Failure Schmailure

Did you know that Babe Ruth, the man who hit the most homeruns in baseball was also the man who had the most strike outs?? People remember his success, not his failure. Where would he be if he didn't strike out all those times?

Kinda makes a strike out seem not so bad doesn't it?

Keep swinging!

Do you ever feel like you have a magnifying glass on you? Like your faults and flaws, real or imagined are huge?

How can you un-magnify these things and put them back in proper perspective?

Strike Two

The pukey/dookie virus strikes again!! Two of the four business office staff called in sick today. We are glad they kept their germified, snottical, vomititrocious selves at home. WE DON'T WANT TO BE SICK TOO!

Ginger

No, I am not talking about the character from Gilligan's Island.



I am talking about the spice.
I am trying a new recipe today for Ginger Chicken. It is from Rachel Ray, or Wachel Way, as Cassi used to say. I had to modify it just a bit since I couldn't find sesame oil at the local grocery store. I can't imagine why our little town wouldn't have more use for sesame oil!

I don't know how this will turn out. I am sure that UJ will be able to doctor it up if need be. I'll let you know how it turns out. :o)
Update: the dish was not very good. edible but not something I would do again, or if i did i would use exactly what is called for in the recipe. i had to use ginger juice instead of minced ginger and it made it too watery and the flavors drained off. that and UJ wouldn't even eat it. i ate it alone......

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In other news, Carly will be leaving for the Jonas Brothers concert on Thursday. I know she is looking forward to seeing them. I hope they have binoculars so she can see them up close.

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My pastor Danny, his wife,Teresa and several congregation members are in Israel right now. I would love to see that area of the world someday, but I doubt it will ever happen. I will have to see it via Google Earth. haha. I am sure they will all be fired up when they get back. I am looking forward to pictures and stories. There is never a dull moment when Teresa is around anyway so for her to be coming back from such an awesome trip is very exciting.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled and less boring blogging. ;o)

Stay Calm....On Second Thought...PANIC!!

Today when I arrived at work to man the check out desk at the clinic, the phone was ringing off the wall. All lines lit up and Beverly and I were frantically answering calls, scheduling appointments and placing sick callers on hold while Karen checked people in.

Then........three of the five nurses on staff came to the front desk and interrupted me on the phone to tell me they have they flu. They were promptly sent home and we were left to deal with the day.



I am proud to report that we made it through the day, thanks to creative management, good attitudes, one x-ray tech/lab tech/fill-in nurse and a firm answer of "NO" to the hundreds, ney thousands of phone-calls we received.



It seems our area has been hit with a killer respiratory virus AND a horrendous pukey/dookie virus that has been terribly hard for our patients to shake. Our office is full of feverish, snotting, coughing, pooping and puking people all day every day. I have bought stock in Lysol, and expect to be a millionaire or at least a hundredaire by the end of the week.

This is a real live picture of the pukey/dookie virus that is plaguing our peeps. Pretty u-g-l-y huh??

The Smell of Music

Two days ago as we were driving home from Nana's, Cassidy in usual form was singing. Carly and I noticed at the same time that she was singing: "I can smell the music........."

Maybe she can.

Barefoot Contessa

I love to watch Ina Garten on Barefoot Contessa on Food Network. I love to hear her soothing voice and watch her cook simple yet elegant recipes for her husband, her florist, her gardner, her friends daughter, her best friend, practically everyone she knows.

I love it that she loves to cook for those she loves. She is very thoughtful in her food choices and always makes something wonderful.

I want her to be my friend and cook for me someday.

P.S. I love chocolate.

Happy VD

Today is Valentines day. I don't have the money to buy Uncle Joe this cool guitar, so I will just give him the picture to look at. A picture is worth a thousand words right?? I wish it was worth a thousand dollars then I could get it for him. He needs another guitar. Pretty soon our garage will be a studio and he can hang them on the walls like Ted. :o)

I am sick with fever and all the respiratory stuff everyone else has had. I managed to go this far without getting sick, and one day at the front desk at work put me right in the line of fire....er actually it was coughing and snotting and breathing down on me with germy breath. Carly is feeling much better I am happy to report. She missed three days of school this week.

I am very sad I can't get any Valentine kisses from UJ. I don't want him to get sick with this so I will stay away from him. (*too bad for him! ;o) heehee

Anyway I am feeling glassy eyed now so I will go dose up with Tylenol and go lie down some more.

Stop the madness!

I have to put my two cents worth in on this subject: Britney Spears.

I haven't really kept up with her since the office's subscription to People Magazine expired some time back. I hear little bits and pieces on what little news I watch and see her face on the tabloids while waiting in line at Walmart or the grocery store, so all this may be off the mark, but it is after all MY opinion. :o)

I really feel sorry for this young woman. Her life is splattered all over every entertainment magazine for the whole world to inspect and critique.

Yes she has made some terrible judgements and has outlandish behaviour, but WHY ARE WE PAYING MONEY TO SEE IT? That is what I don't understand. Let the girl to to Starbux for pete's sake! What is the big deal about following her around 24/7?

When will we stop buying these magazines that exploit her silly antics?

When we stop making pictures of her worth thousands of dollars, maybe she can settle down and get the help she desperately needs!

She is on a dangerous road here and I really do fear for her life. She may bring some of this on herself for all I know, but the photographers that are swarming her car and following her all over creation are creating a dangerous situation. Soon I fear that her name will be said in the same sentence as Princess Di's for the same reason. We hounded her to death. Why?Because we are revelling in someone else's pain and misery. It is just shameful.

Shame on us.

