there is no place like home...

For most of us, our time in the snow will be followed with hot cocoa and a warm fire. It is fun, we are usually dressed in layers and it is always voluntary. We consider it fun.

Just saw a Winter Snow Advisory in effect until 9AM tomorrow. For the homeless in my town, pretty bad news. I don't know alot about being homeless except that my father was for a time. For many different reasons, he could not stay our home and had nowhere else to go. He soon found a spot at the Veterans Home where he stayed for a while.

The last couple of years I have thought about the homeless often. Mostly in winter, but winter just adds more complications, being homeless isn't easy anytime of the year. Might sound a bit strange, but several times a week, I imagine I live in a homeless shelter. I am by myself. It is not warm but I have an adequate blanket. I am on a low cot so I can see under a sea of beds. I hear all the noises and smell all the smells. Ah, the fragrance of communal living. If there is as they say, a bit of poet in each of us, this is where mine would be found. By the time you experience it, you have long accepted it. Lights are out at 9PM, and there is lots of time to think. About my life and those around me. How did they get here, how did I. Throughout the night, awakened often by crying babies and the loud, constant snore of one. I know the snore well. I know the nights that he is not there, and I hope he is ok.

I always fall asleep about this time but the experience is always a humble one. To imagine what it must be like to find yourself spending nights with strangers, not caring about much else but being not cold. No real thought into what it takes to run a faculty like this, because by the time you get here, that paradigm has shifted.

Sunday afternoon, a local church that opens its doors to the homeless during the day, was showing a movie and at a break, several of the people went outside for a smoke. Two men got into it and one bit off part of another man's ear. I can only speak of my experience and that experience tells of acceptance.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” May God bless us all...

snow angels...

I believe in them just as if I was related to one...

Had to run to the store today in less than stellar condition but once I got in and among my earthly peeps, it was better. As I wandered around the store, trying to get enough diverse things to get us through the next few days in case that Big Storm does start this afternoon, I tried to be mindful of those around me.

Have got to admit, there were a few who might not fit into any angel category - like the woman with the handicapped sign who was in such a hurry, she came this close to running over an slow, elderly woman but there was an angel there. The elderly woman had one and probably never knew it.

We don't usually think much about angels except at Christmas. Our Christmas music is full of them and for the most part, it is the picture of a naked, chubby baby-like creature that kind of floats around doing good. I have come to believe that is not the case.

I think angels look more like warriors. I think they may even have battle scars although they would never admit it. They do their thing and most of the time, we are totally oblivious and that is fine with them. If we acknowledge them, I think they smile. A warrior-kind of smile.

We are like little kids, going about our business, willy nilly. Then a close call comes. Something that gets our attention, something we escape and are very glad we did. Imagine there may have been an angel close by.

Awareness is a choice. It is not a natural default. The more you practice it, the better you get at it. Might be worth a try, never know what you might be missing...

Cyber Monday...

If you are not the Black Friday type, maybe today's biggest online shopping day of the year might appeal to you a bit more. Still not feeling great, there was no online shopping for me but Black friday was a different Story.

The difference is in your expectations. If you really believe that getting in line hours early to get one of 20 $ 199.00 TV's. you and I are not of the same species. This is the only day of the year, I get good vibes from the hustle and bustle that can only be found at 5am. Not looking for anything in particular but could not turn down winter boots for $25, made my day. That an dwalking around with my grandson checking it all out.

We met up with the rest of the fam and took over a makeshift living room complete with couch and two chairs. I stood in line for almost 40 minutes to get gift certificates for those who spent enough money to qualify and met some great people. The young militiary girl who had her phone stolen the day before. The 18 year old kid called to tell her he had changed her password and she told him there was alot of military information on that phone that he didn't want to be caught with - later that day not only was he caught with the phone but also drugs. Not a great day for him.

Met an IT gentleman and we had a spirited talk about Apple and Microsoft. He said, If you are looking for media, video, photos or music - Apple can't be beat. If you are looking for productivy, go with a pc. The most honest pc person I have ever met.

For me, it is the perfect day. not to hurry. You immediately notice the ones who would mow down their own mothers for a $9.99 sweater and steer clear of them but most everyone is as nice as they can be. Must be the christmas dust that the Mall spreads around before they open the doors.

