Taking Chance

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/12/sunday/main2677251.shtml

Please be sure to read the article at the link above. It's pretty crazy! It is a true story about a military escort for a 19 year old soldier who was killed in Iraq. Below, I copy/pasted some of the article:

"...Chance Phelps was wearing his Saint Christopher medal when he was killed on Good Friday. Eight days later, I handed the medallion to his mother. I didn't know Chance before he died. Today, I miss him. "


"...As I walked up to the ticketing counter in my uniform, a Northwest employee started to ask me if I knew how to use the automated boarding-pass dispenser. Before she could finish, another ticketing agent interrupted her. He told me to go straight to the counter, then explained to the woman that I was a military escort. She seemed embarrassed. The woman behind the counter already had tears in her eyes as I was pulling out my government travel voucher. She struggled to find words but managed to express her sympathy for the family and thanked me for my service. She upgraded my ticket to first class. "

There is a movie about this tale: Taking Chance.

If you have the opportunity, WATCH IT! It is pretty short, but very moving.

NEVER FORGET the sacriifice of our soldiers. God Bless!

Door Prizes... Continued....

Mark, some coworkers, and I all went to the Indians baseball game last week. Between innings a group of girls played Musical Chairs. The winner walked away with free breadsticks for her next Fazolis visit...

Office politics: To sign or not to sign

Cards. There is an excuse to send one for just about every day of your life. When it’s your birthday, when it’s a holiday, when you are sick, when you got a promotion, when you moved, when you graduated, when you had a baby, when you are sad, when you are happy, when you need thanked, when you get married, when you get divorced, etc. And just when you thought there was no reason for you to send a card, they come out with the ‘just because’ card. Genius.

There are always cards floating around at work. They are ready to be signed. The cards at my work come with a list of names of people in the department. This ensures everyone signs the card. Once you sign, you initial the list next to your name, date it, and then pass it on to the next person on the list. That is not a joke. I laughed at it once and get the stink eye for three days. The dilemma comes when you don’t know the person you are congratulating/ thanking/ hoping to feel better. It’s s0o0o0o0o0 awkward.

I have a friend whose policy is to sign birthday cards, not sympathy cards, for people she doesn’t know. I think it isn’t important WHAT your policy is, it’s just important that you HAVE one. Like a retirement plan. It’s not really about WHAT your plan is, it just important that you HAVE one.

My other problem is, I feel compelled to be witty. I’m a funny person, but please remember that I’m also an accountant. I usually come up with something along the lines of:
Best wishes!
Good luck!
Congrats!
Get well soon!
Disgusting, I know.

I’ve always wanted to sign someone random’s name on the card. Just to see if the person noticed…. For example:
Get well! -Mike Tyson
Good luck! -President Obama
Congrats! -Pee Wee Herman
Best wishes! -The Blind Guy from American Idol

I was in a meeting the other day. There were two random, obscure cards going around for all to sign. One bday, one congrats. No names. I signed them both. What if that was some huge practical joke that I wasn’t in on? If so, genius. Everyone on the list signed it. : )

Door Prizes

I won a door prize at a work seminar yesterday. The woman in front of me won free bread for a year from Panera Bread. An aweome gift, even though it reminded me of (what I would assume) Bingo was like during the Great Depression:

"BINGO!"
"Congrats! You have won enough rations to have bread for a whole year!"

I ended up winning a Christmas mug with some scented oils. SERIOUSLY what kind of asshole on the seminar committee brought THAT in to be used as a door prize?

This is just proof this recession has even pushed the government to regift....

Excellent Advertising

I’m an idiot. No one has ever disputed this. I love to get attention and love to be a punk. When I was in high school, there was this sign at the stoplight right by the school. It was hand-written (think For Sale By Owner type of thing) and read:

Home for sale. 3 BR 1 BA. Please call.

That’s it. I’m still disappointed to this day that I didn’t get a picture of it. If I would have had today’s fancy technology of camera phones, digital cameras, and I Phones, I definitely could have captured it. But instead, I just had my Nokia phone that was the size of my face. It was pretty fancy for the time. But it was no help in capturing this craaaazy sign.

