5 Things We Learned This Week 39 of 2011 (sports, animals, Google)

Lingerie Football

There is actually a Lingerie Football League where 7 women on each team play football in their underwear! I did a whole post about this here if you missed it.

Google Plus

My Google Plus account was suspended because I had my name as "Karen, Author of My Funny Dad, Harry." You have to use your real name. I'm sorry I even signed up for it because I use it so seldom. The only reason I'm staying on it, for now anyway, is that I like the +1 thingy. If I +1 on a post, it lists it in there so it's easy for me to refer back to it if I want.

Dogs

I'm reading Oogly by Larry Levin this week and learned that "there are many nerve endings in a dogs ears and that by rubbing them, one can relax the whole dog."  (My review should be up on our book blog this weekend.)

Choosing Pet Food

You should look at the AAFCO statement on the bag and choose the food that is specified for the life stage of your pet and that has been animal tested as opposed to formulated. I did a post about this on my other blog: Choosing Pet Food: I Like the Picture On The Bag. (Hopefully, I'll get one posted on this blog next week).

Cheerleaders

I attended a freshman football game yesterday and was pleased to see the cheerleaders are finally dressed sensibly! They used to always wear short short skirts with bare legs and low cut tops no matter what the weather. The ones I saw yesterday had slacks on, high necks and when it started raining, they put on clear ponchos! I say Yea for the cheerleaders for being so sensible. Now if they could learn to match their cheers with what is actually happening in the game, that would be tremendous! (Sorry no picture, didn't want to fuss with a camera at the game.)

Find more Friday Fragments at Half-Past Kissin' Time or link up some of your own. Share this:

My Top 10 fall fashion favorites (Writers Workshop)

Naturally, fall means football for us so I look forward to wearing my team sweatshirts and jackets. But you will be happy to know, I also have a few non-sports related items mixed in. The Winnie the Pooh Jacket was one of the best gifts I got from Gerard before we were married. In fact all these items were gifts from my husband, Gerard, except for two: one was from my cats (which Gerard did buy for them to give to me) and one from my mom. Can you guess which one was from my mom?



Ohio State Jacket with cap
Winnie the Pooh Jacket with cap
Cribbs Browns Jersey
White Browns Jersey
Doggie Football fall sweatshirt
Browns Hoodie
Brown Cat Fleece Jacket
Ohio State Hoodie
Browns Jacket with cap
Colorful Fall Leaves Sweetest Day Sweatshirt

This is in response to Mama Kat's Writers Workshop prompt: "Your Top 10 Fall Fashion Favorites." (I'm behind a week on my prompt here, but oh well.)


Share this:

Our Favorite Reads For September

Gerard's Favorite:  Blood Feud by David Robbins

Blood Feud by David Robbins is about a feud between the Harkey clan and the Shannon clan. Chase Shannon sets out for revenge after the brutal rape of his older sister by the Harkeys. To say I enjoyed this book would be an understatement--I loved it! Blood Feud is a double wow, which means it's as good as it gets! The good news is that there is going to be two more books in this series. Can't wait!! Read and enjoy!

Karen read this one too.  Here's what she thought of it:
Blood Feud by David Robbins moved along at a good pace and kept my interest because Chace was such an interesting character.  It is is full of killing, a shoot-em up book about family loyalty, revenge, and hate. My favorite part was when Chace fled to Galveston, Texas and took over the hawking business from Tunk to help the kids which showed he was kind-hearted in spite of being a killer.  I did like the ending!

Karen's Favorite:   War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

War Horse is a touching book that kept my interest all through. 

Although it is a children's book, I enjoyed it but must admit I got teary-eyed reading it.  Parts were very sad but I loved the ending!  Joey, the horse, tells his story about living on a farm with a boy named Albert and then being sold to the army because Albert's dad needed money to save his farm.  The horse goes through a lot but Albert never gives up looking for him.

