The Christianville Spirit: Christian's Year-In-Review 2016

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

December 28, 2016-TCS # 526

Well, My Readers, PTLS Family Members, and Friends, It looks like We have come to The End of Another Year here at The Christianville Spirit and What a Year it was. It has been an Encouraging Year! See what I did there, hehe! This Year’s Tagline was “The Spirit that Encourages” and It was credited to PTLS Member, Roselle Hollard for suggesting that Name!  

I know that I mentioned Last Week about This but, I felt like This Year of 2016 was a Brilliant Year for Me filled with A lot of Opportunity and Lots of Twists and Turns along The Way. So Many Good Things Happened! and, Yes, We had a few Low Points too, but What is a Year without things both Good and Bad. This Year, I will say was a Different Year than usual because I made Goals for The Year and Most of them, I have done, some I haven’t. So, Refresher here, What were My Goals? My 2016 Goals were 

• So, Other than wanting a Great Presidential Election and The Olympics in Rio De Janeiro to go well
• Finally My Future Soulmate (hmm.. Maybe Next Year. Yes, For Certain, It will be Next Year)
• Travel More (Mission Accomplished, in Abundance!)
• Meet More PTLS Family Members that I have not before (Mission Accomplished! Next Year’s Goal?)
• Newsletter Goals: Continue to Write Newsletters (Yep! and, I got 500 Newsletters This Year!)
• Personal Goals: Become a bit more Independent (Working on that!); Get Rid of The Hair on My Face (that one might come True very soon); and, The Most Personal Goal, Meet Lynee’s Sister (That, I have to say, was The Highlight and Best Part of My Goals of 2016; that one happened Faster than I thought it would and I met Lynee’s Mom as well. But, You have to wait until The Year-In-Review to hear about that!)
• Family Goals: Mom meets Her Future Husband (Nope, but I am praying for Next Year) and My Brother meeting Someone who would encourage Him (Thank You Dear God!, Mission Accomplished!)

So, When I look back on This Year, I remember different events both Personally and in the News and I am shocked like “That happened THIS Year?!” and Now, This Year of Memories in both ways are Over. But, before 2017 comes and We watch The Ball drop, Let’s Re-Live 2016 via What I call “Christian’s Year-In-Review 2016”, My Self-Produced Year-In-Review. So, Without further a due, Let’s get started! 

So, like all Years, We begin in January. 

So, Not Long after the New Year started, Lynee’s Sister, Jona contacted My Mom and said that She was ready to Meet Me. Honestly, I was Shocked and I did not think that We would meet her so soon but, on January 23rd, We met her. (Refer to “The Completion of An Untold Story” Newsletter) Meeting Jona, as small as it may seem, was actually a Brilliant Way to Begin The Year and A Highlight of My Year. At The Same Time, Winter Storm Jonas, which was a HUGE Winter Storm hitting Philadelphia and Washington DC happened The Weekend that We met Jona. A Funny Story about that, was that My Friend, Deb’s Mom, whom I refer to as Ma or Deb’s Ma was named Joan. Ma wants The Best for Me. Between Deb and Her Mom, They believed in Destiny. So, The Winter Storm was called Jonas (like The Jonas Brothers), Ma’s Name was Joan, and We were meeting Jona at The Same Time. Destiny? You betcha! Winter Storm Jonas was The Only Major Winter Storm that I totally nerded out on. It dropped 2 Feet of Snow in Washington DC; Richmond, VA; and, Yes, even in West Virginia. In Weather News, I’m not sure if it has happened before or not, but on January 16th, The Actual Temperature and Wind Chills was -30 (Negative 30) in Minnesota. So, In The News, In Mid-January, The Deal known as “The Iran Deal” was finished. Folks, I am giving you Warning, It was a Political Year and I am going to try hard to Not to Mention that many Political Stories, but When I do, If It upsets you, Please move on to The Next Story that I mention. That would really be Great! Just giving you for-warning here, Folks!  

In February, It was a Low Point in Our Family because on Valentine’s Day, Our Aunt Ginny passed away and a couple weeks after, We flew up to Medford, Oregon for The Memorial. In Personal News, I got a little boost of Independence because My Mom had to go to Houston for Business and I decided to stay Home. I wasn’t really missing much, My Neighbors would be around if I needed them, and It would have been Boring anyway. So, part of that Independence Goal I mentioned was partly Accomplished and It was an Interesting Experiment to say the least. In The News, on February 7th, It was Super Bowl 50, which was quite a Milestone and Denver Broncos Won! 

In March, It was PTLS Awareness Month and Boy did We make it Big! A Friend of a PTLS Family Member had a Billboard for PTLS, It was Awesome. As Promised, I mentioned that I met Lynee’s Mom, Dona (Refer to “The Untold Story Completed: Meeting The Parents” Newsletter). We were in Oregon at the time that She friended me and She friended me a Year to The Day that I had first became Facebook Friends with Jona. She was Ready and Wanted to Meet very Soon! I was honestly Shocked that She wanted to meet so soon, I thought it would have been longer, but, Hey that is Okay. Again, In all Honesty, It was a Highlight to My Year of 2016. If I had to remember 2016 in a Certain Way, it would be that. Well, that and Other Things coming up as well! In The News, on March 20th, US President Obama was The First US President to visit Cuba for The First Time since The 1950s. Also in The News, There was Terrorist Attack in Belgium on March 26th. 

In April, It was a more Quiet Month. However, We did have the First PTLS 5K on April 23rd. In The News, It was Sadly Reported that Music Legend, Prince passed away on April 21st. In May, In Late May, We went on Short PTLS Business Trip to Atlanta which was actually a Surprise to both of us. My Mom really helped a PTLS Member with Their IEP. I like to say that She saved them! Also in May, Was What I referred to as “Destiny lead Weirdness”, Refer to The Newsletter about that. Destiny, I have learned, is not always clear! In The News, On May 2nd, There was a Fire at a Historic Church in New York City. As well as US President Obama visited Vietnam for The First Time and Japan as well. 

In June, On June 15h, I had written My 500th Newsletter! Another Highlight of My Year of 2016. In The News, Political Story Alert! On June 23rd, The United Kingdom voted to exit The European Union. In This Month, There were Two Terrorist Attacks, in Orlando and Istanbul. It should be Noted as well that Boxing Legend, Mohammed Ali passed away in Early June. 

In July, We got to try a New BBQ Place here called “Hard Eight BBQ” when My Uncle Craig came to Town for a Visit. It was really Good! Probably, The Best that I have had in Dallas. In The News, something that Us Dallasites will not forget, There was a Shooting at a Protest in Downtown Dallas on July 8th. To Put it Shortly, In Face of Tragedy, the People of Dallas really showed The Rest of Country that Love is The Thing that matters The Most. I was Very Proud of My City! Other than That,  There was a Terrorist Attack in Nice, France. 

