responding to disaster...

Good Morning,


"The biggest mystery about man is that he sees death around him everyday and yet doesn’t believe it will happen to him." (Buddhist scholar)

Perhaps this is why I like Buddhism so much. I can read this statement and say, well at least I don't have this problem...I am able to worry about it (death) everyday in myself and in others!

I've been listening to dharma talks. When disasters such as the earthquake/tsunami in Japan occur we (the collective "we") are left with the painful question "what can we do?"

If you know me well enough by now, I ask WWBTGD? (What Would Buddha Teacher Gil Do?)

Buddha Teacher Gil says that it is enough to "make the effort." That is, to make the effort to respond (e.g., a financial donation to the Red Cross or relief agency) even if it’s small.

In this way, I wanted to share a relief effort I am supporting. My friend and Monday Morning News "language expert" contributor Jen Chen's cousin is the brain behind this effort (and I guarantee you it is BIG)...

I just checked, according to reports, over 250,000 households are still without power. The ReadySet battery will help...If you are still looking for a place to donate; I encourage you to check this out.

http://fenixintl.com/donate

(I love the idea of a battery that you can charge via pedaling a bike!)


If donating does not feel right to you, another thing we can do is allow ourselves to become more committed to our day-to-day efforts. For example, if you are a teacher take some class time to talk to students about what they've seen on TV, check-in on your elderly neighbor, vote for clean energy bills...get your kitty a new ID tag with proper locating information.

The third important idea in the WWBTGD philosophy is to remember to not respond, to not be changed by the difficult circumstances in Japan is to do a kind of violence to ourselves. The nature of the human heart is to respond...

If these suggestions seem too simplistic, remember they are given in the spirit of challenge not comfort. The important questions are perhaps most difficult to grapple with...what can we honestly give? Where does giving truly come freely to you and sustain those around you with joy?

In this light I'd like to offer one last effort.

I have family both by birth and by choosing living in California. Several of whom have seemed to have parked it atop the San Andrea fault... : ( Curious, this morning I went onto the FEMA website...

I've compiled a quick cheat sheet study guide for what to do before, during, and after an earthquake the SGFWTDBDAAAE (another easy to remember acronym)...


Study Guide for What to Do Before During and After an Earthquake

BEFORE

--Prepare an emergency kit. Include in it: bottled water, a fire extinguisher, flashlights (AND BATTERIES), small First Aid supplies, non-perishable food items, blankets, medications and diapers (if it’s the big one someone is going to soil themselves).

DURING

--Drop, cover and HOLD ON!!!!!!!! Get under a sturdy desk, crouch against an inside wall and HOLD ON to something sturdy.

--If in bed, STAY in bed and put a pillow over your head. (This one confuses me...)

The danger during an earthquake seems to be not falling into the earth (i.e., large cracks opening up) but rather getting squashed...

--Do NOT run outside! If you are outside STAY OUTSIDE away from trees, electric wires, and especially the weird neighbors with the gargoyles. Most people are injured when entering or leaving a building and something heavy falls on them…like a large gargoyle?

AFTERWARDS

--If you smell gas turn the gas off. If you see crackling wires, turn the main electricity in the home off.

--IF TRAPPED do not yell? Again, this one is confusing to me, but I guess the idea is that yelling causes deep inhales thus dust into your lungs. (I’m covering my mouth with my shirt and yelling my fool head off). FEMA recommends blowing a whistle or tapping on metal pipes.

(To address this concern I’ve decided I will take the action of sending each of my friends/loved ones a whistle and carry along, pocket dust masks).

SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

--What to do with the little ones!? The same rule applies. Duck, Cover and Cling! Here I believe the clinging will occur to you the adult/guardian so be prepared to offer these words. “It’s okay, Mommy and Mommy are here for you and we’re going to be doing everything we can to keep you safe...Puff the kitty is an excellent hider. She’s gone to find a safe place...Yes, we can pray for her...No we can not go take her some of your goldfish."

--If the other parent is away or at work during this time tell the child that they know we’re together here and will come home as soon as heavenly possible.

okay and lastly, please use the SGFWTDBDAAAE only AFTER checking out FEMA's website http://www.fema.gov/areyouready/earthquakes.shtm.

Wishing you Peace and Comfort. Happy Monday,

Amanda

a trip outside the city limits

Good Morning,

I've been hanging out in museums lately...how's that for a catchy opener?

Recently, I went to see an exhibit at the Johnson County Museum that tells the story of the All American Girls Baseball League. As you might imagine, this did not take long. Women's professional baseball has left us some prominent newspaper clippings and an over-sized mitten (i.e., an old fashioned baseball glove)...

