which went well, despite snowy weather that was a bear to drive through on the way home. Youngest Daughter was bedazzled and amazingly, we managed to be there on the day the study abroad office hosted the international study abroad fair. We have two bags stuffed with materials.
The best part of the trip was meeting Val. What a sweetheart, every bit as beautiful in real life as she is online. We had a wonderful dinner and she took good care of us while we were in her city. Her memory of trivia amazes me--she greeted us with a basket of Oreos and my favorite orange Tootsie Roll pops! I hope she comes up to visit us here in HomeCity soon (I'd recommend waiting until the weather breaks, ha!).
We got home around 9:30 after slogging through about 50 miles of near-blinding snow. Today I am being lazy and hanging around in my jammies. Later I'll bestir myself and clean up for Eldest Daughter's arrival tomorrow. Can't wait!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Oh, this is funny
http://chuck76.com/taxes/
Good one, Chuck!
Yeah, a tax cheat in charge of the IRS....as Rush says, the Treasury of the Secretary. Yup, change has come to Washington, yes it has.
So anyway.
Friday was new tire day for the truck (they took THREE HOURS to put on the new set! THREE HOURS!). Yesterday was dentist day. Not as bad as I feared. Today was eye doc day. Things are fine. Tomorrow is oil change/37K maintenance day for the truck. Thursday we take off to tour Youngest Daughter's #1 college pick. Sunday Eldest Daughter comes home for a few days, yay! We have lots of neat things planned, the best of which is just to spend time together (and watch the Super Bowl on the big screen TV). Can't wait to see her. I hope the Cardinals win; Pittsburgh has enough rings.
Good one, Chuck!
Yeah, a tax cheat in charge of the IRS....as Rush says, the Treasury of the Secretary. Yup, change has come to Washington, yes it has.
So anyway.
Friday was new tire day for the truck (they took THREE HOURS to put on the new set! THREE HOURS!). Yesterday was dentist day. Not as bad as I feared. Today was eye doc day. Things are fine. Tomorrow is oil change/37K maintenance day for the truck. Thursday we take off to tour Youngest Daughter's #1 college pick. Sunday Eldest Daughter comes home for a few days, yay! We have lots of neat things planned, the best of which is just to spend time together (and watch the Super Bowl on the big screen TV). Can't wait to see her. I hope the Cardinals win; Pittsburgh has enough rings.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Too much to do, too little time to do it
I love being a professor. It's what I should have done from the start. But my school is changing from a teaching-intensive school, where we do research if we want to, to a research-intensive institution, where we do research because we have to. I don't have anything against doing research. I like learning new things, and I like writing.
But this change means that what used to be fun is no longer fun. It's work. It's MUST do. It's spilling over into nights and weekends and dreams. It's pressure that saps creativity and drives people to say things they would not otherwise say, as they chase that elusive "scholarly artifact". We have many untenured faculty who have never done any scholarship, who do not have a research background, and who are absolutely terrified. We have many tenured faculty in the same position--but instead of being terrified, they are angry. They came here to teach, not to generate dozens of articles no one will ever read. They feel betrayed. Some will never reach full professor, having waited one year too long to apply; that promotion is now out of reach for those without the Ph.D. The basic character of the school is changing, and many faculty do not like the change.
Students don't much like the idea either. I've had a couple tell me they would not have come here if they had known this change was coming. They want access to the professor, they don't want to be thought of as a nuisance or an impediment, and that is already happening.
So it's an interesting time. "Interesting" is probably not the word many of my colleagues would use to describe it. Desperation is in the air.
But this change means that what used to be fun is no longer fun. It's work. It's MUST do. It's spilling over into nights and weekends and dreams. It's pressure that saps creativity and drives people to say things they would not otherwise say, as they chase that elusive "scholarly artifact". We have many untenured faculty who have never done any scholarship, who do not have a research background, and who are absolutely terrified. We have many tenured faculty in the same position--but instead of being terrified, they are angry. They came here to teach, not to generate dozens of articles no one will ever read. They feel betrayed. Some will never reach full professor, having waited one year too long to apply; that promotion is now out of reach for those without the Ph.D. The basic character of the school is changing, and many faculty do not like the change.
