Efficiency vs. Change - 11 year old's perspective

When my daughter explained to me her system for knowing who's turn it was to empty which section of the dishwasher. What this turned into was an interesting discussion and lesson on efficiency vs. change. If you are into leadership, management, or are interested in encouraging change, then I encourage you to read on.

The scenario: My two oldest daughters switch back and forth between emptying top and bottom of the dishwasher. They sometimes forget and then argue over who has top and who has bottom. My oldest daughter was so proud to explain to me a system that they had devised to tell who had top and who had bottom.

The system:
The system they came up with was to use two double sided magnets that designated whose turn it was. I know this sounds trivial but pay attention to the complexity of the system they came up with. Each double sided magnet has a red side and a blue side (Red = Adriana, Blue = Briana). Each double sided magnet can stick either the blue side or the the red side to the hinges of a cabinet. They chose two cabinets, one containing glasses (representing the top side of the dishwasher) and one containing plates and bowls (representing the bottom of the dishwasher). When switching the magnets they actually carry one double sided magnet (blue side down) from the plates cabinet across the kitchen and physically switch it with the other magnet (red side down) stuck to the bowls cabinet, and then carry the magnet

The lessons:
I am amazed that my daughters could not see how they did not have to use two cabinets to determine whose turn it was, but rather just flip the magnet. In response to my suggestion, my daughter said, "Some people don't like change, so we we are going to keep it the way we have it."

Ways to institute change:
I asked my daughter to come up with ways we could encourage people to want to change and she came up with the following list.
1. Before you release the method, have a conference and discuss it and give people a heads up and discuss their opinions.
2. Discuss how this new method is going to work.
3. We could give people FREE instructions that tell people how to change.
4. Start doing it.
5. After a week, Take a vote on whether we want to keep it or not.
6. If it was at work, we could pay the people involved more so that they want to change.

Pizza, Our Lady, and a Rosary with friends

When we said yes to hosting the missionary image of Our Lady of Guadalupe we received a good call from our friends the Legers asking if they could come over for a rosary. They even offered to bring food! Sure thing! No problem. But if you had told me before last week that we would have 21 people in our house doing the rosary, I would have been surprised.

But one thing after another, we had 7 families from 5 parishes coming to our home including 11 children. I ran a shuttle service to handle the 8 cars including our own because due to the snow we had parking for 6 cars. We ordered 6 cheese pizzas, thanks Chris, cut vegetables, and people brought deserts.

We prayed one rosary in front of the Missionary Image of Our Lady, and were also blessed with an increase in faith as we took time to learn more about the image. A good time was had by all!

A blessed visitation by the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe to our household

Our Household was blessed this Friday to be hosts to a very special guest: the missionary image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Two weeks ago I was asked if I would pick up the missionary image and move it down to Worcester and back to Fitchburg. No problem I said, my favorite gym is in Worcester and the time was convenient. I had no idea what I was saying yes to! I first started to get a sense of what I was getting into, when people started calling to ask if they could visit her, or to ask when I would be moving her around.

Wow! People were really interested in this, and for good reason too! Someone else has done a very good job blogging on the subject of the missionary image so I will point you to: http://knowyourcatholicfaith.blogspot.com/2011/02/little-known-facts-about-our-lady-of.html.

However, I will add to this page, that when our lady visited our house, it was a night of grace! Mary filled each one of our family members with grace and increased our faith. Thank you Mary for blessing our house.

For more information I recommend: http://2secondsfaster.com/2008/12/our-lady-of-guadalupe-the-tilma/

March for Life 2011: "I'm Pro-Life Because.."

Brian Smith: I attended the March for Life 2011 in Washington, D.C. Here is a video where FRC asks some of the tens of thousands who marched in our nation's capital in support of life, why they are pro-life.

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Tags: pro-life, Washington, D.C., March for Life, 2011,

Trifecta Wants You This Election Season! Get Involved, Let's Win This Election!

ARRA News Service - As identified at the end of this video: All Politics are personal! Do you really want to really restore this Republic? We need you make some small sacrifice to make a difference so we all can be in the winner circle! Contact your local Republican party or a candidate that you like. Get involved, make a few phone calls, visit a few people, kick in $5 or whatever to their campaign, lets get others out to vote, so we can all meet in the winners circle.
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Pajamasmedia: You don't win elections by watching Glenn Beck. You've got to do the hard work - walk precincts, talk with neighbors and lick envelopes. Scott Ott, Stephen Green and Bill Whittle tell you what it will it take to deliver a Republican majority in Congress on Election Day. The midterm elections, Obama and the Tea Party Movement on this edition of Trifecta. [Video]

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Tags: PVTV, video, 2010 Election, getting involved. making calls, canvassing for candidates, giving, voting, conservative, Republicans To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to SkierBrian's View. Thanks!

Your first carabiner - Gear Recommendations for new rock climbers #1

Recommendation for Your first carabiner: Petzl Attach at $12.95

My analysis criteria:
I think that your first carabiner should be locking and and it should be pear shaped or williams gate (great for munter if you ever drop your belay device). The wide opening makes it easy to clip into, and these babies are strong. After that I wanted to compare price to strength and weight.

I compared a PETZL SL william to a PETZL attach carabiner using EMS website (www.ems.com) comparison tool: http://www.ems.com/gridFrame/index.jsp?subtypeId=3739638&sortBy=priceDescending&cp=&prodList=pid_3667289.3665027.&categoryId=3739638

The PETZL attach is 0.5 oz lighter (good), a $1 cheaper (good), but holds 23kN vs. 25kN across the major access (closed). The Petzl attach also uses anionized gold, which helps you to easily inspect for wear and tear.

I recommend the Petzl attach over the PETZL SL william for your first caribiner for the following reasons:
The cheaper price and lower weight are better advantages to a beginner. It is very unlikely that this gear will ever be used near it's maximum strength. Beginning climbers are generally using this carbiner for belaying topropers. Since it is their first device ever, it will be good several years later to be able to see if/where the anionized gold is worn off, and to help with inspection.

Nation Debt Hits $13 Trillion

$13,000,000,000,000
America’s National Debt Hits Record High As Private Income Shrinks And Government Benefits Balloon
“The U.S. National Debt Hit $13 Trillion Today, A Stratospheric Number With Looming Implications For Every Citizen.” (“National Debt Clock — Tracking the Red,” Fox News, 5/26/10)  . . .  [Read More at ARRA News Service]

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Tags: Washington, D.C., US Senate, US House, US Congress, National Debt, trillions

Big Up productions post Awesome indoor climbing video

Big up productions published: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml-rxMwcaf0
This is a great video on indoor climbing. It is filmed exclusively at Central Rock Gym (which is my gym of choice). If you wonder if gym climbing is cool, then you have not watched this video:

AMC Worcester held first outdoor Tuesday night of 2010

AMC Worcester MA had their first outdoor Tuesday night of the year. It was a great time and we had some new faces there. Lots of good climbing and fun was had by all. On a personal note, I Redpointed led Intertwine (5.8) which was a significant accomplishment on my to do list.

Your Taxes: Their Spending - Prepare for the Largest Tax Increases in History

Tomorrow is Tax Day, Earth Day and thank goodness for those opposed to all these taxes: a self-proclaimed TEA Party Day. The Obama Administration's spending in the past year has been unprecedented and Tax Day won't come and go quietly. In just over a year, Democrats in Washington have proposed trillions of dollars in new taxes on American Families -- and passed hundreds of billions in new taxes to pay for their government takeover of our health care. These new taxes affect you and your family -- every day.

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Tags: increase taxes, Democrats, Washington. D. C., increased Federal spending, Tax Day
Posted from the ARRA News Service.

Reflecting On "Good Friday": The Purpose of the Passion

A shout out to the Tony Perkins and the Family Research Council staff and thank you for the following post:

The Purpose of the Passion can be summed up as -- a second chance! The life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ provides a second chance for mankind to walk in relationship with the God who created them. The Scriptures make clear that through Adam sin entered the world, but through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ there is justification for every man, woman, boy and girl--if they only place their trust in Him.

The passion of Christ provides a second chance for each of us to be right with God by being forgiven of everything and anything we have ever done. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ gives you and me the ability to live life to its fullest because we can be free of guilt and be guided by a purpose that eclipses all that the world has to offer.

Mel Gibson, in his movie The Passion, captures both the need and the power of the second chance available to us through Christ. Jesus is praying in Gethsemane when the guards of the high priest arrive to arrest Him. The guards approach and ask for Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus identifies Himself and Judas comes up to Him and kisses Him, saying "Hail, Rabbi." Jesus asks Judas why he is betraying "the Son of Man with a kiss?" Judas is stunned and steps back.

The guards move in to arrest Jesus. Suddenly, Peter explodes into action, attacking the guards. Ultimately, Peter pulls out a sword and cuts off the ear of one of the guards. Peter is eventually subdued, and Jesus tells him to drop his sword, saying, "Those who live by the sword die by the sword." Then Jesus reaches down, picks up the guard's severed ear, and looking into the guard's eyes, heals him.

