Do You Know Your Numbers?

One of my nursing jobs is with a company doing health screening. We go into businesses and perform three "tests" to measure one's health: body composition (weight, body mass index, and body fat percentage), blood pressure, cholesterol, and bloody glucose. At the end of it all, a nurse reviews the numbers with each person and specifically addresses the abnormals.

I am not obsessive about health, but I think it is important, and I enjoy helping people live healthy lives. Over the last few weeks, as I have been working at these various health screening events, my main job has been to take people's blood pressures. Unfortunately, there are always at least a few abnormals - meaning, higher than 140/90. (It's surprising that there aren't MORE than a few abnormals, actually). Anyways, the abnormals are unfortunate for a couple reasons: it means the person is at greater risk for things like stroke and heart disease, but it also means that I get the disapproving look that says something like, "What's wrong with you?! Can't you tell that I am a healthy person, and you got THAT number? Obviously, this is all YOUR fault. I was a healthy person until I met you." And very often, they will ask for a recheck...just to make sure.

What's funny about this is that they never (or seldom) do that to the people checking body composition or weight or cholesterol. Those are all checked with machines, so they feel more of a sense of responsibility since the machine cannot lie.

So, next time you have the opportunity to know your numbers (especially blood pressure), remember that those people on the other end are just the messengers.

Need More Joy?

January 1, 1995
By John Piper

1. Realize that authentic joy in God is a gift.

2. Realize that joy must be fought for relentlessly.

3. Resolve to attack all known sin in your life.

4. Learn the secret of gutsy guilt - how to fight like a justified sinner.

5. Realize that the battle is primarily a fight to see God for who he is.

6. Meditate on the Word of God day and night.

7. Pray earnestly and continually for open heart-eyes and an inclination for God.

8. Learn to preach to yourself rather than listen to yourself.

9. Spend time with God-saturated people who help you see God and fight the fight.

10. Be patient in the night of God's seeming absence.

11. Get the rest and exercise proper diet that your body was designed by God to have.

12. Make a proper use of God's revelation in nature.

13. Read great books about God and biographies of great saints.

14. Do the hard and loving thing for the sake of others (witness and mercy).

15. Get a global vision for the cause of Christ and pour yourself out for the unreached.

Zambeezi

As I have gotten older and traveled the world and lived in a developing country, I have become more passionate about things like Fair Trade. Simply, Fair Trade is paying more for a product, so that workers in developing countries can be paid fairly.

Today, I am promoting a not only Fair Trade product, but an organic one as well (ooooohhh-aaaaahhhh!). But before I tell you about this product, I have to say that I am not one of those fanatic type of Fair Trade people or even organic people, where I won't buy something unless it is Fair Trade or organic. Like the other day, Derek and I bought Rwandan Fair Trade coffee from Caribou - it was not good. Perhaps my palate was too delicate for it, but it just tasted burnt. If I am going to pay more, I want it to be good!

That's why this product I am going to tell you about is so good. It is Fair Trade, organic, amazing, and Zambian - how much better can something get???

So, what is it? Zambeezi - organic beeswax lip balm. It really is the best lip balm out there. I just ordered a few for myself, and was reminded why it is so good. The super-soft, great-smelling balm is like a luxurious spa treatment every time I put it on. (Notice in the pic how full the tube is...even after using it a bunch!)

If you want to try some for yourself, go to www.zambiansoap.com or if you want to find out more about where the proceeds go, go to www.zambeezi.com.

Diversity and Productive Conflict

A friend recently posted the following excerpt from Patrick Lencioni on his blog, and it was so good that I had to share it here, too:

"Which brings me back to the power of diversity, and the reason why it remains so misunderstood and under-exploited in most organizations: it requires conflict.

The practical advantage of diversity boils down to this: a group of people with different perspectives usually makes better decisions and finds more creative solutions than those who have largely similar views, backgrounds and skill sets. This is true for all teams, whether they’re running a corporation, a church, a school or a movie studio. However, when a team cannot productively engage in conflict, not only does that diversity remain untapped, it becomes a competitive disadvantage.

That’s because when team members with divergent points of view cannot openly and passionately advocate their positions, the team will not be able to properly understand and incorporate those ideas into a final decision. Instead, they will frustratingly agree to compromise, walking away dissatisfied with the outcome and resentful of their team members who they still don’t understand.

This is the norm in virtually every organization where I’ve worked or consulted. And that’s because when we talk about diversity, the emphasis is usually on acceptance and tolerance and “getting along.” All of which, of course, are good things. The problem surfaces when those qualities prevent people from challenging one another’s points of view out of fear of being labeled close-minded or intolerant.

And so the key to making diversity work is to teach people first how to appreciate one another’s differences, and then how to challenge them in the context of pursuing the best possible outcome. When a company can do that, it will transform diversity from a slogan to a real competitive advantage."

How Much Will You Pay?

The common cold. How can something so "common" make someone so miserable? When the sore throat, stuffy nose, tight chest, fuzzy head, scratchy eyes, fatigue, cough, and overall body aches strike, how much will you pay to get rid of the common cold fast? If you are one of those who heads straight for the Sudafed, let me offer you a better alternative - (drumroll please)...

If you don't mind sticking a gel swab up your nose every 4 hours and paying 45 cents/swab, ZICAM is your answer! It was 2 years ago that I was introduced to this wonder-worker, and my colds have never been the same since. They truly do reduce the duration and severity of the common cold. And when all those "common" cold symptoms strike without warning and threaten to put a cramp in my style (no comments, please), 45 cents/swab is worth it...for me, anyways.

It would be almost unthinkable for me to stop here without mentioning Echinacea as well. Anyone who has visited our house and has a cold will testify that I immediately head for the Echinacea to pass around. Echinacea and ZICAM make a great team! Now my only question is - do they sell this stuff in Zambia?

Getting To Church On Time

From the blog The Responsible Puppet some good tips on Getting To Church On Time. If you have kids this might be especially helpful.

Cheap, fun things to do in Minneapolis

Derek and I often have people stay at our house, and so we are often looking for cheap, fun things to do in the Twin Cities. Of course, there are lots of expensive, fun things to do, but I am convinced that the cheap, fun things take some exploring...

So, here is the list that we have come up with so far of fun things to do under $10:

-The Saint Paul Cathedral - free (just mind Mass hours)

-The Midtown Global Market - "looking is free!" Although, you'd be crazy to not get hummus and pita chips from the Holy Land market. There is often live music on the weekends.

-The Stone Arch Bridge and Locks - free

-Minneapolis Farmer's Market - free (March-November)

-St. Paul Farmer's Market - free (year 'round)

-Teddy Bear Park in Stillwater - free, great for children!

-Como Zoo and Conservatory - $2 adults, $1 children - suggested donation (year 'round)

-Nelson's Ice Cream in Stillwater - $3-something for a 2-flavor, child-size cone (about 8 scoops) (April-October)

-The 5-8 Club - Hamburger and fries for $4.95. Home of the Juicy Lucy and famous Onion Straws (when your arteries need a good clogging).

-Swing Dancing at the Wabasha Street Caves - $7 for walk-in lessons and dancing (every Thursday evening)

-The Foshay Tower Museum and Observation Deck - $8 suggested donation for adults, children under 12 are free (see the website for times)