When the cupboard gets bare and the world has been a bit frustrating, I occasionally head to Mickey D's for breakfast instead of scrounging and scraping something together from the depths of the cabinets. Besides I deserve a splurge from time to time, don't I?
So.... this morning I headed to my nearby junkfood outlet and placed my order at the box. Simple order: Sausage McMuffin (no cheese) and small OJ. The voice through the box asks if I want the meal. What the heck! It won't be that much more, so "Sure!". Then he announces that'll be $4.76. WHAT!!!!! "Could you please redisplay the ticket on the screen?" "No, I've already cleared it and will have it corrected at the window." *very large sigh*
Drive around the corner and get to window only to be informed that the cost is indeed $4.76. Now, let's stop and think a moment. The Sausage McMuffin is listed as $1.89 on the board. The small OJ is $1.00. I hadn't looked at the price of the hash browns (what makes this a meal), since I wasn't originally planning on getting them, but even at their worst it's about $1.00. $1.89 + $1.00 + $1.00 = $3.89 (plus tax - which is nowhere near 20%). Shoot! Even the Sausage McMuffin WITH EGG meal has a price of $3.69 before tax.
Nope! Wasn't buying that figure. The clerk at the window doesn't see anything wrong with the total. After all, the computer said it. It must be right! I grouse. The assistant manager comes to the window and pushes keys on the computer to come up with $4.65. Nope! Wasn't buying that figure either.
They get the manager. HE tried to convince me that my plain-Jane McMuffin was a big seller and that's why it cost more. Again. I'm not buying. I even had to tell him that the price for what I wanted was $1.89 on the board AND where it was located in the vast array of choices out there. I also groused that there wasn't a "meal" price available on the board, so there was no quick and easy way for me to tell him what the "meal" price should be. ('Though the guy SHOULD have known all of this, if he's the manager. I know! I know! My expectations may be set a bit too high.)
I think the guy saw that I was about to explode and take my business elsewhere, so he said "How would $2.05 be?" Well, DUH! Of course I agreed. I truly had no desire to take advantage of the situation and wanted to pay what was fair. However, there was at least one car waiting behind me and I didn't want to start arguing that I'd be glad to pay $3.50, which was about what I had expected it to be.
While I'm irked at this particular part of this particular Evil Empire, I think what irritated me more was the realization that there'd be a fairly large number of people who would not even think twice about the incorrect amount originally quoted. Far too many people trust that the computer must be right, that there could be no human error OR no internal calculation error on the part of the computer.
Even the manager ultimately didn't see what was wrong with the numbers. He was just placating an irrate customer. I'd kept a basic estimate of the cost running in my head and knew immediately that something was wrong. How many people wouldn't even have thought, or been able, to do that much?
Computers are wonderful tools. But they aren't perfect. If we don't have the skills to double-check their calculations, even through rough guesstimate, then we are leaving ourselves vulnerable to being overcharged (in the case of financial transactions) or even harm to our lives or death (if one considers the possible miscalculation of medication dosages or even the fuel consumption of an airplane).
I'm so glad that I was taught how to do basic arithmetic without calculators or computers!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
Will It Ever End?
Close. Oh, so close!
Mondays aren't usually bad days, and today is no exception. Meandered out to the mailbox after the Penster had a minor conniption fit because the mailperson dared to walk across our front porch. What did I find?
A check! Unopened, I thought "I'm finally at the end of dealing with the hurricane repair work! La-la-la-la-la!" After dancing my way back into the house, I opened the envelope. They got it almost right. The mortgage company is still holding $2,000 hostage.
When I got hold of a very helpful customer service rep, she told me they were still waiting on the "waiver of lien" and "completion of repair" certification! I mailed those puppies, next day mail, almost a week ago! OUTRAGE!! Turns out I picked the wrong address from the forms. The mortgage company had received it. It just didn't think to tell the part of their company that cuts the checks about it. *sigh*
The last of my buckos should arrive sometime later this week. At least, that's what I'm hopeful of. Still, I'm wondering. Do you think all this will ever end?
Mondays aren't usually bad days, and today is no exception. Meandered out to the mailbox after the Penster had a minor conniption fit because the mailperson dared to walk across our front porch. What did I find?
A check! Unopened, I thought "I'm finally at the end of dealing with the hurricane repair work! La-la-la-la-la!" After dancing my way back into the house, I opened the envelope. They got it almost right. The mortgage company is still holding $2,000 hostage.
When I got hold of a very helpful customer service rep, she told me they were still waiting on the "waiver of lien" and "completion of repair" certification! I mailed those puppies, next day mail, almost a week ago! OUTRAGE!! Turns out I picked the wrong address from the forms. The mortgage company had received it. It just didn't think to tell the part of their company that cuts the checks about it. *sigh*
The last of my buckos should arrive sometime later this week. At least, that's what I'm hopeful of. Still, I'm wondering. Do you think all this will ever end?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Let the Dancing Begin!
Just this very minute the final inspection of the repairs to the hurricane damage was finished and the work declared 100% complete!!!!!
It only took 2 3/4 years to get to this point.
Let the happy dancing begin!!
That is all. We return you now to your regularly scheduled programming.
It only took 2 3/4 years to get to this point.
Let the happy dancing begin!!
That is all. We return you now to your regularly scheduled programming.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Peripheral Damage
It's been what? Four weeks? since lightning struck the neighbor's tree and wrought minor havoc to my house?
I've had several people tell me to check out my appliances and such because lightning has this weird habit of affecting electrical stuff in the vicinity. Of course, I think refrigerator... tv... computer... printer... phones. With minor previously mentioned exceptions, those things are all working just fine, thank you.
I get back from my trip and the son says, "Mom. I think the DVD player is broken." I decide to tape a tv show and the VCR is acting all wonky and won't let me program it. Then it refuses to even tape the show I'm watching. This morning, I decide to have some toast and the toaster refuses to do more than dry out one side of the bread while not even heating the other side.
Didn't even think of checking out the minor appliances after the storm. I believe I'm experiencing the further aftermath of that "stroke of luck".
At least my can opener still works!
I've had several people tell me to check out my appliances and such because lightning has this weird habit of affecting electrical stuff in the vicinity. Of course, I think refrigerator... tv... computer... printer... phones. With minor previously mentioned exceptions, those things are all working just fine, thank you.
I get back from my trip and the son says, "Mom. I think the DVD player is broken." I decide to tape a tv show and the VCR is acting all wonky and won't let me program it. Then it refuses to even tape the show I'm watching. This morning, I decide to have some toast and the toaster refuses to do more than dry out one side of the bread while not even heating the other side.
Didn't even think of checking out the minor appliances after the storm. I believe I'm experiencing the further aftermath of that "stroke of luck".