Hope those of you who shopped today, got the bargains you were hoping for from the comfort of your home. The only you might have gained from a BF experience is some good Stores and that is worth a bit of effort anyday...

perspective...

A few hours after the devastating loss of our beloved BSU, the Thanksgiving flu that had a hold of Keaton, spread to our house. DH had gone to bed early because of an early wake up call for work but never made it. By 4AM, we were well on our way to an horrific rest of the weekend, just starting to settle down Sunday night.

At first, I wondered if it was the shock of our kicker missing 2 field goals but as 2/3 of The Thanksgiving guests came down with the same thing, decided it was not. It is not the loss per se, that bothered me but how we loss.

By now, everyone knows that our kicker missed a 26 yard attempt that put us into overtime and a few minutes later, missed a 29 for the win. When Nevada got the ball, their kicker was successful from a longer vantage point. Even as Coach Pete and Kellen Moore were been so supportive, I couldn't help to think about our kicker and truly, in the midst of a flue coma, I started praying. Later the news would report that the family almost immediately started getting threatening phone calls, While BroncoNation is know for its overwhelming support, that same passion can go the other direction. Yes, he missed 2 field goals that were almost unmissable but let's start from there and help him and his family move on.

I don't know much about football but I know a bit about people. Until this football season is over, this will be in our minds. Woulda, coulda, shoulda, but for this man, it will never go away. Never.

When he is in his thirties, later in his forties and for the rest of his days, he will never forget. He will replay it in his mind over and over and over again. I truly believe it could drive himself crazy if he doesn't get some help. He will need to learn some coping skills that will allow himself to be human. He will have to learn to like himself again,

Gage ran into his room crying with the loss. He was inconsolable, said he hated football. Probably the most healthy response he could have. He had spent Thanksgiving explaining how the BSC was going to shake out in grave detail. On Black Friday. he was so happy when it looked like Alabama was going to pull off an upset.

Someone started a FB page for our kicker, we still love you, being the theme. I hope one day soon, he can say the same thing about himself...

my favorite things...

Just like Oprah's...almost. This is the start to my favorite week of the year. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, everyone already has visions of turkey and dressing dancing in their heads. Thanksgiving, Black Friday and BSU football finish out the week. Throw in a 59th birthday and a 39th anniversary and you have got yourself quite a week. Will start with my favorite youTube video. I cry everytime I see it. Macy's - where Jesus meets Santa. It truly helped me reconcile the two that always seem to leave me feeling like I'm in a Tug o' War. So, here are some of my favorite things in no particular order.



Did you know you can mail anything that will take a stamp and weighs less than 13 ounces without a box?/Apartment Therapy.



Doodle, put your own photo on a personal speaker



Already received an order and loved it!



I think this is gorgeous


Make your own personalized candy bar. Ingredients galore...



Original, Girls Night out, and many more conversation starter cubes



Apple TV, perfection at its best. I think you can guess where to find it!

May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with lots of love. Take lots of pictures, play a game with a child and remember you are Loved...see you next Sunday, love zalaine

hard work...

All of us will spend some time this week reflecting on Thanksgiving's of our pasts.
Of big family gatherings with lots of food and noise or perhaps, memories of a skinny Thanksgiving where nothing was in abundance. Maybe Thanksgiving 2010 is going to be a tough one. Imagine it might be for many considering the many food bank drives around each of us. Sometimes, it may seem that all our hard work doesn't pay off. I imagine that at the first Thanksgiving, they felt much the same way.

Most of us don't so much hard work. The kind that brings a sweat to your brow. If we do, it is in short spurts with lots of ice tea in between. DH had a very physical job. Most days and nights, he is crawling on top of railroad cars in every kind of weather imagineable. When he retires on Dec 31, 2011, he will be 63 and 1/2, too old for a job as tough as this one. Don't know who will replace him, they can't get anyone to help him now. If he was an insurance salesman, he could and would do the job forever but that is not his lot. He will get the job of being with me, that poor man!

