VOL - What is that?

VOL stands for Virtual Online Learning.com. And what is that? VOL is a wonderful group of successful people who have made the decision that learning never stops no matter how old we become. There is always something new to learn. Always something we can improve or change to make better. Kudos go to Danna Crawford for starting the group. She'll be your biggest cheerleader!


We are all business people of all ages and from around the world who come together in a virtual classroom and learn from each other stuff related to the internet. Most of it relates to how to improve our eBay businesses but any business that has a website online can benefit from this group.


What I personally like about it best is the fact that its all inclusive and Deaf friendly! I am Deaf but I'm still welcomed and can participate. Yes, all the classes are done via talking over the phone or via the computer speakers but most (if not all) also come with a PP (powerpoint) slide presentation and the leaders take the time to transcribe their notes for me (and anyone else who requests written transcripts).


I am very blessed to be a part of this group. I invite you to come join us and I invite you to do it soon as I have seen that the fee is going to go UP January 1. This is a one time life time fee and a real deal! Don't delay. If you have a business, it is required that you continue to learn from others. Don't waste time figuring it out yourself when you can have mentors who are able and willing to answer your questions 24/7. Make wise use of your time! See you on the VOL boards!

There is a huge Gap - Shown in ASL

An excellent video. Please click on the video to see it in whole on youtube. Sorry wasn't able to make it fit here. Please watch!

Master's Hands Deaf Church - In the News

SWARTZ CREEK, Michigan — Brenda Bienlein remembers feeling left out at church.

“I grew up going to a hearing church,” Bienlein said in sign language. “I heard nothing. I tried to lip-read. I didn’t have much success.

Even going to a traditional service with interpreters signing the words poses challenges, she said. It’s like worshipping in a second language.

John Ehlke | The Flint Journal
Shannon Pierce, Mike Pierce and Deena McGee of Mt. Morris sign with each other during a Sunday School session during a test run at Master Hands Deaf Church in Swartz Creek.

Giving the deaf a chance to worship and gather in their first language — American Sign Language — is the idea behind Master’s Hands Deaf Church, which held its first service Sept. 12 in its own building, said John Bienlein, Brenda’s husband and the pastor.

The new church, 6299 Miller Road, grew out of efforts to expand services for the deaf at Cornerstone Baptist Church, which is next door. About 15 years ago, Cornerstone began a deaf ministry, which included having interpreters for worship service. About three years ago, Master’s Hands was formed as a sort of church within a church. Now, the congregation has moved into its own building, a four-bedroom ranch-style house on Cornerstone’s property.

At Master’s Hands, all services are conducted in sign language.

“Interpreting is always involving a third person,” said John Bienlein, 50, who is not deaf. “It’s better to have a message received in your own, natural language that you grew up with, that you know.”

The congregation at Master’s Hands, like all deaf churches, is smaller than hearing churches, the pastor said. About 10 to 15 people attend Sunday mornings. The main seating area, formerly a living room, has 21 folding chairs set up.

Aside from all communication being in sign language, the church is similar to hearing churches, Bienlein said. He gives a sermon and leads prayers, and even traditional hymns are signed in unison.

“They know the words. ... The words have meaning to them,” he said.

People also are free to sign questions or feedback to the pastor during the service, an act that would draw stares at a hearing church, he said.

“Here, if there’s an idea that pops up, a deaf person will speak up,” he said.

The church plans to host Sunday School at 9:45 a.m. each week, followed by a worship service at 11 a.m. and a 6:30 p.m. Bible study Wednesdays. Hearing people are welcome to attend, but they might need an interpreter.

“It’s very important to go to a deaf church because (it’s the) same language,” Brenda Bienlein signed. “It’s more inclusive. ... It’s good to have fellowship with other deaf.”

Video

Master's Hands Deaf Church - New Church in Town

It is always so exciting to be part of God's work! It is always a joy to get a call to be involved and obey. It is amazing to see God do "his thing" and know it is God in action. Last month I was blessed to be there for a very important day. Master's Hands Deaf Church became its own church on September 12, 2010. This is a mission church of Cornerstone Baptist Church. I am blessed and honored to be the pastor's wife and to support my husband, Pastor John, 100% as he obeys his call from the Lord. Our local news channel was there. The local newspaper was there. So much attention and all for a wonderful reason... to spread the gospel. That is our goal. Its not about numbers. Its about our relationship with Jesus Christ. Its our goal to teach and show both Deaf and hearing how to improve and make stronger their everyday relationship with Christ. Jesus wants you so much to be a part of his kingdom. He wants you to be a child of a King. You can have that today. How? Simply admit and agree that you are a sinner (all of us are). Believe that Jesus died for your sins on the cross. Why? Because he wants to save you. What does that mean? Save me from what? He loves you so much and wants to have eternal life with you! Confess your sins to him and make it a goal to live your life as Jesus would. Make Jesus smile!

