Pooped puppy takes a nap

Meet Slim, the newest addition to our family. She's still very shy, getting used to her new home (my sister's house). She's sweet and fluffy and sleepy and I love her already.

Dogs love you back

I've always been more of a cat person, but let's face it...most cats barely acknowledge your presence unless they want something. Dogs actually do love you back.

Check out these videos of dogs greeting their long-absent owners.

I was in tears by the second video.

Do just a little more

I have given up on a lot of things in my life. Some things I wanted to do I never even started. But the ones I did start...how many of them could have been a success if I had just done a little more?

The line between failure and success is so fine that we...are often on the line and do not know it. How many a man has thrown up his hands at a time when a little more effort, a little more persistence, would have achieved success. A little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.

Elbert Hubbard
via Walk the Talk

Five o'clock moon

The view from my window tonight.

Knuckle chuckle

A friend recently turned me on to mixed martial arts. I've watched a few bouts, and it is not at all what I expected. What struck me (pun itended) was the grace of their movement. Watching them move reminded me of dancing - right up until the point where our guy got pummeled after taking one to the chin.

The MMA fighters are supreme athletes in extraordinary physical condition. Their training includes, of course, proper nutrition.

I wonder if this is on any of their diet plans!

Check out all the fun stuff at Insanewiches.

For the broken hearted

Seems several of my young friends have recently experienced breakups or that unique heartbreak of unrequited love. And my heart goes out to each of you. I wish I had words to make it all better for you.

All I can say is I know it hurts. A lot. It's gonna hurt for a while, then feel better, then hit you like a ton of bricks again. That is the nature of grieving.

Twice I have fallen hard for guys who did not love me back. I have been loved and dumped (rather publicly) for a prettier girl. At the time, I blamed it on the fact that she was prettier, but that's not why he dumped me. I've also been on the other side of a breakup.

Relationships are the stuff life is made of...the good ones and the bad ones alike. And the ones that were good that then turned bad...well, it's just gonna have to hurt for a while.

You will get over it - I promise! Don't be too hard on yourself, but don't wallow for too long either. Keep moving, living your life and trusting that there is love in your future.

And he might just be as awesome as Mr. Wonderful.

It's not the bait, it's the bite

This is one of those days when the exact words I needed to read appeared to me. I have been struggling with a severe case of temptation in an area of my life that I thought I had a grip on.

When this temptation is dormant, I have zero doubt that I am doing the right thing by avoiding it. Actually, I don't even think about it. When the temptation flares up, it hits hard. And when it puts itself close enough to touch twenty times in one day, it is nearly unbearable.

But I did bear it. I made it through the night. And in the light of the morning as I sat with my hot coffee and surfed my usual web sites for news and such, I came across this from Pastor Greg Laurie:

God never will give you more than you can handle (see 1 Corinthians 10:13). It may not feel that way in the moment, because the fact is that when temptation is coming your way, it looks as though what would bring the most happiness would be giving in to it. The reality is that happiness comes from resisting and overcoming temptation. There is the initial euphoria that temptation can bring, but then you discover that what looks so appealing on the outside is actually filled with poison. That is how temptation works.

Read the rest here.

Being tempted by things that are ultimately not good for us is part of life on this earth. Sometimes we handle it well, sometimes we give in and immediately suffer the consequences. And sometimes we give in and there don't seem to be any negative consequences. That is the worst scenario, because it just leads to more...and it doesn't take long before what we know is wrong becomes a stronghold and it is nearly impossible to break free.

Do I wish that I was never tempted? Sure. But being tempted isn't the real problem. The real problem doesn't come until I give in. Remember, the worm dancing in the water in front of a fish does not cause him any problems until he takes the bite.