Panic Moon

The Message...

2012-02-19T17:50:00.000-08:00

I didn't mean to stay home and watch the Whitney Houston funeral. I actually had considered going to church myself. Once I had decided to stay home, the plan was to rest for a little while until I felt like doing something less lazy. I really had no intention of watching the Whitney Houston funeral. I mean, I like her music, but I didn't think I would care about the memorial service. But then one of my Facebook friends posted something about BeBe and CeCe Winans, and I thought, "Wow, I wonder what great music I'm missing by not watching that funeral!" So I turned on the TV and tuned in. And I'm glad I did.

The tributes to Whitney Houston were touching and heartfelt. The music was INCREDIBLE! I especially loved hearing CeCe Winans, as well as her brothers Marvin and Carvin. Sure, there were headliners, such as Alicia Keys and Stevie Wonder, but, personally, I preferred the gospel singers, who are well-known in their own right, of course.

I soon realized that though I was not sitting in a church, I was experiencing an amazing worship service. Sure, people were there to honor the life of a performer, but they were also there to uplift God's name and to praise God for God's gifts. It was truly beautiful and a testament to the faith of this woman who grew up in the Lord.

It made me kind-of sad that we didn't hear about this more. I mean, most of us knew that Whitney Houston had roots in the church, but we heard so little about her faith. My favorite Whitney Houston movie (and subsequent soundtrack) is "The Preacher's Wife," in which she starred with Denzel Washington and Courtney Vance. The most popular song from the soundtrack is "I Believe in You and Me," but my favorite song is "Who Would Imagine a King?" It's a lullaby for the baby Jesus, and it is quite beautiful. It's quite a contrast to the power ballads and pop hits and even the gospel songs that Ms. Houston is known for. Instead, it highlights her gorgeous voice and her control of her instrument. The album itself contains some very nice gospel-type music that is not often heard on mainstream movie soundtracks.

But back to my observation. Although I knew about Whitney Houston's gospel background, I really never heard the media talk about her faith. We heard a lot about her talent and then later her marital problems and addiction issues, but we rarely heard about her first love--Jesus Christ.

So this made me think. If I were to die, would people speak of my love for Jesus at my funeral? And would some people be shocked to hear about it? Is the life I'm living a reflection of the God I live for? Am I pointing people toward the Kingdom of God? This funeral actually left me with a lot to think about.

So I may have skipped services at my home church yesterday, but in an unexpected way, I was able to worship God and to hear God's voice. Pretty cool, right?

Album Review: Steven Curtis Chapman's "re:creation"

2012-02-15T13:04:00.000-08:00

I'm a sucker for most things Steven Curtis Chapman. He's not always my favorite CCM artist, but circumstances have pushed him to near the top of the list. (I found myself on a pirate ship, if you must ask.) So when SCC came out with a new album last year, I did not hesitate to purchase it. The album is a mixture of new songs and old favorites--"re:created."

Of the new songs, my favorite tracks are Track 1: "Do Everything" and Track 11: "Meant to Be." Both are very pop-sounding uplifting songs with similar messages: Nothing you do is unimportant, so live your life to the glory of God. Can't go wrong with that message, right? The re:creations that I like the most are "Live out Loud," "The Great Adventure," and "Speechless." All of these arrangements are more subdued than the originals, but they still fit the nature of the songs. It's nice to hear something "new" and still be able to sing along in the car.

Unfortunately, the album is almost spoiled by the atrocity that is the re:creation of one of my favorite songs, "Dive." The very moment that I hear the first note from the asthmatic flute players, I am "diving" for the fast forward button on my car CD player to avoid the rest of this horrible arrangement. What in the world inspired Mr. Chapman to write this awfulness is beyond me. The worst part is the last note of the piece--a sustained note by the two flute players--a note so flat that it feels like listening to fingernails on a chalkboard. I am honestly surprised that no one on SCC's team heard that note and made them do another take? Or was that really the best one? If so, I am glad I did not hear the others. I would have run screaming from the room. As it is, I almost do every time I hear this song on the CD, and it is in my car!

Nevertheless, this album is worth the money. It is a nice change from the very somber album that SCC put out after the death of his daughter. Just don't say I didn't warn you. :)

Love and Other Myths

2012-02-14T21:01:00.000-08:00

So, it's another Valentine's Day. This is one of the days that I miss teaching middle school and high school. College students are less generous (at least in the case) than younger students. I actually enjoyed the kitsch I got from "my kids" every year, and I really liked observing teenaged boys trying to figure out how to impress the girls. Yeah, I do miss it sometimes, but it's not the time to grieve.

Anyway, I'm spending the evening with my computer and my TV. On the computer, math stuff, education policy articles, and Facebook. On the TV, the Westminster Dog Show. It's one of my favorite things to watch on TV, so I'm not really feeling disappointed that I'm staying home tonight.

I know, you thought that this was going to be one of those moany "Singles Awareness Day" posts, and I think it may have started out that way in my head. But then I thought about how I'm going to be graduating soon and going to Vancouver to rub elbows with important education policy people even sooner. So staying in and working on my dissertation is worth it. Mr. Right can wait for his Dr. Right. :)

Soapbox

2012-02-13T18:57:00.000-08:00

So, I'm going to get on my soapbox again today, because it's something that gets to me almost every day, and I think it's time someone stands up and says something.

PLEASE NOTE: DIABETES IS NOT CAUSED BY EATING COOKIES, DRINKING SODA, OR INGESTING MILKSHAKES, EVEN BACON MILKSHAKES. PEOPLE WITH DIABETES--EVEN TYPE 2 DIABETICS--DID NOT BRING THIS ON THEMSELVES, NEITHER SHOULD YOU OR THE MEDIA BE BLAMING THEM FOR IT.

I am thinking about this today because of two incidents that happened over the weekend. On Friday after Renovatus I was helping to clean up the snacks. The snack goddesses this week brought little brownies, red velvet cupcakes, sugar cookies, and juice pouches. They bought just about the right amount, so there was little to clean up, which I always like. As I was cleaning up, Chris came over and took the last cookie, which was good, since there were then only 2 brownies left. When he walked by, I handed him the last juice pouch and said, "Take this, too." He answered with, "Are you trying to give me diabetes?" "Diabetes is NOT caused by eating cookies and drinking juice!" I exclaimed, and then I added, "Don't get me started, Mister." I said it in a good-natured way, but inside I was seething. DIABETES IS NOT CAUSED BY EATING COOKIES AND DRINKING JUICE!

Then this morning a Facebook friend of mine posted something about the new Jack-in-the-Box bacon-flavored milkshake. She is in medical school, so her post said, "Comes with a lifetime supply of glucose monitors and a coupon for metformin!" This sounds very smart, but the fact is, she was still saying that drinking milkshakes causes diabetes. So I posted as such. More specifically, I said, "Not that milkshakes cause diabetes. But thanks for perpetuating the myth and continuing to stigmatize us. Oh, if only I hadn't eaten that milkshake, I wouldn't have to inject myself 4 times a day." I know that sounds kind-of harsh, but I think if a medical student is so taken in by the myth, what hope do we have of educating people? Luckily, I was right about the way that she would take my words, and we were able to have a short exchange about stigmatizing people and being careful about our words. DIABETES IS NOT CAUSED BY INGESTING MILKSHAKES, EVEN BACON-FLAVORED MILKSHAKES!

But it makes me so tired. I do not want to be a crusader. Does having diabetes me that I have to take on this role, too? It reminds me of when I decided to get my Master of Pastoral Studies in 2001. I really just wanted to study the ministry because I felt a true calling to it and wanted to learn more about it. Little did I know that I would have to spend the next 2 years defending my decision to people I barely knew, including the one person who told me that the "only" reason I wanted to be a pastor was because I wanted to "be a man."

So here I am in this role. I did not ask for it, but I am not going to shirk from it either. If you have any questions about diabetes, I would love to have a conversation with you. In the meantime, remember,

PEOPLE WITH DIABETES--EVEN TYPE 2 DIABETICS--DID NOT BRING THIS ON THEMSELVES, NEITHER SHOULD YOU OR THE MEDIA BE BLAMING THEM FOR IT

Two Lunches

2012-02-11T21:54:00.000-08:00

This week I had two lunches out. Since I rarely eat out once in a week it was an interesting occurence of two very different experiences.

On Monday I went to get my hair cut. I was surprised (happily) to run into Virna and Lisa. Virna was celebrating her completion of her first (and she says last) marathon by having Lisa cut her hair. We chatted, and Virna invited me to join them for lunch across the street at Granville cafe. Febe also joined us, and that was especially lovely because I hadn't seen her in so long. It was a delightful time with great company and delicious food.

Contrast that with today's lunch. I went to church and met with some friends. We hadn't gone out for quite a while and finally decided to go to Souplantation in Pasadena. It was a similar occasion--people I rarely go out with and a friend I hadn't seen for a long time; four of us, just like Monday's lunch. But the atmosphere was completely different. One of our party felt the need to monopolize the conversation and to demonstrate her expertise on pretty much every topic that was brought up. It got tedious, and I had to leave the table more than once to give myself a break. It was nice to hang out with my other two friends, and we had some good conversations when we weren't being interrupted.

One week. Two very different lunches. Such is life.

SMASH*

2012-02-05T13:59:00.000-08:00

So, I bought this new scrapbook called SMASH*. Check out the link here. I found it at Swain's when I was Christmas shopping and then found a bunch of accessories for it last week at Michael's. Cute, right? I pulled all of the stuff out on Friday and looked at everything and sighed. I have a paper and a dissertation to write; I don't have time to scrapbook. But I guess I have something else to look forward to in the next two months. IF I ever get this thing finished! *sigh*

A Picture My Sister Sent Me Yesterday

2012-02-04T17:08:00.000-08:00

The caption was "Best Picture Taken at Disneyland This Week."

(No, my sister did not take this picture. Someone else sent it to her.)

LOVE IT!!! :)

Book Review: The Apprentice

2012-02-01T17:06:00.000-08:00

I haven't finished this book yet, but I have read enough of Jacques Pepin's The Apprentice to know that I love this book! From Pepin's childhood summers spent on country farms to his apprenticeship and work in some of the best hotel kitchens in France to a stint cooking for Charles DeGaulle and then finally his adventures in America, I was completely taken by this story. I found myself amused as I read about Pepin's exploits as a young apprentice and amazed as I read about his experiences cooking for important French and international officials.

I was especially taken by the author's descriptions of food. Though I wouldn't want to find myself cooking--or even eating--most of the dishes Pepin described, his culinary sketches show such a true love of food that it is hard not to smile and imagine myself at one of his events.

Equally engaging were Pepin's stories of his life in America. As a chef in Howard Johnson's test kitchen, Pepin was instrumental in the success of chain restaurants in the United States. I celebrated with the chef as he fell in love and started a family. And there were always those amazing descriptions of food and feasts with friends and family.

I think the thing I liked most about this book was that throughout the book I got the impression that Jacques Pepin is really a nice man. Pepin became acquainted with some of the most influential people in the food industry--chefs, critics, restauranteurs, publishers--and befriended nearly all of them. He managed to become a celebrity chef before there was such a thing as celebrity chefs with a combination of talent, hard work, luck, tenacity, and a good nature. Overall, this book is engaging, entertaining, mouth-watering, and quite delightful. I recommend this book to anyone who loves food and a good story.

10 Questions...

2012-01-30T12:31:00.000-08:00

This post was inspired by this article. I found the article inspiring, because it is a good reminder of what is really important. Actually, I have often thought that these are the most important things in life, so it was nice to get some validation in print. :)

Here are the author's 10 questions that one should ask oneself every day:

Have I made certain that those I love feel loved?
Have I done something today that improved the world?
Have I conditioned my body to be more strong flexible and resilient?
Have I reviewed and honed my plans for the future?
Have I acted in private with the same integrity I exhibit in public?
Have I avoided unkind words and deeds?
Have I accomplished something worthwhile?
Have I helped someone less fortunate?
Have I collected some wonderful memories?
Have I felt grateful for the incredible gift of being alive?

What do you think? Do you think it's a sufficient list? Are there any that you find unnecessary? Are there any that you would add? If someone comments, I'll add my own thoughts...:)

Conversation

2012-01-29T12:55:00.000-08:00

Here's the jist of a conversation I had with someone yesterday.

Friend: Thanks for sending me the contact info for your endocrinology professional.

Me: Oh, I didn't realize you'd gotten it.

Friend: Yes, I got it, but I'm not going to call. Out of principle, I don't use that company. I think it's a terrible company, and I think they give horrible care.

Me: I like them; they are good to me, and I've been doing much better since going there.

Friend: Well, that's fine for you, but I think they are a terrible company, and I won't go there. We always got patients that had left their downtown office after getting terrible care.

Me: I don't go to the downtown office. I go to South Pasadena. South Pas is very different from downtown.

Friend: Yes, I know. But I still think it's a terrible company. But it's fine for you.

What the hell?

*seriously reconsidering the value of this "friendship"*

"This Is So Simple That Even..."

2012-01-25T12:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday one of my Facebook friends posted something on her wall that really upset me. This person usually posts inspirational sayings and pictures of fluffy kitties. So I was pretty surprised when she posted a picture yesterday that bore the caption: "Even liberals can understand this." Unfortunately, this post is not rare in the Facebook world, so common that it made me question the hours that I spend on the site.

