Living a full 24 hours

At 1 am this morning I woke and that was it, I could not sleep, my mind moved from the insane healthcare disaster being shoved down our throats to pressing business related and appraisal questions. Finally in desperation I ventured out into a very cold room, pulled some warm clothes on and came down to the office. Once here I settled in with a little space heater warding off the cold and went to work. At 4 am I was nearly completed with a condo appraisal and decided that I'd try the bed again. This time it worked and the next thing I knew it was bright with light and the clock said 8:30.
All day I've expected to hit a wall sleep wise but it never happened. Can a person get ahead on sleep? This morning I finished up the condo report, did some other research work and then left for Antioch to see a place, it was a mess, sort of looked like everyone just walked out and drove away leaving all manner of personal items and junk. The pool had 2 feet of very brown water creating a serious safety issue, leaves were a foot deep in the back yard and patio areas but the property has a huge corner lot and a very quiet setting. Of course the contract price is about 20K to high for the comps, what else is new?
The next stop was a reinspection in Pacheco, a tiny area near Concord and Martinez. The hole in the wall and the broken door are repaired. Then it was on to a loan officers house to collect two checks, can we say high point of the day!! At this point it is late afternoon and the sun is moving toward the horizon so I speed to Oakland to take a series of photos and managed to shoot the last one just before dark. On the way home I try to do some very specialized Christmas shopping but every place I stopped was already closed. Traffic was slow but eventually I made it home and as I pulled in Nikki called. This is their last night in Kona and they have had another great day. Tomorrow night I'll meet them at the airport after their long flight home. This evening I had a chance to speak with Kallie and Keanna which was a warm moment for my lonely heart. This morning I had that same chance as Timothy engaged me in conversation from Denver. I do appreciate family.
Since I arrived home my life has been very hectic. Hawaii compressed the amount of time I had to get things done and some of the things I've had to complete were as hard as any I've ever done. What used to take an hour now can easily take 3 due to so many new things that have to be covered in the report. Not complaining, its just the way it is.
While I'm grateful to have work I've ended up working every waking moment so there has been no time to do Christmas cards yet or even shopping, no time to do wash or tidy up the family room, no time to even build a fire which I dearly love once in awhile.
I'm a person that covets beautiful music, movies with beautiful scenery and meaningful story lines, tidy surroundings, well prepared food, beauty where ever it can be found. Yet I live in this sterile world which lacks most of these things most of the time. Boring to the max.
Last Sabbath was so special, to enjoy a great worship hour and the really interesting music, to discover that my voice once again actually works, to have a tasty lunch and then a wonderful concert / show in the evening and all of this with genuine friends, it was a wonderful Christmas gift.
Last evening Irene and I had a chance to share for a few minutes and once again I am so very proud of her. In spite of really facing some tough medical issues she continues to hold fast to her faith. She is a powerful inspiration to me and she needs and deserves our prayers.
So I'm signing off now, to go build a small fire, clean the family room, sip some hot mocha and catch my breath for a few minutes.
If I could speak to each of you I would just urge you to calmly enjoy your Christmas relationships with friends and family. Share old and new stories, listen to children read or play, enjoy the TV classics about Christmas, taste the good things loving hands have created, treasure this time while you have it, make the most of it, embrace it, love the ones you are with.

Tim