Martin Luther

On Wednesday nights at church I have been going to a church history class. For the most part it has been interesting although it not an in depth study. There isn't enough time in 1 hour a week to get too in depth.
Tonight the subject was Martin Luther. I really didn't know much about Martin Luther except that he is credited with founding the Lutheran denomination and that he caused some people to get upset way back when.
The documentary that we watched was from PBS and we only watched about 1 hour of it, we wll watch the restof it next week. For the most part it was interesting and I did learn a lot. Martin Luther started out becoming a monk and really got into the life of a monk. He seemed to enjoy the rigid lifestyle and went as far as to sleep outdoors in the snow without a blanket until his fellow monks would drag him indoors so he wouldn't die. The film said that in later life Luther complained about the monk hood ruining his health. It seems that some people don't think that maybe their actions cause some of their problems.
The most inspiring thing I learned tonight is how Luther became disillusioned with the Catholic Church and discovered on his own the gift of salvation. I was encouraged by the fact that over 400 years ago Martin Luther would search the scriptures and find that salvation is a free gift. There doesn't need to be anyone to intercede or hoops to jump through-it is a simple gift.
The message of the Bible has not changed. The verses in the Bible that I read are the same verses that Martin Luther read. Salvation: a free gift of eternal life that is made possible through the life of Jesus Christ.

Liz

VOTE

I voted! Have you?

Liz

You Mean There Is A Country Named Georgia?

This week I substituted one morning for a teacher that has one class of "yearbook"-you know, the ones that are supposed to go and take the pictures and put together the yearbook. When I was in middle school we didn't have a yearbook. Now every elementary and middle school has a yearbook.

Anyway, this class is made up of good students, although they are chatterboxes. One of the girls came into the class and asked me if I knew there was a Georgia close to Russia. I let her know that I was aware of this because it had been in the news just a few weeks ago. It seems that in their U.S. History class they were talking about Russia invading Georgia and this girl was confused. She asked the teacher why Russia would be invading the state of Georgia. That is when she was told that there was also a country named Georgia. Boy was she surprised!

The next day I was in a different classroom and this same girl walked by and told me she had just found out that Alaska was next to Canada. I also enlightened her to the fact that Russia can been seen from Alaska. I knew that if she hadn't heard about Russia invading Georgia that she she had never heard Sarah Palin talking Russia. In fact I am not sure that should would know who Sarah Palin is.

She had always thought that Alaska was next to Hawaii. Obviously she wasn't paying attention in elementary school when they were teaching the state locations. In most maps of the U.S. Alaska is shown floating around in the ocean next to Hawaii. I don't know if that excuses her from making that mistake but it does make me wonder how many other students think that Alaska is next to Hawaii.

Liz

Fall

My Mantle

I enjoy fall. In Texas this time of year is not the prettiest. There are a few trees changing colors but not like it is in other areas of the United States. The best part of fall in Texas is the fact that it finally cools off and gives us relief from the heat of the summer.

When we lived in Kansas fall was always a great time of year. It was getting cooler and you knew that snow was just around the corner. The trees were changing and were just beautiful. There was this one house down the street from us that had the most beautiful tree in the front yard. The leaves on it would change to a bright orange and at certain times of the day it would almost look like it was glowing.

Since I don't live in an area where there is an abundance of fall color I have to make do. I try to decorate my mantle and fireplace area with fall leaves (although they are fake) and this year I did something different-I decorated the top of our entertainment center. At least when I am inside my house I can see fall colors.

Liz

Woolaroc

Woolaroc was Frank Phillips ranch home. There is a museum as well as his lodge along with a petting zoo and beautiful scenery.

The museum has quite a collection of Native American artifacts. There are also many other western related exhibits. The only known privately owned dinosaur egg is on exhibit. There is also a plane, that's right, a plane in the museum. It seems that Phillips Petroleum sponsored a plane in a race from Oakland to Honolulu. The plane won and the pilot received $20,000 for his feat. The plane is hanging in the museum and it is the only model left in the world.

The lodge is very rustic. It is large because the Phillips entertained many politicians and entertainers. There is a variety of stuffed animal heads and horns on the wall. The docents are quick to point out that Mr. Phillips was not a hunter and that most of the heads were animals that died of natural causes on the grounds.

Mr. Phillips bought several different exotic animals for his ranch. Many of the animals that are seen on the grounds today are descendants of the original animals. There are buffalo, deer, elk, and cattle (some are longhorn) there.

