Two of my favorite children (besides my own!)
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Night Flags and Silly Kitties
Gotta drag out the Mac Daddy lens and try this again. Can't wait until Harvest Festival! Night shots are so cool with the right equipment. When we got home tonight we found we had 'Kitty in a Basket' instead of "Chicken N a Biskit". I think I like mine best!
Neph's BD
Happy Birthday W! Ah, to light the candles.
A book of matches or a lighter is hard to come by at a 'Baptist' church facility...so we must get creative at times...
Our ingenuity pays off...we have fire!
Then, at the last, the 'big Kahuna' birthday present! A bass amp! Hoo Wee!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Cause for the Pause...
Haven't been able to do much posting this week. It seems that sometime Sunday morning, I scratched my cornea. Feels like a huge eyelash is in my eye. Needless to say, I'm spending a lot of time with my eye closed, putting in antibiotic ointment, etc. I was really hoping that today would start to bring some relief, but not yet. Maybe tomorrow...
By the way...the Quest for Baby Blue continues. The doll I found was more of a 'mini-me' edition. She's pretty, but too small.
Say a little prayer for me that my eye heals up...I have to play for choir practice tomorrow night!
By the way...the Quest for Baby Blue continues. The doll I found was more of a 'mini-me' edition. She's pretty, but too small.
Say a little prayer for me that my eye heals up...I have to play for choir practice tomorrow night!
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Brave's Take 1st in Class!
At the Royal City Classic Band Competition...
Then we flew off into the sunset...another competition, another funnel cake...looking forward to the next one!
Then we flew off into the sunset...another competition, another funnel cake...looking forward to the next one!
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Successful Quest?
My quest for 'Baby Blue' may have come to a successful and happy conclusion. (see earlier post) I found her on Ebay. She will arrive sometime next week. But from the photo...well...what do you think?
If it's not her twin, it's frighteningly close. I'll let you know!
If it's not her twin, it's frighteningly close. I'll let you know!
Beside Myself
Look who we ran into on the way to the Band competition last weekend....
So which one's real, and which one is the Xerox?Saturday, October 13, 2007
Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
We went to see some amazing classical guitarists this evening. I had not heard of the since this year, but they've been around for a while. If you ever get the chance to go...take it!
The concert was held at one of Jacksonville's very old churchs. Absolutely beautiful!
This is the guy that wrote the theme music at the end of Napoleon Dynamite. They played it tonight. Very cool!
The concert was held at one of Jacksonville's very old churchs. Absolutely beautiful!
Thursday, October 11, 2007
APB on Baby Blue...have you seen this doll?
"Lovies", "Comforters", "Special Toys", "White Soft Blankies"... this was mine, and here's the story...
This is a photo of me in 1961, probably shortly after my 1st birthday. The doll is 'Baby Blue'. My Mom tells me that she thinks the name on the box that she came in was 'Baby Blue Eyes', hence the name that she ended up with. This doll went everywhere with me for years. I did not go to sleep without her. I remember one time we had been to visit my Great Grandparents (my Great Grandpa always asked me "Where's Blue Baby?" and I always had to correct him, of course!) and I apparently fell asleep on the way home. In my groggy state, I left poor Baby Blue in the car. When I realized where she was, it took some convincing Daddy that 'she couldn't stay in the car all night in the dark, she would be afraid!'. He rescued her and she was tucked safely in bed with me in no time.
To this day, I remember the way she smelled, how her arms felt, how the curls of her 'molded plastic hair' were on her head. I remember that her arms were made of a different more rubbery plastic than her legs and her torso. Her head was the softer vinyl, I guess. She had blue eyes, of course, that closed when she laid down. She had a hole in her mouth for a bottle, and another hole...you know...for the liquid to drain out. :-) Over the years, the plastic around the armholes became brittle and cracked, causing her arms not to stay connected. When I was around 11 or so, my Mom was cleaning out toys and stuff and ended up throwing her out. I didn't play or sleep with her anymore, and her arms wouldn't stay in the sockets. I was disappointed, and would really have liked to have kept her, and Mom wouldn't have gotten rid of her if she had known. That's okay, because now I am on a quest.
