The thought occured to me yesterday: my alarm clock is off.
Since our move to the city, I've been walking to and from work. It has been healthier for me to walk the 3 blocks down the hill each morning and, more especially, up the hill each evening. The three flights of stairs at the top of the hill help my aerobic health as well.
An extra result of my walks to work: no more public transportation.
I turned in my bus pass yesterday.
For twelve and a half years I regularly rode the bus to work. I didn't ride 100% of the time each week, but probably averaged in the high 80's over that period. The other rides were with members of my family. Especially when she needed to get away from home.
Still, my habit was to ride each day. Mornings were filled with scriptures, prayer and napping; afternoons with journal writing, reading and more napping. It was routine.
My routine has been shattered.
Yesterday I realized that since I no longer am bound by the bus schedule, I had no real concern about when my work day ended. I walked home later than normal.
Likewise, my morning schedule is looser than it was previously. I sleep in later than when I was a bus rider. And, since I no longer need to have my bus pass, I have left my employee ID at home. TWICE.
The first time, I was at the bottom of the hill when I realized my lack. I had to walk back up the hill and retrieve my ID. I swore to myself that it wouldn't happen again.
She dropped me off one morning, on her way out of town. I was in the Library and upstairs before I realized that I'd forgotten my pass (I couldn't get past the doors to my office...). I had to walk home again.
Each trip up the hill gets me better able to walk up the hill later.
Still another consequence of my turn away from public transportation: irregular journal keeping.
It takes more concerted effort to remember to sit down and write in my journal.
I have new habits to create. That can be a good thing.
I hope.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
The Warrior
Last week we received confirmation.
Gideon cries like a kitten.
Of course, we knew that from the first wonderful moment we saw him a little over 3 months ago.
Still, now we know he suffers from cri du chat syndrome. He is missing part of his 5th chromosome.
His large solemn eyes haven't changed a bit. His happy smiles still shine bright. His constant gaze at those I can't see still cause wonder.
An angel baby has been sent to my family. He chose to come get a broken body and he chose our family to grow in.
Think of all the blessings to come! What we'll learn! The mysterious hope of the future looms brightly ahead.
Sure the road will be difficult, but that's why we're here.
What a blessing it is to be Gideon's grandpa.
I just hope I can keep up with him.
Gideon cries like a kitten.
Of course, we knew that from the first wonderful moment we saw him a little over 3 months ago.
Still, now we know he suffers from cri du chat syndrome. He is missing part of his 5th chromosome.
His large solemn eyes haven't changed a bit. His happy smiles still shine bright. His constant gaze at those I can't see still cause wonder.
An angel baby has been sent to my family. He chose to come get a broken body and he chose our family to grow in.
Think of all the blessings to come! What we'll learn! The mysterious hope of the future looms brightly ahead.
Sure the road will be difficult, but that's why we're here.
What a blessing it is to be Gideon's grandpa.
I just hope I can keep up with him.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Stability
Last week we began going through the laundry list of things the building inspector had noted about our house.
I repaired the cracked PVC pipe under the kitchen sink and replaced the sprayer, too. I put new batteries in the smoke detectors, called the gas company and they tightened the connection behind the stove, repairing the "miniscule" leak they found in the coupling. Dad and I glazed several window panes. The weather cooperated and I was able to paint the base of the pillars on the front porch. I even borrowed a "knee-kicker" and got the carpet laying close to the basement wall again.
And I painted.
The kitchen. The master bedroom. The back room.
As I painted I wondered.
The Building Inspection Report included a suggestion to hire a building engineer to do a structural analysis to determine if the foundation had shifted and whether the building is stable.
The buyers were scared off.
Our house was built in 1938 as a workshop. Later, three rooms were added on the east making it a small home. Later still, the basement was excavated (after the house was built!), adding two more bedrooms.
In December 2005 a building inspector comes along and wonders: "The floors are crooked, the walls aren't plumb or square and there is a crack in the kitchen ceiling. The foundation must be unstable."
