My dad, Keith Lohmuller

My first blog was about my dad.  I haven't written one since July of last year, so it is fitting that this blog be about him also.
My dad died in February. He lived 19 months with esophageal cancer. He maintained a positive outlook through the entire time, and we were blessed that he never really suffered much pain. Over time, he slowly lost any ability to swallow, and that produced complications along the way. He had trouble sleeping during his last months, and he spent 3 months getting all his nutrition from his feeding tube. He slowly became weaker, but he continued to play bridge at the bridge club, up until about 10 days before he died. He went into the hospital with pneumonia on Feb 1st, and got out in time to watch the Super Bowl at home. Jeff (my brother) and he had a Sunday tradition of watching football together. I joined them a few times in the past year, and on that last Sunday, both Kathy and I made it over to watch the game with him. We had high hopes that he would be in better health after the hospital stay. He had a stent put in his esophagus, and he was actually able to swallow some liquids and soft food. When we brought him home, we stopped at a McDonalds and got him a mocha frappe, which he loved and used to buy every day before he was unable to swallow. The day he died he actually had cheesecake and coffee for breakfast! Unfortunately, he continued to have difficulty breathing after he got home. We hoped that would improve, but Lisa(my sister) took him to the doctor on Wednesday and the doctor was so alarmed he sent him immediately to his oncologist. Dr D, as we called him (Dubovsky) recognized that he was end stage. Earlier, Dr D had told us that Dad had blown past the bell curve of expected survival rate for the type and stage of his cancer at diagnosis. Recognizing that we were near the end, I called and wrote friends and family and asked them to come visit soon if they wanted to see him. My intention was to celebrate his life while he was still around to participate in it. On the Friday he died, I called hospice, hoping that a portable oxygen tank would help him regain some strength and energy. I did not expect and was not mentally prepared for him to die just yet, I figured we still had several weeks left. But that was not the case, and he died peacefully about 11pm that night, with Jeff and Lisa by his side. His last conscious activity was to watch his beloved Jeopardy with Jeff and Lisa and Jeff reports that Dad still got more correct answers (or questions, actually)than either of them!

Since his death, I have been blessed to hear many tributes to the man that he was. When I called lifelong friends, they gushed over things he had done for them and with them. I called a boyhood friend in CA, and we talked about some of the mischief they had gotten into. I told him that Dad had always "blamed" him for being the instigator, and he agreed. Several of his coworkers from NCR have written tributes to him. All have talked about his generous personality, his compassion, his intelligence and keen sense of humor.  One letter called him a pioneer of the computer age, and talked about how he helped many companies move from mechanical accounting to the computer age.  Others have talked about how he helped them move forward in their careers, but also mentioned how much fun they had over their lives with he and Mom.  It's been such a blessing to hear about the lives he has touched and to know that he had such a positive influence on so many lives.  He also leaves a beautiful legacy in the lives of his children and grandchildren.  The tribute that touched me the most was written by my daughter, Rebecca.  I can't describe it, you have to read it. I will post it in a subsequent blog.  If you want to know who my dad was, take a minute and read it.

I am sorry to  run on so long.  I have probably violated all the rules about blog length!  I originally intended to write this about the struggles I have gone through since his death, but instead the blog wrote itself and turned into a tribute to Dad.  God had other plans!

Grandad Keith Memoir

I promised in my last blog that I would post this tribute from Rebecca to her Grandad Keith.  She wrote this the day after he died and we had it framed at his visitation.  Please take a minute to read it.

For my Grandad Keith:


It’s hard to sum my Grandad Keith up in any one word or category. He represents so many things in my mind. I have always considered him a man of refined taste—I picture him alongside nice restaurants with black napkins, fancy wines that I can’t pronounce, and classic Bloody Marys—almost a James Bond (he looks so handsome in the old pictures). He was also a philosopher; no conversation could remain surface level with him—he always expressed deep conceptions behind every notion—everything he believed had been pondered through and through. I can’t remember ever leaving a discussion with Grandad without feeling thoroughly outmatched and feeling like I had learned so much. But he never belittled anyone. I respect his wealth of knowledge greatly. He was also a historian in his own way--he remembered so many stories from his own life, from my dad and his siblings’ lives, from my life, about Nana…so many great intriguing stories from a life well-lived. His memoirs are fascinating and amazingly detailed. And he was a historian of things outside his own life as well—TV shows, movies, sports, books, politicians. No conversation with Grandad would be complete without a quote or story from a TV show, book, movie, or distinguished person.

