It’s hard to believe she is turning eight! I am overwhelmed with joy at the awesome person Elizabeth is turning into, while at the same time, I’m feeling very sad at how fast this is all seeming to happen!

I’m sure that in eight more years, she’ll be turning 16 and I’ll be feeling similar feelings of happiness and sadness, so I really need to just be ‘in the moment’ right now and enjoy every moment of “eight” that I can!

As someone who teaches “Western Culture” to Asians living in China, I often have to think and evaluate things that normally I might just take for granted.  For example, if I was taking a test on American Culture and they asked: “America’s national pastime is __________” I would quickly fill in “Baseball” and wouldn’t even re-think it for a second! But is that really true?

I came across an article on CNN’s website that suggested that baseball has not been America’s National Pastime since the 1950′s!  Hmmm, interesting – he might be right!

He ended up talking about the explosion of ‘choices’ that Americans have to occupy their time, especially with the popularity of portable devices that serve up limitless amounts of distraction.  He asked the question: “Do today’s Americans simply enjoy the screens they carry with them, or are they psychologically addicted to them — is it a pleasurable pastime, or are they hooked?”

So, what do you think?  If you were helping me prepare my lecture on “American Culture” that I will teach my students next semester, what would you suggest I tell them is “America’s National Pastime”?

If you’d like to see the CNN article I was referring to, here it is;

(CNN) – In a country as splintered as the United States has become, can there be any such thing as a national pastime?

The phrase has been associated with the game of baseball since late in the 19th century, when sportswriters began dropping it into their stories. It was a great promotional slogan for the sport; whether it ever was literally true is open to question. But it would be just about impossible to make the case that baseball is the national pastime today; in a country of 314 million people, this year’s World Series drew, on average, a television audience of only 12.7 million viewers per game (football’s Super Bowl this year attracted an audience of more than 111 million).

Yet the question is not which sport has become the national pastime, but whether any single activity of any kind qualifies for that title. Cohesion is not exactly the dominating quality of 21st-century life; we are endlessly being reminded of all the choices we have about how to spend our time, and the concept of the entire country gravitating toward one leisure-time activity sounds beyond archaic.

 

If baseball ever was, at least symbolically, the national pastime, it was supplanted in the early 1950s by the rapid growth in the number of television sets in American homes. Suddenly something was happening that had never before occurred: People all over the country were looking at the same thing at the same time. Most mornings, the main topic of conversation in offices, factories and schools across the continent was something that had been on all those television screens the night before. There were only three channels to watch in most cities, and perhaps an additional “educational” channel, the forerunner to PBS.

The nation had a new pastime, and it took place indoors.

 

The great majority of Americans who are alive today have no memory at all of a world before television. The median age in the United States hovers right around 37 years old; this means that half of all Americans were born in 1975 or later. The presence of television, to them, is as unremarkable as the sight of the sun in the summer sky.

 

And a newer pastime, as we all know, has emerged, on screens of a different sort. To take note of how free time (whatever that has come to mean) is now being spent, all you have to do is walk down any street in any city or small town, and observe your fellow pedestrians checking the screens they grasp in their palms.

 

But the hegemony of early television, with those three channels, is a distant memory. No one can take the public’s attention for granted today; first the advent of cable television fragmented viewing patterns, and then came the boundless Internet, followed by the creative forces that provide the content for all those little personal screens. Apple offers around 700,000 separate applications, as does Google. A lot of ways to pass the time, in a nation with a twitching concentration span.

 

The same way there are fewer and fewer Americans who can describe to you what the country was like before television, soon enough there will be few Americans who will be able to recall a world before the Internet. It is hard to conceive, but social history tells us that the seemingly limitless array of ways to spend time today will before long seem constricted and small.

 

There is a famous and provocative phrase, translated from the writings of Karl Marx, that has been used in various contexts over the years: “the opiate of the masses.” The concept of people being susceptible to a symbolic opiate of any kind remains controversial and current. Do today’s Americans simply enjoy the screens they carry with them, or are they psychologically addicted to them — is it a pleasurable pastime, or are they hooked? It’s not an unfair question.

 

(And as far as opiates go — pharmacological and figurative — the Wall Street Journal recently reported on an intriguing development at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, as explained by Rhonda Scott, Grady’s chief nursing officer: “Grady agreed to double the number of TV channels in rooms and add ESPN because ‘the requests for pain medication go down during the afternoon football games,’ Dr. Scott said.”)

 

Our pastimes are many, and the very idea of a national pastime goes against the contemporary aversion to doing only one thing at a time.

Although the very real possibility exists that, seemingly contradictorily, we have indeed settled on a new kind of national pastime:

 

Multitasking.

 

Baseball’s starting to sound better and better.

Time sure has flown by since he was born at Harris Methodist Hospital in Ft. Worth, Texas!

Nate is a fun-loving kid who is quick to smile and is very generous with hugs, kisses and “I love you Dad”s!