So, I paint.
And as I paint, thoughts run through my mind: Is the house really unstable? As I cover each crack with a fresh coat of paint, am I hiding proof that the house should be condemned? Is my paint making me a liar?
The realtor had spoken with an engineering firm. They would do a study for $750, if requested, but if the house has been occupied for 10 years with no sign of shifting, then the house is stable.
I am not a Structural Engineer. I DO NOT know whether the building has shifted in the ten years we've lived in it. We've lived with the crooked floors and out-of-plumb walls the whole time, but is the building stable?
Then I saw it.
The joint between the back wall and the kitchen cabinets. The obvious tilt of the wall.
I remember distinctly filling that crack between the wall and the cabinet with caulk 10 years ago. We caulked LOTS of cracks as we made the house more livable after it had been "remodeled". That kitchen crack was memorable. It took a lot of caulk.
My ten-year-old job filling the crack was undisturbed.
No stretching, no cracking.
There had been no movement of the house during the 10 years we'd lived there and I had easy to point-out proof.
Goodness!
I'm not a liar.
I can offer my home for purchase with a clear conscience.
Now we just need to find folks who will fall in love with its character like we did.
I repaired the cracked PVC pipe under the kitchen sink and replaced the sprayer, too. I put new batteries in the smoke detectors, called the gas company and they tightened the connection behind the stove, repairing the "miniscule" leak they found in the coupling. Dad and I glazed several window panes. The weather cooperated and I was able to paint the base of the pillars on the front porch. I even borrowed a "knee-kicker" and got the carpet laying close to the basement wall again.
And I painted.
The kitchen. The master bedroom. The back room.
As I painted I wondered.
The Building Inspection Report included a suggestion to hire a building engineer to do a structural analysis to determine if the foundation had shifted and whether the building is stable.
The buyers were scared off.
Our house was built in 1938 as a workshop. Later, three rooms were added on the east making it a small home. Later still, the basement was excavated (after the house was built!), adding two more bedrooms.
In December 2005 a building inspector comes along and wonders: "The floors are crooked, the walls aren't plumb or square and there is a crack in the kitchen ceiling. The foundation must be unstable."
So, I paint.
And as I paint, thoughts run through my mind: Is the house really unstable? As I cover each crack with a fresh coat of paint, am I hiding proof that the house should be condemned? Is my paint making me a liar?
The realtor had spoken with an engineering firm. They would do a study for $750, if requested, but if the house has been occupied for 10 years with no sign of shifting, then the house is stable.
I am not a Structural Engineer. I DO NOT know whether the building has shifted in the ten years we've lived in it. We've lived with the crooked floors and out-of-plumb walls the whole time, but is the building stable?
Then I saw it.
The joint between the back wall and the kitchen cabinets. The obvious tilt of the wall.
I remember distinctly filling that crack between the wall and the cabinet with caulk 10 years ago. We caulked LOTS of cracks as we made the house more livable after it had been "remodeled". That kitchen crack was memorable. It took a lot of caulk.
My ten-year-old job filling the crack was undisturbed.
No stretching, no cracking.
There had been no movement of the house during the 10 years we'd lived there and I had easy to point-out proof.
Goodness!
I'm not a liar.
I can offer my home for purchase with a clear conscience.
Now we just need to find folks who will fall in love with its character like we did.
