Happy 20th Birthday Elder Pincock

News from the Philipines:

March 22, 2010

"Hi. You don’t have any teenagers in the family anymore. My birthday went really good. I used some of my personal money and I bought some good food to cook on Sunday for my birthday. I bought a lot of spaghetti and I bought some really good spaghetti sauce. I bought a bunch of fresh tomatoes, red peppers, onions, garlic, and cheese to add in the sauce. I fried all the tomatoes and red peppers and onions and garlic first a little bit and then added it to the sauce and cooked it. It turned out way good. I really have started to love onions and peppers; I use them a lot when I cook now. We had one of the member’s families over at our apartment for my birthday dinner. This is the family that always works with us. They are an awesome family and the missionaries are always really close with this family. I also bought a chocolate birthday cake that was really good. I wanted a nice lemon or lime pie but I have not been able to find one here in the Philippines. I have not received your package yet, hopefully I will get it on Wednesday at district meeting. Today on p-day we went as a zone to a lake and we hung out and played games and cooked some food over a fire and ate it on the beach of this lake. It was way fun, it was a really pretty lake.

"Me and my companion are getting along great, our companionship is really good, we are working hard. We have 6 investigators with a baptismal date right now so that is really good. We gave baptismal dates to a lot of our investigators this week. We were supposed to have a baptism next Sunday but we had to move it to the next Sunday, so in two weeks we will have a baptism. We have a really awesome investigator right now we have been teaching him for two weeks and he is progressing really fast. It took two weeks to get through lesson one and 3 Nephi 11. He always has a lot of questions but we always answer all his questions and he always keeps his commitments and reads. He understands everything we teach really well. We teach a lot more to him about stuff in the lessons because of all his questions so he is learning a lot. Most investigators don’t ask many questions which is hard. He came to church for the first time on Sunday also and he said he really enjoyed it. He is about 29 years old he is married and has one kid. He is a big tough guy with tattoos on his arms and stuff that you would never think some one like him would accept the gospel. But he is a very humble guy and he truly is trying to find the truth. This is a guy that we met tracting one night."

"I have got all my pictures on face book albums of my first area uploaded if you want to look, I don’t have them from my second area yet, but I am working on it."

Love Elder Jordi Pincock

PURE DELIGHTS

Cabin Play - Wii Play

Loading snowmobiles in the fog and single digit temperatures - Monday March 15, 2010

Rowan sound asleep sitting up!

A Papa is good for lots of things!

Harper Higdon, M.D.

Angie, Harper, and Rowan just left to go home to Taos, New Mexico after their nice long visit here for the last 9 days. I loved having them and am sad to see them go even though I am exhausted. I wasn't very much fun, or very energetic and helpful to Angie. Nevertheless, it is good to be together however we can do it! We spent last weekend at the cabin - Angie did all the work of packing the food to enjoy while we were there. That is always the biggest job of getting to the cabin. There was an incredible amount of snow - all icy and crusty on top and eager to suck the snowmobiles down in and keep a tight hold on them. Cyrie and Owen and Gus came too! It has been a wild, busy time, of course. Angie has lots of friends and things to do when she is here. We went to a movie one night with Sherry and Jamie. Angie went to Jenny's a couple of time to visit. We went to lunch and the Dino Park with Vicki. And, Angie went to see Dr. Boyle about the pain in her knee and ended up having to go for an MRI, and then received a cortisone injection in it for the inflammation and severe bruise on her bone. She thinks she injured it skiing. No more running or skiing for her for several weeks or months - depending on how fast it heals. Some of the days she was here were WARM and spring like. We went for walks and played on the front lawn. The boys helped me plant some Aster bulbs in the backyard flower beds. We watched lots of kid movies, and a couple of new Anne of Green Cables movies after the kids were in bed. There were lots of guns and balls and trucks, treats, sippy cups, spills, cookies, fruit snacks, and a bit of screaming. I loved it all - though sometimes I just plainly couldn't deal with it and went to bed. Angie wanted to also (not deal with it and go to bed instead), but couldn't because she is, after all, the MOM and I am the GRANDMA and can do that - ha ha! Grandkids are pure delight! So are my 'kids'.

