Praise the Lord I can feed my seven cats and four dogs.  The dogs are large dogs between seventy-five and ninety pounds so it take quite a bit dog food to feed them.  The cats are not as bad although we get special cat food for them:  one cat needs a certain diet and we can’t feed him that and not the rest of the six cats a cheaper cat food.  And that does not include the bird seed I put out and the suet cakes for the woodpeckers.  It is only by grace I can do all those things.  Some families who are broke or unemployed would love to have the money we spend just on our pets (and bird seed).  Praise the Lord for all that.

Sharon, the waitress, at the local diner is more than a waitress.  I found out she has worked there more than twenty years.  It is her calling.  She has on-going relationships with her customers.

She knows I often take my toast and give it to my dogs.  Today she told me, “I do not give my dogs extra food for they get fat enough on just the dog food I feed them.”  Not her exact words but a good paraphrase.

She is there (in the diner) for the long haul.  She loves her job and lives nearby.  I found out today her squash is not doing well in her garden.  Their buds keep falling out prematurely.  Maybe there was too much rain the last four weeks.

I am not extravagant with my tips but I tip accordingly; I give her a decent tip depending on my order.  I want to let her know I appreciate her excellent service.

She is a one woman show, usually she is the only waitress on and there is one cook.  In the early morning sometimes the waitress does every thing including cooking.

I eavesdrop on the conversations at the nearby tables.  It is amazing sometimes what I overhear.  Sometimes I do not talk at all.  I always sit at the counter.  Once in awhile I get into a brief conversation if someone sits nearby.

I keep returning to the diner for the coffee is good, the price of the food is inexpensive and the hash browns are always tasty and I enjoy the brief contact with the waitresses.  My order is usually very simple.  Eggs up.  Once in awhile I order a glass of orange juice.

Of course I go to the trouble of learning all the different waitresses’ names.  There is nothing like a local diner to make you feel wanted and erase some of the loneliness of the morning.  My wife is never up at that hour.

I have a new personal trainer and he is one tough disciplinarian.  He pushes me all the time.  He want me to go faster and faster.  Sometimes he gets waylaid.  He would do anything to run after a rabbit.

He is sixty-six pounds and is black and would take umpteen walks if he had his way.  He is cheap.  All he wants is to have a bowl of food and water and be petted periodically.

He keeps wanting me to go faster and faster.  We just came back from a predawn walk; he walked at the fastest clip yet.  My wind is getting better and better.

If I am not careful, he will fire me and get another trainee.  He wants walks all the time.  All you have to do is rattle the metal leash and within five seconds he is at my feet or say the word “walk” and his ears immediately perk up.

I am grateful for him and I make sure every time he rolls over on his back he gets his belly rubbed.  I do not want to take any chances he will be hired by any one else.  He is the best trainer I ever had.