Students don't much like the idea either. I've had a couple tell me they would not have come here if they had known this change was coming. They want access to the professor, they don't want to be thought of as a nuisance or an impediment, and that is already happening.
So it's an interesting time. "Interesting" is probably not the word many of my colleagues would use to describe it. Desperation is in the air.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Nice tribute to a good man unjustly reviled
From Steve Schippert:
So much venom has been and is still thrust at former president George W. Bush, and it gets no easier to witness knowing that more serene days lie ahead for him in Crawford. In fact, with 8 years of retrospective, it seems more difficult today. It was, therefore, refreshing to see this photoessay from Time along with the accompanying audio of the photographers assigned to gather images during his presidency. It is well worth the few minutes of your time to take in.
And, as can be witnessed in the images and verses this tribute video—written, performed and compiled by James Hooker—there was and remains a very special, unique and reciprocated connection between President Bush and the men and women of the military. (HiRes version here.)
A thoroughly intelligent and decent man so loudly and unjustly derided as dumb, arrogant and negligent, we should all pray for and aspire to the grace he consistently displayed in the ugly face of it all.
May we never afford President Obama such debasing, venomous and cruel treatment as we debate and criticize the policies and practices that we disagree with.
History, I am confident, will be kind to President Bush. For it will not be written by the American or international media, nor by the classless who booed as he entered for the last time to "Hail to the Chief."
But America, the nation he served and protected to the best of his ability, has been most unkind.
...
Farewell, Mr. President, and thank you for your honorable service. Carry on, sir.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Snowflakes of the adult variety
Last week I gave my online class their take-home midterm. They had from 12 a.m. Wednesday until midnight Sunday to complete the test and submit it to the dropbox.
One snowflake (the same one who sent me multiple e-mails over the summer about whether or not he needed a graphic calculator, ignoring my multiple answers) uploaded questions 1-5 and then left a note for me that he "owed me" questions 6 and 7. Somewhere around 1:30 a.m. he uploaded question 7.
Now, I might expect such inexplicable behavior from a student fresh out of high school, but from an adult? Boggles the mind.
The second snowflake is a grad student who I misguidedly allowed to sign up for both an independent study AND her MS capstone project. She promptly proceeded to do absolutely nothing on either project. Stupidly, I assigned her an incomplete grade for the independent study, but since she continued to do nothing it rolled to an F over the summer. Two weeks later, I got an e-mail from her asking what she had done to deserve an F (nothing, dearie!) and requesting me to change the grade as she was going to finish the independent study at the end of September. I refused to change the grade, she got more insistent, I ignored her. She dropped out of sight again.
Two weeks ago she popped up on my e-mail, asking for a meeting to discuss her progress. I was leaving to drive Son's car, so I didn't respond the very day she sent the e-mail. That oversight triggered a frantic phone call to my department, saying it was URGENT that she meet with me. I wasn't even in the state, so she was out of luck. Yesterday I got another e-mail wanting a meeting, and I finally told her that I was not interested in re-opening the independent study and was not going to supervise her project. Of course, she is protesting that all the work is done and she understands I have lost patience with her but she just wants to show me that she finished EVERYTHING don't you know.
Sigh.
One snowflake (the same one who sent me multiple e-mails over the summer about whether or not he needed a graphic calculator, ignoring my multiple answers) uploaded questions 1-5 and then left a note for me that he "owed me" questions 6 and 7. Somewhere around 1:30 a.m. he uploaded question 7.
Now, I might expect such inexplicable behavior from a student fresh out of high school, but from an adult? Boggles the mind.
The second snowflake is a grad student who I misguidedly allowed to sign up for both an independent study AND her MS capstone project. She promptly proceeded to do absolutely nothing on either project. Stupidly, I assigned her an incomplete grade for the independent study, but since she continued to do nothing it rolled to an F over the summer. Two weeks later, I got an e-mail from her asking what she had done to deserve an F (nothing, dearie!) and requesting me to change the grade as she was going to finish the independent study at the end of September. I refused to change the grade, she got more insistent, I ignored her. She dropped out of sight again.