But despite all these other things, Grandad has always defined love and sensitivity for me as well. The love he and Nana shared could inspire any great playwright. In one glance at Nana or even Nana’s picture, Grandad demonstrated more love than many feel in their entire lives. And this extended to Grandad’s kids and grandkids. He loved so deeply and fully and was not afraid to say it—joyfully or tearfully but always sincerely. From the way he answered the phone when I called or said my name to others I could always tell that I was precious to him and that he was so proud. And I have always so admired how well he preserves connections and friendships with others. So many people in this world let friendships fade or destroy relationships over small things, but Grandad always treasured every person in his life continually no matter what choice they made or what situation changed. So many of my memories of Grandad are not about events or places but are about people and family moments—heartfelt dinner conversations at Thanksgiving or Christmas, long quiet breakfasts of coffee cake with him and Nana, long casual chats in the sunroom over appetizers, playing games in the pool or the hot-tub or on the rope-swing, reading books in Lisa’s old bedroom…. In all these different places I can picture his smile, hear his laugh, and see his love-filled eyes. He will be sorely missed, but my life will forever be different because of the love he shared with me during his life.

With prayers and respect and so much love,

Rebecca Elise Wright, granddaughter of Grandad Keith

Me and the Tea Party

I have seen the error of my ways!  I am joining the Tea Party!  All my conservative friends have finally had their influence on me.  No more nanny state.  No more ObamaCare!  Let private industry reign supreme, we can trust them (except maybe BP).

Government is Evil!  Government is Bad!  Let's start with the Feds - according to the Constitution, the only thing the Feds should do is protect our borders.  Heck, in Arizona, we (I say "we", because after all, we are ALL Arizonians!), we don't even need the Feds to do that.  Let's just form our own militia and keep the evildoers out of our borders.   Second Amendment Baby!!

Once we get rid of the Feds, we can go to work on the State Government.  They're just a bunch of fat cats anyway (especially in Georgia!).  Who needs the state to tell us what we can do with our water?  The water is in Georgia, we'll do what we want with it!

Next up is local, county and city "gummints".  Dump them as well.  Who needs fire and police protection?  If a house catches fire, let it burn.   As long as it's not my house, why should I care?  We'll fight our own crime with our own guns.  Once everyone carries, no one would be stupid enough to mess with us, right?  They can have my gun when they pry it from my cold dead fingers!

As the hippies used to say, it's time to go back to the garden, or perhaps the jungle.  Survival of the fittest - that's the Darwinism I believe in!  Let the strong survive, let the weak eat dust.  As Jesus said, "To thine own self be true" (maybe it wasn't Jesus, but it was SOMEBODY important!).

In closing, I ask for your vote.  Elect me, and I will go to work for you to start dismantling the government piece by piece until there's nothing left.   Trust me ...

Health care debate gets buried by hyperbole

This blog was inspired by seeing this billboard posted on facebook:



One of the comments underneath the facebook posting of that billboard reads "I have my gun ready."   This is ridiculous!  Methinks the rhetoric and hyperbole have gone too far.  I don't remember the reaction being this strong in 2003 when Bush involved us in an (IMHO) unnecessary war that killed thousands of Americans. Other examples just from this morning's read of the newspaper:

• several states threatening lawsuit over the 'unfunded mandates' of the health care law (nevermind that the charges to states budgets don't kick in until 2017 and then only a small percentage)
• protesters hurling racial and anti-gay epithets at Congressmen on Sunday (the irony being that John Lewis was one of the targets ... kind of takes you back to the '60s, doesn't it?)
• Sarah Palin saying "Don't retreat, instead RELOAD"
• all the comparisons of Obama to Hitler and Stalin

It's perfectly fine for people to protest our government and it is our right to vote against incumbents that we don't like.  But when people resort to violent rhetoric (and actions) a line has been crossed.   I am actually starting to feel nervous that we are headed for a violent split in this country.  Technologies such as twitter and facebook have helped to amp up the volume.  Our divisions seem to be deepening, and hardening and we are forgetting the many things that unite us.  Politicians on both sides contribute to this by demonizing their colleagues in the other party and by drawing comparisons to socialism, totalitarianism, even fascism!  Go and read up on those ideologies and you will see that nothing that we are doing today remotely approaches those forms of government.  Yes, the Obama administration believes that government has a role to play in the protection of the people; reasonable people can disagree with that and prefer to let the free market sort things out.   That's what elections are for.  My point is that we should engage in a reasonable debate over the role we want government to play.   Let's do that and drop the hyperbole.

