Today was my last day (of this session) at the Healthcare Institute in Milwaukee. 3 long weeks of technical training is finally done. The new all digital (filmless) Xray systems are pretty cool. I get a month at home before I return for the next session.

3 minutes to the debates. What position will Kerry take??? I can't wait to see how long it takes one of them to break the "debate rules". I'm betting on less than 5 minutes.

I am co-writing a play about breast cancer. We are still in the very early stages of developement with it and are conducting research to help with characterizations. We have developed some preliminary questionnaires focusing on the person who actually has/had the breast cancer, the family/friends/clergy, doctors/surgeons, and other care providers. If you - or anybody you know - would like to help with this, let me know & I'll email you the appropriate questionnaire(s).

In case anyone is wondering, no flooding at our house :) Escaped again! I'm worried about a couple of the trees in the yard with the soggy ground though. Hope we don't get a windstorm any time soon!

I found the ultimate Kerry campaign commercial:

click here

Yes, I did have a birthday. Tried to slip it by. It feels good to be 27 again. It was okay. I went to dinner with a friend - morroccon food. Yum!
I bought myself a digital camera for my birthday. I like it. I've been having a lot of fun with it.

another one for the unfortunate names list
I found out today there is a girl who works at micron named Natasha Diklic.
Just had to share

Tylar is sick again. *sigh*

I had hoped this would be an audio blog from the event, but I forgot my phone in the car. Doh!

This is your favorite bleeding heart liberal tree hugging sister/cousin here, recently returned from the City of Brotherly Love. I took a vacation day from work and spent the day at a Kerry rally at Univ. of Penn. I got to be right up front with my special red colored "veteran for kerry" ticket. I actually shook the hand of the man I hope is the next President of the US :) I've never been to a political rally and I really enjoyed it. I know probably most of you disagree with me, but I like Kerry and agree with most of his ideas. I don't trust Dubya and never have. Anyway, I'm going to go call people in Iowa now to get volunteers to help in the voter registration drive there :)

Kerry On :p

Tami

I refinished my dresser for my CDs and extra cables the pic doesn't do it justice Tami sugested I blot it with plastic wrap to give it a leather look It turned out cool I had to strip 4 colors of paint off it 

Rock and Roll Guitars 

comfey corner 

all moved in 

Missy had a birthday and didn't tell us? How unfair! Lets all join in on a little chorus for her....Ready? uh 1, and uh 2, and uh
Happy Birthday to you...happy birthday to you...happy birthday dear MISSY.......happy birthday to you!!

And we can't forget about Ronnie either. Happy birthday lil bro!

Melvin ... how was your birthday?

Another GeorgeWannabee!! 

Ronnie's room is done now and he is all moved in. It looks wonderful! He did a great job. We now
have 1 extra bedroom for people to stay in upstairs. The kids haven't said they needed to move
back in yet. We are hoping it stays that way for a little while! :)

last chance to sponsor either me or Ed for the JDRF walk this Sunday.

Ed: http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=85894304

Me: http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=85819842

So ... UVSC (Utah Valley State College) has booked Michael Moore (for an ungodly amount of money which is coming out of student fees) to speak 2 weeks before the election. There is some talk now about booking Sean Hannity, as well. Apparently Hannity has publicly challenged Moore to a debate. Moore has not answered the challenge.
I think it's a good idea. BUT, they have to have Jerry Springer as the moderator. They could put it on pay-per-view and call it, "EXTREME DEBATE: Battle of the Asses!" And they should get the, "Get ready to rumblllllllllllllle" guy to introduce everybody & get things started.
I'd even spring for the popcorn to see that.

(I am so sick of extremists. Can ya tell?)

Answers to your diet questions:

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life. Is this true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats and that's it. Don't
waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your
heart will not make you live longer. That's like saying you can extend the life of your car
by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay
and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than
an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain?

Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass, a green leafy
vegetable. And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily
allowance of vegetable slop.

Q: Is beer or wine bad for me?
A: Look, it goes to the earlier point about fruits and vegetables. As
we all know, scientists divide everything in the world into three
categories: animal, mineral, and vegetable. We all know that beer and
wine are not animal or mineral, so that only leaves one thing, right?
My advice: Have a burger and a beer and enjoy your vegetables.

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body, and you have body fat, your ratio is one
to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular
exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No pain... Good.

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: You're not listening. Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil.
How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You
should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

Q: Is chocolate bad for me?
A: Are you crazy? HELLO... Cocoa beans; another vegetable!!! "It's the
best feel-good food around!"

Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and
diets. Have a cookie... One more thing... "When life
hands you lemons, ask for tequila and salt."

The Music room is making progress. I finished the grout and started the finish work. I decided to create all the door and window trim from scratch I created this trim from 1X2 pine boards. I made custom corner pieces and painted the old base board. It's comming along if I do say so myself

Shelf and window trim 

corner baseboard 

Door trim 

Happy Grandparent's Day!! 

I watched a program on the DIY Network today about fixing up a Music Room at home.
I thought about you, Ronnie.

Ponderosa Ranch was cool. Too bad is closes forever the end of this month. I really enjoyed it. After stopping there I went to Kings Beach on Northshore of Lake Tahoe and waded in the lake. It is quite beautiful there. I could do this everyday.
Museum day was good - 4 museums. Who knew we had that many? hmmm
I am more relaxed and may be able to go back to the "evil place" on Monday and not hit anyone.

Le - blood could also be a UTI or stones.

I'm off for another 3 weeks of training at GE's Healthcare Institute in Milwaukee starting monday. I have 12 weeks of training left between now and springtime. The toughest classes will be on mri systems, that starts in December.

We're pretty much settled into the new house and job now. Nice quiet neighborhood.

FOOD FUNNIES: Signs Dieting Has Taken Over Your Life
===============================================

10. You just paid $5 for a bottle of water because the label says it's low carb.

9. You make your wife wear lo cal lipstick.

8. You spend more time calculating carbs, calories and fat for
one meal than you did preparing your income tax return.

7. Your only jewelry? Your "WWRSD" (What Would Richard Simmon's Deal?) bracelet.

6. You walked past a bakery... and punished yourself with four
hours on the StairMaster just for looking in the window.

5. You buy the "Young Elvis" stamps instead of the "Old Elvis"
stamps because they have less fat.

4. You look for the carb count on your bottle of shampoo.

3. You can't remember your anniversary, phone number or PIN, but you know the exact carb count of everything in your house, including the cat.

2. You've begun hearing voices in your head -- and they all sound like Al Roker and Richard Simmons.

... and the #1 Sign Dieting Has Taken Over Your Life ...

1. You skip drinking them for a day, and you actually start
getting the "Slim Fast Shakes."

So, is blood in the urine that big a deal, really?

hmmm you are all working so hard. I am on vacation!!! I am exploring the area I live in. (translation -- can't afford a "real" vacation) Yesterday I went to the Jelly Belly factory and Busch factory. It was fun. The roasted garlic jelly beans are actually pretty good. Now if they could come up with Brie and pate to go with them. mmmmmm Busch factory gives you 2 free drinks before the tour. The Bacardi Raz is YUM and a half!!! Today was museum day. 4 museums!! Very fun, very cool (okay geek but fun). Tomorrow is either clean the spare room or Ponderosa Ranch, where Bonanza was filmed.
Destress week is going well!

I guess I could clarify, on August 14th Dusty got his own apartment and I inherited his room. I immediately tore up the stained carpet and started to remodel I patched all the nail holes in my new "Music Room" and stripped all the trim wood from the door frames and windows. This weekend I painted the walls and ceiling, installed a new light fixture and laid tile (Boy am I tired) I should get the grout done this week sometime and get started on the trim work. I can't wait to move in

I have been busy too. new tile and walls 

new lighting 

My new red walls. Purdy, huh?

Why women live longer! 

Hey!! Ronnie....when did you come up with this?

You can find anything on the Internet!

This is a database of recipes for large quantity cooking. (Or a place to search for that one dish you loved while in the Navy!)


Naval Logistical Library Recipe Search offers a search device for over 1300 standardized recipes for 100 people. A slowloading list of all the recipe and guideline titles includes a complete introduction to quantity cooking equipment, recipes, and techniques. You must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in for your browser to use the recipes at the Navy site.

Ray and I went to our 1st Grandparents Day Celebration! It was at Alana's school and it lasted a whole 15 minutes!! The PreK classes performed with the Kindergartners and sang 3 rousing songs! "Itsy-bitsy Spider", "The Wheels on the Bus", and "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear". It was so cute to see Alana with the other kids. She looked like she was petrified; she kept looking at "Jacob"....a little boy she is sweet on. He was standing right next to her and she kept glancing his way for guidance.

She is "all over the walls" at home...but, there she is so quiet. The little boy she likes is a little hyper, but, Alana is a calming force to him. The teacher keeps Alana near by to keep him quiet! J.T. is beside himself! Alana has been saying that she and Jacob are having a sleepover!

