The mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cup of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes'.

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. 'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life...'

'The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions. And if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.'

'The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house and your car.' 'The sand is everything else---the small stuff'. If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.' 'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with your grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.' 'Take care of the golf balls first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.' 'The coffee just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

Sorry...

I'm sorry that it's been so long between postings. I thought that once basketball was over with I'd have some free time but that hasn't been the case.

We are hosting the Equestrian national championships next week and I've been busy putting together (literally) a 32 page program for the event. Luckily, I had started on it early but still it has been a very labor intensive project. I sent it to the printer today.

Now the next challenge will be hosting the event. This is my first season working with equestrian so I'm a rookie. Hopefully all of my hosting experience from other sports will help me out.

Bruce and I worked outside all weekend, cleaning up limbs, mowing, etc. We were sure feeling our age this weekend! Muscles that I didn't know I had (or forgot that I had) were making their presence felt. I just hope that I was able to stay out of the poison ivy. I have found out since we moved to Texas that I'm highly allergic to it.

I didn't work the Final Four this year and really missed being there. Although if I had worked it, I never would have gotten the Equestrian program finished.

Megan and Ricci's son, Parker, was baptized a couple of weeks ago. Erin, Bobby and the girls came down for it so we all went out to dinner afterward. It was good to get most of us together (Bruce had to work).

That's all for now...hopefully I'll post more often from now on.

I was Tagged

Jennifer tagged me and I enjoyed reading 10 fun facts about her and Erin (Erin tagged Jenn), I decided to accept the challenge.

10 Fun Facts About Julie:

1. I like cold tuna but not hot tuna...I will eat a tuna sandwich but won't touch tuna casserole.

2. God got the Bilyeu women's butts and bellies switched...Our (a lot of us that is, not all) bellies are the shape that our butt should be and vice versa.

3. I am the runt of the family ... I am the shortest of my sisters and all of my girls are taller than me.

4. I passed my drivers test (a loooooooooooooong time ago) on the first try and got a 100.

5. I only will eat cheese if it is melted or very finely shredded...I will eat a grilled cheese sandwich but won't dare eat just a piece of cheese.

6. As a senior citizen...I still love to drink milk. In fact, my husband and I go through three gallons a week.

7. I will go anywhere by myself if I want to go bad enough...Have driven all the way to West Virginia and back solo.

8. I love women's basketball...Not a fan of the men's game, especially the pros.

9. I love to read books...The latest author I'm hooked on is James Patterson. He writes mystery books, the new show on ABC, Women's Murder Club (with Angie Harmon and Rob Estes, two of my faves) is based on a series of his books.

10. Last but not least, I have no fettishes like Jenn and Erin...I will eat meat off a bone (love Buffalo wings and ribs) and it's OK for feet to touch me!!!!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Now don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't like Albuquerque but geez this is the third time we'll have been there for NCAA Tournament play! We will be playing 'our' alma mater Fresno State in first-round action on Saturday at noon (Albuquerque time) on ESPN2. Those of you in the central Texas and central California area should get the game (or most of it) in its entirety, the rest of you will get snippets of it in what they call 'whip around coverage'. If we beat Fresno State, we'd play again on Monday night but won't know the time until after Saturday games are finished, it's an ESPN thing. If we lose, our season's over. For once, I won't be rooting for the Bulldogs!

As you all know by now...

As you all know by now, Kansas City was a total bust. Can you believe we were up by 16 at half then lost by 15!!!! Neither could the coaches. I think it's just a case of tired legs.

Anyway, now its on to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is Monday on ESPN, 6 p.m. central time. We'll have a watch party at the Ferrell Center. I just hope that we aren't sent to Albuquerque. Nothing against Albuquerque (other than it being hard to type) but we've already been there twice for NCAA play, time to send us somewhere else!!! The days that we play will depend on where we're sent. Games played at Albuquerque, Baton Rouge, Des Moines and Stanford will be on the 22nd and 24th while Bridgeport, College Park, Norfolk and West Lafayette will play on the 23rd and 25th.

I am not going to work the Final Four this year in Tampa. I need a break, plus since I'm doing equestrian this year I'll be busy preparing for the National Championship that we're hosting. Somehow I have to get a 32 page program done and to the printer by April 4.

That's all for now...I'll try to blog more often.

KC Here I Come

I will be leaving tomorrow for Kansas City and the Big 12 Tournament. We will play on Wednesday at 6 p.m. (CT), taking on the winner of the Texas/Texas Tech game. It will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net on a national basis. If we win that game we will play again on Thursday and if we win that one, we'll play for the championship on Saturday. All games will be on FSN. Lets just say, I hope I'm gone all week, especially since we squandered away the regular season championship. We needed to win two of the last three games, two of which were at home where we were undefeated this season, and we didn't get it done.

I need to go on the road to get some rest!!! I kept Master P (Parker) this weekend while his parents went to San Antonio to celebrate Megan's big 30. I had forgotten how much work babies are. Parker doesn't seem to value sleep as much as his Grammy does.

That's all for now....keep blogging all you Bennett girls.

Another Birthday Party

We had another birthday party this Sunday. Heather and Megan both celebrate birthdays this week, Heather on March 2 and Megan on March 7. They got their choice of the menu so we had fajitas and quesadillas and all the trimmings.

I made a combo birthday cake, kind of corny but a cute idea. You can tell that I am not a cake decorator. The lady at the grocery story checkout said, "either you're celebrating multiple birthdays or someone is mighty old."
You can tell from the cake how old they will be on their birthday.