a time to learn

I'm back from my "vacation" - and it was incredibly refreshing to be away from work for 7 straight days. I'm a spoiled girl - but at least it's already Thursday!
Here are some things I learned during my time off:
1. If I stay at home by myself for too long, I eat. A lot. It's important for me to have errands, or company or some big project to work on.
2. It's surprisingly easy to leave all thoughts of work at the office. I missed the people I work with - but not actually being there. (I do enjoy my job - don't get me wrong).
3. You can get infinitely more done when you're not at work. I can sleep in, watch a half hour of TLC, go to Home Depot, Target, Meijer and JoAnn (and take my time at each place), eat lunch, watch another 30 minutes of TLC, plant and hang flowers... at it's not even 3:00pm.
4. The gym is easy to go to when I'm at work, and it's on my way home. If I'm already at home - it seems awfully far away.
5. The bullfroggies in our backyard don't stop gulping - all. night. long.
6. Sleeping with the windows wide open is one of my favorite things (even with croaky-frog noises).
7. Except when it starts to rain in the middle of the night, and you have to run around the house, half asleep, and close the windows.
8. I live a pretty charmed little life. God is good to me!

Vacation!

I'm not really going anywhere - but I won't be at work again until next Thursday. Right now - I have plans to hang out with my friend D on Friday, and I think we'll head up to Uncle Tom's Cabin (Mark has an Uncle Tom, and Uncle Tom has a cabin on Wixom Lake) for the weekend - but other than that, I have no plans. Just the kind that don't really count. Like:
-sleeping in
-getting the house cleaned/organized
-planting some flowers/pulling weeds
-working on my sister's birthday gift (I'm making a couple of throw pillows for her - she picked out the fabric and requested them, so it's not like I'm spilling the beans on my blog)
-going to the gym in the middle of the day
It should be fun - I had to use up some vacation days before they expired. I'll try to keep blogging, but there may be a dry spell in there. So, dear loyal reader (or two), hang on - I'll be back!

lessons from the park

On Saturday afternoon, Mark and I spent some time at Rayner Park with 4 of our middle school friends. We were playing Lava Freeze Tag most of the time (a game that involves a person to be "It" who chases everyone else around the playground - if you're tagged, you freeze, but the wood chips are "lava" so you can only take one step on it at a time. This means that you must leap, climb, and shimmy your way around the park, trying to simultaneously avoid being frozen and unfreeze your "chilly" peers. It's a fun game, but I was tired and wearing shoes ill-suited to the task at hand - hence, I spent much more time being frozen than actually leaping, climbing or shimmying around the park).
During one of my frozen sessions of solitude, I watched a man playing with his two sons. One appeared to be about 8 years old, the other was probably about a year old, and fairly new to walking. Older Son was hanging upside-down, jumping off things, and generally propelling himself around the park much as any young lad would. Dad was chasing Younger Son around, making sure he didn't toddle right off some steps, or inadvertently into the tornado-like path of Older Son. The conversation Dad had with Older Son while chasing Younger Son was kinda cool:

Older Son: Dad, check out what I can do! (does some sort of upside-down flip/leap thing off the parallel bars)
Dad: That's cool, buddy!
Older Son: I can do it every time! Watch! (does it again)
Dad: Great job - but you know, sometimes it's good to do things that are hard for us. If you can do it right every single time, then you're not learning. We get better when we're doing things that we can only do right about half the time.
Older Son: (is losing interest in Dad's motivational speech) Okay.
Dad: (watching Younger Son trying to climb up a slide, land on his rear end, get up, and try again) Toddlers are great at that. They're always trying things that are too hard for them. By the time we grow up, we're not very good at that anymore.

How true! I've always liked learning things - but as I've gotten older, I've grown distinctly more concerned with being "good" at those things immediately. Makes me wonder how much I'm missing out on by being worried I'll look "stupid."

wax on, wax off

I was at the salon Saturday morning, giving my hair some much needed love and attention, and it was lovely. I have just started going to see Jena, a fantastic gal with great big curls, a warm smile, and a really down-to-earth, open-and-honest personality that I enjoy. She actually scheduled my appointment for a half-hour before the salon opens, because she "likes to spend at least an hour with any new client, just to get a feel for what they want." Her salon just opened in November, and I know her daughter (an 8th grader) from WyldLife. I really love living in a small town sometimes!
We're in the back, shampooing my dreadfully split-ended hair, and chatting famously, when she pauses for a moment, looks at me, and says,

"Would you like me to wax your eyebrows for you while you're here?"

