December 26 , 2005

Merry Christmas! I hope that you had as wonderful a time on Christmas Day (or right around there) as I did. We spent the day in Firth, Nebraska with my brother and his family. All of us were there - and it was an absolutely wild day. Pictures were taken, gifts were opened, food was eaten, andthe family had a wonderful time with each other.

Max got me the best gift this year. I had asked him to get me the Aslan lion from our local Christian book store, Parables. We were out there one evening a few months ago and he laughed at me, telling me that there were never any surprises at Christmas in my family. So, I figured that one was out, but always hoping for it. The face is beautifully done! And the image of Aslan in my life has always been a very strong one. I have loved the Chronicles of Narnia books since I was very young. Since the movie came out this year, I have found myself crying at the trailers. Hmmm...I can only think that I have always related the strength of the Lion of Narnia to the actual Lion of Judah - and the sacrifice that is made in the book breaks my heart as much as the sacrifice that Jesus made for all of us.

When the gift came to me (in a large gift bag), I opened it and started crying like crazy. Poor Max - cried right along with me. I'm a terrible wife! <grin>

We brought the lion home and I wondered out loud how our cats might react to it - would they simply think it was another piece of furniture or what? Max put it up on the back of the couch and we watched a few of the fun shows he had received on DVD (old tv shows).

Because of my exhaustion, I crashed by 10:45 on the couch. Sound asleep. I woke up at 3:00 in the morning and went to the bathroom. Howard came up out of the basement, crouching down in a prowl. And he wouldn't come out of the kitchen. I continually called to him, but he wasn't going to have any of it. I fell back asleep, but only after putting Aslan down onto the floor. By morning, Howard was finally walking through the house, but circling the lion.

I love my animals! They all entertain me. For more about this year's Christmas, with pictures of the family - click here!

December 15 , 2005

Christmas is upon us and I am no closer to normal than I was at the beginning of this year. Goodness how time flies by. And this year I have been having a lot of fun while it does! I love playing in the band at church, I love going out with my friends, I love staying home with my husband, I love that I have a great family, I love doing all that I am doing at church. For all of the stress that has happened this last year, I have a pretty good life.

I am thankful for Dad's excellent prognosis after being diagnosed with breast cancer. They got it all in the surgery and will only be doing radiation treatment - no chemo! Max's mother fell twice this year and broke her hip both times, but the therapy and surgeries are helping her. Carol got married and is making a brand new life for herself.

God has been good - and I'm so excited that we are preparing for the celebration of Jesus' birth! I get quite emotional when I consider what that means in the life of the Christian. From beginning the end, the gift of His life is more than we can ever deserve, but all that we need.

Merry Christmas!

October 24, 2005

I feel like I have been lost in an alternate reality lately. Nothing is normal in my life and everything seems to be going on! I leave in the morning for work and don't come home until after 10:00 at night. And I love everything that I'm doing, but I don't think I'm getting enough rest. I kind of went into a small panic this weekend, but was able to avert most of the insanity by vacuuming and cleaning on Sunday. All in preparation for another week of craziness.

I have started playing with some of the most talented musicians in Omaha (I could be a little biased, but that's ok - I have the floor here and I'm going to say whatever I wish). We are working to present excellent worship at Faith-Westwood and it is happening. I told my father the other day that I have never had this much fun making music. And I'm, by no means, at the front of the group. I am working with my Praise Choir and I'm playing background piano. But, we are doing some amazing music. The wonderful thing is that the congregation is responding with overwhelming positive response. We are doing stuff by Israel Houghton (who knew this old white lady could 'get down'!) and Tommy Walker, Christ Church Choir in Nashville (whee!!!) and Kirk Franklin. I have a hard time sitting still on the piano bench, it's so much fun! God is truly blessing me at this time in my life with music and it's a lot of fun! You can always hear us at the 10:30 worship service on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month at Faith-Westwood UMC.

