Well, I'm resting up now from sorting, filing and throwing out old stuff from years and years ago. I came across the paper, open it up, and the first thing that caught my eye was the headline story: SKY HIGH GAS PRICES!! Area residents with large vehicles are considering making a trade as gas prices zoom above $1.40 a gallon! The high price of gas may drive many Killeen residents to shop for smaller vehicles to drive. Especially those who commute and drive daily to Austin and other cities 40 miles away to work. A survey shows many have been driving that distance round trip for years and can no longer afford to pay the high price for gas five days a week.

The article goes on to say some husbands and wives are driving those long distances in their cars daily going to different jobs in different directions. Some have college kids driving to Austin attending the university of Texas. Paying for gas alone will take a huge bite out of the family budget and it's forecast to go even higher in the coming months. That will make summer driving and vacations this year very expensive for many people.

Now that was big news 13 years ago can you imagine what would be printed as a follow up to this story in today's newspaper? WOW, gas is now currently $3.29 a gallon for regular grade with premium costing around $3.75 a gallon at most stations in the city.

I looked at this article and thought about me owning a motor home and living in an apartment at the time. I was still in a partnership owning the Bowling Pro Shop with another guy and thinking I got to move into a house and sell my motor home. Sure enough I got a call from the owner of the second bowling center in town wanting me to open a Pro Shop in his center. I accepted the offer, he had been holding out having a shop in the center but discovered having a shop would increase the traffic into his center. New Bowling balls were being produced by the ball companies at two a week and all the bowlers wanted to use the new balls. For me that worked out right on time.

I sold my motor home bought a house and made a bank loan to set up my shop and stock it with all the latest balls, bags, shoes, a new ball drilling machine and all the equipment I needed to run the shop. I had just gotten married again in 1998 so this was a great time to be a sole properitor in my own shop. Mind you this was in 2000 and my wife was not too sure I was making the right move. I said you told me this was your second and last time getting married so trust me I know what I'm doing and I'm not getting married again in this life time,You are it for me and trust me we can climb this hill together.

In just three years I had made enough money to pay off the loan I got to furnish the shop and refince the house to 15 years. I know God has been with me in all I accomplished because a year later I had the stroke and now I only owe three more years on the house. I had to sell out on the bowling pro shop being handicap with a weak side unable to operate a machine nor stand very long after a five month stay in the hospital.

Fast forward to 13 years later I'm still surviving, married and doing pretty good physically for all I have had to endure over the last nine years of my life. If I had it to do all over again I wouldn't change a thing. I feel so blessed in every regard. So to me surviving a stroke is not all bad even when recovery is slow at best but when you still got your family it makes all the difference in the world.

I started this blog with news of high gas prices but I know what I had to deal with all that time until now and this many years later gas is much higher cars are a bit smaller with better gas milage but big cars and trucks are still a Texas favorite for many drivers. I guess I can't complain life for me has been very good from the minute my wife came home and found me passed out on the floor after the stroke. I have a lot to be very thankful about in my life! God Bless all of you that may read this blog! It's a bit of my story with higher gas prices now!