The Dallas Vacation, Or There And Back Again

Word of the Post
Today's word is: peregrination
/per'e*gri*na"tion/ noun
Travel, especially by foot, from one country to another; wandering, sojourn, pilgrimage.
We went to Texas on our vacation, I think that can count as a peregrination. Texas is "a whole other country", after all.
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I got back from St. Louis, and had two days to do laundry and sleep in my own bed before taking off again for Dallas. We spent our time going to various destinations. We determined that we could spend a whole week (twice the time we had) and still not do all the things that we wanted to do in and around Dallas. This "whole other country" has a lot of things to do.

We first went to see the Body Worlds exhibit, on its last weekend at the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science. This is the same kind of display featured in the newest James Bond film, Casino Royale. I first heard about Body Worlds on another blog, where the girl's hubby went to see it in Chicago, and she wanted to know if anyone else was grossed out or offended by the displays. I have to admit I wanted to go for the simple reason of morbid curiosity. I wanted so very much to ogle the inner workings of the human body. I would be happy to show you pictures, but they wouldn't let me take any. I did buy a book, and I can send you to their site and you can look at the displays for yourself. If you get a chance, definitely check it out. They are actual bodies, and they are not clothed, many even do not have skin. The muscles in the genitals are not hidden, nor are they vulgar...but it may not be something you want children to see. It may not be something you want to see, either.

We next went to the Dublin Dr. Pepper Bottling Co. in Dublin, Texas. This is the only company that uses Pure Cane Sugar, instead of Corn Syrup to sweeten the drink. We took a tour, and learned all about the history of Dr. Pepper.

This is a can that is on the property of the Bottling Co. It is at least 13 ft. high, and if you click on it, you can see that can hold, by their estimations, around 3,306 gallons of Dr. Pepper. Talk about a caffeine addiction!

This is the light test, to see which bottle is properly filled and mixed. They test about one out of every 100 bottles this way. The one on the left is without much syrup at all, and mostly soda water. Way salty, and no flavor... not a good drink. The one on the right has way too much syrup in it... I can imagine that it would taste pretty good, but if a bug or something was hiding in there, you would get that, too. Obviously, not a good drink, either. The two in the middle are the proper color range, but the right of these two is filled too high in the bottle, and won't have the proper fizz when opened. The second from the left is the proper proportions, the right color, and a near-perfect mix. These large bottles are actually refills. They are older bottles that are accepted for cleaning. The machinery that you see in the left of the picture is where the full and properly mixed bottles come out of the machine, and get picked up and put in crates, like the one below the light box.

The main reason to visit Dallas is friends. We have many friends and a few family members who live in the MetroPlex. We stopped at Reaper, and bought a few miniatures. We tried to lynch the Ded King, but he was on the clock, so we let him live. (That joke was for Teh Club, and if you get it, good. If not... sorry. Take too long to 'splain.) We did get a mini tour of his workspace, and met the resident shop kitty. If you don't know what Reaper is.... you must not play D&D. I don't play, either. I only know about it because I know a guy who works there. But hey, you can go and take a tour sometime. You will probably meet our friend.

We spent our nights with friends who used to live here in OKC. They now live near Dallas. Sandman, his wife, Monkey's Momma, and three Sugar babies. The first kiddo (11) is Sugar Bear, my buddy. He was very small when we all met, and he has grown up to be quite a special little man. The second kiddo (8) is DH's girlfriend, Sugar Bunny. For some reason, my hubby attracts the attentions of little girls at church under 2. They think he is fun to play with, and they flirt like crazy with him. This one we met when she was born (the Black Hole of Babydom sucked him in!). Their third kiddo (2), Sugar Monkey, is the miracle child.

Sugar Monkey has cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus and other issues. Sandman and Monkey's Mamma were told that he would be nothing more than a vegetable. Those doctors were wrong. Totally wrong. This little boy is learning. He needed help to get on his knees and hands, but he did the pushing up, he held his head up, and he balanced this way long enough for Sandman and me to get several pictures.

I called this picture "Concentration". He was tired of being up on all fours, but he pushed back up on his elbows. He was listening to that little toy train with very concentrated enthusiasm. Clarity in those little eyes, can you see it?

This tired boy had been up on all fours for roughly five minutes, and was resting. He put his head down, and rested for a bit, and then picked up and turned his head and looked again at the train. Twice, at least. This kid is strong, and getting stronger every day.

Finally, we see why he is Sugar Monkey. This is Monkey's Momma tickling and smooching the Sugar Monkey. He was smiling a bit before, but this is a picture of a full-on giggle. He has such a sweet spirit. He can say Hi, and DaDa, and he gives verbal and touch cues to show that he is understanding things like singing and clapping. He is legally blind, but that doesn't stop him from showing me the face of God.