October 10 , 2005

FALL HAS ARRIVED! This is my absolute favorite time of year. The weather cools down, I sleep better at night, I can open my windows, and all of the stale air is removed from my house. Ahhh.... it's a beautiful thing! Carol came over this weekend to do more purging in my house. She gets such a kick out of it. She was having a great time Saturday afternoon cleaning me out. Out of the smallest room in the house (my craft room), we purged 20 bags of trash, 4 boxes for Goodwill and several bags that will go to friends. Oh my goodness! But, the room has been cleaned out. Ok ... we haven't attacked the closet, but that will happen sooner rather than later. I actually feel pretty good about things there. Last year we did the bulk of the house (that required a dumpster), a month or so ago, Max and I cleaned out the basement and now we've done this room. We still have a couple of rooms to attack, but I can't believe the garbage (not literally) I have expunged from my life. It's awesome!

We had the Beth Moore Simulcast of Living Proof Live at our church this weekend. Not a lot of attendees, but an amazing amount of Bible Study and excitement from those of us who got to listen to her. She is one of the most amazing Bible Teachers alive right now - and she has such a passion for the Scriptures. I'm so grateful to be able to study with this woman. God has truly given her a gift and I'm glad that she shares that gift.

September 30, 2005

Another weekend is here - and that makes for such a wonderful feeling! I look forward to my Fridays more than anything else in the world! The weekends always go by too quickly, but at this age, everything goes by too quickly! I try to enjoy every day and not waste them away bywishing for a different day, but the reality is that I love the weekends! I love hanging out with my husband and my friends, I love the freedom that Saturdays give to me, I love being a part of worship on Sunday mornings ... I just love my weekends!

I'm adjusting to life without a dog in the house. It's kind of a weird process, but it is happening for me. I am really processing hard on whether or not to get another dog. I kind of like the freedom! But, I desperately miss the companionship. The cats are wonderful and they can definitely take care of themselves. So, it's easier for me to leave the house and stay away longer. I am probably driving my husband and sister crazy - up and down about this whole decision. I promised Max that I would wait a month - and I'm just hoping that at that point, I will have come to a decision that I can live with!

September 27, 2005

The last few weeks have been wild! in my life. I've decided that there is always something. And, at least I'll always have a story to tell! I mentioned last time that the landlord was working on the concrete at my house. Well, that's just been a comedy of errors! The concrete got ripped up, and nothing was re-poured until nearly 2 weeks later. I still don't have steps up to my back stoop, but I took a small step stool home and I can finally go in my back door again. The ground around the front of the house is in such disarray, I was twisting my ankles and knees walking on it - so, I'm glad to have that back.

Then ... 2 weeks ago, I was heading to the basement to make sure that the door was locked before coming to work - and WHEE!! I fell off the basement stairs onto the concrete floor. I let out a holler for Max, who was 2 stories up in the shower. He came running, but couldn't find me. I was laying on the floor in the basement, trying to assess the situation with my body parts. I was fairly certain that they were ok, nothing seemed to be broken. I didn't let him come downstairs, knowing he was wet and fairly clean. I took a few minutes to check myself out and then got up and headed upstairs. I was alive. Whew!

That Saturday was Carol and Tony's reception. We had a wonderful time with family and old friends. It made me realize how important these people have been in my life. I have had a wonderful life with amazing friends and I'm truly blessed!

Last Wednesday (Sept. 21), I finally put Bert to sleep. The poor little guy was breathing so hard and couldn't calm down. It was too much to watch. I called my veterinarian, took Bert over to see him and the decision was easily made. Yes, we could have worked and worked to get drugs into him to help alleviate the suffering, but goodness! That's not why I want my little guy around. It was a difficult couple of days, and I still get a little emotional when I realize how much I miss him, but time does heal most of that pain.

I'm looking forward to a new month and less hassle in my life. I'm certainly praying for that to be reality. God is good - all the time. All the time - God is good.