Where will you go after you die? There are only two possibilities. You can go to heaven or you can go to hell. Its your choice. Don't make the wrong choice. Don't delay either as you never know when you will take your last breath. Accept and believe in Jesus today! If you are local, we welcome you to join us at Master's Hands Deaf Church in Swartz Creek, Michigan. If you are out of the area, we ask that you pray for our ministry to be true to the gospel of Jesus Christ and to reach out to the lost (both Deaf and hearing). Thank you. God bless you richly.

Wacky Cake...Are you familiar with that?

Birthday Cake

Last week was my daughter's 15th birthday. She asked for a chocolate cake with vanilla icing. I am not a big baker or even an everyday cook. I am blessed to have a husband who enjoys cooking and willingly cooks the family meal most days. I do cook now and then. Because we simply don't need the calories of baked goods its a treat when I do bake.

Anyways... its my daughter's birthday and she wanted a birthday cake. Ok... I immediately think of Wacky Cake. Have you ever heard of that? I grew up on this and I'm pretty sure its the most often baked cake in our family history. Not only is it super moist and tastes good but its easy, its fast and it doesn't require a lot of ingredients. The most likely reason its made is because we probably already had those ingredients in our cupboards so it didn't require a trip to the store. There are no eggs, butter or milk in this cake.

And that is the reason I made Wacky Cake for my daughter's 15th birthday last week. Before I give you the recipe, I want to share a funny story that is constantly told when the family gets together and Wacky Cake comes up.

Funny Story

As I mentioned above, I grew up on this cake. I come from a big family of 8 kids but by the time I was in my early teens, only 5 of us kids were still living at home. My father had a grocery/garden combination store. We lived above the store. That comes in handy sometimes if we need an ingredient and hope my dad carries it in his store! Anyways, all of us kids were expected to work in the store. I just so happened to be half of a twin so when we came home from school, one of us was responsible for making supper (we didn't call it dinner in those days) and the other one responsible for working in the store until it was time to eat. Since I was not a big fan of cooking, I usually opted to work in the store and my twin sister made supper. However now and then we did switch roles.

Trying to impress my family that I could cook if I wanted to, I decided to make a Wacky Cake for dessert one day. I had made this before so it was not the first time I made this. I carefully followed all the instructions and it came out beautifully. My mom came in the kitchen and asked why it smelled like vinegar. I told her I made a wacky cake for dessert. We had supper and then it was time to have dessert. I proudly showed off my Wacky Cake. I think it was my mom who had the first piece. She took a bite, made a face and spit it out. OH NO... it was that awful?? Seemed I had switched the measurements for vinegar and water! Oh boy! So.... obviously that explained why the whole kitchen smelled like vinegar and why we didn't have dessert that night. (I don't remember for sure but we probably sent someone down to the store to pick out a bag of cookies or something for our dessert that meal! We ALWAYS had dessert with our meals)

So, I take a ribbing about this every time Wacky Cake comes up in the family. Here is the recipe.... be sure NOT to switch the measurements for vinegar and water! Consider yourself warned.

Wacky Cake

3 cup flour

2 cup sugar

6 tbs cocoa

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp Salt

Mix the above dry ingredient in a bowl with a fork. Make a well in the middle to pour the liquids in.

2 tsp vanilla

2 Tablespoons Vinegar

3/4 oil

2 cups water

Mix the liquids together with a fork

Pour the liquid into well made in the dry ingredient bowl. Stir with fork.

Pour into a rectangle cake pan (this does not work as a double cake. Its too moist)

Bake 350 degrees for 40 mins.

After cake cools, sprinkle with a dusting of confectioner sugar or icing of your choice.

More facts about Wacky Cake

I googled "Wacky Cake" and found out more about this recipe ...

Wacky Cake was actually born out of the seriousness of wartime rationing. At various times during the world wars, eggs, butter, sugar, and milk were all in short supply, so inventive home cooks and home economists did their best to create dishes with limited ingredients. Wacky cake is a moist chocolate cake prepared, miraculously enough, without eggs or butter.

Enjoy.

How much does a prayer weigh?

I believe in miracles. This is one of my favorite stories. This is not something that I wrote but am sharing. I have seen it in shorter versions in email forwards but I like this longer (and maybe its the original?) version best. I hope this causes you to wonder on the power of prayer too. Be blessed and seek the Lord today!

The question is: How much does a prayer weigh?

The only man I ever heard of who tried to weigh one still does not know.