Just for the record, this post is not a political statement on my part. I consider myself conservative on some points, liberal on others, and moderate on still others. I disagree with most of what I hear from politicians. But more than anything, I find political bullying absolutely unbearable.

I wonder why anyone would post something that clearly would insult at least one of her Facebook friends. Is the post meant to engender intelligent discussion during which both sides (in this case, "conservatives" and "liberals") can exchange points of view and maybe learn something from each other? If so, then starting with an insult would probably not be wise.

Is the post meant to appeal to those with similar political ideals, to say, "Look at how right we are?" If so, then why the name-calling?

Seems to me that the caption on the post is bullying, pure and simple. And as such, I want nothing to do with it. So, sorry Facebook pals. I may have to block you soon. If so, it's absolutely personal.

Happy Year of the Dragon!!! :)

2012-01-23T15:45:00.000-08:00

How to Turn a Night Owl into an Early Bird

2012-01-19T21:53:00.000-08:00

I'm NOT a morning person. I like sleeping in and staying up late. I love late night TV and cheesy reruns in the middle on the night. I like working until I'm tired and getting up when I'm ready to. If I had my way, I would do something that required an alarm clock maybe once or twice a week. Unfortunately, bills must be paid and the car requires gas. And, frankly, I do like my job. My students are pretty nice, and we're having a good quarter so far. I could just do without the 1-hour commute and the 7:30 am start time.

For the past month I've been trying to change my sleeping habits. I have been setting my alarm for an early hour and making plans to go to bed early. I have even gotten to the point where I stop working at either 10 or 11 every night. But I still haven't been able to manage falling asleep early, unless I'm so completely exhausted that I can't help it. And I still can't wake up early, except on the days that I have to go to work. On the nights before I have to go to work, I am so anxious about waking up on time that I can't sleep and end up getting only about 4 hours of sleep before I crawl out of bed. So when I come back home in the afternoon, I have to take a nap, which, of course, puts my timing off for my sleep time at night.

But I haven't given up. Every night I think, "Tomorrow is the day that I turn into a morning person." I'll let you know how it goes.

New Year, New Look, New Outlook

2012-01-16T23:00:00.000-08:00

If you have read my blog before, you will notice that I changed the look of my blog. I figured that I was due for a change. So I changed the look as well as the title. Some of you will understand the significance of the title, but if you don't, I'll forgive you. Anyway, I changed the title because it was a little on the negative side, and I'm trying not to be as negative here in cyberspace as I usually am. So for the new year, I'm trying out a new look AND a new outlook.

Let me know what you think.

Get to Work!

2012-01-15T14:13:00.000-08:00

Today marks exactly 2 months before my AERA paper is due. Despite my best intentions to be done with this thing early, I suspect that I am going to be down to the wire with my writing. I am currently reading through the notes that Dr. Mitchell gave me on my first draft. This is, by the way, no simple task. There are lots and lots and lots of notes. And, Dr. Mitchell, scientist that he is, is VERY thorough. I know that this will help me in the long run, but I'm kind-of overwhelmed right now. I keep looking at these pages and pages and pages and wonder if I'll ever be done with this thing. And I really need to be done. As much as I love school, I really need to move on with my life. I need to find a stable job, stop worrying about money, buy a house, and move on. I can hear it now: "You can't keep waiting for your life to start." And that's not what I'm talking about. It's not about waiting for something to happen. It's about not slogging around in the same place for too long. And I think if I don't finish this thing this year, that's what I'll be...slogging.

And yet, I procrastinate. Even writing here is a form of procrastination, although I am also investigating inflation rate calculators even as I write this. So I guess I ought to go figure them out some more. See you whenever.

Happy 2012!

2012-01-10T22:36:00.000-08:00

OK, I have to say that 2011 was a terrible year. So was 2010, for that matter. I am ready for something great to happen in 2012.

Here's what I'm looking forward to...

--AERA in Vancouver in April. I'm presenting on EIEA to a room full of people who are experts on Kingdon. Am I scared? You betcha!

--Dissertation defense in April (or earlier!). I have to finish writing first, but, yeah...:)

--Graduation in May! This is contingent on the previous item, but, well, yeah...:D

--A new job! OK, this is really wishful thinking on my part, but, c'mon. I think I'm due.

--Celebratory trip(s)! Again, wishful thinking, but again, I think I'm due. LOL

Yeah, so that's what I'm looking forward to. I could add more, but I think that's sufficient for now.

When Potato Salad Makes You Cry

2011-12-30T23:37:00.000-08:00

I love potato salad. I don’t know why. I think it’s the starchiness of the potatoes, the creaminess of the dressing, the crunchiness of the pickles and whatever else the chef decides to include in the recipe, the sweet-tart-salty mixture of all of the ingredients. Commercial potato salad will do in a pinch, but there is nothing like homemade potato salad. I don’t make my own, because I don’t have the patience to cook, cube, and chop everything that needs to be attended to. But, oh, how I love potato salad.

Yet, after 13 years of being a type 2 diabetic, I know that potato salad isn’t the best thing for me. Starchiness = carbohydrate; creaminess = fat; and the combination of the two means not only high blood glucose but also sustained high blood glucose for a longer than normal time period. So I’m careful about consuming potato salad. I eat it sometimes, but not as much as I used to and not very often.

Christmas day of this year was relatively uneventful. I got to spend the day with my cousins, which always makes me happy. I ate what I thought was not too much eggplant parmesan and potato casserole and what I knew were too many of my aunt’s lumpia (Filipino egg rolls). Still, I was surprised at how high my bg was so many hours after lunch, especially since I was feeling hungry. Determined to “be good” after a day of indulging, I made myself a sandwich of vege-sausage and sat down to eat.

That was when the doorbell rang. Our neighbor was at the door, bearing gifts—a bowl of pancit (Filipino-style noodles) and a saucer of potato salad. Yes, homemade potato salad. My eyes lit up. I knew that I could devour that whole plate of salad in one sitting. But my newly-discovered “good” diabetic said, “No, you can’t. Imagine what that will do to your bg. And after the day you’ve already had, it’s just not a good idea.” And despite my love for potato salad, I had to agree with conscience. I spooned out just enough for a taste—and oh! it was delicious!--and put the rest into the refrigerator for the next day.

At lunchtime the next day, I had the same argument with myself. Only a few years ago, I would have ignored that little voice and gobbled up the treat in just a few minutes, but that was before the insulin, the needles, the multiple fingersticks a day. That was before the worry about complications, the constant vigilance, the extreme exhaustion from the out-of-control numbers. So I managed to limit myself to half of what was left on the plate, despite the struggle. “If I don’t eat it now,” I reasoned, “I can eat the rest later and that way the joy will last longer.” Again, it was delicious, but I waited.

When dinnertime came, my dad prepared the meal, basically warming up leftovers from the day before. Arriving at the table, I knew something was wrong. The potato salad that I had been anticipating all day was sharing a plate with my aunt’s potato casserole. “Did you warm this?!?” I exclaimed a little too loudly.

“Yes, of course,” my dad assured.

“That was potato salad!” I exclaimed.

“Oh, I thought it was potato casserole. It’s OK. You can still eat it,” said my dad.

“No, I can’t. You just warmed mayonnaise! It’s ruined!” And it was.

My dad apologized, offered to put the salad back into the refrigerator, but I shook my head. “It won’t work. Cooked mayonnaise. How disgusting.” And I left the room to inject my insulin. Once out of my dad’s sight, I felt tears come to my eyes. I had been *so good* and had *not* eaten the way I would have just a few years earlier. If I hadn’t been “good,” I would have gotten to eat that whole plate of one of my favorite foods, and there wouldn’t have been any left for my dad to ruin. Why did I have to watch my carb intake if it just led to disappointment? Why was I being punished for behaving?

Maybe you wonder why I let something like this get to me. But if you haven’t had a chronic illness, I don’t think I can explain it to you. I don’t know that I can make you understand how frustrating it can be when doing what you “should,” makes things worse.

Taking insulin for the past 10 weeks has made diabetes very real for me. Instead of just taking pills twice a day, I now have to be constantly aware of my next mealtime, the number of pens in my refrigerator, where my last injection site was. And I hate it. Just as much as I love potato salad, I hate diabetes. Maybe more. No, definitely more.

And you definitely know that you are a diabetic when potato salad makes you cry.

Another year...what a lot has happened...

2011-11-15T21:48:00.000-08:00

Sooo...last week was my birthday. It was pretty low key. Most of you know that usually I do a big thing for my birthday, but this year I did not. This is partly due to the fact that I am desperately trying to get my dissertation proposal finished (and it is way overdue) and partly due to the fact that people seemed really put out by what I wanted to do. Nevertheless, there were some high points.

On my birthday, the Chans (Virna, Danny, Cassidy, and Jordan) took me out for burgers at The Counter and dessert at Green Street Restaurant. On Friday, my Renovatus church family surprised me with a fruit tart from Porto's. And on Sunday, my friends Nestor, Kelly, Yvette, Pixote, and Olivia surprised me with a red velvet cake--also from Porto's. YUM!!! :)

Also on my birthday, I spent the morning at the vet with Barney, who has (had?) two ear infections. He got some medicine, and he seems to be doing a lot better now.

In the last year, I have passed my qualifying exams, presented at my first conference, had a paper accepted at my first national conference, gotten a new job teaching college students. I have lost my best friend, attended three funerals, NOT finished my dissertation proposal (yet!). I have started giving myself nightly injections, gotten a new doctor, and gotten a new doggy. In short, I have lived life.

I'm thankful for another year of life. Looking forward to what's next.

A New Friend...

2011-08-26T12:13:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since I blogged. I fell that I am not managing my time well. I honestly should be able to accomplish more in a day than I actually do.

Thank you again for your condolences and gestures of caring after the death of my beloved Milo. He was an amazing dog, and I still miss him every day.

Meanwhile, we have found a new friend to live with us at our house.

I have other pictures of him, but they are still in my camera, and I'm too lazy to upload them right now. So these will have to do.

Our new friend's name is Barney. He was adopted from the Northeast Los Angeles County Animal Shelter about 1 month ago. He was a stray and had been at the shelter for a month before we adopted him, so he was pretty yucky and stinky when he came to live at our house. He even had paint on his fur. He was also not neutered, so he had to go to the doctor first and then came to our house post-op. (Hence, the cone.) He had to wear the cone for 2 weeks and was not allowed to have a bath until the cone came off.

Now he is all clean and feeling at home. He sleeps on the kitchen love seat and has many toys to play with. Yesterday he ate Mom's breakfast leftovers from the table, dug through the recyling and spread paper all over the floor, and tore the feet off of one of his (actually Milo's) toys. He also has learned the sound of the garage opening and how to rest his head on my lap while I'm studying. He is becoming "my dog" but is also "our dog," since Pop went to the shelter with me this time. He is a friendly, sweet, dog, if a bit rough around the edges. He's not as gentle as Milo and Tim Tam, but with patience he will learn to be.

I am still in mourning for Milo. I miss him every day and cry about him often. But I am learning to love my new dog and to give him the life he did not have in the shelter. I'll keep you updated.

The Face of Grief

2011-05-13T19:13:00.000-07:00

Grief is exhausting. Thank you to everyone who sent their condolences about the loss of my sweet Milo. It has been a very hard week for me. I stayed in bed for two days until I had to get up to teach a class. I have been back to bed on and off since then. I cried so much in the first 24 hours that I gave myself abrasions on my eyelids. I had to sleep with the windows open for several days, even when I was cold, because my bedroom smelled like dog. Yes, it has been hard. But I managed to get some work accomplished today, and I did go to school yesterday. (Oh, that was rough. My knees actually buckled when I walked in the door at home.) My eyelids are back to normal. Febreze appropriately directed does wonders. And there have been several of you...

So thank you especially to:

V for checking on me regularly and the cookie-baking session
P for calling and texting
M for the beautiful letter
R for letting me cry on your shoulder
T for understanding enough to let me off the hook tonight

...and to the rest of you who were so kind to me.

FYI, I am not going to answer any of the questions some of you asked. This is not something I want to discuss. And, no, I am not going to get another dog right away. I understand the reasoning when some of you have suggested this, but we all grieve differently. The next one will come along when the time is right, just as Ginger, Tim Tam, and Milo did. Until then, my arms will be empty. Again, thank you...

The Favorite

2011-05-08T11:01:00.000-07:00

I've never been anyone's favorite. You may think that's a strange statement, but it's true. As the third child, it's hard to be the favorite. I have a theory that within families, aunties and uncles choose their favorites by whoever is the "baby" when they are falling in love. So my oldest sister was my Auntie Jemimah and Uncle Jerrys's favorite, and my second sister was my Auntie Daisy and Uncle Gerhard's favorite. No one was in love when I was the baby, so I ended up being no one's favorite.

By the time I came along, everyone was too busy even to give me a nickname, even a funny one, such as "Neng Neng" or "Lors." I was just the generic "Anak," the kid. My friend S loves to give nicknames to women. He names them after actresses, characters in movies and TV and comics and books; he plays with variants on their names and their looks. But he's never given me a nickname in all these years, because he only gives nicknames to beautiful women. Only once has he even called me "Kat," and that was because he was trying to impress another girl. It's always Kathy or, when he is angry, he uses my last name. The only time I ever had a true nickname was when A and J used to call me "Pokey," because they thought my long hair reminded them of Pocahantas. They have no idea how much it meant to me to have a nickname, even though it was a silly one. A nickname shows endearment. I needed that.