September 3, 2005

The country is devastated. Heartbroken. Angry. Desperate. How can this incredible loss and infuriating lack of organization happen to a country that sends relief all over the world? We are the richest, most powerful country on this earth and we can not take care of our own when anatural disaster occurs. The questions are not going to pass away soon. But, as much as the government is proving itself to be completely unable to care for it's people, the individuals and groups of civilians are proving themselves to be amazing. The people of Houston will leave this year knowing that they have done everything to care for their fellow man. From all over the country, help, aid and offers for future help are pouring into the south. Hope is coming in one person at a time. As a people we are good and we love. We express that love to everyone, no matter what color or level of poverty. We are all God's children and it is time for us to come together and remind each other of that fact.

Today has been a clean up day at the Muir household. Max and I spent hours in the basement trying to clean up some of our mess down there. The landlord is going to be redoing all of the concrete around the duplex and the basement window wells as well. So, that means that we needed to get things cleaned up to have strangers wandering around down there. We'll work tomorrow and maybe one of these days in the near future, we'll even have it cleaned enough to allow Max to be back in there working in a darkroom. That would be cool!

I'm thankful for the 3 day weekend. It's been a very long week in my world and I'm in desperate need of some quiet time and rest.

Take time to let those around you know that you love them. Times of crisis remind us how important that is. Take tomorrow to be in church. Know of the Father's great love for everyone. Disaster and devastation does not change the fact that He loves His children.

September 1, 2005

Hurricane Katrina has devastated a portion of the United States and we couldn't be more shocked! How could the strongest nation in the world be so out of control when it comes to a natural disaster. How could we have ignored the signs. The questions are immense! And no one knows where to find the answers. People are pointing fingers at each other and looking for someone to blame for this tragedy and the follow-up. But, as much as we want to find a scape-goat, the reality is that we live as guests in a world that can be terrifying and powerful. We see people acting like criminals at a time when we hope that people will act like heroes. But, there are plenty of heroes and plenty of amazing stories that will come out of this tragedy. The thing to remember throughout all of this is that God does not cause disasters. However, He is always there to care for us through all of this. His love never fails.

My prayers are immediately with these people and my money will soon follow. What else can I do? I'll keep looking for that option. And I hope you do as well. This is our country, these are our people, these are our families. How do we respond?

July 30, 2005

Ahhh... sleep is wonderful and last night I finally got some. What a relief. But, the week got better as it moved along. I took Bert in to see the vet on Monday morning and though I have a lot of concerns about what's going on with him, at least this vet knows that it is very importantto comfort the mama. And he did. He also asked me if I could keep Bert at work with me so that I could watch him. Ummmm...well, yes I could. It's been years since the boy has been at Insty-Prints with me and I didn't realize how much I missed him. What a peaceful feeling to look down beside you and find your best friend sound asleep on a pillow. And, by the way, the pillow was mine. How else could I make him comfortable, but on the pillow I sleep on. That probably led to me having less than productive sleep all week long, but I suppose it was worth it. Each day, he started looking a little more upbeat and alive and by Friday, I knew that he would probably be ok. He has infected teeth that are messing with his whole body - those will come out next Wednesday. He does have a heart murmur, but as long as everything else starts becoming more normal - he'll be fine with that.

Last spring I began coming to the point of high frustration with my 'ministry'. I had no idea where God was leading me. I was no longer certain that it was to be in leadership at Faith-Westwood. But, I was feeling a call to do a lot of writing - I began writing the study on Revelation. It was an awesome time of study, research and time with the Lord. I was coming to understand that awesome book and I was able to begin putting down in words the thoughts that have been roiling around in my mind.

But, alas, I can't simply focus on one thing. Our church hired a new worship and music director - a friend of mine, Jennie Birnstihl and the last month or so has been wild. I have been able to begin processing again on praise and worship music. The keyboard has been reattached to my computer and I'm spending a lot of time working on music.

Again, I have no idea where God is calling me - but I guess I'm along for the ride, wherever it takes me. I'm so thankful to trust the One who is in charge!

July 23-24, 2005

It's midnight and I'm trying to settle down. I just spent the last hour taking Bert to the Animal Emergency Clinic. He is having seizures and they're coming regularly. I'm a little depressed, but mostly because I know that things can't be good with the poor guy. He's 14 years old and it looks like he has a heart murmur and something wrong with his liver. So, now I'm up until the vet there calls me tonight to tell me any information they have on him. We'll see what happens. I'll be able to deal with whatever happens, but I think the 'not knowing' right now is the hardest.

