Glub Glub Glub...

Just for the record...
I have no drowned.
I am not underwater.
I have not been in a high water rescue.
And...
My apt is seeing sky and not fishes out the windows.

So yeah... if you heard about the rains, they're bad but I'm ok.
Luckily I live near work and we are closing at 5 pm.

~L~

Weary catch up?

So today I spent another 8 hours on the road, taking and picking up kids from camp, and will do another 6 hours tomorrow. I thought that once all of this stuff started getting close to winding down or ending, I might have some sort of physical backlash take hold as a result of the months of ongoing stress. Funny, that. Right now, I am bordering on weepy and am really shakey. And disoriented. I think if I go do laundry and dishes, maybe it will subside. Maybe staying busy will help.
I dunno.
It just kinda weirds me out, so I figured I would take a sec and blog it.

There it is.

Road Trip Photo

I took this photo while Stu and I were killing time (for the 3rd time) at the only landmark within walking distance - Chili's Restaurant. By this time, the claustrophobic experience and the libreral application of Guiness had reduced us to blithering idiots. As evidenced by my text message to Bryan, which he recorded here at this blog "Cry Havoc."

Update #3 : STRANDED-DAY 1...

The first day of driving started out well. Our lovely brand new, 28ft U-Haul truck had just come off the assembly line with only 92 miles on it. Ahhhh the "New Car" smell!

We left Rhode Island at 4am and entered Mass, as the sun came up.

We bid a fond farewell to the ocean and...

headed north and west toward the Birkshires.

While Stu drove the first leg of the trip, I counted the travel money in our ever-so-fancy money bag.

And I navigated...and zoned out with my MP3 player.

We passed by lovely farm land and serene, slow flowing rivers. Our brand new truck, sailed along smoothly.

Until we pulled off at the Tim Hortons Rest-frikkin-Stop outside of Rochester/Victor New York.

Suddenly our brand new truck hot off the assembly line did not want to go in gear. Oh sure...it would go in reverse, but I have no intention of driving all the rest of the way to Oregon in REVERSE!

Waiting...

Waiting...

....for the tow truck from Rochester to come and fetch us to who-knows-where...

Good thing we had food!

A lovely thunder and lightening storm arrived while we waited...

And...

Waited....

And ate some more yummy healthful foods...

Eventually the tow truck arrived and hauled us to the Managerial training site for Western New Yorks U-Haul employees. Each one bent on making us happy. They dragged the wretched beast off to the GM dealership to deal with it, and they put us up in the local "Microtel".
Unfortunately, LPGA is in town and ALL the motels are booked with the exception of this one SMOKING (!) room. (Was it Divine Providence, More Testing of Patience, or both?)

Anyway...here we sit...wasting valuable driving hours in this tacky motel.

I am CERTAIN, that some of those LPGA women could drag our truck the rest of the way to Oregon if we recompensed them properly.

Anyway, tomorrow is another day.

A scultpure a day...

Ok so, Tina sent me this amazing collection of sculptures using plain household Scotch Tape(tm).
I will be loading these images over the course of the next few days. If you know who the sculptor is, please share his or her name. I think these are AMAZING!!!!

Old SCA Promo Video

THIS POST WAS UPDATED JUNE 11, PM.
(with regard to the changed video link at the bottom of the post.)

Stu shot and edited this about 3 years ago.
The YouTube.com compression plays havoc with the original broadcast quality - which I am sure you are well aware of anyway, but I thought I would point out that we do NOT produce video that "looks" like this.

Scout, who is graduating from Sisters Christian academy's 8th grade, and I stumbled upon the Master copy of this old promo the day after her graduating ceremonies. We watched it and blubbered our eyes out because she knew and remembered all the students, older and younger, for her 8 years at this school. I blubbered because I had more than 75% of them as Art history students while I taught there. Remembering each kid, his or her bents. if he or she were labeled as a troubled kid - funny - those labeled as "Trouble" seemed to be unusually gifted and attentive art students - anyway...Stu is collecting footage this year to create the next new marketing video for next year. No matter how the school changes its name, whether it creates another highschool class or doesn't, it is a family of alumni and current students and faculty that give the whole place a sense of "home and family" as opposed "insitution" that makes it unique an beautiful.
Anyway...the vid is here...

