T.M.I.

There are so many ways to get information nowadays.  Anything you want to know, you can find the answers with just a few clicks of the mouse.  And every day as I peruse the various social media sites, I see plenty of things that I don't want to know, that I don't care anything about, and that are none of my business. I'm trying to learn to tune these things out and not even take the time to read the headline, much less click on the link to read more.

I truly believe that too much information can be a very bad thing.  Why, oh why, do we feel the need to know every little thing about every aspect of everybody's lives?  Whether it is friends on Facebook or Twitter, politicians, or the famous celebrities that our media loves to follow around - we are at the point of serious information overload.

I remember way back when the most common ways to communicate with friends and family, other than in person, was either on the telephone or through the postal service.  Of course, if a friend lived outside of our city limits, we weren't allowed to call them on the phone unless it was a dire emergency, and even then we had to keep it short and sweet.  Those long-distance rates were crazy!  We really thought we were moving up in the world when our parents gave us a calling card to use, if we had to call home from a payphone and didn't have the money.

Sorry, got off on a little trip down memory lane for a minute there.

The point I was trying to make is that in those days, we weren't in each other's faces all the time, broadcasting every detail of our daily lives.  (Well, except for those teenage girl years when I basically had a phone glued to the side of my head as much as possible.  But at least that was only to one friend at a time.)

I worry sometimes that this idea of instant information is going to come back and bite us, if it hasn't already.  Particularly when it comes to knowing what others are doing or saying that we don't particularly agree with.  Sure makes it easy to judge, especially when we only see a snippet of information, or a photo that someone was tagged in.  (Is anyone else guilty of that?  You know... coming across a somewhat risque photo of a friend on Facebook, assuming the worst, and having bad feelings towards that person because of it, when it wasn't any of your business in the first place?)

Or, how about when you hear through the grapevine about something that was said about you.  Or when somebody leaves a snarky comment on your status and you're not quite sure how to take it?  Or, a friend seems to be ignoring you online, so you start analyzing every encounter you've had with that person to try and figure out why they suddenly hate you.  After all - we've just GOT to KNOW.  Right?

(I've read this somewhere before, and believe me, if I could remember where I saw it I would gladly give the original thinker of this thought the credit.)  I am often reminded of the fact that we are not the first generation that has dealt with this.  As a matter of fact, the problem of too much information can be traced all the way back to the very first human beings ever created.  Did you ever think about Adam and Eve having TMI?

Here's the passage, found in Genesis 3:1-7:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.  He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”  And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden,  but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’”  But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.  For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”  So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

Why couldn't she just be happy with what she had?  Why did she have to listen to that stupid snake and let him talk her into picking that fruit, in search of more knowledge.  She lived in paradise, for Pete's sake.  She had the perfect life, the perfect husband, no hard toiling to grow food, no labor pains... no death.  But she threw it all away, for just a little more information.  (Okay, a lot more information... but still...)

So why can't I just be happy with what I have?  Quit spending so much time chasing after stuff that doesn't matter.  I don't need to know everything about everyone I've ever met or ever thought about or that the media thinks I need to know about.  Really.  It's okay.

Better quit while we're ahead.

Busy is as Busy Does

Today I needed to do two things: get a prescription filled and get a few groceries for a dinner party we were having tonight.  So I decided to kill two birds with one stone and go to Walmart to do both.  

As soon as we (my 9 year old and I) walked into the store, I could see the line at the pharmacy snaked around the dividers and into the main walkway.  Thinking to myself, "Oh terrific. This will take all day," I stepped into the drop-off line.  We waited for a few minutes before the line began to move and surprisingly, it went fairly quickly.  Before I knew it, we were at the window to drop off the prescription and get on our way.  

The woman behind the counter was probably in her 60's, petite and gray-headed.  She was handling a phone call with one hand while clicking away on the computer with the other.  

And I waited.  

And waited.  

In the background, the other phone rang incessantly.  Workers buzzed back and forth like bees in a busy hive.  The lady behind the counter had not yet made eye contact with me to even acknowledge my presence.  I began to wonder if I somehow ended up in the wrong line.  

After a few more minutes of waiting, the harried-looking lady looked at me and said, "I'm sorry, it will just be another minute."  

I replied, with a smile, "It's no problem.  I'm not in a hurry."

Her response was... well... shock, I suppose.  (Honestly, I was a little surprised that it came out of my mouth, as well, because I was in a little bit of a rush to get done and get back home.)

"I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that here before," she said.  

"Well, you seem to be very busy today.  I understand how that can be," I replied.  

The harried look faded to a soft smile as she took down my information.  "It will be about 20 minutes," she said.  

And it was.  

I must learn to slow down and not be in such a hurry, taking more time to bless people around me with the gift of being patient with them.  The Lord knows that I am one who often requires patience from others, too.

Lesson learned.

Testing... testing... Is this thing on?

It's been well over a year since I last posted anything here.  And many times I have thought about trying again, but the blank page (or screen, in this case) is so intimidating.  I do have a lot to say, though, and so much that I really want to say.  

Because - if I have something to say that never gets said, no one will ever know, after I'm gone, that it was there, in my head, in the first place.  

And maybe it is something important.  

Or something that somebody needs to hear.  

So, like the little blue engine... I will try.

Stay tuned...

Technical Difficulties... Sorta.