In school I was smart but didn't know it. I didn't really excel until I was much older. I was relatively quiet and didn't get a whole lot of attention. I still don't. I certainly wasn't anyone's favorite in school. I was just...there.

But for almost 39 months of my life, I finally learned what it was like to be someone's favorite. When I went to the shelter that day, I actually had a list of dogs I wanted to look at. It was the third time I'd been to the shelter, and no dog had felt right. I looked at the dogs on my list but didn't think any of them was right. I walked up and down the aisles several times, not sure why I didn't leave, but I had to look again and again. One cage had a sign on it that said, "Shepherd mix." As much as I love German shepherds, I was not sure that I could handle a dog that needed as much attention as a shepherd needs. So I walked by without looking. But he was looking. I walked by that cage at least 4 times, each time noticing that the dog in the cage was watching me intently. He would follow me with his head every time. I finally stopped to look and realized that he wasn't a German shepherd at all; he looked more like a beagle. Since a beagle had just won the Westminster dog show the night before, I was drawn to beagles. (Also, a cute boy once told me I should own a beagle, so I have a thing for them.) But this dog wasn't a beagle; he was too big. Turns out that he was a harrier, and I had to do some research to learn about the breed. So that was how Milo chose me. I was his favorite from the very beginning.

It took him a full year to the day to decide to sleep on my bed. He had graduated from his bed in the kitchen to the whole kitchen to my bedroom floor. But on the anniversary of his adoption, he decided that he was going to sleep on the bed. And he did. He would usually jump down after a little while and spend the night on the floor--or lately, on the floor of my closet--but as soon as it got light, he would be back up on the bed. Sometimes I wouldn't even know he was there until I woke up. If I was too close to the edge of the bed, he would cry until I woke up and moved to give him room to jump up. Or sometimes he would just jump on me. When I woke up, I'd say "Let's go, Milo." He would scoot up from his place at my feet until he was close enough to pet. Then I would rub and tickle his belly. He would roll on his back in utter joy. We played like this until he would sneeze from being on his back for too long. Then we would do it again. Then I'd say, "Let's go, Milo." He'd jump down and be ready to start our day.

If I went out during the day, even if it was just to go to the car, he would be waiting when I came home, usually with a toy.

I admit that I couldn't resist buying him toys; they made him so happy. He would bring the toy to the door, but when I would try to take it, he would run away. If, however, I did not say, "Thank you, Milo," and try to take the toy, he would follow me around with it, pushing it against my thighs and rear until I gave him appropriate acknowledgement.

Sometimes he would stay with the folks in the kitchen and I would go to my room to study. After a while he would come to look for me and would cry at the door until I let him in. I was the one he wanted to be with. One of our favorite activies was sitting on the bed while I was studying while he would lie down right on top of one foot or with his head on my thigh and fall asleep. He just liked being close to me. I was his favorite. If I was on my desktop computer, he would lie under my chair or sometimes right on top of my feet until I was done.

Another of our favorite activities was when I would sit on the top step in the hallway. He would sit right next to me then all of a sudden put his head on my chest and lean...hard. I would pet and pet and pet him until he would slide down and put his head on my lap. Sometimes he would fall asleep, but sometimes I would say, "Let's go," and we would run down the stairs.

My parents loved Milo. Milo knew them as "Grandma" and "Grandpa." If my dad went to take the trash out or if my dad went somewhere and Milo heard the car returning, Milo would whimper by the door until "Grandpa" came back in. If he heard the car coming, he would look around, deciding which toy to bring with him. At dinner, Milo would put his head on my dad's lap, hoping his cuteness would get him a treat from the table. But as much as he loved my parents, mine was the bed he slept in and mine was the room he thought of as his.

I was his favorite. For the first time in my life, I was someone's favorite. And he was mine. I called him "Milo, Milito, the Mexican dog." He wasn't really, of course. I was just making up a song to sing to him one day (something he thought was very strange), and it sounded like a Mexican song. So he became "Milo, Milito, the Mexican dog," with his own special song.

I do not have very much. (I know you're thinking, "yes, you do," but stick with me here.) I have been begging God for a job, love, a house, a family. Milo was all of those things. He was my one true love, my child, my family. He made this house (my parents' house) a home in a way I didn't know existed. Being his mommy was the one job I truly loved. He was my loyal companion
,
my brave protector,
my best friend.
He saved my life, just by being. He was the only one who truly loved me first, and he made sure to let me know it. "Am I your favorite, Milo?" I would ask. He would lick my face and kiss me. "You're my favorite," I would respond. You're my own baby dog, and I love you. You're my own precious dog forever."

He put up with my crazy schemes and costumes ,
just to be with me. He was mine, my very own, the one thing that was my very own. I do not know why God would take away my one thing from me. God has not seen fit to give me the other things I have asked for; instead, God took away the one thing I had. I am devastated and hurt and angry. I cannot understand why God could be so cruel to take away my one true love.

For 39 months, I knew what it was like to be someone's favorite. And in a flash, that was gone. And I do not know how I will live without him.

Royal Wedding...

2011-04-29T01:17:00.000-07:00

So, it's past midnight, and I'm up listening to commentators with British accents babble about William and Catherine. Frankly, I don't really care all that much about what they have to say; I'm just waiting for the wedding itself to start. I may fall asleep before that happens.

I'm not sure that I even care, but there's a part of me that does. When I was much younger, I was a minor royal-watcher. I was obsessed with Prince Andrew, especially. Back then, he was pretty hot. And I remember getting up at 3am for the wedding of Charles and Diana. One of my sisters woke up with me, too. So I guess part of my interest in the wedding is left over from that, even though I'm not so much of a royal-watcher anymore. It will be kind-of fun to see what the family looks like 30 years after Charles' and Diana's wedding.

The other thing I'm looking forward to is the ceremony itself. I love, love, love high church, especially in the Anglican tradition. I love Anglican hymns and prayers, and I love the liturgy as well. I don't get to experience them very often, so I'm looking forward to a great ceremony.

And, yeah, I'm interested in seeing what everyone is going to be wearing and who shows up, but not as much as the reporters seem to be.

But I'm a lot older than I was when I got up in the middle of the night to watch that other wedding. I still have to wait quite a while for the actually wedding, and I don't know if I'm going to make it that long. But I'll leave the TV on, and if I fall asleep, I fall asleep. Ha ha. If I manage to stay awake, I'll let you know what I think...or not. *yawn*

Wow! Time flies!

2011-04-19T22:34:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe that it is already April of 2011. Where did the last two years go? Well, if you're still reading my blog, then I suppose I ought to catch you up with things.

School. School is difficult and crazy and frustrating and...well, good. As crazy as things are, I still love it. The last two terms were a little tedious, but the research part is getting interesting. We have a nice research team (me, Matt, Jean, and Dr. Mitchell) for our dissertation project. I must admit that Matt used to drive me nuts and that I did not get along with him at all last year. But we've figured out how to get along and even enjoy each other's company, and he has been pretty good to work with so far. Jean is wonderful, as always. She's smart, hard-working, and easy-going. She just had a baby, so she's pretty wiped out these days, but she's a great addition to our team. As for our fearless leader, Dr. Mitchell, he's pretty awesome. He's one of the smartest people I've ever met. He is introducing us to a lot of interesting stuff, and so far I'm still excited about our topic. I just hope I can continue this excitement for the next year.

Work. Work is...well, awful. Ever since the company restructured last year, it has been a pretty awful place to be. Our boss is, frankly, clueless, and it is not fun to work for her. The company cares nothing about its students anymore; the bottom line is the only line. Teachers are treated as if they were disposable, and administration has no idea what we do. I could complain for hours, but let's just leave it at that.

Church. Church has gotten interesting. We have a new pastor for Renovatus, and he is not hesitating to recognize my strengths. Since he has arrived, I have already gotten to speak twice, and I am also helping with the decision-making process. Of course, I still get to bake every month or so. It's really a very nice group to be a part of. The Sabbath morning service is hit-and-miss, but I'm trying to make it a point to go. I figure that I need to be a part of a community, and that I'm going to have to make the effort to do so.

Relationship. Non-existent. No prospects. Depressing. 'Nuff said.

Family. Complicated. Have to go to a funeral this week. Auntie Mein (my mom's brother's wife) was taken by cancer. She had been sick for a very long time. She was a good mom and wife, and she'll be missed a lot. As for the rest of the family. Yeah, let's just say complicated and leave it at that.

So yeah, I think that's about it. Not that many people read this, but I figured I owe it to the people who do pay attention. No promises to blog more regularly. For some reason, life is kicking my ass right now. Ha ha.

A Strange Day...

2011-01-10T19:14:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was very odd. It was so strange, in fact, that I think I am just going to pretend that yesterday didn't happen.

For Christmas, my sister gave me a membership to the Norton Simon Museum. It's one of my favorite places, and I'm really grateful for the gift. I was planning to go sometime during the week; I figured fewer people would be at the museum, and I could linger as much as I liked. However, one of my friends decided to go with me, and since she works in the afternoons and evenings when the museum is open, we made plans to go yesterday afternoon. I was working until 1pm, so we decided to meet for lunch in Pasadena and then head to the museum.

However, when I finished with my student, I hadn't heard from my friend. I called and texted her multiple times, but I got no response. Just when I was about to give up on her, she called. Turns out that her water heater leaked in her apartment, and she was busy getting that taken care of. She said it had been settled, and she would be along shortly. About 15 minutes later, she called me again and said she was feeling sick and was going to go back home. I was very disappointed, but I was having a conversation with someone, and I decided to stay put while I decided what to do next. While I was sitting there, my phone rang again. My friend had decided that she wasn't feeling sick and was coming back. I had wanted to go to Green Street Restaurant, but my friend wanted to go to Souplantation, so that's where we went. I figured that since she wasn't feeling well, I'd let her choose. Has the food at Souplantation always been that bad? It was also crowded, and we had to wait to be seated because of the crowd.

Anyway, we were finally off to the museum. Once there, we headed straight for the special exhibit: A Raphael painting of the Madonna and Child; the painting is on loan from the National Gallery.The painting is quite stunning in its beauty. Any pictures of the painting that you may have seen do not capture how truly beautiful the painting is. I really can't even explain why.

After we looked at the Raphael, my friend seemed very antsy to leave. "Did you want to see anything else?" she asked. I answered that I love to look at everything, and she seemed disappointed. I did a little shopping in the bookstore while she visited the restroom. However, when she found me, she said that she still wasn't feeling well and was going home. I shopped for a little while longer by myself and then decided to go home, too. It was less than an hour until the museum closed, and I had been out all day.

So, yeah. It was a strange day. But I have decided to go back to the museum on Wednesday. I have to work in Pasadena at 6:15, and the museum is open from 12 to 6, so that will be just perfect. If you promise not to be a catalyst for another strange day, you are welcome to join me. :)

Back to Work...

2011-01-06T16:00:00.000-08:00

So, last night I went back to work after a couple of weeks off for the holidays. I had been tutoring throughout the break, several days a week. (Thank God for that, because I actually will be able to pay my bills in January.) But I hadn't taught a class for three weeks. Oddly, it felt as if I had been away for much longer.

I had mixed feelings about going back. For one, I had really hoped to be in a different job by now. I need this job--not only for the income, but because I need the health insurance. I guess I feel trapped. This does not make me a happy employee. On the other hand, I do enjoy the actual teaching part. I especially like the interactions with students and seeing them succeed and reach their goals. Still, I'm getting a little weary of teaching the same thing over and over. That's why I enjoyed the mentoring/observing and tutoring parts of my job. Sadly, the observation part of my job has been taken back by my new boss, and the company seems to be doing everything it can to make tutoring unbearable. *sigh*

Anyway, I continue to do the best I can for my students. I just hope that something new comes along soon.

A Gorgeous Day!

2011-01-05T00:09:00.000-08:00

In the past few weeks, Southern California has experienced at least 3 storms in a row. We even had some snow (not in L.A.). We are not used to the rain. We can't drive in it. And it causes mudslides. And most people don't like it.

But after the rain, Southern California is GORGEOUS! The air is clean and crisp and clear. Right now there's snow on the mountains, and they are beautiful to look at.

Today I took Milo to Petco to have a bath. I had to wait almost three hours for him to finish, so I did a little shopping, had some lunch, and sat outside reading. It was the perfect afternoon for being outside. I really should take advantage of our weather more often. Plus, I actually got some work done, which was something I really needed to do. I read a great article that I am pretty sure I can use for the dissertation, so now I feel productive as well. LOL

I think that this year I need to spend more time outside. With all of the reading I'm going to have to do, it is not going to be that difficult to do. Right???

Wow! I can't believe it's 2011!

2011-01-03T18:40:00.000-08:00

Maybe my new year's resolution should be to keep up with my blog...

So...Happy New Year, everyone! Now that we're only a few days into 2011, I guess it's still OK to say that. I did absolutely nothing on New Year's Eve. My dad roasted a chicken with the new chicken roaster he got for Christmas. I did nothing of consequence. In fact, I can't even really remember what I did. Ha ha.

