i received a generic newsletter from my insurance company the other day. you know, tips on retirement strategies and fund investments and life insurance, crap like that. also included was a section on saving for your kid's higher education. and though i have no children of my own nor am i anywhere near having children of my own, i am a thorough kind of gal so i read through it over my cereal the other morning. okay, okay, take advantage of compounding interest, 529 plans, your run-of-the-mill sort of stuff. and then i got to point #4:

Look into prepaid tuition plans.

Many colleges and universities now allow you to start paying tuition years before your child is admitted, essentially "locking in" tuition at current rates. This is a particularly good idea if your heart is set on sending your child to your alma mater.

are you kidding me with this?

trust me, i understand that having your parents send you, or even help send you, to college, is not something to be taken for granted [thanks, mom and dad!]. but seriously? "if your heart is set on sending your child to your alma mater"?

i am appalled. i can't possibly think of a better way to cause your kid to happily attend your alma mater's rival school.

another quote from the weekend:

"hindsight is 40/40."  -  cd

well, ya, i guess technically... 

"i've been reading about adhd... i've been jumping around."

i have decided that kt is so inherently funny, she's forever making jokes accidentally.

hopefully i will have a big update around here soon.

the question is, what is a mahna mahna?

[thanks to jeff for the link.]

do doo, be-do-do...

crap, i almost forgot. freederekwebb went live on september 1st.

you can even use my email address as an entry if it makes you more comfortable. you'll know what i mean if you go there.

i like kt. she is a good egg.

that is all. 

no, this isn't about ou. 

since i can't seem to come up with anything on my own, i present two borrowed thoughts.

the first is an excerpt from friend and fellow squarespace blogger meegs. i always like reading her thoughts on God. the second is a prayer from 16th century explorer sir francis drake [thanks rachel].

+++

If the only God I know doesn't threaten my way of thinking and behaving, I submit that I probably don't know the real God at all. If the God I know behaves in predictable ways, doing just what I want so long as I push all the right levers and buttons, then I probably don't know the real God at all. If the God I know seems to be reading to us from a book called 101 Ways to Improve Your Self-Esteem instead of the book called The Glory of the Lord Will Be Revealed, I probably don't know the real God at all.

I'm tired of only knowing the God that's defined by me, instead of knowing the me that's defined by God. We all want something bigger than ourselves. If all God really does is validate my ways and my wants, then all that's left is a very small, sad, me-centric existence. I want to know the God who threatens me, who challenges me, who is dangerous, who makes life unsafe. I'd rather know the real thing than live with a pale shadow.

+++

Disturb us, Lord, when
we are too pleased with ourselves.
When our dreams have come true
because we dreamed too little.
When we arrived safely
because we sailed too close to the shore.