Genius and Havik
Genius: Type A personality. I want to be your friend and be into everything. I will wait for you at the bathroom door until you come out. I want to meet everybody and every dog I see.
Havik: Type B personality. I want you to be my friend and I'll check everything out after you do. I will wait right where I am until you come back into the room. I don't mind meeting other people and dogs that don't make me uncomfortable.
Genius: Forty pounds of lean speed and hyperactivity.
Havik: Fifty pounds of well proportioned quickness and activity. I lack the hyper portion.
Genius: When you come home I will stiffen up and jump straight up in the air like a deer and land like a fish with whirling disease. Let me give a 1/3 groan, 1/3 howl and 1/3 growl so you know how happy I am to see you. Basically I will have a happy attack that you are home. Let me give you kisses. Let me lay as close to you as I can when I am asleep.
Havik: When you come home I will let out two barks that taper into a long drawn out howl. I will jump up on you or climb up on the back of the couch so I can give you a kiss or two but I would really like some of that ice you bring home to me everyday. Just let me lay under the covers somewhere on the bed.
Genius: When we go play I'll be sure to check back in with you evert few minutes.
Havik: When we go play I'll be sure to not let you out of my sight for more than 30 to 40 seconds, tops.
Genius: I want to show you love and do things with you.
Havik: I want to be loved and just be with you.
Genius and Havik: Sisters from the same litter. We look quite different from each other. We act very differently.
These two dogs have taught me so much and have been so much fun to take out and walk and play with. How I got the type A dog and Cory got the type B is a mystery. It does work better that way though.
Kathy has even taken them out by herself for off leash walks and tries to get Havik to "speak". She has more interaction with them than she had with our previous dogs. That is huge because our previous dogs would automatically go to her like a child to it's mother. But with Genius and Havik they don't just lay by her. She will pet, scratch and rub them while they are laying by her.
Genius and Havik. What a pair.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
Friday, April 19, 2013
Friday, December 14, 2012
Fear and Worry and Facebook
December 21st is the end of the world. For approximately 153,000 people that will be the case. That is the daily average of the number of people that die around the world. Just today there were 28 people in Newtown, Connecticut whose world ended. Twenty of them were little children. Contrary to popular or sentimental belief, they didn't become angels. They just left their physical bodies and were given spiritual ones. All 20 children got to meet Jesus face to face and are filled with joy. Any fear they may have had on this earth, especially in the last moments of their life is now gone. They are now surrounded with peace, joy and love.
We are surrounded by fear and worry. We fear for our safety in our homes so we lock the doors. We fear strangers so we don't talk to them. It is even difficult to get a hello out of people when you pass on the street. We worry about our jobs, the economy, our retirement. I think it's safe to say the one thing we don't worry about is what happens when our "world ends". It it's so far off in the future or only other people die unexpectedly. Most people think everything will be fine and/or maybe they can make a deal with God if they weren't good enough. Others believe they will die and poof, that will be that. Then there's the group that just don't care and think they will just go hang out with there friends in hell. At least they won't be alone is their line of reasoning.
I fear and worry. I know I shouldn't and I know I don't need to because God is my provider. But still I do. I worry about my job. I worry about my health. I worry about finances that I know nothing about. I worry about if am I doing what God wants me to do while I am here on earth. Did I keep silent when I should have spoken up? Did I give the correct answer? Am I the example I am supposed to be to the people I come in contact with at work, in public, at home? When my world ends will God say to me, well done my good and faithful servant?
As someone who believes that Jesus died for me on the cross and that I am supposed to let others know that He died for them as well, I have a difficult time telling them so. I fear rejection. I fear failure. Fear is from Satan and I know it. If I tell someone about salvation then I didn't fail. If they reject what I say, they aren't rejecting me. They are rejecting Jesus. Yet I fear.
When I first started writing Blog blog blog blah freak'n blog it was just supposed to be random stuff that I thought about. It didn't take long and it turned to serious things I spend my time thinking about. I'm a fun love'n guy on the outside but my mind spends a lot of time thinking or is it worrying about what I feel are serious things.
This morning as I was heading to Kamas with the dogs I was worrying about the "am I doing and saying what I am supposed to" part of my life. I actually prayed that God would give me something worth posting on facebook that would be of benefit and impact someones life in a good way. Not knowing that in just 3 and 1/2 hours I would be listening to the news about the shooting in Connecticut. God answered my prayer. He gave me some verses and some thoughts to go with them. I posted them and was encouraged to see that a few people even liked the post. When I went over to my neighbors to play pool, he told me that he had seen the post as well. I keep my facebook settings on public so that if there is anything that will impact someones life in a positive way it can be seen and shared. Thanks to facebook and this blog I can share with people without fear or worry. I do hope that soon I can talk to people face to face as well and be very comfortable while doing so.