Who Said Presidents Have To Be Dull?

Word of the Post
Today's word is: jobbernowl
/job"ber*nowl'/ noun
Stupid fellow, blockhead.
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Take for example, Michael Moore. He is a classic jobbernowl. How do I know this? Well... he challenged a presidential hopeful to a debate. He got refused in the best way possible: Fred Thompson recorded a little spot that ended up on video the world over.

First, we have the letter. If you can keep up with this, understand it, and even read it all, I give you a gold star (like Jared does). I don't want to post the whole thing, it is BORING, and, as we have already discussed, the man is a dullard. Go to his site, where he actually posted a letter. (I have to link there, because I didn't want that blathering to appear in print on MY blog.)

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?id=208

Next, we have the video response. I admire Thompson for this. He, like Reagan, is an actor first, and a politician next. He has the training and practice to speak to the people, he is a good communicator. He can say more than two sentences without saying "Um.." every three seconds. The best part of this response is the underlying theme that M.M. is nothing more than a bother, a fly in the face, and not deserving a whole debate, but only the tiniest of responses. I like Fred's humor. {Edit: I had to change the video clip, because the copy I had went away...so I linked up to the original site. Go there and play the video clip. Hopefully this will work for a longer time. Sorry for any confusion.}

http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=611

Now, go to the library and check out "Michael Moore is a big fat stupid white man" by David T. Hardy and Jason Clarke. If you couldn't tell from the letter and the response, they were right.

Name That Meme!

I have already done a post today, so this one will not have the word. Well, OK, technically the last post was yesterday, as it is now post-midnight. But I haven't slept, so it is still Today to me. I feel that since I have been gone so long, without a computer at hand, that I need to make up a little time with all of you. Guilt! The great motivator.

I tried first with my given name, Michelle, and then it occurred to me that most of you know me as Chelf, so I did that too. C was harder than M. Just so you know.

DH came in and saw what I was doing, and said this was like Scattergories, only personal. Anyway, I stole this after seeing it on two other blogs I regularly visit. Here be me answers. Steal this from me too. Go ahead. Make My Meme.

RULES
• Use the the first letter of your name to answer each of the following.
• Answers must be REAL places, persons, things. . .NOTHING MADE UP!
• If you can't think of anything, skip it.
• Try to use different answers if the person before you had the same initial.
• DO NOT use your name for the boy/girl name question.
• DO NOT use a search engine to look up answers!
• GO!

1. Your Name: Michelle/Chelf
2. Famous singer/band: Madonna/Cindy Lauper
3. 4 letter word: Move, More/Can't, Cone (Ice cream!)
4. Street name: Montgomery (in ABQ, Liz!)/Churchill Way
5. Color: Mauve/Cerulean (shade of blue)
6. Gift/present: Movie/Candy
7. Vehicle: Mustang, Ford/Cabriolet, VW
8. Things in a Souvenir Shop: Mirror/Coins
9. Boy's Name: Mahlon/Caleb
10. Girl's Name: Michaiah/Charissa
11. Movie Title: Mask/Caddyshack
12. Drink: Mojito/Cognac
13. An Occupation: Mortician/Counselor
14. Flower: Marigold/Carnation
15. Celebrity: Marlon Brando/Camryn Mannheim
16. Magazine: Mademoiselle/Car and Driver
17. U.S. City: Medford, OK/Chattanooga, TN
18. Pro Sports Team: Miami Heat/Colorado Avalanche
19. Fruit: Mango/Coconut
20. Reason for Being Late to Work: Moron in Traffic/Can't find parking space
21. Something You Throw Away: Mold/Charred meat
22. Things You Shout: Mayhem! Madness! Mischief!/Cannibal! Call a Locksmith!
23. Cartoon Character: Maxine/Cathy

Hearts And Dreamers Both Murmur

Word of the Post
Today's word is: fibrillation
/fi'bril*la"tion/ noun
An act or process of forming fibers or fibrils; a muscular twitching involving individual muscle fibers acting without coordination; very rapid irregular contractions of the muscle fibers of the heart resulting in a lack of synchronism between heartbeat and pulse, caused by the abnormal discharge of electrical nerve impulses. Ventricular fibrillation is life-threatening.
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I have had a busy week. Last Tuesday I left home to go be with some friends in St. Louis. I drove there from here... and that took me 9 1/2 hours. I stop a lot more often when I drive alone. I think it is because I have to stay awake, so I get out and move more often. I don't have anyone to keep me awake, to navigate for me, to help me merge onto the new highways in strange cities. I just go as long as my legs, back and bladder can stand, and I jam to loud music all the way. I stayed there until Saturday, and then drove home in two days, with a pit stop in Kansas to see family.

