Quote this

I just came across this quote: "When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on." It is attributed to Thomas Jefferson.

Really?

The man who wrote: "When a man assumes a public trust, he should consider himself as public property." and "We hold these truths to be self-evident,—that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; 1 that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." also wrote this: "When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on." ???

That saying doesn't sound at all what I think Thomas Jefferson would have written. If it was from his time period, I would imagine maybe Ben Franklin saying it. But to me it sounds way more modern - 20th century, in fact. To me it sounds like a late '60s to early '70s feel-good saying.

If anyone knows, I'd like to hear where this saying came from. I'm inclined to contact all the websites that attribute it to Thomas Jefferson and correct them, but probably won't bother, even if it wasn't him. It is a slight possibility, however.

Anyway, that's my position today. I don't believe that saying came from Thomas Jefferson until someone proves it to me.

Scripture of the day

From Debbie Kiley:

Saturday, Jan. 24
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
Revelation 3:20

Sunday, Jan. 25
Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.
3 Nephi 18:20

Scripture of the day

From Debbie Kiley, for Friday:

Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
2 Corinthians 13:11

Scripture of the day

From Debbie Kiley:

Wednesday, Jan. 21
If ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.
2 Nephi 31:20

Thursday, Jan. 22
Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Romans 14:19

More fun with food

Cake Wrecks!

(Another site you may want to avoid while eating, drinking or needing to go to the bathroom.)

I love this site. I visit it every so often, and go back to check what I've missed since the last visit. Just looking at the pictures often gets me laughing so hard I cry. Reading the commentary out loud with Cayla, we both start laughing.

The basic idea of Cake Wrecks is these are professional cakes - somebody paid money for these works of art. In some cases, there was an inspiration piece and we get to see what the customer wanted and what they actually got. (Inspiration vs. perspiration) Some are just sad. Some are sick (watch out for the anatomy cakes! You've been warned).

In some cases it's a misspelling or misunderstanding between the order sheet and what went on the cake. (See the cake that started it all.)

So I've spent the last little while getting caught up and laughing (mostly to myself but out loud) and it's time to move on. There are some cakes that are NSFW (not safe for work) or inappropriate for various reasons (anatomy cakes, the first censored cake wreck [I would lose friends that thought a naked woman giving birth is a good idea for a baby shower cake]) or just plain creepy (creepy baby cake).

Fun with pets

Taking pictures of pets can be quite a source of amusement. For example, I took this picture with my cell phone tonight, just before the cat woke up:



This cat is known as Edgars, Eddie, Edgar Allen Poe. This cat is a girl. (Long story) Anyway, Edgar was sleeping in a position that only a cat can assume - on top of the computer tower, over the phone at the base of the lamp. Lovely.

Scripture reading charts

I like the bookmarks with little squares to mark off as you finish each chapter. These are printable, and I've made them in the past and made bookmarks from them.

http://lds.about.com/od/ldsscriptures/a/scripturecharts.htm

These are specific - in the D&C, each section is listed by number. In the other scriptures, the book and chapters are listed. If you read out of order, you can still keep track.

Making bookmarks: I use cardstock, usually colored. I layer patterned paper next, then the reading chart. I may punch a hole in the top and put a ribbon through for decoration. I haven't laminated these for two reasons: I don't have the right size of laminating plastic and you would need a permanent marker to mark your scriptures if it's laminated. (I have a heat laminator - using clear contact paper would probably work just fine.)

I haven't done these this year yet, but maybe I should.

Going to church after all

I had considered not going - Mom doesn't feel well and so I won't have to take her. Cayla said last night that she didn't feel like going - no reason given and I didn't want to press her. So I won't be taking anybody.

I thought I could just stay home and not have to do anything - maybe take advantage of computer time (five women, one computer means lots of sharing and sometimes I don't get the computer on a particular day).

But then I thought of BJ. BJ would go to church, the only reason he misses is from being so sick from chemo. I don't have an excuse - just laziness.

So I'll go. I'll be late, but I'll be there. And if I see you there, BJ, that's great. If I don't, I'll still be thinking of you. ;-) Hang in there.

Daily update

No funny link right now - I'm tired. The kids don't have school, but I still do. I'd rather go back to bed. I also have to work tonight, and go in an hour early due to my school schedule.

Nicole: I loved your post. I'm so glad you posted. This blog is becoming what I had hoped it would be - we can all participate. For some reason, this computer or blogger isn't letting me do comments on posts, so I have to just do a post.

