java janie’s Neighbors

Attack Chickens at the Farmers Market

nobody@vox.com(dewitte) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:03:53 -0400

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Cornell Entomologists Want You AND Your Kids

nobody@vox.com(Jamie) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 12:55:57 -0400

Cornell's got a new program I heard about on NPR yesterday (some guy I was talking politics with the other day asked me what NPR was. That kind of ended the conversation right there.) looking for kids and the outdoorsy type to collect ladybugs for them. Apparently, the ladybugs that were so prevalent and helpful at controlling aphids and mealybugs in New York have completely disappeared from the area and Cornell wants to know why.

Here's a link that tells you what to do and how to help..and get your kids the heck out of the house in the process..you really can't beat that with a stick!

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QotD: Family History

nobody@vox.com(jacolily) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 11:55:07 -0400

What do you find interesting or unique about your family history?

One of my great grandfathers immigrated to the U.S. from Denmark as ian infant on ship which ended up sinking. A passing cattle ship threw all the cattle overboard so they could pick up the passengers from the sinking ship.

Norgaard - 006

The above great grandfather and another great grandfather from Denmark settled in the same town in MN before moving to MT where they homesteaded near each other. They were both 100% Danish so I am 50% Danish.
My paternal grandfather died before I was born so I never got to know him. He began as a teacher on an Indian reservation and then became a rancher. He started the ranch my dad runs today. At the age of 54, my grandfather was flying his plane to check on things at the ranch and my Big Grandma was with him. He had a heart attack and my grandma had to land the plane based on watching him over the years. She didn't actually know how to fly. She was a very courageous woman! Here's an old photo of my parents with the plane.

Image-01

My dad had it refurbished and still flies it out at the ranch.

20060713_ranch_011
My great uncle died on a ship during WWII from an infected tooth. He was buried at sea.
Pictures 001

My maternal great grandfather was a gymnast and would still walk on his hands to the barn into his 50's.
My paternal grandparents got a lot of neat Indian artifacts from teaching on the reservation. Here's me modeling some of them.

1980 - 02181
My mom was 16 and my father 18 when they married.
The name Ray or Raymond is prominent on my side of the family and my husband's. On my side, there's my great uncle pictured above, my brother, my uncle's middle name, and my son's middle name. On Ray's side, there was him and his paternal grandfather.
I have an aunt whose into genealogy and has done extensive research on my little grandma's side of the family. Its fun reading all the information she finds.
My dad was born on an Indian reservation.

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QotD: Family History

nobody@vox.com(Nacwolin) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 10:25:57 -0400

What do you find interesting or unique about your family history?

Here are a few things - perhaps not unique, but interesting, at least to me!

Our great grandparents on our mom's side (our Mom-Mom's parents) were from the same village in Hungary, though they did not know each other and did not meet until after they had both immigrated to the states. If I am remembering the story correctly, Grandma Meyer was Grandpa Meyer's house help when his first wife was alive. Some time after his first wife passed, they married, but I seem to remember Mom-Mom saying that he never treated her as he should have - that he favored his first wife and wasn't shy about letting her know that.
The Meyer surname is not actually accurate - it was Mayer, pronounced like the bologna, but they Americanized it - well, all but our Great Uncle Dominic (who I believe was from Grandpa Meyer's first marriage), who retained the original spelling. I have no idea what Grandma Meyer's maiden name was - I wish I did.
Our great grandmother on our paternal grandmother's side married her childhood sweetheart when she was in her 70's, I believe. She was 98 when she passed, outliving both of her husbands by many years.
On both sides of our family, the name Charles is very predominant, though only one person goes by "Charles". Here's the count and how we keep it all straight: my father (Charlie), his father (usually went by his last name), my other grandfather (Buck), his son (Chuck or Butch), my mom's cousin (Charles), his son (Chucky), and one of my dad's uncles (Brother). Needless to say, no one in my generation - on either side! - has felt the compulsion to use the name Charles for their progeny.
Our mom's parents eloped on Thanksgiving day. He was 26 and she was 17 (I think - do I have that right, Janie?). They won't back "home" separately. After a week or so, Mom-Mom spilled the beans to one of her sisters, and I believe that is when word got out. I am not sure what the reaction was or when they actually got a place of their own (maybe one of my sisters can shed some light on that).
Another "famous" surname within our family tree comes from our dad's side: Hefner. Do you think we could be heirs to either a lunch meat or - *ahem* - other fortune? (Heh. Not likely.)
When our mother was pregnant with me, she wanted to use Patricia for my first name. Our paternal grandmother thought that was outrageous since our father had been engaged to a Patricia. A year or two later, our parents reconnected with Pat and her hubby. The four became fast - and best - friends for years. I've always found it humorous and ironic that Mom and Pat became such good friends.

