Hurricane Info

Hurricane Alex is a category 1 storm, which is the "weakest" hurricane, but it can still cause lots of damage with its winds, rain and flooding, and possible tornadoes. Here in Corpus Christi, TX we are relieved that it is hitting landfall south of us. We'll get some rain and wind.

When I lived and grew up in the north, I just assumed that hurricanes were big storms that caused lots of damage and was glad they didn't really affect me. So I thought I would put some info about hurricanes to inform you (and ME)!


To see an animation of hurricane damage according to the categories of storms, go here.

From The Palm Beach Post.

Here will tell you about Herbert Saffir, the creator of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.

Randomness

This is what is circulating in my mind today:

• Tropical Storm Alex is in the Gulf of Mexico. Projections of its path vary hourly, but fears that it will come near Corpus Christi are pervading our atmosphere. When I went to the supermarket today (HEB), there were long lines and scurrying people with carts laden with cases of water and other supplies. I felt like I should buy water and batteries, although we have enough for awhile. I did succumb to buying bug spray!

• Since I am so intrigued by Karen Armstrong's book The Case for God, I was disappointed in the article in "The Christian Century" that soundly criticized her writings as sparse and biased. The article by Amy Frykholm is here.

• On the RevGalBlogPals site, I was directed to A Thing With Feathers blog. She displayed a beautiful picture with a saying from Storypeople.
  

image by Kieran Rynhart

"This is a tree on fire with love, but it's still scary since most people think love only looks like one thing instead of the whole world." -storypeople

• In 2006, Marj Barlow taught a Sunday School class on discerning and developing one's strengths. Today a friend asked me if I remembered mine, and I could not. I saved them somewhere on my computer. All I do recall is that she taught us from a book: How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life by Tom Rath and Donald O. Clifton, which contained the code for taking the online test Strengthsfinder 2.0. I will write more about this when I uncover the info.

• I have attended too many meetings lately, with two more tomorrow, so that I am realizing again that I am not a meeting person. Perhaps this is due to my introverted nature and it's just too much in too short a time period.

Nick Vujicic :: Attitude is Altitude :: No Arms, No Legs, No Worries

Nick Vujicic :: Attitude is Altitude :: No Arms, No Legs, No Worries

Maisie jumps up

Maisie jumps up on CB's lap when he's at the computer, which he allows and then helps her to get onto his lap. Sometimes Maisie pounds on the keyboard.


Cisco usually stares quite jealously at Maisie on CB's lap. When I asked him why he never had Cisco on his lap, CB told me that Cisco had never tried. Poor Cisco has much better manners.

Unfortunately, Maisie thinks she can jump up on anyone, and I get irritated when she jumps up on me, especially when I am typing.

Since both Cathy and my daughter AE want more pictures of Maisie, I'll try to remember to do that.

Dive in!

By David Hayward at Naked Pastor

Dogs Dig Out (again)

Just one of the boards they chewed on to get out.

As I got out of the shower this morning, the phone rang--CB was calling me from the Habitat site to tell me that the dogs were OUT! All three had been outside in the fenced-in yard. Maisie and Cisco had dug out again. I blogged about their digging awhile ago here.

BUT how did CB know this when he is across town doing construction? Our nice neighbor, who sometimes takes care of the dogs when we are gone, called him, since I was not available to answer the phone.

When I went out the backdoor, I was surprised to find Maisie there! Only later did I learn from our neighbor that he had hauled her by the collar into the backyard and then blocked the hole, but he said Cisco would not come to him. By the time I got a treat and the leash and went out the front door to find Cisco, Cisco was sitting there waiting to be let in! Cisco always comes back home, but not Maisie (yet).

Here is Maisie sniffing at the blockage to her hole:

And here are tired Cisco and Maisie:

Friday Five: TX Summers

Songbird brings this Friday Five to RevGalBlogPals. This is what Songbird suggests for today's Friday Five:
"But I don't want that to ruin summer for the rest of you. So I invite you to share five things you love--or don't--about summer. The tone is up to you!"

1. HEAT and HUMIDITY! Living in south TX, our summers seem present for half the year, so I am biased. In fact, I have a blog label entitled Texas Heat that has rants and cartoons about how hot it is here.

The lethal thing about living on the coast in warm/hot weather is the humidity. In the winter the humidity helps keep our skins hydrated. Now they really are wet! In fact, my friend KK has a cute story about her young nephew who arrived in town yesterday from WA State--he'd been running around the airport on arrival and suddenly stopped and said: "It's hot. I'm all wet!" He looked at his dripping self in surprise, never having gotten so sweaty up north (which I know is possible, but is not usually a daily event).