In August, Being that It was My 29th Birthday, I had a Very Pleasant Surprise Birthday Dinner with My Neighbors on August 5th. For My Actual Birthday, We took a Drive up to Colorado to see My Brother, Michael. That was a Really Fun Trip! Another Highlight of My 2016 Year! Refer to “My 29th Birthday and Surprises” Newsletter. In The News, It was finally time for Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. US Olympian, Michael Phelps (It was his Last Olympics) won His 20th Olympic Gold Medal. The Highlight of His 2016, I bet! 

In September, It was a Rather Busy Month! Between bringing Michael’s Dog, Paco back home temporarily to Driving to Waco to meet a PTLS Family Member, refer to that Newsletter. Another Highlight of My Year of 2016 was when I finally got to meet My Friend, Deb (now referred to as “The Famous Deb”, refer to The Newsletter about that!) That was an Awesome part of My Year, Up there with Meeting Lynee’s Mom and Sister. In Late September, We got an Invite to go to Spain, more on that later in The Review! In The News, Sad News of Golf Legend, Arnold Palmer passed away on September 25th. 

In October, We got to meet My Grandma Honey’s Boss, Jan Winters for The First Time on October 28th. My Brother and His Girlfriend, Nicole went to Spain for a 2 Week Trip in Mid-October. Nicole had spent time over in Spain, teaching kids English for a Year. A Year or so before She met Michael. in The News, The Chicago Cubs go into The World Series for The First Time in 50 Years on October 24th. In Weather News, Hurricane Matthew hits the Caribbean and Florida. It got so bad that They closed Disney World so People would evacuate. That has only happened twice, I believe. 

In November, A bit of Sad News within The PTLS Family, An Awesome and Brilliant Relative of a PTLS Family Member named Faith Thompson passed away on November 20th. To say the least, She was for lack of a Better Word, of Utter Brilliance! She was up there with The Brilliance of My Mom. She probably deserves a Newsletter about Her! I will likely wait until The New Year after The Holidays are over. All Honor to You, Faith! In a more Upbeat Story, over Thanksgiving Weekend, We did a Business Trip to Spain that I dubbed “PTLS En España”. (Refer to “PTLS En España” Newsletter). That Trip was The First Time that I spoke in front of PTLS Family Members publicly! In The News, The Chicago Cubs broke their Curse (Similar to “The Curse of The Bambino”) and won The World Series for The First Time in a Long Time! Not really a HUGE Fan of Baseball, but I was Very Happy when They won. Political Story Alert! And, It’s a Biggie! So, Let me say this first. Let Me Make it VERY Clear that Us here at The Christianville Spirit and In Integrity of This Newsletter, **The Christianville Spirit is and Forever will be Non-Politically Aligned with any Candidate or Leader.** I know that I said I would not mention who The US Election because The Oh-So-Sensitive Situation but, For Historical Reasons, Billionaire Donald Trump won. Whew! That was The Most Challenging Part of This Newsletter. Trying to be funny here, In Movies depicting The Future, They always said that a Celebrity would run The Country, so Why Not? 

and Finally, We wrap up The Year with December, This Month went by rather Fast! My Brother, Michael was in Colorado. So, He could not come Home for Christmas, but We did FaceTime with Him and Open Gifts. I would not do it again, but I have to admit that It was Pretty Cool to Open Gifts on FaceTime. In The News, Musician George Michael and Actor Allan Thicke passed away This Month. I am Sorry to say but, We lost a lot of Legends in 2016. All in all here, 2016 was a Great Year for Me and I hope You had a Good Year too. And, I can’t wait to see you back here for Another Year of Inspirational, Encouraging, and Thought-Provoking Newsletters in 2017!

(For the Last Time in 2016)

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Love and Life is Ever Changing. Roll with It!

The Christianville Spirit: A Classic or Modern Christmas

The Christianville Spirit

 The Spirit that Encourages

  December 20, 2016-TCS # 525

Well, My Readers! It is that Time of Year again and My Favorite Time of The Year, Christmas. and, What a Year it has been. Wait, Maybe I should say that in My Year-In-Review! Well, I mean it, in Both Ways. Christmas, Some People say is a Time to Reflect on The Year that You just lived out. For Me, It has been a Brilliant Year full of Magic and Hope! But, We will discuss that Next Week. So, What should I write about in My Christmas Newsletter? I have written about Some Newsletter Goldie Stuff over The Years, so Let’s go into Christmas Past shall we? Refer to These Newsletters if You have not Read Them, I have written some Pretty Good Ones! Enjoy!

• The Ideal Christmas (December 2015)
• Where is The North Pole? (December 2015)
• What does Christmas mean to You (December 2014)
• Why I Love December (December 2012)
• A Christmas Miracle (December 2012)
• The Spirit of Christmas (December 2011)
• The Meaning of Christmas and Why We Have It (December 2010)