Sitting here with my laptop... earbuds plugged in so I can listen to The O'Neill Brothers instead of the annoying sounds of Mario Kart on the Wii.  So many things on my mind and heart lately that I want to blog about.  I've been physically writing about them in my journal, and that alone has worn my emotions very thin.  I wanted to write them there first and sort through my thoughts, then decide what I wanted to add here, that might be beneficial to others.  I will get to it, eventually, as time permits.

Another thing that has held me back lately has been these constant headaches.  It seems that each day I am plagued with a headache by early afternoon that gets worse as the day progresses.  Headaches are nothing new to me.  I remember my mother taking me to the doctor when I was in the 3rd grade because I was constantly complaining of a headache, and in the past 10 years, especially, they have been ever present.  But it's just been in the past few weeks that they have become so regular and difficult to get rid of.  Makes it kinda hard to concentrate and think clearly.  

So if you think of it during your prayer time, please say a simple prayer for me and my aching head.  Thank you. :)

God bless you and yours,

Stuck In The Garage

If you have read my blog before, you probably know that I have a cat named George. He is, for the most part, an indoor cat. But, we put him in the garage at night because, we don’t particularly enjoy being pounced on in our sleep. 

And George is perfectly content to stay in the garage at night.  He has his food and water and a little bed, and he has the whole garage to himself for all the exploring and mischief that a kitty can get into.

However, by the time morning rolls around, George is more than ready to be let back inside. As soon as he hears his humans up and about, he starts meowing at the door. 

If we don’t come right away, he meows more loudly and more dramatically. 

If that doesn’t work, he tries to dig his way in by scratching frantically at the bottom of the door. 

And if we still don’t come, he climbs the door facing and peeks through the window! 

Sooner or later, one of us will hear him (or see him!) and open the door. And whoever does so is then greeted by a very thankful kitty who wants nothing more than to purr and rub against your legs in complete adoration.

This morning, George was even more adamant than usual in his pleas to be invited back inside, probably because it has gotten so hot outside these past few days. 

As I opened the door for him and received my good morning leg rubbing, it occurred to me that if George hadn’t stayed by the door asking to come in, I probably would have let him stay outside a lot longer. 

In fact, I didn’t really want him to come inside when he did because the children were still asleep, and George enjoys waking them up (by pouncing on them and demanding to be petted). 

Yet, because he was so persistent in his request to be let in and because, quite honestly, he was getting on my nerves with all the meowing and climbing up the door (and sliding back down with those sharp kitty claws on the metal door), I relented and let him inside. 

I thought about how George had displayed the perfect example of how we, as Christians, really should be in our prayers and petitions to our Father. 

Luke 11:5-10 says: 

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread;  a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’  And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’  I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.    “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

I wonder just how often I get "left in the garage" because I just neglect to ASK  for God's help in opening the door?  

Of course, I am speaking figuratively here because I am capable of turning a door knob.  But in what areas of my life am I falling short, or what have I completely missed out on altogether due to my lack of persistence? 

I truly believe that God answers prayers, but how can He answer the prayer that never gets prayed?  Yes, He can read my mind and He knows what I want and what I need before I even ask, but if I never bother to ask and make my requests known, will He see fit to grant them?  Just like I know that George wants to come inside every morning, but if he is not persistent in letting me know that he's ready to come in, I surely will not get in a hurry to open the door for him.  

Just some food for thought.... 

Would love to hear your thoughts on the subject, as well.  

Blessings to you,

P.S. You can follow me on Twitter, and hear more than you really want to know about my kitty cat, George.  ;)

Randomocity

Because I know that enquiring minds want to know, here are some oh-so-random facts about yours truly.

1. I've never really liked my name.  (No offense, Mom.)
2. I've lived in the same town my whole life, so far.  
3. I now live just 2 streets away from the place I called home all my growing up years.  
4. My mom still lives there.  I can see her driveway from my front door.
5. My older sister lives on the one street that comes between my mom's house and mine.  
6. I can see her front yard from my front door, too.
7. My kids get to walk over to see their aunt and their Grammy frequently.  I love that.
8. I have 2 brothers and 2 sisters.  All are older than me, except one sister.
9. My siblings are each as different from each other as daylight and dark.
10. Out of the 5 kids, I am the only *normal* one.  

Ah.... I am so boring.  :op

Have any random fun-facts to share?  If you blog about them, leave me a comment so I can come and see!

Blessings,

P.S. About that #10... I really just put that there to see if my sisters are paying attention.  ;)

Teach 'Em to Fish

There's an old saying that goes, "If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day.  If you teach a man to fish, he'll never go hungry."  Or something along those lines, anyway!  

I like the alternate version of that saying: "If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day, but if you teach a man to fish, you can get rid of him all weekend."  LOL.

Not that I want to "get rid of" my guys.

Ahem.

But in the past year, my husband and sons have become quite the fishermen.  My husband has always loved to fish, but it's just been in the past several months that the two boys have really gotten into it, as well.  I love how excited they get in anticipation of a fishing trip.

Yesterday, my husband called home from work and said for the boys to get ready and they would go fishing when he got home.  The older boy couldn't go because he had already committed to doing yard work for an elderly friend that evening.  But the younger was immediately set and ready to go.  He took a big bucket out in the back yard and started digging for worms.  And since he loves his mom so~o much, he brought them inside the house to show me.  One of them was as long as his arm.  Maybe that worm was the one responsible for the big catch of the evening, as you can see in the photo above.  

I'm glad they have so much fun together fishing, but more than that, I'm so thankful for the Father/Son relationship that goes along with it.  I am so blessed with a good husband and wonderful children.

Have a blessed day!