I remember in high school and college in Bellingham, WA that we would go out sunbathing and in shorts when it hit the upper 60's. Now that seems "wintery" here.

2. NO SCHOOL! The relaxed atmosphere of having no school has been with me since I was an elementary school teacher and then having four children of my own. With only one (MJ) still in school (college), I like having her come home more often.

Without school in session, I can see teacher friends more frequently. Also, there is less traffic in the early mornings on our streets.

3. VACATIONS! Ever since we got married, we usually have vacations back home in WA State. It was always wonderful for our children to explore parks and do all sorts of outdoor activities up there, as well as getting to know their grandparents. Since both my parents are dead, I am grateful my kids had the opportunity to visit every summer.

AND this summer, CB and I are going to ALASKA! This is a big vacation for us; formerly most of our vacations were to visit relatives. We will have the third week in WA to see our daughters AE and KA, plus a few days in Bellingham to see CB's parents and other relatives.

4. FRUIT! There is more fruit, especially berries. They are more plentiful in stores, as are also grapes, peaches and nectarines. Such abundance is helping me to eat more nutritiously. In WA, the strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries are brimming with flavor, as they are growing there. My parents grew them in their backyard, so the kids loved to pick them themselves. I have been surprised this year that the raspberries and blackberries available for purchase here have had more flavor than in years past.

5. HURRICANES! This is a scary prospect every summer--June 1 to Nov. 1. That's the period when the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean have temperatures that are warm enough to spawn and nurture the growth of big tropical storms. Corpus Christi has not had a big hit since Celia in 1970. We did not live here then; we have heard graphic stories of the damage and difficulties from that storm. Friends who were teenagers then tell us what it was like to have two weeks with no electricity; I would not like to be here for that! And today's water temperature in Corpus Christi is 87 degrees F. Not good.

Will you ever?

Will you ever understand how near God is to you?

Lalla, fourteenth century C.E.

Lalla was a great saint and mystic from the Kashmir province of India. She lived in the 14th Century, which was a period of great religious upheaval and change. Go here to read more about her.

To receive such quotations every day, subscribe to Word for the Day at Gratefulness.org.

My wish for you

Every Day

No, no, there is no going back.
Less and less you are
that possibility you were.
More and more you have become
those lives and deaths
that have belonged to you.
You have become a sort of grave
containing much that was
and is no more in time, beloved
then, now, and always.
And so you have become a sort of tree
standing over the grave.
Now more than ever you can be
generous toward each day
that comes, young, to disappear
forever, and yet remain
unaging in the mind.
Every day you have less reason
not to give yourself away.

~ Wendell Berry ~

Belief before and now

I finally finished reading The Case for God by Karen Armstrong. I strongly recommend it! I need to refine my understanding of all she says, because I want to share a lot of it with my children. Also, I am making a list of books Armstrong refers to in the end notes of each chapter for future reading.

Since I am in a rush, I am going to copy one of the paragraphs from her "Epilogue":

"We now understand basic religious terms differently and in a way that has made faith problematic. 'Belief' no longer means 'trust, commitment, and engagement' but has become an intellectual assent to a somewhat dubious proposition. Religious leaders often spend more time enforcing doctrinal conformity than devising spiritual exercises that will make these official 'beliefs' a living reality in the daily lives of the faithful. Instead of using scripture to help people to move forward and embrace new attitudes, people quote ancient scriptural texts to prevent any such progress. The words 'myth' and 'mythical' are now often synonymous with untruth. 'Mystery' no longer refers to a ritualized initiation but has been routinely decried as mental laziness and incomprehensible mumbo jumbo. The Greek fathers used the word to describe a truth that could not be put readily into words, could be understood only after long immersion in ritual, and, as the understanding of the community deepened, changed from one generation to another. Today in the West 'dogma' is defined as 'a body of opinion formulated and authoritatively stated,' while a 'dogmatic' person is one who 'asserts opinions in an arrogant and authoritative manner.' We no longer understand Greek theoria as the activity of 'contemplation' but as a 'theory,' and idea in our heads that has to be proved. This neatly demonstrates our modern understanding of religion as something that we think rather than something that we do."

Armstrong, Karen. The Case for God. NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. 323-324.

(I added the emphatic bold font, because I want you to pay attention to at least that much!)

A Co-Dependent Fable

Are you familiar with Edwin H. Friedman's book, Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue? That was recommended to me to read when I was in the UMC ministry process. It is a good, good book.

Recently, my friend KK told me about a story Friedman relates in Friedman's Fables, which keeps resonating within me as I hear of and/or encounter difficult situations with particular people.