The quest to find Baby Blue. Of course, not the 'real' her, she's at the bottom of a landfill somewhere, but at least her twin. Unfortunately, I don't remember who her manufacturer was, of course at the tender age of 1, why would I have cared? Ha! She was most likely purchased from Pic 'N Save, or W.T. Grants or somewhere like that, in the North Florida area. I have found a couple with a pretty close resemblance on Ebay. I actually went to a doll shop here in town today, who had one listed. Unfortunately, it wasn't her. It was a valuable trip though, because that doll was about 22 inches tall, so by looking at that, I know that Baby Blue was more in the 18 inch range. A 22 inch doll would have been as big as me!
So, here I am in 1961. Me and Baby Blue. Now, 46 years later, I'm searching for her twin! If anyone has any idea who the manufacturer might have been, or know of some good places to look...I'm open! This is my APB for Baby Blue!
This is a photo of me in 1961, probably shortly after my 1st birthday. The doll is 'Baby Blue'. My Mom tells me that she thinks the name on the box that she came in was 'Baby Blue Eyes', hence the name that she ended up with. This doll went everywhere with me for years. I did not go to sleep without her. I remember one time we had been to visit my Great Grandparents (my Great Grandpa always asked me "Where's Blue Baby?" and I always had to correct him, of course!) and I apparently fell asleep on the way home. In my groggy state, I left poor Baby Blue in the car. When I realized where she was, it took some convincing Daddy that 'she couldn't stay in the car all night in the dark, she would be afraid!'. He rescued her and she was tucked safely in bed with me in no time.
To this day, I remember the way she smelled, how her arms felt, how the curls of her 'molded plastic hair' were on her head. I remember that her arms were made of a different more rubbery plastic than her legs and her torso. Her head was the softer vinyl, I guess. She had blue eyes, of course, that closed when she laid down. She had a hole in her mouth for a bottle, and another hole...you know...for the liquid to drain out. :-) Over the years, the plastic around the armholes became brittle and cracked, causing her arms not to stay connected. When I was around 11 or so, my Mom was cleaning out toys and stuff and ended up throwing her out. I didn't play or sleep with her anymore, and her arms wouldn't stay in the sockets. I was disappointed, and would really have liked to have kept her, and Mom wouldn't have gotten rid of her if she had known. That's okay, because now I am on a quest.
The quest to find Baby Blue. Of course, not the 'real' her, she's at the bottom of a landfill somewhere, but at least her twin. Unfortunately, I don't remember who her manufacturer was, of course at the tender age of 1, why would I have cared? Ha! She was most likely purchased from Pic 'N Save, or W.T. Grants or somewhere like that, in the North Florida area. I have found a couple with a pretty close resemblance on Ebay. I actually went to a doll shop here in town today, who had one listed. Unfortunately, it wasn't her. It was a valuable trip though, because that doll was about 22 inches tall, so by looking at that, I know that Baby Blue was more in the 18 inch range. A 22 inch doll would have been as big as me!
So, here I am in 1961. Me and Baby Blue. Now, 46 years later, I'm searching for her twin! If anyone has any idea who the manufacturer might have been, or know of some good places to look...I'm open! This is my APB for Baby Blue!Concert Tonight!
Darling Youngest Daughter had her first chorus tonight. They did a fabulous job! They have an awesome sound for just the first 9 weeks of school. The entire program is 200+ strong.
Universal Health Care? Think About It...
I received this email from a friend of mine. Hopefully, it will be seen by more people out there than by my feeble attempts to send it to everyone on my contact list.
I've heard a lot over the years about the health care system in Canada and how wonderful it is that it's free and provided by the government, blah, blah, blah. However, I think that the downside of the whole process is totally not worth all the hype. Here is an account from someone who has been subject to (or after you read it you may define it as a 'victim of') the Canadian Health Care system.
