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My human will never let me eat their pet hamster, and I am at peace with that.
I will not slurp fish food from the surface of the aquarium.
I will not eat large numbers of assorted bugs, then come home and throw them up so the humans can see that I’m getting plenty of roughage.
I will not lean way over to drink out of the tub, fall in, and then pelt right for the box of clumping cat litter. (It took FOREVER to get the stuff out of my fur.)
I will not use the bathtub to store live mice for late-night snacks.
We will not play “Herd of Thundering Wildebeests Stampeding Across the Plains of the Serengeti” over any humans’ bed while they’re trying to sleep.
I cannot leap through closed windows to catch birds outside. If I forget this and bonk my head on the window and fall behind the couch in my attempt, I will not get up and do the same thing again.
I will not assume the patio door is open when I race outside to chase leaves.
I will not stick my paw into any container to see if there is something in it. If I do, I will not hiss and scratch when my human has to shave me to get the rubber cement out of my fur.
If I bite the cactus, it will bite back.
When it rains, it will be raining on all sides of the house.
It is not necessary to check every door.
I will not play “dead cat on the stairs” while people are trying to bring in groceries or laundry, or else one of these days, it will really come true.
When the humans play darts, I will not leap into the air and attempt to catch them.
I will not swat my human’s head repeatedly when they are on the family room floor trying to do sit ups.
When my human is typing at the computer, their forearms are *not* a hammock.
Computer and TV screens do not exist to backlight my lovely tail.
I will not puff my entire body to twice its size for no reason after my human has watched a horror movie.
I will not stand on the bathroom counter, stare down the hall, and growl at NOTHING after my human has watched the X-Files.
I will not drag dirty socks onto the bed at night and then yell at the top of my lungs so that my humans can admire my “kill.”
I will not perch on my human’s chest in the middle of the night and stare until they wake up.
I will not walk on the key board when my human is writing important adagfsg gdjag ;ln.
From Pastor Tim’s Clean Laughs
According to CNN (among other sources), the average American gains 7 to 10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years Day. What is a person to do?
Well, to be honest, you shouldn’t you get yourself in that position to begin with. Moderation should be the watchword for those who tend to easily gain weight. If not, then there are some consequences that need to be addressed. Now how to lose that extra weight?
Now the first thing that some people will do is overreact. Throw themselves on the first diet that they see, and start eating diet-labeled foods. That’s the worst thing that you can do.
First of all, fad diets are short term, and don’t last. What does work is a moderate intake of a variety of food (you don’t need that third helping of pie…) and exercise. A new food pyramid at http://www.mypyramid.gov/ is a good start on the nutrition side of the equation.
Also on the food side, people like to think that if they drink diet colas and eat diet products that this will help with the calories. Wrong! The tendency is to drink more of the diet colas than normal because it’s diet.
Of a greater concern (at least to me) is the use of artificial sweeteners like aspartame (like NutriSweet and Equal). First of all, I cannot stand the taste of these products, and they tend to make me light-headed. And there seems to be a reason behind this.
According to Wikipedia:
In 1995, FDA Epidemiology Branch Chief Thomas Wilcox reported that aspartame complaints represented 75% of all reports of adverse reactions to substances in the food supply from 1981 to 1995. Concerns about aspartame frequently revolve around symptoms and health conditions that are allegedly caused by the sweetener. A total of 92 different symptoms and health conditions were reported by physicians and consumers.
The extreme side of this is a condition known as Aspartame Poisoning (information found here). What is also confusing is that aspartame has been approved by the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority. Personally, I would rather just deal with moderate portions than trying to cheat with a chemical that has the potential of having adverse effects.
Now the part that everyone talks about but few do – Exercise!! My wife and I have been going to the gym for almost two years. She has lost 25 pounds and several pant sizes. I have lost 20 pounds and three inches around the waist. Exercise only works if you are consistent in the time and frequency spent. It does work, but it takes time and dedication.
So when everyone is looking at the scale and trying to figure out how to lose those holiday pounds, breath in and relax. There are ways to deal with it, just don’t think that it will be as quick or as easy to get rid of them as it was putting them on.
Hope everyone has a wonderful New Years.