2010 was an up-and-down year for me. July was particularly difficult. But November was great. On balance, it wasn't a great year, but since I came out at the end still kicking and screaming, I guess it's something to celebrate.

Nothing big planned for 2011, either. I don't think I'll be able to do a real vacation until after May 2012. Yes, I'm already counting down to graduation. This year's posts will probably have a dissertation theme running through them...but, then again, maybe not. I guess we will just have to see what the year brings. Maybe it will be a year of miracles. :)

Are You Still Waiting?

2010-10-22T00:06:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while...life has been interfering. But I decided to write tonight before it all flew out of my mind.

Tonight the University of Redlands sponsored a free screening of the documentary, "Waiting for Superman." The movie is written and directed by David Guggenheim, of "An Inconvenient Truth" fame. After the screening, we had a (too brief) panel discussion. The panel was made up of two awesome professors in our Ed.D. program and two fabulous doctoral students. They were knowledgeable and diverse in their opinions, and I really enjoyed what they had to say. Here are my gut reactions about the movie itself.

The movie's "stars" were 5 adorable children. I actually kept hoping that there would be at least one not-so-attractive child in the movie, since most children are, honestly, NOT that cute. While it was obvious from the beginning that Waiting for Superman was going to be an exercise in emotional blackmail, it was really hard not to root for those little ones.

Waiting for Superman uses statistics to back up its claims that public schools are failing. I agree that U.S. education misses the mark on many counts. However, the statistics cited in the movie do not match what I have learned in my study. For example, at one point in the movie, we are told that test scores have remained flat for many years. This is not true; test scores have, in fact, been improving. We are also led to believe that the achievement gap between poor and non-poor students is not narrowing. This is demonstrated by two seemingly parallel lines with a positive slope. However, this contradicts the earlier statement that test scores are "flat." If they were flat, then why the positive slope? Also, the articles I have read show that the achievement gap is narrowing. There is most definitely still a gap, and it is not narrowing nearly as quickly as all of us would like (think glacier), but it IS narrowing. One statement had me particularly riled up. The narrator stated how many public school students fail to finish high school and go on to college and then said that over 90% of students from the "top charter schools" attend college. I'm sure that if we chose the "top public schools" we could find the same statistic, especially since "top" is not clearly defined. Guggenheim's failure to be truthful in these instances dilutes the message of his film.

Waiting for Superman blames the public school system and its teachers for the deficiencies in American education. The fact is that public schools are full of dedicated, competent, hard-working teachers who do an amazing job for little respect, money, and resources. I go to school with public school teachers by whom I am constantly amazed. If you were to believe Guggenheim, the schools are rampant with lazy, horrible educators who do nothing but draw a paycheck, because "it is impossible" to fire them. This characterization is unfair and hurts those teachers who do such an amazing job every day. In a profession that is already under-respected, educators need to be lifted up rather than beaten down.

Guggenheim and others like him like to compare the United States to other countries. We are "behind" other countries in math and science. This alarming comparison has been used since the 1950's and was emphasized during the 1980's with "A Nation at Risk." However, these well-meaning people ignore the fact that many of the countries they like to compare us to track their students at an early age and so do not strive to provide the same type of education to all children. Of course those students do better in math; they were chosen because of their abilities. Perhaps Guggenheim should examine some recent research; even the 20-year-old Sandia Report will do.

Waiting for Superman would have us believe that charter schools are the educational equivalent of the Second Coming, with charter school founders as The Savior. However, most charter schools do not help students' test scores improve; just as with traditional public, private, and parochial schools, some are good and some are bad. One of the front-runners in our current gubernatorial race recently released a new commercial that claims she wants to increase the number of charter schools. Why? Why doesn't she find a way to help the existing traditional public schools instead? Because the candidate, like so many others, believes the charter school propaganda that is being spread.

The fact is that most students in charter schools are already ahead, as is apparent in the movie. Students in charter schools have parents who care enough about their children's education to figure out what a charter school is, where the good ones are, and how to get in. Many students don't have such parents, and thus don't have what the children in the movie have. We can't compare students who have this kind of support to the students who don't, and it's not fair to anyone to think that we can.

Two things in the movie really bugged me on a personal level. First, the movie talked about our need for quality math and science teachers. I have heard this for my entire career. However, I have never had an easy time finding work. I am intelligent, certified, educated, and experienced, and, frankly, I am an amazing teacher. And at the same time that President Obama announces his push to recruit thousands of new math and science teachers, I can't even get an interview.

WARNING! SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH ONLY! The second thing that got to me personally got me so riled up that I am still upset about it. At one point in the movie, a beautiful child sits in her windowsill, looking at the children going to school across the street. The child's mother tearfully explains that she had fallen behind in her tuition payments for the parochial school and that her daughter could not attend that day's graduation. It's a touching scene that tugs at the viewers' heartstrings. This scene just made me angry. Here's my beef. David Guggenheim, who made millions on his last movie, "An Inconvenient Truth," and yet couldn't turn his camera off, walk across the street, and pull out his checkbook so that this little girl could attend her graduation. Instead, Guggenheim continued to film the mother, with tears running down her face, for the sake of this movie. Any respect I may have had for this filmmaker was lost when I watched that scene.

Parts of this movie actually made some good points. Sadly,the good was masked by the propaganda and half-truths told by the filmmaker.

When I decided to pursue a doctorate in Leadership for Educational Justice, a very wise woman told me that she thought it was an amazing degree. "You're like a superhero!" she exclaimed. I see superheroes in education every single day, superheroes who are devoted to their students, to learning, and to educational justice. So instead of wasting my time and energy waiting for Superman, I will use my talents, education, and experience to support, respect, and work alongside with the real superheroes.

Sojourn in Africa!

2010-07-16T14:56:00.000-07:00

My brother-in-law Ed is in Mozambique for several months, helping to set up a national resource lab. He is having some interesting adventures. Follow his travels on his blog.

Let me know what you think . . .

Two Terms Down . . . Seven More to Go!

2010-04-04T17:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I got through Winter Term. It was rough . . . Legal and Ethical Issues in Education; Quantitative Research Methods; Research to Practice Seminar. The work wasn't necessarily HARD; it was just LOTS. And I learned lots, too.

My classmates were pretty disappointing, though. Many of them were big jerks, just because they couldn't pick up statistics immediately. Certain students were VERY rude to the teacher. This was especially disappointing because my classmates are education professionals and would be angry if their own students treated them with the disrespect they showed our professor.

And our professor was BRILLIANT! Not only did he understand the one Doctor Who joke in the textbook, but he was really sensitive to the fact that the material was really scary for a lot of people. He made statistics really accessible and was very kind. I must say that I liked the class.

I was glad to find out later that I wasn't just irritable and that other people in my class felt the same. The semester ended well, with me finishing all of my projects and a nice lunch with some new classmate friends. I had felt rather lonely and isolated for much of the term, so it was nice to know that I'm not alone.

I don't know if I got straight A's. Statistics is a toss-up, but the lowest grade I could have possibly gotten was a B+. Anyway, Dr. Mitchell set me straight when he said, "This is the last degree you're going to get. At this stage, GPA is just ego." After he said that, I calmed down about grades and felt MUCH better.

So now I have a month off of school (but not off of work). When we return in May, it will be the third term of our first year! :)

It is time for me to clean my house.

A Student's Story

2010-03-08T13:53:00.000-08:00

One of my classmates shared a story with us. I had been watching the news about this incident (wow, that's an understatement--incident!), and then we talked about it in class. The thing I wasn't expecting to hear was that one of the students hiding in back room was our classmate's niece. You can read the story in her own words here.

Reading the story brought me to tears. Instead of scaring me about what's going on in the classroom, the story made me wonder if some kids are slipping through the cracks because I'm not there. Not that I'm all that important, but, well, I don't know. I guess it just really made me miss "my kids." And I really miss feeling as if I'm making a difference.

Life Update

2010-02-14T13:56:00.000-08:00

In honor of the Lunar New Year, I am posting my life update, just so you know what's going on.

School--School has overtaken my life. There is rarely a moment that I am not thinking about how much reading I have to do, a project that is due next, or an interesting discussion that I had about educational justice. But it's great. I started with a taste of school in July and then got going full throttle in September. I finished my first term with a 4.0, and now I'm motivated to maintain that. I'm excited by what I'm learning, and it's very interesting. This term is Legal & Ethical Issues in Education and Quantitative Research Methods (stats). Both are very interesting courses, and I've been blessed by great teachers in both classes. At some point I'd like to narrow down my interests to a dissertation topic. I know, there's still time, but I am so eager to get out there and move on. Which brings me to . . .

Work--Work is going relatively well. I find that I am still excited by teaching and that having my students change so often helps keep me motivated. At the same time, the work load is hit and miss. Sometimes it's overwhelming, and sometimes it's not enough to pay the bills. I find it frustrating. Also frustrating is the fact that we are judged constantly by our students through surveys they fill out. I usually don't find these helpful, as the students tend to blame things on me rather than realize they are curricular issues that I can not change (such as how much material I need to get through in a night). Such surveys are used to prevent me from getting a raise, which is quite unfair. Also, I'd like to get out of my doctoral program with some relevant experience so that I don't have to spend several years after graduation working at something that I am overqualified for just to gain experience. The problem is that with all of the budget cuts, no one is hiring for positions that would help me in that respect. So any of you that work in schools, if you hear of anything, I'm admin intern eligible.

Church--Church is going fairly well. I am probably going to change my membership to Eagle Rock SDA after all of these years. It's like getting a divorce from VDSDA, but that place clearly abandoned me years ago. I have been involved in Renovatus at Eagle Rock and have even made some friends there. I bring food once a month and even got to preach last year. It was a lot of fun, and it's nice to be in a place where it is recognized that talents can expand and grow.

Health--Health is :p. I am not taking care of myself as I know I should. I need a coach like the one Oprah had. Not that I can afford that. :p

Relationships--sigh. Have made some friends at school, church, and work. I guess that's nice. But there's still never that "one person" that I know I can call on. It gets rather lonely living that way. Really had hoped to have a husband and kids by now (or at least kids?), but I guess I'm not all that high on God's priority list. sigh

Anyway, that's my life. I know only about 5 of you read this, but thanks for staying tuned.

See? Facebook Can Be Good :)

2010-01-03T11:48:00.000-08:00

In December 2009, a college student named Mia sent Facebook messages to two people named Christopher and Emily, asking them if they had found a baby in front of a townhouse in 1989. Turns out that Facebook aided in reuniting this abandoned baby girl with her rescuers. You can read the story here. (By the way, don't read the comments. Sure, the story isn't written really well, and it ends rather abruptly, but it's a nice story.)

Funny

2010-01-02T12:16:00.000-08:00

Stole this from Mick's blog. Totally cracked me up. (He posted it a while ago, but I'm very behind.)

Inspiration for the New Year . . .

2010-01-01T21:33:00.000-08:00

As we begin the year 2010, many of us are making new resolutions, setting new goals, hoping new hopes. So, I offer this as inspiration for the day when the newness wears off--Faith the Dog!

I had heard about her before, but when I read this article a few weeks ago, I was inspired all over again. Faith was born with undeveloped front legs, so her owners taught her to walk on her hind legs, upright. Now, at 7 years old, she makes appearances to give hope to people who have lost limbs from disease, wars, and accidents.

Faith teaches me two things. First, sometimes when things don't work out the way I've planned, they can still work out. Second, a lot can be accomplished when someone is rooting for me. :)

New SCC Interview

2009-12-14T12:02:00.000-08:00

Steven Curtis Chapman was on Good Morning America this morning, but I didn't hear about it until later. Good thing the entire story is here on the ABC website. This family still makes me cry. But they amaze me with their faith. I'll never forget hearing this man talk about the loss of his daughter and then leading an entire audience of people in singing "Blessed Be the Lord." That song has never been the same for me since.

Anyway, read the article and watch the interview. Amazingly, this time ABC didn't cut out all of the references to God, as they did last time. (That would have made for some pretty interesting editing.) Be sure to get out your tissues. :)

Making Fiends Christmas videos

2009-12-13T15:45:00.000-08:00

Check them out here and here. They are quite wonderful!

Who for Christmas!!!

2009-12-13T14:07:00.000-08:00

BBC America is finally showing The Waters of Mars, the Doctor Who special that was shown a while ago on BBC One. We finally get to see it on Saturday night, December 19th. I'm crossing my fingers that my cable doesn't go blitz on me, as it seems to be doing a lot lately. On subsequent Saturday nights we get our installments of The End of Time (parts 1 and 2). I'm so excited to see the new specials, but I'm sad, too. The End of Time will mean the end of David Tennant as The Doctor. Boo hoo. I'll keep my mind open. Maybe I'll fall in love with Matt Smith as The Doctor.

Meanwhile, I'll enjoy the fact that BBC America will be showing Doctor Who and other Who-related things every Saturday night and Sunday through January 3rd. As I'm sitting here writing my final paper for class, it's nice to have The Doctor saving the world in the background. :)

Belated Post . . .

2009-12-12T22:49:00.000-08:00

Stephen sent me this link last summer, and I've been meaning to blog about it. Now, you all know that I love Hello Kitty, but REALLY? Do we need this???

