Sidekicks Clergy Spouse Network

Where the Pastor's Wife / Husband Can Climb Out of the Fishbowl

You've found Sidekicks, the Clergy Spouse Support Network


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What am I doing here???? If you feel lost, not to worry, you're among friends. This website is designed to get clergy spouses connected and communicating with each other.


The site is public, so all pages may be accessed by visitors as well as members, with the exception of closed groups. Comments made in closed groups can only be viewed by group members, so comments made there won't get back to your congregation.

Share a little or a lot, use a pen name, substitute a holiday for your birthday, even use a cartoon instead of your photo. Posting age or gender is optional.

To read the Guidelines and Rules, after signing up, click here.


Health Matters

A Weighty Issue

We’ve all heard about the obesity epidemic, with some statistics claiming that nearly 60% of Americans are overweight, and that our hefty children will suffer lifelong problems. Now researchers suspect that obesity will soon become the leading cause of cancer in Europe.

That may be shocking, but the news isn’t all bad. Obesity is becoming more of a concern because the two other causes of cancer - smoking and hormone replacement therapy after menopause – have seen dramatic drops in the last decade. That’s good news.

"Obesity is catching up at a rate that makes it possible it could become the biggest attributable cause of cancer in women within the next decade," said Andrew Renehan, a cancer specialist at the University of Manchester. Renehan presented his findings to a joint meeting of the European Cancer Organization and the European Society for Medical Oncology in Berlin on Thursday, September 24.

Not all cancers are related to being fat. Colorectal cancer, breast cancer and endometrial cancer are among those that appear to be related to obesity. Researchers postulate that certain hormones produced by fat cells, including estrogen, may promote tumor growth. Larger digestive tracts also produce more stomach acid which can lead to stomach, intestinal or esophageal cancer.

Even with this knowledge in hand, the question remains, what to do? Renehan said new strategies were needed to help people stay slim. "We need to find the biological mechanism to help people find other ways of tackling obesity," he said. "Just telling the population to lose weight obviously hasn't worked."

Unlike some habits linked to cancer, such as smoking, one cannot simply stop eating. It will require a joint effort by scientists, educators, government and the corporate community all working to support the commitment and resolve of individuals. In short, reversing the obesity epidemic will require a shift in our entire consumer culture. Are we big enough to do that?

Read the entire article by Maria Cheng of the Associated Press here.

See more health topics in our Health Matters archives.

Click here for practical health information based on research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the nation's medical research agency.

Groups

What are these GROUPS?

GROUPS are places for special interests. Join an existing group or start one of your own. Prayer requests? Bible study? A hot issue in your denomination? Or maybe you'd like to share BBQ recipes or quilt patterns? This is the place.

How? Click on the name of one of the existing groups. You'll find yourself on that Group's page. In the upper right corner, click on "join this group." That's it. Now you can post comments or photos, join or begin a discussion, whatever.

To start a new group of your own, click above on "Create a Group," then follow the prompts. Your Group can be open to everyone or just to those you invite. So jump in and have fun!
 

Musings

Merry Chr . . ., Um, I mean . . .

"He shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, Prince of Peace!"

We all know those words, recognizing them from Handel's Messiah and Isaiah 9:6. Lots of Christmas carols

Continue

Created by Starr Luteri-Hicks Dec 9, 2009 at 9:43am. Last updated by Starr Luteri-Hicks Dec 10.

Forum

Bending Over Backwards

Has anyone ever been so offended by something you've done or said that they left the church? How did you respond? What would you suggest to another clergy spouse in this situation?

1 discussions

Dear Nonni Know-It-All

Dear Nonni Know-It-All,
A few health-nuts in our congregation have decided we need to stop setting out cookies with the coffee and tea during Sunday Fellowship Hour. They claim that it sets a bad example for the children, and that we older folk should be watching our blood sugar and cholesterol. My personal opinion is that they want our Deacon's Fellowship Fund to be used for sandwiches for hobos and bums.
Simmering in Salt Lake


My Dear Simmering,
Remove the cookies from Coffee Hour? How ridiculous! We're talking Fellowship, not Fitness. The notion that the Church might somehow improve the health of members by eliminating sweet biscuits and small cakes (as they are referred to in the more civilized Mother Country) is not only foolish, but quite impertinent. The tendency of older persons toward obesity, diabetes or ailments related to cholesterol is no one's business other than their own. Didn't Our Lord say we should shoulder our own cross and keep one's nose to oneself? Nonni cannot recall the precise chapter and verse, but she is certain it is in the Gospel. And, if Nonni may venture an opinion, she suspects your suspicions regarding the Deacons' Fellowship fund is correct.

