Rain, Dentist and 8th Monday of the year 2010

Woke up at 3:45AM and didn't get back to sleep until around 5:30am - Bummer. Woke to a very gray and cloudy day with a drizzle starting by the time we reached the first door and then rain. I hate that since Eileen came out with us this morning and she has been having such a hard time getting out. The fun part was riding in ShelaB's new SUV - so something good did come out of that wreck she and Ger were in other than hurt backs and sore muscles. We finally gave up, ran by the house to pick up my laptop and printer and met everyone back at the KH for letters and telephone calls. This is where I got a big disappointment about a purchase I made this weekend. While I was upgrading my cell phone (I love it - simple but perfect) I picked up something I have been wanting for awhile - a way to have broadband on my laptop when I'm at the KH writing letters (to look up addresses), at the beach during vacations (2-4 times a year) and when/if I ever get back down to GA to visit Page without having a monthly fee. I thought I had finally hit on a great plan until I locked into something today that is probably going to require me returning everything and then re-purchasing it with a different plan which I'm hoping will make them come to their senses and "just do it". I think the secret will be to actually go back to the store and let them do it from there. So maybe I will not get down about it just yet. Eileen left us at 11:30 to go home and I definitly didn't blame her - it was so dark all day. We quit a little early and I came home, brushed my teeth and went for my regular cleaning and check-up. I had been out in the rain all morning with the hood of my raincoat over my hair and when I check in at the desk - they take a picture of me for my records. HELLO? So I took out my handy dandy little camera and took their pictures. LOL I really just wanted to get Wayne's picture. He has been working a 3 day a week schedule and Big D told me several weeks ago he found out he has gone to 2 days a week. I called him a "slacker" today and we both laughed. We hit it off the first time I went to him and have become pretty good friends considering we only see each other at least twice a year. :-)I usually have a joke for him but forgot to tell it to him today. Oh well - in 5 months I guess (yeah - like I'll remember that)! I also took a picture of the hygenist who did my cleaning today but decided to just stop with her and Wayne - actually he is my only constant in that office anyway. One of the truly great doctors who actually treats you the way he would want to be treated - a real gem. Big D called and wanted KFC for dinner so that's what we had. It was good but definitely not on my list of healthy foods - which isn't to say I have been doing that great in that department either. Yesterday, Roseanne and I were going to go to the movies after our meetings but it was SO pretty - in the 60's and sunny - that we decided to spend the time outside. We went to the little Cafe in Barnes and Nobles and ordered and split little mid afternoon (high tea?) meal of soup, sandwich, decadent cheesecake and fruit drinks and sat at the tables outside. The sun was warm, the air was cool and people were out and about all around us walking with their kids and animals. We were so glad we didn't spend that time in a dark theater. When we are in the theatre, we can't really talk and get caught up so it was exactly what the doctor ordered!! An afternoon with my dear Roseanne! What could be nicer? At least they are calling for warm weather tomorrow but partly cloudy and then it is going to be cold again. But I think I do feel me some Spring in the near future and that is a good thing. Don't want to wish my year away - we are already in the 8th Monday of the year so I think I will just enjoy this moment now. Going to try to stay awake to watch a little TV and get to bed early for a long day tomorrow.

Censorship.....

"Censorship is the suppression of speech or deletion of communicative material which may be considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or inconvenient to the government or media organizations (or even individuals) as determined by a censor." Hmmm - I've always thought that was an interesting word and concept. I have heard it most of my life - normally in connection with the government or another authority deciding what could be made public and what couldn't. A good example is certain literature. During World War 2, many nations censored our literature and a few countries still do. Freedom of speech is something people born in this country take for granted - especially when it comes to stating our opinion on something that isn't popular with the majority of people. It was during the late 50's and through-out the 60's that young people decided they were going to exercise their freedom of speech and do away with censorship. Some good and bad things came out of that but if you were being molded during that time period as I was, it is very hard at times to accept the concept of censorship.
Looking back in history - a book I have taken for granted my entire life was censored as far as it's being accessible to the "common man" for so many years. That book is the Bible. There are still some places where it is still censored which would come as a surprise to many people who are not only aware of but can not even comprehend such a thing.
Other cases of censorship may come as a result of someone choosing not to report something to the general public as it might cause more more harm than good. For example a reporter may learn of something that might make him a superstar in his profession but when the information would cause an individual harm or anxiety, that reporter may choose to censor himself and not print the information as he may have desired to do.
In the first century, many Christians were put to death for carrying out the commission given to all Christians to continue preaching about Christ even though that work had been censored by the authorities of that day. Many are facing physical persecution and imprisonment even today for doing the very same thing in several countries.
So censorship can come in two forms - one imposed by another authority or one that is self-imposed because of a request or because it is deemed the information is more harmful than good. Freedom to share our opinions on issues and/or people, institutions, movies, plays, sports, whether to pull for Chevy or Ford in NASCAR - is something that comes as easy to us as breathing. When someone asks us to censor ourselves and what we write or talk about; it takes a few minutes to assimilate that request. Assimilate means to take in and utilize as nourishment : absorb into the system b : to take into the mind and thoroughly comprehend dissect that request.
As a minister, we try to listen and think before we speak and choose our words as wisely as we possibly can. That isn't censorship - it is putting the importance of the life-saving message before our freedom to be able to speak it. That doesn't mean it isn't hard to not speak freely of something that is very important to you - but you have to work on self-control and use your words wisely and for the good of others and not just yourself.
I will have to say once more how much I do appreciate freedom of speech - especially with those who love us and accept us for exactly who we are and what our needs are.
Tune in next time for more ramblings of an old lady.....

