Part of the series celebrating 200 years since the "discovery" of Pikes Peak by "American" explorer Zebulon Pike - interesting history - of particular interest to Colorado Springs folks since the majestic mountain graces our skyline.
By ED SEALOVER - THE GAZETTE
In the 200 years since Zebulon Pike explored this region, historians have struggled over whether to label him as hapless or heroic.
This, after all, was a man who slogged through snow without socks in a failed attempt to climb the peak towering over the Plains, yet survived a frigid winter without losing men to death or defection. Pike was an ambitious and obedient soldier, but when he was captured by the Spanish, he surrendered without a fight.
History lovers still debate Pike’s abilities and accomplishments as an explorer, but they agree on this: He was an excellent spy.
But just whom was he spying for?
Pike’s adventure was spurred by the Louisiana Purchase, the same land deal that launched Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on their trek to the Pacific. President Thomas Jefferson bought 820,000 acres in the West from the French in 1803, and he and others were eager to explore the new lands.
Jefferson handpicked Lewis to be his eyes and ears in the territory, but Pike got his travel papers from a man who turned out to be one of the great scoundrels in U.S. history.
James Wilkinson, commanding general of the Army, first tapped Pike to explore the upper Mississippi River and find the source of the waterway in 1805. Pike returned 8½ months later with “disappointingly meager” results, according to a National Park Service account. He produced no accurate maps and failed on his mission to persuade prominent American Indian leaders to meet with U.S. military leaders.
Still, less than three months later, Wilkinson had another job for the 27-year-old soldier, and this was the one that sent him to the Rockies.
Pike’s journey has to be seen in the context of the suspicion and hostility between the United States and Spain over the boundaries of the Louisiana Purchase.
“The thing from today’s perspective . . . is he was right in the middle of a Cold War,” Pioneers Museum Director Matt Mayberry said. “We could have gone to war at any moment with Spain over what was the definition of the Louisiana Purchase.”
Before Pike left on July 15, 1806, he and Wilkinson discussed that he might be caught while wandering so close to Spanish territory. They even laid out a plan of how Pike would say he was lost and allow Spanish troops to escort him and his men through their land, an event that would “gratify our most sanguine expectations,” according to a letter from Pike.
Pike headed west with one civilian doctor and 23 military men from the St. Louis area with few skills. In his journal Pike wrote that he served as “astronomer, surveyor, commanding officer, clerk, spy, guide and hunter.”
For the first three months, they meandered through present-day Kansas and Nebraska. In October, they reached the Arkansas River, where Pike sent some men downstream and took the majority northwest to find the source of the Red River.
Spanish troops sent out an expedition to find Pike almost as soon as he began the journey. A National Park Service history notes that while Lewis and Clark would have been concerned their mission would be compromised by such attention, Pike reported with pride that he was being hunted.
He was not to be found for three more months, though — months when the men endured a rugged winter. Pike spotted the peak that would be named after him on Nov. 15, when starvation and frostbite were setting in.
In the midst of this misery, one member of Pike’s party made a strange move. Dr. John Robinson left, supposedly to collect a debt near Santa Fe. Not surprisingly, he was quickly found by the Spanish, who sent out patrols.
This, said Colorado Historical Society chief historian Modupe Labode, seems a sign that Pike wanted to be caught. The Spanish took him and his men into custody in February.
As the group was escorted to Santa Fe, Pike made mental notes of the placement of forts and the size of the garrisons. He had long meetings with priests along the way to gather information. Pike even worked on biographical sketches of Spanish military officers.
After Spanish authorities in Chihuahua determined Pike had ulterior motives, they grabbed his papers and ordered him to stop taking notes. He kept scribbling, though, and hid notes in empty gun barrels as the group was escorted across Texas to the United States.
Pike’s journals were mundane in his description of American lands and showed little imagination, Labode and others said. The confiscated journals were forgotten until 1907, when Mexico returned them to the United States.
But Pike perked up during his detour through Spanish territory. His writings on the trip home chronicled the people of New Spain, natural resources and military arrangements. The National Park Service describes his work as “the first adequate report on the Spanish provinces of North America ever brought back to the United States.”
“That he was able to make fairly extensive notes and keep them hidden and return with them intact, that was incredible,” said David Heidler, an author and history professor at Colorado State University-Pueblo. “In terms of informing the (American) government of things they wouldn’t have known about otherwise, it was a pearl without price.”
By the time Pike was released on July 1, 1807, his commanding officer, Wilkinson, was on trial for treason. The exact nature of the Burr-Wilkinson Conspiracy has never been determined.
Some historians think Wilkinson and Vice President Aaron Burr wanted to separate the Louisiana Territory from the rest of the country by force. Others say they wanted to raise a private army, invade Mexico and overthrow the Spanish. Still others think it might have been a benign mission to encourage commerce with the Spanish.
Both were tried and acquitted. It was learned later, however, that Wilkinson had sworn allegiance to Spain and was on its payroll.
Pike was linked to the conspiracy because of his relationship with Wilkinson — his loyalty remained long after Wilkinson was no longer his commander, Heidler said. Pike was never accused of being a part of it, though, and was cleared. He died in the War of 1812.
“I really do think he was following orders, and he interpreted following orders very literally,” Labode said.
No examination of Pike’s life is complete without considering his journeys through Spanish lands, where he might have done his best work.
As an explorer, Heidler argued, Pike was a conundrum of failure — someone who drew inaccurate maps and got badly lost but kept the loyalty and confidence of his men. But as a soldier doing reconnaissance in a foreign country, he did a good job of gathering information and relaying it to his government.
Mayberry called Pike “the explorer most of us would be” — a man who made mistakes and seemed generally dumbfounded by the West.
“I think that Pike was touchable in a way Lewis and Clark never were to me,” he said. “Certainly he should be remembered because of what he did, even his failures had a significant impact on American history.”
Then, asked whether Pike was an explorer or a spy, Mayberry considered the question, smiled and replied:
“I think Pike would say, ‘Absolutely, I was a spy.’”
CONTACT THE WRITER:
636-0184 or ed.sealover@gazette.com
Sunday, January 15, 2006
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Cat calls 911 to help owner, police say
The Associated Press
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Police aren't sure how else to explain it. But when an officer walked into an apartment Thursday night to answer a 911 call, an orange-and-tan striped cat was lying by a telephone on the living room floor. The cat's owner, Gary Rosheisen, was on the ground near his bed having fallen out of his wheelchair.
Rosheisen said his cat, Tommy, must have hit the right buttons to call 911.
"I know it sounds kind of weird," Officer Patrick Daugherty said, unsuccessfully searching for some other explanation.
Rosheisen said he couldn't get up because of pain from osteoporosis and ministrokes that disrupt his balance. He also wasn't wearing his medical-alert necklace and couldn't reach a cord above his pillow that alerts paramedics that he needs help.
Daugherty said police received a 911 call from Rosheisen's apartment, but there was no one on the phone. Police called back to make sure everything was OK, and when no one answered, they decided to check things out.
That's when Daugherty found Tommy next to the phone.
Rosheisen got the cat three years ago to help lower his blood pressure. He tried to train him to call 911, unsure if the training ever stuck.
The phone in the living room is always on the floor, and there are 12 small buttons - including a speed dial for 911 right above the button for the speaker phone.
"He's my hero," Rosheisen said.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Police aren't sure how else to explain it. But when an officer walked into an apartment Thursday night to answer a 911 call, an orange-and-tan striped cat was lying by a telephone on the living room floor. The cat's owner, Gary Rosheisen, was on the ground near his bed having fallen out of his wheelchair.
Rosheisen said his cat, Tommy, must have hit the right buttons to call 911.
"I know it sounds kind of weird," Officer Patrick Daugherty said, unsuccessfully searching for some other explanation.
Rosheisen said he couldn't get up because of pain from osteoporosis and ministrokes that disrupt his balance. He also wasn't wearing his medical-alert necklace and couldn't reach a cord above his pillow that alerts paramedics that he needs help.
Daugherty said police received a 911 call from Rosheisen's apartment, but there was no one on the phone. Police called back to make sure everything was OK, and when no one answered, they decided to check things out.
That's when Daugherty found Tommy next to the phone.
Rosheisen got the cat three years ago to help lower his blood pressure. He tried to train him to call 911, unsure if the training ever stuck.
The phone in the living room is always on the floor, and there are 12 small buttons - including a speed dial for 911 right above the button for the speaker phone.
"He's my hero," Rosheisen said.
Monday, January 02, 2006
Beautiful and Powerful Words of Imam Sadiq (as)
Do not covet anything avariciously; for if you ignore it, it will come to you anyway, if it is destined to be yours. Then you would find ease in your heart with Allah swt, praise for leaving it.
But you will be blamed for your haste in (instead) seeking it, for not trusting Him, and for not being content with the decree. Allah swt created this world the same as a shadow: when you chase it, it tires you out and you can never catch up with it. If you leave it alone, it follows you inexorably, and gives you not cause for fatigue.
Imam Sadiq (as), Lantern of the Path
But you will be blamed for your haste in (instead) seeking it, for not trusting Him, and for not being content with the decree. Allah swt created this world the same as a shadow: when you chase it, it tires you out and you can never catch up with it. If you leave it alone, it follows you inexorably, and gives you not cause for fatigue.
Imam Sadiq (as), Lantern of the Path
Saturday, December 31, 2005
New Year
Happy New Year everyone, wishing you the best.
1. I hope this year would not find anyone facing the great disasters like the Tsunami or Katrina or the Pakistan Earthquake. In reality we know these things happen continually and may be happening more because of Global Warning (some of them), and if you are the one affected it doesn't matter if the disaster is one on a global scale or only your home. So maybe I should just wish that we all are safe in the new year and that we avoid disasters, and if we do face one that we recover easily and it brings out the best in us rather than the worst.
2. Last year I almost lost my father. But now he is better than he had been in years. I hope everyone gets to enjoy their families.
3. I have been divorced now just over a year, although I've been alone much longer. I hope everyone can find the love they need in the coming year if they don't have it already, and if they do have it, I pray they can nurture it and appreciate it.