Jesus stands up, and the remaining guards move in and arrest Him -- striking Him and handling Him roughly. They shove Him along the road and begin to leave. The healed guard is still on his knees, unmoving. His fellow guards tell him to get up and come along, but he cannot. The guard can no longer participate in anything that brings harm to the Christ.

He was left in the garden of Gethsemane to marvel at what the Savior had done for him. In the film, Peter, left behind, then comes face to face with the guard after Jesus healed his ear and touched his life. This is especially poignant, as within hours Peter would need that same forgiving touch of Jesus and a second chance.

This is the same Peter who had walked with Jesus (Matt 4:18-20). This is the same Peter who boldly declared that Jesus was the Son of God (Matt 16:13-17). This was the same Peter who committed to follow Jesus to the death (Matt 26:35). Despite all of this, Peter denied even knowing Jesus, not once, but three times (Matt 26:75). Was this the end for Peter? Was Peter beyond the forgiveness of Jesus Christ? Not at all! Following the resurrection, Jesus gave Peter a second chance (John 21:15-17).

The Purpose of the Passion is to give each of us a second chance. Whether you're like the guard who came face to face with Jesus for the first time or whether you're like Peter who had walked with Jesus in the past, declared who He is to others and even committed his life to Him, if something is separating you from the abundant life Jesus has obtained for you--a second chance awaits you. That's the Purpose of the Passion.

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Tags: Good Friday, The Passion, Jesus Christ, Family Research Council, Christians
To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!

Taxpayer Funding of Abortion Under the Health Care Bill

Americans United for Life has put together a flow chart of the ways that Taxpayer Fund Abortion Under the Senate Health Care Bill which was just signed into law. Rep. Randy Neughbauer (R-TX)was correct in calling the health care bill a "baby killer." Below is a screen shot of the chart:

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Tags: abortions, taxpayers, tax funded, Americans United for Life, government health care, culture of death
To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Cross-posted from the ARRA News Service.

PRO-LIFE DEM - WHAT A JOKE

Health Care Vote Set to Expose the Myth of the 'Pro-Life Democrat'

Phyllis Schlafly, president and founder of the conservative grassroots public policy organization Eagle Forum, made the following remarks after the public announcement that formerly pro-life Democrat Bart Stupak (D-MI) will cast a "yes" vote for the Senate health care bill today in the House.

Phyllis Schlafly: It is naive for any elected official, especially one who describes himself as 'pro-life,' to expect that a promise to issue an Executive Order that reasserts the intentions of the Hyde Amendment will be fulfilled by the most pro-abortion president to ever sit in the White House. Perhaps Mr. Stupak and his fellow pro-life Democrats forget that President Obama's first Executive Order was the repeal of the Mexico City Policy to allow for international funding of abortion.

Not only would an Executive Order be rendered meaningless in the face of Congress passing legislation which actively provides for the massive expansion and funding of abortion services, but anyone who doubts the abortion tsunami which awaits this bill becoming law lives in a fantasy world.

Barack Obama has lined every existing federal agency with the most dedicated pro-abortion ideologues, and we know that he will continue this pattern of pro-abortion appointments when it comes time for him to fill the over-100 bureaucracies created to administer his socialized health care program.

Any formerly pro-life Democrat who casts a 'Yes' vote for this Senate health care bill tonight will be forever remembered as being among the deciding votes which facilitated the largest expansion of abortion services since Roe v. Wade." "Mr. Stupak and his Democrat followers have now clarified that you cannot be pro-life and be a Democrat. If abortion was truly their biggest issue, they wouldn't willfully align themselves with the Party of Death.

This vote will expose the myth of the "pro-life Democrat." With this single vote, the Democratic Party will divide our nation into the Party of Death and the Party of Life, and future elections will never be the same.

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Tags: Phyllis Schlafly, myth, pro-life, democrat, nationalized health care, abortion, Bart Stupak
To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Hat Tip  ARRA News Service.

Pontiff Cleared of Reassigning Pedophile Priest

Brian Smith: I was disturbed by CNN's attempt link the pope to priest who had been convicted of abusing children. But, I found CNN's report lacking and insincere. So, I went in search of the truth, and I did not find it on CNN. You have to read between the lines in what CNN is telling you. Please consider these articles: Media Failed to Blame Pope in Sexual Abuse Cases and Pontiff Cleared of Reassigning Pedophile Priest

Rep. Michele Bachmann Honoring the Pro-Life Movement

Rep. Michele Bachmann Honoring The Pro-Life Movement During Woman's History Month (3/11/2010)