Little people giving in a big way

This story is so cute! What a great idea all around.

I think these types of stories should be shared more often in the news and through emails, etc. So here. I'm sharing a nice feel-good story to brighten your day.

Thoughts for Todd

Hello everyone, I need to ask for some support for a friend.

Well, when I got out of class tonight at 8 pm, I had a text message from my friend Ashlee (whom I've known since kindergarten). After exchanging several texts tonight (that is her preferred method of communication right now--we aren't just crazy techie teeny boppers who don't talk with their friends anymore), I've learned that her dad (Todd) needs lots of thoughts and prayers right now. He has an appointment with an oncology specialist at the U of M on Tuesday to run a biopsy on some tissue from his arm. Ashlee said that the docs think it could be soft tissue sarcoma (a type of cancer that grows in the soft tissues of the body).

So if you could all think good thoughts, say some prayers, send healing energy, etc. their way, that would be great. I know Ashlee said "the more prayers, the better!" For now, the hope is that it is not cancer at all. So meditate, pray, etc. on that!

Thanks!

Fun discovery

At work today, I was researching info about different places to host video for the Center for Spirituality & Healing. So I was looking around on facebook and youtube just noting the different file size limits and how users can share videos, etc. Well, then I typed in my username since I have posted videos on youtube before (just for random family fun and for posting to my blog). I was surprised to see that I had posted so many videos! There are like 10 on my "channel"! I'm pretty sure I did all that during that first winter that I moved back to MN after living out of state for about 8 years. It was a time of adjusting to life in MN, life away from college friends, life in the cold tundra and life with a new puppy. And yep, I sometimes found myself with a lot of time on my hands, so I filled it with things like creating a blog and posting videos to youtube.

If you need some entertainment (not sure how entertaining any of it really is...), go to www.youtube.com/user/hgehrman. There you'll find some videos of Indy playing in the snow and with a lazer pointer, Paul and my adventure playing on Lake Superior and the fam singing Christmas carols on Christmas Eve 2006.

Enjoy!

PS I can't wait for Christmas Eve! I love it and I'm super excited for my cousin Jason and the lovely Felipe to return home from London!

CSH on KARE-11 tonight

If you've ever wondered about the department I work for at the U of M, here is a little opportunity for you to learn more about it. My co-worker, the communications director of the Center for Spirituality & Healing, pitched a piece about positive aging to KARE-11 (a local news station) a little while ago, and they picked it up. Tonight, there will be a little special on the 10 o'clock news featuring the Center and some people who are aging positively. You can watch it on the local news tonight or probably check the KARE-11 website after 10 pm tonight to see it online.

You can read more about it and view the ad here.

Vote!

I voted this morning!

Eric and I got up early and arrived at the local park and rec to cast our vote at about 7:10 am (they opened at 7). It took about an hour total to go through the line to check in, the other line to get a ballot, the final line that actually led to the little voting stalls and then to cast my vote.

Here in Minnesota, we use a black marker to fill in the circle next to the candidate of your choice. Then you slide it into a scanner machine (kinda like the old days in high school when you filled out scantron test form). What do they use in your state?

Anyway, I feel good about my choices, and I'm excited to see what the results will be. As a fellow blogger wrote, I wonder if we'll get to find out the results tonight or if it'll be days before we know. I hope it's not super close and there are no scandals like last time.

One of the things I love about election day: getting the "I voted" sticker and then seeing who else has them on throughout the day. I found myself smiling at people on the bus and in the halls here at work when I saw that they also got up early to vote this morning.

Eliot's story

A couple years ago, my cousin Katy's friends had a little boy who was born with Trisomy 18. Their story is very moving, and it will actually be on Oprah today. Read Katy's blog about it -- there is a video and also a link to the Mooney family's blog as well.

Thanks McCammacks!

Here is an e-card that I got in my inbox this morning from my friends Laura and Brian.

If you all knew the McCammacks, you would think "Yep, that's about right. It's the perfect card from them."

Thanks, Laura and Brian! Love and miss you!

And I'm not surprised that you already knew about someecards.com. :)

Some ecards

Here is an e-card I could send to my department:

And here is one they could give me in response:

Thanks, Ang! That is a funny site.

Another fun one I found that does not pertain to this situation, but that I just thought was funny because really, who hasn't had something like this happen (for either birthdays or Christmas or Valentine's Day)?

Who knew?

This little article should be printed and stuck to your refrigerator! What a handy dandy little list! Browse through it to learn when to throw out foods, condiments, household cleaners, etc.

The most important thing I learned: drink that bottle of wine I've been saving for a special occasion!

My dad and Beth gave me a bottle of wine almost 3 years ago for Christmas, and Dad said "save this for a special occasion." Well, I've been saving it and saving it cause I didn't want to drink it for just any ol' reason. The last time he came to visit, he saw it in my wine rack and laughed saying "you haven't opened that yet?!" When I said, "you said to save it for a special occasion," he said "it wasn't THAT expensive -- go ahead and drink it before it goes bad!" Well, I took his initial comment seriously, so I've been saving it. This article says that wine unopened should last for three years, so that means I have just a couple months left before I need to consume this thing. Maybe my birthday next week can be the special occasion. :) I'll keep you posted on whether or not it is still good.

Help Josh decide

My friend Janelle linked to this website on her facebook page, and I thought it was interesting. This guy Josh created this page in an attempt to get people to write why they are voting for Obama or McCain. So if you feel so inclined to persuade him either way, you can add a comment for either side. Or if you're just interested in reading about why people want to vote for either candidate, you can just browse through the comments.

Happy reading. Happy voting (in 20 days).