Personal Journal Entry — October 20, 2026: Catching Up on the Days I Missed

Tuesday evening, October 20, 2026 · Willis, Michigan · By Al Timberlane

Good evening, friends. Usually I say “good morning,” but it’s about 9:30 tonight, and I’m finally sitting down to catch up with you. Life has been moving faster than my journal, although many of the stories here have become a record of what we’ve been doing.

Tonight I’m in Willis, Michigan, with Becky, our daughter Lori T., our son Joshua, and our daughter-in-law Morgan. I’m grateful to be with family, but I sure do miss Mountain View, Arkansas—the music, our friends, and the familiar places that make it home.

Lori Is Home

Let me start with the best news: Lori is home and doing much better. She still has digestive difficulties and follow-up care ahead, but tonight we’re encouraged. Tomorrow we plan to see Dr. Rizwan, and I’m hoping that visit brings more understanding and a good path forward.

I’ve also had to leave room for something every concerned parent hopes to say: perhaps the hospital doctor’s assessment will prove more workable than we feared. I sincerely hope Lori continues doing well without the vascular access she depended on for so many years.

My gratitude and my concerns can sit together. I have described the University of Michigan overall as a ten out of ten, while giving the in-house experience a seven. Those three withheld points reflected our concern that Lori’s long history had not been fully connected to the final plan. We wanted a fuller reassessment and an explanation of how her earlier care fit into what would happen next.

Family time near the end of Lori’s hospital stay. We gathered to listen to piano and discuss her care. I remember her feeling better after about 28 days, while we remained disappointed about plans to send her home without vascular access. Family recollection by Al Timberlane.

These photographs hold more than one kind of moment. We could enjoy music, company, or a break in the lounge while still talking seriously about her care. Seeing Lori smile did not mean all our questions had been answered.

A lounge break with visiting dogs and volunteers, about nineteen days into the stay, as I remember it. Lori was still receiving IV support and wound care. She enjoyed the company and wanted to go home, while we continued discussing her health. Family recollection by Al Timberlane.

That experience helped shape our reassessment wheel: the patient at the center, with doctors, specialists, departments, and the patient’s own history connected around them. Someday I’d like to share that idea more widely with people who can help improve communication in healthcare. For tonight, I’m thankful our daughter is home.

A Glimpse of Life Beyond the Hospital

An earlier family outing in Elkhart, Indiana, before this hospital stay: Lori points out a poster connected with Al’s years in the Van Dyke Acoustic Revue. A glimpse of life when she was feeling well.

I wanted to keep this earlier photograph from a coffee house in Elkhart, Indiana. Lori was pointing out a poster from my years with the Van Dyke Acoustic Revue in the 1990s. It was taken before this hospital stay, during a time when she was feeling well. That’s part of her story, too: family outings, music, shared memories, and a life beyond the hospital.

Back to the Studio

Between family responsibilities, I’ve been spending some late nights working on our virtual recording studio. After more than nine months of development, we now have our 16-track system working. There is still more to build and test, but it’s exciting to see it coming together.

The idea is to bring the feel and working rhythm of an analog studio into the computer: a TASCAM-style recording environment, a large mixing console, a reel-to-reel workflow, and a Studer-style stereo mastering deck.

At Timberlane Ranch & Studios, I already have the TASCAM 16-track, one-inch tape machine. Eventually I’d like to bring the matching console and mastering equipment into the physical studio, too. The digital system lets me work through that vision while we build toward it—and I can already think of plenty of musicians I’d love to welcome through the door.

The Jacob Austin Band—Jacob, Liz, and David Austin—sharing the music that keeps us connected to home. Image supplied by Al Timberlane.

Discover Detroit: Music and Memories

Our time in Michigan has also opened the door to Discover Detroit. We recently recorded a program with Tyrone and Julie, two musical friends from the Detroit area. Both are blind, and both have wonderful stories and music to share.

Tyrone brings a family connection to Detroit’s R&B and blues history. Julie brings gospel, blues, R&B, organ playing, and memories of her childhood years performing with Children’s Bible Hour. We’re planning another visit on November 1. I want to give them time to tell those stories in their own voices.

There’s also a gentleman from the automobile industry I’m looking forward to interviewing. He has shared memories involving Ford, Lincoln, Mustangs, Town Cars, engineers, executives, and members of the Ford family. One story involves a special hood ornament and a case of wine offered in appreciation afterward. That’s a story I’d rather let him tell himself!

Conversations About Worship

As another part of Discover Detroit, I’ve recorded a conversation at a Methodist church and hope to arrange a longer interview with Pastor Andy. I’d like to ask him to speak especially to people who don’t attend church: what worship means to him, why a church community matters, and what he would say to someone who hasn’t walked through those doors in years—or has never been inside. That visit will have its own story.

Meet Lori T.: A Story Still Being Written

Our hospital experience also became an illustrated book of about 86 pages, alongside the stories we’ve shared through the Journal. Meet Lori T. includes family memories, hospital experiences, service animals, and our thoughts about keeping a patient’s history connected to their care.

For now I’ve slowed the writing a little. We need to see what happens next. There’s a time to document, and there’s a time to listen, wait, and gather more information. Tomorrow’s appointment is the next chapter.

Timberlane Relay: A Place to Visit

Another project coming to life is Timberlane Relay, our virtual interview room. The thought behind it is simple: Good company. Clear connection. A place to visit, share a story, and press record when the time is right.

I want to visit with musicians, historians, artists, venue owners, and other interesting people wherever they happen to be. My interviews often begin with an ordinary conversation. We get acquainted, follow a few memories, and discover what deserves a longer visit. Then we come back for the fuller interview.

I still have an unfinished conversation from Nebraska that I’d like to return to. Tonight I can’t remember the venue’s name, and I’m tired enough to know better than to guess! Someday I’d also welcome a conversation with people from the hospital experience about how such a large system works from their side. There’s more to understand, and listening is part of the work.

Nine O’Clock Comes Early Enough

So that’s where I am tonight: family in Michigan, thoughts of Mountain View, music waiting, interviews taking shape, and a studio slowly becoming what I’ve imagined. Some nights I’ve stayed up until four in the morning working on these projects. That may explain the missing journal entries—and the missing Nebraska venue name.

Tomorrow we’re getting up early. Well, nine o’clock early, anyway.

Thank you for keeping up with us, listening to the programs, reading the stories, and caring about our family. There will be more music and more stories to share. Tonight, most importantly, Lori is home.

“Imagine tomorrow today. Put your faith in God, and He will move mountains for you.”

— Al Timberlane · Good Morning Ozark American Journal™