Page, Bentley and Page2 - Spring time near?

I ran across a few picture's of Page, Page2 and Bentley from last year when the Pages got to have some time together in GA. Kurt and Leah had gone to Florida to visit a friend and it was a perfect opportunity for the two Pages to be together. Page and Bentley really showed her a wonderful time - roller skating on the Comet, Calloway Gardens which has something for everyone including bike rides, nature trails, butterfly houses and the list goes on. I love these two pictures of Page with Page and the other with Bentley. They had a very good time while they were there even though Page2 almost killed Bentley when he was pulling her on the bike w/his.

It also reminds me that Spring will not be far off - at least not as far off as it was two days ago. We have finally had a truly cold winter - the first in a long time and I'm happy about it BUT, I am not definitely looking forward to Spring! I was reading Page's blog and this made me think of her entry talking about the period of time she hated being outside because of a bad episode with poision ivy when younger. I'm happy she finally got over that fear and absolutely loves being outdoors as much as possible these days. I think she will be happy to be home tomorrow - I know Bentley and I will be glad when she is back. I spoke with him awhile ago and he was happy to hear she sounded better. He also let me know he is now on light duty and that gave me a reason to smile too. Now to just get the surgery over and move forward. Remember - if you click on the pictures - you can see them closer and you will see how handsome our Bentley really is. :-)

Oops - everyone makes a boo boo sometime...

This is so funny. Someone sent me an email with a link to Dr. Oz and his show. It seems he had done a show about High School Reunions and guess what YearBooks he had pictures of?It is so funny - these are some of our YearBooks! As a matter of fact, I have every one of these on my shelves in the hallway. They are not like this anymore - they are not hardback and not nearly as big - I miss the colorful hue of our old books but like everyone - we need to be as green as we possibly can. You can tell they got smaller as time has passed. For a period of time, I read every word in the YB but I have to admit that hasn't been the case these last few years. It makes me remember what Keith's dad asked me when I told him I wanted to be a regular pioneer. He said there were three things - support of spouse, schedule and would it rob me of my joy? The last one was a little confusing but he explained it this way. Since we have been getting the WT - CD - I have thoroughly enjoyed doing research on so many levels and would my not having as much time impact that? Well guess what? It has but the benefits I have received from the ministry just makes those nugget I'm still able to fine more important to me so it was an okay trade-off. I have the new YB and will definitely try to read as much as possible but know that I'm out almost every day doing what I have been commission to do so I'm okay. You know what? I keep trying to find something for my Family Study and I think this is going to be it until I finish reading the entire book. There - that feels better.

Baby girl better and everything going good.....

Page always sends me information for any of her "across the big pond" trips so when I got home this afternoon, I decided I wanted to "hear" her voice to assure myself she was really getting better. She was booked into The Hotel Manos Stephanie which looks very nice. I called at a time I thought would be 10:10pm but the gentleman at the desk said she was not in.

I decided to wait awhile and try her again which I did and she answered. Dinner had run long and she had gotten in shortly after I had called. The gentleman at the desk had informed her when she returned that she had received a call and the person who called said they would call back. Nice. I felt so much better because she really did sound better. She said she was glad she had gone, the meeting today was very positive and she felt great about everything. Tomorrow is more meetings but she hopes to be able to catch a ride about 45 minutes out to see some of the people she used to work with over there. She will probably kill me for putting this picture on here but I love it! I took it at the beach last November and she had just rolled out of bed, not combed her hair or anything but I love that pretty face and smile! I have another one of her she sent me and her Daddy when he was in the hospital for his final surgery. She had turned the shower on and turned around and all but scared herself by what she saw in the mirrow. She took the picture with her phone and sent it to me with the note - where are the squirrels? Her hair was totally hilarious! It looked like a nest of squirrels were still in it and her expression looked like a deer in the headlights! Daddy used to tell her in the mornings when she would roll out of bed on weekends - "don't walk in front of the windows - you are going to kill the squirrels!" and we would die laughing. After laughing my own head off - I passed my phone to Big D and he kept saying - Oh, Oh, Oh - it hurts to laugh but he also couldn't help himself. And NO - I am NOT putting that one on here. There might be a squirrel walking by your window and I wouldn't want to kill it! :-) Overall - it looks like it was a good decision to go. We were enjoying our conversation when I suddenly remembered where I had called! Yikes! Don't even want to know how much that cost but believe me - it was worth every single Euro!