As to the health care law, I have a couple of points I want to make, with regard to some of the reactions I have heard:

• People are criticizing Congress for going against the wishes of their constituents.  They forget that Bush was praised for not being a slave to the polls.  They also forget that in 2006, Bush ignored a wide majority of the American public and the recommendations of his own blue ribbon, bipartisan panel, and he escalated the war in Iraq by going forward with the surge.  Guess what - that worked out pretty well!  Sometimes a politician has to do what he or she thinks is right even if public opinion is opposed.
• The issue of the constitutionality of the individual mandate is very interesting.   Supporters cite the commerce clause as justification.  I read one blog that said that, while the current interpretation of the commerce clause probably exceeds the original intent of the framers, several Supreme Court decisions in the mid 20th Century expanded the modern definition of the clause to cover a wide range of legislation.  Other examples of individual mandates include Social Security and Medicare taxes, and income taxes in general.  So there is precedent, and the likelihood of the issue even getting to the Supreme Court is remote.  Most scholars that I have read believe that, despite the current conservative leaning makeup of the Court, if it did reach that far they would uphold the law as written.  As recently as 2005, Justice Scalia wrote "noneconomic local activity" can come under federal regulation if it is "a necessary part of a more general regulation of interstate commerce." 
• The other constitutionality argument being made by several states is that the government is imposing an unfunded mandate on the states by expanding Medicaid.  Here, the "supremacy clause"(Article 6) states that "the laws of the United States ... shall be the supreme Law of the Land".
• The health care law is not a "socialist" law.  A single payer system would be an example of a socialist policy.  Even with the "public option" this type of legislation was never part of Obama's recommendations.  The law Obama signed on Tuesday keeps private insurers in place, and is, in fact, a very moderate change in policy.  Yes it will cost more, and there are legitimate concerns about what it will do to the deficit.  However, it is not socialist.

OK, I've had my rant.  Feel free to comment / rebut as you see fit!

Random musings from sick bay

I'm not really much of a blogger, given that this is my first (attempt) at a blog since mid November.  I've always thought of myself as having some writing talent, but my life is (thankfully) pretty boring and there's just not that much inspiration.

So what prompted this blog?  Only the most boring weekend I've had in years (which is not in and of itself a bad thing, mind you!).  I was supposed to go to Brunswick with Kathy on Friday to see the grandkids but my 10 day old cold turned into a sinus infection on Thursday night.  With the way I was coughing, Kathy (rightfully) declared that I had no business hanging around a 1 year old (or a 6 and 4 year old for that matter!).  So she went on to Brunswick and I went to the doctor and got some antibiotics.

I'm always saying I wish I had more time to read.  So here I am with 3 days stretched out in front of me with no obligations, and what do I do ... I rent 3 movies!  My excuse was that I didn't have the mental energy to focus on a book (I did catch up on Time Magazines!).  So I rented 3 pretty mindless comedies, all of which were entertaining enough to keep my mind off how badly I felt.  What were the movies, you ask?  Well, I'm almost embarrassed to say, but here goes ... "The Simpsons" (I have never watched the TV show and I am always missing character references); "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" (the music was pretty good and Michael Cera and Kat Dennings were good together) and Woody Allen's "Whatever Works".  That was the best one, but I have always enjoyed his movies (even while not approving of his life choices!).  I don't usually like Larry David, but he was softened by Evan Rachel Wood, one of my favorite actresses, who was barely recognizable in this movie.

I did do some chores, caught up on laundry, read my Disciple, and kept the kitchen cleaned up!  One strange thing I did was re-read the entire US Constitution and Declaration of Independence!  Why would I do that?  Someone at church made a comment the other day about this being a "Christian nation".  Depending on what you mean by that, that can be true or not true.  But it prompted me to do a little research about Jefferson and Madison, and while doing so, I decided to go straight to the source.  It reminded me that too often we all form our opinions based on other people's opinions without making any effort to focus on the source, whether that be a book or an essay or a speech or whatever.    With the internet we often have the opportunity to see for ourselves but instead we let talking heads tell us what to think.

OK, that's my philosophical comment for this blog.  Over and out!

What does it mean to be "saved"?

I'm taking a Disciple Bible study course called 'Christian Believers', which is a study of theology and why we believe what we believe.  The current chapter is on salvation.   One of our readings is from Georgia Harkness, a Methodist theologian who died in 1974.  She writes about the change in our life that results from the experience of salvation:  "Sometimes the change is so radical that it seems miraculous.  Sometimes there is a gradual ... almost imperceptible, change in values, motives, feelings and modes of responding to situations.  If there is no difference at all, regeneration has not occurred."

