User-agent: Mediapartners-Google* Disallow: Things that make you go hmmm.: March 2005

Things that make you go hmmm.

Thursday, March 31, 2005

Clean hands

When you wash your hands to help prevent getting the flu or some other sickness, is that really the best idea? I mean is it better to wash your hands even if you have to put your hands on the soap dispenser where everyone else who had dirty hands and germs has put their hands? I guess maybe the soap’s antibacterial ingredients can kill the germs that get on your hands from the dispenser too. But then you have to put your clean hands on the faucet to turn off the water where others with germs have touched also. And if in a public restroom, you may have to touch the paper towel dispenser and then the door handle that people that didn’t wash their hands have touched. I usually will get some paper towels ready before I wash my hands, use them to turn the water off and to dispense some more paper towels, and then if the trash is near the door, use the paper towel to open the door and throw it away on my way out. When you have to take a little one to the restroom, this usually doesn’t work. I really like the restrooms that have automatic flushers, faucets, and towel dispensers with the winding entrance with no doors. All this effort and someone will probably sneeze on you when you come out the door anyway.

posted by whaaaat! at 10:01 AM | 1 comments

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Robbing God

Would anyone in their right mind ever say that they would willingly steal from God? This is exactly what Christians do if they don’t tithe. See Malachi 3:8-12. I am sure I may offend some here since I have heard that usually a large portion of a church’s budget is usually funded by a small portion of the congregation. So I am sure there are a lot of Christians who don’t tithe, but how can a Christian justify not tithing? God commands us to tithe. All that we have comes from God and He promises to pour out His blessing on us when we tithe, and He feels so strong about this that He invites us to test Him in this. So speaking of spending habits, if you are a Christian and you don’t tithe but you continue to spend on all of your wants (not needs) are you honoring God by being a good steward of all He gives you? Here are some alarming statistics and many more can be found at http://www.emptytomb.org/lifestylestat.html :
The 2001 Overseas Ministries income, including donations and other sources, to 690 agencies, including denominational, interdenominational and independent agencies, was $3.8 billion. Compare this with consumer sales, U.S. Consumers spent more than $24.3 billion on candy in 2002, during 1999 U.S. soft drink sales came to $58 billion, in 1998 there were $23 billion in pet-related sales, in 2001, Americans spent $38 billion on state lotteries.
I’ll try to not be so preachy tomorrow.

posted by whaaaat! at 10:00 AM | 0 comments

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Penny pinching

I admit that often I am a penny pincher like this.
Why is it that some of us penny pinchers will cringe when you use an extra paper towel to clean up a mess, but then will pay more than say $5 for a meal at a fast food restaurant that could easily be made at home for a fraction of the cost? And then at the same restaurant we will take extra napkins home (to use instead of those expensive extra paper towels), extra condiments and utensils, and make sure to fill up our soft drinks to take home for some future meal at home. Or how about those of us who turn the heat or air conditioner way down making everyone suffer to save a few pennies all the while enjoying our nice spacious home (which is actually why it costs so much to heat and cool that much space). Or taking extra effort to take home the soap and shampoo every day you stay at a hotel which costs way too much, and then spend big bucks for a haircut. OK, those of you who know me know that I may take home the shampoo, but since I am folically challenged would never spend big bucks on a haircut.
I know you are probably saying that there are usually good reasons for spending extra for things like a fast meal, nice house, and even a nice haircut, but sometimes the penny pinching can go a little overboard ... or maybe that penny pinching attitude is why you are able to spend extra for those things occasionally. Hmmm.
More on spending habits tomorrow.

posted by whaaaat! at 7:42 AM | 2 comments

Monday, March 28, 2005

He is risen...

He is risen indeed!!! Isn't it amazing that there are millions who follow the other major world religions even though they have their basis in the teachings of their leaders or founders who are dead? Isn't it wonderful that we have a Savior, Jesus Christ who is alive and who has conquered death and sin? Isn't it great that we can also experience new life by accepting Jesus as Lord and be cleansed from all our sin through our faith in Him?

posted by whaaaat! at 8:38 AM | 4 comments

Friday, March 25, 2005

Accent Dialogue

I am sure that the reason that people take on a certain accent is because that is how the people around them are speaking. Either when they grew up as they learned to speak or if they have moved somewhere and slowly their accent changes to mirror those around them. But have you ever wondered what the origins of those accents are? Who was it that originally started to speak a certain way or did it slowly evolve over time?
I assume it is true in other countries too that there are different accents or dialects depending on what part of the country you are from, but it seems that in the US this is especially true. And being a relatively young country (only a few hundred years compared to thousands of years for other countries) you would think we could trace the origins of the many different accents in our country.
Of the many different accents in our country, which do you like to hear best? Do you like hearing those from the Northeast esp. the Boston area? I enjoy hearing this accent occasionally like Boston Rob previously on Survivor now on The Amazing Race (see http://www.cbs.com/primetime/amazing_race7/ ). Or do you like the Southern accent esp. in the deep South like Alabama or Georgia, which is different than the drawl of many from Texas and Oklahoma. How about the areas that kind of have inflections from other countries where alot of the people in those areas are from like in Minnesota or Louisiana?
And how come some people who have an accent from an area of the country lose their accent when they move to a different area but others don't? And how come some people have more of an accent than others even in their own family? I grew up in Texas and have moved to the Pacific NW, but most people tell me that I don't have much of an accent, but others in my family you can definitely hear a difference. This area doesn't have an accent associated with it. Maybe I can be the one to start one and be the origin of a new accent.

