107 - Pancakes - Electricity

I am writing this blog from Arizona while attending a conference. Landing at 4:00 in the afternoon to be greeted with 107 degree temperature did feel rather excessive. However, the conference site keeps the meeting room so cool that I get "goose bumps" before each session ends. So the solution (since I did not bring a jacket) is to run outdoors at every possible break to get warmed up! The conference has been great. I head home tomorrow to more normal temperatures.

At lunchtime on Monday I found myself staring at the Denny's menu offering "all-you-can-eat-pancakes" for $4.00. When I asked the waitress what the record was she said 9 pancakes (by a 12 year-old boy) was the most any of her customers had eaten. Ah, the challenge. I can do more than that. So here you have me vainly trying to revert back to my gluttonous childhood and consume 10 pancakes - just for the record. All was going well on the road to the record even as each bite of the 7th pancake told me a wiser person would quit while still able to crawl back to the car. But just 3 more pancakes and the record is mine! As I was finishing off pancake number 8, the waitress brought pancakes 9 and 10 along with horrifying news. The waitress on the other side of the room said she had served an eight year old girl 11 pancakes. This is like moving the goal line whenever you get close to it. I've played games with people like this. They keep informing you of another rule to the game as you go along. Of course, the new rules never seem to be an advantage to you. 10 pancakes were within distance but 12? How stupid was I going to be on this afternoon?

On the home front. This morning I heard the statistic that there are 1 billion persons on the earth living without electricity or running water in their home. (U.N. statistics) As of today we can remove 4 of those statistics. Christie and children have now gotten electricity to their home! The first electric appliance Christie was going out to buy was . . . an electric rice cooker! I will get to see how well Christie cooks rice in 46 days, 5 hours, 12 minutes. That is when, according to the countdown clock on my computer, I will land in Tagbilaran to see Christie and the kids again!

Well God is certainly good. It is fun being His child. And, by the way, I did quit at 10 pancakes. I decided to let the eight year old girl keep her record. And yes, I felt stuffed for at least 24 hours.

Blessings.