Salvation is one of those 'churchy' terms that means little to non Christians.  I grew up outside the church.  I was 30 years old when I accepted Christ as my savior.  But what does that mean?   The common definition is that Christians believe we are given eternal life, in heaven, with God.  I believe this to be true, though I dare say I don't pretend to understand what that life will look like.  However, to me the Christian life, and the saving grace that Christ offers to all of us, is so much more than some intangible future reward.  John Wesley writes that salvation is "a present salvation.  It is something attainable, yea, actually attained on earth by those who are partakers of this faith."  He writes that salvation "implies a deliverance from guilt and punishment."  To me, salvation frees me to fully experience all the joy that God means for us to enjoy today, on this earth, now.

When I became a Christian, I did not experience a radical, overnight change in my life or my general outlook.  I was not magically transformed.  Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation."  Since I didn't have a sudden overnight transforming experience, I occasionally wondered if that meant my conversion was not real.  But over time, I did start to notice subtle changes in my outlook, and in the way I treated others.  As I studied the Bible, and took part in small groups at church like Disciple and Sunday School, I learned more about what it meant to be a follower of Christ.  It's not just a question of saying "I believe in Jesus" and saying I am sorry for my sins.  In an earlier chapter of the course I am taking now, we talked about "cheap grace" being the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance.  Sacrifice of self is required.  Acts of service toward others is required.  But the great thing is, that if you spend time in prayer and study and worship, you find yourself wanting to do these things.  It is part of a natural (if in some cases, gradual) transformation!

So, Harkness nails my experience exactly, and reassures my own doubts about my salvation experience.  It doesn't have to be an overnight change.  One of the greatest compliments ever paid to me was when my dad, who is not a believer, told me he thought that I had become a better person since I became a Christian!  Salvation (and sanctification - a whole separate topic!) is an ongoing process.  The goal is to become more like Christ every day.

Baseball Playoffs are here

The baseball playoffs are here! Tis the season for exciting pitching, great hitting, climactic moments ... most taking place well after my bed time! How I long for the days of daytime postseason baseball, smuggling a transistor radio into school (or the office)! The greatest example was 6th grade in 1969, the year of the Miracle Mets against the powerful Orioles, when Eddie Zelkovsky (sp?) had a radio in his desk with a wire under his shirt and into his ears. We were doing fine, passing notes after every inning, until all of a sudden Eddie leaped out of his chair and yelled "Clendennon (Mets 1B) hit a homer, Clendennon hit a homer!" The teacher was on to us, but her only question was, "Eddie, what is the score"?!

I have been a Dodger fan all my life, save for the few years when Rupert Murdoch owned the team and traded Piazza and forced Lasorda out and tried to erase all Dodger tradition. Over the 20+ years in Atlanta, the Braves have supplanted the Dodgers as my favorite team, but some Dodger blue blood still courses through my veins. This year's team has some exciting players, James Loney, Andre Ethier, Rafael Furcal, Clayton Kershaw and Randy Wolf among them. There is also some guy named Manny, about whom I have very mixed feelings. I want to root for the guy, even when he was in Boston, but he makes it tough with his "me me me" attitude and of course his steroid abuse. Still, I hope he gets hot, because without him, the Dodgers don't advance.

In the A.L. I am for anybody but the Yankees! Go Twins! Overall, I am rooting for the Red Sox, if only because I just bought a Red Sox hoodie to stay warm when I was at Fenway last week! No, I have always liked Boston, especially Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury and of course YOUK, Kevin Youkilis.

My picks ... my head says Cards over Dodgers, but I am going with my heart and picking LA; I have to go with Philly over Colorado, and I am going with my heart again and picking the Dodgers over the Phils. In the AL, much as I would love to see the Twins knock the Yankees off, I don't think it will happen. The Red Sox - Angels series could be a classic; I am picking Boston to win. That leads to yet another Boston - New York ALCS ... Boston owned the Yanks early in the year, but in the second half, no one could beat the Yankees. I HATE to do this, but I am picking the Yankees to win the AL pennant.

So that leads to a traditional Dodgers vs Yankees World Series. I just finished a book on Jackie Robinson, and a great WS between the 2 that year (of course the Yankees won). Again, my head says you gotta go with the Yankees to win it all; my heart is with LA, but if I had to be real money, I'd pick the Yanks. They are just too strong.

So bring it on! Who needs sleep! The Dodgers game starts at 9:30 tonight!