A tradition around our house is to listen to Christmas Music on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We usually try and get one or two CDs of new Christmas music. The CD that we purchased this year is Josh Grobin’s Noel. I highly recommend this CD.
Listening to the rendition of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” gave me pause to think and reflect. Included in the recording are greetings from members of our armed forces in Iraq to their loved ones. One cannot ignore the fact there are people making great sacrifices on our behalf, whether it is being away from their loved ones or giving their lives. One also reflects on that it is not just the present day situations, but those situations in years past, both in open war and war disguised as peace. Our soldiers are the most obvious of those making sacrifices, but there are others as well who make sacrifices just as important – their families. I know I have written about this before, but it doesn’t change throughout time.
In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility – I welcome it. – John F. Kennedy
And that is what our elected representatives and soldiers are charged with – defending freedom. There are those who decry our involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other places around the world. That is their right under our Constitution. But they need to answer the question, “Is the world a better place with us or would it be better without us?” If the answer to the question is in the affirmative, then the sacrifices of all throughout the years is justified. If the answer is in the negative, then they do not understand the role of this country in defending freedom in the world, and the sacrifices have been in vain.
It is an unfortunate fact that we can secure peace only by preparing for war. – John F. Kennedy
And sometime, to secure peace, war must be waged.
A people free to choose will always choose peace. – Ronald Reagan
And that is what this country must strive for, to champion the freedom of people to choose their own destiny, otherwise, any sacrifice in the name of freedom will be in vain.
As many of you have noticed (all five and a half readers), I haven’t been posting much. Life has, well, been busy.
Christmas this year will be a lonely one for the wife and myself. The son is spending his Christmas elsewhere, and this time, I’m the one that’s sick. A severe sinus infection is going to be the grinch that’s going to make my Christmas a miserable one.
But no matter – I have my wife, the cats, a roof over my head, food in my tummy, a job, and my (relative) health. No one can really ask for more and truly be happy or satisfied.
So when you gather around your Christmas tree and scarf down the holiday feast, count your blessings and remember those less fortunate than you in your prayers.
May everyone find peace in their hearts, and in doing so, bring peace to those around us.
…or to translate from German – “on the road again.” Yes, I’m a traveling man again, only this time, it’s overseas to Germany. The traveling won’t start until after the first of the year (thankfully).
I got picked for a program, interviewed, and then selected. It’s a big responsibility, and I’m pleased that they wanted me, but there is a downside.
Travel.
Fortunately, it doesn’t look to be over six months of foreign travel, but it looks like around a year in a plant in another state to help start the lines up. Ugh…but that’s part of the job.
An upside is that I just might have time to post and read everyone’s posts with a little more regularity than recently. And by the way, I’m counting on all of you to keep me informed on what’s going on back in the US.
So keep posting, and I’ll keep reading!
I haven’t posted for a while. Life has been extremely busy. Among the many seasonal activities (shopping, putting up the Christmas tree, wrapping presents, etc.), I’ve been converting an old laptop to run Linux. So far, everything works pretty good, although I’m still looking for a good offline blog editor that will run on Linux.
In looking around, I found the below. I present it as a public service announcement:
The AFLAC Scam
Watch out for this scam. Police say that the gang usually is comprised of four members, one adult and three younger ones.
While the three younger ones, all appearing sweet and innocent, divert their ‘mark’ (or intended target) with a show of friendliness , the fourth — the eldest — sneaks in from behind the person’s back to expertly rifle through his or her pockets and purses or bags for any valuables being carried.
The picture below shows the gang in operation.
With the previous post in place, it just doesn’t cease to amaze me that in the times that we live there are religious fanatics making the most outlandish statements and deadly actions. We have all seen the uproar of various radical elements of Islam over such mundane things as teddy bears and political cartoons. We have seen what we would call barbaric practices over criminal actions (chopping the hand off for theft), and the treatment of women (whipping the victim of a rape). Then there are the horrific attacks upon people not only not of their faith, but of the same religion. In many respects, these actions and reactions are a shadow of our own bloody past.