Happy Christmas!!!

2009-12-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks for sharing this, Sylvia!

Seriously . . .

2009-12-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

I would like to know what supposed genius at Bravo TV thought up the new show Launch My Line. Ever since Bravo lost "Project Runway" to Lifetime, the network has been trying to come up with an equally compelling show to replace it. This has been an abject failure.

First, there was "The Fashion Show," starring the duplicitous Isaac Mizrahi and the personality-deficient Kelly Rowland. Bravo recently ran a full-day marathon of this show, and I was reminded of what a train wreck it was. Inane challenges (one based on readings from tarot cards), faux celebrities (who the hell is Tinsley Mortimer and why do I care what she says?), and UGLY clothes. I watched the entire season, hoping that something good would come of it. At the time I remember thinking to myself, "This is better than I thought it would be." However, when the marathon ran last week, I thought, "This is worse than I remember it being." Yeah, train wreck.

But nothing could prepare me for how bad the next should would be. Enter "Launch My Line." It's an intriguing concept--ten professionals, accomplished in fields other than fashion design, are sure they can conquer the design world. The person who wins the competition will have his or her entire line sold on a website, after, of course, beating out his/her competitors in several elimination challenges. Many of us have watched these shows and said, "What is THAT? I'm SURE I could make something better!" Besides, the show was on after Top Chef, so I decided to watch it.

BIG mistake. First, the contestants. Idiots. Seriously. None of them is at all interesting to watch, and none gives me a reason to want to root for him or her. Second, the "experts." Who are these experts? I haven't heard of any of them, and none of them seems to know much more than the contestants. Their only purpose seems to be to cause strife, which, might be fun to watch if any of the people involved were in any way interesting. Third, the hosts. I suppose that Dan and Dean (or is it Dean and Dan?) have made some sort of name for themselves in the fashion world. It doesn't matter that I haven't heard of them; I'm sure they are famous. However, I cannot even begin to describe to you how annoying these twins are. With their gravelly yet high-pitched voices and their not-helpful-at-all "advice" to the contestants, they both speak as if they are about to reveal some sort of juicy gossip but really say nothing at all. They provoke conflict between the contestants and the experts, asking questions such as, "What would you change about your expert?" instead of asking about the actual creative process or the clothes themselves. Last, the most annoying thing of all. The name-dropping. From the hosts to the contestants to the experts, the entire show seems to be about naming as many celebrities as possible. Perhaps the show's producers realized, as I have, that no one knows or cares who these people are. So, the best way, at least in Bravo's collective mind, to promote some sort of interest is to connect the show's "stars" to the rich and famous. It doesn't work. They just aren't very interesting.

So, Bravo TV, I suggest that you take Launch My Line and launch it into the ocean. It's a terrible show. Face facts: You let Project Runway go. Live with it and move on.

Want to Live Longer?

2009-11-19T17:57:00.000-08:00

Stole this article from Mick's blog . . . Supposedly, "Men married to smart women live longer." While some may extol the virtues of the smart woman and be down on the men who choose not to be with one, it seems simple to me. What's the point of living longer if you're not with who you want to be with? Funny.

Thanksgiving Greetings!

2009-11-19T17:28:00.000-08:00

(From Making Fiends)

:)

Click here.

SCC articles

2009-11-18T15:32:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Ruthie and Carmel, who posted these articles (here and here) on Facebook about Steven Curtis Chapman's latest album, Beauty Will Rise. The article are hopeful and heartbreaking. Can't wait to get the album!

Wishlists

2009-10-28T13:07:00.000-07:00

This post is by no means a solicitation to buy me anything. However, if you ever DO want to buy me something and don't know what, you can always check here and here. :D

Just FYI . . . :D

American on Purpose

2009-09-27T21:40:00.000-07:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

My favorite late night host has written an autobiography. I think I may order it tonight. Meanwhile, enjoy this video. :)

(Again, if you're reading this on Facebook, you have to go to my actual blog.)

New Addition to My Blogroll

2009-09-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

(If you are reading this on Facebook, you have to go to my actual blog to see my blogroll.)

Just added a new blog to my blogroll. It's written by our school mascot, Duke. He is a beautiful English bulldog and just became a grandfather. It's a really cute blog and will make you feel happy when you see the picture of the puppies. Check it out! :)

I Am From . . .

2009-09-18T17:58:00.000-07:00

This poem is the result of two experiences I had this week.

On Monday I tutored a woman for the GRE. She is 55, White, and from middle America. She is very nervous about her test. A while into our session, she said to me, "You are very calming. Where are you from?" I wasn't really sure how to take that. Was she assuming that I was from some exotic Asian land and was bringing the inherent calming effects of my supposed culture? Or was she just asking a question? I still don't know. My answer is in the last line of this poem.

Then last night in class we actually had to write "I am from" poems. It was kind-of odd that this came up after my experience on Monday. We wrote them together, and we didn't have a whole lot of time. But after last night, I felt moved to write my own "I am from" poem.

I don't know that it's complete. I don't think it will ever really be complete. But here's what I came up with.

I am from . . .

. . . a sugar cane farmer on a far away island
. . . an owner of a fleet of fishing boards on the Pacific Ocean
. . . a man who died in an unknown village in China
. . . a devout member of a Catholic parish in Spain
. . . families torn apart by a war
. . . grandparents who dreamed of more for their children
. . . parents who saw education as a golden ticket
. . . someone who could see opportunities on distant shores

I am from . . .

. . . a preacher at a tent meeting on that same far away island
. . . a colporteur who sold books door to door
. . . a group of young believers who longed for the return of their savior
. . . a pastor who preached grace without extending it to others
. . . church members who threw me away when I was deemed no longer useful
. . . a God who loves unconditionally

I am from . . .

. . . a collective of teachers—Mrs. Croak to Dr. Lalas—who imparted me with their knowledge—and lack of knowledge
. . . a science teacher who played H-O-R-S-E with me during P.E. rather than traumatize me with team sports
. . . a vice-principal who saw potential rather than mediocrity
. . . a professor who asked, “What was it like growing up gifted?” (to which I replied, “I was?”)

I am from . . .

. . . people in a city that places youth and beauty above all else
. . . aunts, uncles, cousins, second- and third- cousins, once-, twice-, thrice-removed, who arrived one after the other
. . . a family that must answer the question, “May I speak with Dr. Repique?” with “Which one?”

I am from . . .

. . . hundreds of students, who gave me more than they could possibly know
. . . groups of dedicated teachers and students who shared their hearts on Kairos and Emmaus
. . . principals, vice-principals, and department chairs for whom potential donor dollars were worth more than people
. . . colleagues—devoted and not---who inspire me with uncountable reasons to walk into a classroom

I am from . . .

. . . an unexpected friend who challenged me to be better than I was
. . . another friend who knew how to use my gifts without making me feel used
. . . new classmates and professors who are teaching me to become a superhero for educational justice

Where am I from?

I am from . . .

. . . here

Watch This Video

2009-08-12T12:51:00.000-07:00

Watch this video on You Tube and give it 5 stars for my friend Chris. :)

Watch it on the You Tube site so that you can vote. :)

Thanks!

Prayers Needed

2009-07-05T22:42:00.000-07:00

Your prayers are needed for a very dear friend of mine and my friend's family. They are going through a very difficult time right now. I cannot go into much detail, because I'd like to preserve the family's privacy. However, I know that many of you will pray, no matter what the circumstances. Thanks.

Thanks, But . . .

2009-06-30T16:54:00.000-07:00

Since I got in trouble earlier this month for responding to a forwarded email, I decided to do this in my own space.

Almost every day I receive a handful of emails from someone in my address book. It is someone I know that I have known for several years. The emails that I receive are varied. Sometimes they contain jokes, sometimes they contain inspiring stories, sometimes they contain interesting pictures. But these emails are consistently forwards that the sender feels the need to pass on.

I enjoy jokes, inspiring stories, and interesting pictures. However, what it obvious is that the person who consistently sends these to me is doing so with no thought about recipients. She does not edit or even consider to whom she is sending these things. So I will get several emails containing penis jokes, followed by several telling me to pass God's love to my friends. Then I will receive a slideshow of the most beautiful churches in the world, followed by a warning about eating chicken wings. (By the way, I used Snopes to look up that story about chicken wings, and the story is a hoax.)

I have forwarded emails in the past. I admit that I have made mistakes when it comes to forwarded emails. But I have learned from my mistakes. I forward emails to people who will enjoy or gain some benefit from what I am sending them. I use my mind and my discernment rather than just filling up my contacts' mailboxes with a bunch of junk.

I may end up having to report my "friend" as a professional spammer if she can't figure out how to self-edit. *sigh*

Last Chance

2009-06-28T23:17:00.000-07:00

Here's your last chance to donate to our team for the Revlon Run/Walk. Donations are due by 5pm on Tuesday, June 30th. Here's the link.

Thanks to those of you who donated and supported in other ways. :)

Seeing Stars

2009-06-28T13:15:00.000-07:00

I visited the Griffith Observatory yesterday (Saturday, June 27th, 2009) with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece. I guess I should have thought this through beforehand. It was the first official weekend of the summer, and the place was packed. The road to the observatory was blocked, and we had to park halfway down the hill. I was NOT happy to have to hike for what seemed forever to get to the observatory. We passed A LOT of empty parking spaces on our way up, too, and that was pretty annoying.

If you haven't been to the Griffith Observatory since the renovation, you are in for a treat. The exhibits have been updated, but it still feels like the old place. There is a whole lot more room, too. There is a new second floor (under the original building). Annie ran from one place to another, trying to absorb as much as possible.

Despite the crowds, we were pretty much able to see everything. We didn't bother with the planetarium, though. That was much too crowded. Maybe some other time.

And we did not get to visit the gift shop. Boo!

A Quick Trip to Pompeii

2009-06-25T13:46:00.000-07:00

I'm a member of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), so I get to visit the museum whenever I want. Theoretically, at least. I hardly ever go, but I like to option of being able to. In addition to the "free" admission, I also get tickets to certain special exhibitions.

The current special exhibition right now at LACMA is called "Pompeii and the Roman Villa." Stephen and I decided to check it out on Tuesday, June 16, 2009.

First, we stopped at the museum restaurant, Pentimento. It's very overpriced, but that's typical of museum restaurants. The menu is pretty limited, but the choices we made were delicious.

After lunch we stopped in to see the artwork. The special collection is pretty nice, though probably not worth $25. Good thing my tickets were theoretically free (though I did have to pay a lot for the membership). There's a lot of sculpture recovered from Pompeii and its environs. There are also several later depictions of what life would have been like in the days before Vesuvius erupted. Overall, it's a very good exhibition, and I would recommend it if you can afford it.

July's field trip is actually a trip to LACMA, but we're just going general admission; it's much cheaper. Let me know if you're interested in joining us.

Long Beach Aquarium

2009-06-24T13:56:00.000-07:00

We visited the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific on Tuesday, June 23, 2009. By "we," I mean my parents, my sister, my brother-in-law, my niece, and I. We were able to buy the tickets online (with a $5 per ticket discount) and planned to arrive in Long Beach at around 1:40pm. We actually managed to estimate the getting-ready and the driving times appropriately.

It's hard to believe that the Long Beach Aquarium has been here for over 10 years, and I had never been there. It is quite wonderful. They have several galleries with huge tanks of fish and other creatures from different areas of the Pacific Ocean. Fish and creepy-crawlies are interesting, but my favorites are the mammals. They had gorgeous sea lions and really cool otters. (We even managed to catch some sea lions mating, but I'd rather not think about that.) There are many touching pools outside--rays, tide pools, sharks. The aquarium also has a lorikeet forest, which is a lot of fun, if birds don't freak you out. You can purchase nectar to feed the birds, but we didn't do that.

We had lunch in the restaurant, which was terribly overpriced but wasn't too bad. There was a nice variety, at least, so we all found something to eat. We had a nice view of a seagull family (very large babies!) while we had our lunch.

Annie loved the aquarium. She couldn't get enough of each exhibit while wondering what was in the next one. She had a great time and even came home with a stuffed puffin toy to show for it.

I really liked the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific. If I didn't have to brave the 5 and the 710, I might have thought about becoming a member. But I will definitely be sure to visit more often from now on.

June Field Trip

2009-06-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

I left home kind-of early (well, early for me) on Saturday, June 13th, to get to Stephen's house at a decent hour. He then drove for the rest of the trip. (Yay!) We headed to Ventura to pick up Shana at her place. Then we were soon on the road to Santa Barbara.

We arrived at the Santa Barbara Zoo just in time to have lunch. (Even fast food in Santa Barbara is good.) While we were sitting there, Kelly arrived, and our little group was complete. We had a delightful time looking at the animals and enjoying each others' company. We took a ride on the little train that goes around the perimeter of the zoo but doesn't pass by any actual animals. The zoo itself is a lot different than I had remembered, but in a good way. AND the zoo has capybaras! :) Also, Stephen made me buy some food so that I could feed the goats. It was kind-of disgusting, but they were cute enough (as long as I didn't look at their eyes). We saw the entire zoo (except for the reptile house, which no one was eager to visit) and even had some time to sit and talk.