One is NOT the Lonliest Number

Our Sunday School teacher gave us this list some time ago. She has taught us that numbers and names mean a lot in the Bible. Today I want to share the number list with you.

Let me preface this by saying I don't know where the list came from, but in our studies so far, I have found it to be spot on.

one- unity

two- union, division, witnessing

three- resurrection divine completeness and perfection

four- creation world

five- grace or God's goodness

six- weakness of man, evils of Satan, manifestation of sin

seven- completeness, spiritual, perfection

eight- new birth, new creation or new beginning

nine- fruit of Spirit, divine completeness from the Lord

ten- testimony, law and responsibility

eleven- judgment and disorder

twelve- governmental perfection

thirteen- depravity and rebellion

fourteen- deliverance or salvation

fifteen- rest

sixteen- love

seventeen- victory

eighteen- bondage

nineteen- faith

twenty- redemption

twenty one- exceeding sinfulness of sin

twenty two- light

twenty three- death

twenty four- the priesthood

twenty five- the forgiveness of sin

twenty six- he gospel of christ

twenty seven- preaching of the gospel

twenty eight- eternal live

twenty nine- departure

thirty- the blood of Christ, dedication

thirty one- offspring

thirty two- covenant

thirty three- promise

thirty four- naming of a son

thirty five- hope

thirty six- enemy

thirty seven- the Word of God

thirty eight- slavery

thirty nine- disease

forty- trials, probaiton and testing

forty two- Israels oppression and the Lord's Advent

forty five- preservation

fifty- Holy Spirit

sixty- pride

sixty six- idol worship

seventy- universality, Israel and her restoration

one hundred- God's election of Grace, children of promise

one hundred nineteen- resurrection day, Lord's Day

one hundred twenty- divine period of probation

one hundred forty four- the Spirit guided life

one hundred fifty three- fruit bearing

two hundred- insufficiency

six hundred- warfare

six hundred sixty six- number of the beast or anti christ

eight hundred eighty eight- the first resurrection

one thousand- divine completeness and the glory

Here are two easy illustrations: David slew Goliath with 5 smooth stones.

5= God's goodess and grace. The world was created in 7 days by God. 7= completeness and spiritual perfection.

The next time you are involved in a Bible study or sermon, remember these and prove them. I would love to hear of your illustrations!

Isn't It Great?

I was in Walmart today to buy a birthday gift for a little girl down the street. We have gotten into the habit of entering through the garden area of the store. It seems we can find a better parking spot, the line to enter the store is usually not very congested and we can usually get out fairly quickly.

Today was not a getting out quickly kind of day. It seems everyone had the same idea I had and there were several people in line ahead of us and apparently there we were there during lunch because there was only one checker for a while.

So as I waited in line I was looking around at all the couples. I was amazed that there is someone for everyone. The older lady that I observed coming in was a little vertically challenged and seemed to have some deficiencies in the make-up skills department. (either that or she was a former circus clown.) She had her husband following her close behind. He apparently liked the way she looked. The red-neck gals I see coming to Walmart in their pajamas and slippers....they have someone whose boat they float. The tomboyish girls who love to play sports...they have someone who appreciates that. The brainy girls catch the brainy guys. You get my drift.....

Somewhere out there is your mate. Someone whose boat you will float, whose fancy you will tickle. Someone who will love you for just who you are. Someone who will think of you first thing in the morning and the last thing before they go to sleep. If you have that mate already go give them a squeeze and a take-my-breath-away-kiss and just walk away, leaving them wondering what has gotten into you. If you are still waiting for that mate, then get to Walmart! You never know who you are going to run into there, literally and figuratively!

Ain't love grand??

Akanbou

Hmmmm what does that mean you ask??

Go find out and get back to me.

The Hands I Miss

This photo came in an email from a friend and reminds me of when my Nan passed away in Oct 2005. I was on my way home from the hospital when I got the call that she was fading fast and I had better hurry back. I rushed home to get my family and let Uncle Joe drive me back to say good-bye.

I remember listening to Casting Crowns, Praise you in this Storm and Lifesong up there. I cannot hear those songs today and not think of Nan.

We arrived and when the elevator door opened my dad was there to receive me and give me the news. We were too late. I of couse wanted to see her....and very specifically her hands.

I loved her hands.

They were very gentle and soft. I saw those hands many times play praises at church, make my favorite cookies, try to teach me crochet,and dig in the soil to make a fabulous flower and vegetable garden. (those efforts are still evident in the yard now!)

Those sweet hands made thousands of the most delicious meals for our family and taught me to make chicken and dumplins, our family favorite. (I don't make them as tasty as her, but at least I tried!)

I know thost hands spend thousands of hours folded in prayer interceding for me and my family. I think that is what I remember most. She took us to Sunday School , just around the corner from her house when we were little children. We sat on the "Amen Row" until it was time to go to class. Used to peek at her during prayer and see hands folded at her mouth praying earnestly. She was never distracted and I know that she reached Heaven.

Another thing that is very prominent in my mind is the sweet wedding band that she wore. It was a thin gold band with apple blossoms on it. She had worn it so long that most of the blossoms were worn away. That meant something to me.

I have two precious pictures of my babies grasping her fingers. Fingers that would play with them in the floor just like another little child. She adored all her great grand children. I am so glad they got to know her and will have memories of her.

The hands of a woman are special. I look at my hands and wonder what is in store for them? Hopefully a long full life of them giving loving touches, exacting correction when necessary, making the best oaties ever, tickle scratches, foot rubs, work and lots of hours folded in prayer....and....maybe someday I will look down and see old wrinkled hands and smile.