WLKM Radio 95.9 FM
It won’t be long before it will be time to put away the lawn mower and getting the snow blower out and ready for whatever Mother Nature throws our way. Before you put those summer tools away, make sure to clean them up and put a light coat of oil on places that need protection from the elements. If you have a riding mower, I might suggest putting it in an out-of-way place and placing some moth balls around it. Mice love to chew on various parts of your machine, but they don’t care for the smell of moth balls, but then who does? Putting a small tarp of the machine helps keep dust and dirt off also.
Another bit of advice might include getting the snow blower out and ready for the winter season. It can be a real bummer to discover you need a new spark plug when you have three feet of snow to get rid of in your driveway. It is also a good idea to get rid of any gasoline that’s been sitting around in the garage or shed for more than two or three months.
Why we need “Best Friends”:
Because they laugh at the same silly things we do.
Because they give us honest advice.
Because they will be there for us, even if they are thousands of miles away.
Because they celebrate with us when we are at our best, but still love us at our worst.
Like a driver’s license, we all have an expiration date. The big difference is that no one knows when their “Life Expiration Date” is, or how it will come to be. Planning for that time is one thing. No one wants to leave their family with unnecessary worries. Your insurance agent can help with that along with a good financial planner. When it comes to death itself, Hospice can be the best answer in most cases. There are many myths about Hospice, so with the help of my friends at Heartland Health Care, I’d like to dispel some of those myths about Hospice, thereby possibly putting your mind at ease.
Myth: Perhaps a son didn’t consider Hospice because his father was continuing to receive blood transfusions and each time he received one, he seemed to feel better than before.
Truth: The Medicare Hospice Benefit may cover chemotherapy, radiation, blood transfusions or other treatments if those treatments are providing comfort for patients eligible to receive the benefit (life expectancy of 6 months or less if the illness runs its normal course).
Myth: A Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) order has to be signed in order to get Hospice.
Truth: A patient can receive Hospice without having signed a DNR. The Hospice regulation actually says that Hospices cannot discriminate against patients because of any advance directive choices.
Myth: Hospice is only for patients with cancer.
Truth: More than 60 percent of hospice patients nationwide have diagnoses other than cancer.
Myth: You have to give up on everything before checking with Hospice. You must give up hope, give up trying, and give up praying for a cure.
Truth: Hospice focuses on comfort care, not cure. You do not have to be ready to die. Hospice helps patients and their families deal with what is happening to them on their own terms and in their own time frame. It is important to get Hospice early so that the benefit can help patients right away.
Never ask a woman who is eating ice cream straight from the carton how she’s doing.
See you Out and About!
Submitted by Norm Stutesman
