So I have waited and waited and waited for all of my male friends to go and see Transformers, so as to when I write my review I would not spoil it for them. Alas one of them has still not seen it, but oh well. If you don't want the movie to be spoiled Matt don't read any further.
So I loved this movie. It had some good character development, decent action, amazing animation, and surprisingly, humor.
One of the funniest scenes was the one where the teenage boy is trying to put the moves on the girl of his dreams. As is always the case she is not interested but little does she know that this boy has a secret weapon; his car. Actually the boy does not even know that his car is going to help him out which is even funnier. There are some hilarious scenes that take place due to this car from the car just completely stalling out on a remote, romantic cliff with a great view. Or the car picking certain songs like "Baby come back" when the boy, inevitably, over pursues the girl.
And Like I said, the action was good, but what really stole the show was the fast seamless transformation between car/plane, to robot and back again. Sometimes that would happen multiple times in a fight and yet it did not seem fake or too slow so as to distract from the action.
However with any good movie there are some downsides and there were three major disappointments with this movie. First, while the writer developed Optimus Prime, Megatron, BumbleBee, and some of the important humans, he did not develop the rest of the transformers. At the very least he should have developed Jazz and Starscream as they are two very important characters in Transformers mythology. He also mis-wrote one of the Deceptacons into the wrong form. Frenzy is not a boom box, he was a tape played by another major Deceptacon, Soundwave, who is the actual boom box.
Second, I REALLY disliked the destructibility of the transformers. They died too easily to human weapons and while I know there needs to be some human victory is all this, Transformers should not fall to anything less than a full compliment of missiles from a jet; not some RPG's.
Third, they killed every Deceptacon. Yes, Eugene, I know you say starscream is still alive but I did not see him fly away when he was hit by all those missiles. You cannot continue the Transformers universe when you kill off all the bad guys. After all it is a fight between good and evil. And yes I know there are some other bad guys out there but Megatron was the leader and Starscream his second in command. Who else can they bring in who would be a decent bad guy? And yes I realize they might not make a sequel but still, you do not kill off all the bad guys.
Anyway I did love the movie and I cannot wait for it to come out on DVD. I give it 4/5 stars.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Chappie #4: My residency
So, yes, for all those who did not know I received my residency invite a week ago and I accepted that day. I am very excited not just because I am going be a chaplain for this next year at a great institution, but also because I will be paid. Now you all might be thinking I am in it for the $ but the truth is not being paid but working 40-55 hours a week is really hard. Plus I have bills to pay, things I would like to do, and I would like to be putting $ in my savings account instead of withdrawing from it.
Anyway we get to pick a concentration within our residency and I am hoping to pick Pain and Palliative; which deals with end of life. It will be hard but as I want to go into hospice it is the best prep I can get for that job. And I say hope because I wont know if I will get it until I meet with the 5 other residents and we hash out which concentrations we want.
Well all thanks for your prayers and encouragement, I am FINALLY done with retail and I am very much looking forward to my future as a chaplain.
Blessings
Jon
Anyway we get to pick a concentration within our residency and I am hoping to pick Pain and Palliative; which deals with end of life. It will be hard but as I want to go into hospice it is the best prep I can get for that job. And I say hope because I wont know if I will get it until I meet with the 5 other residents and we hash out which concentrations we want.
Well all thanks for your prayers and encouragement, I am FINALLY done with retail and I am very much looking forward to my future as a chaplain.
Blessings
Jon
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
One man's trash, another man's umm stinky treasure?
All I can say is there is no way I would keep on digging. Once I found some of this stuff, I would then stop or give the rest to someone lower on the totem pole. That is why I would not make a good treasure hunter or archaeologist, I want the treasure and the hard work, but man the smells would kill me.
VENTURA, Calif. - The spot where a pair of outhouses stood 130 years ago is proving to be a treasure trove for archaeologists who braved the lingering smell in the dirt to uncover some 19th Century artifacts — and a mystery.
The one-time site of privies for men and women has been built upon repeatedly. Recently, crews demolished a former school bus barn on the 3.5-acre downtown site in order to build a condominium complex and a parking garage.
But first, archaeologists were called in. Beginning in late May, they started digging into the ground in a discovery process that could last several more weeks.
They uncovered a pistol, a knife, whisky flasks, a set of false teeth, two dog skulls and a blade from a set of sheep shears.
