Say Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!?

Just overheard on the History Channel's Modern Marvels re: Coffee:

"We are passionate about instant coffee," --Sanka spokesperson.

Pardon me, but that's hysterical! I'd rather drink a soda in the morning than drink instant coffee! I want the real java, preferably ground just before brewing in a french press, so that the essential oils for good coffee form a nice skim on the top of my mug!

mmmmm, is it coffee time yet?

Political Philosophies

Basically, I think the partisan politics that have been playing out for the past 6 years are beyond retarded. Yes, I know that calling something retarded is not PC, but it is what it is.

And yet, as retarded as the childish, mud-slinging, "oh yeah, well MY party is better than YOURS," nature of contemporary American politicos is, it is 100% in line with our culture. Look at all of our dumb-da-dumb-dumb-dumb lawsuits, where people lacking ANY common sense are awarded huge settlements. Look at the mean-spirited, "I'm gonna get you," mentality amongst the celebs - who apparently model cultural standards?

Politics in America boil down to this simple truth: Regardless of party affiliation, those in the runnings for major offices simply cannot represent the common citizen of our country. These people are so rich, so privileged, they have NO connection to the common citizens of our country, thus will not know how to best represent them. And in the meantime, America continues to dumb down to the point where people don't think about writing their representatives and telling them the desires of their constituents. And, if we did, a lot of the politicians simply don't care..........hmmmm?

The two major parties are now such polar opposites, that it's rare to see them work together, save for at a more local level. And a third party? Puh-lease, we all know the only thing a third, fourth... party does is take votes away from one of the two majors, ensuring victory for the non-affected party.

It's frustrating to me....very frustrating.

Why is it?

That while I'm throwing a load of clothes into the dryer this morning, a completely random piece of information from my college biology days- ATP is the metabolic fuel for cellular energy; further, ATP stands for adenosine triphospate - enters into my consciousness, but I'll forget several times today where my keys are, what I just set out to do, etc?

My brain is like that, always spewing random trivia that I've learned somewhere along the line, at the most crazy times.

Preacher Challenge

Sunday, the preacher challenged us to consider only good thoughts about our church this week. No grumblings, coulda, woulda shoulda's, no bad whatsoever. Easy enough, b/c we have a terrific church body!

So, my Monday positive: We have a nice balance of old, young, and in between members, conservative and liberal, and it warms my heart to see our worship leaders balancing the song service to meet everyone's needs. (and, being the eclectic sort of music lover I am, I love the variety!)

Tuesday: We have a generous congregation. We have several members who have stepped up to the giving plate when times have been tight for our congregation, or just people in the body. It has always made me smile and think of Acts where the early Christians gave at every opportunity.

Wednesday: I LOVE the belief of my church that we are our own authorities regarding our faith. To elaborate, a pulpit minister is still just a man, and not more/less holy than any one of us in the audience. We are encouraged to discuss differences in interpretation of Scripture with the church leaders, and take responsibility for our walks with Jesus individually.

Thursday: We have been blessed with an amazing senior minister for the congregation. His insights fan the flame within me to be a better Christian. He makes the Old Testament relevant for me. When he came here, just 3 years ago, our church was a very divided and hurt church, and now, we're close and connected - a lot to do with his clinging to Jesus' message of love, hope and self-examination in my opinion. God knew what this messenger of His could do for us, and we are so blessed to have such a knowledgeable, ornery, and loving man as the communicator of our church!

More to come....

Ignorance ≠ compassion!

At church today, I was explaining to an older, female, distant relative-by-marriage about the homeless coordinator position. (NOT MIL, note the DISTANT, hee hee)

Said relative is perceived to be notoriously harsh by many in the congregation. Having talked with her about this years ago, she's told me, "I'm not harsh, I just ask questions, I'm curious!"

Well....this may be, but combined with her very direct statements of opinion, tone, etc, those questions tend to put most on the defensive, even me.

No sooner than I explained the position did the interrogation begin.

"You're not counting illegal immigrants are you? I don't believe they should be counted for; they spend enough of taxpayer monies," etc, etc.

I, myself, am torn re: the illegal immigration issue(s), but for the purposes of the count;
#1: I'm not designing the survey nor the the parameters as to who should take this survey, and
#2: It's a homeless persons count, not a homeless citizens count.

