When I was little, I'm pretty sure Christmas was the #1 ranked holiday in my mind. Hardly a surprise, but as I've aged I'd have to say it's definitely changed to Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving has no pretenses. You don't have to bring gifts for people in order to celebrate it. You're not expected to put on pretenses because of it. The media doesn't spent millions of hours trying to convince you or guilt you into to acting differently during that holiday. We don't even argue about how we celebrate it.
With Christmas, you have to be careful not to offend anyone. There's Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannakuh, Festivus, Druid celebration of the shortest day of the year! More trees are wasted on newspaper inserts telling us what we absolutely can't live without and how it will be on sale on something called BLACK FRIDAY because of that winter holiday.
Thanksgiving is all about food, family and catching up in a low key way. Well, there IS football, but there's a lot more of the visiting with family and friends than anything.
In our hurried world, we seldom get the time to just sit down and have a good old fashioned visit with someone - anyone! No TV, no internet, no telephone to interrupt. Just a "How's your fall been?" , "What's new with your kids?", "What's going on at your work?", "Did Uncle Jay ACTUALLY say that?"
Take a little time to learn your family stories. Embrace the diversity of your own family. Learn something new about a family member you never knew and count your many blessings this Thanksgiving. The Pilgrims got it right!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
Fall on the farm
I'm definitely a full-four-season fan when it comes to weather and by the time the hot days of August have begun to subside, I'm ready for the cool fall weather and the farm work.
Most of the time nothing is as satisfying to a farmer as getting out in the field and finding out what your crops did...unless we've had a bad year, then it's just a challenge! We're making good progress in the fields this fall. Part of that is because the corn crop is short of where it was in yield last year. The other reason would be much more cooperative weather.
Short yields usually lead to higher prices. It's the old supply and demand equation. But, short yields and higher prices do not pencil out to equal higher yields and lower prices. You don't get to choose so you have to take what you get and go with it.
Nothing smells as good as turning over the soil in fall tillage. There is something about the completion of the season and preparing for winter that is very satisfying. Time to tuck things in until spring. For livestock farmers it means the transition to calving in January and February.
New seasons, new ventures, new beginnings.
Most of the time nothing is as satisfying to a farmer as getting out in the field and finding out what your crops did...unless we've had a bad year, then it's just a challenge! We're making good progress in the fields this fall. Part of that is because the corn crop is short of where it was in yield last year. The other reason would be much more cooperative weather.
Short yields usually lead to higher prices. It's the old supply and demand equation. But, short yields and higher prices do not pencil out to equal higher yields and lower prices. You don't get to choose so you have to take what you get and go with it.
Nothing smells as good as turning over the soil in fall tillage. There is something about the completion of the season and preparing for winter that is very satisfying. Time to tuck things in until spring. For livestock farmers it means the transition to calving in January and February.
New seasons, new ventures, new beginnings.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Quotes, quotes and more quotes...
I have all kinds of notebooks full of them. Quotes. Quotes I've read in books, heard in movies, read in print. Some I question who they are attributed to. Some I take at face value the author is correct. Anyway...I LOVE quotes.
I usually have a couple on my bulletin board at work. I have them on my email signature line. They reflect who I am in many ways.
While checking out my desk drawer at home I ran across a small quote book and some valuable information attributed to none other than Abraham Lincoln. Might be correct....might not be. Anyway, good quotes!
SOMETHING TO REMEMBER - Abraham Lincoln
I usually have a couple on my bulletin board at work. I have them on my email signature line. They reflect who I am in many ways.
While checking out my desk drawer at home I ran across a small quote book and some valuable information attributed to none other than Abraham Lincoln. Might be correct....might not be. Anyway, good quotes!
SOMETHING TO REMEMBER - Abraham Lincoln
- You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
- You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
- You cannot help little men by tearing down big men.
- You cannot help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
- You cannot further brotherhood of man by encouraging class hatred.
- You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
- You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.
- You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.
- You cannot build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence.
- You cannot help men permanently doing for them what they could do and should do for themselves.
And....on that last note....I left my husband's dirty jeans for him to wash...because he could!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Music...
My mother is a huge fan of musicals. Mom and Dad took us to many Summer Music Theatres at Western Illinois University, St. Louis Muny Opera and I'm thinking there might have been one in Springfield too! Oscar and Hammerstein, Lerner and Lowe, you name it...we can sing the song from the musical.
Did you notice most musicals are pretty upbeat? I think that's why people like them. You leave optimistic that things can be better ! On a bad day a rousing chorus of OKLAHOMA! does wonders! Somebody bugging you at work? Why not sing "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" from GUYS AND DOLLS.
And about that optimistic thing, okay, well CAMELOT didn't end so well, but you knew it was coming. SOUTH PACIFIC had it's "downer" moments also.