"It might be an early crime scene," project archaeologist John Foster said. "It looks like the two dogs were decapitated. Then whoever did it dumped the skulls and the blade, thinking the women probably wouldn't be looking too hard into the bottom of the privy."
The work has its drawbacks.
"The further you go down, the stronger the smell," archaeologist Marisa Solorzano said. "But it's not that bad. These privies are archaeological gold mines."
The site was known to be used historically by American Indians, Spanish missionaries, Mexican soldiers and American settlers. Once, there were brothels nearby. The area, the size of two football fields, housed Ventura's first courthouse, jail and hospital during the late 1800s.
Artifacts found at the site along with photographs and other documentation, eventually will go to the Museum of Ventura County.
VENTURA, Calif. - The spot where a pair of outhouses stood 130 years ago is proving to be a treasure trove for archaeologists who braved the lingering smell in the dirt to uncover some 19th Century artifacts — and a mystery.
The one-time site of privies for men and women has been built upon repeatedly. Recently, crews demolished a former school bus barn on the 3.5-acre downtown site in order to build a condominium complex and a parking garage.
But first, archaeologists were called in. Beginning in late May, they started digging into the ground in a discovery process that could last several more weeks.
They uncovered a pistol, a knife, whisky flasks, a set of false teeth, two dog skulls and a blade from a set of sheep shears.
"It might be an early crime scene," project archaeologist John Foster said. "It looks like the two dogs were decapitated. Then whoever did it dumped the skulls and the blade, thinking the women probably wouldn't be looking too hard into the bottom of the privy."
The work has its drawbacks.
"The further you go down, the stronger the smell," archaeologist Marisa Solorzano said. "But it's not that bad. These privies are archaeological gold mines."
The site was known to be used historically by American Indians, Spanish missionaries, Mexican soldiers and American settlers. Once, there were brothels nearby. The area, the size of two football fields, housed Ventura's first courthouse, jail and hospital during the late 1800s.
Artifacts found at the site along with photographs and other documentation, eventually will go to the Museum of Ventura County.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Chappie #3: The decision to move forward
So the half-way point of my internship is here and I only have 5 weeks left and man has it been good! Yes I have had my fair share of death, sickness, depression, anxiety and even people wanting to end their life, but the LORD has seen me through it all. And where once it felt like an ulcer was in my stomach as I made my way to the ED (or ER) now I am relatively calm. That doesn't mean I don't feel useless at times or that I am able to help everyone that God puts in my path, but it does mean that I am fully confident that whatever comes my way I will be able to do my best and let God do the rest.
What has been the hardest part? Well for me it wasn't the Code Blues, Traumas, or even the infant demise. For me was coming into contact with a patient (PT) who wanted to end their life because of the incredible amount of pain the PT was in. It was especially hard because this PT was not listed as a possible suicide and so I had no idea of the conversation we would have. It was so hard that when the PT told me the PT's desires I wanted to run out of the room. This was not because of the fact I had no possible idea of how to handle this situation, but because it brought up some incredibly painful memories of a student suicide that I dealt with at seminary. However, and to me this is one of the best part's of being a Christian, instead of running, I immediately prayed and I was answered! As I felt myself begin to shut down, God instead gave me strength, peace of mind, and the ability to be there and listen to the PT. Since that PT I have had to deal with more suicides than any other intern, but I am not afraid for my LORD, my defender, my strength, is with me and He will get me through it.
What has been the best part? I can be with people and try to help them with their problems. And that is a bit strange for me, for it was only 12 years ago that as I entered College I was going to choose a profession that would limit my interaction with people. I only wanted to study the ocean, both with my eyes and my stomach, and only on occasion deal with those funny, complex, organisms called humans. However God has changed that and while it has taken over a decade for that change to take place, me I now readily enjoy people and I enjoy listening to their lives. And so I have had the chance to develop my "listening ear" as people tell me of their joys, pains, anxieties, goals, pasts, hopes, anger, and depression. And I have had the chance to bring peace, hope, and love and fulfill the Lord's command to be with the sick, the poor, and the needy. I have listened to the stories of amputees, heart PT's, PT's with HIV, diabetics, those who are clinically depressed, those who are sick of being in and out of the hospital every few weeks, and those scared to death of what their next visit with the doctor will mean. And I meet them with the Holy Spirit having gone before me, I bring with me the Love, Hope and Peace of God and I see them, or try to, with His eyes. For make no mistake there is NO way I could possibly do this on my own.