Now, to be fair - I've been wanting to get my eyebrows "done" for awhile now, and while I by no means have a unibrow or giant, fuzzy caterpillars sitting on my forehead... they are a little unruly and make me a bit self-conscious (in that crazy way girls get about things that no one else will ever really notice or care about.)
So I picked my pride up off the floor, and told her that yes, I would love to have my eyebrows done if she had the time. And I must say - she did a lovely job.
By the end of my hour, my split ends were no more AND my dream of having my eyebrows groomed by ripping hairs out of my face with hot wax had come true. And I couldn't be happier. Jena and I have started (what I hope will turn out to be) a long-term relationship.

Peace

My grandfather Rodney (aka Papa/Grandpa) got to go home and meet our Savior on Tuesday, May 15th. Mark and I went to Illinois for the visitation and funeral on Thursday and Friday. Mark was a pallbearer(all the grandsons were, with all the granddaughters as "honorary" pallbearers, which really means you just walk behind the boys carrying the heavy casket and kinda feel bad that you're not helping), and I read two passages of scripture in the service. Grandpa was a veteran of World War II, so he had an official military send-off at the cemetery - guns, flags, salutes... it was really cool.
Obviously, everyone was mourning - but it was so cool to look through old pictures and hear my grandma tell stories about how they met and when they were first married. Those kind of things need to happen more often. I found a picture of my grandma in 1947 (she was 22, I think) that looked almost exactly like a picture of me taken a few years back. It was really neat. I think we lose history a lot - old stories don't seem important when your life is so full of deadlines and projects and meetings. But our stories don't mean much without those who came before us - and it was good to remember that.
A co-worker told me this morning that I seemed really peaceful. I feel peaceful. My grandpa is kicking around heaven right now - and that's a very good thing.

pictures from New York

For those that asked (okay, just Julie)... Here are some pictures from our trip to New York (State, not City):










Joshua and Ashley were in a fort (the corner of the room) and a monster (Mike) was after them.









Maggie liked playing in the dirt at the park (and climbing on stairs and shooting off the ends of slides...) She's a tough cookie.










This picture of Timmy makes me laugh. It's his cross between the Emperor-from-Star-Wars and the Unabomber-look.










This is everyone - six adults, four kids, one camera on a timer... not bad!

angels and phones

I think my grandfather is getting ready to trade in his earthly body for a perfect, strong, heavenly body. I don't really think he'll look much like this little angel-guy right here - but I couldn't find a picture of an angel that looked much like my Papa.
He had a stroke nearly four years ago - it left him (for the most part) unable to speak, and completely unable to move one side of his entire body. He's been in a nursing home ever since.
Two things have been running through my mind since I got the phone call last night that it "wouldn't be long."
One - that my grandfather, who has been bedridden for nearly four years - will soon be in a magnificently glorified version of his earthly body. He will be strong, healthy, able to walk - and, of course - he'll be with our Creator, which tops everything else. I found myself praying for that last night - for his release from this world and the life he's been limited to these past years; and thanking God for the eternity that's waiting for him.
Two - Papa (what we all called him when we were little - he graduated to "Grandpa" a few years ago) always carried a knife in his pocket. Not a pocketknife - but one of those retractable blade doo-dads that carpenter guys use. Therefore, he was the one I took every toy to - you know how they package kids' toys in impossibly strong plastic that will sever your bones if you try to break through it yourself. Papa just had to pull out his knife - and that Care Bears CloudMobile was mine to play with ASAP!
It's funny what you remember.
In other news - our office got new phones today, and the funny beeping and new rings have given me an oh-so-slight headache. But it's cool to have fancy new phones.

you know you're friends when...

One way to know you've got a bosom friend:
(since most of you probably have no idea what I'm talking about - I'll provide this for you. You have to scroll down a bit to find the reference)
Kristen (my friend who lives in Rochester, NY) and I met up for a girls-weekend-out back in October. We both drove to London, ON (about halfway between our homes) for a weekend of eating out, shopping, and getting pampered. We had spa appointments (facial for me, massage for her) and then we both got our hair cut.
When I showed up at Kristen's house on Sunday, I commented on how long her hair was getting.

