You know. Bullet points. Outline. Updates from my life. Different random points about kids, Christmas, church, cars (life without them), coffee shops, snow, and R E S P E C T. Oh and health, friendships, Manhattan, etc. (What? you thought I could keep up the k sound for the entire list?) And there's even a "if you laugh ... God sees" story. I'm sure you're going to relate to some point along the way here.

Health first:

• Billy is doing much better. Yesterday, we hiked about 1.5 miles (in the snow) over to the church (last week just walking to the end of the drive was still painful). I only walked to the church. He made 1.25 round trips before a pick-up became involved. Yes, one of the church members went out to fetch him. So he walked about 3.75 miles total.
  
  Today, Billy went to the doc. The doc is happy. All is well. Ok, all is nearly well. There's still a little more healing to do but ... all is well.


• I'm feeling aches in all my joints now. I'm doing a lot of slow breathing and stretches, some ibuprofen, and thinking I'll probably break down and go see a doc after the first of the year. Some days are good, some days are a bit tender, some days ....

Have you ever:

• Been the first to understand something cool, tried to explain it, and get no one to understand exactly how cool it is? BUT you go on and you keep reveling in it's cool-ness and you grapple and struggle and come to an understanding with the impact of being so cool that no one understands you .... AND THEN BAM .... out of the clear blue, one of the people you've talked to suddenly gets it. NO BUT WAIT ... they don't get it the way you now get it ... they get it the way you got it when cool was new to you. Anyone who's ever home taught their kids should be able to relate.
  
  The whole scenario is called "Scouts, Pioneers, & Settlers." Scouts go out first into pristine surroundings. They know it's going to be rough. They prepare as best they can. Pioneers come next ... fiercely independent and resourceful. Then come the Settlers who've read alll about it and understand exactly how they will conquer the world and what the Pioneers did wrong and ... Yeah. Settlers are a pain in the whoo-ha. Getting them to slow down and listen is difficult. They tend to be spoiled & pretentious (because they've read allll about it, etc).
  
  Settlers tend to die off faster than the Pioneers because ... they think they know it all already, they've decided it will be easy etc etc etc etc. The ones who do survive probably have a pioneer spirit, listen well, seek out guidance ... OR... they've survived because they settled near pioneers and seasoned settlers who know search and rescue techniques.
  
  All I'm saying at this point is "sigh." I've been here and done this before. I'm always in that little crack between the Real Pioneers and the True, Absolute pain in the who-ha, Settlers. Right this very instant, in Second Life, I'm watching the less experienced settlers die off left and right and, now, now, this person whom I've talked with before ... who did not get it before ... now ... after reading allll about it.... "Sigh"
  
  I can tell you this right now: I am about to get sucked into something ... I can hear the whirlpool ... it's nearby. It sounds a lot like me in a teaching capacity. Imagine that. If this new "wanna be settler" slows down and listens, there could be some really great things that could happen, though. Really great. If not, I'm not going to participate. I have an aversion to watching settlers die.


• Have you ever ... Listened to someone explain something, researched it, thought it could work out -- if you ever needed it ... then you reach a point were it could actually be handy but ... ? Well ... when we first moved in, the landlord tried to tell me about a bus system. I had already done the research. I knew about the bus. I've seen the bus pass me (going the other direction) while I was out walking.
  
  It makes this long circular route that takes a little over an hour to travel. It only runs one direction in the circle. To make it simple, let's say the bus runs in a counterclockwise direction. Pretend my home is at the 12:00 position and all my fave locations are at the 1:00 & 2:00 positions. This means I can walk to my fave locations more quickly than I can ride the bus around most of the loop. But lately ... I've actually wanted to go the same direction as the bus and go much further than I am willing walk. I keep saying, "I need to call and confirm some details about the bus." Well ... there's always something more going on and, besides, it's not a crisis that I go that way, yet.
  
  But today, while Billy was out, he did some exploring around and discovered the bus system for himself. He loved it. He collected all the info that I'd been planning to call and collect. Life is good. Every hour. In front of my house!