Let me show you the reason I went.



This is the little girl, my friend, Ani. She is Ferret's daughter. This is her back before the surgery that she had on Friday, May 11. The surgery was to straighten her back, and put supporting rods next to it, so that her back will grow straight, and her ribs will not crush her lungs and other organs, due to the curve of her spine. Being straightened gave her new height, we guess about three inches.



This is Ani, after the surgery, feeling good enough to drive, and learning early to drive while talking on the phone to her great-grandmother. This is after the actual conversation. I told Ferret that she was teaching the girl bad habits early. We all had a good laugh, and then took a picture with Ferret's phone (with Ani using my phone) to send to Daddy. Notice Ani in her new back brace. It now wraps around her completely, in two pieces, not just one, and she got to pick the design they put on the overlay. There was a boy there who had picked camouflage. Hers is lilac with butterflies all over it. Now she does not have to be embarrassed about her "ugly" old brace being on the outside of her clothes. She has a pretty, and original turtle shell that she designed.

Speaking of turtle shells, countless armadillos, skunks, and opossums littered the roads in both directions. I was about 20 miles away from my aunt's house, at around 11:00 pm on Saturday night, and I nearly hit a deer. The doe just decided that the grass must be greener on the other side of the road. That will make your heart work overtime for a while. Also, was talking on the phone to DH on Sunday afternoon around 4:30 pm, and had just folded the phone to end the call, and nearly hit a HUGE turtle who also decided the grass must be examined from the comfort of being in my way. Visions of Mario Bros. danced in my head, spinning turtle shells, and scoring points for jumping on them. He was as big as my hubcaps, maybe bigger!



The fact that we were in St. Louis was an excuse to get Ferret out of the hospital with a friend, while Grandpa stayed with Ani for a morning. Hooray for Sunlight! Poor Grandpa got a very late start to getting home to Wichita, but Ferret needed to get out for a while. We went to the Arch, and got a few amazing pictures, and then went back. We didn't go up in the arch until Saturday, when we had Ani and Daddy with us.



This is the apex of the arch, from the inside, and then from the outside. Cool, no?


If you click on the outside picture, you can see it closer, and tell that there are windows up there. The windows are not much bigger than a standard QWERTY keyboard. They can't be any bigger than that, or they would simply shatter from the air pressure at that height.

And then for the simple joy of tormenting my mother....



This is a park with a pond near the north base of the Arch. It is a quiet little spot. Mom told me that if we drove into downtown St. Louis, not to get out in strange neighborhoods, lock all the doors, and get out fast. I never went into the East St. Louis side of things. The Arch is as close to downtown as I got. But, if you look carefully... this is a shot of a man getting arrested, while his two buddies sit quietly by. They must have been read the Miranda rights already, and were just being good little (insert crime here: druggie, gunfighter, thief, wife-beater) citizens Joe. Reminds me of a comic named Ralphie May. "I live in a dangerous part of Los Angeles. It's called... Los Angeles." I went to the dangerous part of St. Louis, it's called.... St. Louis.

The train was fine, except for the strange lady with huge plastic bags all over three seats around her, and the conversation she seemed to be having with an empty chair. I turned around once to talk to Ferret, and the lady told ME to mind my business. Yeah, sure, whatever you say, creepy lady. We were happy to get away from her; we got off at Busch Stadium, and got a few pictures, and then waited for the train to take us back from whence we had come.



And, finally for today, you get a rare treat. I don't like having my picture taken, I would rather be behind the camera. So... I give you the rarest of sights. Me. This is me, standing in the middle of the Arch, that is the north end; photo on my digital camera by Ferret. She is a photographer by trade, her alter-ego is a Title Clerk at a car dealership because the photography doesn't pay enough, yet. But, if she can make me look small... she can perform other minor miracles with a camera, as well. Happy Trails!

Life Is A Super-Highway

Word of the Post
Today's word is: pedipulate
/pe*dip"u*late/
"To operate with one's feet." ~~ Grandiloquent Dictionary
The word idea for today came from my parents-in-law. They are just as funny about words as my dad is. The definition came from this neat site I found online, and recommend that you visit. I did not write this entry, it is the property of the guy who runs the site. Like I said, go visit his site. http://www.islandnet.com/~egbird/dict/dict.htm
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I have a tendency to get lost on the information super highway. I need a map. Google Maps seems to work pretty well.

