Zumba-sure I'll go

Earlier this week my friend Marla asked me to go to the Y in Shawnee to take a Zumba class. I have heard that this is a fun workout, so we went to our first class tonight. Ok, my body does not do what my brain is telling it to do. We were so hot and sweaty after the first 30 minutes that the instructor stopped the class. My face was as hot pink as my shirt, but it was fun. I'm sure tomorrow and this weekend I will feel aches in places I have forgot I have, but it felt good to sweat and have fun at the same time.
When I was younger, I might have been too self-conscious to try something so knew. Now, who cares. Girls just want to have fun.

Good news, bad news.

What a crazy day. First, I went to Cross Timbers to tutor my two little guys, and one of them wasn't there. Then I drove all the way to Ada, stayed in class about 15 minutes, and my professor told us she had a faculty meeting, and we were dismissed. Gas is $2.60. What a waste of time and money. Then I have been busting my tail trying to get the first half of my portfolio finished, and my other professor called today to tell me that we won't be meeting tomorrow, so we will meet next week WHEN WE TURN IT IN.
Oh well, I'll just do my best and hope it is enough. I have had a 4. so far, and I really want to maintain that, but I'm starting to think What difference does it Make. I need a pep talk.
To top it all off, it is hot, not June hot, July hot--with no reprieve in sight.
That's what this blog if for. I gripe into it so that I won't bite everyone's head off.

Why?

Why when you do anything in education today do you have to do a portfolio? Undergraduates, National Board, Master's; crazy. From what I understand, no one ever wants to see your portfolio except people who need to see yours to get an idea of how to do theirs. I can assure you in the eight years since I received my National Certification, no one has wanted to see the portfolio that I spent hours and hours on. Now I am digging through old papers to prepare my Master's portfolio. I don't understand why I did all these assignments and now I have to reflect on them. Some of these assignments were done in January of 2008, so I am having to re-read the article and my review to remember enough to reflect. What a waste of time. I am going to make mine look like a typical secondary educator. No art, no color, nothing special. That is the difference between elementary and secondary. Elementary teachers make everything cute and colorful. Not me. I just do it. One superintendent said you can tell the difference between an elementary applicant and a secondary one when they walk into your office. The elementary applicant carries in a huge portfolio that no one ever looks at.
I have to take my partial portfolio to Ada with me Thursday for a meeting with the other women who are doing theirs too. Guess what? They are all emementary, so they will have cute, colorful, pages. They're going to think I'm a slacker. Whatever, I'll jump through whatever hoops they want me too, so if I have to color some pictures, I will. I'm getting cynical. I'm really tired of jumping through hoops. That's what my students probably think they are doing in my classes. Maybe that is what all of life is, jumping through hoops.

The one that Jesus loved.

This week on my 45 minute commute to Ada, I listened to Beth Moore's study on John, The Beloved Disciple. I have the book too and have worked through most of it. What I really need is to have someone else drive while I listen and work through the book at the same time. I need a chauffeur; that would make my life so much easier. I could get so much more accomplished if I didn't have to drive.
I loved listening to the study. Beth Moore makes such practical application of the scripture. She brings out that James and John were brothers, fishermen, and disciples. I knew all of these things, but I did not realize the significance of their names always being listed with James first. James was older, yet John was tho one that Jesus loved. Throughout the Bible God chooses the unlikely little brother to do wonderful things through. I think because I was the baby of my family, I appreciate this about God's plan. Typically the little ones are not the responsible ones, but God used them and made them responsible. John was on the Mount of Transfiguration and the recipient of the Revelation. John was the one to whom Jesus gave his mother when he was on the cross. John outlived all of the other apostles; don't you think he wondered why he was spared when all the rest were killed. The reason--God needed him to go to Patmos so that he could receive the Revelation so that we could get a glimpse of heaven through John's eyes. I'm so glad John remained faithful even during his exile. I wonder if I would have. Would my thoughts have been so self-centered that God would have let someone else have the vision. I pray that I wouldn't. I don't know how many years I have on this earth, but I pray that I will never become so self-absorbed that God skips me and allows someone else to have the blessing.