Facebook and Baby Girl in Europe Sick.....

I have enjoyed being on FaceBook but started realizing a few weeks ago how much time I spent on it in a day. In other words - just like chocolate, sweets and so many other vices in my life, my OCDC kicked in and I was hooked. It has died down some since Jes is no longer in DR but I still find myself checking it multiple times a day. I made some new friends and re-connected with some old. I had some rude awakenings I would have preferred to never had from some people but for the most part, it has been a positive experience for me - perhaps because I know how to "hide" or block out the things I know are bad. I de-activated my account quite awhile back but when I found out Jes would be in DR, I re-activated it. I'll see how it goes and if I miss it, will go back but in a more sane and less time consuming way. It has changed so like Roseanne, I don't think I will miss it that much. We'll see. Roseanne told me this morning she was dropping it so after thinking about it - I came in from service, checked the new emails I had gotten including tons of messages from someone who wanted to be my friend that I really don't think I have ever seen before and that was the clincher - I de-activated it. WOW - it has been interesting. I told everyone I was signing off for awhile so I guess that's it for now. Maybe I can finish getting our books in order now that I'm not as distracted. Page called me yesterday to let us know that she was still sick but felt a tiny bit better and was going to Europe after all. She is the only one from the States that is being sent to represent all the branches in the States and it will also give her the opportunity to re-connect with some old work-mates over there. The President of the company basically wanted this to happen so I'm not surprised she pulled herself together to go but worried? You bet. As I mentioned previously, it is hard for me having one of my babies sick living so far away but especially Page since she isn't married and lives alone. She is a very strong woman and I'm proud of her but still worry - I'm a Mama - it comes with the territory. I know I would feel much better if Chantal was still with the company but she isn't. They did have some wonderful adventures together before she left. I may be remembering incorrectly but I think the picture of the windmill was taken from Chantal's window? I'll have to ask Page. I got up early and kept checking my email up until time to leave for service to see that she had arrived. Since she isn't part of Global Training based out of Europe any longer (based out of GA now) she no longer carries an international cell phone. They are 6 hours ahead of us but it turns out her flight out of NY was delayed for 3 hours, then the taxi that had been ordered to pick her up wasn't there since the flight wasn't there and it took her awhile to get to the hotel. I came home at lunch to check again and there was the email letting me know she was there and okay. I had sent an email before I left letting her know I had called Bentley to ask him to let me know if he heard from her first and she emailed me a second time asking me to let Bentley know since she would be in bed by the time he gets home from work that she was there. I called him and we had a nice long chat about his upcoming procedure and how it went on his job today. They are supposed to be making it possible for him to have light duty until everything is taken care of. Page was entertained somewhat during her wait in NY. There was a woman with quadruplets who were 3 months old. She had 3 women helping her and Page decided that as bad as she felt, she was still in better shape than that woman taking her children half-way around the world. She thinks they were going to Jordan - evidently, they thought she was Arabic. My exotic beautiful daughter. When we chatted around noon (our time) he gotten a hot bath and was waiting for Raph to pick her up for dinner. I know they had fun - she was going to try to get to sleep early and try to get as much rest as possible before everything starts tomorrow. The funny thing is, it is already almost 4:30am there. When we found out she was going, Daddy and I both understood why she pushed herself to go - we admitted would probably have gone also under the same circumstances. I hope she feels better tomorrow though and the rest of her trip is positive and productive. Good night.

Kittrell....

Wow - time does fly doesn't it. It seems like just yesterday we were driving down to Kittrell to bury Daddy but it was 30 years ago. That means Page was 8, Kurt was 4, I was 33, and Big D was 35. We were all feeling a little lost that day. Memories - opening his drawer and smelling his Juicy Fruit chewing gum. Opening his closet and smelling his clothes every day after he died for a long time. Scrubbing his head real good sometimes when he was washing his hair. Rubbing his feet at the end of the day with alcohol. Cutting the hairs in his ears when he got older and hated having to ask for help with that one cause it meant he was getting older. I think I inherited his love of having someone rub parts of my body (ergo - love massages)!
I still miss him - so many things I have wanted to share with him over the years that I know he would have enjoyed hearing. I also think he would have loved seeing how many grandchildren and great-grandchildren came from his loins. He always loved being one of the few who had so many children at school functions and he bragged about his smart beautiful girls to anyone who would listen. He always wanted what was best for us and was proud of all our accomplishments.
I sent this to everyone on my family and close friends list. I just wanted them to all remember him today too. He would have liked that also.