Crossing All Our Fingers and Toes

In just one day, our friends Jim and Karen Hodge will be going through an incredibly challenging situation (Check out their blog if you haven't done so yet). I have to say that I am amazed by both of you. Your strength and courage are inspiring. I can imagine that you'd prefer not to have to be inspiring. But, nonetheless, you are.

Second, I am so sorry we couldn't be there with you all more during this trying time as you were with us. But you have been in our thoughts and prayers. Maddie even bought Jim a Bengals tattoo to wear after the surgery. :)

Third, as you get ready for this big step, know that you are loved and being prayed for, as I'm sure many others are doing. I keep hoping though that God takes prayers in Dayton more seriously since it's such a depressing place. :)

We love you guys and have all our fingers and toes crossed that the surgery will go smoothly.

Another for the WTF File.

So I finally took a break from managing group dynamics and suicide risk assessment to see what else was happening in the world. Given that I haven't read much of anything that doesn't relate to psychology, I thought I would finally dive into a magazine totally unrelated to how the human mind works. A few weeks ago, I happened to be a Barnes and Noble picking up a gift and also snagged a copy of The Atlantic, a magazine that I don't typically read but it had a catchy title about how the Internet is making us stupid. Interesting.

One article in particular caught my attention. Now I realize it's been awhile since I've been connect to the world at large and even more time has passed since I was connected to the world of journalism. But, nonetheless, I still have a fondness for newspapers. It's the world on which I cut my teeth. So when I read an article about Rupert Murdoch buying the Wall Street Journal, I felt the need to grab a picket sign and storm the offices (a leftover urge to protest from Kent).

What the F***! I understand that the days of newspapers are numbered. I mourn the fact that in my lifetime, ink-stained fingers after a Sunday morning with the New York Times may disappear. In this day of technological consumption of news, it won't be long until newspapers will be relics.

But is it really necessary to desecrate one of the last bastions of quality in newspaper journalism as we become slaves to the computers? Murdoch owns Fox Freakin' News and a bunch of shitty gossip rags in London. He intends to set it up to compete with the NY Times. But given the draw to profit and his history, it will most likely pull to the quality of the NY Post.

It is a sad day for all of us who grew out of the simplicity of black and white print.

Fourteen years ago, I met two of the most amazing women. We became an inseparable little triad. As time passed and we grew up, we all scattered across the country. Somehow, despite all the distance and all the complications life has thrown at us, we've managed to keep our friendship.

Nine year ago, our little triad added a fourth with the birth of Maddie. And it stayed that way for quite awhile until Kelly gave us Peyton two years ago. This year, our little group was blessed with the addition of three little girls - Avery, Campbell and Evelyn.

Here we are now. From three to eight. Love you girls.

Clad in bright yellow uniforms that were reminescent of the Bad News Bears, the Alpha Veterinary Clinic team racked up another two losses, giving the team the worst record in the league, which again is eerily similar to the infamous movie team. The final loss, after a painful one and a half innings, left players and parents alike wishing for a drunken Walter Mathau to swoop in and whip the team into shape. Hell, we'd settle for Billy Bob Thorton from the subpar remake of the classic.

We'll keep you posted on the little team's progress.

"Well, That's Why They Wear Helmets."

In their first three showings on the diamond, the Alpha Vet Clinic softball team suffered three devastating losses. Bested by teams with bigger players who had more practice, the little yellow team struggled with to keep hope alive. In game one, the team racked up more walks than anything else, allowing their opponents to score 29 runs in a three inning game before the game was called off. In the two following games, the little Alpha team managed to knock in a couple runs and make a few plays, which surprised the players most of all.

One highlight of the Alpha team's opening performances has been young pitching phenom Maddie "Wild Pitch" Pfirrman. Much like Eddie from Bull Durham, Pfirrman has a mean (underhand) fastball that is as wild as her crazy long hair. Batters quaked at the plate with Pfirrman on the mound - not so much fearing a strikeout as a wild pitch. At each showing on the mound, little Pfirrman managed to hit several batters - two right in the head.

Will the Alpha team manage to pull it together for at least one win this season? Will the wild arm of Maddie Pfirrman be tamed?

Stay tuned for season updates.

I am Blessed ...

... to have a friend like Angie. If you are looking for a little inspiration and something to touch your heart, check out her blog (which is a fantastic read). The link is on the right. The blog post that she references from my site is under the May posts call Mother's Day in case you haven't read it yet and are curious what she's writing in response to.

Massive Updates

We've had a crazy beginning to 2008. Thus the lack of updates until now. I finally had a moment to write. And by "had a moment," I mean I am procrastinating and avoiding the mountain of work that needs my attention. Besides two big emotional hits with losing Kath and finding out about Jim Hodge's cancer, we've had a few bumps on top of the usual chaos (Quick recap - I crashed the car, Maddie was sick, I was sick, Maddie ate something with peanuts and ended up in the ER).

Lots of great things have happened too. First and foremost, Maddie is growing into a fabulous person. Who could ask for more? I got my first practicum placement for next year. I met with Fernside to start on my dissertation project and I'm very excited to get things going. Maddie, Mark, Jason and I ran in the Flying Pig 5K. Maddie and I finished in 32 minutes - 10 minutes faster than last year. I went to a conference in Chicago to learn a therapy technique that is incredibly beneficial for kids (also partied it up a bit). Many of the other good things are captured in the blogs below.

Enjoy!