Create Dunkin’s Next Donut

 

 

 

 

 

Create Dunkin’s Next Donut.

How about this for a DVAM (Domestic Violence Awareness Month) creation donut?

 

You are encouraged to attend this year’s CALL FOR UNITY teleconference call. You may want to listen to be inspired, re-inspired about the domestic violence movement in bringing about awareness of the domestic violence issues, especially promoted during the DVAM (domestic violence awareness month) of October.

The call will be held on Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 3pm EST and is hosted by the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and the national partners (such as NDVH (National Domestic Violence Hotline), NNEDV (National Network to End Domestic Violence) and Casa Esperanza.

On this free, 45 minute national call, we’ll share in a collective moment of silence for all the women, children, and men who have lost their lives to intimate partner violence and we’ll hear a dramatic recitation from nationally renowned spoken word artists Sunni Patterson and Asia Rainey.

To register for the call, simply follow this link and register:

http://bit.ly/2011NatlCallforUnity http://amplify.com/u/a1d0u1

There are just times when some folks seem to get away with murder (even attempted murder) when they should not. Where is the justice system when you need to have it working? Is the scarf around her eyes too tight that she’s not seeing the justice deeds that needs to be served? Justice may be blind, but in no way should it be that she sees no evil too. http://amplify.com/u/a1cf97

Advocates and survivors, as well as domestic violence supporters, are encouraged to attend this year’s CALL FOR UNITY teleconference call. The call will last 45 minutes. Of course, you don’t have to stay on the call for the entire time, but you may want to listen to be inspired, re-inspired about the domestic violence movement in bringing about awareness of the domestic violence issues, especially promoted during the DVAM (domestic violence awareness month) of October.

The call will be held on Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 3pm EST and is hosted by the NRCDV & national partners, such as NDVH, NNEDV & Casa Esperanza.

On this free, 45 minute national call, we’ll hear from survivors, advocates, national experts, and government officials working to end domestic and sexual violence.

You can join the call from anywhere; however, you must register to get the call-in information. To register for the call, simply follow this link and register:

http://bit.ly/2011NatlCallforUni http://amplify.com/u/a1c5u0

I am working on having a #LiveChatFeed on domestic violence issues outside of my role as a NDVH hotline advocate on Friday, October 14th. I’ve been building my account up (@bluebonnetfield) and I will be attending a specialized training on October 5th to figure out the last moment details to get everything else going in place. If you are interested, I’ll definitely keep you posted on the details.

I invite you, if you have a twitter account to follow mine and let me know if you plan on chiming in for a bit on October 14th. We’ll try to keep it going throughout the day/night so any portion thereof that you could chime in, would be appreciated, to keep the chain of conversation(s) flowing. I’ll be working on promoting it throughout September so, hopefully, there will be plenty to hope in and we can make it a trending subject matter as well on October 14th in twitter! http://amplify.com/u/a1c5mt

Electric went off around 4:30a. It didn’t go off for too long (a part of rollouts that we may not be officially having yet), but when it comes back on it programs the thermostat to HEAT. Anyone know how we can reset the thermostat so that when COA cuts off the electric, it goes back to the setting of COOL like we had it before? Just discovered our thermostat on 82 HEAT, by no design of our own.

This happened yesterday too. A pattern is definitely forming.

City of Austin = COA

~ Sweltering in Austin, TX

and wondering if the City of Austin is going to provide a discount for causing this grief (and surely a rise in our electrical billing by having to constantly reset our thermostat)? http://amplify.com/u/a1c0sq

American Indian Women in Domestic Violence

Funny. I attended a training session at work in which I was asking some of the same questions, along with my fellow advocates. Never imagined that when I was home, I would come upon an article so much on point.

There is much to learn about the domestic violence and all the cultures around the world, and in our very own backyard here in the United States of America. We think of ourselves as such a progressive nation; however, it is completely eye opening when we open our eyes only to realize that we may not have come as far along as we have hoped.

Here’s to hoping and praying that we can all be the change.

Amplify’d from www.navajohopiobserver.com

8/24/2011 11:13:00 AM New hope to American Indian women facing domestic violence Navajo-Hopi Observer WASHINGTON, D.C. – An international human rights body has done something that federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court, failed to do – bring justice to a domestic violence survivor. “This decision is important for Native women who face the highest rates of sexual and physical assault of any group in the United States,” said Jana Walker, Indian Law Resource Center attorney. “Although this case did not originate in Indian Country, it has major implications for an ethnic group who rarely sees their abusers brought to justice.” On Aug. 17, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights issued a landmark decision in Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales) v. United States. The decision is the first women’s human rights case involving domestic violence brought before an international body against the United States. The Commission determined that the United States violated its obligations under international human rights laws by failing to use due diligence and reasonable measures to protect Ms. Lenahan and her daughters from violence by her estranged husband. The case was based on a tragic incident in 1999, involving the deliberate failure of the Castle Rock, Colorado police to enforce a domestic violence restraining order. Ms. Lenahan had repeatedly called the police for help after her estranged husband kidnapped her three children in violation of the order. Ten hours after Ms. Lenahan’s first call, the husband drove to the police station, where he and the three children were killed in an exchange of gunfire. Ms. Lenahan sought justice in the federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court, for violation of her rights by the police. After the United States Supreme Court held that women do not have a constitutional right to have civil protection orders enforced by the police, Town of Castle Rock, Colo. v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005), Ms. Lenahan filed a petition with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights alleging that the United States’ failure to act with due diligence to prevent violence against women violated its obligations under international human rights law. In 2008, the Indian Law Resource Center and Sacred Circle National Resource Center to End Violence Against Native Women filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the Commission in support of Ms. Lenahan, on behalf of numerous non-profit organizations and tribal governments working to end violence against Native women. In its decision, the Commission took notice of this brief and acknowledged that domestic violence has a disproportionate impact on Native women and other low income minority women. “We want our voices to be heard around this case, because the United States Supreme Court decision had vast implications for Native women and the enforcement of tribal protection orders by state law enforcement officials,” said Terri Henry, Co-chair of the National Congress of American Indians Task Force on Violence Against Women and Principal Director of Clan Star, Inc. “Violence against Native women in the United States has reached epidemic proportions. One out of three Native women will be raped in her lifetime, and three out of four will be physically assaulted.” Because the United States has greatly limited tribal criminal jurisdiction and sentencing authority, often the only recourse that Native women have against their abusers is a civil protection order. “By allowing state l Read more at www.navajohopiobserver.com

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bxtc

Found a posting on twitter:

@Andrea10TV
Andrea10TV State Senator Kris Jordan to police responding to his wife’s domestic violence call “She got all upset….but girls do that.”
6 hours ago

I haven’t heard the whole story yet; however, it is amazing that the State Senator would stereotype his wife as being just like any other woman who would get upset.

Men don’t get upset, is the implication. Really?
Men don’t overreact. Really?
Men don’t get physically upset. Really?

If no one would get upset,
If everyone could discuss and agree to disagree on certain points of view,
If folks would just never overreact,
If folks would just never get physcially upset,

there just might not be any domestic violence in the world.

Hmmm…

Wouldn’t that be nice?? http://amplify.com/u/a1buy8

To register for this year’s DVAM (Domestic Violence Awareness Month) Call for Unity, please go to this link:

http://www.atconference.com/events/registration.php?ID=63135817-bc86-45cf-bf3d-9abcdb101b81

and follow the instructions from there. The call is free to call in and will last for about 45 minutes on October 4, 2011.

Side Note: The Domestic Violence Awareness Project (DVAP) is an initiative of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRCDV) funded by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).

Domestic Violence Awareness Project
National Resource Center on Domestic Violence
www.nrcdv.org/dvam http://amplify.com/u/a1buux

October is DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH (“DVAM”). As part of the recognition of DVAM is the Call For Unity. Please review, participate and share with others.

This is from the 2010 event:

http://dvam.vawnet.org/campaigns/call-for-unity.php

which includes podcasts of:
•National Call for Unity 2010, full length recording (38:57 minutes)
•Remarks by Vice President Joseph Biden (1:55 minutes)
•A Survivor’s Story: Victor Rivas Rivers, “Remember My Name” recited by Kimberly Collins, and Universal Prayer by Rev. Dr. Aleese Moor-Orbih (17:41 minutes)

It is the belief that everyone can do this together in an effort to bring about peace and freedom from domestic violence. http://amplify.com/u/a1butx

DV Victims May Have Right for Time Off Work

I think it is fabulous that FMLA and some of the States’ own laws are working together to help provide a dv an opportunity to tend to certain things related to care and empowering moving forward to being a survivor. Hopefully all 50 statesw will follow suit as well.

Amplify’d from www.nolo.com

Victims of domestic violence may have the right to take time off work. If you are the victim of domestic violence, you may have the right to take time off from work. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and some state laws allow domestic violence victims to take leave from work in certain circumstances.   Domestic violence — mental or physical abuse at the hands of an intimate partner — often affects the victims’ ability to work. According to Legal Momentum, an advocacy group, victims of domestic violence lose an average of 137 hours of work a year. Some need time off to seek medical attention, seek a restraining order, or relocate to a safe place. Others are prevented from getting to work when an abuser disables or takes the car, sabotages childcare arrangements, or leaves the victim without cash to use public transportation. These problems have led a number of states to pass domestic violence leave laws, which give victims of domestic violence the right to take time off for certain reasons. Some states allow those who are victims of, or witnesses to, a crime to take time off to attend court proceedings; these laws protect victims of domestic violence, although they also apply more generally. And, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) may also provide a right to leave for some domestic violence victims. Read more at www.nolo.com

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1btvn

Talking the other day and learning a new term (to me anyways) called “bath salts” which is all about a designer drug (similar to cocaine) that is sold online, on convenience store shelves & smoke shops, causing havoc among folks who quickly become addicted to this drug. They are getting the name from actually resembling household therapeutic bath salts used in home tubs and spas.

The difference though is that these have no valid medical effect and they can actually affect the person ingesting them with suicidal thoughts, paranoia, etc. The increased danger is that the effects obtained while taking the designer drugs have lasting effects — days & weeks later. No one knows enough about them to truly understand the long-term ramifications.

As quickly as people are coming to know about them, the awareness is increasing of the dangers.

In New Jersey, the Governor has even recently passed a law, Pamela’s Law (SCS-2829); do you know what your State is doing to get rid of http://amplify.com/u/a1bspq

On the way, I couldn’t tell if there was an electrical storm going on in the eastern Austin skies, or actual rain and lightening storms heading in. Are they rain Gods toying with our visions? Could it be figment of our imaginations (just like a mirage in the hottest of deserts)?? Should I have had taken a picture of the curiousity happening in the skies and report it as a possible Unidentified Flying Object? http://amplify.com/u/a1bsj8

Domestic Violence Voices

URL:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Domestic-Violence-Voices…

Are you a survivor of domestic violence? Are you ready to share your voice? This facebook page has a great deal to offer…some points of inspirations, some healthy and vibrant discussions on various issues surround domestic violence survivorship, and more. Feel free to dive in and join the conversations among other survivors!

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bs98

Volunteer for the 2011 Stop the Violence, Start the Peace Concert at River City Youth Foundation!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?authkey=CLnu4ZgN&…

Step up and volunteer for our youth. Great venue on August 26th, needing plenty of folks to assist, with a great cause. If you can #volunteer, please do! Many ways to volunteer…just check out the form!

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bs91

Are you a survivor wanting to tell your story?

If you are a survivor, I want to talk to you and have you come on my show, Beyond Words Live, on blogtalkradio. My show is a platform for survivors to tell their own story in their own words – especially if you are a survivor from domestic violence or sexual assault or childhood abuse.

Check out the video below for more details and then come to http://blogtalkradio.com/oralhistory to contact me for scheduling:

Do you have Klout?

Everyone wishes that they had some degree of clout in everyday living – whether it is just being heard for the first time ever or just trying to have some sort of upward mobility in society as a whole.

The site, Klout (http://klout.com), is no different.

It factors in some movement that you had done on the internet to see how influenced your are by others and/or how much you influence others. Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook are three of those that are factored in. FourSquare is too (however, I haven’t been able to get this to work on my DROID phone just yet.

My profile is at http://klout.com/#/bluebonnetfield, if you would like to take a look at how this works.

Facebook doesn’t include the pages or groups that you created and admin (but this might be included in the future). It doesn’t include the blogs that you have on the net — ie Blogger.com or WordPress.com — however, they may in the future. So, in my mind, those who might have a low Klout figure may not be wholly representative of how influential they truly may be over the social media and internet world; however, Klout, is really still in its infancy stages.

Have you explored how much Klout you might have yet?

Tell Somebody Campaign

Domestic Violence is no joke. Glamour and the National Domestic Violence Hotline are working on a campaign called, “Tell Somebody Campaign”. Click on the video below to learn more about what you can do to help stop domestic violence in your area.

http://www.glamour.com/tell-somebody/video/2011/05/tell-somebody-help-put-an-end-to-relationship-violence

#DVWarrior

Lymphedema Fashion Scarf

As one that has Lymphedema in the legs since 2004, I just love it when folks can come up with creative solutions to the fashion of having to wear  unslightly compression garments, which always lead to questions of “What did you do to your leg/arm?”  ”Is it going to go away?”  ”Is it just water retention?” etc, etc.   Although this isn’t going to work for me with my lymphedema in my legs, it is nice to know that someone out there is thinking outside of the box to come up with some fashionista hints.

“My name is Debbie and I am a two-time survivor of early Breast Cancer.” I am also in the daily trenches of surviving BC’s chronic ‘dirty-little-secret’ of Lymphedema. LE is indeed a potentially life ending diagnosis, but beyond that little attention getter, it poses a daily & never ending array of life-challenging agonies, concerns and frustrations. Don’t be surprised if you’ve never heard of LE. Based on my experience & that of a goodly number of my ‘swell’ LE friends, neither has much of the medical community. Grrrrrrrrrrr.

Like my early BC diagnosis, I am also in the short-end of the LE pool and I’m making it my daily work to stay here. Due to my various surgical procedures plus radiation and its aftermath plus a variety of other complications and set-backs, I have lymph nodes that no longer function properly. Ya never know how significant your lymph nodes are — until they get rearranged and quit smiling. My right arm (and yes I am right handed) no longer feels like it’s mine. It doesn’t feel like it belongs to me. It’s heavy. It tires. It’s dingy, pingy, Grumpy, sleepy and several of the other seven dwarfs as well, tho not Sneezy. I have a whole host of protective, proactive behaviors and exercises. You don’t even want to know about the threat from mosquito bites, I kid you not! Genuine threat the skeeters. Grrrrrrrrrrr.

The long and the short of it? I need to protect my effected arm by wearing a compression sleeve. I also wear other compression garments for various reasons and purposes, but that’s a whole different story and post. Today is about summer. Heat. Ugly sleeve. Intrusive questions from total strangers. [Like the waiter who looked at my compression sleeve and said with an air of knowing superiority, "Drug addiction issues, eh?" Nothing like an insightful waiter. How could I make that up?] This post is about my occasional desiring not to be a billboard for BC/LE. Going under-cover. Yes and fashion! Being the fashion maven that you’ve come to recognize here, you know how fashion plays a large part of my mindset. Here’s what I wrote last month over at BCO.

When we were in Europe, earlier this spring, EVERYONE was wearing scarves. Scarves were available EVERYwhere, in every possible design.

I bought a 6 foot scarf that is made of one continuous piece of ‘pre-pleated’ fabric which measures about 20 inches in it’s natural/scrunchie state. It measures about 40 inches when the fabric is pulled to it’s max width or flattened.

Anyhow. Quite by accident, while in Europe I wrapped the scarf around my compression sleeved arm while wearing a tank top. A little tuck here and there and I could have one ‘naked’ arm and one bare shoulder. VOILA!!!!!

For the first time in the summer I felt like I didn’t need to be ‘on guard’ from total strangers asking what I’d done to my arm. Oh happy day!!

Today, a delightfully warm summer day in the low 80′s, we went to see “Jersey Boys” and I decided to use my European scarf idea again & wanted it not to flop/slip around so much –with me tugging. So I made the scarf into a ‘tube’ by sewing it closed at one edge to slide my compression sleeve’d arm into and then just draped the rest of the length of the scarf around my neck. The sewing it shut/tube is a more permanent solution for using the scarf as a dressy hiding spot. I hope that this makes sense.

I have been experimenting with scarves for the last month.

Having enough length in the scarf seems to be the real solution — especially for the body-draping concept. I hope that the illustration gives the impression of just a scarf draped oh so casually across the shoulder (to the on-looker.)

The tube affair is the real camouflage.

As you may be realizing, I am now at the point of wearing just a sleeve for ‘everyday’ sitting at the theater events. I still wear my gauntlet when doing anything physical, flying etc etc.

I think with enough material in the scarf you could put a little stitch in the very end to create a mitten effect and still hide an entire gauntlet with ease.

The response from my LE cyber-friends round the globe has been awesome. They like it! They like it! I share here, just in case someone googles up LE and fashion (yeah, right!) My original post from BCO has been moved to the site specific for LE created by a trio of the kindest, most brilliant women on the planet called Step Up, Speak Out. It is an end-all, be-all site for support info and all things LE.

I hope that my sharing the same idea here, in this format gives some of my dear friends and supporters just a little further insight it what it means to be a survivor on a daily basis. If the post accomplishes that in the mind of one reader I have met my goal for the day.

***Oh and one more thing!!! When in doubt, out in the real world, if you meet someone with a “difference” in their appearance, count to 10 before you launch into a series of questions or insightful comments a la my waiter. If there’s any wondering at all on your part, you can always fall back on the tested and true voice of your Nana, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” The classics are indeed classic for a reason.

via RainbowsWithinReach: Lymphedema Fashion Scarf.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lymphedema-in-the-News/127336167284700

 

KEYETV’s Photo re Storage Shelter Family

“Up and at em’! It’s finally Friday! This is Erika Gonzalez with We Are Austin Morning’s FACEBOOK TOPIC OF THE DAY: A Houston couple has had their kids taken away from them because for the last 3 years, the family has been living in a storage unit. The 12-feet-wide and 25-foot-long structure comes equipped with beds, a refrigerator and even a computer. The couple says they fell on hard times and are doing the best they can. Should the state give the children back to their parents?”

via KEYETV’s Photos – Wall Photos.

My response on this was:

Homelessness among families is a huge issue throughout the communities and not well spoken about in the media. Talk to ARCH to get some figures on homeless families even just in the Austin area. These children had a shelter over their head, at least. Many are living out of cars. The economy’s ups and downs certainly isn’t conducive to people’s survival in making ends meet. When one is paying $500-800 average apartment rental (more for that many children), it is easy to see why they choose to cut down that expense, when they can’t possibly squeeze any more out of the other areas of their budget. Too, homeless shelters are at their capacities. Provide some solutions so that folks don’t have to be forced into homelessness situations.

Agree or disagree???

Compassion Fatigue

Symptoms of Compassion Fatigue

Some of the tell tale signs of compassion fatigue are listed below.

Lack of enjoyment in day to day activities

Not deriving any joy from things that used to excite the person earlier

Difficulty in concentrating in any task

Feelings of anxiety and perpetual fear

Feelings of irritability triggered by trivial things

Isolation from family and friends

Detachment from work and life

Inability to take big or small decisions

Lack of interest in work

Avoidance of certain situations and people at work

Unprovoked outbursts of anger

Constant feeling of dread and imagination of doom

 

Causes of Compassion Fatigue

Some common causes of compassion fatigue are listed below.

Interacting with and taking care of terminally ill patients day in and day out

Caring for a physically or mentally challenged child

Counseling grief stricken families in times of grave environmental disasters

Counseling victims of sexual abuse

Working in a help line to support and encourage trauma victims

Working in close association with mentally challenged people

Providing support to people suffering from depression

via Compassion Fatigue Causes.

 

As an advocate the key to success is being able to balance compassion so that fatigue is avoided, or if it occurs that it is quickly diverted and conquered.  I am fortunate that I work at a place that takes “wellness” seriously and we are allowed to go into a wellness session for almost 2 hrs each month paid for and flexed time away from the phones, giving one an option and opportunity to balance a 40 hr work week on the phones with folks in various crisis situations  with some downtime to take care of you (the advocate).

Sometimes the wellness sessions would include meditation methods, a bit of art therapy, a bit of learning of various techniques that we can also share with the callers, some yoga, some zumba, pottery making, learning to laugh, and so much more.

More important is to take application of the things learned from the wellness sessions to make a better quality of your own life.    Healthy eats, exercise/movement, quiet time, time to voice and be an activist outside of the work environment, and so much more.

A great book that wasn’t mentioned in the connective article to read about compassion and taking care of yourself is a book called 

Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others

 by Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky and Connie Burk, which can be found on Amazon.com.  It’s definitely a worthwhile book to read and may become your “Bible” beside you if you are a caregiver in any aspect.  Their website is something that is valuable for continued support in your own journey for continued caregiving of others – http://traumastewardship.com/.

What ideas do you have to focus upon to combat compassion fatigue in your everyday life and continue on the enjoyment of the journey of Caregiving in the sense that it is really meant to be?  Would love to hear more ideas from you.

 

So how do you get empathy, anyway?

Empathy can be literally defined as:

em·pa·thy [ émpəthee ]   

1. understanding of another’s feelings:the ability to identify with and understand somebody else’s feelings or difficulties
2. attribution of feelings to an object:the transfer of somebody’s own feelings and emotions to an object such as a painting

[ Early 20th century. < Greek empatheia "affection, passion" ]

 Ashoka Fellow Molly Barker, Founder of Girls on the Run International®, who has been working to build-up Ashoka’s Empathy Initiative. suggests the following:

Empathy has been a hot topic at the summit. Typically considered a soft skill and not necessarily essential to leadership (at least in the traditional sense), Bill Drayton, Founder of Ashoka, has uncovered a number of thematic connections between all of those folks who are social entrepreneurs. Empathy has been and continues to be at the top of that list.

Empathy is one of those things … “things” because I’m not sure precisely what to call it … that I’ve taken for granted. I was raised in a very empathetic home. My family members are empathetic. My children are empathetic and most everyone – heck, EVERYONE! – I work with is empathetic. I’ve naturally, based on my own experiences, assumed that most people would understand why empathy is essential to being human … a kind of “duh” sort of thing. A clear and VERY obvious outcome of Girls on the Run is the ability of every girl and coach to give and receive within an empathetic context.

In my mind, without empathy we lack the ability to deeply connect with another living creature. Empathy affords us the experience of being one in experience with another, putting aside our own ego, the need to be right, and being with the emotions of another. It doesn’t mean fixing them, making the emotions go away or enabling the individual. To me it simply means being with their emotions without interference from me.

via So how do you get empathy, anyway? (Hint: You won’t find it in a lecture.) | Ashoka.org.

As an advocate, I am always under the impression that being with empathy is demonstrating a concern and understanding of the here and now of the caller/person communicating with (no matter the mode of communication).  It isn’t a time of formulating one’s opinion of the situation; it is more important to sort through options and more options for the situation given at hand, as well as providing emotional support and guidance for catapulting forwarding to the light at the end of the tunnel, in order to move forward to, hopefully, without the burdens of the crisis situations at hand.

People need to have a voice in their lives moving forward, they need to see and weigh out the options available for them (because when in crisis mode, you rarely see through the mist of the tears caused by the emotional and/or physical pain currently enduring); however, they need to know that they aren’t crazy, that they have lives that are valued, and that they can do things and make great decisions that affect their own lives, as well as those around them.

How do YOU see empathy?  How do you apply empathy in your daily lives?

 

Personal Fundraising Page for Kathryn Benefiting the Lymphatic Research of the Lymphatic Research Foundation!

Kathryn’s Story

Please join me in the fundraising effort for this organization, the Lymphatic Research Foundation who strives to find a cure for Lymphedema.

In 2004, when a suburban hit me in an intersection and spun me around, my knees hit the steering wheel hard.  At the time, I didn’t have medical insurance; just the PIP insurance with your normal coverage of auto insurance policy.  When it was discovered a month after the accident that my swelling in my legs was simply not going to go away, it was only a beginning to a journey of learning how to be an advocate for myself.  The hospital granted me a grant for 10 treatments, but anyone who knows anything about lymphedema, 10 treatments is clearly not enough.  I was left on my own to wrap my legs and utilize a small pump and try to get the swelling to go down on my own without any insurance coverage.

By the time that I gained health insurance in 2008 through my employer when transitioning from a full time relief employee to a full time permanent employee, my legs were getting out of control and I was beginning to develop some pressure wounds.  After 3-6 months of physical therapy, aqua therapy, and transitioning from the ace looking compression bandages get up to the juxt-a-fit garments, and the approval of a flexitouch pump, I finally was able to have a better guide, control and understanding of what to do for maintaining my condition.

To this day, I still walk about with garments on both legs, although the right leg is far worse than the left, and tennis shoes that are way to big for me ordinarily (because of the wraps, I have to wear much larger shoes).  I have some sights on a new garment that comes in black and cheaper than the ones that I presently have, however, are supposed to work even better.  Hopefully, I won’t have the $500 annual garment purchase, plus the additional $100-200 I purchase each month in various specialized stockings that I have to wear with the garments.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  At least, if they are in black, they might be less noticeable.  For the past 7 years, everyone seemed to look at me with strangely while I continued to wear these garments day in and day out for the past 7 years, going on 8.

During the past years, I have been a strong advocate, learning more and more how to speak up for myself and try to make sure that I have the latest in the developments to ensure that there is continued progress without any set backs.  I’ve also promoted latest and greatest news on my Lymphedema in the News page on facebook and have become one of the admins in a patient’s only page (private) on facebook where we work to encourage and inspire one another.

In additon, I have had other lymphedema advocates come on my blogtalkradio show called, Beyond Words Live, to share updates about HR 4662 bill that is the national legislation concerning helping to defer the high costs of treatments towards the lymphedema patient.  It is critical that there is attention to this bill because, if lymphedema is left untreated, it poses a much higher health risk — such as the awfully painful pressure wounds that can run deep past the fatty tissues underneath the skin layer, exposing it to the opportunity for more infections, etc.

My story is one of many stories.  This is not lympoma or any form of cancer, although it can often result from having radiation treatments necessary to combat cancer.  Many other folks have many other causes — some trauma situated causes like mine — many others have other situations that have occurred to where the lymph nodes were damaged in some other way; and, in some cases, too, there are some hereditary links to this long lasting condition.

I come to you today to ask that, even if you can only contribute $5, it is $5 more towards the research that can be done to find a cure.  Thank you for reading my story and considering helping the cause.  I look forward to being able to tell the foundation that I exceeded my goal in raising funds for the much needed research.

Thank you!!

Kathryn

via Personal Fundraising Page for Kathryn Benefiting the Lymphatic Research of the Lymphatic Research Foundation!.

And, speaking of childhood trauma…

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network provides a great fact sheet resource to Domestic Violence  and Children:  Questions and Answers for Domestic Violence Project Advocates, answering such questions as:

How do children react to domestic violence?

What are some typical short-term responses?

What about children’s responses in the long term?

What are the factors that help children recover?

What should parents tell their children about domestic violence?

How much information is enough but not too much?

What should a parent tell a child about the parent who was abusive?

How can advocates protect children from adult information?

How should parents respond to and cope with their children’s feelings about them?

What are some strategies for managing children’s behaviors that may occur in families with domestic violence?

How can advocates determine when a child needs more help?

and,

What is secondary trauma and how does it affect me?

 

 

Click on the link below to learn more:

http://www.nctsnet.org/sites/default/files/assets/pdfs/DomViolenceFactSheet_final.pdf

 

 

Makers of Memories

Domestic violence cases seem to prevail in spite of all the efforts of the advocates across the United States and throughout the world; however, that doesn’t stop the advocates from continuing to try.  One focus has turned its head towards the affects upon childhood trauma.  One such foundation taking this focus in their hands is the Makers of Memories with its public policy initiative:

The Makers of Memories Public Policy Initiative, launched earlier this month in Washington DC, has already begun to develop momentum towards our two key objectives of:

1) raising awareness about the problem of childhood exposure to domestic violence; and

2) developing a set of solutions to address this problem.

Participants from a wide range of national nonprofit organizations have agreed to collaborate on the educational content and distribution of our documentary film project, 43 Million Secrets, and have contacted us to explore ways that we can work together to motivate leaders and policy makers to take action to provide support and assistance to children who experience domestic violence. We also are exploring programmatic initiatives with these organizations. Some of the individuals and organizations we have engaged to collaborate on our work are featured below in the images from our meeting in Washington DC on June 14.

via Makers of Memories.

Sherwood Forest Faire – Medieval Renaissance Park in Lost Pines between Austin and Houston.

The inaugual event is going to be about 35 miles west of Austin, off of Hwy 290 in the McDade area, from September 24-25, 2011.  More events also planned from February 11th – April 1st, 2012.

This should all be very interesting place to explore.  The hard economic times certainly lend itself to a need to escape into the mystical fairie tale times that the Sherwood Celtic stories that we have only read about in the past.  No longer, will Austinites have to think that the closest places for Ren Faires to be in Tomball/Magnolia, near Houston, or up towards the Waco area.

Have you ever been to a Renaissance Fair in the past?  Would you sign up for the upcoming events at this place?

Check out the link below for more details.

Sherwood Forest Faire – Medieval Renaissance Park in Lost Pines between Austin and Houston..

 

Tickets:

https://tix.extremetix.com/Online/?siteID=2462&cartID=ef3f66d9-0020-4637-a48b-9cbac571c7c8&eventID=28825

 

 

Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/SWFF2010?sk=app_212371285462773

Jamie Oliver – A Hero in the American Public School Cafeteria System

Jamie Olive is my hero.  Last year, when he came to the United States and make a debut in the small, sleepy town in West Virginia, he clearly made an impact and difference in their lives.

This year, he might have taken on more than he could chew by tackling the enormous Los Angeles Community.  By the end of the last show, though, he gained the support of the new supertindent of the LA School system.

He’s got the right ideas though.  He wears his heart on his sleeve and is aiming to put things into good perspective with good eats, starting in the schools.

I thank him for his perseverance in keeping on the school systems.  I look forward to see the long range effects of his efforts.

What’s next for this hero?  Can’t wait to see what he’s got up his sleeve for the next leg of his crusade!

News | Jamie Oliver (US).

 

The Google+ project: real life sharing, rethought for the web.

 

I got the opportunity to view this new social site through a *.tv broadcast today.  It poses some interesting opportunities, although I’m not sure that I would like to be on a webcam throughout the experience.  lol…

On this page is the interactive tour link so that you, too, can have an opportunity to view the interactive nature of this project in development that can take social media networking to an all new level.  Take a look and decide for yourself.

They’re currently testing with a small number of folks before it’s ready for everyone; however, you can sign up to be notified on this page too once it is released for public interaction and exploration.

I’m looking forward to it; how about you?

 

 

 

The Google+ project: real life sharing, rethought for the web..

 

 

Crime victims’ rights discussed at police clinic – Pasadena Star-News

Marsys’ Law created as a result, in California, when a woman was lured back to her ex-boyfriend who claimed wanted to get back with her and make up but in actuality had a shotgun ready to kill her when she entered his home.   This event was a great opportunity to learn more.

PASADENA – The Pasadena Police Department will host a free Crime Victims’ Clinic from 8:30 a.m. to noon Saturday in the second floor assembly room at the department headquarters, 207 N. Garfield Ave.

The clinic will offer information on the Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights Act (Marsy’s Law) passed in 2008, giving victims of crimes and their families 17 constitutional rights.

Workshop participants will include the Pasadena Police Department, Justice for Homicide Victims, Pasadena Superior Court, L.A. District Attorney’s Office, Bailiff’s Office, Victim-Witness Assistance Program; Peace Over Violence and Crime Stoppers.

The clinic is being coordinated, organized and planned by Police Specialist III Patricia Magallanes.

via Crime victims’ rights to be discussed at police clinic – Pasadena Star-News.

Chinese Male Cheerleader Brings it On! Video goes viral in the People’s Republic – Digg

Something you just don’t see everyday:

This Chinese cheerleader video from the Chinese Youtube Youku.com is going viral in the People’s Republic and around the world. The man clad in a skirt and flourishing kicks and arabesques is an unknown student from a Chinese university.

via Chinese Male Cheerleader Brings it On! Video goes viral in the People’s Republic – Digg.

10 Shocking domestic violence statistics for 2011

Recently attended a child custody inservice presented by Barry Goldstein and Dr. Mo Hanna (who, incidently co-authored the book called Domestic Violence Abuse and Child Custody).  Dr. Hanna also speaks to childhood trauma in her part of the presentation.  The statistics presented in this video by Makers of Memories foundation are, indeed pretty staggering and worth taking note.  In a quest to end domestic violence, we must take a look from all perspectives to really figure out a solution to end it forever.

Please reveiw and let me know what you think.

YouTube – 10 Shocking domestic violence statistics for 2011.

See also for more information:

http://domesticviolenceabuseandchildcustody.com

http://blog.makersofmemories.org/

Dream For A Cure…

 

 

 

Being a lymphedema patient myself, and having a wonderfully doting and caring boyfriend who acts as my daily caregiver, I can appreciate reading this lymphedema patient’s daughter’s point of view as a caretaker.

I love the title of the blog as well — DREAM FOR A CURE…  This is definitely a common theme among all lymphedema patients and caregivers because this lymphedema condition isn’t necessarily a temporary condition but one that is a lifetime commitment to keep it from becoming a dangerous and lethal situation if left untended.

Be sure to take a glimpse at this blog and learn more about this condition that so desperately needs a cure.

Dream For A Cure….

 

Legislative Advocacy – Consumer Advocates – NACA | National Association of Consumer Advocates

Stumbled upon this site from a friend on facebook the other day.  It has a lot of interesting features, including (but, not necessarily limited to) the below:

Legislative Advocacy

As an organization fully committed to advancing justice for consumers, NACA is actively engaged in promoting a fair and open marketplace that forcefully protects the rights of consumers, particularly those of modest means.

Today the fundamental consumer protections that we have depended upon to ensure fairness and justice are under attack. This can be seen in the watering down of federal regulations, the prevalence in consumer contracts of forced arbitration clauses that deny consumers their right to be heard by an unbiased court or jury of their peers, and the ever growing presence of unscrupulous and deceptive business practices that trip and trap consumers into predatory loans, unscrupulous fees, and unconscionable contract terms.

NACA is focused on promoting an agenda that lays the groundwork for rebuilding a consumer justice system that will be based on our nation’s fundamental sense of fairness, equity and honesty. Our agenda items include ensuring that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau holds corporations and businesses accountable for their predatory practices, fighting to ban the unfair practice of forced arbitration, staunching the swelling tide of foreclosures, strengthening laws that protect consumers from predatory mortgage and unsecured credit lending, unfair debt collection practices, and abusive credit reporting.

via Legislative Advocacy – Consumer Advocates – NACA | National Association of Consumer Advocates.

Personal Fundraising Page for Kathryn Benefiting the Lymphatic Research of the Lymphatic Research Foundation!

In 2004, when a suburban hit me in an intersection and spun me around, my knees hit the steering wheel hard.  At the time, I didn’t have medical insurance; just the PIP insurance with your normal coverage of auto insurance policy.  When it was discovered a month after the accident that my swelling in my legs was simply not going to go away, it was only a beginning to a journey of learning how to be an advocate for myself.  The hospital granted me a grant for 10 treatments, but anyone who knows anything about lymphedema, 10 treatments is clearly not enough.  I was left on my own to wrap my legs and utilize a small pump and try to get the swelling to go down on my own without any insurance coverage.

By the time that I gained health insurance in 2008 through my employer when transitioning from a full time relief employee to a full time permanent employee, my legs were getting out of control and I was beginning to develop some pressure wounds.  After 3-6 months of physical therapy, aqua therapy, and transitioning from the ace looking compression bandages get up to the juxt-a-fit garments, and the approval of a flexitouch pump, I finally was able to have a better guide, control and understanding of what to do for maintaining my condition.

To this day, I still walk about with garments on both legs, although the right leg is far worse than the left, and tennis shoes that are way to big for me ordinarily (because of the wraps, I have to wear much larger shoes).  I have some sights on a new garment that comes in black and cheaper than the ones that I presently have, however, are supposed to work even better.  Hopefully, I won’t have the $500 annual garment purchase, plus the additional $100-200 I purchase each month in various specialized stockings that I have to wear with the garments.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  At least, if they are in black, they might be less noticeable.  For the past 7 years, everyone seemed to look at me with strangely while I continued to wear these garments day in and day out for the past 7 years, going on 8.

During the past years, I have been a strong advocate, learning more and more how to speak up for myself and try to make sure that I have the latest in the developments to ensure that there is continued progress without any set backs.  I’ve also promoted latest and greatest news on my Lymphedema in the News page on facebook and have become one of the admins in a patient’s only page (private) on facebook where we work to encourage and inspire one another.

In additon, I have had other lymphedema advocates come on my blogtalkradio show called, Beyond Words Live, to share updates about HR 4662 bill that is the national legislation concerning helping to defer the high costs of treatments towards the lymphedema patient.  It is critical that there is attention to this bill because, if lymphedema is left untreated, it poses a much higher health risk — such as the awfully painful pressure wounds that can run deep past the fatty tissues underneath the skin layer, exposing it to the opportunity for more infections, etc.

My story is one of many stories.  This is not lympoma or any form of cancer, although it can often result from having radiation treatments necessary to combat cancer.  Many other folks have many other causes — some trauma situated causes like mine — many others have other situations that have occurred to where the lymph nodes were damaged in some other way; and, in some cases, too, there are some hereditary links to this long lasting condition.

via Personal Fundraising Page for Kathryn Benefiting the Lymphatic Research of the Lymphatic Research Foundation!.

The Dash

Just a little something to think about.  How does this possibly apply to you?

THE DASH

I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend.

He referred to the date on the tombstone from the beginning, until the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth; the second date, he noted with tears.

But he said that what matters most of all, was the dash between the years.

For that “dash” represented all the time spent alive on the face of the earth.

Now only the loved ones left behind knew what that little line was worth.

For it matters not how much we own, the cars, the house, the cash.

What really matters is how we live and love and how we spend our “dash”.

So think about this long and hard, are there things you’d like to change?

For you never know how much time is left, you could be at “dash” mid-range.

Should you be less quick to anger and show appreciation more?

Should you love the people in your life, like you’ve never loved before?

Should you treat others with more respect and more often wear a smile? 

Remember that your special “dash” might only last a little while.

So when your eulogy is being read, your life’s actions to rehash, will you be pleased with what they have to say about how you spent your “dash”?

(Not) spreading the wealth – The Washington Post

$31,244 is the average income of 90% of the income earners, which has only seen a change of 1% during 1970-2008.  As you climb the chart to see other ranges of earnings, the population gets smaller and smaller, but the change of income earned during this same time frame is increasing higher and higher.  Something is very wrong with this picture.

How are folks supposed to hold on to hope for economic change in the future, if 90% of the population is seeing the littlest of changes?

via (Not) spreading the wealth – The Washington Post.

SoulNeeds Beta – Dashboard – txbluebonnet

One of the most creative and latest/greatest social sites being placed out on the world wide web recently is a site called, Soul Needs!

It really works on getting to know people for their wholesome goodness, as well as a place for each and every person to come and explore fitness by way of the mind, body and soul.

Create your own profile.

Explore the “Circles”, various communities centered around specific topics or needs for fulfillment — or, create your own.

Take the many quizes available on the site to explore where you stand with your mind, body, and soul.

There are also other areas in development — entertainment and events, to begin with.

If you are wanting something a little more fulfilling than the social sites you have been to lately, you really should take the time to explore this more by clicking on the link below:

 

SoulNeeds Beta – Dashboard – txbluebonnet.

Domestic Violence Voices

Everyone needs a place to go to where they can heal, be safe to talk, and empower others along their healing journey.  For those traveling the healing journey due to domestic violence issues, Facebook’s page called, Domestic Violence Voices, offers just one such place.

It’s just a great feel good place with a great community spirit.

Congratulations To Blake Shelton – ‘Honey Bee’ Is The New #1 Song In Country Music | The Country Site

Have loved getting to know another side of Blake Shelton on the hit show, The Voice.   Take a listen to this song… the Honey Bee…. love it!  Very cleverly done!

Congratulations To Blake Shelton – ‘Honey Bee’ Is The New #1 Song In Country Music | The Country Site.

 

 

Angel Food Ministries Thoughts and Comments | Feeding America One Box At A Time

 

Just ordered my order today.  I’ve been doing this for quite some time.  Having lymphedema in my legs leaves me unable to shop for long periods of time.  While it might not have everything that I absolutely need, it sure is convenient and saves me time from having to shop a long time in the supermarket/grocery store.

 

I find that I save money, too, by purchase my groceries through them — both through their savings that they pass to the consumers and savings from not buying some things that I don’t really need at the stores.

 

This month they also have a seafood package.  Yummm.

 

Packages that I bought this month are the Bit of Blessings for $22 and the Seafood Special for $33.  Check these packages out and more on the site link below.

 

Be to tell them that you heard it on here.  Keep spreading the word about this wonderful community ministries project.

Angel Food Ministries Thoughts and Comments | Feeding America One Box At A Time.

 

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET AUTHOR SHELLY BEACH June 19 2010 9a CST 06/19 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

 

 

On June 19, 2010, I interviewed author, Shelly Beach:

This author wrote the book SILENT SEDUCTION SELF-TALK: CONFORMING DEADLY THOUGHT PATTERNS TO THE WORD OF GOD. Whether or not that you actually believe in God (maybe you just believe in a higher power of some sort), techniques that Shelly Beach puts into play in her book should indeed ressonate with you, or someone you know. It is easy enough to fall victim to the self-talk that we do to ourselves, which leads oftentimes to low self-esteem and gives an abusive personality power and control edge over our lives. We need to empower ourselves to become stronger so that no one takes control of ourselves and allow us to lead the lives that we so richly deserve. Please join me in welcoming Shelly Beach to our show today and feel free to join in the chat during the show.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET AUTHOR SHELLY BEACH June 19 2010 9a CST 06/19 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET MICHELE JUNE 12 2010 9aCST 06/12 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

 

 

On June 12, 2010, I interviewed Michele who also had an incredible survivor story from many perspectives.

Against all odds is the best three words that I can describe this surivor of domestic violence after hearing about and reading her story. She is a product of extremely young parents that were ill-prepared for parenting (her parents being involved with drugs and prisons) and various struggles leading prior her own domestic violence relationship. She is an incredibly strong woman now and I know you will want to hear her story and her amazing story of survival!

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET MICHELE JUNE 12 2010 9aCST 06/12 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET DANIELLE 05/29 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

On May 29, 2010, I interviewed Danielle Joy, an author with a personal story to share.  Take some time to listen to her story when you have a chance.

Danielle Joy Linhart writes the FROM DEEP WITHIN – BLIND AND BRUISED book straight from her heart, which makes it very straight to the point; however, she has written in a format that is an easy read, and one that can certainly ressonate with any teen going through any degree of teen datingabuse. Please join me as Danielle shares her story on our show and tells more about her book, of which a portion of the proceeds are going to help the National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline (http://loveisrespect.org)! The last paragraph on her backcover of the book states, “As a survivor, I want to help those being harmed or whos might be harmed, and to educate those who can help prevent a violent relationship. This book has been a path to self-discovery, to close the chapter on that part of my life. I feel as though I have re-lived the abuse all over again. At times, I had to stop writing, but I am glad I continued because there is a chance I will help someone in need.” How true! It is hard to write a book about something that was so painful in your life; it is wonderful that Danielle has managed to get past that to share her story. I can’t wait to share this guest with you. Chat room will be open for discussion too.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET DANIELLE 05/29 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET MARILYN BRAY 05/22 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

On May 22, 2010, I interviewed Marilyn Bray, an advocate in Sexual Assault who also shared her own personal story.

Marilyn Bray serves as the epitome of becoming a huge advocate for non-violence, inspired by her own personal experience and has become a catalyst for the new movement of survivors to talk candidly about their journeys, sharing their experiences and become empowered by the truth. Since 2001, Marilyn’s journey toward empowerment and professional growth evolved into advocating and helping those in anguish from being “victims” or rape and sexual assault. She has become actively involved in SOAR SPA, The Clothesline Project, Take Back the Night, survivor workshops and women’s perspective workshops, among many, many other things. Currently, Marilyn serves on an advisory role to Men Stopping Violence Against Women Intiative, recently started in Tampa by a group of concerned men wanting to be a part of the solution. Her story has been shared in SELF MAGAZINE, as well as more recently in the November issue of MARIE CLAIRE MAGAZINE. Please bring a warm welcome to Marilyn has she shares with us her story of survival and her mission of advocacy.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET MARILYN BRAY 05/22 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET HADAYAI 05/15 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

On May 15, 2010, I inteviewed Hadayai, who talked more about Muslim women and their survivorship:

Domestic violence knows no age, race, gender, sexual orientation, etc – including no culture is immune from domestic violence occurring in their relationships as well. The guest today also has her own show on BTR, but comes to my show to talk more about her story and how it relates in the Muslim Community. In fact, she states that “any association with feminism is alienating in Muslim cultural circles … and… confidence from women has been slow in coming.” We hope to help demonstrate the need of understand cultural struggles when trying to help those victimized by domestic violence situations to seek help. Please join us while Hadayai talks about her mission to enact upon her, simple and huge, vision: “Give Muslim women the tools to change their climate by changing themselves” stemming out of her own experience with domestic violence and her compelling need to fill a need to help others in similar situations. Her goal through the program she founded in Georgia (here in the United States) in 1997 is to “end the silence about domestic violence and to help abused Muslim women and children with shelter, food, and clothing, as well as teach them strategies for self sufficiency – how to be confident in speech, mannerisms, and body language.” Come prepared to understand additional dimensions of struggles found in those encountering domestic violence.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET HADAYAI 05/15 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET LAURIE 05/08 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

On May 8, 2010, I interviewed Lauri Allen, who is a survivor, as well as part of the Private Quarters comapny.  She told an amazing story.  Please feel free to listen to her show when you get a chance:

Unbelievable turn of circumstances is a great way to describe Laurie who will be talking to us today. I have been enjoying getting to know Laurie and learning more about what she is doing today with her role at Private Quarters (an organization supporting domestic violence survivors) and part of a documentary in progress called BY A THREAD, as well as her personal experiences involved in domestic violence and why she has been so adamant to advocate for change. She states that she is on a mission to share her story as how she became safe in her own skin, as well as just her story of domestic violence on a whole. There is a certainly level of abuse and violence that women hear about on the news, in the obituaries, the obvious and repeated, daily and nightly abuse; however, there is another level of abuse that is hidden, forgotten about and not on the radar because it may not be thought of as “that bad”. At what point does it have to be “bad” to do something about it, after all? What about those less than obvious signs that lead you down a path of abuse and violence that young and mature women don’t understand and don’t know to look for? Those are the masses we need to reach and educate, speak to and empower! Please join us on May 8th, 2010, at 2pm CST to hear what Laurie has to say to empower all our listeners to changes in our lives.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET LAURIE 05/08 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET JULIANNE 04/17 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

 

 

 

 

On April 17, 2010, I hosted this interview with Julianne. Hoping that you take time to listen to her amazing story:

 

Julianne will discuss her own personal experiences with domestic violence, as well as her involvement in the development of domestic violence programs in rural America, as well as some dilemmas and issues surrounding reaching those in the rural america about resources available to them too. Domestic violence in rural America is a perplexing issue because the batterer will often go to great lengths to alienate and isolate a victim — oftentimes, this includes moving them out to the most remote area that they can where the victim has little access to communication with the wide world, as well as their friends and family members. How can we possibly reach these folks? Be sure to tune in and perhaps we’ll hear some creative ideas that you, as a listener, can proactively do as well.

