Stella Awards

Here are the Stella Awards - Unbelievable!

It's time again for the annual 'Stella Awards'!
For those unfamiliar with these awards, they are
named after 81-year-old Stella Liebeck who spilled hot coffee on herself
and successfully sued the McDonald's in New Mexico, where she purchased
coffee. You remember, she took the lid off the coffee and put it between
her knees while she was driving. Who would ever think one could get
burned doing that, right? That's right; these are awards for the most
outlandish lawsuits and verdicts in the U.S. You know the kind of cases
that make you scratch your head. So keep your head scratcher handy


                       Here are the Stellas for this past year -- 2011
*SEVENTH PLACE*
Kathleen Robertson of Austin, Texas was awarded $80,000 by a jury of her
 peers after breaking her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running inside
 a furniture store. The store owners were understandably surprised by the
verdict, considering the running toddler was her own son.

                       Start scratching!
 * SIXTH PLACE *
 Carl Truman, 19, of Los Angeles, California won
$74,000 plus medical expenses when his neighbor ran over his hand with a
Honda Accord. Truman apparently didn't notice there was someone at the
wheel of the car when he was trying to steal his neighbor's hubcaps.

                       Scratch some more...

* FIFTH PLACE *
 Terrence Dickson, of Bristol, Pennsylvania,  was leaving a house he had
 just burglarized by way of the garage. Unfortunately for Dickson, the automatic
 garage door opener malfunctioned and he could not get the garage door to open.
Worse, he couldn't re-enter the house because the door connecting the garage to
 the house locked when Dickson pulled it shut. Forced to sit for eight, count 'em,
EIGHT days and survive on a case of Pepsi and a large bag of dry dog food, he sued
the homeowner's insurance company claiming undue mental anguish.
Amazingly, the jury said the insurance company must pay Dickson $500,000
for his anguish. We should all have this kind of anguish Keep scratching.
There are more...

                       Double hand scratching after this one..
*FOURTH PLACE*
 Jerry Williams, of Little Rock, Arkansas, garnered 4th Place in the Stella's
 when he was awarded $14,500 plus medical expenses after being bitten on
the butt by his next door neighbor's beagle - even though the beagle was on a
 chain in its owner's fenced yard. Williams did not get as much as he asked
for because the jury believed the beagle might have been provoked at the time
of the butt bite because Williams had climbed over the fence into the yard and
repeatedly shot the dog with a pellet gun.

Pick a new spot to scratch, if you're getting a bald spot..

* THIRD PLACE *
Amber Carson of Lancaster, Pennsylvania because a
jury ordered a Philadelphia restaurant to pay her $113,500 after she
slipped on a spilled soft drink and broke her tailbone. The reason the
soft drink was on the floor: Ms. Carson had thrown it at her boyfriend 30
seconds earlier during an argument. What ever happened to people being
responsible for their own actions?
Only two more so ease up on the scratching...
 *SECOND PLACE*
 Kara Walton, of Claymont, Delaware sued the owner
of a night club in a nearby city because she fell from the bathroom
window to the floor, knocking out her two front teeth. Even though Ms.
Walton was trying to sneak through the ladies room window to avoid paying
the $3.50 cover charge, the jury said the night club had to pay her
$12,000....oh, yeah, plus dental expenses. Go figure.

                       Ok. Here we go!! Drum roll ...

 * FIRST PLACE *
This year's runaway First Place Stella Award
winner was:

Mrs. Merv Grazinski of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, who purchased new 32-foot
Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home, from an OU football game,
having driven on to the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly
left the driver's seat to go to the back of the Winnebago to make herself a sandwich
not surprisingly, the motor home left the freeway, crashed and overturned. Also not
surprisingly, Mrs. Grazinski sued Winnebago for not putting in the owners
manual that she couldn't actually leave the driver's seat while the
cruise control was set. The Oklahoma jury awarded her, are you sitting
down? $1,750,000 PLUS a new motor home. Winnebago actually changed their
manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any
relatives who might also buy a motor home.

                     Think the court system is out of control??

H/T  Lady Di

Scary Obituary

Do you believe perceived historical trends are valid, and may foretell the fate of modern nations?