Music is such a wonderful medium! I'm going to confess something really dumb here. As a child (I'd say 7 years old), I used to believe that ALL the songs in the world were already written and there could be no new music. Then I joined the band and learned to play saxaphone. I better understood how silly that thought was. My band teachers, Mr. Charles Jones and Mr. Robert Schlabach along with my Saxophone teacher, Mr. Les Fonza, opened my eyes or should I say ears to so many wonderful types of music! Jazz, Big Band, Skat, Marching Band Music, Pop, Rock, Country.
Even my Art Teacher, Mr. Don Heberling, introduced me to a wonderful type of music - OPERA! Yes, opera! During Art Class when we were working on projects, he put in videos of operas and explained what the story was about in each. I do remember a lot of what he said, but I actually know more operas from watching Bugs Bunny! Barber of Seville, The Cry of the Valkyrie, etc. Crazy, huh?
When I have time to drive somewhere and really listen to music on my satellite radio I have the most eclectic list of stations you can imagine! 70's oldies, 80's oldies, Outlaw Country, Jazz, etc.
My latest "musical affliction" is music from the Fox TV show GLEE! I had friends who were in chorus and glee. They could have fit in a some of the saner characters of that show. I just LOVE the music from GLEE. I've even become a quasi-Lady GaGa fan! To top that off, my sister has informed me my new ring tone on her phone is "Poker Face" by Lady GaGa.
"I wanna hold em' like they do in Texas, please...."
Did you notice most musicals are pretty upbeat? I think that's why people like them. You leave optimistic that things can be better ! On a bad day a rousing chorus of OKLAHOMA! does wonders! Somebody bugging you at work? Why not sing "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" from GUYS AND DOLLS.
And about that optimistic thing, okay, well CAMELOT didn't end so well, but you knew it was coming. SOUTH PACIFIC had it's "downer" moments also.
Music is such a wonderful medium! I'm going to confess something really dumb here. As a child (I'd say 7 years old), I used to believe that ALL the songs in the world were already written and there could be no new music. Then I joined the band and learned to play saxaphone. I better understood how silly that thought was. My band teachers, Mr. Charles Jones and Mr. Robert Schlabach along with my Saxophone teacher, Mr. Les Fonza, opened my eyes or should I say ears to so many wonderful types of music! Jazz, Big Band, Skat, Marching Band Music, Pop, Rock, Country.
Even my Art Teacher, Mr. Don Heberling, introduced me to a wonderful type of music - OPERA! Yes, opera! During Art Class when we were working on projects, he put in videos of operas and explained what the story was about in each. I do remember a lot of what he said, but I actually know more operas from watching Bugs Bunny! Barber of Seville, The Cry of the Valkyrie, etc. Crazy, huh?
When I have time to drive somewhere and really listen to music on my satellite radio I have the most eclectic list of stations you can imagine! 70's oldies, 80's oldies, Outlaw Country, Jazz, etc.
My latest "musical affliction" is music from the Fox TV show GLEE! I had friends who were in chorus and glee. They could have fit in a some of the saner characters of that show. I just LOVE the music from GLEE. I've even become a quasi-Lady GaGa fan! To top that off, my sister has informed me my new ring tone on her phone is "Poker Face" by Lady GaGa.
"I wanna hold em' like they do in Texas, please...."
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Happy 5th of July...that's right!
I originally wrote this blog in July of 2008 and believe the message even more today. Let's thank our veterans for letting us celebrate this wonderful holiday and to our family and friends.
As our country ponders what we will do to right the ship, we need to remember it is OUR country - we did not give the power to someone else. Thus WE must be the change we want to see to paraphrase Ghandi.
Happy 5th of July!
What? Happy 5th of July? Don't you mean 4th of July? Nope...5th. Here's my thought process.
On July 4th, the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress . Actually on July 2nd, the Congress had already voted to declare independence from Great Britian. It was later published and signed near the beginning of August.
So, why Happy 5th?
On the Fourth, we actually made a statement as a country saying, "We're not gonna take it anymore." We listed the reasons why, what we believed to be the ideal nation, etc, but on the morning of the 5th, can't you imagine those of the Continental Congress waking up to wonder, "What did we just do?" They had pledged EVERYTHING they had to see this through!
It's a whole lot easier to say, "I'm not gonna take this anymore and I'm changing something", than it is to actually do it. Once you've made that public statement you have to begin to formulate how the action will take place; how you will change what you believe to be substandard. How many of us have said, I'm gonna lose weight, or I'm gonna finish school to wake up this next morning thinking, ahhh...maybe tomorrow.
Well, these people had no choice. They had made a rather bold statement of independence and now they were known for it. People would be judging them on how they had achieved that goal or fallen short. They would judge them if they individually profited from the situation.