 

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET JULIANNE 04/17 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET DENISE WOLFORD 04/03 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On April 3, 2010, I hosted this radio show with Denise Wolford.  Just catching up on what I have been doing in the past few years:

I’m very excited to present to you a show with Denise Wolford who has been dedicated to working towards ending domestic violence through her ministry, All Women Marching for Hope! Denise will share with us her story that led her to where she is today, as well as tell us more about her ministries for hope for freedom from domestic violence in this world. Just about a month ago, on March 6th, she was found marching in the streets of the community of Dallas, along with many supporters and Carolyn Thomas. She will be taking their march in other communities as well. Learn more about domestic violence and some avenues for proactive action. Look forward to seeing you at the show on April 3, 2010!

BEYOND WORDS LIVE – MEET DENISE WOLFORD 04/03 by Kat X Beyond Words | Blog Talk Radio.

 

TEXT TO TELL PROGRAM

Information to be passed around and acted upon:

 

Glamour Launches “Tell Somebody” Relationship Violence Awareness Campaign In Honor of Yeardley Love

Today is the one year anniversary of the death of UVA student Yeardley Love. (Note our blogpost about Yeardley Love’s death and what to say to someone you care about here.)

To honor the one-year anniversary of her death, Glamour is encouraging women to talk about relationship violence—both to ask for help and to offer it without judgment. Glamour‘s Tell Somebody campaignis aimed at raising awareness about the secret that kills four women a day in the United States—relationship abuse. Over the course of an average year in twenty-first-century America, more than 1,400 women will be murdered by someone they’ve loved. Glamour asks: Why are women more likely to be killed by their boyfriends now than they were 35 years ago? And what can we do to reverse the trend?

In an exclusive Glamour/Harris Interactive representative, online survey* of 2,542 women ages 18 to 35—single, living with a partner and married—a full 29 percent said they’d been in an abusive relationship. Another 30 percent said they’d never been abused but then went on to acknowledge that, at some point, a partner had viciously hurt them: from verbal degradation to being strangled or threatened with a knife. View the top findings from the survey athttp://glmr.me/jKUWxq.

The Tell Somebody campaign kicks off in Glamour‘s June issue with an exclusive interview with Vice President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden. Also included in the feature are family photos of Yeardley Love that serve as a reminder that the women we hear about in the news are much more than just headlines. Many brave women came forward to tell their stories—and 62 percent said that having the support of a friend, family member or coworker helped them “get through the relationship safely.” 

The message here? Tell Somebody. Ther feature includes exactly what to say to a friend or loved one who may be in an abusive relationship.(Note our blogpost about Yeardley Love’s death and what to say to someone you care about here.)

“The fact that abusive relationships have actually gotten more deadly for young women in the 21st century is not only confounding—it’s maddening,” says Cindi Leive, editor-in-chief of Glamour magazine. “Glamour wants to encourage all young women to start talking about this violence. Our message is simple: If you, or a friend, are in a dangerous relationship, Tell Somebody.”

Young celebrities like Emma Stone and Ashley Greene, are also joining the campaign, coming together to create an awareness video highlighting shocking statistics and underlining the message of the campaign: If you or a friend is suffering, Tell Somebody. To see the video, along with a moving series of exclusive videos of survivors, go to http://www.glamour.com/tell-somebody/video/2011/05/tell-somebody-help-put-an-end-to-relationship-violence.

There is an easy way everyone can help: In 2010the National Domestic Violence Hotline received 281,787 calls, but due to a lack of resources, 83,027 of those calls went unanswered—that’s more than 1,590 calls per week. We can change that. Glamour, the Avon Foundation for Women and the Avon Speak Out Against Domestic Violence program—an initiative that has donated more than $30 million globally to reduce domestic violence since 2004—are working to make sure that no call goes unanswered from now through October, which is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. “Women need to have someone who will listen,” says Katie Ray-Jones, director of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. “We know that for about 85 percent of our callers, it’s their first time ever telling their story.”

Glamour is asking people to make a $10 donation by texting TELLNOW to 85944. The Avon Foundation will match every dollar donated, up to $200,000. “It takes so much courage for a woman to pick up the phone and make that call,” Vice President Joe Biden told Glamour. The least we can do is make sure someone is there for her.

Join Glamour‘s campaign to stop relationship violence by changing your Facebook status to—Relationship violence kills 4 women a DAY in the U.S. If you or someone you know is being abused, Tell Somebody. Make sure someone is always listening by texting TELLNOW to 85944. Your $10 donation will help keep the National Domestic Violence Hotline open.

To learn more about Tell Somebody, visit glamour.com/tell-somebody.

*Survey Methodology: This survey was conducted online within the United States between March 3 to 17, 2011 among 2,542 women (aged 18-35). Figures for age, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Go to http://www.Glamour.com/tell-somebody for the full methodology.

Credit to:

http://domesticviolenceworkplace.blogspot.com/2011/05/glamour-launched-tell-somebody.

BEYOND WORDS LIVE! – Meet Charlotte Waters With a Story to Tell

 

What many folks don’t realize is that this is the lady that I met long ago who said that the magazine folks who had her tell her domestic violence story, but wouldn’t publish it because it didn’t fit exactly in their demographics at the time.  This realization that survivors were not able to have a platform to tell their own story in their own words, led me on a journey which eventually started me doing shows here on BlogTalkRadio, allowing survivors to tell their stories in their own words.

By survivors telling their own story, it is the opportunity for them to share with those that may be listening in and may resonnate with them because they are currently in a domestic violence situation and/or know of someone who is.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/oralhistory/2011/06/11/meet-charlottewith-a-story-to-tell

 

 

 

A Creative Way to Raise a Legal Fees Owed by a Victim

Just happened upon this today.  You’ll just need to read the article to understand the full scope:

 

Reposted article for quick viewing here:

In case you hadn’t heard the latest news to make you doubt the basic humanity of the people around you, several years ago a 16-year-old cheerleader from Silsbee High School in Texas was assaulted at a party by Rakheem Bolton, a basketball player and football star whom she says held her down and raped her. Bolton later pleaded to a charge of misdemeanor assault, but here’s the part that’s going to make you want to set things on fire: Not only did the school allow him back on the basketball team, they told the girl it was her responsibility to lay low, stay away from the lunchroom and not go to Homecoming. And when the girl refused to cheer specifically for her attacker at games — while still cheering for the team at large — Silsbee High School officials did something so fundamentally awful that they might as well be twisting their mustaches: They threw her off the cheerleading squad.

She challenged the school in court and recently lost, so now in addition to suffering a horrendous assault, predictably being branded a “slut” in her community, and getting thrown off the cheerleading team for refusing to shout “put it in” at her attacker (seriously), her family has been ordered to pay $45,000 in legal fees to the school.

Jason Ho, an illustrator and Assistant Editor at Bongo Comics wants to help, so he is drawing custom sketches at $20 a pop and donating the proceeds to the girl’s legal costs. They are both very attractive sketches and a small way to help someone who has been failed disgracefully over and over by the indecency and institutional cowardice of seemingly everyone around her.

“The less I say about it, the better, cause if I start talking about it, I’m just gonna get mad,” Ho wrote on his blog. “Suffice it to say, this is utterly unacceptable, and if we can help, we should.”

You can read more of the profoundly depressing details here, but the courage of the young woman cannot be overstated for speaking out about an assault by a football star in a culture that disproportionately values sports prowess (you’ve seen Friday Night Lights, right?) and is quick to blame victims — even 11-year-old girls – for their own sexual assaults.

Thanks to Silsbee High School and Superintendent Richard Bain Jr., for rewarding the young woman’s bravery with the tacit message to shut up because winning sports games is more important than her assault, and for affirming yet again to girls and women around the world that seeking justice for a sexual assault is the fastest and easiest way to get victimized all over again, except in more public and expensive ways.

Sincere thanks to Ho — an artist we’ve featured on ComicsAlliance before – and Help the Cheerleader, which is working directly with the girl and her family to raise money for both the school’s court fees and their own. Donations are being accepted via Paypal here.

Read More: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/06/08/cheerleader-texas-rape-sketches/#ixzz1OuQWnMyG

 

 

 

An Embarrassing Comment Upon Politicians

Oh, my! I just can’t believe that it has come down to discussing politician’s many love lives and infidelities, and let that drama get in way of what is truly underlying on the the important aspects of getting us out of this economic “bliss” and recession. Don’t get me wrong — when we vote a politician into office, we do hope and pray that they enstill the same morals and beliefs that are representative of our society as a whole, but let us not forget where our priorities should be.

Below is the humor made by a political cartoon today:

Can we please get down to the real business essential to our lives.

Hello, again!

The other day, I popped onto the site and realized just how long it has been since I have been on this site writing and sharing with you all various tidbits of interest that embarked upon various issues — especially domestic violence issues — mixed in with a variety of diverse things.

What have I been doing since then?

Well…

mostly being a domestic violence warrior — networking and sharing survivor stories in an effort to make a change — hopefully, for the better.

Please keep feeling free to offer feedback, ideas, comment, opinions and suggestions.  I love reading through all of them.

 

 

DJ Devine is on Air??? Do what??? lol…

Was it four weeks of DJing that just passed?

Am I really on my 5th week of DJing now???

Wow!!!!

It hardly seems that soooo much time as passed when I am having sooo much fun learning about the world of DJing.

So many good things are happening.  I am having musicians wanting me to air their music and I am soooo very happy to do so.  I am all about the underdog and getting them some air time.  I am also all about not necessarily playing the same songs that you will hear on all other radio stations.  It might be a little bit of Indie music or a song that is sung by a well known singer or band that hasn’t been played in quite some time.

I have some bands giving me exclusivity to air their not yet released music as well.  I am so excited that they have their faith in me, which makes me so much more excited to do my shows.

Not this week, but next week, I am also looking forward to having a guest DJ on air with me.  Can’t wait until that happens. It’ll be fun to have the company of another DJ on air with me, who is also going to share with me some better organizational skills to get me set on the right track from my place.

Next week, too, I am meeting up with a dear musician friend of mine who is playing here in Austin for a change of pace. Can’t wait to see him and see what new materials he’ll let me share with you all.

What other things are in store?  Who knows???? lol…

*Wishing that there were DJ passes to the SXSW shows here in Austin*

Guess you’ll just have to keep in touch and see what happens………………………

In the meantime………

Come on in and join in the fun….

DJ Devine,
Blue Orion Lounge
Playing songs from the last 4 decades, including some Austrialian, Latin, and British songs, as well as some Indie musicians.

MARCH 6 (THURS) 5-8p CST

MARCH 7  (FRI) 2-5p CST

MARCH 8 (SAT) 8a-2p CST
DJ DEVINE @
Blue Orion Radio -
(high band) http://www.sc.jji-radio.com:8008
(low band) http://www.sc.jji-radio.com:8010
Blue Orion Radio Lounge (in Fubar.com) – http://www.fubar.com/new_lounge.php?w=1&lid=53775
My show airs – as DJ Devine – Thurs 5-8pm, Fri 2-5pm, Sat 8a-2pm
Playing the last 4 decades of music

MUSICIANS — Please contact me and let me know if you have something you would like for me to consider airing!!

Come on in and join in on the fun….

DJ Devine,
Blue Orion Lounge
Playing songs from the last 4 decades, including some Austrialian, Latin, and British songs, as well as some Indie musicians.

MARCH 6 (THURS) 5-8p CST

MARCH 7 (FRI) 2-5p CST

MARCH 8 (SAT) 8a-2p CST

Survival on the First Week of Airing as an Internet DJ!!

Whew! It has been the first week of me DJing on the internet. It has been an interesting week getting this set up and going but after my 3rd show this week fully live and all technicalities functioning properly, I am starting to relax and enjoy myself more without having to worry so much about this side of the screen or that. lol……

Would love for more of you to come to the lounge and give me some support while you are meeting other new friends as well. We play anything in the 80s and up category. I tend to play some songs that folks may or may not have heard just yet, mixed in wtih some tunes that you have indeed heard. For instance, I played some Australian bands on the air today. Plus those in the lounge are the coolest folks that you have ever met….

If you want to just tune in, you can also hear me through WINAMP. If you have WINAMP set up, you can put in where you put in “Play URL” the following—http://38.96.148.58:5366. I understand that you can access it through iPOD as well? I don’t have an iPOD so I am not sure how that works.

My air times are—

THURS 5-8p CSTFRI 2-5p CST &
SAT 11a-2p CST (although today I was on until 5p CST).

I would love to have your support and have you visit the lounge. Please provide me some feedback whenever you can….. and, if you are reading this and you have some music that you would like aired, please contact me asap.

Thanks sooooo much.

See more progress on: Become an Internet DJ?

The “Myth” of Domestic Violence Being Worse on Superbowl Sunday

OMG, just read a blog posting that an author stated that,

“There is an oft-repeated, but false, myth that Super Bowl Sunday is the worst day for violence against women.” 

Of course, the author then adds,

“Would that it were that easy.  Domestic violence doesn’t care what day it is.  It is an every day (and everyday) problem of individuals, families, and society as a whole.  The solution to domestic violence cannot, by definition, take place only within the family unit.  It is a public health issue if ever there was one.”

The first sentence sent the hair up on the back of my neck — MYTH?  a fallacy???  I don’t think so!!  I have been working in the domestic violence field for more than 5 years now, not counting the 15 years that I have been a paralegal and the many years of physical and emotional domestic violence that I personally encountered for many years, and yesterday was probably the first experience I had had with working specifically on Superbowl Sunday in this industry and I wrote the following on another site…..

entitled, “Underdogs come up and win! Thank goodness someone did!!!”

Today has been a rough day for me. For many that know, I answer crisis calls for a living. That, in itself isn’t too bad because I generally can separate myself from their pain and move forward to the next caller.

Today, it has been different. Perhaps, it is because I have never worked in this field on Superbowl Sunday; I don’t know. It seems like I had before, but I don’t remember it being this rough.

Superbowl for most people can be all fun and games, but from the domestic violence perspective it can be quite the opposite. I have been receiving higher risk crisis calls today percentage wise than I ever have, I believe. I mean, usually, it is just calls wanting more information or how to plan to help from friends or family members OR understanding how they need to understand why they need to stay away from the abusive person OR some students wanting help on their projects.

Today, though….

* a woman’s face was bashed in by her ex and she just returned home from the hospital. Her ex was on the way to p/u the kids and she needed to ensure their safety until she could reach the attorney and the district attorney in the morning….

* callers calling from places they are hiding from their abusers….

* callers from the other room while there abusive partner was enjoying the superbowl game after having beaten them up. They were seeking shelter space….

* callers wanting us to call 911 for them…

* caller stating that her husband had just “disciplined” her daughter by yanking her hair and dragging her through the house and throwing her into the doorway. The daughter now has a concussion….

* other child abuse calls being called in….

and sooooo much more.

It is times like these when one gets these sort of calls you would like to be able to hang up the phone and call “The Equalizer” to take care of things. I guess I always loved that show because the actor would do so in a not necessarily violent way to get the point across to the aggressor — a sort of person who advocated for the underdog.

It is sort of the peace de la resistance (sp?) in the fact that, at least, one underdog has won today — even if it is from an event that seems to masks the pain of others in the same day.

Some day — I wish the pains of the victims away and the abusive/aggressive folks of this world find peace so that we can all live in the world as one happy family. Is it really too much to ask for???

Now, try to tell me, after my experience yesterday on a domestic violence hotline, that Superbowl Sunday isn’t one of the worst days ever for domestic violence.

In all fairness though, there are hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of calls received day in and day out throughout the entire year.  Domestic violence isn’t just domestic violence on Superbowl Sunday; however, the intensity culminates to something that is both exasperating and emotional.

Some day…..

the violence in the home has to end!

LIST — *Valentine Candy Heart Comments*

1.  Be Mine

2.  Love is Sweet

3.  Charm Me

4.  Love Letter

5.  Sweet Home

6.  I <3 You

7.  Marry Me

8.  Love Story

9.  Sweet Talk

10.  Best Friends

What is your favorite saying on the candy hearts?????  (It doesn’t have to be from one of the above mentioned in the list.)

Making Lists…

Making lists doesn’t always put our world in order, but it certainly helps us to feel more orderly.

~ Anonymous

lol..

I don’t know how many lists that I have written over the years, but it has certainly made me rest better at nights very often so that I could have a renewed perspective of the upcoming day, as well as a renewed charge and dedication to eliminate as many of the items off of my lists.

How about yourself????

Bee Farmers

Wow!  One of the men on a social site similar to MySpace (called Fubar) put 2 and 2 together about a small town that we both had family connections to.  It so happened that his aunt and uncle were bee farmers in that town and had died in the 80′s.  I couldn’t help but respond to him by stating –

“When I was little there was a bee farmer that would bring over to my Grandma’s and Grandpa’s ranch a couple of jars of the best honey with the combs still in it.  Honey became my favorite commodity.

The man that would bring the jars would sit with my family in the country air and talk to us.  He was the nicest man and I really got a kick out of his visits — especially when it meant that he would bring us honey… lol!!

One time, he had held me in his lap and a bee landed on me.  He said to me – don’t worry.  The bee won’t sting you unless you show him that you are scared….

It was a great exercise in overcoming any possible fears of bees and every time I encounter bees, his voice echoed in my head.

My Grandpa worked for Humble Oil for many years, then the Lumberyard until he simply couldn’t work anymore.  He ended up with TB, lung cancer, and emphesema…so he stayed in the house connected to the garage mostly and would come out on the porch, smoke us pipe, and tell us all kinds of stories.

Because he stayed in that house, we would meet in the yard between the two (the garage house and the main house) and socialize; hence why the bee man was also visiting us in the country air versus in the house.

You stating that they died in the 80′s makes perfect sense since it was a rare find after that time to have that delicious honey.  Whether or not they are one of the same, it was nice to relive that memory.”

It is amazing how small of a world that we may or may not live in….and it is wonderful still that such inquiries can trigger such marvelous memories from our childhood.  I can still smell the freshness of that honey that the bee farmer would bring to us, a quality unmatched from honey sold today.

I wish you enough….

Just something inspirational to share with you today:

“I Wish You Enough

Recently, I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together at a regional airport. They had announced her departure and standing near the security gate, they hugged and he said, “I love you. I wish you enough.” She in turn said, “Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy.” They kissed and she left. He walked over toward the window where I was seated. Standing there, I could see he wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking,”Did you ever say goodbye to someone knowing it would be forever?”

“Yes, I have,” I replied. Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and appreciation for all my Dad had done for me. Recognizing that his days were limited, I took the time to tell him face to face how much he meant to me. So I knew what this man was experiencing.

“Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever goodbye?” I asked.

“I am old and she lives much too far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is, the next trip back will be for my funeral,” he said.

“When you were saying goodbye I heard you say, “I wish you enough.”May I ask what that means?”

He began to smile. “That’s a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone.”

He paused for a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail, he smiled even more.

“When we said ‘I wish you enough,’ we were wanting theother person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them,” he continued. Then, turning toward me, he shared the following as if he were reciting it from memory.

“I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright. I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more. I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive. I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger. I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting. I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess. I wish enough hellos to get you through the final goodbye.”

He then began to sob and walked away.

My friend, I wish you enough!

You’re only here for a short visit. Don’t hurry. Don’t worry. And be sure to give enough to those you love. “

~ Unknown author

Well, first off, I am going to have to learn a bit more about it before becoming an Internet DJ — lol…

One of the social sites that I go to has some lounges. They are pretty fun to get lost in, chat a bit, and listen to tunes from all eras (depending on the lounge that you are lounging around in).

There is one that I have been checking out lately and the owner has offered to train me on how to be a DJ. Can’t really pass up the opportunity to learn—we’ll know soon how much more involved it can be soon enough. I have to contact her on the Yahoo Messenger later today.

Is anyone out there an Internet DJ? Do you enjoy it? Do you have any tips or suggestions???

Look forward to hearing what folks have to say…..

It is certainly something different, and a whole new world to explore. Who knows where it will lead to—or, not! lol… It will be fun to explore, nontheless!

See more progress on: Become an Internet DJ?

Katrina Victims or Survivors — after all of these years???

On January 9^th of this year, a posting was made by Timmy called “You want what?”.   In the posting he states:  

Today’s Kick in the Ass goes to an anonymous person, or asshat, who filed a claim against the federal government for of $3 quadrillion for over damage from the failure of levees and flood walls following Hurricane Katrina.For the sake of perspective: A mere $1 quadrillion would dwarf the U.S. gross domestic product, which was $13.2 trillion in 2007. A stack of one quadrillion pennies would reach Saturn.Or maybe this would be a better way to put it in perspective – compare that to $250. That’s the amount FEMA gave residents of my area when in September 2004 Hurricane Ivan dumped 9 inches of rain in less than 24 hours. Nine inches is an unbelievable amount of water to come roaring thousands of feet down mountains and into already flooding streams. The result was the worst flash flooding in the history of the area. That’s where the “impressive” numbers stop. Because unlike some other natural disasters that gained the attention of the world and the backing of disaster efforts and corporate moneys, “only” dozens were killed. “Only” hundreds of homes destroyed. “Only” thousands were displaced. The town I once lived in, Jacksonburg, was wiped off the map. The town was situated on the inside of a huge horseshoe bend in the creek. A temporary earth and culvert bridge had been put in place to allow work on the existing bridge. This became a dam as soon as the wave of water brought trees off the hills. Within minutes, dozens of homes were gone. These were homes built out of the 100 year flood plane, and no one ever imagined flood water could possibly reach them, including my aunt’s home. How did people recover? Neighbors helped them out, mostly. The company me and some other residents worked for declined to help saying the numbers just weren’t there.

But at least not one opportunistic attorney got rich.

This is certainly an atrocity with the audacity of some thinking that they are going to sue the government, especially, for such an exorbitant and outrageous sum of money.  That being said, though, I responded on his posting with the following comment:

I so concur with your thoughts on this.  Any suit would be insanity and justification in comparison to what??

True.  The Katrina victims did face great adversity in their plight; however, years have gone by, and at some point in time, a line in the sand should be drawn, and those same victims should say to themselves, “While we were victims during the Katrina hurricane storm, we are now Katrina survivors!” and work to strive to empower themselves to move forward, out of adversity, and towards a better life for themselves and their community.  At some point, the past can be remembered, but shove the memory to the past and allow all to move to the recovery and survivor mode.

Okay, okay.

Off of my soapbox — for now…

Of course, I don’t want to downplay the enormity of the devastation felt by New Orleans and its surrounding communities; however, at some point of time advocating must be done towards moving the victims from the poor pitiful me stage to empower them to say that they are victors above all because they have overcome such an awful fate of nature that day.

I am sure that there are many victims of the Katrina that have moved forward and are looking at this suit as “Oh, God, when will be able to forget and move on without this being played out and expanded in the media again and again and again??” or “When can the healing process begin without having constant reminders of the past?”

What is really going to be served at attempting to bankrupt the very government that continues to issue grants and support in many continuing situations throughout our society?  Are they really thinking this all the way through?  Do they really want to be remembered for causing a riff in the economy from a potentially bankrupt government, as well as the affect on our children and other members of the society throughout the United States, as well as other parts of the world that we, as a nation of people, do help to support???

Does anyone have a true good solution???  I’d really love to hear it…

Do you ever feel like you have one of these days???? :)

Victim Advocacy

Life isn’t perfect — it never really is. A man lost his wife tonight who he had been married to for 14 years, dated for 10, and known each other as children growing up.

I have been on many victim bereavement calls after the death of a person. They all take you back in a certain way. This one bothered me more than per usual because, although the paramedics had already come and gone by the time that I had arrived, the woman’s eyes were still opened. I guess I am just used to paramedics in the past closing the eyes of the deceased before I arrive — and when I had found my own husband dead, his eyes were already closed (but my husband had also often talked with his eyes closed – a habit of his for some reason).

Currently at work, working on advocacy in another realm tonight; however, the vision of the woman still remains engrained upon my mind. I am sure that it will for quite some time.

Throughout life there are things that approach the way we feel about life and treasure life for what it is and is to be. Seeing death in people, as morbid as it may sound, is one such way that we gain a greater perspective and value for life and the life we live each day.

As family members thanked us for being there, I mentioned to them that, “I can’t say that we enjoy being here, but we are indeed happy that we can help in any way that we can.” I even had one woman bless me tonight; this is certainly not your normal sequence of events at a scene.

I think I remember from a time when my closest grandmother died a person told me that for every death there is a birth. In so doing, while we sadly will miss the person leaving us and heading towards their life after death (for those of us who do believe in that), it is a joy in being able to look forward to births to follow.

I wonder what great birth will become of this death tonight, as a result. Who knows? In the meantime, we are always forever touched in our souls by life’s experiences — the good and the bad, the life and the death.

Scarlet Letter?

Today I awakened at my Alzhiemer’s client’s home to find that she is distraught over her cat.   She threw her cat out the door after the cat appearing to have changed colors (say what?). She said that the cat turned pink.  After seeing the cat last night myself and wondering if the cat were pregnant because she was big around, I was wondering if she meant that the cat was about to have babies or what.  Still not sure what she meant, but I encouraged her to take a shower after engaging her in the Joel Olsteen show this morning and having some freshly squeezed orange juice and toast.

I put out some cat food while she was in the shower after not seeing the cat myself.  After cleaning up the home we left but she thanked me for everything as she was encouraged by Joel Olsteen’s power talk about minimizing our adversities and putting a magnifying glass towards the bigger and better things to come for us ahead – and, she agreed the the shower did make her feel refreshed as well.

We set out and went to Denny’s for breakfast and then off to Sun Harvest for some bits and pieces for things to make at home.  Poor thing.  She got in her mind that she was going to make her famed chicken soup and when I told her that we might not need to buy a whole chicken because it won’t fit into the toaster oven, she felt despair and disgust to her son who had taken apart her stove to keep her from setting the place on fire accidentally.  I tried to point out that she might be able to do the same in a crockpot and she toyed with the idea for a moment then said, “No, I just want my stove to be working!”.  We went around and put some of those ingredients back and searched for other possibilities that she could do — for instance instant oatmeal with the water boiled in the electric kettle, etc.

When we finally got home, we prepared some tuna salad for sandwiches this week and put away the groceries we did purchase.  After calling her son to tell him that he really must get the stove working and hanging up on him after a conversation about his love life that isn’t working out too hot, she pulled up a chair for me to sit in and said, “Come.  Talk to me!”

I sat down and I got a lecture about taking a chance with life and finding a man for me.  She called me a “gootah” (phonetically correct, but Jewish for a woman that does things for everyone else but herself).  She says that she wants me to go out and spend $100 on myself — a new dress, earrings, lipstick — and go dancing.  She says that I should get a sign to wear (like a nametag) and say that I am a free woman! (I can just see it now — women who have already been married and are now divorced and/or widowed must wear a “W” – - an “M” inverted for “woman” and signifying turning over a new leaf!  OMG…lol…..

As I finally was heading out the door after spending 30-1/2 hrs this weekend with her this weekend, she said to me, “You are a lovely woman.  I enjoy spending time with you because you make me feel sane and you are fun to be around.  You need to buy that dress, earrings, and lipstick — and, find something daring to do!”  It almost sounded like a preacher giving me a charge to do for the week ahead, as well as a challenge to find something daring to do.

Thank goodness she has Alzhiemers and she may not remember that she told me that next weekend or I might have to actually report to her the daring thing that I did this week; however, on the other hand, because she does have some degrees of Alzheimers, I might have the same lecture next week.  Oh, nooooooo!!! lol….

No joy stolen today!

Just had a bump in some plans… lol.

While I didn’t get the FT position that I was vying for, I did get a raise finally that I really should have received back in October.  I am just thankful that I did get that much good news today.

Just took of the 9th quote for the month of January to reveal the 10th’s quote as it is already past midnight while sitting here at work.  It states:

“Reality is something your rise above.”
~ Liza Minnilli

This is so on cue today.  Reality is that I someone scored higher in the hiring process this time around, but that isn’t going to steal away my joy.  I reminded myself that the real joy is in the work that I do.  All the same though, it would be better if I were to get paid for what I do at a better rate of pay, which is what I would have received had I been able to get the fulltime job.  However, (1) I did finally get my raise (so today I am getting paid better than I did yesterday and the days before) and (2) I have an opportunity to apply for an upcoming parttime position.  Being “just a relief” has its disadvantages as the person hired was hired from a pool of applicants that were already either fulltime or partime applicants; being “just a relief” has a rung lower than a true employee of the organization, but better than an outside applicant.  Oh, well…

On to revamping and waiting my turn.  My turn will come soon says the director to me after I had already heard the news from the supervisor and attending an inservice training meeting that builds our knowledge about new laws and law resources to better help our victims.  I truly hope that my turn does come soon.

At any rate, I have risen above and no joy is stolen today!!

The Most Wonderful of all Things in Life…

In reading some profiles on Fubar (much like MySpace), I ran across one that had this written on it (by “Lonewolf”)…..

The most wonderful of all things in life,
I believe, is the discovery of another human being
with whom one’s relationship has a glowing depth,
beauty, and joy as the years increase.
This inner progressiveness of love between two human beings is a most marvelous thing, it cannot be found by looking for it or by passionately wishing for it. It is a sort of Divine accident.
Don’t undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others.
It is because we are different that each of us is special. Don’t set your goals by what other people deem important. Only you know what is best for you.
Don’t take for granted the things closest to your heart. Cling to them as you would your life, for without them life is meaningless.
Don’t let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past or for the future.
By living your life one day at a time, you live all the days of your life.
Don’t give up when you still have something to give.
Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying. Don’t be afraid to admit that you are less than perfect.
It is this fragile thread that binds us to each other.
Don’t be afraid to encounter risks.
It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.
Don’t shut love out of your life by saying it’s impossible to find.
The quickest way to receive love is to give love.
The fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly;
and the best way to keep love is to give it wings.
Don’t dismiss your dreams.
To be without dreams is to be without hope;
to be without hope is to be without purpose.
Don’t run through life so fast that you forget not only where you’ve been, but also where you’re going.
Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.

I, especially, love the part about “…Don’t dismiss your dreams.  To be without dreams is to be without hope; to be without hope is to be without purpose. ….”  We all need a purpose in our lives – a purpose for the enjoyment of the moment, and for our future ahead of ourselves (whether or not we can determine what our future is exactly).

No Stealing the Joy!!

This is the first morning that I have felt half way awake since I woke up on Saturday afternoon b/c I then left Saturday night to work a shift from 6pm Saturday night until 2pm Sunday with an Alzhiemers client.  When I arrived her, there was a new shift person that was there for the first time and it had made her extremely nervous and frustrated.  I managed to settle her down that evening and she awoke refreshed and rearing to go, while I awoke with a backache from hell b/c I had slept on the wooden futon bed all wrong.

It took me a while to get moving and she hopped in and out of the room I was several times asking me what was the agenda today.  Finally, I got her engaged in the Joel Olsteen preacher from Lakewood Church in Houston TX on the television.  I told her that he was a powerful speaker and she sat and listened with great intensity.  He spoke about frustrations and not letting people get under your skin and get the best of you — in another words, not to let other people steal your joy.  This was poignant for her….

as well as for me (for what had happened earlier this past week and what is about to happen this week).

We both went forward into the day with a great attitude and went to have breakfast at an Austin tradition hole in the wall place, then tried to go to the LBJ Wildflower park (but we ended up being there an hour too early) then window shopping for a bit before we headed back home.  While we were back home she relaxed reading the NY Times Newspaper and a book about Elvis Pressely.  She became recharged and we headed to the local Dairy Queen to find a sign outside the door over a trashcan stating “Bad Attitudes Here” with an arrow directed towards the trashcan.  We laughed about the irony of it — especially after the Joel Olsteen sermon about the joy and marched into the Dairy Queen saying “No one is going to steal my Joy!” and ordered some delicious waffle sundaes.  (BTW, did you know that the first Dairy Queen was actually in Canada???  That was something that I hadn’t known before.)

At any rate, I went from her home to my home to sleep for a few hours before heading into an overnight shift.  Getting off Monday morning, I was still exhausted because I hadn’t caught up on my sleep yet.  Today, though, even after working last night on another overnight shift, I am feeling recharged (at least, for the moment…lol…).

On the desk I share with another employee at the hotline, I tore off the 7th quote of the day off of the 2008 calendar and revealed the 8th.  Today’s message was — “There’s nothing noble in being superior to someone else.  The one mobility is in being superior to your previous self.” — a Hindu proverb.  That is, indeed, so very true.

Today, the supervisors are meeting to decide about who is to get the permanent overnight shift (you see I have been working as a relief for the past 5 years) that is open.  Myself and two others applied.  One is disqualified from applying because she hasn’t been there long enough to transfer to another shift; the other one would not be a good choice because she has argued with the employees on the overnight shift in the past.  Hopefully, the logical choice will be me.  Even the overnight shift folks are all rooting for me.

But that has no effect on the rhyme or reason of the supervisor staff.  We’ll see.

All I know is that I am better today that I was yesterday — no matter their decision and choice — and, no one can still my joy.  My real joy isn’t whether I am working PT or FT; my real joy is being able to be the best advocate that I know myself to be.

Of course, I am going to have to remind myself to think positive.  My coworkers have already planned to order out for our meals tonight.  We’ll see and hope that that might be in celebration that I am “in” for the FT position.

No harm in keeping my fingers crossed for the best though, right?

Any prayers would be appreciated….as I really need the FT work income wise, which will allow me the opportunity to not work for 2 employers quite to the extent that I have been.

At any rate, please remember that there is no stealing the joy!!!

I believe — do you???

Remaining Positive?

(Actually written 1/2/08:)

I saw a bumper sticker the other day and was puzzled slightly by what it said — “Those who abandon their dreams, will discourage others.”  Although I wrote it on my hand, and later on in my datebook journal I received as a Christmas gift, it just didn’t make sense to me until today.  After all, eventhough I haven’t achieved all of my dreams, I am still the cheerleader encouraging and empowering others to be able to move forward with their own dreams.

Today, though, I indeed had a v-8 moment and realized just what the bumper sticker could possibly mean.

For my living, I am an advocate for those who may not necessarily speak up for themselves.  Currently, I have found myself being an advocate for the elderly as part of my vocation and passion and, as a rule, I truly enjoy what I do.  One client though I have been struggling with to keep upbeat about it.

When I first started going to this client a few weeks ago, I was shocked by the care of his room.  While he may have incontinence, his room reaked of urine all over newspapers, bed linens, clothes, and such.  Apparently, he can’t remember to wear his “briefs”, the depends.  That, in itself is one thing, and makes my job enduring as each week I have to spend 3 hours waiting for the loads to wash through and I don’t feel like I can do this client justice fully because I don’t feel like I have as much time to visit with him, but he tends to stick things in the toilet and stops it up as well (ie, apparently he doesn’t like carrots so they end up in the toilet, which is very disgusting.  I end up having to call maintenance of the facility to come fix the toilet.  It shouldn’t get to the point it does.  The client has a phone; he could call for maintenance himself.  He also walks to the dining room each day; he could tell the management office his needs as well, but he chooses not to.  So, each week I return and I encounter much of the same thing.  You would think that someone wouldn’t want to stay in a room that smells like urine, much less sleep in wet sheets and covers each night.  Each week I keep thinking to myself, “Why, then, do I put myself through such turmoil?”

The answer lays in the fact that I continue to hope that I can make a difference in this man’s life, although, it appears that his level of care needs to be much higher.  This man, who used to not even move out of the bed, does now greet me at his door each week so I am doing something right, it would appear.

Too, while waiting for the clothese to be washed and dried, I’ve met other residents that walk (or, ride) by and they either wave or stop to talk to me for a bit.  I think that they are just happy to see someone else available to hear what they have to say about their day.  Some of them are now even introducing themselves to me with their names and inviting me to go visit them in their rooms — so many are just anxious to have company and companionship.  Even in an assisted living facility, so many residents keep to themselves, which is a shame.

Earlier this morning, I checked my Fubar page just as anyone might check their MySpace page or emails, and saw one of my best friends indicate that he was having trouble waking up this morning.  I called him and told him that, while he was having trouble waking up, I was having a great deal of trouble just motivating myself to move forward to go see this client this morning.  We were talking about why I was having trouble in particular today and he set a positive tone for me by saying to me, “At least, you will have lots to blog about today,” and he was right.

Although I am discouraged by this man’s seemingly giving up on his dreams of having a great life in spite of his health problems, I am discouraged (just like the bumper sticker says).  However, what relights my enthusiasm for returning each week is the brightened eyees and smiles of others I see each week at this facility.  Today, I was surprised, too, in that this man didn’t stay in his room while I was tending to his laundry down the hall.  He actually got up and took the trash to the laundry room area and later he came down to the sitting area and talked with me for a bit telling me that the maintenance has come while I was down here.  Not only once though, but three times!  Maybe next week, he’ll actually sit down and talk to me?  At any rate, any progress made is certainly making way for encouragement that my advocacy is making a difference.

I’ll certainly have to remind myself that, as I crawl out of bed next Wednesday morning, while advocacy work can indeed be very discouraging, it is encouraging to see when folks be able to crawl out of their hinderances (sometime created by themselves) and start getting a little more excited about life.  That is the reward I get in lieu of great monetary salaries, a richness more fulfilling to living a life than making a huge income and not being able to stop and observe life for what it is.  Humanity is a precious regard on this earth; unfortunately, most people are too focused on making the big bucks that they often forget the joys that would surround them if they would just stop and look!

Global Warming in the United States???

In Slate.com there was a cartoon that indicated the lack of US cooperation with the Global Warming issue.  With Al Gore’s campaign for the “Inconvenient Truth” that he has been doing in the past few years, you would think that the prospect of US’s involvement with the global warming issues would be higher.  What this cartoon fails to portray is the thought of what cooperation is being had by the other countries in this world.  I wonder what that would actually look like????

 

 

 

May we all feel changes for 2008,

unlike our favorite chickens!

lol…

No Guts, No Glory!

Although I have run across this blogger, known as “Midnight Dancer”, on another social site (currently called Fubar and fka Cherry Tap & fka Lost Cherry), his blog entitled “Let’s Dance Through Life: Love, Honestly, and the Internet” has a posting called “No Guts, No Glory” and poignantly states:

It has been said many ways: No guts, no glory. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

Life is full of chances and opportunities. But to take a chance .. to reach for an opportunity … there is risk involved.

Some people like to play it safe. They don’t want to take a risk. They have been hurt before and are afraid of being hurt again.

That is totally understandable. I have taken many risks in my life, and I have been hurt. The question one has to ask themselves is, “is the risk worth the reward?”

I have always answered this question, “yes!” Because I know that the reward is the best thing I would ever dream of, and I have said that I will go through anything to get that. And if I quit, then all that I have gone through in the past would be for nothing.

But sometimes … I waver in this. My courage begins to falter. Sometimes I think, “Not again. I don’t want to do this anymore. It’s too much.”

Then I try to take a deep breath, and think, maybe the next risk will be the one that pays off. And I remind myself; I repeat it to myself like some kind of mantra. “No guts, no glory.”

I had responded by stating that…. “Hmmm… I am sure that my crisis callers may not all appreciate that motto or mantra; however, it is certainly one to keep in mind indeed for all of us who have ever taken risks — or about to! “

Don’t you think???

Possible Goal for the New Year?

Received Oprah’s “Today’s Mission Calendar Inspiration” email today wherein in the first paragraph it states about the January issue, “Let the hot air out of the self-esteem balloon–and find a more stable basis for carrying yourself through the world.”  What a great quote!

Wow!  Isn’t that a formidable quest at times???  A more stable basis for carrying oneself through the world???  After all, our world as we might know it gets shaken up all the time — divorce, marriage, becoming pregnant, realizing you can’t have children, in a domestic violence situation (whether it be physically or emotionally OR even if it doesn’t directly involve you but involves someone that you love or have as a friend), illnesses, deaths, etc.  We don’t plan on these events happening in our lives (directly or indirectly) but many are destined to be inevitable to happend, after all wherever there is life, there is also death around us.

For some, it can feel like a never ending cycle.  “Let me off of this roller coaster ride, please!” some will say; others, will not feel the affects of the roller coaster rides of life in general because they live ever so protected lives whereas many of us will feel small in comparison.  After all, how is it that they can have such even keel lives and others don’t?  I certainly don’t see “Hurt me!” written on the foreheads of victims nor do I see “Immortal!” written on the foreheads of those seemingly completely escaping the vast majority of the effects of the rash, bumby roller coaster ride.

How does one truly set out to find oneself more stable for carrying oneself through the world? 

* Having one job that can support yourself and your family?

* Advocating for the future of others?

* Having a job that allows you to afford to be able to spend more time with your family?

* Decluttering life’s “treasures” from one’s home?

* Having an income that will provide for a possibility that you actually have a savings for those emergencies and/or to set aside for retirement — so that one can truly enjoy retirement?

* Vowing to live healthier?

* Having opportunities for vacation time so that one can truly enjoy life?

* Restoring one’s faith in humanity?

* Having an opportunity to make time to enjoy doing things that one enjoys doing besides just working, sleeping, working, and sleeping?

What in the world is it going to take to make one more stable in order to carry themselves in the world?  What would it be for you?

For me, it would be to find that perfect balance in life where I can work to have the bills paid and a bit left over for savings, while having enough time to continue doing the things I enjoy doing — ie,  being with family and friends, blogging (go figure, huh?), artistic endeavors — as well as achieving the things that I want to do — ie, writing the book that is swarming in my head and waiting to be put into print, traveling to other countries that I haven’t been yet to (Belize, Equador, Scotland, Ireland, and Peru), building a modest home in the countryside, and finding a mate to share the rest of my life with one day (someone, that I can see us sitting in our rockers on our porch on our countryside home and just reminiscing about the good things in our lives when we become too old to move around like we had in the last 40-50 years of our lives).   Obviously, though, not all of those things can be accomplished in 2008 — or, can it?  We all must realize our limitations without letting our visions of our limitations stimy our growth. 

I am not sure that one can ever truly find that “perfect balance in life”, but surely one can attempt to try, can’t they?

Goals are nice, but getting them put into action seems daunting at times; sometimes, appropropriately determining one goal in particular is more important that setting many that will merely set us up for failure of being able to accomplish anything.  The purpose of having a New Year’s Resolution, after all, can be to light that fire of inspiration below ourselves to motivate ourselves to move forward from whatever level of instability that we have had in our lives in the past to empower us to move towards the level of stability that we all really truly desire.

Do you have a goal that you are going to put into action?  What might that be???

As Allergy Ridden as I am….

I sure feel like Heathcliff — excepting it has been ongoing for the past couple of weeks…and, I suspect, it isn’t going away anytime soon.  I saw something big, black and furry scurry aross the ditch along the roadway on the way into work tonight — it could have been a skunk that sprayed me and I wouldn’t have even known it.  I feel for Heathcliff, if he is truly having a stuffed up nose like many of us are right now….

Heathkits Regaining Exposure???

A fellow blogger wrote in his posting, Heathkit Reincarnates the Hero Robot, about Heathkit re-establishing themselves from the televisions, radios, and the like that they taught many folks about electronics through their kits and instructions.  Although they have had a long lapse of time, they seem to be making a come back.

I do so remember when my Dad made our first black and white television set from a Heathkit.  Now, they will be having a rebot of sorts available after around Feb 2008???  Count me in…. I’d love to give a hand at it….

Too cool!!

Merry Christmas!!

As Families Grow and Expand,

so do the family traditions.

It is time for my daughter to develop new traditions with her new family with the onset of their baby girl this past June.  They are quickly learning how to adjust to meeting each sides’ family to continue Christmas family traditions.

Because I have to work today and tomorrow, I got to share Christmas with them on this Christmas Eve morning.  At nearly 6 months old now, the granddaughter is wide-eyed and enjoying all the excitement of all the sparking gifts.  With the aid of her mother, my daughter, she unwrapped her gifts from me.  A small moo cow that goes Moooooooo, a soft clown, some Baby Einstein DVDs, some clothes and a colorful musical clown painting for her bedroom.

For my daughter and her hubby, I got them a Japanese tea set to go with the oriental theme that they have started for their apartment, along with a note telling them how proud I was for the both of them to adjusting to all the changes in the past year.

For me, they got me a 2008 bound datebook (beautiful teal leather).  The funny part is that they have already made notes of all of their birthdays — as well as a note 2 weeks ahead of time to plan for their birthday gifts.  My daughter will be 21 this coming year.  Amazing how time flies!

They had his father stay from Saturday through today; and they are off to see my folks tomorrow.  I believe the rest of his family will be over there sometime tonight.  I may have it all wrong.  I am not trying to keep up with it all.  The important time was for me to have time set aside for me to spend with them — especially due to my crazy work schedule and having to work through Christmas Eve and Christmas Day due to the nature of the work I do.

Tonight, I will go and spend some time at some Christmas Eve services at some nearby Churches to keep in line with my own tradition (besides going to a Presbyterian Christmas Eve Service, if I am not too exhausted, I may go also to a Catholic midnight Mass Christmas Eve service, although I am not Catholic just because they are so meaningful).

Before I left today from my daughter’s home, I was given a Santa picture with my granddaughter on Santa’s lap.  What a treasure!  I have already shown it to everyone who was here when I came into work.  Pictures should be arriving soon in my email with my granddaughter and I sticking our tongues out at each other this morning.  lol….

May everyone have bright cheery Christmas traditions and have a very Merry and Safe Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!  Look forward to hearing everyone’s stories to be shared…..

Can someone save me some figgy pudding???

We Wish You a Merry Christmas : Lyrics

Play Music !

We wish you a Merry Christmas; 
We wish you a Merry Christmas; 
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. 
Good tidings we bring to you and your kin; 
Good tidings for Christmas and a Happy New Year. Oh, bring us a figgy pudding; 
Oh, bring us a figgy pudding; 
Oh, bring us a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer

We won’t go until we get some; 
We won’t go until we get some; 
We won’t go until we get some, so bring some out here

We wish you a Merry Christmas; 
We wish you a Merry Christmas; 
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas – lyrics

A Different Kind of Christmas Poem

I, honestly, cannot remember if this was also circulated around last year or not in our emails as well; whatever the case though, it certainly would bear repeating….enjoy!!

A Different Christmas Poem
The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn’t quite know,

then thesure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

‘What are you doing?’ I asked without fear,
‘Come in this moment, it’s freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!’

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire’s light,
Then he sighed and he said ‘Its really all right,

I’m out here by choice. I’m here every night.’

‘It’s my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I’m proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at ‘ Pearl on a day in December,’
He sighed, ‘That’s a Christmas ‘Gram always remembers.’
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ‘ Nam ‘,
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.< /S PAN>

I’ve not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he’s sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue… an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who sta! nd at th e front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.’
‘So go back inside,’ he said, ‘harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I’ll be all right.’

‘But isn’t there something I can do, at the least,
‘Give you money,’ I asked, ‘or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you’ve done,
For being away from your wife and your son.’