In 1887 Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh ,
Had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years prior:

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent
Form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters
Discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury.
From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the
Most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally
Collapse over loose fiscal policy, (which is) always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has
Been about 200 years.
During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

From bondage to spiritual faith;
From spiritual faith to great courage;
From courage to liberty;
From liberty to abundance;
From abundance to complacency;
From complacency to apathy;
From apathy to dependence;
From dependence back into bondage."
The Obituary follows:

Born 1776, Died 2012
It doesn't hurt to read this several times.
Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul , Minnesota ,
Points out some interesting facts concerning the last Presidential election:

Number of States won by: Obama: 19 McCain: 29
Square miles of land won by: Obama: 580,000 McCain: 2,427,000
Population of counties won by: Obama: 127 million McCain: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Obama: 13.2 McCain: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory McCain won was
Mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country.

Obama territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in low income
Tenements and living off various forms of government welfare..."

Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the
"complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy,
With some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached        (AS OF 5/01/2012 THIS NUMBER IS ALMOST 51%)
The "governmental dependency" phase.

If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal
Invaders called illegals - and they vote - then we can say goodbye to the
USA in fewer than five years.

If you are in favor of this, then by all means, delete this message.

If you are not, then pass this along to help everyone realize just how much is at
Stake, knowing that apathy is the greatest danger to our freedom..

This is truly scary!
Of course we are not a democracy, we are a Constitutional Republic .
Someone should point this out to Obama.
Of course we know he and too many others pay little attention to The Constitution.
There couldn't be more at stake than on Nov 2012.

If you are as concerned as I am please pass this along.

7 Deadly Social Sins

Wealth without Work

I sometimes think that the Gold standard should be replaced by the work statndard.

Pleasure without Conscience
It seems that Western Civilization has gotten more materialistic and hedonistic.

Science without Humanity
The real question always seems to be not whether it can be done but if it should.

Education without Character
The intellect seems so insignificant when compared with ideas like integrity and love.

Politics without Principle
True leadership embraces humility while political power is all about pride.

Commerce without Morality
Greed is bad. Why do we want more? Why do we want to get the best of each other?

Worship without Sacrifice
Cheap grace is not grace at all. Worship that does not cause us to bow is fake.

H/T  Kansas Bob

Mayo Clinic on Aspirin - PASS IT ON

 

------------------------------------------------------------
Bayer Aspirin


 Mayo Clinic:  Aspirin

Dr. Virend  Somers, is a Cardiologist from the Mayo Clinic,  who is lead author of the report in the July  29, 2008 issue of the Journal of the  American College of Cardiology. 

Most  heart attacks occur in the day, generally between 6  A.M. and noon.  Having one during the night,  when the heart  should be most at rest, means that  something unusual happened. Somers and his  colleagues have been  working for a decade to show that sleep apnea is to blame.  
         
1. If  you take an aspirin or a baby aspirin once a  day,
           take it at  night.
           The reason:  Aspirin has a 24-hour "half-life";
           therefore,  if most heart attacks happen in the
           wee hours  of the morning, the Aspirin would be  strongest in your system. 

2. FYI,

Aspirin lasts a really long time in your  medicine chest
for years, (when it gets old,  it smells like vinegar).

Please read on.

Something that we can do to help  ourselves - nice to know.
       
Bayer is  making crystal aspirin to dissolve instantly on  the tongue. 
They work much faster than the  tablets.
         
Why  keep Aspirin by your bedside? It's about Heart  Attacks -

There are other symptoms of a  heart attack, besides the
pain on the left  arm. One must also be aware of an intense
pain on the chin, as well as nausea and lots  of sweating;
however, these symptoms may  also occur less frequently.

Note: There  may be NO pain in the chest during a heart  attack.

The majority of people (about  60%) who had a heart attack during their  sleep did not wake up. 
 However, if  it occurs, the chest pain may wake you up from your deep sleep. 

If that happens,  immediately dissolve two aspirins in your mouth and swallow  them with a bit of water. 

Afterwards:
- Call 911.
- Phone a neighbor or a  family member who lives very close by.
- Say  "heart attack!"
- Say that you have taken 2  Aspirins.
- Take a seat on a chair or sofa
          near the  front door, and wait for their arrival and
         
...DO  NOT LIE DOWN!


A  Cardiologist has stated that if each person  after
receiving this e-mail, sends it to 10  people, probably one
life could be saved!

