For all of my dear, sweet, supportive, loving friends who rejoiced with me in my good fortune in having the beautiful, warm days last week, I wanted to report that today it is 13 and very windy.  It is supposed to go up to 17.  You may now clap your hands and dance with glee.

peace...

The World According to Pam Too--TV and Politics.....

• Simon is a lot nicer this year on American Idol (at least so far)


• To add to my comments from yesterday about the Presidential elections, I am sick of hearing people saying in interviews "I am voting for ____ because I want to see the first woman/African American president" elected in my lifetime..."  because that implies that color or gender is the first factor in their decision making process.  I will NEVER tell ANYONE how to vote, because I hate it when people try to influence my vote, HOWEVER I feel strongly that people should vote based on issues, credentials and experience, not based on race, gender and popularity, and frankly, not even along party lines.  This election scares me the most, because it could be a history making election....which I am all for...as long as the history making person has the background and experience needed to run our country.


• Politics Too - What makes these candidates think that making recorded calls to my phone in the evenings are going to get me to vote for them?  A:  I am not going to listen to the whole drawn out message  B:  It really makes me mad and C:  ARGH!!!!!!


• Celebrity Apprentice has given me a new appreciation (or should I say, an appreciation) for Gene Simmons....  He is quite the businessman, and he is very self assured.  And he doesn't let anyone else take the fall/responsibility for something that he believes in....HEY...Maybe HE should run for President!  He could be the first actual Rock start to be elected President! 


• Random Office Quote:  "I'm friends with everybody in this office. We're all best friends. I love everybody here. But sometimes your best friends start coming into work late and start having dentist appointments that aren't dentist appointments, and that is when it's nice to let them know that you could beat them up" - Michael Scott


• Survivor is back...I am SO excited


• This writer's strike is making me crazy.  I found myself watching a show called Parking Wars, which is a reality show about people who write parking citations in the city of Philadelphia.  Now THAT is desperation people! 

Well, that is it....

peace....

The World According to Pam:

• The weather has been really wacky lately-- blizzards, tornadoes, and record-breaking heat.  I am glad I live where I live....we definitely got the best of the alternatives!


• I think it is interesting that someone can confess to committing a crime and then say that they didn't mean it, and still the judge doesn't indite them.  Doesn't that make them a liar one way or the other?  Joran Van der Sloot is guilty of something....  If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck.....  But I must say, this is another big lesson for girls...stay away from boys you don't know...


• I read an article about the youngest Spears sister...the one who is 16 and pregnant.  They were saying that at least she is in a "committed relationship".  Hmmm, committed relationship at 16......  I think I was in about 5 committed relationships that year--or at least that's what I thought at the time--and I didn't have sex with any of them. 


• This Presidential election is not thrilling my soul...  the options are not exciting me.  I am concerned for our future.  I am afraid a lot of people are looking at the glitz and the glamour and not at the core issues..... 


• I wish dogs had an on/off switch so I could turn off the barking.  They seem to get in a "barking mood" on some days.  Maybe just a "mute" button.


• Ron and I have implemented "couch time" every evening for at least an hour after dinner.  It is a time where we both sit on the couch beside each other and watch a show together or just talk....  It is mandatory.  Ron asked last night why it took us 18 years to figure this out....I think we thought we had more important things to do....  He on his computer, me somewhere else in the house.  I don't know.  But since we have been doing this for the last few months, it has strengthened our relationship so much.  I recommend it to everyone.  It's too easy to get caught up in everything else...and the truth is...there will always be something else to do...and before you know it, you will turn around and face your spouse and wonder where the time went and regret the time wasted. 


• God sure works in some amazing ways....if you only knew the ways He has worked lately, you would never believe it.....  I am going to tell you because this is very weird and I can hardly believe it.  Okay... follow this carefully:  A long time ago, I added a friend here who I know because I judged her as a youth in a competition thing...her name was Sandy....somehow from that, another guy commented on my site, and I became his friend.  His name was Gabe...  From Gabe I met a girl named Lanna and we have become good friends, as a matter of fact, she is going to be visiting DC this summer with her new bf.  Somehow from Lanna, I met her friend Sarah.  Sarah recently posted a message to pray for her because she was considering a job teaching english in Japan.  I told Sarah that I have another friend, Bobby, who is a missionary in Japan, and that I was sure that he would be willing to talk to her about his experience in Japan if she was interested...she was, and I introduced them on Facebook.  Here is the REALLY weird part....  Sarah's potential job is at a church where Bobby's very close friend Taka, who went to Bible college right across the street from our church here and who I also know, now worships.  Is that the coolest thing in the entire world?  God worked that whole thing out!  I still don't know what's happening with the job situation, but I do know that Bobby was able to tell Sarah about the area.....  God is awesome!


• I was watching 48 Hours the other night.  It was about a crime that was committed in 1957.  This guy robbed and terrorized a bunch of teenagers and raped one of the girls, then murdered two police officers.  Then, for almost 4 decades, lived a crime-free existence....never getting caught-never doing anything else... until a series of events happened that eventually ended up leading police to an elderly man who thought that he had outrun his past.  A man who technically had "one bad day" but who had impacted so many lives.  He even had a bullet still in him from a shot the dying police officer had managed to get off.  It reminded me of that scripture in Numbers...  Be sure your sins will find you out.... 