I tried to convey points 1 and 2, as well as the fact that this effort is NON-partisan. Then, I redirected with a fact from my previous homeless worker days, "More often than not, in our county homeless persons are actually working poor families."

"Well, those people should be working two jobs."

No, she di-uhn't!! Tell me she did not just say that!

"Some of them are, believe it or not. But, given that our welfare system penalizes, i.e. lowers/eliminates the benefits when there is an income, regardless if it's insufficient to live on, and there are children who are to be cared for in day care, and average market rate apartment housing that requires a minimum-wage earner to work at least 120 hrs/wk to afford, can you really tell me that their problems will all be solved if they just work harder? And that's just the "easy" cases - we're not even talking about the cases where there is a mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, domestic violence, disabilities, or addictions, that as much as a person may want to overcome - can't without HELP. It's not always that simple."

Now, I am not for a minute suggesting we as a society erase others' consequences for choices made. But what if we can help mitigate the effects, and meet them half-way, offer them the grace to at least get started on a second chance?

Stereotypes exist for a reason, b/c there is some fraction of truth to them, and this bit of truth makes critical thinking less analytically rational and more emotionally judgmental. In other words, stereotypes are the lazy person's friend when it comes to thinking; the lazy person does no work at all on the thoughts, and instead relies upon a seemingly tried and true categorization of deductions arrived upon a group of persons. Ahhh, but there's the rub....what seems true very often is NOT.

Jesus saw past stereotypes. He saw past the incorrigible prostitutes and depraved tax collectors, and instead saw hearts seeking love and truth in a hurting world. Seek and ye shall find. Both God in the flesh and these hurting people sought something. He sought sinners with a thirst for Truth. They sought answers, and found the One great Answer.

It makes me sad that hearts can be so hard, and minds so lazy that critical thinking is overlooked, compassion revoked. But, as in the apostle Paul's example, all the more, I rejoice. God has given me opportunity to remove barriers and speak truth in this quest for a homeless count. And through that, hearts may be softened, with servants crying out to the Master, "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. I have held hatred in my heart towards my brother. Teach me to love as Jesus did....." Please keep me in your prayers...to whom much is given, much is expected. Help me to live out my Father's will.

***btw, older female relative does try to love others, it's just not apparent at first glance. This is where I struggle with stereotypes - as I often just want to write her off as a judgmental legalist, but the Lord keeps showing me, in several dreams of late, that she has a heart for loving...may I always see the good and try to improve on what is lacking, versus fixating on the negative.***

Braggin' time

Yes, this is going to be self-promoting post. Note: I don't talk about myself irl like this as I'm actually prone to feeling quite insignificant, I figure this is my blog and since I'm using it for a variety of purposes, one being self-awareness and discovery in the midst of depression, I have every right to brag on myself!

Sooo...this week on the homeless count front:

-Monday, I wrote a report of completed activities on the project thus far, those up ahead, and attached an early revision of my contacts spreadsheet. Then I sent it to all who have put in to pay me, herein referred to as the "investors," as well as the state folks coordinating the project.

-Tuesday, I spoke to our local Homeless Task Force - a grassroots group comprised of agency reps and citizens who'd rather take a vigilante approach to our homeless problem, the latter of which have made this group rather ineffective. As luck would have it, the agency reps were pushing for more structure and organization for the HTF so they could become more effective, including prioritization of projects, clarifying missions and values, etc. I stepped right in, as the homeless count would be a terrific starting place - once the actual number for our area is known, it will give them a better idea of which things are first and second order on the task list. After that meeting, I spoke to our local paper's city reporter about the project, which went in the paper.

- The rest of the week, I worked on finishing the afore mentioned spreadsheet of contacts for the county. If anyone has any political aspirations in my county, I've got a great list of contacts going on: City Councilors, Town Trustees, Mayors, Citizen Advisory Boards and Commissions, Agencies both Government and Non-Profit, School District Contacts, Newspapers, Faith Community,etc etc.