Once upon a time he thought he did. That was when he owned a little grocery store on the west side. It was a week before Christmas after World War 1. A tired looking woman came into the store and asked him for enough food to make up a Christmas dinner for her children. He asked her how much she could afford to spend.

She answered, "My husband didn't come back. I have nothing to offer but a little prayer."

This man confesses that he was not very sentimental in those days. A grocery store could not be run like a bread line.

So he said, "Write it on paper," and turned about his business.

To his surprise, the woman pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to him over the counter. She said, "I did that during the night, watching over my sick baby."

The grocer took the paper before he could recover from the surprise; then he regretted having done so, for what could he do with it? What could he say?

Then an idea suddenly came to him. He placed the paper without even reading the prayer on the weight side of his old fashioned scale. He said, "We shall see how much food this is worth."

To his astonishment, the scale would not go down when he put a loaf of bread on the other side. To his confusion and embarrassment, it would not go down though he kept on adding food - anything he could lay his hands on quickly, because people were watching.

He tried to be gruff, but he was making a bad job of it. His face got red, and it made him angry to be flustered.

So finally he said, "Well, that's all the scales will hold anyway. Here is a bag. You will have to put it in yourself. I am busy."

With what sounded like a gasp or a little sob, she took the bag and started packing in the food, wiping her eyes on her sleeve every time her arms were free to do so. He tried not to look, but he couldn't help seeing that he had given her a pretty big bag and that it was not quite full. So he tossed a large cheese down the counter, but he did not say anything. nor did he see the timid smile of grateful understanding which glistened in her moist eyes at this final betrayal of the grocer's crusty exterior.

When the woman had gone, he went to look at the scales, scratching his head and shaking it in puzzlement. Then he found the solution. The scales were broken. But as the years passed, he often though of it and wondered if that really was the solution. Why did the woman already have the prayer written to satisfy his unpremeditated demand? Why did she come at exactly the right time when the scale was broken? What confused him so that he did not notice it and kept piling on the food with only a scrap of paper in the weight pan? He had felt like a fool and hardly knew what he was doing.

The grocer is an old man now. his head is white, but he still scratches it in the same place and shakes it slowly back and forth with the same puzzled expression. he never saw the woman again, and come to think of it, he had never seen her before either. Yet, for the rest of his life, he remembered her better than any other woman in the world and thought of her more often.

He knew it had not been just his imagination, for he still had the slip of paper upon which the woman's prayer had been written: "Please Lord, give us this day our daily bread."

What happened on the day you were born?

This Day Trivia

This is fun and educational! Click on the date of your birth - or any date - and see what happened in history.

I discovered that Ben Franklin first flew his kite on my birthdate in 1752. In 1919, the first Trans Atlantic airplane took place. Oh yeah.. in 1992, then Vice President Dan Quayle misspelled "potato" during an elementary school spelling bee.

You also get to see what famous people share your birthday or had the misfortune of dying on that date.

Check it out and learn something new today!

This Day Trivia

Slow Down...You Move Too Fast

I received this in my email today and it deeply impacted me. I want to share with you and hope this will make you think as well. I don't do a lot of driving myself as I work from home so really don't have anywhere I MUST go everyday in a car but it really irritates me to see people flying down the freeways with no thoughts beyond getting to where they need to go as soon as possible. Please... please slow down.. you are moving TOO FAST!


Read This Slowly


Jack took a long look at his speedometer before slowing down: 73 in a 55 zone. Fourth time in as many months. How could a guy get caught so often? When his car had slowed to 10 miles an hour, Jack pulled over, but only partially. Let the cop worry about the potential traffic hazard. Maybe some other car will tweak his backside with a mirror. The cop was stepping out of his car, the big pad in hand..

Bob? Bob from Church? Jack sunk farther into his trench coat. This was worse than the coming ticket. A cop catching a guy from his own church. A guy who happened to be a little eager to get home after a long day at the office. A guy he was about to play golf with tomorrow. Jumping out of the car, he approached a man he saw every Sunday. A man he'd never seen in uniform.

'Hi, Bob. Fancy meeting you like this.'
'Hello, Jack.' No smile.
'Guess you caught me red-handed in a rush to see my wife and kids.'
'Yeah, I guess..' Bob seemed uncertain..
Good.
'I've seen some long days at the office lately. I'm afraid I bent the rules a bit -just this once.'
Jack toed at a pebble on the pavement.
'Diane said something about roast beef and potatoes tonight. Know what I mean?'
'I know what you mean. I also know that you have a reputation in our precinct..'

Ouch.
This was not going in the right direction. Time to change tactics.

'What'd you clock me at?'
'Seventy. Would you sit back in your car please?'
'Now wait a minute here, Bob..
I checked as soon as I saw you. I was barely nudging 65..'
The lie seemed to come easier with every ticket.
'Please, Jack, in the car'
Flustered, Jack hunched himself through the still-open door.
Slamming it shut, he stared at the dashboard.
He was in no rush to open the window.