Gerard liked this one too:  War Horse by Michael Morpurgo is a double wow book for me! Joey, the war horse, tells about his adventures during World War 1 and the special bond he has with a young boy named Albert. At only 160 pages or so, it goes very fast. I loved it! I look forward to seeing the movie which is coming out on Christmas.

Once again, we read a lot of very good books in September so it was hard to choose.  Please visit Grab A Book From Our Stack to find more great reads.  We read some romance, memoirs, thrillers, contemporary fiction, suspense, and YA. Spunky Doodle says, "Don't forget the cat book!"  Meow!

Share this:

Lingerie Football?

 Did you know about the Lingerie Football League?  I just learned about it recently and think it's disgusting.  Teams are made up of strong, pretty women barely dressed.  There is no modesty here!  Yes, they play football in an arena.  They wear knee pads and helmets, but only bikinis and underpants on the rest of their bodies.  I think this is so deameaning.  It just looks trashy and I am not even posting such a picture on my blog.  If you want to see a picture and/or learn more about this, go to Wikipedia.

I have no problem with women playing football.  It's actually a fun sport.  My problem is not giving them decent uniforms to wear.  What do you think about Lingerie Football?  Would you play?

Share this:

Why Not Celebrate?

I sure enjoyed watching the Cleveland Browns football game yesterday.  Actually, it was pretty dull until the 4th quarter came.  The Browns were down by 6 and were having trouble offensively all game.  Then Colt McCoy (QB) put together one long drive from the 20 yd line in the last 4 minutes of the game to score a touchdown, giving us a one point lead.

Naturally, the guy who scored was ecstatic and another player joined him in a bit of a celebration.  Unfortunately, celebrating is against the rules in football which to me makes no sense at all.  I think it is a ridiculous rule.  I like to see the players get excited!  What's wrong with that?  Baseball has no such stupid rule, why does football?  Anyhow, because of that, the Browns were penalized and had to kickoff from farther back, giving the Dolphins slightly better field position with just a little under two minutes left.  All they needed was a field goal to win it.

I was yelling at the defense to stop them and they finally did!  Adams got an interception around midfield and then time ran out with us having the ball giving the Browns a 2-1 record and the Dolphins 0-3.  (Sorry, Daisy).

Seriously though, don't you think that celebration rule is stupid?

Share this:

Creator or Creation--Which Rules Your Heart?

This was our discussion this morning in our "Circle of Friends" Bible study. It really made me think and I thought I'd share some of the things that stood out to me here.

An idol of the heart is anything that rules us other than God.

So, what do you think rules your heart? Some of the things mentioned in our class was family, appearance, addictions and hobbies. I for one must be careful not to let blogging become an idol. I am either posting, reading other blogs and commenting or thinking about what to post next all day long it seems. In other words, it is constantly on my mind. Yet, I like to believe that it is under God's control, that I seek his guidance, inspiration and direction daily. I like to use it to bring glory to God and to share things I've learned, including some spiritual things but not only limited to that.

Based on Ezekiel 14:1-5, there is a core principle of inseparable influence:

Whatever rules the heart will exercise inseparable influence over a person's life and behavior.

This is why people have such a difficult time changing their behavior for long-term, because our hearts need to change for our behavior to change. If God is ruling my heart, that I will show his love to others in my action and speech. If I take back control, then what I do is self-serving. It's definitely something to think about.

Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator. who is blessed for ever. Amen. Romans 1:25

The above verse, Romans 1:25, is referred to The great exchange in our study and was described as follows:

The great exchange (creator for creation) is when what really rules our hearts in daily living is not love for God, but a craving for some other thing. The way God changes us is to recapture our hearts to serve Him alone.

This takes constant surrender to God every day. Oh that I would pour out my heart and be honest with Him so that he will rule my heart all the days of my life!  
 
If you are not involved in a Bible Study group, I encourage you to seek one out.  My greatest growth spurts spiritually always happened when I was involved in a small group Bible Study.  I sincerely hope the Creator rules your heart.  

Related Post:  Making An Idol Out of Sports

(Quotes other than scripture are all from Instrument In The Redeemers Hands by Paul David Tripp.)

