A bit down this evening... and some ramblings....

I have a few things that I will be blogging about later this week, and honestly tonight I'm not in the mood to get too philosophical, nor overly theological.

Today I helped out at Benson Baptist by doing the prayers at both services.  At the early service they had the choir perform, and that meant, that my old friend Edsel was there, since his daughter and her husband both are members of the choir.  As soon as I saw Edsel, I immediately went over to him to shake his hand and to wish him well.  It absolutely broke my heart, but he did not recognize me.  You could tell in his mind I was somebody else, and I believe he called me 'Howard'.  Up until now Edsel has always recognized me and known exactly who I was.  

After the second service I saw another friend Rev. Dick Peterson and I told him about my encounter with Edsel.  Dick told me that Edsel's Alzheimer's is progressing and that sometimes he doesn't recognize his own daughter.  My heart is heavy for him and his family, Alzheimer's is such a horrible disease.  In the case of Edsel it is all the more horrible as he lost his wife to Alzheimer's a number of years ago.  No family should have to endure losing two family members to this insidious disease.

I'd like any who read this blog, to please lift up a prayer for strength and peace for Edsel's family as well as for Edsel.  Thank you.

This past week I was also greatly saddened to learn that a longtime friend of my family and myself is suffering from a serious health issue.  Lowell Surat's niece Gayle informed me that Lowell suffers from a terminal heart condition, he is currently in the hospital and honestly I don't know any details beyond that.  Lowell worked for my father back when I was a teen, and I shared a number of adventures and more misadventures with him back in the 'day'.

I'd like to ask any and all who are reading this to add Lowell and his wife Connie to their prayers.  Please pray for peace, comfort, faith and strength for their extended family.  Thank you so very much for your prayers.

Please remember to continue to pray for the Hunzeker family, the Humboldt community, and for my friend Pastor Howard Blecha, as well as all of those in ministry in the Humboldt area.  I plan to call Howard tomorrow to check on him and find out how the rest of the community is coping.

Blog Post about the accident concerning Devon Hunzeker

I apologize for being a bit maudlin this evening but I'm saddened by these illnesses and death.

It's been a while since I mentioned my lifting and partially that's because I've had difficulty training legs heavy due to a re-injury to my lower back that I suffered a few months back.  I've had to be a bit creative training legs for a while now, but this last Friday night I felt good enough to do some heavy leg presses.  I was happy to see that I really haven't lost much strength on this movement.  Purposely, I kept my weights below 1,000 lbs but I felt very strong ,and I could have likely put another 150 lbs on the machine and kept going.

Even with my ailing back I have continued to train hard, and I am likely carrying more muscle mass than I ever have in this life.  I'm feeling very strong and I was happy that a younger lifter (and who there isn't younger than I, LOL) came up to me the other night and asked me if I was training for a powerlifting meet.  I told him 'no' but that I had done powerlifting back in my twenties.  Today after second service Pastor Paul introduced me to a couple of older gentlemen and the one said to me "you look very fit, how often do you workout".  I told him about four nights a week and he turned to his friend and said "see I told you so".

Roy Karlen, November 2014
Forgive the blurry photo.  It's nearly impossible to take a
photo that isn't blurry when you have an essential tremor.
Wm Roy Karlen photo

I am well aware that I'm a bit of an aberration for a man that is staring down his 55th birthday, but I am far from satisfied with myself.  Lately, I have been kicking around in my head trying to compete in a physique competition this next summer or fall.  The only problem is that I would certainly need to drop 30 lbs or a bit more, and that means being very, very disciplined.  This is enormously compounded by the fact that within the last few months it has become obvious, that my essential tremor is greatly aggravated if I go too long without eating.  This means I need to eat approximately every three hours.  I have to eat something just before retiring for the night and then immediately upon waking up.

Up until now I have been reticent to go the route of medication to control my tremors, but lately I have also begun to realize that the day will come soon when I will have no other choice.  I half jokingly will say frequently to Gail, that by the time I'm 70 she will have to feed me.  She is adamant that she will not feed me, she tells me everytime "well I guess you'll starve then".

When I see and learn about the things others are enduring, I am always reminded that a bit of a shake is not a big deal.  I can certainly deal with this inconvenience in light of the burdens I see others bearing.

Well, it is getting late and I'm going to eat something quickly and hit the hay.  May you all be well and blessed... have a wonderful week ahead.

In God's Absolute Love & Grace,
Roy