4. I hope everyone finds good health this year - mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
5. I hope if we make it to the end of this year, that we are better than when it started - mentally, physically, emotionally and especially spiritually.
6. I finished my Master's Degree this past year. I pray everyone is able to obtain their educational goals and continually learn and grow.
7. Now I have to pay that school loan! I pray for everyone that we could all get out of debt. Come on, Publisher's Clearinghouse. :)
1. I hope this year would not find anyone facing the great disasters like the Tsunami or Katrina or the Pakistan Earthquake. In reality we know these things happen continually and may be happening more because of Global Warning (some of them), and if you are the one affected it doesn't matter if the disaster is one on a global scale or only your home. So maybe I should just wish that we all are safe in the new year and that we avoid disasters, and if we do face one that we recover easily and it brings out the best in us rather than the worst.
2. Last year I almost lost my father. But now he is better than he had been in years. I hope everyone gets to enjoy their families.
3. I have been divorced now just over a year, although I've been alone much longer. I hope everyone can find the love they need in the coming year if they don't have it already, and if they do have it, I pray they can nurture it and appreciate it.
4. I hope everyone finds good health this year - mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
5. I hope if we make it to the end of this year, that we are better than when it started - mentally, physically, emotionally and especially spiritually.
6. I finished my Master's Degree this past year. I pray everyone is able to obtain their educational goals and continually learn and grow.
7. Now I have to pay that school loan! I pray for everyone that we could all get out of debt. Come on, Publisher's Clearinghouse. :)
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Two of my Favorite Easy Everyday Good Things
I've mentioned it before, but it is worth mentioning again.
Almost every town/city/community in the country and beyond has a Freecycle network set up. It is a great concept - instead of throwing away what you can't or won't use, offer it to someone else on Freecycle. Have some canned goods in the cupboard that you're probably never going to want to eat? Someone on Freecycle needs it and wants it. Furniture, pets, duplicate Christmas gifts, appliances, clothes, food, exercise equipment, craft stuff, material and sewing stuff, computers, computer parts, car parts, moving boxes, printers, cell phones, wrong brands of stuff bought by mistake, books, all kinds of baby stuff, toys, holiday decorations and anything else you can imagine is offered - no charge, ever. You may sometimes see something you'd love to have. You may have some stuff sitting around taking up space that would delight someone else.
Just have a look for a few days and think of it next time you go to throw something away.
FreeCycle
Also neato:
The Hungersite
Click every day to "donate" free food, mammograms, books, health care, preserve rainforest, care for sheltered animals, etc. (link is also on sidebar)
Almost every town/city/community in the country and beyond has a Freecycle network set up. It is a great concept - instead of throwing away what you can't or won't use, offer it to someone else on Freecycle. Have some canned goods in the cupboard that you're probably never going to want to eat? Someone on Freecycle needs it and wants it. Furniture, pets, duplicate Christmas gifts, appliances, clothes, food, exercise equipment, craft stuff, material and sewing stuff, computers, computer parts, car parts, moving boxes, printers, cell phones, wrong brands of stuff bought by mistake, books, all kinds of baby stuff, toys, holiday decorations and anything else you can imagine is offered - no charge, ever. You may sometimes see something you'd love to have. You may have some stuff sitting around taking up space that would delight someone else.
Just have a look for a few days and think of it next time you go to throw something away.
FreeCycle
Also neato:
The Hungersite
Click every day to "donate" free food, mammograms, books, health care, preserve rainforest, care for sheltered animals, etc. (link is also on sidebar)
2006 Postponed by One (Leap) Second
These past few days I've been mostly hanging out with my mom while she ran errands and then hanging out at home reading Calvin & Hobbes, enjoying my awesome new down comforter and my wonderful new sandwich maker. And trying to figure out all the mysteries of life - no new progress on that front....
John Roach
for National Geographic News
December 29, 2005
For those of you counting the seconds until 2006, add one.
The world's top timekeepers will insert an extra second—or leap second—just before midnight in coordinated universal time (UTC) on New Year's Eve. (That's the same as 6:59:59 p.m. eastern time on December 31.) UTC is determined by atomic clocks and is five hours ahead of eastern time.
Earth's rotation is ever so slightly slowing down, but atomic clocks remain unwaveringly consistent. The extra second will allow Earth to stay in sync with the ultraprecise clocks, which mark time based on the vibration of atoms.
The planet's slowing is mostly due to the friction of tides raised by the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon. In fact, a day is now about two-thousandths of a second longer than it was a couple centuries ago, scientists say.
To keep today's atomic clocks synchronized with time as measured by Earth's rotation, timekeepers insert a leap second whenever the difference between the two clocks exceeds nine-tenths of a second.
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems, near Frankfurt, Germany, coordinates the additions of leap seconds.
This year's "extra" second will be the 23rd leap second added since 1972. In that year atomic timekeeping became the world standard. Before then, authorities relied on the movement of stars.
The most recent leap second was added seven years ago, in 1998.
"For the last several years Earth has behaved well," explained Geoff Chester, a spokesperson for the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. Together with the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, the observatory keeps official time for the country.
But Earth is predicted to slow down "on a nearly exponential scale" in the decades to come as tidal friction increases, Chester says. And this is a conundrum that has sparked debate among the world's clock-watchers.
Abolish Leap Seconds?
As the Earth slows, the addition of leap seconds will be required more frequently to keep the Earth and atomic clocks in sync.For a world increasingly dominated by technology, this is a potential headache for people who have to reset personal computers, global positioning systems (GPS), mobile phones, and the like every time a leap second is added.
"They don't like leap seconds because they are irregular and they are inserted on a sort of as-needed basis," Chester said. "We try to give a six-month warning so they can make plans."
Although the addition of leap seconds has never proven a problem, some scientists are afraid that a glitch somewhere along the line will lead to a catastrophic error.
For example, an un-updated GPS navigation system could cause an oil tanker to run aground and spoil a pristine coastline. To avoid such a mishap, critics are pushing for the abolition of leap seconds.
On the other hand, if the atomic clocks and Earth's rotation are allowed to drift apart, eventually—as in, thousands of years from now—"high noon" will come hours before the sun crosses directly overhead.
Seeking to avoid such a distorted view of time, leap second proponents argue for continued coordination among the clocks.
"It's like on a small scale abolishing the leap year—the extra day. If you did that, sooner or later the months would get out of sync with the seasons," said Mark Bailey, the director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
Bailey wants to keep the tradition of leap seconds alive.
Leap seconds may be an inconvenience for timekeepers, he says. But the abolition of leap seconds could come with unintended consequences.
Many telescopes, he notes, are already programmed to account for the occasional addition of leap seconds. If the practice were abolished, astronomers would have to reprogram much of their equipment.
Ongoing Debate
The U.S. Naval Observatory recognizes the pros and cons of leap seconds. But Dennis McCarthy, former head of the observatory's Directorate of Time, opposes the added seconds.
McCarthy is part of a group of U.S. scientists within the UN's International Telecommunication Union (ITU) that recently submitted a proposal to eliminate leap seconds to the ITU, which has final say.
For most timing applications, the group argues, the practice of adding the occasional leap second creates more problems than it fixes.
A working group within the International Astronomical Union, which also has some influence in the matter, is reviewing the proposal. The IAU group will report its findings at the union's generally assembly meeting in August 2006.
The U.K.'s Royal Astronomical Society issued a statement on December 23 calling for a "much wider, more informed public debate" on the usefulness of leap seconds before a final decision is made.
Bailey of the Armagh Observatory, who is also a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, added, "It is an interesting question and I think one that deserves wider debate than just among professional scientists."
John Roach
for National Geographic News
December 29, 2005
For those of you counting the seconds until 2006, add one.
The world's top timekeepers will insert an extra second—or leap second—just before midnight in coordinated universal time (UTC) on New Year's Eve. (That's the same as 6:59:59 p.m. eastern time on December 31.) UTC is determined by atomic clocks and is five hours ahead of eastern time.
Earth's rotation is ever so slightly slowing down, but atomic clocks remain unwaveringly consistent. The extra second will allow Earth to stay in sync with the ultraprecise clocks, which mark time based on the vibration of atoms.
The planet's slowing is mostly due to the friction of tides raised by the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon. In fact, a day is now about two-thousandths of a second longer than it was a couple centuries ago, scientists say.
To keep today's atomic clocks synchronized with time as measured by Earth's rotation, timekeepers insert a leap second whenever the difference between the two clocks exceeds nine-tenths of a second.
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems, near Frankfurt, Germany, coordinates the additions of leap seconds.
This year's "extra" second will be the 23rd leap second added since 1972. In that year atomic timekeeping became the world standard. Before then, authorities relied on the movement of stars.
The most recent leap second was added seven years ago, in 1998.
"For the last several years Earth has behaved well," explained Geoff Chester, a spokesperson for the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. Together with the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, the observatory keeps official time for the country.
But Earth is predicted to slow down "on a nearly exponential scale" in the decades to come as tidal friction increases, Chester says. And this is a conundrum that has sparked debate among the world's clock-watchers.
Abolish Leap Seconds?
As the Earth slows, the addition of leap seconds will be required more frequently to keep the Earth and atomic clocks in sync.For a world increasingly dominated by technology, this is a potential headache for people who have to reset personal computers, global positioning systems (GPS), mobile phones, and the like every time a leap second is added.
"They don't like leap seconds because they are irregular and they are inserted on a sort of as-needed basis," Chester said. "We try to give a six-month warning so they can make plans."
Although the addition of leap seconds has never proven a problem, some scientists are afraid that a glitch somewhere along the line will lead to a catastrophic error.
For example, an un-updated GPS navigation system could cause an oil tanker to run aground and spoil a pristine coastline. To avoid such a mishap, critics are pushing for the abolition of leap seconds.
On the other hand, if the atomic clocks and Earth's rotation are allowed to drift apart, eventually—as in, thousands of years from now—"high noon" will come hours before the sun crosses directly overhead.
Seeking to avoid such a distorted view of time, leap second proponents argue for continued coordination among the clocks.
