We're back

Vacation: We returned on July 1st from South Dakota having had a good time, but very tired as we had to leave Dave's parents house at 0200 in order to drive to Omaha airport and be on time for our flight. To followup, the little baby bird was gone and no one knew what happened so that was good. Either mamma kitty and baby kitties had a meal or it was rescued in some other way. Before we left, we were able to get rid of mom and dad's furnace and oil tank that was taking up space in the basement. The furnace especially was quite heavy, but we got it done. I am glad we were able to help.

School: I am completing my paper today for school and then I should have completed 21 credits if I passed these last 2 courses-still don't know grades yet. I have a break until August 18th which is nice because we have one more vacation to FA and SC before that. I do have a test to take at work on heart arrythmias in the meantime.

Book: I read a great book while in SD called The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. This gentleman was born in 1960 and was a professor at the University of Virginia and then at Carnegie Mellon University in PA. He was diagnosed in 2006 with pancreatic cancer and has a wife and 3 small children under the age of 6. So, he was forced to retire and give his last lecture. The book is worth reading and you can see/hear his lecture at www.thelastlecture.com but here are a few highlights:

Apparently, he was a know-it-all and a bit proud. People were irritated with him. Finally a professor he admired told him: "It is a shame that people perceive you as being so arrogant because it's going to limit what your are going to be able to accomplish in life." He was able to change after that.

Brick walls (obstacles in life that seem impossible to scale or get through) are there for a reason: they give us a chance to show how badly we want something.

Not everything needs to be fixed (he told his wife after she had crashed both cars but they still worked).

Tips: Time must be explicitly managed, like money.
You can always change your plan, but only if you have one.
Are you spending time on the right things?
Develop a good filing system.
Rethink the telephone.
Delegate.
Take a time out.

Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted.

It can be a very disruptive thing for parents to have specific dreams for their kids. Rather, a parent's job is to encourage kids to develop a joy for life and a great urge to follow their dreams.

Dream big. Be earnest. Don't complain, work harder. Treat the disease, not the symptoms. Don't obsess over what people think. Look for the best in all people. Watch what people do, not what they say.

Running: Before I left SD I was able to run over 4miles straight. So on July 4th I join the 600+ people in Fredericksburg to run 5 miles. I had a great time. I not only did it, but I ran the whole thing with no walking and managed to finish in 47minutes which is a 9.4 minute pace. I was proud of myself and praised God the whole way that I could do this. I do have some soreness in my left lower leg so have been walking gingerly on it. I do need new sneakers. We ended up staying in Fredericksburg on the 4th to see the tiny parade, look through the craft show, and see a juggler then we went home. We had some friends for dinner and saw the fireworks at Lunga and got a bit wet and muddy, but they were grand nonetheless.

Youth camp: I am departing for GA to youth camp tomorrow bright and early. Will I ever catch up on my sleep?