BJ: I'm glad you posted. This is meant for us to hear from you, too. ;-)

Story from the Mish

My flight was canceled. My plane from Phoenix to Dallas was quick and my layover was to be even quicker. Apparently the weather in Iowa had other plans. I stood in line and rebooked my flight which would leave in round about six hours. I took a deep breath and smiled outside and in. It took me no time at all to conclude that Heavenly Father designed this weather plan because someone in the Dallas airport needed the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. The next hours went by fast as I prayed for the spirit of discernment, got to know a lot of people, referred to the Restoration, invited them to learn more, bore my testimony, took a potty break, ate enough M&Ms to make any normal person sick, and thanked my Heavenly Father for my beautiful calling. For six hours I did what I had been doing for the past 18 months but I felt…like something had been left undone. The Saturday before my departure I had received conformation from the Spirit that my Father had excepted my mission but with this feeling ebbing away at me I began to question my experience. I boarded the airplane and seated myself next to my new best friend. Over the next few hours we would share some of the tenderest moments that have taken place over the last 18 months of my life.
Cree (rhymes with tree and I have no idea how to spell it) is from California and was on his way to his brother’s home in Iowa to spend the holidays. I shared with him why I was on my way to Iowa, where I had been, and what I had been doing. He was intrigued and asked the normal questions. It didn’t take me long to pull out the extra copy of the Book of Mormon I was caring with me and explain the meaning of the book. I told my new friend why I love this book and what it means to me. Cree expressed to me His belief in God and Jesus Christ and his love for them. I told Cree with every feeling in my heart that They love him too and that they leave nothing to change. I expressed to him that God had put us on this plane together so I could give Cree a message directly to him from God. I promised him that when he read from this book he would learn more about Christ and his relationship to him, understand what God’s plan for him is, and that he would feel closer to them than he ever has in this lifetime. I began to teach the restoration and all the other ways throughout time that Heavenly Father has shown his love for…Cree. I told Cree that because now that we were friends and all I wanted to give him a special Christmas present. I told him how important it was to me and that I expected him to cherish it for all his life or I would be sorely disappointed. I handed him the copy of the Book of Mormon. He stared down at it in his hands and told me that it was important to him too and the best gift anyone had given him. A comfortable silence fell between us as I silently thanked Heavenly father for this son of his that sat beside me. The lights of the city of Des Moines began to appear in the distance through the plane window. I couldn’t hold my emotion and I began to cry. Cree became alarmed and I told him that I was just overly joyed to see my family after such a long time. Cree began to cry too. He told me that his beloved wife passed away in June and this would be his first Christmas without her in thirty-some years. As I told him about the plan of Salvation we both cried harder. I testified that as he read the special gift I gave him that his life would change for eternity….and the life of his late life. I once again committed him to read and pray. It was time to get off the plane. We wished each other a Merry Christmas. I told him I loved him with my eyes, took a deep breath, and walked off to greet my family. I openly sobbed all the way down the escalator for I knew that my mission was complete. My mother was the first to reach me.

Fun and funny link of the day

Coolsig. Where you can go for a variety of quotes to use in email or forum signatures. It's been awhile since I've checked this site out, so I haven't read every one of the 4,467 signatures they claim. Some may not be work-safe.

A few examples
Web head signatures:
"How to Buy and Set Up a Computer". Step One: Get Valium - Dave Barry
A Life? Cool! Where can I download one of those from?
BTW, FWIW, IMHO, AFAIK, yes. OTOH, AAMOF, maybe not. YMMV.
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him to use the Net and he won't bother you for weeks.

Work:
85% of the world's work is done by people who don't feel very well - Winston Churchill
Due to the constant fluctuation in customer personalities, we cannot be responsible for the mental stability of any one member of our staff. (Seen in a gas station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
A clean desk is a sign of a cluttered desk drawer.
God put me on this Earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now, I am so far behind I will never die.
Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.

Movies:
Sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here - Jack Nicholson 'As Good As It Gets'
Will somebody please get this big, walking carpet out of my way? - Princess Leia in Star Wars
You know what the difference is between you and me? I make this look Good. - Will Smith (Men In Black)
'I've got a dragon here, and I'm not afraid to use it!' - Donkey in Shrek.

Bumper stickers:
Forget About World Peace... Visualize Using Your Turn Signal!
Honk if a part falls off
Hang up and drive!
My reality check bounced
YES this is my truck. NO I wont help you move.
You go on ahead, I'll see you at the next light.

While looking for a few things to post here, I did find some with language issues, and a couple of page links didn't load. Overall, I think the good and amusing outweigh the bad, though.

