Stress Test

I was looking forward to a summer of the beach and planning
a wedding. Also, of course, planning lessons for next year -
in Biology and Mathematics a Human Endeavor (both new for me
this year) in addition to Chemistry and Physical Science (both
of which I've done for so long now I have them well mapped out
by now!).

About mid-June I noticed my ankles were swollen. We were heading
to the beach so I ignored them for the time being. When we
returned my mother saw them and said, "Those ankles look just like
mine did right before my heart attack!". She had my full attention.
I went to the family doctor the next week - planning on just getting
a nice diuretic to get rid of the extra fluid.
But, no, he starts asking all kinds of questions starting with had I
noticed any chest pain (No.). Am I fatigued a lot? (Yes). Do I get
short of breathe? (I said no but now that I think about it - maybe.)
THEN he asked about family history. I told him my mother had five bypasses
and a heart attack at age 69 and that did it. Next thing I know he's
taking blood, doing a chest x-ray and and EKG. When the results came
back - well, I am now headed for a Stress test Monday..and an Echocardiogram.
I don't need a test to tell someone I have Stress.

Anyway, I went to my ministry Prayer coffee this morning. When it came time
for personal prayer requests I still had not said anything about all of this.
And then other ladies started in on their requests - ALL of which involved
increasingly horrible heart stories. From a bad result of a resting stress
test (which I thought sounded good - resting! - but I find out you do NOT want
to do a RESTING stress test at all) to a horrible heart surgery. My pulse
was kinda going through the roof by the time it got to me so I just said, "Well
I'm having a Stress Test Monday." You could have heard a pin drop.
My dear friend said, "FOR YOUR HEART?" (And I then wondered if there WAS
a Stress test for Stress?). I am afraid I snorted. I had to spend some time
assuring everyone I feel fine and the swelling has gone down (he did give me
a mild diuretic!).

SO, I'll post more after Monday! If I survive!
Pax

"Creed" by Steve Turner

Turner's Creed
An excerpt from Ravi Zacharias' book "Can Man Live Without God?" Steve Turner says "No!"...But we try all the time....


Creed
by Steve Turner



We believe in Marxfreudanddarwin
We believe everything is OK
as long as you don't hurt anyone
to the best of your definition of hurt,
and to the best of your knowledge.

We believe in sex before, during, and
after marriage.
We believe in the therapy of sin.
We believe that adultery is fun.
We believe that sodomy’s OK.
We believe that taboos are taboo.

We believe that everything's getting better
despite evidence to the contrary.
The evidence must be investigated
And you can prove anything with evidence.

We believe there's something in horoscopes
UFO's and bent spoons.
Jesus was a good man just like Buddha,
Mohammed, and ourselves.
He was a good moral teacher though we think
His good morals were bad.

We believe that all religions are basically the same-
at least the one that we read was.
They all believe in love and goodness.
They only differ on matters of creation,
sin, heaven, hell, God, and salvation.

We believe that after death comes the Nothing
Because when you ask the dead what happens
they say nothing.
If death is not the end, if the dead have lied, then its
compulsory heaven for all
excepting perhaps
Hitler, Stalin, and Genghis Kahn

We believe in Masters and Johnson
What's selected is average.
What's average is normal.
What's normal is good.

We believe in total disarmament.
We believe there are direct links between warfare and
bloodshed.

Americans should beat their guns into tractors .
And the Russians would be sure to follow.

We believe that man is essentially good.
It's only his behavior that lets him down.

This is the fault of society.
Society is the fault of conditions.
Conditions are the fault of society.

We believe that each man must find the truth that
is right for him.
Reality will adapt accordingly.
The universe will readjust.
History will alter.

We believe that there is no absolute truth
excepting the truth
that there is no absolute truth.

We believe in the rejection of creeds,
And the flowering of individual thought.

If chance be
the Father of all flesh,
disaster is his rainbow in the sky
and when you hear
State of Emergency!
Sniper Kills Ten!
Troops on Rampage!
Whites go Looting!
Bomb Blasts School!

It is but the sound of man
worshipping his maker.



Steve Turner, (English journalist), "Creed," his satirical poem on the modern mind. Taken from Ravi Zacharias’ book Can Man live Without God? Pages 42-44

How Math Explains the World: A Guide to the Power of Numbers, from Car Repair to Modern Physics by James D. Stein

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
NOT light reading but a good read for Math/Science.

I thought it would be helpful for teaching Math next year but I have found better History of Math books. I did find a wealth of quotes I liked though and some thought provoking chapters. Of course Math doesn't explain ALL of life/the world. Like why my internet connection breaks down at the most inconvenient times or why some people dislike cats. Random things. Of course the people who want to win in Las Vegas should understand probability. And we all need to know how to balance the checkbook and pay taxes. Soon we can just send the paycheck to Washington and be done with it..

I liked the chapters on Quantum physics but I'm weird that way. Most won't like those chapters.


View all my reviews.