So, I believe it much harder to actually put the statement into action and today was the day of action for our country. We could no longer talk about doing something, we had to move, take action, change the world. And...overall, I believe it worked out very well.
But...I imagine for a little bit on the morning of the 5th of July, 1776 there were some men who wondered What the heck did we do yesterday? And today, July 5th, 2008 there will be more men wondering the same thing, but for different reasons! Happy 5th!
As our country ponders what we will do to right the ship, we need to remember it is OUR country - we did not give the power to someone else. Thus WE must be the change we want to see to paraphrase Ghandi.
Happy 5th of July!
What? Happy 5th of July? Don't you mean 4th of July? Nope...5th. Here's my thought process.
On July 4th, the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress . Actually on July 2nd, the Congress had already voted to declare independence from Great Britian. It was later published and signed near the beginning of August.
So, why Happy 5th?
On the Fourth, we actually made a statement as a country saying, "We're not gonna take it anymore." We listed the reasons why, what we believed to be the ideal nation, etc, but on the morning of the 5th, can't you imagine those of the Continental Congress waking up to wonder, "What did we just do?" They had pledged EVERYTHING they had to see this through!
It's a whole lot easier to say, "I'm not gonna take this anymore and I'm changing something", than it is to actually do it. Once you've made that public statement you have to begin to formulate how the action will take place; how you will change what you believe to be substandard. How many of us have said, I'm gonna lose weight, or I'm gonna finish school to wake up this next morning thinking, ahhh...maybe tomorrow.
Well, these people had no choice. They had made a rather bold statement of independence and now they were known for it. People would be judging them on how they had achieved that goal or fallen short. They would judge them if they individually profited from the situation.
So, I believe it much harder to actually put the statement into action and today was the day of action for our country. We could no longer talk about doing something, we had to move, take action, change the world. And...overall, I believe it worked out very well.
But...I imagine for a little bit on the morning of the 5th of July, 1776 there were some men who wondered What the heck did we do yesterday? And today, July 5th, 2008 there will be more men wondering the same thing, but for different reasons! Happy 5th!
Monday, June 28, 2010
I LOVE to....
I know this is going to sound absolutely crazy.
I LOVE to officiate volleyball. Really...It's true. I'm refereeing summer volleyball tomorrow night again and it's just summer league - nothing too earth-shattering. I enjoy seeing the coaches I have officiated for during the past years. I like to visit with them; see how they think their season will go; see how their summer workouts have progressed. We're very early in the mix of things. There is a lot to be decided.
Players practice to get better in the off season . As odd as it may seem officials do the same thing! I re-read my rule books. I look at the rule changes for the new season. I try to talk with coaches and fans and let them know what will be different. I try to challenge myself with interpretations - try to think how I would answer the question, "What was that call for?" in a quick and concise way.
I just LOVE this sport! I know people think officials are crazy or are terribly egotistical. I don't think so. I know you're gonna yell at me because you either don't understand the rule or you didn't see it the way I did. That's okay. I don't see everything the way you see it either, BUT I don't yell back at you.
I just ask that fans become better versed in rules. Ask someone what the hand signals mean. Ask about the intricacies of the sport. We're always glad to explain.
The picture is of my officiating last fall at the Illinois State Tournament. Here's the critique - hands too high. Bring your arms down, Julie! Something to remember to work on for summer 2010 prior to the fall season.
It's a never ending process of learning. Time to do some reading on the NFHS website on rules!
I LOVE to officiate volleyball. Really...It's true. I'm refereeing summer volleyball tomorrow night again and it's just summer league - nothing too earth-shattering. I enjoy seeing the coaches I have officiated for during the past years. I like to visit with them; see how they think their season will go; see how their summer workouts have progressed. We're very early in the mix of things. There is a lot to be decided.Players practice to get better in the off season . As odd as it may seem officials do the same thing! I re-read my rule books. I look at the rule changes for the new season. I try to talk with coaches and fans and let them know what will be different. I try to challenge myself with interpretations - try to think how I would answer the question, "What was that call for?" in a quick and concise way.
I just LOVE this sport! I know people think officials are crazy or are terribly egotistical. I don't think so. I know you're gonna yell at me because you either don't understand the rule or you didn't see it the way I did. That's okay. I don't see everything the way you see it either, BUT I don't yell back at you.
I just ask that fans become better versed in rules. Ask someone what the hand signals mean. Ask about the intricacies of the sport. We're always glad to explain.
The picture is of my officiating last fall at the Illinois State Tournament. Here's the critique - hands too high. Bring your arms down, Julie! Something to remember to work on for summer 2010 prior to the fall season.
It's a never ending process of learning. Time to do some reading on the NFHS website on rules!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Not to be left out!
Didn't want to leave out our daughter, Leigh. She's busy helping out at the Heritage Days Parade with McDonough VIBE! It stands for Volunteers Interested in Benefitting Everyone!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)