So the young'un went with my mom to visit her side of the family for Turkey Day (I had to work the Friday & Saturday afterward, because babies apparently don't get the memo that we'd like a day off here & there!). Anyway, so while they're there, my grandfather asks the wee one what the difference is between a 'Mexicano' and a 'gringo'.
His response: "A Mexicano is a big man that eats a lot of hot chiles. A gringo just eats peanut butter and jelly sandwiches."
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Tonight I put my child to bed at around 8:30pm, pretty much the usual. Wasn't sure if he was going to be tired or not - he got up around 11 this morning, due to being up a couple times during the night sick (stupid live nasal H1N1 vax!). Anyway, he has watched Wall-E this week and has had Wall-E brain. *I of course always have to be Eve because I'm a girl.* (As much as I hate the actual premise of the movie, Wall-E himself is a pretty endearing character.)
I hear puttering around coming around from his room around 9:30pm, go in to check on him, he is not in his bed nor on the bottom bunk either. Ask hubby if he's seen him, get a no. Of course, the worst-case scenario goes through my mind! I go look under his bed *justincase* and two big bright eyes look back at me and my child tells me, "I'm just being Wall-E. I'm cubing up and shutting down for the night, Mommy."
What a funny kid.
I hear puttering around coming around from his room around 9:30pm, go in to check on him, he is not in his bed nor on the bottom bunk either. Ask hubby if he's seen him, get a no. Of course, the worst-case scenario goes through my mind! I go look under his bed *justincase* and two big bright eyes look back at me and my child tells me, "I'm just being Wall-E. I'm cubing up and shutting down for the night, Mommy."
What a funny kid.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Fat day
I'm having an 'I'm fat and I don't care' day. That translates into - eating chocolate chip cookie dough (which I bought specifically to be eaten raw) and watching 'The Golden Girls.' There. Take that, skinny people!
I'll go for a walk later today.
And, my mom now knows that we're trying for baby #2. Feels better to have that horse out of the barn.
I'll go for a walk later today.
And, my mom now knows that we're trying for baby #2. Feels better to have that horse out of the barn.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Ft. Hood
A few things amaze me about Ft. Hood. (Before I start, however, let me say how my heart breaks for the folks who lost their lives, as well as for their families. I'm a military family member too and this hits close to home for me as well.)
1) Maj. Hasan walks into a base and kills 13 unarmed Americans, he's vile, a coward, hated, and people are calling for his head on a platter. Troops in Afghanistan kill 13 unarmed Afghans, it is barely even newsworthy. Why the disconnect? Why do lives matter, even to 'pro-life' Americans, only if they are American troop lives? (And sometimes, given the warmongering that so often comes from that contingent, I wonder if American troop lives even matter.)
2) I have heard from several news entities that Maj. Hasan experienced a bit of cognitive dissonance (if you want to call it that) over this country being at war in Muslim nations. He fought deployment to Iraq and tried to fight deployment to Afghanistan as well, because he did not want to be part of an invading force against Muslims (doesn't seem likely that he'd have been in direct combat ops but still part of the force). I hear this as if it's such a big deal. Shouldn't Christians refuse to take up arms against fellow Christians as well? (Really, I think Christians should refuse to take up arms period, as they did in the first 3 centuries after Christ, but that's a different story.)
3) I find it quite disturbing how the military in general operates toward its members. We who pride ourselves on the freedoms we have, for not feeling the need to go along with the 'sheeple', for some reason we have no problem with the government stripping our troops of the rights we shout and protest for in the streets. I have to wonder - had this man been able to switch positions or duty stations, like civilians can - would we be grieving as we are today? The whole way in which the military operates on the principle that they own their troops...it bothers me immensely.
4) I personally wish this man had deserted instead of killing people. Desertion isn't a pretty process and doesn't come without a price, but it's preferable to murder.
I found this on the blog God's Politics, and thought it to be one of the most well-thought-out responses to the insanity of the shooting and its aftermath.
1) Maj. Hasan walks into a base and kills 13 unarmed Americans, he's vile, a coward, hated, and people are calling for his head on a platter. Troops in Afghanistan kill 13 unarmed Afghans, it is barely even newsworthy. Why the disconnect? Why do lives matter, even to 'pro-life' Americans, only if they are American troop lives? (And sometimes, given the warmongering that so often comes from that contingent, I wonder if American troop lives even matter.)
2) I have heard from several news entities that Maj. Hasan experienced a bit of cognitive dissonance (if you want to call it that) over this country being at war in Muslim nations. He fought deployment to Iraq and tried to fight deployment to Afghanistan as well, because he did not want to be part of an invading force against Muslims (doesn't seem likely that he'd have been in direct combat ops but still part of the force). I hear this as if it's such a big deal. Shouldn't Christians refuse to take up arms against fellow Christians as well? (Really, I think Christians should refuse to take up arms period, as they did in the first 3 centuries after Christ, but that's a different story.)