Hi, I am sitting in a recliner at the infusion center at TRHC getting a couple of units of packed red blood cells.  It seems that chemo knocks your counts down and then you get tired and dizzy and weak.  I don't like missing work.  I am usually worse during the week-ends.  Three days after chemo which is Sunday is the worse.  The good news is that the cancer is gone.  I had a CT Scan the Friday after Christmas and all was good.  I have survived the cancer now I have to survive the treatment.  I will feel better tomorrow after getting two units of blood.

On  a lighter side.  I was feeling a little better today when I first was up and was thinking about working until Lori threatened to slap me.  That was a first so I knew she was serious about that.  If all goes well I will be done with chemo by the end a March.

BJ

Funny link of the day

Part of my goal for this blog (besides having multiple authors - no luck there yet) is to have something amusing or uplifting every day. Today is amusing - or at least I find it so.

Lilek's Gallery of Regrettable Food

Suggestions before reading: don't eat, don't be drinking pop and go to the bathroom first.

Don't eat because you may ruin your appetite. Don't be drinking pop because you may snort it out your nose while you are reading the snarky descriptions. And go to the bathroom so you don't wet yourself laughing. Seriously.

This site is best read aloud with someone who will laugh right along with you.

The main site is here. The Gallery of Regrettable Food is my favorite part, and I haven't explored every bit of the site, but wait, there's more. Matchbooks, Minneapolis and many other things await your perusal. Have fun.

(UPDATE: Two-hour delay for most of the area schools, including Fort Dodge and Manson Northwest Webster. So far.)

More template choices

Airplane
Travel
Sky fighters

I'll stop looking now. (I could spend all day at this, trust me.)

I see that some schools are already saying they'll get out early. That's fine, I understand it's better for parents to make arrangements for their kids ahead of time if school gets out early for bad weather. But what I'm concerned about is my own hide - I go to work at 2 p.m. and get off after 10 p.m. usually. I'm guessing we'll have early deadline, and that's helpful. But the other two people who work on the news side tonight live farther away from Fort Dodge than I do, so I can't beg off because of bad roads. I do have the option of staying at Mom's overnight, but I'd rather endure a harrowing ride home with my own bed to sleep in than sleep on Mom's floor or in her recliner.

I can tell you this, though - I'm going back to bed when the girls go off to school. Classes resume for me on Wednesday, and there goes my naptime. I'm taking advantage of my opportunity while I can. ;-)

UPDATE: No school for Fort Dodge kids.

Templates and irony

BJ requested an aviation theme - I found this one, we'll see if it's OK.

Here's the irony: The R.S. lesson (and Priesthood) was Lesson 23 “How Good and How Pleasant It Is … to Dwell Together in Unity."

I taught the lesson in R.S. We talked about working together, how the Saints in Kirtland all worked toward building the temple - the men built the temple and guarded it at night, the women made clothing for the temple workers and carpets and curtains for the temple. Everyone participated and there was enthusiasm for doing the Lord's work.

Then when Cayla and I got home, I asked her to make me a quesadilla. She complied. A little while later, after she had eaten, I asked her to make me another. (I was getting this blog started.) She sighed, grunted, asked "why" and finally said, "I'll do it, but only one more."

I got up from the computer, told Donna to close out and log off my side. I made my own quesadilla and was crabby about it. I wished I had the spirit of cooperation and unity in my own house. That's the irony - I teach a lesson on unity but don't have it in my own house.

And Cayla hasn't always been like this - she used to be way more helpful. Apparently it's a combination of a) her helpful bone is worn out and b) she's an official teenager now. This attitude change came about in the last few months and her teenagerhood began in December. So, there you have it. I have two teenage daughters, with all the fun and worry that that can be. ;-)

Template choices

I did a search for Blogger templates. So far I've only checked one site. But they have quite a variety. I'm still checking it out.

Birds on a wire
Blue Spring
Field of dreams

What I'm looking for is something that's not white text on black (or on dark background) - I find that pretty but difficult to read. So, something that has dark text on a light background. Something that is attractive but not girly (this is girly to me). But, again, if BJ has something else in mind, we'll change. ;-)

More sites:
All Blog Tools
Blogspot Template
Blog Templates

That's it for now - I'll pick something out but we can change it later.

Blogging for BJ - day one

Lori, Nicole, Emily and I were having a discussion in the foyer at church today and I felt inspired to start this blog. The purpose is to let BJ know that we are thinking of him, and to cheer him up. This is designed to be a multi-user blog, so hopefully we'll get more participants involved.

So, I'll be looking for uplifting, cheerful and/or funny things to post here. I'm also looking for a template theme. I'll take suggestions on this. I'll post a few links and take feedback. (BJ - if you like any of these in particular, let me know.)