Max bought some speakers for my computer and I've certainly enjoyed having those available to me this weekend. I love my music! And now I don't have to sit around wearing headphones. I can actually walk through the house and clean while listening.

We have a new young man working at the church, Cody Villarreal. He's in a band, Common Jones. Hit the website and listen to some of the music. It's pretty cool! I'm impressed.

Pray for Bert - God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.

July 20, 2005

Well, it happened - it got hotter. Goodness! This is incredible. And again, I have more recollections of being young and without air conditioning. All of the times we would take our air mattresses and pillows to the basement and sleep down there, just to escape the oppressive heat. I'm so spoiled now - I think I might simply melt away without my A/C. At least the forecast for the next couple of days has dropped by 5 degrees. HEY! Every little bit helps!

Two things are in my mind today. The first is that today is the anniversary of the Moon Landing. 1969. What a spectacular day that was in our world. Mom wrote a poem about it " Walk on the Moon". The second is that James Doohan, "Scotty" from Star Trek, died this morning. I'm a huge sci fi fan and, much to the chagrin of my 'normal' friends, I've even attended a few Star Trek conventions in my day. And at one of them, I was able to meet him and get his autograph. So, this is a sad day in the world that I love to inhabit.

The moon landing in 1969 was something that stirred the imaginations of people all over the world. No longer was this the stuff of fiction and fantasy. Something beyond the atmosphere of our earth was attainable. All of a sudden we had access to the galaxy and to the universe. The last couple of years have brought some exciting news in the realm of space exploration. We have private companies leaping out of the atmosphere and we have landed on Mars and are exploring the terrain there. We are gaining an ever-deeper understanding of our place in this universe. It's an exciting time to be alive. And it's an amazing chance for us to recognize the hand of God in the creation of this universe. Not only did He create all that we have, but He gave us incredible minds that explore and learn. And just so that we don't get comfortable in our knowledge, there is always something new around the bend. Only an awesome God could create something as vast as this universe, as complex as the human body, as intricate as a spider's web and then give us the ability to discover how all of this was done. I'm thankful to be His child.

July 19, 2005

It's hot! And it's going to get hotter. But, we live in Nebraska and I suppose that we have to take what we get - or move outta town! My memories have been wrapped up in the times in my childhood when I either did or didn't have air conditioning. I grew up in a parsonage (the home achurch owns for it's pastor to live in. And in little towns in Iowa, there weren't a lot of parsonages that had central air conditioning. In fact, the first home that we lived in with that benefit had to be built for us! Other than that, we were fortunate to have a couple of window units to keep us cool. I remember pressing myself against the screen in my window to grab any breeze I could. But, my father walked uphill both ways to school in 3 foot snow drifts carrying a hot potato in his pocket to keep his hands warm and that was his lunch! So, no complaining from me. That's not true, I complain and whine a lot in the summertime. I HATE HEAT! I try not to complain a lot in the winter. I save it all for the summer.

This week our church is doing Serengeti Trek Vacation Bible School. It's much fun. 200+ kids. And I'm leading the music. We're having a blast. Singing and dancing and making lots of noise. The only thing better than playing with kids in the worship center is having them recognize you in public and be THRILLED to see you! What a charge.

I've been doing the pop culture thing this week. Watched Fantastic Four on Friday, bought the new Harry Potter book and read it on Saturday and Sunday, then watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on Sunday. What a riot! And it was all good. I've decided that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is my absolute all-time favorite movie. Johnny Depp is amazing in the role of Willy Wonka and I loved it.

July 10, 2005

Carol got another year older yesterday and we all had fun celebrating at Jim & Janet's house. My brother is a fabulous cook - and I really enjoy having fun with that family! Carol taught a couple of them to drive a stickshift and the rest of us stayed in the air conditioning! The rest of the week has been quiet. And I'm eternally grateful for quiet days. Ahhh...the pleasures of youth when you are excited to be doing something every minute of the day. My how that has changed. Sometimes I'm thankful for not having anything to do.