Miss M was the epitome of hard work yesterday. She raked her little heart out, not caring that Gage had decided to take a Inside Day. Keaton went out to help and Gage was challenged on his holiday choice so soon everyone was out in the yard but she was almost hurt that two rakes had to be shared among three of them.

That is what hard work is. It is about getting it done. Seeing a job that needs to doing and doing it. Imagine that the first Thanksgiving was much the same way. No going to Costco for ham and dessert. Maybe there wasn't a pumpkin pie. Maybe dessert was dried fruit or worse. Imagine trying to sell that at Thanksgiving 2010!

As you start your week, may gratitude be your beacon. For all that has been and will be in your life. No matter what the landscape of Thanksgiving 2010, you can find Something to be grateful for because it isn't about what you have but about who you are. If you don't like what you see, be grateful that this very minute, you can decide to change what you don't like. Whatever your circumstances, there is always room to be thankful...

wisdom...

For with much wisdom comes great sorrow. the more knowledge, the more grief... Ecclesiastes

I didn't put that together until today. My idea of wisdom was a mix of the up side of growing older with the idea of being a smarter person. Never thought about the downside of a lifetime of experiences.

One would imagine that after a certain experience, or at the very least, after 2 or 3times of the same... we would be doing the experience smarter, better, faster while avoiding each and every pitfall. Still not sure that isn't true but like all things in Life, for every upside, there may be a downside, lurking close by.

For me, it is not so much as downside as being able to be Real about life and all that goes with it. Argumently easier for those who sees the Glass As Half Empty, we don't expect a rainbow in every sky or even as much as we wished, a VW bug in every driveway. Bad things happen to everyone, the rain falls on the just and the unjust. Prayer is not a guarantee against all things BAD and then sometimes, for no apparent reason, everything is perfect.

While it would appear that I abhor All Things Grownup, the idea of being wiser seemed like a nice trade off for getting older. Common sense should have told me, that I was missing Something. I should have seen that just the pure nature of living through many experiences, there would be grief and sorrow. None of us can avoid G&S, so we have to learn how to incorporate them into our lives. How to co-exist and even continue on when we are so filled with sadness has to be where the wisdom comes in and becomes useful to ourselves and others as we share it.

So, I had to decide today whether to keep aiming for wisdom. With this new knowledge in hand, it seemed like a choice had to be made. It didn't take long to figure out that things are going to be coming my way, no matter what and I might as well get all the help I can. The perfect example of wisdom used wisely. Make no mistake, you can live to be old and not have a bit of anything to offer to anyone. My biggest fear is that my wisdom shared, will hurt someone. That may have to be the chance I have to take if I share but hopefully, I will recognize, apologize and course-correct. Maybe Some Good Stuff has sunk in...

pretty good day...

By last night, the iTunes announcement had been cracked and it was all over but the shouting which you would have heard if you were within a mile of my house.

Spent the morning going through every album and listening to songs I haven't heard in age. We have got many of the albums but to hear them remastered is a absolute thrill. Watching some fo the concert footage and the whole visual that iTunes brought, the virtual black out with a bit of color was outstanding. In part of the 1964 concert footage, the announcer said americans found great happiness after great sadness after the assination of JFK with the Beatles coming to America. I remember the Ed Sullivan show like it was just. We all sat around the TV and someone past out from excitement (not me!) Little did we know then what was in store.

Trying to figure out how to explain to Santa that this would worth carrying around in his sled! Maybe I should appeal to his sense of history, of handing the collection down to the generations to come. Will have to work on it.

Speaking of that generation, I hope they get their Moment. I know it won't look like mine but Someday when they are my age, I want them to be able to relive that excitement. Music is a lot like Christmas, you get to be a kid again if only for a short time but a short time is all you need, if you do it right,

best.day.ever.... I actively make it a point to injest this thought everyday because try as I may, being in the Moment doesn't come naturally. It is just that Somedays are better than others. John, Paul, George and Ringo... Steve Jobs and iTunes, thanks you all...

PS. Just a reminder, back up your iTunes library frequently. You just never know.

relationship...

Heard the other day about a woman going through some Big Stuff and the familiar theme of, Why is this happening? What did I do wrong? Why is God mad at me? It is a played out by many who in a time of crisis, forget what they know, who they belong to and let their emotions completely take over. I have been there too but God help me, there has to be more than trusting God when things are ok to excellent and drop off the face of His earth when times get tough. It think it may have Something to do with relationship vs checklist.

