Books

If that isn't the truth, then I don't know what it is.

I currently have a five shelved bookshelf with 117 books on it and 8 that have been borrowed out and will need to somehow be returned to these overflowing shelves.

 

There are 10 books sitting atop the Hoosier cabinet between Batman and Superman bookends.

 

Distributed between three shelves on the Hoosier cabinet there are 49 books.

 

This, my friends, is not a problem. It's an addiction.

 

If you chatted with my mother she would make it clearly known that there is no need for more books. I must object. There is always need for more books.

 

Over the years I have continued to request Chapters/Indigo gift cards from Santa for Christmas. With list in hand, I enter the store with much more book money than is needed, but walk out with a much happier soul.

 

A common piece of dialogue I have been forced to endure:

 

Spoken like a true book addict.

 

However, I do believe Mr. Jefferson said it best:

 

 

 

I do not deny that there are other important things in life, but I just love books so much. I can't really contain my excitement when I enter a book store. There is something so very magical about all the different authors and thoughts all mixed together under one roof. I shall never be at home without a bookshelf or two.

Happy reading! this is t-bear signing off

QOTD

Writing a letter and sending it through the mail is something I don't know if I can let go of. There is something about the communication that a letter brings. 

Everyone has the ability to write a letter. We all have the ability to pour our hearts out through handwritten letters, but we don't all have the courage to.

this is t-bear signing off

Our Big Roadtrip Adventure

Friday, September 12, 2014
After a rather successful day at work I was quite prepared for the three and a half hour travel, by car, to the wonderful city of St. Catherine's.

Alex and I had everything packed into the car and were ready to go at about 6:00 in the evening. We had plans to stop for a light supper at a service center off the 401 highway and then continue on our way. We proceeded, with much excitement and a rather loud stereo, from our humble abode into the great known, or so we thought. 

The traffic wasn't anything unnecessary. We were moving along at an excellent pace and weren't worried about having to drive along the QEW in the dark. We didn't anticipate there being too many other chipper traveling folk out at that time.

Everything was going according to plan until we were just off the 401, traveling along the 403 at a more than generous speed. We had just started talking about getting near the Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway when we saw the taillights up ahead of us. We came to a stop and then began to creep along at a pace slower than that of a turtle. 

We informed our destination that we were at a slower than slow crawl, to ensure they wouldn't get too worried about our current location. We thought that there was construction ahead or maybe an accident and would be on our way as soon as the construction vehicle got on it's way or the gawkers stopped gawking. 

After about half an hour we were starting to get a little concerned about our present state. We had barely moved. Every time I stuck my head out the window to check if we were almost past it all, I just got the same view of a semi-truck's rear end. We finally got to an area where we had to merge into one lane and we were sure that that meant the construction area was almost done. 

To our dismay, the "low coolant" light turned on and our engine began to overheat. We called our trusty mechanic father, Papa, who informed us that we should turn on the heat in the car to take away some of the heat from the engine. This was an excellent suggestion on his part, it worked just as he thought it might. However; it didn't work as long as we needed it too.
'Twas nearing 9:30 and we were passed the hour when we had originally thought we might arrive at our final destination.
As we were rerouted off the 403 to go around the construction area our engine began to overheat again. This time we pulled over to the side of the road to inspect the damage.
Sure enough, the coolant tank (if that's the correct term) was completely empty. Good thing I had about half a bottle of water left. Alex poured it in and we watched as it poured onto the ground from beneath the car.
This was the moment we started to rather dislike our situation.
As it turned out, we had spent a little too much time in the idle position. The radiator hose on Alex's car popped off and leaked all the coolant about the ground, causing the engine to overheat.
After about half an hour of Alex and I trying to reattached the hose while watching the sun disappear to complete night light, we thought it might be best to call CAA.
By then, it was about 10:00 and the air had a night time chill to it. My hands were starting to get really cold and we were running out of things to try to tighten the hose with.
CAA had informed us that someone would arrive at about 11:15 with a tow truck. So we had an hour to see what we could use to fix the car before we had to figure out where to tow it to fix it. We were getting a little worried that nothing would be open at such a late hour but we didn't really have any other choice.
The Wonderful CAA Employee arrived within half an hour of when I made the call, which was much faster than we had prepared for. He was not from the area so he didn't know where we could go that would still be open, and also have the supplies that we needed.
Being CAA members, we had 10 kms of free towing before we had to start paying. We drove for about 9.2 kms and when we couldn't find anything we pulled into a TSC parking lot to see if some mechanical wire would work. Unfortunately, that was a no go.
Without any more options, we suggested that the Wonderful CAA Employee just drop us off at the convenience store we had seen a little ways back. If they didn't have anything to help us we would call our destination for a pick up.
Once we arrived at the convenience store, Alex went into the store to see what they had and I stay to supervise the lowering of the car. The Wonderful CAA Employee lowered the car like it was his job to lower the car.
Alex returned from inside the store with a lovely surprise. He held within his hands a box of 50 zip ties and two large bottles of water.
Some of you are probably thinking that that isn't very much of a lovely surprise. Let me tell you something. When you're stuck on the side of a random road in a random countryside without the equipment to fix the only car you have with you, you will appreciate zip ties and water bottles.
We finally got the zip ties to hold the hose on tight enough and then but a couple bottles of water through before we were able to drive him off the lot.
The Wonderful CAA Employee was more than awesome with the whole situation. He stayed with us until we got the car working and then watched us drive off the lot into the great unknown.
All was well until we got back on the highway and the "low coolant" light turned on again. We got off at the next exit and put more water into the coolant tank. That seemed to work just fine because we didn't have any more "low coolant" lights on for the rest of the journey.
We will have arrived at our final destination earlier than we did if we hadn't had to take the Toronto exit onto the QEW since the Niagara ramp was closed. Thank you for letting us know ahead of time, that was very kind.
A few back roads later and we were back  on the QEW preparing to arrive and then retire for the night.
After such an experience, I don't suggest that you ever have your radiator hose pop off while traveling though unfamiliar territory. It is not as much fun as I made it sound.