In his eyes welled a tear that held no regret,
‘Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we’re gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.’
——————————————————————-

PLEASE, Would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.  Let’s try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30t h Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum , Iraq

Top Ten Searched Requests This Site 122007

I have been having this blog site for about 9 months now.  While it is is still in its infancy of being developed, I love the administrative outlook on this site to see and learn about the readership.  One of those aspects is a section where they tell the blogger what a reader may have keyed into a search engine to find my site.  Here are some of the top ten that were found to find my site yesterday, for example:

1.	vicks vapor rub on feet
2.	tyra banks
3.	parental alienation synod
4.	emmaus butterfly
5.	analogy list
6.	english teachers metaphor awards
7.	little green giant myspace codes
8.	“vicks vapor rub” feet
9.	bestbuy pre-christmas sales
10.	pensionbook.com

The funniest one I think from yesterday is “little green giant myspace codes”???  It isn’t too often I hear of people talking about the Little Green Giant, much less utilizing it as some MySpace page!

It is just interesting, don’t you think?

Old Fashioned Caroling???

Gone seem to be the days when the neighbors would gather at someone’s home, practice some caroling songs that they would be singing, have hot chocolate and goodies to warm themselves up, put on their scarves and mittens, and head out the door to sing from house to house in their neighborhood.  Why would that be?  Could it be that everyone is so worried about being politically correct and afraid of offending someone by singing Christian Carols to a Jewish home, for instance??? 

Ughhhghghghhh……

Visiting a client the other day, I observed a groups of highschool gals that decided that they were trapse up and down the corridors of the facilities.  The smiles of joy on the faces of the residents as they openned up their doors and saw the young gals singing directly to them was priceless.  When I wasn’t looking they circled around me and sang to me as well.  What a comfort and joy that was to be sung to; I don’t remember feeling that sensation in such a long time and more people would greatly benefit in this world by the old fashion door to door caroling.

The commercials with the singing cards taken around by the carolers is great…as one of the carolers hands the card to the recipient, then whispers “open the card”.  The sparkling of the eyes as the song was played was a great surprise, but not quite as heartfelt as coming directly from the caroler’s voices.

Somehow things are getting away from the personalization of the event at times and that is a shame.  The traditions bring warmth, sense of friendships and a sense of belonging and being a part of an event, seem to be disappearing as more and more families opt for more automated, commercialized celebrations of the holidays.  That was seemingly emphasized sarcastically by the below Heathcliff cartoon.  Sad.  So sad!

Perhaps, traditions will begin again and renew the spirits of the holiday seasons for everyone….before we lose the giving spirit and generosity of Christmas.

Evolution of a Snowman???

lol.. Like we here in Texas are going to know too much about this…. Even if we are going to get the opportunity to build a small one, it is gone within hours of building one — not days/weeks/months!! lol…

In the times of religious acknowledgment…

especially in the world of the media and politics which can often grey out some black and white viewpoints, leaving folks not knowing whether they stand for what they believe in or believe in what they stand for, an author comes forward and writes a book entitled, God’s Politics:  Why the Right gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It (by Jim Wallis, also a speaker on the Minnesota Public Radio) from which he states in part:

“… Of course, nobody can steal your personal faith; that’s between you and God.   The problem is in the political arena, where strident voices claim to represent Christians when they clearly don’t speak for most of us. It’s time to take back our faith in the public square, especially in a time when a more authentic social witness is desperately needed.

The religious and political Right gets the public meaning of religion mostly wrong –preferring to focus only on sexual and cultural issues while ignoring the weightier matters of justice. And the secular Left doesn’t seem to get the meaning and promise of faith for politics at all-mistakenly dismissing spirituality as irrelevant to social change. I actually happen to be conservative on issues of personal responsibility, the sacredness of human life, the reality of evil in our world, and the critical importance of individual character, parenting, and strong “family values.” But the popular presentations of religion in our time (especially in the media) almost completely ignore the biblical vision of social justice and, even worse, dismiss such concerns as merely “left wing.”

It is indeed time to take back our faith.

Take back our faith from whom? To be honest, the confusion comes from many sources. From religious right-wingers who claim to know God’s political views on every issue, then ignore the subjects that God seems to care the most about. From pedophile priests and cover-up bishops who destroy lives and shame the church. From television preachers whose extravagant lifestyles and crass fund-raising tactics embarrass more Christians than they know. From liberal secularists who want to banish faith from public life and deny spiritual values to the soul of politics. And even from liberal theologians whose cultural conformity and creedal modernity serve to erode the foundations of historic biblical faith. From New Age philosophers who want to make Jesus into a nonthreatening spiritual guru. And from politicians who love to say how religious they are but utterly fail to apply the values of faith to their public leadership and political policies. …”

The whole sordid controversy shouldn’t even be there.   True.  Americans pride themselves on the premise of the separation of the State and Church, but just because a politician expresses themselves based on their religious beliefs as a human being and an American themselves, doesn’t mean that they are trying to mix the politics with religion.  That would be taking the context of the separation of Church and State out of context and twisting it into an issue that shouldn’t exist.  What they are referring to with the mix of Church and State is, for example, while the Catholic Church may take a stance of being against abortions, it doesn’t mean that the Government of the United States must also take a stance of being against abortions just because the Catholic Church may say so.

There isn’t anything meant further by wishing one a “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Chanukah” to someone, even if they are in politics, other than expressing the greetings which have become a part of the celebration of the holidays representated by the beliefs in the culture of their religions. 

Okay, so I have digressed a bit.

At any rate, from the excerpt above from Jim Wallis’ book on God Politics, it seems that there is a movement to understand the religious perspectives on social changes or social justices in the world and the mingling of a coming to a better understanding what the beliefs are through a “taking back our faith” process.  It would be interesting to read the book in full and see Jim Wallis’ viewpoint on this issue.

Have you read this book yet????  What do you think????

Creative Career Marketing!

Not too sure that it is going to work for the Easter Bunny too, though!!

 

Mike Huckabee on the “floating cross” image…

and the overreaction of the criticism of his message to wish everyone a Merry Christmas in one of his recent messages on tv.  This video is from the Today Show appearance…

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKMDJ46G4M4]

It is such a shame that folks have to be intimidated by expressing a simple greeting based on their religious belief.  Gone are the days in many countries that many have to hide the Bibles as a symbol of their quest for knowledge based in the Christian beliefs; why should the United States be so much in a uproar over a simple greeting — especially when the vast majority of the citizens of the United States have a founding belief based in some form of Christianity belief system.

A saying by Mahatma Ghandi:

“The need of the moment is not one religion, but mutual respect and tolerance of the devotees of the different religions.

A Naughty Balloon: Good Grief!

What happend to the giving of the lump of coal in the stocking???

Can you imagine the psychiatrist bill in overcoming a child’s potential emotional impact from being degraded and humiliated by carrying a balloon marked “Naughty!”???  Of course, on the other hand, if the child deserved it though, is it good to hold them accountable for their actions throughout the year????

At any rate, Heathcliff certainly doesn’t look very happy, does he???

Ouch! Could a reviewer of a biography be any harsher on an author??

In an article in the Austin American Statesman on Tuesday, December 18th, the author of the article, Charles Taylor, starts off saying in his analysis of the book by Elizabeth Bumiller on Condoleeza Rice: An American Life:

“The subtitle of Elizabeth Bumiller’s biography “Condoleezza Rice: An American Life” tells you everything you need to know. The book is serious, sober and deeply unimaginative.

Neither an attack nor a valentine, it would be far more interesting if it were either — if the writer ventured an actual stand. Instead it shows how the entire notion of “balance” has sucked the vitality out of mainstream journalism, both stylistically and intellectually.”

OMG!  Do you think Mr. Taylor had an opinion on this, or what?  While I have not had the opportunity to read the book on Condoleeza Rice, I would love to see what it might have to say about this very stately woman that seems to have a good head on her shoulders with the utmost diplomacy.  I am not sure that a book on this woman could have been with a steaming richness like a torid romance novel or suspence/mystery book since this woman has seemingly staved away from huge controversial areas, other than working with President George W. Bush’s presidental era.

Although I have no idea about this author and her methodology of her writing skills, I feel that certainly Mr. Taylor may have been a little too harsh – especially in observing the diplomatic nature of Ms. Condoleeza Rice in her own right.  However, perhaps, I should get the book and see whether or not I can concur with Mr. Taylor.

Have you read this book yet?   Do you have an opinion???

How Do You Become a Shopping Mall Santa?

OMG….

just perusing Slate.com and came across a “recycled article” that is republished to make it a new article on Monday, December 17th called, “How to be a shopping-mall Santa”, which is indeed a very thorough article about Shopping Mall Santas.

It brought a smile to my face and a rush of memories as I had worked for one of the organizer companies of these Shopping Mall Santas one year.  It was a great time of coordinating with the malls all the Santas we needed to fill for their Santa photo opps within each of the malls.  Not only were we coordinating schedules for those Santas in Austin, but we were also involved in coordinating schedules for those Santas in many of the other malls in Houston, San Antonio and other metropolitan cities throughout Texas.

What an interesting year that was to be a behind the scenes coordinating elf to make sure that all the malls were fully staffed with the Santas – especially, when receiving the compliments from all the long time veteran Santas that were putting smiles on childrens faces.  After all, besides being the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, Christmas is also about bringing a special joy and memories to all the children.

I am looking forward to going to the mall this year when I do get a chance — not really to do Christmas shopping as I have completed my Christmas shopping for this year — but to observe from a vantage point all the children’s faces light up when they see Santa Claus at the shopping mall to hear what they want for Christmas, as well as to get their photos taken with Santa.  My daughter is too old now to have her photo taken with Santa; however, I am hoping to get a picture of my 5 mo old granddaughter with Santa Claus.  I can’t wait!!

Hoping that visions of Santas in Shopping Malls may also bring rushes of fond memories of your childhood, or as a parent of young children this year!

Okay… so, it has been a few weeks since I had checked my MySpace comments…

but when I checked it tonight, I found this Sesame Street cartoon in relation to Thanksgiving.  I know, it is SOOOO wrong!

Poor Big Bird!

Pre-Christmas Sales???

Obviously, Doug Savage may not be an eBay seller!

Chris Taylor: Stay Wild…

Congrats, Chris, on your new marriage….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaH4iJVdcPU]

See Chris’ page on MySpace — http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=54285664

Maybe a change of uniforms is necessary???

Christmas Elf Annoyances??

Powerful Speech by Evel Knievel on God!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZVNOGtEINw]

You Tube Shows

Steven’s TV Video video talks about how the world is changing to utilize free technology to put forth their campaigns…not just for amateurs anymore.  See Oprah, politians, comedians, etc. take advantage of the video tubes to tell you story….

What do you think?

Awe – Doesn’t that take the fun out of it????

When I was little, we had lived up in Ft. Meade, Maryland, on Suzie Court.  When it snowed, it would snow very hard and we would have feet upon feet of snow — unlike where I live now in Texas where we are lucky if it snows above 3-5 inches!! lol…..

We would go sliding down behind the big hill behind our home and build tunnels in the snow — sending our parents in a panic when they couldn’t see us, but they knew we were out there playing somewhere — and, especially, when they knew that the snowplows were making their way in the streets.  Building our own snowman was half of the fun playing in the snow….

I certainly can’t see much fun taking it indoors; can you???

“Normal” Sleep Hours????

I am often wondering what this truly is. What is normal, afterall? For a person that works the typical 8a-5p shifts, sleep hours might be 9p-6a…or something of that nature. However, for the person working the night shifts, it may invert drastically.

As for me, my hours shift according to the day… sometimes working day shifts; sometimes working night shifts. This can really wreak havoc on the system when one can’t supply a consistent schedule or order in ones day to day events. Yes, one can use a little shuffling for a change of pace; but, how long should this shuffling of pace be and remain a good factor in one’s life remains to be seen.

What do you do to normalize your life if you have a messed up schedule???

See more progress on: have normal sleep hours

Okay…. so 5 books a month hasn’t been accomplished…

to distribute and promote the Bookcrossings concept; however, I am seriously thinking about introducing these books on eBay as well.

Do you think people would buy these on eBay????

See more progress on: Distribute five books a month via Bookcrossings program

Ordered one of those programs on tvs…

that promise to instruct you how to make it rich selling real estate. Although I suspect that it won’t be all that it purports to be, I am hoping that I, at least, learn a few things from it.

Has anyone ever found these programs helpful to direct you to the appropriate sources???

See more progress on: buy some acreage and build a house

Seeing these play and freeze ice cream balls offered now on eBay….

Trouble is…

I don’t know how well they work, do you????

See more progress on: purchase a play and freeze ice cream ball

Gulp, gulp, gulp….

lol…

Although I have been drinking more water, it isn’t consistent enough; however, I have found that I have desired to have a soda even less—and,

that can only be a good thing!!

See more progress on: Drink eight glasses of water each day

Not necessarily a “God Bless You!”,

but it was a very kind note that I received from a scheduler today,

“Just taking a moment to say hellow and thank you for all the wonderful work you do for our clients and FE. Thank you for always brightening my day, and for puting up with my always being scatterbrained! We are very lucky to have you and appreciate you.”

Okay. Although not technically a “God Bless You!”, but I will certainly count it as one very warm fuzzy for the day… and I will accept any and all of those as well.

Thank you cards to employees and those you work with are always well appreciated and sometimes are forgotten to be done at times. What a better time to do it than during the holidays??? (Of course, they can be done at any time of the year….)

See more progress on: Get more “God Bless You!”s

Counting “God Bless You!”s …

has become a way of my looking at life in the advocacy world when answering domestic violence calls on a daily basis… or in working with the elderly… or in my victim advocacies….

It is a way of, essentially, looking at the glass half full rather than half empty. Instead of going home a bit exhausted from the many callers I wasn’t quite sure the seeds I was planting in planning for them to be safe and living a fruitful life was working, I started a while back counting the “God Bless You!”s I received that day. It would seem that those seeds might just germinate and grow into a future that one could have without victimization, harm, destructive behaviours, etc.

How many “God Bless You!”s have you received today??? or, how many “God Bless You!”s have you shared with someone else today???

See more progress on: Get more “God Bless You!”s

Still working on finding the Feng Shui…

in my apartment. It has a lot of good possibilities; however, I have been busy trying to make ends meet and have some for savings, that it never seems to find the way to the feng shui. lol…

Any ideas???

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

“It’s Called Christmas with a Capital C” by Go Fish!

It’s about time…

bring back the jingle and the jangle back into Christmas!!

Make us proud of our beliefs…not having to hide them like many countries have to do in their countries.  After all, being proud of our beliefs and not having to hide our thoughts, dreams, and ambitions is part of what make Americans proud of their heritage as well as a number of other things (which are not directly related to the issuance of this song);  it is just about being able to be able to wish some one “Merry Christmas!” with no worries of being offensive to anyone.  After all, when someone wishes “Happy Chanukah!” to a Christian with Christian beliefs, they aren’t stammering and say “I am offended by what you said.”  Instead, Christians just generally nod and say to their Jewish friends, “and, may you have a Happy Chanukah!”

Bah humbug to the politically correct censorship and the victimization of the Christians to succumb to the numbness of the non-emotional impact of their beliefs, and let all the Christians sing along with Go Fish:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAckfn8yiAQ]

Searching your dream job…

Does anyone actually achieve their dream job — or, is it just merely a figment of everyone’s imagination?

While someone may be doing the job they absolutely love to do, it may not pay all that well and they have to struggle to make ends meet.  Additionally, family members or friends may look down upon someone that isn’t mastering the financial ladder as someone that is being less than their full potential.

A friend was asking me tonight, who often plays “career coach” to me from time to time, what I want to be when I grow up.  If only I could pick and choose the qualities of each of my past jobs that I liked the best and make the ideal job that would be pleasing in all aspects — high income, advocacy, interaction with others, great researching skills, and so much more.

It was announced in the news and news media sources lately a lot about the newest generation of workforce employees are having a tendency to job hop more and have many more background experiences than their counterparts in generations slightly ahead of them.   No longer, for instance, is the trend that people people have jobs for more 20 or more years.  It would be unheard of, perhaps, to see these generation of workers retiring with a job of tenure of 40-50 years of service, as my bosses’ generations have done.

My parents will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this month.  Gone, too, are the days that many couples will look forward to see the day of having a 50th wedding anniversay, while couples in my parents’ generation and before saw 50th and 75th wedding anniversaries as part of the norm of the culture.

What has happened to our culture?  or, do we even have a culture to be considered these days?  What is to be considered about the American society?  Are we all going to be judged by the people who lead us — or what affect we, as individuals have upon our local and global societies?

Okay.  So, I have digressed. 

Does anyone actually achieve their dream job — or, is it just merely a figment of everyone’s imagination?

Does anyone have an answer????

Where do you think it would be the quietest place???

Tired of Storytelling??? ;)

Parent Alienation Syndrome – “Junk Science” says…

those at the Justice for Children program. 

“It is the position of Justice for Children that PAS is junk science.

“P.A.S. per se (not “parents lying about abuse allegations”) is not a syndrome.   People lie on the witness stand every day but that does not make it a syndrome.   Various credible studies have documented that the incidence of false allegations of abuse in custody proceedings make up significantly less than 5% of all abuse allegations  in custody proceedings.  When mental health experts or attorneys claim that P.A.S. is a “syndrome”  – knowing full well that it lacks scientific validity, is the concoction of a disgraced psychologist, and has been soundly rejected by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges — that is disingenuous at best and unethical at worst.  Moreover, when it is used as a vehicle to keep children in the custody of men who abuse them, it is also immoral. ” – Randy Burton, Founder, Chairman and President – Justice for Children

PAS is touted to be an accepted psychological “syndrome” when, in fact, it has no scientific foundation and has been routinely rejected by courts and mental health professionals as admissible in the courtroom.  Nonetheless, PAS is still being used by unscrupulous attorneys and hired gun “experts” to attack the credibility of, parents, usually mothers, and undermine the testimony of little children who have accused their fathers of unspeakable acts of abuse. “

For more information see their posting on Justice for Children. 

OTC Paternity Tests???

I know that they have talked about it for a while… and you have been able to purchase a kit online and send it off to the various DNA labs, but now (in accordance to the Houston News Station) they are available over the counter as well?

What do you think about that?

I am sure that, if it came to a legal matter, the courts may only accept the paternity tests that go through the official DNA labs; but for the millions of folks that are pondering if the paternity of the child is their child or not, this may be able to provide an affordable means to determine the paternity.

Would you trust the results though?

Would Maury Povich relay on these OTC test results as well, or would the producers make him utilize the DNA labs for their accuracy and reliability of that accuracy?

Interesting…

Reasons to be Thankful…

1.  I am alive and survived the 5th year after the death of my late husband!

2.  I have a beautiful daughter who has a loving hubby who both have a beautiful daughter (my first Granddaughter) born this year!

3.  I have parents who will share a 50th Wedding Anniversary this year!

4.  I have two adoring cats — Gibson and Moobaby!

5.  I have a loving family, although I do wish I could see them more often!

6.  I have caring friends who aren’t all into football!

7.  I love my advocacy work that I do, although (of course) I would wish that it would pay better!

8.  I am grateful that I don’t have significant health problems that would impair my dexterity or sight or hearing abilities.

9.  I am grateful that when I walk into a dining room, I am not feeling that I am walking to a whole new world!

10.  I am grateful that when I look into the mirror, I am not seeing anyone other than myself!

What are you thankful for today????

Being Grateful for the Gift of Today

“When you learn how to remain grateful every day you are developing a habit of happiness in your life. There is no such thing as an ordinary day. Every one of your days is a gift from God that is unique and irreplaceable. When you train your mind to see the good and discipline yourself to focus on the positive you’ll be happier, rise higher, and live the life of victory that God has in store for you.”

~Joel Olsteen

While everything comes to a standstill during the holidays,

it is oftentimes that the social service industry is often at its busiest of times.

Pet sitters are needed for the pets while folks go on trips to visit relatives during the holidays.

Babysitters are needed so that the adults can go to their fabulously rocking, cheery holiday celebrations or just for some hassle free shopping.

Granny sitters are needed for the grandparents who aren’t able to get to see their families because their families can’t find it possible to have them travel with them to visit the families (especially, if there are health and health aid concerns), or if the places that they are staying at are understaffed.

It is often a thankless job, but someone comes to the aid for others to have the much needed enjoyment.   Just don’t forget to hug those workers as you see them today and throughout the holidays.  Their sacrifice often means that you are able to enjoy the holidays to the fullest.

Obama Returning to Austin — Sat Nov 17th

See the inspiring speaker, Barack Obama, as he spoke in Austin on February 23, 2007:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45jM2DKwCKI]

What could be better than watching the next President of the United States at a classic Texas hillside ampitheater?

It’s going to be beautiful weather, and we look forward to seeing you this Saturday afternoon at The Backyard.

Who:
Sen. Barack Obama

When:
Doors open at 3:00pm
Saturday, November 17

What:
Live music from Fastball
Guest: $25
Student: $15
After-party at Victory Grill

Where:
The Backyard
13101 Highway 71 West
Austin, TX 78738

click here: Reserve your ticket

And, the world revolves around — who???

While raising my daughter, I grew up in a world that we tried to make sure that we made our children feel important although we were raising them often in two income families or a single parent family; oftentimes, overcompensating to make up for lost time.  Sometimes though there are children who have been raised to believe that they are “IT” and the world does revolve around them — perhaps, those are partially due to the fact that their lives became so public when they were so young and, now, they seem to thrive on the papparazzi that follows them.  This cartoon happens to eminate my feelings exactly when I hear about them on the tv as well; after all, with all the papparazzi, you would think that they have accomplished to win a Nobel Prize or something — not!!  After all, too — what does this say about our society who puts so much emphasis on folks who put on sunglasses and prance around town with much ado but just strutting themselves around, getting involved with the law, and running over a reporters sandal leaving a tire imprint on his socks which are being auctioned off on eBay for a charitable cause.  Say what???   lol….

Is this live or memorex??? lol….

Lol… anyone who remembers the old Memorex commercials may know what I am talking about here!! lol…

Announcing –

Check out the latest from Devine Texan’s Creations!!

Verteran’s Day Thanks!

While I am presently at work this morning, I was up in the wee hours of the morning (besides increasing my inventories on eBay and Half) watching the news blurps about the Memorial Wall of the Vietnam soldiers who didn’t make it back to the States.  It made me teary eyed to think that so many had died in service and how fortunate that I was to have my Dad return to our family when I was in second grade from Vietnam as a Captain in a MASH unit.

In my email this morning, I also received a wonderfully thoughtful message from the US Senator John Cornyn (from Texas):

Dear Fellow Texan:
 
Join me today in honoring and remembering the brave men and women who have answered the call to protect our freedom, defeat tyranny and advance democracy.

This year we honor an increasing number of soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who have served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the greater Global War on Terror.  They join the proud and honorable tradition of American Veterans in whose name we pay tribute.
 
From World War I to the current Global War on Terror, today America stands in collective awe of the heroism of American servicemen throughout our history. It is important that future generations know these stories of American courage, character and selfless sacrifice.
 
While Texans have many thoughts on the War, there is one thing we must agree on, supporting and thanking all those who fight, and have fought, for this great Nation. 
 
Today is a day for us to honor the service and sacrifice of all of these great patriots.

Senator John Cornyn

I certainly do share Senator Cornyn’s sentiments for all of those who have and continue to serve our Country.

Aging Alphabet

Received this in an email from a friend in Canada….enjoy!!!

A is for apple, and  B is for boat,

That used to be right, but now it won’t float!

Age before beauty is what we once said,

But let’s be a bit more realistic instead.

A is for arthritis;

B is the bad back,

C is the chest pains , perhaps car-d-iac?

D is for dental decay and decline,

E is for eyesight, can’t read that top line!

F is for fissures and fluid retention;

G is for gas which I’d rather not mention.

H is high blood pressure-I’d rather it low;

I   is for incisions with scars you can show.

J is for joints, out of socket, won’t mend,

K is for knees that crack when they bend.

L is for libido, what happened to sex?

M is for memory, I forget what comes next.

N is neuralgia, in nerves way down low;

O is for osteo, the bones that don’t grow!

P is for prescriptions, I have quite a few,

        Just give me a pill and I’ll be good as new!

Q is for queasy, is it fatal or flu?

R is for reflux, one meal turns to two.

S is for sleepless nights, counting my fears,

T is for Tinnitus; there’s bells in my ears!

U is for urinary; big troubles with flow;

V is for vertigo, that’s “dizzy,” you know.

W is for worry, NOW what’s going ’round?

X is for X ray, and what might be found.

Y is another year I’m left here behind,

Z  is for zest that I still have– in my mind.

 

I’ve survived all the symptoms, my body’s deployed,

And I am keeping twenty-six doctors fully employed!!!

PBS Sprout – a New Jolly Green Giant???

No, I know.  Jolly Green Giant and Sprout are generally the animated characters associated with the line of vegetables that you see in your grocers’ aisles for many, many years and years throughout the past decades upon decades.

Today, though, while driving from home to a meeting this afternoon, I heard that they are advocating for a PBS station to be 24 hrs with all the fine programming  of Barney, La Madeline, and many others.  If you are 18 and above and without kids around you, you might be saying ughhhh… not more of that; however, if you have children, you are probably jumping with glee.  Although there are special programming for children that are 24 hrs, there are none strictly for the school age child. 

Of course, they are not probably up 24 hrs a day; however, consider the child late up at night with fevers, sickness, or night terrors.  This might be nice to have. 

What I see this as being, perhaps, providing a pre-school age channel that doesn’t jump from the pre-school shows to the elementary and/or junior high-school scheduling.  That pre-school child wouldn’t be limited to a certain timeframe during the mornng or afternoon to accomodate the scheduling of the other age groups on the PBS network.

I, who watched my siblings grow up with Sesame Street and the like, think it is a terrific idea.  What about you?

If you are in favor for your area’s cable stations to include this 24hr PBS channel in their offering of the network systems, you can call 1-866-9-SPROUT and follow the phone sequence to show your interest.   I understand that, too, you can go onto the super highway network under the URL of http://www.sproutonline.com/sprout/home/jump.aspx to demonstrate your interest as well.

While some might view this as a means of some people to placate and/or substitute their children’s daily activities with the PBS Sprout Program, I do see it as a means to enable our pre-school children to jumpstart into their learning since so much more is demanded from their learning than they had before (ie some aspects of Algebra is taught in Elementary School whereas, back in my day at least, it wasn’t a subject matter until the 9th grade at the very least.

Check it out — let folks know what you think!!  It may well be the new Jolly Green Giant leap for the PBS network system!!

1-866-9-SPROUT

http://www.sproutonline.com/sprout/home/jump.aspx

Did you remember to set your clocks back on Sunday? lol….

 

Seriously, I wish it were ever that simple!!

LOL!!!

 

A Woman is Beautiful at any Age…

“A woman is beautiful at any age, if she feels good about herself.”

–Rose Morgan

Good Morning, Monday!! … lol ….

“Grace Will Lead Me Home” – Robin Givins

“Grace will lead me home” – the title of the book she is promoting and speaking out about domestic violence, bringing home to a lot of victims of domestic exactly the fears, trials and tribulations that they have faced and feared.  Check out her story in these YouTube videos:

 

 

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcZg2_BDZKo]

– Robin Givins Story, Pt 1

 

 

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SkgsHX2g0w]

– Robin Givins Story, Pt 2

 

 

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVFaEJDO_zs]

– Robin Givins on ABC  (NOTE: sad to see the hate comments left on this video)

  

“You have to talk about it to conquer it!” – Robin Givins

(what a great quote!!)

Way to go, Longhorns!! :D

This is just in…..

Final: Horns come back to defeat Oklahoma State 38-35

Saturday, November 3, 2007, 06:13 PM

STILLWATER, Okla. — Big leads are never safe when Oklahoma State plays Texas. On Saturday, the Cowboys built a three-touchdown lead, only to see the Longhorns come back and win on the game’s final play.

Ryan Bailey booted a 40-yard field goal for the Longhorns as time expired for the most improbable 38-35 Texas victory, giving Mack Brown a 10-0 slate against the Cowboys.

FOURTH QUARTER

The Longhorns began a comeback bid with a pair of touchdown runs by Jamaal Charles. Colt McCoy set up both with big plays. The first was a 17-yard gain by McCoy on second-and-23, part of a 59-yard scoring drive. Charles capped it off with an 18-yard TD run to cut OSU’s lead to 35-21.

The Cowboys’ punter then pinned Texas to its own 1 yard line. McCoy found Quan Cosby for 15 yards on second down for a little breathing room. Then Charles broke free for a 75-yard touchdown run to cut the Cowboys’ lead to a touchdown, 35-28.

After an OSU punt again pinned Texas deep, this time at its own 9, the Longhorns’ offense again struck quickly. McCoy scrambled for 16 yards on first down, and Charles broke free for 14 on the next play. That led to a 60-yard bomb from McCoy to Jordan Shipley to the 1 yard line, where Vondrell McGee banged in the tying touchdown with 3:22 to play.

But the Cowboys didn’t roll over. After a Texas facemask penalty extended OSU’s kick return to the Cowboys’ 45 yard line, Zac Robinson lofted a screen pass to Dantrell Savage, who turned it into a 35-yard gain. But the OSU drive ended without points, when Jason Ricks missed a 32-yard field goal attempt wide right.

Texas took over at its 20 yard line with 1:13 to play. The Longhorns advanced to the Cowboys’ 40 on a 30-yard pass to Jermichael Finley with 29 seconds left. Then facing third-and-11, McCoy scrambled left for 14 yards to the Cowboys’ 27. That set up Bailey’s heroics. He came in with two seconds to play and booted the 40-yard field goal as time expired for a 38-35 Texas victory.

The Longhorns are now 8-2 on the year and 4-2 in Big 12 play. They are in second place in the South division, with Oklahoma (3-1 in conference play) hosting Texas A&M (3-2) tonight. Oklahoma State fell to 3-2 in conference play and 5-4 on the season.

Woodrow Landfair….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE16oMoVzCs]

One leg of his life journey — the whole story yet to be unfolded before our eyes.  Are you reaching for your dreams??? or, are you willing to procrastinate your entire life away???

Kat

We are shaped by…

“We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.”

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Craigslist Murder!

Sent to me by a friend…. check it out. Be cautious and be safe!!!

Nanny Who Answered Online Ad Found Dead
Man Police Believe Posted Wanted Ad Is In Custody In Minnesota
SAVAGE, Minn., Oct. 29, 2007

(CBS/AP) Police say an online ad seeking a nanny may have cost a Cottage Grove, Minnesota, woman her life.

Katherine Ann Olson, 24, was found dead in the trunk of her car at a Burnsville, Minnesota, park late Friday night. She was last seen by friends Thursday morning, when she went to meet someone in Savage about the job, which investigators said she had found on Craigslist.org, a popular Internet bulletin board.

A 19-year-old man from Savage who police believe placed the ad is being held in the Scott County jail pending charges expected to be filed Tuesday. He worked at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, where police arrested him Friday night.

The suspect, identified as Michael John Anderson, was scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, reported CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds.

“We’re confident we have the suspect in custody,” Police Capt. David Muelken said.

A spokesman for Craigslist told Reynolds that, if the link to the site is confirmed, it would be the first muder ever tied to Craigslist in its 12 years of existence.

“Investigators are working with Craigslist,” Muelken told Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith, “and they have been cooperative.”

In a KMSP-TV interview, the victim’s father, Rolf Olson, says the family is devastated but “there was some sense of peace that they found her.”

Olson was a 2002 graduate of Park-Cottage Grove High School, where she was co-valedictorian, and from St. Olaf College in 2006.

Her family said had taken nanny jobs at least twice before, including a job in Turkey, after answering online ads. They said they had misgivings about her finding jobs online, but she never seemed to worry.

That last help wanted posting, said her sister, Sarah Richter, “seemed kind of fishy, but she was just going to check it out, and meet them.”

Olson’s family gathered in front of their home Saturday afternoon to share stories of a vivacious young woman “who was a joy, who trusted people” and always assumed the best in others. They said they were finding strength in the people who were touched by Olson’s life.

“She was going to set the world on fire, and that’s the grief that we feel,” said her mother, Nancy Olson. “It’s not just for us, it’s for all these other people that she would have touched.”

Citing the ongoing investigation, police were cautious about the details they released. They declined to say how Katherine Olson might have been killed or whether a weapon was used. They said they weren’t sure of a motive.

Muelken said a resident told a Savage Public Works employee about a purse found in a garbage can at Pacer Park. A police officer retrieved the purse, which contained belongings of Olson’s. Thinking it was a theft, police called Olson’s home and left a message telling her they had her purse. About 5 p.m. Friday, Olson’s roommate returned the call and told police Olson hadn’t been seen since 8 a.m. Thursday, when she went off to Savage to interview for a baby-sitting job.

Police went back to the park and found a garbage bag in the container. Inside it was a “significantly bloody towel.” An extensive search of the area ensued. A State Patrol helicopter pilot noticed a car in the parking lot of Rudy Kraemer Nature Preserve in Burnsville, a few blocks away from Pacer Park. Police identified the car as Olson’s, and found her body in the trunk.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/10/29/national/main3422072.shtml

© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Would you do this for a thrill seeking moment???

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afr43HrG26o]

Who Says Big Boys Don’t Cry??? lol…

Can you believe???

“Asabe Ladagu, a Christian widow in this capital city of Borno state in northern Nigeria, has survived without income the past 16 months. It was that long ago, the former librarian told Compass, that Muslim administrators at Ramat Polytechnic forced her into early retirement – without pay – after she and others requested land to build a chapel.

The Christians viewed the denial as deliberate discrimination against Christians by Muslim administrators at a time when there were seven mosques on campus.”

 ~~Nigeria: Ramat Polytechnic Discriminates Against Christians

Can you believe that this is about a current day issue and not something that just happened during Biblical times?   With all the advancement of technology and forward thinking, you would have thought that we would be much more above and beyond this — no matter what part of the world we all live in!

 

 

Supporting Sears; Supporting Our Troops!

Received this in my email today.  It is comforting that some businesses can and do actually go beyond their call of duty these days; so many don’t.  It is indeed a rare find and we should support those who do.

See below for full story:

Sears Walks the Walk…
 
Could we each buy at least one thing at Sears this year?

How does Sears treat its employees who are called up for military duty? By law, they are required to hold their jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up…

Sears is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years.

I submit that Sears is an exemplary corporate citizen and should be recognized for its contribution.

Suggest we all shop at Sears, and be sure to find a manager to tell them why we are there so the company gets the positive reinforcement it well deserves.

Pass it on.

Decided to check this before I sent it forward. So I sent the following e-mail to the Sears Customer Service Department:

Received this e-mail and I would like to know if it is true. If it is, the Internet may have just become one very good source of advertisement for your company. I know I would go out of my way to buy products from Sears instead of another store for a like item, even if it’s cheaper at that store.

This is their answer to my e-mail:

Dear Customer:

Thank you for contacting Sears. The information is factual. We appreciate your positive feedback.

Sears regards service to our country as one of greatest sacrifices our young men and women can make. We are happy to do our part to lessen the burden they bear at this time.

Bill Thorn
Sears Customer Care
< A title=mailto:webcenter@sears.Com href=”mailto:webcenter@sears.Com“> webcenter@sears.Com
1-800-349-4358

Please pass this on to all your friends. Sears needs to be recognized for this outstanding contribution and we need to show them as Americans, we do appreciate what they are doing for our military!!!

It’s Verified By Snopes.Com at: http://WWW.snopes.Com/politics/military/sears.asp (shows the entire article).

Boy Suspended for Drawing

So frustrating is the fear of the unknown.   I remember when I was mentoring a after school program in an Community Program in a poorer segment of Austin (not East Austin) and a young boy had drawn a much worse picture than this child who had been suspended.  While I was alarmed that a boy could have drawn such a picture, I was told that these children were allowed to have their creative expressions.

Somehow, the balance between creative expressions and the psychological aspects of whatever hidden meanings behind artwork done by our children must be met.  Without the creative expression, one might not be able to understand what is going on in the minds of our children.  I believe that children’s creative expression should not be suppressed or meant to be punished; after all, how are we going to be understand what is going on in the children’s minds if they feel threatened for punishment if they express themselves.

I am not saying that children’s expressions that seem to have hidden messages of psychological problems should necessarily be promoted and offered on a public display; however, admonishing them because they have expressed themselves through drawing (which may be a mode that that they are more comfortable with than writing or talking) seems wrong.

Perhaps, a better approach would be to have the parents and teachers more attuned with the meanings and offer the child guidance when the child “speaks out” through his artwork.  Of course, caution should also be had to make sure that, also, too much is read into things as well. 

What say you???

Boy suspended for stick-figure drawing – Education – MSNBC.com

Amazing Painter at it Again! Firefighter Omage!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZFkZiwMLZ4]

Sand Wars – A Powerful Video!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drG8_h9xpro]

Margaret Mead – “Never doubt…”

On another domestic violence note,

October is domestic violence month.

I have a dear friend in Pennsylvania who heard one of Congresswomen speak out with the declaration of Domestic Violence Month and everything uttered out of that woman’s mouth was as if the victim is always a woman. Here, in this video below, sent to me via a Canadian friend of mine (under the guise of a “joke” – “Never marry a woman larger than you”), demonstrates that the victim isn’t always a woman…and the police in the video took it ever so lightly that they just drove by the residence.

never_marry_a_woman_bigger_than_you.wmv

►

When is domestic violence going to be taken seriously — whether it is a man or woman being victimized and the perpetrator held accountable for his/her actions??? After all, isn’t violence just as much a violence no matter who is doing the assault?? As a domestic violence survivor, I couldn’t find myself laughing while watching this video?

What about you???

PS. While the “joke” opened up the can of worms with domestic violence battle, the slur made with the title implying that women that don’t fit the idealist image of the skinny minnie woman (oftentimes wayyy to skinny to fit the mold of the “dream woman”) would be a bully, is downright degrading and not respectful to a woman who is truly a woman without the skinny minnie or bullying imagery. Oh, don’t start me on this one….  What would Tyra say (do you think it might be “So what! if women aren’t skinnie minnies, it doesn’t mean that they are all bullies?” “Who says fat women aren’t better than skinny minnie women?”  “Why do fat women have to be laughed at?” or, “What’s so good about this video, it certainly dehumanizes women and in no way represents women on the whole???”)????

I don’t think that there is a blog space that is large enough for my soap boxes!! That being said though, I believe that this video surely sparks something to think about for everyone.

Internet Dating and Dating Applications???

I know that whenever I have even considered dating anyone from a distance, especially that I have initially met off of the internet, I have sent them no less than 100 questions to complete. In some instances, it has been much longer than that — just short of actually running a background check.

Here is an application that is available on the internet, available through an organization called ApplySpace.   One of the things that I don’t like about their form is there is not a way seemingly to adjust the questions, but please check it out and let me know what you think….

Is it enough questions to ask?

Would you ask more?

If given the opportunity to ask additional questions, what would you ask???

Please advise…

Happiness is like a butterfly???

Taking debt for granted….

So many folks feel that, if they get too far into debt, they’ll just file bankruptcy. Discovered this cartoon on Slate.com today, and it couldn’t have been depicted any better….

Is it Cursh or Crush??? lol… and, what is “wating”???

1 Cursh Message Wating

Find Out Who has a Crush On You Sign Up Today & Find Out!

www.CrushRequest.com

LOL… Has Google Ads heard of a Spell Check???   Found this above ad in one of the Google Ad Sense Banners.

This should go down in the books as “How not to place an ad!” 

Someone mentioned that, perhaps, it was intentional — “after all, it got my interest, didn’t it?”  My response to that is:  “I don’t know… It got my attention because my Mom was a Journalism and English major.  To me, it is a huge turn off and I would completely detract me from utilizing their services.”   :)

What do you think?

Would a gimmick of marketing by choice bad spelling offer you a opportunity to click to see what they are all about? or, does it become offensive and a complete turn off?  What saeth you???

Something wicked this way comes…

just to set the tone for the upcoming Halloween. This was sent to me by Galt Girl on Yuwie. Enjoy!!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_cnP4nA0qs]

How Much are YOU Getting Paid to Blog???

Yuwie is quickly becoming a phenomena of this day and age.  There are many social sites out there, and there are many blogging sites out there….

but,

what if you could truly do both….

and

make money!!!

Yikes, can it really be true??? Yes…

Just check this out for yourself and Click Here>>>> for more information about the Yuwie phenomena!!

or, just plan to check out my profile on there by clicking here!   Remember that Kathryn sent you there!

I won, I won, I won!!

Well, I didn’t win anything here in WordPress (yet!! lol…), but one of my loves and passions is photography. I am getting published soon in the Parade Magazine. The pay isn’t too much, but it is a $100 more than I had in my bank today!! lol….

I’ll certainly try to keep you posted on when it officially comes out…but, I am dancing on cloud 10,000!!

Hope you are all off to a phenomenal weekend! ttyml….

Your friend,

Kat

For Anyone That is a Pet Owner in This World….

Telemarketers are hoping and praying that folks won’t …

notice that their DO NOT CALL notice is about to expire and their numbers will be fair game once again to hound you during dinnertime about needless stuff once again!

Especially, if you are one of those that did the DO NOT CALL notices back in 2003, it is high time that you do it again — or, have you got a new phone number that you haven’t put in a notice on???  Better do it soon!!

It just takes a few moments to do…. DO NOT CALL registration site!! Don’t procrastinate!!

Censorship at the Capitol of the United States?

Received this in my email today.  It is amazing at what lengths people will go who “think” that they have the rights and authority to do so, when in fact they do not.  Will this guy be held accountable for his actions? What do you think????

********************************************************************************** 

Religious words such as God, Lord banned by Architect of the U.S. Capitol

Contact your congressman and senators  today! 

Dear Kathryn,

According to U.S. Representative Marilyn Musgrave, our nation’s legislators are now prohibited from using references to God in certificates of authenticity accompanying flags flown over the Capitol and bought by constituents.  Such references include: “under God” in the pledge, “God bless you,” or “in the year of our Lord, 2007.” Never before has this official prohibition  been leveled.

Architect of the Capitol Steven Ayers said he has removed the words because reference to God and the Lord may offend some Americans. He now prohibits them from being placed on official documents such as flag certificates.

Musgrave was astonished when she flew a flag over the U.S. Capitol building as a tribute to a senior citizen, and the accompanying certificate she received was edited with all religious references removed. 

The  congresswoman was more astounded when, upon further investigation, she discovered the certificate was censored by order of The Architect of the Capitol, an unelected very low-level official who manages the flag office.

Responding to a request for a flag flown over the United States Capitol in honor of a World War II veteran’s 81st birthday, the congresswoman ordered the flag and a certificate to state: “This flag was flown for Mr. John Doe on the occasion of his 81st birthday, the eleventh day of July, in the year of our Lord, 2007. Thank you, Grandpa, for showing me what it is to be a true patriot — to love God, family, and country. We love you!”

When the flag and certificate came back from the flag office, each reference to the Lord and God were removed. A group of lawmakers confronted architect Stephen Ayers seeking to find where he had the authority to restrict their freedom of speech and religious expression. Ayers refused to give the lawmakers a clear justification of his authority to delete the religious references.  For more information:  Capitol flag policy assailed (Washington Times).

Worrying is like a Rocking Chair???

Worrying is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but doesn’t get you anywhere. - Anonymous

Savage Chicken on Pranks!

Longhorn Triathlon — premptor to USA Halfmax Triathlon Championship in MO in Sept 2008

OMG — what a good event this Sunday, October 7, 2007, benefiting CASA and Hope Alliance!!

Check out the web page for the Longhorn Half-Iron Triathlon for more details!!

Geico’s Caveman Meets The View!!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx9vW6lHDqY]

OMG! Did he just say Neil Diamond??? lol…

Is this Canada???

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0IQNwZ-zsI]

 [YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-LzM9fMS-0]

What is it that Toronto really represents???

Just in re Selwyn P Davis – on trial for Domestic Violence

Just arrived about the woman being killed by her daughter’s boyfriend, Selwyn P. Davis, last year (he is on trial)

 “Davis, the former boyfriend of Lara’s daughter, is accused of killing Lara on Aug. 22, 2006, during a two-day crime spree. He also is accused of breaking his ex-girlfriend’s jaw, slicing his uncle with a knife, sexually assaulting a teenager and trying to run over a police officer with a car, according to court documents.”  

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/10/03/1003davis.html

Domestic Violence Awareness

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZh5HN2q_qo]

 [YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9m80kf8l7A]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njx-n6SsdV8]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZobGvCcitOQ]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBpiKQBaTVY]

Battered, but not Broken — Domestic Violence Awareness Month (October 1-31, 2007)

The Fern & The Bamboo

One day I decided to quit…. I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality.. I wanted to quit my life. I went to the woods to have one last talk with God.

“God”, I said. “Can you give me one good reason not to quit?”

His answer surprised me…

“Look around”, He said. “Do you see the fern and the bamboo?”

“Yes”, I replied.

“When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them. I gave them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo.

In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo”.

He said. “In the third year, there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.

In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.

He said. “Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.  Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant. But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall. It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle.”

He said to me. “Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots. I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. Don’t compare yourself to others.”

He said. “The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern, yet, they both make the forest beautiful.”

“Your time will come,” God said to me. ” You will rise high!”

“How high should I rise?” I asked.

“How high will the bamboo rise?” He asked in return.

“As high as it can?” I questioned.

“Yes.” He said, “Give me glory by rising as high as you can.”

I left the forest and brought back this story. I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you……..

Never regret a day in your life.
Good days give you Happiness.
Bad days give you Experiences.
Both are essential to life.
Keep going…
Happiness keeps you Sweet,
Trials keep you Strong,
Sorrows keep you Human,
Failures keep you Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But Only God keeps You Going!
Have a great day! The Son is shining!!

God is so big

He can cover the whole world with his Love and so small

He can curl up inside your heart.

(Story was sent to me via email.)

Amazing Reinvented Technology!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg7fVMiwCvY]

Help Me — I am Shrinking!! :)

I have a skin irritation call rosacea. Many famous people have it.  Winston Churchill, in fact, had it with his nose being so red all the time…. largely due to being irritated by his massive drinking binges.  Honestly, I think Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer had it too — because I certainly feel like Rudolph when it gets really bad.

There is currently a drug trial going on for a new topical medication being placed on market soon for it, after it passes the clinic trials and FDA regulation.  At any rate, I had to go to the clinic to be examined.

At first the nurse who examined me first said that I probably wouldn’t qualify because my case isn’t all that bad, but allowed me to be examined by the doctor just in case.  They both inquired about how I have managed to keep it in check so well.  “Well, I obey the doctor’s advice!!” lol…

* limit my exposure to spicy foods, alcohol, sunlight, etc.
* wear minimal makeup, although keeping my face clean with soft, sensitive soaps and lotions
* minimize stress factors and remain calm
* etc., etc….

They were impressed but have allowed me to continue to participate and put me through the usual steps of a check up. 

My weight was higher than I anticipated, but I think that they are wrong… otherwise instead of my cats weighing 9 pounds and 19 pounds, they would weigh 39 pounds and 49 pounds.  I don’t think so!!  Good thing I weigh my cats, huh??? lol…. 

My height was 1-1/2 inches shorter than I had last been measured.  Now, I know that my Mom has a degenerative bone disease; it looks like I might too, if their records are correct.  I’ll definitely have to look into that and make sure and possibly find Sally Fields to ask her what she is taking for the prevention/treatment of the same thing!!

When it came time to take my blood pressure though it was only 108/62.  The nurse was surprised…and she stated to me, “There has to be something to remaining calm and not stressing out, don’t you think?”

Yeah, I agreed with her.  Although I am probably not height/weight proportionate and no skinnie minnie by any means, none of my doctors could complain because I do try to do everything else right — including my b/p down.

