Cupcake (90/365)

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"When you look at a cupcake, you've got to smile."
~ Anne Byrn

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Birthday

It's spring break in Podunk and I have an extra child all week - Cam's "girlfriend" She lives about 50 miles from here and is splitting her time between Cam and her cousin, one of Cam's friends who lives in town. What's odd is that it was her birthday today and her family wasn't concerned about her being away from home. I couldn't let her have a birthday without a little cake ... a very little cake ... a cupcake!

Flag (89/365)

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What is the essence of America? Finding and maintaining that perfect, delicate balance between freedom "to" and freedom "from."
~ Marilyn vos Savant

TIME: 6:000 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Flag

It doesn't matter where I am or what I'm doing, I never pass a flag without taking a moment to be grateful that I was lucky enough to be born in this great country.

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Moon (88/365)

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“Every one is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody”
~ Mark Twain

TIME: 10:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Moon

The moon was beautiful. I had the perfect shot. I couldn't find my tripod. I may have to try this again tomorrow.

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Trees (87/365)

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I think that I shall never see
A billboard lovely as a tree.
Perhaps, unless the billboards fall,
I'll never see a tree at all.
~ Ogden Nash, "Song of the Open Road," 1933

TIME: 10:00 AM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Trees

In addition to cows, pigs, corn and soybeans, we've got several "landscaping farms" as well. Rows and rows of trees, shrubs and flowers will soon be in bloom. It really is beautiful when they are dressed in their Sunday best!

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Rabbit (86/365)

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"I don't see much sense in that," said Rabbit.
"No," said Pooh humbly, "there isn't. But there was going to be when I began it. It's just that something happened to it along the way."
~ Winnie the Pooh

TIME: 10:30 AM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Rabbit

Rabbits have invaded Podunk! The Chamber of Commerce is hosting our annual "Rabbit Run" to support funding for our summer Community Festival. Businesses are displaying painted wooden rabbits throughout Podunk.

Of course, there is a contest involved. Podunk-ites can get a map with the locations listed, have their map stamped at the various businesses and then submit it to the chamber office to register for the $100 chamber gift certificate drawing.

This rabbit is hanging out in front of the library.

There are times when living in a small town - with a population about the same as the number of kids attending most Chicago High Schools - is difficult. And there are times when the sense of community we have here overshadows all of the negativity.

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Solitary (85/365)

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“Solitary trees, if they grow at all, grow strong.”
~ Winston Churchill

TIME: 4:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Solitary

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Number 2 (84/365)

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“According to most studies, people's number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you're better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”
~ Jerry Seinfeld

TIME: 7:30 AM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Number Two

Imagine of the sound of the metal bleachers at a high school football stadium during the homecoming game. Then imagine they are outside your front door. Yeah ...

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Metal (83/365)

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“Guilt upon the conscience, like rust upon iron, both defiles and consumes it, gnawing and creeping into it, as that does which at last eats out the very heart and substance of the metal.”
~ Bishop Robert South

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Metal

We have a lot of sheet metal and neon in the Hub (a.k.a. the place the middle schoolers congregate on Wednesday nights). I love the contrast in texture of the two!

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Bud (82/365)

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“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
~ Anais Nin

TIME: 12:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Bud

Living in the northern part of Illinois, it takes a while for spring to actually find us. Although most of the trees aren't even considering exposing themselves, this one is!

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Census (81/365)

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The reason the government sells the census as your ticket to getting goodies - rather than as your civic duty - is that distributing goodies is now all the government does.
~ Tom G. Palmer

TIME: 5:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Census

This sign hangs above the main drag in Podunk. I guess they want to make sure we get all of our goodies!

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Sunset (80/365)

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I believe in evolution. But I also believe, when I hike the Grand Canyon and see it at sunset,
that the hand of God is there also.
~ John McCain

TIME: 7:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Sunset

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Spring (79/365)

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There is no season such delight can bring
As summer, autumn, winter and the spring.
~ William Browne

TIME: 1:00 PM
PLACE: NIU Naperville Campus
SUBJECT: Spring

And sometimes, in Chicago, you can enjoy all four seasons in a single week!

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Cows (78/365)

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Cows are amongst the gentlest of breathing creatures; none show more passionate tenderness to their young when deprived of them; and, in short, I am not ashamed to profess a deep love for these quiet creatures.
~ Thomas de Quincey

TIME: 3:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk V3
SUBJECT: Cows

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Smile (77/365)

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“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”
~ Leo F. Buscaglia

TIME: 5:30 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Smile

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Light (76/365)

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Light gives of itself freely, filling all available space. It does not seek anything in return; it asks not whether you are friend or foe. It gives of itself and is not thereby diminished.
~ Michael Strassfeld

TIME: 8:15 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Light

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Concert (75/365)

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“It was like being in the eye of a hurricane. You'd wake up in a concert and think, Wow, how did I get here?”
~ John Lennon

TIME: 7:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Middle School
SUBJECT: Concert

Tonight was Cam's second to last middle school band concert. As eager as I am for him to leave this school, there is a little piece of me that will be sad to see this phase complete.

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Haircuts (74/365)

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It is foolish to tear one's hair in grief, as though sorrow would be made less by baldness.
~ Cicero

TIME: 5:45 PM
PLACE: Mid-Town Beauty
SUBJECT: Haircuts

Cam and I both got our haircut tonight. Can you tell which hair belongs to whom?

