Since yesterday felt like a Saturday, it somehow didn’t seem fair to have to get up and come to work today. Not that coming to work is a bad thing . . . but the brain and the body didn’t connect with the whole concept, making waking up very difficult! Somehow, I managed to drag my carcass out of bed, get myself ready and somewhat presentable, got breakfast made, lunches packed, made sure I had 2 cups of coffee to take to work with me AND I got dinner into the crock pot. That, my friends, made me feel like the day was going to be OK. After work I am meeting up with a sweet friend/daughter of a friend, who is home visiting from college.
To her Mama – and I know you are reading – I owe you a HUGE apology! I had had every intention of making your belated cookies yesterday, but I just couldn’t bring myself to get in there and make cookies with sugar in them, when it was my first day off of sugar! I didn’t plan that very well. I promise I will get them to you before the end of the month! I have an IOU out to you and my dear mother-in-law.
Verse of the Day
January 2, 2019
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
This command and promise to Joshua is also for us as we embrace the upcoming year. We have no idea what lies ahead, we only know that God will go with us if we will ask him on our journey and seek to follow his will. So, this verse is not just a promise to cherish, “I will go with you.” It is also a command! “Be strong, courageous, and do not be terrified or discouraged.” We embrace this upcoming year as an opportunity to serve God and not as something to fear!
Food for Thought
For Christmas my Mom gave me a daily devotional with the focus on gratitude. Every day we should be grateful for the blessings in our lives. I fuss at myself about how I look, and the aches and pains brought on by poor choices, along with the things that are outside of my control (like this getting older thing- not fun!) but what if I were to focus on being grateful that even though my hands ache, they still work? Or even if my feet hurt, I can still walk?! I get up every morning and live a productive life, even on the days when I would rather be sleeping. Today I am grateful that I can get up and go, do what I need to do, and will try to acknowledge the aches or pains as proof that I am alive and doing what needs to be done. Remind me of this attitude tonight when we get ready to take Moose out for his walk, OK?
55 MPH Speed Limit Day – Today is the anniversary of the lowering of the speed limit nationwide to 55 mph, in 1972. President Richard Nixon signed a bill into law that required every U.S. state to reduce speed limits to a maximum of 55 mph. The bill came about because the federal government needed to spend federal highway money, or risk losing it. The country was going through an energy crisis at the time, and there was fear that we would have fuel shortages. People were told that a reduction in the speed limit would reduce the amount of fuel needed to run the cars. With the way cars were built in 1972, this was theoretically true. Now, with today’s cars it would end up burning MORE fuel because the vehicles wouldn’t be driven in at their optimal efficient speeds. Since then some portions of freeway in various states have increased their speed limits to 70 MPH, which makes sense – especially since I only know a few people who actually abide by the 55 MPH anyway. (Shhh . . . I’m one of those people.)
Happy Mew Year for Cats – I love my cat, and I can see why cats deserve a special Mew Year holiday just for themselves. This celebration, like so many very cute ones, was created by www.wellcat.com, and I truly do appreciate it. This sort of special day can raise awareness of the plight of cats who wait at the local shelters waiting for a forever home, which each one so richly deserves to have in their little lives. Consider going and adopting a kitty today. They give such love in return for a warm lap to sleep in, some loving pets and scratches behind the ears, and some yummy treats in their bowls.
National Motivation and Inspiration Day – After the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Congress passed House Resolution 308 on December 18, 2001 officially became National Motivation and Inspiration day. The founder of the observance, Kevin L. McCrudden, said that he created it after 9-11 because in all of the loss, despair and sadness, he saw Americans working side by side to accomplish amazing things. He said he has traveled all across the country over the past decade and has spoken to a lot of people and found out that many of them do not set up personal goals for themselves. He felt it wasn’t right and that in a country as great as America, where truly almost anything is possible, that everyone should have their own personal goals or ambitions, and the beginning of a new year is a great time to start that process. I have to say, I agree with him!
National Science Fiction Day – This one is unofficially celebrated by many science fiction fans in the United States on January 2nd. This date was chosen because it is the birthday of the famous science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It isn’t an official holiday, but it is recognized by organizations like the Hallmark Channel and by the Scholastic Corporation – so it’s at least a justifiable one for the science fiction buffs to celebrate, right? I’ve never been a huge fan of reading science fiction books, but the occasional movie in that genre is a fun thing.