Kristen: Oh, it needs to be cut SO BADLY! I haven't gotten it cut since October, when we were together!
Me: (laughing) Me either.

I've managed to find a friend who is as delinquent in caring for her hair as I am. And for your information - I'm scheduled to get it cut/trimmed/chopped off (I haven't decided yet) next Saturday. The end (of split ends) is in sight!

back to life

Not back-to-life in the "I was raised from the dead" sense... just back to routine, work, and home.

Mark and I left Sunday afternoon for Rochester, NY for a visit with friends who have moved away. Mike and Kristen live in NY with their two boys, Timmy and Josh. Scott and Heather (plus daughters Ashley and Maggie) were visiting family in NY and all six adults and four children (under age 5) spent an amazing two days together. Here are some highlights:

1. Timmy (who will be five in August) writes in full sentences, does Sudoku (a children's version with colored fish, but STILL) and creates perfect pictures on his LiteBrite (yes, they still make those!). Just try to hang around him for four days and not crack up.
2. God gave us absolutely perfect weather for our entire visit - sunshine, breezes, almost 80 degrees... we ate outside at every possible occasion.
3. Ashley (turned four in February) is a lovely, sweet little lady with an angel face, who graciously accepts every SINGLE compliment you give her. It left me wondering when we stop agreeing with people when they say "You are SO good at that!" and start with the whole "No, it's really no big deal, I actually kind of screwed it all up."
4. We (just the grown-up girls) went out to breakfast one morning, and the guys went the next day. I love love love my friends' kids, but it's sooo good for us to spend time together just being friends. I wanted it to go on all day long.
5. Maggie (about 20 months old) is so expressive - smiles that squinch up her whole face, a pout like you've never seen before, and the best head-down-eyes-up-looking-over-my-shoulder-so-coyly look you've ever seen. I wanted to hold her forever.
6. We went to the park, took walks, jumped on the trampoline - and that was about the extent of our schedule (aside from naptimes, bedtimes, mealtimes, and all other manner of "times" that young children will fastidiously hold to)
7. Joshua (turned 3 in February) sang a song about his favorite color (pink) and his second favorite color (purple) - and then turns around and leaps without fear all over the trampoline, the furniture, and anything else he can climb. He's all BOY - with shoulder-length blond hair and a love for shiny, pretty things.
8. I love preparing meals with friends - three or four people make things go so quickly - and even chopping vegetables and washing dishes seems like fun when you're in good company.
9. I got a glimpse of family life - kids running around, minivans, diapers, and snacks. While it looks exhausting, my heart just reaches out for it. Spending time with 2 4-year-olds, a 3-year-olds and an almost 2-year-old may make some people run for the hills. Me - let's just say my heart is so full.
10. It's just so obvious that God is with these people and our relationships. Mark said it well yesterday - it feels like there is longevity and trust - and not so much that we've known each other SO long (although it has been years) - but that you can just tell that we have years and years to come.

It's good to be back to my home and routine - but I praise God for an encouraging, full-of-blessings break.

...not exactly

Here is a snippet of a phone conversation I had last night...

Me: Have you checked on my blog lately?
Sister: Erm... I think about two days ago.
Me: Ooh, you should visit again and check out the pretty picture I posted of the bruise on my leg.
Sister: (pause) You posted B@@BS on your blog?!?
Me: Nooo... it's a bruise.
Sister: Booze??
Me: BRUISE. You're not listening to me. At all.
Sister: (laughing) You're right, I'm really not. Bruise is much better.

Two things I would never am most unlikely to post about. Never say never, right?

pretty colors

To the left, you'll see the lovely flowers my hubby sent to my office on Tuesday. Blue irises and orange lilies - it makes the whole place brighter!!

To the right... this is what my right leg looks like today. The picture doesn't really do it justice - it's a lovely bruise (and a nice sized LUMP) that I gave myself yesterday when I closed the car door across my leg. Real swift, Kate. Just in time for skirts and capris.

with that kind of logic...

Last week I was at a middle school track meet, hanging out with my teenage friends. It was drizzly, gray, windy, and about 38 degrees. CHILLY. Of course, the vast majority of students who weren't running were wearing flip flops or some kind of sandal.
I was explaining to my friend Kelsie the reason their feet are never cold.