A Nervous Condition

from "Friedman's Fables"

When little Johnny was about a year old, his parents noticed that small hair-like fibers were extending from his skin. As the months passed, they saw that the fibers grew and curled. Somewhat concerned, mom and dad took little Johnny to the doctor. He told them that it was an unusual condition. Ganglia, nerve endings, were growing on the outside of Johnny’s skin. He was in good health otherwise, so mom and dad watched him, and were instructed to be very sensitive. Years went by and Johnny grew. His ganglia grew, too — it was very long and trailed behind him. His parents were very careful with Johnny and his ‘condition’. He learned that people always accommodated his condition, and he would plow a path through any group of people. They recognized that He needed special treatment — he might be wounded terribly if someone were to step on the mass of nerve endings! He was just so vulnerable. (It’s best to give that last sentence a bit of whine as you read it.) People moved from him and for him. If some did not immediately know of his condition, he informed them, “I am very sensitive, easily upset, and easily wounded.” Then they would accommodate him.

Some of his classmates and even siblings felt handicapped by his handicap and felt resentment. John went through school doing less homework than others. He got a job without having to qualify. His boss required nothing of him because of John’s condition.

John met a woman he liked. Her pity grew into love. She lived to help him avoid pain. He was so sensitive! But her lifetime of service to one who expected so much without having to contribute anything became very tiresome, and she began to feel less sensitivity. She confessed this to a professional counselor who sympathized with her, but encouraged her to be more patient! She began to have physical and emotional symptoms of excessive stress and even considered suicide as an escape from her bondage.

One day John’s wife noticed a mother cat suckling her kittens. One was small and weak, the runt of the litter. The mother cat did not force the strong kittens to make room for the runt. She, in fact, pushed him away, forcing him to fight for survival. When John met his wife at home that day she stood at the door resolved not to let him pass through. “Why don’t you make way for me? I have a condition, you know.” She did not move! “You’re playing with me, but now you need to make way for me, or I will be hurt if you do not move!” Then she moved, but not out of the doorway, rather she moved toward him, cornering him. “You almost hurt me,” he cried. She stomped on the ganglia and he yelled, cried and screamed, then ran howling. She chased him, stomping his nerve endings. They wore themselves out, she stomping and he reeling. They slept. She woke relaxed and pain free! He woke without his ganglia - they had recoiled within his skin.

A Dog's Thoughts

BJ's dog Troy was here for about 40 hours, much to Maisie's delight. Troy runs and runs and runs, always looking UP.

Troy must be a bird dog. He'll run looking up, then stop and look up, and go off again running. I feel like he's always saying in his mind, "Bird? Bird? Bird! Bird!"


Imagining that Troy is thinking mostly about catching a bird (or a squirrel) reminded me of the wonderful children's book Barney Bipple's Magic Dandelions by Carol Chapman and illustrated by Steven Kellogg, which unfortunately may not be readily available for purchase. Barney's book has his dog voicing his canine thoughts!

Barney is given three magic dandelions by this amazingly eccentric woman named Miss Minerva Merkle. He wishes to be eight years old like his big brother; he wants his dog Snoozer to talk; and wishes for a big, shiny car to drive. The funniest part is about his dog's thoughts:

Barney asks him, "Wouldn't you like to tell me about some adventures?"

"What adventures? All I do is eat and sleep. I did have an interesting dream about a steak once," said Snoozer.

Steven Kellogg's illustrations have images of Snoozer's thoughts that go like this:
eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat, sleep. . . . . That's what I remembered when I imagined Troy's chasing thoughts. When I reminded both BJ and MJ of the book about Barney Bipple, they both remembered it!

In contrast, I think Maisie's thinking might be more sophisticated in that she skitters among many topics: eating, drinking, chewing, running, playing, chewing, sleeping, on the couch when no one is around (to be repeated over and over again).

Maisie sneaks up here, which is supposedly not allowed. But our kids let their animals on the furniture more than we do so Maisie has gotten used to doing that, especially with MJ.

Four Dogs!

Baillie, Maisie, Troy, and Cisco

BJ and MJ came home this weekend, so BJ brought Brittany Spaniel Troy. This is the first time I've ever managed to get all four dogs in a picture together, as they collapsed after being outside in the heat. You can also see our two computer desks; mine is the messy one on the left, where I am typing right now.

A wish for my children

"I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves."

~Anna Quindlen, "Enough Bookshelves," New York Times, 7 August 1991

No new shoes

I haven't bought any new shoes for a long time, but with our upcoming trip to Alaska and WA State, I decided I could use a good pair for walking. CB already has his pair from Zappos and is very happy with them.

