5K

Remember how last year I wanted to run a 5K but lost track of time and whatever and didn't get it done? Well, I've started the Couch to 5K running program and have picked the target for my first race. So many people in my family and so many of my friends have been touched by cancer that I thought I'd not just run a race, but try to raise some money too. So much work needs to be done to beat cancer and as long as our Government is as misguided as it is, The ACS and other organizations certainly need all the help we can give them. I've e-mailed and, if you don't get e-mails from me, here's a link to my donations page. I've set kind of a lofty goal, but I'd certainly like to raise more than that if possible.

And if yesterday's post has you worried, don't be. Things are what they are and we'll do what we need to do. Life's never been easy but we always make it through.

Peace.

Clutterbusting...

I don't know about all (7) of you, but my house is always a disaster and it makes me crazy! My professional background includes training in LEAN. I love LEAN. LEAN is so common sense and wonderful that everyone should do it.

In my personal life, however, I can't seem to get it done. Clutter surrounds me. I can never find anything and it feels like I'm always either picking up after someone or , yes, even after myself. I can't seem to get, much less keep, a grip on the chaos.

Anyone have any ideas? Maybe I'll find a lovely prize for the winner!

And the winner is...

JP of course. She has seen her hubby and I "discuss" the merits (or lack thereof) of NASCAR vs. my beloved NHRA. Number 4 is the fib. NASCAR sucks.

#3: I have a brown belt in Tae Kwon Do and once took second in a sparring tournament. I'd have taken first, too, if they'd allowed contact to the head. I gave up almost as many points as I scored because my opponents kept dropping their hands so I hit/ kicked them in the head. It's just what I do.

#2: Yes, I am one of those people. My favorite shows are Good Eats, The Daily Show and the Colbert Report. I DVR them all. Oh how I love my DVR.

#1. Ian, you made my day when you said that was "badass". I'm not really a badass (am I JP?), but I call myself a Lean Thinker. Being a Lean Thinker means that I have no tolerance for waste - particularly wastes of time and money. I also understand that if you want your process to be Lean, you have to standardize it. Sometimes, it gets me in trouble. Sometimes that bothers me. Most of the time, however, it does not.

I first got in trouble at the Sunday School teachers' meeting because I had asked the person (who coincidentally HAD the information) for my curriculum materials instead of the Sunday School Superintendent (Shoot me! I didn't know she was in charge since I'd never talked to her before the teachers' meeting). I teach the high school class. I like it and I think that some members of our church (not all, evidently ;) ) were happy to see me back because no one else had volunteered for that class. It doesn't bother me. I'd rather deal with the high school class than a preschool class any day.

I raised the super's ire further when I talked about what I had planned for my class. The three curriculum books I was given to choose from (Volumes 1, 2, and 3 of the same series) are written at about a sixth grade level. I know, from my previous year teaching this class, that the high schoolers hate them. They're boring. I said so. I've put together a plan to do a series of short programs rather than one year-long curriculum. We're starting with a book that I think is quite good. It's called "The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus". It's short, easy to read and tells a compelling story. And, when you've spent two weeks playing X-box because you've got nothing to teach from, you grab what you find on the shelf. Yes, believe it or not, there's a Bible Game for X-box. It's awesome - if you're teaching a High School Sunday School class and need to fill the time up. This was the point at which I was told I didn't need to come any more because I'm not teaching the same thing that the other classes are teaching. ~Shrug~ I'm a rebel.

I'm pretty sure that by the end of the meeting the Sunday School Superintendent was 100% sure she didn't want me back. Because after that, a couple of aspects of my personality came into play. First, the aforementioned lean thinker. I hate indecision. "We want people to do this on these days, except for this one of these days when we want them to do this." Well, the activity they want to do on "all" non-communion Sundays is valuable and enriching for the kids. They'll like it. The adults will like it. It's value-added. The other activity is frivolous and people won't remember which non-communion Sunday is which activity if they try to add it in. So, I said so. I did preface it like this: "Forgive me, but my background is in Lean. Lean is about standardization. If you want people to "always" go [here for this activity] then you always need to do that on non-communion Sundays. I'm not saying that the other activity has no value, but it might be better after Sunday School on that fourth Sunday rather than before." When the question arose about what to do when there's a fifth Sunday in a month, I suggested having the other activity there. Ooohh baby, did I get some decidedly Un-Christian looks.

Then my hackles were raised when the attendees of the meeting started bad-mouthing parents of teenagers who don't force their children to attend Sunday School after they are confirmed. Well, kids, I am one of those parents. I didn't make them go because the class was boring. Here comes Lisa the Marketeer again. "You know, as a parent, you have to choose your battles and parents tend to focus on those they can win. If our class is boring, kids aren't going to want to go and it is not worth expending the energy to force them. What we need to focus on is creating a value equation for our high school students and offering them something that they will want to participate in."

~Sigh~ It was a long night.