So, with all that in Mind, What do I write about This Year, Christmas Present! Well, I will tell you how Proud of My Brother I am. That is Not Christmasy, You would say! Oh Believe Me, It is! So, My Brother, Michael, The Last Couple Years, He hasn’t been as much into Christmas as I am. He would not be The One to listen to Christmas Music  or Put up Decorations until a Week before. He used His Odd Artistic Humor to celebrate Christmas in His Own Way. This is more of a Young Adult Aged Michael, not Young Michael. Young Michael was Very Much into Christmas. As We know, or at least We thought We knew, He was having a Rebel Period that sometimes Young Adults have. But, He taught ME something This Year. I Laugh at that Thought because Normally It is I who teaches Him something and If It is about Christmas, I am the one who teaches him! Well, This Year it was The Other Way around! You See, My Brother has a Sweet Girlfriend named Nicole, whose Family really did not get into Christmas and So, She figured that We are going to Bring Christmas here to Colorado, even with Cameron with His Hurt Body after His accident (Refer to The Newsletter, I wrote Two Weeks ago about that!). Perhaps, I wonder about Nicole’s Theory as well in This Lesson. You See, When it comes to Christmas, I am realizing that There are not just ways that You Celebrate Christmas, but rather Styles of Celebrating Christmas. It comes to thought, that You don’t or shouldn’t just CELEBRATE Christmas, but You do it in Your Own Style. So, Michael, I am learning is more an Old-Timey kind of Christmas guy. What does THAT Mean? I think to Myself as I told My Friend, Deb about it. It means a lot of Different Things, It is the Style of How You Celebrate Christmas. I would think, that There are Two Styles of Christmas, The Modern and The Classic. My Brother’s Style is more on The Classical Christmas side. Again, I wonder, What does that Mean? Well, I am more of a Go-With-The-Flow Christmas guy, I would see Myself in both Modern and Classical Christmas. So, Let’s start with Modern Christmas People and I mean, absolutely No Offense by Any of This! Modern Christmas people like The Latest Christmas Songs, as in Those made within a Year of The Present Christmas and dating back at least until Mid-2000’s. They like The Theory behind The Elf on The Shelf. I personally do not get that, but that is just Me. They believe in Shopping and Decorating before Christmas except for Grandma Honey because She likes to be Prepared. Although, Some Modern Christmasers like to Shop at The Last Minute because They are Busy with Parties and Such, or They just forget, Not Judging here! They like The Fake Christmas Trees (This I am guilty of, because It is easier to pull it out and get it set up and Decorated). While We are in Decorating, Some People do their decorations in Extreme Sizes, which Don’t Get Me Wrong, I Love it, but too Extreme is well...Too Extreme! By Extreme, I mean Thousand on Thousands of Christmas Lights, and Music Syndicated Lights. So, then We have The Classical Christmasers, What do They like? Well, Believe it or not, Nicole had Michael listening to Classic Christmas Music, not The Modern Stuff. That, I am Okay with. Again, It is Your Style of Celebrating. I am just shocked and proud that My Brother was listening to Christmas Music at all in The First Week of December. Classic Christmasers, like The Old Fashioned Way of getting a Christmas Tree. Meaning that, You drive out of The City, go to a Christmas Tree Farm and Cut down a Christmas Tree yourself. Honestly, I see that in Movies and It looks Romantic! And, Yes, My Brother, Michael did that with Nicole and He cut it down on His Own! He picked out a Medium Height, European-Style Christmas Tree. Actually, If I had to pick one Myself, I would go with that because I would rather not deal with The Needles on The Christmas Tree. Now, What is Funny is that, We (My Mom, Michael, and I) did that in One Way when We were Kids, only We went to The Store and got a Fresh Christmas Tree. When It comes to Gift Giving, Classic Christmasers think beyond that Question “What do You want for Christmas?”, I would think that seems like a Birthday Question, more than a Christmas Question. But, They believe in not just Buying something and Wrapping it, although They will if They have to, but Really it is Thought that Counts. They see Something that You truly want for Christmas and They get it for You, but Most of The Time, They will make it for You or In Some Way, be a Very Heartfelt Gift. Now, Yeah, I know, I wrote at one Time that Christmas is not about Gifts (and, It isn’t), but for The Classic Christmasers, Keep that Tradition alive! and, Of Course, The Most Romantic of the Classic Christmasers, They would enjoy sitting by a Fireplace, Sip on some Hot Chocolate, and just enjoy The Time together. Honestly, that is The Vision that Christmas should be. If You want to give a Gift, that is Fine, but do in a Classic Christmas Way and then, The Rest of The Joyous Christmas and Holiday Season, Enjoy the Time with Your Friends or Family, or both.

All in All, My Readers, I hope You have a Very Merry-Blessed Christmas, If You do not Celebrate Christmas, I hope You have a Happy Hanukah, Happy Kwanza, and a Blessed Yule.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah (or Chanukah), Happy Kwanza, and Blessed Yule from The Christianville Spirit! 

The Christianville Spirit: What I Taught in Spain

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

December 14, 2016-TCS # 524

Hola, My Readers! So, A year ago, after I went to Stockholm and London, I wrote a Newsletter first about The Trip and then, The “PTLS Business Trip” Side of The Trip, yet I have not with My Trip to Spain. Our Trip to Spain, I feel that This Trip was more Business versus Pleasure in Spain. Now, did I have fun in Spain? Absolutely! So, Considering I wrote a Newsletter that I keep thinking is like one newsletter About The Trip and One of “What I Learned on The Trip”. Most of The Stuff in Spain that I learned was about PTLS Family Members there as well as Things that I told you already in Last Week’s Newsletter. So, What Else did I learn in Spain? How about We reverse The Question, What did I teach in Spain? The Reason I am reversing that is because For The First Time, in My PTLS Life, I spoke to a Bunch of PTLS Members in a Group instead of Just a One or Two People at a Time. I spoke for an Hour, which was Translated and I spoke a Little Spanish to Impress them. and, what followed was a Question and Answer Period. There were Many Questions that I answered or at least, I tried but, The Most Interesting and Most Challenging Questions came when a Young Adult PTLSer who asked me a Deep Question. You See, I talked about How PTLSers see The Good in People, which is a Gift to have, but at The Same Time, I mentioned that It can get You into Trouble. Along with Other Things like Acting Half Our Age, We tend to like to Hang out with those either Older than Our Age or Younger than Our Age. Anyway, She was a little Anxious about Asking The Question (It is a PTLS Thing, I tell ya!) but, She asked me Is It Easier to Make Friends Online or In Person? Because after all, It is not Easy making Friends with those that are Our Own Age. Blame it on the Awkward meeting and being like (Head goes upwards): Sup’ or What’s Up? and usually, You would just say “Not Much”. So, Anyway, She asked me that Question, and I was like “Woah! Good Question!, I have NO Idea how to Answer It!” So, IS It Easier making Friends Online or In Person (Offline or IRL In Real Life), The Short answer is both. That is all You could say without it being Complicated. The Thing is, Making Friends Online is Easy for Us PTLSers because If it gets awkward in Conversation, which can Tough for us, We can just stop talking and so will They until You can come up with Something to talk about other “What’s Up, How are You?, How was Your Day?, and How was XYZ Part of Your Life?” Small Talk as us Americans refer to as. However, Because We see the Good in People, We trust whoever We want to talk to Online and We trust that They are Real or Are Who They say They are. You can be Anyone on The Internet, haven’t You heard? So, If We trust Everyone and See The Good in Everyone, and Yes, We know if Someone is Good or Bad by Our Intuition, but that is hard to Sense talking to Someone on The Internet. If I had it My Way, In My Personal Life, I would MUCH rather meet My Future Soulmate, Bridgett online because then, I can talk to Her online (without as much Anxiety as Real Life) and Talk to Her online until I got Comfortable meeting Her in Person. That is Why, as Exciting as Internet Dating goes which I have considered in Finding Her, I could not do that because I would Trust too Much and of Course, The Lack of Filter too, would break those Rules that say You should not give your Information away. There are Times that I worry about My PTLS Brothers and Sisters because, The Thing is We all want Friends (and, Love) but, It is Hard to make Friends. Don’t get me wrong, I have made Great Friends online, PTLS Family Members, Young Adult PTLSers, Lynee’s Mom and Sister, and Yes, even My Friend “The Famous Deb” (Refer to that Newsletter), I Met Online.

However, I know that The Internet is Easily accessible but, It can be Very Dangerous. 

Now, Making Friends in Person means, in a Way, You have to go out to make them. It can be Safer but, Harder to do. I don’t mean just Out of Your House, I mean Meeting at Different Places. See, This is where We Young Adult PTLSers differ a bit (ahem...Clearing Throat)..Alot! in People that are Our Own Age. I would prefer to meet a Friend at like a Friend’s Party at Their House, or Maybe doing something I enjoy like Traveling or Maybe Bowling. But, Most Typical People My Age, meet at Bars, Dance Clubs, or Some Kind of Large-Scale Social Event and That just doesn’t really sound Fun to Me. The Conversations are Harder to start because You don’t know WHERE to Start and Therefore needing a Little bit of Help with Starting the Conversation to get past the Small Talk. For Me anyway, Talking to People My Age is hardest to get past The Small Talk. Now, If I join in a Conversation and They are talking Worldly Things, Where They have been, News, Politics, Geography, You get the Idea, then I will jump in and We will make friends like That! Now, Regarding Meeting that Future Soulmate, Bridgett (that is what I am led to believe is Her Name), I picture us meeting in Person and us knowing who the other is, without not knowing what to Say and then, falling into The Small Talk Trap, that would be a Nightmare! We would meet naturally and Hug each other as if We knew each other Our Whole Life. All in all, Making Friends is not Easy, but We need a little help.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Everybody needs Friends. Be that Friend. 