In the meantime, I have got to do something about the height thing….

I certainly don’t want folks to be looking towards the floor and say, “Hellllloooo downnnnn there.  Can you hearrrr meeeee?” lol…..

Savage Chicken – Animation Debut!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXKGVuoHzvk]

 Click here>>> for some behind the scenes information about the making of this video for the video contest!!!

Speed Interview!!

LOL…

Although my interview was comprised of a full 30 minutes, I never before in my life have felt so very rushed.

As soon as I arrived (early), I was given a packet of information to read and review. Sat down for a few moments to read through it all and door opens to the waiting room — “Kathryn??”

I look up and respond by stating, “Yes!”…then I was wisked through a maze of hallways and locked doors with special keying sequences to a very back conference room where another lady sat.

This is “L….”… (about all that I heard at the moment b/c I was catching my breath from chasing her down the maze of hallways!!)…

A brief explanation of the job description and expectations. Then we went through some questions and answers period where they wrote down my answers to all the questions I responding to. Reading their writings upside down, I take note that they aren’t writing verbatim but catching key words and phrases down.

Any questions??? (My mind is racing from answering all the questions that they had asked of me. Plus, I am familiar with the roles that I would be doing as I have been in the field for more than 15-20 years.) I began by stating, “No, not really, but….” and then summarized my experiences and how I thought I would be a best fit for the job opportunity at hand. She turns to “L….” and asks her if she has any questions for me (after passing her a note that she had to run off to another interview). What could “L….” say, but “No”??? She asked me to complete the signing of the forms packet I was given when I arrived and give them to the receptionist after I had a chance to finish reading them. Told her that I really had a chance to read through them and could sign them now (so I did very, very quickly)!!

When we were done, I was wisked down other hallways on her way to another interview in another conference room on the way out of the building. On the way to the door to the lobby, she hollers at me, “Don’t forget to sign those forms and give them to the receptionist.” The look on my face must have been priceless as I gazed back at her… and she added, “Oh, never mind. You just did that, didn’t you???”

As I exit out the lobby door and head out the building door, I am thinking to myself, that was the fastest, whirlwind interview I have had in my lifetime. I don’t know whether that was a good sign or not.

We shall see!!!!

Bruce Springsteen on Believing…

In the Blink of an Eye — we all remember 911!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JD2bxNPme7Y]

A Good Cook!

What a great quote –

“A good cook is a sorceress who dispenses happiness.”

- Elsa Schiapirelli

Found quoted in Spark People!!!

Summer Ebbing Into Fall

Summer has been eventful for me…..

1. Biotechnology Program — I attended ACC’s fasttrack program this summer. A very intense program whereby we had 5-1/2 weeks of classes for 3 full days each week, then later had 5-1/2 weeks of nearly 40 hrs/wk internship at many Biotech type locations. Mine was held at the Texas Department of Health. It was an invaluable learning experience and I would love to consider it for a career option; however, the market for Biotech personnel, on the whole in this area, require a degree in Science already. My degree is in Criminal Justice, but they would prefer a degree with more of a forensic approach to it, if in Criminal Justice. Therefore, I am looking to attend in the Spring, perhaps, if I get a Scholarship to do so.

2. Granddaughter — This summer my granddaughter was born. She is absolutely beautiful and growing slowly but surely. Well, that isn’t exactly true as she is outside of the growth percentile range, but weight/height proportional. They are thinking that she may end up being very tall.

3. Still working in the crisis field. I am enjoying it and may continue to make it my career option — if only the money was better!

4. Took a bit of time this summer for a short retreat to reflect upon the summer events and assess where I should be moving forward in my life. Still not sure about the whereto, but really enjoyed the retreat time to enjoy some much needed R&R. (The picture above is one of many pictures I took during my retreat.)

Other than that, not much else happening. Still involved in my Red Hat Society group and planning activities to keep myself active — Church, bowling, reading books, blogging, etc. Would love to hear from you all to see what you have been doing this summer, as what your current aspirations might be.

When is a kiss more than a kiss???

Are they not the cutest??? lol…

Disclaimer: The photo isn’t one of mine, but one sent via email……

American Businesses Need to Rethink Manufacturing Tactics?

Quite possibly! In response to another blogger’s blog posting, I responded:

“It is indeed something to think about… China, Mexico, and many other countries are mass producing things for us….

but, flags have to rise when are products are being imported tainted with things that could kill each and every one of us and the environment we know it to be.

As ecological conscience we Americans are purported to be, you would think that the ecological organizations would also rise to the occasion to speak out and alert American Businesses to quickly begin to rethink our mass productions to be done here in the States for the safety consideration of one and all here.

Can you tell? It most certainly has been on my mind lately……”

What was his blog posting…. See below:

“With a lot of manufacturing jobs moving over to China, are we setting ourselves up for failure???? Hmmmmmmm…….

Let’s look at the facts that have been uncovered in recent months. I’ll start with the mass pet food recall that killed several pets. The cause of the recall was because of contaminated ingredient glutin, which was imported from China.

It gets worse. The U.S. is importing seafood from China. Some of it is farm raised in ponds that the EPA would condem. This food is not being properly inspected and tested by the FDA. Yet, we Americans keep buying it.

And for the latest, Matel is recalling millions of toys because the paint used on them contains excessive amounts of lead. And these toys are made guess where… That’s right! China.

Are we really better off getting our food and goods from China? They could be taking us down without us even knowing it. What would happen if the U.S. got involved in a major war similar to WWII? We would not have the manufacturing capabilities to produce the goods necessary to defend ourselves like we did during WWII. We will not have the experienced workers necessay to man the factories, let alone the factories to make the goods.

Think about it………”

What do you think? Have you been trying to sort out the madness lately in the news????

 

Your Chill Zone

Great businesses often start from being frustrated from others not necessarily meeting your own needs.  A friend’s husband has started this Your Chill Zone site as an alternate to MySpace in a sense, although not as populated.

Please go check it out sometime and let them know what you think; the more feedback he can get, the more opportunity he can have to improve Your Chill Zone.
Check it out by clicking here… Your Chill Zone!!

* Create Groups

* Musicians

* Resumes

* Past Events

* Band Calendars

* Personal Calendars 

Reclaiming Our Power

Women, please let your own sun, your

concentrated energy, your own submerged

authentic vital power shine out from you.

 

We are no longer the moon,

Today we are truly the sun.

We will build shining golden cathedrals

at the top of crystal mountains, East of

the Land of the Rising Sun.

 

Women, when you paint your own portrait,

do not forget to put the golden dome at

the top of your head.

 

~Raicho Hiratsuko

from “Women’s Manifesto”

(1911) translated by

Mayumi Oda

Homely Gift

“By homely gift and hindered Words

The human heart is told

Of Nothing —

‘Nothing’ is the force

That renovates the World —”

–Emily Dickinson

Biotech Fast Track Internship is Ending

I have but one more day to complete of the intense program that began at the end of May and continued well into August.  The first half of the program was intense classes covering scientific math skills and problem solving, ethical issues, and biotechnology laboratory science and lab skills classes for 3 days a week for 5-1/2 weeks.  Then, in July, we began our intense internship at differing locations.  While some of my classmates went to CellzDirect and Ambion, some of my classmates went with me to DSHS.  I was there for 4 days a week.

Having to keep an income coming in for purposes of paying bills, etc., I had to continue working my parttime job at the hotline.  Keeping up with an intense internship and working hours was grueling at times; however, it was extremely rewarding in the end. 

I am certainly appreciative to be a part of the program and look forward to furthering my education in this arena.   I wish I could somehow attach my final presentation to demonstrate some of the enriching experiences I had this summer; if I do figure it out, I will certainly attach it.

In the meantime, I am relieved that the intense program is behind me now….

and I will have more time to communicate in my blogs in the future!

Unfit husband law???

Friend reported to me tonight that a friend was arrested in Travis County, Texas, recently on a Class B charge of being an unfit husband and asked me if I had ever heard of such of a thing.  I told him that I have certainly heard of being an unfit parent, but insofar as being an unfit husband, I hadn’t necessarily heard of that but suspected that its intent might be to light a fire, so-to-speak under some derelict folks who sit and are waiting for things to happen to bring themselves out of a situation rather than to try to do something about it directly.

He went on further to explain that indeed that they had lost their home due to a storm and waiting on FEMA to help fix the situation; however, it is year later and they no longer have a home that they can live in and they have been living in and out of people’s homes and their own car. 

Insofar as the actual law, after a bit of research tonight, I haven’t found it yet.  Does anyone know anything about this law????

Resolving Life’s Disdains….

In regards to the blog posting entitled, It has been a long night, I submitted the following response:

“I certainly do understand all that. The spoken words of “Make Love, Not War” is certainly oblivious to the fact that there are people in other countries ready, willing and able to shake up our lives. 911 is only one instance, which shook up many lives to the fact that the bombing and fighting elsewhere has finally hit our lands. One of the reasons we don’t have 911′s every day, or an everyday occurrence of fighting and bombing in our streets, is largely due to the security that we do have in this country, albeit not perfect by any means.

Kudos for everything that you are doing in your role of security, although it is a lot of sleepless nights lurking in the sites while keeping an eye out for intruders who may upset the very way of life we are used to having….”

Honestly, the thought of pulling some of our troops out from strategic places in the world (even Iraq) has me wondering what the shift will do to the protection of our civilians out in the countries, working for such American companies such as Halliburton and others to help build up other countries. There are too many ifs, ands, and buts left to the unknowns that no one can truly predict.

One of my exes’ favorite rebuttals in life’s disdains was, “If “ifs”, “ands”, and “buts” were but chocolate, candy and nuts, we would all have a very Merry Christmas.” How do you ever resolve all the unknowns? No telling! However, if we certainly could, we would certainly be able to have peace in the world by also being able to resolve all the problems of the world.

Just a bit of food for thought…

Human Weakness Protection

“Our human weakness is protected by the assistance of the angels and…in all our perils, provided faith remain with us, we are defended by the aid of spiritual powers.”

-Gregory of Nyssa

Second Chance Changes?

“We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.”

- Harrison Ford

 

Isn’t it a great way to look at the changes in our lives??????

Medieval Help Desk

Before there were computers, there was a help desk for introducing the book!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFAWR6hzZek]

A vocation vacation???

What a novel idea! 

I was exploring around in 43Things.com.  If you haven’t gone there yet, you really should.  It is like having a large to do list; however, it is out there on the net.  Wouldn’t necessarily put your grocery list on there — or anything extremely personal (breaking up with my boyfriend, for example) — but, a general goal list for yourself – ways to improve your quality of life, or the lives of others is absolutely perfect for this on going list.  I haven’t put 43 Things yet on my list there, but it is growing (and shrinking as I mark things done off) constantly.

At any rate, while on 43Things.com, I discover a link to The Petri Project, which then leads me to the link for Vocation Vacations, part of the reason surfing on the net can become so very interesting!!

This is a place where one can explore, for example, other options to career paths if you are feeling that you have capped out at your career, feeling that the “life” of the career has been dimmed for some time, feeling that you are never going to reach any degree of potential in your present career — and, instead, you are finding yourself saying, “If only I had taken this (or that) career, life would be so different”, or “If only I had a way to work myself into a new career, I would jump out of this one in a heartbeat”, etc., etc.

This is a place where you can take a look at your “dream job” and explore the possibilities, even taking a vacation from your present lack luster job and truly get a hands on experience in your dream job to see if you would still consider it worth pursuing one day soon.

Go explore Vocation Vacations at your earliest convenience if you are even remotely dissatisfied with your present job and dream of all the possibilities and, possibly, even start putting it into action!!

Losing or not losing??

“Lose your wealth, you lose nothing. Lose your health, you lose something. Lose your integrity, you lose everything.”

- Stew Leonard

Well the selling of the recliner couch and chair…

and its coffee and end tables so quickly on Craigslist has certainly encouraged me to go ahead and place the glass dining room table on Craigslist as well.

At the beginning of many of the Craigslist postings is the disclaimer, ”Avoid scammer fraud”, and it provides one with some very helpful tips:

---

Avoiding scams and fraud craigslist help forum

You can sidestep would-be scammers by following these common-sense rules:

DEAL LOCALLY WITH FOLKS YOU CAN MEET IN PERSON – follow this one simple rule and you will avoid 99% of the scam attempts on craigslist.

NEVER WIRE FUNDS VIA WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM or any other wire service – anyone who asks you to do so is a scammer.

FAKE CASHIER CHECKS & MONEY ORDERS ARE COMMON, and BANKS WILL CASH THEM AND THEN HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE when the fake is discovered weeks later.

CRAIGSLIST IS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY TRANSACTION, and does not handle payments, guarantee transactions, provide escrow services, or offer “buyer protection” or “seller certification”

NEVER GIVE OUT FINANCIAL INFORMATION (bank account number, social security number, eBay/PayPal info, etc.)

AVOID DEALS INVOLVING SHIPPING OR ESCROW SERVICES and know that ONLY A SCAMMER WILL “GUARANTEE” YOUR TRANSACTION.

---

Unfortunately, the first bite I had on my dining room set appears to be from one of these scammer folks. I simply responded to him, “Where are you? I normally deal with local people.” Hopefully, this will end the conversation there and will enable me to get a true buyer.

Caveat emptor. (Buyer be aware.)

Perhaps, what should also be said…”Seller be aware of buyers with crooked mouths!”

In the meantime, I am not giving up on my dining room set being sold soon. Next up!!!

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Well… putting the Lazy Boy recliner sofa and chair….

on Craigslist was quite effective. Less than a week after posting the ad, they are so out of my apartment. Yea!!

(Dancing in the extra space formed by their departure, along with the departure of the extra coffee and end tables!!!)

Now, I will be able to move the island in my kitchen created by stacking 12 large tubs on top of each other in a squarish formation to where the old couch was and not in view of guests at my apartment.

Yea…

More soon….

Singing with joy in the meantime….

Next up, is selling a glass dining room table, I think; but, first thing is first in moving some stuff around…

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Amazing “Art in Action” – Brian Olsen

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuT-x4xKQvk]

The Painter – Definitely Worth Checking Out!! :D

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIJtKxdRQzY]

DELL in the news….but not all good!

I worked for Michael Dell back in the day when it was known as PC’s Limited (off of N. Lamar and Hwy 183),  an Austin, Texas based computer company, as its 13th employee and enjoyed the transition of its growth to Dell Computer Corporation, which is now known simply as DELL.

Opening up the Austin American Statesman newspaper today to the Business Section while getting some breakfast to go at the local IHOP, I read about the City of Leander’s progress business projects and looked further down on the section’s first page and see “Dell gets until July 16th to report finances”.  Apparently, DELL hasn’t filed its financials for more than four quarters. 

According to Dan Zehr, American Statesman Staff, “The NASDAQ has allowed Dell shares to continue trading despite the company’s failure to file reports with federal regulators after each of the past four quarters.  Exchange rules require that companies keep current on their reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission, but the exchange often grants reprieves for companies investigating accounting issues.”  Apparently, Dell isn’t disclosing the investigations at this time.  Even in March, the filing of its Annual Report had been delayed.

Things are sounding a bit shaky for Dell at this time.  Hopefully, they will be able to rebound from this struggle soon.

Any thoughts???

You suspect your cats being up to no good?

Well, if you are like this guy, you can creat a webcam for your cat to see “just where does he go” when he goes out and play—See Mr. Lee’s Catcam. It is hilarious to see just where all this cat does go on his adventures outdoors. Be sure to look down at bottom of the initial page for a series of photos from Mr. Lee’s trip (adventures!).

As for me, I am wondering how do my cats, who seem to turn into Dr. Seuss’s “Thing 1” and “Thing 2” while I am gone, seem to always manage to pull the curtain down in the living room, for instance, here lately!! Actually, they shouldn’t be doing that any more as I have nailed the spring rod into the inner portion of the window frame. If they try, they will be in for a surprise…or, I am going to have a shredded curtain one! lol…

I am beginning to think that setting up a private webcam just might be a great idea to see what is happening when I am away from the home—and, to see if the addage of “While the owner’s away, the cats will play!” is truly true!!

What do you think????

See more progress on: Webcam my cats

Lace Curtains

Lately, I have been having a heck of a time being able to keep curtains up in my apartment because my cats have turned into Dr. Seuss’ “Thing 1″ and “Thing 2″ and knocked all kinds of stuff upside down and around. Lately, this has been including my curtains as well.

I was laying on the sofa and heard a noise after I had dozed off. I looked up; yep, the curtains are still there!! lol… and I fell back to sleep. But b/4 falling back to sleep, I snapped this dramatic vantage point I had of the curtains.

Hope you enjoy!!!

Fire Engine at a Dead Stop on Upper Deck of IH35

I was in another part of the same highway and noticed this fire engine that decided to take the upperdeck of the highway at about 4pm that day with its lights on. Normally, not a bad decision as the traffic begins to build up later. Couldn’t get a good shot of it where it had stopped in traffic from where I was near 29th on the east side of the highway.

Drove around to the west side of the highway past 26th and headed to 19th (MLK) off of Red River. Turned back when I saw that I could catch a glimpse of it through the UT practice fields’ gate.

Drove up to the gate at an angle and walked to the gate to capture this picture of the fire engine. It has given up moving forward after sitting there for 45 minutes and turned of its lights. Hoping that there was no fire it still needed to respond to…I hope that all turned out well in the end on Tuesday, June 26th.

---

I avoid the traffic on IH35 like a plague and, as such, made it a priority for my living and work to be in a whole ‘nother part of town. This particular instance could have been a very serious manner.I have also posted this in my

Inquiring Minds (Austin American Statesman) and
Inquiring Minds (My Fox Austin)

blogs already to jumpstart the issue recognition.

See more progress on: Bring Awareness of Issues of Traffic on IH35

Mema

Well my daughter had her baby yesterday, but the day before they had the baby, they had text message calling me “Mema”. Looks like I am going to be called “Mema” when the granddaughter is old enough to say anything….

K

See more progress on: Pick a name for my Granddaughter to call me

Sometimes, it is not for us to ask the reason why….

but, to just accept the why nots and proceed forward.

As much as we prepare for everything, we often find ourselves never truly prepared.

Take for example, today…

1. I decide to make it a day for my daughter by taking her to breakfast.

2. Then I gave her a choice of what to do next. She chose to go for a pedicure. The one she wanted to go to wasn’t open, so we randomly go to another nail salon. Miraculous there was a woman that had worked in OB/GYN who happened to settle some of my daughter’s qualms about having her baby.

3. Afterwards, I went to work and she went off to meet up with her Dad who had just returned from Iraq for a spell.

4. After he left, her water breaks and she races to the hospital where she meets up with her boyfriend and myself.

Long story short….a beautiful life arrives today instead for waiting until the due date. In the midst of things, a bag they had prepared to bring to the hospital is left at home. I didn’t have time to do all the things that I had hoped I would be able to do.

However, all the preparations in the world would have never prepared us truly for the amazing life being brought into this world today. You just accept it, love the new life, and move forward with a commitment towards making this world as safe as possible for that new life.

I am counting this as being completed as such. Wouldn’t you???

See more progress on: prepare for being a Grandma by July 8th

Ad has been posted on Craigslist…

for my Lazy Boy recliner love seat and chair, as well as coffee table and end tables. Just so need the space. Been in the apartment for 1-1/2 years and it is extra stuff that is taking up way too much space for now. Kept hanging on to them because I wanted to have access to them when I move into my house; but, that isn’t happening right away. Just signed another year lease at my apartment.

How successful it will be will soon be seen. I’ll let you know.

See more progress on: Place some items on Craigslist

International Wine Cellars: Fire-Grilled Personal Pizza Recipe! :)

Ingredients Your favorite pizza dough or 1-2 frozen Rhodes white loaves, follow rising instructions and then separate each loaf into 2-3 pieces (depending on how big you want your pizzas to be) Toppings: Hard cheese: Asiago, Romano, Parmesan, Reggiano Mild cheeses: Mozarella or Monterey Jack or Feta Grilled portabello mushrooms Fresh basil leaves Sliced Kalamatta olives Sliced white onions Sliced green, red, yellow and orange peppers Diced Sun-dried tomatoes Use any meat from bacon to chicken Sauce: Any bottled pizza / pasta sauce or olive oil

Instructions
Don’t go strictly by our list — have fun and provide ingredients in separate bowls for people to create their own pizza. Roll dough to desired size and thickness. Brush with olive oil and grill over medium heat until golden brown. Remove from grill and top grilled side with your favorite ingredients. Return pizza to grill, uncooked dough-side-down, close lid and in about 7-10 minutes, you’ll be in gourmet pizza heaven! Serves 4-8

See International Wine Sellers for more ideas….

Recognizing Your Own Path…

“You will recognize your own path when you come upon it,

because you will suddenly have

all the energy and imagination you will ever need.”

- Jerry Gillies

Mr. Bean on Elementary Dating Guidelines…

Mr. Bean can be absolutely hilarious…

Enjoy!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luBbtOoVOKU]

For more bits of laughter, check out my HUMOR MEDICINE tab….

Angelic formations?

Limited as we are to our steadily aging bodies, we find it fascinating that angels can take any form that suits the message. A “classic” angel, with wings and all lighted up, perhaps with pale skin and eyes of blue flame, seems to be less often glimpsed than do angels in the guise of ordinary folks of all sorts–male or female, young or old, tall or short, any race, any dialect, any description.

-Traci Mullins,
“Breakfast With the Angels”

Great purpose for great people???

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds… and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”

 

- Patanjali, physician and “founder” of yoga

Shirley Temple on Santa Claus:

“I stopped believing in Santa Claus when my mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph.”

 

- Shirley Temple

Having meaningful life changing conversations with a stranger…

is not out of the ordinary with me as I do this constantly with my job at work when talking to strangers about crisis situations. We often learn that oftentimes we are just that right person for that person to talk to and somehow we were matched up in the caller sequence. It is amazing how fate works its way out (even if you don’t believe in fate 100%).

I am not too good to sit down next to someone and start up a conversation out of the blue. I will talk to most anyone!! Now, I didn’t say that I was always welcomed b/c some people were sitting there probably to be by themselves for one reason or another and here I come; however, I have on the whole been genereally met with receptiveness.

This is something that someone should always try to do as often as possible. You will never know just what the story is behind the person you meet!!!

Kat

See more progress on: Have a deep meaningful life changing conversation with a stranger

As I am discovering…

when you have an apartment that doesn’t have ample storage space to begin with, there comes a time to decide to part ways with them. Now, I have been parting ways with many, many things since I have moved into this apartment in March 2006; however, there is still more to be parted with. That is just one of the casualities of downsizing and currently being extra inspired through my attempts of finding some feng shui in my living area spaces so that I can feel comfortable living and studying there, as well as entertaining guests there in the future.

I am sooo missing not feeling comfortable enough to have guests to my home b/c it is so small and made smaller with all of my stuff that I have been carrying around with me for years and years and years.

Any other suggestions, besides craigslist, that you would suggest to post my items to be parted with???

See more progress on: Place some items on Craigslist

Still trying to find the feng shui …

in my apartment. I love the candle theme in my present living room nook area, but I am thinking I am going to mix it up a little bit more. I have a lovely dining room table and I am thinking I might move it now towards the window in my living room nook area and expand the look of the great room aspect to circle into the dining room nook and place my long couch (presently blocking not only the window but also the back patio door) over under the overpass/bar area or along the back wall where my glass table presently sits. Not quite sure. Still need to fit into the area a bentwood rocker that my daughter has passed up for a glider that they purchased.

Probably need to make more room in my apartment by putting an old lazy boy sofa and chair recliners and coffee/end tables on Craigslist soon in order to facilitate the feng shui feel of my apartment.

Got any ideas???

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Photography daytrips…

can be quite interesting. I haven’t really done it in a while (since my Annual Bluebonnet Daytrip this past spring), excepting for some time I took in taking an off the beaten path way to an out of town meeting that I had earlier this month. (If I can’t make time for a daytrip, I can a least squeeze in some time whenever I can!)

The picture of the longhorns is a prime example of some good opportunities stemming from just making the time. Had I not taken an off beaten path (which was also a shortcut) coming back home from the out of town meeting, I would not have happened across this Mama Longhorn and her calf who was just getting his/her horns. Isn’t that just the cutest thing you have seen????

Themes for photography daytrips can be good. Any ideas what my theme for an upcoming daytrip should be????

See more progress on: go on a photography daytrip excursion

Boredom Hurts – Falling Guy

Go to Boredomhurts.com for more…

[YouTube= http://www.youtube.com/?v=wtORhyLaQ4w]

Where is Jeff Foxworthy….

because these folks certainly need a “stupid” sign made for them….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqLIQa05uLY]

Expanding your horizons in writing…

can lead to writing with a great deal of expression and creativity by thinking outside of what might be your comfort zone to include the erotic genre in your writing skills…

What writing have you possibly done outside of your comfort zone that has also added so much to your writing skills and development???

See more progress on: write erotic literature

Getting a passport can be increasingly hard to do…

Join me in the discovery of what processes are now required to get this accomplished…

See more progress on: Get (or renew) a passport

Love to cheer more people….

but how do you get more cheers to spread around???

See more progress on: find and cooperatively cheer-bomb 43T newbies

Something to remember about changing….

 

“I wanted to change the world.

But I have found that

the only thing one can be sure of changing

is oneself.”

 

- Aldous Huxley

In re Deadlines!

 

“I love deadlines.
I especially like the whooshing sound they make
as they go flying by.”

 

- Scott Adams, Dilbert

2nd Followup Visit!

The surgeon saw me today and gave me the okay to not have any future follow up visits, although the no lift rule over 10 pounds is still in tact until after the 1st of July.

She said that I am indeed healing nicely and no longer seem to have an infection. Yea!! She is still available, if I it becomes re-infected and I need more antibiotics, or the like. However, I am good to go!! Yea!!

Thank goodness….

and, as such, I can now considered this recovery from surgery completed!

See more progress on: Recover fully from surgery

Found this cartoon on Slate.com today

It certainly has its point driven home. What ARE the carmakers going to do to eliminate the gas guzzler’s on the road? True. There are the hybrids that are saving many consumers hundreds, if not thousands of gas expenses, each year; but, the prices of most of the hybrid vehicles are still seemingly out of reach for the average car buyer these days.

What do you think???

See more progress on: Save on Gas

Faraday’s Response!!!!

I am soooo excited that I got a wonderful response from Faraday’s Kitchen Store when I inquired whether or not they had some cheese making kits there and if they had considered offering some cheese making classes in the future. Be sure to also contact them if you are interested so that we might get a class going in the Austin/Lake Travis area, as well as have access to some cheese making supplies locally!!! See below:

“We have not had a request for a cheese making class or equipment to do so. I like the idea and will look into what is required to make cheese. Any cheese in specific would you like to see done in a class?

 

Thanks for reaching out to us. Have an awesome week.”

 

Tony Curtis-Wellings

 

Faraday’s Kitchen Store

 

Feeding your passion for cooking

See more progress on: make cheese

Gold & Books…

 

“If you drop gold and books, pick up the books first, then the gold.”

 

- Jewish Saying

Day care workers are baulking at having to do criminal background checks or the rate hike?

Per the 80th Legislation article in the Austin American Statesman today,

Day care owners balk at costly new background checks for employees

Children’s advocates, bill author say the fingerprint checks are key for safety

it indicates that the child care workers are all riled up over Governor Perry signing into law that will require a $50 fingerprint background checks for their employees because they have a “high turnover” of employees.

Somehow, I don’t think that they have a valid point, especially, when it comes to the care of our society’s children while parents are having to work to make ends meet for their families.  While I agree that the average day care worker won’t be able to afford $50 for a background check when they job hop between day care employers due to the wage expectations in that industry, nothing can be more valuable than to ensure the safety and well-being of our children from predators preying upon our children.

After all, we have all heard the stories of sexual offenders who have driven buses and taught or worked in the school districts, let alone the horror stories we have heard of day care workers that have been hired that have had shady pasts.  To me, anything that we do to ensure the safety of the children should be of the utmost concern; if that means, too, that the dynamics of the hopping day care worker changes, then so be it!

I am surprised though, too, that there seems to be a doubling of the fees of the fingerprinting  as they used to be $10 or $12 for State fingerprinting/criminal check and $25 for the Federal fingerprinting/criminal check, from what I remembered in the past.

At any rate, perhaps, if the day care licensing authorities post the approved day care licensed worker on a public access database so that the day care working highering authorities could at least have the option of checking their license approval online versus requiring each and every employee being hired to re-go through the fingerprinting/criminal background check (similar to that already established for the private security officers through the Private Security Commission under the umbrella of the TxDPS, it may curtail some of the repetitive hiring processing costs.  Just a thought.

In speaking of online portfolios,

is paying $19.99/month worth it to place up to 15 images in 6 different categories on the CMYK Magazine site for a portfolio image, worth it???

Has anyone had any luck with this portfolio site? Are there any with better values???

See more progress on: creating a photography portfolio

Money is easy to make???

“Money’s easy to make if it’s money you want.

But with few exceptions people don’t want money.

They want luxury

and they want love

and they want admiration.”

 

- John Steinbeck

Blurb.com

In speaking about portfolios, has anyone had any luck with the portfolio software at Blurb.com????

See more progress on: creating a photography portfolio

Creating a Photography Portfolio

I am getting some photos that I do rather like, and may stand a chance in getting a shot of a gallery to take a look at them and perhaps offer me some space to sell my photos.

Question is this: 

Do you think it is better to create a hands on version in a notebook/scrapbook style, or, just offer a gallery a business card with your contact information and a link to a site, such as Flicker or other like sites, where they can view your styles and/or purchase your items???

What do you think? What has your experience been?

See more progress on: creating a photography portfolio

Candle Theme Photos

I have been in the process of ordering postersize prints of some of my candle photos, along with some black frames to change the decor of my living room nook in my apartment. I must say it is starting to come together bit by bit. I am quite pleased.

When I finish with the candle theme for my living room nook, I am thinking about carrying the black frame theme into the kitchen area and put up photographs of food. I have an interesting egg in a vase type of picture, as well as an interesting view of a fish dish that I had in Guatemala during my mission trip in 2003.

Question, should I continue the food theme as well into the dining nook area - or, should that be a flower theme, do you think??? Any ideas???

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Play & Freeze Ice Cream Ball?

Does anyone know if these things truly work??? I have seen this on Amazon and am a bit curious as to if anyone has really had any success with these Play & Freeze Ice Cream Balls that come in a variety of colors?

If you have success with them, what size did you choose and would you purchase the same size again, if you were to do it all over again???

See more progress on: purchase a play and freeze ice cream ball

Tool kits for making cheese

I am getting geared up for the possibility of learning how to make cheese soon. As such, I have doing a variety of research upon a variety of recipes from a variety of resources.

Today, I have stumbled upon Gourmet-Sleuth which has a 30-minute kit for making mozzerella cheese, as well as a home cheese cookbook that they tout as the first cookbook that you should buy when learning about making cheese.

I have contacted a nearby kitchen store, Faraday’s Kitchen Store, to see if they are going to sell some cheese making kits and/or offer cheese making classes.

Any other suggestions for sources of cheese making kits to get started???

See more progress on: make cheese

Adversity per Einstein

“Adversity introduces a man to himself.”

 

- Albert Einstein

Dream house?

Well, we all have our dreams, don’t we???

If I would have my druthers, I would certainly find some acreage (and it doesn’t have to compare to the XIT ranch; just large enough that I don’t feel like I am butted up to my neighbors and I have room to raise some vegetables and flowers and herbs—maybe 6-10 acres would be nice) and then build my dream house that I have had in my mind since I was in the architecture program for 3 years almost 30 years ago.

Not too much to ask for, right??

Well, on the surface, it isn’t; however, as fast as Austin is growing these days, I am going to be pushed further and further out of the city to avoid the taxes, traffic, and urban growth.

Any ideas about how to save up for such a plan, while avoiding being succumbed by the urban growth???

See more progress on: buy some acreage and build a house

Wisdom per Hoover

“Wisdom consists not so much in knowing what to do in the ultimate as knowing what to do next.”

- Herbert Hoover

Well…

it is looking like I might be a Grandma before July 8th!

I need to hurry up and figure out a name to be called…

See more progress on: prepare for being a Grandma by July 8th

A Point to Ponder…

Point to ponder:

The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can’t go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

Received from a friend re Credit Card Scam…

This post has been moved to resolve, hopefully, a technical issue on this home page.

Is there hope for us? :)

Let us not forget that Christopher Columbus

did not know where he was going.

When he got back,

he didn’t know where he had been.

And he did it all on borrowed money.

There’s hope for all of us!

                                    – Terry Braverman

6 year old Conny even amazes Simon!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En0A8KGMgq8]

Is money an excuse for your living???

 

“Money is just an excuse to avoid thinking very much about the life you are living.”

 

- Michael Lewis, Wall Street writer

Good Communication

“Good communication is as stimulating as black coffee, and just as hard to sleep after.”

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Lol… my horoscope for today???

Here is your Work Horoscope
for Tuesday, June 12:

The weather forecast didn’t say so, but you’re experiencing a serious brainstorm today, with all the flashes of brilliant ideas that entails. Your enthusiasm and electricity turn you into a natural leader.

Funny.  I wonder if that also means that I am going to ace my math exam this morning????

Repairs Out of the Ordinary …

just for brakes??? lol…

I have included a picture of the freezing, boring waiting room that I waited in for what was originally to be only a “couple of hours”, which ended up actually being a bit over eight hours!!

This picture was only a smidgen of a moment where there was no one in the waiting room except from me. What is sad is when you realize that this is, in the end, 1/365th of your year in 2007 memories!! lol…..

I think I probably saw more than 100 customers come in and out of that waiting room who waited there for any length of time (not counting the customers I saw walk by the waiting room to the rental car leasing office, or, who were picked up by friends and family). True, I could have rented a car; but, I am in that few day stretch until pay day when this emergency occurred that I wasn’t prepared for…

What ended up taking so long is when they, the dealership where I got the repairs done, had to order a part — what??

Part of the reason one has the repairs done at the dealership is that they should have all the parts for your vehicle — right????

Oh, well….

A day in my life getting repairs done for my vehicle.

On my to do list for repairs still on the Red Barron is fixing the AC unit. Any ideas/suggestions where to best go for these repairs where you don’t feel that you have been taken full advantaged of????

See more progress on: get repairs done on Red Barron (my car)

Stopping the Dead End Shelter – Moving Across Town in Austin, TX

Thank you for signing the petition to Stop the Dead End Shelter!

Can you help us spread the word? Just forward this email to your friends around Austin who may be interested.

Thanks for helping to protect Austin’s community values.

STOP THE DEAD-END SHELTER:

http://www.austinaction.org/petition/Stop+the+Dead+End+Shelter

Help Stop the Dead End Shelter

The City of Austin plans to move the Town Lake Animal Shelter from its current location on Caesar Chavez to a remote industrial location on the outskirts of the City’s eastern edge – out of sight and out of mind.

According to a national shelter expert, locating a shelter in a highly visible location rather than at a remote location or on a dead-end street can literally double shelter adoptions. The proposed new site is an out-of-sight, out-of-mind location, far and away from the City’s main adopters, which is certain to lead to fewer visitors, fewer volunteers, fewer adoptions, and even more killing. We already have a great location and there is no reason to relocate it to the outskirts of town.

With little-to-no public input or discussion, with no public vote by the Austin City Council, and with no analyses of the move’s impact on adoptions, volunteers and return to owners, Shelter management has railroaded the relocation to East 7th and Airport. This is the same Shelter management that has been unable to reduce the kill and intake rates (despite doubling the budget) over the last seven years. Last year over, 12,000 homeless animals were killed and since 2000 under the current shelter management more than 70,000 animals have been killed.

A grass-roots effort has formed urging the City Council to use the voter-approved bond money to rebuild the Shelter where it is-Town Lake.

PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO SIGN OUR ONLINE PETITION TO

STOP THE DEAD-END SHELTER:

http://www.austinaction.org/petition/Stop+the+Dead+End+Shelter

SEND AN EMAIL TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL:

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm

VISIT FIXAUSTIN.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION:

http://www.fixaustin.org/

It can be a bit discouraging to go through a recovery process….

when you have no help at home to do the general things around the house.

Tonight, I had about 2 weeks worth of garbage to take out to the dumpster and I have been avoiding it because they are a bit heavy. Storing them by the front door on a dolly, I finally couldn’t stand it a moment longer and wheeled the trash to the dumpster.

I think I managed to pop my wound open slightly in the process. I can see why the doctor insisted that I don’t lift things over 10 pounds; however, not many people will come at your door asking you if they can take your trash out!

See more progress on: Recover fully from surgery

A friend mentioned to me that there is an online photography course…

for those with Digital SLR cameras on www.betterphoto.com. While browsing their $188 rate it seems a bit pricey too me for right now, although their outlines seem decent. My other hurdle too is that I don’t have a Digital SLR camera. In clicking around on the site and exploring a live chat came on to talk to me.

This was the conversation—

Transcript:
[Jason at Betterphoto] Hi, did you have a question about our courses?
[BetterPhoto Visitor] any discounts?
[Jason at Betterphoto] Hello.
[Jason at Betterphoto] We have a promotion for those who have taken 2 or more courses before.
[Jason at Betterphoto] Although we don’t offer discounts for courses, there are a couple of ways you can save on your course enrollment.

Refer-a-Friend:

You can refer a friend using a special form in the Member Center. If the friend signs up, you get sent a $20 “Thank You” card from BetterPhoto which can be applied to your next course. To participate, sign into your Member Center and then click the Courses tab. Then click the link to the Refer-A-Friend form. For more information, visit:

http://www.betterphoto.com/refer/default.asp

ProCritiques™:

Upload up to 8 photos and get critiqued by a professional on our team of instructors. It’s easy! all you have to do is press the ProCritique icon under your photos in your Member Center. The best part is it is only $79. What’s more, you will receive a coupon for $20 off your next BetterPhoto online photography class! For all the details, visit:

http://www.betterphoto.com/pro-photo-critiques.asp

[BetterPhoto Visitor] Hmmm… still a bit pricey right now. I am entering photos on www.thephotochallenge.com right now with my itty bitty Nikon 3200. I am wanting to purchase one of the fancier digital SLR cameras, but don’t have the funds for doing so as of now. Back about 5 years ago I had some very nice Canon and Pentax 35mm cameras stolen from me—over $3000 in photography equipment, lenses, filters, etc…
[BetterPhoto Visitor] Started exploring the digital world with the HP612 and now with the Nikon 3200…in the meantime.
[Jason at Betterphoto] Sorry to hear that.
[Jason at Betterphoto] Glad to hear you’re exploring the digital world
[Jason at Betterphoto] Welcome to BetterPhoto and hopefully you will take advantage of one of our courses very soon.
[Jason at Betterphoto] In the meantime, you should take a look at our FREE course to get a feel for what it is like to take a course with us
[BetterPhoto Visitor] yeah… a little bit at a time. Learning some from www.thephotochallenge.com, but really need to understand the camera a bit more. Really miss options to change the lenses for telephoto/macro capabilities.
[Jason at Betterphoto] It is no charge and you will receive the same type of instruction as a real course.
[BetterPhoto Visitor] Do I have to have one of the fancier digital cameras???
[Jason at Betterphoto] Take a look here:
http://www.betterphoto.com/courseOverview.asp?cspID=165“>Jason at Betterphoto
[BetterPhoto Visitor] Only problem, it seems to be for the SLR cameras…
[Jason at Betterphoto] Yes, it is best to have an SLR camera
[Jason at Betterphoto] However, if you just want to get the feel for what a course is like…here you go and it’s FREE.
[Jason at Betterphoto] Have a great night!
[BetterPhoto Visitor] Thank you very much….
[BetterPhoto Visitor] You too!

Are these worthwhile courses to pursue; or, is it better to go to a local photo store that might be offering photography classes???

See more progress on: Take a photography course online?

Words of diversity; 4 decades later, still ringing true!

 

“If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.”

 

- John F. Kennedy

Just think….

if we all had these huge bottles of water, it just might make it easier to drink our “8 glasses” of water per day!!!

See more progress on: Drink eight glasses of water each day

I am soooo bad about drinking 8 glasses of water each day…

but, it is something that I am having to force myself to do—especially with the extreme Texas heat this year. Perhaps, it is feeling more extreme than usual to me this year because my AC is broken in my Chevy SUV this summer. However, if that is a good motivation to drink more water this summer, then so be it!!

I don’t like the tap water here so purchasing water, Gatorade, and Vitamin Water is on demand. I know. Gatorade and Vitamin Water isn’t as good as one would hope b/c of the sugars in the waters and about 200 calories per approximately 32 oz bottle, but Vitamin Water has a plus of having no sodium in it.

I am making progress though in trying to get those “8 glasses” into my daily routine. With a quick 32 oz first thing in the morning, it is a great burst from the start of the day. Just another 32 oz to go through out the day…and, with this heat, it is easy to accomplish!!!

What are your tips and strategies to accomplish your “8 glasses” of water per day???

See more progress on: Drink eight glasses of water each day

Love for art…

doesn’t always make the bills be paid. Love to do calligraphy, blogging, writing, and photography, among other creative artistic things.

Any ideas on how to break away from other careers to making significant money with my works of art???

See more progress on: be an artist

Always looking for new ways to ….

develop my photography skills and entering photo contests is certainly one way of doing so by learning from who wins the contests. Occasionally, I have won a few, but I would love to win many more in the future….

See more progress on: Win a Photo Contest.

Why I want to go to Big Bend National Park

When I was little, I heard tales of my Grandma and Grandpa visiting this place. I think it was for their honeymoon. Not sure that most people would consider it a honeymoon spot; however, I do want to see the teacups that are embedded into the mountainous landscape that my Grandma told me about, among other sights and sounds…

Anyone have any tips about going to this place? Any suggestions for places to stay? What accommodations are available for those who can’t walk great distances on a whole?

See more progress on: Big Bend National Park

Being from San Antonio….

this was the first visit we fit into the schedules for our out of town guests for a bit of culture and history…..

Long live the Alamo!!

See more progress on: The Alamo

Costly repairs in a depressed economy…

The economy has been tricky during the past years; most employers offering less pay per job than they have had in the past and cost of living and upkeep keep rising.

Eventually, I am wanting to get a hybrid car to save on gas expenses. I have friends that love that aspect of their hybrid, especially with the gas prices continuing to rise.

In the meantime, I am needing to have some costly repairs to my car. The AC in Texas is something awful…and it isn’t even the hottest months yet. The AC repairs are estimated around $2,000. Don’t have the funds in my bank account to do that just yet. Any one have a quick low-interest loan that I could have to get this accomplished???

More pressing is the fact that my brakes are starting to squeak, which means that the longer and louder they squeak, the more costly the repairs can be, as well as more risk I have as a driver on the road. Working on to have this tended to somehow, some way tomorrow.

Other than that, my 1998 Chevy SUV is in great shape, but I am interested in getting these repairs done as quickly as possible.

See more progress on: get repairs done on Red Barron (my car)

Never Walking Back

 

“I’m a slow walker, but I never walk back.”

 

- Abraham Lincoln

A story about “Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology”

Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

by Lisa A. Seidman

While this book isn’t what I would have gone to the bookstore to read off the bat; it is certainly one that I have found to be very interesting in the curriculum this summer for my biotech classes.

See more about Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

A story about “Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology”

Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

by Lisa A. Seidman

While this book isn’t what I would have gone to the bookstore to read off the bat; it is certainly one that I have found to be very interesting in the curriculum this summer for my biotech classes.

See more about Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

A story about “Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology”

Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

by Lisa A. Seidman

While this book isn’t what I would have gone to the bookstore to read off the bat; it is certainly one that I have found to be very interesting in the curriculum this summer for my biotech classes.

See more about Basic Laboratory Methods for Biotechnology

A story about “Biotechnology Laboratory Manual: Science for the New Millennium”

Biotechnology Laboratory Manual: Science for the New Millennium

by Ellyn Daugherty

This is a companion to the other book. Very interesting approaches on the lab work. Glad to have it on my reading curriculum for this summer.

See more about Biotechnology Laboratory Manual: Science for the New Millennium

A story about “Biotechnology: Science for the New Millennium”

Biotechnology: Science for the New Millennium

by Ellyn Daugherty

Not something that I would have gone to pick up off of the shelf to read in the past; however, I am glad that it is part of the reading curriculum for my BioTech classes this summer.

It is indeed some interesting reading if biological sciences is your thing!

See more about Biotechnology: Science for the New Millennium

Risks taken…

“And the trouble is, if you don’t risk anything, you risk even more.”

 

- Erica Jong, Fear of Flying

Risks taken…

“And the trouble is, if you don’t risk anything, you risk even more.”

- Erica Jong, Fear of Flying

New things in the works…

I have been, lately, seeking out some new education classes in the realm of biotech. Yesterday, I received a congratulations letter from the Biotechnology Consortium (see Congratulations Letter for more about the letter). While it isn’t an earth shattering letter, it is extremely empowering and uplifting and, in a sense, very encouraging….

See more progress on: Improve my Career Options

Received a “congratulations” letter today…

As part of my steps to becoming a forensic biologist, I have had to start somewhere; this “somewhere” as been a part of the ACC Biotechnology program this summer, which started the day after Memorial Day this year.

Today (well actually yesterday by the time that this gets posted), I have received a letter congratulating me on taking this initial step into a new career path for me:

“Congratulations on taking the first step towards your career in the BioSciences!!

The Austin Biotech Workforce Consortium (WorkSource, ACC, The Austin Chamber, UT’s Ray Marshall Center, and area employers) is happy to welcome you to The Fundamentals of Biotechnology.

As part of a new project under Governor Perry’s Meeting Industries’ Critical Needs Initiate, the Consortium is developing new courses in order to provide much-needed training for new workers in the Biotech Industry; while also enhancing the skills of workers with previous experience in the industry. The goal of the project is to develop a better-prepared and more flexible workforce, and to make Austin an important part of the state-wide Biotechnology and Life Sciences industry cluster.

The Fundamentals of Biotechnology course cycle in which you recently enrolled is one of the training programs developed through this project. The costs to participate in the training – tuition, fees, materials, and internships – are all provided through the funding obtained by WorkSource. WorkSource – Greater Austin Area Workforce Board is the publicly funded workforce system of Travis County and was established by the Texas Legislature in 1995. The mission of WorkSource is to lead an innovative, high-quality worforce system that ensures the economic viability of the region. If you want to learn more about WorkSource, visit us at Austin WorkSource.

The Austin Biotech Workforce Consortium wishes you nothing but success as you begin to prepare yourself for a career in the BioSciences.”

(as signed by Peter Brodeur, Training Project Manager, WorkSource – Greater Austin Area Workforce Board)

While it isn’t a letter from Governor Perry or President Bush, it is significant that it emphasizes the importance and relevancy of the career path. That acknowledgement, in itself, can be extremely encouraging and reaffirming that one is indeed on the right path, at the very least!!

See more progress on: forensic biologist

Safety in the Workplace

“I think good lab practice, consideration for other people, and safety are three totally related issues.”

– David H. Beach, PhD, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Mission Successful!

I have picked up the rocker from a friend of mine. Now, my friend is an avid smoker so the rocker is awfully smokey; but, it is now in my car and will soon be on its way to my daughter’s home after I clean it up a bit to take away the smokiness.

The rocker is in good shape overall and should be a great addition to my daughter’s home and in time for the upcoming new arrival of the baby!

Now, I can actually cross this off of my list and say that I have accomplished at least one thing this week….