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Ages
From A Bear Named Boy™
You said your birthday is - / - / 1959
which means you are 46 years old and about:
42 years 3 months younger than Walter Cronkite, age 89
37 years 7 months younger than Nancy Reagan, age 84
34 years 8 months younger than George Herbert Bush, age 81
27 years 5 months younger than Barbara Walters, age 74
25 years 3 months younger than Larry King, age 72
19 years 0 months younger than Ted Koppel, age 65
15 years 7 months younger than Geraldo Rivera, age 62
12 years 7 months younger than George W. Bush, age 59
7 years 7 months younger than Jesse Ventura, age 54
3 years 4 months younger than Bill Gates, age 50
1 year 6 months older than Cal Ripken Jr., age 45
7 years 4 months older than Mike Tyson, age 39
16 years 10 months older than Tiger Woods, age 29
23 years 4 months older than Prince William, age 23
and that you were:
42 years old at the time of the 9-11 attack on America
40 years old on the first day of Y2K
38 years old when Princess Diana was killed in a car crash
36 years old at the time of Oklahoma City bombing
35 years old when O. J. Simpson was charged with murder
34 years old at the time of the
93 bombing of the World Trade Center
31 years old when Operation Desert Storm began
30 years old during the fall of the Berlin Wall
26 years old when the space shuttle Challenger exploded
24 years old when Apple introduced the Macintosh
24 years old during Sally Ride's travel in space
22 years old when Pres. Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr.
20 years old at the time the Iran hostage crisis began
17 years old on the U.S.'s bicentennial Fourth of July
15 years old when President Nixon left office
13 years old when Alabama Gov. George C. Wallace was shot
10 years old at the time the first man stepped on the moon
9 years old when Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated
6 years old during the Watts riot
4 years old at the time President Kennedy was assassinated
not yet 1 year old when Hawaii was admitted as 50th of the United States
[Top 40] you are 46 years old and about:
26 years 0 months younger than Yoko Ono, age 72
17 years 9 months younger than Bob Dylan, age 64
15 years 7 months younger than Mick Jagger, age 62
13 years 11 months younger than Eric Clapton, age 60
10 years 9 months younger than Stevie Nicks, age 57
3 years 4 months younger than David Lee Roth, age 50
0 years 6 months younger than Madonna, age 47
3 years 1 month older than Jon Bon Jovi, age 43
8 years 1 month older than Billy Corgan, age 38
11 years 1 month older than Mariah Carey, age 35
15 years 4 months older than Alanis Morissette, age 31
22 years 10 months older than Britney Spears, age 24
and when these songs were topping the charts
and these events occurred your age was:
The Twist, Chubby Checker: 1
Big Bad John, Jimmy Dean: 2
Sherry, The 4 Seasons: 3
The Beatles first appear live on The Ed Sullivan Show: 4
Downtown, Petula Clark: 5
The 8 track tape player first offered in 1966 Fords: 6
To Sir with Love, Lulu: 8
Hey Jude, The Beatles: 9
Woodstock Music Festival: 10
Me and Bobby McGee, Janis Joplin: 12
ABC TV premieres In Concert: 13
Time in a Bottle, Jim Croce: 14
I Shot the Sheriff, Eric Clapton: 15
Silly Love Songs, Wings: 17
Elvis Presley Dies: 18
Do Ya Think I'm Sexy, Rod Stewart: 20
Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd: 21
John Lennon is shot to death: 21
MTV makes its debut: 22
Who Can it be Now, Men at Work: 23
The recording of We Are The World: 25
Walk Like an Egyptian, Bangles: 27
Didn't We Almost have it all, Whitney Houston: 28
Back In The U.S.S.R. is released exclusively in Russia: 29
Nothing Compares 2 U, Sinead O'Connor: 31
Emotions, Mariah Carey: 32
Fleetwood Mac perform at Bill Clinton's inauguration: 33
The Sign, Ace Of Base: 35
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opens: 36
[TV] you are 46 years old and about:
32 years 8 months younger than Andy Griffith, age 79
29 years 3 months younger than Dick Clark, age 76
27 years 11 months younger than Leonard Nimoy, age 74
25 years 10 months younger than Carol Burnett, age 72
23 years 1 month younger than Alan Alda, age 69
21 years 7 months younger than Bill Cosby, age 68
16 years 3 months younger than Linda Evans, age 63
14 years 1 month younger than Tom Selleck, age 60