Share this:

4 Things We Learned This Week 38 of 2011 (exercise, fun, book, charity)

Exercises

I found some exercises that will help get rid of the love handles over at "Quick Moves To Get Rid Of Love Handles." They are the bicycle, Twisted decline sit-ups, side plank and rotating leg raises. Click on the link to go to the post for more detail.

Day of Play

When reading blogs this week, I learned that tomorrow, September 24, is Worldwide Day of Play! Yippee! I love to play! Here is the post I found that you may want to visit: 10 Activities to Help Celebrate the World Wide Day of Play .

Betty White

When I read Betty White's book, If You Ask Me (and, of course, you won't), I learned that she is 89; I had no idea she was nearly that old! She said she doesn't feel 89 and is still very active. She even did a TV series, "Hot In Cleveland." It's good to know that old age doesn't have to be miserable. I enjoyed this book very much. Click the link to read my review.

The Big Fun Box

Kristin at The Goat helped with The Big Fun Box project by packing some boxes that she posted about.  The Big Fun Box Foundation donates thousands of Big Fun Boxes each year to children who experience frequent and extended stays in pediatric hospitals across the country to provide them with a little fun and distraction.

Find more Friday Fragments or link up yours at Half-Past Kissin' Time.

Share this:

Our Favorite Childhood Recipes (Writer's Workshop)

I LOVED it when my mom would make Chef Boy-R-Dee pizza and then add tuna fish on top. When she baked it in the oven, the tuna would get a little brown. Boy was it good! So far I haven’t found any pizza place that uses tuna fish for a topping. It’s an Arlettaz original.  I tried adding tuna on take-out pizza but it just wasn't as good as mom's.

Gerard's favorite was ketchup sandwiches. That's right, very simple; two slices of bread with just ketchup on them. Did you ever try this?  It's good!

Do you have a favorite childhood recipe to share?

This post is in response to Mama Kat's Writers Workshop prompt: to share a favorite childhood recipe.

Share this:

Why Use An Exercise Journal

It's September and I need some inspiration to keep me motivated to continue to workout. This video does it. I thought you might enjoy watching it too. I see a lot of people at the gym working out but not writing anything down and wonder why not. Maybe they have better memories than I or just want big biceps and forget everything else, don't know. However, it's important to exercise all your muscle groups so I have to keep track of what I do. Plus, to make it a challenge, you should try to improve on something and do a little more each time. I usually pick one muscle group to focus on each session for just about half an hour at a time.  

How I keep track of it:

Leg page

1. I have a separate page for Arms, Legs, Shoulders, Core, Back, Chest, Cardio, circuit and magazine workouts.
2. On the left side of each page I list different machines or exercises that I do.
3. Make columns across page for dates that I work that particular muscle group. 4. Record the amount of weight I use times the number of repetitions times the number of sets: "(wt.x reps) no. of sets."
5. I put a paper clip on the page I will do next.  

Why I like This:
1. This helps me make sure I cover everything equally.
2. It provides variety.
3. Makes time at gym more efficient. I don’t have to write so much and think what to do next.
4. I can easily see what I did last time and try to improve on it. 5. It gives muscle groups plenty of time to recover between workouts.
6. I can easily to see my progress (or lack thereof) at a glance.

I challenge you to try this and see if you don't find that it keeps you more focused, productive and challenged. Did you like the walrus?

Share this:

Some Bag Fun For Cats by Spunky Doodle

Hey cat friends, you want to have some fun? Today I will share a very fun thing you can do that made my mom laugh. When I jumped up on the kitchen counter, I saw a bag. I don’t know about you, but I like bags and boxes. This is a little brown paper bag that I found just sitting there so I sunk me teeth in and gave it a tug. It ripped just a little, enough for me to get a good grip on it with my teeth and make a big hole in it! Then I can push the paper that tore off around and knock it off the counter. Oh, what fun!

