Unnecessary

sign, originally uploaded by dweaver7.

I really did not need this warning of punishment. This sign was inside the compartment going to the top of the St. Louis Gateway Arch. As it shoots up the leg of the arch, rocking back and forth and rattling alarmingly, I wonder who would want to tamper with the door?

I'm a Godmother...

...not the kind with a wand and three wishes, but the kind that holds her Godson and rocks him to sleep! I was privileged to be part of his birth today and am thanking God for his safe arrival. He's beautiful!

"put the camera down...."

"put the camera down....", originally uploaded by mbkepp.

I want a bunny now...just because MaryBeth Kepple keeps showing her adorable HUGE bunny on flickr.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Bombing the Moon

I really thought my son was talking in his sleep when he told me he had stayed up until 7:30 am to watch NASA bomb the moon. But, I looked it up. He is right. They shot a rocket at the lunar surface and followed it with another craft that also crashed into the surface to collect data from the plume of dust and debris that shot up from the first one. They were looking for water.

Fall

I love Fall! It's my favorite season, but here in Houston, there is really very little of it. We get a few cooler days and I can pretend it's a real season. I know it's Fall though because my sinuses tell me. I still get the same old allergies I have had all my life. Ragweed...not good.

I am looking forward to the Katy Rice Harvest Festival this weekend. Nothing like a good old-fashioned small town festival with yummy food, live music and lots of crafts to make you feel like Fall has arrived. I think it's even supposed to be cooler! Yay!

Fall

Since this is the first day of Fall and I recently suffered a fall that left my left foot in a cast, it is appropriate that a friend sent this link to me. It starts with this description...how appropriate.

• Knowing how to fall safely (also known as "breaking one's fall") is useful for close encounters, such as street fights and sparring matches—or simply if you are clumsy-footed.
• http://www.wikihow.com/Fall-Safely

Ouch

I was so excited that I was buying a new bike on Sunday! I went to the store and instead of leaving with a new bike, left with an injured ankle and injured pride. Why do I listen to someone who is less than half my age when what they are suggesting seems unwise? Just because their name tag seems to identify them as someone who should know more about something than me. A name tag is not qualification. I learned this the hard way. The sales clerk had me get up on a bike that was about 4 " too tall for me, WITHOUT moving it out of the row of bicycles first. Then, he told me to try riding it around the stores bike track. When i decided to get off of the bike to move it out of the row of very crowded bicycles, my foot had no where to land. It tried to land next to me but the bike to my left was in the way. I put my foot down and into a tangle of bikes. My twisted foot strained to find something to balance on, but found nothing. I toppled momentarily and then fell at the feet the clerk and everyone else. This is the result...2 doctor visits and 5 x-rays later...not a pretty sight. Where did my ankle go? And why does my foot look like a rainbow?

Malcontent

–noun

a malcontent person, esp. one who is chronically discontented or dissatisfied. Synonyms: grumbler, complainer, faultfinder.

A good description of someone who just won't be happy...won't be satisfied. Someone who spends lots of time and energy finding things that don't meet their criteria. It drains their energy and the energy of anyone who has to spend time around them. Why would someone choose to be this way? I am really not sure. Is there security in it for some people? Do they feel better about themselves if they are constantly finding fault with others or with the world around them? It's difficult to understand and yet not really worth spending any more of my own energy or time to figure out.

This is what I pulled up behind today on WalMart drive off of Fry Rd. Obviously, someone decided to create their own A/C by using duct tape, a wooden shelf, and a window unit A/C.

On the surface, it seems like something to laugh at...but if you think about it, here is someone who is resourceful, smart and a problem-solver...not bad traits to have these days.

What's a Wiki?

There are so many new ways to interact with Information on the new Web 2.0...here's one called a Wiki. If you've ever wondered.

Start Spreadin' the Noos...

Last night I watched a Mariachi band play "New York, New York." What a scream. The singer really belted it out... and it was bizarre. People stopped eating their enchildadas and tacos to stare with mouths gaping open. Some looked shocked, some laughed and in the end they got a nice applause.

I'm trying to learn about geocaching. If any of you have done it and have tips for me, let me know. I think this is something I would love. I love geography and I love to hike...I love mysteries, etc.

looking inward

i'm feeling very introspective tonight. looking inward alot. considering the decision i made today and feeling better about it. sometimes you have to "do yourself a favor and walk away" from something that just doesn't feel right.

laundry dog

Tonight Snoopy was not happy that I would not let him jump up in my chair with me so he found another spot...in the middle of my clean laundry. Silly dog. Smart dog. My funny weiner dog!

I'm a cartoon now. Yay.

Are You Serious?

Saw a shirt at Tennis Express tonight that said that on it...that's all. Wanted to buy it but the price gave the shirt new meaning.
Loving my netbook...so little, so perfect, so fun. Thinking it's funny that it's in between what I've been using...a smart phone and a regular laptop. Big enough to be easier to use, but small enough to be portable and easy to take.

New Office Space

I have a new office/cubicle/workspace. It's nice to have a place to put my stuff and have a sense of belonging. I hope its the beginning of a good year.

I also ordered a netbook today. I decided for me, smaller is better for what I use it for at home. I'm excited and will enjoy having a new toy when it gets here.