The minutes ticked by.

Bob scribbled away on the pad..
Why hadn't he asked for a driver's license?
Whatever the reason,
It would be a month of Sundays
Before Jack ever sat near this cop again.
A tap on the door jerked his head to the left.
There was Bob, a folded paper in hand
Jack rolled down the window a mere two inches,
Just enough room for Bob to pass him the slip.
'Thanks..'
Jack could not quite keep the sneer out of his voice.

Bob returned to his police car without a word.
Jack watched his retreat in the mirror.
Jack unfolded the sheet of paper.
How much was this one going to cost?

Wait a minute.
What was this? Some kind of joke?
Certainly not a ticket.. Jack began to read:

'Dear Jack, Once upon a time I had a daughter. She was six when killed by a car. You guessed it - a speeding driver. A fine and three months in jail, and the man was free. Free to hug his daughters, all three of them. I only had one, and I'm going to have to wait until Heaven Before I can ever hug her again. A thousand times I've tried to forgive that man. A thousand times I thought I had. Maybe I did, but I need to do it again. Even now. Pray for me. And be careful, Jack, My son is all I have left.' 'Bob'

Jack turned around in time to see Bob's car pull away and head down the road.
Jack watched until it disappeared. A full 15 minutes later, he too, pulled away and drove slowly home, praying for forgiveness and hugging a surprised wife and kids when he arrived...

Life is precious. Handle with care.

This is an important message;

Drive safely and carefully.

Remember, cars are not the only things recalled by their maker.

Out of Touch

Isn't it interesting how we get into routines and then just as quickly, we get out of them again? I know I was blogging pretty faithfully last year but I can't even remember what happened... but something did and I got distracted and simply just forgot to blog. I have to relearn how to do this again. I even struggled to remember my password to get in here!


Blame it on old brain cells or lack of interest and motivation? Probably both. I know this is my first blog post this year so far. I know my blogs were in the "dead" zone because I was getting constant spam messages in the comments. I have since changed my settings. I apologize for the inconvenience for having to figure out what all those bunched up letters and numbers are to leave a comment but they do cut down on spam.


So... what is new with me since last fall? I'm thinking...


My life is pretty stable...always has been. I pretty much stay the same year after year without making major changes but more like baby steps. I am still working on eBay and I'm still a "Power Seller" although they have now changed that term to "Top Rated Seller". Just got my certificate in the mail this week which is hanging on my eBay hall of fame door. Hey... I got several new consignment clients the past few months too! They keep my inventory fresh and varied.


Business is also stable... not getting rich but enough to pay the bills and have a little left over for "stuff" - mostly to pay for stuff related to our kids. We have one kid graduating from high school this May so that means we will be having an "Open House" for him this summer. I guess that will be my summer project and motivate me to do things to improve the inside and outside of the house.


I'm still involved with Deaf Cafe which went through some rough ups and downs the past 6 months or so. What a ride that was but God provides for our needs, as always and we give Him an applause of praise and thanksgiving.


My husband is still working for Delta/NW so I still do a little bit of traveling.. not as much as I wish but we go as we are able. I was in Wash DC/VA area a week ago and it was good to force me to get out of town. Sometimes traveling is a pain in the neck with the packing and in my situation, being stuck in airports if there are no standby seats available. I learn to be flexible and patient!


Hope you all have a lovely day and I hope to get back to more frequent blogging!

The Case of the Missing Hearing Aid

Now I can laugh about it but it wasn't funny when it happened!

Before I bring you up to date, I went back to my first post about this incident which I posted almost 2 years ago on December 7, 2007. wow. I didn't realize it was that long!

This is a copy and paste of the second paragraph from that posting. You can read the whole thing here if you want.

More than two months ago, before I went to bed, I put my hearing aid on the nightstand beside my bed. I normally put my aid on the dresser with my glasses but it was one of those nights I was especially tired. I did take off my glasses and put them on the dresser but after I was already in bed, I realized I hadn't taken off my hearing aid. I was too tired and didn't want to leave my warm bed so I just removed my hearing aid and put it on the nightstand next to me. That was the last time I saw it.

Back to today. I found it! For almost two years it has been lost and all that time it was practically staring me in the face.

Yesterday I shampooed my carpet that runs through my living room, dining room and hallway. Since I only do this once a year or so, I do a thorough job of it. I remove as much furniture as I can and get everything off the floor. In one corner of my living room, I have a low wood table. On top of that, I have the TV I use only for VP (video phone) purposes. Under that table, there is a large wicker basket. It is just filled with old magazines that I haven't looked at in... well.. two years? I know Merry (one of our our cat) likes to curl up in that basket and nap. The heating vent is also in that corner so its nice and cozy on cold winter days.