The Christianville Spirit: The Politics of Sleeping Remix

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

December 7, 2016-TCS # 523

Happy December, My Readers! It is now My Favorite Month of The Year, December! I Love December because of My All-Time Favorite Holiday, Christmas. Anyway, on to This Week’s Newsletter. So, I realized Something on My Trip to Spain last week. I have been on 3 “Red-Eye” Flights in Europe in My Life and I realized that I have trouble sleeping on The Plane there. Yeah, Yeah, Follow this Travel List, like a Special Pillow, Choose The Seat Wisely, Bring Headphones (Noise Canceling is Best), Don’t Drink (I don’t, except for Soda), Be Careful about Carry-ons (It is better to have a SMALL Carry-on under The Seat because it takes up Valuable Space!), Take Sleeping Pill (Be Very Careful about that, Read on it and Test it before hopping on a Plane)... But, Really, does anyone actually follow that Advice? Well, for Me, Sleeping and Traveling don’t Work. I am too Excited to see the New Place and Of Course, all the Noise on The Plane, and Lack of Room in between Seat, among other things. The Trouble with it is a Newsletter that I am going to Rerun. You See, Every Now and Then, PTLS Family Members ask Questions that roll into Themes, I like to Think. One Week, It is a Potty Training, Sleep, Walking & Talking, and More. I believe that This Gold Newsletter that I wrote on May 27th of 2015 (Refer to Newsletter 452), not only answers that Question, but My Own Question to Myself of Why I have a Hard Time Sleeping on a Overnight Flight. So, With Further a due, Here We go! Enjoy!

I have an Interesting Topic that I have to tell you about. Although, Each Time I think about it, It is a Very Odd Topic. You See, Sometimes either in My Half-Asleep Mind or My Mind when I about to go to Sleep comes up with Either Ideas that are Just Plain Genius, like Travel on a Dime Agency (called Dime Travel)? Any Takers to Help Me with This One? As My Uncle Bruce would say, “Ohhhhhhh Yeah!” or Ideas that are Just Plain Weird! How about The Politics of Sleeping? (Hmm... The Politics of Sleeping..) So, that is what I am going to tell you. Now, It seems odd to write about Sleeping when I got up at 2:45 Today, but Hey, It Flows. However, What about those people in Places like Australia that are about to go to Sleep or Elsewhere in The World, well This is for You then! I present to You, The Politics of Sleeping! So, Blame It on The Fact that I watch The News a lot or How I am interested in how Geography, History, and Politics mix together, to come up with this idea. But, that is okay. You know those Moments where A Person has a Certain Sleeping Style, One Person will wake up at the First Sound they hear and The Other will keep on Sleeping, You wake them up and be Like “How Can You Sleep like That?!” Trying to Figure Out just how to Sleep like The Other Person. So, How do People Sleep? Well, that is an Interesting Question. So, like Normal Politics, We have the “Heavy Sleeper Party”, “The Middle Sleeper Party” and “Light Sleeper Party”. The Light Sleeper, wakes up at The Sound of Anything, Mowers, Babies Crying, Car Driving By. Meanwhile, The Heavy Sleeper can sleep through The Snoring, The Car Noises, The Road Noise, or White Noise. (I think when I am on a Plane, I revert to the “Light Sleeper Party”) I am probably likely a Middle Sleeper. So, Now the Question becomes, How EXACTLY do People Sleep? Well, This is Where it gets More Broad. There are People who love to have Absolute Silence when They Sleep, Any Noise can and will disturb them. There are The White Noise Sleepers, that would be Me; They need a White Noise, a Little Road Noise, a Fan Running, a Little Music Playing (like a Lullaby or The Type of Music they use to Massage, gentle music along with The Sounds of Ocean Waves), Ocean Waves (That’s Why People love going to The Beach; My Grandma Honey would prefer to Sleep that way!), White Noise Machine (That would be Me; I like the “Waterfall” Sound, The Best). There are also People who would rather not Sleep alone and It comforts them with Someone that They love with them. There are People who have Machines like a CPAP Machine that helps them breath and preventing Snoring. Speaking of Snoring, There are Two Kinds of People, Those that can handle Snoring and It is sort of like The Other Person’s White Noise and Those of Us that Can not stand it! The Funny Thing is that We don’t realize that We are doing it. It took me to wake up half-asleep, half-awake and I heard Myself snore, Very Weird! Now, The Most Fascinating Part of The Politics of Sleeping are Dreams. Now, I have heard that Dreams are The Sub-Conscious Mind trying to communicate with You. You would probably think, “Now You want to Communicate with Me, like when I can not do anything about It.... Now?!”. It goes without mentioning that People have Good Dreams, like a Passed Loved One coming to Visit, Images of The Future, Getting Married, or What Have You. and Those who have Bad Dreams, otherwise known as “Nightmares” or “Night Terrors”. For The Sake of Those going to Sleep in a While, I won’t mention Images. Now, I should tell you that Whatever You are thinking about in The Last 5 Minutes before You go to Sleep is Most Likely What You will Dream about. Now, Here comes the Tough Part, Shutting The Brain down to GO to Sleep. For Me, that is Hardest Part both at Home and Traveling. There are Many Different Ways that People do it. Some just Ride It Through (that would be Me), Some get up and do Something Mind-Less, and Finally, There are People who do Meditation or People who use Soothing Music (refer to The “Massage Music” segment I mentioned before). Now, My Advice, and This One I will admit is a bit hard for Me, but Turn Off your Electronics at least an Hour before Bed. Ha! I don’t follow My Own Advice! It actually is My Mom’s Advice, but I digress. So, The Point is that Everyone sleeps in a Different Ways so You better hope that You find Someone (if You are Single like Me) who has The Same “Sleeping Party” as You do. Otherwise, Prepare to be Woken Up MANY Times! As in The Lion King, (Singing Aloud): “Beeeee Preparedddd!” All in all, If You are Reading This before You go to Sleep, Good Night and I hope You have Good Dreams! and I hope that I did not make any of You that are Awake, Sleepy.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Sweet Dreams to All, No Matter How You Sleep.