It's hard to believe that this blog has had over 170 visits since I started it and who knows how many people have checked out my facebook page. Hopefully there is at least 170 lives I have had a positive impact on and have helped someone to stop and think about the end of their world before that day actually arrives for them.
I pray that I will learn to give my worry and fear to Jesus and just be at peace knowing that with Him all things are possible and that no matter what, all my needs will be met. Maybe not all my wants but definitely all my needs. He is the comforter and provider.
May God bless and comfort everyone that has been affected by the Connecticut shootings. From the students, to the families, to the first responders and all of us who have only heard about it but are still saddened by what has happened.
Be blessed and be a blessing.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Ooooppss. It's been over a year since I posted anything on here. My bad. So many things have changed. Our dog Goomba and our cat Spot, have left our home after being with the family for over 13 years. Grandma Leonard died just 3 months shy of her 100th birthday. Two puppies, Genius and Havik joined the family at the end of last year and Ethan has a baby sister Saydee, to watch over. Spencer is only two months away from graduation from PA school. I turned 50 and my body thinks it's 50 but my mind is still thinking late 30's.
Hopefully in the near future I will have something to add to this blog that will be interesting. Until then,
Be blessed and be a blessing.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
It's our choice, we make it, we live or die with it.
John 3:16, we all know it. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. He doesn't make us believe. It's a choice just like everything else we do in life. So.....
....just another day hiding from the troops that he has been evading since 9/11/2001. BOOM!!! In an instant, in the time it takes to blink, it's dark. He has never seen anything this dark. He can't even see the end of his nose. The noise. It's deafening. Is it from the millions of other people screaming that are experiencing the same thing? Is it from the flames that just won't stop? It's hot, he feels as if he is on fire. It stinks like sulphur, burnt meat and rotting flesh. His eyes are burning from the heat. Closing them brings no relief because there are no tears to wet his eyes when he closes them. He can't catch his breath because of the dry, intense heat. The pain is intense and there's no getting away from it. His mouth is so dry. A drop of water to his lips would be such comfort but there is no water to be found. His lips feel chapped and cracked. His tongue is sticking to the roof of his mouth. His throat hurts so bad from the dryness. All this physical pain in such proportions never even imagined much less actually experienced. At the same instant that all this physical torment hit there was also the mental torment to deal with.
Instantly the realization that this is what he will experience for an eternity. This is it. It will never end. Never change for the better. No getting used to it. In the blink of an eye, he knew he was doomed and was now going to spend an eternity dealing with it. The depression that hits knowing that it will never change for the better. The depression may only deepen. He died but still he lives, but it's a life of death. There is no comfort in any of his thoughts. No laughter. No friends. No peace. No quiet. No comfort. Just heat, thirst, flames, darkness, pain, stench, fatigue, loneliness and deep, deep depression. It goes on forever, there is no eight hour shift or lunch break, no weekends or holidays. No one to cry to. He's with millions of people, yet he is alone. Who will listen to him? They are all experiencing the same thing. When he arrived, there was no leaving. At least in the song "Hotel California" you can check out but you can never leave. In Hell you don't check out or leave. You are there and there is no checking out, physically or mentally. No exit door.
Bin Laden was evil and is now paying for the things he did. It's Gods justice system and it's fair. I am not happy that Bin Laden is there because I do not wish this on anyone. On the other hand. He is reaping what he sowed. Jesus died for him just as He died for me. I've made my choice to accept the sacrifice of Jesus for my sins and I'm sure Bin Laden rejected it. It's a choice that we each have to make.
That said, may we all take advantage of every opportunity to show people what God has done for us and the choice that needs to be made before we leave this life. If we do not make the choice to accept the sacrifice that Jesus made for us then we will suffer the same fate as Bin Laden, Hitler, Bundy... Sin is sin. Jesus made the sacrifice, we need to make the choice.
Be blessed and be a blessing.
....just another day hiding from the troops that he has been evading since 9/11/2001. BOOM!!! In an instant, in the time it takes to blink, it's dark. He has never seen anything this dark. He can't even see the end of his nose. The noise. It's deafening. Is it from the millions of other people screaming that are experiencing the same thing? Is it from the flames that just won't stop? It's hot, he feels as if he is on fire. It stinks like sulphur, burnt meat and rotting flesh. His eyes are burning from the heat. Closing them brings no relief because there are no tears to wet his eyes when he closes them. He can't catch his breath because of the dry, intense heat. The pain is intense and there's no getting away from it. His mouth is so dry. A drop of water to his lips would be such comfort but there is no water to be found. His lips feel chapped and cracked. His tongue is sticking to the roof of his mouth. His throat hurts so bad from the dryness. All this physical pain in such proportions never even imagined much less actually experienced. At the same instant that all this physical torment hit there was also the mental torment to deal with.
