One of the tasks I’ve taken on in our household is laundry. I tend to do the things that I can still accomplish with my limited vision, and then T does the other ones. And I don’t mind laundry; for some inexplicable reason, I enjoy folding and hanging clothes. (Since there’s always some kind of running shirt or shorts in the laundry, perhaps it helps appease my addiction to new running clothes….? I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to leave that one for all the psychologists out there to ponder.)
When I moved in, one thing that confused me, though, was she had this dryer with no lint screen to empty. I had looked several times, and I never could find the lint trap, so I figure that’s a nice feature to have: an automatic version that would just clear itself every load or two. You don’t even have to think about it…so I didn’t.
About three, four, maybe five months later, I mentioned to T that it was great that there was this automatic lint cleaneron the dryer. It’s nice that I never had to empty it, and get lint dust all over, and what a great feature to have on the clothes dryer, and I’d never seen one like that before, and just going on about what a great idea that was.
At first, she thought I was kidding. Then she looked at me and said smiling, “Yeah. It’s great. Your automatic lint cleaneris me!”
It turns out, she had been emptying it for me, never saying a word, until I brought it up. It was an older dryer, and the top surface of it was scratched up, so she had covered up the top with a towel. Although I didn’t know this at the time, of course you had to lift the towel to find the lint screen. Since I’d never lifted it all the way off, I didn’t even know the lint slot was there. Now I don’t have that excuse anymore.
Since then, I’ve noticed that automatic feature has disappeared…I guess I can’t play the “I’m blind” card on that particular issue anymore. :)
This is an Important Message brought to ye as a public service announcement from www.RunnerInsight.com …….
Ahoy d’ere matey, and a throaty “Aaarrrrrrgh” to ye. Come hither, me beauty, and shiver me timbers. Me finds it to be, fer some reason, unbeknownst to my thinkin’ parts as to why, but I’m a-feelin’ like I might need to be bringin’ dis event which be o’ tremendous import to de attention of all ye who darest to step forth onto de land or sea around de whole wideness of de world dis day!
For de unbeknowingest of all ye landlubbers and buccaneers, and me a-feelin’ it be me duty to tell ye, dis 19th day o’ dis month o’ September-ness in de year o’ 2008 comes to be, of all things, International Talkin’ Like de Pirate Day. (In case if’n ye kin’t hear me so good, I said it be de INTERNATIONAL TALKIN’ LIKE De PIRATE DAY!) Aaaarrrgh! (is d’ere any buddy out d’ere dat might be a-knowin’ how to spell de “Aaaarrrrggh” word anyhows…?)
Incredible as it may be to de already a-knowin’ among ye, but d’ere are plenty o’ landlubbers out d’ere in da world and a couple o’ bilge rats, too, dat doesn’t have de thinkin’ knowingness of de genuine import of dis day created to be a day o’ jocularity and revelry. (Dat bein’ known as jest plain ol’ straight-out fun to ye and me and we.)
If’n ye be a lubber de rest o’ de days in dis year, it still be mighty satisfyin’, so go ahead ye there and be a-sayin’ it loudly and proudly like ye means it …..“Aaarrrrrrgh” and teach thine parrot to be a-speakin’ it, too.
But n’er to forget ye mateys, it’s to be de International Talkin’ Like de Pirate Day. None of ye scalawags need be Actin’ Like de Pirate! If’n ye be a-causin’ any trouble, I’ll be a-stringin’ ye up and ye’ll be a-hangin from de yardarm most likely. So today get out yer treasure map and put yer saber aways; yer not cut out to be a-fittin’ in to de outfit anyways. . .
I love my daily Starbucks, as you may have noted from my previous blog posts, so I love this story. And for those of you that have been inquiring as to how you could buy me a cup of coffee, please see the bottom of this post…. Thanks!!
Now on to the content…..
I’m sure that many of you have seen this story before, as it’s been in my email inbox a few times over the past few years. I think it gets forwarded around from time to time. A friend of ours, Jessi, sent it to us this week, and we thought we’d share it with you (again or for the first time….) Thanks Jessi!
Wanting to give credit, we looked it up on the internet, and here’s what we found. It appears that it was written by Laura Bankston. Laura Bankston, Anchorage, Alaska is author of Internationally selling Cooking with Kids Curriculum: Homeschool Cooking in a Box and the Homeschool Cookbook. She currently home schools her three children, maintains home school support websites, and manages their family-owned service business. For information on her curriculum and free home school support services, please visit: http://www.homeschoolcookbook.com .
The Mayonnaise Jar and 2 Cups of Coffee
— Laura Bankston
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee:
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous “yes.”
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
“Now,” said the professor as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things–your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions–and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else–the small stuff. “If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
“Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first–the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked.
It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room to share a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”
Please share this with someone you care about. I JUST DID!
How ‘bout it?
Vision Runner
P.S. For those of you who’ve been inquiring as to how to share a cuppa Starbucks with me, we’ve included the following links below….
The first is to donate $2.50 (USDollars) for a cuppa. The second is to donate $10.00 to me so I can get a Starbucks gift card. And the third button is for you to provide whatever amount you choose. Thanks again to those of you who asked and suggested I include a link to do so. We looked into it, and the links are below. Again, I appreciate it. Thank you so much…A bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck….. VR
P.S.S. I’ve also included the link to the StarbucksStore.com site, so you can give a gift of coffee or tea to yourself, as well. Why not? You deserve a little pampering, too!
I’d like to donate a cuppa coffee to Vision Runner, as I understand that all that running and writing requires a great deal of strength and energy and focus……
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I’d like to send Vision Runner $10.00 so that she can get a gift card for her favorite coffee establishment.
I’m feeling very creative and I don’t want to be inhibited by someone else’s choices. I’m going to pick my own dollar amount…cause what if I want it to end with 46 cents or something?
I'd like to donate a cuppa coffee to Vision Runner, as I understand that all that running and writing requires a great deal of strength and energy and focus......
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I'd like to send Vision Runner $10.00 so that she can get a gift card for her favorite coffee establishment.
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I'm feeling very creative and I don't want to be inhibited by someone else's choices. I'm going to pick my own dollar amount...cause what if I want it to end with 46 cents or something?
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What about me? I need some for me..... (Go ahead. Order some for yourself, why don't ya?)
Day. (In case if’n ye kin’t hear me so good, I said it be de INTERNATIONAL 
) Aaaarrrgh! (is d’ere any buddy out d’ere dat might be a-knowin’ how to spell de “Aaaarrrrggh” word anyhows…?)
Day. None of ye scalawags need be Actin’ Like de Pirate! If’n ye be a-causin’ any trouble, I’ll be a-stringin’ ye up and ye’ll be a-hangin from de yardarm most likely. So today get out yer 
and put yer 
aways; yer not cut out to be a-fittin’ in to de 
anyways. . .
. He then asked the