Since I don't have so much going on at church this summer, I have a lot of free time to do reading - and that is exactly what I've been doing. I discovered D. J. MacHale's Pendragon series for kids. I have boys in my life and like to have a few books under my belt that I can discuss with them. That has been a fun read. I've also enjoyed Eoin Coulfer's Artemis Fowl books. After I got through all of those books, it was time to return to my standby - science fiction. Orson Scott Card's "Ender" series is a wonderful set of books. I read a bunch of them years ago, but it's time to re-read them and remember the enjoyment. There isn't much that I find more enjoyable than allowing my mind to wander into another universe and experience all that it has.

July 3 , 2005

I've pretty much been a sloth this weekend. It's been wonderful! Lots of sleeping late - and extra naps. Plus, I've been reading fiction. I love to read. But, I don't simply read it - I consume it. I have a tendency to become a part of a movie when I'm watching a good one. And when the movie ends, I feel like I'm being ripped back into the present. But, it's much worse when I'm reading a novel. Yesterday I was reading "The Eight" by Katherine Neville. Really fabulous book and I was completely involved. My phone kept ringing, emails kept coming in, husband kept showing up in my face. I thought I was going to die! <grin> Well, not really, but I was having trouble establishing my sanity. Finally everyone left me alone and I was able to finish it. I also read Dan Brown's "Digital Fortress". So, yesterday was a good day. I had gone shopping at Barnes & Noble Friday night after dinner at Buca Di Beppo with friends, so I must have been preparing for a weekend of reading. I have several more books to go and am looking forward to it!

Do you remember when Barnes and Noble was no more than a catalog outfit and that was where you could find erotica and weird books? The days before homogeonization of culture were much more interesting and we had to work harder to find our entertainment. Now, it is spoon fed to us and everyone gets the same dose at the same time. Big business is in control of our wants and desires. I can't encourage people enough to be creative in how they live their lives. Do something out of the ordinary, get excited about the little things, turn off the television, read a book, walk away from the malls and chain restaurants, find a mom and pop place and learn to relax!

June 27 , 2005
Back to work with me. Some days are harder than others. And I really don't like Mondays. It always seems to bring more insanity from the customers. But, today has brought more news to my world - (I'm a fiend for news) and I'm a little annoyed with the Supreme Court. Last Friday, they decided that it was appropriate for big money to decide whether or not you get to keep any land that you own. If it's in the way of progress, a city can take it from you. Today, they decided that any company whose software might be used by consumers to infringe upon copyright can be held liable. Whoa! Not only does that stop possible technological advancements, but it will hold programmers responsible for actions done by individuals. Our rights are slowly being stripped away from us - and very few people are aware of it, much less up in arms about it. Last night when I asked a group of people if they knew what the RIAA was, they had no clue. The computer has created a revolution in our world, and most people have no idea about the laws that are being created around it.

It really bothers me that the public in general has no idea what is happening in the world. We are so protected and are happy to have the government passing laws that affect us without ever knowing how they truly do that. Pay attention!!!!

June 25 , 2005
I've been cleaning today. Poor Max got roped into helping - and I would feel sorry for him, except he's my husband and it's his job! The noise has been the insanity of Tom Cruise - and his argument with Matt Lauer. The just entertains me! I love the idea that celebrities think we should all drop everything and pay attention to their views and take them to heart. Good heavens. Because of course, he IS the smartest man on earth - and he has chosen to believe in Scientology. As I did a little research on this topic, I came away thinking that he now has to be a complete idiot! Do you realize that they believe aliens came to the earth 75 million years ago and have filled the earth - and through all sorts of work, you have to eliminate their spirits from us - that's what they do! It sounds insane! And, it is! The stupid religion was created by L. Ron Hubbard, who in 1944 talked about how easy it would be to create a religion to fleece money from people. Well, duh! Makes sense to me. I can not respect these people at all. Oh well, sigh... There is one website that has had the courage to fight this insane 'religion'. Check it out at xenu.net.

