A Happy Gathering

We had a happy gathering during Christmas 2008 with all of our four children being in one place at one time. Our two sons reside in different states which makes it difficult for them to be at family gatherings.

Our oldest son and his wife live in Eldorado, AR where he works for a radio station. Our youngest son resides in the "Big Apple" and is between jobs. He has worked for several Broadway productions.

Our two daughters reside in Springfield. Our oldest daughter is self employed and our youngest daughter is an office manager for a law firm.

Christmas 2008 was lots of fun with our children, our daughter-in-law, and our 3 grandchildren. The quiet moments were few and far between but that was a good thing as we got to enjoy family.

We treasure and love each member of our family including my sister-in-law, her son and his wife, and their two beautiful girls who reside in Georgia. Also, my brother and his lady friend were here from Michigan to "ring in the New Year" with us.

Family is to be loved and treasured. Have a great day.

Dr. Ron

New Computer

I am now the proud owner of a new HP Pavilon laptop computer. I am learning how to navigate and use all of the bells and whistles that come with it and the Vista operating system.

It was easy to set up and get connected with my home wireless net work which gave me access to the college's website. I spend a lot of time on that website grading papers, exams, and writing lesson plans. Now, my wife can enjoy her computer once again.

Am having fun and that is the main thing as I explore my new computer.

Have a great and wonderful day.

Dr. Ron

Computer Update

Allow me to update you on the status of my laptop computer. There is really no update available for it. Had a new hard drive put in and installed all of my programs, etc. only to have it work online and offline for about an hour or so. Since it was under repair warranty, I took it back. The sad news came in the other day. The motherboard is going bad. Labor alone would have cost over $200 so, I decided to have them refund the money I spent on the new hard drive, which they did. Now, my 6 year old laptop is on the way to the computer recycling place. Good bye, old friend, I shall miss you.

Perhaps, I will go to Circuit City to see what they have discounted on their going out of business sale. My personal economy is just as bad as theirs although I can't go out of business. :)

Until the next time we visit on my front porch, I wish you well,

Dr. Ron

Computer Crash

I have had a laptop computer for five years during which I never had any major problems. That is until the other day when I was defragmenting the hard drive. Let's just say the computer "froze up" and I turned if off manually. Bad idea as it would not come back on. A message screen advised me to open it in "safe mode" or "normal." Well, I tried both with no luck.

Took it to a computer repair shop on Saturday. First indication is that it is the hard drive. They will know more on Tuesday. They may or may not be able to extract and save some of the files.

I use the laptop for all of my college teaching work. While I have many of the files backed up, I don't have all of them. :( The semester just stared so I'll have much to do should I have to recreate the lost files. From now on, I think I had better back up my files each day just to be on the safe side.

A good learning experience for me.

Have a great and good day.

Dr. Ron

Marching to the beat of a different drummer

The holiday season is history. Pondering the past holiday season, I realized this year that I was "marching to the beat of a different drummer." I no longer had to play the games people play during the holidays. I no longer had to be "sweet and charming" to satisfy the church folk at their parties, Christmas musicals, pageants, and worship services. In fact during the holidays, I only went to church once and that was a Christmas musical at one of my daughters' church. I really enjoyed it as it was inspirational and joy-filled"

I made this comment years ago to a group of ministers, "When I retire I will not go to church." Their response was typical in that I had to continue going to church. I asked "Why?" and made the following statement, "When my father retired from Ford Motor Company, he did not go back to work." While I have been retired from the ministry for several years, this past holiday season was the time I chose not to go to church. It is one of those expected games that people play and this season, I chose not to play. It felt good to relax at home watching the various holiday programs on the television. About the only time I go to church anymore is when I am a guest minister [consultant if you wish]. Then if feels good because it is something I chose to do.

As I stated earlier, I march to the beat of a different drummer. My retirement allows me to be the real me with no pretense and fulfilling someone else's expectations. I like this beat. And the beat goes on so that I can do it "my way."

Have a great and wonderful day. Remember, you only have one opportunity in life to be your real self.