I worked on my dissertation for about an hour this morning; not nearly enough, but I'm in a major burn-out period! I have to get myself fired up again so I can push much harder (like 7/8 hours a day!).

While running some errands, I stopped to walk at Davenport University. Here (right) were three geese walking across the parking lot - I'm not sure why!






This next photo is of the one lone duck I spied (photo on the right)! Usually there are both ducks and geese, as well as herons (and a few muskrats). Today was just a lot of geese.




Last (the photo on the left) is a nice goose family! You may need to enlarge the picture to see the babies.

I planted a few things in the garden today ... some peppers, cilantro, stevia, basil, a pumpkin, cucumber, and squash. Still holding off on my new tomato plants. I'm keeping those safe from the cool night air in bags up against the house. Got groceries today, too (yuck). I was talking to a women at the store, and she was commenting how much more prices are going to go up. She said her husband works for an independent trucking firm here in town. They often pick up things from warehouses to deliver to local businesses (around the state). She said with diesel being so high, it costs her husband $1000. right now to fill up his tank! I was imagining picking up a load of cereal in Battle Creek and trying to figure out how many boxes would fit in a truck. Even if it's a thousand, that's still another dollar a box!

Also, Clay and I put together our new kettle grill. We have a gas grill, but sometimes we really enjoy charcoal grilling! Steaks on a gas grill just aren't the same as steaks on a charcoal grill. We grilled some Polish sausage on it right after finishing.

So, Harrison and I need to work on his math yet today. To be honest I feel too tired today! I hate days like this when I feel worn out and unmotivated and like I didn't get done even a quarter of what I had in mind!

I've been thinking about the terrible natural disasters we've had in the last 2 years ... the tsunami in the Pacific Islands, Katrina (which was more than just Louisianna - Louisanna just whines more!), tornados throughout the central US (lots and lots the past 2 years), the cyclone in Myanmar, and now this earthquake in China. I hate to imagine how high the death tolls will be from the last two. I've heard so many theories - it's cyclic and normal, it's "mother nature" rebalancing after we've overpopulated, bombed, and pollulted, it's God punishing us for treating the earth and each other poorly, and so on. I just don't know what to think. I understand that of course there will be more deaths as we become more densely populated and I also understand the difference instant news makes (40 years ago we wouldn't have heard of the earthquake in China). It just seems like a lot, especially a lot for the world to swallow .... and pay for!

Speaking of paying for things, the US has consistently been the largest contributor to the UN's World Food Bank. You want to see how "giving" and "kind" and "caring" the OPEC nations are? Check this out: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,354677,00.html?sPage=fnc/world/unitednations A quote: "The OPEC total amounts to roughly one minute and 10 seconds worth of the organization’s estimated $674 billion in annual oil revenues in 2007 — revenues that will be vastly exceeded in 2008 with the continuing spiral in world oil prices." Let's see what they do for Myanmar and China.

I wonder at times if they are bleeding the rest of the world dry slowly (of money) and then when there is almost no oil left (less than 60 years from now) and they have both the only oil and all the money ... the boom will fall. Perhaps I'm out in left field on this, but it seems interesting to me that there has been a real effort to culturally indoctrinate people to dislike Western nations, all while getting rich from us (meaning all Western nations, not just the US), with the ultimate goal of either annihilating us or using us as peasant labor in the future. Freaky, huh? And I KNOW immensely unpopular, politically incorrect attitude! I KNOW we're supposed to think everyone has the right to do everything and anything they want now-a-days, but honeslty, I don't agree. Some things are just wrong. Sometimes, even whole countries are wrong (oh my gosh, the "politically correct god of the U.S." may strike me down now!!!!!!!).

It will be an interesting next 50 years of my life, watching how this all plays out! I would love to see things go in a more positive direction.

So here's one more thought I'll leave each of you with today. If a country had 3 major problems with these criteria, which should be a priority?

1. This thing has killed approximately 4,000 people in 4 years. The people knew there was that risk and accepted it.

2. This thing has killed 17,000 people per year (about 68,000) . The people knew there was some risk and accepted it.

3. This thing has killed 17,000 per year (about 68,000). The people killed were unaware of the danger - basically, they were innocent bystanders.

Think about it and I'll tell you what those things are in my next post! Wishing you all a great day! (P.S. I love good discussion that includes dissent - feel free to disagree with me, suggest alternatives, anything!)