Anyway I am faced with the decision to move forward in this profession. I have an interview with Christiana Care for the residency this fall. If I am accepted I will be in a paid position (whohooo) and Ill be working about 55 hours a week. I will also have more than just one floor, like I do now, to be the Chaplain for. My interview is at 2pm on Tuesday July 10th. It will be in 2 parts. The first part will be with my supervisor and the director of Pastoral care (who is also my coordinating chaplain). The second part will be with a staff chaplain as well as someone from the oversight committee for pastoral care. It should be a breeze. I am pretty confident that I will get the job, but I want to be where the Lord wants me. So I would like to ask all who read this to please pray for me as I look towards my next stage in life. I would also like prayer as Tues. is one of my on-call nights and that means I will be working from 8am Tues-4pm Wed. It is a loooooog shift and while I do get to sleep, if the night is busy that sleep may not be coming. I will find out by Fri. if I got the job or not.
And so Ill leave you with a story of God's providence. This past Fri. I ended my time with a PT with whom I had met with a few times over a week and a half. The PT was angry with the doctors on what the PT felt was mistreatment and on our first visit I suggested that the PT should fire the PT's doctors. And that is probably one of the reasons the PT asked me to come back. This PT is also a staunch atheist and while we talked about all sorts of topics we did not go much into faith or the Bible. During the course of the three visits I had with the PT we developed a rapport and the PT freely talked to me about the PT's family, outlook on life, why I was a chaplain, a little about how faith affects the outcome of sick PT's, and a lot about history. Most of you might think that because I was not able to evangelize this PT that the visit was a failure. But the truth of the matter is we are not allowed to proselytize anyone unless that ask about our faith. We are only allowed to try and support them in their situation, maybe pray for them, and then leave. And at first this was very frustrating, but as I look to the Bible and Jesus's example I see that He often healed a person or took care of a problem, or in the case of Zacheues acknowledged his existence before He would share the reason why He was there. And that is what I do. I don't physically heal them or take care of their poverty, but I do the one thing most people never do; I listen. I listen to their problems, pains, hatreds, angers, joys, loves, all without judging, all in hope, that somehow Christ's Love will show and that I will get to share about the one whom I LOVE! There are three phases in evangelism. The sowing, watering, and reaping. My role will, most of the time, be the first so that Christians like YOU can follow up and be willing to do the rest. And that is why when I cannot out and out share my faith I am not frustrated, for I know the Lord will not let any of His own slip through His fingers.
What has been the hardest part? Well for me it wasn't the Code Blues, Traumas, or even the infant demise. For me was coming into contact with a patient (PT) who wanted to end their life because of the incredible amount of pain the PT was in. It was especially hard because this PT was not listed as a possible suicide and so I had no idea of the conversation we would have. It was so hard that when the PT told me the PT's desires I wanted to run out of the room. This was not because of the fact I had no possible idea of how to handle this situation, but because it brought up some incredibly painful memories of a student suicide that I dealt with at seminary. However, and to me this is one of the best part's of being a Christian, instead of running, I immediately prayed and I was answered! As I felt myself begin to shut down, God instead gave me strength, peace of mind, and the ability to be there and listen to the PT. Since that PT I have had to deal with more suicides than any other intern, but I am not afraid for my LORD, my defender, my strength, is with me and He will get me through it.
What has been the best part? I can be with people and try to help them with their problems. And that is a bit strange for me, for it was only 12 years ago that as I entered College I was going to choose a profession that would limit my interaction with people. I only wanted to study the ocean, both with my eyes and my stomach, and only on occasion deal with those funny, complex, organisms called humans. However God has changed that and while it has taken over a decade for that change to take place, me I now readily enjoy people and I enjoy listening to their lives. And so I have had the chance to develop my "listening ear" as people tell me of their joys, pains, anxieties, goals, pasts, hopes, anger, and depression. And I have had the chance to bring peace, hope, and love and fulfill the Lord's command to be with the sick, the poor, and the needy. I have listened to the stories of amputees, heart PT's, PT's with HIV, diabetics, those who are clinically depressed, those who are sick of being in and out of the hospital every few weeks, and those scared to death of what their next visit with the doctor will mean. And I meet them with the Holy Spirit having gone before me, I bring with me the Love, Hope and Peace of God and I see them, or try to, with His eyes. For make no mistake there is NO way I could possibly do this on my own.
