My mother (the young girl on the right) and an unidentified friend posed for this photo sitting on a classic vehicle.
Here’s my question for this edition: Honolulu-based “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” the highest-rated reality show on cable television, has been pulled from the airwaves “for the foreseeable future” in light…
Appetizer How much money do you plan to spend this upcoming holiday season? Enough. My definition of “enough” is minuscule compared to what a lot of people spend, but I…
Thirteen Observations About Life Gardening Rule: When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If…
As we were driving west on Interstate 80 out of Davis, I snapped this photo of the sun setting over the hills because I thought the pink skyline was beautiful.…
Q1 – What is one of your favorite words?
Hope.
Q2 – How do react when you are out in public and approached by someone carrying a clipboard asking for your signature on a petition or requesting that you participate in a survey?
I try to avoid walking by them. If I can’t and they manage to ask me to sign, I politely decline while continuing to walk.
Q1 – Death and Taxes: When a successful business or corporation shows an interest in relocating to a new city, town or municipality, if the business in question employs a…
Appetizer
When was the last time you were surprised?
About five minutes ago when I walked into my house, sat down to read my e-mails, and saw that Ann Coulter once again opened her insensitive, bigoted mouth. You might think that, given my profession, I would not be surprised by such behavior. But the opposite is true: Just when I think I’ve heard it all . . .
Coulter draws fire over remarks about Jews
Conservative author offends CNBC host Donny Deutsch with comment
From CNBC and MSNBC
Oct. 11, 2007
Conservative author Ann Coulter finds herself in the middle of a firestorm once again after remarks on a CNBC television show in which she said Jews need “to be perfected” and suggested the nation would be better off if it were all-Christian.
Appearing on “The Big Idea” with host Donny Deutsch on Monday, she said Christians were tolerant of racial diversity but that it “would be a lot easier” for Jews if they were to become Christians.
Appetizer
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you look forward to your birthday?
5.
I have a love-hate relationship with my birthday because it is December 21: So close to Christmas that insensitive friends have often carelessly written “P.S. Happy Birthday” in Christmas cards, it is difficult to plan celebrations because everyone is busy with Christmas parties and events, and as a child, I felt cheated because I never had a classroom party (my birthday was always during what was known in those days as “Christmas break”). Thankfully, by the time my kids started school, teachers had “wised up” and all kids whose birthdays fell during breaks picked another day for an “un-birthday” classroom celebration.
Kailani tagged me to play the $50,000 Question Meme:
A philanthropist awards you $50,000 with the stipulation that you may use half of it for yourself and the other half you must use for the benefit of others. By “benefit of others” it can mean anything really, buying a gift for a family member or donating to a charity.
How do you spend the money on yourself?
Q1 – Books and Movies: When a movie that is based on a book is about to be released — like “Into the Wild,” which is scheduled to open nationwide in early-October — do you try to read the book first or do you believe in the separation of books and movies?
A1 – Only if the book has been on my “to read” list anyway.
Appetizer What is your favorite type of art? I’m not a big art collector, but my favorite types of paintings are of the sea. Soup When was the last time…
Angels are around us every day, everywhere.
JHSEsq collects angels playing flutes
They are mentioned many times in the Bible, perhaps most notably when an angel appeared to inform Mary that she was not only pregnant, but would give birth to the Savior, and again on Christmas Eve when they sang “Gloria” to signal his arrival. My favorite Christmas carols have always been “Angels We Have Heard on High,” “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing” and “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.”
Hebrews 13:2 reminds us to “entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”
In addition to being messengers, angels are also rescuers. Acts 12, for instance, describes how an angel was sent to release Peter from prison. After waking him up and telling him to get dressed, the angel walked him right out of the prison, accompanying him the full length of one street and assuring that he was safe before leaving him. Afterward, he said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me . . ” so he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John (who was also called Mark), and told the people gathered there how he had escaped.
On April 29, 1976, my father underwent open heart surgery for the first time. He was 57 years old; I was 19 and about to receive my Associate of Arts degree from San Joaquin Delta College. I planned was to transfer to a college in Orange County in the fall of that year.
I remember being incredibly frightened because my father had, as far as I knew, been healthy until then. And fathers are supposed to be invincible — strong providers for their families, especially their daughters. He had been ignoring symptoms of heart disease for some time. The local physician who treated him for many years described him once as “stoic” — an apt characterization of a man who stubbornly kept overhauling Lincoln transmissions, despite attacks of angina, because his youngest daughter was set to head off to college. Nothing was more important to my parents than seeing their two daughters graduate from college, secure steady jobs and be self-sufficient.
So it was quite shocking when my father went to the hospital to have surgery for a hernia, but instead ended up coming home that same morning with an appointment to see a cardiologist in Sacramento the next day. At that moment, my world changed forever: It was the point in my life when I learned, as every child eventually does, that my parents were vulnerable beings.
Q1 – What was I thinking?: What is your most regretted impulse purchase of all time?
A1 – Boy, this is a tough question because I usually don’t buy anything on impulse.
I would say the closest I’ve come recently was the purchase of Valgon rings for my flute. Supposedly, they serve as “an additional source of resonance.” Valgon Rings for flute
I’ve only used them a couple of times . . . I will probably use them this Saturday when the Lodi Community Band performs at the Lodi Grape Festival because we will be playing in the Grape Pavilion and will not be mic’d.
But I’ve done blind tests with my teacher, other flutists . . . nobody seems to be able to tell the difference between my playing with them on my flute or off. I suspect that is because I play a professional model “heavy walled” flute — that means the silver wall (tube) of the flute is .18″ thick rather than the standard .16″. It makes the flute heavier to hold, but also projects more sound. In addition, I have a platinum riser in my head joint. Different types of metal produce different sound qualities. I like platinum because it produces a deep, rich sound. So between the heavy wall and the platinum, I am already projecting a great deal of sound.
The other problem is that they are attached to the foot and head joints of the flute. I have to be careful with them because the spring mechanism has a tendency to scratch the flute’s surface.
They actually make rings for piccolos! You can be sure I won’t be buying and using them — that thing produces sounds that can wake the dead. No need to amplify those noises!
Appetizer
When was the last time you visited a hospital?
May 2 through 8, 2007, when BigBob’s appendix burst.
Soup
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how ambitious are you?
9.9
Yup, that’s me warming up backstage at Carnegie Hall on March 28, 2007!You are listening to an excerpt from the Stockton Concert Band’s performance of “Symphonic Duke” (arranged by The…
Q1 – Lying: Are there any circumstances under which you can see yourself lying to law enforcement officials at either the local or national levels? A1 – Americans are a…
Appetizer Using only one word, how does grocery shopping make you feel? Exhausted. Soup What is your favorite part about the season of Autumn? The leaves! Salad Have you ever…
I discovered this meme ((I’m not sure if it is really a full-fledged meme or just more of a writing prompt since it appears that a lot of participants just leave their responses as a comment at Belicove.com.)) at my friend Karen’s site, Write from Karen. It intrigued me so I thought I would participate. I hope that some of you will decide to join in, too.JHSEsq of Colloquium participates in Four for Friday
Each Friday, four questions are posted and each participant drafts his/her response. Simple! But it appears that Mikal asks thought-provoking and timely questions. So here goes:
Appetizer Who is the easiest person for you to talk to? Myself. I answer, too. Soup If you could live in any ancient city during the height of the quality…