Tami’s Neighborhood

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• 17:36 Skipping way ahead to the #bba Panettone. Drake always buys during the holidays. This year, homemade, even tho I'm nervous about it...
• 17:40 ...I did buy SAF Gold Instant Yeast for the Panettone (plan to use also for other sweet, enriched, or sour #bba breads)...
• 17:49 With purchased Christmas presents in the hallway and backlog of mail from being out of town, our place feels a bit chaotic...
• 17:49 ...feeling overwhelming urge to get this all organized.
• 18:53 Listening to Christmas music on KING-FM. First real time we've listened to holiday music.

So I am sitting here at my kitchen table watching the SEC championship game on my beautiful TV with my amazing HD cable and is watching a pretty decent game. It isn't as enjoyable as it could be, seeing that I don't like either of the teams playing in the game (I dislike Tebow and Florida is #1 hated team of Georgia and I can't stand Alabama fans because they think the Crimson Tide are God's gift to earth). One thing that I have posted about before on Facebook is that I won't pull for an SEC team against somebody else because they are an SEC team. For some reason, I don't have pride in conference, I have pride in my teams. It is like me being happy if the Saints win the Super Bowl (which they won't) because they are in the same division as the Falcons...you just don't do that in any other sport. So when I say I don't have an SEC hat, I hope both Florida and Alabama lose, though I know one has to win. Here is what I want, as a selfish fan that pulls for my own team(s) and interests: I don't care who wins the Florida/Alabama game. I know I will be annoyed either way with the fans of whichever team wins. I want either Texas to win the Big 12 championship and win the National Championship (though I hate the Horns) so people can shut up about the SEC, or Texas lose and have TCU make it to the national championship game and then have the winner of the SEC pound, and let me say POUND the snot out of the horned frogs because I am tired of hearing how good these non-BCS teams are. I am a football purist in the since that I don't want to go to a playoff and you should have to play good teams to be ranked high. TCU had one good victory against Clemson, but their top 5 games aren't comparable to the top 5 games of either Alabama, Florida, or Texas and doesn't deserve to be in consideration for the national championship. If you play a weak conference schedule, then you have to play the big boys for your non-conference games. Not fair? Deal with it. See college basketball in that aspect. In regards to playoffs, what is a playoff really going to do for you this year (or any year)? You have 8, maybe 16 teams in this playoff. What happens if Texas, Alabama, and Florida lose and a team like Georgia Tech or Oregon go and win the National Championship. Do you really think they deserve the national championship? No. And if they would make it then the ratings would be crap for the national championship game. Leave it the way it is. Is it perfect? No. But you aren't going to ever get a perfect system. Bowls are good because of tradition and more importantly, money. So have fun watching the SEC championship game, but just know I am not going to pull for a SEC just because they are in the SEC. 

Automatic posting from my Twitter Account:

• 12:23 On our floor, we have a chronic epidemic of personal cell phone usage in the hallway. The conversation snip-its are at times... interesting
• 17:17 Packing it in for the day. Tonight: more knitting. Gotta get the gifts done.
• 18:45 Normally, not a huge fan of Guy Fieri, but love his Bumped-Up Brussels Sprouts bit.ly/4ttAQV

Criminey! Tired of looking online for stuff to buy. I mean, seriously. Why can't people just offer the best prices for auto accessories, computer stuff, and video games without me having to scour the planet? It's annoying! I used to love the hunt for the deal. Now, it is becoming a chore. Maybe I won't feel so much like this after the holidays. Holiday shopping always drives me bonkers....

Do you remember the things you did when you first started using the Web and how it has changed your life?

Sponsored by Yahoo!

What a question! I started out on the internet hardcore when I was in college. I took a class on web design and learned how to make sure my phone bill didn't grow to exorbitant amounts by using instant messaging. The class in web design was the springboard for me to dive completely into the web. I learned so much on my own that my class was getting boring. I started making websites on Geocities and Freewebs. I moved up to blogging, then discovered how I could do it for cash and the rest is history.

FACT

The earth’s climate has constantly gone through periods of warming and cooling.

Scientists have extracted ice core samples from Antarctica dating back 650,000 years. Using these samples, they have been able to estimate temperatures in the past. (Fig. 1.) The recent warming trend is not outside the range of natural variability. The latest scientific data, in fact, suggests that we may be entering a period of global cooling.

FACT

CO2 is likely not the major cause of global warming.

The same Antarctic ice core shows a relationship between CO2 levels and temperature that’s the opposite of what environmentalists would expect: temperature changes precede increases in CO2 by 100 to 1000 years. Even if carbon dioxide was the cause, there isn’t much we could do about it. Man made CO2 accounts for a very small percentage of atmospheric CO2. (Fig. 2.) There is a much stronger correlation between solar output and global temperatures. Solar output is influenced by radiant heat energy and solar winds, both of which appear to have natural cycles.

FACT

There is not a scientific consensus that man is the primary cause of global warming.

