I’ve always said that if you only paid any attention to those with whom you agree completely, your list of associates would be extremely short. John Lennon cheated on his wife, dropped acid, and claimed that The Beatles were bigger than Jesus. And he was a damned talented musician. Don’t know what I’d call Doug if it weren’t for him. John Travolta – I don’t have it out for the Johns, it’s just a coincidence – is a freaking Scientologist. And Pulp Fiction is a damned good movie. What would I quote when ordering pork if it weren’t for the coffee shop scene? Ayn Rand is an obvious atheist, there are of course some flaws in her philosophy, and she has a really weird and violent outlook on sex. And she’s a damned good writer.
Why is it that we can ignore the political beliefs, religious beliefs, and immoral behaviors of entertainers yet we somehow cast stones at our friends when their idea of “fair” differs from ours? Why is it that we can suck it up and pay $7.50 to go see a movie made by a man who stands for everything that we detest yet we can’t hold our tongues when a friend – and I mean a true friend – supports a political cause that we choose not to rally behind? By true friend, I mean someone who has been your shoulder to cry on. Someone you’ve lifted up during hard times. Someone you’ve laughed with and made grandiose plans with. How can we turn our backs on these people and continue to throw our money and our time at people who stand for everything we loathe in the world?
I wish that we could let that ability to disregard that which we detest could carry over into our personal lives. I wish that we could look at our (fill in the blank) friends with a blind eye, just as we do Hollywood. It’s really a shame that we give more merit to the popularity of the latest movie than we do to actual deep-rooted friendship. I pray that I don’t make a hypocrite out of myself by doing just this. I hope that I’m a bigger person than that.
p.s. Nobody turned their back on me. Nothing happened. I just had an “a-ha” moment while reading The Fountainhead. Carry on!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
NB
I just copied and pasted a bunch of old blogs from MySpace dating back to 2006. Happy reading and getting to know the Sheri before Daniel!
Love
I had an emotional day today. Not emotional as in I sat around and cried all day. And not emotional as in I wore skinny jeans and black eyeliner and moped around listening to Fallout Boy. Emotional as in I ran the gauntlet of emotional ups and downs and I am freaking exhausted. Well, maybe they weren’t ups and downs so much as backs and forths, but whatever. Guilt. Relief. Love. Joy. Indulgence. Pride. More pride. Happiness. Sadness. A smidge of anger. Longing. Loneliness. Camaraderie. Annoyance. You name it, I probably felt it today.
It occurred to me that this list of emotions is actually pretty short for one day, unless, of course, you’re Ron Weasley. But because I am neither redheaded nor a fictional character, it seems that this list, while comprehensive, is probably pretty typical for a normal day. For some reason, this list of emotions sent my mind to 1 Corinthians 13:13, specifically this: the greatest of these is love.
While I absolutely agree that love is the greatest of these, I had to wonder which is the strongest of these. Love will make you do some crazy things. Love will make you feel emotions you never even knew you had and will amplify other emotions tenfold. Love will take your breath away. But anger? Wow. Anger will make you do some crazy, fanatical, extreme things. And if you aren’t angry enough to actually do the things that are running through your mind, the fact that they’re running through your mind says a lot on its own. But then I came full-circle. I realized that the things that could make me think and do the crazy, fanatical, extreme things in anger were caused by love. Stick with me for a minute here.
I have a friend who has a friend who has a brother who has a baby. With me? Good. Well, something bad happened to that baby. I won’t go into detail because it’s not my story to share. The baby is going to be ok for those of you who are concerned. But I digress. The baby was hurt. Intentionally. Of course, when I heard this, I thought of my baby and how I would react if my baby were hurt intentionally. Words cannot describe the range of emotions that washed over me just when thinking about my baby being hurt. Extreme and fanatical come close. That’s what made me question the strongest of these. Of course, if it weren’t for the love I feel for my child, the anger would not exist. So here we are again – the greatest, and strongest, of these is love.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
I used to think these words were trite. Sadly, they only seem that way because at least 76 weddings per day pronounce these words before pronouncing man and wife. Love is all of these things and then some. It’s maddening and comforting. It’s fulfilling and fun. It’s glue and it’s a foundation. A foundation for families, for friendships, and for crazy, fanatical, extreme things. John was right – all you need is love. Once love takes its place in your life, the rest just falls into place.
It occurred to me that this list of emotions is actually pretty short for one day, unless, of course, you’re Ron Weasley. But because I am neither redheaded nor a fictional character, it seems that this list, while comprehensive, is probably pretty typical for a normal day. For some reason, this list of emotions sent my mind to 1 Corinthians 13:13, specifically this: the greatest of these is love.
While I absolutely agree that love is the greatest of these, I had to wonder which is the strongest of these. Love will make you do some crazy things. Love will make you feel emotions you never even knew you had and will amplify other emotions tenfold. Love will take your breath away. But anger? Wow. Anger will make you do some crazy, fanatical, extreme things. And if you aren’t angry enough to actually do the things that are running through your mind, the fact that they’re running through your mind says a lot on its own. But then I came full-circle. I realized that the things that could make me think and do the crazy, fanatical, extreme things in anger were caused by love. Stick with me for a minute here.