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Bracelet (73/365)

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And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:20 (NIV)

TIME: 7:30 AM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Bracelet

This bracelet - a gift - came packaged with the above scripture, and sometimes, the only place I can draw strength is from its message.

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Radar & Scooter (72/365)

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"Happy is the home with at least one cat"
~ Italian Proverb

TIME: 1:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Cats

This was taken right after Radar (L) and Scooter (R) joined Cam and me. In the last eight hours, Scooter has decided that we are pretty darn awesome and now sits right behind me on the back of the sofa. Radar? He has barricaded himself under the futon I sleep on in my room. I'm hoping he decides to join us soon!

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Preparation (71/365)

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“Some people are making such thorough preparation for rainy days that they aren't enjoying today's sunshine.”
~ William Feather

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Preparation

Tomorrow morning, Scooter and Radar will be arriving at their new home ... with Cam and me! This is one of those life events that seems so minor, but has major implications. Taking on the responsibility of two cats anchors me to this apartment, just a little more - and away from husband, just a little more.

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Fluff and Beams (70/365)

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“If the person you are talking to doesn't appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.”
~ Winnie the Pooh

TIME: 2:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Fluff & Beams

I snuck into a local "planned community" and borrowed their trellis beams. They framed the fluffy clouds so nicely!

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Slushie (69/365)

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"My slushie has more brain slosh than you!"
~ Jan Kelly

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Slushie

We added green, sour apple slushies at the snack bar this week in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Personally? I was looking for the corned beef and cabbage slushies.

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Diagnosis (68/365)

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“To confess ignorance is often wiser than to beat about the bush with a hypothetical diagnosis.”
~ William Osler

TIME: 2:00 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Diagnosis

Memory is a funny thing, filtering out things it doesn't want to - or can't - deal with. I requested a copy of Cam's psychiatric records from when he was 6. Although I distinctly remembered the Asperger's diagnosis, I was completely blindsided by the Oppositional Defiance Disorder diagnosis. I've spent the last 8 years in denial - denial so strong I had erased all memory of it.

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Car Wash (67/365)

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(Workin')
At the car wash
Workin' at the car wash, girl
Come on and sing it with me
(Car wash)
Sing it with the feelin' ya'll
(Car wash, girl)
~ Rose Royce

TIME: 3:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Car Wash

It was time to knock the salt off the Cavalier this afternoon. Cam has always loved a trip through the car wash. He calls this part the hula dancers.

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Breakfast (66/365)

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“Marriages are all happy its having breakfast together that causes all the trouble.”
~ Irish Proverb

TIME: 8:20 AM
PLACE: Podunk V2
SUBJECT: Breakfast

One of the bonuses of traveling to Podunk V2 to do laundry is that they have a McDonalds. My favorite meal to eat out is breakfast and although McDonalds isn't exactly fine dining, there is still something magical about it. I toss my clothes in the washer then zip across the street for my Saugage Biscuit with Egg and large coffee, then sit down to read a book.

Odd ... it's when I'm doing laundry that I am most relaxed and at peace.

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Morning (65/365)

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“I may be drunk, Miss, but in the morning I will be sober and you will still be ugly.”
~ Winston Churchill

TIME: 6:30 AM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Morning

I really do love mornings, and this is usually how I start mine ... even on a Saturday.

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Train (64/365)

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“I knew I was going to take the wrong train, so I left early.”
~ Yogi Berra

TIME: 8:20 AM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Train

The train tracks go right through Podunk - across the main drag. My morning commute includes crossing these tracks, but seldom includes waiting for a train. I love it when I'm the first car at the tracks - the feel of the power of the train - listening to it's rhythmic "gait." It was a great way to start my morning.

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Goose (63/365)

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“If you feel the urge, don't be afraid to go on a wild goose chase. What do you think wild geese are for anyway?”
~ Will Rogers

TIME: 12:30 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Goose

Another sign of spring ... the nasty, hissing, better on a dinner plate than roaming the corn fields critters are back!

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Journal (62/365)

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“The New England Journal of Medicine reports that 9 out of 10 doctors agree that 1 out of 10 doctors is an idiot.”
~ Jay Leno

TIME: 8:00 PM
PLACE: Church
SUBJECT: Journal

One of the things I believe makes our middle school ministry such a success is the complete media immersion. Even the journals, a guided bible reading resource for the week's teachings, look more like comic books than they do church literature. It's not easy grabbing the attention of a 13 year old these days, yet we manage to do that about 300 times over each week!

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Sign of Spring (61/365)

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“The sign brings customers”
~ Jean de La Fontaine

TIME: 1:00 PM
PLACE: Podunk Illinois
SUBJECT: Sign of Spring

We have very few restaurants here in Podunk - in fact we have more bars than restaurants. We do have Chick 'n' Dip though. It's a 50's style diner with the best broasted chicken, milkshakes and dip cones in the Midwest. It's a seasonal joint, closing in November and opening in March - March 6th to be exact. This is one of the earliest signs of spring we see here, and I couldn't be more excited!

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Fourteen (60/365)

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“When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished by how much he'd learned in seven years.”
~ Mark Twain

TIME: 6:30 PM
PLACE: Home Sweet Home
SUBJECT: Fourteen

He made it ... but more impressively, I made it!

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