"It's like on a small scale abolishing the leap year—the extra day. If you did that, sooner or later the months would get out of sync with the seasons," said Mark Bailey, the director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
Bailey wants to keep the tradition of leap seconds alive.
Leap seconds may be an inconvenience for timekeepers, he says. But the abolition of leap seconds could come with unintended consequences.
Many telescopes, he notes, are already programmed to account for the occasional addition of leap seconds. If the practice were abolished, astronomers would have to reprogram much of their equipment.
Ongoing Debate
The U.S. Naval Observatory recognizes the pros and cons of leap seconds. But Dennis McCarthy, former head of the observatory's Directorate of Time, opposes the added seconds.
McCarthy is part of a group of U.S. scientists within the UN's International Telecommunication Union (ITU) that recently submitted a proposal to eliminate leap seconds to the ITU, which has final say.
For most timing applications, the group argues, the practice of adding the occasional leap second creates more problems than it fixes.
A working group within the International Astronomical Union, which also has some influence in the matter, is reviewing the proposal. The IAU group will report its findings at the union's generally assembly meeting in August 2006.
The U.K.'s Royal Astronomical Society issued a statement on December 23 calling for a "much wider, more informed public debate" on the usefulness of leap seconds before a final decision is made.
Bailey of the Armagh Observatory, who is also a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, added, "It is an interesting question and I think one that deserves wider debate than just among professional scientists."
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Merry Christmas - Christmas and Jesus (as) in Islam
In spirit, most Muslims have no problem with the concept of celebrating the birth of Jesus (as). There are some Muslims who avoid celebrating birthdays altogether. But Shia Muslims as a matter of course find it meritorious to honor and remember the saints and prophets of God on the birthdays, death days and other significant dates.
We now know that December 25 is a wrong date for the birth of Jesus (as) and was chosen to coincide with certain pagan activities to ease their conversions from paganism but allowing them to incorporate some pagan traditions. I guess the more favored date now is sometime in April, around 4 or 5 B.C.
Muslims believe in Jesus (as), and in that sense we are Christians.
1. We believe Jesus (as) was born of the Virgin Mary by a miracle from God.
2. We believe Jesus (as) spoke to people while still a newborn.
3. We believe Jesus (as) performed numerous other miracles through the power of God including having the ability to raise the dead.
4. We believe Jesus (as) was a prophet of God who delivered the message (gospel) about how to get saved from hell and that he was supported by Ruh al Quddus, sometimes called the Holy Spirit. The gospel was a scripture revealed to Jesus (as) to deliver to mankind.
5. We believe Jesus (as) never committed a sin ( and actually we believe this of all prophets).
6. We believe Jesus (as) is not part of a triune God - we believe in a Unitarian God.
7. We believe Jesus (as) is not God in the flesh but is a holy man who prayed to God and carried out God's will on earth.
8. We believe Jesus (as) was not crucified on the cross but was raised to heaven by God.
9. We believe Jesus (as) will return at the time of Armageddon to help establish God's rule on Earth.
10. There is no Joseph as a father of Jesus (as) or husband of Mary mentioned in the Muslim Scriptures.
11. John the Baptist is also mentioned in the Qur'an as a prophet of God just preceding Jesus (as) and a supporter and preparer for Jesus (as).
Some pertinent passages from the Qur'an for Christmas about Jesus and Mary:
So her Lord accepted her with good acceptance and made her grow up a good growing and gave her into the charge of Zakariya; whenever Zakariya entered the sanctuary to see her, he found her with food. He said: O Mary! where did you get this? She said: It is from God. Surely God gives to whom He pleases without measure. (3:36)
And the angels said: O Mary! Surely God has chosen you and chosen you above the women of the world. (3:41)
She (Mary) said: My Lord! Shall there be a son born to me while no man has touched me? He said: Even so, God creates what He pleases; when He has decreed a matter, He only says to it, Be! - and then it is. (3:46)
And most certainly we gave Moses the Torah and We sent apostles after him one after another; and We gave Jesus son of Mary clear arguments and strengthened him with the Ruh al Quddus. (2:87)
Say: We believe in God and what has been revealed to us, and what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord; we do not make any distinction between any of them, and to Him do we submit (are Muslims). (3:83)
And We made a covenant with the prophets and with you, and with Noah and Abraham and Moses and Jesus son of Mary, and We made with them a strong covenant. (33:7)
And We sent after them in their footsteps Jesus, son of Mary, verifying what was before him of the Torah and We gave him the Gospel in which was guidance and light, and verifying what was before it of the Torah and a guidance and an admonition for those who guard against evil. (5:46)
And mention Mary in the Book when she drew aside from her family to an eastern place; So she took a veil to screen herself from them; then We sent to her Our spirit, and there appeared to her a well-made man. She said: Surely I seek refuge from you with the Beneficient God, if you are one guarding against evil. He said: I am only a messenger of your Lord that you will give birth to a pure boy. She said: How shall I have a boy when no mortal has touched me nor have I been unchaste? He said: Even so, your Lord says: It is easy to Me, and that We may make him a sign to men and a mercy from us; and it is a matter which has been decreed. So she conceived him, then withdrew herself with him to a remote place. And the throes of child birth compelled her to betake herself to the trunk of a palm tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died before this, and had been a thing quite forgotten. Then the child called out to her from beneath her, 'Grieve not, surely your Lord has made a stream to flow beneath you, and shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree and it will provide you with fresh ripe dates. So eat and drink and refresh the eye. Then if you see any mortal say "Surely I have vowed a fast to the Beneficient God, so I shall not speak to any man today. And she came to her people with him (Jesus), carry him. They said: O Mary! Surely you have done a strange thing. Your father was not a bad man, nor was your mother an unchaste woman. But Mary pointed to the baby. They said: how should we speak to a child in the cradle? But Jesus spoke, and said: Surely I am a servant of God; He has given me the Book and made me a prophet. And He has made me blessed wherever I may be, and He has enjoined on me prayer and poor-rate so long as I live. And He has made me dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me insolent or unblessed. Peace on me the day I was born, and on the day I die, and on the day I am raised to life again.' Such is Jesus, the son of Mary; this is the saying of truth about which they dispute. It beseems not God that He should take to Himself a son; glory be to Him; when He decrees a matter He only says to it "Be" and it is. (19:16-36)
And when you (Jesus) determined out of clay a think like the form of a bird and by My permission then you breathed into it and it became a living bird, and you healed the blind and leprous by My permission; and when you brought forth the dead by My permission. (5:110)
When the disciples said: O Jesus Son of Mary, will you Lord consent to send down to us food from heaven? He said: Be careful of your duty to God if you are believers. They said: We desire to eat of it and that our hearts should be at rest, and that we may know that you have indeed spoken the truth to us and that we may be the witnesses of it. Jesus Son of mary said: O God our Lord, send down ot us food from heaven which should be to us an everrecurring happiness, to the first of us and to the last of us, as a sign from Thee, and grant us means of subsistence, and Thou art the best of Providers. God said: Surely I will send it down to you, but whoever shall disbeliever afterwards from among you, surely I will chastise him with a chastisement with which I will not chastise any one from among the nations. (5:112-115)
And the Messiah (Jesus) said: O Children of Israel! Serve God, my Lord and your Lord. Surely whoever associates others with God, then God has forbidden to him the paradise, and his abode is the fire, and there shall be no helpers for the unjust. (5:72)
And Jesus Son of Mary said: O Children of Israel! Surely I am the apostle of Allah sent to you, verifying that which is sent before of the Torah and giving the good news of an apostle who will come after me, his name being Ahmad (Comforter). (61:6)
Surely the likeness of Jesus is with God the same as the likeness of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him, Be, and he was. (3:58)
And they say: God has taken to Himself a son. Glory be to Him; rather whatever is in the heavens and the earth is His; all are obedient to Him. (2:116)
And they say: The Beneficient God has taken to Himself a son, Glory be to Him, Nay! they (all prophets including Jesus) are honored servants, they do not precede Him in speech and only according to His commandment do they act. (21:26-27)
Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely God is the third of three; rather there is no god but the one God. (5:73)
The Messiah, Son of Mary is but an apostle; apostles before him have indeed passed away; and his mother was a truthful woman; they both used to eat food (they were humans, not gods). (5:75)
And their saying: Surely we have killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of God; and they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but it appeared to them so (like Jesus) and most surely those who differ therein are only in a doubt about it; they have no knowledge respecting it, but only follow a conjecture, and they killed him not for sure. Nay! God took him up to Himself; and God is Mighty, Wise. (4:157-158)
And God said: O Jesus I am going to terminate the period of your stay on earth and cause you to ascend unto Me and purify you of those who disbelieve and make those you follow you above those who disbelieve to the day of resurrection; then to Me shall be your return. (3:54)
And when God will say: O Jesus Son of Mary! Did you say to men, 'Take me and my mother for gods besides God' he will say: Glory be to thee, it did not befit me that I should say what I had no right to say; if I had said it, Thou wouldst have indeed known it; Thou knowest what is in my mind and I do not know what is in Thy mind; surely Thou art the Great Knower of unseen things. I do not say to them aught except save what Thou did enjoin me with; I said to serve God, My Lord and your Lord, and I was witness of them so long as I was among them, but when Thou caused me to leave, then Thou were the watcher over them. (5:116-117)
We now know that December 25 is a wrong date for the birth of Jesus (as) and was chosen to coincide with certain pagan activities to ease their conversions from paganism but allowing them to incorporate some pagan traditions. I guess the more favored date now is sometime in April, around 4 or 5 B.C.
Muslims believe in Jesus (as), and in that sense we are Christians.
1. We believe Jesus (as) was born of the Virgin Mary by a miracle from God.
2. We believe Jesus (as) spoke to people while still a newborn.
3. We believe Jesus (as) performed numerous other miracles through the power of God including having the ability to raise the dead.
4. We believe Jesus (as) was a prophet of God who delivered the message (gospel) about how to get saved from hell and that he was supported by Ruh al Quddus, sometimes called the Holy Spirit. The gospel was a scripture revealed to Jesus (as) to deliver to mankind.
