Black Belt Living

Holiday Cheer Volunteer

I spent several hours with my friends over at Crayons-2-Computers this morning, helping stuff envelopes with their 4500 Christmas Cards that they will be mailing for the holidays.

Volunteering at C2C is always fun, no matter what I'm doing. Today's task was fun and easy and the group of people I worked with was a lot of fun as well. I was telling them a bit about the day that I spent my birthday with Heather, the C2C development director, at a local high security prison. That was a birthday that I'll never forget! 

I hope you'll take the time to read about my experience, here it is:  90 Minutes in Prison

Do you volunteer in your community? Has your volunteer work ever taken you to an unusual place, or out of your comfort zone?

Race for the Cure - Northwest Ohio

I'm headed up to Toledo this morning for a reunion of sorts. This past spring, my friend and Delta Delta Delta sorority sister Gretchen Gotthart Skeldon lost her fifteen year battle with breast cancer. This weekend, some of our TriDelt sisters are getting together to run/walk for Gretchen in the Northwest Ohio Race for the Cure. 

Gretchen was probably the kindest, most generous, and positive person that I've ever met in my life. I know that she's touched a bazillion lives in such a positive way over the years and while she will be dearly missed, she'll never be forgotten.

So I'm on the road this morning and staying with my friend Mary Helen, who I haven't seen for probably 25 years and I can't wait! I'm also hoping to catch up with a childhood friend, Teresa, who lives in Toledo. Teresa and I have been friends since I was four years old and she was three. That's a LOT of history right there, people. 

I'm going to attempt the walk tomorrow with my big camera, so we'll see how that goes. I hope I can get some good pics this weekend.

Catch ya on Monday!

Andy's Going to Jail!

Hey friends, Andy's going to jail tomorrow and since I don't like to cut the grass, I need him around! Please help bail him out.

Anything you could give is appreciated! All proceeds go to MDA, the Muscular Dystrophy Society. Anything you could give, even if it's a dollar, would be greatly appreciated.

You can donate here!

Bail Andy out of Jail for MDA

I'd also like to thank everybody for your kind thoughts and words about our sweet Olive. We know that the time was right, but it was still a tough week and we're still getting used to not having her here. Of course having Paisley has helped a lot. Life goes on.

I'll be back to regularly-scheduled blogging tomorrow!

Thanks for helping Andy out!

 

 

In the Blink of a Week

Wow, I swear that you blink and another week goes by.  What happened to the days when the school year seemed like an eternity and summer vacation was so long that you actually got bored? Those days are gone, aren't they? At least the dark days of April are winding down and my peonies are looking like they're going to bloom early this year. Adios, April, I'm never sorry to see you go! 

My apologies for no recipe this week.  I have been out of town for several days. I actually got on a plane and flew to New York to take photos for people - my first out of town photo gig. That was really cool! I sure hope it isn't the last.  For those of you who attended the events of this past weekend, I hope to get some sneak peeks up for you in the next couple of days.  And a huge thanks and many kisses to my gracious and great hostess and host Maggie & Marco, who always serve up the best company along with the best coffee. I think we all agree that it's been way too long! 

Anyhow, when you get home on a Monday night, it kind of throws off your whole week. I'll be making dinner for a friend this week who is recovering from surgery, so I think I'll post that later in the week or maybe next Tuesday on schedule.  Do you cook for friends who need a hand? I really enjoy doing that and I have a few tried-and-true meals that are not only delicious, but also good for putting in the freezer and saving for later if you'd like, so they work well. I just think that there's something special about sharing lovely food with people who need a bit of help. 

Sad to hear about Bret Michaels in ICU with a brain aneurism. That's scary, and it's something that could truly happen to any of us at any time. I don't know what it is about that crazy long haired rocker, but he seems to have a really good heart as well as being a good and caring dad. Maybe it's because he's my age, I don't know...I just like the guy. I sure hope that he can recover. 

 I guess that's it for me today. I know that I need to post some more photos and layouts, I'll do that later this week too. Have a great day!

Bullet List

Here's the low down on a busy weekend. I'd love a day off to do NOTHING

(not that I'm complaining)

 

Community service day at ACME
hosted Stanley Cup hockey party and BBQ
salon visit
new LAX gear for S
orthodontia "graduation" photo for S
trimmed a tree
driving range and putt-putt golf
uploaded more photos to Flickr 
edited pics
last choir mass of the year
huge grocery shopping trip
graduation party
another hockey party
visited relatives in for a few days

watched a cheezy disaster movie

and 
the
usual
chores
and
laundry.
Looking
forward 
to 
a
lazy
day
some
day.