Two weeks ago she popped up on my e-mail, asking for a meeting to discuss her progress. I was leaving to drive Son's car, so I didn't respond the very day she sent the e-mail. That oversight triggered a frantic phone call to my department, saying it was URGENT that she meet with me. I wasn't even in the state, so she was out of luck. Yesterday I got another e-mail wanting a meeting, and I finally told her that I was not interested in re-opening the independent study and was not going to supervise her project. Of course, she is protesting that all the work is done and she understands I have lost patience with her but she just wants to show me that she finished EVERYTHING don't you know.
Sigh.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
The failed policies of the Obama administration
- It snowed here yesterday. I thought he was supposed to fix the weather.
- The oceans are still rising. What's up with that?
- People are still getting sick. Thought he was supposed to take care of that.
- We are still waiting for our puppy, the mortgage to be paid, and all our bills to disappear.
- Oh, and this--
- GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba (CNN) — In one of his first acts in office President Obama has ordered the U.S. government to suspend prosecutions of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay for 120 days, military officials said Tuesday.
Papers filed at the U.S. prison camp said the request is made "in the interest of justice and at the direction of the president of the United States." It seeks a delay in proceedings until May 20.
"The judges will receive the requests and review them, and we anticipate a ruling soon," said Cmdr. Jeffrey Gordon, a Defense Department spokesman.
Tuesday's directive was issued verbally through Defense Secretary Bob Gates, according to a military official.
Oh, an here's another one--
President Barack Obama's new administration ordered all federal agencies and departments on Tuesday to stop any pending regulations until they can be reviewed by incoming staff...Controversial late rules by the outgoing Bush administration include allowing the carrying of concealed weapons in some national parks and prohibiting medical facilities from receiving federal money for discriminating against doctors and nurses who refuse to assist with abortions or dispense contraceptives based on religious grounds. (emphasis mine)
From http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090121/pl_nm/us_obama_regulations
The war on religion, and on the freedom to practice one's beliefs, advances.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Loooooooooooooooong week
Last week I was sick as a dog after the drive to the State Too Very Far Away. Some people go there to get a tan; I go there and get a cold. But a few days of staying home as much as possible, and drinking lots of tea, and I'm almost back to normal.
Today was the last meeting with the mid-tenure committee, and it went well. They had lots of nice things to say and basically told me to carry on with what I've been doing. Whew! In two years, though, I get to do this again for the real thing.
This week is going to be busy too. Lots of meetings, plus I need to get my tires changed on Friday. I thought this quarter would be easy, with tons of time for research--but meetings have pretty much eaten up my time. I've got two papers due next week, ack.
Looking forward to next week's trip to Big Important University with Youngest Daughter, where I will finally get to meet one of my online phriends. What a treat!
Today was the last meeting with the mid-tenure committee, and it went well. They had lots of nice things to say and basically told me to carry on with what I've been doing. Whew! In two years, though, I get to do this again for the real thing.
This week is going to be busy too. Lots of meetings, plus I need to get my tires changed on Friday. I thought this quarter would be easy, with tons of time for research--but meetings have pretty much eaten up my time. I've got two papers due next week, ack.
Looking forward to next week's trip to Big Important University with Youngest Daughter, where I will finally get to meet one of my online phriends. What a treat!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Back home again
And getting a cold. Every time I've gone to the State Too Very Far Away, I've gotten a cold. Drat.
Son loves his new car. It fits him. He fits it. It was so worth the two day drive.
So the first day, before we'd even really started the trip, Youngest Daughter wanted to go to Wendy's and get some lunch. I gave her a ten dollar bill and a handful of ones, and sent her in. A couple minutes later, she's back--"I need new money," she says. New money?? Turns out she dropped the bills in the snow, and didn't realize it until after she had visited the ladies' room and was standing in line to order. The bills were soaked through, so we put them in an open baggie to dry out some--and I gave YD some new money.