11 years 2 months younger than Ted Danson, age 57
8 years 10 months younger than Jay Leno, age 55
5 years 1 month younger than Oprah Winfrey, age 51
4 years 0 months younger than Kelsey Grammer, age 50
0 years 9 months younger than Drew Carey, age 47
2 years 4 months older than Michael J. Fox, age 44
5 years 9 months older than Calista Flockhart, age 41
10 years 0 months older than Jennifer Aniston, age 36
13 years 10 months older than Alyssa Milano, age 33
18 years 9 months older than Colin Hanks, age 28
24 years 6 months older than Mila Kunis, age 22
32 years 4 months older than Madylin Sweeten, age 14
and that you were:
3 years old at the time Beverly Hillbillies first aired
5 years old when the Addams Family first appeared on TV
7 years old at the time the first Star Trek episode was televised
11 years old when All in the Family was first shown
13 years old at the time the TV series M*A*S*H began
16 years old when Saturday Night Live first aired
19 years old when CBS introduced Dallas
21 years old during the first airing of Hill Street Blues
23 years old at the time the first Cheers episode was televised
27 years old when L.A. Law was first aired on TV
28 years old at the time the series Married with Children began
31 years old when Seinfeld was first televised
32 years old in the month Home Improvement began
35 years old at the time the TV series Friends began
37 years old when Everybody Loves Raymond first aired
40 years old when Who Wants To Be A Millionaire began in the US
[Movies] you are 46 years old and about:
40 years 0 months younger than Zsa Zsa Gabor, age 86
28 years 8 months younger than Clint Eastwood, age 75
26 years 0 months younger than Kim Novak, age 72
23 years 0 months younger than Burt Reynolds, age 69
19 years 0 months younger than Nick Nolte, age 65
17 years 10 months younger than Ann-Margret, age 64
11 years 11 months younger than Billy Crystal, age 58
9 years 3 months younger than Whoopi Goldberg, age 56
6 years 7 months younger than Robin Williams, age 53
2 years 7 months younger than Tom Hanks, age 49
0 years 3 months younger than Jamie Lee Curtis, age 47
2 years 2 months older than Eddie Murphy, age 44
11 years 5 months older than Jennifer Lopez, age 35
20 years 0 months older than Jennifer Love Hewitt, age 26
29 years 2 months older than Haley Joel Osment, age 17
and when these movies were released in the U.S. your age was:
West Side Story: 2
The Sound of Music: 6
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner: 8
Midnight Cowboy: 10
The Godfather: 13
American Graffiti: 14
Jaws: 16
Star Wars: 18
Animal House: 19
Star Trek: The Motion Picture: 20
ET: 23
The Terminator: 25
Top Gun: 27
Planes, Trains & Automobiles: 28
Steel Magnolias: 30
Home Alone: 31
Wayne's World: 32
Jurassic Park: 34
Forrest Gump: 35
Fargo: 37
Saving Private Ryan: 39
Toy Story 2: 40
You said your birthday is - / - / 1959
which means you are 46 years old and about:
42 years 3 months younger than Walter Cronkite, age 89
37 years 7 months younger than Nancy Reagan, age 84
34 years 8 months younger than George Herbert Bush, age 81
27 years 5 months younger than Barbara Walters, age 74
25 years 3 months younger than Larry King, age 72
19 years 0 months younger than Ted Koppel, age 65
15 years 7 months younger than Geraldo Rivera, age 62
12 years 7 months younger than George W. Bush, age 59
7 years 7 months younger than Jesse Ventura, age 54
3 years 4 months younger than Bill Gates, age 50
1 year 6 months older than Cal Ripken Jr., age 45
7 years 4 months older than Mike Tyson, age 39
16 years 10 months older than Tiger Woods, age 29
23 years 4 months older than Prince William, age 23
and that you were:
42 years old at the time of the 9-11 attack on America
40 years old on the first day of Y2K
38 years old when Princess Diana was killed in a car crash
36 years old at the time of Oklahoma City bombing
35 years old when O. J. Simpson was charged with murder
34 years old at the time of the
93 bombing of the World Trade Center
31 years old when Operation Desert Storm began
30 years old during the fall of the Berlin Wall
26 years old when the space shuttle Challenger exploded
24 years old when Apple introduced the Macintosh
24 years old during Sally Ride's travel in space
22 years old when Pres. Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr.