• It bugs me when women are on those makeover shows and have a chance to get their hair styled by world renowned hair stylists, and then they tell the hair stylist not to cut their hair, or limit them to how much or what they can do.  Listen...this is your one shot with that hair stylist...and HAIR GROWS BACK! (well...for most people...sorry ron and rev jeff)

Oh well...I think that is it.  Weird I know...but then, consider the source!

peace....

67 degrees and climbing

peace...

Funny Stuff....

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That's it for today...

peace...

This song by Casting Crowns is so powerful....

"

"Slow Fade"

Be careful little eyes what you see
It's the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings
Be careful little feet where you go
For it's the little feet behind you that are sure to follow

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade

Be careful little ears what you hear
When flattery leads to compromise, the end is always near
Be careful little lips what you say
For empty words and promises lead broken hearts astray

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day
Daddies never crumble in a day
Families never crumble in a day

Oh be careful little eyes what see
Oh be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh be careful little eyes what you see

I know the video is really directed toward pornography, but I think the words of this song can be directed toward a lot of aspects in our Christian lives.  We take "one step" over the line, and the next time it makes it easier to take two steps, and then three steps and then four steps and then five steps.....  Creeping compromise of our values and our beliefs....and we slowly move farther and farther away from the path where God would have us.  Wow.  I found this song and have been playing it non stop.  What a good reminder. 

Anyway...thought I would share....

peace....

I haven't done a random post in a while...seems like time....

Birthday Related:

So my Bio-Father called me to wish me a Happy Birthday on January 20th.  My birthday is... (let's say it together)  January 30th!  Funny.  He swears that I told him that I told him that my birthday was on the 20th.  Funnier.  I thanked him for the call.  It was nice of him to think of me....but it IS funny.

Ron got a birthday card from our church for MY birthday.  His birthday is in April.  (about this time I checked the calendar)

On a MUCH better note, I got some YUMMY cookies in the mail from my dear MIL, which she made for me even though she was in the midst of catering a huge wedding reception.  VERY sweet... (cookies...sweet...ha)

Other Topics:

So I took the dive and started a Facebook account...  So now I have Xanga, MySpace and FaceBook.  It is tough to stay relevant   And even with all of that I still have my doubts as to whether or not I am keeping up. 

I was visiting with Tyler a weekend or so ago and he wanted me to give him something...  I said how do you ask?  He wasn't saying anything so I said "Say: May I please have the coloring book my most beautiful Aunt Pam?"  He looked at me very seriously and said:  "No, that's not how I ask" 

Another Tylerism.  Tyler was helping to make cookies, and he had to dip the cookies into the chocolate, then into the sugar.  One cookie, he dipped into the sugar, then into the chocolate.  When his Mom pointed out what he had done, he said...  "Oh man, what am I doing?  I must be losing my mind!"

I think that is all I have....I thought I had a bunch of stuff to talk about, but now I can't remember any of it.  I guess old age does that to you

Oh, pray for my FIL, he is in the hospital with complications from kidney stones.  He is pretty sick and is in quite a bit of pain, so please remember he and my MIL in your prayers please....for strength and healing.

peace....

Ron and I were kind of moaning and complaining about  some things the other day.  We are struggling with a few things...  we need some things for the house...  we have lots of things we need to do and don't have the money to do it.  We have bills to pay and have gotten ourselves in a bit over our heads (yeah, that happens, right?)....  And we were both frustrated with a situation that had just happened at a church meeting....  So we were in the car kind of venting and complaining...blah blah blah...kind of childishly....not yelling at each other, but feeding off of each other and having a self righteous pity party.... As we were driving toward home, we saw a column of thick, dark smoke coming up from the direction of our neighborhood.  We drove closer, hoping that it would prove to be in a different direction (you know how that works sometimes), but it didn't...so our hearts kind of started pounding, even though we pretended that they weren't....  As we pulled into our street, we were relieved to see that the smoke was not from our home, but was very close.  By this time, our conversation had completely changed from our problems to concern for our neighbors...we drove toward the column of smoke, feeling a bit like the Israelites in the desert, and this is what we found.... http://www.wlhvfd.com/  (hopefully this link remains current....scroll down about halfway to see 7401 Lake Ora Dr)  We didn't pull into the street, but we could see the house from across the lake.  We got there just as the first fire trucks were pulling up...so we saw the smoke as it is shown in the first picture and the fire as it is shown in the second picture...  I can't imagine what these people went through in losing their home....  But as we God showed us that our problems are trivial...and that as long as it takes to build up our treasures here on earth...they can all be taken in an instant....

Ron and I didn't really talk about much for the rest of the evening...we both felt so drained and impacted by what we had seen...and guilty for wallowing in our self pity....but before we went to sleep, I grabbed his hand and in the darkness said....well...at least our house didn't burn down today....  and he said...yup.  And somehow that said it all. 

peace...