We forgot about the bills until we were accompanying Son to the beach, and wanted to park in the new parking garage. I pulled out five ones from the baggie, and we handed them to the attendant. "Did you already go to the beach?" he asked. The salt from the slushy drive-through had dried and made the bills feel sandy. Ha!
Son took us to his work and gave us the ten-dollar tour, then treated me to deep fried oysters, my favorite meal. It was wonderful to spend time with him, and as usual I miss him like crazy. He drove me to the airport this morning at 4 a.m., poor kid. Security was not yet open, so I sent him home and I waited for the TSA agents to arrive. When they opened the gates, a couple got in line ahead of me and tried to walk through the gate area. The guard stopped them and asked them to stand behind the yellow lined mats. They stood there for a few minutes, watching the agents prepare the bins and scanners. When the podiums were rolled out, the woman called out "Can we just go through now?" The agents said no, they would be ready in a couple of minutes.
Finally an agent came out and stood at the podium, ready to let people through to the scanners. She smiled at the couple and asked for their ID and boarding passes. The woman, who was so anxious to get through the scanners, had to dig through her monstrous purse to find her papers. Grrrrrr!!!
The first leg of the trip back to HomeCity was a crowded flight. A woman came down the aisle, stopped at the row in front of me, and told the man in the middle seat that he was in her spot. "I am in 9E," she insisted. She refused to sit anywhere else, and kept saying she was supposed to be in 9E and was not leaving the plane. Finally a flight attendant came from the back of the plane, where she was stowing baggage, and looked at the woman's ticket. Her seat was 10A. The gate we were at was E9. She was reading the boarding pass wrong. Sigh.
But I finally got home, and drove to UniTown for an appointment I'd set up last month, even though I really wanted to take a nap. I took advantage of the wait to straighten up some things in my office. 3:00 came and went, but no sign of the dude I was supposed to meet with. I could have stayed with Son for an extra day! Dang.
Took a nice hot bath with the bath salts Eldest Daughter gave me for Christmas, which caused Kitty Mama no end of consternation. She seemed to miss me more than Kitty Son--he has pretty much ignored me until just now. He's sitting next to me, but I think he is more interested in the cookie I am eating than in cuddling up.
So it's back to work, reading student proposals and working on data and stuff. Also, I need to write a teaching philosophy statement for this award thing by Wednesday. I doubt I will get it, but--no guts, no glory.
Son loves his new car. It fits him. He fits it. It was so worth the two day drive.
So the first day, before we'd even really started the trip, Youngest Daughter wanted to go to Wendy's and get some lunch. I gave her a ten dollar bill and a handful of ones, and sent her in. A couple minutes later, she's back--"I need new money," she says. New money?? Turns out she dropped the bills in the snow, and didn't realize it until after she had visited the ladies' room and was standing in line to order. The bills were soaked through, so we put them in an open baggie to dry out some--and I gave YD some new money.
We forgot about the bills until we were accompanying Son to the beach, and wanted to park in the new parking garage. I pulled out five ones from the baggie, and we handed them to the attendant. "Did you already go to the beach?" he asked. The salt from the slushy drive-through had dried and made the bills feel sandy. Ha!
Son took us to his work and gave us the ten-dollar tour, then treated me to deep fried oysters, my favorite meal. It was wonderful to spend time with him, and as usual I miss him like crazy. He drove me to the airport this morning at 4 a.m., poor kid. Security was not yet open, so I sent him home and I waited for the TSA agents to arrive. When they opened the gates, a couple got in line ahead of me and tried to walk through the gate area. The guard stopped them and asked them to stand behind the yellow lined mats. They stood there for a few minutes, watching the agents prepare the bins and scanners. When the podiums were rolled out, the woman called out "Can we just go through now?" The agents said no, they would be ready in a couple of minutes.
Finally an agent came out and stood at the podium, ready to let people through to the scanners. She smiled at the couple and asked for their ID and boarding passes. The woman, who was so anxious to get through the scanners, had to dig through her monstrous purse to find her papers. Grrrrrr!!!
