Swwwwweeeeeeeeeeet!

Well, all I can say is... Merry Christmas to The Karas Family! On Saturday we decided to bite the bullet and buy a brand spankin' new 52" Samsung LN52A750 HDTV. This thing is a beast! The box itself was so huge that Scott didn't know if it would fit in his car (lucky for us it did!).





We actually put off buying an HDTV for several years because we wanted to wait for the technology to evolve and the price to come down. We were glad we did. We ended up hitting a great post-holiday sale and paid much lower than we even anticipated. I did a lot of research to decide which make/model we should get. I had specific things I wanted to do in the future like set up a home entertainment network (in order to stream audio and video files from our computer to the TV and stereo). So, this TV would allow us to do that (again, when the media extender technology gets a little better). I read a bunch of reviews that said this TV was the top of the line in its class (best picture, best deep black, best extras for the money). The other one we were leaning toward was the 52" Sony Bravia. It didn't have nearly the bells and whistles that the Samsung had. The Samsung has an ethernet cable input you can plug into and get free news updates and a stock ticker. One thing that makes this TV stand out among the others was a unique frame that is a reddish/black. It's a trademark of the Samsung TVs called "A Touch Of Color". We weren't sure we'd like it until we actually saw it in the store. We read the reviews and it said red frame and we immediately thought of "fire-engine red", but it actually ended up being a very subtle, deep red. We hardly even notice it (although a lot of our decore is burgundy, so it fits in rather nicely).





Once we got everything set up, we just sat back, watched, and tried to keep our jaws from hanging open! I told my husband I would equate the experience to watching the world through a new pair of glasses... you never knew you couldn't see clearly before! We immediately started watching things like football (of course!) and nature shows like Planet Earth. I really felt like I was there and I could reach out and touch things... amazing! It makes watching even mundane things... like the news... seem so cool!

The Spirit Of Giving Is Alive And Well...

This time of year everyone seems to get a lot of solicitations for donations of money, canned goods, etc. Just this past week alone I got calls from the Police Department, Fire Department, Foundation For The Blind, The Salvation Army, and two others all asking for donations. Well, we can't give to all of them every time... so, I chose to give canned food items to a local church who had come by the house passing out flyers a week before. Anyone wishing to donate could just leave the items in a paper bag on the front porch and they would be by in a week to pick up them up.

I rounded up a bunch of baby food that we didn't need anymore because Parker has moved on to solid food. It was nice to free up some cabinet space and it was going to someone who needed it more than we did... everyone is happy. Well, the items were supposed to be picked up on Saturday between 4 and 5:30. It was about 5:45 and the bag was still there so I went and got it and brought it inside (I thought maybe we could donate it somewhere else). For some reason though, I put it back outside thinking maybe they were just running late. Well, about 15 minutes later, someone rang my doorbell. My kids ran up to the door so they could see who was there too. I answered and it was a college age guy who said he wanted to thank me for the donations. This just kind of struck me because generally when I have given to organizations in the past, they just pick up the items and go on their way, not stopping to thank those that are doing the giving.

The next day, my husband went out the front door to take the trash out and he found a rolled up note wedged in our door. This is what the note said:


Dear Family,

I would like to start this letter by saying thank you for the donations you made to our mission project. It honestly was humbling to see how many donated food "stuffs" for those less fortunate than we are. It is also an awesome sight to witness families, despite the "economic times" and the current world we live in - families like you donated and gave out of a caring heart. Thank you again for your kindness and generosity - it speaks volumes of who you and your family are... and gives hope to us all.

On a personal note, I must share my story with you. I had my wife and little boy pick up clothes, and a friend collect as well. I was still at work, so once I got home I was going to follow through and make sure no one was missed - I didn't want people to feel their contributions weren't counted. I had managed to find a couple of homes who had things sitting out - yours included. When I came to pick the bag up, I saw children's eyes watching and waiting. I honestly felt and overwhelming need to ring the doorbell and say thank you. I write you this letter to let you know how thankful I am to have witnessed your family's act of kindness. I'll not forget the look on your little one's faces when I gathered your donation - it was an eagerness to help. It is an act I'd like my children to one day be a part of - helping others in need and wanting to do so.

I cried that night and want to let you know how thankful I am to have watched your family be so kind. I don't know where you all are at spiritually, and I do not write this letter to question that - I just want to let you know I asked God to bless you and your family for your generosity and allowing me to witness the spirit of giving.

May your Christmas be all that it is meant to be. God bless, and than you again for the donation you made to help others, and for showing me that the spirit of giving is alive and well. God bless!

A fellow neighbor


Well, needless to say, that note really had an impact on me. It made me realize that there is still kindness out there in the world and it comes when you least expect it.

I'm here!

Well, here it is... my lame attempt at a first blog post. My goal is to try and make myself write something at least every few days so I can kind of chronicle what's been going on with me (then I can look back on it like a journal). It remains to be seen if I will be able to keep up with it or not. I always tend to want to "over-do" things... make them perfect... etc., but I've got to try and release my inner perfectionist and just get something... anything out there! So, here it is!

As I go along, I'm sure I'll get better at blogging... but until then... bear with me! :)