October 9, 2018 Tuesday #Peace#Strength#Separate paths#Yale#Land of Lincoln!

Get Faith
Philippians 4:9  "The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you."  Jesus came to earth to save us from our sins, He died and was raised from the dead for that reason only.  While on earth He also showed us a better way to conduct ourselves in this world.  It isn't easy for a world of sinners, people who love this life and what it offers more than what our life with God offers here and in the eternal life.  WE are constantly reminded in reading the Bible that a life with our Triune God is a life of peace, which we all pray for.  I suggest we try to love our neighbors as Jesus told us - and have a little more peace in this world.

Get Fit
I also believe in keeping healthy so I can be of service to my loved ones and neighbors.  Today I got back to Jillian.  Keeping strong for as long as you can will give you a healthier life.  It will help you enjoy this life by allowing you to accomplish more and keep you from being a burden to someone else.  Do what you can!

On this day
2016  The night before was the Oktoberfest at First English and Kristin and Waynette had both stayed here over night.  So, on this day Kristin rushed out to her parents to go to her home church, while Nicole and I went to Christ Lutheran and Waynette went to First English.  We all have responsibilities at our respective churches and some days it takes priority.  Because the Lutheran church uses a standard preaching system we all probably heard the same sermon.  The point is, it is not really a social engagement - it is time with God.  Try to get yourself into the habit of spending an hour a week with God, you will be surprised how much peace that simple act brings you.

 1701 - The Collegiate School of Connecticut was chartered in New Haven. The name was later changed to Yale.   Good fact for Jeopardy

Xenia Illinois

Three U.S. presidents have been elected while living in Illinois: Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, and Barack Obama. Additionally, Ronald Reagan, whose political career was based in California, was born and raised in Illinois. Today, Illinois honors Lincoln with its official state slogan, Land of Lincoln, which has been displayed on its license plates since 1954.^[12][13] The state is the site of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, located in the state capital of Springfield, and future home of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.  Good to know

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday  Cheryl!

October 8, 2018 Monday #God hears the heart#Mammogram!#Reunion#Air race#Jazz!

Get Faith
1 Samuel 16:7  "God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."  I am comforted knowing that God knows what is in my heart because my mouth does not always reflect my heart.  Do you find the same with yourself?  My problem is I know what I mean but it doesn't come out the way I mean it and any corrections I make seems to make it worse.  God knows what I mean - He does not judge us on meaningless talk.  I refer back to the other day when I mentioned that I wish I could be more like those that think before they talk and listen more.  In the meantime I am thankful for a God who knows our hearts.

Get Healthy
This is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  I went for my mammogram this morning and I hope that you have had one or are signed up for one.  Prevention is the best plan.

On this day
2015  I drove over to the west side to catch up with some classmates from elementary school that were still in town after our high school reunion the past weekend.  I saw the picture of us that popped up on my Facebook from 3 years ago, today  It was great to see all of them and remember 60 odd years ago what we knew then and what we know now.  The "who will you marry" and "how many kids will you have" questions have all been answered. It is interesting to see what occupations and where people located to.  I have stayed in a 50 mile radius of where I started, like a lot of them but many moved out of state.  I had a few "after" reunions since then, it is a nice time together.  Are you happy to see them or rather not?  You be you.

1919 - The first transcontinental air race in the U.S. began. 

The first transcontinental air race in the United States begins, with 63 planes competing in the round-trip aerial derby between California and New York. As 15 planes departed the Presidio in San Francisco, California, 48 planes left Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York.  Interesting!

Xenia Illinois and beyond
By 1900, the growth of industrial jobs in the northern cities and coal mining in the central and southern areas attracted immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. Illinois was an important manufacturing center during both world wars. The Great Migration from the South established a large community of African Americans in the state, including Chicago, who created the city's famous jazz and blues cultures.^[10][11] Chicago, the center of the Chicago Metropolitan Area, became a global alpha-level city.   Great jazz!!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable! Happy Birthday to Arlene and Blake!

