riddle me this... things that make me go "hmmm?"

Pole dancing for Jesus. I was sure I misunderstood what they were saying... but, no... they said it. Pole dancing for Jesus. I googled it. Apparently... it's stripper dancing to Christian music. Anybody want to take a class with me?

Kinetic action? Baffles the mind. Call me small minded... but if you're dropping bombs on somebody, it's war, no matter what you call it. A rose by any other name... and, it didn't take much research... again, a quick google search showed that this term originated with my beloved George W. Bush.

Thank goodness for google. I'd be lost without it. What did we do when we had a question about something before Al Gore invented the internet? I did enjoy my second marriage in one aspect - he was a veritable walking encyclopedia. He knew a lot about a lot. Of course, head knowledge means nothing if you have no heart knowledge.

Of course... I'm happier just using the internet. It doesn't complain if I eat cookies in bed. Which... I don't... anymore. I eat them in my nest.

Stuck with Weight watchers all week, again, still counting and logging my points every single day. Gained five pounds this week. Yep. The plateau is over. In a bad way. How do you gain five pounds on weight watchers? That's some sick meds.

It's raining, it's pouring... I have no idea when the best time to drive down to the southside of town for the family reunion will be. I'm considering this afternoon but it looks like we'll have crazy bad thunderstorms... hail, strong winds... they're sinking from north to south so unless I time it right, I might have horrible storms the whole ride.

I tried to put together a family tree yesterday and realized that I sadly, don't even know the names of all my first cousins... much less their spouses and children. Hopefully I can put together some kind of family directory when all the elders are gathered together tomorrow. In this information age, it should be easy to get everyone connected.

My coffee and oatmeal were awesome this morning. Muscle spasms not so awesome. I think I'm going to have to have a consultation with the pain doctor prior to the next injection and/or prior to my next scheduled follow up on April 29th (my birthday!). The weight gain is not acceptable, especially considering I'm on meds that are not giving me adequate relief from the pain and adding extra weight will only make the back problem worse. What to do?

I love a good thunderstorm... it's really coming down out there... I'm going to have to venture out long enough to pick up some chicken salad to take down to the reunion and to get a sweet treat from the bakery for the reunion. I'm thinking pound cake. Wish I had the baking skills and the inclination to make one myself. My grandma always made good pound cakes. I don't remember her being a great cook, per se, but she make pound cakes and angel food cakes and rhubarb pie.

Purple Michael is an awesome "Martha Stewart" type baker. He made biscotti one year for Christmas. He used to make me a carrot cake with cream cheese icing for my birthday every year. One year we spent my birthday at a bed and breakfast... he brought along my carrot cake AND all the leftover icing. We ate ourselves into a sugar coma. It was so much fun! And the lady who ran the bed and breakfast made all kinds of yummy treats and would leave them in our room OR... you were welcome to help yourself to any in the kitchen. In addition to their open bar... complete with homemade lemonade OR adult beverages... it was probably one of the best weekends of my life. Sitting on the front porch sipping lemonade... gathered around the piano with the other guests while PM tickles the ivories... sweet memories. Wonder if I'll ever be able to duplicate such amazing times? I think... there are still good times to be had.

We had a debate at the office yesterday about Casey Abrams on American Idol and whether or not the save should have been used for him. Here's my thinking... the premise of American Idol is to produce a winner who could be a successful recording artist. If someone is the last choice out of 11... even if they're a talented musician... they're not going to be successful at selling records (or cds, I guess) and filling concert venues. Casey's awesome. He has a niche market. He's not an American Idol. Any opinions?

I finished reading The Shack. It was one of those books that is so good that you close it and just sit and soak it in for a little while. The concept of being able to truly commune with God is such a beautiful thought. I've been sort of opening my mind to a greater understanding of our Greater Power. I've been challenging myself more with being able to explain what I believe and why. Beth Moore's blog this week solicited stories about a moment when her readers knew that God was real... here's a link to the blog, if you're interested http://blog.lproof.org/2011/03/for-real.html

As I was sort of meditating on things... I realized that my approach tends to be one of believing in God, having faith in His goodness and power and mercy and grace... and yet, still respecting that there are people in my life who don't necessarily share my beliefs. My typical disclaimer about my faith is that if I reach the end of my life and find out that nothing I believed in was true, I would still have lived a better life for having had that belief structure.

I've had so many debates about religion that exasperate me... and the reason they exasperate me is for me, it's not about religion... it's about relationship. It's not about theology or parsing out which translation is right, which group of people has discovered the real path to God... for me... it's about having hope... it's about reading an ancient text... and realizing how current and relevant those stories still are. To me, the Bible is the best self-help book ever written. Whether the stories in it are parables, or whether they really happened... it's not for me to debate... it makes no difference. All I know is that for me, they provide strength and encouragement. I know that when I ask God for help, help comes. I know that there have been countless "coincidences" of times when I was in need and hadn't told a living soul, and that help came. I know that there are times that I'll be studying a particular verse and I'll hear a sermon or read a book or go through a circumstance that perfectly fits that verse.

I don't understand gravity but I believe in it.

I can't see the wind but I feel it.

You call it meditation - I call it prayer.

You call it coincidence - I call it providence.

You call it evolution - I call it divine design.

You call it religion - I call it relationship.

You call it Mother Nature - I call it Father God.

You call it outdated - I call it prophetic.

You call it restrictive - I consider it freedom.

You wait until a crisis to call on Him - I need Him every day.

You believe in your wealth and health to sustain you - I am broke and broken but invincible.

I guess it's all about perspective. That's mine. Have a happy Saturday! Love and hugs!