posted by whaaaat! at 8:07 AM | 1 comments

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Funny Pictures

I found this site and thought these pictures were hilarious:

http://www.benjudson.com/article.php/20041025112531985

Do you remember the TV show “Real People” where people sent in funny pictures like these? I remember when I was a kid while on a family trip stopping somewhere to use the restroom and thinking this would be a great picture to send in. I think the door to the restroom had the permanent sign indicating “RESTROOM” but underneath it was a paper sign they taped on the door that said “PUSH HARD”.

posted by whaaaat! at 8:14 AM | 1 comments

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Bugs in strange places

Have you ever wondered how do those dead bugs get into your closed light fixtures? When I was in college, I looked over at my alarm clock and saw something moving and looking closer saw that somehow a cockroach had crawled inside. What are some other strange places that you have found bugs dead or alive?

posted by whaaaat! at 9:41 AM | 3 comments

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Blessing in disguise

Have you ever had a situation that you thought was absolutely going to be bad and not what you want only to find out after you go forward how wonderful things worked out and you were so thankful? One of the pluses for us when we purchased our house was that a fairly new school that we heard several positives about was very close (we can actually see it about a mile and a half from our back door). When we were preparing to send our oldest child to school whose kindergarten class I mentioned in a previous post, we were very upset to find out that the nearby school was overcrowded and they were redrawing the boundaries and he would have to go to a school that is about 15 minutes away and that had other things that we had preconceived negative feelings about. We prayed about this and wondered what we should do and decided to just trust God that it would work out.
Very soon, we began to hear positive comments one right after the other from several other parents that had kids in this school. My wife took a tour of the school and got to see the 2 kindergarten classrooms and felt good about it. We hoped that we would get morning kindergarten (they only go half days here) and we did. Then we heard recommendations for both the teachers and felt we would be happy with either but especially wanted one and it ended up that she was our son’s teacher, and she has been awesome. She is very creative and has really made kindergarten fun for our son and he has really done well. Our sight into matters can often be so limited and so awesome when you just trust that God will take care of things and He does so even more than you could have imagined.
By the way, my wife has the same opinion as a few of you who commented regarding the creativity with the leprechauns and yes this was another example of how great a teacher our son has.

posted by whaaaat! at 10:19 AM | 1 comments

Monday, March 21, 2005

hmmm or arrrgh?

Not sure if this fits in the category of "things that make you go hmmm" or "arrrgh". When I came out to my car after work on Friday, I look down and see a large bash and scrape on the rear driver's side door. Obviously someone in the space next to me hit my car while trying to park their car or when leaving the space and continued scraping their bumper along the side of my car. I can be a little understanding of someone not leaving their information if they put a little ding or scratch from a car door, but this was considerably more serious damage. I figure that either it was someone elderly (no offense intended to you older folks who drive down the middle of the road and can't pick a lane) who didn't realize they had done this or some jerk who didn't have the decency to own up to the damage they had done. Frustrating!!! What would you have done if you had accidentaly caused damage like this? Or maybe it really wasn't an accident ... maybe someone really has it out for me. Maybe I should be on the lookout for someone trying to inflict harm on me in some way. Maybe I am the one who has acted inappropriately and someone is secretly getting back at me. "Hmmm."
Naaah, I'm assuming it was the jerk "phantom driver" as my insurance company calls them which I prefer to think of them as this so I can direct my emotions to some phantom instead of to a real person.

posted by whaaaat! at 11:12 AM | 1 comments

Friday, March 18, 2005

Extra effort required to vacuum

Why do people run over something like a piece of thread more than a dozen times with their vacuum cleaner, then reach down, pick it up, examine it, then put it down to give the vacuum one more chance?

posted by whaaaat! at 12:49 PM | 3 comments

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Leprechauns, fairies, and the like.

How many out there ever believed in leprechauns? I remember believing in the tooth fairy, Santa Clause, and the Easter bunny... but never leprechauns on St. Patrick's Day. My son just mentioned that his teacher in kindergarten tried to set a trap for the leprechaun and while they were out of the class he left a note saying that the trap didn't work, but he left each one of them a chocolate gold coin. A little too much don't you think?

posted by whaaaat! at 3:17 PM | 2 comments