At least my can opener still works!
Saturday, June 28, 2008
A Funny thing Happened on the Way to ...
General Assembly.
Well, not really, but it seemed like a good title. *chuckle*
A chapter in my life ended this week. I attended my last General Assembly as a member of the General Assembly Committee on Representation. Well, at least, this time around. While it's always possible that I may serve on the committee again, it won't be for some time. *sigh*
Much has happened since I attended my first COR meeting about 8 years ago. The committee has grown, and so have I. And my work on the committee has been instrumental in my own personal growth.
Funny thing, that. I wouldn't have particularly considered myself a rabble-rouser prior to this. A minor agitator from time to time, but not a rabble-rouser. However, there was something about this committee when I got on it that wouldn't let me stop poking at the assumptions being made and the opportunities for an impact on our denomination that slipped by.
For those who aren't up on their Presbyterianism, the Committee on Representation was established as a part of the Articles of Agreement, which led to Reunion in 1983 of the United Presbyterian Church in the USA (northern stream) and Presbyterian Church in the US (southern stream). There was great fear that leadership in the denomination would revert to the majority culture, since the selection of leaders would come only from geographic bodies, not from groups that were made up of minorities. There was a fear that racial/ethnic leadership would be lost, leadership which was just beginning to come into being at the time. Thus, the Committee on Representation came into being - an accountability group to report on how well the leadership of the denomination reflects the makeup of our members.
When I attended my first meeting, I kept seeing situations that cried out for comment being left behind on the floor. Mind you, it wasn't members of the majority culture letting these things slide. Those of the racial/ethnic minorities kept saying, "no, we'd better not". In the years since reunion, this committee, which could have had a major impact on the makeup of Presbyterian leadership, had sidelined itself into obscurity.
Three or four of us got together and griped and groused and complained our way into the committee beginning to take positions on issues of importance. All that hard work may have finally paid off.
This year, our denomination was presented with a new Form of Government (part of our denomination's "operating manual") for review, comment, and, perhaps, acceptance. There is much that is positive in the proposal; however, while it didn't eliminate a call to diversity and inclusiveness, it did eliminate the Committee on Representation. To be fair, it also eliminated every other committee that is currently required by our denomination. It didn't say that the varying levels of the church couldn't have them. It just didn't require them.
When I first got on the Committee on Representation (COR), we probably wouldn't have said "Boo!" and the committee would have quietly faded out of existence. Not now. When we got the first edition of the changes, we made a case for continuing the COR to the Task Force assigned the duty of revising the document. In response, the language was changed to "may establish a mechanism for ensuring diversity and inclusiveness". (that's the gist of it, I don't have it in front of me)
Although it was a concession, we didn't stop there. You have to understand that "may" and "shall" are super-significant words when it comes to polity. So, when the final version went to the General Assembly Commissioners for their study and, ultimately, their vote, we drafted an "advise and counsel" statement encouraging the commissioners to amend the final version to include COR's. In all the years I've served on the committee, this is the first time we've ever taken such a bold step on any issue! [Yes, in the past, the COR has taken a solid stance on some issues, but they are few and far between ... and, up to this point, it hadn't happened once in my 8 years on the committee.]
At the General Assembly, I had the opportunity to speak on behalf of the COR before the committee which would make a recommendation of what would happen to the revision when it was presented to the entire General Assembly. The final outcome was that the whole document was referred for study and tweaking for two years, with a comment made that the concerns of the COR be addressed in the revisions. YAY!!
And, you know what? Eight years ago, I was still a fairly shy person, having to build up my courage just to drop one of those 'tweak of the nose' comments into the conversation on any issue. Now, I'm able to jump into the fray and state my position with the best of them! OK - I still get shy when it comes to large groups, but eight years ago, I wouldn't have been caught dead speaking at a General Assembly, for any reason! "You've come a long way, baby!" YAY!!
Well, not really, but it seemed like a good title. *chuckle*
A chapter in my life ended this week. I attended my last General Assembly as a member of the General Assembly Committee on Representation. Well, at least, this time around. While it's always possible that I may serve on the committee again, it won't be for some time. *sigh*
Much has happened since I attended my first COR meeting about 8 years ago. The committee has grown, and so have I. And my work on the committee has been instrumental in my own personal growth.
Funny thing, that. I wouldn't have particularly considered myself a rabble-rouser prior to this. A minor agitator from time to time, but not a rabble-rouser. However, there was something about this committee when I got on it that wouldn't let me stop poking at the assumptions being made and the opportunities for an impact on our denomination that slipped by.
For those who aren't up on their Presbyterianism, the Committee on Representation was established as a part of the Articles of Agreement, which led to Reunion in 1983 of the United Presbyterian Church in the USA (northern stream) and Presbyterian Church in the US (southern stream). There was great fear that leadership in the denomination would revert to the majority culture, since the selection of leaders would come only from geographic bodies, not from groups that were made up of minorities. There was a fear that racial/ethnic leadership would be lost, leadership which was just beginning to come into being at the time. Thus, the Committee on Representation came into being - an accountability group to report on how well the leadership of the denomination reflects the makeup of our members.
When I attended my first meeting, I kept seeing situations that cried out for comment being left behind on the floor. Mind you, it wasn't members of the majority culture letting these things slide. Those of the racial/ethnic minorities kept saying, "no, we'd better not". In the years since reunion, this committee, which could have had a major impact on the makeup of Presbyterian leadership, had sidelined itself into obscurity.
Three or four of us got together and griped and groused and complained our way into the committee beginning to take positions on issues of importance. All that hard work may have finally paid off.
This year, our denomination was presented with a new Form of Government (part of our denomination's "operating manual") for review, comment, and, perhaps, acceptance. There is much that is positive in the proposal; however, while it didn't eliminate a call to diversity and inclusiveness, it did eliminate the Committee on Representation. To be fair, it also eliminated every other committee that is currently required by our denomination. It didn't say that the varying levels of the church couldn't have them. It just didn't require them.
When I first got on the Committee on Representation (COR), we probably wouldn't have said "Boo!" and the committee would have quietly faded out of existence. Not now. When we got the first edition of the changes, we made a case for continuing the COR to the Task Force assigned the duty of revising the document. In response, the language was changed to "may establish a mechanism for ensuring diversity and inclusiveness". (that's the gist of it, I don't have it in front of me)
Although it was a concession, we didn't stop there. You have to understand that "may" and "shall" are super-significant words when it comes to polity. So, when the final version went to the General Assembly Commissioners for their study and, ultimately, their vote, we drafted an "advise and counsel" statement encouraging the commissioners to amend the final version to include COR's. In all the years I've served on the committee, this is the first time we've ever taken such a bold step on any issue! [Yes, in the past, the COR has taken a solid stance on some issues, but they are few and far between ... and, up to this point, it hadn't happened once in my 8 years on the committee.]