The Email:
" Please take the time to read it so you can do whatever you wish....research, verify, etc., but please read it. I saw on the news up here in Canada where Hillary Clinton introduced her new health care plan. Something similar to what we have in Canada. I also heard that Michael Moore was raving about the health care up here in Canada in his latest movie. As your friend and someone who lives with the Canada health care plan, I thought I would give you some facts about this great medical plan that we have in Canada.
First of all: 1) The health care plan in Canada is not free. We pay a premium every month of $96 for Shirley and I to be covered. Sounds great! What they don't tell you is how much we pay in taxes to keep the health care system afloat. I am personally in the 55% tax bracket. Yes 55% of my earnings go to taxes. A large portion of that (I am not sure of the exact amount) goes directly to health care our #1 expense.
2) I would not classify what we have as health care plan, it is more like a health diagnosis system. You can get into to see a doctor quick enough so he can tell you "yes indeed you are sick or you need an operation" but now the challenge becomes getting treated or operated on. We have waiting lists out the ying yang, some as much as 2 years down the road.
3) Rather than fix what is wrong with you the usual tactic in Canada is to prescribe drugs. Have a pain- here is a drug to take- not what is causing the pain and why. No time for checking you out because it is more important to move as many patients thru as possible each hour for Government re-imbursement.
4) Many Canadians do not have a family Doctor.
5) Don't require emergency treatment as you may wait for hours in the emergency room waiting for treatment.
6) Shirley's dad cut his hand on a power saw a few weeks back and it required that his hand be put in a splint - to our surprise we had to pay $125 for a splint because it is not covered under health care plus we have to pay $60 for each visit for the dr. to check it out each week.
7) Shirley's cousin was diagnosed with a heart blockage. Put on a waiting list .. Died before he could get treatment.
8) Government allots so many operations per year. When that is done no more operations, unless you go to your local newspaper and plead your case and embarrass the government then money suddenly appears.
9)The Government takes great pride in telling us how much more they are increasing the funding for health care but waiting lists never get shorter. Government just keeps throwing money at the problem but it never goes away. They are good at finding new ways to tax us, but they don't call it a tax anymore it is now a user fee.
10) A friend needs an operation for a blockage in her leg but because she is a smoker they will not do it despite paying into the health care system all these years. My friend is 65 years old. Now there is talk that maybe we should not treat fat and obese people either because they are a drain on the health care system. Let me see now, what we want in Canada is a health care system for healthy people only. That should reduce our health care costs.
11) Forget getting a second opinion, what you see is what you get.
12) I can spend what money I have left after taxes on booze, cigarettes, junk food and anything else that could kill me but I am not allowed by law to spend my money on getting an operation I need because that would be jumping the queue. I must wait my turn except if I am a hockey player or athlete then I can get looked at right away. Go figure. Where else in the world can you spend money to kill yourself but are not allowed to spend money to get healthy.
13) Oh did I mention that immigrants are covered automatically at tax payer expense having never contributed a dollar to the system and pay no premiums.
14) We now give free needles to drug users to try and keep them healthy. Wouldn't want a sickly druggie breaking into your house and stealing your things. But people with diabetes who pay into the health care system have to pay for their needles because it is not covered by the health care system.
I send this out not looking for sympathy but as the election looms in the states you will be hearing more and more about universal health care down there and the advocates will be pointing to Canada. I just want to make sure that you hear the truth about health care up here and have some food for thought and informed questions to ask when broached with this subject. Step wisely and don't make the same mistakes we have in the past. "
...and you think your HMO is a pain to deal with! People, we must do our research and not step blindly, or be led unknowingly into something we will not be able to get out of.
I've heard a lot over the years about the health care system in Canada and how wonderful it is that it's free and provided by the government, blah, blah, blah. However, I think that the downside of the whole process is totally not worth all the hype. Here is an account from someone who has been subject to (or after you read it you may define it as a 'victim of') the Canadian Health Care system.
The Email:
" Please take the time to read it so you can do whatever you wish....research, verify, etc., but please read it. I saw on the news up here in Canada where Hillary Clinton introduced her new health care plan. Something similar to what we have in Canada. I also heard that Michael Moore was raving about the health care up here in Canada in his latest movie. As your friend and someone who lives with the Canada health care plan, I thought I would give you some facts about this great medical plan that we have in Canada.