Oh yeah.

The Photo Blog.

It's Back.

Right Here.

Aftermath

Well yesterday sure was a big day. I had no idea that being featured on  The Secret in the Sauce would be so huge, and it was totally fun. Again, I want to thank all of my guests who popped in to read and say hello yesterday. I sure enjoyed all of the comments, and I am pretty sure I've read them all so far. Thank you so much for your input and for taking the time to write.  

I got a bunch of fun questions, so I thought I'd try to answer some of them here today.  

Back in February, I wrote about meeting Herbert. It was one of my three blog entries that was featured yesterday. I seriously had no idea when I wrote that just how many people would end up reading and commenting. 

A week or so ago, my boss sent me back to that same Wal-Mart to pick up Tootsie Roll pops for an activity that we were doing at work.  And what do you know...guess who I ran into in the candy aisle? That's right, it was Herbert. He was buying more candy to share with others. He didn't remember me from when we first met, but I sure remembered him. I told him that I told a few people (heh!) about his lovely story and that he had sure brightened up a lot of people's days, just by chatting with me for a few minutes. 

He said that he's really enjoying the spring weather, and is glad that the Reds are back playing again. We talked about the starting rotation and how the bull pen needs some help. I asked him if people were continuing to be kind to him, and he assured me that they are. 

You can bet I'll be looking for him the next time I'm there. I'm sure I'll see him again, and I'll keep you posted on how he's doing. He's just such a dear man. I don't know how I got so lucky to have met him that day.

Another post that was featured was 90 Minutes in Prison.  Needless to say, this one was nothing like writing about Herbert. As I read it again yesterday, I realized that if you don't visit here on a regular basis, you wouldn't have any idea how I ended up spending half of my 2008 birthday at LCI.  

Even though my real "day job" is being the marketing communications person at ACME, I also do freelance photography on the side, primarily doing commercial work for local non-profit organizations. 

One of my favorite photography gigs is doing the annual report photography for a great organization, Crayons to Computers.  C2C is a free store for teachers that teach in underprivileged areas/schools. C2C delivered nearly $9M in supplies to local schools during the 2007-2008 school year. They do amazing work, and I'm thrilled to be a part of such a great program. 

While most supplies are donated and distributed "as is", they do have some educational toys that teachers can choose that are specially created for C2C. For last year's annual report, we tracked the manufacturing of one of C2C's "turn and learn" math toys.  These particular toys are fabricated and assembled at the LCI prison as part of their community outreach program, and therefore my friend Heather and I ended up at LCI so that I could take photos of the assembly for the annual report.  

Believe me, that trip to LCI was quite something, that's for sure. If you didn't get a chance to read my entry about touring the prison, I hope you will.  It was an experience you can believe that I will NEVER forget.  90 Minutes in Prison

Several people also asked me what kind of camera and equipment I use. I have a Canon 40D digital SLR, and in my bag I have the following lenses:

Canon 50mm 1.4

Canon 85mm 1.8

Tamron 17-55mm 2.8

Canon 28-135mm 3.5-5.6

I've also been able to borrow the Canon 24-70 2.8L from photog friends Grant and Deb, as well as Jessie in the past and I love love love it!  Maybe one day I'll get my own.  But don't fool yourself, you don't need big fancy schmantzy equipment to take good shots.  I also love to use my "baby camera" (Canon SD 1000 Elph) and it gives me shots like these:

 

And of course, you know I love my Blackberry and that I've been known to take a pic or two while driving....

Anybody want to book me for some portraits?  You help me, I'll help you!  Seriously, though. If you're in the greater Cincinnati area and you're looking for some portrait work, give me a shout.  I've got bookings open throughout the summer available. Just sayin'.....

My trifle recipe seems to have been a huge hit. So for you food fans out there, if you try any of my recipes, please drop me an email (there's an email link at the top left of the blog page) or leave a comment here and tell me what you think. And for the reader who assumed that I serve food like that limoncello trifle to my family on a regular basis.....I assure you I don't. You can ask my friend Jan and she'll tell you. We rarely eat dessert around here, so that was a rare and really tasty treat. If you want dessert daily, you need to visit HER house! She's always baking up something sinful while I'm at home trying to cut fat grams from a bowl of bran flakes, because that's how I roll.