At the General Assembly, I had the opportunity to speak on behalf of the COR before the committee which would make a recommendation of what would happen to the revision when it was presented to the entire General Assembly. The final outcome was that the whole document was referred for study and tweaking for two years, with a comment made that the concerns of the COR be addressed in the revisions. YAY!!
And, you know what? Eight years ago, I was still a fairly shy person, having to build up my courage just to drop one of those 'tweak of the nose' comments into the conversation on any issue. Now, I'm able to jump into the fray and state my position with the best of them! OK - I still get shy when it comes to large groups, but eight years ago, I wouldn't have been caught dead speaking at a General Assembly, for any reason! "You've come a long way, baby!" YAY!!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
On Father's Day
My dad was a quiet, tall man. A mathematician. A scientist. Hugs and "I love you" were not part of his parenting vocabulary. He did the best he could with the tools his parents gave him. Took me a very long time to figure that out.
The family story is that, after dad's graduation from college, I followed him around like a lost puppy once Mom and I caught up with him when he moved to Texas before us. What I do remember is "helping" Dad with his experiments as he tried to create a way to scavenge clean water from the air around us. The apparatus was hooked to a vacuum cleaner and never quite worked as he hoped, but I was a part of it. I never learned until after he died that he had several patents. NASA owns them, but they are in his name.
Dad was an atrocious punster. He'd get a twinkle in his eye when he caught someone using a phrase that he could turn into a real stinker. Only once in my entire life did I ever get him back. At a family Thanksgiving dinner, he let off one that absolutely reeked. I turned to my aunt and, doing a takeoff on an old Prell commercial, said "You'll just have to excuse him. He just washed his brain and can't do a thing with it." In time, I learned that the only way to hold my own with him was to staunchly remain silent, pretending I already had the answer, when he snuck up to a zinger. It frustrated the heck out of him! And I usually found out where he was going anyway, because there was generally one sucker in the room who'd have to ask Who? or What? or Why?
Our entire family roller skated competitively. Not roller derby, but like the artistic ice skating competitions. Dad was a hard taskmaster and expected us to work to improve. Yet my fondest memories are of the times he skated with me as his dance partner, and when we did the 14-Step with him doing the women's steps and me doing the men's. What fun!
I was well into adulthood before I realized that "What needs to be fixed?" and "I've noticed 'x', let me get my tool box." actually meant "I love you." When I was a child, I desperately wanted to learn to play the piano. Dad, a fine craftsman, was building a bookcase/desk/cabinet unit into the family room wall. He left a piano-sized space in it for a time when we might get a piano. Later on, when we did, it was just precisely the right size for a small upright. He almost got skunked on it, though, because most pianos at the time were about 1 inch taller than the space he'd left.
On the day that my world went to hell in a hand-basket, Dad was the one who said, "We'll be there as soon as we can. Will you be all right 'til we get there?" The time I left Houston for Austin and forgot my purse, Dad decided that they ought to drive it all the way to Austin instead of sending it via UPS. No cell phones in those days!
In the year before he died, Dad was afraid that he soon might not be able to say some of the things he wanted to. So he wrote me a letter, which I keep in my fireproof safebox. It is very precious to me.
So, on this Father's Day, I want to say, "I love you, Dad, and miss you very much." I'm pretty sure he heard that.
The family story is that, after dad's graduation from college, I followed him around like a lost puppy once Mom and I caught up with him when he moved to Texas before us. What I do remember is "helping" Dad with his experiments as he tried to create a way to scavenge clean water from the air around us. The apparatus was hooked to a vacuum cleaner and never quite worked as he hoped, but I was a part of it. I never learned until after he died that he had several patents. NASA owns them, but they are in his name.
Dad was an atrocious punster. He'd get a twinkle in his eye when he caught someone using a phrase that he could turn into a real stinker. Only once in my entire life did I ever get him back. At a family Thanksgiving dinner, he let off one that absolutely reeked. I turned to my aunt and, doing a takeoff on an old Prell commercial, said "You'll just have to excuse him. He just washed his brain and can't do a thing with it." In time, I learned that the only way to hold my own with him was to staunchly remain silent, pretending I already had the answer, when he snuck up to a zinger. It frustrated the heck out of him! And I usually found out where he was going anyway, because there was generally one sucker in the room who'd have to ask Who? or What? or Why?
Our entire family roller skated competitively. Not roller derby, but like the artistic ice skating competitions. Dad was a hard taskmaster and expected us to work to improve. Yet my fondest memories are of the times he skated with me as his dance partner, and when we did the 14-Step with him doing the women's steps and me doing the men's. What fun!
I was well into adulthood before I realized that "What needs to be fixed?" and "I've noticed 'x', let me get my tool box." actually meant "I love you." When I was a child, I desperately wanted to learn to play the piano. Dad, a fine craftsman, was building a bookcase/desk/cabinet unit into the family room wall. He left a piano-sized space in it for a time when we might get a piano. Later on, when we did, it was just precisely the right size for a small upright. He almost got skunked on it, though, because most pianos at the time were about 1 inch taller than the space he'd left.
On the day that my world went to hell in a hand-basket, Dad was the one who said, "We'll be there as soon as we can. Will you be all right 'til we get there?" The time I left Houston for Austin and forgot my purse, Dad decided that they ought to drive it all the way to Austin instead of sending it via UPS. No cell phones in those days!
In the year before he died, Dad was afraid that he soon might not be able to say some of the things he wanted to. So he wrote me a letter, which I keep in my fireproof safebox. It is very precious to me.
So, on this Father's Day, I want to say, "I love you, Dad, and miss you very much." I'm pretty sure he heard that.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Can't Win for Losing, Part 2
Well, the insurance adjustor just finished his thing and .... TADA! Even at the top limit on the numbers, I come out $65 less than my deductible in repairs. Somehow that's not a total surprise. Frustrating, though. Ahhhhh, well! It could be MUCH worse.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Can't Win for Losing
What a wonderful day! (*she said sarcastically*)
This morning about 10am a nasty chunk of a storm came through. It hadn't started raining and wasn't particularly windy, but all of the sudden there was a huge KA-BOOM! It was mighty close and the critter decided that it was worthy of getting worried about. At least, she didn't try to sit on my head!
As I left the house for an appointment, I happened to look up and see this:
After the appointment, I came back home and got ready to go to the office. Just as I was getting ready to go out the door to my car, I hear another KA-BOOM! Nope. Not lightning. The top of the tree landed on my garage and driveway.