The Christianville Spirit: PTLS En España

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

November 30, 2016-TCS # 522

Hola, My Readers! Welcome Back from a Lovely Holiday! I hope You enjoyed your Thanksgiving. So, Boy do I have an Interesting Story with quite a Twist to Tell You. So, What did I do for Thanksgiving? Oh Just...You Know, hang out with Family...Well, Yes and No. I actually went to Spain for Thanksgiving. Woah! Hold The Phone! You went to Spain for Thanksgiving?! Yes, I know, Crazy, right?! Yeah, You normally don’t hear that in Most People’s Thanksgiving Plans. The Only Reason You would hear that is if Someone had No One to spend The Holiday with, so Why not travel somewhere and Skip Thanksgiving. Well, I will assure you that it wasn’t Us. You See, a Month ago, A Couple PTLS Members wanted us to come to Spain and meet and talk with a Few PTLS Members, Keyword here, a FEW PTLS Members. It was to be a PTLS Hang-Out if You will. They had already picked The Date and It happened to be over Thanksgiving. So, Thanksgiving Week it was! Over the Next Month, The Amount of PTLS Members coming grew from a Couple of PTLS Members to 20 PTLS Members! Now, for those of You wondering, We did have a Thanksgiving, We will call it a “Make-Up Thanksgiving” because One of My Mom’s Friends was having a “Friends-Giving” at their House and so that was Our Thanksgiving. Now, This Second Trip to Europe, was a much shorter and More PTLS Business Trip than A Mix of both Business and Pleasure like Stockholm and London was. We flew on Thanksgiving Morning to Madrid, Spain. I will say that it is quite busy at The Airport on Thanksgiving Morning, but I think most of it was for Those flying home within The United States. This was The First Time that I ever flew on Thanksgiving Day as well as The First Time that We flew on an International Airline where They spoke two Languages in their Announcements, both English and Spanish. We arrived in Madrid, Spain on Friday Morning, as The Sun was starting, It was really pretty to arrive as The Sun was Rising. One of The Organizers of This Meeting, Ana, was Nice enough to pick us up from The Airport and took us to Our Hotel that Early in The Morning. She gave us a Nice Introduction to Spain and Preparing us to meet PTLS Family Members in Spain. None of Them except for Her and Another PTLS Member, Erik another Organizer for This, spoke English. Most of them speak only Spanish and maybe a Little (keyword again, little) English so, It would be a bit of a Challenge but, as Barney of How I Met Your Mother would say “Challenge Accepted!”. So, We arrived at Our Hotel, and let This Business Trip get going! First Thing on The List is an Interview with The Nursing Board of Spain, little did My Mom and I know that Said Interview was to Take Place on Camera. Due to Arriving early in The Morning, Our Room was not ready yet So, We did The Interview, on Camera and with Pictures as well while We waited. After all that was Finished, We were not going to be picked up until later that Evening to go to Dinner in The City Center. After a Nice Nap and a Really Nice Rain Shower in Our Hotel Room, Organizer Erik picked us up and Showed us around on Our Way to Dinner. We drove past several places including The Prado Museum; a Local Department Store called “El Corte Ingles” on Black Friday (which is a New Idea for Those in Spain); An Arched Monument in a Traffic Circle called “Puerta De Alcala”; and, A Traffic Circle with Spanish Flags around it, called “Plaza De Cibelas” near Banco de España; and, Finally, Walking by a Christmas Market in “Plaza Mayor”. We also got to see Some Pretty Cool Christmas Light Displays along the Drive to Dinner. We made a Slight Detour to meet Erik’s PTLS Child because He was not coming to The Event the next day. By The Way, The Way that The Spanish pronounce “Plaza Mayor”, To me, It sounded like “Playa Mayor’d”. We all had a Nice Dinner with a Few PTLS Members at a Restaurant in Madrid’s Old Town. Thank God that We had Erik and Ana to help Translate! My Mom really pulled from Her High School Years of Her Spanish, She can understand more than She can Speak. We tried Several Different Foods including Garlic Soup (It was really good) and Broken Eggs with French Fries (I am told that It is a Spanish Delicacy). I should mention that The Spanish tend to Eat Late, like around 8 or 9 O‘ Clock at Night and then, They party all Night in the Summer because They don’t have Air Conditioning and It gets Very Hot, so They stay out all Night. However, It was Freezing while We were there so We did not stay out late. They also do things Late, Lunch is Late (like 2 or 3 In The Afternoon) and Dinner is Late. Of Course, Organization in Spain may not be Top Priority either, but apparently That is How They like it there. Anyway, so Saturday was sort of like a Mini-Conference, like We did in Stockholm. My Mom spoke most of The Time all the way until After Lunch. By The Way, The Lunch that We had was really good too. Luckily though, We had a Friend of Michael’s Girlfriend, Nicole, named Marta came and She helped us Translate as well as Translators for The Speeches. Boy, Did We need those Translators! What was funny to me (But, It was Respectful) was that Some of the PTLS Members came up to Us and started speaking Spanish and Spoke to us as if We knew what They were saying. It took a lot of Listening to hear Words that You knew in Spanish and then, Get a General Idea of what They were saying. To Be Fair, I am sure that They were listening for Key Words that They knew in English.
After Lunch, I was up to Speak. Yes, I was Up to Speak! Now, This was The Organizer’s Idea for Me to do this. I did Very Brilliantly and I made My Own Powerpoint to Present and I spoke a Bit of Spanish to Impress them a little bit. For Dinner, We went to This Place called “Kilometros De Pizza” (Translating into Kilometers of Pizza) and They had Pizza that was VERY Long for a Group of People! First came Two Appetizers, One which was Real Mozzarella Cheese and Pita Bread. Then, Came the Main Dish, a Board of Pizza that was Literally a Meter Long and It had 4 different Kinds of Pizza (Cheese, Margarita, Ham and Cheese, and Barbecue) that was a 5 Person Length. It was Huge! The Next Day, Sunday was sort of like a Business Meeting. It was Interesting to say the least! After that, Ana took us on a Final Tour on The City and See The Places that was on Our List to See. So, We stopped for Lunch before Our Tour because I had to make sure that I had Paella while I was there. After We walked another PTLS Member to The Train Station (which was quite Extensive!), It was on to The Tour. Due to The Fact, that It was Raining most of The Time that We were There, We could not really explore too much but, We saw The Major Places, The Spanish Palace; “Gran Via”, The Spanish Version of Broadway; The Tourist Avenue; and, Finally, “Puerta Del Sol” which was a Highlight for Me to see! I realized Later that “Plaza Mayor” is More Significant than “Puerta Del Sol”, but to be Fair, “Puerta Del Sol” is the Exact Heart of Spain and Heart of Madrid. After that, That was The End of The Tour and It was Time to head back to The Hotel. The Final Day, Monday, It was Time to head Home. All in all, It was an Awesome Trip and I wish I had more Time in Spain to see it, but Maybe Next Year! A Huge Thank You (Muchos Gracias!) to Our Translators; Organizers (Erik and Ana); Our Cheering Squad, Pili and Laura; a Special Thanks to My Little PTLS Brother, Carlos for His Smile and Kit-Kat, and Finally, the People of Spain for showing Your Lovely and Historic Country.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Spending Thanksgiving can mean Spending It with Family Anywhere.

