Reflections on Doctors

I have many conflicting views about doctors. On the one side there is admiration for their skill and knowledge, appreciation of their high calling, and fascination at what modern medicine can accomplish.

On the other side is distain for their sometimes callous opinions, horror of their principles, and sadness at their mistakes.

So, what brings this topic up you might ask. Please do.

Last Friday I talked about Mr. Glass, who apparently had little brain activity and little chance of recovery. I dared not post about this sooner because of the conflicting messages the family had been receiving from medical staff. The story following his heart attack goes something like this.

-He had received care in a timely manner and little damage was caused.
-He needed a procedure to reduce brain damage.
-His brain scan showed no damage.
-His brain scan showed no activity and he would die.
-His brain scan showed some activity and he would probably be OK.
-His brain scan showed only lower brain activity and he would eventually die without comprehending anything ever again. i.e. He was a vegetable.

At this point he was moved to a hospice facility where it was expected he would "finish dying" within a week. He would not feel any pain. He could not feel pain. He was not really there anymore.

On Saturday when I visited I saw no evidence to the contrary.
On Sunday when I visited I got a shock. He was awake. He looked right at me. He indicated he wanted water. He said a word that was understandable.
On Monday he was doing better. Today better too.

So doctors...you have a choice. Either you were way wrong and were going to let someone die before their time, or else God performed a miracle. Take your pick.

Praise the Lord! He has a long way to go and isn't out of danger yet, but where there is life, there is hope.

Reflections on Life

Life is fleeting, short and unexpected. You never know when something might happen to you or a friend.

Please pray for my friends, the Glass Family. The father of the family (Ken) had a massive heart attack last Thursday evening. After a week of being in the hospital, they have determined that he has very limited brain activity. He is going into hospice care until he finishes dying.

I can only imagine what the family is going through. I cannot imagine how I would feel if it were my Dad laying there in the hospital. The immediate family are all Christians, but it is still very hard.

Please pray for them.

Reflections on the Wedding

I like weddings. On February 10, 2007, my brother married the love of his life in a beautiful and meaningful ceremony that was very special. Here are some of my thoughts about that day.

*Happy - I was/am very happy for Jeremy & Rachel. I do not begrudge them their new-found joy in life.
*Praise to God - For the marvelous way He brought them together and the many ways He provided for the wedding and their future life together.
*Fun - Maybe it is just me, but I think all of the activity surrounding the wedding was fun! I enjoy large projects, multiple details and being surrounded by lots of family and friends.
*Peace - Knowing that God had directed their lives and that He would continue to do so.
*Excitement - Did I mention that over 550 people were there?
*Anticipation - All those plans were coming together...very nicely.
*Honored - What a privilege to be asked to participate in this wedding.
*Hot - It was hot standing on the stage with bright lights shining on you while you try to stand still (and make sure two little flower girls stand still too).
*Relief - It was over. There were no major problems. Everyone had a good time. They got married (the most important part).
*Joy - The whole day was full of joy!

THE Wedding

Not mine, my brother's!

My little, big brother got married last month, and I have been waiting for him to update his website before I blogged about it so there would be a selection of pictures for people to see. Visit www.ourcourtship.com if you want to see and hear more about it.

A Few of My Unfavorite Things

I am not what most people call a picky eater. Last night I got a chance to try a new food...scallops. They were good. Not destined to become a favorite, but good enough to eat. I understand they are also very nutritious. Good enough for me.

That got me thinking about the few foods I don't like. I'm sure I can't remember them all, but here's a list along with why.

- Green peppers - I actually like them in theory, but they give me a stomachache in reality. This took me quite a while to figure out. Now that I understand what is going on, I don't hesitate to pick them out of my food anymore.
- Hot peppers/hot food - Why would anyone think that burning your mouth would be pleasant? Again it is not the taste as much as the result that I mind.
- Black pepper - I don't object if it is in food, especially in small amounts, but you won't catch me putting it on something on my own. Too much makes me sneeze or at least have a tickle in my nose...and it doesn't take much to be "too much" for me.
- Liver - I actually didn't try any liver until I was in my early teens. I entered the eating experience determined to not let any outside influences determine if I would or would not like this food. I didn't like it. The aftertaste was terrible.
- Raw fish aka sushi - Why people would pay big money for raw fish I fail to understand. Yuck! I tried a variety once-upon-a-time with a friend so we could say we had tried. I believe in giving foods a fair chance to impress themselves upon my taste buds. In this case depress was more like it. The texture wasn't pleasant either.
- Clams - Big globs of fleshy, chewy, fishy flesh. I'd rather spend my money on something else. A lot of people swallow them whole! Why bother?!?
- Blue cheese - How did eating mold ever become popular? There are lots of things that I will eat if I am desperate, but that doesn't mean I have to like them.

