Mother’s Day Flowers

Recently we moved my 94 year old mother to my brother’s home. She fell a couple of times last fall and no longer felt secure living on her own. Moving her stuff evoked a lot of past memories. The rocking chair in which I would squeeze in beside her while she peeled apples we shared seemed so small. Even at her current diminutive size, there is no way she or anyone else would be able to squeeze into that chair with me. The table, hand made by my Dad, that was in the corner by the window even after it moved from her home of 40 plus years to her apartment of 10 years ended up in my bedroom. The “blood” lamp sits on the table just as it did in her home. The “blood” lamp so named because a grateful store owner gave it to my Mother after she donated her rare blood to save his daughters life sometime in the 1940s. Mother was not upset about losing her “stuff” because it was going to good homes. Sons, daughter, grandchildren and great grandchildren received the benefit of her largesse. That is hardly surprising, she is our Mom, Grandmother and Great Grandmother and that is what they do. They give, that is how they were raised to give to their families.

Mother’s day is one of the official times we should make sure we give back to our Mothers. Forget about what they say when they tell you don’t go to any trouble or it’s nothing special. It is and it should be. Check out the Mother's Day Flowers at http://www.1800flowers.com/ . They have beautiful arrangements for Mother’s Day that are sure to put a smile on any Mother’s face. Try and be there when she gets those Mother's Day Flowers, it will put a smile on your face too. Happy Mother’s Day!

Hell's Faire By John Ringo

Rousing, non-stop adrenaline inducing action characterizes this entire series. Ringo’s stories are “in the trenches” military scifi. He paints vivid, dynamic, larger than life characters and surrounds them with believable associates. Reading about Ringo, he appears to think he is a cynic but from his stories you can tell the man is a pragmatic optimist. His characters exhibit the highest moral values and the most human desires. Whether is a child turned into a teenage assassin or a father who thinks he has sacrificed his daughter for the greater good, the characters are likeable and genuine. As an aside, we begin to get hints that the villains of the series may not be responsible for the actions. We also see a closure of the action that seemed entirely too abrupt with too many loose ends. I have since started “The Hero” which takes place sometime long after the end of this book and it ties some of the ends that I had hoped to see tied. I truly enjoy the stories, the sacrifices and the nobility of the characters. I recommend the book. If you can’t find it in print, go to Baen and download it.

Body of work of John Ringo

Review: http://www.sfsite.com/05a/hf151.htm

Web site: http://www.johnringo.com/Home/tabid/1574/ctl/Terms/language/en-US/Default.aspx

Hunger Hurts

Hunger isn’t just your stomach growling at 11:30 A.M. in anticipation of lunch. Hunger for millions of people is a debilitating condition faced daily, that drains resolve, crushes enthusiasm and stifles growth. As you read this, more than 500 million people are living in "absolute poverty" and more than 15 million children die of hunger every year.

There are estimates that 1/3 of the world’s population is starving and another third is chronically hungry. Guess where that puts you, the third that is striving to lose weight and stay fit, rather ironic. Even in our good old US of A we have people going hungry, every single day. In this economy, the food pantries are be overwhelmed by not just the traditionally impoverished but by white collar, formerly middle income folks who are suddenly jobless and destitute.

Heifer International is partnering with Bloggers Unite to heighten awareness of a endemic problem that we are all loathe to face. Pause for a moment the next time the Boy Scouts or the mailman are publicizing a food pantry drive and think how you feel when you are hungry. Now magnify that feeling ten fold and pull some things out of your pantry and donate them. The next time you grocery shop and they have a buy one, get one free, buy two and donate the two free ones to your local food pantry. It truly doesn’t demand a terrible sacrifice for anyone if everyone thinks a bit beyond themselves and gives a little. Lots of little donations by lots and lots of ordinary people can help starve off the hunger afflicting so many.

Wheels of Fire by Mercedes Lackey & Mark Shepherd

My guess is the goal of the Serrated Edge series is to address social issues. The exploited children theme was in the last one I read as well. I like that they tailor a story to emphasize a social ill and at the end of the book have phone numbers for help. The book’s target audience may be the teen age years but I am young at heart. I enjoyed the book. It deals with cult type of pseudo-religions and their impact on both parents and children. It also paints a sad but often true portrait of how greasing palms can smooth the way for all kinds of nefarious activities. The easy access to AK47s mirrors the current trouble with the arming of the Mexican drug cartels through our southern borders. I recommend the book.

Body of work of Mercedes Lackey
Body of work of Mark Shepard


Site: http://www.mercedeslackey.com/

Site: none found for Mark Shepherd

Review: http://davidsnewzealandadventure.blogspot.com/2009/02/review-wheels-of-fire.html

Making Pregnancy More Pleasant

I know how can a guy, especially an older Dude such as myself, have any clue on how to make pregnancy more pleasant and why would he be audacious enough to write about it? Well, keep in mind that in most cases pregnancy is something that both sexes at least initiate. Then as the none carrying partner, we do live with the burden carrier. Not that babies aren’t a blessing and welcome, at least in our family but guys, face it, your bride is doing the grunt labor (I know bad word use) in the pregnancy deal. As a teacher, I once had my male students carry a medicine ball in a bag hanging in the approximate position for carrying the unborn baby. Needless to say at the end of the day the guys had a much greater appreciation of the stress and discomfort that can occur while pregnant. That was after a single day let alone nine months. So it behooves those of us with a sense of self preservation to make pregnancy as painless as possible.

There are a variety of ways to do this. Chocolate, foot massages, picking up household chores, loving consideration and clothes. Why clothes? Sadly many women have difficulty appreciating the beauty of pregnancy. Some idiot guys also describe pregnant women as fat which just does wonders for a woman’s self esteem. Clothes can help maintain positive self esteem. The right pregnancy wear can help a woman to feel attractive and chic. SimplyBe is a site that has a very flattering selection of pregnancy fashion. They have a complete selection of other clothes but I thought their maternity selection was particularly chic. (Are guys allowed to use that word?) They also have a wide selection of very flattering plus sizes. Gentlemen take my work for it, after my own kids and grand kids, if your lovely wife is pregnant, the happier you can make her through that pregnancy will benefit, you, her and the baby(ies). If dressing better helps her feel better, then find her some sizzling maternity wear.