5. We believe Jesus (as) never committed a sin ( and actually we believe this of all prophets).
6. We believe Jesus (as) is not part of a triune God - we believe in a Unitarian God.
7. We believe Jesus (as) is not God in the flesh but is a holy man who prayed to God and carried out God's will on earth.
8. We believe Jesus (as) was not crucified on the cross but was raised to heaven by God.
9. We believe Jesus (as) will return at the time of Armageddon to help establish God's rule on Earth.
10. There is no Joseph as a father of Jesus (as) or husband of Mary mentioned in the Muslim Scriptures.
11. John the Baptist is also mentioned in the Qur'an as a prophet of God just preceding Jesus (as) and a supporter and preparer for Jesus (as).
Some pertinent passages from the Qur'an for Christmas about Jesus and Mary:
So her Lord accepted her with good acceptance and made her grow up a good growing and gave her into the charge of Zakariya; whenever Zakariya entered the sanctuary to see her, he found her with food. He said: O Mary! where did you get this? She said: It is from God. Surely God gives to whom He pleases without measure. (3:36)
And the angels said: O Mary! Surely God has chosen you and chosen you above the women of the world. (3:41)
She (Mary) said: My Lord! Shall there be a son born to me while no man has touched me? He said: Even so, God creates what He pleases; when He has decreed a matter, He only says to it, Be! - and then it is. (3:46)
And most certainly we gave Moses the Torah and We sent apostles after him one after another; and We gave Jesus son of Mary clear arguments and strengthened him with the Ruh al Quddus. (2:87)
Say: We believe in God and what has been revealed to us, and what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord; we do not make any distinction between any of them, and to Him do we submit (are Muslims). (3:83)
And We made a covenant with the prophets and with you, and with Noah and Abraham and Moses and Jesus son of Mary, and We made with them a strong covenant. (33:7)
And We sent after them in their footsteps Jesus, son of Mary, verifying what was before him of the Torah and We gave him the Gospel in which was guidance and light, and verifying what was before it of the Torah and a guidance and an admonition for those who guard against evil. (5:46)
And mention Mary in the Book when she drew aside from her family to an eastern place; So she took a veil to screen herself from them; then We sent to her Our spirit, and there appeared to her a well-made man. She said: Surely I seek refuge from you with the Beneficient God, if you are one guarding against evil. He said: I am only a messenger of your Lord that you will give birth to a pure boy. She said: How shall I have a boy when no mortal has touched me nor have I been unchaste? He said: Even so, your Lord says: It is easy to Me, and that We may make him a sign to men and a mercy from us; and it is a matter which has been decreed. So she conceived him, then withdrew herself with him to a remote place. And the throes of child birth compelled her to betake herself to the trunk of a palm tree. She said: Oh, would that I had died before this, and had been a thing quite forgotten. Then the child called out to her from beneath her, 'Grieve not, surely your Lord has made a stream to flow beneath you, and shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree and it will provide you with fresh ripe dates. So eat and drink and refresh the eye. Then if you see any mortal say "Surely I have vowed a fast to the Beneficient God, so I shall not speak to any man today. And she came to her people with him (Jesus), carry him. They said: O Mary! Surely you have done a strange thing. Your father was not a bad man, nor was your mother an unchaste woman. But Mary pointed to the baby. They said: how should we speak to a child in the cradle? But Jesus spoke, and said: Surely I am a servant of God; He has given me the Book and made me a prophet. And He has made me blessed wherever I may be, and He has enjoined on me prayer and poor-rate so long as I live. And He has made me dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me insolent or unblessed. Peace on me the day I was born, and on the day I die, and on the day I am raised to life again.' Such is Jesus, the son of Mary; this is the saying of truth about which they dispute. It beseems not God that He should take to Himself a son; glory be to Him; when He decrees a matter He only says to it "Be" and it is. (19:16-36)
And when you (Jesus) determined out of clay a think like the form of a bird and by My permission then you breathed into it and it became a living bird, and you healed the blind and leprous by My permission; and when you brought forth the dead by My permission. (5:110)
When the disciples said: O Jesus Son of Mary, will you Lord consent to send down to us food from heaven? He said: Be careful of your duty to God if you are believers. They said: We desire to eat of it and that our hearts should be at rest, and that we may know that you have indeed spoken the truth to us and that we may be the witnesses of it. Jesus Son of mary said: O God our Lord, send down ot us food from heaven which should be to us an everrecurring happiness, to the first of us and to the last of us, as a sign from Thee, and grant us means of subsistence, and Thou art the best of Providers. God said: Surely I will send it down to you, but whoever shall disbeliever afterwards from among you, surely I will chastise him with a chastisement with which I will not chastise any one from among the nations. (5:112-115)
And the Messiah (Jesus) said: O Children of Israel! Serve God, my Lord and your Lord. Surely whoever associates others with God, then God has forbidden to him the paradise, and his abode is the fire, and there shall be no helpers for the unjust. (5:72)
And Jesus Son of Mary said: O Children of Israel! Surely I am the apostle of Allah sent to you, verifying that which is sent before of the Torah and giving the good news of an apostle who will come after me, his name being Ahmad (Comforter). (61:6)
Surely the likeness of Jesus is with God the same as the likeness of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him, Be, and he was. (3:58)
And they say: God has taken to Himself a son. Glory be to Him; rather whatever is in the heavens and the earth is His; all are obedient to Him. (2:116)
And they say: The Beneficient God has taken to Himself a son, Glory be to Him, Nay! they (all prophets including Jesus) are honored servants, they do not precede Him in speech and only according to His commandment do they act. (21:26-27)
Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely God is the third of three; rather there is no god but the one God. (5:73)
The Messiah, Son of Mary is but an apostle; apostles before him have indeed passed away; and his mother was a truthful woman; they both used to eat food (they were humans, not gods). (5:75)
And their saying: Surely we have killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the apostle of God; and they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but it appeared to them so (like Jesus) and most surely those who differ therein are only in a doubt about it; they have no knowledge respecting it, but only follow a conjecture, and they killed him not for sure. Nay! God took him up to Himself; and God is Mighty, Wise. (4:157-158)
And God said: O Jesus I am going to terminate the period of your stay on earth and cause you to ascend unto Me and purify you of those who disbelieve and make those you follow you above those who disbelieve to the day of resurrection; then to Me shall be your return. (3:54)
And when God will say: O Jesus Son of Mary! Did you say to men, 'Take me and my mother for gods besides God' he will say: Glory be to thee, it did not befit me that I should say what I had no right to say; if I had said it, Thou wouldst have indeed known it; Thou knowest what is in my mind and I do not know what is in Thy mind; surely Thou art the Great Knower of unseen things. I do not say to them aught except save what Thou did enjoin me with; I said to serve God, My Lord and your Lord, and I was witness of them so long as I was among them, but when Thou caused me to leave, then Thou were the watcher over them. (5:116-117)
Sunday, December 18, 2005
I just thought this was interesting.....
It snowed all weekend - big pretty flakes, but coooold. Drove up to the mountains and it was clear there because the clouds were all down low and enjoyed a beautiful view of Pikes Peak from Woodland Park. The birds outside were crazy at the feeder - whenever the weather turns bad, the wild birds want to eat like there's no tomorrow - I think they must need the extra food to try to stay warm and it must be instinct when weather turns to eat up trying to store for the future a little bit.
I read this article yesterday and thought it was interesting....
14-point deer turns out to be doe
The Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa — A hunter thought he might have bagged a trophy buck when he shot a 14-point deer in northeast Iowa earlier this month.
Eric Weymiller, 25, of rural Harpers Ferry, started to field dress the animal when to his surprise he noticed it wasn’t a buck at all.
“I noticed right away it was missing some plumbing,” said Weymiller, who shot the animal Dec. 7 in Allamakee County.
He discovered he was dressing a doe sporting antlers with 14 tines, a big rack even for a buck.
“I stopped field dressing the animal and called a DNR biologist,” Weymiller said. “I wanted them to document this.”
Iowa Department of Natural Resources Biologist Terry Hainfield confirmed that the animal was female.
“It is unusual to find a doe with antlers, but what makes this particularly unusual is that the antlers had hardened and grown so big,” Hainfield said.
More research will be required to determine whether the deer’s antlers are large enough to set a record for doe antlers.
I read this article yesterday and thought it was interesting....
14-point deer turns out to be doe
The Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa — A hunter thought he might have bagged a trophy buck when he shot a 14-point deer in northeast Iowa earlier this month.
Eric Weymiller, 25, of rural Harpers Ferry, started to field dress the animal when to his surprise he noticed it wasn’t a buck at all.
“I noticed right away it was missing some plumbing,” said Weymiller, who shot the animal Dec. 7 in Allamakee County.
He discovered he was dressing a doe sporting antlers with 14 tines, a big rack even for a buck.
“I stopped field dressing the animal and called a DNR biologist,” Weymiller said. “I wanted them to document this.”
Iowa Department of Natural Resources Biologist Terry Hainfield confirmed that the animal was female.
“It is unusual to find a doe with antlers, but what makes this particularly unusual is that the antlers had hardened and grown so big,” Hainfield said.
More research will be required to determine whether the deer’s antlers are large enough to set a record for doe antlers.
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Masha'allah
Woman found alive from the Pakistan Earthquake after more than 2 months of being buried in rubble.
I still have the link for free aid to victims of the earthquake at left in the sidebar.
I still have the link for free aid to victims of the earthquake at left in the sidebar.
Sunday, December 04, 2005
What's your Childhood Fantasy?
Mine is that I could travel back in time. Not actually being in that time in a way to influence it, but to see how things really were. To see the Saber Tooth Tiger and Giant Sloth. To see answers to mysteries like what really happened to Amelia Earhart or what the Lighthouse of Alexandria really looked like. Similarly, I wished that I could see anything in the present instantly, like where a missing person is or lost money or sunken treasure or the Loch Ness Monster..... And then people would ask me to help them find their lost friends or things and I'd do it instantly for free and make my living off finding some giant piece of gold or diamond somewhere.... So that's my childhood fantasy; what's yours?