And finally, it's Tax Day. Ugh. There is not a day on the calendar that I detest more. In four days, it'll be Termite Day. I detest Termite Day too, but not to the extent of Tax Day. In five days, the worst week of the year will be over for 51 more weeks, and that's a really good thing.  So to celebrate the passing of yet another Tax Day and as appreciation for all the love you have given me this week, I've got a $20 Target gift card to give away to somebody who leaves me a comment today. I'll pick the winner tomorrow at random, so be sure to leave me a comment and check back tomorrow to see if you are the winner!

Have a super day!  

Witness to a Miracle

Today's recipe Tuesday is going to be postponed until tomorrow, because I just had to report on my extraordinary President's Day.

I have been "on call" for literally months now, waiting to photograph the birth of K&J's baby. Yesterday morning, at 5:19am, the phone rang. Now the phone only rings at that time of day when school has been cancelled, and the weather has been perfect, so that wasn't the reason. I knew the reason immediately, and jumped to the phone. And I was right, it was J calling me to let me know that contractions were three minutes apart and that they were on the way to the hospital.

Now I've been prepared for this call for months, I was a total ditz when getting ready to leave the house. I couldn't find my back up flash card. I realized that my tripod was at the office (which was fine, I wouldn't have needed it). My phone had nearly no juice left. I had no clue what to wear. I acutally put the dog out and left her outside.

When I got to the hospital, K was in triage and the nurses told me that she was ready to deliver, and that I should be ready to run. Well they weren't kidding. After trying to walk herself down the hall to the birthing suite (dang, that hallway must have been a mile long), she had to push, so she was immediately plunked into a wheelchair and we all went racing full speed down that endless hallway. I'm telling you, that was surreal, especially at 6:15am, with nobody else around. It was like watching a television drama and living it all at the same time. But we made it, or I should say, K made it. Baby didn't come out in transit.

But baby did make his glorious entrance into the world at 6:49am. I have to say, it was an extraordinary experience. Mom was relieved, Daddy got a bit teary, Grandma was thrilled (first bio grandchild), and I bawled. It was such an honor to be invited to be there. I'll probably never see another birth unless they decide to go for #2, and if they do, I hope I'm invited back to the party.

So, that was my day yesterday. It was nice of baby William Alexander to make his entrance on President's Day, so that I didn't have to take any time off of work. And with that being said, I bring you possibly the second cutest baby ever....William. (and his cool family, of course).

And yeah, that's champagne, on Monday morning. The hell with Weight Watchers, we had some real celebrating to do. It was a heck of a way to start the week.

Herbert

A few weeks ago, I ran into the WalMart near my office to pick up a few things, I don't even remember what.

While I was walking through the produce section, an older gentleman came up to me and asked me if he could have a minute or two of my time. Right away I was taken aback. I immediately was thinking of reasons to flee. For one, I was on my lunch hour, I was already short on time, and I knew that I had to wait in line to check out. And two, I just didn't feel like being talked to about having my soul saved or anything remotely like that. But I'm a sucker for a kind older person, and this guy looked harmless, so I stopped and actually made some eye contact with him. That's when he gave me a piece of candy, a watermelon Jolly Rancher and asked me if he could have a minute of my time.

As it turns out, his name was Herbert. Herbert told me that he was 89 years old and several times a week, he grabs a bunch of candy, leaves his home, and heads to the WalMart to basically be nice to people.

He told me that four years ago, his beloved wife of sixty five years passed away from cancer. When it was pretty clear that she wasn't going to be recovering, he was so worried about her. But while he was busy worrying about her, she was more worried about him. She was so afraid that after she was gone, Herbert would sit alone at home and become reclusive and give up his will to keep on living. The day before she died, she told him of her fears. He told me that conversation literally saved his life as she was dying. That was when he made a promise to her that once she was gone, he wouldn't sit at home and "get old, feel sorry for himself, and give up". And so from that day forward, he has grabbed his candy every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and headed to WalMart to "meet nice people and try to pass along a piece of candy and a smile."

It was such a pleasure to just chat with him for a few minutes. I no longer cared if I was a few minutes late getting back to my desk. It was so obvious how much he loved and missed his wife, and how much joy he got by getting out of the house and meeting people. He told me that he's met all sorts of people...soldiers that fought in Iraq, business people, cute little kids, school teachers, and even a circus clown.

He said that people have always been kind to him. I was happy to hear that, because people aren't always nice, that's for sure.

