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…
Consider this observation by Tim Rutten, writing in the LA Times: “O.J. Simpson’s trial and acquittal on charges that he murdered his ex-wife and Goldman have spawned a small library…
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
Have you ever offered a reward to your child to encourage them to attain a goal?
A couple of years ago, my kids wanted new computers. So I made a deal with them: I agreed to buy them new computers when the school year ended — they wanted them for their summer vacation when they could play a certain game — if they achieved an agreed-upon grade point average.
All that semester, they asked me repeatedly as they proudly showed me their tests and papers that their teachers had graded and returned to them, “Mom, if I keep this up, I’m going to get my computer, right?”
“Absolutely,” I would tell them as I posted yet another “A” on the refrigerator.
I remember how their eyes lit up when the UPS truck stopped in front of the house and the driver rang the doorbell with a big smile on his face.
“Did somebody her get good grades?” he asked as he brought in the boxes.
But have you ever bribed your child to lose weight?
My first reaction was, “Are you kidding me?” Fifty thousand words? In only 30 days? This is not the article I intended to write today. But when I saw a…
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…
Last week, I shared my frustration with my writing, especially in the context of my own blog. This past week, I’ve continued to think a lot about not just what…
Sometimes “the end is in sight” at the outset.
It was when he struck up a conversation with me at work. Six years older than me, he was different from any man I had known up to that point in my life. He was handsome, intriguing, charismatic . . . and, as my coworkers had to point out, flirting with me. He was someone I could never “take home to mother”. Besides, I was still pining for someone else.
We interacted casually for a few weeks, our conversations gradually becoming personal and revealing. I understood that he was recently divorced and had a three-year-old son.
I was naive, inexperienced and oblivious so a friend explained that he was pursuing me. I had never before been “chased”.
Eventually, my defenses worn down, I agreed to a date and the relationship progressed. I knew that it would, of necessity, end, but I didn’t know when so I told myself that, in the meantime, I could just relax and enjoy spending some time with him. We never talked about long-term commitment.
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…
I think #1Son was somewhere between three and four years old when he decided to try out Dad’s boots! He looks very surprised and looking at this photo makes me…
Appetizer
Say there’s a book written about your life. Who would you want to narrate the audio version?
Janet Evanovich.
Soup
Take the letters from your favorite kind of nut and write a sentence. (Example: Perhaps every avenue needs understanding today.)
A little misogyny offends naturally delicate sensibilities.
It is going to happen. You are going to “fall off the wagon” occasionally due to special events, vacations, lack of motivation, someone or something in your life sabotaging your efforts . . . When it does happen, there are a number of things you can do to get back on track with your health and fitness program. Here are thirteen tips for us all to keep in mind:
1. Be kind to yourself.
You are not perfect. You are never going to achieve perfection. So there is no point in beating yourself up psychologically when you occasionally demonstrate your own humanity.
2. Keep it in perspective.
Consider your slip-up. How does it compare to your old habits? Did you fall right back into your old destructive habits or was this different?
These days, when I “fall off the wagon,” the scenery around me as I’m picking myself up and dusting myself off looks quite different that it used to.
So when it happens, I stop and compare my lifestyle before I developed this program for myself and what the program looks like when I am conscientiously following it. Inevitably, I find that my deviation is minor when compared with how I used to live and what my eating habits used to be.
The spotlight is on blogging tips from thirteen fabulous bloggers!
“Sensory overload.” We’ve all heard that phrase. It has become a cliched part of our vernacular. For instance, when deadlines and activities at work start to make us feel frazzled, we tell our colleagues, half-jokingly, “I can’t hang in. I’m on sensory overload here.”
The phenomenon is being studied by the experts and every day, it seems, there is another news story about the impact that technology and all of the communicative devices we use every day are having upon us. We are all connected to each other perpetually through our cell phones, blackberries, computers, etc. But are we really connecting with other human beings in a meaningful fashion or just superficially? That’s a question for the sociologists to answer in years to come.
For me, the question has become, am I really connected with my internal self? Some days the honest answer is “no.”
My mother-in-law died suddenly in May 2002 at the age of 82. The sheriff showed up at the front door holding her wallet and keys, and notified BigBob that the neighbors had called 911 earlier in the day when she did not answer the phone, doorbell or open the shades.
To say that we were shocked is an understatement. The day before she had driven #1Son to school after he spent the night at her house with her.
We need some of her wishes, but not all. She had indicated a preference for cremation and no viewing, plus she had made clear that she did not want a schmaltzy organ-with-loads-of-vibrato sort of funeral service. Past that, we had to figure out how best to say our good-byes and celebrate her life. To be perfectly accurately, BigBob, as her only child, had that responsibility. Our role was to support him.
I thought I took a photo of Matthew before the limousine came to pick him up for his first homecoming. I didn’t realize until several hours later that I had…
Appetizer
Describe your laundry routine. Do you have a certain day when you do it all, or do you just wash whatever you need for the next day?
I have yet to find the bottom of the pile. Ever. That’s all I’m saying about this subject. 😳
Soup
In your opinion, what age will you be when you’ll consider yourself to truly be old?
Dead.
Based upon my observations and experiences, I would say that there are three basic types of bloggers: The Professionals These folks claim to earn their daily bread solely via blogging…