I don't want to sound like a bible thumper here, because I'm really not. I believe in a higher power and I have felt that power work in my life. Because I was raised in the Christian (Lutheran) faith, the concept of Jesus Christ as my savior works for me. I try to live my belief that you need to treat people the way you want to be treated and respect the differences between people that make us all unique! Do I think the Lutheran Faith is the best? No. It's just best for me. Whatever works for you, works for you and that is awesome. I also believe that I'm not going to hell just because I choose to buy groceries rather than give 10% of my gross to my church and I do not necessarily believe you should cut down trees to build bigger churches when you can just as easily worship at the tree. Being the Sunday School Superintendent is not a position of power, but rather one of facilitation. Not a "you need to run things through me" but rather a "How can I help you?" position. Is this wrong? Someone needs to tell me if it is because I really don't think so.

Happy Friday. Sorry for the Jesus-rant.

Peace and Blessings,

Moi!

I think this might make me a bad person...

Here's the e-mail I sent to my family and friends this morning:

Welcome to Fall! Fall is the time for back to school, leaves changing and the dreaded school fundraiser. All the adorable kids come home carrying their order sheets and catalogs imploring you to PLEASE buy some lovely over priced wrapping paper or candy or maybe some low-quality and over priced knick-knack you never knew you needed.

Well, this year I've decided not to send my adorable kid around with the catalog or send out a link for you to buy on the web. I'm not buying a darn thing and I don't want you to either. I'm making a donation - 100% pure profit directly to the PTO and I'd like you to do the same. Instead of spending $20 on the stuff he's selling, I'd really love a $5.00 donation to the LaGrange PTO from you. Give more if you'd like - or less. It doesn't matter. I would love to help Kostya's school get the things they need and offer the programming that they do, but I just don't see that selling stuff is the answer. Help if you can and want to by sending a check made out to LaGrange PTO to:

(our address)

I will pass them along to the PTO since I think getting all those random checks in the mail would confuse them just a little bit. If PayPal is easier, then my paypal e-mail address is sharplisa@hotmail.com put PTO donation in the memo field or something. I'm planning to match your donations with 50 cents of my own for every dollar you guys contribute unless your generosity exceeds my budget!

Thanks for your support of the PTO!



Can I say here that I absolutely detest these fundraisers! The primary profit making organization is the company putting out the program, right? They take a healthy mark-up foro themselves and pass a wee portion of it back to the PTO in exchange for the child / parent labor to take these orders. The stuff is typically garbage or - if it's edible stuff especially - way over priced. I'm just writing a check. I think my $20 or whatever I decide to give them will go a lot further than whatever they'd make on my fundraising efforts. I always feel obligated to buy it for the children, but this year I don't. I don't even feel bad. Either way it's $20 lost, right? So I'd prefer to have it all go to the PTO than get merchandise I'd value at $2.00 for my $20 with the PTO maybe seeing $5 of that. Is that wrong?

Oh and if you're a loyal blog reader and want to donate? Leave me a comment and I'll tell you where to send your check - or just use paypal.

Thanks!

Isn't it pretty?

See my shiny new button? The one that says "I Fight Cancer"? Isn't it great? Well, click on it to get that button for your own blog if you feel so moved. I hate cancer, I do. I'm sure you do too.

One of the things I am supposed to do to have this button is to write a blog entry about how cancer has affected my life and I frankly can't. The list of the lovely, talented, wonderful people I personally know who have fought and lost battles with this monstrous disease is just too long. There is such a strong history of cancer in my family that I have always felt that it wasn't an "if" I would be diagnosed with it but a matter of "when". Thankfully, a couple of scares, a LEEP procedure and a couple of breast biopsies thus far but the monster stays away. I am grateful.

I am angry, though, when I think of the people that have been lost. I have attended too many memorials for too many people to list here (and I respect their memory and their families' privacy too much) and wondered what I could do - one poor little person - to make a difference. So I've put this button on both blogs as a pledge and a reminder to myself to find ways that I can help fight cancer.

I am happy that I do know a few people that have won or are winning the fight, but the fight must go on and I encourage each of you to join it in whatever way you can.

Blessings and peace,
L.

Wednesday's Worthy Cause

Sometimes I try to tune you, my beloved loyal readers, into opportunities to do something good. You are all multi-talented people and give so generously in so many ways - thank you!

Here's another option: Warm Up America. This charity provides warm knitted and crocheted items to needy people. If you do this kind of thing, you can knit or crochet something as small as an afghan square or as big as a cap or a scarf. Just thought I'd put that out there.

Another worthy cause, of course, is us! I don't know how to put it out there, but we're hoping to add more kids - I know, I know - to the family later this year or early next year. Adoption is not an inexpensive process and we have set up a website - A Sister For Kostya - that links to an Amazon.com marketplace. If you buy through Amazon and access through this website, we get a percentage of what you spend put into our account. The funds will go toward adoption expenses. If anyone knows anything about legal, effective ways to raise adoption money, drop me a comment!

Support a great cause for free

I think everyone knows someone who's life has been touched by lymphoma, leukemia or other blood-related cancers. For me the list is getting too long. My sister sent me this link to a site that rewards you for doing online surveys by donating money to the Lymphoma Research Foundation for each survey you complete. You can select the number of surveys you're willing to complete each month based on the profile you complete during the registration process.

Everyone wants to make a difference. This is one small way that costs you nothing but time. Thanks for checking it out.