Anyways, yesterday I pulled out that basket and went through the pile of dusty magazines. I got all the way to the bottom and couldn't believe my eyes... there was my long lost hearing aid!!!! It was certainly dusty but looks just fine. Wasn't chewed up or anything! I haven't yet tried it on. I'm sure the battery is no longer good.

I have since purchased a new hearing aid that cost me an arm and leg since I lost this one so now I have two! I just happen to have another hearing aid mold for the opposite ear laying around so maybe I'll play with the idea of trying two hearing aids to see if I can tolerate that or not. I have tried twice to use two aids at the same time over the years but couldn't stand so much noise surrounding me. But, maybe if I give it another chance within the quiet of my home, I can teach my brain and ears to accept it. It wouldn't hurt. If it doesn't work, I just go back to what I had all this time.. just an aid in my right ear.

Sometimes its nice to just do without and have total quiet. This is what most of my day is. I normally don't even put my aid in unless I'm leaving the house and must face the public.

As for how my aid got in that basket... I can only suspect one of the cats removed it from the nightstand that night 2 years ago. They might have played soccer with it a little bit and then for reasons only they know, took it to that wicker basket under the wood table where the VP sits.

Now I can laugh about it!

Two Words Why I Love Facebook!

EQUAL COMMUNICATION!

That is why I love Facebook! I think of Facebook as a coffee house. There are groups of people sitting here and there... people coming in and coming out...some stay for awhile and some just pop in to say hello, look around and leave again. These are all people I know. Each group is having its own conversation and at any time, I can "butt" in and participate in the conversation or I can "lurk" around the edges and just "listen" to the others chat. I can even start my own conversation and see who comes and joins in.

I love Facebook because I can HEAR/read every single word same as every one else. I am not missing snatches of conversations. I am not laughing a fake laugh and not having a clue what I'm laughing at. I am not adding a comment to a conversation only to find out they are now discussing something else. I am not attempting to lipread conversations bouncing from one person to another and each time it "bounced", the subject changes. I am not frustrated with feeling "left out". This is my experience being the only Deaf in a hearing group.

With Facebook, I can be as active and participate as I want to. I LOVE hearing/reading the little comments of my friends and seeing what they are up to that day. Are they having a good or bad day? Can I rejoice with them over a blessing? Can I give them a virtual hug if they need or maybe some counsel? Can I just smile and laugh with them for a few minutes?

I've been on Facebook I guess 6 months or so now. A friend or two got my started and then I learned how Facebook would benefit my business so many business friends became my "friends". I have hearing and Deaf friends on Facebook. I have church friends and business friends on Facebook. I even have a few friends from high school and college on Facebook. Just recently... starting last week in fact... my family - both on my husbands and my side... joined Facebook. WOW. I had suggested this to them months ago but at that time, they were not so keen on the idea. I'm happy to hear that something caused them to change their mind. Now I can finally participate in conversations with my family... something that is not always easy to do in person. The fact that my side of the family is scattered in 4 different states and I'm the only one here in Michigan means we don't see each other in person much. I can finally say I have family on Facebook too!

Best of all... I love Facebook because it allows me to be myself... doesn't matter if I'm hearing or deaf... on Facebook...we are ALL equal!

While only people I know can become my friend on Facebook, I do invite you to become a fan of my business page....BienleinDesign Finds

See you on Facebook!

Proofreading in a dying art....

I often do newsletters for church or clients so I am familiar with proofreading mistakes that sometimes happen. I got this list of proofreading gaffes in an email today and it just makes me laugh! Thought I would share and give you some chuckles too. I do not know who originally put this together so unable to give proper credit. Enjoy...


Proofreading is a dying art, wouldn't you say?

Man Kills Self Before Shooting Wife and Daughter
This one I caught in the SGV Tribune the other day and called the Editorial Room and asked who wrote this. It took two or three readings before the editor realized that what he was reading was impossible!!! They put in a correction the next day.
------------------------------------------------

Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
No joke, really? Ya think?
------------------------------------------------

Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
Now that's taking things a bit far!
------------------------------------------------

Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over
What a guy!
------------------------------------------------

Miners Refuse to Work after Death
No-good-for-nothing' lazy so-and-so's!
------------------------------------------------

Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
See if that works any better than a fair trial!
------------------------------------------------

War Dims Hope for Peace
I can see where it might have that effect!
------------------------------------------------

If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile
Ya think?!
------------------------------------------------

Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
Who would have thought!
------------------------------------------------

Enfield ( London ) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
They may be on to something!
------------------------------------------------

Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
You mean there's something stronger than duct tape?
------------------------------------------------

Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge
He probably IS the battery charge!
----------------------------------------------

New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
Weren't they fat enough?!
-----------------------------------------------

Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
That's what he gets for eating those beans!
-------------------------------------------------

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
Do they taste like chicken?
-------------------------------------------------

Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half
Chainsaw Massacre all over again!
-------------------------------------------------

Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
Boy, are they tall!
-------------------------------------------------

And the winner is....
Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead

Did I read that right?
-------------------------------------------------


Now that you've smiled at least once, it's your turn to spread the stupidity and send this to someone you want to bring a smile to (maybe even a chuckle). We all need a good laugh, at least once a day!