There are some other things I generally avoid, but they aren't really food: cola pop, coffee and mayonnaise.

Disappointments in Life

Life is full of disappointments. At least that's what I've always been told. I rarely experience this because I keep my expectations low and my enjoyment of whatever comes along high. However there is always the occasional experience that fits into the "disappointment" category. Today I had one of those.

This evening I was scheduled to host a wedding shower for a co-worker (the past-tense should give you a clue about what is coming). Shortly after noon the groom let me know that not only was he sick and going to go home, but his bride was sicker than he was. He asked me to cancel the shower for tonight and said that we would try to reschedule for later. So I cancelled it.

I am trying very hard to think about this properly. First, it is very sad that the bride and groom are both so sick less than 2 weeks before their wedding. It must be much harder for them than for me. Second, I am grateful that I received the message from the groom about 1 minute BEFORE I walked out the door to do the final shopping for the party tonight. Third, some of the food can be frozen. Fourth, my co-workers are enjoying the fruits and veggies, so they aren't going to waste. Fifth, at least it wasn't ME that was sick and had to cancel. Sixth, all of the attendees are close at hand and easy to notify about the cancellation. Seventh, I now have an extra free evening this week. Eighth, being sick is not usually fatal. There could have been much worse reasons to have to cancel the shower tonight. Ninth, we should be able to have the shower someday. Tenth, God knows best.

I'm sure I'll come up with more thinks to be thankful for. However, I still have to admit that I am a bit disappointed. Ahh well, such is life. Hopefully we will be able to reschedule for sometime in the future when all are well (pun intended). :-)

Birthday Surprises

Birthdays are fun...at least that is my perspective. When other people complain to me about their birthday I tell them, "Well having a birthday is better than the alternative." So far they all have to agree with that. :-)

Last Saturday my family gave me a Surprise Birthday Party. It was a double-surprise. First, the party. Second, that we celebrated (officially) my 35th Birthday. The second was a surprise because this year is not my 35th Birthday.

Here's the explanation. The year I turned 35 my family asked me if I would like to have a party. (We try to do big parties every 5-10 years for family members.) I replied that yes, that sounded like fun. (I enjoy just about any excuse to get together with friends and family.) But through a series of circumstances, the party never materialized. Those were busy days.

However, my family did not forget their promise to have a 35th Birthday Party for me...so they had one last Saturday. True, it was about two years too late, but whose counting?

The party invitation did, I have since heard, generate a lot of speculation among my friends who thought they knew how old I was (or at least that I was older than 35), so my family had to repeat the above explanation many times.

Many thanks to the wonderful family and friends who put this together and attended (and many thanks to those who sent birthday greetings even though they were unable to attend)! I had a delightful time and felt loved by all.

Happy March!

March is in like a lion around here...we had snow yesterday!

Now some of you may consider snow to be "old news," but here in the Pacific Northwest, every flake of snow is celebrated or feared (depending on who you ask). Wednesday was the weirdest weather day I every remember seeing. Snow one minute (it didn't stick) and bright sunshine the next. You could literally wait a few minutes if you didn't like the weather to get something different. One time it was near white-out with snow and wind combined.

Although the snow didn't stick here, it did other places. And then some places had a sunny day with no snow.

Very weird weather for the last day of February.

Amazing Grace Movie

It may seem ironic to those who know me best that I am recommending a movie, because I don't go to movie theaters. However, that does not mean that I object to the many other people who do.

"Amazing Grace" is being released today. You can visit www.amazinggracemovie.com to read more about it and find a local listing.

This movie tells the inspiring story of William Wilberforce, a British lawmaker who, because of his Christian beliefs, fought to end slavery in Britain. It took him 20 years (20 years!) to pass legislation that outlawed the slave trade. Then it took him another 26 years to abolish slavery in the British Empire! The final legislation passed just three days before his death.

I have heard nothing but rave reviews from my colleagues who have had the opportunity to screen some or all of this movie. If you are a movie goer, I urge you to see "Amazing Grace."

