55

I turned 55 on Thursday.  I made it to the big double nickel.  Three months ago when I was in the hospital with a severe case of pneumonia, I honestly didn't know if I would make it to see 55.  I was on oxygen and struggling to breathe, but God pulled me through again.

Time after time throughout my life, the Lord has protected me and kept me alive.  He spared my life in 2005 when I was in a car crash and my truck overturned.  I came away from it with only a few cuts and scratches.  My truck didn't fare as well, but I survived.

After surgery
in 2014

When I developed spinal stenosis in 2013, I lost a lot of motor function in my already limited mobility, and I ended up having to move into a nursing home.  Thanks to God and a skilled surgeon, I didn't become even more paralyzed, and I have regained part of that function.

It was a dark time in my life.  When I came into the nursing home, I couldn't feed myself.  I couldn't type on this keyboard.  I couldn't do much of anything, and I couldn't understand why I was having to go through this ordeal.  It was the only time that I felt like giving up.  I wanted God to take me home to heaven, but He didn't.  

I kept going back to a Bible verse I had read many times.  Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

That verse reminded me that God can take something bad and turn it into something good.  I never expected to be in a nursing home at this stage of life, but God has turned even that into a good situation.  I actually have a good set-up here.  I don't have to cook, clean or do laundry, and I have the help I need.  I've also met a lot of great people here.

My scooter and my truck

I do miss living in Amarillo and all the places I went in my truck, but now I can get around better on my scooter in Pampa.  I go to a wonderful church, and it's only a 10-minute ride.  There's a grocery store, the movie theater and several fast-food restaurants within a couple of blocks.  I can ride almost anywhere in town in about 30 minutes.

I ride all over town.  It makes me feel like I still have some independence.  Some people see me and think I've escaped and call the police to come check on me.  One of the officers who checks on me is Neal Gardner, a friend from grade school.  He'll pull up beside me and say, "I knew it was you!" 

The bottom is God is good!  He has taken care of me all these years.  I don't know what the next year will bring, but I know God is faithful, and He will bring me through it all.

Outfoxed

Anyone who knows me knows I have been a Fox News fanatic for years.  I got hooked on it in 2000-2001 during its coverage of the tumultuous presidential race between George W. Bush and Al Gore.  I watched the network nonstop through all the ballot recounts and fights over "hanging chads" and final showdown in the Supreme Court.

I still watch Fox News but not as much.  It's still one of the only sources of reliable conservative news, but it has changed a lot since the departure of some of its big name hosts.

I used to watch the Fox primetime lineup religiously.  It started with The O'Reilly Factor at 7 and Hannity at 8.  Later, Megyn Kelly joined the lineup.  I always referred to Megyn as the foxiest fox on Fox! She was entertaining and even a little feisty.  Her interviews with Anthony Weiner were classics.  So I was sad when she and Bill O'Reilly left Fox.

I also watched The Five every afternoon for some lively debates between the five co-hosts.  Three of the five original hosts aren't there anymore, and it's not the same without them.  There was Eric Bolling, Kimberly Guilfoyle and my favorite liberal Bob Beckel.  I disagreed with almost everything Bob said, but he was sensible unlike most libs.  You never knew what would come out of his mouth, and neither did Fox.  After Bob dropped the F-bomb a couple of times on-air live, the show was put on an 8-second delay in case Bob had to be bleeped.  Fox fired him twice.

Bob was really an old softy.  He always had a huge light display at his home at Christmas.  I read his autobiography called "I Should Be Dead."  It was a fascinating look into his life as a political operative  and analyst.  Sadly, he passed away in 2022.

Fox still has better talent than CNN and the propagandist MSNBC.  Sean Hannity has been at Fox since Day 1 of the network and still does great work, and I have found ways to keep up with my old favorites.  I watch Bill O'Rielly's No Spin News broadcast on The First channel on Roku, and Megyn has a talk show on Youtube.  Eric Bolling has a show on Newsmax.  Between those three, I can still get the news from a conservative viewpoint.  

Journalism may be a dying profession, but as long as there's journalists like O'Rielly, Hannity and Bolling, journalism is not dead yet.  

Joe's Greatest Hits

Democrats are always talking about how great Joe Biden is and how much he has accomplished as president.  I decided to investigate their claims.  After many hours of research, I came up with this list of Joe's greatest accomplishments.  Here are Biden's top 10 accomplishments:

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There you have it.... Joe's Greatest Moments!