I am delighted with Zappos, but disappointed that the pair and color I wanted do not fit. The story of getting TWO pairs of Tevas happened in the last three days. The day after I ordered a size 9, they arrived--too big. So I quickly printed out the USPS postage label and took the box to the post office. This was Thursday; I ordered a size 8, because the color I wanted (chocolate) was out of stock in size 8.5. Yesterday the next pair came and were almost all right, but my toes hit the front of the shoe when walking; I know that would end up hurting when walking a long way.
So vanity of vanities, I will not get the chocolate pair. (Is this to replace the chocolate candy I am not eating these days??) I will soon mail that box back to Zappos. Still wanting to try the middle size, I may opt for the light green.

BTW, Zappos was bought by Amazon last year, but is remaining its own business dedicated to service. I love Zappos service and selection!

And here are the Core Values of Zappos, which could guide many of us to a better life:
(Chart of values is from Rich's Blog)

Friday Five: Running LATE!

I'm late, I'm late, I'm late for a very important date!

As I opened up my computer this morning, I directly went to my blog and RevGals to see what the newest Friday Five would be! Nothing was here, which seemed odd. Then I went to look at the calendar and counted the Fridays, and it is the THIRD Friday! How did that happen so quickly? It's my turn, so here's a quickie:

1. Do you tend to be a late person or one who is timely, arriving on time or earlier?
I am more likely to be a timely or early person. Living in slower South TX culture for more than 25 years has sometimes caused me to show up a few minutes late, but that does not happen too often. Having a Marine for a father had me learn the importance of timeliness when I was growing up.

2. Have you forgotten anything of importance lately?
First off, I forgot about this being the third Friday of the month!

I slept through a walking date with a friend last month, which now means I do not forget on Thursday mornings to show up at the mall at 7 am. That was a good teaching moment!

Over the years, I have forgotten a lunch date because I have not written it on the calendar--OR haven't looked at the calendar!

3. Is procrastination your inclination? Why or why not?
Yes, I admit that I tend to procrastinate. As I am continuing to put off those looming papers, I think it is due to my "all or nothing" outlook--for perfection. I am trying to learn that writing is a process with expected inadequacies; I would learn more quickly if I wrote every day (and not just on my blog!).

4. Do you like schedules or spontaneity? Which works best for you?
I'm in the middle here. Being an introvert, I function better with schedules, especially for meetings. I have some extrovert friends who espouse spontaneity, but they arrive late and talk excessively. That is not what I think of "spontaneity." A middle ground works better for all concerned.

5. How do you stay on track with the various things you need to, people you must meet, etc., etc.?
Keep my calendar up to date! Lately, I need to write myself notes, too.

One practice that keeps me on task is recording friends' and family's birthdays on the calendar so that I can send them birthday cards. When I was a teenager in Japan, I started writing those dates on the new calendar on January 1st. I still do this every year.

Alaska in one month!

One month from today, on July 18, CB and I are flying to Seattle and then to Fairbanks! We are going to take two different trains: the Denali Star from Fairbanks, with an overnight in Denali (at Talkeetna), and on to Anchorage. From Anchorage we will take the Coastal Classic to Seward and back in one day.

Then we will fly to Juneau and take the ferry to Bellingham, WA, where CB and I are from and where CB's parents still live. We will spend three nights on the ferry, which is the first time I have slept on a boat since we took a U. S. Navy ship from Yokohama, Japan to San Francisco in June of 1964.

After this 11 day adventure, we will have one more week in Washington to visit in Bellingham and in Seattle (where daughters AE and KA live). MJ will join us then.

It will be here before we know it! I have always wanted to visit Alaska!

Penguin or Seagull?

By Steve Kelly

Go and read this article by Bracken Hendricks, Kate Gordon, and Tom Kenworthy:

Fix the Real Problem: End America’s Energy Vulnerability

And here's something Brian McLaren wrote:

An Oil, Slimy, Putrid Epiphany

Now here's a video that Cynthia posted from the Environmental Defense Fund:

99 Things About Me

Sarah and Cecilia put this on their blogs to "re-enter" the blogosphere. I never left, but needed something to post today.

99 Things About Me (Everything that I have accomplished is in bold)

1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii (I had a stop over when we returned from Japan to the USA)

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to DisneyWorld

8. Climbed a mountain (more like a hill, but a mountain by TX standards!)

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (I've stood by it)

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch-hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person--BUT I have visited and seen Victoria Falls!!

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors-

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing- kind of.

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had your portrait painted (from a photograph)

48. Gone deep sea fishing

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business –

58. Taken a martial arts class (Does tai chi count?)

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Got a tattoo

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee