Open Night

<-- Me, last night.

After Steve decided not to go to the gym last night as he's not feeling well, I opted to go to open fencing at another center that has the intermediate classes.

I suited up and this time, I put on a sleeveless lame' in order to do electric fencing. This is the same format on than the foil has an outlet and you have a body cord that runs through your jacket and attack sleeve. Then you're hooked up to a box with a cord that is attached to the score box. There is a slight drag to the cord. This format is used in competition as the weapons move so fast it's difficult to accurrately award points.

I went up against James, the intermediate instructor. Yeah. I don't think I'm ready to advance just yet. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself because I feel like I'm doing pretty well in the beginner class and Patrick thinks I can movc on. I think I was only able to get three hits in a span of about 10 minutes.

It was incredibly frustrating for me last night. James is a bit more abrupt than Patrick and maybe his demeanor just didn't settle well with me. I fought back tears and kept biting my lip so I wouldn't break down when James was coaching me.

Will it wound my ego if I stay back another session? Perhaps. Fencing is a difficult sport and I know I'm not at the level of training where I can read my opponent and attacks/retreats come instinctually. I need to be there first before I can move on.

Am I Over-reacting??

On Tuesdays Jenna has show-n-tell in her Pre-K class. Tuesday night she told us that one of her friends brought in a Cheetah Girls video and they watched some it.

It's been my understanding that the Cheetah Girls is geared towards the 'tween generation. I asked Jenna, "Do the Cheetah Girls wear really short dresses?"

"Yeah." I was not happy to hear this was being shown to 5 year-olds.

Yesterday I called the principal and voiced my concern. She had never heard of the Cheetah Girls but told me she'd look in to it. In my conversation with the principal I acknowledged that the teacher can't control what is brought in for show-n-tell. I was dismayed that she chose to show it.

I'm not a prude by any means, but given the chronic, wide-spread, low self-esteem issues that our Nation's girls have already, I don't need for it to start with my five year old.

A couple of hours later she phoned me back and said she had discussed this with Jenna's teacher. Her teacher said it was a 'G' rated video and they watched about 15 minutes of it. She did indicate that from now on no outside videos would be shown unless the teacher had screened them first.

Regardless if it's a 'G' rated video, is it still appropriate for five year olds? In my mind, no. Then again, parents are over-protective at times; sometimes for good reason, and sometimes not.

I may have over-reacted but I'm sticking to my guns. I don't care if the Cheetah Girls is on the Disney Channel. There's a lot of shows on that channel that are not appropriate for pre-schoolers.

Whaddaya think??

Sadness

Today, as I was thumbing through Yahoo! News, I found this article that literally brought tears to my eyes.

In it, it tells of a 16-year old girl who gave birth to a boy and drowned him in the toilet, then threw him away in a plastic bag.

Threw. him. away. No regard to his life or his potential.

This baby didn't ask to be conceived. This baby didn't ask to be born. This baby didn't ask to be killed.

Meanwhile, there are families yearning to love a baby as their own.

Did the State fail this baby, or does it rest solely on the girl and her parents? Did they seek every opportunity to provide a stable and loving home for this boy?

I think of my own children as I grapple with the thought that there are people out there who are incapable of loving children and therefore, subject them to verbal, physical, and sexual abuse, who are willing to sell their children for drugs.

For years I regarded myself as Pro-Choice. But once I had children of my own and discovered the joy and heartache they bring to me on a daily basis, I find that my views have changed.

Help me understand what goes through peoples' minds when they make such decisions like this.

Then again, maybe I don't want to know.

Economic Downturn - Good?

Yes, Tom. Fencing. ;-)
~~
I can't help but wonder is this recession isn't such a bad thing. Think about it....

During The Great Depression, granted things were a lot worse, but people had to ration and scrimp and make sacrifices to make ends meet. Enter WWII. Again, more rationing and living within their means, making sacrifices. After the war our country saw a HUGE explosion of businesses, inventions, and ideas.

The country was in unity.

And things got done. Progress was made.

But it didn't come easy. Nearly everyone had to give up something in order to contribute to the overall success of our country. We quickly became the most prosperous country in the world thanks to a lot of hard work.

Are we that bad now? Not even close. But with so many huge corporations folding because of lousy planning and infrastructure, this could very well pave the way for "the little guy" to step up and fill in the gaps and rebuild the economy from the ground up.

And look at where we are now. Gasoline sales are down, first because of gas being $4/gallon, then because of slower economic times. People are walking more, driving less, saving a little extra money. People had to buy cheaper, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

Holiday sales were down everywhere. People were unsure about their next paycheck. People found other ways to celebrates the holidays that didn't involve searching for the perfect gift.