Back!...for today anyway....

...so the kids are watching Amercia's Got Talent. I swear that Piers Morgan is the rudest thing since the invention of the colonoscopy! He just came unglued all over some little girls and tore them apart. What a nit.
Anyway...other than that, the show is pretty hilarious.

Tomorrow Scout has her 8th grade graduation and then it is back to prepping to return to RI on the 15th to make the Uhaul trip. Cross the US from the Atlantic to the PAcific in 4 days or less.
Yes friends.
That is the plan.
And then I will fly BACK to RI and get my dad on the 30th.

Then it will be finished.
The travelling part anyway.
And I will collapse.

Still in Rhode Island

I have been without a computer now for 10 (count them TEN!!!) days. Oh sure I have been able to go to my sisters and borrow theres a couple of times, but it is NOT the same.
Even so, I am grateful.
Without them I would have needed sedation by now.
So anyway, I return to Oregon Wednesday night and begin a new regimen. Instead of running herd on my dad, and packign up 12 years of his packrat household, Barns and Sheds, I will hit the ground with my feet running, and commence building planning. I arrive at Home at 4:30 on Wednesday and have a 5pm meeting with our Contractor.
Then I will sit down with my kids, and watch a rousing segment of Monty Python's Flying Circus.
Thursday is MacKenzie fields trips to rock climbing and volcanic interpretive sites and I will work at the Pony while Nadean has her Knee surgery. The weekend will be a true "let down" time. (I hope). Then the week will begin anew with me coordinating the rest of the move from Rhode Island to Oregon. Stu and I will fly the red eye out of Portland on June 15th, arrive in Providence afternoon of 16th. Pack the U-Haul's on the 17th and 18 and start driving the 19th.

Bryan - we will be passing though Ohio - hopefully by-passing Cleveland - especially at high traffic times. We may skirt that town and then stop and kick back some where for a few hours and press through in the evening. Of course this is all so tentative. If we end up in the area in the night anyway we will just blast on through.

The plan is to drive straight through, only sleeping in the cabs at rest areas when we need rest and taking one night in a motel. We plan to make the drive in 3.5 to fours days.

I LOVE the idea!
My only fear is driving my own u-haul through the cities, but more than likely I will have the short U-haul, and hopefully no vehicle trailer. If Stu pulls the shorty with a trailer, then I will have to drive the big truck. (26 ft).

Anyway, thats the plan.

Sorry we aren't going thru Texas Leh!

I fly back to RI on June 30th (red-eye) and fly my dad back to Oregon on July second and then its all done!...

...except...

I have decided that it is too much fun seeing my sister, and if I can work a few days a month a Pony, I can earn enough for a round trip ticket and rental car every 3 months and go stay with her for a week!!!!

With my dad living with me, I will appreciate the vacation, and believe I will have earned it!

:o)

There!

We

Fasting Reply

Well... you are better than I.

When we had the 18 hour power outage a few weeks back, I was already loopy after a couple of hours.

I tried to go to other places outside of my apt till 3 am so I could be sure I'd go back to AC, a working fan and working electronics. Nada... so I had to do what I could... watch PBS on the ancient portable b/w tv my folks let me have way back when. Kept me from completely losing my mind. LOL And I had my little grundig handheld radio with shortwave. :D

Like Homer said to his tv: "Let's never fight again!" ;)

~L~

NEVER again! neeeVER!!!!

I will never ever again leave my laptop home.
The withdrawls are debillitating.
I am crippled and need a daily fix of internet.
In the morning with my coffee.
In the afternoon right before dinner and again before I go to sleep.
I NEEEEEEEEDDDDd interNET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It has only been 3 days.
I am going loopy.

Fasting

Fasting...doing without something...for a period of time...in order to utilize that time/energy to
commit to achieving something else valuable.