Anyway I am faced with the decision to move forward in this profession. I have an interview with Christiana Care for the residency this fall. If I am accepted I will be in a paid position (whohooo) and Ill be working about 55 hours a week. I will also have more than just one floor, like I do now, to be the Chaplain for. My interview is at 2pm on Tuesday July 10th. It will be in 2 parts. The first part will be with my supervisor and the director of Pastoral care (who is also my coordinating chaplain). The second part will be with a staff chaplain as well as someone from the oversight committee for pastoral care. It should be a breeze. I am pretty confident that I will get the job, but I want to be where the Lord wants me. So I would like to ask all who read this to please pray for me as I look towards my next stage in life. I would also like prayer as Tues. is one of my on-call nights and that means I will be working from 8am Tues-4pm Wed. It is a loooooog shift and while I do get to sleep, if the night is busy that sleep may not be coming. I will find out by Fri. if I got the job or not.
And so Ill leave you with a story of God's providence. This past Fri. I ended my time with a PT with whom I had met with a few times over a week and a half. The PT was angry with the doctors on what the PT felt was mistreatment and on our first visit I suggested that the PT should fire the PT's doctors. And that is probably one of the reasons the PT asked me to come back. This PT is also a staunch atheist and while we talked about all sorts of topics we did not go much into faith or the Bible. During the course of the three visits I had with the PT we developed a rapport and the PT freely talked to me about the PT's family, outlook on life, why I was a chaplain, a little about how faith affects the outcome of sick PT's, and a lot about history. Most of you might think that because I was not able to evangelize this PT that the visit was a failure. But the truth of the matter is we are not allowed to proselytize anyone unless that ask about our faith. We are only allowed to try and support them in their situation, maybe pray for them, and then leave. And at first this was very frustrating, but as I look to the Bible and Jesus's example I see that He often healed a person or took care of a problem, or in the case of Zacheues acknowledged his existence before He would share the reason why He was there. And that is what I do. I don't physically heal them or take care of their poverty, but I do the one thing most people never do; I listen. I listen to their problems, pains, hatreds, angers, joys, loves, all without judging, all in hope, that somehow Christ's Love will show and that I will get to share about the one whom I LOVE! There are three phases in evangelism. The sowing, watering, and reaping. My role will, most of the time, be the first so that Christians like YOU can follow up and be willing to do the rest. And that is why when I cannot out and out share my faith I am not frustrated, for I know the Lord will not let any of His own slip through His fingers.
The Kite Runner
So today I realized I had not been to one of my favorite stores in a long time (a few weeks). Barnes and Nobles had not seen my smiling face and had probably missed my patronage and so I decided to go visit and pick up a couple of books....Man that was hard just picking two.
And into B&N I went and wow was I surprised... I saw Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Betrayal, The Judas Strain by James Rollins, and The Navigator by Clive Cussler. Now I am on a budget as as each of these books are $25+ I could only get two out of three. And that was a hard decision because I have read each of these authors for years now and I love them all. But then as I was trying to make a decision I saw A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini and I thought hmmm maybe I should try something more thought provoking. I had heard, from a number of people, including some fellow chaplains and my supervisor, that Khaled was a very good author and so I decided to give him a chance. However I decided to read other book first The Kite Runner partially because it was cheaper than the other novel, partially because by reading his first novel it would tell me if spending another $25 would be worth it, and partially because a movie is being made http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419887/ for the The Kite Runner and I always read the book first before I see the movie. Anyway I walked out with The Kite Runner and The Judas Strain, but I will read the The Kite Runner first and I will try and have a review up by next week.
And into B&N I went and wow was I surprised... I saw Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Betrayal, The Judas Strain by James Rollins, and The Navigator by Clive Cussler. Now I am on a budget as as each of these books are $25+ I could only get two out of three. And that was a hard decision because I have read each of these authors for years now and I love them all. But then as I was trying to make a decision I saw A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini and I thought hmmm maybe I should try something more thought provoking. I had heard, from a number of people, including some fellow chaplains and my supervisor, that Khaled was a very good author and so I decided to give him a chance. However I decided to read other book first The Kite Runner partially because it was cheaper than the other novel, partially because by reading his first novel it would tell me if spending another $25 would be worth it, and partially because a movie is being made http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0419887/ for the The Kite Runner and I always read the book first before I see the movie. Anyway I walked out with The Kite Runner and The Judas Strain, but I will read the The Kite Runner first and I will try and have a review up by next week.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Chappie #2: A listening ear
One of the dangers of being a chaplain is trivializing a person's pain or experience. It is relatively easy to do and if you do it too often the patient will shut up and not talk anymore or ask you to leave the room. And so you might loose the chance to support them.
