Airline No Frills Policy

I saw this video the other day and just died laughing….it’s scary when it is so close to the truth.

To all those weary travelers….enjoy…

New Weight Loss Program

A guy calls a company and orders their 5-day, 10 lb. weight loss program.

The next day, there’s a knock on the door and there stands before him a voluptuous, athletic, 19 year old babe dressed in nothing but a pair of Nike running shoes and a sign around her neck. She introduces herself as a representative of the weight loss company. The sign reads, ‘If you can catch me, you can have me.’

Without a second thought, he takes off after her. A few miles later huffing and puffing, he finally gives up. The same girl shows up for the next four days and the same thing happen.

On the fifth day, he weighs himself and is delighted to find he has lost 10 lbs. as promised.

He calls the company and orders their 5-day/20 pound program.

The next day there’s a knock at the door and there stands the most stunning, beautiful, sexy woman he has ever seen in his life. She is wearing nothing but Reebok running shoes, and a sign around her neck that reads, ‘If you catch me, you can have me’.

Well, he’s out the door after her like a shot. This girl is in excellent shape and he does his best, but no such luck. So for the next four days, the same routine happens with him gradually getting in better and better shape.

Much to his delight on the fifth day when he weighs himself, he discovers that he has lost another 20 lbs. as promised.

He decides to go for broke and calls the company to order the 7-day/50 pound program. ‘Are you sure?’ asks the representative on the phone. ‘This is our most rigorous program.’

‘Absolutely,’ he replies, ‘I haven’t felt this good in years.’

The next day there’s a knock at the door, and when he opens it he finds a huge muscular guy standing there wearing nothing but pink running shoes and a sign around his neck that reads, ‘If I catch you, your a$$ is mine.’

Happy Mothers Day Mom

This post is dedicate to my mother and wishing her the best Happy Mother’s Day ever!

Mom - in her early to mid-20s

As most of you know, my mother’s health hasn’t been that great and that I just recently returned from a week of helping her with her recovery. When I first posted about her and her injury as well as her progress, things were pretty grave to say the least.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived and was scared to face what I may see. Surely I was surprised by how much older she had gotten and how frail she had become. But all that was secondary to the happiness and joy that I felt when I saw her and knowing that I was going to be able to spend some very quality time with her. It had been YEARS since I had seen her with only conversations on the phone. The joy I saw in her face when she saw me made me feel like I was in heaven! I knew that my visit was going to make a difference!

The first couple of days that I was there, mom was progressing better than she had been in the past. And according to my sister that lives there, she even mentioned that this was the best she had seen mom.

Now, don’t get me wrong, mom had a day or so where she was just totally out of it. Our hearts sank with thoughts that she was digressing. However, I kept my faith in knowing that she was going to continue to get better and that she was only having a few “bumps” in the road.

As days gone by, mom was eating better and seemed brighter than ever. She was “almost” back to herself. I got her involved in the daily activities that they held in the rehab center, I went with her to her physical therapies and I joined her at the majority of her meals making sure that she was continuing to eat. You could see that mom was getting a little stronger every day and her mental and emotional state were good. We took some outdoor walks, we sat and watched TV, but mostly we talked and talked and talked…it was all good! Mom is on her way to recovery, but she still has a long ways to go before she can go home. We are all thankful that she is making progress and that we are hopeful that things continue to get better.

One day, there was a tea party for the ladies, which mom and I attended. The activities director had them all round table discussing various topics. One activity that made a huge impression with me was questions that were asked of each resident that took some deep thought. Examples of some questions were - “what was the most mischievous thing that you did when you were little”, “if you could spend the day with someone in history, who would it be”, “what was the most important thing your father taught you”. Now keep in mind, all these ladies are elderly and so their parents have already passed on. Therefore, a lot of their responses stem from the past. One question that stuck out and stays in my mind is “If you could spend time with your mother (again), what would you tell her?”

When you think about that question, you have to ask yourself, why does it have to be after she is gone? Why can’t it be now? That is, when you are with your mom, what is it the most you would like to tell her?

Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our daily lives, we forget to tell the people most important to us how much they mean to us. The “I love yous”, the “thank yous”, the “you are wonderfuls” sometimes go left unsaid. Why do we sometimes wait until they are gone or it is too late?