Kelly had to leave us for an appointment, but Stephen, Shana, and I were ready for dinner. We headed to the Beachside Bar Cafe at Goleta Beach. Nestor was off of work, so he met us there, too. The three of us got there a little early for dinner, so we took a walk on the pier before dinner. We finally were able to be seated on the patio, where we had a lovely view of the beach, the pier, and UCSB. We were a little disappointed by the abbreviated menu. I had forgotten that the restaurants in Santa Barbara do that for UCSB graduation weekend. Nevertheless, the food was delicious, and we had a very nice time.

The July field trip is to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, tentatively scheduled for July 18th in the afternoon. Feel like joining us?

New Look

2009-06-19T23:08:00.000-07:00

If you are reading my actual blog and not the Facebook feed, then you are seeing the new look. I found this template online; I'm not talented enough to do that myself. Other than the template, the most fun I had was adding the stuff about me. Hope you like it, too. :) (Yes, you. The five of you who read this.)

New Book!

2009-06-17T16:03:00.000-07:00

My friend Chris wrote a book for children. You can learn all about it here. Pretty cool, right?

Some Hints before You Hit "Forward"

2009-06-08T23:50:00.000-07:00

So, today I got an email from someone I consider an old friend. I've actually known him for most of my life. I first got the email on my phone, but it had been forwarded so many times that I couldn't get through the headers before my phone decided the email was too big. The subject of the email made me think that some pastor had been fired, so I immediately had to boot up my computer to read the email. I became very upset when I finally got to the text, only to learn that it was a message claiming that some bill in Congress is going to restrict religious programming on TV. I was upset because I recognized the email as an update of one I had read many years ago. The older one claimed that the bill was being pushed through by famed atheist Madelyn Murray O'Hair, despite the fact that she had died many years earlier. To verify my thoughts, I did a quite internet search and found that I was, in fact, correct. The bill does not exist, and the email is a hoax.

I responded to my friend with a link to the article on Snopes.com and wrote "You don't really believe this crap, do you?" Unfortunately, I hit "reply all," and that is when the shit hit the fan. Frankly, my response was much tamer than what I wanted to say. What I really wanted to respond was, "You don't really believe this bull shit, do you? And don't even get me started on those hatemongers Dr. James Dobson and Joel Osteen. I'd be happy if those assholes were off of the air." (I know that some of you like them, but I do not happen to agree with the way in which they treat people.)

Well, you should have seen the hate mail that I got. One person told me that Ellen G. White prophesied that "this" would happen, so it must be true. Gee, if Ellen White foretold that TV shows would be banned and rulings by the FCC before TV and the FCC even existed, then she was sure an amazing prophet! I'd love to see those prophecies. Another person was so offended by my use of the word crap that he said I am not fit to "call myself" a pastor. Both were sure that I am going straight to hell and told me to get my own crap together. Wow, and some of you wonder why I don't go to church regularly anymore?

I don't always respond to these forwarded emails, but I really hate the thought off someone propagating something so untrue. But apparently, as I was told many years ago (by the person who sent me the Madelyn Murray O'Hair lie), you have to follow your beliefs (even if they are proven untrue). So, since it is clear that my attempts to inject some truth into the situation will result in condemnation, I offer these hints before you hit "forward."

1) If you are forwarding a supposed news story to me, then please take the minute it takes to verify it from a real news source. Sending a link to a real news story from a valid news source is good form; sending a suppposed story in the text of an email is not. (By the way, taking the time to send me many, many, many jokes--several of which are off-color--but not having the time to READ my email about eradicating cancer is really, really shitty form.)

2) Use the mind God gave you. Do you really think that adding your name to the bottom of an email is a valid method of signing a petition? Unless every person only sends the email to one other person, there are hundreds of copies of the supposed petition with the same signatures on it. Who is going to go through all of those signatures and cross out the duplicates? Most of these emails have no instructions as to where to send the petition either, so the email just gets sent from person to person. Unless there is some valid website for the petition signatures, the email is useless and just JUNK!

3) If you do have a valid cause, the way to get the news to lawmakers is to write a letter to your congressman or senator. It's not hard to do; I've done it many times. And it will actually get to the person who can make a difference.

4) Don't you dare question my Christianity, spirituality, morality, or anything else just because I disagree with you. One thing I heard from more than one of the hate mailers was that I shouldn't be surprised that "the government" wants to persecute Christians. WAKE UP, PEOPLE! Christians aren't persecuted because of what we believe. Christians in the United States are persecuted because they act superior, call people names, and tell people they are going to hell.

Something just came into my inbox. I wonder if it's another person damning me to eternal fire. Great . . .

Please Vote

2009-06-07T14:50:00.000-07:00

Please vote for your favorite name for my blog. :D

Thanks!

Random Thing . . .

2009-06-01T16:14:00.000-07:00

Found this website today . . . Walk Score

You put in any address, and the site will tell you how walk-friendly the neighborhood is. It's good if you're looking for a new place to live (which I'm not doing at the moment). My neighborhood scored a 34 out of 100, which translates to "car dependent." Yeah, I kinda knew that.

Anyway, it's a fun distraction.

Cool Article . . .

2009-05-05T15:54:00.000-07:00

Here is a cool article that was in the St. Helena newspaper. It's about my sister and her husband and how they saved a pipe organ from being destroyed. The organ now resides in their home in Angwin. Sis tells me that there were better pictures in the actual (not virtual) newspaper. I think it's kinda cool.

AB 1430

2009-04-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

I recently got a letter from the American Diabetes Association about AB 1430. The California legislature is considering a bill that would make it illegal for anyone except trained nurses to administer insulin to students in California public schools--even if there is someone else in the school who is trained to give the injections. This means, basically, that if your child has diabetes, then he or she will either (1) have to learn how to give his/her own injections, no matter how old that child is; 2) only have his/her medication on the days that there is actually a nurse on campus--sometimes only once every two weeks; 3) have someone (usually the parent) come on campus at regular intervals to administer the medication; or 4) stay home from school and be homeschooled.

Why? Because California school nurses are afraid that by allowing someone else to give these much-needed injections, they will become obsolete. Frankly, what is making them obsolete is the ridiculous notion that not having a full-time nurse on every campus is somehow good for children's safety. "Yes, Johnny, I'm sorry you fell down and sprained your wrist on the playground. We will have the nurse look at it next Thursday when she comes in."

Since we can't have nurses on every single campus in every single public school, why must we punish diabetic children? If students are too young to administer their own insulin, does that mean that the state has the right to discriminate against them and essentially keep them out of public schools? How is training someone to do something that a nurse isn't even there for a bad thing? How is allowing a child access to education while at the same time caring for his/her health harmful to nurses?

If you're not sure about this, maybe this article will give you some perspective. Please pray about this matter.

United Tour!

2009-04-14T22:28:00.000-07:00

So, for those of you who read my actual blog and not the feed on Facebook, I've posted some pictures here. :)

Diane and I were again concert buddies as we made our way to Long Beach (thanks for driving, Diane!) and the Terrace Theater for the United Tour. I'd never been to that venue before. It's pretty nice. Not too big, so even though our seats weren't the most expensive, we still had a very good view of the stage.

SCC and MWS appeared on stage together, about 10 minutes after the scheduled time. They started off by singing/leading some worship songs, including "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord," which is a song that SCC has talked about a lot since Maria's death.

Then SCC started in on his own music. MWS joined the band for one or two songs, then it was SCC and the band. Caleb is along on this tour, but Will Franklin is not. Steven is a lot different since the last time I saw him. And that's to be expected. He is more serious, and the songs he chose all seemed to relate to his family's experience in the past year--"God Is God," "Yours," "Miracle of the Moment," and, of course, "Cinderella." And, of course, he talked a lot about Maria's death and how they have been living their lives since last May. It was definitely a different vibe. It was still great--just . . . different. But Steven did not disappoint us. He finished his solo set with two favorites--"Live Out Loud" and "Dive." Geoff Moore even surprised us by joining SCC on stage.

And just when we were expecting the intermission, Michael came back out. This was my favorite part of the concert. The banter between SCC and MWS was a riot. And then they started singing each other's songs. With MWS singing, "The Great Adventure," and SCC singing, "Go West, Young Man" and "I Will Be Here for You" (complete with instructions to the audience to open their cell phones and sway), it was so much fun! MWS "convinced" SCC to sing, "I Will Be Here for You." Steven talked about adoption and Show Hope, and then Geoff Moore came out and talked some more about Show Hope and Compassion.

During the intermission, Diane and I visited the merc table. They had some cool stuff, but the only thing I really thought I might buy was a T-shirt. Since I don't wear T-shirts that often, I really couldn't bring myself to spend the money. Diane bought the "Speechless" CD, but that's all we bought.

Then it was Michael's turn. He sang a medley of some of his bigger hits, ending, of course, with "Friends." Steven joined him for that, and cute, playful banter ensued. Then MWS sang a bunch of other songs, as I realized that I have not bought one of his albums in a really long time. In the last few years, he's really gotten into more worship music. It's not a bad thing; it's just not my favorite. Plus, I couldn't get into it, because he sang a lot of songs I didn't know. He's a great showman, but I'd rather he sang things I know. I guess I'll have to pick up his latest album and catch up.

The concert ended with both Geoff and Steven joining Michael for some more worship songs. I actually knew the songs; at the moment I just can't remember what they were. Then they all left the stage--no encores.

Overall, it was a great concert--different--but great. Please remember to keep SCC and all of the Chapmans in your prayers. They are clearly still grieving, and they need to be surrounded by our prayers and love. And, of course, do pray for the rest of the tour as well.

If you're going to see this concert, you will have a wonderful time! Be sure to post your pictures! :)

Airplane Tragedy

2009-03-24T12:25:00.000-07:00

I'm sure that most of you have heard about the airplane that crashed into a cemetery in Montana on Sunday. I hadn't realized that the families on the plane were all Adventists and that all of the seven adults were LLU alumni. Here's the article my sister sent me. And here's the story from the L.A. Times. My sister actually worked with a man whose son, daughter-in-law, and 3 grandchildren were killed in the crash.

Please pray for the families of Vanessa & Mike, Sydney, and Christopher Pullen; Amy & Erin, Tayor, Ava, and Jude Jacobson; Brent and Kristen, Hailey, and Caleb Ching; and Bud Summerfield.

Nice Craig Ferguson Article

2009-03-23T18:14:00.000-07:00

Here's a nice article about Craig Ferguson, whose show I love. Craig comes across as more than just a goofball. He is also thoughtful, smart, and genuine. And, yeah, he is a goofball, too. Anyway, it's a nice article, so I thought I'd share. :)

Also, the above videos show Craig's interview with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It's amazing to believe that goofball Craig got to interview Archbishop Tutu. I think Craig was the most amazed. I think he did a great job, while still staying true to himself.

Sorry It's Been So Long!

2009-03-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I sort-of left my readers (all 4 of you) hanging with my last blog post. Sorry about that. I guess I should finish the story.

If you didn't catch it on Facebook a few weeks ago, I have some news: I am going back to graduate school. Yes, I, the perpetual student, couldn't handle being away from school for this long. If all goes according to plan, three years from now I'll be receiving an Ed.D. in Leadership for Educational Justice from the University of Redlands.

I'm really, really, really excited about this! As most of you know, I'm a school junkie, so this has the potential to be very cool for me. The program looks like a lot of fun, and it's broad enough not to lock me in to have to become a principal. I DO NOT want to become a principal!

So school starts in September, with a summer institute the last week of July. I wish it started tomorrow! The best part is that the program will allow me to keep my job and work probably just as much as I am working now. Yay!

So thanks for your prayers and support. I am really excited to be starting this new phase of my life. :)

Prayers Needed . . .

2009-02-04T12:21:00.000-08:00

I have something in the works over here. It's kind-of important, and the last hurdle will take place on Monday, 2/9, at 3pm. I don't want to jinx it, so I'm not going to go into too many details today. If all goes as I wish, I'll be able to tell you all about it by about this time next week. So until then, I hope that some of you will find some time to remember me in your prayers. Thanks!

Milo Makes a Friend

2009-02-03T17:39:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to take Milo out more often. It's good for both of us--we both need the walks. Today we walked just a little farther than we had been, even though it's been unseasonably warm.

As we were walking along, we saw a man with a dog coming toward us. He was several houses away, and, as most people do, he crossed the street to avoid a dog encounter. Milo, true to form, began pulling at the leash and whining. Surprisingly, the man (whose name turned out to be Paul) understood what Milo was crying about. Instead of walking away quickly, he came back across the street to let the two dogs meet. They sniffed at each other, while the "parents" discussed our "children." His dog looked like a beagle from far away, but up close her face looked more terrier-ish. Anyway, the funny thing was that once the dogs smelled each other up close, they were fine--no more crying, whining, barking, or pulling. The four of us parted, and Milo and I continued our walk without any trouble.

So Milo made a friend today, just because someone crossed the street to say hello. I know there's an object lesson in there somewhere. If you think of one, feel free to post it. :)

February Field Trip

2009-02-01T21:49:00.000-08:00

Our January field trip was a great success, and some people have told me that they are eager for February's excursion. It will be on Saturday, February 21st, and we will be visiting the Asia Pacific Museum in Pasadena.