How do you trivialize their pain? You do this by first listening to their experience and then telling them that..."Oh yes I have been through that" or "I know of someone who went through the same thing and this is how they got through it". This at first might seem good as your are just trying to show the patient that you are empathizing with them. But as they try to tell their story/pain and you try and interject with something of your own they begin to think that this person is not listening to me. And then they stop talking and let you talk which is the exact opposite of the role of the chaplain. In the first few visits the PT does not want to be told how to fix their situation or how you or a friend went through the same problem. They want to be able to tell their story/pain and they just want a person to listen. And that is hard as we, humans, seem to be hardwired to try and solve problems or talk about what we have been through instead of just listening.
This applies to every day life as well. How often do we find a friend in need or in pain and when they try to tell their story we say, "Oh it's not that bad, I had the same thing happen to me/friend/co-worker etc and this is what happened". Or "Wow that stinks, but you know what this is how you can change that". And so instead of letting the person tell us the depth of their pain, we wall it off, and try to fix it instead. Pain, like grief, needs to be worked though not necessarily solved. And that is hard because as Americans we tend to avoid pain as much as possible. Eventually Time and God allows for the healing/solving process to begin, but in the meantime we need to just to shut our mouths, (indeed zipper them if need be) pray, and open our ears.
How do you trivialize their pain? You do this by first listening to their experience and then telling them that..."Oh yes I have been through that" or "I know of someone who went through the same thing and this is how they got through it". This at first might seem good as your are just trying to show the patient that you are empathizing with them. But as they try to tell their story/pain and you try and interject with something of your own they begin to think that this person is not listening to me. And then they stop talking and let you talk which is the exact opposite of the role of the chaplain. In the first few visits the PT does not want to be told how to fix their situation or how you or a friend went through the same problem. They want to be able to tell their story/pain and they just want a person to listen. And that is hard as we, humans, seem to be hardwired to try and solve problems or talk about what we have been through instead of just listening.
This applies to every day life as well. How often do we find a friend in need or in pain and when they try to tell their story we say, "Oh it's not that bad, I had the same thing happen to me/friend/co-worker etc and this is what happened". Or "Wow that stinks, but you know what this is how you can change that". And so instead of letting the person tell us the depth of their pain, we wall it off, and try to fix it instead. Pain, like grief, needs to be worked though not necessarily solved. And that is hard because as Americans we tend to avoid pain as much as possible. Eventually Time and God allows for the healing/solving process to begin, but in the meantime we need to just to shut our mouths, (indeed zipper them if need be) pray, and open our ears.
Happy 4th of July
I love the 4th of July! I love the fried food, the warm weather, and then the fireworks. For me it always takes too long for the Sun to pass through the horizon. Silently I will the Sun to move it's last sliver past the Earth so that my mind can be blown away by the magic of our hosts. I love seeing the contrasts of red/purple, blue/green, and orange/white across the night sky. And it amazes me the new shapes and designs within designs that the engineers come up with every year. I cannot wait for the day that a dragon such as the one Tolkien writes of at Bilbo's party come to pass!!
My fav. 4th of July happened near Hearing Beach in MA. I had heard their fireworks were pretty good and as I had never seen fireworks over the water before I was determined to go. So I picked up about 15 friends and we went to the beach for the afternoon playing in the water, getting bit by horsefly's, playing Volleyball, and eating dinner. Then around 9pm it all started but not at our beach. A town a few miles down started early with a HUGE bonfire and then they set off their fireworks. It was cool but I was disappointed because they were so far away and so we could not take part in the fun......then 5 min later fireworks again started going off. These were much closer and m0re colorful but again they were coming from another town a mile up the beach. Then BOOOM....BANG.....POP the fireworks I had come to see were here!!! There were all sorts of shapes and sizes and colors and they were beautiful. And the best part was that I could look all around me and see fireworks! I could look down the beach and I could see them! I could look up the beach and see them there too. And then I could lay down in the cool sand with my eye to the stars and see those explosions of light and be satisfied. And for a time I was able to put away my worries of Hebrew, and of my job, of the youth ministry I volunteered at, and how I was going to pay for the next yr of school and just be.