In case someone wonders about the name Woolaroc it is a name that Mr. Phillips came up with. It stands for WOOds, LAkes, and ROCks. These are the 3 things that drew him to the area.

Liz

My Sentiments Exactly

Go here http://mygardenhat.blogspot.com/ and read the entry for today. I share her sentiments and wish I had written it.

Liz

Frank Phillips Home

Frank Phillips, the founder of Phillips Petroleum, lived his adult life in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. He and his wife were originally from Iowa but had found their way to Oklahoma and like so many others struck oil.

The home is beautiful but it is unique in the fact that 95% of the home is original. The home was built around 1909 and enlarged in 1930. It is approximately 9000+ square feet. Mr. and Mrs. Phillips lived in the home until they died.

When Mr. Phillips was having the home built his lawyers advised him to put the house in his wife's name to protect his assets. Due to the fact that the house was legally hers Mrs. Phillips made the decisions when it came to the interior. The living room and dining room have the original gold fabric wall paper. Some of the wall coverings have been restored to the original coverings or color. The home also had an elevator installed at one point and it still works.

The Phillips' had one biological child, a son, and 2 foster daughters. The daughters were never legally adopted but were always treated as their own daughters. The 2 girls never knew that they were not legally adopted until Mr. Phillips death.

Mrs. Phillips died in 1948 and she stated in her will that Mr. Phillips would be able to live in the home until his death. Upon his death the home would go to her oldest granddaughter. When the granddaughter moved in she was grown and married and brought her own furnishings. She had the original furnishings stored in the carriage house.

After many years of living in the house the granddaughter gave the house to a historical society and told them that the furnishings from the house were in the carriage house. The historical society has also turned the carriage house into a museum . They ask only a $3 donation to tour the house and museum-it is well worth the $3.

Liz

Bartlesville, Oklahoma

In April when our daughter and son in law were married they gave us a weekend trip to Bartlesville, Oklahoma. I am sure that Bartlesville is not the first place that would jump into people's mind when they think about taking a weekend trip. The purpose for the gift of the trip (besides thanking us for all the hard work we did) was for my husband to be able to stay in a building that Frank Lloyd Wright had designed. That's right...in Bartlesville, Oklahoma there is the only skyscraper that Frank Lloyd Wright has designed. The name of it is Price Tower (pricetower.org).

Price Tower was completed in 1956 for the Harold C. Price Company. There were other offices that were available for rent as well as 4 executive apartments that could be rented. Eventually the office building was owned by Phillips Petroleum but it wasn't being used by them and it needed extensive work. Phillips paid the updating to be done and it became the Price Tower Arts Center. A few years ago some of the original offices were made into hotel rooms so now you can spend the night at a Frank Lloyd Wright skyscraper.

The rooms are wonderful. The architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright is repeated in all the furnishings and decorations. The rooms were so comfortable and enjoyable.

We also went to the Frank Phillips mansion (frankphillipshome.org) and to Woolaroc (woolaroc.org). More about those tomorrow.

Liz

The Stump

Today the stump was removed from our front yard. The stump had been out there for over a year. It only took about 1 1/2 hours to remove it.

The first time we had foundation work (that's right-we are fortunate enough that we have had it done twice AND they need to come out again) they suggested that we remove the tree closest to the house because of the damage that the roots can do to our foundation. That was a quick and easy decision-remove the tree. My husband started cutting on the tree and got it down to a large stump, which is what remained for a very long time. From time to time yard workers would stop and give us an estimate to remove the stump but we didn't want to pay $400 to remove it.

In 2007 I gave my husband a deadline of the fall of that year to get the stump removed and finish the fence that had been started. Then he got a reprieve because he had to have a brain tumor removed. I kept telling him that he doesn't know how lucky he is that he had an excuse for not removing that deadline.

Now a year after his surgery and long recovery plans had been started to remove the stump. THEN 2 life savers stopped by yesterday and said that they would remove the stump-for $250. I wasn't home and so my husband told them he would have to talk with me (that is because he doesn't handle the money in our house and so he really doesn't have a clue if we could afford that). When I found out that they would come and do it I told him to call them immediately. Of course he waited until this morning to call them and lucky for us they didn't have anything planned. In fact, I think that they were as excited as we were to remove the stump.