The Christianville Spirit: Being Truly Thankful

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

November 23, 2016-TCS # 521

Happy Thanksgiving, My Readers! Yes, I know that it is technically Thanksgiving Eve but, I thought that I would wish you a Happy Thanksgiving anyway. My Friends, It is that Time of Year again, My Second Favorite Time of Year after Christmas. I Love Thanksgiving though! I mean The Turkey, The Stuffing, and The Family, What more could You want? Yeah, I could do a Thanksgiving without seeing The “Giblets” coming out of The Turkey, to me, It is Nasty. Now, I am sure that some of you would consider the “Giblets” a Delicacy or The Best Part, Nope! Not Me! Anyway, so Let’s be Real for a second. What are You Thankful for? Yeah, Yeah! I know! We are asked this Question every year and usually We answer with Something simple like Your House, Your Family, or Yes, even Your Wealth. Maybe It is The Roof over Your Head, Food on The Table, and Money to pay for The Food as My Mom likes to say in Our Dinner Prayers. and, Don’t get me wrong, Folks! Those Things are Great to be Thankful for, How about What are You Truly Thankful for? Well, as for Me, I am Truly Thankful for My PTLS Family, My Mom & Brother, The Smith Family, and Of Course, You, My Readers. I am Thankful that as mentioned in Last Week’s Newsletter and Several Times This Year that I got to Finally meet Lynee’s Family and Help them (and, Myself) in a Way find both Ourselves, and Lynee herself, in The Process. I am thankful that My Grandma Honey moved in Her New Place unscathed (Relatively, anyway) and We No Longer have to Worry about Her falling down The Stairs, and Finally, As Life has taught me Recently, You have to be Thankful for..well..Life. Funny, It is Easy to think (in Super Hero Voice) “I am Invincible and Nobody can Harm Me! (or Friends of Mine for That Matter)” As I mentioned about My Brother last week, He was feeling down. It is because One of His Best Friends, Cameron, went Rock Climbing last week and Fell 100 Feet (Yes, really 100 Feet!) without a Helmet and is to say the least, Pretty Badly Damaged, It was surprising that He survived the First Night after The Fall. Kinda sent me a Hard Reminder that One, that could have been My Brother, Two, that One time I watched My Brother Rock Climb Indoors (Refer to the “Great Wolf Lodge” Newsletter) and My Brother fell, He only fell maybe 15 Feet or so and Came out of it only with a Body Ache and a Bop on The Head. It could have been so much worse. and, Then, A Relative of a PTLS Family Member, one that We held Very Dearly as well as, She held us Very Dearly, Passed Away the other day. She was One of Brilliance, and I use the word in This Context VERY Lightly. She, Her Name was Faith, was in a Word, a Queen (A Hero of Many Sorts!) Of helping My Mom and Her Own Daughter raise Awareness for PTLS. She even Showcased a Shirt with Her Own Design, with The PTLS Logo as well as Permission to do so, at Her Church. Her Favorite, of Course, was One that was Mainly Pink with The PTLS Logo on it. Pink and Green, that was her motto! I would believe that She has Heaven painted Pink and Green by Now. Now, Yeah, I don’t like to think about These kind of Stats, but People are Born or Pass Away Everyday, even on Holidays. It sounds Sad and Depressing, but It is true. So, It shows me a Lesson that really, Anything can happen at Anytime. Hence to be Truly Thankful for Your Family, Your Friends, and Your Life as well as The Lives of Others because Everyone’s Life Matters to Someone and That is The Way it should be. Even those People who Annoy You, or Could Care Less about, Their Life Matters in Some Odd Way. And, all in all, Finally, I am Thankful to Someone who hurt me badly in The Past who extended an “Olive Branch” to Me and My Mom This Year as well I have extended an “Olive Branch” to Other People in My Own Life.  

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Be Thankful for Everything around You.

The Christianville Spirit: Celebrating Christian's Best Friends' Festival

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

November 16, 2016-TCS # 520

Happy Michael Day, My Readers! I actually have not written on The First Day of My Best Friends Festival in all The History of Writing for 10 Years. So, What is “Christian’s Best Friends’ Festival”, You ask? For Those of You that Don’t Know, I hold a “Best Friends Festival” Each Year from November 16th-20th and Each Day honors All My Friends and I name a Day after a Few Select Friends, among them, My Brother, Michael; Childhood Friends, Brooke; Meredith, and of Course, Whitney; and, Ending with My Best Friend, Steven. More on that in a Second. Anyway, So in thinking of What I could write about This Week, I though about Writing about What an Expat is, Maybe a Newsletter about How We need to Love one Another, or Something Special about My Brother because He is going through a Bit of a Hard Time. So, Before I begin with What I am going to write about, My Best Friends Festival. I want to Say for those like Me that are worried about Our Country’s Condition, We will be Okay! Just Spread Love! An Expat, in short is Someone from a Country moving to Another Country, either Short Term or Long Term. So, on to This Week’s Newsletter. So, on The Opening Day of Christian’s Best Friends’ Festival. Michael Day, It is a Big to do! It starts with The Opening of The Festival Doors, City of Christianville Band, The Presentation and Introduction of Friends, and The Parade of Michael Centeno featuring My Brother and All that He likes. But, One Thing that Touches Me that I did not think about until Now is How Blessed I have been This Year between Friends that I know and More Importantly, Friends (or Family) that were Introduced in This Year’s Best Friends‘ Festival. Starting with Who I feel has been The Most Important of This Year and Believe Me, I have met a Lot of Brilliant People both This Year and in My Life. Those People are Jona and Dona Watson, Lynee’s Sister and Mother, and Dad included as well. Not sure that I have ever said This but, It is Something really, I never thought would happen. I don’t know about You, but An Old Fashioned Romantic like Me, feels that It is a Must or at Least a Dream to meet The Family of a Girl that You were either Dating, Liked, or Had a Crush on. In This Case, I had a Huge Crush on Lynee and I figured that because I thought it was Time that I needed a more Modern Picture of Lynee instead of The Old One I have, I figured Why Not Contact Them? To say the least, It not only provided My Self with Closure and Quite an Accomplishment of Meeting My Year’s Goal. But, Most Importantly, It blessed Their Life and Honestly, I am blessed that I could do that for Them. The Second Important Person, or actually Persons, was that I got to If You Will, Re-Meet an Entire Family. You See, My Mom’s Dad’s (Popi) Side of The Family had a Family on the West Coast in Oregon. I like to refer to them as “The West Coast Smiths”, They are The Grants but, Anyway. Up until February of This Year, I had never been to Oregon but We always planned to go. Well, on Valentine’s Day, My Aunt Ginny passed away, so We went to Oregon to have a Memorial/Family Reunion because Truth be told, We had not seen each other for 10 Years! So, It was an Awesome Way to Re-meet them! The Third Person, is My Brother’s Girlfriend, Nicole and Believe it or not, and This shocks me too, This is a Girlfriend of My Brother’s that My Mom actually Likes! Yes, I can’t believe it either. Of The 2 Girlfriends that My Brother has had, My Mom likes Nicole The Most. Nicole actually has helped My Brother in More Ways than He (or Us, for that matter) realize. Alot of Not Good things could have happened if Michael had not Met Her. Blessing in Disguise, I tell ya! Of Course, We can’t forget Meeting PTLS Members as well as Present PTLS Members. PTLS Member, Jennifer formerly-Scarborough has been around for Quite some Time but, She was been Very Supportive of My Mom in The PTLS Family. PTLS Member Natalie Hinkin, I thank her alot because She made a Birthday Brunch Meal at Her House for Me, when We were driving home from Colorado. Some Thanks have to go to My Mom’s Friend, Barbara because She was the one who Found (actually better said, Rescued) a Boy Dog known as Paco. We have never had a Boy Dog in Our House before and He is quite a Handful, but We are hoping to He will be with Michael again soon. And, The Final Person is Someone named Deb, that I have been talking to for 2 Years online and This Year, I finally met her in Person. All in all, I have been Blessed to meet Several Great Friends This Year. I thank All My Friends, Family, and PTLS Family for being so Awesome!