How Great Thou Art in ASL

How Great Thou Art is one of my top favorite songs. I can never get through it without tearing up and just sobbing. The third verse especially is extremely powerful.

This video was done by Ronaldo Feliciano. Ronaldo is the Deaf pastor of Tampa Baptist Deaf Church in Florida. Even if you don't know ASL, you can "see" the music in his soul!

Pause a moment from whatever you are doing and stand in awe of the Almighty God we serve!

Back to Blogging and Summer Movies

wow... I didn't realize I haven't been blogging in too long of a time. I need to get back into the habit. Its interesting how summer brings new routines and habits. For instance, since I work from home and have my own business... www. bienleindesign.com... I do not have set hours that I have to go to bed or wake up. I'm SO blessed!

My kids are teenagers so they are pretty much on their own and share many of the same habits I have... stay up late and sleep in in the morning. Unfortunately, my husband MUST wake at 3am as he starts work at 4am so all years around, he is the only one who still has set hours.

I rarely watch TV and even when I do, I am often doing something else at the same. I am reading a book or I am doing business related stuff on the laptop or maybe ironing. I just can't seem to SIT and DO NOTHING. To me, that is a waste of time. But... during the summer, I change.

Since I don't have to be awake at a set time to get the kids up and off to school, I have been doing the following routine for about a month now... I work on business related stuff until about 10 or 11pm. During that time, I'm not normally on the computer but I could be cleaning up or reorganizing my inventory.. I'm selecting the items I plan to post the next day...I take photos of those items or I pack up sold items for shipping the next day. Always something to do. I'm normally on the computer only up until about 3 or 4pmish.

So, anyways... at around 10 or 11pm, I force myself to stop. Now is my downtime. I find the remote and just browse through the Guide until I come across a movie that looks interesting. I try to pick one I haven't seen before, that has at least 3 stars rating and that is closed captioned. It really bums me to find a great movie and then discover it is not captioned or the captions are so screwed up, its not worth it.

I watch almost anything but I'm not a fan of the overly violent, gory or incredibly stupid movies (most of those DON'T get 3 star ratings!) or westerns. I like science fiction and most of anything else! I especially love Turner Classic movies - those in black and white! I try to do nothing else but just watch the movie. So far, I have not fallen asleep during a movie. I go to bed when its over and that is normally around 1am.

Of course, all this will end starting September when my kids are back to school and I need to get up at 6am again. Thus the routine changes with the calendar. No more late movies until the next June rolls around. In the meantime, I'll just enjoy catching up with old movies while I can.

I want to add that I never go to watch movies in the theater - mostly because none in my immediate area offer captioned movies. We don't often rent or buy movies either so I am years behind in watching the movies that won all the awards and such. That is not a big deal at all to me.

Being Deaf within Hearing Groups

It was almost a last minute decision to fly out to Tucson, AZ to spend the holiday weekend with my college roommate Grace. They are constantly telling us to come out to visit them and we try to at least once a year. John was supposed to go with me but that didn't work out so my 13 yr old daughter went with me instead. We are blessed to be able to fly free as John is an employee of Delta airlines.

Grace knows a limited amount of sign language but she is one of those I normally have no problems lipreading so I'm comfortable being around her and we have a good time together. Her husband, Charlie is a little harder to lipread but I can manage. If necessary, Kayla will interpret what they say if I get stuck. It works out.

They have 9 horses on their mini ranch so I got to go horseback riding twice. My horse, "Chief", is so patience and tolerant of my inexperience. Kayla enjoyed riding "Ben" and she does a good job.

While we had a super relaxing weekend with Grace and Charlie, there were a few testing, stressful moments for me - all of which involved groups.

I do not do well in hearing groups. Put me with 3 or more people who do not sign and I'm lost. I am not able to follow conversations that bounce back and forth as the subject matter keeps changing...people don't keep their bodies in my line of sight...people are laughing and its pretty much impossible to lipread talking while they are laughing or smiling big... people are not looking directly at me... the lighting is not good... mustaches and beards (ugh... a deaf person's nightmare)...etc etc.

