Blurry Vision

I woke yesterday morning with a small problem, everything being blurry. Now this is not usually the case, even though I wear glasses because I am far sighted I can see unless I am trying to read or put my makeup on. It was if someone had spread Vaseline on my eyeballs and my glasses didn’t make it any better.

Kyle and I went out for breakfast and where I would normally be able to read every sign on the road with no problem everything was a blur I just couldn’t focus. After breakfast I tried to log onto the computer and had to give up because I just couldn’t read anything. What the stink was going on with my eyes? It had been more than three hours now and I I was a little concerned. I searched my brain for a reason that I couldn’t see clearly.

By this time our granddaughter came over and we headed out to the pool for one last swim together. After just a few minutes of swimming in the pool I noticed that not only was my vision still blurry but it was like I was seeing through a veil as well.

We finished up at the pool and headed off to Bass Pro Shop for lunch and to spend a little time checking out the fun stuff before we had to catch our flight back to Seattle and as we sat at the table with the menus in front of us, I realized that I could see again. What a relief and praise to Jesus.

The best that I can figure it was a combination of things that caused my vision to be disrupted. One, I spent over 3 hours in the pool on Saturday afternoon, without my glasses on. This probably put a strain on the eye muscles and they just needed to rest and adjust again. Two, I have been in more sunshine in the last three days than I have been in the last six months. It was just real bright and shame on me I don’t wear sun glasses. – Note to self, see about prescription sunglasses. And finally, all that swimming in the pool and the chemicals that are used to treat the water were just more than my eyes could handle. I learned to swim with my eyes open underwater I just can’t be under water with my eyes closed. I even open my eyes when I swim in the ocean.

As we were on the plane I was reading a book that talked about the Vision the Lord has given us and how we need to keep it clear and in focus. So thinking back to earlier in the day when I could see clearly I thought about my spiritual vision: Has it become blurry? Am I looking at my vision without a focus, not using the lenses that God has given me for my Vision? Letting the glare of other people’s visions that seem to be bright and occurring now dilate my pupils or even blinding my vision totally? Or am I letting the stuff of everyday life get in and cause an irritation to my Vision.

Just as it was concerning and caused me to think of going to the doctor for a checkup for my eyes , I need to be going to The Doctor, Jesus, and get a check up for the Vision He has provided me make sure that I keep it in clear focus.

Acceptance

Our granddaughter and I went swimming in the hotel pool. We were not in the pool more than a few minutes when she was playing with another little boy. It just didn’t matter that they had never met before the only thing that was important was that they were both in the pool and there were having fun.

It is just too bad that we all can’t stay a little child like when it comes to meeting new people. As we grow older we look at the people we meet and some that we have known for a long time and wonder what it is they want from us, when are they going to disappoint us, how soon before they hurt us. All of this tends to build up a wall that prevents others from getting in and from us to get out. We pull back from just enjoying being with people. We pull back to a place we think is protection and it is really a prison.

After about 5 minutes of playing in the pool the other boy’s dad comes out to the pool side. Katelynn swims over to the side of the pool and says, “I’m Katelynn, he’s my best friend.”

Kiss My Grits

Got to have one of my favorite breakfast today. Scrambled eggs, Grits and Hashbrowns.

And there is no better place for Grits that I have found in the US than the Waffle House.

Just Plain Gloating

There

Here

Fruits of My Labors

This is a picture of my office for the next couple of days. Yes, I’m sitting on the patio of my hotel room looking out at the pool. It is a little warm and the glare makes it hard to see the screen in the full sun or I would be at the pool. I am in Phoenix on a working vacation. I am working during the day and visiting with my son and his family in the off times.

I can honestly say I am reaping the fruits of my labors. In the mid-late 90s I was heavily involved in the organization that set the standards for these wireless networks. This hotel offers free Wi-Fi access and of course there is excellent coverage pool side. All those hours of meetings and discussions on what is allowed and what wouldn’t be, how to make the networks secure and how to make it easy for someone to be a User of the technology and not need a degree in electronics to get connected.

It is a day like this that I can see that what I do has a purpose. Well it sure makes my life easier.

Why Not?

Why is it easier for us to come up with a list of reasons not to do something a whole lot easier than a list of reasons we can to something? I’m sure you are like me and there is something in your life you would really like to do and yet you don’t. In our minds we come up with all the excuses in the world why we can’t:
- I’m too busy
- I’m not good enough
- Others will judge me
- I might fail
- Who am I to think that I can do that
- Others are much more capable then I am.
All these are nothing but excuses.

But what if we would make a list of reasons why we can:
- I have something to offer
- I don’t have to be perfect, I just need to try
- So what if I fail?
- I could easily find the time
- I have what it takes or I wouldn’t think of it.
- I will learn as I go


So WHY NOT stop the excuses.