And so that time of year is once again here. I am looking forward to seeing friends, eating good food, and maybe throwing around a Frisbee, but the main attraction is those bursts of light and sound. And while they are often too short of a show they are none-the-less beautiful and make me look forward to the great celebration, the one that will never end, that is yet to come.
My fav. 4th of July happened near Hearing Beach in MA. I had heard their fireworks were pretty good and as I had never seen fireworks over the water before I was determined to go. So I picked up about 15 friends and we went to the beach for the afternoon playing in the water, getting bit by horsefly's, playing Volleyball, and eating dinner. Then around 9pm it all started but not at our beach. A town a few miles down started early with a HUGE bonfire and then they set off their fireworks. It was cool but I was disappointed because they were so far away and so we could not take part in the fun......then 5 min later fireworks again started going off. These were much closer and m0re colorful but again they were coming from another town a mile up the beach. Then BOOOM....BANG.....POP the fireworks I had come to see were here!!! There were all sorts of shapes and sizes and colors and they were beautiful. And the best part was that I could look all around me and see fireworks! I could look down the beach and I could see them! I could look up the beach and see them there too. And then I could lay down in the cool sand with my eye to the stars and see those explosions of light and be satisfied. And for a time I was able to put away my worries of Hebrew, and of my job, of the youth ministry I volunteered at, and how I was going to pay for the next yr of school and just be.
And so that time of year is once again here. I am looking forward to seeing friends, eating good food, and maybe throwing around a Frisbee, but the main attraction is those bursts of light and sound. And while they are often too short of a show they are none-the-less beautiful and make me look forward to the great celebration, the one that will never end, that is yet to come.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Crazy Yo-Yo guy
This guy is nuts. I wonder how much time he put into this act?
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=512516&fr=&cache=1
http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=512516&fr=&cache=1
No dough no go
So while I know I wanted most of my posts to deal with movies, books, news, or my experience as a chaplain, this post will be a little off the beaten trail. I have had discussions with multiple men on a a certain topic and I was curious as to what women thought as well. This is hypothetical and yes while I know some of you are married, engaged, or dating, think back to the days when you were single and tell me what you think....
What would you do if a guy, who had most of the characteristics that you were looking for in a boyfriend, asked you out but did not have a job, or more specifically a job that did not pay yet but would in a few months. You do know him pretty well and he is a dependable guy. The guy can take you out occasionally, he does have some money put away, but it not would be to the same extent of a normal first month of dating where the guy is supposed to wow and dazzle the woman he is trying to pursue. Would you be willing to date him? Would you be willing to wait for his job to become a paying one and in the meantime hang out with him in groups etc? Or would you tell him that if you are still available when his job starts to bring in the green then you would think about taking it to the next step?
BTW if you are interested in what I think or what some of the guys I have talked to thought I post that inside after a few responses.
What would you do if a guy, who had most of the characteristics that you were looking for in a boyfriend, asked you out but did not have a job, or more specifically a job that did not pay yet but would in a few months. You do know him pretty well and he is a dependable guy. The guy can take you out occasionally, he does have some money put away, but it not would be to the same extent of a normal first month of dating where the guy is supposed to wow and dazzle the woman he is trying to pursue. Would you be willing to date him? Would you be willing to wait for his job to become a paying one and in the meantime hang out with him in groups etc? Or would you tell him that if you are still available when his job starts to bring in the green then you would think about taking it to the next step?
BTW if you are interested in what I think or what some of the guys I have talked to thought I post that inside after a few responses.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Just Breathe
Breathing is pretty important, you need to be able to do it for just about everything. The only times it seems to be a bad idea it underwater with out a scuba tank, or when you are in a room with poisonous gases. And even then you need air you just cannot get it at the moment.