A group of scientists and researchers recently gathered in New York to sign a declaration stating that there is no convincing evidence to suggest that CO2 emissions from modern industrial activity cause climate change and called upon world leaders to abandon all efforts to reduce emissions. Over 31,000 scientists have signed a petition stating that there is no convincing scientific evidence that human release of greenhouse gases activity is causing global warming. And John Coleman, founder of the Weather Channel, calls global warming the “greatest scam in history”.

FACT

Proposed global warming “solutions” will not make a difference and will have tremendous costs, especially on the poor.

There is no scientific proof that proposed global warming “solutions” will have any impact upon the climate. These proposed “solutions” rely upon extremely intrusive government controls designed to reduce our energy consumption, thereby significantly increasing the cost of energy and the price of nearly all goods and services produced within our economy, as businesses pass these costs onto consumers. The poor would be the hardest hit by increases in gas, utilities, food and other essentials.

FACT

History shows that periods of warming have been healthier for mankind.

Global warming alarmists warn of cataclysmic changes including dramatic sea level increases, fierce storms and devastating drought. But history shows a different story. During the Medieval warm period which was warmer than today, there were record harvests, few major storms, and a thriving of the human population. Many of the pre-dictions of the alarmists have been shown to be false.

For the latest on climate change, visit: GLOBALCLIMATESCAM.COM

                                                                             Prepared and paid for by Minnesota Majority

Figure 1. Antarctic ice core sample temperatures in Celcius.

Figure 2. Global Carbon Flows and Sinks in billions of metric tons.

Click here: GlobalClimateScam.com to see the entire 95 minutes speech, to read the treaty, and to sign the petition to stop it!  We must act!  We must be vigilant!  Spread the video!  Spread the truth!

Ah, or maybe AAAAAHHHHH!  Where has the time gone?  This 6 month furlough is drawing to a close and I can’t believe I haven’t updated this site in months.  What a whirlwind this time has been.  I’m beginning to wonder why time seems to pass so much more quickly in the states than it does in our little town of Wiang Kaen.

  Since being back in the States I’ve found myself thinking more about how much I have to be thankful for.  At first it was just the simple things like having a DISHWASHER, a DRYER, HOT WATER IN MY KITCHEN FAUCET that made me so joyful, so thankful.  But I’ve gotten deeper than that too.  I’m thankful for the cooler weather, the lack of bugs, the gift of watching the seasons change.  I’m thankful for this time we’ve had to step away from our ministry in Wiang Kaen, to see it from a distance with the Lord’s perspective.  I’m thankful for how the Lord has stretched our income, somehow, that even though we’re living in a place where things are much more expensive for us than normal, we have never ended up short, not even once.  I’m thankful for the attention of family and friends to Raymond and Rudy, and for how they have blossomed under the love of such an extended network of people who care for them.  I’m thankful that God has called me to be a missionary and for what that has done for me personally, how it has opened my eyes wide to how the Lord has tenderly cared for me in every difficult situation. 

There’s something about living in the States that sometimes makes me feel kind of numb.  Do you ever feel that way?  We spent this past week with family, enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday together.  I noticed during that time how much I took for granted.  I sat down for Thanksgiving dinner and I didn’t give a lot of thought to what a blessing it was, to be in a warm house, to be surrounded by family, to have a splendid feast before us.  I thought about those blessings but they didn’t grip my heart in the same way as they have before.  A year ago in Wiang Kaen I remember what I was thinking on Thanksgiving Day.  I remember being thankful that the Lord gave me the energy I needed to provide a big meal for our friends.  I remember being thankful that we had enough money to buy gas to drive 2 hours away to the grocery store and then that we had enough to buy the provisions to  make a meal.  I remember being thankful for the faces of our dear friends and their shy smiles as they shared about how the Lord had been good to them.  It’s like everything is in bold, florescent color there- when we get sick we sometimes get really sick.  When the Lord answers a prayer it’s a huge blessing.  Each meal that ends up on our table there is something to be truly thankful for.  Here we are surrounded by so much.  Excellent medical care in a huge variety of nearby locations.  Stores that provide every possible necessity.  Friends and family who  are continually generous to us in many different ways.  When we return to Thailand though, that’s all gone.  Medical care is mediocre at best, and it’s far away.  Food is available but not always clean and not always providing the nutrition that we need.  Fellowship with other English speaking believers is far away.  But do you know what we have when you take all those other things away?  We have our Lord Jesus, and He knows all our needs.  We have never gone hungry.  We have never been in a seriously dangerous medical situation.  When all that I would have depended on was taken away, that’s when I truly began to lean on the Lord.  And how faithful He has been. 

The holidays are in full effect, so tell us: What's your favorite holiday song? Bonus points if you share it with us!

Motown Christmas Songs - Donny Hathaway - This Christmas

Donny Hathaway

Automatic posting from my Twitter Account:

• 20:41 I'm lean, mean slipper-knitting machine! Love these: bit.ly/7DTEDc