Now the stump is gone. The only thing left is mulch. Now if we can just get the fence done. . .

Liz

Feast or Famine

I often compare substituting to feast or famine. Some weeks I work everyday, some weeks I work very little, if at all. Last week was a famine, out of 5 days I only worked 2. This week is a feast, out of the 3 days that I could work I have worked 2 1/2. Next week is shaping up to be a famine. Out of the 5 days that I am available to work I am only scheduled to work 1 1/2. Hopefully someone will need a day off and I will be working more.

Liz

A Lazy, Rainy Day

It is raining this afternoon. It is nice to be able to sit in the sun room and listen to the rain on the roof. Unfortunately I also have to be aware of leaks. The sun room roof has a few leaks that need to be fixed-once my husband has figured out where the water is getting in.

This morning was one of those mornings that I was overpaid-it makes up for the times that I feel I am not making enough money for what I put up with. I only had to work 1/2 day for a language arts teacher. The first period was plan time, the second period all 6th graders were taking a timed test so I just had to hand out the test and make sure they didn't talk. The third period was another plan time and then fourth period I only had about 11 students. About 40 minutes after the class started the teacher came in and I got to come home.

We are still without a working master bathroom shower. My husband hasn't had time to work on it so it looks like it will be another 2 weeks before it will be completely finished and usable. He had intended to work on it this past weekend but there were other things that had to be done outside. We have other plans for this weekend and they don't include tiling a bathroom. Hopefully it will be operational by the following weekend!

Liz

My Husband and Abe

This is my husband with Abraham Lincoln. I know it is a little difficult to see. When we went to Gettysburg last month you could have your picture taken with Lincoln, courtesy of a green screen. Never one to miss an opportunity R. decided that he must have this done. For him, it was the highlight of his day. He thought it was great fun, I just thought it was typical of him.

Liz

The Secret Life of Bees

Photo from Flickr

The movie The Secret Life of Bees will be opening October 17. It is from the book by Sue Monk Kidd.

I read this book and absolutely loved it. I was so excited when I learned that it was being made into a movie. I have plans to go and see it and I hope that I am not disappointed.

For Christmas, 2007 my son and daughter in law asked that we give them our favorite books. I extended this to my daughter also. I suggested that my mother do this and I knew that if I asked my father what his favorite book is he would reply with Ferdinand.

I gave each of my children the book of Ferdinand because I could remember how excited I was to find this book because my father would compare any book I talked about with Ferdinand. Mind you I was in the first grade so about the only thing I was reading was Fun with Dick and Jane.

That Christmas I gave my daughter The Secret Life of Bees. My wish was that she would find it as pleasurable as I did. She did read it and loved it. I do think that was one of the best gift ideas I have ever participated in.

Liz

Wedding Sampler

Five years ago when my son and daughter in law got married I cross stitched a wedding sampler for them. It was nothing frilly because I didn't think that is what they would want.

This past April my daughter and son in law were married. I spent several weeks looking at cross stitch patterns trying to find something that I thought they would like. I finally found one that hopefully would be reminescent of their wedding. I finally chose this one. It had a gazebo with flowers and in the middle it had their names and wedding date. It was done on blue fabric and I stitched the names and date in brown. Blue and brown-their wedding colors.

As hard as I tried I was not able to finish it before their wedding. I worked on it at school and at home when I wasn't substituting. By the time summer rolled around I was tired of looking at it and working on it. I had to put it away and even though I would try I could never work up the energy to work on it.

When school rolled around again I took got it out and took it with me. I was determined to get it done. I worked on it every chance I had-at school. Last week I was finally down to the date. I knew I would get it done that afternoon during my second plan time. Then the inevitable happened-I was called to cover another class. Didn't they know that I had plans and that I needed to work on this sampler and get it done? I gathered up my things and went to the other class and covered it, hoping that they would remember how cheerful I had sounded.

Anyway, I sat down Friday night and finished! Yea!! Sunday when B and Z came over I showed it to them, hoping that they wouldn't think that it was the ugliest thing they had ever seen. Z said it was nice (he's a man-he can't appreciate all the hard work I put into it) but B loved it (she knows how to make her mother feel good). She told me that she was hoping that I would do something for her.

I am glad that I finally finished the sampler but I am thrilled that I don't have any more children to marry-I don't want to have to do another wedding sampler. Now birth sampler for that baby that will be born in December-that is another story!