Personally I envy each and every one of you who can breathe normally. Who can talk and sing without any impediment at all. That for me just is not possible because of my asthma. Now I don't go about wheezing and for the most part I can play sports, sing when I want, etc and get by with a normal dry cough. Except that at times it can get so bad that I cannot even speak two words with out going into a coughing fit or I cant breathe deep enough to string a few notes, than it is readily apparent that I have asthma. Often times I wonder if people think I am sick and just need to get some meds or if I could shut up and go get some water to get rid of my cough. I am extremely self conscious of my cough. And it is pretty embarrassing when you are dancing with someone, having a good time, and you just cough full in their face....I tell ya nothing kills a dance faster than that.
But to keep with my Chaplain chain of thought. I have really noticed that in the hospital I cough more. It is due to stress/anxiety and it really bothers me as I do not want patients to think I will get them sick. I could wear a mask I suppose but it really inhibits the rapport between two people when you have one of those on your face. At least I can wear a normal one and not have to wear the Darth Vader mask. But if I think about it so far no one has grimaced or pulled away when I cough to the side and so maybe it is all superficial or I am just being too sensitive. I don't know but I have often wondered what my friends have thought. So what have you thought of my coughing? Did you know I had asthma?
Personally I envy each and every one of you who can breathe normally. Who can talk and sing without any impediment at all. That for me just is not possible because of my asthma. Now I don't go about wheezing and for the most part I can play sports, sing when I want, etc and get by with a normal dry cough. Except that at times it can get so bad that I cannot even speak two words with out going into a coughing fit or I cant breathe deep enough to string a few notes, than it is readily apparent that I have asthma. Often times I wonder if people think I am sick and just need to get some meds or if I could shut up and go get some water to get rid of my cough. I am extremely self conscious of my cough. And it is pretty embarrassing when you are dancing with someone, having a good time, and you just cough full in their face....I tell ya nothing kills a dance faster than that.
But to keep with my Chaplain chain of thought. I have really noticed that in the hospital I cough more. It is due to stress/anxiety and it really bothers me as I do not want patients to think I will get them sick. I could wear a mask I suppose but it really inhibits the rapport between two people when you have one of those on your face. At least I can wear a normal one and not have to wear the Darth Vader mask. But if I think about it so far no one has grimaced or pulled away when I cough to the side and so maybe it is all superficial or I am just being too sensitive. I don't know but I have often wondered what my friends have thought. So what have you thought of my coughing? Did you know I had asthma?
The Art of Saying Goodbye
Saying goodbye is always hard especially when the people you are saying goodbye to are/were close friends. I have had the pain and heartache of having to do this recently and to be honest it has really sucked!
These friends were with me through some of the hardest times in the history of my family. Through my grandfathers death, my aunt's death, the threatening of my parents, and the closing of my families business; just to name a few. And I have been with them through some pretty rough stuff as well. I have known them for 5 wonderful years and yet over the past two they have shown me more and more they just did not want to make the effort anymore.
And while I have tried to call them just to say goodbye, they have yet to return my calls.
So how have you handled goodbye's to friends? Do you have a certain way of doing it or do you just let go? Doesn't matter to me if they were crappy friends, good friends, friends who have faded away...just curious
These friends were with me through some of the hardest times in the history of my family. Through my grandfathers death, my aunt's death, the threatening of my parents, and the closing of my families business; just to name a few. And I have been with them through some pretty rough stuff as well. I have known them for 5 wonderful years and yet over the past two they have shown me more and more they just did not want to make the effort anymore.
And while I have tried to call them just to say goodbye, they have yet to return my calls.
So how have you handled goodbye's to friends? Do you have a certain way of doing it or do you just let go? Doesn't matter to me if they were crappy friends, good friends, friends who have faded away...just curious
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Chappie #1 When does engaging the world stop?
So today I came across an issue which I as a Christian have a problem with. This is the second issue that I have disaggreed with (the first I am trying to word correctly before I post) and while I am not forced to practice said issue, a few of my fellow chaplains and supervisors were a little shocked at my opinion.
The issue is whether or not I would participate in patients faith that was other than my own. To clarify, by other faith I mean Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. And by participating I mean helping them pray to their spiritual god/etc or by performing rituals that are considered holy to their faith. Now as a chaplain I am responsible for supporting patients of all faiths and traditions and of that I have no problem in as much as I can observe their rituals or get them a spiritual leader who can help them in their faith. However I draw the line where they would like me to participate in their worship. For me that is worshipping another God and there are numerous verses, in the Bible, that forbid me from doing so or shows what happens to God's followers when they do forsake him. Some of my fellow chaplains, who are Christian, believe we all follow the same God and so helping the Patient worship their god is no different than when we worship ours. This syncritism has got to stop somewhere, but we are also told by Paul to be all things to all people so as witness to them The Gospel. The question is when does this engaging the world cross the line and lead us into sin and when does it open the eye's of the unbeliever?