October 7, 2018 Sunday#Gossip#IT savvy#Transportation hub!

Get Faith
Proverbs 20:19  "A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much...."  I don't believe they mean that everyone who talks to much is a betrayer.   I do think that people that like to talk can slip and say something they shouldn't, just in the interest of continuing talking - they hate to lose the spotlight.  I think I may have been guilty of that myself.  I admire people that hold their tongue in a conversation, for whatever reason.  Many relationships have been broken by a loose tongue.

On this day
2014  My neighbor's son Daniel had a report due for school and needed a computer to do it on.  He came over and used mine - it was a small thing for me but a big thing for a boy that age wanting to be like the others in his class.  It was the first of many times.  Not everyone could then or now afford a computer and a printer.  It puts underprivileged children at yet another disadvantage.  Yes, I know they can go to libraries, assuming they have had enough training at school to accomplish the task.  I hope that the schools are making progress to keep these kids on track with the rest of the world or it will be just one more reason they are falling short of what they can achieve.


1868 - Cornell University was inaugurated in Ithaca, NY. 

Xenia Illinois
 The capital of Illinois is Springfield in central Illinois. Although today, the state's largest population center is in and around Chicago in the northeastern part of the state, the state's European population grew first in the west, with French who settled along the Mississippi River, and gave the area the name Illinois Country. After the American Revolutionary War established the United States, American settlers began arriving from Kentucky in the 1780s via the Ohio River, and the population grew from south to north. In 1818, Illinois achieved statehood. After construction of the Erie Canal increased traffic and trade through the Great Lakes, Chicago was founded in the 1830s on the banks of the Chicago River, at one of the few natural harbors on southern Lake Michigan.^[8] John Deere's invention of the self-scouring steel plow turned Illinois's rich prairie into some of the world's most productive and valuable farmland, attracting immigrant farmers from Germany and Sweden. The Illinois and Michigan Canal (1848) made transportation between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River valley faster and cheaper. New railroads carried immigrants to new homes, as well as being used to ship commodity crops to Eastern markets. The state became a transportation hub for the nation.<sup>[9]   We need to explore our own country and the wealth we have here!

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!  Happy Birthday Peggy and Judy!</sup>

October 6, 2018 Saturday #Great things#C'mon#baking cookies!#Illinois

Get Faith
Joel 2:20 " Surely he has done great things."  I can't count the great things He has done for me.  It would have to start with giving me my daughter and continuing to bless me with who she is.  My life has been a great mixture of ups and downs.  I suppose if you are going to have a life at least mine has been entertaining.  AND He has watched over me through it all, that to me is great.  Creation comes to mind.  What is on your list of the great things he has done?

Get Fit
I went to the Daily Dozen today.  Good stretching and strength training.  What did you do?  C'mon I'm trying to energize you!

On this day
2011  I was still fighting health issues from this year and left work early to go to a doctor's appointment.  When I got home Mom had been baking cookies.  There is nothing more uplifting then to come in from a chilly fall day into a house that smells of fresh baked cookies... 

Xenia Illinois
Not much here - I will expand to the entire state. 

State of Illinois
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Land of Lincoln, Prairie State
Motto(s): State Sovereignty, National Union
State song(s): "Illinois"

Illinois (/ˌɪlɪˈnɔɪ/ ( listen) IL-ih-NOY) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is the 6th-most populous U.S. state and 25th-largest state in terms of land area, and is often noted as a microcosm of the entire United States.^[7] With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in northern and central Illinois, and natural resources such as coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a diverse economic base, and is a major transportation hub. The Port of Chicago connects the state to other global ports around the world from the Great Lakes, via the Saint Lawrence Seaway, to the Atlantic Ocean; as well as the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River, via the Illinois Waterway on the Illinois River. The Mississippi River, the Ohio River, and the Wabash River form parts of the boundaries of Illinois. For decades, Chicago's O'Hare International Airport has been ranked as one of the world's busiest airports. Illinois has long had a reputation as a bellwether both in social and cultural terms^[7] and politics.