I have a friend who has a friend who has a brother who has a baby. With me? Good. Well, something bad happened to that baby. I won’t go into detail because it’s not my story to share. The baby is going to be ok for those of you who are concerned. But I digress. The baby was hurt. Intentionally. Of course, when I heard this, I thought of my baby and how I would react if my baby were hurt intentionally. Words cannot describe the range of emotions that washed over me just when thinking about my baby being hurt. Extreme and fanatical come close. That’s what made me question the strongest of these. Of course, if it weren’t for the love I feel for my child, the anger would not exist. So here we are again – the greatest, and strongest, of these is love.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
I used to think these words were trite. Sadly, they only seem that way because at least 76 weddings per day pronounce these words before pronouncing man and wife. Love is all of these things and then some. It’s maddening and comforting. It’s fulfilling and fun. It’s glue and it’s a foundation. A foundation for families, for friendships, and for crazy, fanatical, extreme things. John was right – all you need is love. Once love takes its place in your life, the rest just falls into place.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Work Widows Wednesday
Some good friends of ours live just down the road, have a son who's just about Daniel's age, and happen to keep a schedule similar to ours. We have what we call Work Widows Wednesdays. She's constantly widowed in the evenings - I'm only made to suffer two nights a week. Point being, we get together on Wednesdays and have dinner as a "family." I've decided that my regular blogs will take place after dinner on Wednesdays. Our little clan has it hard enough trying to find time to spend as a complete family. I don't think I should add another distraction (blogging) to making dinner, cleaning the kitchen after dinner, studying for an exam, mowing the grass, bathing the baby, putting the baby to bed, brushing the dogs (yes, I'm serious) . . . the list is already obviously long enough - you get the point. For those of you who are following, expect to hear from me then. :o)
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Welcome wagon
So I’ve been thinking about starting a blog for a while now. I used to blog anonymously, but that was before blogging was . . . well, cool, I guess. I haven’t quite decided what format it will take – if any – or what exactly I’m going to blog about. What our family has planned for the weekend? How I feel about my baby growing up? My daily struggles, be they mental, physical, or spiritual? My thoughts on the hottest political debate? However it plays out, you’re more than welcome to follow along and contribute as you see fit. I only ask that you respect my views and the views of others who comment on my views. Sheesh. That was a lot of viewing! Please disagree with me; tell me what you think and why you think I’m wrong (or right). Just do so in a manner that maintains at least the illusion of respect.
Thanks for reading!
Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Waterbabies - Take 1
Despite most people's opinion that I'm clinically insane for enrolling my seven-week old son in waterbabies, last night was a complete and total success. Just about everyone who knows us knows that we're water people. Surfing, diving, swimming, beaches - you name it. Sometimes I even shower twice a day, just to be in the water. I want Daniel to love water just as much as we do so when Rachel called me about this class, we went for it.
It's 8 weeks in 30-minute segments on Tuesday nights. What could it hurt? The director said that we could just pay for one lesson to see how it went before we paid our full enrollment fee.
Daniel obviously can't do many of the activities yet, but who cares? He loved being in the water. Maybe by the end of the class, he'll be able to do some of the actvities, although I'm not holding my breath on the jumping-off-the-wall thing. As long as he's happy and it's not hurting him, we're there. Not to mention the fact that he slept for 7 hours last night - woot!
It's 8 weeks in 30-minute segments on Tuesday nights. What could it hurt? The director said that we could just pay for one lesson to see how it went before we paid our full enrollment fee.
Daniel obviously can't do many of the activities yet, but who cares? He loved being in the water. Maybe by the end of the class, he'll be able to do some of the actvities, although I'm not holding my breath on the jumping-off-the-wall thing. As long as he's happy and it's not hurting him, we're there. Not to mention the fact that he slept for 7 hours last night - woot!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Life-changing event
I'll try not to get too detailed, but here's the story of Daniel's entrance into the world:
As you can tell from my previous blogs, I'd been having contractions for about two weeks. Ten or so minutes apart, not too painful, a little annoying. Thursday night around 6:00, I started having contractions, ten or so minutes apart, not too painful, a little annoying. By about 8:00, I decided that they were more than a little annoying and started keeping track. By 10:30, they were 3-5 minutes apart and I was grimmacing through them, refusing to talk to Doug or answer his questions. With about 10 minutes left in the second National Treasure, I decided we HAD to go. No more waiting or wondering if "this" was it - I knew it was showtime.
We got to triage around 10:45 and got hooked up to the monitor. I was measuring right at 4 cms and my contractions were pretty consistent - 3-5 minutes apart. Amy, my nurse, asked Doug and I to walk around for about an hour to see if I progressed any further. After MANY laps around labor and delivery, we went back to triage. I said about the tenth prayer of the night, Amy said I was at 5 cms and we were staying. I sighed a huge sigh of relief and thanked God, again.