Because of this crazy writer's strike, I am missing some of my favorite shows on TV.  I figured I would share some of my favorite Dwight Shrute quotes today from the "Office".  He just cracks me up! 

Why tip someone for a job I'm capable of doing myself? I can deliver food. I can drive a taxi. I can, and do, cut my own hair. I did, however, tip my urologist, because I am unable to pulverize my own kidney stones.”

A 30-year mortgage at Michael’s age essentially means that he’s buying a coffin. If I were buying my coffin, I would get one with thicker walls so you couldn’t hear the other dead people.

Yes I have acted before. I was in a production of "Oklahoma!" in the 7th grade. I played the part of Mutey the Mailman. They had too many kids so they made up roles like that. I was good.

Women are like wolves. If you want a wolf, you have to trap it. Snare it. Then to keep it happy, you have to tame it. Feed it, care for it. Lovingly. The way an animal deserves. And my animal deserves a lot of loving.

I like the people that I work with, generally. With four exceptions.

Ever since Michael dumped Jan for Carol, Jan’s been mean to him. Reject a woman, and she will never let it go. One of the many defects of their kind. Also, weak arms.

When my mother was pregnant with me, they did an ultrasound and found she was having twins. When they did another ultrasound a few weeks later, they discovered, that I had resorbed the other fetus. Do I regret this? No, I believe his tissue has made me stronger. I now have the strength of a grown man and a little baby.

 [bringing in a dead goose] I accidentally ran over it. It's a Christmas miracle!

I don't have a lot of experience with vampires, but I have hunted werewolves. I shot one once, but by the time I got to it, it had turned back into my neighbor's dog.

Did you know that the human thumb is formed by 15 interchangeable joints? Wrong. Don’t believe everything that people on television tell you.

Hey! Who put my stapler in jello again?

''That's a terrible idea...Them, [the women] in there all together. They stay in there too long, they're gonna get on the same cycle...Wreak havoc on our plumbing.''

and a couple of Michael Scott quotes:

I’m an early bird and a night owl. So I’m wise and I have worms.

Yes, I was the first one out. And yes, I’ve heard "women and children first". But, we do not employ children. We are not a sweatshop, thankfully. And women are equal in the workplace by law. So if I let them out first, I have a lawsuit on my hands.

You may look around and see two groups here; white collar, blue collar. But I don't see it that way, and you know why not? Because I am collar-blind.

New York, New York. The city so nice, they named it twice. Manhattan is the other name.

I'm very sorry, I did not know you were wearing a hearing aid. I thought you were just speaking abnormally.

Yes. It is true. I, Michael Scott, am signing up with an online dating service. Thousands of people have done it, and I am going to do it. I need a username, and... I have a great one. [types something] 'Little Kid Lover'. That way people will know exactly where my priorities are at.  (he wants a wife and kids)

Well apparently in the medicine community, negative means 'good.' Which makes absolutely no sense. In the real world community that would be chaos.

Society teaches us that, having feelings and crying is bad and wrong. Well, that's baloney, because grief isn't wrong. There's such a thing as good grief. Just ask Charlie Brown.

they make me laugh

peace

We had a nice weekend...  We didn't do much, but we spent it together.  We took our time getting up on Saturday morning, and got some things done around the house.  My sweet husband vacuumed the floors and cleaned the bird cages while I cleaned up the kitchen and picked up the family room.  It is nice working together...makes it seem like it is not so much "work"...then we went and got lunch on Saturday...something that we enjoy doing...then just ran a few errands and putzed around, ending up with coffee from Starbucks before coming home to finalize stuff for Sunday.  On Sunday, we had a good morning at church, then went and tried out a new restaurant and stopped at the grocery store on the way home to get the makings for chili.  When we got home, we chilled for a bit, then worked together on making a pot of chili....  Ron doesnt mind chopping the onions, where it makes my eyes swell for hours, so he sweetly does that.  Once we got that all together and simmering on the stove, we got a huge quilt, and settled on the couch to watch the Giants and the Packers play....   all of the dogs gathered and snuggled with us, because it was so cold.... 

At one point in the middle of the game, Ron had gotten up sat down with his mouth full of something...  I said...  "Are you eating chili?!?!?!"  Because I KNEW it couldnt be good yet ('cause it takes hours to taste REALLY good)  Ron said "No?" with Chili juice dribbling down his face.  Made me laugh...

Not an eventful weekend, but it was so peaceful, it was just what I needed. 

Now I have some very dear friends and family who were, I am sure, crushed by the outcome of the game, and my condolences go out to them.  I was kind of in the position of being an objective observer this time, because the only preference I have for the team is because of Ron's side of the family and their great love for the Packers.  I know that they care as deeply for the Packers as my side of the family cares for the Redskins, so, because of that, I root for the Packers....and I felt badly that they lost, but it was interesting to watch a game semi-objectively for once....  I never do that....because I never watch a game if my team isn't playing   I must say that my company is based in New York, so I do work with people who are very happy about the outcome....so....  I walk the line

I just enjoyed the time on the couch with my hubby and my critters....

a great weekend....and I love my hubby....