Nate does a great job playing with his two older sisters – and even though they sometime call him their “little bother”, in reality, they love him and can’t stand it when he’s not around!

I’m sure the next 5 years will fly by, maybe even quicker than the first five… it scares me!

I love you Nate!

This is our second time to go to this Pumpkin Patch, the last time we were in Texas, we brought Elizabeth and Anna here… so I guess now it’s become an official ‘Tradition’!

And now, back to 2012, with the Webel SEVEN at the Pumpkin Patch!

(Now if you are one of the Dr. Mercola disciples that is against immunizations, go ahead and stop reading this blog post, medical facts and best practices don’t seem to interest you anyway.)

Our family has to have all the ‘normal’ immunizations, but then we have to take it up a level and get immunized against some nasty things that are usually not huge problems here in North America, things like “Japanese Encephalitis”, “Yellow Fever”, “Rabies”, “Hep A, B,” “Typhoid”. I know, fun stuff!  

Erica and I will mostly just be getting some ‘boosters’ to bring our immune levels back up on everything, but some of the kids (Hope & Luke) will be getting some of these shots for the first time.  Please remember them in your prayers, it’s one of the least fun parts of going back ‘home’ to China!

___

In case your interested;

There is an article published by Lonely Planet that has some good advice for people traveling outside of North America who need to get their immunizations up-to-date. I’ll include part of it below;

Be wary of advice on immunisations and other health issues given to you by embassies or travel agents, especially if they say that ‘no immunisations are needed’. What they mean is that you won’t be asked for any vaccination certificates when you roll up at the border, not that you don’t need the jabs for your own protection.

Timing

The first step? See your doctor or local health centre before you go for the most up to date information and treatment options. Ideally, you’ll need to make the first appointment for your immunisations and other travel health advice about six to eight weeks before you travel. This is because you usually need to wait one to two weeks after a booster or the last dose of an immunisation course before you’re fully protected, and some courses may need to be given over a period of several weeks. Although there’s no medical reason why you can’t have all your injections together, it’s a bit masochistic and it may make side effects like fever or sore arm worse. Generally, if you’ve had a full course of an immunisation before, you will only need a booster injection.

Don’t panic if you have left it to the last minute. Immunisation schedules can be rushed if necessary, and many vaccinations can be given together two weeks, or even one week, before you leave. Just bear in mind that you won’t be as well protected for the first week or two of your trip. Note that a full course of rabies vaccine takes a month, as does Japanese B encephalitis.

Which ones do you need?

Working out which immunisations you need doesn’t just depend on your destination, your doctor will also take the following into account: the length of your trip; whether you’re going to be travelling in rural areas or sticking to the resorts; whether you’re planning to work; which vaccinations you’ve had in the past; any medications you’re on; and any allergies you have. So while we can give you some idea of the immunisations you’re likely to need, for the definitive list you’ll need to discuss your requirements with your doctor.

Whatever your travel plans, make sure you’re up to date with routine immunisations, including:

• tetanus (often given together with diphtheria)
• polio
• ‘childhood’ illnesses: measles, mumps and rubella
• influenza

In addition, world travellers will probably need some of the following travel-related immunisations:

Cholera

Note that immunisation against cholera is no longer generally recommended, except in special circumstances. However, some border officials in Latin America and Africa have been known to demand to see a certificate of immunisation before allowing travellers across the border, even though this contravenes international law.

Your best bet is to discuss this issue with your travel health clinic or doctor before you go. You may be able to get a certificate of exemption or some other form of relevant documentation to carry with you just in case.

Hepatitis A

All world travellers should be protected against this common disease. You should have the hepatitis A vaccine, which gives good protection for several years (probably forever if you have a booster). A combined hepatitis A and typhoid vaccine has recently become available, which will help cut down on the number of injections you need to put up with.

Hepatitis B

This immunisation is recommended for long term travellers to hepatitis B hot spots (e.g. Africa, China, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent). You might also need it if you’re going to be working as a medic or nurse, or if needle sharing or sexual contact is a possibility at your destination. This immunisation is given routinely to children in some countries, including Australia and the USA. A combined hepatitis A and B vaccine is available if you need to have both.

Japanese B Encephalitis

You may need this if you’re planning to spend more than a month in rural areas of the Indian subcontinent, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, the Philippines, or Pacific Islands.

Meningococcal Meningitis

Check with your doctor or travel health clinic for the latest information on outbreaks, but this immunisation is currently recommended for Nepal and long term travel in northern Pakistan, northern India, Mongolia and a few areas of Vietnam. Outbreaks of this disease occur periodically in some parts of Latin America, such as the São Paulo area of Brazil. In Africa, epidemics of this occur periodically, mainly in the Sahel area in the hot dry season, although the so-called ‘meningitis belt’ extends as far south as Zambia and Malawi. Be aware that there have been reports of travellers being required to be immunised at borders into Burkina Faso and possibly other countries in the region.

Rabies

With rabies, you have the choice of either having the immunisation before you go (called preexposure) or if you get bitten (postexposure).