Have you ever Googled yourself? I have done the cute little search where you type "Name needs" or Name wants", and you get all sorts of people talking about how someone with your name needs to grow up, get a life, or get back on track. You can type any variation of your name, and find any number of sites that are talking about (not) you. Apparently, Chelf is a popular surname. This blog came up on page 4. Oh, boy, someone is actually watching!

My maiden name is a doctor, VP of Marketing, CEO, and several other wonderful occupations, as well as a Sim keeping a Diary online... I don't get it. My married name is an artist, a real estate agent, and my real self came up on page 3 of that search, too. I am the first (and a few later ones as well) entry when I Googled my favorite nickname, "mychelf". I have never thought about how just living would put little old me into a Google search.

What was I hoping to find? Really, I don't know. Was I hoping that I would be the first or only entry with any of my searches? Would I find significance in knowing that there are more people out there making the same jokes as me with their names, too? How would not finding myself made me feel any better?

The Bible says there is nothing new under the sun. Does that mean that there was a Chelf back in Bible times? Probably not; but someone must have made a wordplay out of their name or hobby. In my case, it just happened to be both. Did pre-literature times have computers? What happened to the written history of the world? Maybe it suffered a crash like we once feared from Y2K. All the old parchments were scanned into the computer... and then the weather fried the systems, and all history was lost, except for what a few typists could remember. Secretaries Rule!

The history of the world is still written down by the winners. Efforts will always be made by the losers to forget or revise the misery. And weather will always play havoc with your electronics. Thunderstorms are a-coming. More thoughts will pour out of my head later, when the pitcher is emptied of the rain.

On The Chelf, Aging

Word of the Post
Today's word is: birthday
/birth"day/ noun
Day of origin or commencement; the day in which any person is born; the day of the month in which a person was born, in whatever succeeding year it may recur; the anniversary of one's birth; the celebration surrounding any such day.
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I need a party, it's my birthday!
Famous Holidays: Cinco de Mayo (Mexico); Children's Day (Japan, aka Boy's Day); Martyr's Day (Albania).
Famous Births: 867-Uda, Emperor of Japan; 1813-Soren Kierkegaard, Danish Philosopher; 1926-Ann B. Davis, Actress (Alice on Brady Bunch); 1943-Michael Palin, Actor (Monty Python); 1974-ME!
Famous Deaths: 1821-Napoleon I of France; 1971-Violet Jessop, Titanic Survivor (amazing story, go look it up!).
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This is the 33rd anniversary of the day that the world was graced with my presence. I am now 21, with 12 years of experience. This is also my 33rd post. I saved it, just for today. Tradition has it that Jesus was 33 when he was crucified. Tradition also has done some math, and every few years, Ascension Day happens on May 5. It happened last year, and will happen again in 2016 (If we survive past the newest End-of-the-Earth prediction of Dec 21, 2012, of course). I have said for years that the birth of Christ was most likely in the Spring, because the shepherds were out with their sheep; this usually happened only in lambing season (Spring), and so... why couldn't I guess that He was born on May 5? It was every bit as likely as Dec 25, and in fact, a closer guess. Now I have found that He ascended back to the Father, probably near May 5. Ha! That is great. (Hail, Princess Delusion of Grandeur, long may I reign!)

My best friend and her daughters call me on or near my birthday each year... they sing to me over the phone. I have grown fond of the "Happy Cinco de Mayo to you!" It is a joke that has existed between us since before we were as old as her daughters are now. Her younger daughter asked one year WHY they did this. She answered that we just do, because we love Auntie Chelf. Little one still doesn't get it. Oh, well, at least we still get a kick out of it.

This leads me to think of a friend in college, who played "My Michelle" by Guns'N'Roses for me, instead of playing (or worse, singing) "Michelle" by the Beatles. I think I am the only Michelle I know who was NOT named for that song. Every person who meets me tries to sing it. I have a rule about that. If you wish to sing it, you must know more than the first three words, and the French part is extra credit if you pronounce it correctly. My DH and his first roommate from college are the only two people who would have been qualified to sing it, because they are the biggest Beatles fans I have ever met. And, thankfully, they are the only two who have never tried. DH is such a sweetie, he even skips it on his CD sometimes, just so I don't have to hear it. Which is funny to me, because I actually like the song... but only when sung by the Beatles.

I love these guys, and their crazy computer geek workplace antics. (click on it to make it bigger... that tiny type is hard to read, especially for us old fogies...) Makes me wish sometimes that I had tried harder in those computer classes at school. But, I am more of a post-production testing sort of geek, not the sysadmin sort of geek. If you know anything about computer programming, this is your joke source. If you don't, well... the finer jokes may go over your head, but the gist of it is still funny.