And I challenge you to ask yourself this question: What would I give 46 years of my life to accomplish?

New Year, New Employees & New Baby

The New Year has come, along with old and new work. I don't mind. I like my job and my coworkers. We are fighting for a good cause, and that makes the hard work worthwhile.

Our pastor preached a good sermon on Sunday about the need to live one day at a time. God doesn't give us a "year-full" of blessings at a time; He gives them to us one day at a time. Hence the exhortation to pray for our *daily* bread. We wouldn't want to eat a year's worth of food in one sitting any more than God would give us a year's worth of blessings all at once. Interesting thoughts.

Yesterday we had two new employees start work. One of them will be my future "replacement" in my current job so I can move along to my next one. This will involve weeks of training...and I have to clean off the second desk in my office so he can use it.

Things should be quiet around here -- 8 of my fellow employees are gone on a business trip to Washington, D.C. However, this morning we had a meeting with 24 people that I had to lead (because everyone else was gone). That more than made-up for the 8 people who were missing from the office.

I doubt if things will be any too quiet around here tomorrow. The phones will likely be ringing off the hook because of our case being heard before the U.S. Supreme Court.

My Bible study this evening was cancelled because the leader is sick. In addition, they are calling for snow and she didn't want me (or my sister who drives even further and on worse roads than I do) to be traveling late tonight. I hope she gets better quickly.

And finally, my dear friend who got married this summer is expecting a bouncing baby boy! I am SO very happy for her and her wonderful husband. I am already trying to figure out how I can visit her during or after the birth. It will be a bit tricky. I AM hoping that she will be able to arrange her schedule (which is very busy) so that I can host a baby shower for her. That would be such fun!

Christmas with Grandma

When I arrived home on Friday, December 22, I found that my passport had arrived. Horray!

We packed our bags and loaded up the truck (crew cab) for our trip to Grandma's house. We were able to get away before 10:00 p.m. This is pretty close to a record.

The trip over the mountains and through the valleys went well. The roads were just about the best we had ever seen in the middle of December. I think that partly because we got away from home right at bedtime, everyone (except the driver, which rotated every few hours) slept late into the morning on Saturday. We stopped about 1.5 hours before getting to Grandma's and ate brunch. As a result, the trip was one of the fastest trips we have ever made. It only took us about 16 hours to drive the 800 miles (and that included almost an hour for lunch).

We quickly settled in at Grandma's house. We have been visiting her at least once a year my whole life. We all know just what to do. These days my special task is working to cook-up meals to freeze for Grandma and Uncle to eat when we are gone. This year was no different. I cleaned-out the freezer and organized it so we could fit as much in as possible. I spent almost all of my days cooking, except for Thursday afternoon when I took time off to go swimming with Dad and my sister.

Happily Grandma and Uncle prefer simple meals. We have made more complicated things in the past, and have found them still in the freezer a year later! They are old-fashioned meat and potatoes people. I made dozens of containers full of potatoes and gravy (turkey and beef) and turkey or beef stew. I am happy to report that with my final efforts last night, the freezer is packed full with a few to spare that went into the kitchen freezer.

The kitchen fridge was not cooling things down properly. The milk we were drinking was bairly cool, so after fiddling around with the controls all week, I decided that drastic measures were called for. I spent a good portion of yesterday defrosting the freezer and cleaning out the fridge. I discovered that the back of the freezer was full of ice...and it is the type of fridge that gets its coolness from the freezer. Thanks to the liberal use of my Mom's hairdryer, I was able to get the freezer defrosted in one day. And thanks to the nice cold weather here, I just set the stuff from the freezer (and then the fridge) outside in boxes while I was defrosting it and they kept nice and cold. In fact, the stuff from the fridge hadn't been that cold in a long time. I am happy to report that following the complete defrosting and cleaning of the freezer and fridge, the freezer now keeps ice cream hard and the fridge keeps milk cold! PTL!

Today is the last day at Grandma's house. We will leave for home after supper tonight. We liked the leaving in the evening schedule so much that we have decided to try to do it each time (in the past we have left closer to midnight than supper). The nice thing about this is that we should get home tomorrow in time for New Year's Day football (which will make the guys happy).

Happy New Year's Eve!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

We're off to Grandma's house for Christmas! I hope you have a very blessed Christmas season and that God gives you a wonderful New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Which Superhero Are You?