First of all: 1) The health care plan in Canada is not free. We pay a premium every month of $96 for Shirley and I to be covered. Sounds great! What they don't tell you is how much we pay in taxes to keep the health care system afloat. I am personally in the 55% tax bracket. Yes 55% of my earnings go to taxes. A large portion of that (I am not sure of the exact amount) goes directly to health care our #1 expense.
2) I would not classify what we have as health care plan, it is more like a health diagnosis system. You can get into to see a doctor quick enough so he can tell you "yes indeed you are sick or you need an operation" but now the challenge becomes getting treated or operated on. We have waiting lists out the ying yang, some as much as 2 years down the road.
3) Rather than fix what is wrong with you the usual tactic in Canada is to prescribe drugs. Have a pain- here is a drug to take- not what is causing the pain and why. No time for checking you out because it is more important to move as many patients thru as possible each hour for Government re-imbursement.
4) Many Canadians do not have a family Doctor.
5) Don't require emergency treatment as you may wait for hours in the emergency room waiting for treatment.
6) Shirley's dad cut his hand on a power saw a few weeks back and it required that his hand be put in a splint - to our surprise we had to pay $125 for a splint because it is not covered under health care plus we have to pay $60 for each visit for the dr. to check it out each week.
7) Shirley's cousin was diagnosed with a heart blockage. Put on a waiting list .. Died before he could get treatment.
8) Government allots so many operations per year. When that is done no more operations, unless you go to your local newspaper and plead your case and embarrass the government then money suddenly appears.
9)The Government takes great pride in telling us how much more they are increasing the funding for health care but waiting lists never get shorter. Government just keeps throwing money at the problem but it never goes away. They are good at finding new ways to tax us, but they don't call it a tax anymore it is now a user fee.
10) A friend needs an operation for a blockage in her leg but because she is a smoker they will not do it despite paying into the health care system all these years. My friend is 65 years old. Now there is talk that maybe we should not treat fat and obese people either because they are a drain on the health care system. Let me see now, what we want in Canada is a health care system for healthy people only. That should reduce our health care costs.
11) Forget getting a second opinion, what you see is what you get.
12) I can spend what money I have left after taxes on booze, cigarettes, junk food and anything else that could kill me but I am not allowed by law to spend my money on getting an operation I need because that would be jumping the queue. I must wait my turn except if I am a hockey player or athlete then I can get looked at right away. Go figure. Where else in the world can you spend money to kill yourself but are not allowed to spend money to get healthy.
13) Oh did I mention that immigrants are covered automatically at tax payer expense having never contributed a dollar to the system and pay no premiums.
14) We now give free needles to drug users to try and keep them healthy. Wouldn't want a sickly druggie breaking into your house and stealing your things. But people with diabetes who pay into the health care system have to pay for their needles because it is not covered by the health care system.
I send this out not looking for sympathy but as the election looms in the states you will be hearing more and more about universal health care down there and the advocates will be pointing to Canada. I just want to make sure that you hear the truth about health care up here and have some food for thought and informed questions to ask when broached with this subject. Step wisely and don't make the same mistakes we have in the past. "
...and you think your HMO is a pain to deal with! People, we must do our research and not step blindly, or be led unknowingly into something we will not be able to get out of.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Weekend Fun
Who says grownups can't have fun? I think truly, we never grow up! Here are some photos from our annual weekend ladies retreat...Topic: The Bride of Christ. Amidst all the fun was a time to focus on where we are in our journey.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Remodeled Auditorium
The platform area of our auditorium was remodeled last week. We used to have stairs all the way across the front.
So, here it is at a little different angle, and obviously taken during a wedding...but: BEFORE
So, here it is at a little different angle, and obviously taken during a wedding...but: BEFORE
...and AFTER:
The sides extend quite a bit further out to each side, (but I didn't have my wider angle lens on.) So, what do you think?
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