A Wheelchair, a Cabinet and a Baby Gate

What do all these things have in common; these are the items I worked on today. Since I took yesterday and did the things I like to do, I ended up needing to do a few chores today.

I adjusted the brakes on my mom’s wheelchair, hung a new cabinet on the wall in the bathroom and installed a baby gate to keep Indy, the puppy, in the kitchen while we are all at work.

We Only See In Part

This is the new guitar I bought last week while in Cincinnati, it was totally an impulse buy and I don’t feel guilty at all. Looking at this picture you really don’t see how good of a buy it was.

We all make judgments based on limited information. We disapprove of someone or something they did because we only see the results and have no idea what the motive or reason behind it was. We see the woman who is wearing worn, faded cloths that are a little out of date, is it because they don’t care or is it because they spend the money they have supporting someone that cannot support themselves. We see someone that is perfectly put together on the outside where the latest fashions and spending way too much money and think they have everything but we don’t see it that person has to go home at night when in fact that person may be afraid to go home at night because they are in such pain and are afraid they will give into the depression.

How does the old adage go, “You can’t judge a book by its cover?” This is so true. The Bible says we only see in part.

Above is the picture of my new guitar, here is a picture of my new guitar to the left of my old guitar, can you see it?

Spring

As spring begins for us here in the northern hemisphere, the length of daylight rapidly increases the temperature warms significantly causing new plant growth. Snow begins to melt and streams swell with runoff and spring rains. Most flowering plants bloom this time of year, in a long succession beginning even when snow is still on the ground, and continuing into early summer. In the southern hemisphere March is not spring time. In the Antarctic spring as we know it has a whole different meaning as it does in the Amazon jungle.

So as we go into new seasons we need to remember we are not all at the same place even though we are all on the same day.

Handshake

A handshake can be soft, firm, brief, long, or even painful. The way you shake hands provides clues to your personality. Aggressive people have crushing handshakes. People with low self esteem often have a limp handshake. Domineering men often squeeze the hand of women during a greeting. So adopt a handshake that is firm, yet not crushing. Convey confidence and professionalism, not dominance.


In the business setting a handshake is a simple yet powerful gesture. When meeting someone for the first time I find that I am usually the first one to extend my hand in greeting. This is probably because I try and put people at ease and when I started in business it was awkward for men to know how to greet a business woman. I stand, extend my hand and say my name. Simple straight forward and seems to work.


This week I spent a lot of time meeting new people since it is my first opportunity to visit our Cincinnati office. We have three locations; Bellevue, Costa Mesa and Cincinnati. The history is that the company in Cincinnati bought the company in Bellevue and then that new company bought up the company in Costa Mesa. All of this has happened in the last 24 months I have the advantage of observing the interaction between the three offices as somewhat of an outsider because I am new and don’t have any history with any of the companies and let me tell you that there are a number of strong emotions with some of these people in respect to the “old” companies.


This was painfully obvious when I met one of the key managers of the data team here in Cincinnati. He is very threatened by all of the changes these acquisitions have brought. He and I had communicated a little via email but really not much. As Chuck walked over to the desk I was working from I stood and extended my hand and said, “Hi, I’m Karen Pearson.” Now this guy is not very big, stands less than 6 feet tall and obviously doesn’t spend much time in the gym, but when this guy grabbed my hand he was out to prove something. I believe in a firm handshake, but honestly when he clinched my hand pain shot up through my wrist to my elbow and I thought for a moment he broke my thumb. It took everything in me not to pull back and I sure hope I didn’t flinch too much.


There is no easier way to expose what is really inside then by how you greet a person. So what is your handshake saying about you?

Got a Boat?

Key roads were closed in the Cincinnati area, where water 4 feet deep was reported in businesses in the suburb of Sharonwille, police said. Police contacted at least nine businesses and warned them not to open Wednesday. Northeast of Cincinnati, two members of a cross-country team had to be rescued from a rain-swollen creek after falling in.

The Ohio River at Cincinnati was expected to rise about 2 feet above flood stage by Friday, flooding some neighborhoods outside the city.

John Grisham: The Appeal

Last night I finished John Grisham latest book, The Appeal. Thankfully he went back to writing about the legal arena he knows. After his last book I even waited to buy this one and then after I bought I waited to read it.

The book was good, not great but good. There are three different plots all woven together to keep you engaged through out. I read the 1st half of the book on my trip to Dallas at the end of February and then didn’t pick it up again until this trip. It was a fun read and I glad I read it and if you are a Grisham fan you will enjoy it. There are three main plots that are intertwined in the book that keep you engaged. The characters believable, making it easy to get involved with them. The ending will evoke emotions but it is not a tear jerker. At the end of this book you will look at judges just a little different.

