MATTHEW
Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, Biblical

Pronounced: MATH-yoo [key]

English form of Ματθαιος (Matthaios), which was a Greek form of the Hebrew name מַתִּתְיָהוּ (Mattityahu) which meant "gift of YAHWEH". Saint Matthew, also called Levi, was one of the twelve apostles, a tax collector. He was supposedly the author of the first Gospel in the New Testament.


ROBERT
Gender: Masculine

Usage: English, French, Scandinavian, German, Czech, Polish, Russian, Slovene, Romanian

Other Scripts: Роберт (Russian)

Pronounced: RAH-burt (English), ro-BER (French), RO-bert (German), RAW-bert (Polish), RO-byert (Russian) [key]

Means "bright fame", derived from the Germanic elements hrod "fame" and beraht "bright". The Normans introduced this name to Britain. It belonged to three kings of Scotland, including Robert the Bruce who restored the independence of Scotland from England in the 14th century. The author Robert Browning and poets Robert Burns and Robert Frost are famous literary bearers of this name. Also, Robert E. Lee was the commander of the Confederate army during the American Civil War.



NELSON
Gender: Masculine

Usage: English

Pronounced: NEL-sun [key]

From a surname meaning "son of NEIL". Lord Horatio Nelson was a British admiral of the 19th century. His most famous battle was the Battle of Trafalgar, in which he repulsed the fleet of Napoleon, but was himself killed. Another notable bearer is the South African statesman Nelson Mandela.

Seeing things in the dark....

Shadow People. The name alone raised the hair on the back of my neck. I suffer from 3 different types of sleep parasomnias which thankfully I have been able to treat. Previously, I dreamt very vividly. Like entire movie dreams. Very detailed, very plot oriented, very wild. Think Tim Burton on vacation in your head!

I used to see these figures, very sinister and foreboding to me in some way. They never touched me or threatened myself, but I always felt as though there were inherently evil in some way. Some of the scariest things I have ever seen made me not even want to go to sleep at night. This drawing is one that over the years has come back to me in the most striking visual representation of what I saw, or what I thought I saw according to my sleep doctor. "Just dreaming it all, no need to worry." Well, being afraid enough not to want to go to sleep is cause for concern in my book. I have heard many different explanations for the beings but for me they are evil. It was just the extreme chill I got, the uneasiness, the general feeling of dread when I came in contact with these figures. Crazy stuff. What real nightmares are made of.........

Shark Week

One of my favorite times of the year is Shark Week on the Discovery Channel. I am absolutely enamored with sharks. Everything from their anatomy to their feeding habits is eagerly dissected by myself with great interest. Of course, shark preservation is of great concern as certain species face extinction. It is great to see that sharks are more than "eating machines" that will attack you without notice(like my picture above right!). Anyone who has been in the water diving with any kind of shark can definitely appreciate their graceful beauty as they glide through the water around you.
If you haven't checked out shark week before make plans in the future!

Endeavor Liftoff

While reading about tonight's space shuttle launch it brought back some memories from the past. Tonight the Space Shuttle Endeavor lifts off from Florida with teacher Barbara Morgan on board. She was the back up for Christa McAullife back in '86 when the shuttle Challenger broke apart claiming 7 lives. What an inspiration Mrs. Morgan is; not only witnessing the tragedy first hand, but now going up in the Endeavor herself.

I will be praying for their safe journey up into space while thinking back about the Challenger 7 also.

1st post

This will be a general thought post. Anything that comes to mind. Historical events, current events, people, places, things. Whatever washes up on my beach...