See more progress on: Get a rocking chair for daughter

MADD: This is so sad…please keep it moving…..

Be sure to cut and paste all the below into your email system and keep this moving forward:

*******************************************

Just a note, the lady that hired me when I first came to the school system just lost her granddaughter of 17 years old; a drunk driver plowed into the back of the car she was in with her best friend at the wheel. They were both

Sitting at a red light wearing seat belts and sober. The man that killed them was 23 and drunk; this was in a residential area around 11:45pm at night (it was a Friday evening). Both girls were HS seniors. This just happened a couple of weeks ago.
Please sign this petition.

 

(Read all the way to the bottom and sign your name)

Went to a party Mom… I went to a party,
And remembered what you said.

You told me not to drink, Mom, so I had a sprite instead.

I felt proud of myself, the way you said I would,  

That I didn’t drink and drive,

Though some friends said I should.

I made a healthy choice,
And your advice to me was right.
The party finally ended,
and the kids drove out of sight.

I got into my car, Sure to get home in one piece.
I never knew what was coming, Mom,
something I expected least.

Now I’m lying on the pavement,
And I hear the policeman say,

The kid that caused this wreck was drunk,
Mom, his voice seems far away.

My own blood’s all around me,
As I try hard not to cry.
I can hear the paramedic say, this girl is going to die.

I’m sure the guy had no idea,
While he was flying high.
Because he chose to drink and drive,
now I would have to die.
So why do people do it, Mom
Knowing that it ruins lives?
And now the pain is cutting me,
like a hundred stabbing knives.

Tell sister not to be afraid, Mom
Tell daddy to be brave.
And when I go to heaven,
put “Mommy’s Girl” on my grave.

Someone should have taught him, That it’s wrong t o drink and drive.
Maybe if his parents had,
I’d still be alive

My breath is getting shorter,
Mom I’m getting really scared These are my final moments,
and I’m so unprepared.

I wish that you could hold

me Mom,
As I lie here and die.
I wish that I could say, “I love you, Mom!”
So I love you and good-bye.

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Drivers) IS HOPING TO GET 5,000
SIGNATURES ON THIS THEN PASS IT ON TO SIGN. When this petition has reached 5,000, please return it to:

MADD
P.O. Box 54168 8
Dallas , TX 75354-1688 1-800-GET-MADD (1-800-438-6233)

If you receive this petition and do nothing but delete it, your selfishness knows no bounds. Signing is such a small effort to make. After you have read the poem, please add your name at the bottom. And never forget, DON’T EVER DRINK AND DRIVE, not even once, thinking that it won’t matter. IT DEFINITELY WILL MATTER!!!

How to se t it up:
* Click on Forward
* SIGN YOUR NAME AT THE BOTTOM.
* Then send it t o everyone you know.

* Don’t use last names, cities, states, and don’t put a smiley face or anything besides your first name! I (#787) just spent five hours cleaning this up so don mess it up!

THE NAMES:
1. Adam
2. Deanne
3. Rapha
4. Courtney
5. James
6. Tracy
7. Traci
8. Faye
9. Devin
10. Starla
11. Theresa
13. Courtney
14. Erika
15. Kym
16. Michael
17. Matt
18. Laura

19. Daniel
20. Ashley
21. Brian
22. Bonnie

23. Susan
24. Michele
25. Denise
26. Keshia
27. Amy Sue
28. Tracie

29. Diana
30. Brooke

31.Aaron
32 Christina
33. Crystal

34. Kate
35. Callie
36. Christy

37. Rebecca
38. Elena

39. Missy

40. Erin

41. Lindsay

42. Jenny
43. Cassandra
44. Amy

45. Eric
46.Alisa
47. Pam
48. Leanne
49. Megan
50. Kristen
51. Mara
52. Lisa
53. Amanda
54. David
55. Connie

56. Jaime
57. Erin
58. Erin
59. Becky
60. Alana

61. Carrie
62. Susan
63. Gaye

64 Lynn
65. David
66. Carol
67. Natalie
68. Alissa
69. Rebecca
70. Lisa
71. Eric
72. Danielle

73. Elizabeth
74. Katy
75. Susan
76. Miranda
77. Meg
78 Samantha
79. Travis
80. Randy
81. Chris
82. Matthew
83. Crystal
84. Kyle
85. Krystal
86. Laura
87. Bethany
88. Amy
89. Christine
90. Courtney
91. Lauren
92. Jackie
93. Liz
94. Kathryn
95. Heather
96. Katie

97. Cara
98. Emily
99. Emily
100. Emily
101. Sarah
102. Eric
103. Dan
104. Abby
105. Alyssa
106. David
107. Celia
108. Susan
109. Carly
110. Anna

111. Alison
112. Litzi
1 13. Teresa
114. Stephanie
115. Jamie
116. Jenny
117. Meg
118. Kevin
119. Loan
120. Elizabeth
121. Katie
122. Angie
123. Troy
124. Natalie
125. Dyanis
126. Vasil
127 Marie
128. Jessi
129. Courtney
130. Tracy
131. Sue
132. Sally  
133. Rachael
134. Jan
135. Kari
136.Dawn
137. Staci
138. Douglas
139. Brooke
140. Rachel
141. Brian
142. Ben
143 William
144. Erica.
145. Jason
146. Frank
147. Kevin
148. Matt
149. Deepak
15 0. Liz
151. Jessa
152. Maureen
153. Dawn
154. Paul
155. Vanessa
156 Ryan
157. Rachel
158.Christy
159. Julie
160. Alex

161. Mariah
162. Brandon
163. Ashley
164. Jeffrey
165. Lois
166. Priscilla

167. Mei-mei

168. Gennie

169. P.J. R.
170. Charina
171. Nieves

172. Calley

173. Alexandra

174. Lisa
175. Amber
176. Mandy
177. MICHELLE
178. Meghan
179. LAUREN
180. Brandie
181. Lorianna
182. Kris
183. Katie
184. Jenny

185. Kim Jones
186. Sarah
187. Jon
188. Elizabeth
189. Lesley
190. Kellyn
191. Jenna
192. Katherine
193. Ben  
194. Andrea
195. Erin
196. Tiffany
197. Carrie
198. Melissa
199. Emily
200. Jill

201. Meghan
202. SLS
203. Karen
204. Kasey
205. Tom
206. Jesse
207. Pam
208. Fiona
209. Ann
210. Gina
211. Johnny
212. Melissa

213.Morgan
21 4. Erin
215. Jennifer
216 Kayla
217. Alison

218. Denise
219. Amber
220. Holly
221. Daryl
222. Diana
223. Todd
224. Eric
225. Kristin
226. Dave
227. S.
228. Christina
229. Sanam
230. Lindsey
231. Meredith
232. Candice
233. ANGEL
234. Kathleen
235. Alex
236. Rachel
237. Abe
238. David
239. Sarah
240. Ben
241. Devon
242. Ashley
243. Amy
244. Nicole
245. Katie
246. Jessica
247. Brianna
248 Mary
249. Kristen
250. Lindsay
251. Heather
252. Nyleen
253. Catrina

254 . Melissa
255. Ashlie
256.Ashley
257. Mark
258. Colleen
259. Monica
260.Rebekah
261. Heather
262. Kristina
263. Shane
264. PFC Jamison Hurley Military Police Corps. US.ARMY
265. PFC Daniel Brown Transportation Corps. U.SARMY
266. Kyla
267. Angel
268. Linda
269. Stacy
270. Peyton
271. Shelton
272. Diane
273. Linda
275. Ben
276. Chad
277. Eric
278. Julie
279 Dawn

280. Melissa
281. Dave
282. Mary
283. George
284. Joshua
285. Dave
286. Sheri
287. Dave
288. Jessica
289.Rose
290. Dorie
291. Michael
292. Maria
293. Rebecca
294. Deana
295. Nancy
296. Mark
297. Grace
298. Becky
299. Carolyn
300. Robert
301. TRACY
302. KURT
303. June
304 Robin
305. Sarah
306. Kathy
307. Frank
308. Erin
309. Jim
310. Kim
311. Kate
312. Stefanie
313. Ginger
314. Barry
315. Graham
316. Gabe
317. Heather
318. Megan
319. Liisa
320. Christine
321. Danielle

322. Sarah
323. Megan

324. Alexa
325. Ashley
326. Kristin
327. Scott
328. Ruth
329. Nolan
330. Roger
331. Susan
332. Paige
333! . Dang
334. Mark
335.

336. Amy
337. Skye
338. Deanna
339. Amanda
340. Ryan
341. Tim
342. Joan
343. Andrea
344. Gail
345. Lindsey
346 Destiny
347. Meredith
348. Lynne
349. Christy
350 Kimyia
351. Patti
352. Kathy
353. Emma
354. Cynthia
355 Brent
356. Ana
357. Keith
358. Becky
359. Alizabeth
360. Raeanne
361. Theresa
362. William

363. Carol
364. William
366. Quyen
367. Asia
368. Zion
369. Tom
370. Jolene
371. David
372. Bela
373. Tiffany
374. Nicole
375. Mark
376. Tina
378. Adam
379. Victor
380. Christine
381. Cindy

382. Buddy

383. Kelley.
384. Tammie
385. Dale.
386. J.T.
387. Wendy
388. Kathy

389. Heather
390. Edward
391. Jodie
392. Marc
393. Stephen

394. Jennifer
395.Dorothy
396. Pauline
397. Katherine
398. Sam
399. Bob
400. John
401. Mary
402. Elaine

403 Helen
404. Patty
405. Jennifer
406. Yaung-Moon
40 7. Elsa
408. Gros
409. Kalia
410. Sandra
411. Shandro
412. Tammy
413. Caroline
414. Anna
415. Lynette
416. Kerry
417. Julie
418. Kim
419. Jennifer
420. Mary
421. James
422. Kevin
423. Joanne  
424. Laurie
425. Debbie
426. Jim

427. Lea
428. Deb
429. Mike
430. Chris
431. Gi
432. Cheryl
433. Kim
434. Ashley
435. Amy
436. Debra
437. Andrea
438. Lisa
439. Jonathan
440. Jeff
441. Charlie
442. Fran
443. Ron
444. Nikki
445 Shannon
446. Laura
447. Maxine
448. Marie
449. Veronica

450. Sharon
451. Arlene

452. Patricia

453. Diane
454. Nannaette
455. Eugenia
456. Diane
457. Kathy
458. Jennifer
459. Nathan
460. Carole
461. Jaime
462. Amanda
463. Linda
464. Rita
465. Jen
466. Patricia
467. Dan
468. Jessica
469. Morgan
470. Sherin
471. Aswathy
478. Tiffanie

479. Steve
480. Clara
481. Kristi
482. Gillian
483. Tara
484. Melanie
485. Wanitta
486. Danielle
487.. Tamara
488. Gord
489. Shannon
490. Linda
491. Mark
492. Sandra
493. Darcy
494. Anthony
! 495. Dustin
496. Nicole

497. Amber
498. Josh
499. Gordon
500. Tim
501. Ian
502. Chris
503. Sonja
504. Yvonne
505. Leslie

506. Wendy
507. Wilf
! 508. Bev
509. Alice

510. Ivana
511. Selmi

512. Lori
513. Cathy
514. Kari

515. Joel

516. Erik
517. T.
518. Janna
519. James
520. Nicole
521Lesley
522. Pierre
523. Vanessa
524. Carey
525. James
526. Peter
527. Breanne
528. Donna
529. Harvey
530. Eric
531. Dennis

532 Lucie
533. Edward
534. Ashton
535. Ed
36. Mark
537. Christopher
538. Anna
539. Cherlyn
540. Julie
541. Robin
542. Kim
543. Charmaine

544. Sean

545. Stephane
546. Stephanie
547. Devlen
548. Alexandra
549. Jacob
550. Cameron
551. Noah
552. Nicole
553. Helne
555. Paula

556 . Dave
55 7. Tony
558. Jean
559. Diane
560. Barb
561. Julie
562. Lucille
563. Delilah
564. Joanne
565. Connie
566. Helen
567. Aline
568. Michel
569. Anne
570. Paul
571. Katy
572. Km
573. Shirley
574. Sheelagh
5 76. Monique
577. Gerard
578. Mike
579. Tobi
580. Les
581. Donna
582. Tracey
583. Billie
584. Geoffrey
585. Mike
587 Dana
588. Susan
589. Glen
590. Roxanne
591. Michelle
592. Mike
593. Clayton
594. Glen
595. Kat
596. Linda
597. Len
598.Alana
599. Michael
600. Nisa
601. Charlotte

602. Kyle
603. Linda
! 604. Peter
605. Ron
606. Marie
607 Carol
608. Noreen
609. Helen
610. Josie
611. Lyse
612. Diane
613. Leslie
614. Derek
615. Ed
616. Chuck
617.Heather
618 Doug
619 Judi
619 Kaitlyn
620 Andrea
621 Harry
622 Leslie
623 Aleah
624. Camila
625. Paula
626. Els
627. Anne
628.Nancy
629. Vic

630. Brian

631. DIANE
632. KAREN
633. Thandra
634. W.
635. M.
636. Gary
637. Paul
638. Len
639 Sherri
640. Catherine
641. Leah
642. Jessica
643. Madeleine

644. Dena
645. Candise
646. Robert
647. Ryan
648. Maria
649. Linda
650. Wendy
651. Debbie
652. Isabel
653. Suzanne
654. Kathryn

MeMe (pronounced MayMay)….

has been turned down b/c it would sound too much like what his Mom wants to be called (NayNay). Augghghghgh….

Help!

Does anyone have any suggestions???

See more progress on: Pick a name for my Granddaughter to call me

Things Turning Out for the Best…

“Things turn out best

for the people who make the best

of the way things turn out.”

 

-Anonymous

 

I only hope that this is very true!

 

 

How I met Dale Evans

I was in third grade about the time that Hemisphere ‘68 was built and in high gear action. My Dad was one of the on call doctors at that time at the Hemisphere and had the opportunity to go meet Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. He could have gone by himself, but he got permission to take both myself and my sister to meet them.

We had the opportunity to see their dressing rooms and the loads of fancy clothes that they had for their shows.

Dale Evans and Roy Rogers after agreeing to have their picture taken with us, invited us to watch the show. We stayed for the show and were in high heaven because we had had the privilege of meeting them in person before the show.

It was an amazing day that we had that drew on into the evening. Almost 40 years later and I still have that memory ingrained on my mind although my sister ended up with the photograph taken that day.

Learn more about Dale Evans

Why I want to meet Nicolas Cage

I have always been a great admirer of him b/c of his roles in his movies, but also b/c he seems to project that he is a real, wholesome person that is truly down to earth and not into all that glamor and glitz that people get so wrapped up in.

Met someone once who is a huge fan of Johnny Depp who indicated that my intuition of Nicolas Cage is correct b/c she has actually met him through Johnny Depp, one of Nicolas’ friends. I lost contact with her and will probably never know if, what she was telling me, it is more truth than fiction.

Would love the opportunity to assess that for myself in person some day…

In the meantime, I will continue to envision those sexy eyes looking at me one of these days in person, albeit it may only be in my dreams. lol…..

Learn more about Nicolas Cage

Watching Observations!

 

“You can observe a lot by watching.”

 

- Yogi Berra (Yankee Hall of Famer)

Things that my Grandma did…

included the aromatic scents of her baking a freshly prepared batch of bread—banana, white, zucchini, pear, and so many options. One would always feel that besides eating a warm batch of bread that one was also eating healthy knowing that zucchini, pears, bananas, or any number of fruits or vegetables might be blended into the bread during preparation….

I would so love to be able to duplicate that experience with my future granddaughter some day….

Anyone have any good, simple recipes to start off with the learning process???

See more progress on: bake bread

Probably shouldn’t have….

but I have begun to move things around a bit in attempts to find that feng shui in my living room. (Shouldn’t have because of my recovery period.)

It is looking a bit better though so I am happy about that, but I will probably shift things around soon another swing to find that perfect spot for the sofas. As it is, I have put the long sofa against the wall with the window; however, it is blocking the patio door a bit, which can be a good thing dependent upon how you look at it.

In the meantime, the quest for feng shui in my living room are coming together with some of my candle photographs I have taken put up on the walls to continue with the candle theme in this room; however, I am open to other suggestions.

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Augghghghghgh….

Nothing like being kept from doing any lifting over 10 pounds for 6 weeks. Went for my 2 week review at my surgeon’s office and she said, “Definitely, nothing over 10 pounds lifted until after July 1st!”

Now, how can I move my living room around to gain that feng shui perspective, if I can’t lift anything over 10 pounds??? Do you think that includes not pushing (at least, I am not lifting!!)???

Patience…. aughghghghgh….

See more progress on: Recover fully from surgery

Have camera, will travel…

has been my motto. I even take my camera stashed in my purse to the grocery store and classes. Don’t know whenever you will find that opportune moment!!

Kat

See more progress on: carry around a camera

So trying to find a good place to study…

but it seems that home is full of distractions although noone lives with me right now other than two loving cats. This is part of the reason I am trying to find feng shui in my apartment; however, I am limited right now because of my surgery recovery process (to move things around just yet) since I just had surgery about 2 weeks ago. Frustrating…to know that I can’t do anything for 6 weeks!

In the meantime, I am off and running to the class building to study before class starts. Laters!

See more progress on: find a good place to study

Sometimes, I just feel like…

no one hears what I say. I talk and talk, question and question, blog and blog, and yet—

some of the same questions I have from 3 years ago are still seemingly unanswered. Could be that I am asking the wrong questions and they have no answers….

but, what are the right questions to ask????

See more progress on: Would love to not be a “Who” in “Whoville”!

Preventing Oil Pricing Gouging

Received this email from a friend of mine this morning….

“Hi,

Can you face another summer where a day trip to the lake or the beach costs you an arm and a leg? It’s shaping up to be just that if we don’t ask Congress to stand up to Big Oil now.

The House passed a bill last week that could make gas price gouging a federal crime, but the oil companies succeeded in weakening it at the last minute, so it’s hard to enforce.

In a couple weeks, the Senate will vote on the same bill, and we need them to make it stronger. I signed a petition to urge my representatives to pass a strong gas price gouging bill. We have over 500,000 names already, but we want to get to 750,000 — can you join me at the link below?

 

http://pol.moveon.org/stoppricegouging/?r_by=-8354252-5dnlA7&rc=mailto

 

Thanks!”Do you think that you can help encourage the passing of the bill by contacting your representatives today???

The Long haul…

 

“Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.”

 

 
- Oprah Winfrey

Is it possible to find love again??

I am hoping so. I had found a man that doted on me; unfortunately, he died just 2 weeks short of our first anniversary. That was nearly 5 years ago.

I feel that there just might be someone out there for me. If he is out there, I would sure like for him to speak up!!

I’ll keep a flame burning until he is found…..

See more progress on: Fall in love

What should my Granddaughter call me??

Of course, she isn’t due in this world until around July 8th and, among the fact that, she won’t be able to speak my name until after 6 months or so, I know that I do have some time.

Mumo – My Mom is called by my daughter
Mimi – My sister’s children call her mother-in-law
Grandma – I called my own grandmother

What are some other suggestions???

See more progress on: Pick a name for my Granddaughter to call me

Finding feng shui…

is one of my goals for this year for my apartment. I became an empty nester February 2006 and it has been an adjustment without a husband by my side. I had figured that when this would happen I would at least have someone by my side to share life on a day to day basis; that hasn’t happened according to plan. Few things, I am finding actually truly fit a molded plan; therefore, I devise some loosely molded plans to make things work and come to forward as an accomplishment. That way, I am not quite so disappointed when things don’t come forward exactly as to plan.

I moved to a smaller apartment at that time to save money, etc.; however, coming with the smaller apartment is also a less means of storing things. Aughhghgh. I have had to be creative about my storage aspects (ie creating an island in the kitchen by stacking 18 large plastic tubs together). Thankfully, I have a larger than normal kitchen for a small apartment!

My goal is to have recreate some even more clever storage aspects, after going through more stuff to minimize my stuff in my home, and find some idea of feng shui existing in my apartment so that I will feel relaxed and rejuvenated when I am at home.

To start, I have created a candle theme in my living room and started printing out my photography with candle themes (my own photography created) and hanging them with black frames. It is a start…

Currently, I am physically hindered from doing any moving around of anything greater than 10 pounds since I have recently had an umbilical hernia surgery. My doctor has forbid me from physically doing anything until after July 1st; however, this doesn’t mean that I can’t spend the next couple of weeks mustering some other ideas and comparing notes to some suggestions, and devise a plan of action in my mind.

Would love to hear some ideas from others that have created some feng shui in their home….

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

Finding feng shui…

is one of my goals for this year for my apartment. I became an empty nester February 2006 and it has been an adjustment without a husband by my side. I had figured that when this would happen I would at least have someone by my side to share life on a day to day basis; that hasn’t happened according to plan. Few things, I am finding actually truly fit a molded plan; therefore, I devise some loosely molded plans to make things work and come to forward as an accomplishment. That way, I am not quite so disappointed when things don’t come forward exactly as to plan.

I moved to a smaller apartment at that time to save money, etc.; however, coming with the smaller apartment is also a less means of storing things. Aughhghgh. I have had to be creative about my storage aspects (ie creating an island in the kitchen by stacking 18 large plastic tubs together). Thankfully, I have a larger than normal kitchen for a small apartment!

My goal is to have recreate some even more clever storage aspects, after going through more stuff to minimize my stuff in my home, and find some idea of feng shui existing in my apartment so that I will feel relaxed and rejuvenated when I am at home.

To start, I have created a candle theme in my living room and started printing out my photography with candle themes (my own photography created) and hanging them with black frames. It is a start…

Would love to hear some ideas from others that have created some feng shui in their home….

See more progress on: Finding feng shui

This is actually a part of my preparation…

for being a Grandma. A friend of mine has a bentwood rocker to hand down to my daughter. Need to pick it up, clean it off, and take it to my daughter’s apartment in preparation for her being a new Mom soon.

What accessories would you suggest for the rocker???

See more progress on: Get a rocking chair for daughter

Bookcrossings.com

This has seemed to be such a great idea to help disperse my book collection to good use. Anyone have any experience with this program as being successful for them???

See more progress on: Distribute five books a month via Bookcrossings program

Career Improvement

I have worked as an administrative in a variety of fields, been a paralegal, worked and volunteered as an advocate, and moved forward to getting some education in the biotechnology field.

By the end of the year, I hope to be employed in the biotechnology field in order to be on my way to improve my career options. Any suggestions on biotechnology companies best to work for???

See more progress on: Improve my Career Options

I have started it…

by taking photos of crosses, but I have a long ways to go. I don’t know how to find a publisher though and put the whole thing together.

Any ideas????

See more progress on: publish a photo coffee-table book for fundraising

My Grandma

was my role model in having sewn many quilts for all of us grandchildren, who had learned how to sew quilts from her own Mother.

I have sewn one with my Grandma when she was alive; now I would love to sew my own many, many, many years later. Just need some incentives—one being my granddaughter to make her debut on/about July 8th.

See more progress on: sew a quilt

Photography

has been more than just a hobby of mine; it has become throughout the years a passion. I have entered several contests and have won on occasion. Would like to make money at this someday; however, I haven’t a clue where to start. Does anyone have some ideas to begin???

See more progress on: sell my photographs

Daughter is due…

on July 8th with their first daughter; my first granddaughter. Am I prepared? Can anyone truly be???

See more progress on: prepare for being a Grandma by July 8th

Scotch Tape Art???

Can you believe these are made from ordinary scotch tape????

For more things exuding a sense of humor, check out more under my tab HUMOR MEDICINE!

How would you like to be known as “LAME”???

Visited some family in San Antonio this past weekend. Some of them told me that, like Austin has the phrase of “Keep Austin Weird”, San Antonio has adopted the phrase, “Keep San Antonio Lame”!

What the heck???

“Thousand Hand …” Dance

This was forwarded once again to me in an email, but I thought I would share it with my readers of my blogsite.  You have to see it to believe it because it is sooo beautifully well done.  

 www.suoitumedia3.net/Video/thousandhandguanyin.wmv

There is an awesome dance, called the Thousand-Hand Guanyin, that is making the rounds across the net and traveling around the countries. Considering the tight coordination required, their accomplishment is nothing short of amazing, even if they were not all deaf.

Yes, you read correctly.

All 21 of the dancers are completely deaf. Relying only on signals from trainers at the four corners of the stage, these extraordinary dancers deliver a visual spectacle that is at once intricate and stirring. Its first major international debut was in Athens…at the closing ceremonies for the 2004 Paralympics. But it had long been in the repertoire of the China Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe and had traveled to more than 40 countries.

Its lead dancer is 29 year old Tai Lihua, who has a BA from the Hubei Fine Arts Institute.

The video was recorded in Beijing during the Spring Festival celebrations in 2005.

Enjoy!!

A Bit of Creativity at HEB???

I missed out on the beginning of the contests, but this was a great outlet for YouTubers who are creative in the mind and soul….

HEB Commercial Contest — Go check it out!  Some very creative submissions are here!

and, for those who love to write….

HEB Scriptwriting Contest — Be sure to check this out as well.  Definitely will see some creative ideas here!

You may not be able to enter yourself this time around, but please vote for your favorites and put your thinking cap on in case they offer these opportunities again soon.   If you are in a need of some inspirations, definitely check those out above, as well as the My Commercial Creations already done!

Enjoy!!!

Pro-Active Sex Offender Capture Measures?

I certainly hope so.  Texas has been aggressive against sites, such as MySpace.com, to provide them with the Sex Offenders on their sites, especially after having to sue them for their accountability after some children were attacked by sexual predators when they went to meet them in person.  I am sure that will only make the sex offenders try to be a little more clever in hiding their identities, but at least there will be some cooperation from MySpace to hand over the names and identities used on the sites so that the authorities can crack down on these offenders who are not allowed to be on the computer sites as part of their agreements to be living among society.

Will this completely protect our children on such sites from all sexual predators? Not likely from all as some have merely not been caught — yet.  However, any steps moving in aggressive measures  is certainly a pro-active measure indeed and holds those sites accountable!

Reported:

MyFoxAustin, MySpace to Share Sex Offender Data

Cheddar Vision TV :D

Everyone is getting in on the web cam thing these days, even a cheddar cheese factory in Germany (West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers) that has set up a web cam in their shed to watch the mold grow on some cheese, which is a process that helps the cheese to age to perfection.

YouTube has taken the opportunity to do a time lapse video of the watching the cheddar cheese growing from 0-3 months, see below:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVMt9ECdOjA]

While watching the cheddar cheese mold at an ever so slow rate of speed, it is a great marketing gimmick to get folks to their site. I wonder how their sales are because of the draws just to see the CheddarVision.tv!?!

 

 

Shane Brenier’s Birthday Greeting Card World Record Status

Today, on May 21, 2007, I heard from the TLP Foundation wherein they confirmed that the last that they have heard, there has been more than 1 million greeting cards received for his birthday. Keep them coming!!!

See “Happy Birthday, Shane?” for more about the whole story and where to send your greeting card to him today!

West Nile Virus Goes YouTube!

This first clip is from Coronado High School for a Environmental Awareness Informercial Project. A bit silly at times, but I think that they drive their point across:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BldbzKBE1Iw]

and, not so entertaining videos as prepared by Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District Public Affairs Manager Deborah Bass who gives insight into how this virus, which currently has no human vaccine, can impact the health of the public.

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YirZ77EvA8Y]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYw9uu2tIck]

 

 

 

West Nile Virus – Crows Continue to be Hard Hit

For 6 years now, the West Nile Virus has been hitting the crow population hard. Scientific American’s May 17th, 2007, article, “West Nile Hammers U.S. Birds”, spells it out best.

“Now a major analysis confirms that American crows have been extremely hard hit nationwide–populations have fallen by 45% since the West Nile virus arrived–and several other common birds continue to decline as well.”

However, with some bird populations bouncing back from the devastations of the disease, the article concludes with the following caution:

“Ecologist Carsten Rahbek of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark notes in an accompanying commentary that the study shows that “West Nile virus could potentially change the composition of bird communities across the entire continent.” That could bode ill for plants, Kilpatrick notes, as many of the birds eat caterpillars and other pests, while others disperse seeds. The crisis for birds isn’t over yet, adds ecologist Kevin McGowan of Cornell University in Ithaca, as a lot of birds have not yet been exposed.”

One cannot help but think about how all the viruses (good and bad) are affecting our world.

See also…

What is one Bee’s Pleasure is Another’s Disdain?

PS. If you see a dead bird or squirrel, or suspect symptoms of the West Nile Virus, call 1-877-WNV-BIRD, IF you are in the State of California only.  If you see a dead bird or squirrel, in any another State, please contact your local animal control or health agencies in your State.

Scientific American – Psychie Dilemmas

Something just for stiring up your mind this morning as published in the June 2007 issue of Scientific American:

Traveler’s Dilemma

Prisoner’s Dilemma

Nash’s Equilibrium Strategy

Rubinstein’s Conjecture

Traveler’s Dilemma (in conclusion)

Did it tickle your brain this morning???

Immigration…hmmm….

If you go back into my public reader blogs on the Austin American-Statesman (either the “Inquiring Minds” as txbluebonnet2006 or “Inquiring Minds” as txbluebonnet), you will see that I have written extensively about this subject matter.  They were shouting back then that it was all an “amnesty” ploy that the government was coming up with; and, things haven’t changed one iota since then.

Some folks feel, like in a recent public blog on the Austin American Statesman, called, “I am curious”, wherein the author seems to make the whole issue is about where you come from.  It isn’t at all. 

What I care about is the safety of you and me, the neighbors down the street, the communities in my State and across this great nation.  What I want to see is that, no matter where they are from, our government isn’t letting in folks that are pedafiles, murderers, terrorists, drug cartel, etc. that jeopardize the safety of where we live and exist, as well as our futures as we might know it to be.

The reform is all about figuring out the guidelines, and redefining them, to expedite some of the processes of the immigration department to not take 10 years to process applications for citizenship here in the United States due to the backlog of applications.  Some processes may take only 5 years because they don’t have as many people applying from that country as they do from a different country that might have 1,000 times more applicants.

The system is failing because, in the meantime, while they are waiting for their applications to process many of them have come on over to live here illegally; some of which are unsavory criminalistic backgrounds and thereby putting our country at risk.

In the meantime, more and more folks cross over our borders illegally – seeking freedoms and that famed “Horatio Alger’s American Dream” that doesn’t even really exist for many of the American Citizens.  Something needs to be done to curtail the illegal arrivals while we get a fix on the process procedures of the applications.

The drug cartels fighting their wars on the borders of Texas sends up a flag for many Texas Citizens.  Perhaps, those in Washington DC aren’t caring too much because the war isn’t in their backyard yet, but Texans are getting a first hand look at it — especially those in South Texas.

UPDATE: Emilio Gonzales

See the Austin American Statesman’s article, “Emilio’s short life likely to be long remembered: Terminally ill child’s case could influence laws and debate on end-of-life care”. I couldn’t have put it to words better myself.

I certainly do hope some laws do get to change. The thing is, it wasn’t just about spending more money to keep Emilio alive despite the odds, it was the principle of the matter as well.

I hope we do see an EMILIO EDICT added to the legislation that better defines what to do for terminally ill patients that seemingly have very little, if any, chance to survive in this world. Wouldn’t it have been better to put him in a hospice situation long time ago, rather than expend the hospital resources? Where are people to draw the line? And, does the government really have a right to tell us where to draw that line with our loved ones?? Hopefully, something can be done…

only time will tell!

See also — my posting:

“Baby Emilio Gonzales — Futile Care Bill”

Domestic Violence – Sign the Petition!

Your say is needed to make sure that DV programs are funded.  Lifetime is pushing the petition to be signed and states the following:

Tell Congress to fund critical programs that help thousands of victims of domestic, dating and sexual violence

In just a single day, domestic violence programs served nearly 50,000 adults and children in the United States.* These programs provide emergency shelter, counseling and legal services critical to families trying to escape abusive homes and break the cycle of violence.

Every 2.5 minutes another American is sexually assaulted.** Rape crisis centers, schools and clinics across the country offer medical assistance, counseling and prevention programs.

Today, these lifesaving programs are in jeopardy if Congress does not decide to fully fund the landmark Violence Against Women Act of 2005, which Lifetime viewers helped to make law.

You can help again! Make your voice heard by signing this petition to urge Congress to give the funding needed to keep the doors of shelters, rape crisis centers, and prevention programs open and ready to rebuild lives and make communities safer.

Sources:
*”Domestic Violence Counts,” National Network to End Domestic Violence, March 2007
**RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), calculation based on United States Department of Justice National Crime Victimization Survey

http://www.lifetimetv.com/endviolence/signthepetition/

Futile Care Compassion?

OMG, I went to YouTube this morning and found this message of a voice mail left by a hospital about the care of someone’s father. The lack of compassion heard here is appalling and is worse than any bill collector that I have ever heard. Someone needs to teach this woman a bit about compassion. Whether or not the family of the father left at the hospital has truly procrastinated about the decision certainly doesn’t warrant such a vile and rude behavior of a hospital employee.

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZ0HOq0qNi4]

PS. The message on this YouTube presentation is:

“This is what compassionate care has come to under the Texas Futile Care law. Call or email your Texas State Representatives and Senators NOW so that hospitals can never again threaten to send patients “on to glory” against their will. Tell your Texas State Representatives to support HB1094 and your Texas State Senators to support SB439 so this kind of abuse never happens again.”

Truth of the matter is that it certainly doesn’t have to be this way…

After all, we are not just talking about a car that is beyond repairs; we are talking about a human being that is part of other individual lives.

 

For more information, see

Texas Patients’ Rights

Baby Emilio – Futile Care Bill

 In following up on my Bits and Pieces posting, I had mentioned that Baby Emilio Gonzales’ Mother was fighting hard to keep Baby Emilio, at 17mos old, sustained on resuscitation equipment for just a little bit longer. On April 17th, the Court heard the matter and extended the hearing awaiting on other findings. On May 8th, the Guardian ad Litem for Baby Emilio agreed with the doctors that the baby should no longer remain on resuscitation equipment and filed a legal brief so stating the decision. While the legal brief had been filed in agreement with the doctors, it is unclear to the reported articles on MyFoxAustin whether or not the baby, at the time being 18mos, was actually taken off the resuscitation equipment or Baby Emilio Gonzales has actually died yesterday on his own as a direct result of the Leigh’s Disease, a disease that attacks the central nervous system, last night, May 19, 2007.

In an Austin American-Statesman blurb, “Emilio Gonzales loses battle with illness”, it is stated simply, “Mother who fought to continue son’s treatment cradles 19-month-old at end.”

In accordance with the Austin American-Statesman article, “Baby on life support dies of natural causes: Mother who fought to continue son’s treatment cradles 19-month-old at end”, serves to confirm that, in the end, Baby Emilio dies of natural causes and, as his attorney (JerriLynn Ward) puts it when interviewed, “God chose to take Emilio at this time”.

It is disheartening to every Mom when their own child dies, much more so when your only child (and possibly your only child ever), Emilio Gonzales, dies in his Mom, Catarina Gonzales’, own arms. Much heartfelt sympathy will certainly be felt by the Lockhart community she and the baby are from, the Austin community where she and the baby stayed for the majority of his life, and communities around the world who have heard of the plight and fight for sustaining his life in the hospital.

As per the Austin American-Stateman’s article, it goes on to say:

“According to Texas law, once doctors give notice that they want to stop treating a patient against the family’s wishes, they can start a process in which the family has 10 days to transfer the loved one to another facility.

 

The hospital and the court had given Gonzales and her supporters more time to find another facility, but months of searching had failed.

 

In recent weeks, a court-appointed guardian for Emilio had filed legal briefs backing the doctors’ and hospital’s intentions to stop treatment. The next court hearing had been scheduled for May 30.

 

[JerriLynn] Ward [Baby Emilio's attorney] said that Emilio’s mother’s fight was against the law permitting doctors to decide when to end treatment and that she didn’t know if Catarina Gonzales would press the fight.”

Whether or not Catarina Gonzales has the strength now to fight the fight to change the law should be a moot point, the legislation in the Texas’ chambers should be continued to be fought for some degree of change because it is likely right around the corner there is another mother having to make that frightening decision of whether or not to continue resuscitation of her own child. The laws need to be made clearer.

In the meantime, whether or not you agree with Catarina Gonzales’, the mother of Emilio Gonzales, decision, she should be put down in history as one of the strongest mothers in the world to have to fight for the right to her son’s life in spite of the dismal prognosis of the son’s fight with the illness of Leigh’s Disease. Hopefully, her fight will not be a futile one and laws can be changed to be clearer, as well as giving the loved ones more of a chance and voice to make such grueling decisions, as well as more of an awareness of the disease and more research can be given to a possible cure for this gripping and fatal disease in the future.

May peace be with Emilio Gonzales as he no longer suffers now.

May peace be with Catarina Gonzales and the families of them as they properly grieve their child missing from their arms. May Catarina Gonzales, also, find peace and strength in the future, no matter which path she chooses (continuing to fight the legislation battles, making an awareness known more about the Leigh’s Disease and a movement for a cure, or any other number of proactive measures in the memory of her son).

Additional Information about Leigh’s Disease:

National Institute of Neurological Disorders

Madison’s Foundation – Moms & Dads in Search of Needed Support

Wikipedia: Leigh’s Disease

Addtional Information about Futile Care Legislation:

Futile Care Debate: Prolonging Life or Suffering? (May 6, 2007)

Highlights from Texas Legislature (May 14, 2007)

Also posted in:

“Inquiring Minds” — my Statesman.com Reader Blog

“Inquiring Minds” — my MyFoxAustin.com Watcher Blog

Procrastination — who me??? ;)

Seeing a blurb in SparkPeople in posing the question, “Is Procrastination Curable?”, I decided that it just might be a great time to write about it (that ugly word we all hate to admit to – procrastination):

“Procrastination. Putting off until tomorrow what you could do today. Is there a more counterproductive habit around? It causes more stress and anxiety than the Grinch in December. Procrastination solves nothing and usually makes things worse. It piles up unfinished business that lurks in and preoccupies the dark corners of your brain. You hope the pile will disappear, but for some reason it doesn’t. The worst part is that once we put off things we’d rather not do, we start to delay the fun stuff as well. How many times have you said “no” to an opportunity because you had to take care of something you put off earlier? How many lost opportunities can you accept? Let’s make action a habit instead. Tomorrow, focus on your toughest hurdle first. Get just that one thing out of the way and enjoy the rest of the day. Be firm and don’t let yourself off the hook. After all, it’s not going away. Follow that one strategy and you’ll be surprised how the momentum carries through the rest of the day. Do it now!!”

Procrastination can often rear its ugly head up in my world…

* cleaning house and decluttering one’s own life (in and outside of the home)

* remembering to take care of own’s own health before the needs of others around us (taking care of others is important, but without our own health in good shape, we aren’t going to be any good to them)

* writing a blog posting on a difficult (often controversial) subject matter

* remembering to have some humor and laughter in one’s own life (after all, laughter and humor can oftentimes be the best medicine in this world)

* delaying responding to a job offer or date because one thinks too long about it

* remembering to love yourself as well as others around yourself

* delaying to buy something that you really need while it is on sale

* remembering to say prayers for others around you (so often we pray for our own needs naturally before praying for others) and maintain the spirituality in our lives

* writing or calling a friend even just to tell them that you are thinking about them rather than waiting until you have something truly earth shattering to say

* remembering to continue to build relationships around us (building relationships is a two way street; if you haven’t heard from someone lately, contact them today!)

* taking time for oneself to have a vacation from work thinking that the needs of the business may not survive if you are not there

* remembering to be one’s own best advocate

* being that part of the village that helps a child

* remembering that we don’t have to be paid for everything that we do; it is okay to volunteer your time to meeting the needs of others

* and, so very much more!!

We all do it — procrastinate on some degree or level.   Recently, I have been guilty of it as well and have begun to take action.  For example, oftentimes, I will just let some ailments cure themselves; however, I have advocated for myself and found a way to get the treatment that I needed most immediately in order to feel “whole” and “healthy” in spite of having no insurance to pay for the needed care.  It took some whining and stomping of feet in an sense to get what I needed done, but after a lot of pleading, it has been taken care of this weekend.  Although the aftermath is currently a bit painful, it is certainly a window of opportunity to feel healthy again.

I have also done something about the feeling my career may be going as far as it may go by, upon hearing of a grant education opportunity to take a new path, I immediately responded and presented my case and won an opportunity to take that path through some additional education.  I am excited about that opportunity and look forward to learning, once again, about a field of sciences — a path that I should have continued some 30 years ago, but got diverted all because of a physics course that I had been advised wrong about.  That is a long story and all a part of history.

My daughter is about to have a baby girl in a little over a month from now.  I am truly excited about the baby coming into the world and have been enthusiastic in helping them as much as I can.   Because of her anticipated arrival, I have been making an effort to declutter much of my home and life so that focus can be had to help them out whenever possible as well.

I have vowed to make 2007 a part of making it about me this year — no longer procrastinating fussing about getting help for my health ailments that prevent myself being “whole” on the inside; no longer procrastinating about doing  something that might help me get out of the rut that I feel myself in career wise; etc.  Although, I love what I am doing for a career right now, it is barely able to meet the obligations for my bills and nothing left over for me.  I have no money available to do as I would like to do — travel, make myself more healthy, visit friends and family that live far away, etc.

What say you?  It isn’t too late to make 2007 a part of making it all about you either.  It is never too late, it is just delayed greatly if you procrastinate too much.  What procrastinations are you going to put aside to move forward in your life???

Escaping Responsibility???

“You can’t escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.”

- Abraham Lincoln, U.S. President

Do You Remember???

SENT TO ME VIA EMAIL….thought I would share it with you….

Not that some of us ever really “forget,” but for those times when we

seem to be overcome with our own problems, it never hurts to remember

those who are going through something WAY bigger than us.

P.S. Maybe I’m a sissy or something, but I needed a Kleenex, you might

too.

_____________________________________________________

The following is the hottest thing on the internet and on Fox News recently.

Lizzie Palmer who put this YouTube program together is 15 years old.

There have been over 5,890,084 hits as of this morning (and counting). In case you

missed it, here it is.

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ervaMPt4Ha0]

Pecan Parkway – Austin, TX (horizontal viewpoint)

Okay, as promised, I am posting the horizontal of this shot.  Unavoidable is the construction going on across the street in the distance, which is revealed more here than in the vertical shot.

Surgery was fine, aside from them not being able to find my veins for the IV.  I got poked many times.  I think it was the 7th or 8th one that finally worked! lol… Told them as one of the jokes I was joking around with them about, if they poked me any more I would turn into a sieve.  They were laughing hard by the time they brought me into the surgery room.

Trying to keep the cats from pouncing on my stomach while I am laying down, but it appears to be healing up pretty good.  Thanks to all for their well wishes!!

Pecan Parkway – Austin, TX

 

Undergoing surgery this morning.  New experience for me so I thought I would post something very peaceful to me; an image I can take with me to the surgery room in my mind.

The path aligned with the pecan trees is actually in a median on Pecan Parkway in NW Austin, TX.  I had an opportunity to stop in the turn lane when no one else was traveling on the road much and captured this picture.  I took both horizontal and vertical pictures of this section of trees aligned.  In the vortex of the vantage point, the tree alignment is actually curving to the right so it appears that they are curving around to meet each other when they are not.

Because the vertical is my favorite of this site, I am posting that this morning.  Perhaps, tomorrow morning I will post the horizontal so that you can tell me which one is your favorite.  If you don’t see me for a few days, it is only because I have had to stay a little bit longer than expected.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Valley of Fire – B/W Exploration (“Ominous Desert Sun”)

Happy Birthday, Shane????

How many ways can you say “Happy Birthday” to an eight year old who is also a cancer patient???

Received this in the email today.  It has a direct link, too, to his site encouraging everyone to massively cooperate and send this young guy a means to get his wish for breaking the Guiness World Records for the most cards received.

The email:

 Shane Bernier is a cancer patient at the Children’s Hospital of eastern Ontario. 

He turns eight on May 30. His dream is to set a record for the most birthday cards ever received.

It will be a wonderful sign of support from the EMS community to help him reach his goal, so please consider sending him a birthday greeting.

His address is:

Shane Bernier
Box 484
Lancaster
Ontario
K0C 1N0

For more information go to : http://shanebernier.ca/

For more information about this feat that is set out before Shane Bernier, please read also Birthday Cards for Shane Bernier which confirms that he is indeed setting out to achieve this milestone.

Best of luck to you Shane, and many wishes for your future “Happy Birthday” card accomplishment, traveling to you from all over the world!!

Valley of Fire – B/W Exploration (“Dancing Shadows”)

Valley of Fire – B/W Exploration

Small Group Changes World!

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.     ~Margaret Mead

Just Give Me a Sign!

A personal story.

Recently, I was talking to a friend, “Wendy”, who, after a long conversation about some issues she was having about the care of her Dad, turned the conversation about me, asking if I was happy with my life now. I told her I was, and then she said that she had to tell me something.

I braced myself for what she was about to tell me because I often have those epiphany moments where I am compelled to tell folks something out of the blue; I could sense that she was heading into that direction as well.

She proceeded to tell me about how she and her friends went on a mission with intent to find someone to attend her wedding with her basically. They set the date, and proceeded to plan the wedding. Instead of getting married on that date, she ended up having found the guy she was going to marry by that date and married him about 6 months later. At any rate, what she was giving me was a ray of hope after having my husband die from a heart attack about 5 years ago. Hmmm… perhaps, it is time to set a date??

What she didn’t realize is that I had just experienced from a guy that I had been dating off and on for the past few years him moving forward with someone else he just met; he just told me the news last night. What she said certainly did give me a new ray of hope.

Then, when I checked my email after getting off of the phone with my friend, I received an email stating….

“We all have a desire to make a difference, don’t we? We want to
make our mark on the world, to leave it a better place than it was
when we came. It’s a desire that’s as good as hardwired into our
DNA, one of the six human needs that speaker/writer/motivator Tony Robbins says we all share. We not only want to change to world, we feel an innate need to do so.”

Somehow, that seems to speak to another decision that I had recently made to pursue additional education and career involving biotechnology and technical writing, in a sense. It seemed to affirm that I am on the right track.

On some days, you just keep getting those “Ah-ha! moments” or “V-8 moments” that just speak to you. Perhaps, to you, as a reader, it may not make much sense; however, what I am writing today may or may not be intended either to make sense to you specifically today.

At any rate, I feel like God is intervening in his own ways today to point me in a direction that I have already begun to travel that twist in the path that is approaching my way. Be it right or wrong, remains to be seen; however, with this seemingly affirmation, it seems to be quite right.

Ever have those days that you feel that you have just been given some signs????

Robert Frost. 1875–

67. The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;	5
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,	10
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.	15
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.	20

May 16, 2007 — A Livestrong Yellow Day???

Heard it so on the news, but I couldn’t find any support of the story linked on their sites; didn’t find it supported on the official Lance Armstrong website as well — at least, initially!!

I’ll continue to look for support of the news announcement on the news sites….

 

In the meantime, though, I did find support of it on a blogsite from a New Zealand blogger that did make reference to it on his blogsite called, “WinosAndFoodies”. He is even sporting a yummy looking Lemon Meringue Tart (Pie) on his site.

 

 

Hope you will show your support of a Livestrong Yellow Day, whether or not it is an official day!!

Many people are affected by cancer each and every day;

whether it be directly or indirectly.