Me: It's because you're all growing like crazy. It raises your body temperature.
Kelsie: I didn't know that.
Me: Old people like me have cold feet because we stopped growing a long time ago. Now, I'm pretty much shrinking.
Kelsie: How old are you?
Me: Twenty-six.
Kelsie: (scoffing) That's not old. You're not old until you can no longer reproduce.

You heard it here first folks. Now, on some levels I question the merits of her wide-reaching statement... but when you think about it from a 13-year-old's point of view, her logic is basically flawless.

indoor weather

There is a wind tunnel in the stairwell at work.

I understand that sometimes weather can worm its way indoors - humidity creeps everywhere, like some stealthy frizz-inducing villain. Excessive rain causes ceilings to drip and basements to flood. But how do 30-mile-an-hour winds end up in the 5-story stairwell of a university building?

The good news: I arrive at work every morning with a lovely, windswept hairdo.

The bad news: Due to the ferocious blowings of said wind tunnel, the already-heavier-than-normal fire safety doors (leading from the stairwell to the actual hallways and offices) become leaden. Seriously - the door to the second floor weighs about 275 pounds. Luckily, I work on the third floor - but due to poor planning in the restroom situation in this building (read: there is only one stall in the ladies' room on my floor), I often travel downstairs throughout my day (where the ladies' room has a much less awkward three stalls).

I thought the picture was appropriate, although it reminds me that I only have a vague idea of how those tall wind turbines actually work to produce electricity. Kind of like how my friend D asked me, "What exactly does it mean when they say 'You're in escrow'?" yesterday at lunch. I laughed, informed her I'm still not exactly sure, and told her what little I did know (which pretty much boils down to "The bank takes hundreds of extra dollars along with my mortgage payment each month and dumps it into their own account to pay my city taxes later. And it makes me angry.")

I know. You're marveling at my masterful ability to weave together stories of restrooms, wind tunnels, real estate terms, electricity and fire doors. And can you believe... I don't even have to try.

waking up

In my own humble opinion, the absolute best way to wake up is with sunlight pouring in my window and playing across my face, birds singing outside (not squawking), and the warm body of my husband just a few inches away (or feet - not exactly a snuggler, that one). No alarms - just the delicious feeling of a good night's sleep.

I did not wake up that way this morning.

It was dark, for one thing. To be fair, it's virtually impossible for me to wake up to sunshine, unless it's a weekend in summertime. My alarm goes off at 5:20 most mornings. Instead of hearing birds, I heard rain. Now, I like rainy days and thunderstorms... mostly because it means it's warm enough to rain instead of snow. But the past few days have absolutely spoiled me - I just want sunshine, clear blue skies and lovely spring breezes to continue forever. Hubs was in bed next to me... but we were both making our typical grumbly-early-morning noises. Definitely not enjoying the pure sweetness of waking up next to the love of your life.

However... it struck me this morning (as I dragged my sleepy self around the house) that this is the way God works. This morning, He decided to wake me up and grace me with another day to live and love. He may choose to wake me up with annoying radio banter, or with sunshine and birds, or creepy nightmares, or thunder and rain. While I may have a preference, the end result cannot be ignored - and that is the gift of a life I did not earn, blessings I do not deserve, and second (third, fourth, seventy-fifth) chances. I know this sounds a little like "the end justifies the means" - which is something I don't normally buy into. But maybe with God - it's true.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

At any rate, I am grateful for a new day, and for a God whose grace extends beyond anything I can deserve or even imagine deserving. Thanks, Lord, for waking me up today.

on being known

We all realize, from a young age, that other people are important. Everyone wants to be loved by someone; everyone wants to have friends. But it's only as I've gotten older that I've realized the true extent to which God has created us as relational creatures. He made us to be known.

When I feel lonely or unknown, I have a tendency to feel wimpy. The fact that I am bothered by lonsomeness is a sign of weakness. I ought to be stronger, to have more faith, and to be one of those people who needs nothing more than knowing I am a child of the King. It feels like I'm failing. But I've realized that God's earnest pursuit of our love and devotion is not weak. It is a part of His very nature - a part that cannot be removed without dramatically changing God Himself. And as children of God, we've all been created to reflect Him. The desire for companionship - to be known and loved - comes from the Lord. It's no sign of weakness or failure. I only fall into my sinful human nature when I place the importance of having people in my life above God.

