1999 YULETIDE ANTHOLOGY

^{Seasons Greetings!} 

1999 has been a very busy and exciting year for The Cash Clan! In many ways it has been a year of rest and recovery, but it has also been a year of quiet reflection. For the first time in quite a few years, I’m not dreading “my next surgery.” After twenty-two surgeries (including, six major surgeries since 1989), you’d think it would get easier as time goes by, but it doesn’t. In fact, quite the opposite is the case; I get white-knuckled just thinking about it!

In the event anyone would try and tell you otherwise, two knee joint replacements within six months will surely knock the wind out of your sails! My bionic knees are doing very well now, but there were times when I didn’t think they would ever heal. So, I went on the Internet and visited the Delphi “Joint Replacement Forum,” and boy was that a wake-up-call! I found a lot of information about knee joints and healing times, but also, I found quite a few miserable, suffering people with failed joint replacements, some with the most difficult of circumstances.

One forty-eight-year-old lady has had multiple back surgeries (like me) and has also had two failed knee joint replacements. After multiple infections, they’ve now fused one of her knee joints (my next-door-neighbor has also had a failed knee replacement resulting in fusion). Can you imagine trying to get up out of a chair with a really bad back, one rigid, fused knee and the other knee failing? It made me count my blessings and also to reflect on how foolishly we sometimes put ourselves in the hands of mortal doctors who can make life-altering mistakes. As I’ve told some of you individually, if you ever contemplate having this surgery (or any serious surgery), do your homework! Check out your doctor; talk to some of his/her patients; don’t get just one reference; get at least a half-a-dozen! And make sure he/she’s the most experienced and accomplished doctor in the field (i.e. a dedicated specialist). If not, then take the time to find a doctor who is! Don’t let anyone do “practice” surgery on you!

Fortunately, I had the best knee joint specialist (Dr. Eric Oser) and the best spinal surgeons (Dr. William C. Horton and Dr. H. Dale Richardson) that money can buy! But, it never ceases to amaze me how many people will opt to let just any, run-of-the-mill orthopedic surgeon do a total joint replacement or spinal surgery on them, even though their doctor only does such procedures on a part-time basis (i.e. he/she’s a general orthopedist, not a specialist)! By the way, “choosing the wrong doctor” seems to be the number one reason for people having failed joint replacements on the Delphi forum. “He/She that hath ears; let him/her hear!”

Now, as I climb down off my soapbox, let me tell you about my granddaughter! Amber Lynn is almost seventeen-months-old now, and she’s growing like a weed! She’s always been a very good and sweet baby and has made life a joy for her parents, Jamie and Chip, and Grandma Margie. I have been so fortunate to have them living here with me and to be able to share their lives on a day-to-day basis. God is so good!

The best way to introduce you to Amber is to show you some cameo shots of her during the past year.

 

Many of you are already aware of Amber’s visual problems that were diagnosed as cortical vision impairment (blindness coming from her brain) in November of 1998. And, you also may know that we have seen startling changes in her ability to see since Dr. Paul Walker and the Mount Paran Central congregation prayed for her healing shortly after the diagnosis. In an effort to improve her vision, Amber had eye surgery in early September that has almost completely straightened her eyes, and she seems to be seeing much better now that she’s not seeing double (or triple) all the time. She definitely recognizes our faces now and turns to look at noises she hears. Praise the Lord!

Amber’s doctors have just finished a complete round of new tests (CAT scan, MRI, blood tests, genetic testing, etc.), and they have found no brain damage nor any genetic disorders! The only abnormality that the neurologist found was what he called “delayed myelination” (myelin is the white matter of the brain that insulates the nerves), but he believes she will probably outgrow this condition in time. I am hopeful and believing that this will be the case, and that she will be restored to her full potential when the delayed myelination subsides and as God heals her of Cerebral Palsy. Your ongoing prayers for her are very much appreciated.

Chip and Jamie are very encouraged with Amber’s progress. They love her unconditionally and are also planning on giving her a new baby brother or sister to play with in late June! Jamie has been feeling the effects of morning sickness through the holidays, and hopes to be over and done with that side-effect very soon. Chip is still working the night shift at UPS; it has been a real blessing to have the UPS insurance benefits for Amber; with good insurance, they can choose her doctors!

I am still trying to become an Internet Guru and spend most of my days developing websites, selling web hosting and software, and giving away Free Web Marketing Tools (http://www.myce.com is my primary website and mcash@myce.com is my email address). But, the best thing I’ve come across in recent years is AllAdvantage! Yes, I’m getting paid to surf the web – Really! I signed up on October 3 and made $49.72 the first month, $134.11 in November, and expect to make over $200 in December (even during the holidays when no one surfs much). In January, I expect my earnings to double or triple (I’ll have about 1,000 people in my down-line network by year-end); all for just surfing the web for 25 hours a month! Very soon, AllAdvantage will be paying for 40 hours of surfing per month; just imagine what my commission checks will be then (it’ll bring tears to your eyes!). If you haven’t taken advantage of this free, get-paid-to-surf program, you can join at:
http://www.alladvantage.com/home.asp?refid=EQF-939. Please read the membership rules before you download the Viewbarä and remember to tell everyone you know about AllAdvantage; also, be sure they join using your referral id (replacing the EQF-939 above with your referral id) so you’ll earn money when your friends surf too! May you have a Happy and Prosperous New Year!

Love in Christ,