The first leg of the trip back to HomeCity was a crowded flight. A woman came down the aisle, stopped at the row in front of me, and told the man in the middle seat that he was in her spot. "I am in 9E," she insisted. She refused to sit anywhere else, and kept saying she was supposed to be in 9E and was not leaving the plane. Finally a flight attendant came from the back of the plane, where she was stowing baggage, and looked at the woman's ticket. Her seat was 10A. The gate we were at was E9. She was reading the boarding pass wrong. Sigh.
But I finally got home, and drove to UniTown for an appointment I'd set up last month, even though I really wanted to take a nap. I took advantage of the wait to straighten up some things in my office. 3:00 came and went, but no sign of the dude I was supposed to meet with. I could have stayed with Son for an extra day! Dang.
Took a nice hot bath with the bath salts Eldest Daughter gave me for Christmas, which caused Kitty Mama no end of consternation. She seemed to miss me more than Kitty Son--he has pretty much ignored me until just now. He's sitting next to me, but I think he is more interested in the cookie I am eating than in cuddling up.
So it's back to work, reading student proposals and working on data and stuff. Also, I need to write a teaching philosophy statement for this award thing by Wednesday. I doubt I will get it, but--no guts, no glory.
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Random Thursday stuff
It's been a busy week.
Monday I had the mid-tenure meeting, which went very well. They really had nothing to complain about, so they focused on the low number of students who actually fill out evaluations, and the perennial bane of professors, the "timeliness in returning homework" issue. I asked if they had any suggestions for getting more students to participate, and they really didn't.
The timeliness issue is, for me at least, a matter of perception. I tell my students that if they had a week to do a homework assignment, I should have a week to grade it. Normally I get everything back within a week, but sometimes that slides a couple days. I don't ever have more than one assignment waiting to be graded, and I always get things back before exams.
So the whole thing was pretty collegial and not stressful at all. After that, I jumped in the truck and headed to HomeCity for the test drive. I ended up buying a 2008 Kia Sportage LX in Smart Blue (heh heh) which I will pick up tomorrow morning and drive to the State Too Very Far Away. Youngest Daughter is coming with me; we are leaving right after her allergy shots (with a side trip to Babci and Dziadzi's house to pick up some Christmas presents). So that means I have a ton of stuff to do today--take down the tree, vacuum, do laundry, pack, make some cookies for Son, etc. All that has to wait until after my back-to-back-to-back meetings and YD's music theory class.
Yesterday was B2B2B meetings also, plus the deadline for the conference paper (which has been submitted, yay!) and it took me until 8 p.m. to catch up with e-mail and other little things I had to do. Then I hit the hay early because I had to get up at 5 this morning and drive the parental units to the airport. They are headed to Mexico for a missions trip. I need to get my dad one of those luggage weighing devices so he knows when he's put too many tools in his bag.
The other big, and bad, news is that Eldest Daughter was laid off Tuesday from a job she's only had for four months. She had just started getting out of the post-jobless economic hole. Sigh. She's taking it well, but I am very sad for her. It's really hard to be on your own and suddenly have no income.
Time to pray again, for a good job for ED and for continued success in Israel's fight against Hamas. I was upset to see rockets falling in Nahariyah. We visited that pretty town in July, and have a bunch of gorgeous photos from the area. We are praying for the safety of the Israelis and our friends in the Galilee.
Monday I had the mid-tenure meeting, which went very well. They really had nothing to complain about, so they focused on the low number of students who actually fill out evaluations, and the perennial bane of professors, the "timeliness in returning homework" issue. I asked if they had any suggestions for getting more students to participate, and they really didn't.
The timeliness issue is, for me at least, a matter of perception. I tell my students that if they had a week to do a homework assignment, I should have a week to grade it. Normally I get everything back within a week, but sometimes that slides a couple days. I don't ever have more than one assignment waiting to be graded, and I always get things back before exams.