We, as a nation, are capable of solving this and coming out for the better. That's just who we are. That is what this country was founded on; ideas, visions, and dreams.

Maybe I'm just the eternal optomist.

Remember...

Join the Conspiracy!

Am I The Only One?

...that is completely SICK of this woman??

How much more ego-centric can one person be? Yes, she's gorgeous, is the most powerful Black woman in the entertainment industry, is a fabulous philanthropist (she turned me on to Heifer International) has her own talk show, production company, and magazine.

I understand the magazine is named for her, but REALLY!! Does she have to be on EVERY. STINKIN'. COVER????

WE GET IT!! You have more money than you know what to do with and because you had a crummy and hard life growing up and were denied lots of things you are going to flaunt your now wildly successful career and win the hearts of American women. But sometimes things aren't as rosy as they appear.

I can just imagine the conversations at the weekly staff meetings at O Magazine:

"So who's the cover shoot for this month? Oh. riiiiiiiight. My bad."

I'm sure it makes the shoots go much faster as there's no outside person to schedule, but don'cha think they're getting tired of shooting Oprah in various outfits and settings and encouraging her to give her best cheesy, "I do love you, but I love seeing myself plastered all over my magazine even more so EAT YOUR HEART OUT, AMERICA!"

Is it just me?

Here's What I Think

If TV is airing Christmas-themed commercials before Thanksgiving then people should be allowed to have their Christmas lights on with no ramifications!

So there!!

The Olympics

I'm protesting the Olympics. A little late to be typing this.....

Having an international event of this magnitude in a country like China comes as complete lie to me.

Here is a closed nation, a Communist nation, that is trying to put on such a front, a phony front at that, and it just makes me sick.

Starting things off was the opening ceremonies when the little girl lip synched because the face of the actual singer wasn't pretty enough. Sure, at our huge sporting events the acts are lip synched but it's the actual artist singing.

The Chinese governement is going so far as to squelch any protests and is clearing out the homeless to give the false image that they are in control and eveything is all hunky-dory.

I think what bothers me the most is the human rights issues with this country; creating false crimes to arrest people. I belong to Voice Of The Martyrs, a non-profit organization that raises awareness of the crimes committed against Underground House Churches and its fellow followers, condeming them for following Christ and denouncing their National Religion.

I write letters of encouragement to imprisoned pastors and believers of Christ as they endure torture and lengthy sentences. I admire these people for having the faith and courage to stand up for Christ in the face of adversity.

Ask yourself this: would you defend Jesus if you were threated with death of either yourself or your family? Would you renounce your faith in Him if faced with this in order to protect yourself or your family?

I don't think I could. Yet these people do on a daily basis. They strongly and proudly profess their love, faith, and devotion to the Lord. I was emailed the following story today about a pastor in China who was arrested because he was behind the Olympic Prayer Bands that have been circulated around the world.

Inspiration for Olympic Prayer Band Arrested

Pastor Zhang “Bike” Mingxuan, known for traveling across China on a bicycle to evangelize, was arrested by Chinese police just two days before the Olympics began. Pastor Bike was the inspiration for the recent partnership between The Voice of the Martyrs and China Aid Association to create the Olympic Prayer Band.

Earlier this year, Pastor Bike pleaded with VOM staff to ask Christians to pray for persecuted Christians in China during the Olympics. The pastor voluntarily preaches the gospel openly in China despite being persecuted. He has asked for his identity to be revealed to bring continued attention to the persecution of Christians in Communist China.

Thanks to Pastor Bike’s inspiration and the commitment of concerned Christians across the United States, more than 800,000 prayer bands have been circulated. On Aug. 6, Pastor Bike was arrested while trying to deliver medicine to his ailing wife. His wife and another pastor were also arrested. We have also learned this week that Chinese officials are opening a full investigation of the Olympic Prayer Bands that were distributed to house church members within China. Despite this increased pressure from Chinese authorities, Chinese Christians continue to ask for prayer and to make their plight known.
Order your Prayer Bands today!As the Olympics goes on, the harassment of Chinese evangelists continues to increase. Please help remind others to pray for persecuted Christians like Pastor Bike by ordering your prayer bands today!

More about Pastor BikePastor Bike, president of the Chinese House Church Alliance, rode his bike more than 10,000 miles, visiting 24 Chinese provinces to introduce nonbelievers to Jesus Christ. Armed with a Bible and his business card, which declared “Believe in Jesus, Earn Eternal Life,” Pastor Bike brought the gospel to thousands of people. He and other Chinese evangelists have been repeatedly harassed by Chinese officials during this Olympic year. Please pray for the release of Pastor Bike and his wife.