More details to follow soon. Let me know if you want to join us!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-26T15:57:00.000-08:00

Chinese New Year 4706 is the Year of the Female Brown Earth Ox — sometimes called the cow or water buffalo.

The year of the Ox is associated with domestic trouble that seems to have no solution. The grounded, rational, earth influence of the Ox may bring good fortune to troubled economic times but only with a sustained, well planned effort. The Ox influence brings an aversion to risky credit and quick answers that are not well conceived. The Ox year brings success only through discipline and through hard work. The steady ox is quick to anger when confronted by what seems to be irrational opposition, but the use of reason works well and avoids a charge by the angry bull. There is much danger of war and unrest if diplomacy does not prevail.

The last time the earth Ox was seen as the ruling influence was January 29, 1949 - February 15, 1950. The world suffered a recession in late 1948 and early 1949. The world economy recovered during the year of the ox due to rational decisions and careful planning. By 1951, the recession was over. Many will be searching for a quick solution to the current economic crisis, but the ox favors a well planned, consistent path that will take more time but lay a foundation for long lasting results. The strong earth influence of this year favors a strengthening of the housing market, but risk takers will not find this year favorable. Those who look for long term benefits, have a well thought out plan and are willing to work to see results will find great success.

(I got this info from here.)

Happy Year of the Ox, everyone!

Cute Shoes

2009-01-25T18:53:00.000-08:00

It's been a while. :)

Hope and Virtue

2009-01-22T21:29:00.000-08:00

I woke up much earlier than usual on the morning of January 20th, 2009. Remember, I work in the evenings, for the most part, so it's not always easy for me to wake up before 8am. Nevertheless, I set my alarm for 6:45 and was all set to watch the festivities. I won't rehash what you can get from any news source, but I thought I'd share some thoughts.

1) Overall, I thought the ceremony was very nice. It was a stately occasion, but it was not stuffy. I thought that the First Family looked gorgeous. The little girls were cute, Mrs. Obama was very pretty, and the President was very handsome. I enjoyed the quartet; Simple Gifts is one of my favorite tunes. I wasn't impressed favorably by Pastor Rick Warren's prayer. I know that some of my readers love him, but, frankly, I'm not a fan. I did, however, enjoy the benediction. It made me smile.

2) I loved President Obama's speech. I thought he did a wonderful job of showing hope while not ignoring the seriousness of our nation's situation. I loved how he focused on our nation as a whole and not on himself. I found myself inspired and hopeful. My favorite line was this:

. . . know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy

I think that's awesome! What if you . . . we . . . I lived my life as a a builder more often than a destroyer? I mean, deliberately lived that way? Wouldn't this be an awesome world?

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect.

This is kingdom-building at its core--recognizing our responsibility to feed the hungry, quench the thirsty, clothe the naked, and care for the widows and orphans. Of course, I was especially drawn to the line about feeding hungry minds, but I'm sure that if you know me, that's not a surprise. It's the message of Matthew 25. Inspiring!

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

Really inspiring!

3) I found myself really let down by the cattiness and downright hatred from some of my fellow Christians on this important day.

One person, who loves to proclaim herself to be a Christian seemed only too happy to proclaim that she "hates our new President and everything he stands for." Really? Hates? Everything? From what I've seen, our President loves his family and his country, God and humanity. Or, as I posted above,

hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism

Yeah, those sound like things that a Christian woman should be "totally against." Sure, I get that some people don't agree with President Obama's politics, but, seriously, the President said it best in his inaugural address: "the time has come to set aside childish things." Yeah, um, that's from the Bible. Maybe you've heard of it? But maybe you haven't, since you're against "EVERYTHING" that our President stands for. OK, I'm done ranting.

But I urge those of you who approached January 20th with a dirge in your heads rather than a hymn in your hearts to listen--really listen--to what you claim to be against. And whether you agree with what you think Barak Obama believes or you think the change he promises is not what you are hoping for, consider a different mindset. Think instead of how you might build something today. It's what I'm going to do.

January Field Trip!

2009-01-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

Well, Saturday, we finally had our January field trip. We visited the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. It was a wonderful day.

It began with lunch at Daisy Mint. I met Evelyn, Lloyd, Victoria, Finster, Stephen, and Carla at the restaurant. We had a delicious meal with good company. (This is the second weekend in a row that I've eaten at Daisy Mint, and I've had a good experience both times.)

Then it was time for the main event. Everyone was a little late, but finally everyone showed up. And by everyone, I mean . . . LaViva, Jaela, Carla, Lloyd, Victoria, Evelyn, Finster, Stephen, Ashley, Nestor, Shana, Janelle, Virna, Danny, and Michelle. Most of the people attending had not been to the museum before, so it was nice to see it through their eyes. We started off heading in the same direction, but with such a large group it was hard to sightsee together. Nevertheless, we made sure to check in with each other throughout the day, so that it still felt like a group outing. I really love the Norton Simon Museum. The collection is eclectic and wonderful. My favorites are the Degas and Picasso, and the religious art is always interesting. And, of course, I love museum shops. :) Everyone seemed to have a good time and told me that they really liked the museum.

After the museum, some people (Ashley, Nestor, Shana, Janelle, Virna, Danny, and I) went to Starbucks and sat on the patio. After Danny and Virna left, the rest of us went to Acapulco restaurant. We were having such a good time that we didn't want the night to end, so after dinner we headed over to Nestor's house, where we watched "The Princess Bride" and quoted lines to our hearts' content.

Overall, our first field trip was a success. Next month's trip is to the Asia Pacific Museum in Pasadena and will most likely occur on Saturday, February 21st. Wanna join us?

In Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

2009-01-16T15:30:00.000-08:00

Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Something to think about this weekend, as you're enjoying your time off.

CompassionArt

2009-01-12T12:16:00.000-08:00

I was reading Andy Chrisman's blog and just learned about something pretty cool. I know, it's probably old news. Those of you who are CCM fans probably heard about it a long time ago. It's something called CompassionArt, and you can learn all about it here. Here's what the website says . . .

CompassionArt is a charity that joins the dots between art and poverty. It raises money to help breathe life into the poorest communities, restoring hope and igniting justice.

. . . the dream was born to gather some of the best-known writers in the gospel/Christian music scene and spend the week writing songs that could impact these issues on a long-term basis.

So after many phone calls, the team was assembled, Michael W. Smith, Darlene Zschech, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman, Tim Hughes, Paul Baloche, Israel Houghton, Graham Kendrick, Steven Curtis-Chapman, Andy Park, Stu Garrard, Martin Smith.

So, with so many songwriters gathering it felt like we needed a new structure to compliment and carry this dream. The usual way of doing things is for a publisher to own the songs and then distribute them to the writers. Although there's nothing wrong with this it felt like we needed a more radical approach to maximising all the income from these songs as the intention of the writers is to give every cent away. Also a lot of the publishers and managers were excited about being involved too and making a contribution.

So CompassionArt was born, a charity dedicated to seeing works of art generate income for the poorest of the poor. So these songs that will be written in Scotland in January will be owned by the charity meaning that every penny will come to it and the trust will own these copyrights forever. The publishers, the managers, the agents and the writers have waived all their rights to see something historic happen, the music business coming together for something great, something that is about something greater than any individual could achieve.

It sounds pretty cool to me. What a great way to use one's art to BE Christ's Kingdom! I'm interested in hearing the album, too!

Grrr . . .

2009-01-11T21:47:00.000-08:00

So last night I logged onto our business system at work, and I was in for a great shock. I was just going on there to find a student's email address. I was not prepared to learn that one of my classes was cancelled. I'm really upset for a couple of reasons.

1) That is a lot of money that I won't be earning in February and March. I was already in trouble because of the Christmas break, and now I may have to borrow money again. *sigh*

2) No one bothered to call me and tell me that my class was cancelled. Had I known earlier, I could have made plans to be away for the six days that I have off. I could have gone to Hawaii or St. Louis or Chicago or that cruise with the 4Him reunion. Couldn't someone have dropped me an email to let me know?

I'm not in a good mood right now. Grrr . . .

Goal #4

2009-01-07T16:53:00.000-08:00

Here's goal #4 for year 2009:

I will get one room clean every week.

Again, this seems like a weird goal, but if you saw our house, you would understand the issue. Years of packratting by me and my parents has resulted in a huge accumulation of junk. So my goal this year is to get the entire house cleaned and to redo at least a couple of rooms. But I'm only focusing on one room at a time. Once I get the house presentable again, maybe I can get back to entertaining. :D

Goal #3

2009-01-06T15:19:00.000-08:00

So here is goal #3 for 2009:

Have a blood glucose within range at least 3 times a week.

Since I am supposed to test 14 times a week, this seems quite reasonable. However, let me give you some background. Last year I managed to lose some weight and to get my blood glucose (BG) under control. In fact, I was even able to decrease the dosage on one of my medications. Unfortunately, this did not last long, and I started slowly gaining again. And slowly my BG started to creep up. *sigh* The last time I went to the doctor, I told him that my BG was starting to get too high in the mornings but was perfectly within range in the afternoons. My doctor thought that my BG might actually be going too low at night, and I was catching it on the "bounce" in the morning. So he suggested that I try cutting out one of my medications and seeing if that helped. It didn't. Instead, my BG skyrocketed. I stopped checking, but I could tell that I was really high. So I started taking the meds again on New Year's Day. That day my morning BG was 262, and the afternoon BG was 281. Today I have gotten my morning BG down to 214 and the afternoon to 144. This is much better, but my goal is to be between 70 and 140, so I have a way to go. I'm starting off with a goal of 3 times per week, but I hope to be able to raise this number sometime soon. I'll keep you posted.

DREDF

2009-01-04T18:21:00.000-08:00

I got this an email from the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund a while ago. Some of the stories are heartbreaking. I'm reprinting some excerpts below . . .

Dear Diabetes Families and Friends of DREDF:

As you know, DREDF attorneys Larisa Cummings and Charlotte Lanvers have been working full steam on achieving the right to health care assistance in school for children with diabetes. We won a landmark settlement in 2007 from the California Department of Education (CDE). Then nurses’ organizations sued the CDE, and we received a setback a few weeks ago when a Judge ruled that licensed nurses are the only people other than parents, parent-designees, or the child herself who can administer insulin. It would be great to have a nurse in every school, but that is not going to happen. Larisa and Charlotte continue to put their all into this work every day.

In the midst of this work, Lisa Shenson, one of DREDF’s parent volunteers sent a plea for support to her friends in the diabetes family community that we'd like to share with you. It is important for us to reach out to the communities we serve for support, because few institutional funders will underwrite the legal advocacy DREDF undertakes as a 501(c)3 non-profit public interest law firm. Please help us so that we can continue to fight for your children and families.

Here is Lisa’s message:

Dear Diabetes Families & Friends,

Last month an 8 year-old child newly diagnosed with diabetes had no one at school to administer his insulin — there was only one nurse for the district, and she would not train any other school personnel to help this boy. Another child, 6 years old, was told by his school’s nurse that he must learn to press the buttons on his pump or he would not be allowed to come to school. At another school, administrators told a young teen that she may not participate in team sports because of her diagnosis. And a young boy in the Central Valley has been home-schooled for two years because his neighborhood school told his family, “We don’t do diabetes care.”

These are but a few of the real stories of children with diabetes who have recently faced discrimination in California ’s public schools. Be it your family or one you don’t even know, the pain of discrimination touches every diabetes family.

Now, more than ever, all diabetes families need to support the organization that has been leading the fight against discrimination on our behalf … the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF).* DREDF is one of the nation’s leading legal and policy advocacy non-profits, and it is passionately championing the rights of children with diabetes in California. DREDF’s intensive efforts are vitally important to all diabetes families.

Last month, a judge in California Superior Court ruled that only certain individuals are permitted to administer insulin to a child with diabetes in California public schools. This is a major setback. Why? Based on this court ruling, unlicensed school personnel may not administer insulin to a student on a regular basis. The ruling does not prevent trained unlicensed school personnel from assisting a child with self-administration of insulin, or administering insulin in an emergency. But with a serious shortage of nurses in schools, children with diabetes and their families will have to fight for their right to appropriate care in school. Parents and their designees may choose to come to school to administer insulin. But for many families, this is near impossible.

DREDF and its legal partners fought hard to keep this ruling from happening, and they are continuing to fight for our children and to provide legal assistance to individual families so that all children with diabetes are safe at school.

In Gratitude & Partnership,

Lisa Shenson, Diabetes Parent & Advocate

Susan Henderson

Executive Director

I don't really know what I want to say about it. It's just another thing . . . *sigh*

Squid and Frog

2009-01-04T17:55:00.000-08:00

So, one of my favorite animators, Amy Winfrey, has another cartoon! This one is called Squid and Frog, and you can watch the holiday special above. :)

Amy is the creator of my all-time favorite cartoon, Big Bunny. She is also the creator of Making Fiends, which started out as a web cartoon and is now on NickToons every weekend. All of her cartoons are infused with her bizzare and fun sense of humor. Check it out for a good laugh.

Goal #2

2009-01-04T10:31:00.000-08:00

Here's another one of my goals. It kind-of goes along with Goal #1, but it's slightly different.

I will do something with friends at least twice a month.