Schooled through popular culture, I too enjoyed these pioneering women depicted in "A League of Their Own" but I went seeking more of the immediacy of the experience. Somehow the old grainy photos connected me to a look I recognized, a look that says there's a little more "sporty girl" in my DNA than you might realize...

I winced a little when I came across this document "League Rules of Conduct" which spelled out in gory detail...

1. ALWAYS wear feminine attire...AT NO TIME MAY A PLAYER APPEAR IN THE STANDS IN HER UNIFORM, OR WEAR SLACKS OR SHORTS IN PUBLIC.

2. Boyish bobs are not permissible and in general your hair should be well groomed at all times with longer hair preferable to shorter cuts. Lipstick should always be worn.



The list did not get any better ending at the bottom with...15. Players will not be allowed to drive their cars past the city limit's without the special permission of their manager.

It was a different time back then but I feel a "proper lady" should've been free to conduct her lady business!!!

Although not recorded for history, I played one year of Little League baseball. Here's how the back of my b-ball card would have read.

Team: Tipp City Optimists
Team Color: black
Position: 2nd base, pitcher
Seasons: 1
Stats: Batting Avg. .125, home runs 0, 1 fly ball out of the infield
Pitching Scouting report: high accuracy throws a good slow ball

*Interesting fact: One All-Star appearance that really confused an older woman in the park restroom. An indignant woman kept saying "young man! young man! You CAN NOT be in here!"

After finding an old stack of Sports Illustrateds in the attic, I determined I would be the next Sandy Koufax!--the first girl in Major League baseball playing for the Cincinnati Reds and pitching for the LA Dodgers on weekends.



Wandering through a museum I was able to wonder would I have played back then? (minus the challenges at the plate...lack of speed? power?...) somehow I could have managed this. I could field to the right and the left and had the discipline to make a solid plate appearance. I even had the family connections. (Great Aunt Margaret of South Bend could’ve been my miserly chaperone for the Blue Sox...) What I could NOT have managed was this...CHARM SCHOOL.

I will not go into full detail but rather highlight a few key items on the syllabus:

"Keep your uniform as clean and neat as possible. Always secure your stockings so that they are smooth and neat and remain in place. Keep your shoes clean and shining. And see if you don't feel better and play better ball..."

How is a girl supposed to keep her shoes clean and shining on a dirt field?

"Always carry your beauty kit with you when you go on road trips and equip yourself with all necessary articles for your toilette."

I think this means to carry a plunger with you at all times in case there's a backed up toilet?

"INTRODUCTIONS. Under all possible circumstances the reply to an introduction is "How do you do?" Well bred people do not say: "Pleased to meet you" but when it is actually true, you can say: "I am VERY glad to meet you."

What if I might like to smile and say HOWDY! (strike THREE!!!)

No, I would not have made it in "The League" but I am thankful to the women who did. There is no crying in baseball but there is a grateful heart. How many frustrations and embarrassments did Betsy and Edyth endure to follow a dream and speak the simple truth "I love to play ball?"

As I wheeled out the door and down the ramp, I braced for the bitter cold. I grabbed the brim of my cap when smacked with an early spring gust and gamely slid behind the wheel. I gunned the engine (nooo not really) and with a tip of my cap OFF back inside the city limits to keep doing my lady business! (i.e., workout, study for licensing exam, take out the trash, love on Mitty...)

Happy Monday,

Amanda

p.s. you can go to http://www.aagpbl.org/ for more info on the All American Girls Professional Baseball League

Tourney Pick'Em Tips

Good Morning,

If you live in Kansas, there is one thing you are guaranteed this time of year. Wherever you go you are likely to run into random groups of people huddled around a TV looking intent or mildly concerned as they mull over the words to "Rock Chalk Jayhawk!"-a haunting victory chant.

Rooooock chaalk Jaaaaay Haawk...Kaaaay Uuuuuu

The mood and tone of a city is indeed set by the outcome of the madness.

MARCH MADNESS!!!

The NCAA Men's (and Women's!!!) basketball tournament is set to begin this week. I have my sheets of integrity here ready to fill out (aka the "Pick em' Pool" Tournament brackets). Over the years in doing this it has become my theory that knowing the most about sports does not make the best Bracketologist. My Grandma, routinely a top finisher the family pool, relies on a steady viewing schedule and then I think selects based partly on whether or not a team has a cute coach or handsome players.