The good news is that my son's car was not in the driveway or it would have been smushed. Another good thing is that my car was in the garage, so it wasn't damaged, even though I can't get out of the garage until someone cuts the huge limb into little pieces and hauls them out of the way. The other good thing is that I didn't really have to go anywhere this afternoon.
It was the neighbor's tree, but, since there wasn't any negligence, guess who gets to pay for fixing things. Ayup! Right on the first try.
Just what I needed right now. Another deductible to come out of too shallow pockets.
Not only that, but I ended up spending waaaay too much time trying to convince Time-Warner Cable that the too close lightning strike did a number on my internet connection. From their end, things were working just fine. From my end, I couldn't get either of my computers to actually speak to the internet. "Try this." "I did that already." "Let's try this." "I did that already." "Let's try one more thing." "I DID that already." After we went round and round, I bailed and talked to my computer guru friend and got enough information to be able to speak intelligently and affirmatively that the problem was my modem and I wanted to swap for a working one.
When my son got home, we made a trip to the local office and I'm online!
Someone just suggested that I oughta get my house exorcised. I was actually planning to have a house blessing once the last vestiges of hurricane damage were repaired. Guess I waited too long!
This morning about 10am a nasty chunk of a storm came through. It hadn't started raining and wasn't particularly windy, but all of the sudden there was a huge KA-BOOM! It was mighty close and the critter decided that it was worthy of getting worried about. At least, she didn't try to sit on my head!
As I left the house for an appointment, I happened to look up and see this:
After the appointment, I came back home and got ready to go to the office. Just as I was getting ready to go out the door to my car, I hear another KA-BOOM! Nope. Not lightning. The top of the tree landed on my garage and driveway.
The good news is that my son's car was not in the driveway or it would have been smushed. Another good thing is that my car was in the garage, so it wasn't damaged, even though I can't get out of the garage until someone cuts the huge limb into little pieces and hauls them out of the way. The other good thing is that I didn't really have to go anywhere this afternoon.
It was the neighbor's tree, but, since there wasn't any negligence, guess who gets to pay for fixing things. Ayup! Right on the first try.
Just what I needed right now. Another deductible to come out of too shallow pockets.
Not only that, but I ended up spending waaaay too much time trying to convince Time-Warner Cable that the too close lightning strike did a number on my internet connection. From their end, things were working just fine. From my end, I couldn't get either of my computers to actually speak to the internet. "Try this." "I did that already." "Let's try this." "I did that already." "Let's try one more thing." "I DID that already." After we went round and round, I bailed and talked to my computer guru friend and got enough information to be able to speak intelligently and affirmatively that the problem was my modem and I wanted to swap for a working one.
When my son got home, we made a trip to the local office and I'm online!
Someone just suggested that I oughta get my house exorcised. I was actually planning to have a house blessing once the last vestiges of hurricane damage were repaired. Guess I waited too long!
Friday, June 06, 2008
Under Pressure
Hurricane season 2008 has arrived!
How do I know that? Well, the annual ritual has begun. Promptly on June 1st, the Chronicle Hurricane Guide arrived with the newspaper. The Beaumont Enterprise neglected to follow suit, which I think is a big mistake. The Houston paper cannot adequately cover things like SE Texas evacuation routes and local resources. Plus not everyone currently living along the coast has ever lived near a coast nor knows what's involved in preparing for the potential hurricane. Besides, everyone needs to have a brand-new, pristine, official Hurricane Tracking Chart, don't they?
The Enterprise hasn't totally ignored hurricane season, since they've had articles about hurricane season beginning and Her Horribleness' affect on insurance and (one day later than the Chronicle) an article on how building codes in Texas haven't been modified to address updated innovations that might make a home more secure the next time a hurricane strikes the state. They've even had one of their weekly Lifestyles columnists do a piece on whether he'd stay in town or go the next time a hurricane headed this direction. (He'd GO!! Not quite so much because of the storm itself, although that would be a factor, as because of the discomfort in the aftermath. But still, at least it was an article advocating evacuation.)
Anyway, back to how I know it's hurricane season.
The Weather Channel has begun its "Tropical Update" at "ten 'til" each hour, with tips on preparation, lists of hurricane names, explanations of what the science currently knows about hurricanes, possible patterns for this time of year, and so on and so on. Actually I believe they do a fairly good job of providing pre-hurricane information and tracking updates from the moment there's an iffy area lurking out there. Sure, they get a bit hysterical when something begins to head to land. But then, if you're broadcasting 24-hours a day about the weather, sometimes you just have to find something, anything, to keep you (the weathercaster) awake.
But do you want to know how I really know it's hurricane season?
It's hurricane season because I've started watching the barometric pressure again. That's right! Six months out of the year I apparently don't even see the barometric pressure listed in the "Current Conditions" of "Local on the 8's". But once, June 1st rolls around, I'm suddenly aware of that number and whether it has an S or up/down arrow next to it.
Guess you could say that hurricane season is enough to put one under pressure.
How do I know that? Well, the annual ritual has begun. Promptly on June 1st, the Chronicle Hurricane Guide arrived with the newspaper. The Beaumont Enterprise neglected to follow suit, which I think is a big mistake. The Houston paper cannot adequately cover things like SE Texas evacuation routes and local resources. Plus not everyone currently living along the coast has ever lived near a coast nor knows what's involved in preparing for the potential hurricane. Besides, everyone needs to have a brand-new, pristine, official Hurricane Tracking Chart, don't they?
The Enterprise hasn't totally ignored hurricane season, since they've had articles about hurricane season beginning and Her Horribleness' affect on insurance and (one day later than the Chronicle) an article on how building codes in Texas haven't been modified to address updated innovations that might make a home more secure the next time a hurricane strikes the state. They've even had one of their weekly Lifestyles columnists do a piece on whether he'd stay in town or go the next time a hurricane headed this direction. (He'd GO!! Not quite so much because of the storm itself, although that would be a factor, as because of the discomfort in the aftermath. But still, at least it was an article advocating evacuation.)
Anyway, back to how I know it's hurricane season.
The Weather Channel has begun its "Tropical Update" at "ten 'til" each hour, with tips on preparation, lists of hurricane names, explanations of what the science currently knows about hurricanes, possible patterns for this time of year, and so on and so on. Actually I believe they do a fairly good job of providing pre-hurricane information and tracking updates from the moment there's an iffy area lurking out there. Sure, they get a bit hysterical when something begins to head to land. But then, if you're broadcasting 24-hours a day about the weather, sometimes you just have to find something, anything, to keep you (the weathercaster) awake.
But do you want to know how I really know it's hurricane season?
It's hurricane season because I've started watching the barometric pressure again. That's right! Six months out of the year I apparently don't even see the barometric pressure listed in the "Current Conditions" of "Local on the 8's". But once, June 1st rolls around, I'm suddenly aware of that number and whether it has an S or up/down arrow next to it.
