I believe in the open door/closed door policy. If I am in the midst of making a decision, and the door to one option is open, in other words, if there are no barriers, then I am to walk through the door. This is after prayer, contemplation, and weighing the pros and cons.

We need to open soon, to make our services available as a benefit to the public. People are out there suffering from a lack of the services we will provide. But we need a bricks and mortar building in which to offer them. Of course, I also believe in doing things with God’s timing, and not our own. I know that timing is everything when opening a new business. If we don’t have the clientele we need as soon as we need them to have as much income (membership fees and charges) as we have outgo (staff salaries, utilities, rent, etc.), we will quickly cease to exist. That is the trouble with being a small family owned start-up business. We don’t have a lot of corporate dollars or non-profit donations to keep us afloat until we prove our value to the public.

There are three ‘doors’ leading to a home for the health club for seniors that have opened partially. One just opened a little wider this morning, but it is still not wide enough to walk through. I also believe in the old adage, “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”. I am going to grab the first bird I can get my hands on.

We had an interesting weekend, beginning on Friday night. Lawrence had a previously scheduled field trip with his art club high school students to the Gallery Hop, so I asked my friend Phyllis to accompany me to the annual Martin School Alumni Reception at the University of Kentucky. The president of the university, Eli Capilouto, was there and Phyllis and I were able to have a private conversation with him before he left early to join his daughter at the UK basketball game. He said he and his daughter always attend the UK/Boston University competition together. Apparently she attends or used to attend Boston U. Anyway, Phyllis is the CEO of a biotech company and they are piloting a new product that is a revolutionary anti-microbial rinse that may reduce the incidence of bacterial heart infections. The endocardium is the inner lining of the heart muscle. Endocarditis is an infection of this lining and the heart valves. Dr. Capilouto seemed very interested. He used to be a dentist of some kind, Phyllis told me. Teeth cleaning has been sited as one of the causes of endocarditis. By the way, I saw on a Dr. Oz episode that we should brush our teeth as soon as we rise (before we eat or drink anything) in the mornings to hopefully rid our bodies of the nasty bacteria that has grown on our teeth overnight.

We also had a chance to talk with Isabel Yates, one of the most influential people in Lexington, and an octogenarian. I love her as a role model for aging well. There were many more people there who held or who used to hold prominent positions in the university, in government, and/or public affairs. A tribute was paid to former Mayor Pam Miller. My, she has a handsome husband (who is a retired physician). They are both role models for aging well.

Saturday morning I got up at 6:00 am and drove Phyllis to the airport. She leads an exciting dual life here and in San Antonio, Texas. My grandsons were still in bed and Lawrence said he would be there for them if they woke up before I returned. I cooked a big breakfast and then attended a meeting that our therapist recommended because they provided childcare.

I wanted to attend the Markesbery Symposium Saturday morning, where they annually reveal the latest brain aging research, but I did not procure a babysitter in time. There was a party that evening hosted by one of the couples in our Sunday School class, but I could not attend that either, for the same reason. I decided I need to retain a regular Saturday babysitter and called a young woman I know to ask her. She said she would get back with me.

My grandsons and I made it to church on time for Sunday School and the first service for a change. We are usually late. We all woke up at 6:00 am for some reason, and I cooked a big breakfast again. After church we came home and ate lunch and then at 2:00 I attended one of the monthly “Sunday Sessions” sponsored by the good folks who also sponsor the “I Know Expo” every year (the same people who brought us ITN Bluegrass…Gale Reece and company). Kentucky Representative Susan Westrom was there to educate us about what goes on in our state government and about senior issues in particular. I did not know that Gale had run into a law that forbade her non-profit transportation company from becoming a reality in Kentucky. Susan Westrom came to her aid and got a law passed making it possible for ITN to open in a year (when usually such a law takes three). I admire Gale Reece and am grateful for her company that helps seniors so much. We all need to communicate more with our state lawmakers and get educated about issues concerning us. They are making laws that affect intimate areas of our life without our knowledge or input. I don’t think most people realize how grim the future is for seniors currently here in Kentucky because of how our government works. Go to http://www.lrc.ky.gov/ to learn more!

Kentucky legislators really do listen to you and value your communication. They need educating about issues because unless someone takes the time to tell them (a meeting is best), they may not even know a problem exists. They are busy, there is so much to know and they have many distractions. Thank you, Susan Westrom, for your heart, your time and your hard work!