Word of the Day: divagate(DAHY\vuh\geyt); to wander; stray
Weight: 206 pounds
Goal: lose 100 pounds in one year duration
Pounds to lose: 74 pounds
Waist Size: 44 inches
Rowing Duration: one hour, fifty-nine (59) minutes, four (4) seconds
Okay, well were into the weekend, and I, for one, have been very busy. As you know, Zac and I picked up our kids, Raphael and Jessie from their school yesterday afternoon, and from there we took them to the "Toys R US" store where we exhausted ourselves going up and down the aisles, back and forth over this way, side to side to all of the Barbies, and around again to the helicopters, "you want to make sure you get the right one, don't you Uncle Efrem?" I think you all get the pretty picture of our venture, but you know what?, I loved doing it and would go back to the store to do it again, tomorrow, in a heartbeat, oh yes I would!
Let me tell you what happened at the kids school. We arrived about fifteen minutes early, which is very okay with me, I hate being late. I decided, because it was such a lovely afternoon to wait outside the school, and I sat on a bench that was situated right outside the main hall. Winter kept me company, she's so loyal, and Zac stayed in the car doing his sudoku. Okay, you get the picture, we move on.
Let me say outright, I am very impressed with the supervision at the children's school. I was sitting on the bench no less than two minutes when I was approached by the principal of the school who was named Brad. Brad, asked me who I was there for, I told him the names of our children, and then Brad pressed me further in giving the names of the children's parents. Brad did not want to settle for our just knowing the names of the children, he wanted better data to support our getting our hands on innocent children. I love Brad for doing his job well, and I hope other people who hold our children's lives in their hands are just as thorough. I don't like saying it, but it's a fact, there's some crazy people out there and our children need all of the protection that we can give them. So, hooray to all those caregivers who hold our children's lives and a really big Hooray again Brad, I know our children and I included appreciate all of your efforts, and thank you.
After our jaunt to "Toys R US", we went to McDonalds for refreshments, wherein Jessie, Raphael and I each had a hot fudge sundae, was it ever good, YUM! After Mickey D's, Zac drove us all to my brother Biff's house and we lounged around playing there with Winter until Biff and Louise got home. That is what I call a great afternoon!!!!
Here it comes people, are you ready for it?, do you really want it?, lock up your daughters because there are now only twenty-one (21) days until the birthday of Jesus. Yes, it's Christmas-time, and soon you will not only have to contend with the snow, slush and sleet (good alliteration, don't you think?) but soon your home will be showered with presents, Christmas wrapping, Christmas Pointsettas, bows, Christmas Angels, Christmas Trees, coloured lights (some homes really have truly spectacular lighting and I love it) Nativety sets, tinsil, candy-canes (another favourite of mine,) Angel-hair (for some reason or other, Winter is crazy about this stuff, hehe,) and don't forget to leave that milk and cookies out for Santa on Christmas Eve!
This morning, Zac, Winter and I have plans to take Biff, Louise, Sally, Jessie and Raphael to the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) for breakfast. We have been here almost three weeks already and we haven't yet been to the IHOP so I'm really looking forward to it today. They really do a great breakfast!
I'm having more health problems, my back is extremely painful these days and I'm trying to just settle for taking Acetiminophen for the pain, but sometimes I do have to take Dilaudid, yes, the pain is that bad!
Whilst I was on CC this morning, I watched the PBS channel which was playing "In performance at The White House." (originally broadcast in October of this year.) Some of the performers were Nathan Lane, who also acted as host, Audra McDonald who sang two songs beautifully, Tony-Winner for Wicked, actress Idina Menzel who is truly amazing, and a young lady, who I've never heard before, but I expect we'll all be hearing about Miss Assata Alston.I know I use the word amazing alot, but Miss Assata Alston, who is just twelve (12) years old, really has an amazing voice, I am already a huge fan. Trust me, I know about these things and I predict huge, huge success for Assata Alston, who has already played the lead in the musical "Thoroughly Modern Millie." I wish you all could have heard her sing "Gimme, Gimmee", she sang the heck out of that song, WOW! I know that is only her start, Assata Alston is on her way, some people are already calling her a "legend," so how about that?, remember people, you heard about Miss Assata Alston from me first!
I was thinking that this gift-giving occasion, why not give a gift that's worth remembering by moving away from the more traditional choices and going with something a little more abstract. Friends, family, co-workers and even bosses enjoy gifts that are both thoughtful and engaging.
First on my list, and it is neither new or abstract, but I believe the best gifts to give and receive are those gifts that come from the heart, yup, that hand-made scarf, or that picture of Little Johnny's First Day of School, for me, gifts that come from the heart are the most memorable and they are always, always my favourite gifts, trust me, they are a win-win!