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Mass exodus

nobody@vox.com(Jen) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 05:44:35 -0400

So those of you who have erin*carly in your neighborhoods probably saw her post yesterday about possibly making her new WordPress blog her main blog.

That post is finally the catalyst that motivated me to do what I've been wanting to do for a while -- namely, move to a different blogging format.

It's not that I don't like Vox. Of course I like Vox. It's just that in addition to some irritating technical issues I've been having with what seems to be only Vox, I have felt rather pigeon-holed. Basically I've done it to myself by setting out to have just one type of blog when I probably should've just structured it a bit more freely in the beginning.

Plus, with WordPress, anyone can comment, and you don't have to have a WP account (or sign up for one) in order to do so.

So yeah. If you are so inclined, feel free to check out the new blog: as told by jen. It's still a work in progress, obviously, but I have gotten about 60 posts moved over so far and hope to finish in the next couple of days. I really like the categorization options -- that really appeals to my OCD, I tell you what, and it really makes finding a certain post or type of post a lot easier -- and I also like the fact that I can set up as many different pages as I'd like to.

I resurrected my Flickr and Facebook accounts because I decided I needed some personal blogrolling-type stuff, so again, if you're so inclined, click on the links and add me.

(Oh. And as far as Vox goes, I'm going to keep my user name/profile so I can still keep up with all of you, and nothing changes where my other Vox blog is concerned. I will still be maintaining/updating that as usual.)

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another day, another movie

nobody@vox.com(gunderson bee) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:37:04 -0400

It sucks when I go to see a movie and have it figured out in the first 5 minutes. I feel like it's a waste of time after that.

I went to see Hancock. It was a good movie, but still.... the above issue bummed me out.

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Lady M Pic Share

nobody@vox.com(♥Lady M♥) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:10:15 -0400

Lady M Pic Share
Originally uploaded by ♥Lady M♥.

T-Mobile

Happy luau!

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Scariest phrase ever

nobody@vox.com(Kelly) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 22:55:28 -0400

You know how they say that the scariest phrase ever is "We're from the government and we're here to help you"? It's not true.

It actually is "I started watching/reading/listening to (whatever) because you liked it so much."

Most of me is really flattered when I hear that (as I did recently when Ginger_sister said she was watching Gossip Girl on my recommendation). And the rest of me? Flat out panicked.

What if they hate it? What if they hate it so much that they think I'm stupid for liking it? What if they hate it and it's something I really love and I start to think they're stupid for hating it?

Oh, the wheels on that train of thought go round and round.

Fortunately she likes it, so all is well.

And I'm generally careful about what I recommend and to whom. Weeds, for example. It's an incredibly smart and funny show, and I don't think I can say enough good things about it. But I can understand why some people would be like, "Whoa. No."

It's about a mom who sells drugs. And while yes, she sells them so that her family will be taken care of, she's still breaking the law. And she gets more and more into it as the seasons progress.

And there's swearing. A lot of it. And the humor isn't the nicest. It's sarcastic and yes, mean.

I love it.

Snakes on a Plane on Weeds

And who hasn't wanted to say this? Maybe not to your parents (we're all a little old for that) but to

various other authority figures?

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This is probably not a good thing...

nobody@vox.com(Nacwolin) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 21:45:19 -0400

I can moblog now.

Oh, man.

This is probably not a good thing.

You have been warned.

(insert ornery grin here)

At least I won't have any excuse not to post to Me and My Monday, eh?

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My very own ER episode...

nobody@vox.com(ashbylane) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 21:42:12 -0400

Thanks to everyone who has been thinking of and praying for me and my family over the last few days. We had some interesting moments, and I want to share some of them in hopes that if you are anything like me (and tend to shrug off pain or sickness), that you'll reconsider when it really counts!

LESSON ONE: Walk-in Clinics should NEVER have the final word
On Thursday, Steph took me to a walk in clinic in Spring Hill. While I was still mostly convinced I had food poisoning, I was BEYOND miserable at this point. It hurt to talk, breath, move or do ANYTHING that even remotely involved my upper torso. The doctor at the walk-in clinic was NOT listening to me. (This is a huge pet peeve of mine in normal life, add a potential life-threatening illness and it's downright criminal.) I could tell as I described the pain in my chest that she wasn't registering it. AT ALL. I told her I felt like I had swallowed a soft ball and it got stuck (not that I know what that actually feels like, but, hey, it's what I imagine that would feel like). She kept asking questions like "does your throat hurt?" "Do you have stomach cramps?" I honestly don't remember one question about my chest pain until she finally suggested I try drinking some liquid antacid. Seriously, she would have simply sent me home saying "Well, drink lots of fluids...." when I was practically doubled over with chest pain in her office. I was so ticked. When I realized she wasn't getting this I said, "Where else can we go? Is our best bet the Williamson ER?" She said she'd call ahead and let them know we're coming. However, when we walked into the ER, the nurse checking me in asked "Did Dr. So-and-so know you had severe chest pain?" I said yes. The nurse was dumbfounded. "She didn't even mention that to us." Don't get me wrong - I'm glad we have walk-in clinics. But doctors there are not going to have a full perspective on your health (like your regular physician), and they're NOT equipped to do any serious testing (like an ER). If you go to one, make sure the doctor is truly listening to you, if not, don't be afraid to say "We're going somewhere else".