Guess you could say that hurricane season is enough to put one under pressure.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Eep!
A momentary chuckle: It's evening. It's dark. The dog decides she really needs to go out. I head to the curtained sliding glass door, unlock it without pulling the curtain back very far. PLOP! hmmmmmm... Plop? Dog actually jumps backward. I think to myself, "Snakes don't go "plop", so what is it?" There on my side of the door is a nice, plump frog. I gently encourage the frog to return to its favored environment, which it politely did. Do you think the dog would go out after that? No Way! Silly dog.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Preach It!
I've been out of touch with most of the world this past week while attending the Festival of Homiletics in Minneapolis. It was a week of worship and lectures on preaching given by some of the big names in the reformed tradition. I think I'm about "worshipped out".
Don't get me wrong! It was great to be in a setting where about 2,100 pastors were listening to and learning more about their craft. The presenters did an awesome job. But 10 worship services in 4 1/2 days? It's a good thing I'm not preaching this Sunday!
As I drove home on the last leg of my trip, I suddenly realized that not a single one of the pastors who preached, and only one of the workshops, used powerpoint. Just the spoken word was powerful enough to get their messages across, and they did it in a way that kept your interest.
Occasionally, someone tossed out a $10 word, but then, they were preaching to pastors who should be able to understand them. However, what was most compelling was the vivid, descriptive language and the ways they shared the "old, old story".
It's funny, but most of them stayed in the pulpit, too, with only a couple of them wandering about the chancel area. And not a one of them walked out into the congregation as they spoke. I didn't even pick up on that until just now.
Of course, the big-name lecturers, people who teach people to preach, managed to contradict each other about some things. That really didn't surprise me too much. One said "every pastor must preach without notes". Another said "it just depends". And about half of those who led worship used manuscripts and half didn't. *chuckle*
Guess we'll all just have to continue to hone our craft, do the best we can before God, and preach the Good News with all our hearts and minds and souls and strength.
Don't get me wrong! It was great to be in a setting where about 2,100 pastors were listening to and learning more about their craft. The presenters did an awesome job. But 10 worship services in 4 1/2 days? It's a good thing I'm not preaching this Sunday!
As I drove home on the last leg of my trip, I suddenly realized that not a single one of the pastors who preached, and only one of the workshops, used powerpoint. Just the spoken word was powerful enough to get their messages across, and they did it in a way that kept your interest.
Occasionally, someone tossed out a $10 word, but then, they were preaching to pastors who should be able to understand them. However, what was most compelling was the vivid, descriptive language and the ways they shared the "old, old story".
It's funny, but most of them stayed in the pulpit, too, with only a couple of them wandering about the chancel area. And not a one of them walked out into the congregation as they spoke. I didn't even pick up on that until just now.
Of course, the big-name lecturers, people who teach people to preach, managed to contradict each other about some things. That really didn't surprise me too much. One said "every pastor must preach without notes". Another said "it just depends". And about half of those who led worship used manuscripts and half didn't. *chuckle*
Guess we'll all just have to continue to hone our craft, do the best we can before God, and preach the Good News with all our hearts and minds and souls and strength.
Sunday, May 04, 2008
The Secret
It's baaaaaaa-ack!
The Power of Positive Thinking, that is. Sure it's wearing contemporary clothing and wrapped in the scientific language of quantum wavicle theory, but it's back nevertheless.
I was at a meeting this weekend and there was a segment on "The Secret Isn't a Secret". Time was spent going through the wavicle theory and how the observer interacts and affects the outcome of whatever's being observed. Well, DUH! This isn't a new concept! It's been around for quite some time.
Then the presenter gives a recent personal experience of thinking she's about to be fired from her job, and Lo! and behold! ... She's fired.
Please don't get me wrong. I've been involved in community and individual prayer for positive outcomes and been ecstatic when incredible outcomes occur. I've known people who've gotten their lives back together by changing the way they approach the experiences in their lives. I'm not saying that a positive approach to life isn't a good thing.
Yet ... I can't help but see the fallacy in this approach to life. While we were watching the associated video, I kept thinking of the person blind from birth whose positive thoughts were of being able to see, and nothing happens. Then the family dealing with Alzheimer's unrelenting path to lost and befuddled death, putting positive thoughts out into the universe while their loved one continued to die bit by bit, day by day. Do we tell the amputee that if they just think good thoughts long enough, that prosthetic will somehow become real?
If this kind of message comes from a religious person, are we not telling those whose dreams and visions are not (and perhaps cannot be) fulfilled in this life that God has rejected their requests, and, thus, the person themselves? It seems to me that if putting positive thoughts and visions out there were the solution to all of life's ills, that Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane would have been "Father, I've envisioned this wonderful, peaceful way to bring your kingdom into being", and he would have been spared the suffering and death of the crucifixion.
Of course, I guess you could also look at Gethsemane as Jesus putting out the negative vibes and then getting what he deserved. Hmmmmmmmmm.....that doesn't seem right either.
"Not my will, but Thine" is the prayer of relinquishment Jesus prays. That's the harder prayer to pray, and may be why we're drawn so quickly to the "happy talk" prayer. Guess I'm just getting cantankerous in my *chuckle* 'old age'. I find myself being drawn to that Gethsemane prayer: "God, I'd love for the wonderful, positive thing to happen ... my definition of the perfect vision to occur, but God, I relinquish all that I have and am to you and am willing to trust you with it. Not my will, but Thine, O God!"
The Power of Positive Thinking, that is. Sure it's wearing contemporary clothing and wrapped in the scientific language of quantum wavicle theory, but it's back nevertheless.
I was at a meeting this weekend and there was a segment on "The Secret Isn't a Secret". Time was spent going through the wavicle theory and how the observer interacts and affects the outcome of whatever's being observed. Well, DUH! This isn't a new concept! It's been around for quite some time.
Then the presenter gives a recent personal experience of thinking she's about to be fired from her job, and Lo! and behold! ... She's fired.
Please don't get me wrong. I've been involved in community and individual prayer for positive outcomes and been ecstatic when incredible outcomes occur. I've known people who've gotten their lives back together by changing the way they approach the experiences in their lives. I'm not saying that a positive approach to life isn't a good thing.
Yet ... I can't help but see the fallacy in this approach to life. While we were watching the associated video, I kept thinking of the person blind from birth whose positive thoughts were of being able to see, and nothing happens. Then the family dealing with Alzheimer's unrelenting path to lost and befuddled death, putting positive thoughts out into the universe while their loved one continued to die bit by bit, day by day. Do we tell the amputee that if they just think good thoughts long enough, that prosthetic will somehow become real?