By the time we were admitted and got to a room, it was about 2:00 am. By this point, my contractions were about 2 minutes apart and very painful. Hook me up to that epidural - STAT! Dr. Prus came in and started the drugs. Slight bump in my so-far perfect labor - Dr. Prus thought he "missed." Not missed in the sense that I'd never walk again, but missed in the sense that he thought he may have punctured the spinal membrane. Not terrible, but if had fully doped me up, we could have been in trouble. All this meant was that I only got a mild dose of the epidural. He told me to get some sleep and he'd be back to check on me later. Amy checked me then and I was at 8 cms. Talk about flying. . .
About an hour later, I woke up and could feel the contractions again. I called Amy and asked if Dr. Prus could come redo my epidural. Fortunately, he didn't have to. He checked me out and had not missed. He gave me another dose and I was out like a light. I slept until 7:00 when Amy checked me again (9.5 at this point), checked out and handed me off to Aimee and Kim, my new nurses. They were a hoot. Here's where we really start flying.
At 8:30, Dr. Strong showed up, checked me out, and declared that I was 10 cms, Daniel was in position, and I should get ready. Aimee and Kim suggested that we "practice" pushing. We talked about it, waited for a contraction, and I gave it all I had. I heard Kim say, "He has dark hair!" and I almost died. I couldn't believe she could already see his head! Two more pushes through that contraction, and they were off to find Dr. Strong.
He came in wearing a polo and jeans. Somebody told him, "Uh, Dr. Strong? I think you should get dressed."
"Yeah, I guess I should go put on some scrubs." About two minutes later, he was back, dressed, and ready to catch. My next contraction stared, I pushed once, and we had a head. I pushed again, and we had a baby. Literally five pushes was all it took. Woot for walking 2 miles a day!! :o)
Daniel was perfect (still is). 7 lbs 8 oz and 18 inches of pure bliss. I would imagine that this page (and blog) will be mostly dedicated to my life as a new mom, so stay tuned for updates.
As you can tell from my previous blogs, I'd been having contractions for about two weeks. Ten or so minutes apart, not too painful, a little annoying. Thursday night around 6:00, I started having contractions, ten or so minutes apart, not too painful, a little annoying. By about 8:00, I decided that they were more than a little annoying and started keeping track. By 10:30, they were 3-5 minutes apart and I was grimmacing through them, refusing to talk to Doug or answer his questions. With about 10 minutes left in the second National Treasure, I decided we HAD to go. No more waiting or wondering if "this" was it - I knew it was showtime.
We got to triage around 10:45 and got hooked up to the monitor. I was measuring right at 4 cms and my contractions were pretty consistent - 3-5 minutes apart. Amy, my nurse, asked Doug and I to walk around for about an hour to see if I progressed any further. After MANY laps around labor and delivery, we went back to triage. I said about the tenth prayer of the night, Amy said I was at 5 cms and we were staying. I sighed a huge sigh of relief and thanked God, again.
By the time we were admitted and got to a room, it was about 2:00 am. By this point, my contractions were about 2 minutes apart and very painful. Hook me up to that epidural - STAT! Dr. Prus came in and started the drugs. Slight bump in my so-far perfect labor - Dr. Prus thought he "missed." Not missed in the sense that I'd never walk again, but missed in the sense that he thought he may have punctured the spinal membrane. Not terrible, but if had fully doped me up, we could have been in trouble. All this meant was that I only got a mild dose of the epidural. He told me to get some sleep and he'd be back to check on me later. Amy checked me then and I was at 8 cms. Talk about flying. . .
About an hour later, I woke up and could feel the contractions again. I called Amy and asked if Dr. Prus could come redo my epidural. Fortunately, he didn't have to. He checked me out and had not missed. He gave me another dose and I was out like a light. I slept until 7:00 when Amy checked me again (9.5 at this point), checked out and handed me off to Aimee and Kim, my new nurses. They were a hoot. Here's where we really start flying.
At 8:30, Dr. Strong showed up, checked me out, and declared that I was 10 cms, Daniel was in position, and I should get ready. Aimee and Kim suggested that we "practice" pushing. We talked about it, waited for a contraction, and I gave it all I had. I heard Kim say, "He has dark hair!" and I almost died. I couldn't believe she could already see his head! Two more pushes through that contraction, and they were off to find Dr. Strong.
He came in wearing a polo and jeans. Somebody told him, "Uh, Dr. Strong? I think you should get dressed."
"Yeah, I guess I should go put on some scrubs." About two minutes later, he was back, dressed, and ready to catch. My next contraction stared, I pushed once, and we had a head. I pushed again, and we had a baby. Literally five pushes was all it took. Woot for walking 2 miles a day!! :o)
Daniel was perfect (still is). 7 lbs 8 oz and 18 inches of pure bliss. I would imagine that this page (and blog) will be mostly dedicated to my life as a new mom, so stay tuned for updates.
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