Email your heartaches and deep spiritual questions to Nonni Dearest: NonniDeare811@sidekicks.ning.com

Click here for more pearls of wisdom from Nonni Know-It-All.
copyright Starr Luteri-Hicks 2009
Legal and Theological Disclaimer: Anybody tempted to take "Dear Nonni" too seriously should immediately increase their dose of humor medication.

Fix that Default Photo!

Put your own face or avatar on site with your name. You can use any photo or graphic in .jpg, or .gif. Here's how to do it:

To change your profile photo on Sidekicks, especially to get rid of that silly default photo, sign into the network and click the “My Settings” link on the upper right side of the page. Click on the blue/green photo icon next to “Your Photo.” A small window will pop open. Click the “Browse” button under “Upload a file from your computer.” Locate an image on your computer, double click on it, and then click “Done.” When you upload a new photo, the old one will be deleted.


 
 

Events

Photos

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Web Words

BTW: By The Way,

FWIW: For What It's Worth

GMOG: Great Minister of God / Great Man of God

LOBHL: Little Old Blue-Haired Ladies

LOL: Laughing Out Loud

MDH / MDW: My Dear Husband/ My Dear Wife

PK: Preacher's Kid; a.k.a. DO: Divine Off-spring

Click here for more Web Words

Latest Activity

Oh dear Lord- yep, that pretty much explains why the church doesn't have any young families. MDH has been known to pick up a child and incorporate the interruption in to his sermon. Parents love it and the congregation is charmed.
December 10
I've had dear sweet people confront kids and their parents and tell them that their kids shouldn't make so much noise during church and if they can't control their kids, maybe they should go elsewhere. GOOD, HUH. Needless to say, it rather discourag…
December 10
Linda Kargard updated their profile
December 10
Starr Luteri-Hicks added a note
"He shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, Prince of Peace!" We all know those words, recognizing them from Handel's Messiah, even if we rarely study their origin in Isaiah 9:6. Lots of Christmas carols and ser…
December 9

BOOKSHELF


In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, recommended by Amy Spencer. Starr's comment: don't read this book if you don't want your lifestyle changed.


My Life in France, by Julia Child and Alex Prud'Homme. It's the part of "Julie and Julia" movie with Julia Child in Paris with her beloved husband Paul. It lets you know Julia even better.

Liturgical Mysteries by Mark Schweizer, St. James Music Press. This absurd series starts with "The Alto Wore Tweed" and includes "The Soprano Wore Falsettos" and four more just as bad. But never mind the literary quality, the liturgical / musical humor is great for those of us who get it. I get my copies from our church organist, and she gets them at church music conventions. But not to worry, you can find the Liturgical Mysteries at Amazon. Just don't read these during boring sermons, because you're apt to laugh out loud.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin. Why and how one American decided he had to build schools for children in Afghanistan. You'll discover the story behind stories in the news, and see how a determined individual established a charitable institute that is changing the world, one child at a time.

article: "My Brief Life As A Woman" by Dana Jennings. How would a man cope with menopause? Guys treated with hormones for prostate cancer sometimes learn all about hot flashes, cravings, and, well, just read it here.

The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by David Kessler. Disturbing revelations about the food industry and biological roots of compulsive overeating. Thorough research. Unfortunately this reads more like a textbook than a thriller.

Time Magazine article about Pastors' Wives.

My Dearest Friend, Letters of Abigail and John Adams. Edited by Margaret A. Hogan and C. James Taylor. I love this book. It's especially nice if you've seen the HBO series on John Adams.

Recommend your favorite books here.

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