Preexposure vaccination involves receiving a course of three injections over a month before you leave. If you then get bitten by a suspect animal, you will need to have two boosters to prevent rabies developing. If you didn’t have preexposure vaccination, you will need the full course of rabies vaccination (five injections over a month) as well as an immediate injection of rabies antibodies (expensive and often not readily available).

Consider having preexposure rabies vaccination if you’re going to be travelling for more than three months or if you’re going to be handling animals. Children are at particular risk of being bitten, so may need to be vaccinated even if you’re going for only a short time – discuss with your doctor or a travel health clinic.

Tuberculosis

This infection is widespread in Latin America, but generally poses a small risk to travellers. You may have been immunised against this as a child, but even if you weren’t, you probably won’t need this unless you’re going to be living with local people for three months or more in most parts of Asia (except Japan).

Typhoid

You’ll need this if you’re going for more than a couple of weeks to Africa, Latin America, the Pacific, and most parts of Asia (except Japan), especially the Indian subcontinent. The oral typhoid vaccine can sometimes give you a tummy upset. The new injectable vaccine causes very few effects.

Yellow Fever

There are two things you need to be aware of with this immunisation. First, proof of immunisation against yellow fever is a statutory requirement for entry into all African countries, and most Latin American countries if you are coming from a yellow-fever infected country in Africa or South America. Second, regardless of whether you need a certificate as an entry requirement, you need the vaccination to protect yourself from the disease if you are planning to visit rural areas of infected countries.

Yellow fever does not exist in all parts of Africa and Latin America, but mosquitoes capable of transmitting it do. In theory, this means it could exist if travellers from infected areas bring the disease with them. Yellow fever-free countries protect themselves from this risk by requiring you to be immunised if you are coming from an infected area. Countries differ in how they define ‘infected’ – discuss this with your doctor before you go, or check any of the information sources listed earlier in this chapter.

My wife and I had the honor of having a wonderful newborn photographer photograph our new son shortly after he was released from the NICU and the results are AMAZING! I still have not settled on my favorites, maybe you can help – which one(s) do you like the most?

The photographer is named Brandy Adams and I’m sure she would appreciate it if you visited her business page on Facebook and gave her a “Like”!   ( https://www.facebook.com/BebeCharmPhotography / http://bebecharm.com )

The Thorn by Martha Snell Nicholson
I stood a mendicant of God before His royal throne
And begged him for one priceless gift, which I could call my own.
I took the gift from out His hand, but as I would depart
I cried, “But Lord this is a thorn and it has pierced my heart.
This is a strange, a hurtful gift, which Thou hast given me.”
He said, “My child, I give good gifts and gave My best to thee.”
I took it home and though at first the cruel thorn hurt sore,
As long years passed I learned at last to love it more and more.
I learned He never gives a thorn without this added grace,
He takes the thorn to pin aside the veil which hides His face.

“I Stood a Mendicant of God” The Next Chapter – Steve Saint

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations,a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Look at those pieces of cake fly!

It’s hard work smashing a cake!

Hi mom, dad said it was okay to do this… really, he did!

The big sister’s trying to capture the moment.

I use it to teach from, projecting Keynote presentations and showing video clips to my students. I use it to read and respond to Email. I use it to read and study the Bible (I even have a ‘read-through-the-Bible’ function in my BibleReader that keeps me on track!) I communicate with family and friends using Skype, I share and view photos and videos from family and friends. I keep track of the news, the weather, sports, all on my iPad. The list of all the things I do with my iPad is too long for me to list here… needless to say, I take the iPad with me most places.

I love my iPad so much, that it makes me happy when I find others who appreciate and use their iPads as much as I do. Recently I came across a news story talking about how many football teams are going completely digital with their playbooks and how it is such a radical improvement over the ‘old school’ way of doing things.

Technology has come to the Dallas Cowboys. Gone are the old playbooks. In is the iPad.

“It beats killing all those trees with all the paper in your hand,” defensive end Jason Hatcher said. “It’s easier to learn. They can download a lot of stuff and you can be ahead of the game. You can watch film and go through the instillation before you get it the next day. You can be in your room getting ahead. It’s very useful.”

The Cowboys are like a number of teams in the NFL that have put their playbooks on iPads. Coach Jason Garrett said most of the players have grown up on video games and that this might be an easier way for them to learn.

But he doesn’t want them to get away from the correct way of studying. He wants them to take notes just as they would before, except now they can take those notes on the iPad.

Garrett added that some of the coaches have needed some help in adjusting to technology.

“There are some old-school guys who take a tremendous amount of pride in being old-school guys,” Garrett said.

And for those worried about players scanning the Internet or playing Words With Friends during meeting time, there is security in place so they can’t download any apps.

“I don’t think there’s any minuses,” defensive end Marcus Spears said, “unless you lose it and have to pay that fine.”

How much is that fine? Try $10,000. That’s pretty hefty. And they also get fined for not having the iPad charged for meetings.