3) I find it quite disturbing how the military in general operates toward its members. We who pride ourselves on the freedoms we have, for not feeling the need to go along with the 'sheeple', for some reason we have no problem with the government stripping our troops of the rights we shout and protest for in the streets. I have to wonder - had this man been able to switch positions or duty stations, like civilians can - would we be grieving as we are today? The whole way in which the military operates on the principle that they own their troops...it bothers me immensely.
4) I personally wish this man had deserted instead of killing people. Desertion isn't a pretty process and doesn't come without a price, but it's preferable to murder.
I found this on the blog God's Politics, and thought it to be one of the most well-thought-out responses to the insanity of the shooting and its aftermath.
As the facts continue to be revealed in this tragedy, Major Hasan will most definitely be the focus of an entire nation’s rage. Without a doubt, he will suffer the unforgiving wrath of public opinion. As the Church, I hope we can find it in ourselves to encourage our neighbors and friends to remember his humanity, however tarnished it has become, and extend to him what compassion we can muster. If we succumb to the temptation to hold malice and rage towards Major Hasan, we will, as John Howard Yoder might put it, become just another sociological reflection of the world and embody the message that there is truly nothing new about Christ. We have a beautiful opportunity, as Christ’s body, to show the world that hatred and scorn, and ultimately violence, does not have to have the last word. (link)
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Veterans Day
Veterans Day always makes me stop and think.
I used to be a big 'thank the troops' person; not anymore. 'Thank a vet' has, for me, morphed into 'Hug a vet' for a few reasons that I think are valid. Hugging is a bit less socially appropriate but the things combat vets have done and seen, I don't see that they want our thanks. Among the vets I know (most of them combat vets), they'd rather not relive all that. Thank them for killing people? Thank them for participating in things they didn't always agree with? Thank them for watching their buddies get blown to smithereens? Thank them for obeying the orders of the State? I don't think so.
So, I say hug a vet instead. Different meaning conveyed altogether. It says, 'I care that you suffered as you did. I care that you went and did and saw things that no one should ever have to do or see. I care that you didn't know you could say no. I care that you cannot put it out of your mind. I care that you lost buddies to the jungle, to machine guns, to an IED, to suicide. I care that some of your wounds have not healed.' That's why I say 'hug a vet' instead.
I used to be a big 'thank the troops' person; not anymore. 'Thank a vet' has, for me, morphed into 'Hug a vet' for a few reasons that I think are valid. Hugging is a bit less socially appropriate but the things combat vets have done and seen, I don't see that they want our thanks. Among the vets I know (most of them combat vets), they'd rather not relive all that. Thank them for killing people? Thank them for participating in things they didn't always agree with? Thank them for watching their buddies get blown to smithereens? Thank them for obeying the orders of the State? I don't think so.
So, I say hug a vet instead. Different meaning conveyed altogether. It says, 'I care that you suffered as you did. I care that you went and did and saw things that no one should ever have to do or see. I care that you didn't know you could say no. I care that you cannot put it out of your mind. I care that you lost buddies to the jungle, to machine guns, to an IED, to suicide. I care that some of your wounds have not healed.' That's why I say 'hug a vet' instead.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Friday, November 06, 2009
The latter things, and the former things
Funny how God speaks to me through Scripture that the preacher's not even preaching about during church. Wednesday night he was talking about something completely unrelated but my eyes wandered over to this passage and it hit me like a ton of bricks!!
Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue, and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. (Luke 11:42)
And I am so good at the very same thing. I'm really good at going to church and doing my Bible study group every Wednesday and doing my homework in between the Bible studies. But where in my life do I take the time to do, as Micah said, and as Christ commands here, to act justly and love mercy? How do I see to it that the refuse of our society - the homeless, the addicts, the prisoners, immigrants, the elderly, the most marginalized - what am I doing to see that they are loved? I'm good at talking about it. What am I doing to make sure that these folks see Christ in me?
There's nothing wrong with going to Bible studies and church and all that. It's a command, in fact. But what am I doing outside that? Nothing. And that is not cool at all. Because if I can tell everybody else they have to be born again to see Heaven because Christ said so, then you can tell me that I have to actively love people...because Christ said that too.
I am searching for ways to do this. I am looking for ways to love people actively.
Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue, and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. (Luke 11:42)
And I am so good at the very same thing. I'm really good at going to church and doing my Bible study group every Wednesday and doing my homework in between the Bible studies. But where in my life do I take the time to do, as Micah said, and as Christ commands here, to act justly and love mercy? How do I see to it that the refuse of our society - the homeless, the addicts, the prisoners, immigrants, the elderly, the most marginalized - what am I doing to see that they are loved? I'm good at talking about it. What am I doing to make sure that these folks see Christ in me?
There's nothing wrong with going to Bible studies and church and all that. It's a command, in fact. But what am I doing outside that? Nothing. And that is not cool at all. Because if I can tell everybody else they have to be born again to see Heaven because Christ said so, then you can tell me that I have to actively love people...because Christ said that too.
I am searching for ways to do this. I am looking for ways to love people actively.
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Books
I just finished reading The Road Back, by Erich Maria Remarque, more well-known for his classic All Quiet on the Western Front. The Road Back is a continuation of that story.