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Love everyone who comes and goes in Your Life!   

The Christianville Spirit: If I Were President Rerun

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

November 9, 2016-TCS # 519

Well, My Readers, It is The Day after Election! Finally, The Election and Anxiety is Over! Annndd, Breath! I am Glad that The Election is over, No Worrying. Now, Folks, Due to Sensitivity of Said Election, I and those here at The Christianville Spirit will not speak of Who won, Our Stand on it, or Anything Else. Disclaimer here: **The Christianville Spirit is and Forever will be Non-Politically Aligned with any Candidate or Leader. Thank You!** So, with that in Mind, Let’s speak of what would I, Myself would do if I ran for President and I promise You, It would be Brilliant! I wrote a Newsletter about just that. I wrote This Newsletter back on November 7th of 2012 (Refer to Newsletter 324). I wrote This Newsletter when Obama was running his Second Term. Anyway, I talked about The Possibility of a Special Needs Person running for President, after all Anyone can run for President so, The Law says anyway. So, I hope You enjoy This Point of View!

So, Considering that Everyone is talking about and sharing their view on US Politics, I figure that I would put my own twist on it. However, instead of writing all about The Election and The President, I’m going to take a different road. You See, the thought occurred in my mind sometime ago and then, I was reminded when I read the wonderful post on Facebook about Daniel Honda for President. I was really excited and thought, “YEA! A PTLS Child for President!”. So, I thought of what I would do if I were President of The United States. So, here we go, what would I do if I was President. Of Course, there are many things going on that I could change, for instance, I would make sure that Everyone had Health Insurance, that they could choose on their own and If it comes from the job they have, then they can choose from what the company does or what you want. For Illegal Immigration, I would have a “Stay or Leave” Condition, which meant that If you want to stay here in The US, You must get citizenship, Pay Taxes, and Speak at least Half English compared to your native language. I would love for you to keep some of your language to add a little flavor to the culture pot of America. If you choose not to do those things, (not to sound mean or anything but..) then you will need to go back home and come back for a visit. In the Jobs Sector, I would encourage people to find what their passion is or what they love to do and go after it. My Belief is that if You go after your passion then, Everyone will have a Job to do. I would really make sure though that Jobs stay here and Things are made here in America. In the Debt, I would cut spending and Tax heavy on the bad stuff like Trans Fat, High Fructose Corn Syrup (yes, that’s a big word; I know it because My Mom and Brother mention it a lot) and Cigarettes which would make the Government money and which in turn would Pay off the debt. I would incorporate Hugs as Currency in exchange for some things like Groceries, Electricity, Water, and Phone Bill. I would incorporate a PTLS Holiday called “PTLS Awareness Day” to be on March 7 because it was the day that PTLS (Potocki-Lupski Syndrome) was named. People with Special Needs would get the services they need and their seen as Honorary Members of Society. I would believe that if you say your going to do something, you do something. It’s called “Say what you mean and Mean what you say.” The next one most people don’t think about until it is brought up to them, I would make that there were Anti-Bulling and Anti-Hatred Laws in Every State. Truth is, there is quite a bit of separation in our country, let alone The World because of Bulling and Hatred. I Mean, without Hatred we would all get along and be at peace with The World and the funny thing would be The World would be at peace with all of us. After all the debt is paid off, I would make sure that those really poor countries like Haiti and Nations in Africa would get money and food to help them until they sustain themselves. As for The Military, I would pull them out of Afghanistan and elsewhere for 2 reasons. 1. To give them a little break to be with their families and 2. I read in a magazine once that the less countries we occupy, the less we get attacked and the less Suicide Bombings. Then, there’s Oil. The World would use it until it’s gone and then, we switch to Vegetables and then, to Hemp, because Hemp powers Cars much better than Oil or Vegetables. Finally with Social Security, I would keep both Medicaid and Medicare. Considering that Everyone would have a Job and Health Insurance including those with Special Needs, not many People would have to have it, only the people who really need it like the elderly. I can tell you though that things will certainly be organized with me as President, because of My OCD and needing structure and needing routine. Things like the Tax Code would be so simple because I would bring the code down to 1 Page instead of the 100’s, you could do it in an hour. All in all, Things would be very simple, Organized, and Loving...if I were President. Of Course, it wouldn’t be a good team without Daniel Honda as Vice President.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. PTLS for President!     

The Christianville Spirit: My Headache Remix

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

November 2, 2016-TCS # 518

Happy November, My Readers! Yes, Folks! That is Right, Halloween, My least Favorite Holiday is over and It’s Time for Christma...Hold on a Minute! I am happy that Halloween is over too, but What about Thanksgiving? Like I mentioned in a Newsletter about I feel like Thanksgiving is skipped (Refer to Newsletter 475 or November 2013). Okay, I’ll give you a break This Year without the Political Correctness (We have enough of that with Our Election!) Happy Christmassing Away! Anyway, On to This Week’s Newsletter, Due to an Episode that I had that other day, I am going to Rerun and Remix while I am at it, a Newsletter that I wrote back on February 6th of 2013 (Refer to Newsletter 337). Enjoy!