So, I cleaned my house today - and had to take some pictures for my landlord. I figured that I would post some of them for you to see my little nook in the world.

June 23, 2005
It's Thursday and it has been a good week. My friend, Amy, got stuck going to the Shrine Circus with her girls this evening. That makes me howl with laughter. I've never been a big fan of circuses and it's HOT outside!

Today, Carol brought me a couple of books. One of them was "The Little Book of Stupid Questions". Oh, I can't stand it - some of these questions are just begging to be asked! For example: When someone enters a building in front of you and holds the door open, do you feel compelled to rush through it so that they aren't waiting for you? Why do we do this, especially when it's someone we don't know?" I want to hear your answer - so email me at nammynools@cox.net.

The other book that she brought me was an old, old favorite. "Irregular People" by Joyce Landorf Heatherly. We all have someone in our lives that drives us absolutely nuts. And we can't get rid of them. They are part of our family, or circle of friends, or someone we work with. So, how do we deal with them. Joyce Landorf was one of the people that taught me how to be a strong, Christian woman. She was an active speaker during the 70s and 80s and is dealing with health issues right now, but still has a lot to say about how to live as a Christian woman in today's world.

Max and I have spent the last few evenings watching the Sci Fi series "Firefly". It was only on for one season before Fox completely destroyed it by messing with the schedule. It's wonderful! It's heading to the big screen this fall with the movie "Serenity". I can't wait.

June 21, 2005
It's Tuesday - and there are 3 more days in this week. It's a terrible thing - trying to live until the weekend. But, I do love my weekends! While you're here, check out my sister, Carol's stuff - do you know she's married?

My name is Diane Muir and I am completely and totally addicted to information. I'll admit it now. I crave information and I much prefer that it be delivered in the written word. I love sending and receiving email, I love getting the news and I love reading books. I spend hours on the net researching (you can obviously see that in my Links). And when I run out of energy to find information, I start creating it. I guess it's a good thing that I am living in the Information Age.

I'm so thankful for the break that I get from all of my commitments during the summer time. All of a sudden this week I have 3 nights free! I was at our Beth Moore Bible Study "Living Beyond Yourself". I truly love listening to her speak. I wish I could encourage more people to take some of her online studies. It's a most amazing experience. There is a lot to be said for being in a group, but it is really intimate watching all of this in the privacy of my own home.

June 19, 2005
The weekend has been good. Soul Seekers had their final performance of the year this morning. That was terrific! Max and I went to Batman Begins this afternoon. Again ... terrific. I was never able to get into the Batman franchise until now. Dark, intense, original story. Almost better than Star Wars! And that's saying something for this Star Wars addict. For the first time in years, Max and I are making an effort to get to movies while they are still in the theater and now I'm reading that Hollywood is worrying about receipts. They're down 6.4% this year. No one is going to the movies. I seem to always be out of the loop.

The College World Series is happening in Omaha this week. Something I'm just going to have to miss. The idea of sitting in a stadium under the hot sun in a crowd filled with people is not appealing to me. I'm so glad I don't have to do that for my fun! And I'm so glad that there are plenty of people that will.

June 17, 2005
It was time for a new website design. So, I'm going to spend quite a bit of time updating this website and setting up a pattern so that I can begin adding more and more pieces to this.

The website is up and running at this point, but I'm going to spend the weekend ironing out the details. If you find a weak link, let me know! Email me at nammynools@cox.net

April l4, 2005
The big news? Carol has found her lifemate. And will be getting married soon - so, do you want to see what he looks like? Check it out here! She's happy - he's happy - our family loves him - what more could a person ask for?

And right now - that's all that matters...

April 2, 2005
The Pope has died. This man has had a profound impact on our world and today as I'm listening to CNN report on his death, it seems that it is still occurring. More people are hearing people talk about his relationship to the people and how sharing his faith in Jesus Christ was important to him. The name of Jesus Christ is being spoken clearly throughout the world today.