The first happened Saturday night when we attended an Open House for a friend's son who graduated. That was not too bad as that was also my first evening with Grace so it was our first chance to catch up with each other so we mostly sat at a table and chatted the whole time. I am pretty good with a one to one conversation as long as I know the subject we are discussing.

The next occasion was church on Sunday. They normally have an interpreter. I was there before with an interpreter so we all expected the same... except the interpreter did not show up. ugh... that meant I had to sit there for an hour and attempt to lipread everything. Not good. My lipreading skills are no longer as good as they once were. Since I learned ASL and spend most of my time around Deaf people, I don't depend on lipreading as much as I once did growing up. When I am sitting "deaf" within a hearing group, I tend to have "pity parties" for myself.

I hate that and I struggle with that. I really should have stopped feeling sorry for myself and just had a private worship and ignored what was going on around me but I have a hard time doing that. I tried SO HARD to lipread the pastor and it frustrated me so much that I had no idea what he was saying. I'm curious if any of the readers also feel this way. I spent more time trying to hold back tears than anything else.

The third occasion was Memorial day when Grace had 2 other couples over for a BBQ. I had met these people during previous visits with Grace so I knew who they were but never really related to them. We all sat around the table and the conversation just bounced from one thing to another. Grace would occasionally voice interpret what someone said. As long as she was talking directly to me, I could understand her. It was interesting to note that my daughter who was also there and knows sign very well, did not attempt to interpret except if I couldn't understand Grace. I never asked her to and would never put her into that position. That would have to be her choice. Just because she is a CODA, doesn't mean she is my personal interpreter. Perhaps when she gets older, she will feel more comfortable. That is fine.

I might be seeing these very same people again next month as we were invited to join them when they travel to Mexico and stay at their summer house on the beach. This time John is coming with us. While I won't force him to be my personal interpreter, I know he will be willing and I'm looking forward to the chance to get to know Grace's friends better as they are all very nice people.

Overall it was a very nice weekend and I'm glad I went. It forced me to take a break from work and do different things...even if sometimes they are out of my comfort zone!

God Gave Each of us an Angel

This is dedicated to all the moms out there! Hope you had a happy Mother's day and remember that EVERYDAY is Mother's Day and it is an honor to be a mom! Enjoy! If you doubleclick on the video, it will show up larger.

Vote for DOUA today!

Please Vote for Disabled Online Users Association. http://communicause.com/my-cause/1431/gwscY7DTmzrYLDgs

DOUA stands for Disabled Online Users Association. Its free for anyone who has any type of "disability" to join. No one judges you there. There are classes and forums where you can ask questions to help you get started with having a business on the internet. They have been a big encourager to me when I was struggling a few years ago. They are part of a contest to receive a $25,000 social media makeover. They deserve your support and your vote. GO and vote now! and many thanks!

Are you Spontanious? A Trip to Canada

Ever wake up and know you had the whole day as a clean slate... no appts... no plans....nothing that MUST be done that day? You are free to do as you want and then wonder... what DO I want to do today? Well.. this past weekend was such a day for our family. We had nothing planned at all. I was going to do the "usual" which is work on my eBay business. This is something I do everyday... no set hours but always have something I could be doing business related. Its actually rare for me to do something just for myself (like a hobby or such).

But anyways...Saturday we were bored. John did work some OT that morning 4am to 8am and did take a couple hours nap when he got home. About 10:30am, he asked me... want to go on an adventure? I said sure... I need to know what time we needed to leave the house as I was working on my shipping at that moment. He said ASAP. I said, ok.. give me 10 minutes to finish my shipping. I printed them off and he and our daughter taped the labels on the boxes while I changed my clothes, brushed my teeth and put together a bag with a book, mags, and my camera. We left the house in 10 minutes and headed to Bishop airport. I had no idea where we were going. I was just there for the ride. Unfortunately, we arrived too late. John was not aware that NW had pushed up their leaving time 20 minutes. We had just missed the cutoff time for loading.

Oh well.. back to the car and home again. Now what? We can't fly anywhere and didn't want to stay home and do the "usual" so what was left? A drive in the car! It was a very nice early spring day with the sun shining. I still didn't know where we were going but I did see John pull out our passports and our daughter's birth certificate. ummmm... We go east on I-69. We end up in Port Huron and then over the bridge into Canada. We are asked a few questions as far as where we were going (nowhere in particular) and how long we would be staying in Canada (just a few hours). That was it.

My daughter asked for the camera so these are her shots (I took one) of the day... In Canada we stop at the visitor center for a map and bathroom break. We decide to just head south and drive along St. Clair Lake. We passed several huge freighters on the lake. Its kinda boring on that side of the lake.


