Wednesday Words: Grades

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The summer term begins tomorrow, and I’m looking forward to the two classes I am taking (Comparative Public Policy and Public Policy Formulation). They count as “concentration” courses in my field, which you might have already guessed is Public Policy. šŸ™‚ Instead of two brief summer terms, Valdosta has one long term, so it’s like another regular semester.

I finally got feedback last week on my term paper about the Art & Science of Strategic Philanthropic Management. I’ve mentioned before that this particular prof has some very interesting ways of looking at the world universe, and it would behoove you, as a student, to try to grasp his various trains of thought and hold on for dear life.

I had hoped that my topic would pique his interest because of the focus on technology and consideration of scholars outside of those we discussed in class. In the comments section for my grade, he remarked that my paper was good (hooray!), but its main flaw was that I referred to the “transformational” role that the nonprofit sector plays, yet I failed to consider the possibility that all nonprofit organizations may not, in fact, exist for the betterment of humanity. For instance, some terrorist cells masquerade as nonprofit organizations; therefore, I glossed over some potential ethical dilemmas. *sigh – fine. I’ll take my A- and be happy with it … besides, I made an overall A in the class! Wahoo!

Monday Musings: Superheroes

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Hawkeye, Hulk and more:
saving the world from itself —
we need unity.

The boys and I went to see The Avengers this weekend, and it was fantastic! I was impressed that all of the superheroes had relatively equal screen time, and they each played an important role in the outcome of the story. It wasn’t *just* an Iron Man show or a tale about Captain America; instead, the group of misfits (for lack of a better term) had to learn to work together and overcome their personalĀ vendettasĀ in order to ensure survival.

RSVP for the Pity Party (Prayer Devotional for the week of May 6, 2012)

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I had a little meltdown one day last week ā€“ a pity party, if you will. The kids were driving me bonkers, and I questioned what on Earth God was thinking as he pieced together this crazy life-puzzle of mine. I thought surely, there is someone more qualified than me to accomplish the things that he has called me to do.

The pity party guests (you may know them ā€“ their names are Woe, Fear, Grief and Pride, and they are never very much fun, anyway) finally left, and I was reminded of a few things as the fog began to clear:
1)Ā Ā  Ā I am uniquely qualified to do whatever God wants me to do, because his Spirit has prepared me for it already (I Corinthians 12).
2)Ā Ā  Ā If I could do it all in my own strength, then I might fool myself into thinking that I didnā€™t need God (Psalm 25).
3)Ā Ā  Ā When I have bad days, I can turn my attention to others around me who are having even worse days. How can I fret for long over a kidā€™s bad attitude or the 14,827th dirty sock I find wadded up under the couch when a friend is out of work or a neighbor is fighting cancer?
The author of much of the New Testament, Saul-turned-Paul, models the third point very well. The book of Philippians (which is actually a letter) was written while Paul was in prison. He wasnā€™t in prison for bank robbery or carjacking, either ā€“ he was incarcerated because of his bold witness for Christ. Not only that, but he was chained. No cable television and laundered orange jumper for him ā€“ he was caged up like an animal.

Paul begins his letter to the Philippians with a reminder that they are in his prayers. While he does occasionally ask his readers to pray for him, he consistently focuses on letting them know that he is the one praying for them. He also encourages them to be confident and remember that God will finish what he started in their lives (v. 6).

What refreshing news! God is still working on me. I donā€™t have to have it all together yet, because Iā€™m a work in progress. Letā€™s spend our prayer time together this week focusing on our Creator who is making something uniquely wonderful out of our lives, for his glory.

Underwire is Evil

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I did the unthinkable earlier this week: I bought a bathing suit without trying it on. I know, crazy, right?! The thing was, I was returning a pair of jeans & shorts for my eldest that I bought without him there, and they were (surprisingly!!) too big. I didn’t bother getting a buggy, since I was just planning to exchange the clothes during my lunch hour and didn’t *really* have time to shop.

When I got back to the boys’ section, I saw that they had Levi jeans on clearance for $7! Whoa – can’t pass up that bargain for next school year! So, I stocked up on two pairs apiece for the older three boys. (They were out of the size the younger two wear.) If you’re doing the math, that’s six pairs of jeans I was carrying, plus two pairs of shorts that I got for the eldest, since he’s growing like a weed and has hardly anything to wear this summer.

Arms full, I passed by the ladies’ department and saw that bathing suits were on sale. Mine from last year was not only threadbare, but also the flimsy straps broke and were held together with safety pins … b/c I’m classy like that, y’all. So, I decided to take a gamble and get a tankini set (long “tank” style top and separate bottoms, so you can get different sizes, if need be).Ā I found a cute black & white set (with thick straps, thankyouverymuch) that caught my eye. The tankini style is perfect for me, because I always need a larger top, if you get my drift.

Anyway, I didn’t have time to try them on, so I got a size larger than my pride suggested that I needed (bathing suits always run small, right?!) and hoped for the best.

When I got home, I decided to try it on. Lo and behold, it fit!! I was so happy (not for how it looked, necessarily, but that it actually covered what needed to be covered). Unfortunately, somehow in the course of pulling the tank over or off of my head (or perhaps it was already like that & I failed to notice), I managed to pop a thread on the edge of the underwire, and it gave me a huge gash next to my armpit.

It didn’t hurt, and I didn’t notice it until I had already put my regular clothes back on and noticed a wet feeling in my armpit. Uh, yeah – that’d be blood. I had to call one of the boys to help me, since I couldn’t bend my cut arm to hold the bandage. He was pretty creeped out to have to touch my arm near my armpit, but I think he understood that I was in a real pickle, and he didn’t complain.

At least it quit bleeding relatively quickly and is already closed up.Ā Those red streaks are an unfortunate skin reaction to the first aid tape, blerg. Classy, no? I’ll keep an eye on it to be sure that it doesn’t get infected, but I think it’ll be ok.

The moral of the story is: Underwire is evil, and we should all go braless and wear muumuus … to heck with fashion! šŸ˜¦

Foodie Friday: Hot Pockets

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I know there are “healthier” things for kids to eat, but let’s face it: there are certainly worse things for them to eat. Hot Pockets (or the store-brand equivalent) are a staple on our grocery list. The boys especially love the ham & cheese and pepperoni varieties. They make a great after-school snack (and sometimes breakfast) that the guys can fix themselves, and they are a nice break from sandwiches for the younger three who take their lunches to school each day.

I have a system for packing Hot Pockets for school lunches. (The same wrapping system works for corndogs, burritos, etc.) First, I put threeĀ Hot Pockets on a microwave-safe plate for six minutes (in their little magical cardboard sleeves, of course). While they are cooking, I layer a paper towel and square of foil, paper towel, square of foil, paper towel, square of foil. I wrap up each cooked Hot Pocket in a foil/paper towel combo to keep them warm and somewhat insulate them from the other items in the lunch bag. It seems to work great, and the Hot Pockets are still warm when lunchtime rolls around.

So, there you have it — one of my work-arounds for a relatively healthy and super easy snack/meal for the kiddos.