So when I leave for my next stint in Rhode Island on Saturday I will NOt be taking my computer.
I will be "Fasting" from my comp.
(*bites own finger and swoons*)
Yes its true.
Instead, I will be hauling my fiddle to Rhode Island.
I figure its a safe place to really devote time to proper practice, after all, my dad is nearly deaf and at the ripe age of 80 years, he tends to fall asleep at 7pm.
Each evening I am free to practice without threat of injuring the sensibilities of any one within earshot.

I hope to come back with at least some rudimentary bow skills.

Its like the foreign language equivalent to immersion.

The violin and I have shared a life long love-hate relationship.
I was first chair in elementary school but dropped it like ahot potato when I got to 6th grade.
How sad.
I lost what could have been.
So at least I can start with basics I already know.

I wonder where Chucker is these days.
He has played for 9+ years.
I should like to glean stuff from him - ad then there is Moleculo who is also a seasoned player.
WHere are these peopel when I need them?
Why do they not harken unto me?
WHo DO I think I am anyway.
;o)
Anyway...
as of Saturday I will be completely "unplugged" until the 30th of May.
(I hope I survive.)
;o)

Hmmm...

Well, Miss Mishehl,

Don't know if I can find a pic beyond when I moved to SA. LOL
I'll have to do a look when i go home this next weekend should all go well.

I have to warn you, I was a bald child up till 2 yrs of age. :blush:
But I should maybe find the pic of my brother feeding me Lucky Charms.
It's a cute pic. I think I was 3 and I actually remember when it was taken.

I liked your pics. You and Mac have similar features in your pics. I liked that you had short hair in Elementary. I think mine was cut in 4th grade so I'll have to find one of my pics with the giganto pigtails from heck. I think those things would have made some great arm weights. I had enough hair that when my mom made princess leia rolls in my hair, it felt like two plaster of paris fritters were on either side of my head. It was heavy! :P Don't think I have a pic of that though which is sad... it was interesting from what I recall of it.

So anyhow... I guess enough sharing. *giggle*

I'm still waiting for my electricity to come back at my apt.
15 hours of lovely darkness... read my blog.
I'm at work now which is my only relief. (laughs insanely)

~L~

UPDATED : Foto-Rama!!

Tina reminded me yesterday that it has been a long while since I updated my blog.
To bring us up-to-date:

-Went to Dad's. Packed up the barn. (Dad is an 80 year old Pack-Rat.)
-Injured rotator cuff at the gymn. Still hurt.
-Scout had a hospital visit.
-Sold dad's house within a week without listing it and with NO banks involved. (Thank YOU GOD!!!!)
-House closes next week.
-Paid off the majority of Dad/s medical bills.
-put on 7 lbs becasue Rhode Island is seriously over populated by Dunkin' Donuts. Dad wanted to go there every morning.
-Came home.
-Blakes Jr. Prom. Drove to Portland, picked up date. Created bedroom for date while she stayed here.
(see Below)
















Blake and Casey














Blake, Casey, Andrew, Franci and Andrew's
Dad's Sweet Ride.


-I am now prepping for new construction here, to build the addition where my dad will live once he arrives here in Oregon, from R.I.
(See Beta-Addition below)










-I have been working with a group from the community, to create a Highschool Alternative, as our local educators have crossed the line with their heavy handed, autocratic behaviours. Our goal is to have additional grades of 9 and 10 added to the Private school here in town which currently only goes Pre - 8th. We are looking for a seperate campus and scouting out interest.
I am on the committee that collects community information to access the demand for a High School alternative.

-MacKenzies 12th birthday was yesterday, and her party will be on Saturday next.

-Mothers Day Tea will be held Friday at the Private School and the girls have informed me that I am to provide elementary and childhood fotoz of myself for the collage of Mom's.

Hence the offering below.

















Me age 2yrs



















Me Age 3 yrs






















Me 3rd Grade






















First Day of 4th Grade




















4rth Grade





















5th Grade


Challenge is hereby issued to L. DG, and to B Siegfried (and I don't mean "Beth.") to step out courageously and post similar age fotoz of themselves.

