Feeling A Little Discouraged, Need To Vent

I know it has been a long time since I posted. Hope everyone hasn't forgotten me. I got some news yesterday that I just wanted to share. After some pretty severe stomach pains over the weekend, causing me to miss church, my nurse practitioner sent me yesterday morning to get a cat scan. I was called back in to her office yesterday afternoon to receive the results. The verdict? Diverticulitis, most likely passed on to me by my dad. Thanks, dad. (Just kidding!) Most of you probably know what that is, but for those who don't, I will spare the unneccessary details and simply suffice it to say that this means if I eat something containing nuts or seeds or husks, they may become trapped causing pain. Tomatoes are my favorite food! I can eat a basket from the local produce stand myself! But they have SEEDS. I fix a mandarin cashew chicken salad that is out of this world. Cashews-NUTS. I have to admit I am worse than a child about vegetables, but potatoes and corn on the cob are the only 2 I enjoy. Corn-HUSKS. There is no better summer meal than an ear of corn and a couple of sliced tomatoes. MMM, Heaven! And of course, who doesn't love popcorn? I am absolutely aware that I am blessed and that my situation could be much worse. It's just that:

1. I'm diabetic so I try to watch the sweets and watch the carbs. (I don't always succeed. In fact, sometimes I WATCH them go right into my mouth, but I do try. lol)

2. I try to keep a check on the salt.

3. I try to limit fats.


BUT:

NOW NO NUTS, SEEDS, OR HUSKS!




SOOOO:


What does that leave, except to grow long floppy ears and a cotton tail and go of hopping down the bunny trail, stick a piece lettuce in my yap and hope Mr. MacGregor doesn't catch me in his garden????

Had Enough!

I'm about to get fired up here. I'm sure you've all heard the controversy over the comments of Carrie Prejean, Miss California, because of her stance against gay marriage. It's the usual firestorm. As usual, those who affirm this sin are saying,"All you people want to do is hate. This God you claim to serve is supposed to be love, but all you do is teach hate." I am telling you, if I hear this one more time, I am going to throw up. Let me state for the record, hating what you do DOES NOT, let me repeat, DOES NOT, mean that I hate you. If I hated you, would it make any difference to me that you are going against God? No. They are trying to ruin this woman's life, reputation, and career, because she dared to speak the truth. She is being ripped apart. She is being ridiculed, called every name imaginable, (idiot and dumb are the NICEST names she is being called- the rest are truly horrible!) and what is her response? "I can only say that I will be praying for them." Excuse me, did I miss something? Who exactly is doing the hating here? Why is it that in this country every viewpoint EXCEPT the evangelical one must be accomodated and tolerated? Anything else, the attitude is, "Well, this is America, have to be tolerant, you know-live and let live. None of my business." UNLESS, of course, you happen to be one of those judgemental, narrow-minded, intolerant, hate-mongering (pppptttoioooe!) CHRISTIANS! Can't have that! Gotta shut those kooks up! If you are part of the Church of God, it is time we stand up and say that we are not going to kowtow anymore! If you don't agree we will love you and pray for you, try to answer any questions in a loving way, and do whatever we can for you, but WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED ANYMORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Shout it from the rooftops, brothers and sisters! STAND UP AND BE COUNTED!! Right is right and wrong is wrong, and I am tired of compromising, of going along to get along. We are the truth, the light. If they don't hear it from us because we are too afraid of "offending", how will they EVER hear it? Jesus left us a big job to do and we can't be too scared to do it , and we don't have to do it alone. WHO IS WITH ME? If you are not ashamed, let me hear it!

Our Nashville Trip

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Ok, I am behind but here are a few promised pictures from our Nashville trip. We had a great time . I'm new at this, so I hope I get it right. Here is a picture of Bobby in our room.

1. Our first stop was RCA Studio B, a famous recording studio on Music Row where just about everybody, not just country singers, has recorded at one point. The piano is one played many many times by Elvis Presley. In fact, he kept trying to buy it, but no luck.




2. Speaking of Elvis, see the cabinet above with the missing panel? This is courtesy of the foot of the King of Rock'n'roll himself. Seems EP was recording one night and the equipment wasn't quite up to par. The king then declared that as much money as he was making for RCA, he expected the equipment to be working and proceded to give a karate kick (he was a black belt) to the cabinet.

1. In the picture of the guitar and the clothes, the guitar belongs to Charlie Daniels and the clothes belong to Hank Williams Jr. These and many other pictures were taken on our next stop, which was the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The plaque is Kitty Wells' plaque in the Hall of Fame. See how shiny her nose is? This is because there is a legend in Country music that if you rub her nose on the plaque, you will have good luck. Sorry the pictures aren't posted within the message instead of all at the top. I'll learn! Anyway, we had a great time and hope to go again. Let hear from you and tell me what you think. God bless.

In Nashville, Tennesee!!!!