I had never talked to my friends about the sign, but always let out a little chuckle when I drove past it in my Chrysler Lebaron. One day, I had a group of friends in the car. We were leaving school. I pulled over to the side of the road, right in front of the sign.

I got out and yelled,

“Hello?! I’m calling about the house! I’m very interested!”

To this day, no one has responded. But I would definitely be interested. Not in the house, but in seeing who the dummies were that didn’t leave a number.

My friends thought it was hilarious in 2002. I hope you got a little chuckle out of it in 2009. Maybe it was even a knee slapper. Who knows…

House for Sale...

Just as an FYI, Mark and I are selling a home on 2005 Hulman Street in Terre Haute, Indiana.

If you want more information, visit 2005Hulman.Blogspot.Com

Ross-Dierdorf Wedding

Mark and Abby have known each other since they were in diapers. We went to her wedding a few weeks ago. She looked ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!!
MOTHER SON DANCE

Markie and Abby!

He just HATES attention... :D

and I just HATE taking pictures... ;)

Conner, Mark's cousin's little boy, played in the dirt instead of dancing during the reception... his face kind of busted him out... ;)

Aunt Kim and I

My husband the party animal

Aunt Kim and her daughters, Jaime (left) and Amber (right)

Awesome people- Mark (right) and yours truly (left)

wait... other way around.. I would retype it but I'm lazy

Aunt Kim with the mother of the bride, Kathy

Jaime dancing with her sons. That's the best mothering I've ever seen ;)

Congrats, ABby!!!!!

Afterward, Mark and I met Mom, Dad, Craig, and Tiff at the Landing (formerly the Elks).

More boozin means we are THERE! :)

overall a wonderful night! :)

Don't fret........I'm going to claim it soon...

I got this from: http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/weird/Large-Sum-of-Cash-Found-on-Freeway---.html


Money Mystery: Large Sum of Cash Floats Down Freeway
By MICHELLE WAYLAND
Updated 2:05 PM PDT, Sun, Jun 14, 2009

“It was a large sum of money floating down the freeway.”

No one has stepped forward to claim the large sum of cash found flying around a San Diego freeway in Mission Valley this weekend, police said.

Large Sum of Cash Found on San Diego Freeway

The owner of a large sum of cash found flying around a San Diego freeway in Mission Valley has yet to come forward, police said.

Officers were driving northbound on highway 163 near Interstate 8 when they spotted clothing, debris and cash in the roadway.

“They did a traffic break and we stopped the traffic, picked up all the money that we could find,” Sgt. Ken Impellizeri said. “It was a large sum of money floating down the freeway.”

It seems San Diegans learned their lesson from the last time a large sum of cash was scattered across a San Diego Freeway.

In March, drivers stopped to scoop up the bills blowing across the freeway when drug suspects tossed thousands of dollars in cash out of a window during a chase, prompting an investigation.
This time, however, it seems motorists behaved themselves.

“One motorist stopped and we talked to them. They didn’t have any money on them,” Sgt. Impellizeri said, “Other people were just driving by, nobody else stopped on the freeway.”
Police found a bank deposit bag, along with checks and receipts at the scene.

“There was some paperwork in the pouch so we’re doing research there to find out where it came from,” Sgt. Impellizeri said.

Police impounded the items. They have not yet released details regarding the amount of money found, but they say the cash was in the form of $100 bills.

No robberies were reported in the area at the time of the incident

Emergency Contacts.....