I have  already shared this information. What about you?

Do  forward this message. It may save  lives!

Happy Flag Day!

Here are a couple of my wedding pictures that mean so much to me!

This is our wedding party!

My beautiful sisters:

Sherry, Toni and Lana

My beautiful Flower Girl

Karla Woodward

Our Ring Bearer 

Teddy Phillips

2 of Vern's brothers

Simon & Harold

Friend

Carlyle Gwin

Our reception line was held outside.  Don't you all wish you had a backdrop like we do!

L-R

Dad and Mom Cimino

Vern's mom - Hulda Goossen

Me, greeting my grandmother, Nannie Adams

Vern

Grandma Honey, and Grandpa Chuck

Lana and Simon behind people, along with my dad, Jim and Arlein Adams

Marc Goossen

Marc's parents: Aunt Rachel and Uncle Ed Goossen

Great Aunt Goldie Bell

Aunt June and Uncle Cress Cressler

It was a great day!

47 years ago, my best friend and I were married!  

I met Vern at the beginning of my third year (1963) at Western Bible Institute, which later became Colorado Christian University.

Vern was a cute, young man from Western Kansas.  He made me laugh the first time I talked to him.  I was part of the 'welcoming' committee for the new students, and had the privilege of showing him around the campus.

As the year progressed, and we were in a lot of the same classes, I go to know him better.  He would sit to the side, behind me, and when I looked at him, he's raise his eyebrows, one at a time, at me.  I think he was flirting with me.

I had a job at a hospital from 3-11, and the school asked him if he'd be willing to drive me back to the campus, because his hours were the closest to mine.  He graciously agreed, and we had a lot of rides and time to talk.  We became best friends!

Our first 'official' date was going to a Youth For Christ rally in Denver, CO.

I graduated with a diploma in Bible in the spring of 1964.

He returned home to KS to work on the family farm, that summer,   but wrote me letters every day, and I answered them.  He invited me to meet his family, so I made the trip.  Needless to say, I was nervous.  Vern was the oldest of eight children, and his father had passed away the week before he turned 16.  I figured his mom would be apprehensive about his getting serious about a girl.  It was a needless  apprehensiveness!

On July 13, 1964, he proposed to me.  I accepted.  I went back to Denver, and he stayed in KS to get the wheat crop harvested, and in the fall, he came back to WBI.  I took some additional classes, and we became closer, and more in love.

On June 13, 1965, we were married in the chapel of WBI.  It was a beautiful day, filled with our wonderful families and friends.  Billy Renstrom sang for us, and Miss Elsie played the organ.  There were around 100 people that shared in our day.  We had a lovely reception of cake, punch, coffee, mints and nuts.  (We couldn't afford to pay for a meal for everyone like is done today!)

We had one night for a honeymoon, in CO. Springs, CO, because Vern had to be back to work the next day.  He was a swing shift supervisor at the Samsonite Factory.

Vern had bought us a brand new mobile home.  We were so happy to have our own home!  It was so cute!

3 days after we were married, the Platte River flooded from all the rain.  The picture in the article is close to where we lived.  Vern and his cousin's husband were the last ones to cross the river to the west side that night.  His cousin and I went to my folk's home to wait out the night.  Remember, there were no cell phones.  We weren't sure what was happening.  There was no 24 hour news coverage either.

They made it to my mom and dad's home about 1 AM.  The next day, we went to see the damage.  The National Guard was out there, and wouldn't let anyone in the area unless they could prove they lived there.  The only thing we had was our public service receipt, so Vern, snuck down to our home and found it.  We got in to the area and saw our new home about half a mile south of where it had been parked.   Gates Rubber company was to the south of us, and the tires, and some lumber, went under our trailer, and picked it up and floated it down the river.

The only damage we could see was a hole in one wall where a piece of lumber went through, and a candy dish slid off the coffee table and turned over.  There was a whole pitcher of Koolaid in the refrigerator,  but none spilled.

We contacted the insurance company, and they arranged to have it repaired.  We went to live with different family members, and friends.  That wasn't the way we'd imagined our new life to be!

All in all, we were away from our new home for 13 weeks.  We finally got back into our home after it was moved to a mobile home park in Morrison. CO.

