"Everyone Left California in 2000"

That's a paraphrased line from this story from Reuters. Apparently spite isn't strong enough to hold a community together.

It's hard for me to describe how jealous I am of The New York Times' Frugal Traveler. There's got to be something about me that he wishes he had. I bet he doesn't know how to make chocolate mousse.

I applied to a job with Habitat for Humanity in Bratislava a few weeks ago. They didn't call me. Sigh.

Hee! I guess Clinton and Stacey haven't made it to Beijing.

Notes from all Over

I did find some interesting stuff online. The world never ceases to amaze.

First, this from MSNBC.com. Um, anybody ever hear of cooking?


This was bound to happen I suppose.


Apparently we don't know a lot about glass. Who knew?

Vacation Bible School Day 1

Re-reading some posts I realize I've talked about his a lot the last few days. It's a pretty big deal at our church. We get about 100 kids over the course of the week. Pretty much everyone helps. It's crazy and busy and loud and fun and we all are glad when it's over, and then we all come back the next year. I am teaching 1st grade this year with my friend Amy. We had 11 kids last night. I got pictures at recreation. I'll try to get some others when they're not moving.

They had to carry water from one bucket to another using cups with holes and jumping, skipping, etc along they way. This is Lyric.

Hannah

The group, cheering each other on.

VBS is all I have time for during VBS week, so expect some more of the same. Maybe I'll see a good artile online I can share too.

Another Great Weekend

This weekend I was flying from start to finish. There were the usual things like laundry and snack-making, but the added fun was my sister and her family were in town from Florida. Yay! We started out Saturday with a trip to Starbucks, yum. Then we went downtown to Eastern Market.

I've talked about the Market before. We all like to go. This is, left to right, my niece Rebekah, my mom, and my niece Julia. We bought fruit and chocolate and candy. Mmm-mm.

Saturday I did some prep work for Vacation Bible School (VBS) and I watched The Greatest Show on Earth on DVD. Pretty cool showing the old-time circus, but could Betty Hutton over-act a little more? I don't think she could. Still a good movie, a classic.

Sunday after church we went to see my grandmother who has been blessed with 96 years.

Left to right, Mom, brother-in-law David, Rebekah, sister Holly, Julia, me, Gram. Pretty good looking group.

So tonight starts VBS. It's always a great time, but a lot of work and tiring at the same time. I'll get some pictures of that too. Should be fun.

TGIF

Hey, this story from MSNBC.com is scary in a lot of ways, but the most horrifying to me is how long would an Australia to London flight be? It doesn't say if it was a direct flight, but I'm assuming since that's listed as the destination. Ugh. Can you imagine being on a plane that long? First class would so be worth the price.

Busy weekend ahead. Sis and fam are in town and I've got to get ready for VBS. Whoo Hoo!

Ch-Ch-Changes

This is interesting from Business Week Online. I contemplate working from home a lot. I love the ability to work remotely. But there is something to be said for face time in building relationships, which is still a big part of the work world. And I'm not just talking about business relationships. We (or at least I) need to keep practicing relationship skills. It's Biblical too: "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17) Finding the balance would be key.

I am currently trying to find time to prepare for Vacation Bible School next week. I am overwhelmed by all I have to do by then. Should be good posts next week, though.

Back to Reality

I thought this was cool, a New York Times article about the MOMA exhibit I saw this weekend. It's not often I read about something in the Times that I've already seen.

This one is making me think I need to firm up my Italy plans for next year. Who wants to go with me?

This one from BusinessWeek.com gives me hope for the economic future of America. Someone is always coming up with something new.

And, lest I forget, here's the snack for this week.

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Here's the recipe, but I use shaved Callebaut semi-sweet chocolate instead of the chips. Makes all the difference if you ask me.