Since this has proven an effective strategy, I've decided to put away my stat sheets and try a new approach this morning. Amidst the MADNESS an analysis of team nicknames and mascots seems a saner approach.

So...after research and analysis of the 2011 NCAA's 68 teams I've culled together some tips I hope you too will find helpful for filling out your brackets.



10 Tips for Tourney Pick'Ems!...using team mascots

1. Look for Indiana State "The Fighting Teachers" (although currently the Sycamores) to make a long run into the Tournament. As demonstrated by the current political battles in Wisconsin, a cohesive group of Teachers are hard to knock off their committed course...


2. Write this down somewhere handy...next to your sheet.

A Tiger beats a Wildcat (too generic) and a working dog (Huskies, "Reveille" the Collie) beats a domestic non-sporting dog (e.g. Bulldogs or Terriers).

In all there are 11 cat teams, 9 dog teams, 5 bears...and at least 2 rodents. In a cat vs. dog fight go with the cats.

3. Also, a man with a gun beats animal unless it is a grizzly...

4. There are several interesting match-ups in the first round I am excited to see:

"The Commodores" against the Spiders. Here I feel at least one of them, probably Lionel, would step on a spider...or possibly in choreographed dance moves inadvertently squash the spiders.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Pocket_(Commodores_album)

The Texas A&M "Aggies" will be clashing with the Florida State Seminoles. I believe FSU after losing in the conference tournament might be ready to beat the "land grant" Aggies over the uppity white mans proliferation of farming.

5. Purdue vs. St. Peter's. A trained craftsman beats a peacock. (You might also report this to PETA)

6. Looking to outwit your friends by nailing the tricky 8-9 seed matchups? No problem. How about out in the West region the #8 seed Wolverines vs. #9 seed Volunteers? A fierce rodent like animal fighting on it's back verses the helpful volunteer. Go with the Wolverines.

7. I have not yet been able to come down with a ruling for battles of mythical creatures so my advice is flip a coin or consult the oracles for contests between, Blue Devils, Pirates, Leprechauns, Redstorms, Bruins and Blaze a Fire Breathing Dragon

8. A Buckeye is a poisonous nut. They are also the #1 overall seed...coincidence? no, pick them!

9. Akron ZIPS!!!!!!! this team will run faster, jump, higher etc. Down side, if they win, it is Akron. Remember "It's gotta be the shoes money!" No MAC team is a good bet.

10. So,...my Final Four Includes a mythical bird (Kansas), a gator (Florida), huskies (U Conn), and dirty feet (North Carolina)? With the overall champions?...

Dirty Feet vs. a Baby Jay?

Dirty Feet.

okay, good luck and Happy Monday,

Amanda

p.s. Zips refers to a particular brand of kids shoe

Five random acts if cuteness.

Good Morning,

Not too long ago this mysterious clip went viral (or okay was at least a big hit among cat lovers) on YouTube.



Thanks to my favorite language expert (hello Eto : ) I've learned there was a huge trend in Japan where people discovered that if you put kittens beside a nabe pot (those pots you see in the video), they will climb in and curl up like it's a box. This is a particular game show in which they decided to do it en masse. At the very end of the show, the hosts declared it 'a success' because most of the kittens climbed into the nabes...

There really seems to be no further explanation. Kittens are cute and, okay, the Japanese are odd.

or maybe they are just really more in tune with finding the joy and delight in the everyday. With two weeks left of winter and a solid study routine, I feel myself slipping into the mundane...

Now, inspired! I've challenged myself to see if I can find at least Five Random Acts of cuteness...in one morning.

Five Random Acts of Cuteness

1. A little girl in the bathroom stall at church. I listened as she was schooled on what not to do with the communion bread. This little one had torn off a piece and instead of dipping it in the cup of Christ had left it to bob and swim in the grape juice.

2. The children of St. Andrew were called to the front for special prayer and community praise. They had been keeping coin collections for their brothers and sisters in Haiti (?) who as one child put it "Do not have as good a walls as we do." All sat with attention toward the woman kneeling with the microphone except two. Two random children turned to look for their parents both with fingers sticking in their noses. (I've been told they think better this way : ).

3. The 11:00 service Adult choir soloist. I know you're not supposed to have favorites but i do. A very tall woman in her 60's (59 and holding) sings with such spirit and energy it is catching. Her solo was a planned event but sitting in the back with obstructed view it seemed random. Halfway through the folksy bluegrass spiritual I saw her rock the page boy and lift her somewhat shrill soprano in jubilant vibrato. My heart leapt as she beamed and then acceded the planted microphone to an equally expressive (i.e. cute) "Man of (In)Constant Sorrow..."