The next few weeks will be an absolutely fascinating time while we watch the progression of the election of the new pope. This is history in the making. I remember when this pope was elected. It was a fascinating time. And we are there again. This is a time to remember.

March 26, 2005
It's been a long, wild week, but thank heavens for friends and time with them. I'm getting highly annoyed with having to transfer my entire graphics life from Mac to PC. Every single time I open a new file, I have to deal with another annoyance, a graphics file that has to be opened in Photoshop and re-saved to IBM format, another font that I don't have. I became quite frustrated. But, it's what it is and I have to deal with it and move on.

Holy Week. When I was growing up, Holy Week was fairly 'unholy' in our household. Dad was so stressed over all of the activity at work that it wasn't much fun at home. Consequently, I don't get as excited about the whole thing as many people do. I suppose that's too bad, but I also know that the promise of the resurrection is mine any time of the year and I'm grateful for that every day of the year.

It's also been another week of intense studying and reading. I can't let this old brain rot away, so I keep it activated and thinking all of the time.

Max bought me a gift on a whim this week. Volume I of Star Wars: Clone Wars. It's a cartoon series produced by Cartoon Network. These begin bridging the gap between Episode II and Episode III. Pretty fun stuff.

March 11, 2005
It's Friday and I'm so thankful for that. My friend Amy had to deal with surgery for her daughter, Rachael this morning. It's been a long day, but thankfully all went well and Rachael was able to have a fun evening at Libby Lu's with her Brownie Troup. Rachael has kidney reflux disease and hopefully this will take care of it.

Me? I managed to land on a new forum. If you know me at all, you know that I am immediately attracted to intelligencia. This would be why I am married to my amazing husband. I love listening to and reading physicists and higher level mathematicians. Do I get all of it? No way. Do I keep trying? Absolutely. I'm so disgusted with myself for avoiding this when I was in high schol, but I can't get too upset. I am who I am - and my mind simply keeps learning new stuff.

I was out doing some research on Irenaeus, and ended up at EblaForums. A bunch of esoteric geeks. Gotta love it! I'm lurking (tech speak for reading forums and not posting to them) for awhile. It's a little intimidating - these guys aren't terribly interested in pop culture - they read philosophy and all sorts of textbook style books. Want to know about that stuff? Check it out.

And for the nutty in life - here is a thesis on the History of Candy Bar Wrappers. Oh my!

March 10, 2005
Blogging ... I suppose that is what I am doing. I've been reading others' blogs this week. There is some really entertaining stuff out there! Wil Wheaton has his own blog. Now, most people have no idea who the guy is. For anyone who isn't a Trekkie (and I'm sorry for you), he was in "Stand By Me", but he was known to me as Wesley Crusher on ST:TNG. Yea, yea, yea - he's a little young for me, and ok - I was never in love with him, I had a huge thing for Captain Picard, but I still loved the character.

And there are some awesome techie blogs out there. I read them and find links to really cool places. I discovered yesterday that the New York Public Library has their entire digital library online. Old maps, rare prints, lithographs, photographs, illustrated books. Take some time to check it out! But I found this site by looking at Drawn, a cool blog by designers, etc. And I discovered this by looking at one of my favorite sites, boingboing.net. This has cool stuff!.

My life has been stressful this last week and a half. I totally lost my Macintosh here at Insty-Prints. All of the data was fine, but the computer completely died. What an awful thing to have happen to a graphic designer that owns a printing business. But, God is so amazing! He prepared me in some strange ways for that. It actually began it's death march on Friday afternoon. Max came in to look at things Saturday morning and got the computer working. I asked him at lunch on Sunday if he would consider taking Monday off to help me if necessary. He did. I started reinstalling software Monday and CRASH, it went down again. He was available to me. We got it up, then I began reinstalling and CRASH, it went down again, never to be resuscitated. But, Max was here. The other thing God had in preparation for me? I had already brought a PC over to Insty (had two computer monitors on my desk) and I was learning how to use it. It had Pagemaker and Photoshop on it, so I wasn't totally dead in the water. We spent the day re-doing the PC and installing new software, and I was ready to go with partial computer come Tuesday morning. I'm nearly all put back together now and it blows my mind that something this major has only taken a few days to recover from. God is so good.

