Variety

1. My mom came to visit for a week. She did a lot of nice stuff around the house while I worked from my home office. Over the weekend we drove out to Blowing Rock, NC. Cool little town and it had snowed a couple days before. JP was with us and he had fun throwing and eating snow. We then went to the "Mast General Store" in Valle Crucis, NC. Look it up, they have a web site. Cool old place.

2. Back to work. After a 3 day weekend it is tough to get going again. But there's enough to do before Friday. I take Friday off and will have vacation and holiday through the end of the year.

3. A friend sent me the following "prayer"...hope you like it. It is all to easy to be quick to judge, isn't it?

Heavenly Father, Help us remember that the jerk who cut us off in traffic last night is a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children.

Help us to remember that the pierced, tattooed, disinterested young man who can't make change correctly is a worried 19-year-old college student, balancing his apprehension over final exams with his fear of not getting his student loans for next semester.

Remind us, Lord, that the scary looking bum, begging for money in the same spot every day (who really ought to get a job!) is a slave to addictions that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares.

Help us to remember that the old couple walking annoyingly slow through the store aisles and blocking our shopping progress are savoring this moment, knowing that, based on the biopsy report she got back last week, this will be the last year that they go shopping together.

Heavenly Father, remind us each day that, of all the gifts you give us, the greatest gift is love. It is not enough to share that love with those we hold dear. Open our hearts not to just those who are close to us, but to all humanity. Let us be slow to judge and quick to forgive, show patience, empathy and love.