So the whole thing was pretty collegial and not stressful at all. After that, I jumped in the truck and headed to HomeCity for the test drive. I ended up buying a 2008 Kia Sportage LX in Smart Blue (heh heh) which I will pick up tomorrow morning and drive to the State Too Very Far Away. Youngest Daughter is coming with me; we are leaving right after her allergy shots (with a side trip to Babci and Dziadzi's house to pick up some Christmas presents). So that means I have a ton of stuff to do today--take down the tree, vacuum, do laundry, pack, make some cookies for Son, etc. All that has to wait until after my back-to-back-to-back meetings and YD's music theory class.
Yesterday was B2B2B meetings also, plus the deadline for the conference paper (which has been submitted, yay!) and it took me until 8 p.m. to catch up with e-mail and other little things I had to do. Then I hit the hay early because I had to get up at 5 this morning and drive the parental units to the airport. They are headed to Mexico for a missions trip. I need to get my dad one of those luggage weighing devices so he knows when he's put too many tools in his bag.
The other big, and bad, news is that Eldest Daughter was laid off Tuesday from a job she's only had for four months. She had just started getting out of the post-jobless economic hole. Sigh. She's taking it well, but I am very sad for her. It's really hard to be on your own and suddenly have no income.
Time to pray again, for a good job for ED and for continued success in Israel's fight against Hamas. I was upset to see rockets falling in Nahariyah. We visited that pretty town in July, and have a bunch of gorgeous photos from the area. We are praying for the safety of the Israelis and our friends in the Galilee.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
No storybook endings here, sigh.
AlmaMaterU's first bowl game ended in a loss, which is unfortunately a typical scenario for anything from HomeCity. Ah well, we should be used to it by now. It was a nice day, even with the horrific traffic, and we enjoyed ourselves as much as possible considering we lost.
Now it's back to work, as today is the last day of Christmas vacation. Tomorrow I have a meeting with the mid-tenure committee, bright and early. Then I will probably drive back to HomeCity to test drive a car for Son--my original plans were to test drive it on Friday, but the 2:00 appointment stretched until 5. I did a dippy thing and forgot to put the new registration sticker on the truck, so I had to go back to UniTown to get it, and then back to HomeCity, so by the time I finally got home it was after 8 p.m. Argh.
The truck heater fan started up again, thank GOD. It was on full blast New Year's Day when I started the truck up to take Youngest Daughter to work, and I turned it off because the engine was cold and it was blowing cold air inside an already freezing cabin. Then once the engine warmed up, I turned the fan on--only it wouldn't come on. That made for an awfully cold ride. When it came time to pick YD up from work, I walked to the truck and prayed that the heater would start up. Got in, turned the key, turned on the fan, and VOILA! Heat! I have not turned the fan off since, lol, which meant that Spouse, who is perpetually too warm, had the AC on during the trip back and forth to the bowl game (and therefore, my toes FROZE).
It's going to be a busy week. Tomorrow the meeting, and maybe the test drive; Wednesday a meeting with a local company on a project I'd like to do; Friday is Allergy Shot Day; and sometime this week I need to find time to finish the conference paper I'm collaborating on, do some work on the other two due this month, get YD's transcripts to her high school so they can collate everything for her college applications, buy a car for Son, and make a bunch of doctor/dentist checkup appointments. If all goes well with the car, I'll head South with it on Friday after the shot appointment. Praying hard!
Now for really serious stuff, prayers for the IDF and their continued success in Gaza, rooting out and destroying Hamas. Enough is enough.
From my friend Robert, the prayer they recited in his synagogue each Friday:
He Who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — may He bless the fighters of the Israel Defense Forces, who stand guard over our land and the cities of our God, from the border of the Lebanon to the desert of Egypt, and from the Great Sea unto the approach of the Aravah, on the land, in the air, and on the sea.
May the Almighty cause the enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before them. May the Holy One, Blessed is He, preserve and rescue our fighters from every trouble and distress and from every plague and illness, and may He send blessing and success in their every endeavor.