Spunky Doodle, What Are You Up To? by Karen

Usually Spunky Doodle is close by keeping an eye on me at all times or at least looking out a window that is in the same room as I am. Consequently, when I don’t see her I wonder what she is up to. After all, she got her name for a reason—because she is a little spunkster! Sure enough, I noticed she has been jumping up on the kitchen counter quite often lately and when I heard some rattling, I knew she was up to something. When I went to pack my lunch bag for the next day, there was a big hole torn in it. Yes Spunky Doodle, I know it was you!

Visit Bozo's Pet Pride to find more pet posts or link up yours.

P.S. If you do not have a cat, I highly recommend you get one or two. They are wonderful companions and very amusing entertainers and will keep you on your toes!

Spruce Up Your Bible

There are many Bibles around, but none like mine!; That is because I have made mine very personal to me and therefore precious. Some people do not want to mark in their Bibles, but I am glad I am not one of them!

HOW TO HIGHLIGHT VERSES:

Some people use highlighters or ink to mark their Bibles but I found colored pencils or crayons work much better. When marking with highlighters, always use a light color such as yellow.; If I do underline something with ink, I found that using a straight edge makes it look much neater. (I have one Bible that I use ink to underline.)

I learned long ago that the flair pens bleed through the page and tend to look sort of messy. (That’s what I used as a kid.) Colored pencils work very well and there is a wide variety of colors that you could use to underline verses. Crayons are my favorite though because they cover quickly and provide lots of color choices.

THINGS TO MARK:

1. Memorized verses. Every verse I memorized I mark because if I made the effort to memorize it, I think it’s worth reviewing.  By marking it, I review it again when I see it and it also helps me to find it if I forget the reference, not that you would ever forget the reference, but you may.  If I forget the reference, I can usually remember the book and if it’s marked, it makes it easy to find it.
2. Salvation verses. I like color coding so colored the salvation verses with red. Starting with John 3:16, next to it I list the reference of the next salvation verse (Romans 3:23) and so on. By doing this, I am always ready to share the plan of salvation using scripture if the opportunity should arise. It has been useful in teaching Sunday School and counseling situations.
3. Commands. Things to do or not to do that stand out to me are marked with blue (blue rhymes with do).
4. Promises. For God’s promises that “pop” out at me, I color with orange.
5. Truths about God. These I mark in yellow (reminds me of God’s glory).

MAKING NOTES:

Now, this is when I use a pen for making notes in the margin. I jot down sermon/class notes such as what some words mean, perhaps an object lesson or story illustration for a particular passage that I thought was especially good, the month/year that I marked the verse, or sometimes a situation I am going through when the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart through a particular verse or passage.

I realize I am a bit more organized and into color coding more than most people, but even if you don’t use my color coding suggestion, I encourage you to start marking your Bible your way and make it special to you. I immediately felt a connection with my "Circle of Friends" Adult Bible Fellowship (ABF) group leader who also encouraged the class to use colored pencils to mark our Bibles. The best part about taking time to do this is that you spend time in God’s Word.

Share this:

8 Things We Learned This Week 37 of 2011 (sports, geography, people, words, books, tips))

Military

William Conn, the father of a boy (age 12) I had in my Sunday School class a year ago, is being deployed to Afghanistan for six months.  You can hear his faith story that was played in church last Sunday.

Cleveland Browns

After watching last Sunday's game I learned that the Browns aren't as good as I thought they would be. They had 9 penalties in just the first quarter! After coming back from a 13-0 deficit to take the lead, they lost in the 4th quarter. Wake up defense! Josh Cribbs made two very good plays and Massaquoi's 41 yd. reception was a bright spot. Twitter was busy throughout the game with fans tweeting away (I participated during the first half.) They were the only team that was favored to win who lost.

Chicken, Alaska

I heard a guy talking on the bus this week about wanting to go to Chicken, Alaska. He said the town wanted to name it after the state bird which resembles a chicken but couldn't agree on how to spell it so they called it Chicken. I looked it up when I got home and sure enough, he was right! Check out www.chickenalaska.com!