Kids & R E S P E C T

• Having your kids call me by a title does not mean that you have taught them how to show me respect. In fact, it does not mean that you, yourself, have respect for me. This is not the first time for this event to happen to me. It looks like this:
  Parent to (often nearly grown) child, "Call her Miss Pam."
  Me to parent, "No, I prefer to be called Pam"
  Parent to me, "No, they will call you Miss Pam."
  Me to parent, "No, it's my name and my name is simply Pam"
  Parent to me, "They are my children and they will call you Miss Pam. It's respectful"
  Me to parent and entire audience (always an audience), "It is my name and you are being disrespectful to me."
  Parent to me, "But they are my children ... .... "
  etc
  
  Now, usually, these are the types of kids that already understand respect means 1) look a person in the face when you talk to them (without contempt), 2) give a straight answer, 3) enjoy people as unique.
  
  How is it that parents can raise their children to do these things but cannot themselves extend to me the same courtesies? AND how is it that they think that because I have a name preference for myself that I am denying them the right to call their children their own. I never question the parent/child tie. It is not about whether the child is related to the parent. It is about what I should be called.
  
  However ... I have come to a solution ... I have found a title that I think goes with my name and my station in life on this planet while waiting to leave and go on to my heavenly rewards.
  
  If you MUST require your child to call me by a title, the correct title is Princess. Princess Pam. End of discussion.


• If you or any organization you are associated with, are blessed by one or more talented, hard-working, willing teenager who is taking on responsibility you are not even remotely capable of accomplishing ... I have a suggestion for you ...
  
  SHOW RESPECT TO THE TEENAGERS IN YOUR LIFE AND ORGANIZATION.
  
  OK THAT IS NOT A SUGGESTION ... IT IS AN ORDER FROM PRINCESS PAM.
  
  Just let me assure you ... that there are people in my life who are about to be sent to the guillotine if they don't drop and kiss the feet of certain teenagers I know.
  
  Nothing infuriates me more than jealous, self-righteous (yet often ignorant), adults passing judgment on teens who are accomplishing miracles with equipment that is second-rate, second-hand, and are performing in less than desirable conditions.
  
  If you spent time with me in the last 10 days, examine your attitude and your knowledge ranking. Check your assumptions at the door. Basically, if you spent time with me in the last 10 days, you probably shouldn't talk to me for yet another 10 more days. Apologies are being accepted by email. There are two exceptions, no three. Okay, basically, If you spent A LOT of time with me in the last 10 days, you are probably safe. If you said things to me in passing, or I hustled you out of a small room, chances are exceeeeeedingly high that you're on my "adults who don't know how to show respect and feel insecure around accomplished teens" list.
  
  And, Daddy, if you're reading this and you, in your leadership responsibilities, are suddenly God-Blessed with this type of young person, .... well I know I can count on you to defend, guard, and encourage them. Still, I know you know this ... but, still, I'm going to remind you ... this type of teen is very often the hinge-pin of organizational growth. On top of that, it's just a travesty against a Child of God to use a teen as a scapegoat (especially when said teen is working in such conditions that most adults would refuse by siting the conditions as "a prime example of being set up to fail").

oh well ... I'm going to take a break here and let you mull this all over. What? You thought I was upset about kids who didn't respect me. Pooh. I've not seen one of those in a very very very long time. Yes, I do consider myself very blessed. But, I find I very often receive from children and teens what I hand out.

There's so much more ... I'm a little less Texan this year. Yep I'm afraid it's true. Snow. Snow and I'm not freaked out. And as another fellow Texan now living on the Southern fringes of Upstate New York pointed out to me, we are not running around trying to photograph the one falling flake of snow. Yep. Multiple inches of snow and the city isn't shut down. It's got to be over 12 inches and it's ice capped and yet the roads are clear and things are going on pretty much as usual. Pictures? Ummmm yeah ... uhh well ... I uh ... sort of.

Tell you what. Pictures tomorrow. I'll tell you about the Christmas play at church, the snow, my three Second Life coffee shops ... yes three ... it's gone from one to two to one to three so many times in the last month that my head is spinning. And there so much more ... I might actually have to blog all week.

Have fun,
Enjoy,
Princess Pam

Princess Pam is a Texan living on the Southern fringes of Upstate New York. She has added a few blankets to her bed this last week and is (once again) surprised to find that wearing three layers of clothing is not difficult and can feel cozy ... very cozy. Very very very cozy ... even after walking over a mile. Also, she is considering replacing the word "very" with "exceedingly." "Very" is feeling used and over-used.