-Yesterday, I worked on a press release and sent it to everyone on said contact list. did you know that Outlook won't allow 300 e-mail addys on the same distribution list? LOL

Also yesterday, the woman from the National Research Center in Boulder who is the Statewide Logistics Coordinator for the project, called me and told me how wonderful my work was and that she was going to be using it as a model for the other "rural" communities in the state that she would be working with! WOW! That was an awesome boost to the self-esteem :D

I'm hoping that my career path will be set with this project...God's blessed me much.

Hmmm?

Thanks to Purple Kangaroo, I took this quiz twice, with differing answers each time, but I guess I'm dominant to this category b/c this is where I ended up each time:

Which Classic Female Literary Character Are you?

You're Beth March of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott!
Take this quiz!

Quizilla Join Make A Quiz More Quizzes Grab Code

Quite flattering actually, but I don't see myself in such an altruistic way.

First blooms of the season

My lone little forget me not ahem, baby blue eyes bloom, an individual amongst the sprouted "surprise" variety of wildflowers we planted. It is the first of any of the wildflowers to bud, let alone bloom.

Then, our columbines (this blue variety being the CO state flower) just opened up yesterday, and we have a bunch more on the way.


Finally, our hot poker flower plant is true to form and producing a lot already. It's fun to watch the asparagus-looking buds go red to orange to yellow.








I think I've mentioned on here how LMNOB is a green thumb? Well she is, and she DELIGHTS in every seed, bud, blossom, and mature plant stage that gardening entails. I'd say the flowering stage is by far her favorite though. Every night this week we inspect the plants for new growth when we come home...and oh, the joy, the bliss on her face when there is new life to behold! And, the truth be told, it's on my face too...I've been thinking about God, during the time of creation and how much fun it must have been to craft all of these very different plants!

So...the other day, we're praying...

We, being myself, LMNOB, and Punkinhead, in the car on the way to daycare. LMNOB likes for me to go over items of concern, then pray in a manner where she repeats what I say. So, we prayed for: babies, both born and to be born (a boom at church ;) ), Daddy to have a good day, Mommy to be productive, LMNOB and Punkinhead to obey Miss B, and later Mommy and Daddy...etc.

"Dear Father, God in Heaven"

dear fodder, god in heavvvven

"Thank you so much for today and the blessings within it,"

tank you for today, and what a lovely day it is - is that pretty sky for me? Tanks anyway, even if it's not!

"Please be with Baby Hank, and make him strong to go home,"

and PLEASE make his mama not so sore anymore too!

"Thank you for the miracle of Baby Hank, Lord and be with Miss A and the baby boy she's expecting,"

Mama, what's his name gonna be?

"We're praying, sweet..." prompting to repeat above.

tanks for Baby Hank, God, he's just not so big, so help him get bigger. Oh, and make Miss A's baby come out, else he's gonna be tooo big. Mama, that's an opposite! Baby Hank and Miss A's babies will be opposites, big and li'l!

*giggle* look upward, remind my heavenly father of his words re: children, and wonder, do WE get in their way of seeking Him, or do they just meander in their thoughts too much? Smile deeply. Almost there...

Rushing, "Be with Daddy and give him peace during a hard day, Lord. And be with Mama so that she can do good things for people who need it. And be with me and brother so we will be good today...."

Be with Daddy and give him peace during a hard day, Lord. And be with Mama so's 'at she can do good tings for people who need it. And be with me and brudder so we will be good today

"In Jesus' name"

in Jesus' name,

"Amen" (pronounced Ay-men)

hoity-toity corrective tone: AAAHHH-men! Mama, that’s the way some people say it.

LOL....the Legacy of Little Miss Can't be Wrong lives on. This fall will be interesting when she starts school!

Loving my Lord, the Life He's given me, and my Lovey

LOL, Loving my Lovey...I'm just a regular sentimental cheeseball tonight, but I do!