Instantly the realization that this is what he will experience for an eternity. This is it. It will never end. Never change for the better. No getting used to it. In the blink of an eye, he knew he was doomed and was now going to spend an eternity dealing with it. The depression that hits knowing that it will never change for the better. The depression may only deepen. He died but still he lives, but it's a life of death. There is no comfort in any of his thoughts. No laughter. No friends. No peace. No quiet. No comfort. Just heat, thirst, flames, darkness, pain, stench, fatigue, loneliness and deep, deep depression. It goes on forever, there is no eight hour shift or lunch break, no weekends or holidays. No one to cry to. He's with millions of people, yet he is alone. Who will listen to him? They are all experiencing the same thing. When he arrived, there was no leaving. At least in the song "Hotel California" you can check out but you can never leave. In Hell you don't check out or leave. You are there and there is no checking out, physically or mentally. No exit door.
Bin Laden was evil and is now paying for the things he did. It's Gods justice system and it's fair. I am not happy that Bin Laden is there because I do not wish this on anyone. On the other hand. He is reaping what he sowed. Jesus died for him just as He died for me. I've made my choice to accept the sacrifice of Jesus for my sins and I'm sure Bin Laden rejected it. It's a choice that we each have to make.
That said, may we all take advantage of every opportunity to show people what God has done for us and the choice that needs to be made before we leave this life. If we do not make the choice to accept the sacrifice that Jesus made for us then we will suffer the same fate as Bin Laden, Hitler, Bundy... Sin is sin. Jesus made the sacrifice, we need to make the choice.
Be blessed and be a blessing.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Numbers
Mt Everest is 29,035 feet tall. The Mariana trench is 36,210 feet deep. The average distance to the moon is 238,857 miles. To the sun is 93,020,000 miles. The Milky Way galaxy is 100,000 light years across. It is believed to contain 200 to 400 billion stars. Who knows how many millions or billions of galaxies besides the Milky Way there are. There are approximately 6.8 billion people on earth. There is only one you.
In the beginning God created all of this. Galaxies, stars, suns, moons, mountains and valleys. He knows each star. He set the stars in their places. The sun is far enough from earth that it doesn't scorch us yet close enough that we get its warmth. Each mountain range and valley was designed by Him. The mountains catch the winter snows and store them to water the valleys in the summer.
Six point eight billion people on the planet earth and He knows each one of us and how many hairs we have on our head. He knows our thoughts, dreams, fears, likes and dislikes. Of all the things He has created you are the most important creation. More than galaxies, mountains, valleys, birds, whales, you name it. You are the most important thing to Him.
I started out by wanting to give a small perspective on just how big God is. He's created things that are thousands of light years across. Like we really can comprehend what a light year is. He put the sun 93 million miles away. Most of us will be lucky if we even come close to driving 500,000 to 1,000,000 miles in our lifetime so imagine 93,000,000 miles. Just drive around the earth 3,735,000 times and you'll get an idea. Maybe if we just think on a smaller scale. From the bottom of the deepest ocean to the top of the highest mountain it's 65,235 feet. Only 12 1/2 miles. That's easier to wrap your brain around. Hold on, when was the last time you dug a hole 6 1/2 miles deep and piled the dirt 6 miles high above it?
We can't even begin to understand the bigness of God. When it comes to Him we have to think outside the box because there isn't a box big enough to put Him in.
We can't know how big God is but we can and do know that He loves us more than anything. He died for us and then rose again so we could be with Him. That's right, we couldn't put Him in a box on earth either.
The one that made you wants to spend eternity with you.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
In the beginning God created all of this. Galaxies, stars, suns, moons, mountains and valleys. He knows each star. He set the stars in their places. The sun is far enough from earth that it doesn't scorch us yet close enough that we get its warmth. Each mountain range and valley was designed by Him. The mountains catch the winter snows and store them to water the valleys in the summer.
Six point eight billion people on the planet earth and He knows each one of us and how many hairs we have on our head. He knows our thoughts, dreams, fears, likes and dislikes. Of all the things He has created you are the most important creation. More than galaxies, mountains, valleys, birds, whales, you name it. You are the most important thing to Him.
