Officially kicked off grill season today by dragging the gas grill out of the shed and scrubbing it down with wire brushes and grill cleaner. All those leftover medical supplies came in handy. I gowned up, double gloved, masked, even put on safety goggles over my glasses.
![cool :cool:](./images/smilies/cool.png)
Even though it was 60 degrees this morning, by the time the grill was clean and the racks were oiled, my clothes were dripping wet under that full-length plastic gown. I briefly considered weighing my clothes before & after washing them to see how much water weight they contained. ROFL! Sad, but true statement. I didn't do it, primarily because I had spent two hours trying to find a way to make a flame to light the grill to see if it still works and if the gas was any good. I wasn't about the make the same mistake I made with the mini-fridge (spending two hours cleaning it before plugging it in to see if it worked -- it didn't)! Thankfully the grill worked great, because I was SOOOO HUNGRY for some fresh food grilled outdoors.
Took grilled veggies & grapes to my friend Kris' house for lunch. She is handicapped too, and although she is ambulatory, she suffers a lot of pain from a broken back that happened more than 20 years ago. I met her through Red Hats a year ago, and she has adopted me. She is a dynamo and doesn't let anything slow her down, despite her pain. She met me in the driveway and wanted to help me into the house, but I wanted to show off how well I'm getting around. I put the big box if stuff I brought into the seat of my folding wheelchair and pushed the whole rig unto the house while I walked along behind it. She has two small steps separated by a short landing and I was able to climb both the steps while maneuvering the chair ahead of me without a problem! YAY!!! She kept saying, "Let me help you, let me carry that, here, take this walker..." I have learned to tell people, "Let me show you what I can do, and if I get tired I'll yell for help, okay?" Then they understand that I really am okay doing it myself. I confess my leg muscles were on fire by the time I got in the house, removed the box and plopped into the wheelchair seat. When I looked up into her face, she was beaming with joy and said, "You are AMAZING!" How cool is that?!?! I felt like a million bucks.
Kris is such a good friend. I asked her for ice in my drink and jokingly told her my lack of refrigerator/freezer tale. We talked and played with her artwork and her two huge, adorable basset hounds all afternoon. They are such clowns they provided most of the entertainment for the day. At one point during lunch the dogs were begging and being a little pesky. She surprised me by whirling around in her chair and hitting the lever for the ice maker, letting dozens of ice cubes spill all over the floor. The dogs flew into that ice, acting like she had thrown steak on the floor!
At the end of the day she got serious and told me she wanted to loan me the money for a new refrigerator so I won't have to wait until I can afford one. AWW! I didn't accept, but I'm crying just thinking about it. I went home all hairy, smelly, and dog-slobbery, glowing with gratitude, peace and well-being. She is a true angel sent by God to love and support me through this time. She and her husband were so sweet and loving during and after the funeral time.
I am so blessed to have friends like her in my life.
![love *love*](./images/smilies/kiss.gif)