Pet Travel and Safety Day – This is a pretty important one, since I know many of us have furbabies that we take with us in the car when we go places. It was set up by Pet and Family Lifestyle expert, animal advocate and former EMT-Medic, Colleen Paige, to educate people about the dangers of unsecured pets in cars, and to teach how to make traveling in a vehicle safer for people and their pets. Ms. Paige teaches that there are simple and inexpensive ways to keep you and your pets safe when you go for a ride in the car. It doesn’t matter how well you drive, or how comfortable and happy your pets are going in the car, they are not safe from irresponsible drivers, just like you aren’t safe from irresponsible drivers. Cats don’t seem to be at as great a risk as dogs because usually cats are crated in the car. If they aren’t, they should be. (I have to be honest here, usually I have my angry kitty crated and my relaxed car kitty just sleeping on the floor. I may have to rethink that.) Any unsecured pet, at just 10 MPH, if you have to stop quickly for something in the road or swerve to avoid someone who crosses into your lane, your pet faces the risk of flying into the dashboard, windshield or the back of your seat. At this point at the very least they will suffer emotional distress, and possibly sustain cuts, bruises or even broken bones from blunt force trauma. If you let them ride in your lap, or even worse, be on your lap looking out the driver’s window, they can be crushed between you and your steering wheel if you have to stop suddenly or are in an accident and ejected into oncoming traffic. Obviously with a huge dog like Moose we aren’t going to be having lap riding incidents, but I have seen so many people with small dogs in their laps and looking out the driver side window. How about dogs who hang their heads out the window while going down the road – regardless of if they are in your lap doing it, or a big dog in the backseat? They are at risk of eye and head injury from road debris. Have you ever had a rock hit your windshield that puts a chip or a crack in it? Imagine that, or even something larger, hitting your dog in the face, eye or head? It makes me feel sick to think about! How about the times a bush or tree branch has smacked the side of your car? What would happen if your dog got smacked in the face with that? There are so many things that can injure your dog that you wouldn’t anticipate happening, that it just isn’t worth the risk to allow certain things, like lap sitting, or hanging heads out the window, even if they enjoy it. There are safety harnesses and crates would prevent injury to your pets. Metal separators aren’t even enough to keep your dog safe – they just keep them from jumping into the front seat and hitting the dash, but they could still suffer injury if your car rolls after being impacted. If you don’t have a harness, or cannot afford one, you can loop a strong, thick leash through the seat belt to confine your dog from moving around. It isn’t 100% effective to keep them from being ejected, but it does reduce the risk quite a bit. Another thing to keep in mind, just as you should carry an emergency bag for you and your children with three-days of food, water and medication when you travel, you should also take three days of food, jugs of water and everything your pet needs as well. You never know when you will get stuck on the road due to natural disaster, your vehicle breaking down, road closure due to traffic accidents, etc. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to put up windshield and window shades to pull down to keep yourself and your pets from heat exhaustion if you should breakdown in the high heat. There are many other things to consider when traveling with pets that I just couldn’t fit here, so please, take a look at http://www.pettravelsafetyday.com/index2.htm to see the entire article and learn how to keep your pets safer on the road. We don’t take chances with our children. It just makes sense that we shouldn’t take chances with our pets.
Run It Up the Flagpole and See if Anyone Salutes Day – is an expression that literally means to put an idea out there and see what other people think about it, or if they even notice that you’ve done something. Often, you’ll hear people use this expression in advertising, or in the print media. I don’t think I have personally ever heard someone use it, but someone, somewhere, thought it was an important enough expression that they set up today as the day to celebrate it. Use today to try out something new in your life – doesn’t have to be limited to business – something you haven’t tried before. See if anyone notices! And even if they don’t, if you like it, stick with it. It might just catch on.
Food Celebration of the Day –
National Buffet Day – I enjoy a nice buffet as much as the next person, but I can’t help but think this one lands way too close to many people’s New Year’s resolution to lose weight! BUT for the folks out there who are OK for having a food free-for-all, today is YOUR day! This one is about either hosting or attending a buffet of epic proportions – enjoy a spread that has enough food to keep anyone full for the entire day! Sort of like our house at Thanksgiving! I’ll pass on this one, since I don’t feel like going out today, but let me know how it goes for you, if you decide to indulge!
National Cream Puff Day – Cream puffs, gougeres and eclairs come from the French dough called choux paste. Perfect the paste (or cheat a little) so you can enjoy light-as-a-cloud pastries. This is the one I chose to use last year for my low carb cream puff. They were pretty good! The recipe is linked here, and this is the picture of the ones I made. If you want traditional, honestly, I’d just stop by the bakery. Can’t really beat those for deliciousness, right?
I hope your day goes well, and that you haven’t already broken your resolutions! It’s only day two! So far, so good here. For now. I need to run but hope you have a great day! God bless you and I’ll see you tomorrow.
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Celebration list sources:
www.verseoftheday.com www.brownielocks.com www.holidayinsights.com www.thenibble.com www.foodimentary.com