Grandparents Day isn't until September 12th...I couldn't resist this joke!
*********************

WHAT IS A GRANDPARENT?
(taken from papers written by a class of 8-year-olds)

Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of her own. They like other people's.

A grandfather is a man grandmother.

Grandparents don't have to do anything except be there when we come to see them. They are so old they shouldn't play hard or run. It is good if they drive us to the store and have lots of quarters for us.

When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.

They show us and talk to us about the color of the flowers and also Why we shouldn't step on "cracks."

They don't say, "Hurry up."

Usually grandmothers are fat, but not too fat to tie your shoes.

They wear glasses and funny underwear.

They can take their teeth and gums out.

Grandparents don't have to be smart.

They have to answer questions like "why isn't God married?" and "How come dogs chase cats?".

When they read to us, they don't skip. They don't mind if we ask for the same story over again.

Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don't have television, because they are the only grown ups who like to spend time with us.

They know we should have snack-time before bedtime and they say prayers with us every time, and kiss us even when we've acted bad.


A 6 YEAR OLD WAS ASKED WHERE HIS GRANDMA LIVED. ''OH,'' HE SAID, ''SHE LIVES AT THE AIRPORT, AND WHEN WE WANT HER WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN WHEN WE'RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.''

The Tea Cup

There was a couple who used to go to England to shop in a beautiful
antique store. This trip was to celebrate their 25th wedding
anniversary. They both liked antiques and pottery, and especially
tea-cups. Spotting an exceptional cup, they asked "May we see that?
We've never seen a cup quite so beautiful."

As the lady handed it to them,; suddenly the tea-cup spoke, "You don't
understand." It said, "I have not always been a tea-cup. There was a
time when I was just a lump of red clay. My master took me and rolled me
pounded and patted me over and over and I yelled out, Don't do that.
I don't like it! "Let me alone," but he only smiled, and gently
said; "Not yet!!"

"Then. WHAM! I was placed on a spinning wheel and suddenly I was spun
around and around and around. 'Stop it ! I'm getting so dizzy! I'm
going to be sick!', I screamed. But the master only nodded and said,
quietly; 'Not yet.' He spun me and poked and prodded and bent me out
of shape to suit himself and then......

Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat I yelled and
knocked and pounded at the door. " Help! Get me out of here!" I could
see him through the opening and I could read his lips as he shook his
head from side to side, 'Not yet'.

"When I thought I couldn't bear it another minute, the door opened. He
carefully took me out and put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. Oh,
that felt so good! "Ah, this is much better," I thought.

But, after I cooled he picked me up and he brushed and painted me all
over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. 'Oh, please; Stop
it, Stop it!!' I cried. He only shook his head and said. 'Not yet!'.

Then suddenly he put me back in to the oven. Only it was not like the
first one. This was twice as hot and I just knew I would suffocate. I
begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried. I was convinced I would never
make it. I was ready to give up. Just then the door opened and he took
me out and again placed me on the shelf, where I cooled and waited
------- and
waited, wondering What's he going to do to me next?

An hour later he handed me a mirror and said 'Look at yourself.' And I
did.

I said, 'That's not me; that couldn't be me. It's beautiful.
I'm beautiful!"'

Quietly he spoke: "I want you to remember, then,' he said, 'I know it
hurt to be rolled and pounded and patted, but had I just left you alone,
you'd have dried up.

I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had
stopped, you would have crumbled.

I know it hurt and it was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I
hadn't put you there, you would have cracked.

I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but
if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened. You would not
have had any color in your life. If I hadn't put you back in that second
oven, you wouldn't have survived for long because the hardness would not
have held.
Now you are a finished product. Now you are what I had in mind when I
first began with you."

The moral of this story is this:

God knows what He's doing [ for each of us ]. He is the potter, and we
are His clay. He will mould us and make us, and expose us to just enough
pressures of just the right kinds that we may be made into a flawless
piece of work to fulfill His good, pleasing and perfect will.

So when life seems hard, and you are being pounded and patted and
pushed almost beyond endurance; when your world seems to be spinning out
of control; when you feel like you are in a fiery furnace of trials;
when life seems to "stink", try this.... Brew a cup of of your favorite
tea in your prettiest tea cup, sit down and think on this story and
then, have a little talk with the Potter.

http://www.ixox.com

For some reason this site amuses me. Maybe it's that they really expect men to use adhesive there. Maybe it's using 9/11 & Anthrax to sell condoms. Or maybe it's the phrase, "The very best way to prevent disease is to develop disease prevention products that will be willingly and fatefully used." Fatefully?!? BWAhahahahahaha!


(In my defense, I was trying to find the site for our ISP & guessed the wrong URL.)