That's What Jenni Said

With all the drama in my life the first quarter of this year I neglected to post a link to my article on Austria. It’s my second (paid) published travel piece to add to my portfolio. I hope to build a solid portfolio and begin publishing in standard print magazines such as Budget Travel or Travel and Leisure. The link is here: A Three Day Excursion Into Austria

As I posted previously my father died on March 5, 2011. He was 82 years old and he passed exactly six months before his 83rd birthday. This is the story of his death. On a Wednesday in late February my father alarmed the staff at Manassas Adult Daycare (run by the Manassas Baptist Church) when he suddenly appeared non-responsive to their questions. He was rushed to the ER but presented responsive by the time the doctors saw him. They considered releasing him but opted for the conservative approach of admitting him for testing. Inside I was secretly relieved- a hospital admission would lead to a direct transfer to a nursing home upon discharge for rehab and then Daddy could get the professional caregiving support he needed. Each day at home had been getting progressively more difficult. Dad complained more, demanded more and slipped in health a little more as we moved through winter. I was wounded so many times by his careless and biting remarks. He had one behavior that particula...

These are the words I spoke today at Daddy’s memorial service. My Uncle Lu then reflected on his memories of Daddy as well. Daddy was born an ordinary man. And like all men he wrestled with his sinful nature. But Daddy was also a believer and the promise for believers is clear: when this mortal life draws to a close our sinful natures are cast off and what remains is our godliness; our love. So I want to tell you a little about the godliness I met in Daddy and leave his sinful nature on the ground where its been shed as I find it totally irrelevant to his current conditions. As I mentioned, Daddy was a believer. I cannot remember a time before I knew of God; Daddy worked to instill knowledge of our father in heaven within me from the beginning. He and my mother raised me in the church. Angels and demons, the afterlife, and the nature of God were frequent discussion topics between us. Daddy’s belief brought hope to those around him. Daddy was a teacher. He spent hours with me tire...

…and tonight I go to bed hoping I will awake tomorrow and find it was all a bad dream.

Two blind pilots both are wearing dark glasses, one is using a guide dog, and the other is tapping his way along the aisle with a cane. Nervous laughter spreads through the cabin, but the men enter the cockpit, the door closes, and the engines start up. The passengers begin glancing nervously around, searching for some sign that this is just a little practical joke. None is forthcoming. The plane moves faster and faster down the runway and the people sitting in the window seats realize they're headed straight for the water at the edge of the airport. As it begins to look as though the plane will plough in to the water, panicked screams fill the cabin. At that moment, the plane lifts smoothly into the air. The passengers relax and laugh a little sheepishly, and soon all retreat into t heir magazines, secure in the knowledge that the plane is in good hands. In the cockpit, one of the blind pilots turns to the other and says, “u know, Bob, one of these days, they...

Why I chose this book  As noted in my last book review entry, I am working my way through three distinct volumes on Middle Eastern history, each focused on a different cultural group whose interests were or are entangled in the region – native Muslims; Americans; native Byzantines. Oren’s book centers on American involvement in the region as seen from the American point of view from the time of our nation’s founding through the present age. Book recommendation: Buy Recommendation Justification: This book is long (over 600 pages) and at times tedious and dry as compared to Ansary’s work which I reviewed yesterday .  While Ansary covered over a thousand years in less than four hundred pages, Oren devotes the same page count for just the first hundred years of the history he is presenting. Still, the knowledge gained from a focused reading makes it well worth the effort. To this end, I suggest reading no more than a few chapters a day to keep from feeling overwhelmed with fact...

Why I chose this book  With the escalations in terrorism and violence directed at Americans over the past decade that have originated in the Middle East, it has been an item on my to-do list for some time to dive into the history of the region. Toward this end, I picked up three distinct volumes concerning the Middle East- the first focused on its comprehensive history from the perspective of the Persian, Turkish, and Arab Muslims starting from the time of Mohammad; the second centered on American involvement in the region as seen from the American point of view from the time of our nation’s founding; the third revealing Middle Eastern history through the eyes of the Eastern Christians (Byzantines) who resided there after the fall of the Roman Empire. Perhaps in time I will also pick up a volume that channels the thoughts of the European powers who were heavily involved in shaping Middle East history. That will just about round out the story from every perspective.  Book reco...