know they will drive me to drink if I don’t get them moved sooner rather than later. And I don’t drink! And I’m not sure where to move them to.

Got the month-end report posted. Always feels good to get that done. It is way too long but that is how I roll I guess. Lots going on.

I am grateful I have lots of empty space ahead of me. I filled the last two weeks in October with work days. I best give some time to my upcoming trip and decide what I will be wearing and if I need to get somethings for the trip. I leave the first part of November and that will be here before I know it.

Rain, rain, rain. It has rained off and on all day with lots more rain coming. We are in a tornado watch for the evening. So far we haven’t had any wind and the rain has been gentle and mostly light. Good day for a nap – wish I had thought of that sooner. Too late to nap now.

Reality kinda slapped me in the face today with the huge delivery. Things will get all sorted out. I need to remind myself to take one step at a time and it will all come together. So grateful I listened to my intuition and ordered the bulk things when I did so I have time to get them all ready. It would have been hard to schedule lots of work days the end of November and even in December with the holidays coming.

Grateful for my friend that did the Zoom lesson today, grateful the bulk items are here, and grateful I have time to figure things out.

It was not a good night to find sleep last night. Not sure I got even one hour of sleep. I have been in a bit of a daze all day. Just laid down for a bit but didn’t find sleep yet. Maybe later I will crash and sleep around the clock.

I made a post asking for some help with the Go Bags and filling the Halloween Treat bags for the Detainee’s October treat. I already have two to four volunteers for each day. Betting it will all fill up before it gets here.

I gave more thought to the washing day. Discovered the Cottonwood Falls laundromat only has four regular sized washers and two big ones. When you have to wash up 100 t-shirts, 100 pairs of pants, 100 hoodies or sweat shirts, 100 blankets, 100 pair of underwear, 100 pairs of socks, etc. I realized I would need several wash days to get it all done. Still not sure I need to wash everything but this way I will have help folding and sorting if nothing else. I added two more wash days just in case. I may need to wash some things at home too.

I got the first of the 15 boxes that are coming from the bulk supplier. I got the ladies underwear today. They look like they are an acceptable quality. Trusting the remainder of the items will be too.

Had a kind offer today of some work space and storage space. If it all works out this will solve my storage issue. I may have a room where I can leave the supplies all the time in a secure room plus a big area right next to it for work days. I should know in the next week or so if it is a go. If it is, all I will need to store at home is the completed Go Bags. I can go get more as needed and store the next round of supplies at this place. Another answer to a request I sent out to the Universe.

I will need to figure out a way to get all the stuff to that location and I will have to transport boxes of stuff to the new space as they arrive but that can be managed. I have a feeling 100 backpacks are going to take up lots more space than I have.

Found some sugar free treats to order for the Halloween gift bags. It usually costs more for the dozen sugar-free treat bags than it does for the normal ones. Grateful I found what I needed.

Found a supplier of hoodies with no strings for only $3.58 each. Shipping makes them closer to $5.25 each but that is still way cheaper than I can find anywhere else. Sitting on it for a bit before I decide to order them. Shipping time takes a bit so need to make a decision soon if I want them here for our packing the Go Bags work day.

Still need to find a bulk supplier of pants for the men. I found some leggings for the women that are reasonable. For some reason, sweat pants for men are hard to find for under $10 a pair. They can’t have draw strings and that makes them even harder to find. I will keep looking.

Sure wish I had a crystal ball and knew for sure how many Go Bags will be requested. I keep listening to my inner intuition as that is the only thing that I have to go off of right now. So far, it hasn’t led me astray.

I think I have the month-end report ready to go. I got some more donations and had to add the expense of the sugar free treats to it. It always feels like a big project off my plate when I can publish it.

Didn’t feel the best today as I was going on no sleep. Sure wish I could figure out this sleep thing. It kicks my ass occasionally when I have a night of no sleep. It will take me a day or two to recover IF I get sleep tonight.

Didn’t attempt much else today. I did get two loads of laundry washed but haven’t gotten them folded and put away yet. I stayed in today for the safety of all around me. It was a hard day!

Tomorrow I am to have a Zoom call with an immigration attorney. We will talk about the current status of immigration and how the law is being interpreted. When we are done we will post it on the Love in Action Facebook page. I am not sure how that is done but trusting the attorney will know how to do that. There are so many myths and untruths out there about immigrants that I am hoping this will make things a bit clearer about the reality of being an immigrant these days.

No plans for the rest of the week or weekend. There is an event I might go to on Saturday if I can make myself leave the house. We are to get rain for the next two days and lots of it. Rainy days make me want to stay home and curl up and read a book. My inner level of beingness needs some quiet time at home right now.

Grateful for the volunteers that are signing up for the work days, grateful the month-end report is ready to publish, and grateful for the sleep I will get tonight.