 

Livestrong Day 2007

 

Livestrong Day Events in a City Near You!

 

Insofar as Austin, TX, some of the events include –

Central Market

24 Fitness Locations

Iron Bartending Competition Benefiting LAF

 

 

Just uploaded a couple of days ago, a moving LiveStrong Mother’s Day story video on YouTube….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wpbkCoHfZ4]

 

Here is a LiveStrong Message on YouTube:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibKkOXFZ44o]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is the sky falling, or not, Mr. Gore??

This seems to be the latest blasts from the conservative Republicans and they seem to be standing behind the Christopher Horner (a Senior Fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute) who has put together a book called, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming (and Environmentalism), where he seems to combat every issue that Mr. Al Gore has presented to be true in a very Oscar approval way with his campaign.

Now, whether or not the book by Christopher Horner is based upon fact or fiction, or if the campaign that Al Gore has been heading up during the past years is fact or fiction, I am not here to say.  I haven’t the time to analyze every word for every word; hopefully, some scientists will be able to make heads or tales from what are seemingly, at this point in time, great hypothesis arguments from each point of view.

While I do know that we should be careful about our use of our resources on this Earth, I don’t think that we need to run around like Chicken Little and say that the day of gloom is today, or even tomorrow.  Changing our behaviours to conserve our resources can never really be a bad thing; after all,  we do need to not be greedy with our resources and destroy them for future generations.  However, do we need to be in panic mode and go into alternative behaviours without a well thought out process?  I am not quite so sure; after all, who is to say that the seemingly well thought out process is actually the wrong choice and, in the end creates more harm than good.

After all, we have some other baffling things at hand — like the virus created for the demise of the fire ants, but is it the same type of virus that is affecting the bees and their contribution to pollination, which in turn affects the growth of our  food production???  Stay tuned…

The Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming (and Environmentalism)

Paparazzi, paparazzi!

So Italian sounding is the name “paparazzi” that one presumes that it is all good, so associated with the good eats that the Italians have — ie, “Pizza, pizza!!” — however, a paparazzi can never really be good news.  While keeping some celebrities in line with the social graces by exposing their bad behaviors to the public, the barrage of “in your face” photographers expose what is the otherwise surreal life that we see of the celebrities on the screen, plays, political stances, etc., with the realness of who and what they truly represent.

It is thought that Princess Di was victimized by the paparrazi who chased her in the car driven by her driver on that fateful evening.  This shocked the world and the reality of the damages that the paparrazi could do suddenly became front and center.

I love to take photographs of people, but I respect their boundaries for privacy and the right to live a life without being felt like a fish in a fishbowl.  Their job is for entertaining oftentimes, and yet their reward is constant view into their lives, such as in the movie “The Truman Show” where I am sure they often wonder where their job and personal lives are separated and how they can bring up their own children and have family lives of their own without the parrazi always breathing down their necks, although, I suppose they are getting a litte bit better about that at time until a greedy photographer gets obsessed in getting that one photograph that will make them boo-koos of money.  At that point, what really truly separates them from being categorized as stalkers?  Don’t the celebrities deserve to live lives stalker free too???

In a recent incident in Prague, it was said that:

“On Friday, their presence as they were leaving their son Maddox’s (5) kindergarten in Prague, caused quite a stir, witnesses said.  

Angelina Jolie is making the movie Wanted in Prague until the end of May. It is a film adaptation of the eponymous graphic novel in which she stars alongside James McAvoy and Morgan Freeman.  

On Tuesday evening, their presence in a restaurant in the old city also caused a fight among the paparazzi from France, Germany, the U.S. and England, which almost escalated to violence.”

It was not indicated what “violence” was almost had, however, the paparazzi should never get to the point of any degree of violence.  If they do, they are truly no better than any stalker threatening their safety and right to some degree of privacy in their lives.

 

Anti-Stalking Website

Common Traits of Stalkers

Stalkers and Their Victims

Definitions of Various Types of Stalkers

in re paparazzi’s –

Richards denies using paparazzi during divorce

Jolie – Pitt and the Paparazzi in Prague

Chasing Celebrities CBS 2 HD Follows Paparazzi:  Our Cameras Gets Firsthand Look at How it Works

Woman’s Face & Character

“There is no greater wonder than the way the face and character of a woman fit so perfectly in a man’s mind, and stay there, and he could never tell you why. It just seems it was the thing he most wanted.”

~Robert Louis Stevenson

How True It Is…

“It takes a minute to have a crush on someone,

an hour to like someone,

and a day to love someone…

but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.”

 

~Anonymous

Ten Most Popular Baby Names

The Social Security Administration has published their top 10 list (one for males and one for females) just in time for Mother’s Day:

MALES:  Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Ethan, Matthew, Daniel, Christopher, Andrew, Anthony and, finally, William!

FEMALES:  Emily, Emma, Madison, Isabella, Ava, Abigal, Olivia, Hannah, Sophia, and, finally, Samantha.  

I am not often interested in looking at theses lists other than in pure fun; however, since my daughter and her significant love are having their first baby (and, my first Grandbaby girl) in early July, it brings an added interest this year.  The name they have picked out already for their baby girl isn’t on any of those lists (at least, so far).

You can go to the site and check your own birth year as well.  It can be pretty interesting to see if your own name even made the top 20 back then!! lol….

Tyra Banks’ “So What” Campaign Continues…

Tyra Banks continues her “So What!” Campaign by having a Belly Brigade, which aired on April 26, 2007. I missed that showing, but enjoyed seeing it re-ran tonight on the television.

If you missed it, certainly it awe inspiring to anyone who feels like they have some flaws that they are not proud of; and, who of us doesn’t have some degree of flaws or misgivings about ourselves in one way or another — just saying to ourselves, “If only this…” or “If only that…” (and if we don’t say it to ourselves, we have been told repetitively these things about ourselves to the point that we actually believe them.

It is a “take charge” and “feel good” movement that Tyra Banks started as a result of a little negativity about herself. Well it has spread! One young girl even created a “pay it forward” approach by telling it to a group of her friends on a video with the edict that they each have to “pay it forward” (so to speak) to two other people. If this campaign hasn’t already taken the nation by storm enough, this young girl may be able to set forth the campaign into motion by making two other people realize “So What!” about themselves and take a different look at themselves.

The challenge is – “What is your ‘So What!’ attitude to regain your own self-esteem and image about yourself?”

More information:

My prior posting on the “So What!” Campaign

Tyra Banks’ Recap on the April 26, 2007, Belly Brigade Show

Good Morning America’s Recap on Tyra Banks’ April 26, 2007, Belly Brigade Show

I am a Mellow Chick’s blog Recap on Tyra Banks’ April 26, 2007, Belly Brigade Show

Associated Content’s Recap on Tyra Banks’ April 26, 2007, Belly Brigade Show

and the list goes on and on.

Plus, learn more about the “Pay It Forward Foundation” as started by the novelist who wrote the book “Pay It Forward”, as well as read about others’ who have sparked the continuation of the “Pay It Forward Movement”.

What say you????

Two Human Souls Enjoined

“What greater thing is there for two human souls that to feel that they are joined… to strengthen each other… to be at one with each other in silent unspeakable memories.”

~George Eliot

Purpose of Friendship?

“And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit. For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught”.

~Khalil Gibran in The Prophet

Texas’ Temporary Fix to Soaring Gas Prices???

In the past month or so there has been some emails circulating fast and furiously wanting people to not pump gas on May 15, 2007, but as pointed out in my posting entitled, “May 15, 2007, Gas Out Misgivings”,  Snopes argues that it isn’t an effective approach to take because it merely shifts the day that the consumer purchases gas rather than having any real effect affecting the gas and oil  conglomerates.    I made a suggestion of giving up traveling for our summer vacations this summer and just rely on our own hometown offerings for our summer vacation.  No feedback has been given on this though.

At any rate, various resources announced yesterday that the Texas Leglistators are considering passing a temporary three-month fix for the soaring gas prices by taking off the gas tax for three months.  The problem is that the gas/oil companies won’t necessarily suffer from the long-term consequences of the “feel good” measure, it will be more than likely things like fundings for a variety of education, road repair, and other much needed programs.

Not sure what the answer should be, but there should be a good resolve out there if we look hard enough and, perhaps, keep knocking on the doors of the oil/gas industry to let them know that we cannot afford the soaring prices within the boundaries of our incomes to afford ourselves, and our families, to thrive for existance in today’s economy.

Some of the resources reporting the Texas Legislator’s Proposal to date:

Gas Tax Vacation Eyed

House Votes for Gas Tax Break

Mercado Woman – Xela, Guatemala

This woman was amazing in Xela, Guatemala. She was with another woman that was selling wool rugs one morning at our hotel in Xela when I was there in 2003 for a mission trip. One day, I broke away from the group and walked towards the mercado area in town. I bought some bread from a vendor and she saw me and told me about the bread I was buying in her broken english. Afterwards, she wanted me to buy some of her fabrics from her and I had already been on a mission to find the internet cafe to send off some emails back to friends and family. Afterwards, she was still there and called out, “Katrina, you…buy??? Me made. Beautiful, yes???” I couldn’t help but smile and seeing that she was still there. I bought one of the fabrics she had woven. I asked her to hold it for me so that I could get a picture of her with the fabric.

How Often Do You See A Smiling Bank Robber???

and a woman at that????  A Wachovia Bank in North Austin was robbed by this woman on Monday afternoon.

She wasn’t stupid though as she blended in well with the dress style of the nearby High School that lets students off campus for lunch.  After she robbed the bank, she ran off.  Because she blended in well with others in the area, no one noticed where she had gone.

 

Austin Police Department asks that anyone who recognizes her to please contact them.

First Kiss???

“I worked so hard for that first kiss
And a heart don’t forget something like that

Like an old photograph
Time can make a feeling fade
But the memory of a first love
Never fades away.”

~ Tim McGraw

Do you need subtitles?

This was just a joke posted on YouTube June 8, 2006; however, every now and then we need something to chuckle about. The guy being interviewed is hilarious. Hope it brightens up your day….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpaYu757gFs]

 

NOTE:  If you still need more bits and pieces of humor, check out my HUMOR MEDICINE tab with additional bits and pieces of humor I have added along the way.

On the Subject of Love

“The Encyclopedia Galactica, in its chapter on Love states that it is far too complicated to define. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has this to say on the subject of love: Avoid, if at all possible”.

 

What do you think????

Where in the world is Woodrow Landfair??

LOL…          

Well, it isn’t exactly “where” that you should be asking, but “who” is Stanley Wood “Pack” Landfair?  He is a former catcher for University of Texas (majoring in English and Creative Writing) who has been on a trek to see the world (within the boundaries of the 48 states) in a year’s time to help him launch his writing career ahead of his life path he had chosen for himself due to a spinal injury.  The injury kept him from pursuing his dream of first becoming a Navy Seal then a writer; but, when the injury occurred, he turned his sights directly upon becoming a writer.

Launched upon a motorcycle with a backpack, he is no different than many folks do after they have graduated in order to find themselves and know what directions they want to head into their lives.  A prime example of this was depicted in the offbeat but famed movie called The Motorcycle Diaries where two friends take off on motorcycles to take a tour around South America, where the phrase became important, “Let the World Change You … and You can Change the World!”

Becoming more like a “Where’s Waldo” type of figure of mystique, he has traveled in many states already and is still on his journey (just check here to see where he is heading to next).  To find out more about his journey that he has taken, be sure to read his journal entries that he is posting on his website (www.woodrowlandfair.com).  The journal entries are definitely worth the while to read.

It certainly makes one envious in wanting to go off and explore as well.  There is much to our own lands to see — with differing peoples, cultures, customs, etc.  I love taking daytrips and exploring; wish that would also pay the bills!!!  In the meantime, we can all live vicariously through him and his travels — for now!! :D

Two human souls; One memory…

“What greater thing is there for two human souls that to feel that they are joined… to strengthen each other… to be at one with each other in silent unspeakable memories.”

~George Eliot

Saving the Trees!

Last Sunday, after I got off of work, I drove to different Churches for more pictures of crosses for my Cross Project.  Got some, but stopped in my tracks when I saw this tree, propped with 2x4s all around the tree trunks, then surrounded by wire fence all around with a diameter of more than 6-8 feet.  I thought to myself, “Dang!  They are going to make sure that if someone runs into those trees during construction, that person is going to know it and others are indeed going to know it was very intentional!” 

Austin is well know for its conservation approaches to many of the surrounding lands.  This was a welcomed relief while on those Church grounds after seeing for the past month a large hill being topped off because they are building a ranch on top of that hill just past Bell Mountain off of RR 2222.

There is hope still!!

What is one Bee’s Pleasure is Another’s Disdain?

One of my many fond memories of my childhood is being very little (maybe 4 or 5 – the age that many older adults still enjoy picking you up and letting you sit on their knees). We were sitting outside in the “courtyard” of sorts between my Grandparent’s home and the guest house that was attached to a detached garage (detached from the main home, that is). The yard had a huge pine tree that overpowered the levels of the roofs of the structures and hid the water well from view. Along the sidewalks and the outer outlining areas, separating it from the rest of the ranchland were many flowerbeds that had roses and daisies planted in them. They were all a-bloom.

One of the visitors that my Grandma had over was an older man and a friend to my Grandma and Grandma. I always loved it when he would come over because he would bring us the largest jar of honey that you would have ever seen in your life with the largest honeycomb right smack in the middle of it. I loved picking up the honeycomb and allowing the fresh honey to be dribbled all into my mouth. It was almost tradition that my Grandma would let me have the first taste of the fresh honey brought to us.

My Grandma would have made fresh bread for this occasion and we would spoon heaping spoonfuls of honey all upon the hot bread and savored each and every bite as my sister and I would play outdoors and the adults would continue talking beyond when the sun went down.

Before the sun went down though, I sat on this man’s knees for a bit. A bee landed upon my knee and I quickly got the attention of everyone by saying, “Grandma!” without even a flinch. This man quickly patted me on the back and assured me that, if we just watch the bee, he will fly away soon and look for something else to light upon. The bee did fly away while the beekeeper continued to tell us a story about how he collects the honey from the bees and how the bees were our friends.

Apparently, this story wasn’t heard near and far though!!

Katie Couric, from the CBS News, aired a story entitled, “FYI: What’s happening to the bees? Lots of theories but little proof as scientists scramble to solve what could be an agriculture crisis!” She started out with the story about a Pennsylvania farmer:

“As if by one sudden swoop, thousands of bees disappeared from the Pennsylvania farm of Dave Hackenberg. But he was just the first of hundreds of bee farmers — also known as apiarists — to report a sudden die-off or depopulation of their hives to researchers.

He told National Geographic: ‘In almost 50 years as a beekeeper, I’ve never seen anything like it.’”

and then continued by explaining:

“In short, a quarter of the country’s 2.4 million bee colonies have been decimated or lost. There are many theories about what’s caused the loss, but there is no definitive answer.

One thing has almost been agreed upon: Scientists are calling this Colony Collapse Disorder. Well, except for those who call it Fall Dwindle Disease (the phenomenon’s former name).

A Congressional Research Service report for members of Congress listed the following possible causes of CCD, as reported by scientists.

 

Parasites, mites, and disease loads in the bees and brood

Known/unknown pathogens

Poor nutrition among adult bees

Level of stress in adult bees (e.g., transportation and confinement of
bees, or other environmental or biological stressors)

Chemical residue/contamination in the wax, food stores and/or bees

Lack of genetic diversity and lineage of bees

A combination of several factors”

and concluded with some resources that will be posted at this end of this blog posting.

In the meantime, I am remembering another story where a virus has been developed to destroy the pesty and annoying fire ants, such as in the May 7, 2007, CNN story entitled, “Fire Ants May Have Met Their Match”. They said:

“Researchers have pinpointed a naturally occurring virus that kills the ants, which arrived in the U.S. in the 1930s and now cause $6 billion in damage annually nationwide, including about $1.2 billion in Texas.

The virus caught the attention of U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers in Florida in 2002. The agency is now seeking commercial partners to develop the virus into a pesticide to control fire ants.

The virus was found in about 20 percent of fire ant fields, where it appears to cause the slow death of infected colonies.”

They are now looking for a partner to introduce this virus into pesticides. But one has to wonder if by gambling with the development of this virus that, supposedly just affects the ants, isn’t potentially affecting our bee supply too????

With so much biotechnology being developed, one has to wonder if, perhaps, development of some viruses could also be an upset to our balance of nature. What do you think?????

*******************************************************************

As promised, some of the additional resources for more information about bees that was given in the CBS News article are (for quick access):

USDA’s “National Honey Report”

The National Honey Board – This month’s top topic is the “Colony Collapse Disorder”

Prepared Testimony of Diana Cox-Foster, Professor Department of Entomology at the Pennsylvania State University before the US House of Representatives’ Committee on Agriculture’s Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture on Colony Collapse Disorder in Honey Bee Colonies in the United States, March 29, 2007

Congressional Research Service Report for Congress, Recent Honey Bee Colony Declines, March 26, 2007, by Renee Johnson, Analyst in Agricultural Economics (Resources, Science, and Industry Division) for the members and committees of Congress

Honey Locator

Additional Resources:

National Human Genome Research Institute

When a Protective Order Becomes More Than “Just a Piece of Paper!”

When does a Protective Order become more than “Just a piece of paper”? When you advocate for programs like this come into place in your state!! See the following article…

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Health Care — Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine & Vermont!

Health insurance just improved for 4 states.  Progress is in the making, at the very least!!

Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine & Vermont! « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

If you have ever been to a thrift store…

you know the excitement that can be had like Terri Horton had when she possibly found a Jackson Pollock masterpiece, as shared in 60 Minutes’ posting entitled, “A Thrift-Shop Jackson Pollock Masterpiece?  Ex-Trucker Claims She Scored a Multimillion-Dollar Painting for $5″.

CBS 60 Minutes did an excerpt on this story on tonight’s 60 Minutes show entitled “The $50Million Mystery”.  It is truly an amazing story and poses the question, “What if she did find that greatest find in the world of thrift-store hunting???”  A fingerprint expert on 60 Minutes confirms that he does indeed think it is by comparison of fingerprints on the back of Terri’s canvas to on that is in the museum on an old can of blue paint to one that is found on another known Pollock painting!!

After all, we know that old adage of “What is one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!” (origin unknown).  Often times, the staff at thrift stores have no idea of whether they are looking at an original or replication of a work of art.  They often treat it as if it were replication and put it on the floor with a ridiculously low price.  Sometimes, I feel, it may be somewhat intentional to draw those customers in who are looking for that unique treasure that may put their children through college and then some in order to keep the other things moving in their stores; if so, it is a great marketing gimmick as much of what they do receive in the thrift stores are not so remarkable treasures in most people’s eyes, but that $2 bear might be a child’s prize possession for years to come; and, that joy being spread is much of what the mission of the thrift stores is all about.

Will it create droves to the Thrift Stores?  Probably not.  Not many people think that they will be the one to find that treasure in what can be like finding a needle in a haystack.  However, lucky is the person who can!!

See the CBS 60 Minutes Video on this Thrift Shop Find, here!

For fun, create your own Jackson Pollock masterpiece here!

 

 

Would your blog posting’s title pass Andy Rooney’s standards???

When I watched tonight’s episode (May 6, 2007) of Andy Rooney, on 60 Minutes, I couldn’t help but think about this when listening to his rants about some of the headlines he has been reading in the newspapers.

Does he only read newspapers that he can physically hold on to and see?  More than likely.  It seems that, throughout the years, I remember seeing an episode about that, too.

If he were to browse, though, through the the blogs that are out there on the world wide web of today, would he be just as equally or more critical, or would he be happy with our creativity?

Maybe some day, we will see Andy Rooney say, “Okay, the bloggers who are offering their opinions often about news and other events going on in the world are truly being very creative with the titles they head up on their postings!” Do you think it would be possible????

I have loved watching Andy Rooney on 60 Minutes for as long as I can remember because of his unique perspective on things, even though it can be a bit twisted with that dry, sometimes sarcastic sense of humor. You have to admit though that, as a fellow writer/blogger, it would certainly be an interesting episode to watch indeed!!

“Copyright Infringement” in Blogland???

Last night I was attacked by Snopes via email stating that I had infringed on their copyright by quoting them, even with crediting them through a link for my readers. I immediately complied and removed it, but not without putting in a statement of the removal because it directly affected the climate and argument support of dispelling the myth (that was being circulated around and received as an email) argued in my blog posting.

As a researcher for many, many years (been doing research papers since I was in 2nd grade) and a blogger for the past 4-5 years, I have utilized quotes and provided direct links to those quotes wherever possible, especially if the information was found on the internet, as any responsible writer/blogger would. Some quote that Benjamin Franklin said, for instance, wasn’t necessarily linked only because that information could be available on so many resources that would be too numerous to list and would seem to be falling in some sort of public domain pool by now of great quotes, so long as we make sure that we credit Ben Franklin with having said that quote.

I can see if I quoted someone and claimed it as my own work as being copyright infringement indeed; however, when you quote someone AND provide the link to where you can see the original work, should be only the ethical thing to do. In fact, claiming that the quoted material lifted as one’s own would actually fall under plagiarism, which is why every student is told throughout time, make sure that you not only indicate that you are quoting someone, but you are giving them credit for what they have said.

It would seem, then, that the original composer of the original written article would proved that you had quoted them without the intent of providing support to their written material and/or that the person who had lifted a quote from them had the intent of claiming the material as their own. The world wide web is a very fast structure that is filled with people interlocking their stories with others. To say that one has to get permission to quote someone else when it is out there for the world wide world to see every time that they would wish to link up a quote seems borderline of insanity because (1) some sites aren’t well maintained, (2) some sites don’t provide a contact, (3) even if there is a contact on the site, I have had many, many times that I still haven’t heard from them even months later. By that time, the story/article/posting being written has long turned cold and is yesterday’s news.

It has been accepted practice to, at the very least, provide a direct link to the resource being quoted so that the reader can judge and follow up on additional information about the subject matter if the reader would so like to do so and/or validate where the writer/blogger is coming from in his/her theory or opinion that is formulated in what the writer/blogger is writing or blogging about in their article/posting.

In the YouTube world, they are also being attacked about copyright infringement and requests for removal. While I can understand the arguments there a little bit more as someone isn’t putting up “quote signs” while they quote anyone or providing videos and, grant it, some I have wondered where they have appeared to captured a video directly by filming what they are viewing on television, why someone hasn’t booted them off before. In fact, one goes through an accreditation process when you post a video on YouTube. One would think, if YouTube thought it was a copyright infringement, they wouldn’t have allowed it on their site to begin with. YouTube has just gone through a cleansing of sorts and deleted over 30,000 videos that border on copyright infringements. This video seems to explain the YouTube copyright infringements readily:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4wyWLjiSc]

I feel that Snopes has taken it a bit too far when insisted that I remove what I quoted from them in my blog posting, especially, when I had provided a direct link to the full article on Snopes supporting what I was conveying to the readers.

I know that the laws of internet usage need to be better defined, especially, in the world of utilizing quotes for support in other articles being posted on the internet. Hopefully, they will be doing so in the near future so that other writers and bloggers won’t be attacked as I was last night.

PS. Until today, I hadn’t really investigated this issue in depth since I felt that, if I did quote and credit them with the quoted material, I was well within my bounds and duty. I will periodically update this posting with additional information that I find on the subject matter….

Wikipedia: Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act (1998)

Please feel free to share any other resources to help us, as writers and bloggers, to be better informed and know how to react when we are attacked by emails alleging that we have violated some form of copyright infringement.

 

 

 

 

For a Change of Pace – “A Piece of Mind”

Enjoy!!

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbbfJClypYg]

Provided By:

 

VancouverFilmSchool

View Making of Video – http://www.you… View Making of Video – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5qWG3…
Download sound track –
http://www.vfs.com/blog/2007/03/29/do…
Created by Vancouver Film School graduate Ori Ben-Shabat through the VFS 3D Animation & Visual Effects program. The audio was created by Colin Janz, a VFS Sound Design program graduate, and recently received the award for “Best Original Musical Score” at the CAEAA awards.

Can David Hasselhoff get back…

Hooked on a Feeling????

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfwyuofTdV0]

It seems a shame to see someone hit bottom as he has been shown to the world this week by his daughter’s own video of him. I don’t think that she was trying to be spiteful, just at her wit’s end as she tries to intervene and help her father.

Anyone who has been around an alcoholic, they know of the pain of watching them spiral downwards from the person that you knew and love, and one that you know is still somewhere in that body that seems to be deteriorating as the evilness of the alcoholism takes over their heart, body and soul.

At some point, one has to draw the line and walk away (if that is what it takes) in order to bring home a point that they need help and ask for that help. Unfortunately, one of the hardest lessons to learn in life (because we are natural nurturers and caretakers) is that the only person we are going to change is ourselves. We have that power to say, “This is my wake up call and I am going to change.” Until the person you see spiraling downward truly states that, from the bottom of their heart with absolute and resounding meaning (and not for the sake of keeping you around), they want that help, there isn’t much that you can actually do other than encourage them, provide them the resources to call, etc. They have to want it… they have to crave for the help…they have to have the determination for success in getting the necessary help needed.

Hopefully, David Hasselhoff will, too, crave and desire for the help that he so apparently needs, as evident in his 17 yo daughter’s video of him in his seemingly rock bottom state of mind.

Hopefully, he’ll find freedom soon in his own sobriety….

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cejq10jZ0kQ]

Just a thought: What about…

having the oil/gas companies fund our health care programs, from the obvious profits that they are squirreling away, so that everyone can have access to health care equally???

Either the oil/gas companies will tire of having to foot the health care access bills or they will drop the oil/gas prices in effort to get out of paying for the health care access for all.

LOL…

Sad, but it could happen — couldn’t it???      

Just a thought!

March 15th, 2007 – Gas Out Day Misgivings?

A friend of mine from Canada sent this to me…

Imagine the effect (if it would really work):

“Our gas went up this week to about $5.00 gallon for regular. So I won’t pump gas on the 15th NO GAS…On May 15th 2007

Don’t pump gas on MAY 15th

In April 1997, there was a “gas out” conducted nationwide in protest of gas prices. Gasoline prices dropped 30 cents a gallon overnight.

On May 15th 2007, all internet users are to not go to a gas station in protest of high gas prices. Gas is now over $3.00 a gallon in most places.

There are 73,000,000+ American members currently on the internet network, and the average car takes about 30 to 50 dollars to fill up. If all users did not go to the pump on the 15th, it would take $2,292,000,000.00 (that’s almost 3 BILLION) out of the oil companies pockets for just one day, so please do not go to the gas station on May 15th and lets try to put a dent in the Middle Eastern oil industry for at least one day.

If you agree (which I cant see why you wouldn’t) resend this to all your contact list. With it saying, ‘Don’t pump gas on May 15th!’”

I checked with Snopes and this is what they said:

[well, unfortunately, I cannot provide you this information because Snopes emailed me and stated that:

"It is a violation of copyright law to reproduce copyright-protected material without the permission of the rightsholder. Whether or not you credit the source is irrelevant.

 

You did not ask for, and did not receive, our permission to reproduce our material. Please remove it from your blog immediately."

 

According to them, it didn't matter that I gave them credit of the quoted material for the context of supporting why I the "Gas Out" email is false in accordance to their research. I tried to get clarification on it and, even after several emails back and forth, they wouldn't budge in insisting that I remove everything that I had quoted them saying. It would seem that, when their contribution to the world is dispelling myths and urban legends, they would appreciate being quoted and credited with the URL to their site.]

 

At any rate, I truly wish that we wouldn’t be a “Who” in “Whoville” waiting for “Horton” to hear our complaints about the gas prices. There has to be a viable alternative that we can do to make the “Who” in “Whoville’s” voice heard about the stammering increases of oil prices.

I know that the high prices have changed what I do during the week. On the days that I am off from work, I tend to just stay home, albeit who gets punished really? Me (and others out there like me), because it can be depressing to just stay home and not use up more gas that absolutely necessary to get one to and from work.

In Austin, I have seen many bicyclists travel on Loop 360. They have made an impact on not using any gas when they ride their bikes to and from work. Of course, we can have a bike or walk day; but, that is only effective for those who are lucky to live near where they work.

Something that might be interesting to try is to curtail vacations from being far away to those vacations that are in our neighborhoods. That wouldn’t be just shifting the date of purchase of the gas; it would actually have an effect by affecting the gas companies from less gas being purchased from June through August for the purpose to traveling to far away destinations for mere pleasure. So, perhaps, instead of a Gas Out per se by not pumping on a certain day, perhaps the campaign that should be floating around is a campaign to “Vacation at Home in Summer 2007!”

Do you have any ideas or suggestions that would be equally or more effective????

UPDATE: Texas Legislation Proposed Action – Gas Tax Out Vacation Option

Hungry???

I have tons of photos from my Guatemala Mission trip that I am very proud of to show off to everyone. This is after our venture in Tikal, Guatemala, and heading to the airport. We stopped at an island known for their black pottery (where I bought a black pottery vase) and shopped for a bit. Before heading back on our venture to the airport (which was another whole experience to getting to Tikal from Guatemala City), we stopped in this hole in the wall restaurant. A co-delegate on the mission trip and I had decided we weren’t extremely famished so we thought we would split an order of a fish marinated in a type of sweet and sour sauce (with a slightly different flavor from the chinese sweet and sour sauce) and some vegetables.

When the extra large platter arrived, we were certainly glad that had split this order! It even had an eye on it. I choose the none-eye side; wasn’t too sure that I would want to look at the eye while eating it. Somehow that made it just seem a little tooooo fresh! lol…

Lack of Warning to Residents of an Apartment Complex in Austin, TX, of an Alleged Sexual Assault

I can understand that there is a reason to be quiet about notification rather than send the residents into a panic; but, geez this apartment complex needs to exercise some sense. They are talking about an alleged sexual assault (just because it is alleged doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen; just means that the crime suspect is innocent until proven guilty).

Is the apartment complex going to sit there until all the facts are in? Perhaps, at least, a confirmation that a report has been made (either to their office or to the police authorities).

Are they going to wait for trial before they announce that the sexual assault predator was on their property? Now, that would indeed seem preposterous as everyone knows that the trials can take for-ever to come around and the suspect may or may not be actually found guilty from a matter of 6 months to a year, perhaps more — all depending on the caseload upon the Courts already — although everyone is entitled to a “speedy trial”.

What about the children of the residents who tend to play outside (sometimes even unintended)? Wouldn’t it make sense that the parents be notified so that they can keep an extra close eye on their children outdoors. After all, how can the apartment complex make the decision that just because the alleged MO might have been an adult to adult situation; how could they determine that the predator was someone who prefer children but merely found an opportunity of an adult?

What about those who tend to come in after sunset? Don’t they deserve to know that, while they probably do exercise caution and basic awareness of their surroundings, they might want to exercise an extra set of caution and awareness? How can the apartment complex (even if it is based on the Austin Police Department’s Detective recommendations) assure that the predator won’t continue to prey? Are they really willing to make that risk?

How would their ownership insurance of the property feel about the increased risk caused by the lack of response and concern to the safety of their residents? I think that they would be extremely alarmed by the slow reaction time of the management.

In Fox’s article, Neighbors Upset with Police for Not Being Told About Sex Assault, they mentioned:

“Neighbors are angry and frightened after they say Austin Police left then in the dark about a sex crime in their own backyard. Residents at the Jefferson at Canyon Creek Apartments in Northwest Austin say they learned about the sex assault from the local news one month after the crime occurred. As FOX 7′s Foti Kallergis reports, the sexual assault suspect is still on the run.”

In Fox’s subsequent follow up article (appearing on the site on the same day), Sex Assault Suspect Still on Run, stated:

“One month after a man sexually assaults a woman in Northwest Austin, police have released a sketch of the suspect.

Investigators say last month, a woman was walking her dog near the Jefferson at Canyon Creek Apartments in the 11000 block of Four Points Drive shortly after 1:00 a.m. Police say just as she was opening her door to get into her apartment, a man came behind her, forced his way in, and sexually assaulted her.

 

For the last month, the victim has been working with A.P.D. to help identify the man.

 

He is described as:

 

White male
21 to 22-years-old
6′ to 6’2”
Muscular build, clean cut
Last seen wearing a baseball cap and long sleeve shirt..

 

Police describe him as a preppy fraternity boy meets construction worker. The victim was also able to describe a class ring attached to a chain and a thick belt buckle. You can see the police sketches of the suspect and his belongings in the photos associated with this story.

 

At this time detectives believe it was an isolated incident and even say the suspect may be living at the apartment complex.

 

“[The suspect] said he was very intoxicated, so he could have been someone who was coming home from drinking or something. It was more of a crime of opportunity than someone who was hiding out,” says Det. Scott Stanfield with the Austin Police Dept.

 

If you recognize the person in the sketch, you are asked to call the A.P.D. sex crimes tip line number at (512) 974-5095.”

A few things bother me, besides the story and story’s follow up have been posted on the same day, that (1) the incident occurred several months ago, (2) lack of response of the apartment management to notify the residents about the incident having occurred on the property a month ago when it occurred, (3) lack of duty of care from the management to make the residents safe, (4) them presuming that it might just be an isolated incident, and the possibility that the alleged perpetrator may live on the property.

Because I do live in Austin, I heard Channel 42′s News mention the name of the apartment complex of Tintara at Canyon Creek in their news broadcast tonight and on the video, while the stories written mention Jefferson at Canyon Creek. They are really two separate properties although they have access between the two properties since they are owned by the same owner, which is really a moot point. There are neighboring apartment complexes, residential neighborhoods, and businesses that deserved the right to know as well. As soon as they had the composite sketch, they should have posted it at the mailboxes of all the communities and windows of all the businesses. The chances that they would have the perpetrator by now would have dramatically increased by the prompt action.

Of course, the news broadcast mentions that the victim had just come along to the police station to provide a sketch description of the perpetrator this week; however, the sketch should have been released immediately.

UPDATE: Tintara Management respond as per Channel 42′s News, but blames the security officer for just notifying them of the incident. Somehow, I don’t think that the residents are going to be comforted any by that response read on the station.

UPDATE:  More information and details about the sexual assault crime from Austin Police Department.

Photo Challenge Seeking Volunteers

In searching for a site I am familiar with today, ThePhotoChallenge, I stumbled upon this challenge for photos from someone named Kara (as posted on 2/17/07):

Hey my name is Kara. I’m a photography student in Boston. I’m doing a photo project for display in a local coffee shop. I’m looking for unique and open minded volunteers for the project.What makes this project unique is that all of the pictures for the project will be taken by the volunteers themselves, which enables me to have people from all over the globe involved. I’m making a collage of peoples faces hands and feet and arranging all of the pictures randomly. The whole concept of the project is to see if people who view the project can match the feet and the hands to the faces. And since the people for the project will be taking the pictures themselves, no two pictures will be alike. If you’re interested in volunteering I would just need a picture of your face, Two pictures of your hands one picture of the top of your hands, the other picture the palms. And two pictures of your feet, one of the tops of your feet, the other one the soles. All you’d have to do is email me the pictures and I’ll add them to the project. If you’d like I can email you a picture of the finished project. I am hoping that the project turns out good, as I think it’s a cool concept that’s never been attempted before. Everyone I’m asking to volunteer is being selected completely at random. If you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to ask. I thank you for your time. I know this quite random, but such is life. I look forward to hearing back from you. Take Care
Kara

kara2zmax@yahoo.com

Are you up to the challenge????

 

15 yo Suicidal Death at a School

Sad. Very sad.

Just in! This young girl, at Matagorda High School, excused herself from a band class and self-inflicted a wound upon herself. When the girl hadn’t returned to class, the teacher sent another student to check up on her and found her dead.

At the end of the article, they mentioned that they were uncertain how the gun had been brought into the school. Oh, my gosh!

It is reported that she had been recently depressed. It is too bad that she didn’t get the help that she needed in time and felt that she needed to resort to suicide. No reports yet on what set everything in the spiraling motion for her.

If you, or someone you know, is depressed, please know that there is help out there to help you.

High School on Lockdown After Student Suicide

Need Someone to Talk To? Samaritans are available 24hrs/day

Depression Help for You

Depression Help Prevention

Depression through NAMI.org (National Alliance for Mental Illness)

Depression Treatment, Medication, Help, Symptoms: Anxiety Attacks Depression Test, Types, ADHD Causes

Ruthie Foster (You are missing something…

if you haven’t heard of her before!) Be sure to sit back and enjoy…..

Small Town Blues

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1TpeDQQ7mc]

Another Rain Song

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZv06gTRHs4]

Real Love

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM6JV0XpB_I]

Harder Than the Fall

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3LizKatI-k]

 

 

PS.  One of my favorites is the Church song.  If you see her in person, tell her to play this lively tune.  I couldn’t find it on YouTube or I would have uploaded it for you to hear.

Hanson “Go” (For a change of pace today…)

I remember when my daughter was little, she had been a fan for a while of the group Hanson. For years, I haven’t heard much of this group and thought that they had simply given up on their music interests; probably just being an empty nester for a year or so has me a little out of touch of the latest and greatest of the music industry. While this might not be the greatest of the greatest, it was pleasant to listen to. Enjoy…

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3B-x8GRJXg]

Added some others for you to enjoy, as well, from this group:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuR3_2hQPMI]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9bimWJylT4]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kdgm9_S_AQ]

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDWASiNfCzw]

 

 

Al-Qaeda Linked Leader Dead

Lol….Wasn’t I just saying yesterday in my post entitled “Do you think that GW might have some Missouri roots?” about the catching the bad guys???  Apparently, now, the latest in the news is that one of the leaders of the Al-Qaeda linked movement is now dead as a result of a military roundup:

“The head of al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, was killed in a military operation in western Baghdad, the al-Iraqiya news channel reported Thursday.

 

Al-Iraqiya quoted Abdul-Karim Khalaf, head of the operations’ centre of the Iraqi Interior Ministry, as saying ‘Abu Omar al- Baghdadi, leader of what is called the Islamic State in Iraq, was killed today in the Ghazalya district of western Baghdad.’

 

He was also reported as saying that the Interior Ministry had the body of the dead militant.

 

Al-Baghdadi is reportedly known on the internet as ‘the prince of the Islamic State of Iraq,’ an al-Qaeda-led militant group formed in October which comprises Sunni insurgent groups.

The reports also said al-Baghdadi was the leader of ‘Majlis Shora al-Mujahideen,’ which is comprised of several Iraqi militant groups connected to the al-Qaeda terrorist network.“

Hopefully, this isn’t just timely propaganda and is in fact very true.  *Sigh!* Hopefully, too, this will be one of many captured as we well know that, similar to a bloom springing forward for every bloom that dies on a growing flowering plant, there can always be more leaders coming into force.  All we can do is to continue to hope and pray that the bad guys who are like monsters in our dreams are removed from being able to continue their ill-ways towards any progress to peace being had in this world.

Recognition of Love

“Why is it that we don’t always recognize the moment love begins, but we always recognize the moment it ends?”

~anonymous

National Day of Prayer is Today — Are You Praying???

Each year there is a designated National Day of Prayer. Even Benjamin Franklin is quoted to have said:

The first Day of Prayer was declared by

the Continental Congress in 1775.

“I therefore beg leave to move That henceforth prayers, imploring the assistance of Heaven and its blessing on our deliberations, be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business; and that one or more clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service.”

~Benjamin Franklin

See National Day of Prayer for more details about the background of the National Day of Prayer. See National Day of Prayer (Online) for how you can participate online. If you have a nearby Church, see how you can best participate with their National Day of Prayer activities.

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NENgHYJABLQ]

Loving Everyone?

“I wish I could take what I’m feeling right now and put it in the water system so everybody could drink it and we would all love each other.”

~Jamie Foxx, Golden Globes 2005

Humor Medicine

Laughter can be the best medicine as is often told. Once, when I had a case of pneumonia, my doctor exhibited humor as best he could. One day, he flew into the bed areas with his white doctor’s coat spread out like he was flying in with a white cape — a super doctor to the rescue.
I try to pass along things with a bit of humor to folks to help them share a bit of laughter along the way. Some of these were passed on by my friends and aquaintences through mail, word of mouth, and emails. As such, this section will lead you to various pages full of humor medicine to hopefully shed a bit of laughter in your day.  This is constantly being updated and has something for folks with all sorts of humor tastes!

Happy Trails!!

Humor Medicine « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

The Working Uninsured

A great article posted here about the perils of the working uninsured is found here.  Be sure to check them out and see various options pitted here.  Maybe you can come up with another resolve??

“The Working Uninsured” by John Rossheim « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Do You Think That GW Might Have Some Missouri Roots???? lol…

Just kidding a bit; however, everyone knows that the attitude that many Missourians have is “Show Me”, which has been the motto of their state as well.

News has flied all over that President George Bush has vetoed a bill — the second only during his terms of offices — yesterday that involved in funding of the armed forces; but, also included a drawback of the forces beginning in October. It really should be no real surprise; after all, President Bush has made no bones about what his stance has been about any stance — especially, this one!

I am certainly not for any war; however, on the other hand, I am torn and certainly for getting the bad guys that are a threat to our very existence. If we are not achieving that, then we certainly need our generals to go back to the drawing board and revise their strategies; after all, that is there job — right???

After 911, we haven’t had any terroristic threats on our lands; this may be largely due to our presence in Iraq, as well as some other middle eastern countries. If we withdraw our troops in total, I wonder if we also loose some ground on having presence strategically placed.

Some of the complaints that I have seen from families of the armed forces is that they have been extending their tour of duties rather than bringing in the freshness and energies of new troops. I remember when my father was in Viet Nam when I was little. If the news kept coming back that my father’s tour of duty had been extended, I am sure that I would have been exasperated as well. Although just in the second grade at that time and not understanding the whole concept of the necessity of the war, I would be staying up each night and watching the news with my Mom — hoping and praying for his safe return to our family.

That being said though, I am certain that President Bush has his reasons to continue his stance of maintaining the troops presence in Iraq and in other countries. The funding does need to go through to support our troops; and, hopefully, for a refreshment of troops so that our troops are not continually having their tours extended.

I do know too that there are many civilians over in the war zones attempting to rebuild what has been torn down and helping them to build up a government that is more resembling a democracy form of government. Without the presence of the troops, are we not also putting our civilians there in danger?

I don’t have all the answers and do not profess to know all the ins and outs of the wars at hand. I do want the bad guys to be dealt with so that our threat to our very existence, which is often the basis of the wars, is diminished. One thing with certainty is that President Bush seems to be stating clearly, “Show Me!” that the necessity of pulling the troops will be in the best interest and safety of all. It will be interesting to see what the US Legislators come up with to resolve things in the best interest and safety for all!

Fiona’s Favorite

Wasn’t able to locate a picture of the newest M&M candy package sporting OGRE-SIZED Peanut M&Ms that are touted to be Fiona’s Favorite!  All the M&Ms in the new package were yellow and green – and, were HUGE!! Just in time for the new Shrek 3 coming out.  Check out the BOGO displays in your favorite grocery or convenience store.  I found mine for 2/$1 at an area Walgreen’s store.

Need We Say More on The Whole Pet Food Issue?

Cartoon by Tom Toles.

Couldn’t help but be humored by this cartoon today because it does pose the question whether or not we would eat food produced elsewhere like we do for our pets.  The issue of the pet food problems containing an (albeit illegal in the US) ingredient called melamine, which is actually very toxic, but allowed in countries, such as China.

Maybe organic foods that we produce in our own gardens may be the better answer; but, then we need to take a look at the fertilizers that we use to raise our own food.  I know.  Organic is supposed to be foods that we produce without the need of any fertilizers, but even the Mom on King of the Hill cartoon show demonstrated in the school’s organic garden needs a little of influence to help keep the bugs away.  The trick is finding the fertilizers, at times, that produce the less risk to ourselves and our families and friends.

What is the answer for the dilemma?

Shouldn’t we be able to enforce our own FDA standards on those exports coming in?  If so, is it FDA that let us down by allowing the products to come through with the toxic melamine in our pet foods?

Who is responsible and accountable for all the deaths of pets fed with the tainted pet food???

Is the New Miss America a Fake?

It is all over the news that the Miss America, Lauren Nelson, was all talk and vying more for a PR stunt rather than have the intent to testify to the courts in Suffolk County, New York, about the child predators they caught with regard to them thinking that they were going to come to a home where they intended to have sex with a 14yo, posed by her pictures.

America’s Most Wanted’s producers were quick today to respond and put a spin on the rumors flying by stating:

“Despite the information to the contrary that appears in an article in Newsday, according to the Miss America Organization neither Lauren Nelson nor her representatives have told the Suffolk County District Attorney — or anyone else — that she would refuse to testify in any of the cases in which she participated. We don’t know why the D.A. would make the comments attributed to him without knowing all of the facts.

 

“It is important to note that the Suffolk County Police were in charge of every aspect of the investigation that was featured in our broadcast. The accused predators who were arrested during the taping of this episode of America’s Most Wanted were taken into custody at the discretion of the Suffolk County Computer Crimes Unit.

“We believe that our work speaks for itself, and we believe in letting the legal system take its course.”

Lauren Nelson has also posted a video blog stating about her involvement with the sting and how comfortable she was with the process and speaking with the perpetrators. I am not sure that “comfortable” should have been expressed; after all, isn’t that what Patty Hearst said of her captors when she was allegedly kidnapped??? Just the first thought that sprang in my mind as she was talking and watching her body language and always keep looking down as if she weren’t totally telling the truth or, perhaps, a staged response. Check it out and let me know what you think??

I am not sure who to believe at this point. America’s Most Wanted certainly has a reputation to uphold and they don’t want to be going down in history as staging a sting that was a farce to improve the status of this new Miss America, which is why I am not surprised that they so very quickly posted a statement on their website.

I had, too, posted a posting after watching the sting that aired last Saturday, entitled “America’s Most Wanted Safety Center” under the “Internet” tab on this blog site. I felt that she was being sincere then; I just hope that she wasn’t planting seeds for a PR ploy and wasn’t honest in her campaign. I guess we will soon see how true to her word this Miss America is when she proves the “proof in the puddin’” by either testifying – or, not.

In the meantime, I might be heading back to the blog posting, entitled, “Person of the Week: Lauren Nelson” and see if the blogger has a different opinion of her now that this conflict rumor has started flying!!

Question: If she doesn’t testify, will this put a poor limelight upon her alone or the America’s Most Wanted as well??? Just curious as to what you might think…

Question: Do you think that the convictions of these predators can be successful – even if she doesn’t testify???

National Day of Prayer

Yes, I received an email about plans to have people at the City Halls across the nation for a few moments of expression of prayer.   Churches are also planning acknowledgement of the Day of Prayer; check with your Church for their plans.

The story of the National Day of Prayer stems from:

“The National Day of Prayer is a day designated by the United States Congress as a day when all Americans regardless of faith are asked to come together and pray in their own way. It is held on the first Thursday in May. A “National Day of Prayer” Task Force was created in order to coordinate the event.

History of the National Day of Prayer

 

There have been several national days of prayer in the U.S. before the day was made official in 1952. The Continental Congress issued a day of prayer in 1775 to designate “a time for prayer in forming a new nation”. Thomas Jefferson argued however, that although individual religious organizations had the right to designate a day of prayer, the U.S. government should not have that right.

 

On April 17, 1952, President Truman signed a bill proclaiming the National Day of Prayer into law. It was in 1972 that the National Prayer Committee was formed. It went on to create the National Day of Prayer Task Force, with the intended purpose of coordinating events for the National Day of Prayer. In 1988, President Reagan signed a bill into law decreeing that the National Day of Prayer should be held on the first Thursday of May.

