A Time for Everything

There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-7

Change is tough, but it's a part of life. I was forced to realize that when my parents pulled me away from my elementary school friends to go live in the middle of a ridiculously hot desert... and when, at 10 years old, it became clear that I'd never be able to hug my grandma again... and again, when I moved away for college. It was weird when I went home to visit, and "home" was suddenly a different house. Today is one of those moments. Today, I found out that the dog I grew up with has an aggressive malignant tumor. Since she is probably experiencing a great deal of pain, my family made the heart-wrenching decision to have her put to sleep. Tomorrow. Since I live hundreds of miles away from my family (and have for more than half a decade now), I guess it hasn't really sunk in yet. I can't begin to imagine Buffy's sweet little face not being there to greet me at the end of each long trip to my parents' house. It's truly the end of an era. Please keep my family in your prayers as we grieve over the loss of a dog who became like a part of our family.

Ethanol... A Sweet Solution

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, our country imported an average of 9.4 million barrels of crude oil per day, primarily from Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, and Nigeria, in March of this year (the most current data available). At the same time, the national average price of gasoline per gallon, $3.79, is up over 57 cents from a year ago. While ethanol is a viable alternative, many have expressed concern about the implications of corn-based ethanol production on our food supply. Well, Brazil has figured out how to produce ethanol from sugarcane instead. Read this article from The Dallas Morning News for more information. Instead of continuing to protect "big oil" interests, Congress needs to act in the best interest of Americans and either lift the 54-cents-a-gallon tariff on Brazilian ethanol or invest in r&d to find another innovative solution to the energy crisis. Until then, we're clearly behind the times.

The Blame Game

Image credit: Andrew Beierle

Image copyright: sxc.hu/andrewatla

I've noticed that, in our culture, personal responsibility seems to be an increasingly rare attribute these days. We have become incredibly skilled at making excuses for our behavior or shifting blame on others. As much as I hate to admit it, that's definitely my tendency, and I struggle with it constantly. The litigious nature of our society offers evidence of this attitude as well. I'm convinced that the root of the problem is pride, which all of us have at some level, combined with a lack of grace for others. To protect our image and keep from being humiliated, we instinctively try to deflect any negative attention away from ourselves. It's just easier to say, "It's not my fault because of X, Y, and Z" than to admit we actually messed up. Further, because of our love affairs with ourselves, we become sensitive and defensive when we perceive that someone else has wronged us. Rather than extending grace, we want to hold them accountable for what they've done, to punish them somehow, even if we might have played a role in the problem, too.

The Bible tells us multiple times that this attitude is sinful. We're called to be humble, to hold others in higher regard than ourselves. A major aspect of that is admitting when we've made a mistake, taking ownership of it, and learning from it. I find Proverbs 15:32-33 particularly convicting: "He who neglects discipline despises himself, but he who listens to reproof acquires understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility" (NASB). Similarly, Proverbs 16:19 reads, "It is better to be humble in spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud" (NASB). In Matthew 23:12 (NASB), Jesus even says, "Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted." That's pretty clear, I think. I have always loved how Jesus doesn't sugarcoat the truth; He tells it just like it is! Oh, and the Bible has this to say about placing blame on someone else whom we feel has wronged us: "Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person" (Colossians 4:6, NASB). Just imagine what our world would be like if everyone interacted this way!

My prayer this week is that God will continue humbling me and helping me respond to others with at least a little bit of the grace He's shown me.

Best... Onion Rings... Ever

(Partially Consumed) Beer Battered Onion Rings from O'Niell's Irish Pub

They looked so tasty, we couldn't even wait to take the photo before diving in!