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Imam Sajjad (as) - Giving Thanks
His Supplication when Confessing his Shortcomings in Giving Thanks
1 O God,
no one reaches a limit in thanking Thee
without acquiring that of Thy beneficence
which enjoins upon him thanksgiving,
2 nor does anyone reach a degree in obeying Thee,
even if he strives,
without falling short of what Thou deservest
because of Thy bounty.
3 The most thankful of Thy servants
has not the capacity to thank Thee,
and the most worshipful of them
falls short of obeying Thee.
4 To none of them is due
Thy forgiveness through what he himself deserves
or Thy good pleasure for his own merit.
5 When Thou forgivest someone,
it is through Thy graciousness,
and when Thou art pleased with someone,
it is through Thy bounty.
6 Thou showest gratitude
for the paltry for which Thou showest gratitude
and Thou rewardest
the small act in which Thou art obeyed,
so that it seems as if Thy servants' thanksgiving
for which Thou hast made incumbent their reward
and made great their repayment
is an affair
from which they could have held back without Thee,
and hence Thou wilt recompense them,
and whose cause is not in Thy hand,
and hence Thou wilt repay them.
7 Nay, my God, Thou hadst power over their affair
before they had power to worship Thee,
and Thou hadst prepared their reward
before they began to obey Thee;
and that because Thy wont is bestowal of bounty,
Thy custom beneficence,
Thy way pardon.
8 So all creatures confess
that Thou wrongest not him whom Thou punishest
and bear witness
that Thou bestowest bounty upon him whom Thou pardonest.
Each admits
that he has fallen short of what Thou meritest.
9 Had Satan not misled them from Thy obedience,
no disobeyer would have disobeyed Thee,
and had he not shown falsehood to them in the likeness of truth
no strayer would have gone astray from Thy path.
10 So glory be to Thee!
How manifest is Thy generosity
in dealing with him who obeys or disobeys Thee!
Thou showest gratitude to the obedient
for that which Thou undertakest for him,
and Thou grantest a respite to the disobedient
in that within which Thou art able to hurry him.
11 Thou givest to each of them
that which is not his due,
and Thou bestowest bounty upon each
in that wherein his works fall short.
12 Wert Thou to counterbalance for the obedient servant
that which Thou Thyself hadst undertaken,
he would be on the point of losing Thy reward
and seeing the end of Thy favour,
but through Thy generosity Thou hast repaid him
for a short, perishing term
with a long, everlasting term,
and for a near, vanishing limit
with an extended, abiding limit.
13 Then Thou dost not visit him with a settling of accounts
for Thy provision
through which he gained strength to obey Thee,
nor dost Thou force him to make reckonings
for the organs he employed
to find the means to Thy forgiveness.
Wert Thou to do that to him,
it would take away
everything for which he had laboured
and all wherein he had exerted himself
as repayment for the smallest of Thy benefits
and kindnesses,
and he would remain hostage before Thee
for Thy other favours.
So how can he deserve something of Thy reward?
Indeed, how?
14 This, my God, is the state of him who obeys Thee
and the path of him who worships Thee.
But as for him who disobeys Thy command
and goes against Thy prohibition,
Thou dost not hurry him to Thy vengeance,
so that he may seek to replace
his state in disobeying Thee
with the state of turning back to obey Thee,
though he deserved from the time he set out to disobey Thee
every punishment which Thou hast prepared
for all Thy creatures.
15 Through each chastisement
which Thou hast kept back from him
and each penalty of Thy vengeance and Thy punishment
which Thou hast delayed from him,
Thou hast refrained from Thy right
and shown good pleasure
in place of what Thou hast made obligatory.
16 So who is more generous, my God, than Thou?
And who is more wretched than he who perishes
in spite of Thee?
Indeed, who?
Thou art too blessed to be described
by any but beneficence
and too generous for any but justice
to be feared from Thee!
There is no dread that Thou wilt be unjust
toward him who disobeys Thee,
nor any fear of Thy neglecting to reward
him who satisfies Thee.
So bless Muhammad and his Household,
give me my hope,
and increase me in that of Thy guidance
through which I may be successful in my works!
Surely Thou art All-kind, Generous.
1 O God,
no one reaches a limit in thanking Thee
without acquiring that of Thy beneficence
which enjoins upon him thanksgiving,
2 nor does anyone reach a degree in obeying Thee,
even if he strives,
without falling short of what Thou deservest
because of Thy bounty.
3 The most thankful of Thy servants
has not the capacity to thank Thee,
and the most worshipful of them
falls short of obeying Thee.
4 To none of them is due
Thy forgiveness through what he himself deserves
or Thy good pleasure for his own merit.
5 When Thou forgivest someone,
it is through Thy graciousness,
and when Thou art pleased with someone,
it is through Thy bounty.
6 Thou showest gratitude
for the paltry for which Thou showest gratitude
and Thou rewardest
the small act in which Thou art obeyed,
so that it seems as if Thy servants' thanksgiving
for which Thou hast made incumbent their reward
and made great their repayment
is an affair
from which they could have held back without Thee,
and hence Thou wilt recompense them,
and whose cause is not in Thy hand,
and hence Thou wilt repay them.
7 Nay, my God, Thou hadst power over their affair
before they had power to worship Thee,
and Thou hadst prepared their reward
before they began to obey Thee;
and that because Thy wont is bestowal of bounty,
Thy custom beneficence,
Thy way pardon.
8 So all creatures confess
that Thou wrongest not him whom Thou punishest
and bear witness
that Thou bestowest bounty upon him whom Thou pardonest.
Each admits
that he has fallen short of what Thou meritest.
9 Had Satan not misled them from Thy obedience,
no disobeyer would have disobeyed Thee,
and had he not shown falsehood to them in the likeness of truth
no strayer would have gone astray from Thy path.
10 So glory be to Thee!
How manifest is Thy generosity
in dealing with him who obeys or disobeys Thee!
Thou showest gratitude to the obedient
for that which Thou undertakest for him,
and Thou grantest a respite to the disobedient
in that within which Thou art able to hurry him.
11 Thou givest to each of them
that which is not his due,
and Thou bestowest bounty upon each
in that wherein his works fall short.
12 Wert Thou to counterbalance for the obedient servant
that which Thou Thyself hadst undertaken,
he would be on the point of losing Thy reward
and seeing the end of Thy favour,
but through Thy generosity Thou hast repaid him
for a short, perishing term
with a long, everlasting term,
and for a near, vanishing limit
with an extended, abiding limit.
13 Then Thou dost not visit him with a settling of accounts
for Thy provision
through which he gained strength to obey Thee,
nor dost Thou force him to make reckonings
for the organs he employed
to find the means to Thy forgiveness.
Wert Thou to do that to him,
it would take away
everything for which he had laboured
and all wherein he had exerted himself
as repayment for the smallest of Thy benefits
and kindnesses,
and he would remain hostage before Thee
for Thy other favours.
So how can he deserve something of Thy reward?
Indeed, how?
14 This, my God, is the state of him who obeys Thee
and the path of him who worships Thee.
But as for him who disobeys Thy command
and goes against Thy prohibition,
Thou dost not hurry him to Thy vengeance,
so that he may seek to replace
his state in disobeying Thee
with the state of turning back to obey Thee,
though he deserved from the time he set out to disobey Thee
every punishment which Thou hast prepared
for all Thy creatures.
15 Through each chastisement
which Thou hast kept back from him
and each penalty of Thy vengeance and Thy punishment
which Thou hast delayed from him,
Thou hast refrained from Thy right
and shown good pleasure
in place of what Thou hast made obligatory.
16 So who is more generous, my God, than Thou?
And who is more wretched than he who perishes
in spite of Thee?
Indeed, who?
Thou art too blessed to be described
by any but beneficence
and too generous for any but justice
to be feared from Thee!
There is no dread that Thou wilt be unjust
toward him who disobeys Thee,
nor any fear of Thy neglecting to reward
him who satisfies Thee.
So bless Muhammad and his Household,
give me my hope,
and increase me in that of Thy guidance
through which I may be successful in my works!
Surely Thou art All-kind, Generous.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
some hadith
--
Thus ease comes from considering this world to be insignificant, giving up one's enjoyment of it, and removing the impurity of what is forbidden or doubtful. A person closes the door of pride on himself once he recognizes this; he flees from wrong actions and opens the door of humility, regret and modesty. He strives to carry out Allah swt's commands and to avoid His prohibitions, seeking a good end and excellent proximity to Allah swt. He locks himself in the prison of fear, steadfastness, and the restraint of his appetites until he reaches the safety of Allah swt in the world to come and tastes the food of His good pleasure. If he intends that, everything else means nothing to him.
Imam Sadiq (as), Lantern of the Path
--
It is narrated that Imam Zainul Abideen (as) has said:
The richest of people is [one] who is satisfied with
what Allah has
chosen for him.
Tuhaf al-Uqoul
The Masterpieces of the Intellects
Page 327 Hadith Number 5
Compiled by Abu Muhammad al-Hassan bin Ali bin
al-Hussein bin Shuba
al-Harrani
Translated by Badr Shahin
--
It is narrated that Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) has
narrated from Imam Ali (as)
Indeed, he who treats people fairly even though it be
to his detriment, is only increased in worth and
honor by Allah.
Combat with Self
Page 120 Hadith number 20525
Muhammad b al_Hasan al-Hurr al-Amili
Translated by Nazmina A Virjee
--
It is narrated that Imam Ali (as) has said:
If a person thinks well of you, make his idea hold
true.
A Bundle of Flowers from the garden of traditions of
the Prophet &
his Ahlul-Bayt (as)
Compiled by Ayatullah Sayyid Kamal Faghih Imani
Translated by Sayyid Abbas Sadr-ameli
Page 89
--
I am as My servant thinks I am.
I am with him when he makes mention of Me.
If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention
of him to Myself;
and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make
mention of him in an assembly better than it.
And if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw
near to him a fathom's length.
And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.
Hadith Qudsi http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/hadithqudsi.htm
--
It is narrated that Imam Sadiq (as) has said:
Dua is more forceful than a sword.