Your results: You are Superman
You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Superman		70%
Spider-Man		70%
Supergirl		65%
Wonder Woman		65%
Robin		65%
Green Lantern		65%
Iron Man		50%
Hulk		45%
The Flash		40%
Catwoman		35%
Batman		30%

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

Passport

Today I will be turning in my passport application. I am very excited! Once it comes back I will be able to travel anywhere in the world (within reason), if I want and can afford to go.

Trips to Canada do not yet require a passport, but I hope someday to make a trip somewhere that will. :-)

Why I've Been Too Busy to Post

OK, I know it has been a while since I have posted, but I have a very good reason...I've been too busy.

During the past four weeks I have coordinated about 11 events for work. I have been assigned full responsibility for managing and filling my boss' schedule. We have had a major project take-off. And I have worked instead of blogging while eating my lunches every day at my desk (when I took time to eat at all).

Now I can take a breath and get down to my normally busy life instead of an extraordinarily busy one. (grin) So maybe I'll have time to write once in a while.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Computer Crashes - Good News & Bad News

My computer hard drive crashed last week. There is good news and bad news.

Good news: I didn't lose any real "work" documents. Per office procedures, all files were saved on the server which is backed-up regularly. I can honestly say I practice what I preach! (I tell people on a regular basis that it is not "if" their hard drive crashes but "when.")
Bad news: I lost most of my favorites which are not backed up to the server. So if you know me and have a blog, please give me your blog address again. (Except QOC which I have memorized.)
Good news: I did have some favorites saved on the server from when I switched computers several months ago.
Good news: My replacement computer is faster than my old one.
Hopefully good news: Maybe this will motivate me to research how to get SBS 2003 to do keep a copy of My Favorites on the server.
Bad news: The server keeps restarting itself at various times in the day. Nothing consistent mind you, but it is getting annoying. (And who knows when it will develop into a serious problem.)
Good news: I have been authorized to purchase a new server.

Unlocking the Mystery of Life

Did you know that there is a little machine inside of each cell that untwists your DNA so that it can be transcribed using a messenger RNA which is then moved into the manufacturing part of your cell where it is put into a little two-part building machine which then matches the code with one of 20 specific amino acids to form a chain that is moved into a tumbling machine that helps it fold into a protein? (And that is only one part of the process.)

If you randomly dropped Scrabble letters onto a table, what are the chances they would ever fall in such a way as to line-up and make one complete sentence? And DNA has millions of lines of code.

And some people actually think this all happened by some big cosmic accident or by chance. Ha! That's not science, that's science fiction.

I recommend you view the Unlocking the Mystery of Life video if you get the chance.

Just Relax

Today I read an article on the importance of not being stressed out and relaxing regularly. The article then explained the physical effects of stress and relaxing. It explained that you can learn to relax with very little effort or time.

Several ways to relax were explained. Ways to relax include breathing deeply, laughing, meeting with a friend, singing, reading, and listening to music you enjoy.

While I was at the printer waiting for a print job to appear, I decided to take the few seconds to relax. I breathed deeply, laughed and sang a song in my head all at the same time. It was very relaxing. (grin)

(For those of you who know how busy I am and wonder how I could have time to read a magazine article, let me tell you my secret. There is a spot in every house and office where you sit for at least a few minutes each day and don't need your brain power. That is when I find time to quickly read an article or two each day.)

A Week in Review

Well, I can hardly believe I haven't blogged for a whole week. And I was getting downright regular at it. I can only credit such a lapse to the fact that on Monday I spent my lunch time on someone else's blog answering their questions about dishwasher use. The rest of the week I didn't have a regular lunch time.

The week has been busy, as expected. My fellow employees returned from their combination of vacation and conferences (except for two). Most importantly was the return of the two "top dogs" in our organization who create a lot of work for me when they are here. (Not that I am lacking in work when they are not here.)

Deadlines that could not be met early because people were gone had a heyday with my schedule this week. I know in theory that the best way to avoid the tyranny of the urgent is to get stuff done ahead of time. However, when people have their own deadlines that prevent them from getting you the stuff you need until you can't let them put it off anymore, what can a person do?

I'll just keep trying to get "ahead" when I can. Meanwhile, all these urgent deadlines keep my life from being boring!

And since I brought that up, what is it like to be bored? I really can't say from personal experience. If I was ever bored in my entire life, I don't remember it. I'm sure it didn't last very long.