Amy's Bridal Tea

Amy was the perfect Bride to be...
And the hostesses were great - Toni is lovely.
And Mandii is very pregnant.
I just pray she lasts until AFTER the wedding...
Darcy was a bit befuddled that all the gifts were for Aunt Amy.
And the cake and punch was great but the cheese
was not so good (according to Darcy).

I have got to lose weight. Got to!

The new in laws were wonderful. We hit it off immediately.
They LOVE LOVE books. So they definitely fit right in.
And they wanted to try "Southern Food" afterwards so we did
the best we could - we went to Fish Market and they had (well, duh,
fish) fried okra, fried green tomatoes, hush puppies (who knew they
don't do hush puppies in NYC?), sweet tea, and a few assorted other
goodies. It was fun! We all had a great time.

Many of Amy's friends are artists and I was amazed at some of their
creative gifts. I shall have to take photos and post them. Next time..
Chris

Has the Supreme Court Joined Osama?

"America is at war with radical Islamists. The enemy began by killing Americans and American allies abroad: 241 at the Marine barracks in Lebanon, 19 at the Khobar Towers in Dhahran, 224 at our embassies in Dar es Salaam and Nairobi, and 17 on the USS Cole in Yemen. See National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, The 9/11 Commission Report, pp. 60–61, 70, 190 (2004). On September 11, 2001, the enemy brought the battle to American soil, killing 2,749 at the Twin Towers in New York City, 184 at the Pentagon in Washington, D. C., and 40 in Pennsylvania. See id., at 552, n. 9. It has threatened further attacks against our homeland; one need only walk about buttressed and barricaded Washington, or board a plane anywhere in the country, to know that the threat is a serious one. Our Armed Forces are now in the field against the enemy, in Afghanistan and Iraq. Last week, 13 of our countrymen in arms were killed.

The game of bait-and-switch that today’s opinion plays upon the Nation’s Commander in Chief will make the war harder on us. It will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed."

Justice Scalia dissented.

The terrorists (NOT U.S. citizens btw) now have habias corpus rights.
Will ALL prisoners of war in future conflicts get these same rights?
Can you even imagine the number of lawyers this is going to require?
We are going to need more Law schools! (Yeah, just what we need..)
I THOUGHT the Constitution was for U.S. citizens but I guess I was
mistaken.

I fear for our country.
Pax

Where Amy is at now

http://www.carriagehousepaper.com/

I keep getting asked.
This is the place - Brooklyn, NY. She's safe.
This looks like it's right up her alley. I'm SURE she is
having fun.
Chris

Questions

"This was the moment – this was the time – when we came together to remake this great nation." Barack Obama as he reached the numbers to make him the
Democratic nominee

"My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you'll join with me as we try to change it." Internet saying attributed to Obama
but not really said by him from early in the campaign.

Hum - maybe he did say it. Contrast these two. Aren't they saying the
same thing??

If it's a great nation why do we need to "remake it"?
Chris

E.T.

Suppose you wanted to visit Pluto (since it happens to be a LONG way away from Earth)
(And I know it is no longer a planet but let's just pretend you still want to see it!) - and you hop on your handy space ship (you do have one right?) and it goes 1,000 km/hour (since I only do metric in my class). You will arrive in 684.9 years.
Slightly wrinkled. Hope you packed enough food.

Now MAYBE you decide to travel on to Alpha Centauri C (the nearest star to our solar system). It is a mere 40 trillion km away (rounded off) - or 4.21 light years. Pack a LOT of food since that trip will take you 4,566,210 years.

Einstein proved (with math) that you can't travel faster than the speed of light (sorry). So I have you traveling about the speed of a fast jet.

Now E.T. MIGHT go a bit faster. Maybe. Anyway IF E.T. has figured out a way to get to Earth to visit - a big IF - WHY would he use that intelligence to then spend his time peeking in windows in Nebraska? (See news story). Just asking.
Pax aka Chris

PS Of course I have been worried ever since I read this story that my son
has made E.T. puppets and has been visiting homes playing practical jokes.
And if he's reading this - STOP IT NOW before you end up in trouble!

Memorial Day

He's a Sgt. now (this was a graduation from Boot Camp photo with wife, Heather).

I'm also the Proud Daughter of an Army Vet (just don't have any photos of Dad in
uniform).
Dad served in the Navy during WWII, losing part of a finger because he didn't
get it out of the way quick enough when the gunner closed to fire on his destroyer.
He says he shot it at the Japanese (along with dozens of other great stories
he's told the grandkids on how he lost his finger - none of which are true.
Trying to get above son LONG ago to quit sucking his finger he told him he
"sucked it off". Michael looked at him wide eyed (age 3) but refused to quit
sucking his fingers. He doesn't do that anymore though!).
After WWII, Dad came home and joined the Army Reserves. He stayed in it
until the Korean War when he was called up again. He served throughout the
Korean conflict - serving at the end in China. He's led an interesting life.
He also, in between, served during the Navy time in the Atomic Bomb trials.
He has suffered cancer as a result. (That cancer was pronounced cured some years
ago but he suffers the effects still).
Heroes...they are all heroes.
May we pause to remember all of them.