BFFs

This morning on the Today show they did a report on the importance of best friends among women. I'm sure someone got a grant and spend thousands to determine that it is vital for women to have a best friend. Duh!
When I think of the friends I have been blessed with, I could have written the report without spending a dime. From early childhood I recall my time with Shirley, one of my closest lifelong friends. She was four years older than I was and was my protector. She kept the mean boys from bullying me and watched out for my safety. We still laugh at the dangerous situations she led me into when my mother was certain that I was safe because I was with Shirley, but for the most part, she did watch out for me.
My grade school and jr. high friend was Marla. She and I spent hours together, mostly at her house, and I have so many wonderful memories of the fun we had. She even went on vacation with me and my mom and dad once, and I went with her family to visit relatives in Texas. Today I received a Hoops and Yoyo ecard from her that made me laugh at the silliness. The only time I ever remember getting taken to the principal's office in high school was because I slapped her old boyfriend. My loyalty to Marla was worth the detention.
During high school Cathy Madden and I spent so many hours together being silly. Cathy was (and is) one of those strikingly beautiful girls that boys flocked to (well boys don't flock to her now). It was fun just watching the antics of those boys trying to get her attention. Most girls didn't know Cathy the way I did. She was the silliest, most fun person to hang out with. Many of my best memories from high school are the times Cathy and I were at one or the other of our houses and doing the goofiest stuff. (I have pictures.)
LaDonna was my college roommate for the first semester of our freshman year. We had to change roommates at the semester because we were in a sorority. I've always regretted that. LaDonna and I were perfect roomies; I never did find another one as compatible, except Tony.
Phyllis Bolt and I had great times in high school and college and continue to stay close. Whether we meet by accident at Walmart or meet for dinner on a planned evening, we never are at a loss for words. I know I can count on her, and I hope she knows she can count on me.
After I left Ada and started school in Edmond, I became friends with Jeanne Capps. We were in the same major, so we had almost all of our classes together. Recently Jean and I reconnected on Facebook. Life has knocked us both around, but we have maintained our friendship.
During those college years, Tony and I would move to Stillwater so that he could work construction. That was when my friendship with Kay Bosworth was affirmed. We knew one another from Ada, but those summers bonded us completely. She now lives in North Carolina, but when she comes here, we meet and have dinner. It feels to me like we just pick up where we left off. Today I got an email from her that she will be here in a couple of weeks. I can't wait.
Teresa Smith was and is my best friend starting with the many of the years that we lived in Wellston. We shopped, sewed, attended ballgames, played Scrabble, really did everything together for many years.
When I moved back to Tecumseh, Cindy Hale and I became great friends. We have traveled to Tulsa, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Houston, skiing, and various other places together and are completely compatible travelers. Even though she has moved, I am certain that our friendship will continue.
Now my friends are a motley crew. As is typical with adults, we find our friends at work and for me at church. Some of these people are the same. The interesting thing is the age range. My closest friends, Toni, Mel, and Gina are all younger than I am
by quite a bit. Mel could be my daughter; Toni and Gina could be my daughters if I began having children when I was twelve, but we really enjoy doing things together.
I learned the value of friendship after Jason's death in a way that I never knew before. My friends took care of everything--food, money, funeral arrangements, flowers, the program--everything. I can't tell you how many Sonic Diet Cokes I received because everyone brought me one when they came to see me. Poor Cindy got the Kleenex detail the day of the funeral. She would bring me new ones and take the old ones from me. Now that's friendship.
According to the Today show report, best friends are good for women's mental health. If all women had the friendships that I have had, counselors wouldn't be able to make a living. I can talk to any of these friends about my issues. I don't have to pay anyone to listen to me. The coolest thing is that all of these friends have remained in my life.

Awkward Conversation

Lately a conversation has come to my mind from the night Jason died. We were awakened by the sherrif's deputies about 3:00 AM Sunday morning. They gave me a number to call the highway patrolman in Nebraska who had worked the accident. I called him, and he gave me the details of the accident that he knew. He also told me that Jason was an organ donor, so we would be hearing from the organ donation people very quickly. I remember thinking that night that I wouldn't want to have the job of notifying a family of an accident like the deputies or talking to someone's next of kin on the phone after a fatality accident. Very soon after the deputies left, we received the first call from the organ donation people. At the time I couldn't compose myself enough to talk to them, so I asked them to call later. Randy and Cindy had just arrived at our house, so we were all a mess at the moment.
A couple of hours later the lady called back. Now I know the worst job of all--the person who has to call the next of kin and ask them thirty minutes worth of questions after a loved one has died. I wanted to cooperate because organ donation is very dear to my heart. My sister Phyllis was a candidate for a lung transplant before she became too ill to go through the procedure.
If you have ever given blood, you have an idea of the kind of questions that the poor girl had to ask me, Jason's mother. I kept reminding her that I did not know the answers to her questions, but she proceeded as she was instructed.
She got to the questions about tatoos which has caused me to smile lately. She asked if Jason had any tatoos; I said yes. She asked where the tatoo was on his body; I said on his upper arm (I didn't remember which one). She ask me what the tatoo was; I answered, "It was Yosemite Sam." Don't you know Jason was laughing his head off at the awkwardness of this conversation. I hope if there is a filter between here and heaven, and he can see some of what we are experiencing here, that he could hear just that part of the evening. The rest of that night and the next week were excruciating to us, but just as he always could, Jason brought a little levity into a bad situation.

Reality Television

I do not watch reality television. For some reason it embarrasses me to see people humiliating themselves on national tv. This morning I was sewing and The View was playing in the background. They were talking about the show I'm a Celebrity; Get Me Out of Here and some guy and his wife wanted to leave after the first day because they thought they were too big to stay with all the B list people on the show. I don't know who these people are, but the guy was baptized by immersion by the Baldwin brother who is also on the show. They showed video footage of the baptism and then the ladies of The View discussed the event. What ignorance!!! Joy (who is Catholic) seemed to not even know that immersion baptism existed. She stated that at the church when a person is baptized, they are sprinkled not immersed. Of course, Sherri and Elizabeth tried to correct her, but were unable to get the point across. These women all talk at once trying to make sure their opinion gets across disregarding others' opinions and many times the truth.
I have often wondered why most television shows that have a Christian family will make them Catholic. I know I live in the Bible Belt and live a relatively sheltered life, but I thought of Jimmy's sermon series on the various World Views from earlier this year. The media skews Christianity into an unrecognizable belief system that includes bizarre stories like the Duggars with eighteen children, cultlike behavior that the Christ followers I know would avoid at all cost.
We should not expect the media to be a witness for us. Our job is to be a witness to those around us and to let the talk show hostesses reveal their lack of connection with the world they pretend they know so well.
I'm not sure what tht impact of the baptism by immersion will have on the viewers of the reality show, but I don't think it could be bad unless the guy is a poor witness for Jesus. Since he publicized his salvation on television, I pray that he will not embarrass God by living out his life in a shameful manner.