(Odattol Daee)
Thus ease comes from considering this world to be insignificant, giving up one's enjoyment of it, and removing the impurity of what is forbidden or doubtful. A person closes the door of pride on himself once he recognizes this; he flees from wrong actions and opens the door of humility, regret and modesty. He strives to carry out Allah swt's commands and to avoid His prohibitions, seeking a good end and excellent proximity to Allah swt. He locks himself in the prison of fear, steadfastness, and the restraint of his appetites until he reaches the safety of Allah swt in the world to come and tastes the food of His good pleasure. If he intends that, everything else means nothing to him.
Imam Sadiq (as), Lantern of the Path
--
It is narrated that Imam Zainul Abideen (as) has said:
The richest of people is [one] who is satisfied with
what Allah has
chosen for him.
Tuhaf al-Uqoul
The Masterpieces of the Intellects
Page 327 Hadith Number 5
Compiled by Abu Muhammad al-Hassan bin Ali bin
al-Hussein bin Shuba
al-Harrani
Translated by Badr Shahin
--
It is narrated that Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) has
narrated from Imam Ali (as)
Indeed, he who treats people fairly even though it be
to his detriment, is only increased in worth and
honor by Allah.
Combat with Self
Page 120 Hadith number 20525
Muhammad b al_Hasan al-Hurr al-Amili
Translated by Nazmina A Virjee
--
It is narrated that Imam Ali (as) has said:
If a person thinks well of you, make his idea hold
true.
A Bundle of Flowers from the garden of traditions of
the Prophet &
his Ahlul-Bayt (as)
Compiled by Ayatullah Sayyid Kamal Faghih Imani
Translated by Sayyid Abbas Sadr-ameli
Page 89
--
I am as My servant thinks I am.
I am with him when he makes mention of Me.
If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention
of him to Myself;
and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make
mention of him in an assembly better than it.
And if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw
near to him a fathom's length.
And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.
Hadith Qudsi http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/hadithqudsi.htm
--
It is narrated that Imam Sadiq (as) has said:
Dua is more forceful than a sword.
(Odattol Daee)
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Pikes Peak
By DEB ACORD THE GAZETTE
Lt. Zebulon Montgomery Pike wasn’t sure. But as the explorer stood on a rise in the flat, dry prairie of southeastern Colorado on Nov. 15, 1806, he thought he had spotted something on the horizon with his spyglass.
“At two o’clock in the afternoon I thought I could distinguish a mountain to our right, which appeared like a small blue cloud,” he wrote in his journal.
Pike had been in Colorado four days with his group of soldiers on an expedition to explore the southern reaches of the Louisiana Purchase. He kept quiet about what he saw, talking only to another member of his party. “Yet only communicated it to doctor Robinson, who was in front with me,” he wrote.
But another half hour’s travel brought the party to a hilltop with a clearer view. The group, Pike reported, “gave three cheers to the Mexi- can mountains.”
On this date 199 years ago, Pike’s journal entry about the “small blue cloud” became the first record of the mountain that would someday be named after him.
Throughout the next year, his expedition to the mountain we know as Pikes Peak will be cause for celebration in communities throughout southeastern Colorado. Small towns like Rocky Ford and Las Animas, the cities of Colorado Springs and Pueblo, and such entities as Colorado State Parks, the Santa Fe Trail Association and the Colorado Division of Wildlife have also joined in. The Gazette is planning a year of coverage, including a collector’s edition special section.
Working from old maps and Pike’s journal, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has surveyed the area where Pike camped when he sighted the mountain and will soon set a marker of Pikes Peak granite on the spot.
By the time Pike and his men reached that stretch of land on the banks of the Arkansas River, they had already encountered vast herds of buffalo and signs of Indian war parties. It was a vast, dry prairie cut by rivers that meandered in the shade of cottonwoods.
On Monday, the area still looked like Pike described it, save for the absence of American Indians and herds of buffalo. The prairie was silent except for a constant wind that rustled the remaining leaves on the cottonwoods crowding the banks of the river. Coyote tracks were preserved in the dry clay. Tumbleweeds blew through with little to stop them, and tufts of buffalo grass waved and bent.
And to the northwest, a “small blue cloud” sat on the horizon, topped by bubbly white cumulus clouds. It shimmered, discernible only because an Army Corps of Engineers official pointed it out, changing shape with the angle of the sun or hiding tantalizingly beneath clouds that signaled an encroaching storm.
Looking at that shimmering image from this vantage point allowed a visitor to wonder at the temerity of Pike and his men. The party — 21 men and one interpreter — had set forth four months earlier, on July 15, 1806, from Belfountaine, near modern-day St. Louis.
The group’s mission was to explore the southwestern holdings of the Louisiana Purchase, acquired by the United States from France in 1803. The more famous expedition of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark took a more northerly route across the continent.
In Colorado, Pike and his men followed rivers and creeks, charting their course and noting other geographic features along the way. He followed groups of Spanish cavalry, who may well have seen Pikes Peak, and encountered Indians, who of course already had their own name for it — Taba. But Pike was the first to record an observation of the mountain he first spotted as a blue cloud and later called Grand Peak.
In the week following his sighting, he moved closer to the mountain, and on Nov. 23, 1806, he wrote, “As the river appeared to be dividing itself into many small branches and of course must be near its extreme source, I concluded to put the party in a defensible situation; ascend the north fork, to the high point of the blue mountain.”
Pike misjudged his proximity to the source of the Arkansas, which was still more than 100 miles away. He also misjudged the climb he faced. He thought it would take one day’s march, but after a day he was nowhere near the summit, and by the 27th he realized he had underestimated the climb. He looked at the mountain again.
The first recorded ascent was by the botanist Edwin James in 1820. Nevertheless, the mountain was called “Pike’s Peak” until 1891, when the U.S. Board on Geographic Names took out the apostrophe.
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Imam Sajjad (as)'s supplication when sick
His Supplication when Sick
His Supplication when Sick or Visited by Distress or an Affliction
1 O God, to Thee belongs praise
for the good health of my body
which lets me move about,
and to Thee belongs praise,
for the ailments
which Thou causest to arise in my flesh!
2 For I know not, my God,
which of the two states deserves more my thanking Thee
and which of the two times is more worthy for my praise of Thee:
3 the time of health,
within which Thou makest me delight
in the agreeable things of Thy provision,
through which Thou givest me the joy to seek
the means to Thy good pleasure and bounty,
and by which Thou strengthenest me
for the acts of obedience
which Thou hast given me success to accomplish;
4 or the time of illness
through which Thou puttest me to the test
and bestowest upon me favours:
lightening of the offenses
that weigh down my back,
purification of the evil deeds
into which I have plunged,
incitement to reach
for repentance,
reminder of the erasure of misdeeds
through ancient favour;
5 and, through all that, what the two writers write for me:
blameless acts,
which no heart had thought,
no tongue had uttered,
and no limb had undertaken,
rather, as Thy bestowal of bounty upon me
and the beneficence of Thy benefaction toward me.
6 O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household,
make me love
what Thou hast approved for me,
make easy for me
what Thou hast sent down upon me,
purify me of the defilement
of what I have sent ahead,
erase the evil
of what I have done beforehand,
let me find the sweetness
of well-being,
let me taste the coolness
of safety,
and appoint for me
a way out from my illness to Thy pardon,
transformation of my infirmity into Thy forbearance,
escape from my distress to Thy refreshment,
and safety from this hardship in Thy relief!
7 Thou art gratuitously bountiful in beneficence,
ever gracious in kindness,
the Generous, the Giver,
Possessor of majesty and munificence!
His Supplication when Sick or Visited by Distress or an Affliction
1 O God, to Thee belongs praise
for the good health of my body
which lets me move about,
and to Thee belongs praise,
for the ailments
which Thou causest to arise in my flesh!
2 For I know not, my God,
which of the two states deserves more my thanking Thee
and which of the two times is more worthy for my praise of Thee:
3 the time of health,
within which Thou makest me delight
in the agreeable things of Thy provision,
through which Thou givest me the joy to seek
the means to Thy good pleasure and bounty,
and by which Thou strengthenest me
for the acts of obedience
which Thou hast given me success to accomplish;
4 or the time of illness
through which Thou puttest me to the test
and bestowest upon me favours:
lightening of the offenses
that weigh down my back,
purification of the evil deeds
into which I have plunged,
incitement to reach
for repentance,
reminder of the erasure of misdeeds
through ancient favour;
5 and, through all that, what the two writers write for me:
blameless acts,
which no heart had thought,
no tongue had uttered,
and no limb had undertaken,
rather, as Thy bestowal of bounty upon me
and the beneficence of Thy benefaction toward me.
6 O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household,
make me love
what Thou hast approved for me,
make easy for me
what Thou hast sent down upon me,
purify me of the defilement
of what I have sent ahead,
erase the evil
of what I have done beforehand,
let me find the sweetness
of well-being,
let me taste the coolness
of safety,
and appoint for me
a way out from my illness to Thy pardon,
transformation of my infirmity into Thy forbearance,
escape from my distress to Thy refreshment,
and safety from this hardship in Thy relief!
7 Thou art gratuitously bountiful in beneficence,
ever gracious in kindness,
the Generous, the Giver,
Possessor of majesty and munificence!
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Du'a for Sahar (Dawn)
Du'a for Sahar
This is a very beautiful du'a. Its poetic language and heartfelt message makes for an outstanding prayer. The all encompassing mercy of the Almighty is analogized with the vastness of the sea, while the needy are passengers on a ship waiting to cross.
Humility is an essential part of the etiquette of Du'a. An acknowledgemnt of one's sins and shortcomings is most becoming to a supplicant. This is succintly expressed in the following Du'a.
In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful.
O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.
My God,
the beggars are standing at Your door,
the needy have taken refuge with Your Honor.
The ship carrying the poor and humble people,
is standing at the shores of the sea ,
of Your generosity and grace,
hoping for permission to cross ,
to the shores of Your mercy and blessings.
My God, if You do not forgive,
in this honored month,
except the one who has sincerely purified himself for You,
in his fasting and prayers,
then who is there for the negligent sinner,
when he drowns in the sea of his sins?