Put religion, church and and feelings aside, what is the dance you do with God? How do you two relate? If someone could listen to your prayer time with Jesus, what would they hear?

I have had this particular conversation with fa few closefriends a million times because until you go through it, not sure you know how you will respond. YOu hope you will be strong. Everyday your relationship has the opportunity to grow. Someone once likened it to the phone ringing, you answer and would you recognize Jesus's voice immediately or would you have to ask, who is this? Obviously you would know immediately a voice that you have a good relationship with. Just like in Real Life...well, for everyone but Gage.

Me: Hey Buddy, how you doing? Have you had a good week at school? What was the funniest thing you did? I sure miss you Gage.

Gage: Who is this?

Me: It is your nana

Gage: Oh, you all sound alike.

That is Gage. I'm pretty sure he was just being the comedian that he loves to be. He knows my voice but loves to mess with me.

Forget the checklists or the things you think He wants to here. Just have a relationship with Him. Thank him for the people in your life. Tell him what is going on with you, the good and the bad. Sit on a swing and just hold hands, crawl up into His lap and let Him hold you. The rest will come and it will all fit together...

just say no...

When life(or your granddaughter) gives you lemons, you make lemonade...

She is going through her Don't Take My Picture phase. I now that this too will pass but not loving it now. The thing I do appreciate is her ability to say no. It is a very misunderstood subject, the ability to say no. Either we can't for so many different reasons which leads to a completely new set of problems or we say no at the wrong times, for the wrong reasons. Just say no sounds easy but in reality, is tough to get right.

Some no's are so obvious, you wonder why it was ever a question. Came across one myself last week, leaves you scratching your head in dismay about how much denial a person can be in. Even though it was a no-brainer, the politics of the situation did not leave me the luxury of displaying Miss M's most truthful response. Had to negotiate a response and it actually fell to another to do the deed. Sometimes you just have to follow someone else's lead.

There is a real art to saying no. You have to balance guilt with good, mental health. It doesn't come overnight but if you keep trying, after many attempts and some failures, it will get easier and you will get better at it. The guilt will never go away - it will subside but will rear it's ugly head just when you think you have conquered it. Miss M is off to a good start. It was but a few weeks ago that she was telling me, Nana - take my picture now. Oh, how I long for the good old days...

new direction...

I am going a new direction for Christmas this year. No more worrying about blurring the line between Santa and Jesus, I know what I know and what I know is this...Don't sweat the small Christmas stuff. I can't save the world so I am going to get out of that business. My new focus is gratitude365. No matter the day, whether plain or fancy, I am going to be all about the gratitude.

There is a Dec Daily that alot of the scrapbookers do. The 25 days before Christmas, you take a photo or document a craft and make a nice little book to remember the holidays. I have never done one for a variety of reason but this year, thinking I will. It will be a bit different, as I want to document the gratitude of the 25 days of Christmas. Something I see or remember that reminds me of what a wonderful life I have been given. No more whining about retail, or crazy people. It is Time to move on. To enjoy the holidays with as little thoughts of the have-to-do's and all that goes with it.

Would love to go to a cookie exchange or a my favorite things party. Take the kids out when it is snowing or just to feel the hustle and bustle that the holiday brings. I give up! When the commercials start, I am hooked and want to start decking the halls.

So come ahead Christmas! Jump in front of Halloween and Thanksgiving. Shove school supplies to the side. Put a Santa hat on every product we buy. Play the carols, sing the songs and bring on the smells. Good tiding of comfort and joy, the more the merrier. Don't forget to tell us about your aggressive layaway programs and by all means, fight for my shopping dollar. It is part of it, it is just the way we do business. I am prepared and ready to go. NO FEAR....

women and birthdays...

A group of women, a surprise birthday party, great food and fabulous conversation. We should each experience it at every so often in our lifetime. I imagine that all women talk about the same things at birthday parties. Age,parents, children, husbands, sex. Milestones met and new ones to come.