I started out by wanting to give a small perspective on just how big God is. He's created things that are thousands of light years across. Like we really can comprehend what a light year is. He put the sun 93 million miles away. Most of us will be lucky if we even come close to driving 500,000 to 1,000,000 miles in our lifetime so imagine 93,000,000 miles. Just drive around the earth 3,735,000 times and you'll get an idea. Maybe if we just think on a smaller scale. From the bottom of the deepest ocean to the top of the highest mountain it's 65,235 feet. Only 12 1/2 miles. That's easier to wrap your brain around. Hold on, when was the last time you dug a hole 6 1/2 miles deep and piled the dirt 6 miles high above it?
We can't even begin to understand the bigness of God. When it comes to Him we have to think outside the box because there isn't a box big enough to put Him in.
We can't know how big God is but we can and do know that He loves us more than anything. He died for us and then rose again so we could be with Him. That's right, we couldn't put Him in a box on earth either.
The one that made you wants to spend eternity with you.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Just another day?
Her alarm went off. Just another day. Lay in bed and hit the snooze button a time or two. Maybe she was a one alarm person and got up as soon as the alarm sounded. Time for a shower, maybe some breakfast or at least a snack then off to school.
She greets classmates in the hallway and heads to class as the first bell rings. Did she doodle while she listened to the teacher? Maybe she took notes or maybe she didn't need notes because she grasped what was going on and could just dive into her assignments.
Time for another class. She leaves her classroom says hi to more friends in the hallway on her way to her locker to get books for her next class. So it goes. A few classes, lunch, a few more classes and then school is out for the day. Then it's off to track practice. After practice she will go home for dinner, do some homework, text friends and maybe watch some t.v.
Just another day.
Not quite. She never made it home after practice. Calls were made, Posts were put on facebook. Prayers were said. Searches were organized. It seemed as if most of West Wendover was at City Hall Saturday morning. Classmates, teammates, friends, strangers, search dogs, people from half a state away. All came to help find the missing girl. The searchers met at seven Saturday morning and by 11:30 that morning the search was suspended.
What started as just another day on Thursday morning ended Saturday morning in hugs and tears. Hugs of comfort and tears of sadness. Not much was said. Everyone just filed out of the room and went their separate ways.
She was found in a shallow grave just a day and a half after being recorded on video camera leaving school. She won't be going to Junior Prom, playing basketball as a senior in her number 22 jersey. The same number one of her teachers wore when she was in high school. No graduation or college. No marriage or kids.
Micaela Costanza will be missed by many people.
I was given some advice by one of my teachers when I was in high school. It was to never leave the house without kissing my wife goodbye, It didn't matter if we were mad at each other or not. If something were to happen to one of us, the other person would have the memory of one last kiss.
Give a hug, give a kiss, because it may start out as just another day but it doesn't mean that it will end that way.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
She greets classmates in the hallway and heads to class as the first bell rings. Did she doodle while she listened to the teacher? Maybe she took notes or maybe she didn't need notes because she grasped what was going on and could just dive into her assignments.
Time for another class. She leaves her classroom says hi to more friends in the hallway on her way to her locker to get books for her next class. So it goes. A few classes, lunch, a few more classes and then school is out for the day. Then it's off to track practice. After practice she will go home for dinner, do some homework, text friends and maybe watch some t.v.
Just another day.
Not quite. She never made it home after practice. Calls were made, Posts were put on facebook. Prayers were said. Searches were organized. It seemed as if most of West Wendover was at City Hall Saturday morning. Classmates, teammates, friends, strangers, search dogs, people from half a state away. All came to help find the missing girl. The searchers met at seven Saturday morning and by 11:30 that morning the search was suspended.
What started as just another day on Thursday morning ended Saturday morning in hugs and tears. Hugs of comfort and tears of sadness. Not much was said. Everyone just filed out of the room and went their separate ways.
She was found in a shallow grave just a day and a half after being recorded on video camera leaving school. She won't be going to Junior Prom, playing basketball as a senior in her number 22 jersey. The same number one of her teachers wore when she was in high school. No graduation or college. No marriage or kids.
Micaela Costanza will be missed by many people.
I was given some advice by one of my teachers when I was in high school. It was to never leave the house without kissing my wife goodbye, It didn't matter if we were mad at each other or not. If something were to happen to one of us, the other person would have the memory of one last kiss.
Give a hug, give a kiss, because it may start out as just another day but it doesn't mean that it will end that way.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Simpler Times
When I was in fourth grade my family lived in another part of Murray. We had a field next to us that we would ride our bikes in. Every once in a while dump trucks would come and dump loads of dirt that with the help of friends we would quickly turn into our own BMX track. In another corner of the field was a cement culvert with a metal grid over the top of it. We could go out there and occasionally get catfish out of it.
