Coffee CubBuster

This is my last Friday as the Family Support Coordinator at Shepherd Center. It is really starting to make me a little teary. The past 22 months here have been some of the most amazing, difficult, incredible, inspiring and growth-related times of my whole life. Some days were filled with heavy hearts, while others gave way to witnessing literal walking miracles. I've made more friends, laughed more times, and been given an everlasting important perspective that I had never experienced before working at Shepherd. This family-started hospital has left a true imprint on my heart that I can never express my appreciation for enough. WARNING:  .... I'm about to get a little sappy, so if you hate sap, skim over the next couple of sentences.... On a personal level, the past year and a half has been one of the most difficult while one of the most amazing in all my long 25 years of life. Yet, it was truly a gift from God that I was working at a place like Shep...

After being told that some were unaware of the various tabs on this blog, I've decided to copy some of my "Coffee Talk" section to my posts periodically so that you can properly learn more about the entire overriding subject of this blog. The history of the yummy beans is a great place to start.... The History of Coffee Unfortunately no one really knows for sure who discovered the first coffee bean. There is both a popular legend that has become the title of many coffee beans, Dancing Goats, and then there is other evidence to point to a different origin of the coffee bean. Here are both, and you can decide what to believe.... According to a coffee history legend, an Arabian shepherd named Kaldi found his goats dancing joyously around a dark green leafed shrub with bright red cherries in the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. Kaldi soon determined that it was the bright red cherries on the shrub that were causing the peculiar euphoria and after trying the cher...

Saturday was a sopping wet day in the ATL, but it was a great day for an indoor conference! I got to go see Beth Moore at Woodstock Baptist Church (which is like the size of Phillips Arena mind you) as she spoke about her new book So Long Insecurity. Now I know what your thinking because I thought the same thing and Beth actually mentioned my thoughts aloud at the start of the conference. "Many of you probably didn't buy the book because you don't want to be carrying around a book about insecurity when most people wouldn't call you an insecure person." Yes Beth, I didn't buy the book until after your conference! :)  The book itself isn't some self-help saga on how to love yourself.... no no.... don't let the title mislead you. I haven't started it yet, but after the awesome day, I'm excited to read it. I HAVE however read many other books and bible studies by Beth that I would highly recommend including, Breaking Free , The Esther Bible Stud...

So, I've been crazy busy because my whole life is about to undergo a big change. I am officially resigning from my position at Shepherd Center to become a fulltime student in a Masters in the Art of Teaching program at Kennesaw State University (go Owls? No I'm still a bulldog!). Yes, I know many are thinking that I'm crazy, not only to be a fulltime student again, but to want to be a teacher in this economy-crazy!  But I'm SO excited about this new adventure ahead of me. I know it's where I'm suppose to be right now in my life. The program lasts exactly one year, and I will come away with an MAT in secondary English. (I doubt my blogs will have any less grammatical errors though. This is blog-world, not high school English folks!) As many of you know, I've always had a teacher's spirit and truly love making a difference in other's lives. I have a passion to inspire our youth! Plus, when I realized that the certification exam I had passed some years...

My amazing GREAT-grandfather will officially turn 105  on Friday, April 16th. In honor of this most magnificient accomplishment, my family in Washington D.C. was finally able to get him a highlight on the Today Show  on Thursday, April 15th! The famous Williard Scott will be recognizing Alfred James Dumas (our Pop) sometime between 8:00 and 9:00 EST (but the show is from 7-10 so get those DVRs set to go!). My sweet Pop is still living at his home in Alexandria, Virginia. He is an extraordinary man who has been blessed to see some amazing transformations in this country and world. He can tell you what happened 5 mintues ago, and he can explain our families linage and history from centuries ago. I feel honored to still have him in our lives. He is a blessing to all he meets.  Happy Birthday Poppy!  Love and miss you! This was my great siblings and I with Pop when he was only  102! Um..... yes, he's amazing!

Yes that's right, the Atlanta Braves 2010 opening season began against the infamous Chicago Cubs. My co-worker, office-mate, and dear friend Peter Collman is a baseball (well I guess all sports) fanatic, and knew that to start the season right, he needed to invite the CubBuster to be sure the Braves started the season with a win! The second game of the season started off slow with a 1-0 lead for the Braves, but at the beginning of the 8th, Atlanta was losing to Chicago 2-1. Although others may be slightly tense at this predicament, I was calm and collected knowing I possessed a special gift of busting up on a certain kind of cub. Thank goodness I've still got it (and I guess Chipper still has it too!). Jones hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and held off the Cubs for a 3-2 win! The CubBuster lives on! Thanks Pete for a fun night! You can see other pics from Turner Field on my Pictures page... ~THE CubBuster

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that today's pollen count is 5,733 which constitutes particles of pollen per cubic meter of air. This is up 2,000 points from last year's spring pollen peak and only 280 points away from the Atlanta pollen record of 6,013 in 1999. This high level makes it quite difficult to breathe in any air that doesn't contain pollen in it. The major current allergen attacks are stemming primarily from birch, oak, pine and sweetgum trees. Although the spike in warm temperatures is certainly welcome after the long and bitter winter, but such a gold dusting as this makes it difficult to enjoy the outdoors. Hopefully tomorrows rainy forecast will aid in this onslaught of sinus trouble! Well, you can always sit inside at a coffee shop and enjoy some hot tea to help with that sinus pressure. "They" also suggest exercising indoors, keeping windows closed, keeping your nose clean, and showering before bed. Good luck out t...

So my father informed me that I have missed an essential element of my childhood nickname. I would be remiss if I did not mention another key factor in the coining of the name Katie Cub Buster. Not only did the Padres beat the Cubs in 1984, but apparently the Ghost Busters movie was at it's peak in popularity right around the time of my birth. Yes, the original Ghost Busters movie with Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Sigourney Weaver hit the big screen in June of '84. I'm under the assumption that everyone has seen this classic tale of good versus evil, but it not, PLEASE go out today and rent it! You are missing out on one of the great movies of the 80's! (It actually kind of scared me quite a bit as a little kid, but I'm sure you all can handle it.) Well, it makes even more sense now why I was called Katie Cub Buster. Thanks for the clarification Dad! ~Coffee CubBuster