 

The intention of the National Day of Prayer was always that it would be a day when members of all faiths could pray together in their own way. It would involve Christians, Jews, Muslims, as well as Buddhists, Hindus, Aboriginals, Zoroastrians, and all others, of any faith or of no organized religion, who wished to participate.

 

 

National Day of Prayer Task Force

 

The National Day of Prayer Task Force is a non-governmental organization created by the National Prayer Committee to help coordinate events on National Day of Prayer. Based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, they work out of facilities from Focus on the Family, a conservative Christian organization. Shirley Dobson (wife of prominent evangelical and Focus on the Family founder, James Dobson) is currently at the head of the Task Force.

 

The Task Force’s charter is tolerant of all religions, although it does not allow members of all religions to participate equally. The Task force’s website says in their FAQ section: “Americans of all faiths are encouraged to participate in the [National Day of Prayer] according to their own traditions. However, the [National Day of Prayer] Task Force [only] provides promotional materials and sponsors several events in keeping with the Judeo-Christian tradition”. The application for volunteer coordinators with the Task Force lists the following as a primary qualification, “Commitment to Christ. A volunteer must be an evangelical Christian who has a personal relationship with Christ. I acknowledge that I am working for the Lord Jesus Christ and the furthering of His Work on earth and agree to perform my work with the highest standard of Christian faith.”^[1]

 

 

Constitutionality

 

In the National Day of Prayer School Events Guide available on the National Day of Prayer Task Force’s website, they argue for the constitutionality and need for a National Day of Prayer, claiming that the “Founding Fathers did not mean for our government to be separated from our God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob”.

 

Issues of Government involvement with religion are often disputed because of the Establishment clause in the First Amendment.

 

Those opposed to a national day of prayer have established another observance that coincides with the National Day of Prayer called the National Day of Reason.”

Whatever may your basis in need of prayer for others around you — may it be peace on this earth, cures for ailments and diseases, feeding the hungry, saving the children, etc. — it would certainly be nice to see everyone participating in the recognition of the power of the prayers.

Be sure to share how you are going to participate in the National Day of Prayer…

 Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

When EF Hutton talks, people listen!

E.F. Hutton (1875-1962)

No, I am no EF Hutton, but wouldn’t it be nice???  lol…

At least, it would be nice if the phrase that was coined through their commercials (“When EF Hutton talks, people listen!) also applied to me!!!

I had a friend explore who I am over the internet through all of my blogs and said that, “You are famous!”  I just laughed and said, if I were famous, people would stop and listen to me just at the mention of my name.  That doesn’t happen.   People know me only through my “name” of txbluebonnet that I penned for my blogging endeavors, unless they have met me in person.

The day that someone mentions that, “Txbluebonnet said….”, and they stop to listen, then (perhaps) I might consider myself famous; especially, if what they said was all good!!!  I certainly wouldn’t want to take the PR beating that they did during their demise as a focal point on Wall Street.

In the meantime, I continue to blog, often times feeling like the “Who” in “Whoville” waiting for “Horton” to hear me and pass my messages right on along.   May your day be blessed in some way today.

Dangers from Abroad

“Weakness and divisions at home,

would invite dangers from abroad.”

– John Jay, 1787

One Day Blog Silence – April 30, 2007

 

 

 

Silence can say more than a thousand words.

Drug Company Ethics

Just like in the previous posting about UT’s unethical woes of being wooed by lenders who offer special treats and favors to have a strong presence in their offices. It was rumored that the reason that Governor Perry, of Texas, was also wooed by Merck about the ovarian cancer drug that he was trying to make law that young, middle-school aged girls would have to take to help prevent the onset of the ovarian cancer. What might have actually been a good idea, the general public didn’t like the role that Merck might have had to persuade Governor Perry in the viability of the drug, which just so happened to be their own drug and they stood to profit emensly from the requirement being stated in law. The houses of the Texas legislation have voted it down, I believe, but Governor Perry is still convinced that it should be a law and continues to advocate for it.

 

Improprieties at UT’s Student Financial Services’ Office

As much as I like the University of Texas as they are my parent’s alma mater and I live in the same city as the great university, I can’t stand the invalidation of a sense of ethical behavior.  UT’s Student Financial Services’ Office, as reported in today’s The Daily Texan Online seems to be under just that level of scrutiny right now as they have seemingly given preferrential treatment to those lenders who show “strong presence” in their office, especial through gifts and “treats”.

Everyone tends to give gifts to companies that they do business with to develop a relationship with the company.  The thing is, though, while it is a great marketing tool, it can be viewed with improprieties or being unethical if it is much more than taking cookies to all the employees occasionally to build awareness of their own services that they offer.  It is a marketing tactic that companies often use to set themselves apart from the other companies that might be vying for presence and usuability of their own services.  Just a part of doing business.

However, when things are gone overboard – trips, gifts, happy hours, and such are given – and the influence of these gifts influences the companies to give special treatment or ranking of a vendor based on those “treats” then it becomes a bit unethical.

Do what??? lol….

It is often the topic of much heated debates in business, law, and ethic classes all over the world.  Consumables are almost accepted (cookies, donuts, tacos, etc.) practice while others are not.  The difference is often in the value of the gift and not singled out to any one person who has the power and influence to make decisions on vendor usuage or a ranking thereof.

To illustrate this, in the CRS Report for Congress:  Lobbying Congress:  An Overview of Legal Provisions and Congressional Ethics Rules  of December 27, 2006, it states:

“In attempts to limit what has been perceived to be potential undue or improper influence in governmental processes, restrictions have been adopted to limit the postemployment lobbying of certain high ranking officials of the federal government for a period of time after those officials leave government service (so-called “revolving door” laws). Similarly, to deal with the potential for, or perceptions of, undue or improper influences, both Houses of Congress have adopted internal rules regarding the acceptance of gifts and favors by Members, officers or employees of the House or Senate from private sources, particularly from registered lobbyists or agents of foreign principals. No gifts may be accepted by Members, officers or employees,except as permitted in the Rules of the respective chamber.”

Now.  Just how confusing does that sound???  Doesn’t it sound like they allowed themselves a little bit of breathing room for allowing exceptions in accordance with those “permitted in the Rules of the respective chamber”?

While I have seen an absolute definition that can be applied to all, I have yet to see companies try to lobby for a spot in other business to do business with them without providing some sort of gimick to draw brand name identity and recognition for their goods or services.  If they are not able to provide certain gifts, I am sure that there will always be that weasel who figures out a loop hole of some sort that makes their gift perfectly acceptable, even if it is just in the best interest of the company to be able to market themselves.  After all, free commerce is based on the appeals of being able to market freely their goods or services — right???

Where should the line be drawn?  Any ideas????

Texas & Rattlesnakes!

It is so not so unusual of story to hear about rattlesnakes this time of year. People get used to walking around, especially in the recent colder days where folks are not generally out and about walking in the woods, etc., and not seeing very many of the snakes out and about. Oftentimes, it isn’t the snake looking to bite you, unless you are in the water and see a water moscasin or you happen upon a snake curled up and you accidently approach it and/or step on it.

Photos of Venomous Snakes of Texas

Copperhead	Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin)
Rattlesnake	Timber Rattler	Diamondback Rattler
Mojave Rattlesnake	Blacktail Rattler	Western Rattler
Massasauga Rattler	Pygmy Rattlesnake	Coral Snake

One certainly wants to use precaution when walking about in the rural areas; which is why the predominant footwear of a cowboy is generally the cowboy boot and the general style of pants is heavy denim! The boots and pants offer an added protection, albeit not failproof, if a snake does strike from fear of being stepped on or killed.

In an apartment complex in the West/Lake Travis area, a man was recently walking his dog near a woodsy area. The dog happend upon a rattlesnake and was bit. A this time the small dog is still in the hospital recovering from the dog bite. Pet owners are not at fault, but they can be an extra observer set of eyes and not allow their pets go into tall grassy areas where the snakes may be lurking and hiding.

If anyone or any pet gets bit by a snake, one should follow the following set of guidelines until one can get to the hospital:

According to the American Red Cross, these steps should be taken:

• wash the bite with soap and water
• immobilize the bitten area
• keep the bitten area lower than the heart
• seek medical attention as soon as possible

Here’s a list of things not to do:

• Do not eat or drink anything unless okayed by medical sources
• Do not engage in strenuous physical activity
• Do not apply oral (mouth) suction to bite
• Do not cut into or incise bite marks with a blade
• Do not drink any alcohol or use any medication
• Do not apply either hot or cold packs
• Do not apply a narrow, constrictive tourniquet such as a belt, necktie or cord
• Do not use a stun gun or electric shock of any kind
• Do not waste time or take any risks trying to kill, bag or bring in offending snake

Just go to the nearest healthcare facility!

For many, snakes are a source of recreation — rattlesnake festivals, snake farms, and more. However, for even those in the recreational aspects of the enjoyment of snakes, one always must exercise caution above all other concerns.

Have fun this Spring and Summer, but don’t dress inappropriately if you are in tall grassy areas, in woodsy areas, in or around rocky areas, etc. Think smart and be safe!

Check out these resources for additional information –

South Texas Poison Center

Texas Snakes

South Texas Herpetology Association (& HB1309)

Texas Herpetological Society

West Texas Herpetological Society

Brazos Valley Herpetological Society

Austin Herpetological Society

Dallas-Ft.Worth Herpetological Society

Sweetwater Texas Rattlesnake Roundup

Freer Rattlesnake Roundup

Texas Rattlesnake Sales

Texas Rattlesnake Recipes

Rattlesnake Roundup Locator

Rattlesnake Humor

You – In spite of time and distance!

“Look at time and distance as the essence of the understanding in realizing how price-less it is to have you”.

~Ronald Johnston

Who Can Speak Better About the Power of Words….

better than Dr. Maya Angelou herself???  See the below YouTube where CBS interviews Dr. Maya Angelou on the subject of the power of words soon after the Imus blunder.  Perhaps, others should watch this as well to learn a little bit more about the Power of their Words and take their actions to heart to improve their lashing of words.

 [YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n9Pq1LNLwM]

More on Alex Baldwin…

Found this article on him and thought I would share it with you all, although, I am sure, that he would prefer all this media exposure to just go away and quiet down. The author certainly does make a good point in the end.

Published on April 29, 2007 by Ezine @rticles

Alex Baldwin Doesn’t Get It
by Douglas Bower

Alex Baldwin’s tirade against his minor child needs to be seen for what it is—child abuse. Not only is it child abuse but is also so typical of the mindset and the philosophy that Americans so easily resort to when it comes to taking responsibility for their actions. “It’s not my fault.”

Here is what Baldwin said after calling his little girl a “thoughtless little pig” and threatening to come from New York to Los Angeles to “straighten her out”—a threat to the kid’s safety if ever there was one.

“Although I have been told by numerous people not to worry too much, as all parents lose their patience with their kids, I am most saddened that this was released to the media because of what it does to a child,” he wrote. “I’m sorry, as everyone who knows me is aware, for losing my temper with my child. I have been driven to the edge by parental alienation for many years now. You have to go through this to understand. (Although I hope you never do.) I am sorry for what happened. But I am equally sorry that a court order was violated, which had deliberately been put under seal in this case.”

1. “Although I have been told by numerous people not to worry too much, as all parents lose their patience with their kids, I am most saddened that this was released to the media because of what it does to a child.” – The man is not worried that what he said to his daughter would affect her adversely, only that what he said to her was released to the media. He is not concerned about how his abusiveness might affect the girl but how the release of the recording might affect her. Is this man in his right mind or is this indicative of just how much his character is flawed?

2. “I’m sorry, as everyone who knows me is aware, for losing my temper with my child. I have been driven to the edge by parental alienation for many years now. ”— The man is shifting blame and not taking personal responsibility for his words or actions. He is sorry for losing his temper but blames “parental alienation” as that which drove him to lose his temper. No, Mr. Baldwin, “parental alienation” is your perception of a stimulus provided to you through the circumstances in which you’ve found yourself. Parental alienation, whatever that is supposed to mean, is not some animated, sentient entity capable of doing anything. It hasn’t arms nor legs, a brain to think with, or anything else that would enable “it” to “drive” you to do anything. Your loss of temper is a behavior you chose to deal with a situation. (Since he is referring to someone committing the sin of “parental alienation,” he must certainly be blaming the child as the alienator—it’s the child’s fault for alienating him—“parental alienation” made him do it.)

3. “You have to go through this to understand.”— If ever there was an indication of the lack of critical thinking skills in the minds of Americans, this is it. This is something to which many resort in trying to justify their irrational and ill-chosen behaviors. Think a moment to what this man is actually saying: If you went through what I’ve been going through, then you would not condemn me. And, if you’ve never walked in my shoes, then you do not have the right to criticize me for calling my daughter a little pig.” This man is claiming that the only way we could “understand” why he did what he did is if we had undergone this spookily-termed, “parental alienation.” This man is not apologizing but trying to justify his bad behavior. And, he claims, you would understand why he abused his child if you had undergone his trials and tribulations. I don’t have to have murdered someone to understand why someone resorted to bad behavior by killing his neighbor. I don’t have to have sexually abused a child to know that it is ill-chosen behavior. I don’t have to have stolen something that didn’t belong to me to understand that stealing is wrong. How, I would love to ask Mr. Baldwin, would our understanding help us to “get it?” How would our undergoing “parental alienation” help us to understand that what Mr. Baldwin did to his daughter is somehow justified? After all, Mr. Baldwin seems to be saying if we had ever undergone “parental alienation,” we would understand—cut him some slack.

4. “I am sorry for what happened. But I am equally sorry that a court order was violated…”— See how the man is trying to shift blame? What the man is sorry for, I cannot fathom, but I most certainly see that he is blaming the one who violated a court order. Baldwin cannot, at least as yet, just say that no matter what the circumstances were, no matter what the situation dealt, no matter what information he was provided to which he had to respond, that he was wrong—period—for lashing out at that child.

The past decades, if not a century, of psychoanalytical psychobabble has taught Americans that they are victims. If they act out with bad behavior, it couldn’t possibly be the fault of the one who chose the bad behavior. It was “the circumstance’s fault.” If they get caught in some behavioral sin, then it wasn’t their fault but the fault of someone or something that provided them with something to which they had to respond and did so badly.

Every circumstance, situation, problem, child acting out, a spouse acting out, a boss firing you, is just information provided to you. You get to choose how you are going to react to what is before you. All we ever do is behave. From the time we are born to the time we die, all we do is choose behaviors in response to a stimulus. What marks us as mature, sane, and rational is how we’ve learned to think critically through a bad hand dealt us and choosing the correct, socially appropriate and morally correct behavior.

Was one of Alex Baldwin’s choices when his daughter didn’t pick up the phone when he called to lash out in an abusive tirade at her? Yes.

However, thinking, and I mean using critical thinking skills, is what would have directed him to consider better alternatives. He could have ranted at the girl or he could have made a better choice. A little bit of maturity would have gone a long way in preventing his childish behavior.

Oh, Mr. Baldwin, we understand perfectly and are wondering,

“Just who is the child here?”

Successful men don’t quit!

“Success seems to be connected with action. Successful men
keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit.”

– Conrad Hilton

Tyra Banks’ “So what!” Campaign

Tyra Banks’ “So What!” Campaign is such a great movement to set forward. There are so many people out there that have such low self-esteem about themselves. Sometimes, largely due to fitting into the image of what other folks “think” that they should be. Why should that matter???

Tyra Banks often states throughout her ongoing campaign:

“Every woman has something in her life she has to fight to overcome…whether it’s a body issue, a relationship crisis, an emotional challenge or a fashion emergency! Rather than wallowing in the negative, why not embrace the positive?”

I can understand wanting to fit into the morals and beliefs of the society insofar as being good in the sense of being non-criminalistic; however, being “good” doesn’t have to mean that you fit into a size 5 outfit when you are a size 26. Some expectations are not real or reasonable. Insolong as your size 26 isn’t posing any health risks, why care if the typical modeling look is a size 5? Is a size 5 even happy about their lives? Isn’t it more important to be happy and enjoy your life???

Relationships aren’t built solely on the outside packaging. They are built upon what a person sees in the other’s soul, personality, nature, emotions, etc. Those who build their relationships that they surround themselves with (either on a organizational or personal level) purely upon the outside packaging, they are indeed missing out on the relationships that are built upon common interests, personalities, emotions, etc. that add to the reason for living on this grand earth we call home.

Life is limited to what we know of it as we exist in the past, present and future. Why waste the time on earth without getting to know our neighbors and friends and build lasting relationships???

Not sure that I would, at my size, want to be pictured in a red swimsuit with the number of my weight on my chest; but, I do wish that there would be far less judgemental people in our world and base their opinions of others for who they are and not who they should be in their eyes! I am beautiful i my own right; hear me roar!! lol….

If you have a “So What!” comment, please add here and/or submit to the Tyra Banks’ “So What!” Campaign.

Someone might want to have a talk with Dr. Phil before he does his May 4th show!

UPDATE:  See about the April showing of the “So What!” Belly Brigade!!

One word = love!

“One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: that word is love.”

~Sophocles

Alec Baldwin’s Blunder

Seems like a lot of folks are blundering fools these days.  Donald Trump and his spats with Rosie O’Donnell, Imus with his unwarranted remarks about a women’s basketball team, and now Alec Baldwin’s comments about his daughter!

We often speak frankly to our children and tell them what everyone else may walk on eggshells to tell our children.  Even if it were true, sometimes we should use a little more tact.  I’m not sure how what he said to his daughter got blasted everywhere, but everyone has their own opinion about how to resolve the PR issue stemming from his blunderous remark.

This cartoon is no different that was found on Texas Insider:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you to all that…

supported and voted for my bluebonnet picture that I submitted to the photo contest (as mentioned to you in my “I have submitted a bluebonnet photo…” posting).  They have selected another photo to be the winner for Week 4 of the Photo Contest.

I am not sure what they are looking for exactly, but there are always other contests!   Again, thank you, for your support!!

Prisoner of Love…

is the name of an article (subtitled – Shattered by loss and overcome with lonliness) in the February 2007 issue of Vogue written by a woman (Joyce Maynard), who is an author of a syndicated column, who found herself being a penpal with a man in prison.

The article is interesting and intriguing as you want to know why does a woman with seemingly intelligence get involved and scooped into the realms of having any sort of a relationship with a someone in prison. After all, what kind of life can that be? Someone who may never leave the walls of the prison; someone that is in prison for some sort of a horrendous crime; etc. Just like the Mendez brothers, who killed their parents years ago, maintaining some level of relationship with women who are now, I believe, their girlfriends.

Joyce offers us an insight as we begin to read the article:

“I will tell you now one thing about men in prison:

As much time as the rest of us spend going to jobs, taking care of our houses and meals, our children, our pets, carrying on relationships and breakups, paying bills — having sex perhaps, if we are fortunate — that is time men in prison have for writing letters. Not surprisingly, they get good at it.”

I bet! Who wouldn’t be able to master the art of writing without given too much else to do within those prison walls. Strangely enough she indicates that he doesn’t write much about his life in prison. One would think that he would, but instead he talked about his past life, one that he could intertwine with what she could actually relate to — his family, his child, etc.

She goes on, further, to explain her justification for anxiously waiting for his continual correspondence with him by stating:

“I know how this sounds.  So I will say, in my defense, what any woman who has been single for a while probably knows already.  I had been out in the world of single womanhood long enough by this point to understand that just because a man you may be dating is a cardiac surgeon, say, or a tenured professor at some Ivy League University, or a partner in a major Boston law firm is no guarantee that he won’t be a sociopath.”

This is so very true; after all, we hear about very worldly folks being victimized of domestic violence just as much as those neighbors just down your street or in the next neighborhood over from you.

I have heard of other people getting involved with the prisoners, thinking that they could help them and, just perhaps, they could right a wrong and help them to see justice. Truth of the matter is though that true justice is that they are probably still in prison.

The prisoners are called “con” men oftentimes for a good reason. They didn’t get there because they did any good for someone; generally speaking, most of them got where they are by doing some form of a con or criminalistic action.

Oftentimes, they “reel” someone into their “good” side by presenting them with things that they can indeed identify with. With the technology available out there today, they are not limited to just letter writing, unless they have no access to the internet; however, some of the prisoners do have internet access, even if on a very limited basis.

Some of the ways to determine if you might be dealing with a con in prison, one can:

1. Ask to view them on a cam. Sometimes, they will have one available that you can see; however, they often won’t let you see them on a cam because you will be able to see them in the same outfit each and every day. Of course, this isn’t a fail proof system because there are many that won’t set up a cam because of the perverts out there who only want to cam for one thing only.

2. Ask them to send photographs of themselves. If all the photos look like mug shots (or in the same outfit), that is certainly a good sign that they are in prison. They have limited options of taking photos where it doesn’t look like they are in some sort of an institution.

3. Check the times that your emails or IMs are sent to you. If they have access to a computer, it might be that they are with a limited access timeframe and schedule. If you are getting emails and IMs at the same time of the day or night, it just might be a good sign that they are in some sort of an institution requiring a rigid routine process.

4. Ask them about what they did in the day. If they don’t talk about their activities there and just talk about the past, it is a good chance that they are avoiding about telling about today’s activities — they are as mundane as they can be from one day to the next.

5. Be concerned if they get upset or focused upon a particular subject matter consistently. Sometimes this is a sign of a matter that is particularly close to them because they have felt that they have been wronged by the justice system. When they feel that they have obtained a certain degree of a level of confidence, they are going to springboard you into action to help them appeal their case, which is also a good sign that they had pegged you from the beginning that might be able to have influence on the justice system – writers, reporters, lawyers, paralegals, and many of the other occupations can be susceptible to being pursued by a con.

When you find that you are being wooed by a con, there are several things that you can do:

1. Don’t communicate with him anymore; and, block his emails and IMs.  Remember they are the one in prison; not you.  If they are determined to find the person to help them, they will give up and move on to another target person.

2. Report the convict to the police. Hopefully, you haven’t given the convict your home address.

3. Report the convict to the warden at the prison. As much as they try to control the communication, they need to know if they need to pay particular attention to one of their convicts.

To exercise safety in the future from a predator convict (or anyone you communicate with), be sure to:

1. Never give out your personal information — especially, your home address, phone number, etc. Remember sometimes folks can search your phone number and find your address. Always exercise caution.

2. Be wary of those who contact you and want to accelerate a relationship really fast.

3. Always be observant of who you are talking to, what they are talking about, and how they communicate with you.

4. Make sure you can truly trust a person.

5. If you must meet a person, always meet them in a public place. I would suggest this for the first few hundred times. Well, not necessarily that much; but, make sure you are absolutely comfortable with them. Many of the cons who are out and about, can be quite conniving as they are very charming and charismatic. Of course, if he is in prison, he will never be able to manage to meet you in person.

Of course, nothing is set in stone. Just because a person fits the bill under one potential flag instance, doesn’t mean that they are necessarily a convict; however, if there are more than one potential flag instances waving, I would certainly suggest that you put up your guard and walls of protection immediately. It is always better to error on the side of caution rather to find out that your error was not to pay close enough attention to your instincts!

Eerie is the feeling one gets to read Joyce’s article wherein, even until the end of the article, she is still longing about the relationship with this man, a man who will never see the light of the day outside of the walls of the prision walls.  She states that she doesn’t visit him, but romantiziing about a relationship that will never be in flesh is indeed very surreal.  It is sad to think that one would even seem to desire to seemingly give up on the real life to have a surreal existance.  This is not living in the present.

One must, no matter how lonely one might think they are, sink their heels in the soil of the terra Earth and look for ways to live and live safely!  One should never place themselves in a situation to be a prisoner of love; one deserves so much more!!

Got an opinion on Health Insurance??

Check out this page on opinions that I have collected from YouTube about the quality of health insurance and the need for health care reform. Come see what I have collected so for and offer your own opinion as well. Would love to hear from you!

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Sensational Horse Performance

I can’t say that I have seen quite anything like this before. If you enjoy watching horse shows, you will certainly be amazed by this. This is amazing stuff. This video is of Andreas Helgstrand and his 9 year-old mare, Matinee, at the World Equestrian Games. It is the Musical
Freestyle Dressage competition, and they pretty much wiped the floor
with everyone. Turn up the sound and watch this mare dance…she knows where the beat is. Enjoy!!

 

[YouTube=http://beboframe.com/FlashFrame.jsp?Size=S&FlashBoxId=3309347442]

 

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKQgTiqhPbw]

 

 

 

Wordly Person

“To the world you may be just one person, but to one person you may be the world.” 

~ Brandi Snyder

Toughness

“Tough times never last, tough people do.”

~Robert Schuller

Giving Honor

“No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.”

~Calvin Coolidge

Having Everything?

“You cannot have everything. I mean, where would you put it?”

~Steven Wright

Living Now

“You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die, or when. You can decide how you’re going to live now.”

~Joan Baez, Singer/Songwriter

Canyon’s Carvings

“Should you shield the canyons from the windstorms, you would not see the beauty of their carvings.”

~Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, 1926-2004, Psychiatrist and Author

What are you?

“Do not wish to be anything but what you are, and try to be that perfectly.”

~T. Francis de Sales

Destiny Decisions

“Our destiny changes with our thought, we shall become what we wish to become, do what we wish to do, only when our habitual thought corresponds with our decision.”

~ Orison S. Marder

Destiny Decisions

“Our destiny changes with our thought, we shall become what we wish to become, do what we wish to do, only when our habitual thought corresponds with our decision.”

~ Orison S. Marder

Media Influences

Who do you blame when your child pulls pranks and verges on the criminalistic side? Some will be quick to blame parents for allowing their children to listen to rap music, for instance. While some rap music can be alright, it is certainly not the norm of the rap culture who glorifies violence, drugs, rape, etc. I know. I was a parent of a teen going through the rap phase. I think sometimes they are so enthralled by the beat of the song and truly aren’t listening to the song they are singing. What parent isn’t a bit guilty of doing that themselves?

After all, I do remember my Mother taking me and my friends to school for an after school activity of some sort, probably practices for pep squad or drill team. As we were driving down the Dreamland Drive hill and crossing the railroad tracks, I remember we were turning up the music on the radio and singing to the tune of Elton John’s “Bitch is Back” at the top of our lungs, especially when it comes done to the words:

“I’m a bitch, I’m a bitch
Oh the bitch is back
Stone cold sober as a matter of fact
I can bitch, I can bitch
`Cause I’m better than you
It’s the way that I move
The things that I do”

My Mother would just look at us like we were crazy, but I am sure that we probably did offend her in some way who enjoyed such songs as Roger’s Miller’s version of Counting Flowers on the Wall or King of the Road and other artists’ songs, such as, Mr. Sandman, Alley Oop, and so many others that we later had placed into our jukebox that we had in our den. Come to think of it, perhaps, that was her way to try to influence us in a good way. I don’t think that she counted on us enjoying to sing and dance to those songs too when my friends would come over to visit, practice routines, or spend the night. (For those who aren’t familiar with the “Bitch is Back” tune, see the below YouTube video.)

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5D1KOUjzf0]

When That 70′s Show comes on the television, I am reminded each time of this event as we see the introduction lead in for the show while folks are all singing away in the car. Although we shocked our parents at times, none of us became social deviants. Strange how some things we do/see today triggers memories from our pasts.

At any rate…

I was watching The Family Guy on tv Sunday night vying some time before I actually needed to go into work. Parts of it seemed in good humor excepting parts where Meg was praised for her road rage antics and Stewie and Brian at the end were performing a carjacking to get back home. If The Family Guy is not a show intended for 18 and below audiences, then why are they airing it on Sundays at a time when children are still up and not required to have their bedtimes just yet? Why air shows the seem to encourage violent behaviors before 8pm?

It seems that they wouldn’t air shows that were aimed at adult audiences until after 8pm; and, yet, that policy seems to be thrown out the window these days.

I know that we can’t protect our kids from absolutely everything; in fact, being exposed to some of it may be okay in healthy small doses as the child can tolerate in order for them to not go hog-wild when they are finally exposed to the adult audiences world. However, the children these days are seeming to get it from all directions these days.

I certainly don’t believe a single song, game, movie, television show, etc. is going to adversely affect our children, but certainly the culmination of all the medias converging on ideas of violence, criminalistic behaviors, etc, can’t help to influence them in a positive direction. I couldn’t prevent my daughter from buying rap music and other music that contained derogatory lyrics when she had money of her own since I certainly couldn’t walk behind her 24hrs/day; however, I refused to spend my money on the music that I didn’t feel was in good tastes. As a coworker had mentioned that they were, for example, a family that didn’t believe in a lot of television watching, their children still managed to watch the television when they visited their friends’ homes.

All one can do, as a parent, is to try to lead by example and hope that the morals and positive influences that they do instill upon the children are absorbed and practiced by the children when they are tempted by other bad choices and influences from others. Insofar as folks trying to set blame to being influenced by a song or some other form of media for their actions, I don’t believe it 100%; after all, each of us have brains in order to make right and wrong choices. The choices that we make are those which influence our lives, although without the adverse forms of medias being in existence may have an influence in a more positive environment, it is the fact that these do exist, at times, which gives cause for the exercise of our brains in making decisions between right and wrong, don’t you think???

Is this love?

“The reduction of the universe to a single being,

 The expansion of a single being even to God,

this is love.”

~Victor Hugo

Love = Laughter?

“It has been wisely said that  we cannot really love anybody at whom we never laugh”.  ~Agnes Repplier

The Road to Austin (free concert) – Sat, 5/19/07

Pete Earley speaks out, “CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness”

I have received in the mail today at home an invitation to attend a MH event with former Washington Post reporter, Pete Earley, speaking on CRAZY:  A FATHER’S SEARCH THROUGH AMERICA’S MENTAL HEALTH MADNESS, presented by NAMI Austin, in cooperation with The University of Texas School of Social Work.

This former Washington Post reporter, Pete Earley, had written extensively about the criminal justice system.  But it was only when his own son – in the throws of a manic episode – broke into a neighbor’s house and took a bath in her tub that he learned the truth about what is happening to mentally ill people who have the misfortune to break the law.

“I had no idea what it was like to be on the inside looking out…until my son, Mike, was declared mentally ill” said Earley.

Through his research Earley found that 300,000 persons with severe mental disorders are currently being held in jails and prisons, another 500,000 are on probation, and 700,000 go through the court system each year.

Sunday May 6, 2007, at 3pm Thompson
Conference
Center AuditoriumThe
University of Texas at AustinSW Corner of Dean Keeton &
Red River (free parking in Lot 40)

To reserve a seat, please call the NAMI office at 512-420-9810.

The announcement card mentions to go to www.namiaustin.org for additional information; however, their link wasn’t working tonight. 

Immediately following from 5:30-7p, there will be a wine & cheese reception with Pete Earley at Follett’s Intellectual Property on the NW Corner of 24th and Guadalupe Street.  A 20% discount will be given on the purchase of the book during this book signing event.

International Family Violence And Child Victimization Research Conference

For those going to
New Hampshire anytime soon, I have also received an announcement today for a conference about INTERNATIONAL FAMILY VIOLENCE AND CHILD VICTIMIZATION RESEARCH CONFERENCE presented byt the University of New Hampshire in conjunction with the Family Research Laboratory and Crimes Against Children Research Center. 

July 8-10, 2007Sheraton Harborside Hotel
Portsmouth, New Hampshire 

Online registration begins in early April.  Go to www.unh.edu/fri/conferences/2007/onlinereg.html.  Registration should be done by May 11^th to receive the early registration discount.

Love is infinite?

“If a thing loves, it is infinite”.

~William Blake

Jennifer Garner on Pregnancy

“When I was pregnant,

so many people warned me:

‘Your life is going to change!’

It sounded ominous.

Of course, having a baby

is a big change, but it’s

positive.  And I’m still me.”

~ Jennifer Garner

I have submitted a bluebonnet photo….

in the KEYE-TV Photo contest. Be sure to look for this photo in the Week 4 of the Photo Contest for KEYE-TV and place your vote. I win a canvas photo of my photo, when I win!

Reminder:  You can vote once a day for the following week for my photo; therefore, bookmark this so you can go to it each day.  The one with the most votes win!!

Thanks, in advance…

World Peace

“If you want to do something for world peace, cultivate kindness,
stop hating, and have hope for all individuals including you.”

– Patricia Sun

For All Victims — especially, VTI victims!

I have been wracking my head trying to find the perfect words to say to you all this week as one that had been an ordained Deaconess, although I know that no words can truly substitute for what you are feeling today and for the next few months. Then I remembered tonight a poem, from one of my heroes Maya Angelou, that I used in a Toastmaster’s Speech after my husband died. May it please having meaning to you as well while sparking the road to recovery from this great tragedy.

LIFE DOESN’T FRIGHTEN ME

~ Maya Angelou

 

Shadows on the wall

Noises down the hall

Life doesn’t frighten me at all

Bad dogs barking loud

Big ghosts in a cloud

Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

 

Mean old Mother Goose

Lions on the loose

They don’t frighten me at all

Dragons breathing flame

On my counterpane

That doesn’t frighten me at all.

 

I go boo

Make them shoo

I make fun

Way they run

I won’t cry

So they fly

I just smile

They go wild

Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

 

Tough guys in a fight

All alone at night

Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

 

Panthers in the park

Strangers in the dark

No, they don’t frighten me at all.

 

That new classroom where

Boys all pull my hair

(Kissy little girls

With their hair in curls)

They don’t frighten me at all.

 

Don’t show me frogs and snakes

And listen for my scream.

If I’m afraid at all

It’s only in my dreams.

 

I’ve got a magic charm

That I keep up my sleeve,

I can walk the ocean floor

And never have to breathe.

 

Life doesn’t frighten me at all

Not at all

Not at all.

Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” ›

I believed!

“I believed in life.

I believed in getting

better and learning

how to love.”

~ Mary J. Blige

Watch Me!

“Anytime someone has said to me,

‘You can’t do that,’

I have answered,

‘Watch me.’”

~ Jaime Pressly

Mother’s Day 2007!

As I am thumbing through and reading one of the last few articles in the May 2007 issue of Redbook, “the 5 hardest things about being a mom”, I am thinking to myself, “They have managed to narrow it down to just 5???  How can that be???”

First sentence reads, “Motherhood is a major learning curve.”  My, my, my.  That certainly is a major understatement.  “One minute you’re pregnant and the next you’re a feeding, swaddling, diapering, soothing machine, an instant expert in basic invant first aid and the art of latching a five-point harness.  At the same time, you’re a way out of your depth, struggling to navigate a stormy sea of new emotions that are unique to moms — from exhilerating pride to nail-biting frustration. … That said, there’s no one right way to cope with any of the five emotionally charged mom obstacles outlined here.  You’ll still break down in tears from time to time (we guarantee it) … “

Mom Challenge #1 — When you don’t like your kid…(this generally occurs in their teen years when they don’t want to be seen with you)

Mom Challenge #2 — Letting Dad parent, too (it does take the Mom and Dad working together to best parent the child)

Mom Challenge #3 — Separation anxiety (yours!) (oh, don’t you know it — when they go to school for the first time, when the slowly spend more time away from home and more time with their friends, etc.)

Mom Challenge #4 — Accepting your child’s failures (I never saw my daughter as having any failures.  She has had made choices that I haven’t agreed with and she has learned from those choices to make better choices along the way.  To me, she is still moving forward with her life and has yet to achieve all her dreams; yet, I know that she will!)

Mom Challenge #5 — Learning to let go (This has to be the hardest to do as they begin to have lives of their own.  You hope and pray that they don’t forget about you as they continue on their journeys.)

“You can’t raise your child in a bubble, but you can make sure she’s in responsible hands.  Once you’ve done all you can to protect her, it’s easier to let go.” (So true, so true.  My daughter has found someone that they share incredible dynamics together, which has made it easier for me to distance myself and be okay-er about the idea of being an “empty nester” than I was initially.   This is an interesting adjustment because my life has been so centered around her for her first twenty years.)

As I have been through the gambit, especially as a single parent for the majority of my daughter’s life,  I have seen the whole spectrum and am presently at the stage of letting go a bit more as she is beginning to start her own family with her significant love. 

I have been through the storms and the joys throughout the years and a cherish them all as they are my memories for a lifetime and she isn’t underfoot any more.

This year is going to be different though.  I am not only her mother, but she will be giving birth to a new bundle of joy in July.  Although the child won’t be born yet on this Mother’s Day,  I feel that it is only right that I surprise her a little this Mother’s Day with a gift of some sort.   Some may not feel that it is appropriate to do so until the child is born such that we can all can see; however, I feel that is a mere technicality and we shall see her soon enough.

They, too, will be able to have the opportunity to experience the gambit of parenthood whether or not they feel that they are ready.  My daughter’s hormones are getting ancy as the birth day arrives for my granddaughter; I can’t be more excited!  I do know that they will make terriffic parents.

This Mother’s Day will be unique indeed and I am so excited in anticipation of this wonderful new tradition that we can carry throughout the raising of their child.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Ah-ha Moments!

Know that feeling that happens when you go to Church and you feel like the preacher has just spoken to you? ?  Today, it was a similar experience when I went to a meeting today with a room full of social workers after having an experience with my daughter and her hormones.  Did the leader of the meeting hear my daughter from all the way over here??? lol…

Funny how life just seems to present you some answers at the most puzzling moments of your life, don’t you think????

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Duh?? Texas Medicaid Program Ranks 48 of 50 States

Can I imagine? Yes!!!!!

It is what I have been complaining about all along. People say that, if you don’t have insurance, just apply for Medicaid. It isn’t all that simple and this article, “Public Citizen: Texas Medicaid Program One of the Country’s Worst”, on the American-Statesman reiterates my point exactly.

In fact, the article states:

A new report from Public Citizen, a national, non-profit consumer advocacy organization, ranks the Texas Medicaid program 48 out of the programs in the 50 states.

 

Medicaid, the federal-state health insurance program that covers around 55 million Americans, varies widely from state to state, said the report, which ranked states on eligibility requirements, benefits and quality of care.

 

“Where you happen to live can make all the difference,” said report co-author Annette Ramirez de Arellano, a public health expert at Public Citizen.

 

The report said that even the highest-ranking states had serious weaknesses but that Texas was one of the worst, scoring higher than only Idaho and Mississippi.

 

Texas “is the only state that places consistently at the bottom,” the report said. “Unlike other states that have made a policy decision to cover more persons for fewer services, or vice-versa, Texas ranks extremely low in both eligibility and scope of services.”

See Public Citizen for more details.

How Green Are You?

Beliefnet has distributed a quiz this morning via email to take on How Green Are You?.  Take the Green Quiz and find out how green you are.

I am:

Friend of the Forest

Though you’re not waving sustainable-timber picket signs, you do all you can in your buying, cleaning, and recycling habits to tread lightly. You’ve switched over some but not all of your light bulbs to LED or compact fluorescents and wish everyone else would do the same. You consider the earth a sacred sustainer of life that must thrive, but the green fight is not the center of your life.

What are you??? 

Grief Well Spoken

In reviewing some comments on a post on a God Bless Virginia Tech blog, I came across comment #299 wherein they posted a poem about grief that seems to be well on target for anyone that is going through the grief process and seems very appropriate to share with the direct and indirect victims of the tragedy at VTI.

See below:

My prayers are with those who lost family & friends during this horrible tragedy.

I found this poem on the internet awhile back. It has helped me; maybe it can help others.

 

I am not strong.I am just numb. When you tell me
I am strong, I feel that you don’t see me.

 

I will not recover. This is not a cold or the
flu. I’m not sick. I’m grieving and that’s different.

 

I will not always be grieving as intensely,
but I will never forget my loved one and rather
than recover, I want to incorporate his life and love
into the rest of my life. That person is part of me and
always will be, and sometimes I will remember him
with joy and other times with a tear. Both are okay.

 

I don’t have to accept the death. Yes, I have to
understand that it has happened and it is real,
but there are just some things in life that are not
acceptable.

 

Please don’t avoid me. You can’t catch my grief.
My world is painful, and when you are too afraid to
call me or visit or say anything, you isolate me at a
time when I most need to be cared about.

 

If you don’t know what to say, just come over,
give me a hug or touch my arm, and gently say, I’m sorry.

 

You can even say, “I just don’t know what to say,
but I care, and want you to know that.”

 

Please don’t say, “Call me if you need anything”
I’ll never call you because I have no idea what I
need. Trying to figure out what you could do for me takes
more energy than I have.

 

So in advance let me give you some ideas. Bring
food; offer to take my children to a movie or a game so
that I have some moments to myself.

 

Send me a card on special holidays, birthdays,
or the anniversary of the death,
and make sure to mention their name.

 

You can’t make me cry. The tears are here and I will love
you for giving me the opportunity to shed them
because someone cared enough about me to reach out on
this difficult day.

 

Ask me more than once to join you at a movie or lunch or dinner.
I may say no at first or even for a while, but please don’t give up on me
because somewhere down the line, I may be ready,
and if you’ve given up, then I really will be alone.

 

Virginia A. Simpson, Ph.D., CT (I think this is the correct author, if not, my apologies)

As posted as a comment #299
on God Bless Virginia Tech

Monday’s Tragedy at VTI – Mental Illness and Violence

Although people often use the terms mental illness and violence in the same sentence, especially when there was such a tragedy as was had at Virginia Tech Institute. People jump to the conclusion that, because, for instance, the violence that affected so many students and staff at the Institute was so maddening, they often presume that mental illness must have been at the core of the issue. While some of the investigation seems to have unveiled that he had been to a mental health facility for assessment, it doesn’t mean that he was actually treated for mental illness or that, if he was undergoing some form of treatment, the proper treatment was being presented or followed through.

The National Alliance for Mental Illness has immediately released a statement to this regard to be passed to others:

For Immediate Release
April 18, 2007

The VTI Tragedy: Distinguishing Mental Illness from Violence

Statement of Ken Duckworth, MD
NAMI Medical Director

 

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) extends its sympathy to all the families who have lost loved ones in the terrible tragedy at the Virginia Technology Institute (VTI). We are an organization of individuals and families whose lives have been affected by serious mental illnesses.

 

Despite media reports, Cho Seung Hui, the shooter in the tragedy may not actually have had a serious mental illness relative to other diagnoses. But the possibility opens the door for reflection on the nature of mental illnesses—what they are and what they are not— with regard to symptoms, treatment and risks of violence.

 

The U.S. Surgeon General has reported that the likelihood of violence by people with mental illness is low. In fact, “the overall contribution of mental disorders to the total level of violence in society is exceptionally small.” More often, people living with mental illness are the victims of violence.

 

Severe mental illnesses are medical illnesses. They are different from episodic conditions. They are different from sociopathic disorders.

 

Acts of violence are exceptional.

 

Treatment works, but only if a person gets it.

 

Questions must be answered about whether the mental health care system responded appropriately in this case. We know that Cho Seung Hui was referred to a mental health facility for assessment. Did he receive the right treatment and follow-up? If not, why not?

 

NAMI offers below the federal government’s authoritative language on perceptions of violence.

 

Mental Illness and Violence

 

Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health (1999)

 

Are people with mental disorders truly more violent? Research supports some public concerns, but the overall likelihood of violence is low.

 

The greatest risk of violence is from those who have dual diagnoses, i.e., individuals who have a mental disorder as well as a substance abuse disorder. There is a small elevation in risk of violence from individuals with severe mental disorders (e.g., psychosis), especially if they are noncompliant with their medication….Yet to put this all in perspective, the overall contribution of mental disorders to the total level of violence in society is exceptionally small.

 

National Institute of Mental Health (2006)

 

A study of adults with schizophrenia showed that symptoms of losing contact with reality, such as delusions and hallucinations, increased the odds of serious violence nearly threefold. The odds were only about one-fourth as high in patients with symptoms of reduced emotions and behaviors, such as flat facial expression, social withdrawal, and infrequent speaking.

 

Overall, the amount of violence committed by people with schizophrenia is small, and only 1 percent of the U.S. population has schizophrenia…By comparison, about 2 percent of the general population without psychiatric disorder engages in any violent behavior in a one-year period.

 

The researchers found that the odds of violence also varied with factors other than psychotic symptoms. For example, serious violence was associated with depressive symptoms, conduct problems in childhood, and having been victimized, physically or sexually; minor violence was associated with co-occurring substance abuse.

By issuance of the above statement, NAMI hopes to be able to clarify some questions that many might have with any alleged mental illness(es) that the gunman, Cho Seung Hui, might have had.

I am sure that more information will be divulged as the security and authorities perform their thorough investigations on the matter. Some other theories being tossed around is that he was searching out his ex-girlfriend, and, by some sources, it seems that his ex-girlfriend may have been one of the first presumed to have been shot at in the dormitory. While this may not be the official worst blood bath at a college/university in American history, it will certainly be interesting as more information surfaces to see what actually that they can piece together, although the whole story may never be known, especially since not many people knew him well.

At this time, rumors of new gun laws needing to be made are re-surfacing as well as other legislations. The total ramification of the whole ordeal has affected the Nation’s society, especially the VTI staff and students, beyond comprehension and will probably be something to be dealt with in the future, as we have seen from many of our tragic events. Hopefully, something good will come out of the event; heroes will emerge; and a tragedy turned into a triumph. At this time, the “triumph” is still unknown, but one can always hope and dream — right??

April 20 – Virginia Tech Tragedy: Responses and Resources

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” ›

There is no time like NOW…

to establish this is the first day to your recovery from a cluttering lifestyle!

When I was much younger living at home I was a much neater type of person and almost on the point of being obsessive to a degree.  I had a daughter in my later years and, eventually, as a single parent I had to choose my battles; be obsessive about cleaning or keep up with my daughter and my jobs I was working upon to afford things for us.

Fast forward. 

Eventually, I was in Houston, Texas, and read an advertisement about a Cluttering Recovery Group.  I had known that things had gotten out of hand and I went to their meeting to see what they would suggest to do.  One of the biggest things I took away from me was the idea of having plastic tubs to assist in the organization.

Then, I became obsessed about having millions (okay, well, not millions, but definitely a lot) of plastic tubs.   From Houston to Cedar Park and then from Cedar Park to Austin, all of these plastic tubs have travelled with me.  Since I have progressively moved to smaller places, it has forced me to actually go through these plastic tubs and eliminate the need for so many tubs and living with stuff all around me!

Speaking of “Stuff”, I have always thought that George Carlin was always speaking to me (similar to just like when you go to Church and the preacher always seems to be preaching directly to you) about “my” stuff being at one place; when going to visit someone, I take some of “my” stuff with me but, especially on vacations, I always manage to bring more “stuff” back with me than what I had left with, etc. LOL….

The Clutterless Recovery Group in Houston was founded by Mike Nelson, an author from Galveston, Texas.  Unfortunately, he also sustained a fire a few years later (after I had moved to Austin, I believe) wherein a lot of his stuff was destroyed.  It brings into perspective how little we often need all of this “stuff” we keep surrounding ourselves with, as well as humanizes the whole issue in that no one is perfect.   He was just happy that he had already begun to get a handle on decluttering his own life.

One thing that Mike mentions on his website about clutters and the Clutterless Recovery Group is: 

“When we clutterers understand the psychological and emotional reasons for our cluttering, we can stop cluttering. Cluttering is often a manifestation of issues like depression, anxiety, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder), attention-deficit disorder or AD/HD (ADD) tendencies we all have. We do not use the terms, “messies, packrats, slobs.”  These are demeaning and a first step to changing our cluttering mentality is to change our negative self-talk.