A Real Cup Please

Here I am in Cincinnati Ohio training some of our staff on our new product. I had a great day yesterday traveling ¾ of the way across the country on a non-stop flight. I watched a good flick (August Rush) and read a little in the latest John Grisham book, the Appeal.

The day was going fine and relaxing as I checked into the Sheraton hotel and headed up to my room. Since I got in about 3pm local time I decided just to work for a few hours from the room instead of heading over to the office. I sat down fired up the computer and took off. For some reason I cranked out so much stuff and the next thing I knew I was hungry. It had been 4 hours that I sat there and worked. Being that late I decided I would fix myself some tea and call for room service.

Sure enough there is the obligatory coffee pot in the room with the individual packs of coffee and even a couple of tea bags. Being a tea drinker I always travel with my own tea since the stuff in the hotel rooms has probably been sitting there for years. I look and the only cups in the room are “Plastic Foam Cups”. "Styrofoam" is a brand name applied only to Dow Chemical's plastic foam products, none of which is cups.

I am not a fan of Plastic Foam Cups, especially with tea and NEVER use one if you have lemon in your tea. The acid in the lemon breaks down the foam who knows what that does for you. I just don’t like the fact that if you put tea in a foam cup the thing creates foam on top similar to the head on a draft beer. What kind of reaction is occurring to make that happen? None of this happens with the paper cups you get from the coffee shops, only with a foam cup.

So I call room service and place my order, a BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwich with a side of Jalapenos and an empty coffee mug. “A real cup please”, and everything is right with the world again.

To Be, or Not to Be:

Most of us have heard at this phrase, It is arguably the best-remembered phrase and one of the most famous quotations in world literature. It comes from the play by Wm Shakespeare, Hamlet. In this play Hamlet is actually considering all the troubles that he is facing and whether it is worth the effort, “To be, or not to be.”

In the last few weeks I have been thinking a lot about color. You know, red, blue, green, black, white, and all the shades thereof, color. Prior to the change to daylight savings I was able to witness some of the most amazing sites. On those days when the snow capped peaks are bathed in the first colors of the day even before the sun has climbed high enough in the eastern sky to be seen, it is spectacular. All the various shades of blue, purple and pink that only God could imagine and create. How do you describe that? There are not words and even a photo with all our digital technology or a painter has never been able to recreate or capture it all.

It has made me to think about someone that was born blind. How would you describe the color green? Green is the sound of a frog in a pond covered with algae. Green is the smell of fresh mown grass. Or Blue? Blue is the clear morning sky, or the cool ice of a frozen lake.

Would it be better to have been born unable to see color or to have lost your sight and to be left with only a memory that is the question?

Butter Beans

I often say that I have the perfect husband; he cooks dinner most nights, he does the grocery shopping, he allows me the freedom to take care of my mom and in general he is just perfect for me. Ok so last night being the kind soul that he is was downright mean to me. Yes I know it is hard to believe for those of you that know him but trust me he has it in him. I come home from work and my wonderful husband had dinner ready and waiting for me as he does most nights. I come in and get a plate out just as he is pulling the butter beans out of the microwave. He had bought these things a few weeks ago and I asked him then what they were, I have never even heard of a butter bean before. I look at them in the bowl and realize that they look a lot like lima beans, I hate lima beans they make me want to spit I hate them so much. So I ask this love of my life “are those lima beans, they sure look like it?” “No, they are not lima beans, try one,” he says. Again I ask him if they are a lima bean or are they related to the lima bean and of course he assures me that they are not the same. Not being one that usually won’t try new foods I grab one bean and pop it in my mouth. AUGH, It’s a lima bean!!!!. Even as I sit here typing this I am reliving the moment of biting into that bean and I am having a hard time not getting sick to my stomach.

As I was gasping and trying to spit that morsel of nastiness out of my mouth he stood there and laughed. Not only did he set me up, but he stood there and denied it when I point blank asked him. Butter Beans and Lima Beans are the same thing. When he told me they tasted good I trusted him but I guess I should have considered that fact that this is a man that also likes sardines and that pickled fish, Lutefisk.

I so owe him if anyone has any idea please comment.

I won’t get mad, but I will get even. Love You Dear.

New Resident - Indy

Meet Indy, short for Indiana Jones or Independent Films take your pick I myself will stick with Indy. Indy is our son’s dog and they both just moved in last weekend. This will be a temporary arrangement but considering that the last time our son moved in he stayed for almost two years I’m guessing our guest room will not be available for some time.