Socks

I had a strange thought today. I remembered something as I looked out the window at some very red dirt on a hillside. I was in Bastrop and the dirt reminded me of dirt in North Carolina. I mentioned to the driver who was bringing us back to our car after a kayak trip down the Colorado River, that I could remember that red dirt in NC and how my kids' socks would get orange from playing outside around all that red dirt. All the kids had orange socks.

Then, memories of my kids socks and the dirt that would dump out of their shoes as they came in from playing starting flooding my mind. Kentucky... where the dirt was black or brown. Florida...where sand would come pouring out of their shoes. And, NC where the socks were orange with the red clay dirt. See, I told you...strange. My kids' shoes and socks as mile markers along our journeys through life.

Can you change someone?

"People only change for their own self-interest. So unless they can see what's in it for them, they probably won't change." - Linda Talley
Interesting bit of insight. I believe she is right. Even when people say they are changing behavior or attitude for someone else, it is because they want approval, love, or something else.

New Addiction

I am addicted to the website Etsy. Thanks to Cait for turning me on to it. A place for people to sell and buy handmade items and vintage items. Awesome. Look at this seller's stuff. Just pillows, but not just pillows. Artwork. Really.

I spend WAAAAY too long looking at this stuff and saving favorite stuff and following some of the artists. I'm getting inspired. Maybe I'll put some stuff on here.

Pancho the Penguin

...a very cute pet of a blind bar owner in Uruguay. Really. I saw him on Anthony Bourdain's show No Reservations. Okay, don't know why I had to tell that. Just found it to be cute, funny and sort of sweet.

Not so sweet...he visited a family who sent their son to catch an armadillo for dinner. YES, I said an armadillo. You know...the animal that carries leprosy. And, they ate it. Probably one of the most disturbing things I have seen cooked and eaten on TV. Yuck.

MapMyRide.com - General Road Cycling: General Road Cycling on 07/11/2009

Okay, watching the Tour de France is making me want to get back on a bike like so many other people out there. Went for a ride today and saw LOTS of others riding too. I have a feeling lots of us have bike fever because of our awesome American teams. Hopefully this will become another of my workout routines. Running, biking and playing tennis. All fun. In fact, wish I had more time to do them.

MapMyRide.com - General Road Cycling: General Road Cycling on 07/11/2009

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Happy 4th!!!

Happy Birthday U.S.A.!!! I am very patriotic and love the 4th of July. I love being an American and would not trade it for any other country. Even with our faults and problems, we are still the best nation on the face of the Earth. Thank you to all those who are serving or have served in our military to keep us free!

Webinars

This is pretty cool. I am attending a seminar type class online where I can see the people talking to me and also watch what they are doing on their computer screens and try it on mine if I want to. This is called a webinar. This one is for a product we might use in our school district this year for students and teachers to communicate and collaborate online.

STBX Issues

I have decided that it's not just me.

I cannot be the only person who notoriously spills her Starbucks coffee when I use one of their cups with their lids. It JUMPS out of the sipping hole at the top on me and then after getting a drink spits back at me. I end up looking like this and my cup looks like it belongs to someone just learning the skills of drinking from a cup.

So, I looked it up on Bing (my new favorite search provider) and found that there is actually someone out there so tired of spilling this way, they decided to profit from Starbucks' weakness. They are selling little green plugs to put in the hole when not drinking. This would solve coffee dribbling down my hand as I open my car or office door, pouring it on my feet as I get in the car, etc. However, it won't help me with the dribbling and spitting that occurs when just taking a sip, making it obvious to everyone I meet for the rest of the day that I've been drinking from a Starbucks cup. I just can't plug the hole after each and every sip.

Ready, Set, Think About It, Go?

Dabbling.

Doing old things in old ways.

Doing old things in new ways.

Doing new things in new ways.

It's how we adapt to something new in life...either in our jobs or our personal lives. This is specifically referring to the four steps schools usually take to adopt new technology (since that's my area) but I think it just applies to all of life. Anything new... we start little and slowly adapt our ways and our thoughts to it.

Did I Fall or Was I Pushed?

Don’t walk the plank like I did

You will be dispensed with

when you’ve become inconvenient

- Thom Yorke

Good lyrics for the way I feel about my job situation lately. Lessons in humility. When you've worked hard for a school for years and no one even bothers to announce you're leaving or recognize you, it hurts.

Deep DooDoo

Progress...is it ever real? ... is it only a perception? ...are there real start and end points in life? ...isn't all of life just a process that is marked by stops, changes, events? ...if there is not real start and end point, how do you measure progress?

Okay, very introspective today. I did NOT smoke anything to cause it. Just all of the changes in my life over the past year I guess. Or, maybe it's because I'm listening to Thom Yorke on my iPod.

Always check power...

...when it doesn't work, check to be sure it's plugged in. That is the first thing to look at. Sometimes common sense is uncommon. That's all I have to say.

To twitter or to blog...that is the question

I guess both. I have given up on Facebook ... it's too full of weird, time-consuming, addictive stuff.

I am working as the technologist for Summer School currently. A job that has been "re-purposed" by the district for next year. So, I am toggling between urgently needed and insignificantly unnecessary right now. Right now, I am doing exactly what you see in the picture. However, at any moment I will be called upon to solve a major crisis that will make life better for 300 students and 50 teachers.