As we finally got to go through out wedding gifts and our wedding book, we found that many of our new things had been stolen.  Needless to say, I wasn't a very happy bride, but we survived!  We came out secure in our new lives together!

Since then, we've had 3 beautiful children, who've made us grandparents of beautiful, smart, cheerful grandchildren.

We moved to Western KS, 7 years after we were married, and have been in our current home for 36 years!

We praise the Lord for our love for each other, and His love and protection for us over the years.

Thank you, sweet Vern for these wonderful years!

Noah's Ark

 Everything I need to know, I learned from Noah's Ark .


ONE: Don't miss the boat.
TWO: Remember that we are all in the same boat!
THREE: Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.
FOUR: Stay fit. When you're 60 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.
FIVE: Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.
SIX: Build your future on high ground.
SEVEN: For safety's sake, travel in pairs.
EIGHT: Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.
NINE: When you're stressed, float awhile.
TEN: Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals.
ELEVEN: No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

Please pass this on to people you want to be blessed.
Give it! Don't just get it!

Most people walk in and out of your life,
But FRIENDS leave footprints in your heart.

From my SIL!  Thanks, Sheryl!

The Buzzard, Bat & Bee

 THE BUZZARD

If you put a buzzard in a pen that is 6 feet by 8 feet and is entirely open at the top,

The bird, in spite of its ability to fly, will be an absolute prisoner.

The reason is that a buzzard always begins a flight from the ground with a run of 10 to 12 feet.

Without space to run, as is its habit, it will not even attempt to fly,

But will remain a prisoner for life in a small jail with no top.

--------------------------------------------------------------

THE BAT

The ordinary bat that flies around at night, a remarkable nimble creature in the air,

Cannot take off from a level place.

If it is placed on the floor or flat ground, all it can do is shuffle about helplessly and,

No doubt, painfully, until it reaches some slight elevation from which it can throw itself into the air.

Then, at once, it takes off like a flash.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

THE BUMBLEBEE

A bumblebee, if dropped into an open tumbler, will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out.

It never sees the means of escape at the top, but persists in trying to find some way out

Through the sides near the bottom.

It will seek a way where none exists, until it completely destroys itself.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

PEOPLE

In many ways, we are like the buzzard, the bat, and the bumblebee.

We struggle about with all our problems and frustrations, never realizing that all we have to do is look up!

That's the answer, the escape route and the solution to any problem...

Just look up!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sorrow looks back,

Worry looks around,

But faith looks up!

Live simply,

Love generously,

Care deeply,

Speak kindly, and

Trust in our Creator,

Who loves us.

Share this with a friend... I just did.

Can You Guess?

Can you guess what these kids are looking at?

Here's the answer!

Street construction in front of their house!

I wonder how long it will be before they can drive on their street again?

Where will they park?

They are 5 of my grandkids!

Thanks for the pictures, Tesa!

Our 2 Year Old Granddaughter!

This beautiful little girl is 2 years old today!  

We are all so thankful for her, and her family!

She's #12 for us, and #13 is on the way!

Praise the Lord for large families!

I Am Come...

This was on my son's FB page this morning.  I love it!

Here's a picture of my beautiful son!  One of them!

Pledge of Allegiance - P/C for Today

BY A 15 yr. OLD SCHOOL KID
who got an A+ for this entry !

Since the Pledge of Allegiance
And The Lord's Prayer are not allowed in most
Public schools anymore because the word 'God' is mentioned.....
A kid in Arizona wrote the attached NEW School prayer:

"New Pledge of Allegiance"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule
For this great nation under God
Finds mention of Him very odd.

If scripture now the class recites,
It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow
Becomes a Federal matter now.
Our hair can be purple, orange or green,
That's no offense; it's a freedom scene..
The law is specific, the law is precise.
Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall
Might offend someone with no faith at all..
In silence alone we must meditate,
God's name is prohibited by the state.

We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,
And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks...
They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.
To quote the Good Book makes me liable.
We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,
And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.
It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong,
We're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong..

We can get our condoms and birth controls,
Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles..
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,
No word of God must reach this crowd.

It's scary here I must confess,
When chaos reigns the school's a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:
Should I be shot; My soul please take!
Amen


"He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a shield to
those whose walk is blameless."  Proverbs 2:7

H/T GeeeeZ