I came across this passage in Isaiah earlier this week and sent it to my friend S, whose husband is battling sexual addiction:

Isaiah 14
A Taunt for Babylon's King
1But the LORD will have mercy on the descendants of Jacob. Israel will be his special people once again. He will bring them back to settle once again in their own land. And people from many different nations will come and join them there and become a part of the people of Israel.[a] 2The nations of the world will help the LORD's people to return, and those who come to live in their land will serve them. Those who captured Israel will be captured, and Israel will rule over its enemies.
3In that wonderful day when the LORD gives his people rest from sorrow and fear, from slavery and chains, 4you will taunt the king of Babylon (Satan). You will say, "The mighty man has been destroyed. Yes, your insolence is ended. 5For the LORD has crushed your wicked power and broken your evil rule. 6You persecuted the people with unceasing blows of rage and held the nations in your angry grip. Your tyranny was unrestrained. 7But at last the land is at rest and is quiet. Finally it can sing again! 8Even the trees of the forest--the cypress trees and the cedars of Lebanon--sing out this joyous song: `Your (Satan’s) power is broken! No one will come to cut us down now!'
9"In the place of the dead[b] there is excitement over your arrival. World leaders and mighty kings long dead are there to see you. 10With one voice they all cry out, `Now you are as weak as we are! 11Your might and power are gone; they were buried with you. All the pleasant music in your palace has ceased. Now maggots are your sheet and worms your blanket.'
12"How you are fallen from heaven, O shining star, son of the morning (Satan)! You have been thrown down to the earth, you who destroyed the nations of the world. 13For you said to yourself, `I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God's stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. 14I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.' 15But instead, you will be brought down to the place of the dead, down to its lowest depths. 16Everyone there will stare at you and ask, `Can this be the one who shook the earth and the kingdoms of the world? 17Is this the one who destroyed the world and made it into a wilderness? Is this the king who demolished the world's greatest cities and had no mercy on his prisoners?'
18"The kings of the nations lie in stately glory in their tombs, 19but you will be thrown out of your grave like a worthless branch. Like a corpse trampled underfoot, you will be dumped into a mass grave with those killed in battle. You will descend to the pit. 20You will not be given a proper burial, for you have destroyed your nation and slaughtered your people. Your son will not succeed you as king. 21Kill the children of this sinner! Do not let them rise and conquer the land or rebuild the cities of the world."
22This is what the LORD Almighty says: "I, myself, have risen against him! I will destroy his (Satan’s) children and his children's children, so they will never sit on his throne. (And He HAS!!! He is RISEN!) 23I will make Babylon into a desolate land, a place of porcupines, filled with swamps and marshes. I will sweep the land with the broom of destruction. I, the LORD Almighty, have spoken!"

In NO uncertain terms, the Lord has won this battle over Satan, and it is SO comforting to me to repeat verse two, particularly the latter half: Those who captured Israel will be captured, and Israel will rule over its enemies. It's not just a hope I cling to, but a living truth that has been played out in a very real way in my marriage. My husband has risen up to be a mighty warrior for God. He's reading the Word - actually READING it, on his own, apart from Bible Class/Church. This is a first in ...EVER, at least in 8 yrs of marriage. And how sexy and romantic this is to me! My need for Charlie Brown to be a spiritual leader in our home has gone unmet for a number of years, but now, Satan- who once captured Charlie Brown is now defeated and Charlie Brown is ruling over him, by the grace and transforming power of Jesus.

Abba, Abba Father! I love you and thank you for this priceless gift of love! Your gifts of love upon me are so numerous, from Jesus offering salvation, to the teachers of the truth you've blessed me with, to my children, friends, etc. Salvation alone is wonderous enough, but that you keep on pouring your blessings on me humbles me. A million thank you's are never enough!
I pray that you are with our many friends experiencing trial right now. Lord bless them with the comfort of your arms, bind the influence of the evil one, and remove it from their lives, Father. Be with those who are graduating and moving to a new phase in life right now, Lord. Guard their tender hearts and direct them in paths of righteousness. Strengthen them and blossom them into the men and women you would have them be.

I just want to be where You are
Dwelling daily in your presence
Take me to the place where you are,
I just want to be with You...

Be with us Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen.

I'm SOOOOOOOOO TIRED!!!

Friday didn't come fast enough yesterday. This was my first week working the new part-time job as homeless count coordinator, in addition to my normal part-time job as municipal employee. 40 hours isn't so hard when it's evenly dispersed over a 5 day period....but, halfway through the week, that balance shifted.