20 years old at the time the Iran hostage crisis began
17 years old on the U.S.'s bicentennial Fourth of July
15 years old when President Nixon left office
13 years old when Alabama Gov. George C. Wallace was shot
10 years old at the time the first man stepped on the moon
9 years old when Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated
6 years old during the Watts riot
4 years old at the time President Kennedy was assassinated
not yet 1 year old when Hawaii was admitted as 50th of the United States
[Top 40] you are 46 years old and about:
26 years 0 months younger than Yoko Ono, age 72
17 years 9 months younger than Bob Dylan, age 64
15 years 7 months younger than Mick Jagger, age 62
13 years 11 months younger than Eric Clapton, age 60
10 years 9 months younger than Stevie Nicks, age 57
3 years 4 months younger than David Lee Roth, age 50
0 years 6 months younger than Madonna, age 47
3 years 1 month older than Jon Bon Jovi, age 43
8 years 1 month older than Billy Corgan, age 38
11 years 1 month older than Mariah Carey, age 35
15 years 4 months older than Alanis Morissette, age 31
22 years 10 months older than Britney Spears, age 24
and when these songs were topping the charts
and these events occurred your age was:
The Twist, Chubby Checker: 1
Big Bad John, Jimmy Dean: 2
Sherry, The 4 Seasons: 3
The Beatles first appear live on The Ed Sullivan Show: 4
Downtown, Petula Clark: 5
The 8 track tape player first offered in 1966 Fords: 6
To Sir with Love, Lulu: 8
Hey Jude, The Beatles: 9
Woodstock Music Festival: 10
Me and Bobby McGee, Janis Joplin: 12
ABC TV premieres In Concert: 13
Time in a Bottle, Jim Croce: 14
I Shot the Sheriff, Eric Clapton: 15
Silly Love Songs, Wings: 17
Elvis Presley Dies: 18
Do Ya Think I'm Sexy, Rod Stewart: 20
Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd: 21
John Lennon is shot to death: 21
MTV makes its debut: 22
Who Can it be Now, Men at Work: 23
The recording of We Are The World: 25
Walk Like an Egyptian, Bangles: 27
Didn't We Almost have it all, Whitney Houston: 28
Back In The U.S.S.R. is released exclusively in Russia: 29
Nothing Compares 2 U, Sinead O'Connor: 31
Emotions, Mariah Carey: 32
Fleetwood Mac perform at Bill Clinton's inauguration: 33
The Sign, Ace Of Base: 35
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opens: 36
[TV] you are 46 years old and about:
32 years 8 months younger than Andy Griffith, age 79
29 years 3 months younger than Dick Clark, age 76
27 years 11 months younger than Leonard Nimoy, age 74
25 years 10 months younger than Carol Burnett, age 72
23 years 1 month younger than Alan Alda, age 69
21 years 7 months younger than Bill Cosby, age 68
16 years 3 months younger than Linda Evans, age 63
14 years 1 month younger than Tom Selleck, age 60
11 years 2 months younger than Ted Danson, age 57
8 years 10 months younger than Jay Leno, age 55
5 years 1 month younger than Oprah Winfrey, age 51
4 years 0 months younger than Kelsey Grammer, age 50
0 years 9 months younger than Drew Carey, age 47
2 years 4 months older than Michael J. Fox, age 44
5 years 9 months older than Calista Flockhart, age 41
10 years 0 months older than Jennifer Aniston, age 36
13 years 10 months older than Alyssa Milano, age 33
18 years 9 months older than Colin Hanks, age 28
24 years 6 months older than Mila Kunis, age 22
32 years 4 months older than Madylin Sweeten, age 14
and that you were:
3 years old at the time Beverly Hillbillies first aired
5 years old when the Addams Family first appeared on TV
7 years old at the time the first Star Trek episode was televised
11 years old when All in the Family was first shown
13 years old at the time the TV series M*A*S*H began
16 years old when Saturday Night Live first aired
19 years old when CBS introduced Dallas
21 years old during the first airing of Hill Street Blues
23 years old at the time the first Cheers episode was televised
27 years old when L.A. Law was first aired on TV