To say it's a really good read is an understatement. Both books are excellent, really. I've read All Quiet twice, and shed tears both times, and did the same during the movie based on the book. I truly believe anyone who votes to send boys off to fight in wars should read both these books before they vote.
There is another, Three Comrades, that I'm anxious to read, but I've checked out a couple books from the library that I have to read first.
And...a song by Elton John. Can't embed it in here so I've enclosed a link. (Warning: a few graphic images.)
Probably what those books did for me is show me the universality of war. In that war (a completely unnecessary one, by the way) Germany was supposed to be our enemy. Yet in these books, one can't help but feel sympathy and grief for these poor fellows fighting a war that their government has told them is necessary, that they don't really understand, don't really care to be fighting, and all they really want is to get home. Could that not be any soldier fighting any war anywhere in the world? And since people are people everywhere, do we really need to be killing our fellow humans??
Tough reads but well worth it.
To say it's a really good read is an understatement. Both books are excellent, really. I've read All Quiet twice, and shed tears both times, and did the same during the movie based on the book. I truly believe anyone who votes to send boys off to fight in wars should read both these books before they vote.
There is another, Three Comrades, that I'm anxious to read, but I've checked out a couple books from the library that I have to read first.
And...a song by Elton John. Can't embed it in here so I've enclosed a link. (Warning: a few graphic images.)
Probably what those books did for me is show me the universality of war. In that war (a completely unnecessary one, by the way) Germany was supposed to be our enemy. Yet in these books, one can't help but feel sympathy and grief for these poor fellows fighting a war that their government has told them is necessary, that they don't really understand, don't really care to be fighting, and all they really want is to get home. Could that not be any soldier fighting any war anywhere in the world? And since people are people everywhere, do we really need to be killing our fellow humans??
Tough reads but well worth it.
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Puck that
I've recently become obsessed with NHL hockey. I think it's started when my friend Kirsi, who came to see us for a few days this summer, and I went to see the Hurricanes' last playoff game vs. the Penguins. We went because she is Finnish, she loves hockey, and there are several Finns that play for them. Anyway....
It was a terrible game, a nightmare. A horrible beating that you can't divert your eyes from (my blog, my grammatical rules). But I LOVED it, had a BLAST. The sounds of the stick on the puck, the sound of bodies slamming against the boards, the smell of the ice (yes, ice does have a smell, at least hockey arena ice does!), the fast pace of the game, the grittiness, the feel that it's a working-man's game...I loved it all. Even the fights, pacifist that I am. (Knowing that these guys get paid an insane amount of money helps me not feel too sorry for them.) It is all so intriguing....and I somehow can't get enough of it.
Recently we cancelled several channels from our satellite service, and I didn't realize that among the channels we cancelled were the Fox Sports channels, which is where we get our hockey...check that, where I get MY hockey from. So, that result in a lightning-fast subscription to NHL Gamecenter, which allows me to watch any game I want on my laptop. Any game from this year or from their archive, I can watch multiple games at once, or I do a picture-in-picture dealio. Pretty sweet for $20 a month.
Other than the Canes, I have no particular team that I root for. I just watch 'em all to get a feel for rules (I am still learning) and I like seeing what the Canes have to look forward to, depending on who's playing, of course.
My husband thinks hockey is stupid but I don't care for two reasons: 1) I think he'd like it if I could just get him to see that it's essentially soccer on ice; and 2) he likes and does so much for which he doesn't ask my approval, it just seems fair. So far the Canes are off to a pretty sucky season but I'm used to that. I'm a Cubs fan.
So between the NHL and Heels basketball, this fall/winter oughta be pretty sweet.
It was a terrible game, a nightmare. A horrible beating that you can't divert your eyes from (my blog, my grammatical rules). But I LOVED it, had a BLAST. The sounds of the stick on the puck, the sound of bodies slamming against the boards, the smell of the ice (yes, ice does have a smell, at least hockey arena ice does!), the fast pace of the game, the grittiness, the feel that it's a working-man's game...I loved it all. Even the fights, pacifist that I am. (Knowing that these guys get paid an insane amount of money helps me not feel too sorry for them.) It is all so intriguing....and I somehow can't get enough of it.
Recently we cancelled several channels from our satellite service, and I didn't realize that among the channels we cancelled were the Fox Sports channels, which is where we get our hockey...check that, where I get MY hockey from. So, that result in a lightning-fast subscription to NHL Gamecenter, which allows me to watch any game I want on my laptop. Any game from this year or from their archive, I can watch multiple games at once, or I do a picture-in-picture dealio. Pretty sweet for $20 a month.
Other than the Canes, I have no particular team that I root for. I just watch 'em all to get a feel for rules (I am still learning) and I like seeing what the Canes have to look forward to, depending on who's playing, of course.
My husband thinks hockey is stupid but I don't care for two reasons: 1) I think he'd like it if I could just get him to see that it's essentially soccer on ice; and 2) he likes and does so much for which he doesn't ask my approval, it just seems fair. So far the Canes are off to a pretty sucky season but I'm used to that. I'm a Cubs fan.
So between the NHL and Heels basketball, this fall/winter oughta be pretty sweet.
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