On Wednesday, there was a statewide conference that Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, (CCH) sponsored, and in one of their breakout sessions was a training for those who would be involved with the statewide homeless count on August 28th. Being true to their metrocentric form, CCH scheduled the blasted event from 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM. I had to leave at 6:15 AM just to get there on time, which, ladies with wavy hair will appreciate and knowingly nod along in sympathy regarding the fact that for me to have been up, hair straightened nicely, made up to look professional, organized to the extra business cards in the bag before I left, etc - I HAD TO BE UP AT 5:30 AM!!! I'm so not a morning person! But I did it, with massive amounts of caffeine coursing through my veins. CCH's director, Mr. Non-Dynamic Speaker with a horribly monotone voice, tendency to go on and on AND ON , let alone a very narcissistic agenda for his agency proceeded to get all of us workers from the "rural" areas to all but protest: . Don't get me wrong, his agency does great work, in DENVER. CCH, to the rest of us, is little more than a paradoxical agency, displaying overbearing micromanagement in their role as fiscal agent and yet a very keen disinterest in the unique needs of the "rural" balance of state (probably most notable when a couple of years ago CCH was under sanctions with HUD b/c of improper usage of federal dollars and their subgrantees had to operate CCH funded programs for 9 mos without funding!), and has long since frustrated many to tears.

You see, we aren't Denver in a number of ways. Predominantly, we're not the same political climate, at least not at the leadership levels. Secondly, because our experience of homelessness is different - often hidden and not the in your face panhandling variety of many urban homeless - our communities do not have a reason, desire, etc. to change this difference in political climate. Another thing is that our homeless populations are TOTALLY different - so what works in Denver, may not work in other cities/towns through the state. And that, is where CCH's arrogance comes in. Mr. Non-Dynamic Speaker went on this asininely long diatribe touting the agency's many successes in the past year. The implicit message was rife with the understanding that all we had to do was mirror them, with their help, and we could have the same successes. And nevermind the above cited differences, we're supposed to have the same FISCAL RESOURCES to implement these programs? Thank you, CCH for solving all of Colorado's homeless issues...or not. Anyway, I digress...my very LONG point here, is that most of what ended up to be a 12 hour day was really useless to me, equivalent to Ron White's joke about ear rape. The part that I attended for, was actually really good, and gave me what I believe to be a leading edge. That day wasn't over at 4:30...no, I still had prime-time rush-hour traffic to face on my ride home. Then, when home, it was cook, clean, put the kids to bed, etc. Didn't hit the pillow until 11:00...AAAck!

Then....Thursday, I ended up meeting with a church who had approached my office about our City's homeless needs. Since it related to the Count...yeah. I'd gone to work at my normal 8:30 and got home just before 9:30. Bed at 11:30 that night....then dh gets frisky in the middle of the night....normally, I'm ALL for midnight nookie, but that night, I was SOOO "just have your way with me and hurry, 'k?" LOL.

Friday, I have a breakfast meeting with some key players about homeless discharge planning, a huge item of research I tackled last year in aiding my boss with developing the city's 5 yr. consolidated plan, and the count. By 2 that afternoon, my brain resembled an old campaign: , no drugs involved, per se, but apparent lack of sleep, which researchers now say can be equivalent. We DID have date night that night, but I'm ashamed to say I became rather maudlin and no fun to be around after a 23ox light beer with dinner. Self-sabotage?!?

Today? Our neighbors were moving, and Charlie Brown helped via manpower. Me? I watched 4 children 2-5 yrs of age...then took LMNOB to a 5 y/o b'day party for 2 hrs. Then, Charlie Brown and I attempted to take them to Home Depot for some landscaping needs we'd wanted to address...well, we actually did, but it was with an assaulting barrage of whining, sibling attacks, and flat out disrespect, that it didn't have any resmblance to the outing Charlie and I had in mind.

Now...it's nearing 11:00, yet again. I'm not in bed, we have roughly 10 loads of laundry that are dirty, begging my grudging attention to my domestic neglect this week, my eyes burn this week with what I imagine are allergies, and I'm only 24 hours from preparing for my return to the work week. And yes, there is another long day in Denver this week - for my municipal job this time.

In the words of Shania..."Man, I feel like a woman"

particularly those too-tired, always got a headache women who prefer sleep over sex whom I never used to identify with....

it's happening...

I'm getting older