Reading Cats

My cats were thrilled with this cute comment we got over on our "Tuesday Teaser" post this week on our book blog. I think this is the cutest comment we ever got!

Cristina said... Awesome teasers. Breaking Silence really intrigues me. My little guy looked at your picture and was amazed! He is convinced your cats can read and cannot wait to tell his teacher. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you entered to win a copy of Ghost on Black Mountain by Ann Hite. I thought it was an awesome read and I will be picking two winners! http://www.alaskanbookcafe.com/

Internet Safety

From reading Want To Go Private by Sarah Darer Littman, I learned how internet predators operate and that they even have websites where they give each other tips and brag about what they do! How sick is that??? We also learned that schools actually have presentations about Internet safety. Want To Go Private is a good book every kid who goes online should read. Although it is a good contemporary teen fiction novel, it is very educational! Parents would benefit from it too! Click on the link to see our reviews of it.

Read more »

Our Worst Date Ever! (Writer's Workshop)

We found each other through Great Expectations and agreed to meet at a Pizza Hut for our first date. This one went very well and Gerard suggested that we go together to the party that Great Expectations had scheduled at a restaurant. I had a feeling it would be bad, but decided to go along and give it a try since he suggested it. I didn’t want to start off our relationship by shooting down his ideas right off the bat.

Snoozer

After Pizza Hut, we went to Marc's to find a toy to take to the Great Expectations party for a child.  Everyone was supposed to bring a toy to donate which we thought was a nice idea.  We bought a cute stuffed dog.  (I liked it so much that later on, Gerard bought me one too and I named it Snoozer.)

It was a cold, wintry night and neither of us normally would have gone anywhere in that kind of weather, much less dress up. Gerard wore a suit and I wore a green velvet dress and was COLD; Gerard told me I had nice legs! There was snow on the ground. We both had a terrible time, the food was okay but it was so loud, it was hard to hear each other. Neither of us are party people; neither of us drink alcohol; and we just felt very out of place there.

Going was definitely one of Gerard’s bad ideas. The good thing was, we both felt exactly the same way and just wanted to disappear! I don’t think we even stayed a whole hour. We ate quick and left. Our dates could only improve after that! They took a picture of everyone but even that didn’t come out very well as you can see. We laugh about this now, but it really wasn’t funny at the time.

When did you want to disappear?

This is in response to Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop prompt: “Write about a time when you wanted to disappear.”

Share this:

How To Shoot A Video People Will Watch

I think this is a good video by Steve Stockman that gives some great tips from his book, How To Shoot Video That Doesn't Suck.







I will definitely work at following these tips the next time I shoot video. It will save on my editing time, I'm sure.

1. Think in shots. Shoot for only 5 - 10 seconds at a time.

2. Treat the video camera like a still camera: move close, point, shoot (5-10 seconds), stop.

3. Don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes. Get the expression of people's faces.

4. Refrain from using the zoom, move your feet closer.

5. Keep it short!

Thinking in shots and not shooting until seeing the white's of their eyes were new tips for me.  This is the first I've heard of these and am very curious as to what other tips are included in the book.  I just may have to get this one!

Now, go shoot a video using these tips and feel free to include the link in the comments so we can see how it turned out.  (I heard about this book in an email I got from Kodak.)   

Share this:

Feast Day by Spunky Doodle

Karen used to put food in my bowl twice a day that I could eat all day long. I must admit, I ate most of it all at once and then vomited it up. Gross, I know, but it’s just so good I can’t help myself! Then as some of you know, I got a Kong because I Karen saw me knocking over Abby’s and eating some of her food.

I could fit my whole head in!

My Kong is much, much smaller though and Karen only fills it twice for breakfast and twice for supper. But I was able to get a feast recently when the last bag of cat food my mom bought ripped down the side when she opened it! I watched and waited until she went to work. Then I found the bag and knocked it off the shelf, just like I do with my Kong.

See the small hole on the front of the bag halfway down?

When I went back the next day, there was a different bag without the big hole in it. I worked very hard and was able to chew a hole through the side of the new bag and what do you know? Some of that food fell out for me! I made a mistake though by not eating it all up. When Karen came home, she discovered it and now she put the bag in the closet so I can’t get to it through the day.