The issue is whether or not I would participate in patients faith that was other than my own. To clarify, by other faith I mean Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. And by participating I mean helping them pray to their spiritual god/etc or by performing rituals that are considered holy to their faith. Now as a chaplain I am responsible for supporting patients of all faiths and traditions and of that I have no problem in as much as I can observe their rituals or get them a spiritual leader who can help them in their faith. However I draw the line where they would like me to participate in their worship. For me that is worshipping another God and there are numerous verses, in the Bible, that forbid me from doing so or shows what happens to God's followers when they do forsake him. Some of my fellow chaplains, who are Christian, believe we all follow the same God and so helping the Patient worship their god is no different than when we worship ours. This syncritism has got to stop somewhere, but we are also told by Paul to be all things to all people so as witness to them The Gospel. The question is when does this engaging the world cross the line and lead us into sin and when does it open the eye's of the unbeliever?
Pranks: Show 'em if you got 'em
So I love to play pranks on people. I love little pranks and big pranks but they should always be in good taste. I have used them to scare my mom, on Mission trips, freak out my cousin, or just mess with my friends. They can be as little as moving a friend's Penn-State Paws on her car to using dead fish to get some great pictures. One of my favorite pranks was used on my cousin. This happened in high school in 12Th grade. We were best friends and so while I use to be very obnoxious to her, she would always forgive me and life would move on. Anyway we were sitting with our friends at lunch and while eating she was also doing homework for some class. Well, after a while she put down her pencil to talk to a friend and when she was not looking I put her pencil through a Hot dog and then put the pendog back where she left it. Needless to say, and much to my glee, a few seconds later she picked it up and she screamed. I had tears coming out of eyes and I nearly fell out of my seat laughing.
Anyway I have plenty of other pranks that I have pulled and a few I have yet to pull. But I would love to hear about the ones you have pulled or have had pulled on you, so tell away
Anyway I have plenty of other pranks that I have pulled and a few I have yet to pull. But I would love to hear about the ones you have pulled or have had pulled on you, so tell away
Click, Click Boom
So I once had a friend say, "That movies are suppossed to be a social event, and that she could not imagine ever going to a movie by herself." Well I beg to differ. There are times when I have needed time to myself and while books and nature are always a good outlet sometimes I just do not want to think. So I go see a movie. Other times I go alone because I am unsure of how horrible a movie it will be. The movie can be from any genre, but the movies that tend to have the worst acting or plot are Sci-Fi, Martial Arts, or Action.
It is a movie from the last genre which I saw today and I am whole heartily glad I did not see it with anyone else. I saw "Live free or Die Hard" or Die Hard 4. Now I am a fan of the previous three and while they all had their fair share of bad acting but for the most part had pretty decent action. Well this movie fails in both regards. The action makes just make so little sense. I mean how many Jet fighter pilots that you know of would fly a multi-million dollar jet in between levels of a highway when he can just use his missiles to blow his target up? Or how many helicopter pilots do you know would just let a car fly up a ramp and crash into their 'Copter?
There were some decent lines, "How about you dig deep and grow some big balls, because you are going to need them before this is over". Or "Stop moving you damn Hamster!"
Anyway if you have to see it, wait for video, do not spend $9+ to go see it.
It is a movie from the last genre which I saw today and I am whole heartily glad I did not see it with anyone else. I saw "Live free or Die Hard" or Die Hard 4. Now I am a fan of the previous three and while they all had their fair share of bad acting but for the most part had pretty decent action. Well this movie fails in both regards. The action makes just make so little sense. I mean how many Jet fighter pilots that you know of would fly a multi-million dollar jet in between levels of a highway when he can just use his missiles to blow his target up? Or how many helicopter pilots do you know would just let a car fly up a ramp and crash into their 'Copter?
There were some decent lines, "How about you dig deep and grow some big balls, because you are going to need them before this is over". Or "Stop moving you damn Hamster!"
Anyway if you have to see it, wait for video, do not spend $9+ to go see it.
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