4. Pastor Holly she is sometimes random and is cute...

I wasn't feeling too well but somehow perked up as she managed to equate Jesus' Transfiguration i.e.,

"Atop a mountain, he became radiant, spoke with Moses and Elijah, and was called "Son" by a voice in the sky..."

to a young child in the 1950's patiently kneading a yellow dye tablet into an opaque blob of lard.

5. Okay, sorry just a random thought. How did they discover that kittens will sit in nabes? According to Wikipedia, a nabe pot is Japanese earthenware typically used for communal eating of stews and soups. How did more than one person discover...I mean what was the conversation that occurred to discover that both of us have kittens that might curl up nice n easy in the communal stew pot? Just a random thought.

okay off to study or see if I can get Mitty (the pen stealing kitty) to sit in a crock pot : ),

Happy Monday,

Amanda

a brother's love is...

Good Morning,

Here's a very quick story from my youth. As I bent down to set up the BB-gun target, a row of Coke cans, I heard the unmistakeable click, click blat...of the "pump" gun. To this day, it is unclear whether the true bulls-eye was my butt or the bottom of my shoe but as I knelt to do my apprentice duty...I suspected the hee hee hee of my brother's voice was not meant to leave my sweat-panted hiny unscathed.

Perhaps this is why I was so moved this weekend as I looked out my apartment window to see Eric (my brother) bent over clearing a path for me with such meticulous care. It iced-over hard here this weekend. My brother was in town for a business meeting and up early the next morning to make his flight.

I'd gotten up early too to see him off. After hugs and safe travel wishes, no sooner had I turned to tend to Mitty "the treat jonesing" kitty than I heard a little knock on my door. It was Eric! He said, "Hey I just wanted to let you know, it's a sheet of ice out there. Be careful. I just fell."

Surprised, I checked to make sure he was okay then turned on the TV. The winter weather news crew flashed onto the scene and reveled in their morning horror stories.

"It's ICEY out there Bob! I live 30min. from the station and had a 1 1/2 hr. commute this morning!"

only to be out done by the next...

"Yes Carol, as you can see traffic here at I-69 and 435 is crawling. If you don't need to be out this morning stay in, and if you do be sure to leave yourself plenty of extra time!"

Although I would have loved it if he could have stayed, I also did not want my brother to have to extend his travel. Thus, I quickly urged him to be careful (TURN AROUND AND COME BACK if needed...) and advised that he head slowly to the airport right away!

Eric stood there looking concerned. My interpretation?...contemplating how to leave yet still do his duty to care and protect his little sister from hazardous foot steps.

I know! I thought. I have the quick solution to our problem! By my door I have a bag of rock salt. That is, a bag of salt maintenance crews use for spreading on icey sidewalks and walkways.

I handed my brother the bag and a plastic cup and asked that he throw some down...implying quickly as I parroted out the news crew's growing alarm, "You need extra time if headed to the airport!"

(...we had planned for a morning with a leisurely departure time not one of triple drive time and jack knifed semis!!!)

Doo do doo...

I looked out the window proudly at my brother in his smart looking pea coat and nifty running shoes.

Yes, i thought, that's my brother! Look at him putting down that salt for me!

I looked out the window still proud...

See how careful he's being!

I looked out and at the clock concerned...

Now what can be taking so long? Just exactly what is he doing?

This was not the simple maintenance man scatter. There was some sort of systematic planning going on out there. There was bending and stooping almost like a golfer setting up his put. He surveyed and turned and sprinkled...

Desperate to help or understand, I stepped out onto the door mat in my PJs. "Brother!? Brother? Are you done?"

I went back inside. Checking the freezer for more overnight provisions, there is no way I thought this boy's making it to the airport. Luckily, I had food...

Finally, I heard some foot stomping at the door. I can't help but tear up a little when I think of the words that came next. "Well Sister, I made you a path!" My sibling companion who used to shoot BBs at my behind had...cared enough to make me a path! It was the best path every made! It went directly from my door, down the sidewalk, around my neighbor's car and straight to my driver's side car door!

This person who used to bitterly complain about arrival times (a Senior providing car pool service cannot arrive at the early bird Freshman's time!) had seen through to my needs and let the demands of schedules sit to make a way for me to be.

This person who made me use the broom while he got to use the hockey stick...

okay...He indeed made it to the airport in time and is now home. I believe in you and love you Brother.

Happy Tuesday,

Amanda