http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra recent pleonast.com entries by user jra en-us http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=598378 So, this is completely her fault. She got me doing Sudoku puzzles at the hospital one day and I seem to be slightly hooked. I even bought myself a little book of Sudokus and have a daily puzzle on my igoogle page. And, my boss looked at me funny the other day when I was completely absorbed in one during lunch at work. I do a few every night before bed, too, and they have this great knack for putting me asleep quickly. Anyway, hundreds of Sudoku puzzles later, I finally have come across one that has me completely stumped. And I have the answers in the back of the book and I could cheat and look up a hint or something. I may yet be forced into that. But I thought I'd put what I've got up here and let you all take a crack at it. Yes, I realize that getting the answers from y'all is just as much cheating as looking at the back of the book. It just seems more sporting somehow. 3 4 8 6 1 5 7 2 9 9 5 1 8 2 7 4 3 6 2 7 6 9 3 4 _ 5 _ 6 _ 2 4 5 9 _ 7 _ ... 2008-11-11 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=593116 It has been a great couple of days. Not just ok....but really great. And not because of anything earth-shattering or life-changing. Just because I've really enjoyed the little things. Like... - Having my kids come to our in-school rehearsal of the school play and really liking it. Not just kinda liking it, but going home and telling their parents how wonderful it is and that they all have to come see the "real show." - At same rehearsal, having the cast and crew really come together for the first time and doing a great job! - Keeping the stats at the middle school basketball game. We lost, but I really love doing the stats. - Funnel cake. With powdered sugar. By the way, ABS has the absolute best concession stands ever. - The storytelling festival today was tons of fun. One of the guys who was there last year and then again today is just phenomenal and has these great growing up in the seventies/eighties stories that are just spot-on. - One of the storyte... 2008-10-30 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=590937 Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights? By Orson Scott Card Editor's note: Orson Scott Card is a Democrat and a newspaper columnist, and in this opinion piece he takes on both while lamenting the current state of journalism. An open letter to the local daily paper — almost every local daily paper in America: I remember reading All the President's Men and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know. This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration. It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans. What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely not to be able to repay. The goal of this rule change was to help the ... 2008-10-23 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=587628 Ok, so... Everybody go here and congratulate the good news. And then go here and tell him too! :) 2008-10-15 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=585283 We are known by our friends; this is an inescapable fact. The people we associate with and choose to be around, these are among the best indications of our character and what we hold to be important. Our friends are people that we admire and whose influence in our lives we value. Often, we give ourselves over to their judgment and their opinions tend to weigh mightily in our decision-making. And so...I look to my friends--those that I cherish and appreciate and hold dear. And honestly, I marvel that they put up with me and call me a friend. I think of my oldest friend. We met during our high school years at a Florida College camp. If I ever were to consider someone a big brother, it would be him. I am awed by him for so many reasons, but among them is unbelievable courage and strength and the ability to use humor to defuse even the toughest situations. In my darkest times, he finds some way to make me laugh. But this friend I can also count on to call me on my mistakes; to p... 2008-10-09 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=573898 From mice to bats to cats. I am the temporary (and I really, really stress the temporary) owner of an adorable gray kitten with yellow eyes. It happened like this: I went to McDonalds for a quick drive-through supper after work today and before racing home to work some more on my Bible class materials for tonight. Whilst sitting there waiting to pay, I notice this tiny little gray cat weaving in and out from under the tires of the lady in front of me. So I throw money at the man at window number one, leap out of my car, and wave down the lady on her way to window number two...freaking her out mightily in the meantime. She stops her car and I try and get the cat to come out from underneath, but he's terribly skittish and it is really hot in the sun (cat likes his shade), so he refuses to cooperate. Instead, (and I do have to question his intelligence a bit here) he leaps into the car and up into the engine. So I got the lady to pop her hood after instructing her how (yeah, she h... 2008-09-11 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=572066 I've got rodents on the brain. Well, not really. But my last post was about my new computer mouse and this one is going to be about a bat, so I figure it's a good tie-in. I got home the other day to find that we have a bat. Now I know that I'm supposed to cover my hair and scream and run for the hills or something, but this little guy is completely adorable. He sleeps on my front porch, just over the door. Hangs upside down and everything. And he's just cute as a button. I'm sure there's some reason why I'm supposed to call the pest control people and have him eliminated. But...I really don't think I'm going to do that. I like him. He adds character to my house. And now I'm thinking that probably makes me the "Crazy Bat Lady" in lieu of the "Crazy Cat Lady." That's a difference I can live with. :) 2008-09-06 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=567269 I had to get a new mouse. Yep. My wireless, five-button optical mouse died. It was a cheapie from Walmart, so I didn't really expect long-term usage out of it or anything. Consequently, I got a new one at Staples today. It is not wireless (because apparently there's a better communication speed when you actually have a wire) and it also has five buttons and is optical. And it is made by Logitech which I think is probably a more reliable brand than the Micro Innovations one I'm replacing. I like it so far. But I'm going to have to get used to the positioning of button 4 (that's my push-to-talk button) and it's a little further back on the mouse than I like. I'm sure in time, I'll come to love this mouse as much or even more than my old one. I live a very exciting life. :) 2008-08-25 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=564646 So, there's an assignment that I gave my fifth graders and one of the answers cracked me up so much that I have to share. The assignment was to collect headlines from the paper. Headlines are not complete sentences (and yes, this is basic fifth grade, beginning-of-the-year review-type stuff). So, I had the kids turn them into complete sentences...by adding words or revising them or whatever. Here's the headline that resulted in me getting all giggly: "No joke: Ledger has Oscar shot." And here's the student's sentence which actually caused the giggles: "This is no joke people; a ledger has a man named Oscar shot." It's a whole new twist on Leno's headlines. 2008-08-19 http://www.pleonast.com/user/jra?l=5&entryID=562084 One of my fifth grade students had to bury his father. I saw 24 kids face up to their own fears to be there to help their classmate and friend. I realized how tender-hearted little boys can be when one of their own is hurting. A mother's strength in the face of tragedy was steadfast and sure. And a sweet boy whose world has fallen apart showed true faith and confidence in God's promises. ________________________ Please keep the family of Ronnie Thompson in your prayers. He was a valued member of the community and of the church and will be sorely missed by all who knew him. 2008-08-12