Well, I for one do not want to wait until that time. This post is dedicated to my mother and to let her know how much I love her and how much she means to me. Without her guidance and love, I could not have become the person I am today. I am very grateful for all that she has done and all the she sacrificed for us kids.

Mom, this is your special day! Know that you are loved and cherished each and every day. I may not be there and I may not see you very often, but that does not mean that the feelings are any less.

Happy Mother’s Day Mom! What a wonderful day to celebrate such a wonderful person!

Hello to the Lotus/Domino Community

This post is to thank Planet Lotus for adding me to their site and to say “hello” to all the Lotus/Domino community.

Many may already know me and many may not. You probably are asking how am I related to the “Lotus/Domino” community and how much involvement/knowledge do I have with this community and the product.

For those that do not know me (or even if you think you know me) below is a short summary about me.

Now, I don’t consider myself a full-fledged geek, but I also do not consider myself a total novice in the technology field. Most of my experience with Lotus/Domino has come about from being a “user” as well as a “seller” of the product. I guess I have enough knowledge to be dangerous (uh-oh) but not enough to be considered an “expert” in the field.

My background and experience with Lotus/Domino started back in the mid-late 90’s (I believe we were using Notes 3.x) when I worked at Underwriters Laboratories in Camas, WA. Bruce Elgort (my husband) was tasked with making this office the first “paperless” office for UL and to make it the “technology savvy” office. Hence, the introduction of Lotus Notes. What a surprise it was when all the users first saw the user interface of Notes….we were all scratching our heads thinking that maybe Bruce had gone off his rocker with rolling out such a foreign application. But as time went on, everyone saw the value of the product and it’s highly collaborative capabilities. To this day, UL still uses some of the very same applications that Bruce and Steve developed back in the 90’s.

My next encounter with Lotus Notes/Domino was when I sold help desk/CRM/SFA applications at GWI Software, located in Vancouver, WA. Selling products developed around Notes was one of the best ways to understand the product technically as well as understanding the benefits of this platform.

I continued to sell products/services that were built around Lotus Notes/Domino until about 2004. I left the Lotus/Domino world to join forces with a company that was solely Microsoft based. And boy, did I miss using Notes!!! I was an Account Manager for this company managing major key accounts throughout the country. They did not have a CRM package, so needless to say, contact management was done via email and via a LOT of spreadsheets!!! The lack of collaboration was frustrating for me. If only we had a Notes database that could do simple contact management…I would have been in heaven.

Well, in mid-2007, I left this company to pursue other endeavors. This brings me to date with Bruce, Matt and I developing our own Notes/Domino based product (IdeaJam) and creating a company called Elguji Software LLC.

I feel like I am back home again working with something that I am familiar and comfortable with. So, I guess you could say that I am “back in the saddle again” re-joining the Lotus/Domino community. So, I hope you all welcome me back with open arms and stay patient with me while I bring myself back up to date with the latest and greatest on what is going on with the product and the community!

God’s Country…

PHONES IN CHURCH

A man in Los Angeles, California decided to write a book about churches; around the country. He started by flying to San Francisco and started working east from there. Going to a very large church, he began taking photographs and making notes.

He spotted a golden telephone on the vestibule wall and was intrigued with a sign, which read “Calls: $10,000 a minute.” Seeking out the pastor he asked about the phone and the sign.

The pastor answered that this golden phone is, in fact, a direct line to heaven and if he pays the price he can talk directly to GOD.

The man thanked the pastor and continued on his way. As he continued to visit churches in Reno, Denver, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Bangor, Atlanta, Miami, Dallas and around the United States, he found more phones, with the same sign, and the same answer from each pastor.

Finally, he arrived in Oregon, and upon entering a church in Eugene, behold- he saw the usual golden telephone. But THIS time, the sign read “Calls: 35 cents.”

Fascinated, he asked to talk to the pastor. “Reverend, I have been in cities all across the country and in each church I have found this golden telephone and have been told it is a direct line to Heaven and that I could talk to GOD, but in the other churches the cost was $10,000 a minute. Your sign reads only 35 cents a call. Why?”

The pastor, smiling benignly, replied, “Son, you’re in the Northwest now. This is God’s Country, it’s a local call.”

