My Husband . . .
"You owned my heart then and still today. Everyday you amaze me with your ability to plan for the future and you love for me and others. I am proud to be your husband and you should be proud to be such a wonderful wife.
I Love You!
Mike"
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
All I Want for Christmas . . .
1) For the doctors to be able to help treat our chronic health problems successfully.
2) For Scuro, Ru, and Carerra to be happy and healthy.
3) To find another couple in Charlotte who considers us their "best friends."
4) To have the respect of my colleagues, peers, friends, and family.
5) To positively impact the lives of others. And to know it.
6) To find more of a role for us in our church home.
7) To see my mother-in-law make more friends and enjoy fellowship with them.
8) For my mom and Watson to be healthy. For Mom to see Max as often as possible. And for her to be around to see our sons or daughters grow up.
9) For us to be prepared to be parents.
10) Encouragement and praise from mentors and superiors.
11) For Mike to have a job where he feels appreciated and has the respect to be able to make decisions that affect his career.
12) For more people to find jobs and the economy to turn up.
13) For there to be more compromise and less political divisions in our nation.
14) To be good friends with my sister-in-law.
15) For my Compassion Child Abigail to learn the skills she needs to help bring her family out of poverty.
16) For my family to heal from the abuse of the past and want to find the time to spend more time together.
17) To see our neighborhood become healthier and safer.
18) To find the perfect dissertation topic for me - where I can be successful.
19) To lose weight. About 30 pounds.
20) To find ways to appreciate Mike more and show him how much I love him.
21) For our friends to know to come to us if they need help. To have friends we can go to for help. Real help, not cup-of-sugar kind of help.
22) To get to know my father-in-law and his wife better.
23) For my relatives to know more about me and me more about them.
24) For people to give one another the benefit of the doubt and to build one another up instead of tearing one another down.
25) To have the strength to not become apathetic and bitter. The strength to always lead with love and compassion.
26) To set healthy boundaries for myself and my family so that they always come first.
27) To remember to pray for those who hold ill will toward me and to never seek revenge.
28) For Jesus to be undeniably real to me and my family.
29) To be more grateful, content, and joyful. To feel appreciated and loved.
30) For my priorities to represent God's will, not my own.
So if anyone can give me any of these things for Christmas, I would be eternally in your debt. :-)
2) For Scuro, Ru, and Carerra to be happy and healthy.
3) To find another couple in Charlotte who considers us their "best friends."
4) To have the respect of my colleagues, peers, friends, and family.
5) To positively impact the lives of others. And to know it.
6) To find more of a role for us in our church home.
7) To see my mother-in-law make more friends and enjoy fellowship with them.
8) For my mom and Watson to be healthy. For Mom to see Max as often as possible. And for her to be around to see our sons or daughters grow up.
9) For us to be prepared to be parents.
10) Encouragement and praise from mentors and superiors.
11) For Mike to have a job where he feels appreciated and has the respect to be able to make decisions that affect his career.
12) For more people to find jobs and the economy to turn up.
13) For there to be more compromise and less political divisions in our nation.
14) To be good friends with my sister-in-law.
15) For my Compassion Child Abigail to learn the skills she needs to help bring her family out of poverty.
16) For my family to heal from the abuse of the past and want to find the time to spend more time together.
17) To see our neighborhood become healthier and safer.
18) To find the perfect dissertation topic for me - where I can be successful.
19) To lose weight. About 30 pounds.
20) To find ways to appreciate Mike more and show him how much I love him.
21) For our friends to know to come to us if they need help. To have friends we can go to for help. Real help, not cup-of-sugar kind of help.
22) To get to know my father-in-law and his wife better.
23) For my relatives to know more about me and me more about them.
24) For people to give one another the benefit of the doubt and to build one another up instead of tearing one another down.
25) To have the strength to not become apathetic and bitter. The strength to always lead with love and compassion.
26) To set healthy boundaries for myself and my family so that they always come first.
27) To remember to pray for those who hold ill will toward me and to never seek revenge.
28) For Jesus to be undeniably real to me and my family.
29) To be more grateful, content, and joyful. To feel appreciated and loved.
30) For my priorities to represent God's will, not my own.