My God, if You do not have mercy on any,
except the obedient,
then who is there for the disobedient?
And if You do not accept from any,
except the performers of (good) actions,
then who is there for those who fall short?
My God, those who fast have profited,
those who stay up in prayer have won,
and those who are sincere have succeeded,
but we are Your sinful servants!
So be kind to us through Your mercy
and save us from the fire through Your forgiveness, O Gracious
O most merciful.
O Allah, bless Muhammad and his family, the purified ones.
This is a very beautiful du'a. Its poetic language and heartfelt message makes for an outstanding prayer. The all encompassing mercy of the Almighty is analogized with the vastness of the sea, while the needy are passengers on a ship waiting to cross.
Humility is an essential part of the etiquette of Du'a. An acknowledgemnt of one's sins and shortcomings is most becoming to a supplicant. This is succintly expressed in the following Du'a.
In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful.
O Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.
My God,
the beggars are standing at Your door,
the needy have taken refuge with Your Honor.
The ship carrying the poor and humble people,
is standing at the shores of the sea ,
of Your generosity and grace,
hoping for permission to cross ,
to the shores of Your mercy and blessings.
My God, if You do not forgive,
in this honored month,
except the one who has sincerely purified himself for You,
in his fasting and prayers,
then who is there for the negligent sinner,
when he drowns in the sea of his sins?
My God, if You do not have mercy on any,
except the obedient,
then who is there for the disobedient?
And if You do not accept from any,
except the performers of (good) actions,
then who is there for those who fall short?
My God, those who fast have profited,
those who stay up in prayer have won,
and those who are sincere have succeeded,
but we are Your sinful servants!
So be kind to us through Your mercy
and save us from the fire through Your forgiveness, O Gracious
O most merciful.
O Allah, bless Muhammad and his family, the purified ones.
Monday, August 29, 2005
Statue springs to life with pumpkin vines
I haven't seen this, might have to stop by. Not particularly a fan of statues, but the man himself is remembered for his good deeds.
By BILL VOGRIN - THE GAZETTE
Hot days and afternoon monsoons have had a magical effect on the statue of Nick Venetucci — the celebrated pumpkin man of Colorado Springs memorialized in bronze on the lawn of the Pioneers Museum downtown.
Almost overnight, the statue seemingly came to life as large pumpkin vines sprouted in the flower bed that surrounds it.
The vines have obliterated pansies planted earlier in the summer, and they’ve given birth to gourds that swell with each afternoon shower. Today, the vines are kneehigh on the statue honoring the Security farmer.
It’s a pose thousands of area residents would recognize: Venetucci smiling amid growing pumpkins. Before his death Sept. 7, 2004, he became a legend for giving pumpkins to area schoolchildren over a 50-year period.
“It really looks great,” said Matt Mayberry, museum director. “It’s such a fitting tribute to Venetucci.”
Mayberry is eager to see the small green fruit on the vine grow and ripen into the large, orangish-yellow pumpkins that were Venetucci’s trademark.
Some of the vines are spilling onto the sidewalk, and others are slightly obscuring the three bronze children who surround Venetucci in artist Fred Darpino’s sculpture.
Again, Mayberry thinks it only adds to the effect.
“It really looks great with the kids there in the pumpkin patch,” he said.
Others agree, including Suzanne Royer, who spearheaded the “Pennies for Pumpkins” campaign that raised more than $100,000 to pay for the statue.
“I love it,” Royer said.
Another fan is Bambi Venetucci, who worked side-by-side with her husband at the farm and was his partner in the annual pumpkin giveaway.
It was Bambi who coordinated the visits of school groups, social clubs, senior citizens and others — upwards of 50,000 a year — to the farm to gather free pumpkins.
She has made several visits to the statue since it was unveiled last October and is tickled by the growing vines.
“It’s a beautiful tribute,” she said. “And I think it’s wonderful people are still so caring and interested. He loved his community, and it’s so nice to see they love him, too.”
So, just who is responsible for the pumpkins, anyway? Neither Royer nor Bambi Venetucci knew the answer.
And it wasn’t the city gardners who planted them, said Paul Butcher, director of the Parks Department.
“We don’t plant vegetables and fruits that can be consumed,” he said.
Could it have been magic? Maybe a little pumpkin dust sprinkled in the dirt?
Actually, it was Beth Kosley of the Downtown Partnership.
“We planted pumpkin seeds at the request of the museum and the artist,” Kosley said, noting how the vines are really taking off. “I’m a little worried we’re having too much success.”
No way, say Mayberry, Royer and the others. Their only fear is that the pumpkins might disappear.
“We’re a little bit worried,” Mayberry said. “We’ll just have to see what happens. It will be great if we can get to middle or late October and have bright pumpkins in there.
“We’ll have to see how the public reacts to it.”
Tell us about your neighborhood: 636-0193 or
bvogrin@gazette.com
On other notes - I watched the series finales of The 4400 and The Dead Zone last night - they were good!
Later this week is a birth anniversary for Imam Musa Kazim (as), 7th Imam (as). I think it is Wednesday. People don't give him the respect and attention he is due, as is the case for many of our Imams (sa). There is a lengthy biography of him for sale at the Khoei bookstore now. I got a copy but I haven't read it yet, because I'm trying to work through the Imams' biographies in order.
By BILL VOGRIN - THE GAZETTE
Hot days and afternoon monsoons have had a magical effect on the statue of Nick Venetucci — the celebrated pumpkin man of Colorado Springs memorialized in bronze on the lawn of the Pioneers Museum downtown.
Almost overnight, the statue seemingly came to life as large pumpkin vines sprouted in the flower bed that surrounds it.
The vines have obliterated pansies planted earlier in the summer, and they’ve given birth to gourds that swell with each afternoon shower. Today, the vines are kneehigh on the statue honoring the Security farmer.
It’s a pose thousands of area residents would recognize: Venetucci smiling amid growing pumpkins. Before his death Sept. 7, 2004, he became a legend for giving pumpkins to area schoolchildren over a 50-year period.
“It really looks great,” said Matt Mayberry, museum director. “It’s such a fitting tribute to Venetucci.”
Mayberry is eager to see the small green fruit on the vine grow and ripen into the large, orangish-yellow pumpkins that were Venetucci’s trademark.
Some of the vines are spilling onto the sidewalk, and others are slightly obscuring the three bronze children who surround Venetucci in artist Fred Darpino’s sculpture.
Again, Mayberry thinks it only adds to the effect.
“It really looks great with the kids there in the pumpkin patch,” he said.
Others agree, including Suzanne Royer, who spearheaded the “Pennies for Pumpkins” campaign that raised more than $100,000 to pay for the statue.
“I love it,” Royer said.
Another fan is Bambi Venetucci, who worked side-by-side with her husband at the farm and was his partner in the annual pumpkin giveaway.
It was Bambi who coordinated the visits of school groups, social clubs, senior citizens and others — upwards of 50,000 a year — to the farm to gather free pumpkins.
She has made several visits to the statue since it was unveiled last October and is tickled by the growing vines.
“It’s a beautiful tribute,” she said. “And I think it’s wonderful people are still so caring and interested. He loved his community, and it’s so nice to see they love him, too.”
So, just who is responsible for the pumpkins, anyway? Neither Royer nor Bambi Venetucci knew the answer.
And it wasn’t the city gardners who planted them, said Paul Butcher, director of the Parks Department.
“We don’t plant vegetables and fruits that can be consumed,” he said.
Could it have been magic? Maybe a little pumpkin dust sprinkled in the dirt?
Actually, it was Beth Kosley of the Downtown Partnership.
“We planted pumpkin seeds at the request of the museum and the artist,” Kosley said, noting how the vines are really taking off. “I’m a little worried we’re having too much success.”
No way, say Mayberry, Royer and the others. Their only fear is that the pumpkins might disappear.
“We’re a little bit worried,” Mayberry said. “We’ll just have to see what happens. It will be great if we can get to middle or late October and have bright pumpkins in there.
“We’ll have to see how the public reacts to it.”
Tell us about your neighborhood: 636-0193 or
bvogrin@gazette.com
On other notes - I watched the series finales of The 4400 and The Dead Zone last night - they were good!
Later this week is a birth anniversary for Imam Musa Kazim (as), 7th Imam (as). I think it is Wednesday. People don't give him the respect and attention he is due, as is the case for many of our Imams (sa). There is a lengthy biography of him for sale at the Khoei bookstore now. I got a copy but I haven't read it yet, because I'm trying to work through the Imams' biographies in order.
Friday, August 26, 2005
Jeff Foxworthy on Colorado
Some of the favorites:
You know you're from Colorado when...
1. You switch from "Heat" to "A/C" in one day.
2. You know what the "People's Republic of Boulder" means.
3. Your sense of direction is: towards the mountains and away from the mountains.
5. You're able to drive 65 miles per hour through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without even flinching.
6. You take your out of town guests to Casa Bonita even though you would never go there otherwise.
8. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
11. You can drive over a 12,000-foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow.
12. You know the 'correct' pronunciation of Buena Vista and Pueblo.
15. You have surge protectors on every outlet.
16. April showers bring May blizzards.
17. 'Timberline' is someplace you have actually been.
18. You know what a 'Chinook' is.
20. You know what a 'fourteener' is.
21. But you don't know what a 'turn signal' is.
24. You know who Alfred Packer was.
30. Thunder has set off your car alarm.
33. You think a red light means 3 more cars can go.
37. You know where the real 'South Park' is.
You know you're from Colorado when...
1. You switch from "Heat" to "A/C" in one day.
2. You know what the "People's Republic of Boulder" means.
3. Your sense of direction is: towards the mountains and away from the mountains.
5. You're able to drive 65 miles per hour through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without even flinching.
6. You take your out of town guests to Casa Bonita even though you would never go there otherwise.
8. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
11. You can drive over a 12,000-foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow.
12. You know the 'correct' pronunciation of Buena Vista and Pueblo.
15. You have surge protectors on every outlet.
16. April showers bring May blizzards.
17. 'Timberline' is someplace you have actually been.