A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I decided to try O'Niell's Irish Pub on Central, in Nob Hill. As we approached the entrance of the pub, we noticed that a row of tomato plants were lined up neatly beside a sign inviting patrons to take one home for free. Inside, the atmosphere was loud, lively, and anything but pretentious, complete with a super-long bar. With the pub being close to Aaron's school, some of his classmates have become regulars, and apparently those who drink so many beers (I'm not sure what the magic number actually is) are rewarded with a beer stein engraved with their name and kept on a display shelf behind the counter for repeat use. A few tables were available outside, but since it was fairly windy, we opted to sit inside. After just a few minutes, we were escorted to a window table. We started off with some "Brew City Onion Rings", which were the best I have ever had. Not only was the beer batter delicious, but the rings were fried to perfection-- crispy, but not at all overdone. Aaron's main course was O'Niell's Irish Red, a Happy Hour special custom brewed by the Tractor Brewing Co., and a St. Patty Melt with fries, both of which he enjoyed. I ordered the "award winning" O'Niell's Burger in Paradise with a side salad. While my side salad was excellent, I was not that impressed by the burger. I was, however, very pleased with the service we received.

Overall, O'Niell's seems like a fun place to go for drinks and appetizers with friends, and its onion rings shouldn't be missed!

Reasons to Celebrate

I have many reasons to celebrate today:

8. It's Thursday. In other words, it's almost Friday.
7. It's rainy and overcast, which is actually kind of special here in New Mexico
6. It's payday.
5. Max is mellow.
4. Aaron was able to come home for the weekend from his clinical rotation in Deming.
3. Aaron fixed grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup (the perfect warm weather fare) for me for lunch.
2. My new notebook computer just arrived via my favorite carrier, DHL, and it appears to be in one piece.

And the #1 reason I have to celebrate is...

(Insert dramatic pause here to preface nauseatingly sappy moment.)

Today marks three wonderful years of marriage with Aaron.

Happy anniversary, sweetheart! I love you.

Globalization and Customer Loyalty

Globalization has increased the relevance of corporate reputation exponentially. With more companies competing for the American dollar, we have more options as consumers than ever before; close substitutes for most products are highly available. Further, the Internet has given us more convenient access to information than consumers ever had in years past. In a matter of moments, we're able to peruse product reviews or read about how a company is being socially responsible. To remain economically profitable, therefore, companies must understand how to develop strong reputations, and I'm convinced that long-term customer relationships are key.

Bed Bath & Beyond is a company that "gets it". Keeping sight of the big picture, the retailer consistently delivers superior customer service, and the "20% off" coupons it regularly sends me don't hurt, either. One of my earliest experiences with Bed Bath & Beyond involved setting up my wedding registry. As many couples do, my husband and I established registries at a few different stores, and the customer service we received at Bed Bath & Beyond really stood apart from the rest. The associate spent time with us, made suggestions, and even checked in on us periodically to see if we had any questions. We really felt valued.

A couple of years later, the pedal mechanism on our simplehuman® stainless steel trash can broke. We'd purchased it at Bed Bath & Beyond in Tucson, and it was still under warranty, but we couldn't find our receipt. We'd moved, so we took the broken trash can into an Albuquerque location, and they told us to pick out a new one, no questions asked.

This week, our Cuisinart® "Coffee on Demand" coffeemaker stopped working. We knew it was still under warranty (we'd had it for less than two years), but once again, we couldn't find the receipt. If we'd ship it to Cuisinart, they'd send us a new one, but we're caffeine addicts and really didn't want to wait for a new unit to arrive. So, we took the inoperable unit to a (different) Albuquerque location. Guess what? The manager told us to go ahead and pick out a new one. She even pointed out that we may want to try a different model since the one we had did, after all, stop working. (For the record, we did get the same model. We think we just worked the first one to death.)

So, kudos to you, Bed Bath & Beyond. You've got it right. You may even end up in my portfolio.

Freeze(r), You're "It"

When my husband and I were dating, he decided to use a Best Buy gift card from his parents to purchase an upright freezer, and I made fun of him for it. I mean, why would a single guy need that much freezer space? Plus, at the time, my husband lived on the third floor of an apartment building (no joke... getting that unit up the stairs proved to be quite interesting).