Surprise someone with a gift membership to an on-line movie company, such as Netflix. Netflix, (available now in the United States (U.S.) and I believe is now in Canada,) is a fun and easy-to-use online movie service with more than 100,000 DVD titles available, as well as 10,000 movies that you can watch instantly on your computer. Shipping to and from Netflix is free, and most titles arrive within one business day. With gift memberships available in durations as short as one month to as long as a year, a Netflixgift membership makes for a great gift for anyone with an Internet connection and a love for movies. You may have picked up on it, but just in case you haven't, I love movies.
Name a star after someone. I love this one, and I would love to have a star named after my self. True, I'd rather be the star, but that's another complicated story for another day, isn't it? Anyway, having a star named after someone is fun, it's romantic, and it definitely shows a certain amount of creativity in gift-giving. Yup, you definetly do not want to be boring. Boring is out.
The International Star Registry is the original name-a-star service, but there are literally dozens of similar companies with different options for extras. For the thrifty star-namer, there is Free Name a Star, who let's you register your star's new name, albeit without all the bells and whistles. I love the bells and whistles, am I being too suggestive? Hmmm.
Give a gift to a conservation society. Anyone will do and any and all are deserved and necessary, this planet is the only one we have, we need to take care of it!
Support wildlife conservation by "adopting" an animal. The Humane Society of Canada can give you some names if you don't know of one. I know of Wildlife Adoption and World Wildlife Fund and these are two of the best sites, offering many different choices of animals. For a contribution to the animal's conservation fund, you can get an "adoption kit" with a mini-plush of your chosen animal complete with certificate of adoption. This gift is a big hit with kids and animal lovers alike, and my child, Winter, thanks you in advance for giving this gift.
Show you care with a Kiva gift certificate. This one is a little out there, but that is what I really like about it. Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, meaning that you can make a loan as small as $25 to an entrepreneur in an impoverished country and track their progress as they pay it back. Don't you think that's clever?, I do. A gift certificate allows the recipient to choose their entrepreneur and be involved in this amazing experience. Remember what you've learned in that lesson about teaching someone to fish, they'll be always able to feed themselves, teaching and showing people how to take care of themselves is one of the greatest gifts to give anyone!
Give a gift card to Heifer International. Heifer International is an organization that gives the gift of livestock to impoverished families around the world, going beyond just charity to allow families to create a sustainable income for themselves. Heifer's "pass on the gift" (the movie, "Pay It Forward" is similar to this,) policy requires each livestock recipient to pass on one or more of their animal's offspring to another needy family. This is a great gift for those who love to help others, and you can feel great knowing that your gift will continue to help more and more families in need. I, am doing this one, this year, people, why don't you keep me company!
I think it is essential that we all do what we can to give back, not only to those in our backyard and our community, we need to lend a hand to all who are on this planet that need it, so this year, why don't you use one of my ideas listed above, I'm telling you, you will end up feeling so much joy in your heart, and isn't that what this season is all about?
That's it for me today folks, I have to walk the baby, also known as (aka) Winter, shower, shave, and all the rest of it. You, on the other hand, have your stuff to do so get on with it. Thank you for reading, just in case you don't know it, I'm glad I'm not talking to myself! As always, be careful out there!
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Heifer International (HI) is an organization that claims to work against world hunger by donating animals to families in developing countries. Its catalog deceptively portrays beautiful children holding cute animals in seemingly humane circumstances. The marketing brochure for HI does not show the animals being transported, their living and slaughter conditions, or the erosion, pollution and water use caused by the introduction of these animals and their offspring.
ReplyDeleteBy definition, animals raised for food are exploited in a variety of ways. The animals shipped to developing countries are often subject to; water and food shortages, cruel procedures without painkillers, lack of veterinary care resulting in extended suffering as a result of illness or injury.
A large percentage of the families receiving animals from HI are struggling to provide for themselves and cannot ensure adequate living conditions, nutrition, and medical care for animals they have been given. HI provides some initial veterinary training to individuals and the initial vaccines. But, long term care for these animals and their offspring is up to the individuals.
To make matters worse, animal agriculture causes much more harm to the environment than plant-based agriculture. The fragile land in many of the regions HI is sending the animals cannot support animal agriculture. Although they say they encourage cut and carry feeding of the animals to avoid erosion, the reality is often quite different.
The consumption of animal products has been shown in reputable studies to contribute significantly to life-threatening diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and a variety of cancers. Regions that have adopted a diet with more animal products see an increase in these diseases. The remote communities supposedly served by HI have no way of dealing with the health consequences of joining the high-cholesterol world.
While it may seem humane and sustainable to provide just one or two dairy cows here or there, the long term consequences are an increased desire for animal products in local cultures leading to an increase in production. These communities may be able to absorb the additional water use of one or two cows, what happens when there are hundreds or thousands of dairy cows, each consuming 27 to 50 gallons of fresh water and producing tons of excrement? The heavy cost to animals, the environment and local economies is not figured into HI's business practices.
Thank you for providing a full understanding, this shows me that I need to research things fully before putting my stamp on it.
ReplyDeleteLive and learn, but thank you again, I know my readers appreciate this input.