I hope she got the message though that I need more food! It’s no wonder I sometimes go for the dog’s food if I can find it. I know I was chunky, but not anymore. Now I’m hungry! Just call me Hungry Spunky and please, could you leave a comment telling her to give me more food. (I got the Kong when you told her to get one for me.)

Related Post:  Be Careful What You Wish For

Share this:

September Is For Taking New Classes

I am so excited to be starting a couple new Bible studies this fall.  

SUNDAY MORNING ADULT BIBLE FELLOWSHIP 9:30 A.M.

First of all, since I gave up my Sunday School class I can now attend a small group Bible study with other women at 9:30 on Sunday mornings. We are using the study guide, Instruments In The Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp which is Bible based. The goal of this study is that we will all be changed by God, ready to be his instruments of change wherever and with whomever he laces us. Some of the things that stood out to me the first week are as follows:

1. All of us are both people in need of help [because we are human] and people who have been positioned by God to provide his help to others.

2. The Bible teaches [Isaiah 55:1-13] that personal transformation takes place as our hearts are changed and our minds are renewed by the Holy Spirit. And the two instruments that the Holy Spirit uses are the Word of God and the people of God.

I am excited about this course because its focus is on developing a personal ministry which is something I've wanted to do for a very long time.  

WEDNESDAY FAMILY NIGHT 7 P.M.

Secondly, on Wednesday, I began a study on The Tangible Kingdom. This is going to be fun because we will actually be practicing the concept of serving people in the community as Jesus did. I can't wait to see what God teaches me through this class. Already, my view of evangelism (strictly sharing the Gospel of Christ verbally with others) is changing to just bringing people a step closer to having that personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ through serving.  

WOMEN OF WONDER--2ND THURSDAY OF THE MONTH 7 P.M.

Lastly, I attended our "Women of Wonder" meeting on Thursday. This one meets monthly and all women are welcome! It was fun! I look forward to actually

getting to know some other women on a deeper level and make some new friends here.

We have a dessert buffet, some discussion, time to chit chat and make a craft; first time I ever used a glue gun! This is the picture of the craft we made last week. It's a decorative frame with our monthly key verse displayed in it which is easily changed.

We listened to how women in the Bible influenced others and then shared at our tables the different roles we have and how we have influenced others. I was surprised at how many areas of influence I have when I actually took time to think about this. We certainly influence our family members, our co-workers, those we serve in a volunteer capacity and in the posts we write as bloggers.

What are you excited about this fall? Are you taking any new classes?  Who are you influencing? I invite you to visit Parma Heights Baptist Church are in the area. We are all about loving and following Jesus Christ.

[I tried posting this on my ALWAYS LOOKING UP blog at http://karen.pnn.com but it wouldn't work so here it is.  As of now, I've just about decided to stop posting over there altogether.] 


Share this:

6 Things We Learned This Week 36 of 2011 (Twitter, animals, words, jobs)

Twitter and Football

Gerard likes Twitter now because I showed him how to get the up-to-the-minute updates on his high school football team' games. I found Benefootball on there for him.  They got a new coach this year and have a quarterback with a good arm.  It's going to be a fun season!  They are off to a good start!

September is Happy Cat Month

This video gives ways to keep your cats happy and also gives a great reason for owning a cat. I liked seeing all the different cats as the lady was talking. Hope you will take the time to watch it.

Looks like Manny might be a Pixie Bob cat! I always thought he was a Tabby but I guess "Tabby" is not a breed, but refers to the pattern. I know he is a happy cat because he blinks at me a lot!

I learned that my cat, Spunky Doodle, can chew through the plastic Science Diet food bag so now have to keep it in a closet instead of just out on the shelf. More about this coming soon!

