Wednesday, October 28, 2020

 I was a little disturbed yesterday to see a big packet from the VA in the mail yesterday. My first thought was "What did I leave out/fill out wrong/need to add" again. When I opened it the first page said that it was determined that Bill had been a disabled veteran who had died, we were married for the proper length of time, and I was entitled to received the Dependent and Children's Compensation. DUH! I already knew that! The second page however, told me how much my monthly benefit would be and that it was retroactive back to June 1 and what day of the month I would receive my benefit from now on! It also said that a deposit would be made within 15 days of the determination. The date the determination was made was Oct 7, so I went online and looked at my account and a deposit for the last 4 months had been made last week! I was really surprised! Except for being able to bury Bill's ashes, the business of death has been completed...as far as I know.

There was something else a little upsetting this week. A friend's father passed away and his funeral is Friday...with burial with full military honors in the same cemetery I want to use! I had emailed the governor a couple of weeks ago, asking when the restriction for committal ceremonies would be lifted. So far, other than an automatic response that said my email would be forwarded to the proper department, I have heard nothing. I have also heard nothing from the cemetery. I was told they would contact me when things changed. I've been a little miffed about this, but not as much now as when I first read the other obituary. There could be different reasons that the other burial can take place. It's immediately following a funeral service and a body is being buried, not ashes. But, it still involves an honor guard, 21 gun salute and taps. So, that's still a mystery. I've made a decision about the burial, though.

Since the virus is ramping up again and our area of Arkansas is now considered a "red zone", with Blytheville being a "red zone city", I have decided to wait until spring to hold the burial. I have until May 16 for it to continue to be free. And if it's after that date, the cost is very low, $300 to open the grave. I don't know, but maybe the year deadline will be waived because of the virus. At any rate, it's not safe for people to travel to this area, especially with young children, and the weather is deteriorating now. So, we'll wait until spring. I feel very comfortable with this decision.

I have recovered with whatever I had. Surprisingly, the granddaughter who had the exact same symptoms as I did, but tested positive for the virus, recovered when I did, with the same antibiotics and steroids I had. So, we're not sure she actually had the virus. But, her quarantine is over and she made it through it. 

Today is grandson Kayden's 16th birthday. He's having a bonfire Friday night with some of his friends and one of them is staying over. I'm taking both of them out for breakfast on Saturday morning.

I still have not gotten the estimate and pictures for the roof repairs even though I have contacted them again. If I don't hear by the end of the week, and it will be 4 weeks by then, I will contact another company. I haven't opened a claim with insurance because I wanted to have the estimate and pictures to send them.

So, that's the latest update from here. Stay safe, stay warm (or cool).


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