A fresh perspective

As usual, I'm a week or so behind in my weekly copy of Crain's Detroit Business, but this morning I read with interest the (April 20-26) edition that profiles of their twenty in their 20's list http://www.crainsdetroit.com/assets/html/twenties09.html.  While many were "creative" types, others were successful in a more standard business career path, and I found myself reading each of their comments about why they live in the metropolitan Detroit area. So many of them shared the common thread of feeling rewarded if they could thrive in this unique environment lots of us call home.  Stay on and fight my fellow 20-somethings!  Okay fine, so maybe that ship (my 20's) sailed some time ago, but anyway take a peek and try to get inspired yourself. 

Also read this article last week in the Detroit News http://www.detnews.com/article/20090424/SCHOOLS/904240389/1026/MSU+s+$10+million+gift+a+mystery, how cool is that? Basically there's a donor that has given away nearly $70 million in recent weeks to colleges across the country - anonymously.  The only pattern they've found so far is that the 14 schools that have received the gifts are run by women.  Double cool.  But I'll be honest and say that if I had that kind of dough to give away, I'd probably put my name all over it!
 
Lastly, hitting this week's newstand in Fortune magazine is not just the annual Fortune 500 list, but smack dab in the middle of the magazine itself is a 2-page spread that is a simple and effective ad about the Judson Center www.judsoncenter.org, a human services agency where I sit on the board.  A fellow board member who is a GM executive (not sure if he's wanting to be anonymous himself) "donated" the  national ad space by letting Judson use it because it's one of his favorite charities.  Pleae check it out, it's awesome.  If I can get an electronic copy, I'll post it.  

Start small

Since I may have scared off a few readers by asking them to become organ donors (but c'mon folks, don't let them go to waste :), I'll also suggest a few ideas to start small.

I've convinced the hubby (isn't he great??) to join me this week in making a blood donation through the American Red Cross who holds blood drives every week in your backyard www.givelife.org, even though he admits it is not his favorite thing. But here's the deal, as it turns out it is also not my favorite thing to be poked by a needle, but I'm sure that sentiment is also shared by a 2-yr-old at our church whose parents shared a story yesterday of his blood disease and the transfusions that he needs every 6 weeks just to get by. It breaks their heart to watch their little boy and all the other families they meet at the hospital go through the process over and over, and yet they can't even give themselves in case he needs a bone marrow transplant. I do love you my friends - but get over it. No excuses. Please?!!?

For better reading than my whiny/tough love, see the top 10 reasons to give http://www.givelife2.org/donor/top10.asp, and the top 10 excuses http://www.givelife2.org/donor/top10excuses.asp.

Another coolio idea that I recently discovered, an organization called Paper to Pearls www.papertopearls.org that benefits women in Uganda and helps them better their lives through jewelry-making. Seriously, I get to make a difference in someone's live and get a fantastic handmade new necklace to boot? Somebody pinch me. So if you're due to get a present from me this year, guess what it will be?? :)

Have a heart

Hi friends - please consider joining me & my husband by registering to become and organ and tissue donor. April is designated as Donate Life Month, and in Michigan alone 3,000 residents are waiting to receive hearts, livers, lungs, kidney and other organs; but last year in Michigan only 327 people donated organs (which in itself was a record). Nationwide, the number of people waiting for donors is 100,000. God forbid that any of our lives or our loved ones are cut short, but if so your physical body can help so many. One local mother reported that her son Tim tragically died at 17 yrs old in a car accident, but as he was a donor 7 people received his healthy organs and another 158 people were recipients of his tissue donations - what a gift!

Leave a legacy of generosity - join via www.giftoflifemichigan.org or in another states check your state government website.

Helpful hubby

I promise I'm not just trying to be cheesy about the positive attributes of my spouse, but he really can be super helpful to have around! While he readily admits that doing certain things around the house are not exactly top of mind for him, when I ask for assistance with something he is always at the ready. Also, he has figured out how to handle my independent, I'd-rather-do-it-myself mentality, in that he will ask "is there anything I can do to help?" and I'll quickly assess the situation and reply either no thanks I've got it covered, or I'll rattle off a couple of things he can do to assist me. That way I know that he is willing to pitch in if I need it, but I can also let him know that it would be better to just give me my space (especially in the kitchen!).