Hey all! Bobby and I are in Music City USA! We decided to take a trip and arrived earlier this evening. It is a pet friendly hotel , so we have our little Yorkie, Sparky Jake, with us. I'm on the road with my two guys! Get this- when we checked in, the Reservations clerk said, "So what brings you to Nashville? " Bobby told him it was kind of a second honeymoon. So he says, "In that case, I'm giving you a free upgrade to a jacuzzi room!" Fantastic! Tomorrow we are going to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and to the Ryman Auditorium. Tomorrow evening we are going shopping at Cool Springs Galleria, to be followed by dinner at Red Lobster. I'll be taking lots of pictures and I will upload them when we get back tomorrow evening, so get ready! You'll be my captive audience for a vacation slideshow! Toodles till then!

Kill The Guy At Wal-Mart!

Bobby and I bought a treadmill at Wal-Mart, as I mentioned. As you know, treadmills are expensive, but we considered it an investment in our health and our future together. We paid $377.00 for this thing. When we picked it up, (which we had to arrange with a friend with a truck to do) I asked the manager specifically if it was put together, just folded down in storage position. He assured me that yes, for the most part, it was, nothing major to do, just a few simple things that would take about 10 minutes . Well, I get it home, unpack it, and there are ten bazillion parts to this thing!!!!!!!!!!!!! There is an entire BLISTER PACK, not a little bag, an entire laptop sized blister pack, of little nuts and bolts and screws and washers. You have to attach the electronic control panel, and put the arms on, and put the sides on, and attach the safety belt, and who knows what else. There is a number in the instruction manual to call to have a tech from the company come and put it together. I thought I was saved! I called today to check on it, and they want (Drumroll please) $194.00 to come and asemble it! The guy at Wal-Mart just lied to sell a treadmill. So now I have 3 choices: 1. Inconvenience my friend with a truck again to take it back to Wal-Mart here and have them put it together, if they'll even do it, and then again to haul it back when they are through 2. Cough up approximately half the price of the treadmill to have a tech come, plus promise him my first born child to get him to come on Sat since I work all the other days 3. Have a $377 piece of useless junk sitting in the corner of my living room! I am furious!!!!!!!

Bobby and I just got a treadmill that is being delivered friday night, and we're excited! We want to exercise and lose weight so we can have many many happy, healthy years together. Space is going to be cramped, and I was hoping to put it where we could watch tv whilw walking, but I don"t know. Gonna have to do some re-arranging! It is the Gold's Gym 450. Here are the specs:


Lose inches and shed pounds with the Gold's Gym 450, the impressive weight loss treadmill that creates customized, calorie-burn workouts specifically for your needs. Simply plug in your weight, the number of calories you want to burn, how long you want to workout, and press go, and you're on your way to a trimmer, healthier you. The 450 also offers StepTech cushion technology, which maximizes workout comfort while reducing impact on your joints.
Gold's Gym 450 Treadmill:
Plug in your weight, the number of calories you want to burn, your workout time and press go
6 Personal Trainer workouts automatically adjust the incline and speed of your treadmill to focus on an aerobic, weight-loss, or performance goal
StepTech impact reducing cushioning is designed to provide maximum comfort, while reducing the impact on your joints
Blue-tinted LCD display tracks your speed, time, distance, calories and pulse
Motivational RaceTrack displays your workout's progress in the form of a racetrack, keeping you informed and motivated
0-10 MPH QuickSpeed control lets you instantly change the speed of the treadmill between 0-10 MPH with the single touch of a button
0% to 10% power incline conveniently changes the incline of the treadmill to raise or lower the level of intensity of your workout
5" x 7" workout matrix displays your workout graphically
Dual-grip BodyPulse heart rate monitor uses sensors built into the handlebars
CoolAire workout fan is built right into the console.
G Force 2.5 THP drive motor
18" x 50" quiet tread belt
275 lbs. weight capacity


What do you think?

One Million Dollars

Ever thought about what you would do if you had one million dollars? Can you even conceive of that much money? Would it change you? Would you go wild and buy everythng you ever dreamed of, or would you be a spendthrift? Would you invest, or put it in the bank? Nowadays, maybe you'd put it under the mattress. Who knows? What we do know is that this money can buy only material things, not happiness, and certainly not salvation. But just think about it. What would you do? Most of our ideas about money and the "Security" it brings come from our family of origin, how our parents dealt with and taught us about money, which comes from how their parents dealt with it, and so on, and so on. These attitudes can be changed by circumstances and experiences that come our way in life. Harsh financial times can cause insecurity in other areas of life and cause us to feel that money is the ONLY security we can have and that our worth is based on how much or how little money we have. Seasons of plenty can cause us to have a false sense of entitlement and to place too much importance on things and name brands and the latest techo gadgets and toys, and send us spiraling into an abyss of debt that we can never hope to climb out of. Enough is never enough. We are always striving, clawing for more, more more! Personally, if I had that amount of money, I would donate a large portion (at least a tenth, probably more) to my church. Then I would buy houses for Bobby and I, and for all our parents. Then I would travel some with Bobby, go to places I've always dreamed of seeing. The rest would sit in the bank waiting to hear of family, friends, and community members in genuine need. What about you? Let me hear from you. What would you do?