A DAY AT THE ZOO

QUOTES OF THE DAY

"I don't want to play it safe by just waiting on the future."
"If we are not intentional, we become people who 'wish we had' instead of those who are 'glad we did'".
"I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well." (Diane Ackerman)

-all quotes from the yet to be published book, You're Stronger Than You Think, The power to do what you feel you can't. by Dr. Les Parrott and Bill Dallas

FUTURE PHOTO BACKDROP

GAS STATION

I took a trip today to my northern most account in Michigan. I enjoy my visit once I'm there, but it's usually a long, lonely drive before I get there. My Sirius radio keeps me company and I'd be lost without it (not really, but it sounds dramatic). Anyway, Michigan has been hit pretty hard these last years, and seeing this gas station on my ride to Alpena speaks to many buildings like this along my journey to Alpena, Mi..

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FOXNews.com - LONG-HATED ONE CHILD RULE MAY BE EASED

It's all about the economics.

FOXNews.com - Long-hated one-child rule may be eased in China

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SEAN'S HOMETOWN

From a blog written by David Frum:

To leave Beijing is to leave a city where Western-style affluence is at least everywhere visible for a nation where wealth is concentrated at specific points. I’m staying now at one such point, the campus of Shantou University, a university funded by the philanthropy of the Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing. The guesthouse of the university in particular is one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve seen in China – although it should be said that beauty is rare here, the Chinese preferring to buy grandiosity when they have money to spend.


Shantou itself however is a grim place, a struggling industrial city in southern China, home to a big toy manufacturing industry and to the world’s largest garbage dump for electronic remains. Mao-vintage apartment blocks rust alongside the shattered hulks of pre-1949 housing, the latter still used as shelter for the very poorest. Scavengers work the town garbage sites, where slow fires smolder. Shantou is a place where scooters outnumber cars, where drivers have not yet mastered such concepts as driving the right way on a lane of highway, and where chicken cartilage still counts as meat. And yet there are thousands of places in the interior of China much poorer still.

MAIL CALL

Getting the mail today was a little more special than usual. One month ago, Will sent one of his basketball cards off to his favorite player, and today, received it back...with a signature. Very cool.

CORRECTION

I previously posted that Sean's Heart Cath is on May 12. IT IS ON MAY 11th.
Just a minor detail.

GETTING CLOSER

I don't remember blogger being so difficult to change out header photos, but I'm getting closer.

SHRINK TO FIT

Blogger doesn't actually believe me when I say I want my photo to fit the screen. That's annoying.

DID IT AGAIN

I was leaving one of my stores when I look at this elderly lady sitting in her car, probably reading, though I thought she was slumped over, and I stepped wrong coming off the curb, and sprained my bad ankle again. I was already thinking I was going to have life long problems with this ankle, now I'm convinced of it. Blasted!

LAST NBA GAME OF THE SEASON

I took Liz to the home opener of the Pacers v. Denver Nuggets, and Will and I wrapped up the season by going to a Pacers v Orlando Magic game. It's always been kind of wierd going to the Pacers since none of us really care about the Pacers, but since they aren't that good of a team, tickets are pretty cheap. I think we had our best seats ever tonight, being 17 rows from courtside...$30 a piece.

I told Will, if the Pacers ever get good, we're going to have to find a new team that stinks so we can get cheap tickets. For now, we enjoy Pacer ball so we can see the teams we really love.

EASTER SUNDAY

We had a good today. After a great church service we came home and had the traditional Easter meal of Lasagna. After lunch, afternoon naps, and a little NBA, all five of us headed to do something we haven't done for seven years...geocaching. Click the link below if you're unfamiliar with this activity, but simply put, you get yourself a GPS unit, go to the geocaching website, download the coordinates, and look for hidden "treasure". All five of us had a good time looking for the hidden caches in the local arboretum. There are a few pick and one video posted below for your pleasure.

May 12

This is the day Sean will have his heart cath done to close the littel hole in his heart.

90

That's Sean's O2 level on Thursday. He had a heart check up, along with Dr. Lane looking to see the fenestration (a little whole in the heart, which relieves blood pressure)to see if it's still there. Sometimes it will close on it's own. It's still there, and the doctor will get back to us after he meets with his colleagues next Wednesday. Once closed, the doctor anticipates his O2 level to pop up to 93 or so. We're also to the point that Sean no longer cries when at the doctors. What a year and a half it's been.

BEDTIME

It's official: Sean is now out of our bedroom. While playing with some arrangements of Will's bed, we moved Sean's bed next to Will's. Sean seemed to like the idea and was excitied to be by his big brother. So, after a year and a half, Sean left the security of knowing mom was right next to him, and took a step toward becoming a bigger boy. (All this while a serious thunderstorm raged outside).

Our room never looked so big!

COMPASSION

I found this to be extremely moving. What is God asking you to do?

REGRET

I'm regretting not bringing my camera with me on my Iowa/Nebraska travels. There is so much open space and not much to see, except for some really old barns and structures that probably have some stories to tell. And my 1 megapixel camera phone just won't cut it. Oh well.

FLORIDA DAY 8

1. On Thursday, we made our way over to two places, one called "The Pier" and the other was Treasure Island. In short, the Pier was a nice place to see the water and some birds, but the upside-down-pyramid-of-a-building that housed an aquarium, some shops and a few eateries, was a let down. For us to get into the aquarium, it cost $18. I've been to a few pet shops that had more fish. We determined this was our one rip-off of the trip. So we headed out to Treasure Island and Madeira Beach...a much better choice. We found a place with some unique shops and had a great few hours.
2. The rain arrived on Thursday, so it was a good day to do the above.
3. We rapped up the day by eating at a place called Sonny's Bar-B-Q. Very good and all you can eat.

FLORIDA DAY 7

1. Day seven can be summed up as travel from Orlando to Tampa, and beach day.
2. A year ago, when we came to Florida, and had Sean, he did not want to get even his feet on the beach. This year, he felt like he had a giant sand box.
3. We've been to quite a few beaches, but this is the first one that was littered with sea shells. The sand was less than soft, except for a few places, and I should have worn sandles.
4. As regular watchers of shows on the Travel Channel and Food Network, we always set out to hit one of those places we see on TV that appeal to us. This time, it was Mel's Hot Dogs, and it did not disappoint, especially for Will, who loves hot dogs. As one who talks from time to time about having a hot dog cart, I kept the menu for some ideas. As a Christian, I'm not allowed to comment on the car, but a few lines from the movie Shrek do come to mind.