So many blessings all in one day...

Driving Miss Becky...
Friday, March 25th was an amazing day. First of all, I thought it was going to be just another ordinary afternoon of catching up on some projects in my office, but instead it turned out to be an extraordinary day of getting out with my girlfriend, Mary Ann.

A very special birthday...
First of all, it was Mary Ann's birthday, a birthday that is also on the feast of the Annunciation of our Lord, which celebrates the angel Gabriel's appearance to the Virgin Mary, his announcement that the Blessed Virgin had been chosen to be the Mother of Our Lord, and Mary's willing acceptance of God's holy plan. (I found this on the internet, because I could not explain it nearly as well.) Nine months later on December 25th, we celebrate Christmas. It also just so happens that Mary Ann was named after our Blessed Mother Mary and Mary's mother Ann.

Father James Trick has the gift of healing...
First Mary Ann and I went to the St. Charles Seminary, near Carthagena, to see Father James Trick. For many years, Father Trick has has been having healing services in surrounding communities and has helped countless number of people with spiritual, emotional and physical healing. Even though Father Trick has Parkinson's and has a very difficult time walking, he came to see me last year when I was recovering from the foot surgery and he gave me a special blessing.  By the time I was able to walk last November, the winter weather was too bad to get out so yesterday was the first time in many months that I was able to venture out and I really made the best of it. Father Trick once again anointed me with oil and gave me a special blessing.

A cottage on the lake...
After visiting Father Trick, Mary Ann and I went to Montezuma to check out a cottage owned by Mary Ann and her husband Steve. They have put a lot of hard work into fixing the place up and now it's a real gem.

God speaks to Jackie...
From Montezuma, we drove to Minster's St. Augustine church, where Mary Ann's niece Jackie made an unexpected visit last week and felt the very strong presence of God as He helped her with a health problem that she has had for many years.

Where Our Blessed Mother has cried...
Then we traveled back to St. Sebastian church where a parishioner, who's name is also Becky, saw the Blessed Virgin Mary statue cry a few years ago.

Seeking inner peace...
At both churches, I prayed to God to help me release pent up frustrations and anger that have been bothering me since 2008. I want more than anything to have inner peace and joy and I know God will help me overcome these feelings.

Happy, Happy, Birthday Mary Ann!!!
I hope you and Steve had an enjoyable evening out together. You made my day so very special just by sharing our friendship and building our faith. May God bless you and Steve, now and forever!

Out with the old eMac computer and in with the new Mac Mini...

Almost seven years ago...

On June 4, 2004, I had gotten my third Apple computer since 1989. My first computer, a Mac SE (Super Enhanced), had a 450 MB hard drive, the equivalent of about 112 - 4 MB mp3's today. This is very small by today's standards since a one inch security card can hold 512 MB.

In the very beginning...
Way back in 1972, when I was 12-years-old, I used a manual typewriter. You remember those, don't you? I had to push down on the keys kind of hard to get it to work. Then in 1974, at 14, I got an electric typewriter, which had a tape correction cartridge. Wow, now I didn't have to press down on the keys near as much, plus I could correct my mistakes without having to use the small correction papers. I thought I really had it made.

The age of computers...
In 1978, at 18, I got my first computer, a Commodore 64, with a floppy drive to save files, plus a daisy wheel printer which produced letter quality print. The printer was so much faster that I really felt like I was moving up in the world. I had no idea at the time how far technology would advance over the next 32 years.

Screen black outs...
Within the past few months, my eMac computer, which is a computer and monitor all-in-one (shown below) was gradually breaking down. First the screen would suddenly go black, so I had to shut it down and then turn it back on a few minutes later. I did some internet research and discovered this was happening to other users, but if another monitor was connected to the computer, it would mirror whatever was on the eMac. What a relief, it worked like a charm. Having a monitor that worked again, diminished my stress level a lot since I was able to get projects done without being interrupted.

System crashes...
Then about two month later, I started having system crashes that happened once or twice a day for a couple weeks and then every 15 minutes to two hours for two more weeks. I finally had to face the fact that my faithful, but worn out eMac needed to retire and I had to get a newer model that would be more reliable.

Fourth Apple computer in 22 years...
When I got the new Samsung monitor back in December, I decided ahead of time that "when" my computer did finally conk out, I would replace it with a Mac Mini, which is a much smaller version of the PC computer "towers". Here's a picture with the exact measurements.

Height: 1.4 inches
Width: 7.7 inches
Depth: 7.7 inches
Weight: 3.0 pounds

I got the Mac Mini the end of February and I've been getting oodles and oodles of work done again. I love it!!!

Scanning pictures and 35mm slides...

I really enjoy making music videos and I've made some for my personal use, as well as for family and friends, but sometimes it's mind boggling trying to get the pictures or videos to be in sync with the songs. Now that I have upgraded my computer, I have decided to start a new business venture called, Preserving Precious Memories, in which I will scan old and new photos, plus 35 mm slides, and put them on DVD's as a slide show presentation that can be viewed on a computer or DVD player. Since our family has a lot of old pictures, this will be my first project.

Upgrading walking videos...

In my blog post from January, I included a walking video with three songs on it, but I decided to delete it and make two separate videos instead, (using two of the same songs) which I produced before my eMac gave out. The first video is from the song, Someone's Watching Over Me by Hilary Duff. As a Catholic, I believe in the Divine Mercy Chaplet, so I wanted to include the picture of Jesus in my video, because He inspires me every day and gives me so much hope. Jesus is the one watching over me. The second video is Footloose by Kenny Loggins. It's one of my all time favorite dance songs. I hope you like both videos.

The links to watch these videos are below, which will redirect you to the Youtube website. After placing my videos here at blogspot.com, I wasn't really satisfied with the quality since they were more pixelated when the screen was made large. After experimenting with Youtube's quality, it seemed more logical to upload the videos to their new home.

Becky walking - Someone's Watching Over Me by Hilary Duff

Becky walking - Footloose by Kenny Loggins

In earlier posts, I had included other videos, but because the quality was so poor for them as well, I decided to delete them and post them on YouTube instead. To watch my collection of videos, just click on the YouTube web page below.

Becky Bensman' Video Collection


Looking forward to spring and summer...
Fortunately, I did not have to tromp through the snow this winter, but for those of you who did, I would imagine you are even happier than I am to put the winter behind you, at least for eight months. Yoohoo!!!

Spring into action...
My friend, Glenna, emailed me the following web link. Click on it and you will get a black page. Click your mouse anywhere (and everywhere) on the page and see what happens! Better yet, click (hold down) and drag your mouse over the black page... or do as I did and just click away. Enjoy!!

Get in the mood for spring and summer!