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!

Happy Birthday Diane, Katie, Kay and Aimee!

October 3, 2018 Reprint from 2014

Friday, October 3, 2014

October 3, 2014 Friday

Kim and her resistance ring and a workout she calls Pilates.  It isn't really Pilates.  It is squats and leg thrusts and arm workouts using a ring with resistance springs.  I think if you did it longer then the 1/2 hour workout she gives you, it would work better, but it is ok for an off day.


2 Corinthians chapter 4 - Honest this is the reading today.
 vs 1 and 2 "Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart.  Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways: we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God." 
It is important that we work together, love our neighbor and not accuse but trust that we all want what is best for God's work here on earth.


On this day:
2012 - Mom and I were up at Farwell.  My Uncle Hank, who was also my Godfather had died and my Aunt Teresa and the family had to deal with the funeral.  I felt my uncles hand on my back pushing me to go up there and take care of my aunt.  I am so glad we went, it helped her and the family get through a very trying time.  Its what families do for each other.


1893 - The motor-driven vacuum cleaner was patented by J.S. Thurman. Going to be using mine today! I get enough cat hair to make another cat from the bag.


Parenting - My friend Don's daughters were remembering that their Mom used the term "crackpot", which has an entirely different meaning these days.  Or with today's phone, it might be crockpot.  I believe I have been referred to as a crackpot and I know I have used the term.  Talk about a generational "thing".  Make sure you know which context you are using and avoid an argument.  Does anyone know where Don's crockpot is?


Ethiopia - history
This article covers the prehistory and history of Ethiopia, from emergence as an empire under the Aksumites to its current form as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, as well as the history of other areas in what is now Ethiopia such as the Afar Triangle. The Ethiopian Empire (Abyssinia) was first founded by Habesha people in the Ethiopian Highlands. Due to migration and imperial expansion, it grew to include many other primarily Afro-Asiatic-speaking communities, including Amhara, Tigray, Oromos, Somalis, Afars, Sidama, Gurage, Agaw and Harari, among others.  Our heritage is rarely from one single source is it?

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!

October 2, 2018 Reprint

October 2, 2014 Thursday

Kicken' with Country with Denise Austin.  I don't even have to wake up for this I have been doing it so long.  Start your day with Alvira.


Mark - chapter 4 - Jesus calms the storm.  We all have storms.  The disciples were still afraid even though they were in the company of Jesus.  We are all afraid to die and what comes after.  We all stress abut how we will die, more as we get older but you can alleviate the concern of where you go. Strengthen your faith.


On this day:
2009 - The youth group had a coffee house/open mike night at church with a sleep over.  I seem to remember it being a well received event.  But I'm not youth director anymore.


1836 - Charles Darwin returned to England after 5 years of acquiring knowledge around the world about fauna, flora, wildlife and geology. He used the information to develop his "theory of evolution" which he unveiled in his 1859 book entitled The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. Hope my book is as well read as this one has been.


Parenting - It's that time again!  Don was over for dinner last night and then our dance class after.  We had just sat down to dinner when little Gracie came to the door selling pretzels for her soccer team.  Now I have pretzels.  I sat down to have another bite when I heard a knock.  It was Dalton next door, he needed to be at the high school for band practice.  It only took 10 minutes to drive him and my dinner was still a little warm.  I'm happy to support kids that are making good choices and doing the right things.  Dalton's mom is a single working mom and was late getting home.  no problem.


