ahhh ... vacation

I had a good flight down to Dallas yesterday. Why are airports so kind to me when they're so nasty to others? :) I arrived 10 minutes early, and enjoyed basking in the sun until D. arrived to pick me up.

It has been a blessing to have a good, long visit with her already. She's been to a program called Pathways that has been a blessing to her, and I've appreciated hearing how God has used it.

Some neat plans on the horizon for this ten days ...

• A ladies' retreat where D. will be speaking
• Bungee jumping (hush mom ... just pretend you didn't read that line) :)
• Visiting the Bible study that D. does in an indigent HIV ward on Sunday afternoons
• Some Goodwill shopping ... I just love scrounging for bargains.
• Maybe a floating-down-the-river-on-an-inner-tube afternoon
• (If I decide I can stay awake long enough), going to observe the work being done with the Dallas Prostitute Initiative. This is a wonderful program where they reach out to these ladies, and instead of just arresting them, help them get drug treatment, and job and housing help. Though it runs from 11:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. ... so I want to be sure I can stay conscious, if I DO go. :)
  

Robins-to-be

There has been a robin sitting on eggs on my porch. Today I took my camera out and held it up over the top of the nest and snapped a picture.

Looks like there are three potential bird-lets up there. :)

Things went fine in the nursery yesterday ... nobody died, and there was a nice grandma-type lady who took responsibility for anyone who cried.

I'm leaving Wednesday for vacation! Yippeee!

a picture for Kristen

I tried taking a picture today to show the highlights she put in my hair. I'm afraid it doesn't show up very well ... but it was the best I can do. Remember that any fashion choice I make must have "subtle" as one of the key adjectives, so even in person, most people can't quite figure out what's different. :)

more violets, and a persistent robin

I think these grow lights were well worth what I paid for them. :) My persevering robin is back, and has re-built his nest. I hope this one makes it -- I don't mind doing a little extra cleaning to be able to watch some babies grow!

a bit of stretching ...

I just volunteered to work in the nursery at church one Sunday/month.

Everyone who knows me just went into shock. :) I'm not good with children. I didn't "play" well when I WAS a child, let alone now. I was figuring it out yesterday, and it has been almost 20 years since I last changed a diaper. Babies tend to cry when they see me. But I'm going to give it a try, and see how it goes.

It seems like it's always the same people doing all the work in the nursery, and I ought to at least attempt to help out before deciding I'd be a miserable failure at it.

So ... if you plan to visit ...you might not want to bring small children on the 4th Sunday of the month, just to be safe. :)

My nieces seem to like me. I'm holding on to that as my one straw of hope that I might be able to serve without seriously traumatizing any of our little ones!

what twelve activities do you most enjoy?

A friend asked me this question today, and I found it very enjoyable putting my answer together.

Here's what I came up with!

1. watching the sun set or rise
2. training a dog or horse
3. learning a new skill or subject
4. conversations with trusted friends about what's happening with our hearts and souls
5. encouraging someone who's hurting
6. reading a riveting book
7. editing
8. cleaning / organizing / getting rid of un-needed stuff
9. travel to interesting places with non-stressful companions
10.watching a thunderstorm
11. finding bargains at thrift stores or garage sales
12. wandering museums

Give it a try, and leave your answer in the comments -- what 12 activities do you most enjoy?

a little light-headed ...

I had my hair highlighted last night, and she put a little bit of red in it too. (I love red hair.)

So now I've become horribly-vain-woman and keep looking in mirrors at my hair. :)

Unreasonably proud of this

The gun class last night was great! There were only 4 of us, and the teacher had a nice balance of making things very basic without talking down to us.

He set out all different kinds of hand-guns and explained how they worked, showed us how to hold them properly, load and unload them, and told us there was no live ammunition in the room.

Then he would use dummy bullets, and hand us each a gun, and ask us if it was loaded or not.

It was a very good experience -- gave me a lot of confidence that I understand how they work, and can handle them safely.

And I discovered in the end-of-class practice session that I really enjoy shooting. I brought my target home, and am quite proud of how I did! :) (Though I'm NOT proud of the fact I can't figure out how to rotate a picture on a Mac. Grrrr!!!! ... I can do it in a half dozen different programs and fashions on a PC. There's an obvious educational deficiency waiting to be addressed! The bottom of the target is actually on the right of the above picture.

The teacher said that if I practiced between now and then, I shouldn't have any problem with the CCW class, so I'm looking forward to that also!

Of course, the untold story of the target picture is that the instructor was really setting us up for success on our first try. He only put the targets about 10 feet away. :) But, it gave me the opportunity to try it, and I could see how I can improve with practice.

I just love learning new things. I wish I could make a living taking classes. :)

another idea I've been mulling ....

As we continue to try & get our T-1 line working. (The process has been a demonstration of inefficiency by two phone companies who shall remain nameless ... or not ... AT&T/TDS).

Someone mentioned that incompetent people don't KNOW they're incompetent ... that the set of skills necessary to BE competent is the same set of skills necessary to recognize incompetence.

It explains a lot, actually.

And ... if you think about it long enough ... can be a tad bit scary.

I mean ... what IF people are following behind you and kindly re-doing all your work after you go home at night? And you're going blissfully along, thinking everything is running well by your own efforts?

go ahead ... think about it for a while ... :)

the benefits of being a worry-prone person

The other day, a friend shared a thought from a book she was reading.

If a person is prone to worry, they already have cultivated the skills needed to meditate on Scripture.

I've thought about that a lot.

Worriers take a situation and turn and twist it in their minds, examining it like a favorite treasure. They disassemble and reassemble it in every conceivable way.

That's what meditation is (the Christian version anyway!) ... taking a passage of Scripture, and mulling it over, examining the word choices and themes, thinking about why one thing was said and not another, looking at connections with other passages, etc.

One ... worry ... tears a person's mind apart, and profits nothing.

The other ... meditation ... builds faith and a strong mind, and profits much.

I know which I'd prefer to pursue!