Punishments just as barbaric by today’s standards can be found in the Old Testament. However, over the years, Western civilization has endeavored to be more compassionate and forgiving, especially since Jesus Christ taught tolerance and forgiveness as being God’s will. But that has not necessarily been the Christian way…
I cannot defend the Christian faith as being pacifistic throughout its history. Many wars have been fought in God’s name and have used God as the justification for battle. If we look in the Old Testament of the Bible, there were wars fought on God’s behalf and direction. Just recently, the violence in Norther Ireland was, in part, due to religious differences between Catholics and Protestants. In light of such a bloody past, is Islam any different?
Perhaps not…
We, as Christians, tolerate other religions, especially in the United States. Our Bill of Rights states that a freedom to worship (or not) is up to the individual, not the government, and no religion or belief is to be held above all others. But that doesn’t mean that we like it, but we typically do not wage war against another faith, at least in these modern times. Tolerance and forgiveness is typically our creed.
Then perhaps I’m ignorant, but isn’t the violence advocated by the Islamic radicals over the acceptance of their religion over all others? If that is the case, then that is why they do not like free societies with their acceptance of multiple religions and beliefs. Indeed, the preferred government they advocate is a theocracy, a religious government.
But even then, what version of their belief would they have as their governing body? Sunni or Shiite? What are the differences between the two? You and I probably wouldn’t understand the differences that these two sects have, but it’s enough for them to war over each other for over 1100 years.
From George Mason University’s History News Network:
The groups first diverged after the Prophet Muhammad died in 632, and his followers could not agree on whether to choose bloodline successors or leaders most likely to follow the tenets of the faith.
The group now known as Sunnis chose Abu Bakr, the prophet’s adviser, to become the first successor, or caliph, to lead the Muslim state. Shiites favored Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law. Ali and his successors are called imams, who not only lead the Shiites but are considered to be descendants of Muhammad. After the 11th imam died in 874, and his young son was said to have disappeared from the funeral, Shiites in particular came to see the child as a Messiah who had been hidden from the public by God.
The largest sect of Shiites, known as “twelvers,” have been preparing for his return ever since.
How did the violence start?In 656, Ali’s supporters killed the third caliph. Soon after, the Sunnis killed Ali’s son Husain.
Fighting continued but Sunnis emerged victorious over the Shiites and came to revere the caliphate for its strength and piety.Shiites focused on developing their religious beliefs, through their imams.
The Sunni branch believes that the first four caliphs–Mohammed’s successors–rightfully took his place as the leaders of Muslims. They recognize the heirs of the four caliphs as legitimate religious leaders. These heirs ruled continuously in the Arab world until the break-up of the Ottoman Empire following the end of the First World War.
Shiites, in contrast, believe that only the heirs of the fourth caliph, Ali, are the legitimate successors of Mohammed.
So now the violence between the sects is over who is the legitimate head of Islam. Sort of reminds you about the early days of the Catholic Church, doesn’t it?
But regardless of who is supposed to be the legitimate head of Islam, this religion must come out of the dark ages and join the modern world. It must realize that preaching hate against non-Muslim countries and people is not the way to convert people to their religion nor to join the world community. But then, this hasn’t been their practice nor their aim. From a prior post:
Islam is a religion of conquest – it was spread by subjugation. The soldiers would ride into a village and wipe out any resistance. Afterward, they would gather up all the villagers, and separated the leaders. The Imam riding with the soldiers would then ask them one by one if they would accept Islam as their religion and Allah as their god. If not, the leader would be forced to kneel, and he was beheaded in front of the assembled villagers. This process usually didn’t last very long as the village saw which way this was going, so they would take vows to accept this new religion. Afterward, they would ride to the next village and repeat the “conversion” of the infidels.
The tribal mentality of the radical Islamists will only turn the world further against the religion as a whole. Many people are looking at Moslems as a whole to be dangerous fanatics even though they do not ascribe to the radical’s agenda.
What is the radical agenda? To subjugate the world under one religion: Islam. And they will do it in any way possible. And therein lies the danger.
This is where the ends justify the means. Bombings (suicide & other), attacks on civilians and soldiers alike, and hate-filled speech all drive this point home although it may be against the ultimate will of Allah. But that does not matter as long as the coming of the Islamic Messiah is hastened. A bloody legacy indeed.
I have posted other essays and opinions on this subject which state what the civilized world should do before the barbarians are at the gate and pounding it down. What say you?