This stems from the fact that I tend to go into a cave from time to time, and this can be a very dark place. So in an attempt to prevent this from happening, I am going to force myself to interact with people at least twice a month. It kind-of goes with the museum thing, since I hope that people will join me at the museums, but I plan to go to the museums with or without people. The "something" doesn't have to be anything more than a quick lunch; it doesn't have to be a big party or anything.

In this way, I hope to keep myself from retreating into myself. It's my attempt to be less "Eeyore" and more "Tigger."

Inspiration . . .

2009-01-03T12:40:00.000-08:00

I recently learned about Randy Pausch. Apparently, I'm late in this discovery, since Randy Pausch was recently selected (on Beliefnet.com) as the most inspirational person of 2008. He made a speech in September of 2007 that was titled "Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." Video of what came to be known as The Last Lecture spread all over, and millions of people considered Dr. Pausch's approach to life and death inspirational. There's some info on Dr. Pausch here. I finally got around to watching the whole lecture, and I must admit that it was pretty cool.

I suppose everyone who watches the lecture or who reads the book gets something different from it. For example, I'm sure that the teaching part isn't what necessarily appealled to the majority of people, but it's definitely something that jumped out at me. It reminded me of how much I love being a teacher, how blessed I am to be a teacher, and how important it is that I share this blessing with the world.

Still, I wasn't as super-inspired as people seemed to have been by the words of Dr. Pausch. Not that it wasn't good . . . it was good and inspiring. And I highly recommend watching the video, if you have 1-1/4 hours to spare.

Dr. Pausch gives a lot of good advice, and there are many lessons to be learned. The one I will take for 2009 is this: Am I a Tigger or an Eeyore? As most of you know, I tend toward the Eeyore side. But I'm trying to change that--really. I honestly don't think I have to be a Tigger all of the time. That would madden me AND everyone I meet. But I think there's room for more Tigger and less Eeyore in my life. :D

As I said before, it's a good lecture. It may make you cry. If you do watch it, I'd love to hear what you have to say about it.

Goals for 2009 . . .

2009-01-02T22:43:00.000-08:00

I'm not posting all of my New Year's resolutions in one great list. How embarrassing if I can't keep them!

But I thought I'd post some goals every so often.

Here's my first one . . .

This year I will visit at least one local museum every month.

I am surrounded by a lot of amazing things here in L.A., and I rarely take advantage of my environment. I even have a book that lists all of the museums in Southern California. When I bought the book years ago, I went through and put tags on all of the pages that looked interesting. Unfortunately, nothing ever came of that . . . until now.

I'm going to start with something familiar and move on to places I haven't been. First stop, the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. Who's joining me?

A Christmas Story

2009-01-01T21:32:00.000-08:00

I just read this story about a baby that was born in Peru on Christmas Day. The mother's name was Virgen Maria, and the father works as a carpenter. No, really! I'm not making this up! Of course, they named the baby Jesus Emanuel. Interesting, right?

Snowzilla Lives!

2009-01-01T11:32:00.000-08:00

For some reason this story caught my attention. I'd love to see 25-foot snowman on my front yard or in my neighborhood. If I lived somewhere that was possible, I think it would be fun to be able to do something like that, at least once. Snowzilla has attracted a lot of attention, and I guess that's the problem. Legal action is being taken against the homeowner, because Snowzilla is supposedly a public nuisance. There's even a website to raise money to "Save Snowzilla." Is this really the best way to spend the government's time and money?

HAPPY 2009!

2008-12-31T22:47:00.000-08:00

We're still a little over an hour until the new year, but I thought I'd post early.

Wishing you all the best in 2009.

Frankly, my 2008 sucked, so I'm looking forward to a much happier year. :)

More later . . .

Geeky Science Stuff

2008-12-31T22:00:00.000-08:00

Here's something cool, if you're an astronomy geek. :)

I'll probably miss it . . . I don't think I can wake up that early. Haha.

Reality Check

2008-12-26T12:47:00.000-08:00

I got home from a very pleasant time at my aunt's house yesterday to read this. So sad. Pray for those injured and for the families affected.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T21:08:00.000-08:00

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from me and Milo!!!

Mary Beth Chapman's Christmas Letter

2008-12-13T22:04:00.000-08:00

With tears in my eyes, I read Mary Beth Chapman's Christmas letter. I can't even imagine how hard this Christmas must be for her as the first one since Maria's death. As I read the letter, I knew that this mother misses her beautiful little girl every day. I also noted how blessed this family is. They are a family full of love for God and for each other, and they've been amazing to watch through this whole experience. The letter is really sweet. Take some time to read it and let me know what you think.

Christmas Gifts!

2008-12-09T14:35:00.000-08:00

I got another couple of emails from Ferragamo and had to share.

First up, this shoe, which costs almost $1K. It's such an odd shoe but strangely intriguing. I would never wear it, though. Would you?

Then there's this shiny bag, which is really cute and costs ONLY $1350. Really? Does anyone really need a $1350 bag? But it is pretty, isn't it? :)

Volunteer Opportunities

2008-12-07T19:59:00.000-08:00

If you've paid any attention to me in the last year or so, you know that I volunteer at the Downtown Women's Center in the Skid Row area of Los Angeles. It's a truly amazing place, where lives are changed daily. I'm a member of Birthday Guild, which is in charge of monthly birthday parties for the residents of the center. We welcome creative and/or willing people who like parties. Let me know if you're interested in coming to a party with me.

DWC is a flurry of activity during December. This means that there are many more volunteering opportunities available. Last year I helped with the gift wrapping, but this year I have to work both nights. *sigh*

Here's a copy of the holiday wish list . . .

Gifts Wish List*
last updated November 12

For Residents

29 bath towel sets
45 clock radios
15 bath robes
45 Christmas stockings

For our Day Center Ladies

114 backpacks
120 wallets
120 pieces of jewelry
48 scarves (for neck or head)
71 make-up sets
120 perfume sets
120 gift cards (Ralphs, Starbucks, and Subway preferred)
21 fleece throws

*We respectfully request new items for gift giving.

We ask that all items be received by December 16 to ensure that we have time to festively wrap each gift.

Party prep for December Birthday Guild is TONIGHT (12/9),and the party is on December 30th! Let me know if you're interested. :)

The Low Carbon 12 Days of Christmas

2008-12-07T19:01:00.000-08:00

So, I get this newsletter from the National Council of Churches of Christ Eco-Justice Programs. I'm still not sure how I managed to get on the email list, but it's interesting to read through every so often. One of the things that was on the most recent newsletter was a list of 12 low carbon things that people can do for Christmas.

I've copied it here, in case any of you is interested. I won't say that I'm up for all of these, but it's an interesting read.

The Low Carbon 12 Days of Christmas This Christmas
Let’s Keep Coal Out of Our Stockings!

1. Send Electronic Christmas Cards: Sending your Christmas greetings electronically is good for Creation because it saves trees. If you want to send a personal Christmas greeting to close friends and family, use recycled paper to make your own Christmas Cards.

2. Make Your Own Decorations: This can become a wonderful family tradition. Use recycled materials or natural materials like pinecones, leaves, vines. Making your own Christmas wreath out of materials you collected is carbon neutral and positively fun!

3. Buy a Living, Local Christmas Tree: Start a tradition of planting your Christmas tree in your yard or on your church grounds after Christmas. You can even put a message in a bottle underneath the tree thanking God for the year’s blessings. Your planted tree becomes a Christmas gift for creation and a living family memory for years to come!

4. Use LED Christmas Lights: These lights use around 90% less energy than incandescent Christmas lights. Look for lights that are Energy Star approved. Remember to conserve energy and not to leave them on all day or overnight.

5. Do Your Christmas Shopping with Reusable Bags: Less plastic bags means less energy is used to produce them, and therefore less carbon is released into the atmosphere.

6. Give Responsibly: Buy gently used gifts like books and toys or nonmaterial gifts like a national parks pass or event tickets rather than products. If you are good at making crafts, consider making gifts for your loved ones.

7. If you buy traditional gifts, minimize your carbon foot print by purchasing Local and energy efficient gifts that are minimally packaged. Click www.nccecojustice.org/greengifts.htm for ideas.

8. Use Reusable or Recycled Gift Wrap: You will save energy by reducing the need to produce wrapping paper and help reduce global warming pollution.

9. Practice Alternative Giving: Donate to a charity in a friend or family member’s name.

10. Limit Your Travel: If you need to travel to be with family ride with other friends and family to reduce the per person carbon emissions or take the train. In general, driving results in fewer carbon emissions than flying, especially when driving a moderately fuel efficient vehicle at or below the speed limit with properly inflated tires.

11. Serve Local Food for Christmas Dinner: Consider serving a locally raised main course, but if a local ham or turkey is too pricey, serve a few side dishes made with local vegetables. This is a tasty way to reduce the number of miles food has to travel to get to your plate, which in turn helps reduce carbon emissions.

12. Remember Why We Celebrate! Christmas is a time to celebrate God’s gift of Jesus Christ, a savior who will bring peace to Earth (Luke 2: 11-14), through whom all things came into being (John 1:3) and through whom God reconciled all things (Colossians 1:19).

Comments, anyone?

Dishonesty Is Alive and Well and Living in Our Schools

2008-12-02T21:42:00.000-08:00

I was not at all surprised by the results of a study recently conducted by the Josephson Institute. You can read about the study here. According to the study,

In the past year, 30 percent of U.S. high school students have stolen from a store and 64 percent have cheated on a test.

Sadly, this is not news to me. After all, I DID used to teach high school.

These days, I spend a lot of time emphasizing how paranoid test administrators are about people cheating. My students are always amazed at all of the restrictions and hoops that they are made to jump through in order to minimize cheating. I guess GRE and GMAT administrators have a reason to expect cheating?

So sad . . .

Life Right Now

2008-11-21T21:05:00.000-08:00

I've had a crappy--no, shitty--past two weeks. *sigh*

My job has let me down. I had been teaching a class. It was a difficult class because of some circumstances out of my control. Frankly, I didn't even want the class to begin with. But I did my best. And they turned on me. My students never told me I was a bad teacher to my face, but they felt the need to say I was horrible and mean to my bosses and to anyone else who would listen.

The only good thing that came out of this is that I found out just how much I am supported in my classroom. Iain, Kelly, and Elizabeth all backed me up, and, because of my class's idiocy, are still backing me up--even though the course is finished. It is a far cry from having to work with JS, TM, TF, GB, and PH. I am grateful for their encouragement.

Still, the entire situation has put me in a really shitty mood. I am too old to be dealing with this petty crap. I'm a good--make that, GREAT--teacher. I'm always on time, I know my stuff, I cover all of the material IN THE ALLOTTED TIME, I support my center, I get people to come to workshops, I'm available to my students via email and before and after class, AND MY STUDENTS GET RESULTS! I do all of that, and still I'm vulnerable to the kind of attacks that I've had to endure. I'm angry and hurt and just want to cry.

And I was supposed to be happy about my birthday in the midst of this. I got a lot of well-wishes on Facebook. I was very grateful for those. I was also fascinated by who managed to forget. It was a little heartbreaking on a couple of accounts. Still, Stephen, Mesash and Ashley, and Virna all took me out for meals--on three different days! So that was quite nice. And Stephen, Chris, and Trish donated to DWC, which was really great.

Yet, my birthday left me feeling empty. I usually love my birthday, but this year, for the first time, I felt as if life has just passed me by. I was supposed to be at a different stage in my life than I am. And I'm disappointed, because I know that I'm too old for most--if not every one--of my wishes to come true. It makes me truly sad.

Last night I actually went to DWC for our monthly birthday party. The party was great, and the ladies had a better-than-usual time, thanks to Ricardo and his singing. But the party ended badly for me, due to people's lack of respect and boundaries. This is really the first time this has happened to me at the center, and it really did hurt. It was mostly due to misunderstandings, but it was not something I needed on top of everything else.

The worst part is that this cyberSCREAMing is really all I can do. There's no one home to talk to; I don't have anyone to hold me and assure me that I'm loved; even my best friends have other things going on in their lives--too much to concern themselves with my feelings right now. Sure, they can give me a few hours of their time--but, really, there's no one in my life that can give me of themselves. I'm not complaining; they have a right to their own lives and their own loved ones. It's just that I'm really sad . . .

Oh well. Back to work . . . *puts mask back on*

Handbags . . . :)

2008-11-20T22:55:00.000-08:00

It's time for our not-so-regular visit to Kate Spade.

What do you think of this bag? I think it's gorgeous. $245 :)

And this bag is so cute! In black, red, and blue . . . $295

For Those of You Who Can't (or Don't Want to) Go SCUBA Diving . . .

2008-11-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

I love the National Geographic Wildcams. Now they've added another one . . . Belize Barrier Reef. SOOO COOL!!! Check it out!

Wanna See What a $1000+ Shoe Looks Like?

2008-10-31T22:28:00.000-07:00

I love getting email ads from Ferragamo. Oh, the fun things I discover . . .

This shoe costs $1090. YIKES!!!

This is a really cute bag. But is it REALLY worth $1850? Is ANY bag?

Like boots? Here's a men's motorcycle book for $990.

And here's one for women--an equestrian style for ONLY $1090. :)

And another cute shoe for ONLY $820. :)

The question is, if I COULD afford stuff like this, would I REALLY spend my money on it? Hmmmm . . .