Allergies, Guitar Strings, and Misc. News

When the seasons change, I typically always receive a present: allergies. Even if I tell Mother Nature that I don't want my gift, the prude gives it to me anyway. Sometimes it's subtle, and sometimes it's like getting punched in the face. Was allergies part of the Curse of Man? I imagine the pollen count in Eden was low. So with dry, but runny eyes, I stare at my monitors (yes, I have dual monitors at work) and contemplate the transition into my next paragraph.

There are some interesting things going on throughout the world. I read about this 7 year old blind British boy that has learned to use echolocation to see, just like a bat. The article is pretty interesting. Another fun fact was that a study suggests that 34% of Americans take a nap daily. I'm not saying that I'd like to be in that 34%, but I'd like to have the freedom to take a nap whenever I wanted to. As a recycler, a final thing I found refreshing was that CNN has an article on recycling tips. Recycling is easy, and I don't understand why more people don't do it.

I went and bought some nice guitar strings yesterday. I had broken my high E string, so I needed new strings. The ones I play with are Elixir's, and I like the way they sound and how they feel to my fingers. Unfortunately, these strings are almost $20. Anyway, I bought my Elixir's after work and went home to restring my guitar. I've played guitar for around 7 or 8 years now, but I still hate restringing my guitar, and I still have trouble doing it.

As luck would have it, I successfully restrung my guitar but for one problem. I broke the exact same string that I initially needed to replace. Needless to say, I was more than slightly agitated. I tried a few things to remedy the situation (using a dulcimer string that's the same gauge, but it didn't work), but nothing worked. Finally, I just used one of my old B strings. It's slightly thicker than the E string gauge, but it works.

Oh, if you're interested, it looks like my Sunday School class is going to get to have a little service this weekend at the homeless shelter. Any prayers (for us and those we're serving) will be greatly appreciated.

In other news, be ready for a review of Markus Zusak's The Book Thief on Thursday or Friday. Writing Wednesday's will continue tomorrow, with the second installment of The American Dreamer.

I think I need a tissue...