If this kind of message comes from a religious person, are we not telling those whose dreams and visions are not (and perhaps cannot be) fulfilled in this life that God has rejected their requests, and, thus, the person themselves? It seems to me that if putting positive thoughts and visions out there were the solution to all of life's ills, that Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane would have been "Father, I've envisioned this wonderful, peaceful way to bring your kingdom into being", and he would have been spared the suffering and death of the crucifixion.
Of course, I guess you could also look at Gethsemane as Jesus putting out the negative vibes and then getting what he deserved. Hmmmmmmmmm.....that doesn't seem right either.
"Not my will, but Thine" is the prayer of relinquishment Jesus prays. That's the harder prayer to pray, and may be why we're drawn so quickly to the "happy talk" prayer. Guess I'm just getting cantankerous in my *chuckle* 'old age'. I find myself being drawn to that Gethsemane prayer: "God, I'd love for the wonderful, positive thing to happen ... my definition of the perfect vision to occur, but God, I relinquish all that I have and am to you and am willing to trust you with it. Not my will, but Thine, O God!"
Friday, May 02, 2008
In the Mail
When I moved back into my house, I made some well-considered decisions regarding my telephone, tv, and internet. Because I am a pastor, I really need the reliability and confidentiality that one can get on a landline telephone. Of course, the only secure landline is through AT&T, so guess who supplies my telephone service.
I've done the satellite tv bit before. Not only did I consistently lose the picture whenever there was a significant storm (one of those times you really need tv reception), but the satellite provider significantly changed the service they provided without notification. No more satellite for me! How does AT&T provide tv service? You've got it! Satellite! So, I get my tv service through cable.
Before the storm, I had dsl service. It was good, but not the fastest service for the price. So, when I got back home, I decided to go with Roadrunner.
All very clear decisions. Each particular choice told to the particular company with the reasons why I made the choices, and the fact that I would not be making any changes was particularly noted.
So, why is this post titled "In the Mail"?
Today's mail contained an advertisement from the phone company offering all sorts of incentives for me to shift my tv and internet to them, AND, an advertisement from the cable company offering all sorts of incentives for me to shift my phone service to them.
*sigh*
It'd save them all sorts of shekels in postage and ink and paper, and it'd save the environment too. Why won't they listen to their customers?
I've done the satellite tv bit before. Not only did I consistently lose the picture whenever there was a significant storm (one of those times you really need tv reception), but the satellite provider significantly changed the service they provided without notification. No more satellite for me! How does AT&T provide tv service? You've got it! Satellite! So, I get my tv service through cable.
Before the storm, I had dsl service. It was good, but not the fastest service for the price. So, when I got back home, I decided to go with Roadrunner.
All very clear decisions. Each particular choice told to the particular company with the reasons why I made the choices, and the fact that I would not be making any changes was particularly noted.
So, why is this post titled "In the Mail"?
Today's mail contained an advertisement from the phone company offering all sorts of incentives for me to shift my tv and internet to them, AND, an advertisement from the cable company offering all sorts of incentives for me to shift my phone service to them.
*sigh*
It'd save them all sorts of shekels in postage and ink and paper, and it'd save the environment too. Why won't they listen to their customers?
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Quite a week!
I may someday catch up on this week's newspapers ... possibly, and am only stopping in here because I don't want to abandon things completely.
Besides the multitude of meetings that were scheduled for this week, one of my oldest members died. It is quite an honor to be present at that point where one passes from this life to the next, and this was a gentle transition. She had lived a long and full life and things were becoming difficult for her, so this was a blessing.
She had done some thinking about her funeral and had several things planned. First on the agenda? "No eulogy." So I didn't, but I couldn't leave her unmentioned. I snuck in a few memories in one of the prayers. *teehee*
The ladies of the church did an awesome job of preparing munchies for the visitation after the funeral. Her sister only wanted something to drink and some cookies. This crew doesn't do "halfway"! I told her sister to just accept an enjoy their gift. Once our crew gets started, even an armored tank couldn't stop them! There were homemeade sandwiches and cookies and punch and fruits and veggies with dips.
Such amazing people! My life has been truly enriched by getting to know them.
Now my feet are tired, and my brain is fried. I think I'm going to take a nap. It's been quite a week!
Besides the multitude of meetings that were scheduled for this week, one of my oldest members died. It is quite an honor to be present at that point where one passes from this life to the next, and this was a gentle transition. She had lived a long and full life and things were becoming difficult for her, so this was a blessing.
She had done some thinking about her funeral and had several things planned. First on the agenda? "No eulogy." So I didn't, but I couldn't leave her unmentioned. I snuck in a few memories in one of the prayers. *teehee*
The ladies of the church did an awesome job of preparing munchies for the visitation after the funeral. Her sister only wanted something to drink and some cookies. This crew doesn't do "halfway"! I told her sister to just accept an enjoy their gift. Once our crew gets started, even an armored tank couldn't stop them! There were homemeade sandwiches and cookies and punch and fruits and veggies with dips.
Such amazing people! My life has been truly enriched by getting to know them.
Now my feet are tired, and my brain is fried. I think I'm going to take a nap. It's been quite a week!
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Whimsical Thought
If one believes that God created the earth and humanity and all creatures great and small, and declared it "very good" (Genesis 1:31, NRSV)
AND
If one believes that our beloved pets are welcomed into God's kingdom along with us humans,
THEN
are there mosquitos in heaven?
AND
If one believes that our beloved pets are welcomed into God's kingdom along with us humans,
THEN
are there mosquitos in heaven?
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
A Momentary Harumph!
Static! That's about all I get on my phone. Static! And it's no fun for either end of the conversation.
My AT&T payment includes the In-Line Plus that means the repair people can track down problems inside the house as well as outside without costing an arm and a leg. Everything's covered, right?
Call the repair center. "We've a longer than normal wait time right now. Why don't you try the website?", the voice message says. Ooooo-kay.
Get on website. Begin report. They do their magic via the computer generated testing thingy. Nope! No problems we can see. Here - go do these things first: followed by a list of steps which includes taking a screwdriver and opening some box on the outisde of my house.
WAIT A MINUTE!! Aren't I paying you so many buckos a month to do all that stuff when I have a problem?
I just clicked on the "been there, done that" button and am going to let them come out and tinker with it. HARUMPH!
My AT&T payment includes the In-Line Plus that means the repair people can track down problems inside the house as well as outside without costing an arm and a leg. Everything's covered, right?
Call the repair center. "We've a longer than normal wait time right now. Why don't you try the website?", the voice message says. Ooooo-kay.
Get on website. Begin report. They do their magic via the computer generated testing thingy. Nope! No problems we can see. Here - go do these things first: followed by a list of steps which includes taking a screwdriver and opening some box on the outisde of my house.