G-O-L-F

(UPDATED 9/9/11 at 8 p.m.) I just learned last night from a lady at church during our Women Of Wonder (WOW) meeting that the name of the sport of golf is an acronym for "Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden." Did you know that? According to Scottish Golf History, this is a common misconception and not true. Thanks, Rebecca, for giving me this link in your comment! I do think the acronym is funny though.

 Roosters

Do not wake a sleeping rooster! One of my co-workers was moving her rooster to the indoor pen to protect it from the predators but didn't realize it was sleeping, I guess. It dug in its claws and scratched her up. The wound got infected and she had to go to the hospital. The first thing she says when telling people about this is that "It wasn't the rooster's fault." It thought she was a predator and was just trying to defend itself.

Job?

Congratulations to Jim Tressell (Former Ohio State football coach) on his new job with the Indianapolis Colts as "game day consultant." That certainly sounds like an easy job to me. I wonder what exactly he does. He won't actually start work until after the first six games because he's suspended. What a crazy situation! I think Gerard would be a good game day consultant. How does one get a job like this?

Bible Studies

I am beginning two classes at Parma Heights Baptist Church that I think will be very helpful and interesting and am very glad I signed up for them. They are "Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands--How To Help Others Change" by Paul David Tripp on Sunday mornings with a small group of women and on Wednesday nights, "The Tangible Kingdom--an 8-week guide to Incarnational Community" taught by our minister of outreach. The goal of the second class is to become an apprentice of Christ and represent Him in our community.

Stop by Half-Past Kissin' Time for more Friday Fragments and link up yours!
Share this:

She's Too Good--What Should I Do?

I heard somewhere one of the definitions of going crazy is doing the same thing over and over and getting the same results. That sums up my tennis matches with Karen. She wins ALL THE TIME and beats me like a drum. I get so frustrated that I sometimes take it out on my racket. Even buying new tennis balls didn't help.

How do you think I should approach these games?

(A) "Hey, at least I'm getting a full body workout."
(B) Take some satisfaction from the few points I score.
(C) Take my beating and just be quiet, admiring her skill.
(D) Forget the racket and grab the dog leash instead.

Karen says she doesn't mind winning all the time and is happy that I still play with her. I just wish I were better. It would be nice to win at least once in a while. Since we've been playing over 14 years, I think I could count on one hand the number of matches I've won.

Related Posts: Great Exercise Fun and Free--Tennis Everyone!
Summer In November in Ohio  and A Fun Honeymoon

Share this:

What Baseball Snack Are You?

We enjoyed going to the Indians ballgame while on vacation last week. I love sitting in those Club seats because not only are they good seats for viewing the game, but great because you can eat all the food you want because it's included in the ticket price. This works out wonderful since I get the tickets free from work. I had a burger, hot dogs and beans, corn on the cub, a big slice of pizza, a brownie and orange sorbet and Moose Tracks ice cream. I would have eaten more ice cream, but I was full. Just had to take this quiz to see what baseball park snack I am:



You Are Cracker Jacks

You get a lot of delights out of life, and others are surprised by how easy it is to make you happy.  Yup! You are a creature of habit, and it's likely you've been doing the same things since you were a kid. Oh yeah! You are a very hard person to persuade. You make up your mind on your own.  Definitely! You appreciate strangeness. You understand how difficult it is to be different.  Absolutely!

Gerard was a hot dog. Please take the quiz and see what you are and leave your result in the comments.
What Baseball Park Snack Are You?

Share this:

The Sofa Bed Is Finally Moved!

Notice, there's no room for it to open.

When we first moved in 14 years ago, the movers were very happy to hear that this sofa bed was going on the main floor because it is SO heavy. We put it in our "music room" which is now our "computer room." I used it for a shelf and the cats liked walking on it.

The cats liked lying on it too sometimes.

It was our first cat, Moe's, final resting spot before he died. Sometimes, if Gerard is on the computer and I am waiting to go on again, I'll sit on it and read, but not often. I've been wishing it were in the basement instead for a long time now and finally decided to call a mover to move it downstairs for us. Unfortunately, the mover I called kept putting me off. He'd say he would come and do it and then not show up. Said he was going to call me but lost my number. Said he was gone for a week so that's why he didn't call. Blah, blah, blah. Finally, I took Gerard's advice and called Parma Movers instead who responded within a few days.

