Why Dogs Rule

The world is divided into two kinds of people - dog people and cat people. From the perspective of a dog lover, cats are fickle, selfish and undependable... while dogs are loving, brave and utterly loyal.


Confirming those stereotypes is this AP story - Dog Saves Man in Fire Blamed on Cat.

GREENVILLE, Maine (Oct. 10) - Thumper, a black Labrador retriever, is getting credit for saving a Greenville man when a fire swept through his home. Roland Cote said his wife and their 7-year-old grandson were away when the blaze started early Sunday in a converted two-story garage. He said Thumper grabbed him by the arm to wake him, leaving just enough time for him to dial 911 before fleeing the fast-moving fire. While the dog is the hero, a cat is the bad guy in this story. Cote said the fire marshal investigator believes the blaze was started when Princess, the family cat, tipped over a kerosene lantern. Cote says he and his pets escaped safely, but he says Princess did get her tail singed by the flames.

What do you cat people (you know who you are) have to say about this?

What's a Stay-at-Home Mom Worth?

According to Salary.com, the work of a typical stay-at-home mom is worth $138,095. The research study released on Monday, noted a mother's work included that of - housekeeper, cook, day care center teacher, laundry machine operator, van driver, facilities manager, janitor, computer operator, chief executive officer and psychologist. Your typical stay-at-home mom puts in an estimated 92 hours per week, hence leading to 52 hours of overtime.

Salary.com compiled the report from online responses of 26,000 stay-at-home mothers and 14,000 mothers who also work outside the home. You can read more about it here. If you're a mom and would like a more precise estimate of what your work is worth, check out Salary.com's Mom's Salary Wizard. Based on personalized information you supply, it'll calculate a salary for your work.

Even if we could pay them, you know that these stay-at-home moms don't do what they do for the money. Let's face it, it's the sheer glamour of the job that appeals to them.

Seriously, when I think about how Kathy serves every person in our family with her hard work, I'm humbled. Our home wouldn't run without her. So, what are stay-at-home moms worth? In my humble opinion, they're priceless.

Does Beauty Transcend ?

I really wanted to post on this earlier in the week but I've been unplugged for the past 3 days.

Washington Post conducted a fascinating social experiment - it's a long article but worth reading. They commissioned Joshua Bell, a renown violinist to play some of the finest classical music ever composed on a Stradivarius, right in the middle of a Washington DC metro train station...during rush hour.

The idea was to find out if the essence of beauty is self evident, and whether it would transcend the busyness of the rush hour commute. Would people be so moved by the music, so as to pause the hustle and bustle of the morning, to recognize or perhaps even appreciate its evident beauty?

Well, the results aren't pretty. As Joshua Bell played for 43 minutes, a total of 1,097 people passed by. Only seven stopped to listen. Here's the excerpt from the article that really got my attention -

The people scurry by in comical little hops and starts, cups of coffee in their hands, cellphones at their ears, ID tags slapping at their bellies, a grim danse macabre to indifference, inertia and the dingy, gray rush of modernity.

Even at this accelerated pace, though, the fiddler's movements remain fluid and graceful; he seems so apart from his audience -- unseen, unheard, otherworldly -- that you find yourself thinking that he's not really there. A ghost.

Only then do you see it: He is the one who is real. They are the ghosts.

Knowing myself, I probably wouldn't have been found among the seven but it did give me pause to think -

Is real beauty self evident and self authenticating?
Why can't we recognize it?
What does that say about us?
What is real beauty?


One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in his temple.

Psalm 27:4

I Could Have Been a Contender...

There are world championships for soccer, ice skating, gymnastics and even chess – so, why not the universally popular “Rock-Paper-Scissors”?
Apparently, 500 top players from around the world gathered in Toronto this past weekend to compete for $8,840 prize and title of world champion.

The winner was Bob Cooper, a 28 year old sales manager from London, UK.

The tournament had all the attributes of high stakes championship play, including teamwork, trash talking and intimidation.

Players will have to steel themselves against psychological pressure as players typically form teams to rally each other ”The team will surround the arena, provide moral support and usually try to intimidate the opponent," said Graham Walker…co-author of "The Official Rock Paper Scissors Guide”

Sadly, ESPN chose not to carry the event...but you can read about it in this news account and also at the World RPS site.