One day he was in line and talking to a young couple in front of him who were checking out their groceries. When they had gone and it was his turn to pay for his things, the couple that he had talked to had made arrangements to pay for all of his items. To me, that's what the "pay it forward" thing is all about.

Herbert certainly made my day that day, right there in front of the broccoli, and all it took was a few kind words and a Jolly Rancher. In the promise that he made to his wife, he not only keeps himself living, but reminds everyday people in the Walmart about the power of a kind word.

I was honored that Herbert not only picked me to talk to, but let me take his picture that day. I told him that I wanted to take his picture so that I could share his story with my friends and family. Here he is:

Here's to Herbert!

What Do You Need To Say?

My regularly scheduled post for today is being postponed. I saw this video on Jan's blog yesterday and I thought it was absolutely beautiful and moving!  Of course I had to share.

It's no secret that I've been a bit anxious and down lately. If you've been feeling the same, or if you just want to put a smile on your face, take a few short minutes to watch this.  

'Say' Music Video from Matthew Singleton on Vimeo.

Here's what I need to say today....

To the person who stopped the car on the hill ~ THANK YOU on so many levels. Timing is everything.

What do you need to say today?

17 Seconds Can Change A Life

Meet David. David is my friend Lena's husband and he's in basic training in the Army.  David is just about ready to graduate, but there's one little snag. It's a 17 second snag. An important 17 second snag.

In Lena's words:

My husband was supposed to graduate from Basic Training on September 19th. He has completed all of the requirements...field training, obstacle courses, written tests, weapons qualifications, etc...But could not pass his PT test when it came to graduation week. He has to run two miles in 17 1/2 minutes and he was a minute over. So, he stayed at Ft. Knox and was told he was going to FTU-a fitness training unit. There they specialize in helping you to pass your PT test. David, and about 15 other "holdovers" as they call them, didn't go to FTU however. They stayed around the barracks and did crap work...painting the walls, washing trucks, and other busy work. They weren't allowed to do PT actually, except the occasional trip to the weight room. But no running except for the 2 or 3x a week PT tests, which David has continued to fail...though improving his time each test. He's now 20 seconds over on his two mile run. He's a very tall man, 6'0, and in great shape, but he has a very long torso and very short legs. He's working on his stride right now and his technique...trying everything he can to pass!

He called last night and told me they sent him to FTU, but that one of the drill sargeants gave him some bad news. That he won't receive another PT test until next Thursday (a week from today) and that is 27 days after his supposed graduation date. The drill sargeant continued on to say that if you don't pass your PT test by 28 days past graduation, you are discharged from the Army. :(

This is potentially devastating news. I know that exceptions may be made, and maybe they'll give him a little more time since he will have only been at FTU for one week, but if he doesn't pass he could be out of a job! Of course, we hope and pray that he passes! With nothing to focus on for a week but fitness hopefully it will be the boost he needs to make a difference and shave off that last 20 seconds. If he does get discharged from the Army, it means our world will be flipped upside down. We'll have no income coming in, and no place to live as it stands, either.

I'm not allowing myself to dwell on the negative possibilities. This is going to be a long week for me, not knowing, and not having any control over anything. All I can do is cheer him on from the sidelines. That's where I was hoping you could come in.

He gave me his new address at his FTU. I was hoping that maybe if he got enough letters of encouragement, it would help his morale and lift his spirits. It's one thing to hear that I'm praying and wishing the best, but it would be quite another to have the surprise of a stack of encouraging mail waiting for him!

I'm asking you to just send a little encouraging note, it doesn't have to be a novel...or a little card...but please don't send any packages :) I'm asking you ONLY to send something if you can get it in the mail on Friday or Saturday and live in the U.S. Obviously after next Wednesday he could be on his way home, or on his way to AIT at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO, so I don't want stray mail straggling in after that and being wasted. I have a feeling they don't forward soldiers' mail because they get so much of it after a person has already left the unit. I'm thinking anything mailed by Friday or Saturday will be recieved no later than Wednesday.

So I know that it's short notice, but if you can take five minutes and a stamp to drop a note in the mail today for a man who is committed to helping our cournty, I would appreciate it. I know Lena would too. Please help me help a friend!

I know that I've been pretty down lately, and this is a way to actually do something to help somebody else out, which in turn makes me feel better. Both Shannon and I will be making cards and sending them to David today. It doesn't have to be fancy or long. I think that we could all benefit from helping each other out a bit these days.

So run David! I know that you can do it!