Liz

Bathroom Update

This is how the bathroom looks now. The white thing in the middle is an old closet door that was being used to protect the bathtub while taking the tile off.
As you can see the blue backer board is up and the stubbing for the faucet is visible. There are two niches that are in the wall for shampoo bottles and other things. The white stuff is a waterproofing paint. Everything is being done to make sure that water does not get behind the tile.
Hopefully tile will be going up soon. We are getting a little tired of having to use the bathtub upstairs.

Liz

My Favorite Verse

When I was about 8 or 9 years old I was in Sunday School and was asked to read Psalm 56:3. I think that the Lord knew that I would need this verse for the rest of my life. It reads:

When I am afraid I will trust in you.

Throughout my life that verse has always given me much comfort. It came to my mind this morning as I was listening to the latest economic news. The economy doesn't seem to be bringing good news lately. My little stock account that I mess around with has lost about $500 in the last week and I don't even want to think of how much my husband's 401k has lost. I am just glad that we are not close to retirement age.

When I start to panic or worry about the future I reel myself in and try to meditate on what David wrote in Psalm. I think it is natural to start to worry even though we are told not to. I think that I go overboard in the worrying department but through it all I know that God is in control and I just have to trust him.

Does that mean that everyday life will be a bed of roses? NO! All anyone has to do is look at my life for the last 2 years and realize that isn't so. In 2 years we have had to deal with my mother in law moving closer to us (a 9 month process), a dislocated and broken ankle which required 2 surgeries, a breast cancer scare (turned out to be a radial scar), a daughter's wedding in which some people were uncooperative, and my husband's brain tumor and surgery to remove it. Through it all I know that God was there walking beside us and that people were praying for us. Was the journey an easy one-of course not, but we received blessings that we might not have experienced otherwise. Sometimes we have to endure the trial to reap the blessings.

Liz

Sunset

We were at my parent's farm over the weekend. The sunsets there are always beautiful. My brother had tried to talk my parents into having weddings at the farm-that was a no go. He has always said, "There goes another $1000 sunset". He is right-they could charge a minimum of $1000 just to have a wedding there.

Liz

Cheating

On Friday I was substituting for the same Language Arts teacher that I had subbed for on Wednesday. Overall she has some good classes. They don't give me a lot of trouble and for the most part they are a lot of fun.

Friday the classes had a test. Even though they knew about the test (they were even given a review sheet for it) there was still the usual amount of groaning and complaining. Before I ever hand out a test I tell the classes my rules:

1. If they talk during the test I will assume they are cheating and I will take up their test. It will be up to them to come and talk with the teacher about it.

2. If they have wandering eyes I will assume they are cheating and (refer to #1).

3. If they turn in their test and they begin to talk while others are still taking the test then they will be on step 1 (steps is a discipline program) until everyone is done with the test.

Before I ever take up a test for talking I will usually remind them and then if it continues I will take up their test. I have done it before and usually that makes a believer of the students. Evidently on Friday I had a student that thought that she was being cautious. She had the test in her lap with the review sheet under her test and she was referring to it for the answers on her test. I took her test from her and she never protested. She didn't even come up to me at the end of class and talk with me about it.

I have never understood why a student would take a chance on obvious cheating. They can be suspended for cheating and personally I don't think that it is worth it.

On another note on Friday I had lunch duty (again). There were the usual few that can't count that there are already 8 at the table (the limit) so they go ahead and join them. That means that I have to go to them and remove one to another table. Then there was the girl that thought she would check her text messages on her cell phone at lunch (why take the chance). I saw it and confiscated her phone. Now her mother will have to come to school to retrieve it and pay the $15 fine.

I was glad that it was Friday-I didn't need any more excitement in my day. Thank goodness there wasn't a fire drill that day.

Liz

My Favorite Teacher

I know this teacher at school and today was the first time we have ever had any time to talk. I have always liked him and wish I could manage students as he does.

I also think that Mr. H. is one of the best role models for male middle school students. He teaches Language Arts. That is all he teaches. He does not coach. I can think of only 1 other teacher at school that doesn't coach, OOPs, make that 2. Anyway, I think that it is so important for students to see that you can be a male teacher and that is all they do...teach. So many times male teachers teach a subject but they also coach because that is what they would really like to do but they have to also teach a subject. There is nothing wrong with that but I think sometimes it is nice for students to see that a male teacher can teach a subject and not be a coach.

Liz