The Sky is Falling! Or is it?

We had a bit of a Chicken Little freakout moment when we arrived in the office today for the first time since Thursday. I guess a lot can happen in that span of time – including a leaky pipe somewhere that results in very soggy and saggy ceiling tiles.

Was the sky falling?! We were more than a little concerned the leaky tile on the right was about to burst with a gushing waterfall. But when our maintenance folks arrived on the scene, they determined it was soaked but there was no more water leaking.

As I videoed them poking a hole in the tile and nothing burst on the scene but soggy particles, I told the guys, "This doesn't make very compelling video!" It sure didn't. But after expecting the worst, I'm also glad there wasn't a huge mess.

Made me think of how many times I'm more like Chicken Little and wondering if the sky is going to fall rather than realistically looking at a situation and seeing it's not as bad as it appears. 

Nine out of 10 times I stress first, then take a deep breath and assess second. This is when hubby says I'm being dramatic. Guilty as charged. 

Lord, help us to trust that You have our best interests at heart. That not every perceived mountain is much more than a mole hill. Pour out Your calming spirit on all of us and restore our trust in You! Amen.

News to me...

Chicken Little: Good news in the "sky is falling" department. The Pentagon said today it has a "high degree of confidence" that the missile fired at a dead U.S. spy satellite in space (remember the one the size of a bus?) destroyed the satellite's fuel tank as planned. Apparently, a space operations center in California is tracking some 3,000 pieces of debris, all smaller than a football. Well, I still think an object smaller than a football, falling thousands of feet from the sky, could hurt, don't you? Think: baseball, Coke bottle, telephone...

Tooth Fairy: I got Scott and Jana's take today on Carter's weekend visit. He behaved quite well and was patient with their almost 4-year-old (for the first 12 hours anyway). If you recall, Carter lost a tooth on Friday so they got to play Tooth Fairy that night. Carter put his tooth in his little snack-sized Ziploc bag and put it under his pillow, where he found two presidential dollars in the morning. One tiny detail Carter was quick to point out to the fairies-in-training: "She (as in the Tooth Fairy) doesn't usually doesn't take the baggie." Oops. I think he still believes -- especially since the ante has been upped to presidential dollars now!

Oscars: I'm glad I didn't bother staying up for the Oscars. Looks like No Country for Old Men took home a bunch. I didn't see that movie (yet) so I wouldn't have been excited or impressed. Sort of like the year Titanic won everything and I was the only person in the western hemisphere who hadn't seen it yet! (Yes, I've seen it since. What's all the fuss?) Of course, now that I am typing about it, the Celine Dion theme song for Titanic is starting to play through my head. I hate when that happens!

Winter Break: We got a reprieve from the arctic air yesterday and today. The mercury moved up beyond the 30 mark! The joy is short-lived, naturally, and temps will dip down to single digits again by tomorrow night. Did I mention I am going somewhere warm for spring break (tee hee)? Three weeks from now, I'll already be in toasty Texas -- where it is 93 degrees as I type this. Whoo hoo!

Concession Stand: We'll be signing up Carter for baseball this evening, which means Mommy and Daddy will have candy bars for sale at their desks for the next few weeks ... or until the box of 50 is gone. Even if you gave up chocolate for Lent, buy one and stick it in your freezer. If we don't sell them, we get stuck eating them ... and I don't think my Biggest Loser team would appreciate that.

(What? Don't all newscasts end in a commercial?)

Chicken Little

In the childhood story of Chicken Little, he thinks the sky is falling and tells everyone the sky is falling, but no one believes him. Now we actually have something falling out of the sky and no one is really telling us anything.

In one of those 15-second news spots, I heard this: Government officials say a large U.S. spy satellite has lost power and propulsion and could hit the Earth in late February or March. The satellite, which no longer can be controlled, could contain hazardous materials, and it is unknown where on the planet it might come down, they said. Did I mention it's the size of a bus? The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the information is classified as secret, but they are keeping other nations apprised of the situation. Did I mention it's the size of a bus?

Last night I was freaking out when I was hearing the 45-mph winds howl in the blizzard. As I listened to the creaking and groaning of the house, I wondered what it would be like to have the roof ripped right off. Now I'm wondering what it would be like to have a bus land on my home, where thankfully we only have 3 occupants (just in case maximum seating capacity on the satellite is 71).

Funny (as in funny ironic and scary, not funny ha ha) how there's all this urgency about global warming, but not much to be said about this mammoth chunk of "Chicken Little's sky" falling. I'm feeling a bit like Chicken Little myself -- mainly the chicken part -- and I'm a little concerned ... not fretting or worrying yet. Just concerned and keeping my eye on the sky (and the news).

Hmm... I wonder if March will come in like a lion this year or lamb or perhaps a Greyhound...