May He lead our enemies under our soldiers' sway and may He grant them salvation and crown them with victory. And may there be fulfilled for them the verse: For it is the Lord your God, Who goes with you to battle your enemies for you to save you.
Now let us respond, Amen.
Amen, and amen.
Now it's back to work, as today is the last day of Christmas vacation. Tomorrow I have a meeting with the mid-tenure committee, bright and early. Then I will probably drive back to HomeCity to test drive a car for Son--my original plans were to test drive it on Friday, but the 2:00 appointment stretched until 5. I did a dippy thing and forgot to put the new registration sticker on the truck, so I had to go back to UniTown to get it, and then back to HomeCity, so by the time I finally got home it was after 8 p.m. Argh.
The truck heater fan started up again, thank GOD. It was on full blast New Year's Day when I started the truck up to take Youngest Daughter to work, and I turned it off because the engine was cold and it was blowing cold air inside an already freezing cabin. Then once the engine warmed up, I turned the fan on--only it wouldn't come on. That made for an awfully cold ride. When it came time to pick YD up from work, I walked to the truck and prayed that the heater would start up. Got in, turned the key, turned on the fan, and VOILA! Heat! I have not turned the fan off since, lol, which meant that Spouse, who is perpetually too warm, had the AC on during the trip back and forth to the bowl game (and therefore, my toes FROZE).
It's going to be a busy week. Tomorrow the meeting, and maybe the test drive; Wednesday a meeting with a local company on a project I'd like to do; Friday is Allergy Shot Day; and sometime this week I need to find time to finish the conference paper I'm collaborating on, do some work on the other two due this month, get YD's transcripts to her high school so they can collate everything for her college applications, buy a car for Son, and make a bunch of doctor/dentist checkup appointments. If all goes well with the car, I'll head South with it on Friday after the shot appointment. Praying hard!
Now for really serious stuff, prayers for the IDF and their continued success in Gaza, rooting out and destroying Hamas. Enough is enough.
From my friend Robert, the prayer they recited in his synagogue each Friday:
He Who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — may He bless the fighters of the Israel Defense Forces, who stand guard over our land and the cities of our God, from the border of the Lebanon to the desert of Egypt, and from the Great Sea unto the approach of the Aravah, on the land, in the air, and on the sea.
May the Almighty cause the enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before them. May the Holy One, Blessed is He, preserve and rescue our fighters from every trouble and distress and from every plague and illness, and may He send blessing and success in their every endeavor.
May He lead our enemies under our soldiers' sway and may He grant them salvation and crown them with victory. And may there be fulfilled for them the verse: For it is the Lord your God, Who goes with you to battle your enemies for you to save you.
Now let us respond, Amen.
Amen, and amen.
Thursday, January 01, 2009
And the New Year begins...with vehicle issues
Nice bright sunny cold day. Truck heater fan has decided not to work, which makes for a very cold ride. I have a call in to the dealer and hopefully can get it fixed tomorrow morning, or it will be a very cold ride to HomeCity. Grrrr.
Son called yesterday to tell me his Oldmobile is almost completely rusted out, to the point where the shops won't even rotate his tires because the car almost broke apart on the lift. So tomorrow I go car shopping. Spouse and I have decided to try to get a new vehicle for Son, so we don't have to deal with car payments AND repair bills for a while. If we are successful, I will drive the car to him, which is a great excuse to stop at Best Friend's house en route.
Speaking of Best Friend, they should be arriving in DC within the next 20 minutes, back from a month-long trip to India! I hope they had a great time.
Son called yesterday to tell me his Oldmobile is almost completely rusted out, to the point where the shops won't even rotate his tires because the car almost broke apart on the lift. So tomorrow I go car shopping. Spouse and I have decided to try to get a new vehicle for Son, so we don't have to deal with car payments AND repair bills for a while. If we are successful, I will drive the car to him, which is a great excuse to stop at Best Friend's house en route.
Speaking of Best Friend, they should be arriving in DC within the next 20 minutes, back from a month-long trip to India! I hope they had a great time.
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