LESSON TWO: Pride and false bravado just get you killed.
While Steph and I were in the ER, a simple curtain separated us from the next bed over. We could hear an older man complaining of chest pains. The doctor was asking him and some family members questions, when suddenly we heard the man make a sound as if he was in serious pain, and a family member said "Oh God!" They were quickly asked to leave and a nurse says "I don't have a pulse"....the doctor barked some quick commands, told everyone to stand clear and you could hear the click of the paddles. At this point I looked at Steph and mouthed the word "Pray". A nurse was drawing blood and putting my IV in, but I couldn't help but think about that man next door, and how upset those family members must have been. Even under all the calm "professional" demeanors of the nurses and doctor attending him, you could hear such concern and determination. After a half a minute or more of praying for him and listening to the activity going on, they successfully resuscitated the man. I was so thankful that the man survived, but I was struck by the timing. Imagine if he hadn't come in? What if he (like I would have had I not felt so awful) had said "It's probably nothing, and I don't want to ruin the family holiday weekend"? Even if he had waited 30 minutes, he would've had that heart attack outside the hospital, and may not have lived to tell about it. About this time I was being told that, although my blood enzymes looked great, the doc thought he saw something abnormal on my EKG, and that he was concerned I might have contracted a virus that was inflaming the tissue around my heart. Up to this point, the thought of my chest pain being heart-related had never occurred to me. I have a healthy heart, passed a physical with flying colors - I quite naturally assumed that my chest pain must be due to something else. That I could contract an infection that could put my heart at risk had not crossed my mind.

LESSON THREE: LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN! QUESTION QUESTION QUESTION! REPEAT AS NEEDED.
As a software developer, I'm painfully aware of all the TLAs (Three letter acronyms) and "geek speak" that so many in my field love to use. Sometimes it really does help speed up communication. Very often, though, I hear a developer use those terms in talking to someone unfamiliar with them - and it drives me crazy. What's the point? A power trip? Blowing smoke? Condescension? Ignorance of your audience? There were several instances where the walk-in clinic doctor and even my own physician dropped "doctor speak" as if I was supposed to understand exactly what they meant. I absolutely refuse to be dealt with like that. I made them explain to me, in detail, what they meant. I thought I may have detected some surprise that they were being made to explain themselves, and I wondered, how many people don't ask when they should? Also - the ER doctor and my personal doctor disagreed on the results of my EKG. The ER doctor was (naturally) being very cautious since if my issue was heart related, he didn't want to send me home to potential death. However, I could tell my doctor was dismissing him somewhat sarcastically when he arrived at the hospital (not to his face, but to me). I was glad I had listened so closely to the ER doc, and my own doc. While I ultimately agreed with my doc's assessment, I wanted to remind him that he could dismiss the ER doc's concerns so easily because HE wasn't the one being admitted.

LESSON FOUR: IF YOU'RE LOSING THE DEHYDRATION BATTLE, GET HELP
I learned this one about ten years ago. (After a botched spinal tap (thanks to someone misdiagnosing me with meningitis), I was laid out on my back for a month, hardly able to eat or drink because of the pain of my nervous system being so dehydrated. It was one continuous migraine-on-steroids that started between my eyes, went up and over my head, down my back to my bum. I finally had to go back to the ER to get fluids via IV.) I recognized Thursday morning I was losing my battle in trying to stay hydrated (yeah, the diarrhea was that bad...yuck). That one fact alone is probably what convinced me the ER was the place to go. They immediately recognized I needed fluids and put me on an IV, and it made ALL the difference. I suggest you do the same if you find yourself in those shoes! What I didn't know was that dehydration causes your heart rate to increase. (I had actually complained to Steph about my heart rate Wed night.) My resting heart rate was abnormally high when I got to the ER (try 110 - I'm normally in the 70s). Going to the ER can be an inconvenient pain - but don't risk NOT going.

LESSON FIVE: GOD IS STILL GOOD
My favorite lesson. Despite the ordeal, pain and inconvenience, I am incredibly thankful that I have such a wonderful wife, family and friends standing by me. It's an amazing thought that one day we will live without sickness and death - and I reminded myself of that reality throughout the whole ordeal. It really puts things in perspective.

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