We sat around the table eating got food and then sharing fondue. One big conversation and at other times, small ones going on around the table. The Birthday Girl is wearing a crown and pink beads, you could pick her out of a crowd.

There is just Something about a group of women sharing that is a little slice of heaven. Ranging in age from 42 to 58, the conversation flows from topic to topic. Sidebars come naturally and often. Over 2 1/2 hours later, we each have gotten our 2000 words out for the day and collectively, go our own ways.

Great way to end the week. A little bit of living in the Moment, with a foot in the Past and in the Future. Loved it!

PS. The conversation about Denzel Washington - you couldn't drag it out of me,
(yummy!)

fool...

Alcohol, at times, made me a fool...George W Bush

Fool/noun...Someone who very much likes something specified.  [quotations ▼]
1975, Foghat, "Fool for the City" (song), Fool for the City (album): I'm a fool for the city.

Like him or not, George Walker Bush, 43, is very an interesting character. Caught his interview with Oprah today and was impressed. Anyone who admits to being a fool can't be all bad and as I learned today, looks like being a fool can go several different ways.

If Wikionary is right, one could be a fool for a good reason. Still not convinced that being a fool for either side is Something to be proud of even though I am a full-fledged card-carrying member of the club. Right now, I have several things that I like very much, going on. Some are physical like MacQuesting and some are theory which are just as strong, some days even stronger.

Can one be a fool in any category and live a healthy, mental life? I have seen what believing in nothing looks like as well as religion, both at less than their very best. Maybe it is alright to be a fool with conditions? Maybe not.

At any given time, we are all excited about Something. Something that we wish everyone would love to learn about and share with the world. What about your fool?

What does that look like for you, today?
Is it a negative or a positive?
How would giving it up, change your life?

Thinking my fools issues are now in preliminary mode and will either sink or swim, die a natural death or join the ranks of permanent files on my hard drive. Still uncomfortable about the very word, fool but thinking flushing them out and dealing with them, may be the way to go...

inside the actors studio...

Inside the Actors Studio: imagine James Lipton asking you his 10 questions and how you would answer,

1. What is your favorite word? breathe

2. What is your least favorite word? deserve

3. What turns you on? what brings me to tears

4. What turns you off? sci fi

5. What sound do you love? the lawn mower.

6. What sound do you hate? backhoe

7. What is your favorite curse word? everyone else's least favorite

8. What profession other than yours would you like to attempt? U2's back up singer

9. What profession would you not like to do? anything to do with mountain climbing

10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?Well done, good and faithful servant.

No matter who we are, I believe there is a little bit of actor in each of us and i say this, because we are all so full of drama. It may not look like Tom Hanks or Julia Roberts. You may not like being up in front of an audience but some of the time, we all live out the drama we have chosen or that has chosen us, and we put our heart and soul into it. It's not about memorizing a script or having your own dressing trailor but rather what happens when we are on. When we are living it or when the drama is living us. Like it or not, all the world is a stage and we perform on it every single day...

play.laugh.grow.

These words in this order belong to Fisher Price but don't be fooled, they are words to live by, no matter what your age. The older you get, the more you see their significance.

After spending time out and about this weekend, DH listened to me as I lamented about the early onslaught of All Things Holiday and stated as if I had been on a desert island for the last 10 years, Christmas starts the day after Halloween. He is so right.

The fight for our Christmas spending has already begun. There is no waiting until Black Friday. Layaway which was so 1970, made a come back last year and has been paraded in front of us since August. Here it is, I will fully admit it - when the fake snow starts flying and the red Christmas ornaments are everywhere, I start to change. I get the bug. I want all things, merry and bright. I become a kid and all that goes with it. I want, I want - kicks in with a vengeance.

While my usual default for the gratitude season runs from November 1 to Thanksgiving, I am moving it to December. Actually, it will run from November 25 to December 25. I am extending the season of thankfulness for all I have been giving at the toughest time of the year.

The season where Jesus and Santa Claus clash.
The season where everyone gets that one perfect gift, they so long for.
The season where everyone walks away from the table, full and happy.