After deciding that it would be best to stay in our condo this year (stupid economy!), I asked if we could have a bedroom makeover, and he agreed. I also had the benevolent excuse of passing on some of my old furniture to my sister who recently moved into a new place (ironically into an apartment directly across the hall from the one I moved out of almost 5 years ago to the day! weird). Now nearly everything in our room is brand new, all the way down to several new decorative notions including a mirror and tapestry that the hubby hung up yesterday after painstakingly measuring for after I had him reposition both a few times :). So while it's not a new house that I really wanted, it's a new touch that we've added together to a place that still has mostly things I previously bought and decorated with. Didn't he do a great job?!?

Signs of spring

We are still waiting for the season to truly take hold in our fickle-weather state of Michigan, but while I am eagerly anticipating some consistently warm days in which to bring out the peep-toe pumps and slingbacks, I've been keeping my eye out for signs.
 
Thought I'd share a few, including some hopeful glimpses of green in the flower pot that I planted some seed packets in, a bunch of vibrant daffodils that my sister Aimee bought and brought over last weekend, and our mischievous nephew playing in their backyard mud (yes, in his pajamas!).  Ahh, spring, it has been too long, dear friend...

Sunny Florida

OK, so it wasn't exactly sunny the whole time we were there, which was over two months ago at this point.  But forgive me while I look for the sunny side of this dreary April day. 
 
The first pic is my documented review my first time eating at a Chic-Fil-A, which my friend Rich cannot believe as he raves about them constantly.  I appreciated the friendliness of the cashier/franchise owner (his picture was on the wall!) but my favorite part was the older gentleman passing out mints as the Hospitality Manager, I filled out a comment card just for him!  Thank you, kind sir.  The next one is of me with our good friend Karin (with the hubby popping up from behind, that stinker! :) who drove in 3 hours to stay and visit with us, and also a picture of a local restaurant that I took to show my mother-in-law.  Lastly, no we did not take pictures of any homeless people (nor do I believe they exist there in downtown Celebrations!), Aimee just captured our friends Dave & Damon taking a little nappy in the sun while the Barton & I popped into the arcade and ice cream shop.
 
Fun times!

Good Friday

Disclaimer : I am totally copying off of our friend Jodi's blog today, but she posted the lyrics of a Michael W. Smith song and I was so touched by reading them that I decided to post them as well.  So for those of you that happen to read both of our blogs, well lucky you, you get to have the words speak to you twice! :)

I have been unfaithful
I have been unworthy
I have been unrighteous
And I have been unmerciful

I have been unreachable
I have been unteachable
I have been unwilling
And I've been undesirable

And sometimes I have been unwise
I've been undone by what I'm unsure of
But because of you
And all that you went through
I know that I have never been unloved

I have been unbroken
I have been unmended
I have been uneasy
And I've been unapprochable

I've been unemotional
I've been unexceptional
I've been undecided
And I have been unqualified

Unaware - I have been unfair
I've been unfit for blessings from above
But even I can see
The sacrifice You made for me
To show that I have never been unloved

It's because of you
And all that you went through
I know that I have never been unloved

(Never been Unloved by Michael W. Smith)

Beauty from ashes

A recurring theme this week, so it would seem. From last night's bible study reading (Isaiah 61:3), a Time article on Detroit's "Road to Renewal" (whose title reads more positively than the article, but hey it helped keep me on the elliptical machine tonight for those brutal last 10 min) that quoted the city's motto coined in 1827, translated from Latin as :"We hope for better things; it shall rise from the ashes.", and lastly, Eminem's PSA on Detroit that aired during the NCAA final. Yes, there will and should be many of you that are surprised that I would ever mention Eminem, much less quote him, especially in the same paragraph as scripture, but nonetheless I was touched by it.

So here's to a sense of renewal and rebirth, even as we finish out this week leading to Easter and the commemoration of our Savior rising! May you find hope in it all.

Calling all Trader Joe's lovers

I'd be afraid to count up the monthly dollars that we spend at Trader Joe's www.traderjoes.com , but suffice it to say that we keep a running list of items we want from there on our fridge.  But they do stock some wacky things (not to mention getting rid of some things that we loved!), which is why this video/mock commercial that some random guy placed on YouTube was just so darn funny!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdB7GDZY3Pk

Just had to share this, it was too cute/hilarious!  Thanks to Damon for sending it to us.