28 years old at the time the series Married with Children began
31 years old when Seinfeld was first televised
32 years old in the month Home Improvement began
35 years old at the time the TV series Friends began
37 years old when Everybody Loves Raymond first aired
40 years old when Who Wants To Be A Millionaire began in the US
[Movies] you are 46 years old and about:
40 years 0 months younger than Zsa Zsa Gabor, age 86
28 years 8 months younger than Clint Eastwood, age 75
26 years 0 months younger than Kim Novak, age 72
23 years 0 months younger than Burt Reynolds, age 69
19 years 0 months younger than Nick Nolte, age 65
17 years 10 months younger than Ann-Margret, age 64
11 years 11 months younger than Billy Crystal, age 58
9 years 3 months younger than Whoopi Goldberg, age 56
6 years 7 months younger than Robin Williams, age 53
2 years 7 months younger than Tom Hanks, age 49
0 years 3 months younger than Jamie Lee Curtis, age 47
2 years 2 months older than Eddie Murphy, age 44
11 years 5 months older than Jennifer Lopez, age 35
20 years 0 months older than Jennifer Love Hewitt, age 26
29 years 2 months older than Haley Joel Osment, age 17
and when these movies were released in the U.S. your age was:
West Side Story: 2
The Sound of Music: 6
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner: 8
Midnight Cowboy: 10
The Godfather: 13
American Graffiti: 14
Jaws: 16
Star Wars: 18
Animal House: 19
Star Trek: The Motion Picture: 20
ET: 23
The Terminator: 25
Top Gun: 27
Planes, Trains & Automobiles: 28
Steel Magnolias: 30
Home Alone: 31
Wayne's World: 32
Jurassic Park: 34
Forrest Gump: 35
Fargo: 37
Saving Private Ryan: 39
Toy Story 2: 40
Monday, December 19, 2005
Identity
For a week I've been thinking about it.
What makes up me?
My economic identity is in jeopardy. No Question.
I've done all that I can to forestall the firestorm: Fraud Alerts have been issued to the three majors; the police report has been filed; the forms canceling our passports have been submitted.
Still, who am I?
When somebody uses my birth certificate or Social Security card to establish a fraudulent credit account it's called Identity Theft. That is a popular term, right now.
I am not my credit report.
The Adversary would like us all to focus our attention on his false facade of reality. My economic identity is part of that facade. I can expend energy and time worrying about what might happen. I am more concerned, presently, with spiritual preparation for the future.
I've paid the worldly dues to "protect my good name," but I refuse to let circumstance shift my focus from becoming a better husband, father and son, to undue worry about things that might or might not happen to an economic identity.
There is only time enough left to repent, forgive and be thankful. So that's what I aim to do.
What makes up me?
My economic identity is in jeopardy. No Question.
I've done all that I can to forestall the firestorm: Fraud Alerts have been issued to the three majors; the police report has been filed; the forms canceling our passports have been submitted.
Still, who am I?
When somebody uses my birth certificate or Social Security card to establish a fraudulent credit account it's called Identity Theft. That is a popular term, right now.
I am not my credit report.
The Adversary would like us all to focus our attention on his false facade of reality. My economic identity is part of that facade. I can expend energy and time worrying about what might happen. I am more concerned, presently, with spiritual preparation for the future.
I've paid the worldly dues to "protect my good name," but I refuse to let circumstance shift my focus from becoming a better husband, father and son, to undue worry about things that might or might not happen to an economic identity.
There is only time enough left to repent, forgive and be thankful. So that's what I aim to do.
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