That being said, I've been thinking lately how important it is to have people that know you. Most of us have a number of friends, acquaintances, colleagues - people who care about us... but how many of us have a number of people who know them?

I'll be honest - I could use a few more friends. (I don't know anyone who would honestly turn away more friends, but I've been feeling a little lacking here lately). I like to sit at coffee shops and talk for hours. Going shopping and trying on crazy stuff you have no need of and no intention of buying - a fabulous pastime. I love eating out with friends and laughing until my stomach cramps and tears pour out of my eyes. But these are side effects - things that follow relationships where there truly exists knowledge and love.

Distance makes that hard - because no matter how much you love someone, it becomes tougher to know them when you're not a part of their everyday life. Proximity helps. That's when you hear about all the little things - stuff that seems to trivial to mention in precious emails or phone calls. It can't all be about big, momentous updates. Sometimes it needs to be about the fact that you've just discovered Eggo NutriGrain Blueberry Waffles - and your life will never be the same again. Or that there's a spot on the road in front of your house that now smells a little like Cherry Peach Salsa (mostly because you dropped a jar of it yesterday).

I may well have scared anyone who reads this (all three of you) off of ever wanting to know me... but it still holds true that while God knits each of us together in thrillingly unique ways, He weaves into all of us a need to know and be known.

I'm just saying.

homecoming

Mark and I returned from Traverse City yesterday afternoon - the conference went really well (Mark is SO good at his job - it's always such a cool thing to watch him handle situations, big and small... I'm proud of him!)
I love coming home. I don't love unpacking suitcases or finding expired milk in the fridge or realizing that there's no fruit in the house (a tragedy at 422)... but I love to walk in the door and feel like I'm home. Yesterday was a lovely summery day - warm air, a great breeze, windows flung wide. Sitting on our couch, reading a book - it was such a nice way to relax. I was looking forward to getting to bed early and continuing to catch up on the sleep I didn't quite get to during the conference.
However - I tossed and turned all night, waking up from nightmares of being chased and attacked... there was actually a point when I woke up with my ankle hurting (I had been dreaming that I was hiding from some sort of deranged criminal/killer type person - and in the dream, they were biting my ankle.) Okay, I know that's weird (but it's a dream, people) - but it was unbelievably freaky to wake up with your ankle actually hurting. It made me not want to fall back to sleep, because I was afraid my dreams would pick up right where they left off.
(I'm sure I could psycho-analyze this to mean something about the level of stress I was feeling about coming back to work and my "regular" life, and how badly I need a real vacation with my hubby right now... but I'd rather not. Sometimes, you just have bad dreams).
Here's to hoping I sleep better tonight!

Traverse City, Here We Come

My husband is on his way up to Traverse City this morning, to the Grand Traverse Resort (a lovely place, by the way) for his 8th HOSA State Conference. I'll head up tomorrow with Jamie (a friend of ours, one of Mark's groomsmen, who I would link to, but is a big ole blog quitter). Here are ten reasons why I really love going to the conference:
1. Mark and I had just started dating when he got this job - and I've never missed a State Conference. It's definitely one of those experiences that you can't understand until you've been there to see it - and I love that I've been to every one of them with Mark.
2. We stay in the super suite on the 15th floor - and I get my very own king-sized bed and jacuzzi tub for the first 3 nights. (Mark stays in a separate room, for some very good reasons I won't get into here *smile*)
3. Mark's best friends come to help him out - and seriously - if you judge a man by his friends (and really, you shouldn't judge people at all, but if you did) - Mark is the best guy in the world. He attracts some of the most genuine people I've ever known. It's really fun to hang out with them for a few days each year.
4. I get to coordinate the power point slides for the huge (over 1000 people) sessions each night - I know it doesn't sound like much fun, but it is when you try to flash a slide with the word "poop" on it without anyone noticing. Ah, sophisticated adult humor.
5. Saturday morning, I get hooked up with a 50-minute massage. Oh, bliss.
6. GREAT food. We eat at Traverse City staple restaurants like Don's Drive In, Ponderosa, Red Mesa Grill, and TraVino. I know you're jealous.
7. The teachers can be really fun - I've known some of them for almost 8 years now.
8. If it's nice - we can play tennis and walk around the golf courses. If it's not - we go to the pool, play ping pong, and hit the workout room. And play tennis at the indoor courts. (All on Saturday, after the conference is over, of course...)
9. It gets me out of my own stressful job for a couple of days, and lets me focus on making Mark's job easier and more enjoyable for him.
10. It's such a cool, tangible way to show love and support for people you care about. Coming to work at his conference is really (pardon my use of a slightly cliche phrase) speaking his love language.