Make sure you have zip ties, this is t-bear signing off

For all you hipsters out there...

I have compiled a list of all the "in" things of the current age. I would suggest that you study this list carefully and adjust your life accordingly.

To break the ice, I thought I'd start with this lovely comic from yesterday's calendar.

1. Dog sitting. Very in. If you're not doing it, I sure hope someone else is.

2. Mac n' cheese. No matter what form, it's in.

3. Crosswords. Widen your horizons and exercise your brain!

4. Chocolate. But is it really ever out?

5. Real estate. Because all of us are looking forward to Friday, August 29.

Let's be in, or risk standing out! this is t-bear signing out

Skillz

Within the past four days I have aquired two skills that are mandatory to lead a life of excellent quality.

1. How to knit.

2. How to smoothly and patiently release the clutch on a standard vehicle without resulting in a stall or jolt.

If you haven't learned either of these two skills I would suggest that you think about the direction that your life is headed.

Grab your rubber boots! this is t-bear signing off

QOTD

Let me tell you something about human beings. They judge other people to make themselves feel better. Life has become a competition. We compete against other people and, sadly, against ourselves. Society has created a world where it is important to be better than others. Better looking, more athletic, and tragically, superior in intelligence. 

Competitions easily lead to judgment being laid on the better party. It is becoming increasingly difficult for people to accept not being the best.

If something so common as competition can force such a large amount of judgment, when will it end? We will never be free from competition, which is why it's important for us to learn how to control our own judging and the judging of those around us. 

this is t-bear signing off

A Prayer of Peace

For anyone and everyone who has been affected by the unrest happening, not just in Israel and Gaza, but around the world.

As a pacifist Mennonite, I completely disapprove of disagreements that amount to war. We were not put on this earth to destroy each other but to "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Matthew 22:37-39) It is a simple text, yet it is the most difficult one to follow. The end result is peace at it's height, which is why we keep trying even when it gets hard. "The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace." (Numbers 6:26)

 

God of mercy,

As the cycle of violence in Palestine and Israel repeats itself,

Our hearts break once again.

Even as we long to understand that which is often beyond our comprehension,

we lay before you the hearts, minds and bodies of all those suffering from conflict in the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, and from the ongoing occupation. Shower upon all the people of this holy land the spirit of justice and reconciliation.

May weapons and war, apathy and blame be laid down.

May diminishing and demonizing of "the other" cease,

May there be acknowledgment of harms committed

May there be new energy for building bridges of understanding

May there be new efforts to address root causes of the violence

May there be new visions of a shared and peaceful future.

O God, whose heart breaks for the world,

May your justice dwell in the land

May your righteousness abide in fruitful fields

May the effect of righteousness be quietness and trust forever

May the effect of justice be peace - enduring peace.

Amen

 

Adapted from Prayer By Esther Epp-Tiessen, Public Engagement Coordinator for the Mennonite Central Committee Ottawa Office.

 

this is t-bear signing off