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a
light for my path.
( Psalms 119:105 *NIV )

When in need please use the following Emergency Phone
Numbers:

When in sorrow, ...................... call John 14.
When men fail you, ................... call Psalm 27.
If you want to be fruitful, .......... call John 15.
When you have sinned, ................ call Psalm 51.
When you worry, ...................... call Matthew 6:19-34.
When you are in danger, ............. call Psalm 91.
When God seems far away, ............ call Psalm 139.
When your faith needs stirring, ..... call Hebrews 11.
When you are lonely and fearful, .... call Psalm 23.
When you grow bitter and critical, . call I Corinthians 13.
For Paul's secret to happiness, ... call Colossians 3:12-17.
For understanding of Christianity, 2 Corinthians 5:15-19.
When you feel down and out, ....... call Romans 8:31.
When you want peace and rest, .. call Matthew 11:25-30.
When the world seems bigger than God, ..... call Psalm 90.
When you want Christian assurance, call Romans 8:1-30.
When you leave home for labor or travel, .. call Psalm 121.
When your prayers grow narrow or selfish, . call Psalm 67.
For a great invention/opportunity, ... call Isaiah 55.
When you want courage for a task, ..... call Joshua 1.
For how to get along with fellow men, . call Romans 12.
When you think of investments and returns,. call Mark 10.
If you are depressed, ..................... call Psalm 27.
If your pocketbook is empty, .............. call Psalm 37.
If you are losing confidence in people, . call 1 Corinthians 13.
If people seem unkind, ................ call John 15.
If discouraged about your work, ....... call Psalm 126.

Alternate Numbers:

For dealing with fear, ........... call Psalm 34:7.
For security, ................... call Psalm 121:3.
For assurance, ................... call Mark 8:35.
For reassurance, ................. call Psalm 145:18.

All lines to Heaven are open 24 hours a day! Therefore feed your
Faith, and Doubt will starve to death! Have a Wonderful Sunday
and always remember that God answers all Knee mail! Amen.

All My Love & Prayers,
Pastor Allen

Sometimes it pays to be a nerd alert......

I got this from: http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/us_world/Teen-Outsmarts-Doctors-In-Sciene-Class.html?yhp=1

Teen Outsmarts Docors In Science Class Self-diagnosis impresses docs who've missed signs of her disease for years

By EMILY FELDMAN
Updated 10:21 AM PDT, Mon, Jun 15, 2009
High school senior Jessica Terry studied her own tissue samples as part of her school’s biomedical course. (Photo courtesy Sammamish Reporter)

When doctors didn't give a Washington state high school student the answers she wanted, she took matters into her own hands.
Eighteen-year-old Jessica Terry, brought slides of her own intestinal tissue into her AP science class and correctly diagnosed herself with Crohn's disease.
"It's weird I had to solve my own medical problem," Terry told CNN affiliate KOMO. "There were just no answers anywhere ... I was always sick."
For years she went from doctor to doctor complaining of vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss and stomach pains. They said she had irritable bowel syndrome. They said she had colitis. They said the slides of her intestinal tissue were fine, but she knew that wasn't right.
"Not knowing much about a disease you're growing up with is not only nerve-wracking, but it's confusing," Terry told the Sammamish Reporter.
So when local pathologists stopped in to teach students in her Biomedical Problems class how to analyze slides, the high school senior decided to give her own intestines a look.
What she found? A large dark area showing inflammation, otherwise known as a granuloma--a sure sign of the intestinal disease.
To confirm her suspicion, she checked in with her teacher.
"'Ms. Welch! Ms. Welch! Come over here. I think I've got something!" she shouted.
Mary Margaret Welch, who has spent 17 years teaching science at Eastside Catholic School, had a feeling Terry was on to something.
"I snapped a picture of it on the microscope and e-mailed it to the pathologist," Welch said. "Within 24 hours, he sent back an e-mail saying yes, this is a granuloma."
The finding impressed doctors.
"Granulomas are oftentimes very hard to find and not always even present at all," said Dr. Corey Siegel, a bowel disease specialist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. "I commend Jessica for her meticulous work."
While Terry's glad to finally have answers, she now knows she'll have a tough road ahead.
Crohn's disease is an incurable, though treatable condition caused by inflammation in the intestines. It can cause malnutrition, ulcers, pain and discomfort.
Still, she looks towards the future with optimism. She'll begin nursing school in the fall and hopes to have a kid's book on Crohn's disease published