WAIT A MINUTE!! Aren't I paying you so many buckos a month to do all that stuff when I have a problem?
I just clicked on the "been there, done that" button and am going to let them come out and tinker with it. HARUMPH!
Saturday, April 05, 2008
Holy Carp!
For much of this week, I've been away from technology at the annual clergy retreat. So, only today have I caught up on reading my newspapers. Two thoughts arise from this marathon paper-reading: (Well, there's more than these two, but ...)
First thought -
In Houston this past week, the Catholic church has been celebrating the opening of its new co-cathedral. Okay. A reasonably big deal if you're Catholic. A one day wonder if you aren't, or at least that's the way I see it. The Houston Chronicle has had some kind of whiz-bang article at least four times since Sunday and three of those articles have been Section A, if not front-page. SHEESH!
I don't recall quite this much splash and bother over Joel O'Steen's church opening in the old Reliant Stadium. I certainly don't recall it hanging around on the front page for days. Even the new Buddhist temple didn't get this much coverage. Of course, I will admit that my memory isn't perfect and I didn't do any research to back up my impression.
However, I truly wonder if there would be such hoopla if the Presbyterians or Methodists or whatever denomination or religion built an equivalently brand-spanking new facility. Somehow, I doubt it. Ah, well! Such is life!
Second thought -
In today's paper, there's an article about insurers pulling out of insuring homeowners, if another hurricane blew in along the Texas coast. And mentioning that the current Texas Windstorm fund doesn't even have enough buckos to cover the cost of repair/replacement of insured buildings in Galveston County, if the next big one roared through there.
Here's what totally angers me - Insurers are upping their rates as much as 20-25% along the coast, for less coverage, and making huge profits in spite of whatever losses they may possibly have exprienced in 2005, and they're whining that "if another comes through, we're out of here!". ARGH!
OK, I believe in capitalism about as much as the next person; however, there's this part of me that wants to take all for-profit insurance companies and legislate them out of existence. Let the risks be shared across the country for whatever catastrophic weather events may cause damage of mega-proportions. There's not any part of the country that's totally immune to floods or tornados or hurricanes or wild fires or earthquakes or landslides or drought or whatever.
It probably wouldn't be ideal, and would likely increase rates as well. Yet we wouldn't be held hostage to companies whose main reason for existence is not repairing damage but making sure their shareholders reap profits. Of course, this isn't going to happen any time in the near future, if ever, and there would probably be as many glitches and angering experiences as one might expect in dealing with another bureaucracy. I just wish we could come up with a better way of sharing the risk of natural disaster without bankrupting those who try to plan ahead for when disaster occurs.
First thought -
In Houston this past week, the Catholic church has been celebrating the opening of its new co-cathedral. Okay. A reasonably big deal if you're Catholic. A one day wonder if you aren't, or at least that's the way I see it. The Houston Chronicle has had some kind of whiz-bang article at least four times since Sunday and three of those articles have been Section A, if not front-page. SHEESH!
I don't recall quite this much splash and bother over Joel O'Steen's church opening in the old Reliant Stadium. I certainly don't recall it hanging around on the front page for days. Even the new Buddhist temple didn't get this much coverage. Of course, I will admit that my memory isn't perfect and I didn't do any research to back up my impression.
However, I truly wonder if there would be such hoopla if the Presbyterians or Methodists or whatever denomination or religion built an equivalently brand-spanking new facility. Somehow, I doubt it. Ah, well! Such is life!
Second thought -
In today's paper, there's an article about insurers pulling out of insuring homeowners, if another hurricane blew in along the Texas coast. And mentioning that the current Texas Windstorm fund doesn't even have enough buckos to cover the cost of repair/replacement of insured buildings in Galveston County, if the next big one roared through there.
Here's what totally angers me - Insurers are upping their rates as much as 20-25% along the coast, for less coverage, and making huge profits in spite of whatever losses they may possibly have exprienced in 2005, and they're whining that "if another comes through, we're out of here!". ARGH!
OK, I believe in capitalism about as much as the next person; however, there's this part of me that wants to take all for-profit insurance companies and legislate them out of existence. Let the risks be shared across the country for whatever catastrophic weather events may cause damage of mega-proportions. There's not any part of the country that's totally immune to floods or tornados or hurricanes or wild fires or earthquakes or landslides or drought or whatever.
It probably wouldn't be ideal, and would likely increase rates as well. Yet we wouldn't be held hostage to companies whose main reason for existence is not repairing damage but making sure their shareholders reap profits. Of course, this isn't going to happen any time in the near future, if ever, and there would probably be as many glitches and angering experiences as one might expect in dealing with another bureaucracy. I just wish we could come up with a better way of sharing the risk of natural disaster without bankrupting those who try to plan ahead for when disaster occurs.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
State of Health
I just got back today from a meeting where various state organizing groups were discussing what impact they had had on their local healthcare systems, and what action they might take to further "fix" our terribly broken system.
For the most part, these are groups that have been at it for several years and, while significant in their own way, have pretty much been successful at making only miniscule changes to the system: managing to get local governments to raise the threshhold of "indigent" from 21% of the federal poverty level to 25% of that level (mind you - that's the equivalent of working for 7 hours at minimum wage/week), raising awareness of how local governmental entities will "sluff off" their indigent care responsibilities onto other agencies, that kind of thing.
We heard stories of how varying segments of the healthcare system, through willful neglect or ignorance or just plain idiocy, caused harm to those present, their family members, friends, or others they had contact with. The stories are powerful witnesses to just how broken the system is: those with no insurance paying the "full" cost of care (that amount that medical care providers have to charge in order to receive adequate reimbursement from insurance companies or governmental entities), care denied for a breast tumor the size of a golf ball because "it wasn't an emergency" and then reaming out the patient because she didn't come in sooner for treatment once it had finally reached the size of a peach and then denying the prescribed chemotherapy/radiation treatment because, once again, her condition "was not life threatening", medical doctors in various specialties refusing to participate in government sponsored programs for indigent care because reimbursement rates didn't even begin to cover the costs (occasionally that excuse sounds like a base cannard, but when you start figuring in all of the costs of staffing and equipment, sometimes it's legit), paperwork and bureaucratic red tape causing children to be dropped from programs they qualify for and then taking too long to rectify the problems (Texas has been struggling with some vast red tape problems), and on and on.
I truly admire those people who can organize groups and write-in campaigns and work the system in such a way that politicians and appropriate executives are embarrassed into making things right for large numbers of people. I realize that I'm not one of them. My strong suit is more along the lines of agitating in the background, poking and prodding at things and lifting up the stuff that gets missed. For example, one of the things I noticed at the meeting was a lack of representation of those affected by various disabilities. Don't you think they might be prime candidates for advocating for adequate healthcare for all? But I digress ...