We go past several smelly oil refineries and rundown houses. I was saying to John... you would think the houses would be nicer as they have the lake view right in front of them. We drive until we hit the small town of Sombra.












This is where we end our Canadian drive and take the ferry back over to USA to Marine City. We are now "home" again as we once lived in this area and this is familiar to us. We stop at a Flea Market in Marine City and then drive along the shoreline until we hit the small town of New Baltimore. When we moved to MI from PA back in 1994, we lived in New Baltimore for 2 years before we moved to our current home in Flint.

Of course we had to stop by our old neighborhood and see if our old house was still there. IT WAS! and its for sale again! LOL. It was a nice house. It is a doublewide home. I loved the layout and large rooms but space was limited and no basement, etc made it hard. I also did not like how close the houses are. When I did the dishes, I could look into my neighbors living room. I would be very curious to see what it looks like inside now.

It was interesting driving through the town and remembering what was there before and what has changed. We checked out the church we used to attend and the elementary school our oldest attended. We checked out the beach we used to take the kids several times a week. They have a nice play-scape there now. We decided to stop for supper here and went to Ponchos which is a REAL Mexican restaurant... not Taco Bell!

We then headed up north and arrived home again about 7:30ish. So... that how we spent this past Saturday... being spontaneous!

Now this morning I got a text from John saying... do we have any plans for this Saturday? Are you up to leaving the house EARLY and arriving home LATE? Sure! Looks like another day of being spontaneous and just going "for the ride"! Who knows where we will end up!

Hero Video by Kirk Franklin

A friend of mine sent me this video called HERO by Kirk Franklin. It was performed live at her church in Columbus, Ohio on Easter Sunday.

While I can't actually hear the music, I can sing along by reading the words.

YES! Jesus is my hero
YES! He saves and He saved the Day!

Enjoy

Fire in Self Cleaning Oven on Easter Sunday

I had a terrific Easter weekend. It started with our regular monthly Deaf Cafe, Flint program on Saturday night. We had a Bible time Jerusalem theme. ALL the team members wore Bible time costumes. We had the usual dramas, songs, videos during the first half of the program. During the second half, we served Bible time food such as hummas, feta cheese, nuts, dried fruit, raisins, grapes, oranges, apples, olives, olive oil, honey and pita bread. It was wonderful meal. While eating, we showed part of the "Jesus" movie. The program ended with a short devotion. We decorated the room with props that made it looks like Jerusalem. We had drop cloths on the walls that were painted to look like stone. One of one members made two palm trees and more walls and gates from cardboard. It was one of the best Deaf Cafe programs we have done in 5 years.

Sunday we went to Deaf Church at Cornerstone where John, my husband, taught Sunday School and then preached in ASL. We had a very large group which was great! After church, we had two families over to our house for the traditional Easter meal of ham, etc. My husband did most of the cooking with Kirstan contributing her ozo salad (yummy). The food was terrific. I'm still stuffed! We spend the afternoon just sitting around the table chatting. It was a great day of being with good friends and knowing that Christ is alive!

However...the day almost ended in tragedy. My husband had gone back to church but I decided to stay home and clean up the kitchen. That's my job.. he cooks and I clean up. I started washing the dishes and I noticed that the oven got dirty so I decided to run the self-clean cycle. I then continued washing the dishes. I finished that and something made me turn around to check the oven and there was a fire inside it! It was shooting flames about 10" high in the middle where the crusted over food was. I did panic. My first thought was to open the door - which didn't work as it automatically locks when set for cleaning and it will not open until it cools down. I pushed all the buttons to turn off the cycle and that was successful. I must have screamed as my two teenagers came running to the kitchen. My 16 yr old is holding his phone saying... I'm going to call 911! I tell him to wait... as I could see the flames were getting smaller.. and smaller.. and smaller and finally it burnt itself out. big breath! This all happened in about 2 minutes.

It was another hour before the oven cooled down enough to unlock itself. I realized that it was the sugar glaze from the ham that set off the fire. I made the mistake of not cleaning up that mess BEFORE I set the cleaning cycle. I had used that feature many times over the years and never had a fire before. I don't know if I will use that feature again. I think I'm scared to now. But I praise my Lord for taking care of us and for patting down that fire. I praise the Lord that I was NOT successful at opening the door as that probably would have made it much worse feeding it oxygen. I praise the Lord that I was at HOME and had not left the house!

So.. please take this as a warning. If you use the self-cleaning feature on your stove, please make sure there are no grease or sugar drippings on the bottom that could catch fire. Make sure you are HOME. Never leave the house while this cycle is running. Most of all, make sure your smoke detectors are operating. I didn't have any smoke so my alarms did not go off.