Ok, fast forward four years. By now, I've grown used to my husband being right about everything, so I'm not surprised to have to eat my words. We still have that freezer today. It sits quietly in the corner of our garage and gets more use than I ever imagined it would. We're able to save a ton of money by buying in bulk. We usually can't afford to eat steak, for example, but just last week Smith's had a deal on "value packs" of ribeye steak. Thanks to our freezer and the way it allows us to split up and save that value pack, I was able to splurge.

So, if any of you are wondering how to spend your federal tax rebates, help stimulate the economy by purchasing a freezer. With the tough economic times that are probably ahead, I'm sure you won't regret it.

Dude, I'm Getting a Dell!

The other day, I was sitting in my favorite armchair in the living room, toiling away at my accounting homework, when my puppy Max suddenly decided he would enjoy tearing around the house. At warp speed, it seemed, he ran up the stairs, down the stairs, under the table, around the couch, and ultimately landed in my lap, where my laptop unfortunately rest. Apparently, Max thinks the "G" and "H" keys are overrated. As I sit here typing this on my middle-less keyboard, I have to thank him, really. This notebook computer and I have been through a lot together. Two moves, repair of the motherboard (while my urge is to rant, I will simply advise you never to purchase a warranty from Staples), several power cords, a battery that lasts only 15 minutes on a full charge... Well, you get the idea. So, we've come to the end of the road. It's time to demote the old Compaq Presario 2200 to "backup" status.

If you've been in the market for a notebook computer recently, you realize just how overwhelming the options can be. At first, I thought I wanted an Apple. I grew up with a Mac, and I love the simplicity of the operating system. However, the only MacBook I could afford would lack most of the software I need, and then what's the point? Much to my dismay, I had to set my sights back on a Windows system. My only criteria was that I didn't want a computer with Windows Vista. (According to my brother (a programmer), Vista demands a great deal of memory, and it has compatibility issues with some older software. Plus, I think almost everyone knows someone with a Windows Vista horror story. ) As it turned out, finding a Vista-less notebook computer proved to be quite a challenge. Nearly all the laptops carried by the big-box retailers come preloaded with Windows Vista. The only units I found that still pack XP are Compaq's V6700TX series and Dell's Inspiron 1520.

Ultimately, I went with the Dell, mainly because I wanted Microsoft Office Small Business, which costs significantly less than retail price when purchased through Dell as part of the bundle. The order process went smoothly, except that I was irritated by the fact that Dell's Web site doesn't provide estimated arrival dates before the consumer completes the transaction (which makes selecting a shipping method difficult). Only when Dell sends the email confirming the order does the company provide an estimated ship date. I ordered my Dell last night, and the estimated ship date is 5/14. Oy vey!

Obeying Your Thirst*

Next week is National Drinking Water Week (here's to a century of chlorination!), which got me started thinking about water. For one, I never drink enough of it. Two, I never give my plants the right amounts of it, so thank goodness I married a "farm boy". More importantly, though, I think water is probably the most precious resource we have. Sure, we might be able to survive for a while without food, clothing, or shelter, but our bodies demand water to live.

Just as God designed us to thirst physically, He also created us with a spiritual thirst. I think many of us go through life trying to quench our spiritual thirst in the wrong ways. We try to fill that emptiness with sex, wealth, popularity, the newest cell phone on the market-- whatever it is that we think will make us feel better. Then we always find ourselves thirsty again. For some reason, it reminds me of the latest Dos Equis ad campaign. At the end of the t.v. commercial, the "most interesting man in the world" tells us, "Stay thirsty, my friends." The things of this world will always leave us dry, exactly like Jesus tells us in John 4:13: "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again..."

Everyone's deepest need is a relationship with God; He is the only One who can quench our thirst. He offers us living water that won't just satisfy us for a day but instead will refresh and renew us for eternity. "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink," Jesus says (John 7:37). "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst... The water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life" (John 4:14). Wow. I'll drink to that!
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* Yes, I know, I'm an advertiser's dream.