Ethiopia -  interesting history as well.
Ethiopia (/ˌiːθiˈoʊpiə/; Amharic: ኢትዮጵያ^?, ʾĪtyōṗṗyā,  listen (help·info)), officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea to the north and northeast, Djibouti and Somalia to the east, Sudan and South Sudan to the west, and Kenya to the south. With about 87.9 million inhabitants,^[3] Ethiopia is the most populous landlocked country in the world, as well as the second-most populated nation on the African continent. It occupies a total area of 1,100,000 square kilometres (420,000 sq mi), and its capital and largest city is Addis Ababa.<sup>[2]  

Enjoy the day!  Make it memorable!</sup>

October 1, 2006 Reprint

Thursday, October 1, 2015

October 1, 2015 Thursday #abs#Godprovides#workingmom#Latvia

Get Fit
My legs were overworked this week so I chose to do Abs of Steel which is laying on your back.  Now my legs and my abs are sore.  It is okay, it means it worked.
Get Faith
Matthew chapter 6:24 "No one can serve two masters.  Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and money." As the study writer says - there is more to this than what you see.  I think the lack of money makes it more important to certain people than having an abundance of it does to some.  If you have two dozen pairs of shoes you don't worry about going shoeless.
On this day
1993 - A blank page.  It was a hard time to be in.  I had gone back to work after being home with Nicole for 8 years.  The job was at a construction company that I had no previous job knowledge of and there was no one there that could help me.  I went to the library to find out about construction law and read the computer book at night at home to understand the accounting system.  It was extremely trying.  I either didn't have time to write in my journal or didn't want to remember this day.
1880 - Thomas Edison began the commercial production of electric lamps at Edison Lamp Works in Menlo Park.  Remember this is the kid the teacher said was too stupid to learn? Because he was hard of hearing.
Parenting
I told Mark that if I couldn't stay home with kids, I didn't want any.  I feel strongly about raising your children yourself - whenever possible.  It was no longer possible but I was fortunate in that my mother and mother in law were available to cover that time that the kids would need someone at home. It is no surprise that many children spend most of their time in daycare, school programs, or on their own after school at home.  Huge topic, what are your views?
Book Club - The Other Irish by Karen McCarthy


Jekabpils Latvia

Facts & Figures
Map of Latvia
President: Raimonds Vejonis (2015) Prime Minister: Laimdota Straujuma (2014) Land area: 24,903 sq mi (64,500 sq km); total area: 24,938 sq mi (64,589 sq km) Population (2014 est.):2,165,165 (growth rate: –0.62%); birth rate: 9.79/1000; infant mortality rate: 7.91/1000; life expectancy: 73.44 Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Riga, 701,000 Monetary unit: euro National name: Latvijas Republika Current government officials Languages: Latvian (official) 56.3%, Russian 33.8%, other 0.6% (includes Polish, Ukrainian, and Belarusian), unspecified 9.4% (2011) Ethnicity/race: Latvian 61.1%, Russian 26.2%, Belarusian 3.5%, Ukrainian 2.3%, Polish 2.2%, Lithuanian 1.3%, other 3.4% (2013) Religions: Lutheran 19.6%, Orthodox 15.3%, other Christian 1%, other 0.4%, unspecified 63.7% (2006) National Holiday: Independence Day, November 18 Literacy: 99.8% (2011 est.) Economic summary: GDP/PPP(2013 est.): $38.87 billion; per capita $19,100. Real growth rate: 4%. Inflation: 0.2%. Unemployment: 9.8%. Arable land: 17.96%. Agriculture: grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish. Labor force: 1.022 million; agriculture 8.8%, industry 24%, services 67.2% (2010 est.).         Note that Lutheranism is the largest religion - no wonder I have met so many of them latetly. Enjoy the day!  Make it Memorable!    Happy Birthday to Suzanne!!

Index Latvia Main Page Latvia Declares Independence and Seeks to Protect Its Ethnic Identity Political Unrest Grows as the Economy Falters Dombrovskis Resigns after Supermarket Collapse

Geography

Latvia borders Estonia in the north, Lithuania in the south, the Baltic Sea with the Gulf of Riga in the west, Russia in the east, and Belarus in the southeast. Latvia is largely a fertile lowland with numerous lakes and hills to the east.