I think it's fairly obvious that our healthcare system is broken. My mom's biggest fear is that healthcare will be rationed if we convert to some kind of universal healthcare system. It continues to bug me that I'm not able to convince my own mom that rationing is already taking place. It's just that we ration according to one's ability to pay. At which point I cry "Not fair! Not fair!" Yet she worries incessantly if one of her kids or grandkids is in a position where they don't have health insurance. *shakes head*
The one thing this meeting convinced me of is that the system is quite broken. Oh! I knew that, but hadn't seen all of the pieces together at one time. How can we fix it? Lord, I don't know! But I'm not convinced that the only way to fix it is piecemeal with one portion of this huge state getting a concession here and another getting a concession there. It seems to me that if enough people put their heads and their petitions and their voices together, comprehensive change could become a possibility.
The one thing they said over and over at this meeting was that local people have power. What if we all began a campaign to push and prod our elected officials to change the system for the good, regardless of who's lobbying for what? You get enough people on the bandwagon, the number of votes might cancel out the effect of the lobbying dollars lurking in the shadows. I wonder what it would take to start a national initiative for a change in the state of our health. Any suggestions?
For the most part, these are groups that have been at it for several years and, while significant in their own way, have pretty much been successful at making only miniscule changes to the system: managing to get local governments to raise the threshhold of "indigent" from 21% of the federal poverty level to 25% of that level (mind you - that's the equivalent of working for 7 hours at minimum wage/week), raising awareness of how local governmental entities will "sluff off" their indigent care responsibilities onto other agencies, that kind of thing.
We heard stories of how varying segments of the healthcare system, through willful neglect or ignorance or just plain idiocy, caused harm to those present, their family members, friends, or others they had contact with. The stories are powerful witnesses to just how broken the system is: those with no insurance paying the "full" cost of care (that amount that medical care providers have to charge in order to receive adequate reimbursement from insurance companies or governmental entities), care denied for a breast tumor the size of a golf ball because "it wasn't an emergency" and then reaming out the patient because she didn't come in sooner for treatment once it had finally reached the size of a peach and then denying the prescribed chemotherapy/radiation treatment because, once again, her condition "was not life threatening", medical doctors in various specialties refusing to participate in government sponsored programs for indigent care because reimbursement rates didn't even begin to cover the costs (occasionally that excuse sounds like a base cannard, but when you start figuring in all of the costs of staffing and equipment, sometimes it's legit), paperwork and bureaucratic red tape causing children to be dropped from programs they qualify for and then taking too long to rectify the problems (Texas has been struggling with some vast red tape problems), and on and on.
I truly admire those people who can organize groups and write-in campaigns and work the system in such a way that politicians and appropriate executives are embarrassed into making things right for large numbers of people. I realize that I'm not one of them. My strong suit is more along the lines of agitating in the background, poking and prodding at things and lifting up the stuff that gets missed. For example, one of the things I noticed at the meeting was a lack of representation of those affected by various disabilities. Don't you think they might be prime candidates for advocating for adequate healthcare for all? But I digress ...
I think it's fairly obvious that our healthcare system is broken. My mom's biggest fear is that healthcare will be rationed if we convert to some kind of universal healthcare system. It continues to bug me that I'm not able to convince my own mom that rationing is already taking place. It's just that we ration according to one's ability to pay. At which point I cry "Not fair! Not fair!" Yet she worries incessantly if one of her kids or grandkids is in a position where they don't have health insurance. *shakes head*
The one thing this meeting convinced me of is that the system is quite broken. Oh! I knew that, but hadn't seen all of the pieces together at one time. How can we fix it? Lord, I don't know! But I'm not convinced that the only way to fix it is piecemeal with one portion of this huge state getting a concession here and another getting a concession there. It seems to me that if enough people put their heads and their petitions and their voices together, comprehensive change could become a possibility.
The one thing they said over and over at this meeting was that local people have power. What if we all began a campaign to push and prod our elected officials to change the system for the good, regardless of who's lobbying for what? You get enough people on the bandwagon, the number of votes might cancel out the effect of the lobbying dollars lurking in the shadows. I wonder what it would take to start a national initiative for a change in the state of our health. Any suggestions?
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Riddle Me This
I realize I haven't posted in a while. Poor blog! The creative juices have been focused in other areas recently.
But this just plain begs for some kind of comment. I finally got around to reading the Houston Chronicle front page. Below the fold, there's a man standing on the hood of his vehicle using a cellphone. OK - slightly odd, but not totally beyond the realm of possibility.
His vehicle is halfway submerged in flood waters and he's a good football field length away from solid ground!
Why on earth would anyone drive around a barricade to drive through water that's obviously more than a couple of inches deep?
Does this person NEVER watch tv and has he NEVER seen vehicles floating downstream on even relatively small amounts of water over the road? This kind of thing just totally bamboozles me! What the heck was he thinking? I sincerely hope that the government rescue units that were required to get this idiot back to solid ground have a way to charge him an arm and a leg for his stupidity. Perhaps that, plus the major expense of repairing his vehicle (if the darned thing doesn't end up floating away downstream and getting destroyed in the process), might make him think twice before trying that stunt again.
But this just plain begs for some kind of comment. I finally got around to reading the Houston Chronicle front page. Below the fold, there's a man standing on the hood of his vehicle using a cellphone. OK - slightly odd, but not totally beyond the realm of possibility.
His vehicle is halfway submerged in flood waters and he's a good football field length away from solid ground!
Why on earth would anyone drive around a barricade to drive through water that's obviously more than a couple of inches deep?
Does this person NEVER watch tv and has he NEVER seen vehicles floating downstream on even relatively small amounts of water over the road? This kind of thing just totally bamboozles me! What the heck was he thinking? I sincerely hope that the government rescue units that were required to get this idiot back to solid ground have a way to charge him an arm and a leg for his stupidity. Perhaps that, plus the major expense of repairing his vehicle (if the darned thing doesn't end up floating away downstream and getting destroyed in the process), might make him think twice before trying that stunt again.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Feed the Hungry
Improve your vocabulary while helping to feed the hungry. There's a website where you test your vocabulary and for each word you get correct, you donate 20 grains of rice through the United Nations to help end world hunger.
This site is insidious and educational. Yesterday over 91 million grains were donated. This is a program that apparently started in October and has already given more than 17 billion (yes, that billion with a b)grains.
Hey! Why not take a few minutes out of your day, improve your wordpower, and help the world? Seems like a good plan to me!
This site is insidious and educational. Yesterday over 91 million grains were donated. This is a program that apparently started in October and has already given more than 17 billion (yes, that billion with a b)grains.
Hey! Why not take a few minutes out of your day, improve your wordpower, and help the world? Seems like a good plan to me!
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