Play.laugh.grow, that is what I want for each and every one of us but the reality is that won't happen. The reality is people are homeless, hungry and have no money for anything. So where do we start? How do we change our personal realities? It had to come from within and it has to contain the element of gratitude. It is about learning to be grateful, no matter where you find yourself. It is about being happy doing what you can with what you have. Learning new ways, if you have to. Making new traditions and most of all, not living in a world that doesn't belong to us. Yearning for what isn't ours in spite of our best efforts and wanting.

I have been listening to Christmas music for about a month now. Not the Santa Claus is coming to town stuff, but the Real Christmas stuff. The reason I know it is real is that it calms that part of me that wants to smother the world in snow and gifts and wants to see play.laugh.grow flourish in real world. Now that, is heaven in the Real World...

the blond in the t-bird...

Keaton now has a thing for Happy Days. Richie Cunningham and The Fonz are high on his list and as any good nana would do, I need to keep up with his ongoing knowledge of all Things Cool. On Friday, we got into a little discussion about American Graffiti which has one of his favorite actors, Harrison Ford. He couldn't believe it so we started Googling AG. Richie and Shirley were there which later led to Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley but also Richard Dreyfuss who Keaton loved in Jaws. It is at the top of the list for the next sleepover if not sooner.

So, its 2AM and DH and I are going to bed and I start telling him all about this wonderful conversation with our grandson. As I proceed to go through the cast of characters, he says, Oh yeah and Suzanne Somers was the blond in the t-bird. No, I tell him, I don't remember her being in American Graffiti. This movie came out in 1973, the year our girl was born - this is the man who can't always remember my birthday or our anniversary which is the very next day but he remembers the name of an actress in a movie over 37 years ago. I am so sure he is wrong, either because it was very late or very early. I couldn't sleep, finally got up , turned on the iPad and after searching the exhautive cast, found Suzanne Somers, near the end. We had a good laugh and finally were able to get some sleep.

I should not be surprised. There are a few things that we women should never bet against with men. When on a diet with a man, never bet. Never, even if they are prone to cheating. There is Something about their DNA that allows them to kick your butt everytime. Find something else, but never weight loss. The other thing is women. Men have an uncanny knack for remembering things we don't want them to when it comes to blonds in t-birds. Again, can they helpd themselves? I think not. It is better to go with the flow and understand they are who they are and we are not going to change them and learn to buy your own birthday presents...word.

the power of music...

Thanks Mrs D! You made my day! and the beat goes on...

best.day.ever...again

It doesn't stand for what you think...Twitter, Google, IPhone and Facebook. Leonard Sweet.

BC - before cellphones. In 1973, Martin Cooper stood in front of the Hilton Hotel in NYC and made a call from the sidewalk to AT&T. The first cell phone call.
If you were born before 1973, you are an immigrant. Born after 1973, you are a native.

TGIF - this is a culture that sell relationships not products. Don't believe it, try getting out of your cell phone contract.

All this is mixed up with going to the Mac world and leaving the PC world behind. Gotta to say that the iPad has got me thinking so far ahead of what I thought was possible and with the Mac App store coming in January 2011, my pc days are over.

Had an issue with my camera connection for the Ipad which turned out to be a memory card issue but I spent several hours at the Apple Store today trying to figure out what direction to go. Got to pick the brains of a couple of 20 something young men and decided to go for the iMac desktop and use my iPad instead of getting a laptop. Each of them have the same set up and it works perfectly. They have Expert on their business cards, imagine I can't go too wrong with their advice.

As I invested myself in their knowledge, I kept thinking about the TGIF thing. Everywhere in the Apple Store, one is bombarded by images. Fast, striking, big and colorful. I see what I see now. If you are around me, you won't hear anymore about leaving Twitter...I am in for good. I see the benefit and truly, want to see the world through their eyes. They are awesome....

After spending a couple of hours there, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a woman way older than me - buying an iMac. She didn't look like the Apple type, the times they are a changin. After spending 20 minutes with my last Expert, the best thing ever happened. He offered me a job at the Apple Store. I told him I study Steve Jobs' Keynote speeches like I was going for college credit. Seems like I am headed in the right direction... Now, if I only lived closer to the Mall...

you were put here, for this Moment...

Let's be more amazed that we are forgiven, than that we are right/John Piper.