Clutterless Recovery Groups believes in a psychological and spiritual approach to changing our cluttering behavior through support groups. Organizing systems are valuable, but before we can apply them, we need to address the underlying psychological, emotional reasons we clutter. How often have you “organized” and found that the clutter just came back? It’s not your fault, it’s not that you don’t know “how” to organize, or that you aren’t motivated. It’s that you’ve been approaching the problem from the outside, not the inside. Professional organizers provide a valuable service, but we have to do the inner work before their systems can be of lasting use to us.”

It just makes sense to take a look at all angles when we begin to focus on our de-cluttering!

With this week being the first day of Spring, as well as being Green Earth Week, it would seem poignant and on target that we establish this as the point of NOW in getting our lives decluttered as we do our Spring Cleaning.

I have put some interesting links to the right under the “De-Cluttering” category that you might find of interest, especially, if you are beginning to explore your options — and, some for if you just need new ideas/suggestions.  Don’t forget to check out the “Fly Lady”; she is hilarious!!

Plastic bags to Green Earth Spring Cleaning!

Austin City Council is considering a ban on plastic bags.

When Whole Foods and Central Market came along more than 20 years ago they promoted that recycled bag, but it didn’t really take off too well.  Oftentimes the bag weighs more than the groceries themselves and can oftentimes be bulky.

A CVS employee mentioned last night when I was checking out with my cat food and candles that he thought that, perhaps, it might evolve competition among the stores to come up with the most usable and unique bags so that their bags are the bag of choice one takes when going shopping wherein their name brand is recognized even when a shopper goes into another store to shop.

Austin American Statesman reports that Whole Foods gives a credit of 5 cents for bringing in a recycled bag; Houston Chronicle reports that Whole Foods gives a credit of 10 cents.  Whooo hooo… not enough of a credit for me to have the incentive to switch no matter whether it is 5 or 10 cents unless they talk about 5-10 cents off of each item purchased.  While I am disgusted with some of the plastic bags that don’t hold much in them beyond getting a small load from point A to point B anymore without disintergrating and the handles breaking apart with the weight of the objects in the bag, I am not sure that I am all that thrilled about not having the choice to have a plastic bag every now and then.

Don’t get me wrong.  As much as I love my bluebonnets and love seeing that the environment is encouraging of their continued survival (for instance), I will certainly do anything I can to help improve the longevity for everyone and every living thing through improving the environment.  With only one hand that can carry comfortably any significant level of weight (as one of my hands was broken a couple of years and still hasn’t regained the ability to carry the same level of weight that it used to), having to use non-plastic bags may limit my ability of carrying groceries into my apartment and I will then be required to make multiple trips to my apartment.

Of course, the CVS cashier also mentioned then we might be seeing more carts & dollies that folks bring in to carry things back and forth.  I do have one of those foldable carts that I purchased when my husband died and I had no one to help me bring up the groceries to my second floor apartment, which became useful too when I was moving from Houston a few years ago from a second floor apartment in The Woodlands to a second floor apartment in Cedar Park.   Now, I am in a first floor apartment to avoid that whole situation.  (It is too bad that apartments don’t put in dumb waiters in the stairwells so that folks can carry things up to the upper level apartments.)

At any rate, this morning on MyFoxAustin it is being announced that there is another “Call to Recycle” Campaign being had for rechargeable batteries, cell phones, laptops, PDAs, etc to the local Radio Shack locations.  This is a good thing because I have a lot of electronic equipment that I do need to get rid of, but wasn’t quite sure how to properly dispose of them.  That announcement was very timely indeed.

Funny thought.  How much gas will we be expending to cart all of our things from recycle point to recycle point?  Will the cost factors of expending the gas outweigh the recycling attempts?  I certainly hope so.

At any rate, it is certainly a good week to do some Spring Cleaning!!

For more information –

Austin Recycling Programs

Texas Recycling Programs

Home Hazardous Waste Disposal through AFD

AFD locations to pick up Austin Recycling Bins

Ecology of Texas – Listing of Where to go for Recycling What

Locations of Recycling in Greater Austin

Other Austin Area Earth Day Events – ie, Shred Day at Austin High School and much, much more.

Great Quotes

“It’s not enough to know how to ride — one must also know how to fall.”

– Mexican Proverb

 

 

“An important part of who you are is what you want to be.”

– Unknown

 

“Fall seven times, stand up eight.”

– Japanese Proverb

 

“Quitters never win, and winners never quit.”

– Unknown

 

“Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing oneself.”

– Leo Tolstoy, Russian novelist (1828-1910)

Did you pay the Tax Man?? or…

will you be getting money back from Uncle Sam this year???

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzLry3ABpV0]

I was chasing post offices for dropping off the envelope containing my extension request because I, after procrastinating for a couple of months, I couldn’t find where I had left that stack of papers! Well, I didn’t exactly have to chase down post offices, but it did take me a while to figure out where it was in the dark. Many years ago, we would take it downtown but that all changed when they built the post office facility on the northeastern outskirts of town.

Being that I generally email to communicate these days and pay my bills online, I have no real need for the post office any more. I just check my mailbox daily for mail still being delivered to me these days.

When I finally found it, the postmen were great with great humor although they had rain ponchos on to persevere through the earlier rain storm. They had a great system down and huge truck heading over to the IRS facility. I have often wondered that, since we live in the same city as the big city for the IRS facility for the State of Texas, why should we have to put the post stamp on the envelope and hand it to the postman when we could drive to the facility just as easily off of IH35 and hand it directly to them themselves. Wouldn’t it just make sense?? Oh, well… I guess we humor them by taking it to the post office and having them go through the protocol of postmarking the envelope.

Although I still haven’t found my special stack of papers, on a positive note, my apartment is cleared of some extra clutter that had been piling up while I was sick a few weeks ago and my crazy hours at work. Hope the event of preparing your tax returns hasn’t given you the tax return blues this year…

If you were to vote today for a President…

who would you vote for? Would you vote Republican or Democrat? Do you have a favorite so far???

VOTE HERE

and cast who you would vote for today. The results may surprise you. Currently one leads the pack, but not enough have voted yet, I don’t think, to give a good idea of who the true competitors are.

Will it be someone that has a certain perspective on the war or on the homelands? Will it be a hero? Is it someone that is spiritual?

Does any really know what their platforms are?

Who will you be voting for, given the knowledge that you have today??

Shifting of Priorities?

LOL…

Am I not alone?  As I read More.com’s article, Fixing the World After 40, I am captivated by the words:

“I came of age in the do-good 1970s, when we believed we would change the world by raising our consciousness, caring for the environment, or joining the Peace Corps. Some of us actually followed through — until we had to get serious about tuition repayment or the rent. Others chose the traditional helping professions of nursing and teaching right off the bat. I admired these women but was dead set on business, ready to work like a dog to prove I could be as big a breadwinner as any man. I figured I’d volunteer when I retired.

 

I’m still working full tilt, and although I’ve served on the boards of nonprofit organizations, I find it easier to donate money than time. But I’ve noticed an emerging trend: Many successful women are deciding at midlife to redirect their energy from a career to a cause. What is it about turning 40 that goads us to fulfill our early idealism? Is it that we can afford to be more generous when we have more money in the bank and kids ready to fly? Or do we feel time is running out and race to (as I heard one wag put it) “pad our obit”?

 

My bet is that by now, we’re ready to make our lives matter more, either by committing ourselves wholesale to an issue we’re passionate about or fitting small acts of charity into our busy lives. These MORE readers prove it’s never too late to share the love.”

While I was raised by a somewhat affluent family because my father had worked hard to make sure all four of us kids had what we wanted and dreamed for, which has had to have been difficult with each us having differing dreams and ambitions.  For instance, my sister had told me one night when we were laying in our beds in our bedroom that, “I am going to marry someone so that I can have steak and mushrooms every day.”  She married an attorney and could quite possibly have her dream fulfilled.  Another sister of mine wanted to be a teacher and she has not only fulfilled her dream, but volunteers her time at a few organizations and runs in marathons.  My brother had told me that, when he was four years old, “I am going to design a car that runs on air.”  While I don’t think he has done quite that, he has been quite successful in his life with work, travel and his friends.  With him being just shy of being the most genius man on this earth, it would not surprise me if one day, he also achieves that dream.  There is still plenty of time, he is in his 30′s; he has a lifetime to enjoy all the achievements and mark on this earth that he has made thus far.  I will never cease to be amazed by my siblings’ determination to fulfill what they have wanted to achieve thus far.

I, too, came of age in the ’70′s; I had my own dreams and ambitions, although my journey has not be quite the simply and paved road.  I have had to jump across many divets and take many detours along the way; however, I keep gravitating towards ways that I could help others.  While I had to keep working hard at bringing home some income as a single parent for most of my daughter’s life, I couldn’t help but find some time in the day to try to help others in some form or fashion.  My mother would get frustrated with me as she would remind me, “You can’t help everyone.”  I would look at her puzzled and think, “Why not?”, although as I get older, I realize that I truly can’t help everyone.  This became clearer too as I try to fixed the marriages I had with abusive men.  I kept thinking that I saw the good in them and I could help them shine; it is oftentimes I hard lesson to learn that the only one that one could truly change is oneself and take that knowledge to empower myself to move forward throughout the years.

That still doesn’t change the aspect of my desire to help others and make a difference in this world through whatever steps I can do to change the world to a more peaceful environment, including the many hours I have volunteered as an advocate for children through CASA and GAL, for the elderly through Family Eldercare, for the victims of domestic violence, and for the victims of crimes through being a Victims’ Advocate (and so much more).  Sometimes, I feel like a “Who” in “Whoville” waiting for “Horton” to finally hear me; however, it is the thanks that I have received along the way from folks that I have somehow made a difference in their lives that keeps me fueled to continue against whatever odds I have had to cross.

The difference between trying to help another person to change and making a difference in the world to change things for the better is that one is providing the tools for that person to change.

In the meantime, I am relieved to see that there are others who haven’t been necessarily vying for that $50,000+ job and have settled our lives in the hopes of making a difference in the world, even if that means a smaller income to live upon.  Some day, I will have achieved most of my dreams and will reward myself with a small home in the country built in accordance to my vision; in the meantime, I strive to make, at least, one person smile and feel better about themselves each day.  If I accomplish that, at the very least, I will have fulfilled my dream each day.  I’ll keep hoping and praying that “Horton” finds this “Who” in “Whoville” and a thousand prayers to bring peace to this world.

Heroism in Iraq – A Voice Heard?

There are times that we all wonder whether or not we are doing the right thing in the world by trying to help others survive when we have such homeless and poverty issues to be resolved here at home as well. After all, many would say, shouldn’t we fix what is wrong in our own backyard before we try to fix what is wrong in other people’s backyards?

In my email this morning, I have received an email that is very profound with a link to an unknown soldier’s/soldiers’ two songs posted on a web page. I am sure that you will appreciate the songs as they are both very heartwarming; therefore I am passing the link to you as well. Be forewarned that both songs upload very fast and you will also want to view the slides going with the songs as well.

Sit back and be moved…

One Voice (ends with the words on the slide “In time hopefully… …Peace will prevail”)

If I die before you wake

Thanks be to the people who made it possible for us to see these slides and hear these songs and the all the heroes behind them.

Killer Hugs???

This week, so far, has been a bit with some craziness — Virginia Tech massacre allegedly due to a domestic violence/obessesive ex syndrome issue. Abortion/Pro-life folks coming to a head on some of those issues. Brought up some YouTube domestic violence videos and posted them under the DOMESTIC VIOLENCE tab for you to review. Some positive outcomes include Lawrence Wright receiving his Pulitzer Prize on his 9/11 non-fiction book and a re-discovery of a FREE HUG project which projects a healthy attitude on things. Why can’t we all just get along?? Thank goodness for the volunteers bringing cheers and support along the way; be sure to thank a volunteer this week!  Check it all out.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” ›

So much violence in the world…

can’t we all just get along???

This YouTube FREE HUGS project is interesting. What a great idea, but do we really have to hold up a sign to get a hug???

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4]

More about the FREE HUGS project….

“Sometimes, a hug is all what we need. Free hugs is a real life controversial story of Juan Mann, A man whos sole mission was to reach out and hug a stranger to brighten up their lives.

In this age of social disconnectivity and lack of human contact, the effects of the Free Hugs campaign became phenomenal.

As this symbol of human hope spread accross the city, police and officials ordered the Free Hugs campaign BANNED. What we then witness is the true spirit of humanity come together in what can only be described as awe inspiring.

In the Spirit of the free hugs campaign, PASS THIS TO A FRIEND and HUG A STRANGER! After all, If you can reach just one person…

Music by Sick Puppies. (Visit http://sickpuppies.net or http://myspace.com/sickpuppies for the music)
—————————— ——————-

PS. The response to this video has been nothing short of overwhelming and touching. Hugs to every single one of you who messaged. There has been thousands of emails from all over the world by people seeking to participate in the Free Hugs campaign and asking for permission. You do not need permission. This is the peoples movement, this is *your* movement. With nothing but your bare hands you can make THE difference.

Imagine all the people.

—————————— ——————
http://www.freehugscampaign…
http://www.myspace.com/free…

Press/media contact:
paul.stepanek@oninternational. com”

Has the Nation Gone Mad This Week?

Shocking is the news of the killings and woundings found at Virginia Tech this morning from a gunman that went on a rampage and killed 31 and wounded 29 with his shootings at two different buildings on campus  two hours apart — a dormitory and some classrooms in another building.  This sends chills as we all remember the
Columbine High School and University of Texas massacres in the past.   More information will be divulged in due time; it is my understanding that the gunman has been killed — either by the fire of the police or through taking of his own life.  We may never know the whole story; but, rest assured, it will be marked in history as one of the most tragic events in US History.  At this time, I understand that this may be a domestic violence issue because he was seeking out his girlfriend.  Nothing has been said so far, to my knowledge, whether or not his girlfriend was among those killed, wounded, or witnessed the tragic series of events today.

Another blogger stated, “It seems, even at this early hour, the Virginia Tech shooting seems to have been triggered (um), by domestic violence. We shouldnt take domestic violence lightly, and I dont think this is an issue that has to do with “bad” men, because women are just as likely to commit acts of violence. Just the other week there was a shooting at the University of Washington that also involved a domestic dispute, in this case, stalking. Unfortunately, it takes a public incident like today’s shooting to highlight the brutality of personal violence.”  I agree.

In my email, I have also received communication about the pro-life/abortion issues.  They seem to want to pinpoint the fault of the abortion laws being pushed actively by Nancy Pelosi, Teddy Kennedy, and Hilary Clinton to allow for funding under Medicaid for abortions, etc.  Whoever is to blame is not the point.   Pro-life activists state:

“Both Pelosi and Clinton are getting stronger and stronger as the weeks and months go by. Every week they are in power, over 26,040 abortions are performed in our United States. Every month they are in power, over 111,600 babies die in abortion. That’s one baby every 25 seconds. Since 1973, that’s over 47 million babies. Babies who were going to be named Jack, Sara, Timmy, Adam, Claire, Ben, Elizabeth, Catherine, Mary, Abraham, Daniel, David, Michael, Salvatore and so many more….We cannot let Pelosi and Clinton set the agenda in congress for the next 2 years and stand idly by when over 2.6 million babies will die during abortions!”

No matter what your viewpoint on abortion/pro-life, those are some staggering numbers indeed.  One can’t help but feel how future generations will be affected by the availability of more abortions.  If you go by the adages of the survival of the fittest, it would seem that these potential children of the world are not given the opportunity to survive; they are not given a choice and many children who could be the future leaders of their generation are lost.  Just think it is so very sad to think about. On a brighter note today, this week is “National Volunteer Week”.  I would certainly go read my posting about this week and look to the right column for some ideas of resources where you can look to do your part in today’s society to make it a better place for living for all concerned.  At least, find a volunteer and hug them this week, letting them know that you appreciate all that they do to help make your community a better place to live, if you do nothing else! 

Sometimes, out of the madness of events, can come some good.  Austinite, Lawrence Wright (previously a staff writer for the New York Times), has provided a prime example of this.  After the 9/11 tragedy, he went on a pursuit to find out what had happened and wrote a book called, “The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11.”   Today, he was notified that he has won a Pulitzer Prize for his work endured to create and write the book.  Many kudos to his deligence and hard work!

Blessings for all the victims and their families, as well as all the volunteers.  May this Nation see some semblance of normacy in their lives, whatever normalcy may mean to them.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

“Inspire by Example”

This is the theme for this week’s National Volunteer Week as proclaimed by every President since 1974, as sponsered by the USA Freedom Corps and Points of Light Foundation.   

I am, myself, a huge advocate of volunteering.  In the past 30 some odd years, I have been known to volunteer for political campaigns, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), Family Eldercare (Elder Advocate and Guardian), GAL (Guardian Ad Litem), Big Brothers – Big Sisters Program (Mentor to Children), Victim’s Advocate, and so much more.  I feel that the best way that we can best help give back to our communities is through helping others in the various programs that are aimed at helping special focuses on needs – whether it is to act as a voice in court, helping to spread messages, being their friend, helping a victim regain their life after a trauma, etc.

I try to lead by example and, hopefully, my daughter will also follow in my footsteps as she gets older.  In the meantime, I have certainly tried to influence and encourage others to do their part in their local community schools, Churches, police stations, libraries, etc.  The diversity of the volunteering opportunities is emense and never ending.  There is always someone looking for some help – some where, some way!!

Please look to the right column under “Volunteering” for some ways to find out where the best for you to volunteer might be.  Check with your local library or police department to see what special activities might be happening in your community to promote volunteering.  Look for ways that you might be able to get involved to help your community today!!

Additional resources about the National Volunteer Week:

To learn more about National Volunteer Week and how you may observe it, visit http://www.usafreedomcorps.gov/about_usafc/special/nvw.asp.

For further information on mentoring as an opportunity to volunteer, visit http://www.mentoring.org/mentor_minute/national_volunteer_week_coming_soon.php.

Does health care truly value society??

Amazing today about the whole issue a level of quality of care being available to one and all alike in our society has to be an issue at all in today’s society. Read under my HEALTHCARE NOTES tab about this very issue that I discussed with my father today over a brunch we had while my parents were in town. The health insurance companies only advocate for those who pay them; where is the advocate that will advocate for those who aren’t offered the option of the health insurance benefit or they are unable to afford to pay for health insurance on their own. Even Medicaid doesn’t seem to cover all that are left out and only cover those under some restrictive poverty guidelines. There is seemingly a hole in the system (perhaps, many holes) and it should be addressed as soon as possible. Let me know what you might think…

It’s Official – Bluebonnet 2007 Photos…

presented in a RockYou format. This certainly has to be one of the best years despite, or because, of the strange weather we had this winter and spring. Check it out…. Bluebonnets (and wildflowers) 2007!

Thoughts on a Saturday…

I am working two shifts today and writing this in between calls and multi-tasking with other things that I am working on as well. The fact that I am able to do this is good because that means that there aren’t as many crisis callers today.

Yesterday was a wonderful day spent looking for bluebonnet photo opportunities, as well as photos for my Cross Project. The Cross Project was interesting as I was welcomed by many Churches (not of my own faith denomination) to go into their Churches and take photos. As such, I met a lot of interesting folks along the way. (The Cross Project photos have been updated, although I have a few more to add later when I create a page for my bluebonnet photos I took yesterday.) The icing on the cake was having fajitas with my daughter and her significant love. I had so much fun there.

This morning, at work, we encouraged one of our coworkers to go home because she was sounding sickly. Another coworker came in a bit later. When we told him that we had encouraged the other coworker to go home, he shared with us a story about being in the subways in NYC. He stated that a very determined woman was walking through the subways pushing her way through, all the while spraying lysol ahead of her just to make sure that she wasn’t going to get sick! Sometimes, I feel like that at times; being sick is no fun indeed, although I don’t get sick too often.

On another note, today is sunny and very windy. North Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth area) had two tornados hit last night. While it is windy here in Austin (central Texas), it is very nice out there and doesn’t appear to be the type with tornado capacity; hopefully, it will remain to be a very nice day. We need that for a change!! I am also sure that the SafePlace Walk this morning is very appreciative of the wind and sun; it certainly makes for beautiful weather to walk in and make an impact on awareness for domestic violence and sexual assault programs. I am envious; it looks gorgeous outside of the window in our office.

Okay… just completed the Bluebonnet Project!  Check it out!

Cross Project & Bluebonnet Search

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” › Create New Post — WordPress

Got back this afternoon from my adventure of my ritual, traditional bluebonnet photo hunt this morning. Went along 620, to Hwy 71, to 281 and through Marble Falls, Burnet, to 29 and through Bertram and Liberty Hill, to 183 and through Leander and Cedar Park, to wiggling back to 620 to head back home. Along the way I got some pictures for my Cross Project.

I have updated the page with the Cross Project on it. Check it out!!

I will be updating with photos from my Bluebonnet tour, which ended up getting a lot of other wildflowers as well this year at some phenomenal places, later tonight or sometime tomorrow.

Although we were threatened with thunderstorms, hail storms, and possible tornados in the area, they still haven’t arrived just yet. Sun is shinning and it has been a beautiful day after all. Glad I didn’t let the forecast from the weathermen this morning keep me from getting out and about today. I think you will agree that some of these photos are just awesome.

Check back for the bluebonnet photos; however, enjoy the Cross Project photos in the meantime!

More soon!

It’s my birthday!

Yep. I am 48 years young today!! Unfortunately, the typical aches and pains are here as one gets older. Taking my Aleve now! lol…

Today is also my designated traditional bluebonnet hunt day. This afternoon’s weather is supposed to be not quite so good today – with promises of thunderstorms and possible tornados and hailstorms. So, I am changing clothes soon to head out to take advantage of the non-thunderstorm weather as much as possible.

Will be having dinner tonight with my daughter and her significant love. They are making fajitas — yummmy!! My parents will be in town for a conference this weekend; I’m looking forward to catching up with them as well.

I will try to upload bluebonnet photos tonight; if not, I will be doing so at some point in time tomorrow.

May everyone be blessed…

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Check out pictures from last year’s SafePlace Walk (2006) to see the excitement and fun that you will have at this year’s Safe Place Walk (2007) who raises funds for domestic violence and sexual assault programs in the Austin area. See you all there on Saturday, April 14th!

| View Show | Create Your Own

Don’t forget to also check out my Cross Project that I am working upon as well. It is a collection of photos of crosses that I am, currently, finding throughout the Greater Austin Area.   I am seeking out a publication commitment as well for part of this project.  Any ideas/suggestions, please let me know.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

So much was added today.  More shopping links, Radio-Television-Film links, interesting links on self help and domestic violence issues, Webby Award links and so much more were added.  I added a Sunrise Thoughts article, as well as an article about being careful regarding Imus, a tragic death of a 7 yr old who had been shot while jumping on a trampoline and some personal humorous antedotes of my needing to be careful as well.  Check out my garden flower photos as well.  I just might add some of my Cross Project photos by tomorrow afternoon.  

Being Careful – Theme for the Day?

Imus leads the pack in being careful, without doubt.  It was announced today that MSNBC that they will cancel running the simulcast of his show as the sponsors for the advertising have pulled their ads; they may sponsor again at a later time, but not for Imus’ show.  Sometimes, one has to wonder if these folks ever had Mom’s who told them that they “must think before you speak” while they were growing up.   After all, as my Mom would continue, “it just doesn’t show your intelligience, if you don’t think before you speak”.  I know that some people are simply not raised the same as others, but you would hope and pray that there would be much more cooth than that!  At any rate….

In Hays County, a rural county south of the Austin area, horror swept throughout the 5-county region, if not across the nation, as Daniel Galicia, a 7 year old boy, was shot to death while jumping on a trampoline with his friends.  The man who shot the boy claimed that he had been shooting at a target at his own home with his new 22 gauge rifle.  He told the authorities that he thought all his bullets had hit the target; he had no idea that any of his bullets had strayed and certainly didn’t think that they would have hit anything beyond the target.  Apparently, he might not have thought that the children would have been playing in a community in a rural county where the houses were somewhat close together, about 1/3 a mile apart.  The 37 year old man has been charged with manslaughter, a second degree felony that has a maximum sentence of 20 years.  Sometimes, while even being in the country/rural environment one should just use a bit of common sense.

On a lighter note, I need to be a bit careful myself! 

This afternoon after getting off work and running some errands, I stopped by my home to rest up a bit before heading back to work for an 8 hr shift this evening.  I put up some candles that I bought, checked some of my emails, and laid down to rest up.  After some tossing and turning after an ever so brief of a nap, I decided that I would continue my pursuit of photos of flowers and crosses for an upcoming photo project I am working upon.  I turned upside my home looking for my keys as I was getting ready to leave.  Nowhere to be found!  I even asked Gibson and Moobaby (my cats) where in the world have they moved my keys and they looked at me with a very puzzled look.  A lot of help they were!!   After exasperation, I went to look at the front door.  There they were!!  They were still in the door where I left them as I unlocked the door and carried in the store bought items.  Gracious!!  Thank goodness my neighbors are honest.

I got to the gardens where I wanted to take some of my flower photos.  I succeeded in taking some of them; however, my batteries died.    I was trying to travel light while hiking through the gardens.  *Sigh*  I best not forget my batteries on Friday when I head out on my Bluebonnet Adventure!!

In the meantime, please enjoy some of the garden photos that I did manage to take before my batteries died in the camera….

Received in Email — Dog’s Diary vs Cat’s Diary

Just for a bit of humor today…. 

The Dog’s Diary

8:00 am – Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am – A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am – A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am – Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 pm – Milk bones! My favorite thing!
1:00 pm – Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 pm – Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 pm – Dinner! My favorite thing!
7:00 pm – Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 pm – Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 pm – Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

The Cat’s Diary

Day 983 of my captivity. My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates my capabilities. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a “good little hunter” I am. Bastards! There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of “allergies.” I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage. Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow, but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released, and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded. The bird must be an informant. I observe him communicate with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now…

Sunrise Thoughts…

I don’t normally write so early in the morning, but I had worked last night until 11:15p and had to be back here at 7a to help cover for some folks attending a meeting; hence, the ability to have some sunrise thoughts.

At any rate, I thought you would enjoy a small antedote about what I discovered when I went home last night.  I walked into my home only to discover that my home (inside) had been “T.P.’d” (toilet papered).  My mistake began with (1) taking a roll of toilet paper out from under the master bath sink (intending to take it to the guest bath) but never quite making it to the guest bath, and (2) leaving my bedroom door open when I left for the day yesterday.  This gave my two cats ample opportunity to romp and play in additional space in my home yesterday; much more space to explore and get into trouble!!  One (or both) the cats knocked down the toilet paper from the sink counter and let it roll throughout the home.  Don’t know who to blame so I scoffed at both of them as I am walking throughout my home to pick up toilet paper from everywhere and just let it be.  After all, it was partially my fault.

Oh, if you haven’t checked it out already, there is a site that you should really check out.  I added I Spy With My Little Eye last night, but you may not have noticed it right away.  The site is a dutch group focused on domestic violence is one of 5 non-profit sites that won the 11th Annual Webby Award this year.  Check I Spy With My Little Eye out when you can.  It will surely amaze you.

Thank goodness for Chick-Fil-A.  I was able to pick up a bagel with ckicken and egg, hashbrowns, and a large Diet Dr. Pepper to help fuel my energy this morning.  More later.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Lots went on today besides adding a lot more resource links to the page, as well as linking up some blogger pages that I have found interesting.  Check out the YouTubes about a strong parent and the miniture earth; some extemely moving videos.  Speaking of videos I found some that did a parody about being “Christian” vs a “Christ Follower”.  Pretty interesting.  Don’t forget to take a look at the latest blog posting on some Bits and Pieces of thoughts wherein I mentioned things about exercising on a recumbant bicycle, Emilio, and Larry Birkhead. 

Bits and Pieces of Thoughts of the Day…

Today, I crossed one of my fears.  I had been given a recumbant bike by a person that put it in the online classifieds for free.  I wanted it because I thought with my knee problems I would be able to do that in my home and not have such high impact on my knees so that I could get regular exercise.  I got it, probably closer to a year ago.  It took a while for me to get it into the home because it was a bit heavy and cumbersome.  Finally, I got it in the home, but then I have moved it around in my home; trying to find the best location for it.  For the past few months, it has been sitting parrallel to the couches and directly in front of the tv.  Procrastination has been working its charm and I put a bunch of fears into my head — seemingly very unnecessary fears.  One of the greatest fears was that it would hurt my knees as I cycled the peddles; boy, I was wrong!  Okay.  Now the next hurdle is to set up a schedule of riding it each day — maybe even several times a day.  I have to remember to take one step at a time though.

Emilio was granted an extended life by the Travis County Courts to try to find other hospitals willing to continue this 17 month old’s life as it stands today — on resucitation.  Folks are questioning the quality of this boy’s life while others say that people have been left on resucitation means for lots longer than this young boy has been.

Larry Birkhead is Anna Nicole’s baby’s true father per DNA results.  Personally, I am relieved.  He seems to be much more level headed than anyone else in the spectrum and will, hopefully, not let the money get in the way of raising the daughter in as little limelight as possible; something that her Mom didn’t ever had the chance of doing.

Just thought I would share a joy with you…

These are some Lillies that I have received for a combination Happy Easter and Happy Birthday that I have enjoyed the last few days on up until my birthday on the 13th. They arrived in a box via FTD.com; first time I have ever received flowers in a box!! lol….

Aren’t they beautiful????

Get Ready to be Moved…

by this YouTube video about “The Miniture Earth”:

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C-u6kdHuXE]

(Below is the same video with music)

[YouTube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIUCTbi_XZs]

Strong Parents

Go to the SPIRITUAL GROWTH tab and see the entry made about Strong Parents. Trust me, you will indeed be moved!

The weather has been most unusual this year…

and the Lake Travis Vet Clinic had something to say about it!!

So many new links added over the weekend…

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

The site has been updated with additional domestic violence, stalking, sexual assault, healthy living, teen dating helps and sites, as well as a links to articles on domestic violence, predator safety, child internet protection, and so much more.  Come take a look and explore.  While the site is still under constant construction, it is shaping up with a lot of useful information, spiritual guidance, and self-help sites.

Texas Bluebonnet Collections…

are getting nestled in my decor slowly but surely.  Although my passion is bluebonnets, I am trying to be careful to not get too carried away with everything turning into bluebonnets around me.  Check out the BLUEBONNET HUNTS tab above and view my Texas Bluebonnet Decor page with some of the decorations that I have intertwined into my own decor.  See what you think as I continually add more decorations.

Scores of Resources Added…

in the Worldly Inquiring Mind site.  I have updated this site within the last few days with a variety of resources concerning advocacy and self help, shopping, healthy living, Texas history, Texas Travel, Publishing, Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, Missing Children, Spiritual Growth and oh so much more.  Be sure to come and explore soon what you might be missing!!

Texas’ Missing Children Center Announced

This past week First Lady Laura Bush announced the decision of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to open up a Regional Office which is to become one of the hubs for the organizations efforts to find missing and exploited children, many of who are missing from the Texas area as well. I am excited because it is a proactive measure to combat this problem, as well as other related issues.

Check out my new tab above entitled, TEXAS’ MISSING CHILDREN CENTER, to see my ongoing updates regarding this new center and its efforts.

Healthy Viewpoint on Prayer?

This page on the website is an amazing story about an amazing woman that has gone through great odds and adversities above and beyond what most people go through in a lifetime.  Please read her story under the HEALTHCARE NOTES tab and be braced for a moment of awe, and then some!

When little girls dream…

Please feel free to go to the SPIRITUAL GROWTH tab and check out the most recent addition of a story about dreaming and aspiring to be something when grown up. It is a light-hearted short story about my own aspirations and dreams as a child. Enjoy!

Who is responsible for domestic violence?

Check out the DOMESTIC VIOLENCE tab here for a page written about the CIRCLE OF ACCOUNTABILITY, along with a video, entailing some ideas/suggestions about the responsibilities of everyone in the “village”.  Where does domestic violence end?

Book Captivity ;)

“Be you writer or reader, it is very pleasant to run away in a book.”

~ Jean Craighead George

Red Flag Awareness Goes YouTube! « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Red Flag Awareness Goes YouTube! « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

YouTube is often utilized by many folks to make silly videos about this and that — sometimes sharing songs, movies, quips about their likes or dislikes and so much more.  Organizations, such as Texas Council for Family Violence are also utilizing this web tool creatively to get their message out and advocate for healthy dating relationships.  Check out the article on the DOMESTIC VIOLENCE tab and see what I mean.

Domestic Violence Guidance from Pastors?

It is tough enough for a victim of domestic violence to struggle with being in an emotional, mental and/or physical form(s) of domestic violence, but to also struggle with the religious beliefs as well can be a whole another story, especially as the victim asks oneself, “Why? If there is truly a God out there, why am I being harmed? What did I do so bad to deserve such a wretched life?”, along with many other questions. The victim is pushed into believing that they deserve to be harmed and that there is no one, not even a God, that could save them.

Check out this posting on the Domestic Violence tab/page and see what I mean. Also, see what some people are actively doing out there to change things where domestic violence victims can feel welcomed to seek refuge — even in the Church!

Weight loss is Spiritually Led? « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Weight loss is Spiritually Led? « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Doctors have a variety of opinions on weight loss.  Many of them attribute it to food intake and/or lack of exercise.  Dr. Kara Davis has a viewpoint that it is related to one’s spirituallity and has written about it in her book, Spiritual Secrets to Weight Loss.  You be the judge and take a look at what she says it is cultivated upon.  Do you agree or disagree?  Comments are appreciated.

GodTube Brings Spirituality Home « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

GodTube Brings Spirituality Home « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Amazing.  Once there has been known to the world YouTube, now there is GodTube!  What an amazing work of art to have the world be able to explore spirituality through various assortments of videos.  I have added some links to some songs that are sung by the ever talented and blessed musician, Chris Tomlin.  Enjoy!!

Healthcare Notes « Worldly Inquiring Mind

Healthcare Notes « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

It frustrates me to no end that health care is available to those “haves” and not so much to the “have nots”.  By “haves”, I mean that those are the folks who are able to qualify for health insurance through their employer and/or afford to pay for it on their own or they have a low enough income to qualify for medicaid and/or medicare insurance.  The “have nots” are all those lost souls who don’t have employers offering them health insurance benefits because it is either too small of a company and/or they are employed as “part-time” even if they work full-time hours.  They are also those who make too much money to qualify for any assistance program or medicaid/medicare.

It is a pet-peave of mind with absolute certainty.  As such, I am seeking out stories from other people who have stories to tell about seeking out the quality of health care that should be available to everyone regardless of their income level.  It should be a matter of a humanistic concern for the next human being rather than an issue over money.

I am looking forward to hearing more from you.

The Cup Runneth Over??? « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

The Cup Runneth Over??? « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”  

A somewhat funny story happend to me at the Church’s communion service this morning.  Please read it and let me know whether you feel that it was indeed divine intervention or just happen-stance? Or, perhaps, you have another funny story to share??

Finding Hope in Expecting the Unexpected?

Amelia Earhart has long been a story told and re-told about her flight that was to have been completed around the world.  She fell short of it.  Many thought her to have died at sea; new dairies may indicate that she might have survived as a castaway on an island:

“Last September, Arthur Rypinski, a TIGHAR volunteer who regularly scans the Internet for Earhart-related material, found a woman in West Virginia offering an “Amelia Earhart Original Flight Plan” for sale on eBay.

“I was deeply intrigued,” says Rypinski, of Rockville, Md., and he bought the document for $26.

The “flight plan” proved instead to be a copy of Carey’s diary, along with news clippings and other items. Stamps showed it was once owned by the U.S. Army Military History Institute in Carlisle, Pa. The seller, Dolores Brown, told Rypinski she probably had found it at a Goodwill store.

According to Carey’s son, Tim Carey of Woodbridge, Va., his father served as a naval officer in the Pacific in World War II and had a career in public relations before his death in 1988.

His role as an AP reporter on the Earhart story became part of family history, his son says. And he adds: “The diary was completely in character for him. He was a real note-keeper.”

Now raising funds for a ninth TIGHAR expedition to Nikumaroro in July, Gillespie says the Carey diary serves as a reminder to always “expect the unexpected” in the Earhart case.”

 There are so many life mysteries left unresolved, the Earhart story just being one of them.  If we can have this one resolved, perhaps there are also hopes to continue expecting the unexpected in order to be able to resolve the ever so many other life mysteries as well??  One can certainly continue to hope, pray, and dream!

Searching Bluebonnet YouTubes

has yielded some interesting BLUEBONNET YOUTUBES to check out. Remember the cartoon, Johnny Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet, for example? Laurie Lewis & Grant Street also plays “Those Texas Bluebonnets” with the supreme fiddling as well. More to be added throughout the Bluebonnet Hunts.

Maybe I’ll create my own Bluebonnet YouTubes soon and add them here for your enjoyment as well!

The Beginnings of the Texas Bluebonnets 2007…

is definitely among us, but are they what all they should be just yet. Check out the page under the BLUEBONNET HUNTS tab above to see what I mean. It is a great time to see other flowers and colorful events, but the best of the bluebonnets are yet to come, I am afraid.

What is Advocacy?

In general terms, advocacy is being there to help someone else out and help them by speaking out for them when they otherwise feel that they could not.  Some examples, of course, would include scenarios, such as:

* being a Court Appointed Special Advocate or a Guardian ad Litem to speak up in the best interest of the child who has been abused, abandoned, or neglected;

* being a Eldercare Advocate is challenged by talking up for the elderly who may not know how or are mentally or physically incapicitated to speak up for themselves to get the quality of care or life that they so deserve;

* being a Mental Health Advocate help those with any sort of mental illnesses by speaking up for them and making certain that they are provided with the best care in the mental health arena that they so very much deserve; and,

* being a Disabled Advocate helps those who are handicapped or disabled to ascertain that they are provided with the tools necessary to provide them the quality and equality of living and/or working that they need to be able to live/work.

To be a good advocate, I believe that one must always stay informed.  As such, I tend to read a lot of materials from a lot of resources.  Some of the online resources are indicated to the right in the list under the category “Advocacy” to give you an idea of the array of resources that I try to use — some that are a bit conservative in thinking and some that are a bit liberal in thinking in order to have a balance of the spectrum in keeping open about all viewpoints of things.

The challenge comes from feeling like you stay up on top of the new viewpoints and theories and other new organizations that would be able to increase the level of care and/or life for those who are not able to speak up for themselves.   Keeping up on the resources that I have provided under “Advocacy” is certainly a good place to start for any advocate.  My list is constantly changing and creating new avenues for me to expand my knowledge and understanding of this world and the societal needs.  Each advocate will find their own sources to keep themselves informed in accordance to what they are advocating for.

In addition to the resources that I utilize to keep myself informed on society, justice, and worldly viewpoints (globally and locally affecting my community), I also try to keep uptodate on resources that I have listed to the right, for example, in the category of “Self-Help Sites” that continues to grow as well each day that I can refer folks to obtain some additional resources that I might not necessarily have direct knowledge of or access to within my reach.

It takes a real mixture of things to help make advocacy happen.  Advocacy begins with everyone becoming involved in the community – the person needing advocacy speaking out and asking questions so that others find out about their needs, you asking neighbors and friends questions about the needs that they need, and the advocate putting it into action and making the connections known so that everyone needing advocacy gets the quality of life and care that each and every person so rightly deserves on this planet we all live upon.

So, I guess my question left unanswered is:  “How are you going to make a difference in this world and ensure that advocacy is continually connecting the world in a quality of living and care that brings equality for everyone?”

Domestic Violence Awareness « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Domestic Violence Awareness « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

33% of homicides are due to domestic violence.  I have started a page to mark some awareness of some of the domestic violence cases being tried this year.

More Information on The Castle Doctrine « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

More Information on The Castle Doctrine « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Updated another page on the site with Mike Rosen’s blog comments on The Castle Doctrine as well as my own viewpoint, or rather some notes and thoughts thereof.  I would really enjoy hearing from others on their veiwpoint of The Castle Doctrine and their projections of how definitive this new law is.

The Castle Doctrine « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

The Castle Doctrine « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Because the theory is that everyone has the right to defend his home, Texas Governor Perry has signed into law what is known as “The Castle Doctrine” on March 27, 2007.  I have created a page about it and am looking for opinions on this.  Would love to hear from you as well.

Increasing Faith

This was sent to me by a friend and I felt that you might enjoy reading it as well. Keep up your faith!!

 

Increasing Faith

John Ogden, Sr.

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. (Romans 10:17)

Much is said about having faith. Many sermons have been preached on faith and as a young man I would leave church and wonder, “How can I have more faith?” I’d hear well meaning people say, “Just leave it at the altar.” At one point in my life, when I was going through a very desperate situation, Ms. Becky (my wife) said, “Just leave it in God’s hands.” I was trying to! Everything within me wanted to take this situation and put it in God’s hands and go skipping down the highway of life. But, it seemed much easier to say it than to do it. Have you ever been there or maybe you are there now. As I began to pray and seek God’s face I discovered Romans 10:17.

As I read it and reread it and meditated upon it, I began to see that there are times when we need to hear the Word of God over and over and over again. I began to see how that God’s Word could be planted into my spirit as a seed to be nurtured to bring forth a harvest. What I am going to share with you has worked in my life time and time again.

As I face any issue of life, I go to God’s Word to see what He says. I then write the scripture down and put it in my pocket. Throughout the day, I read the scripture over and over and over. I cannot explain what takes place, but I find myself going from a place of doubt to a place of bold faith in God. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. I realize it is good to meditate on God’s Word, but this scripture deals with hearing bringing faith. As I would take a particular scripture, I would read it out loud and then my faith would grow.

I challenge you to take God’s Word and read it out loud over the next few days. I believe that your faith will grow bringing victory in your life. Everything that we receive from God comes by the way of faith. May your faith grow according to God’s Word!

The Bluebonnet Hunts « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

The Bluebonnet Hunts « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Just updated with the latest possibility of a bluebonnet tour group invite.  I am not sure that I will get to go on this trip, but I will certain have a blast, if I do.  I do so love the adventure of searching out for the most perfect Texas Bluebonnet Flower photo.

Spiritual Growth « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Spiritual Growth « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

A great piece has been added to this page about “In the meantime”.  We always say it, but do we ever really do anything about it?  Read this article  on this page and enjoy.

Gliding through time…

“I distrust summaries, any kind of gliding through time, any too great a claim that one is in control…. I admire the authority of being on one’s knees in front of the event.”

– Harold Brodkey

About the Creator « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

About the Creator « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Spiritual Growth « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Spiritual Growth « Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Loving Someone…

“Loving someone is giving them the power to hurt you, but trusting them not to”.

Anonymous

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” › Create New Post — WordPress

The site has been updated with more blogging sites that I have written, some additional spiritual and self-help sites, as well some blurbs about the upcoming and promising rise and glory of the Texas bluebonnets along and throughout all of the Texas Highways.

The Signs of Bluebonnet Spring!

Coming home from Church this morning, I have seen signs of bluebonnets and indian paintbrushes in bloom along Bee Caves Rd, Hwy 71, and FM 620! Hooray!!

Each Spring, I make it a yearly ritual to go driving aimlessly in the countryside to find the best field of bluebonnets to photograph and/or best bluebonnet pose/picture period. Since they are coming up vibrant in color already, it is a good sign that they are indeed going to plentiful and colorful since we had a great cold spell this winter. Hooray!!

I am soooo excited. The tentative date I have set is for my birthday, April 13th. I know. It is on a Friday, but did you know that anyone that is born on the 13th, the superstitions run opposite that they do for most people???

More details later….and perhaps a page full of flowers that I take this Spring.

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” :D › Create New Post — WordPress

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM” › Create New Post — WordPress

Much has been added today including more links from prior Blogger sites that I have composed my own blog series on a variety of issues and topics, as well as a blurb about Bryant McGill’s Community Forum.

Bryant McGill Forum — A Place for Positivism

I AM A MEMBER, AND YOU SHOULD BE TOO.

Please join me in the community meant to help you achieve your dreams. You will not find a nicer more positive group of people anywhere else on the Internet. If you are having tough times, you are sure to find some good advice and support at this community, where there is NO NEGATIVE ENERGY.

Also, many industry professionals, actors, professors, singers and other good spirited people are regular contributors to this website. This is the one place you can be your true self, make meaningful relationships, share your work and have fun.

Click here to sign-up and to chat with me now:

Bryant McGill Forum Community

Please repost this, or email it to any of your friends would would like to help.

Hope to see you there!

Kat

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Worldly Inquiring Mind “iWIM”

Updated site with more links regarding Concordia University’s move to FM 620, as well as its Accelerated Degree Program.

Something Exciting My Way Comes…

Concordia University is actually re-locating to the old Schlumberger facility just down the road from me, quite literally! This is what they had to say on the first page of their web page announcing this change:

“The Board of Regents of Concordia University took a visionary step of faith on May 13, 2005, deciding to relocate its main campus.

 

The new site was selected the following year and put under contract in July 2006. Closing on the property will take place in early 2007.
Formerly owned by Schlumberger, an oil services company, the property was developed in 1987 as a research facility. The company closed the site several years ago and moved most of its research activities to Cambridge, England.

 

The original Schlumberger site consists of approximately 440 acres of land divided into four lots. Nearly 250 acres of Lot 2 comprise a protected nature preserve. In addition, six buildings are located on Lot 2 consisting of 195,000 square feet of usable space. Most of Concordia’s current academic programs and administrative departments will fit into the existing buildings, after some renovations. New construction on the campus will include a gym, athletic fields and student housing.”

Of course, because some students would be looking at getting housing off campus, this might drive up the apartment rates of my complex and others around here in this area; however, I view it as an opportunity to complete my education.

I have been on an educational roll for quite some time — having obtained my Paralegal Certificate in 1991 and my Associates in Criminal Justice in 2005 in between working 2-3 jobs at a time and being a single mom raising my daughter as best I could. I have been close to finishing my Bachelors but the platform at the University I was attending was revamped and kept cratering often. So frustrating and then, of course my work schedules have been crazy too to not be conducive to having a schedule for studying habits as well.

Oh, well. They have a program for Accelerated Adult Learning where you attend classes one night a week, ie from 6-10pm, and each class only lasts 4 wks. I would love to get into those and with the University relocating less than 2 miles from my apartment, I would have no excuse, other than to try to get my work schedule conducive to attending those classes.

Of course, since they won’t be officially open until 2008, I have some time to get that accomplished, albeit that time will come before I realize it, I know! Maybe, they will be hiring at the new campus??? I’ll definitely have to check that out soon.

We’ll have to see what life brings along my way; in the meantime, something exciting is this way coming for certain and I am giddy with its possibilities!!

Worldly Inquiring Mind “WIM” :D

Worldly Inquiring Mind “WIM”

GMAIL INVITES

I have loved my email account with GMAIL because of its threading of the ongoing conversations that one sends and receives through the email account.  It also has a means to IM folks that you might want to talk to remotely (ie, if you aren’t home with access to your Yahoo Messenger or other IM application), calendar system and documentation storage that you can share with others and sooooo very much more.

 Just let me know if you are interested.  All I need is your email address and I can send you an invite.

Reaching New Heights?

Just discovered this site tonight. An attempt is being made to connect ALL my blogsites to this through the blogroll, at the very least.

This seems to be a fairly sophisticated site, so bear with me as I work through any and all kinks I might encounter.

In the meantime, there are plenty of blogs listed on the blogroll for your perusal pleasure. Looking foward to getting to know others connected to this wordpress.com site.

Blessings to all.