Great Dog Site

A while back I had posted some pictures of Domino on my Flickr account and received a comment/notification from a woman who was developing a dog breed site. She was asking if she could use some of Domino’s pictures for her English Springer Spaniel section. Of course, being the proud mama of such a handsome dog, I said “yes”.

At the time, the site was being revamped and she had asked us for any input on English Springer Spaniels, knowing that we were avid English Springer Spaniel lovers and owners. Of course, we referred her to Domino’s grandma who is a breeder (Donahan Springers) of English Springers. She was able to assist her in getting the right information out on her site. (Domino is prominently displayed in the English Springer Spaniel photo gallery along with some other Donahan springers.)

Just a couple of days ago, I received an email from the woman who owns/manages this site stating that they finished their site. I have browsed through her site and it is Wonderful!

If any of you are interested in owning a dog or need information about different types of dog breeds, this site is a great place to find valuable information about different dog breeds and their characteristics. Her site is called DogBreedExplorer. Check it out!

Home Sweet Home

I am home again and getting back into the groove of things. Give me a day or so to catch up and I’ll start posting again with the latest updates. Thanks for your continued readership!

Taking a small hiatus…

I am taking a short hiatus from the blogging world to go home and take care of my ailing mom. I’ll see you all back on line starting May 5, 2008.

College bound…..well almost

I can’t believe how fast this school year has gone by! I just looked at the calendar and realized that the kids only have a couple of months before school is over for the summer! There is so much to do before the school year ends!

Brandon graduates from high school (June 17) this year and we have tons of things that we are getting ready for. The school even has developed a “count down” list for the seniors! I am really excited for him as this will be a big milestone for him and for us.

He has chosen his college (he had 4 other colleges to choose from - Oregon State University, University of Portland, Western Washington University and Montana State) and has decided to go to Washington State University - Pullman. I believe he is going to go into the bio-technical field, although I am not 100% sure. His dad will be going with him to Freshman Orientation sometime mid-July. I won’t be able to go as Erin has Volleyball camp during that time and needs to be here if she is going to make the team next year. School starts on August 25, 2008 and he needs to be there to move into the dorms on August 17-20.

Its just hard to believe that I have a child going to college and is considered as an adult (who even gets to vote this year!) I still remember him the day he was born. I guess you don’t realize how time goes by until the major milestones happen in your child’s life.

As his special day gets closer (graduation) and as the time for us to wave “good bye” to him on his first day of college gets closer, I will continue to keep you posted.

Just a mom…

A woman, renewing her driver’s license at the County Clerk’s office, was asked by the woman recorder to state her occupation.

She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.

“What I mean is, ” explained the recorder, “do you have a job or are you just a …”

“Of course I have a job,” snapped the woman. “I’m a Mom.”

“We don’t list ‘Mom’ as an occupation, ‘housewife’ covers it,” Said the recorder emphatically. I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation, this time at our own Town Hall.

The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, “Official Interrogator” or “Town Registrar.”

“What is your occupation?” she probed.

What made me say it? I do not know. The words simply popped out. “I’m a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.”

The clerk paused, ball-point pen frozen in midair and looked up as though she had not heard right.

I repeated the title slowly emphasizing the most significant words. Then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement was written, in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.

“Might I ask,” said the clerk with new interest, “just what you do in your field?”

Coolly, without any trace of fluster in my voice, I heard myself reply, “I have a continuing program of research, (what mother doesn’t) in the laboratory and in the field, (normally I would have said indoors and out). I’m working for my Masters, (first the Lord and then the whole family) and already have four credits (all daughters). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities, (any mother care to disagree?)and I often work 14 hours a day, (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most run-of-the-mill careers and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.”

There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk’s voice as she completed the form, stood up, and personally ushered me to the door.

As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants — ages 13, 7, and 3. Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model, (a 6 month old baby) in the child development program, testing out a new vocal pattern. I felt I had scored a beat on bureaucracy! And I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable to mankind than “just another Mom.”

Motherhood! What a glorious career! Especially when there’s a title on the door!

MY MOM UPDATE: My mom should be getting out of the hospital next Tues/Wednesday, but will need to be transferred to a Rehab Center as she is not yet 100% recovered and still needs a lot of assistance. She has her up and down days and is a bit depressed. She still has a long ways to go before she can go “home”. I will be going home next Saturday for 7 days. I am not sure how much (if any) I’ll be posting during my time away, but I will update when I am back.