Next to the field were the train tracks. There were always a few railroad cars sitting there waiting to be played on. It was a time when they still had a caboose at the end of the train. Those were always fun to climb on and sit in the second level and look out over everything.
When we lived there skateboards became popular again. We rode them everywhere. To the store to get penny candy and 10 cent candy bars. To Gibsons to look at the newest toys and see mom at work. To McDonalds, Wendys or Arbys for some good food not the PB & J from home.
We would get together with the neighbor kids and play kickball, tag, hide and seek, cops and robbers, baseball and doorbell ditch a few houses after dark.
In high school our family moved to Kamas. I didn't drive yet and we lived 3 1/2 miles from town. What a drag, what a blessing. I would ride my bike a mile or so the Weber river and fish. I could get my shotgun and a box of shells and go look for rabbits. Yep, 16 years old and wandering down the road with a gun. I wonder how many police would have me in their gunsights if I were 16 and trying that today. Hiking on Hoyt's was a good past time. Learning to play basketball just so I could fit in and do things with all the other kids up there. Kamas was football, basketball, wrestling and what ever church activity they were involved in.
Those were simpler times. Now there are very few fields in the Salt Lake valley. The ones that are left won't have kids riding bikes in them. I'm not sure there are very many kids that even fish and they probably wouldn't know where to find a place to fish if they did. Empty railroad cars parked next to a subdivision doesn't happen around here anymore either. The caboose, they only exist at old train depots as tourist attractions.
Skateboards? I see more people carrying them than riding them now. Why someone would carry their transportation I'll never understand. Penny candy and 10 cent candy bars are long gone. So is Gibsons and Grand Central. McDonalds, Wenys and Arbys are all still around but even they're not the same. Too many choices and too much money for a hamburger. I see a few kids ride their bikes up and down the sidewalk but there is no kickball, no tag probably no cops and robbers.
Everything around Kamas is now posted. You can't just wonder out to a farmers field and look for rabbits anymore. You don't see kids walking down the highway with a gun cradled in their arms. Football, basketball and wrestling are still big though. That will stay the same until they do away with high school sports because they can't afford to fund it.
Those simpler times were 30 to 40 years ago. I'm sure back then our parents thought the same thing about the time they grew up in.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
Next to the field were the train tracks. There were always a few railroad cars sitting there waiting to be played on. It was a time when they still had a caboose at the end of the train. Those were always fun to climb on and sit in the second level and look out over everything.
When we lived there skateboards became popular again. We rode them everywhere. To the store to get penny candy and 10 cent candy bars. To Gibsons to look at the newest toys and see mom at work. To McDonalds, Wendys or Arbys for some good food not the PB & J from home.
We would get together with the neighbor kids and play kickball, tag, hide and seek, cops and robbers, baseball and doorbell ditch a few houses after dark.
In high school our family moved to Kamas. I didn't drive yet and we lived 3 1/2 miles from town. What a drag, what a blessing. I would ride my bike a mile or so the Weber river and fish. I could get my shotgun and a box of shells and go look for rabbits. Yep, 16 years old and wandering down the road with a gun. I wonder how many police would have me in their gunsights if I were 16 and trying that today. Hiking on Hoyt's was a good past time. Learning to play basketball just so I could fit in and do things with all the other kids up there. Kamas was football, basketball, wrestling and what ever church activity they were involved in.
Those were simpler times. Now there are very few fields in the Salt Lake valley. The ones that are left won't have kids riding bikes in them. I'm not sure there are very many kids that even fish and they probably wouldn't know where to find a place to fish if they did. Empty railroad cars parked next to a subdivision doesn't happen around here anymore either. The caboose, they only exist at old train depots as tourist attractions.
Skateboards? I see more people carrying them than riding them now. Why someone would carry their transportation I'll never understand. Penny candy and 10 cent candy bars are long gone. So is Gibsons and Grand Central. McDonalds, Wenys and Arbys are all still around but even they're not the same. Too many choices and too much money for a hamburger. I see a few kids ride their bikes up and down the sidewalk but there is no kickball, no tag probably no cops and robbers.
Everything around Kamas is now posted. You can't just wonder out to a farmers field and look for rabbits anymore. You don't see kids walking down the highway with a gun cradled in their arms. Football, basketball and wrestling are still big though. That will stay the same until they do away with high school sports because they can't afford to fund it.
Those simpler times were 30 to 40 years ago. I'm sure back then our parents thought the same thing about the time they grew up in.
Be a blessing and be blessed.
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