Life Is Funny: Er.Um.Uh.That.You.There...

By MAD21

I hope I'm not the only one who has trouble forming proper sentences when shocking things happen. Things like being a passenger in a car when the driver doesn't realize the cars in front of us have stopped. Instead of saying something coherent like, "Hey! Hit the brakes, the cars have stopped!" It comes out as, "Er, uh, ack, um, uh... (most times accompanied by furious pointing and pushing the invisible brakes with your own feet on the floor in front of you)."

Depending on where you live, you may or may not know what a Cicada is. Let me inform you. They are these nasty, LOUD, huge bugs with wings that come out in July and August every year. Each year apparently has a different variety, there are the "every 2-years," and the "every 17-years," etc. All I know is that we have them "every year." They don't bite or sting or anything, but the ick-factor is very high, at least for me. They are like gigantic grasshoppers on steroids.

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Tasty Bites: Summers Bounty Cucumbers

By Candy, RN (Steele the Day)

Remember the “family reunion cucumbers” Aunt Blondie inevitably brought Every. Single. Year? Yep, me too. They were good, but when I was given a huge bag of cukes the other day I thought they needed a little more flair. I was looking for the same great taste, but better. Because I like zing.

As I sliced the cucumbers, I had to look no further than my patio herb pots and my teensy vegetable garden beyond, loaded with peppers (and nothing else). Add a few of these different flavors to your cucumbers and see if you don’t like the difference. And next time? I’m adding a jalapeno. Like I said, I like zing. And I have way too many peppers. This would also be good using fresh dill in place of basil.

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YOB: #6. Visit The Narnia Exhibit At The Franklin Institute (Part 2)

By Beth

As previous posts may have let on, Lara and I enjoy going to museums. There was the International Spy Museum, Geppe's Entertainment Museum and, what both of us were looking forward to, the Franklin Institute and the Chronicles of Narnia exhibit. It had been advertised as "interactive" so we were extremely excited. Both of us spent our childhood (and adulthood) wandering the woods, shores and castles of Narnia. We had our favorite books, characters and scenes. Sadly, the movies that have been made thus far have left us sorely disappointed. They have their good moments but really, it could've been done a lot better. We have hope for the third installment, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but not much.

My mother and two children are also Narnia fans so they joined us on our trip into Philly and the Franklin Institute. I admit, I had an ulterior motive for bringing them along, mom especially. I don't like driving in the city. (I should clarify that this is not the ONLY reason mom came, I love my mom and wanted to share the "interactive" experience with her). So down to Philly we went, sitting on the edge of our seats, poor Lara in the back of my car with my two kids. I believe they tried to tickle her.

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One Word At A Time: Laughter

By MAD21

"Why do you always do that?" A past coworker said to me on the way to lunch one day about 18 years ago. "Do what?" I asked. "Laugh when you talk." She said. It was a character trait I had never really noticed in myself before. But since this person brought it to my attention, it is something I have thought of often. Oddly enough after she said asked me this, I noticed the same trait in my dad. Guess I at least know where it came from, and it's not a bad thing.

Funny how comments like these stick in your head, isn't it? Honestly, I don't think I had a good answer. I probably just said something ordinary like, "I don't know." I'm not sure if the friend was asking me because she was annoyed by my habit, or jealous in some way, but for some reason she felt the need to ask such an odd question.

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Are You Wondering?

By Pat

I recently went through a very difficult, emotionally trying time, and although it's over now and the outcome mostly favorable, spiritual questions remain for me. We all know, as Christians, that we are to trust in God and give Him our cares. We all know that God has our best interest at heart. But we also know that sometimes things don't go the way we want them to, and that even God's faithful followers don't always get their way. Well, what then? During the five months of the difficult period I went through, I prayed fervently.

Desperately. I prayed for God to make sure that the outcome was as I requested it to be, for I knew that was what was needed, and I knew that God knew that, too. But after a time, I began to also pray for God to enable me to accept whatever happened; not only accept it, but continue to trust God and not allow anger, pain, bitterness and resentment to affect my faith. And quite honestly, I wasn't sure what I would do, how I would go on if wrong decisions were made. What would I do? A horrible way to feel.

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