Flat Tire verses Faith

"A bad attitude is like a flat tire. If you don't change it, you'll never go anywhere."

(the up side, Guideposts Magazine, March 2010, p.17, submitted by Buz Moxon)

Happiness amid Adversity - A message from Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

“When I was young I loved playing sports, and I have many fond memories of those days. But not all of them are pleasant. I remember one day after my football team lost a tough game, I came home feeling discouraged. My mother was there. She listened to my sad story. She taught her children to trust in themselves and each other, not blame others for their misfortunes, and give their best effort in everything they attempted.
“When we fell down, she expected us to pick ourselves up and get going again. So the advice my mother gave to me then wasn’t altogether unexpected. It has stayed with me all my life.
“‘Joseph,’ she said, ‘come what may, and love it.’
“I have often reflected on that counsel.
“I think she may have meant that every life has peaks and shadows and times when it seems that the birds don’t sing and bells don’t ring. Yet in spite of discouragement and adversity, those who are happiest seem to have a way of learning from difficult times, becoming stronger, wiser, and happier as a result. …
“How can we love days that are filled with sorrow? We can’t—at least not in the moment. I don’t think my mother was suggesting that we suppress discouragement or deny the reality of pain. I don’t think she was suggesting that we smother unpleasant truths beneath a cloak of pretended happiness. But I do believe that the way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be in life.
“If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness.”
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (1917–2008), “Come What May, and Love It,” Ensign, Nov. 2008, 26.

Causing me a "flat tire" attitude: Psoriatic Arthritis!

A good Rheumatologist makes the 'tire changing' more bearable!

Thanks Dr. Steven E. Call, M/D., PLLC.

Next line of defense: Methotrexate (NSAIDs, joint injection, and 9 months of prednisone use have not been sufficient help.)

Info. on psoriatic arthritis from the National Psoriasis Foundation:

What is psoriatic arthritis?
Psoriatic arthritis [pronounced sore-ee-AA-tic] causes pain, stiffness and swelling in and around the joints and places where tendons and ligaments connect to bone. Without treatment, psoriatic arthritis can potentially be disabling.
What causes psoriatic arthritis?
Both genetic and environmental factors seem to be associated with the development of psoriatic arthritis. The immune system plays an important role. Psoriatic arthritis is linked to psoriasis on the skin; in 85 percent of individuals, skin disease preceded joint disease.
What are the symptoms of psoriatic arthritis?
Tender swollen joints
Swollen and tender entheses (where a muscle or ligament attaches to a bone)
Back pain
Nail changes—for example, a nail that separates from the nail bed and/or becomes pitted and mimics fungal infections
Morning stiffness and tiredness
Generalized fatigue
A reduced range of motion
Redness and pain of the tissues surrounding the eyes, such as conjunctivitis
How is psoriatic arthritis diagnosed?
There is no specific test for psoriatic arthritis. The diagnosis is based mostly on symptoms, examination, X-rays and the elimination of other types of arthritis. If you have psoriasis and experience persistent joint pain, you may have psoriatic arthritis and you should see a rheumatologist. These doctors specialize in arthritis and can provide further evaluation and/or a diagnosis.
Is all psoriatic arthritis the same?
No. There are considered to be five different forms of psoriatic arthritis:
Symmetric: Affects multiple symmetric pairs of joints (occurs in the same joints on both sides of the body).
Oligoarticular: Affects few joints in an asymmetric pattern and is usually milder.
Distal interphalangeal (DIP): Affects primarily the distal joints of the fingers and toes (the joints closest to the nail).
Spondylitis: Predominantly affects the spinal column from the neck to the lower back.
Arthritis mutilans: Affects the small joints of the hands and feet, although it can appear in other joints. This rare form of arthritis is severe and destructive.
What treatments are available for psoriatic arthritis?
Drugs for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis are divided into three main categories:
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) include over-the-counter medications such as aspirin and ibuprofen as well as prescription products.
Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) may relieve more severe symptoms and attempt to slow or stop joint/tissue damage and the progression of psoriatic arthritis.
Biologics such as adalimumab, etanercept and infliximab are also considered DMARDs. They are highly selective agents that target specific parts of the immune system that cause psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

I am trying to change my flat tire!