I have "My Next 30 Years" by Tim McGraw running through my head. I could really use a lot more Jesus in my next 30 years. I have done so much that was nothing but selfish. I have done some good, too. I have helped friends in need, I have sacrificed time and talent to show Jesus in many ways. But I know that simply being a "good person" is not enough. I have to strive to be better than "good". I have to BE Jesus to the lost and dying world, because they won't listen to His Word. But they SEE.... they see ME, and I am in no shape to be seen yet. "Eat a few more salads..." Yep, My next 30 years will be better; but I have to work, and I certainly don't relish that.

I am off to see a chick flick with the DH, and I have a wedding to attend this evening. All in all, today is going to be a great day. I have presents, people who care about me, time to have fun doing what I want to do... The only thing that could make it better would be to have no worries to come back to. Reality will still be here when I get back, but, for now, I can ignore it. Mental vacation, here I come!

"Happy to me, happy to me!" ~~ Best friend's daughter on the occasion of her 2nd birthday.

Little View, Big Thoughts

Word of the Post
Today's Word is: schadenfreude
/SHOD-n-froy-duh/
noun
A malicious satisfaction obtained from the misfortunes of others.
From German, from Schaden, "damage" + Freude, "joy." It is often capitalized, as it is in German.
~~~
The historian Peter Gay -- who felt Schadenfreude as a Jewish child in Nazi-era Berlin, watching the Germans lose coveted gold medals in the 1936 Olympics -- has said that it "can be one of the great joys of life." ~~ Edward Rothstein, "Missing the Fun of a Minor Sin", New York Times, February 5, 2000
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Sometimes you have to stop and smell the flowers.



I don't so much like the smell of roses. The intoxication of honeysuckle is much preferred. Even stinky old dandelions are pretty, if you bother to look at them. I am not a fan of the iris, I think they are ugly. I don't really know why that opinion was formed, it just is. I wonder what these little purple things are in my yard. I know that the plant is a creeping vine. It surrounds my backyard, and has crawled to the front of the house, and up the bushes that I would love to chop down. The flowers are so pretty, I have delayed destroying their ladders.

April Showers bring May Flowers, May Flowers bring June Bugs. Ugh.

May brings Tornadoes. At least in Oklahoma. We had a small one yesterday, somewhere in the state, that the news called an F0. F Zero? How can it be a Tornado if it doesn't even qualify for a number? Aren't those called Dust Devils? These people crack me up. Apparently, the poor baby Tornado stirred the air enough to shake a few leaves off of a tree. No damage that a good gust of wind couldn't have managed. The next question is, logically, "Why is this news?" They must have had a slow day. Which is good, because that means there were no REAL Tornadoes, nothing in the range of F3 or F4.

This past Sunday, we were at my church building. My niece was visiting with Grandma and Grandpa for the weekend, and the three of them came to our Family Day. She had wandered into an empty classroom. I was letting her run, because she had ridden in the car for an hour and a half, and then sat through one church service, and was expected to sit through another one soon. She got to spinning while she played, and she started asking for "Ashes?" She wants to play Ring Around the Rosie. So I start singing for her. She turns in circles, and will say "rosie" and "posies" and "ashes", and then yell "Down!" with you, and sits on the floor. Then she lays down on her back, and puts her feet above her head and hollers "Whee!" while throwing her legs down the length of her body. She also does "I'm A Little Teapot" pretty well. She is enthusiastic, in a way I don't remember from my own childhood. She keeps me young.

I think now I understand better why Jesus said to become like Children to get to Heaven. Children approach things so honestly. They want to know all the great questions of research: Who, what, when, where, why and how? They don't have an agenda or any presuppositions, they simply wish to know more. They are happy to stand on their heads and observe the shoes and purses behind them on the church floor. They are concerned when another child cries. They are amazed at the way the pencils and cards fit into their own holes in the pew in front of them. They are happy to say Hi and give "fives" to anyone nearby. They know that hitting is wrong, and yet they still try it as a reaction to injustice.

Significance is harder to find as I grow older. The fact that I see Blue in the sky was significant to me as a child. Now, I find that political and religious debates show me significance. I have ignored the significance that observation can bring. I have forgotten to stop. I have forgotten to smell the flowers. I have simply forgotten to observe, to question, to consider. Proverbs 6:6 "Go to the ant, O sluggard, Consider her ways and be wise."

Is it bad to want to use my glasses to burn ants? I do remember that from my childhood; it was fun.