So if anyone can give me any of these things for Christmas, I would be eternally in your debt. :-)
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
God, please take care of Ra
Ra
April 1, 2000 - November 22, 2009
Ra was the best little orange cat in the world. He never did anything wrong or out of spite. He loved everyone unconditionally. His purr was like an old car starting on a cold morning. He was bright orange with handsome tribal markings. His fur was like memory foam; you could leave your hand print in it. He quit his tail a few years back to boast a silly little stub that better suit his personality. He snored loudly at night. He liked to sleep in the laundry basket in the closet so combined with the snoring, he fondly became known as our "closet monster." He also liked to sleep between Daddy's feet. He was our "little head," "Buddy Buddy," and as Pedro says, our "tailless wonder." He wasn't just a cat to us. He was and will always be part of our family. He had no cadence to his walk. He just went pad-padpad-padpadpad-padpad-pad in a kind of lopey fashion. His head was always too small for his little body. My "little head." He always wore a little heart for his tag which somehow he managed to use to get stuck to the carpet. I think the best thing about him is that when you looked at him, you could tell that he had already reached that level of blissfulness that you and I are always trying to find. Most of the time, it was like he just didn't have a care in the world. He was a lover, not a fighter. He would let his sister beat him up then he would go and bathe her head. He was always submissive and loving - taking no quarrel with anyone and on his back exposing his tummy in a second. I respected his persistence and resiliency. He never got mad at you and always came when welcomed back on your lap.
He kissed you like a tootsie roll pop . . . lick one, lick two, chomp! He would do completely silly things like get stuck on top of the door, lay on top of the silly putty on the table, and roll on the counter after you just cleaned it with Windex. One time he slinked up to the vacuum cleaner, batted it, hissed, and ran. So silly and sweet. His constant grooming and licking habit led to the loss of his tail, but he didn't mind that one bit. It was his constant search for Ambrosia, and God, please now that you have him, let him find it. His favorite blanket was the green one. His favorite color has always been hot pink. He was fancy that way. He always let us know when the water bowl was emtpy and especially the food bowl. It was like he was the eternal kitten. Scuro has this cat-like mischievousness to her that Ra never had. He always just had . . . an innocence. He greeted new guests by waking them up in the middle of the night, flat dab laying on the middle of their chests. He was such a purr-head. He was nine years old, and we thought we would have more time with him.
God, if animals don't have souls it must be because they are already your angels. Take him home. Pet him. He likes his chin and tummy rubbed. He likes to sit on your lap when you are typing at the computer or on the toilet. He loves talking on conference calls and hates closed doors. Keep a closet ajar somewhere just so he can sneak in and lay among the blankets. He isn't the smartest cat in the world, but he is the sweetest. Yeah, sometimes he can be really stinky. It is like he is baking soda and soaks up the smells from the litter box. Let him know you are behind him, but don't sneak up on him because it makes him jump. What else? He likes sitting in his porn star pose and licking his belly so give him a wall to lean on on occasion. I think it was his way of making sure everyone laughs. He doesn't get over-cuddled and needs lots of attention. He needs hugs and kisses every day. All the other animals might bully him, so keep him protected. He has loved me more and better than most humans have. He and Scuro have been by my side longer and closer than any man or any human friend. He happily went though all the hell I've been through just so he could take care of me. Make sure he isn't alone. Amen, amen, amen.
We don't know what happened. He yelped, and Mike pulled him out from under the bed. His tongue was out and he was fading. Within minutes, he was just gone. We rushed to the emergency vet. When the vet brought him back out to us tonight, they had wrapped him in a towel, and it was his favorite color - pink.
I love you Ra. Mommy loves you. Daddy too. You are the best little orange cat in the world, and I would have done anything for you. I am sorry we weren't able to do more. I love you so much. Thank you for being you. Everyone loved Ra. Chris once offered me a million dollars to take Ra with him when he moved out. Not in a million years. Ra is truly irreplaceable! We all love you, Little Head.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Goals
-Exercise/lose weight
-Fellowship with other couples: Matt & Amy, Orson & Donna, Haya & Mahdi, Corey & Megan, Charlene & Nick, Larry & Susan, etc.
-Find/start small group at Meck
-Write a random thank you note
-Finalize December holiday plans
-Bake/make Christmas/holiday gifts for neighbors, colleagues, and friends
-Buy Christmas gifts for family
-Finished geovisualization data coding, come up with results, and write up paper(s)
-Decide dissertation topic
-Revise and resubmit WASA paper to The International Journal of Human Computer Studies
-Revise and submit Technology Overload Gender research to a journal (pick journal)
-Finalize January travel plans to San Fran
-Get signatures from board members to finalize non-profit bylaws
-Finalize 501(c)3 paperwork
-Write grant proposal
-Get some sleep
-Fellowship with other couples: Matt & Amy, Orson & Donna, Haya & Mahdi, Corey & Megan, Charlene & Nick, Larry & Susan, etc.
-Find/start small group at Meck
-Write a random thank you note
-Finalize December holiday plans
-Bake/make Christmas/holiday gifts for neighbors, colleagues, and friends
-Buy Christmas gifts for family
-Finished geovisualization data coding, come up with results, and write up paper(s)
-Decide dissertation topic
-Revise and resubmit WASA paper to The International Journal of Human Computer Studies
-Revise and submit Technology Overload Gender research to a journal (pick journal)
-Finalize January travel plans to San Fran
-Get signatures from board members to finalize non-profit bylaws
-Finalize 501(c)3 paperwork
-Write grant proposal
-Get some sleep
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