Down the basement stairs it goes!

Two young strong men quickly took care of it for us but took it out the front door and around through the side door to go straight down instead of manipulating it around the corner. I put Abby on her leash right away and closed the cats in upstairs rooms. Gerard took Abby out for a walk around the block and by the time he got back, the sofa bed was in it's new location in the basement and no pets got out.  Yippee!

Now we have room to open it up if we want to use it as a bed and have something we can lay on while watching TV in the basement. It was nice to cuddle up with Gerard on it while we watched reruns of "The Waltons" down there. Now I'm just debating whether to move that big picture above it back upstairs. I am so happy it is down there now. It cost us $157 but well worth it to me. Even the movers said it was heavier than they thought it would be.  There's no way we could have moved this ourselves and I didn't want to ask any of our friends or nephews to do it because I didn't want them getting hurt.

So, what are you procrastinating about?

Share this:

7 Things We Learned This Week 35 of 2011 (Blogging, NFL, Petties, Femara, pets)

Attack Site Warning

Thanks to Daisy, I learned that if a blog that is in your blogroll gets hacked, Google will mark your blog as an "attack site." Because of this, Daisy took down her blogroll. Of course everyone knows, Daisy, The Curly Cat is not an attack site!  I felt very bad for Daisy when such an awful thing as this happened to her.  I did a whole post about this last Sunday:  Your Blogroll Could Cause Problems.

NFL Football

When watching the preseason games I learned that every scoring play will be reviewed this season. It's good to get the plays called right, but doesn't this seem a bit overboard?

From reading Growing Up Colt, I learned he doesn't drink soft drinks or alcohol, he's from Texas, Colt is his middle name, he's been on mission trips to Peru to teach kids how to play football, he got married right before coming to the Cleveland Browns and cut his honeymoon short, he attends church every Sunday and is a great role model.

The Petties 2011 Award Winners

Spunky Likes Mr. Puddy too!

Did you vote? I did. Yes, there was actual voting going on for different categories of pet blogs and some of mine actually won like Sparkle, Cat Lady Land and The Conscious Cat, but Mr. Puddy did not win for the funniest which is who I voted for. He sure did an outstanding post though announcing the winners here: Who Is The Winner Of The Petties 2011! Even all our pets were interested in this. Check it out and then let me know if you don't agree that he is one funny, very smart cat!

Read more »

Comment For Charity in September: Best Friends

For July we had 175 comments plus August's of 255 for a total of 430 so we had more than enough to provide a goat for a poor family for $120 through Heifer International.  Thanks to everyone who commented on our blogs during July and August!  Why a goat?  Here's why besides the fact our readers voted for us to donate a goat: 

The gift of a dairy goat represents a lasting, meaningful way for you to help a little boy or girl on the other side of the world.

Goats can thrive in extreme climates and on poor, dry land by eating grass and leaves. The gift of a dairy goat can supply a family with up to several quarts of nutritious milk a day - a ton of milk a year. Extra milk can be sold or used to make cheese, butter or yogurt. Families learn to use goat manure to fertilize gardens.

Goats often have two or three kids a year making it easy for Heifer recipients to pass on the gift of a goat to another family in need. This great investment allows our partners to lift themselves out of poverty by starting small dairies that earn money for food, health care and education. (From Heifer Int'l website.)

At 50 cents a comment, we actually have $95 more to donate which we will give to Samaritan's Purse to provide relief to those hit hard by hurricane Irene.  We hope all our readers are happy with this decision. 

For September comments, we will donate 50 cents per legitimate comment to Best Friends Animal Society , a fantastic animal rescue organization. They help a wide variety of animals, including dogs, cats, horses, birds, rabbits and even pigs! You can visit Best Friends and make your own donation if you wish. We donated to sponsor one of the animals and signed up for the free magazine which has lots of good stories in it about the different animals.

Share this: