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My Mom e-mailed me late last night, to say that Dad's procedure to implant a pacemaker in his heart yesterday evening went fine. Yay! As of last night, Dad was supposed to be released from the hospital this noon and Mom was still planning to drive them both down here to visit me on Wednesday.
I got a little weirded out this morning (not having yet seen Mom's reassuring e-mail), when I suddenly remembered that it's almost 20 years ago today that my father's father dropped dead of a massive heart attack (after years of minor and not so minor heart attacks, and at the ripe old age of 89, while he was on his way to get his coat and drive one of Grandma's friends home from a garden club meeting -- so it's not like I'm afraid that my 68-year-old father will be following in Grandpa's footsteps anytime soon . . . really). It happened just a few days after Thanksgiving in 1984, I recall, only a day or two after the rest of my family (I was at school in New Jersey at the time) got back from visiting Grandpa and Grandma in Iowa.
I'm reminded that we're entering the time of year which -- at least to ministers and health care workers -- often seems to be particularly hazardous for the elderly and vulnerable (though if they make it through Thanksgiving and its aftermath, the physically fragile elderly [at least the ones whose families celebrate Christmas or Winter Solstice or one of the other winter holidays at about that time] usually try to hang on through Christmas, and then between Christmas and New Year's there's a noticeable upsurge in deaths among the ailing elderly). People in failing health seem to try to hold on until the holiday, to have one last chance to see and say good-bye to family members or close friends, and then they're ready to go, it sometimes seems.
So, for all those among my friends who may have similar memories of grief, as well as joy, attached to the Thanksgiving holiday or to the upcoming Winter-Holiday-of-Your-Choice/New Year's season, my sincerest sympathies. And my wish that this year you may know only joy and the blessings of gathering together in safety and health with your families and families-of-choice. May the good memories and current blessings continue to out-weigh the grief-filled memories or the fears of future losses to come.
And Now For Something Completely Different . . .
If you're a long-time "Star Trek" fan (as I am, and darn proud of it!) and you haven't been watching "Enterprise" lately, then I whole-heartedly urge you to give it another chance. The season-opening two-part episode may not have been as good as it could have been, but the series has been gathering more and more steam ever since (having finally, apparently, put to bed that temporal cold war motif). The recent three-episode arc guest-starring Brent Spiner was SOLID and CLASSIC "Trek" at its best, and the current three-episode arc (which started this past Friday) dealing with the question of the leadership and philosophical direction of the planet Vulcan is shaping up to be worthy of adding to my "permanent collection" of taped Trek episodes. A great many things that have been bothering a lot of us about the way Vulcan and Vulcans have been portrayed on "Enterprise" seem to be in a good way to being cleared up and resolved in a dramatically satisfying way, while fleshing out the characters of many of our favorite Vulcans VERY nicely.
(I admit I've always had a soft spot for Gary Graham, since I loved the series and the TV movies based on Alien Nation, but as Ambassador Soval he's often been rather hard to like in past seasons. But now, I find myself genuinely rooting for Soval and able to believe that he's both fully Vulcan and the kind of Vulcan that a human could genuinely respect, trust, and enjoy working with.)
I got a little weirded out this morning (not having yet seen Mom's reassuring e-mail), when I suddenly remembered that it's almost 20 years ago today that my father's father dropped dead of a massive heart attack (after years of minor and not so minor heart attacks, and at the ripe old age of 89, while he was on his way to get his coat and drive one of Grandma's friends home from a garden club meeting -- so it's not like I'm afraid that my 68-year-old father will be following in Grandpa's footsteps anytime soon . . . really). It happened just a few days after Thanksgiving in 1984, I recall, only a day or two after the rest of my family (I was at school in New Jersey at the time) got back from visiting Grandpa and Grandma in Iowa.
I'm reminded that we're entering the time of year which -- at least to ministers and health care workers -- often seems to be particularly hazardous for the elderly and vulnerable (though if they make it through Thanksgiving and its aftermath, the physically fragile elderly [at least the ones whose families celebrate Christmas or Winter Solstice or one of the other winter holidays at about that time] usually try to hang on through Christmas, and then between Christmas and New Year's there's a noticeable upsurge in deaths among the ailing elderly). People in failing health seem to try to hold on until the holiday, to have one last chance to see and say good-bye to family members or close friends, and then they're ready to go, it sometimes seems.
So, for all those among my friends who may have similar memories of grief, as well as joy, attached to the Thanksgiving holiday or to the upcoming Winter-Holiday-of-Your-Choice/New Year's season, my sincerest sympathies. And my wish that this year you may know only joy and the blessings of gathering together in safety and health with your families and families-of-choice. May the good memories and current blessings continue to out-weigh the grief-filled memories or the fears of future losses to come.
And Now For Something Completely Different . . .
If you're a long-time "Star Trek" fan (as I am, and darn proud of it!) and you haven't been watching "Enterprise" lately, then I whole-heartedly urge you to give it another chance. The season-opening two-part episode may not have been as good as it could have been, but the series has been gathering more and more steam ever since (having finally, apparently, put to bed that temporal cold war motif). The recent three-episode arc guest-starring Brent Spiner was SOLID and CLASSIC "Trek" at its best, and the current three-episode arc (which started this past Friday) dealing with the question of the leadership and philosophical direction of the planet Vulcan is shaping up to be worthy of adding to my "permanent collection" of taped Trek episodes. A great many things that have been bothering a lot of us about the way Vulcan and Vulcans have been portrayed on "Enterprise" seem to be in a good way to being cleared up and resolved in a dramatically satisfying way, while fleshing out the characters of many of our favorite Vulcans VERY nicely.
(I admit I've always had a soft spot for Gary Graham, since I loved the series and the TV movies based on Alien Nation, but as Ambassador Soval he's often been rather hard to like in past seasons. But now, I find myself genuinely rooting for Soval and able to believe that he's both fully Vulcan and the kind of Vulcan that a human could genuinely respect, trust, and enjoy working with.)
(no subject)
Also, I completely agree about Enterprise. I am not really a Trek buff. I haven't watched since reruns of TOS, but I truly enjoy Enterprise, even more so currently. Ditto on really loving Gary Graham, Alien Nation, and this most recent turn of events in Soval's character.
(no subject)
Can't wait to see what happens next.
(no subject)
Hear, hear, another voice spreading the good news that Enterprise, once again, has joined the ranks of good, interesting and thought-provoking TV shows :-)
I've been a Star Trek fan ever since I saw the original series as a kid, and always suspected that following the adventures of Captain Picard, Data and Geordi in their original language was the secret driving force behind all my teenage attempts to hone my English skills as well as possible *g*
When Enterprise came out a couple of years ago, I enjoyed it immensely, because of its enormous potential and freshness. Halfway through the second season, however, I had gotten so disappointed that I lost my interest completely. It was not until very recently that a friend convinced me to start watching again, telling me that it seemed Enterprise was back on track again. Except for the first two episodes, I've seen all of season 4 now, and I don't regret it.
Solid, classic Trek, interesting plot lines and the strong will to strengthen the continuity of the Trek Universe, instead of destroying it.
Go, Enterprise! The last couple of episodes rocked :-)
(no subject)
Amen!
I grew up on the original series in perpetual re-runs, as well, and became an ardent fan. In fact, for a few crucial years in my teens, just about my only effective "parenting" was coming from Kirk and Spock and their ethical world-views.
Enjoyed "Next Generation" quite a bit, at times, but it never really got to me the way the original had, or the way "Deep Space Nine" later did. "Voyager" was a fun place to visit, but I never really "lived there" (not after I realized they were NEVER going to allow Janeway and Chakotay to have a fling, no matter how much they teased!).
Now, "Enterprise" is reminding me of what I loved most about the original series. I can't wait for this next week's episode (which is pre-empted by some sporting event on my local UPN station, I see, but surely they'll show it SOME TIME!).