In the middle of some serious study. My head is whirling and my heart is full. It is about joining the culture of Today, the one God has put me in with the one I was raised it. I live in a world where text has gone from being a noun to a verb. The average 13 year old sends over 3400 text messages a month. I couldn't have imagine the world we live it today. A world that is foreign to what I know yet, I am here for a reason.

To know a culture, you have live with them. Do what they do, become a part of their community. You have to have some credibility and that doesn't happen without involvement. You have to speak their language and when they know that, then you have made a Way. This culture is not about works, they are about images. TGIF... it's not what you imagine, Twitter, Google, IPhone and Facebook. The currency of this culture is images not words/Leonard Sweet.

You and I were put here, for this very Moment, and we need to create some creditability. The only way to do that is too immerse yourself in this generation. Need a starting point? Follow Apple for a while and then go out, spread the Gospel of Jesus in a way that this culture will respect because we cared enough to learn their ways. I could not be more excited. TGIF, from this Moment on.

TGIF...

It doesn't stand for what you think...Twitter, Google, IPhone and Facebook. Leonard Sweet.

BC - before cellphones. 1973 Martin Cooper stood in front of the Hilton Hotel in NYC and made a call from the sidewalk to AT&T. The first cell phone call.
If you were born before 1973, you are an immigrant. Born after 1973, you are a native.

TGIF - this is a culture that sell relationships not products. Don't believe it, try getting out of your cell phone contract.

All this is mixed up with going to the Mac world and leaving the PC world behind. Gotta to say that the iPad has got me thinking so far ahead of what I thought was possible and with the Mac App store coming in January 2011, my pc days are over.

Had an issue with my camera connection for the Ipad which turned out to be a memory card issue but I spent several hours at the Apple Store today trying to figure out what direction to go. Got to pick the brains of a couple of 20 something young men and decided to go for the iMac desktop and use my iPad instead of getting a laptop. Each of them have the same set up and it works perfectly. They have Expert on their business cards, imagine I can't go too wrong with their advice.

As I invested myself in their knowledge, I kept thinking about the TGIF thing. Everywhere in the Apple Store, one is bombarded by images. Fast, striking, big and colorful. I see what I see now. If you are around me, you won't hear anymore about leaving Twitter...I am in for good. I see the benefit and truly, want to see the world through their eyes. They are awesome....

After spending a couple of hours there, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a woman way older than me - buying an iMac. She didn't look like the Apple type, the times they are a changin. After spending 20 minutes with my last Expert, the best thing ever happened. He offered me a job at the Apple Store. I told him I study Steve Jobs' Keynote speeches like I was going for college credit. Seems like I am headed in the right direction... Now, if I only lived closer to the Mall...

the wear and tear of Real Life...

The phone started ringing at 8am and 12 hours later, I have received a total of 16 political-based calls. It is enough to make one crazy and I told the last caller at 816PM Something to that effect.

Week after week, we all have a personal routine. If you have kids, you know the drill. School, homework, sports, church, whatever it is that has captured your time. Vacation is overrated. You can't wait for the hopes of a getaway or you will never make it. The longer I live, the more I think vacations are for making memories, and using them as a way to distress is a inappropriate use. We have to value and find ways to weather the storms of everyday life, everyday.There are magazines filled with ideas and most of them will work for someone.

We all have to find a way to refresh, in the Moment. Doesn't have to take much time or cost any money. Maybe the most important thing you can do for yourself is smile. Find something that makes you smile. A few minutes of music can make one a new person. I played the Hallelujah chorus on my iPod tonight and I was smiling and soaring in no time. I started listen to Christmas music last week. Not Jingle Bells or It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas, but, The Young Messiah. One of my favorite pieces of music that reminds me of the Big Picture. A few minutes in and I was thinking, it's the best.day.ever.

I say this because I am not a natural optimist. I have to relearn it everyday. When you know your strengths and weaknesses and are willing to look them straight in the eye, there are no surprises. Get what you get and don't throw a fit, is a great way to live because it puts life in perspective.

I use to think I could do it all, Now, I know how insane that was and how that thinking that was more dangerous than actually living it. Life after the Garden may be less than ideal but it is doable and that is all any of us can ask for...