February 25, 2005
It is a Friday afternoon and I'm pretty much finished working. That doesn't mean I've cleared my desk by any means, but it does mean that I'm not going to be spending any more time than necessary thinking about work. The weather outside is beautiful! 52 degrees and sunny. At the end of February? All I can do is say "Thank You God!"

I've had a cold this week. These things make me insane. Not a lot of sleep, a lot of coughing and now it's in my nose, so I just keep dripping. Thank heavens for the basics of life - OTC drugs. Whee! At least they make my life livable through this stuff.

Talked to Dad this week looking for some of Grandma Greenwood's stories. He worries about his memory, but thank heavens the Parkinson's drugs don't mess with his long-term memory. He still has a lot of information stored up there that I want to get. I know that there are many questions I would have loved to ask my mom before she died - and I just nev er got around to it.

How much of your childhood do you remember? I was a little too old to get excited when Sesame Street began, and I didn't watch Mr. Rogers Neighborhood very often. I was really into Captain Kangaroo and Romper Room. But, there is a wonderful article on Fred Rogers at Lifeway.com. He was an amazing man.

February 12, 2005
Quiet, overcast day and I've been spending it being as quiet as possible. That isn't necessarily so, I suppose. I've had my earphones on with the WOW Worship CDs playing and I've been singing along. Fortunately, Max is upstairs playing World of Warcraft and isn't too terribly offended by all of my noise!

Fun stuff I found this week: On the internet everyone gets 15 minutes of fame. Check this out. I laughed and laughed - the pure joy this guy is having (I think he's from Brazil). I picked up a terrific book on punctuation. Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynn Truss. She really has a great time explaining our insane use of commas and apostrophes. That book was one of my purchases at Borders. I decided that I hadn't been able to spend enough time looking at books and music, so I dragged Alison with me to Borders. I bought new music: Peter Frampton's "Frampton Comes Alive", Lionel Richie's Love Songs, a new Pat Metheny CD and Deep Forest (soundscape stuff my brother really likes). And then some flat out sci fi junk for me to waste my mind on!

I know that I'm a teacher. There is no greater joy for me than helping someone understand a concept. I remember a friend's young son coming to understand the concept of 10s, then 100s in his counting. He was 5. All of a sudden the lightbulb went on in his mind and I got to see it! It was one of the most amazing things. But, even more so I love to see people come to a full understanding of the awesome things of God. And for myself, I love to have the lightbulb come blasting on in my mind when I discover another extraordinary element in God's Word brought to life for me.

I so appreciate Beth Moore. She is such a visual teacher. She makes things seem so obvious as she's teaching, yet they are so deep and profound and have an impact on my life. I would never consider myself to be the teacher she is, but it is a goal. If you want to see those things that I have discovered and have managed to get down on paper, check out my page of devotions and writings. And if you want to see why I have this history in my heart, check out my mom's page of writings. That woman was simply amazing.

Happy New Year

January 1, 2005
A year has come and gone and I'm on the cusp of yet another new year. They seem to go faster and faster - the older I get. Today has been a good day - a lazy day - a day filled with football and reading. Max is watching football, I'm reading.

Until the last 5-6 years I have been an avid sci fi reader. I don't simply read those books, I consume tshem. But, things changed over the last few years and I didn't read that style as much. I've had a desperate craving for it lately, so I started with books that I remembered. And today I made Max leave one of his games and go to Borders with me. I purchased Dan Simmons' "Hyperion" series today. And I'm well into the book. It's kind of odd and wonderful. This stuff just stirs up all of the creativity in my brain.

Carol leaves in the morning for Belize. She is going down with a group from College of St. Mary and Faith-Westwood on a mission trip. Working with teachers and building schools and medical buildings. I'm excited for her. I really think she will love this life. She loves to travel and be in places different than the United States and she cares so much about people. This should be a fabulous experience.