So, This Week, I’m going to write about something that I thought that I only had, but apparently a couple of PTLS Kids have. So, before I start, I need to put a Disclaimer in, so Parents don’t freak out. Disclaimer: *Not ALL PTLS Kids/ Adults have this.* So, this is how I remember it, One Day I remember, I all of a sudden started getting headaches. It started happening in December of 2008. I remember that because it was the time that We got done with getting Guardianship for Me. At First, I thought something was wrong with Me, like as if I was sick or tired, or something Medical that was of concern. Now, when I say that I have had headaches since then, they haven’t all been strong headaches, most of them have been ones that you barely notice but, know that they are there. I do have bad headaches every now and then, but I am not sure why, I’m going to see the doctor about it. When I was younger, the doctor did not see any Chiari but, I need to have it checked again. I even came up with my own headache scale so I can tell if it is a Low Headache or a Headache to be concerned about. I call it my “HDA Scale” or “Headache Index Scale.” So, for example if I say I have an “HDA 5.7” Headache, that would mean that is a Medium Headache. My Rule on it, is that if it is a 7.1 or Higher, then I need to go to bed early and oddly sleeping it off does help. Most of the time, I have My Mom give me medicine if it is getting bad, I have My Mom rub what I call my “Neck Cords” which are the two muscles that run down on both sides on the back of my neck. My Mom finds that the way I sit sometimes and the way I sleep, stretches The Cords out and causes me to have headaches. At Least, that is one of the guesses we have about why. I will say that the Chiropractic Adjustments that I have sometimes, helps that the cords relax a little bit and it helps a lot. As far as Medicine goes, it helps me a bit but, not as much as just sleeping it off. The Problem with that is that I don’t like to go to bed early, I can if I need to. But, I would rather stay up and go to bed at My Normal Time. I can always tell when I’m having a bad headache because My Forehead starts to hurt and When the headache gets bad enough, it makes me start to feel nauseous and then, it starts to make me feel sick.  

Now, as I have had Headaches for a While now, It is getting Harder for Me to Gage where on The Headache Scale I am.  Most of The Time, If I have a 7.1 or Higher HDA, I get Nauseous and I know that It is Time for Me to go to Bed. My Recent Episode, I started to feel Nauseous because of a Bad Headache and I thought, I could make it a little longer. And, then Another Thing It is hard for Me to Gage, I felt like I was going to be Sick. I stopped what I was doing, sat there, and Pretty much ran from The Living Room to Bathroom getting sick and more in The Bathroom. Funny, by the time, I realize that I’m going to be Sick and need to get to The Bathroom, I only have a Minute to get up and go. I don’t really feel like going to The Bathroom to get sick until I know I have to go. This Time, I kind of thought that It was only Nausea like I normally have when I have a Bad Headache. Luckily though, I do not have 7.1 or Higher Headaches that often. On Average, My Headaches are maybe a 2.3 or 3.5 HDA. Before Writing This Original Newsletter, I thought that It was only Me who had Headaches or Something was wrong with Me, but, I was surprised to learn that It is Common for PTLSers to have Headaches.

So, If your kids can’t tell you that They have a headache, watch for signs like Rubbing their Forehead, Playing with Their Ears, or Rubbing Their Neck. Also, Their Eyes may look Sad, they may have what My Mom calls “That Look on their face”; which looks like that something is wrong, they don’t feel good, or going to Sick. All in all, Headaches are No Fun.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Our Heads should be as happy as We Are.         

The Christianville Spirit: Ode to Michael (You Don't even Knooow)

The Christianville Spirit

The Spirit that Encourages

October 26, 2016-TCS # 517

Greetings, My Readers! Today is a Special Day in My Family! I like to think of it as The Only Reason that I celebrate The Month of October (besides Autumn Foliage) because after all, I Hate Halloween. That Reason of course, is My Brother, Michael. You See, Today is actually Michael’s Birthday and He turning 28 Years Old. Yes, I can’t believe it either. So, Let’s Sing to My Brother!

Haaapppy Birthday to You, You smell like a Poo (Just Kidding!); I Love You, My Little Brother, and You smell like One too! Now, Isn’t that Nice?! Anyway, I’m not sure that I have actually written a Newsletter on My Brother’s Birthday or not, I have always written one near It (Either Before or After) but, Never on It. So, Why Not, Write a Newsletter about My Brother, Michael. Now, I have done Odes to My Mom, PTLS Family Members, and Myself, but Not My Brother. So, I am going to do a Ode to My Brother, Michael entitled Michael, If It weren’t for You (You don’t even Knooow!). By The Way, “You Don’t Even Knoow!” is one of My Brother’s Trademark Sayings! So, Without Further adue, Here it goes!

Michael, If It weren’t for You (You don’t even Knooow!)

• I would not have a Little Brother
• I would be an Only Child. Which Frankly, would be Very Lonely and Totally NOT helpful with My Development of PTLS
• I would not have had You to Push me to do Things in a Helpful Way
• I would have not had help to Get up onto The Jungle Gym that I wanted to go up on as a Child, but It was too High for Me to Reach. So, You helped push Me up to go up there. I probably would say, just Given Up
• No One to Talk about Guy Things and Help with Girlfriends
• No One Helping and Supporting Me as much as You could when We went to Our Dad’s House.
• No One to say “C’Mon Christian” to get me to do things because I was stubborn to do things sometimes
• No One to come with the Term “Butt Buster” on The Trampoline when We were Kids
• No One to see How High I could jump when We were Kids.
• No One to call me “Chris-Pee-In” when We were Kids because It hard to say My Name as a Child.
• No One to Teach Me about Art. And, Not The Art that School teaches you, The “Funky Art” (as I like to call it) that You taught me
• To Show me that “Art is subject to One’s Own Interpretation”. the Most Crucial Thing about Art because There may be Art that offends People or that People don’t understand.
• No One to Introduce Me to Your Friends in High School or Senior High School.
• No One to Show me Typical Behaviors with Friends and Acceptance from Your Friends as well
• No One in Our Family that has such Long Hair
• No Little Brother to be Proud of His Big Brother’s PTLS
• No Little Brother to take The Big Brother Role. Even We though switch those Roles every Now and Then.
• No Little Brother to also to be Proud of
• No One whose Name I mix up for Time to Time, It is Michael, Not Micheal. 
• No One to teach you that It really does matter, The Girlfriend that You choose. I guess that Goes for The Both of Us.
• No One to hang out with Us on Family Breakfast Sundays
• No One to Show My Mom and I how Proud to feel when You are hosting Your Own Art Gallery (at least in an Art Gallery)
• No One to Give Extra Love to The Dogs Sometimes
• There would not be a Handsome Boy Dog named Paco that Is Your Dog. The Dog would be in an unpleasant place had You or Us, not taken care of Him.
• No One with Your Humor to almost name Your Dog, Paco; Grandpa Banjo before settling on Banjo and Finally, Paco because it sounded like Taco.
• Other than Autumn Foliage, No other Reason to Celebrate October.
• No One to talk about News and Politics, but in an Interesting Perspective than Others.
• No One to Write a Newsletter about Today (Hehe)
• No One to show us This Strange City that You live in known as Denver, Colorado.

So, as You can see, I have quite an Awesome Brother and I wish him to Happiest of Birthdays. All in all, I Love My Brother very much and I really do Miss Him a lot while He is up in Colorado. And, I cant wait to see My Brother doing His Dreams in The Future.

Thanks for Reading The Christianville Spirit. Every Now and Then, Show Your Family Member appreciation and Love. They will Love You Back!