Grand Canyon Death Defying Act (Not one of mine!)

He wanted a photo of the sun rise. Right. I'm not sure why THAT spot was the
best spot. Seems like the safe ledge was just as good but who knows. We don't
get to see the photo he took. Just the ones the tourists took of the photographer.
I suspect NONE of the other tourists even SAW the sunrise that morning.

The Grandkids

I love the photos of Darcy and Jacob loving each other.
The one photo of Jeremiah standing at the gate was taken by Darcy
(age 3) who is getting pretty good (with a bit of help aiming) with
my digital camera! She loves to take pictures. And I love to have
them visit.

Prince Caspian is a Hit

I saw the movie today...and it was a hit. Very good - better
than the first one. You just know Aslan will come through (but I
won't spoil it for those who have not yet seen it.). There was
enough humor to break the tense moments and I loved the "evil king".
Reepicheep had to be my favorite (besides Aslan of course) but
then of the humans I guess I'd go with...I have no idea...I like them
all!

Working for ReadItAgainBooks Wears Me Out

I think my Owner is violating Cat Labor laws. I work a lot of overtime
lately and just look at this stack of books. I tried a sit out today but
she just moved me off her book and went on packing books. Then she had the
audacity to complain that I was shedding! I may go on strike!
Aslan

PS I have a new movie coming out soon. Go see it..

Mother's Day 2008

The Incredible Egg Drog Contest

The rules were easy - the lightest contraption that holds a raw egg in which the egg does not break when dropped from the second story of the church where we meet wins.
I also awarded a prize for most creative invention. So we had all kinds of entries this year.
I think the most creative packing material used this year was jello. A bit messy to get the egg out of to check afterwards but the egg emerged unbroken!
The lightest overall was the styrofoam cup and straws. The "Mary Poppins" look was a nice touch I thought but was pretty heavy. Diapers worked well too.
Ryan's childhood? bear served well (also very heavy) but we watched and watched as he unstuffed and unstuffed to find the egg. I was beginning to think there was really no egg in there but finally the egg was found unbroken.
Temperance and Kathleen were happy with their bubble wrapped unbroken egg.
Several tried parachutes (it was a tad windy but not too windy so they sort of
worked). Packing peanuts worked again too. Abby's was pretty - and worked well too.
I have to say Andrew's idea of a controlled drop was great BUT was fudging the rules so I had to disqualify him (awarded points for creativity). It was a simple and elegant idea but the two person control defeated the idea of "egg drop!".

Only a few eggs broke so I think the kids have this thing figured out - next time I'll have tough rules!

This past week on CSI 3 victims all had green blood and no there
were no aliens involved. When I saw the previews from the previous
week I knew that the probable cause was going to be drug related
and I turned out to be right. The producers of the show decided to
call the drug "Thiocyte" (there is no such drug) probably fearing
lawsuits but they did get the right type of drug - migraine medication.
Sumatriptan (Imitrex) is thus far the only suspected drug to cause this
effect (not yet proven to cause this but very suspect and only in
daily or above average doses).

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2007/06/08/health-green-blood.html

You can google Sumatriptan green blood and get a lot of hits now on
the growing number of cases (surgical).

It's the sulfur that swaps out with the iron in the blood that turns
the blood green. After stopping the drug the blood turns red again.

It was sort of fun to watch the show and be right about it before
the show even began but I'm also sure I'm not the only medical person
who was watching who had it figured out before they had gotten very
far into the show.

It was fun to see the Mythbusters guys show up but I wish they had
had a bigger role - bring them back!

Visit with Karla and CR

We hadn't seen Karla since she had married CR and moved
to Medicine Lodge, Kansas. Now she and her husband were back
with 3 children (and another on the way - due in Sept.).
Emma, Colt and Lena won our hearts very quickly.
We played and I read books (we do books well here and they are
raising readers!) to them. Then we visited the Birmingham
Art Show downtown. There was a part set aside for children
and you can tell Emma is very serious about learning how to draw.
She paid great attention to what the instructor was telling her to do
(she is four.). Karla is a talented artist and I think she has
a budding artist already.
It was too quiet when they left.

Mentos and Diet Coke World Record

http://gizmodo.com/383936/belgian-students-break-mento+and+coke-world-record

Taking the Side of Science

"We take the side of science in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs, in spite of its failure to fulfill many of its extravagant promises of health and life, in spite of the tolerance of the scientific community for unsubstantiated just-so stories, because we have a prior commitment, a commitment to materialism.
It is not that the methods and institutions of science somehow compel us to accept a material explanation of the phenomenal world, but, on the contrary, that we are forced by our a priori adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of investigation and a set of concepts that produce material explanations, no matter how counter-intuitive, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated. Moreover, that materialism is an absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door."

Richard Lewontin, geneticist, New York Review, Jan. 9th, 1997, pg. 31

Go See "Expelled"