18. You know what a 'Chinook' is.
20. You know what a 'fourteener' is.
21. But you don't know what a 'turn signal' is.
24. You know who Alfred Packer was.
30. Thunder has set off your car alarm.
33. You think a red light means 3 more cars can go.
37. You know where the real 'South Park' is.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Painting
I took my brother's kids yesterday up to school and painted my classroom - well at least the two big walls - I didn't bother with walls with chalkboards and other stuff. When I picked them up, they told me they had to be at a baseball thing at eleven so we had to work really fast. They helped some both in painting and in making a big mess! :) The walls are painted and I think that part is fine, but there is also some paint on baseboards, floor, student desks, etc., that I guess I'll be trying to work on some over the next several days.
In the evening I picked them up again to go to a geocaching event - it wasn't actually caching, but rather a meeting/picnic of southern Colorado cachers discussing some upcoming games/events. The kids played on the playground, adults sat around and talked to people they already knew from online but never in person before. Just as it was ending, the rain came - I love this weather!
Tomorrow it is official - back to school for teachers - although I've already been working in the building three days I still have a lot to do to be "ready", but at least I am closer than before. But tomorrow insha'allah everyone will be back. And we'll have to sit in lots of meetings.
With all my travel this summer I didn't get to the gym regularly. After my last trip end of July, I haven't been to the gym but a few times, plus at all these conferences and meetings it is hard to avoid not eating well. So now I have to motivate myself to go after work when I'm tired several times a week - that was my plan to begin with, but now I've got to make myself stick to it!
In the evening I picked them up again to go to a geocaching event - it wasn't actually caching, but rather a meeting/picnic of southern Colorado cachers discussing some upcoming games/events. The kids played on the playground, adults sat around and talked to people they already knew from online but never in person before. Just as it was ending, the rain came - I love this weather!
Tomorrow it is official - back to school for teachers - although I've already been working in the building three days I still have a lot to do to be "ready", but at least I am closer than before. But tomorrow insha'allah everyone will be back. And we'll have to sit in lots of meetings.
With all my travel this summer I didn't get to the gym regularly. After my last trip end of July, I haven't been to the gym but a few times, plus at all these conferences and meetings it is hard to avoid not eating well. So now I have to motivate myself to go after work when I'm tired several times a week - that was my plan to begin with, but now I've got to make myself stick to it!
Monday, August 08, 2005
Madrassah, Grad Party, Board Retreat
Saturday I went to the last Madrassah session for this term up in Denver. I got reimbursed for my gas which was really great - 150 miles a trip adds up! I guess it is starting up again for a new term in September.
Saturday afternoon was the Master's Degree party. It was nice, my mom did a nice job putting it together, and Tonya and the kids helped with the food and decorations the day of the party. From my school Jen and her husband Dave came, and Nancy and her husband Bob came - those are both math teachers. Anne and her husband Rick came and Marie came - Anne is the school front office queen and Marie is the data processor. Dave Ulmer came, he was my cooperating teacher at the school when I did my student teaching. Laura and Byron came even though they just flew in from the East Coast, which was really nice - Laura gave me a nice purse. Derek and Heather came as well. Some of mom's family and Jeff's guests of course came, too. And Mark and Irma from CSEA came. I think that's everyone.
Yesterday and today I was at the Board Retreat up in Florissant. It was a cute place we stayed at. I felt we had a productive meeting and we had a lot of fun. The geocaching game was a hit, everyone seemed to like it. I took a ton of notes as Secretary. The rest of the week is more CSEA stuff - tomorrow is the AR training and Friday is the New Teacher Orientation. I think I'm going to axe painting the classroom, I'm just out of energy and time. But we'll see. I'm struggling a bit with the sudden and early end of summer juxtaposed with the beginnings of excitement for a new year.
Saturday afternoon was the Master's Degree party. It was nice, my mom did a nice job putting it together, and Tonya and the kids helped with the food and decorations the day of the party. From my school Jen and her husband Dave came, and Nancy and her husband Bob came - those are both math teachers. Anne and her husband Rick came and Marie came - Anne is the school front office queen and Marie is the data processor. Dave Ulmer came, he was my cooperating teacher at the school when I did my student teaching. Laura and Byron came even though they just flew in from the East Coast, which was really nice - Laura gave me a nice purse. Derek and Heather came as well. Some of mom's family and Jeff's guests of course came, too. And Mark and Irma from CSEA came. I think that's everyone.
Yesterday and today I was at the Board Retreat up in Florissant. It was a cute place we stayed at. I felt we had a productive meeting and we had a lot of fun. The geocaching game was a hit, everyone seemed to like it. I took a ton of notes as Secretary. The rest of the week is more CSEA stuff - tomorrow is the AR training and Friday is the New Teacher Orientation. I think I'm going to axe painting the classroom, I'm just out of energy and time. But we'll see. I'm struggling a bit with the sudden and early end of summer juxtaposed with the beginnings of excitement for a new year.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Cachin' and Gettin' Soaked
Yesterday I spent the whole day caching with Haily, my niece. That is what she asked for as 'payment' for watching my birds when I went to L.A. We started about 8am and picked what we wanted to do off the Internet. Then we loaded up an ammo box for a multicache we went out and placed. I had three fake rocks that could hold micros, so I came up with the idea of a "shell game". The first coordinates takes them to one of the rocks. Inside is a card with two coordinates on it and they have to pick one. It takes them to one of the two other rocks. Inside again are two coordinates and they have to pick. One would take them to the cache and one would take them to the third rock. Depending on the choices the make they may have to do more walking or less and make have to make three stops or four. So, we'll see how that goes.
We found two new ones in my neighborhood - not first to find, but third, which still isn't bad. Then, we went and found one in a neat quiet park west of highway 115 that had cabochons in it. The guy who owns the cache polishes and cuts semi-precious stones like agates and jaspers. We left various toys and goodies and choose two small red agates. We went over to a jewelry store that does custom work in the southgate shopping center - the one with the Schlotzsky's and Sylvan called Berges. I let Haily pick out a setting for her stone in silver, she chose a pendant setting, and I chose a ring setting. So that will be her birthday gift, insha'allah.
Then we went on to try a newer cache over near Quail Lake. The coordinates kept pointing to the middle of the lake. So we checked what I'd written down and I'd left out a number and Haily had just filled a zero. So, not having the right coordinates available we had to move on to another cache. But, we had a nice walk all the way around the lake. It was a bit nostalgic for me because I used to live in the apartments right next to the lake and would walk around it in the evenings sometimes.
Our last cache of the day was a micro over by the old airport. It was a tiny keychain size toothpick canister covered in camo tape hanging in a tree in a hotel parking lot. We found it right away.
It took all day for that because it took awhile to set up our own cache, we stopped at Dairy Queen for blizzards, and it took us awhile to find the park for the Cabochon cache since we didn't know the neighborhood.
Today, I ended up doing cache-type stuff again. Mark Hampson, the VP of the union board, and I went up to Florissant to set up a caching type team-building game for the board retreat this weekend. We set up three mile and a half courses with six stations. So, the teams will be about six people, and they will have to use a gps to get the first station, find a hidden plastic baggie with the next coordinates, and so-on. The baggies also have letters in them that they will have to unjumble to solve a puzzle. But it was pouring rain today. So we spent a few hours trudging around in mud and wet trees and grass and got soaked to the bone. My jeans were so wet it looked like they'd been soaked in a tub for an hour. :) So it was a bit chilly and wet, but fun. At the main hall of the place we're staying, there were these humming bird feeders and they were literally swarming with humming birds - dozens of them. I love the sound they make when they fly, and they're so pretty. Even though these weren't the pretty-colored ones, they're still awesome. We headed out early so I was back home by 1. I fell asleep in the afternoon - man is it going to be an adjustment going back to a rigid schedule trying to get everything done and still get more than 5 hours of sleep, which just kills me. :)
We found two new ones in my neighborhood - not first to find, but third, which still isn't bad. Then, we went and found one in a neat quiet park west of highway 115 that had cabochons in it. The guy who owns the cache polishes and cuts semi-precious stones like agates and jaspers. We left various toys and goodies and choose two small red agates. We went over to a jewelry store that does custom work in the southgate shopping center - the one with the Schlotzsky's and Sylvan called Berges. I let Haily pick out a setting for her stone in silver, she chose a pendant setting, and I chose a ring setting. So that will be her birthday gift, insha'allah.
Then we went on to try a newer cache over near Quail Lake. The coordinates kept pointing to the middle of the lake. So we checked what I'd written down and I'd left out a number and Haily had just filled a zero. So, not having the right coordinates available we had to move on to another cache. But, we had a nice walk all the way around the lake. It was a bit nostalgic for me because I used to live in the apartments right next to the lake and would walk around it in the evenings sometimes.
Our last cache of the day was a micro over by the old airport. It was a tiny keychain size toothpick canister covered in camo tape hanging in a tree in a hotel parking lot. We found it right away.
It took all day for that because it took awhile to set up our own cache, we stopped at Dairy Queen for blizzards, and it took us awhile to find the park for the Cabochon cache since we didn't know the neighborhood.
Today, I ended up doing cache-type stuff again. Mark Hampson, the VP of the union board, and I went up to Florissant to set up a caching type team-building game for the board retreat this weekend. We set up three mile and a half courses with six stations. So, the teams will be about six people, and they will have to use a gps to get the first station, find a hidden plastic baggie with the next coordinates, and so-on. The baggies also have letters in them that they will have to unjumble to solve a puzzle. But it was pouring rain today. So we spent a few hours trudging around in mud and wet trees and grass and got soaked to the bone. My jeans were so wet it looked like they'd been soaked in a tub for an hour. :) So it was a bit chilly and wet, but fun. At the main hall of the place we're staying, there were these humming bird feeders and they were literally swarming with humming birds - dozens of them. I love the sound they make when they fly, and they're so pretty. Even though these weren't the pretty-colored ones, they're still awesome. We headed out early so I was back home by 1. I fell asleep in the afternoon - man is it going to be an adjustment going back to a rigid schedule trying to get everything done and still get more than 5 hours of sleep, which just kills me. :)
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