I won't be back in town until Sunday, so my blog will be a little slow for the next few days. Enjoy your weekend!!

six degrees of God

Through an incredibly complicated series of blog-linkings (I confess, I like to click on the "Blogs I Read" links of "Blogs I Read" links of the Blogs I Read and see if I find anything good... and I've found some treasures, let me tell you) I've stumbled (correction - God has led me) across an online community of Christian women that blow me away with their humor, candor, and genuine love for the Lord and one another.
Tomorrow (Wednesday, April 18th), BooMama is hosting a love offering for Heather, who recently received the news that she has a (most likely) inoperable brain tumor. Read "About Heather" and "Emma Grace's Story" to witness the journey that God has already led this family on. It's a blessing, to be sure. The strength and faith in her words absolutely blows me away.
Anyway - hospitalization, etc. can be awfully expensive, and Heather's family could use our support. So stop by BooMama's site tomorrow (minimum donation of just $1.00) and show some love.

not-so-little miss sunshine

Funny how some things that we enjoy SO much can actually be a little scary! I was thinking about how lovely it was to see the sun shining all day yesterday... so I googled "sun" to find a picture for today's post. This may sound silly, but I'd forgotten that the bright blue sky and warm seats in our car were provided courtesy of a gi-normous ball of burning gas. Yesterday's soft, warm light seems pretty intense when you look at it this way...

I was thinking that I could make some sort of deep, philosophical connection to the fact that we take for granted the true source of so many things in our lives - but I honestly don't have the energy for it right now. Maybe I'll make a note and blog about it some other time. :)

For right now - I'm enjoying my morning yogurt, catching up on the emails that came in over the weekend, and trying to wrap my poor Monday-morning-head around all the things that need to be accomplished this week.

can you ever just be whelmed?

(Before my post really gets going - who knows what movie the title of my post is from? Don't be afraid to reveal just how many mediocre teen movies you've watched!!)
I think being "whelmed" is my new goal. Underwhelmed sounds like it's always a bad thing - expectations aren't being met and nothing is turning out the way you thought it would. Even though it sounds bad, overwhelmed can be a good thing - if you're overwhelmed with the deliciosity (I like to make up new words) of your Cold Stone ice cream, or overwhelmed by how gorgeous the sunrise was today - but it still sounds like it's about to put you over the edge. A little bit dangerous.
I'd like to be whelmed.
Just the right amount of emotion, experience and passion - enough to wake you up, make you sit back and say "wow - life really can be pretty incredible," and just find joy in the moment.
Lately, I feel like I've been overwhelmed a lot. Big things (not so fun things) have been happening in my life recently, and I've been letting them get to me more than I should. My husband bears the brunt of my self-pity parties when this happens. It's a drag (mostly for him).
So, as of 7:17 this morning, I've decided to aim for being whelmed. For me, that means recognizing that I need feet to fit the path God has for me (not the other way around). It means that I need to allow myself to smile, laugh, and be cheered up - even when so many things feel unfulfilling, frustrating and/or just plain hard. It means that I can find joy in each moment, no matter what.
In case you've been wondering - the title of my blog, "A Heartful of Eternity" comes from Ecclesiastes 3:11.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

I love that verse, for so many reasons. I find such profound comfort in the reminder that the Lord makes everything beautiful - in its own time. My occasional dissatisfaction with life/people/circumstances is my heart crying out for eternity - a reminder that we were created for more than this. God fashioned us in His image - and we are programmed to desire our home. And I definitely definitely cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. All I can fathom is my own little corner of the world - so big to me, so small to the rest of the world - yet still so important to God.
That verse helps me focus on being whelmed. So when I have to juggle many things, as everyone does (I know there is no sleep deprivation but such that is common to man... there is no struggle with work but such that is common to man...) - I can remember that juggling is fun - like all other things, it's what I make of it. This guy is pretty impressive - I mean, I've mastered the art of juggling two things at once (you may commence to "ooh" and "aah" at my jaw-dropping skill level).