It is interesting having a dog in the house even as small as he is. Indy is about 4 months old and loves to play with cats. Only problem is that our cats are not used to having their space invaded and since the guest room was where they used to hang out or hide when someone would come over they are a little put out. It is an interesting dynamic amongst the three of them. One the cats used to live with a dog prior to us having her so she puts up with Indy to a point, but if he gets on her nerves she has swatted him a few times and now he tends not to chase after her. This is also the bigger of the two cats and she tends to be a little bit of a bully at times chasing the other one around the house. The other cat is the one that surprise me, at first she would cower back in the corner as if she was either waiting to pounce or trying to hide. If Indy chased her she would just run from room to room. She has figured out that he is too small to get up on the furniture by himself so she has relaxed some.

It has been four days and things are starting to settle down. Now when Indy walks by the cats just watch him and they don’t take off running. If Indy playing and one of the cats walks up he looks but usually leaves them alone. In another week or two they all will have learned how to live in the same house together. It is just like new roommates getting acquainted. The only hard part is keeping them out of each other’s food. Oh wait, that really is like getting used to new roommates.

Step Motherhood

Boy, the title of this book says it all: Step Motherhood: How SURVIVE Without Feeling Frustrated, Left Out, or Wicked. When I married my husband several years ago I became the wife to a man with two sons making me the Step Mom.

Going into this new relationship I knew I would not be their mother, they had one and they weren’t looking for a replacement especially since the boys were actually young men and good young men at that. I only wanted them to respect me as their father’s wife and anything beyond that was extra. Today I believe we are closer than that. I make a point to not interfere with their lives. I help them out in any way I can and do my best not to interfere.

I do feel frustrations at times. They come when their dad does something for them that I disagree with but just have to sit back and trust him, even when I don’t agree. Frustrated when their dad makes decisions that affect me concerning the boys and he tells me, not ask me about it. Frustrations when it seems that the boys hold back and don’t just come to me directly and use their dad as a filter.

Feeling left out comes and goes during the strangest times it happens when we are all sitting around and they start talking about things that happened when the boys were little, it happens when they are struggling and I just have to sit back and watch.

Hopefully I don’t come off as the Wicked Stepmother very often but you would have to check with them on that one, I’m probably a little biased.

I truly only want what is best for them and the biggest problem I have is that I have is that I have fallen totally in love with both of them making it hard not to jump in and over step the roll of Step Mom. It’s a balancing act that is tenuous at best and most of the time I stay quiet. Just in the last couple of weeks we as a family have had our opportunities that could either pull us apart of bring us closer and only time will tell where we end up.

BTW: I have not read this book

Busy or Productive

Busy would be a word that most of us would use to describe our lives. We are busy doing a lot of things. We are busy with work, with family, with friends, with errands, with projects, with activities. Our lives are crowded with activities.

I was thinking about my life lately, there are so many things I want to do and yet I seem to not have a lot of extra time. I am up early every morning busy with my morning routine, then head off to work where I have lots of activities throughout the day , then I head home where I stay busy until it is time for bed so I can rest up for the next busy day. My question is how much of my business is productive?

Busy and Productive are two very different things. Busy is just being engaged in an activity, Productive is engaging in an activity that yields constructive or useful results. So I have been looking at my activities and have determined that it is time to lose some of the ones that really aren’t that productive or beneficial and to be quite honest, I am wasting time. If I were to eliminate the business I would have plenty of time for productive activities such as reading, writing, study and exercise.

1 Corinthians 10:23 (Amplified Bible)
All things are legitimate [permissible--and we are free to do anything we please], but not all things are helpful (expedient, profitable, and wholesome). All things are legitimate, but not all things are constructive [to character] and edifying [to spiritual life].

In The Quiet

I was sitting here at the house this morning, working from home, more exactly working from the dining room. The house is quiet, Kyle has long ago left for work and the interns just recently left for church. I’m sitting here enjoying the quiet, one of the cats is on the chair next to me curled up for a nap the other is sitting in the window sill watching the birds and whatever catches her eye outside.

There is stillness and a peace that I don’t often get to enjoy in my own house. Yes I have some time to myself in the morning after Kyle leaves and the guys are still in bed, but it is just different when the house is truly empty. No TV, no CD player, just quiet a time to sit and enjoy.

It is in the quiet times of our life that we find out who we are, it is in the stillness that we really hear not just our own thoughts, but our own heart. You can’t run from yourself no matter how much you try. No amount of external noise will cover the real you that is in your heart, no amount of drugs or alcohol will cover the ache and cry that is in there. For me I know that I am in a good place with myself and with God when I am happy in the quiet.

I am home this morning because of circumstances that are not the best, but if we take the time to be quiet, good will come of it. Last night we had a little crisis in our house, a cell phone went missing. Well this morning sitting in the quiet I hear this sound coming from out in the garage. I go out there and sure enough I find the missing cell phone in the garbage can. It’s hard to know how it ended up there, but I know that had I not taken the time to just be quiet that phone would probably have ended up in the landfill.

Thank you Lord for the quiet.