*throws down white gloves.*

;o)


UPDATE:

Scout had a project for school this week requiring fotoz of herself as a wee tot.

Hence the additional foto-rama below:

Nor' Easter hits Rhode Island

...and I get a second row seat! (which was still pretty danged good!)
It was lovely!
The wind blew so hard, the house shook!
The power went off and on, and the rain blew sideways.
Oh sure...
to many of you this is not such a great thrill, but this is not the sort of storm we get typically in the high alpine desert.
And so I spent a large portion of the wee-hours pacing the upstairs compartment that is my room, with a lovely glass of diet tonic water in my hand and 6 of the vanilla scented candles lit, enjoying the fierce winds as they whistled around and through the house - making the candles flicker.
Such moments - in quiet partaking - are what life is made of.
Many moments.
A secret smile witnessed on the face of a child.
I laugh shared between baby and parent.
The tremor of an earthquake felt as the trees bow to the soil.
The awesome glory of the ash plume given to the sky by the volcano...
moments of silence. Taking only minutes or seconds, are glimpses of the perfect peace of eternity.
At least I think so.
:O)
This particular storm ROCKED!!!!!!!!!!

And then, the dog rolled in some horse poo so I had to depart from my reveries to bathe the stink off her.

The ethereal moment is replaced by the mundane.
Thus the ethereal finds it's value.
;o)

Lawn Bard

Lawn Bard.
The older I get, the more I cry.
Why?
There are many reasons to weep for joy.
Poignant, perfect stories and the people who live them.
Man's life truly is like a blade of grass.
Living briefly - for a season only.
He grows and lives and withers with the end of autumn.
I sit on my porch and gaze out over a cup of tea, at the new life growing on my lawn in springtime.
Each blade of grass, as an individual life - each one with a living story worthy of telling.
That is how man's life is.
Brief, it flowers, it withers, it dies.
When you walk down a city street,
Whether you are in Peoria Illinois, New Delhi, or London,
You pass people on the street.
Each face, each set of eyes bears an epic worth telling, worth remembering.
Each life is a story.
The telling, from start to finish, may be long, taking many nights before a winter-warmed hearth, or may be so brief as to lend itself to a bedtime story.
Each one is worth the telling.
Each one WILL be told.
Each one is worth the remembering.
Each one WILL be remembered.
Many pass far too quickly for those around to take time to notice and commit the telling to memory...except God.
He is the Great Author, as well as The Great Bard.
When all things end, all of the Books will be opened.
All of the stories told.
Each story a comedy, a drama, a tragedy and often, a Victory, combined.
We will hear them all in the twinkling of an eye.
Stories of quiet greatness, that went overlooked and untold here while we wore this Fleshly Tent, they will be told and sung by the Greatest Bard Who Is Ever Living.
And so, on this lovely early spring afternoon,
I sit on the porch, and watch the lawn return anew, and think.

Daydreaming: This post is for my dear friend who hates Sin and loves Love and truth. :o)

We all like to daydream.
Even when we don't plan to, we sometimes find ourselves in the midst of it.
Daydreaming of the future, or of days gone by.
Of friends and foes, of being worthy of such.
What ever.
Me, I wonder if I am odd.
(well decidedly so!...but...)
certainly there must be others because I am not likely special in this.
SometimesI daydream about worshipping God.
With friends and people I have come to hold dear.
People like my friends KiKi, or Pete B. Carl T or Jason and Ran and Rich and Ang, and Bryan an d Peej, Tina and Leh and a host of others. Many, many others. The Pratt even...
To be caught up together,
in the ENDLESS CHORD,
in the song of angels and the music of Charis.
Certainly there are others who have such daydreams?
Such imaginings?
Who are they?
Who are you?
Certainly I do not sing alone?
Decidedly not!
Someday I hope
(and not blindly)
that we will be together, properly installed in eternity in His presence.
We will sing.
Together revelling in the Reciever of the song, and in the sharing of the singing.
The sharing of the Chord.
Dissonant and releasing all through out eternity.
It will be perfect.
:o)

Paint Jobs and Cardiac events

So apparently my dad had a "cardiac event" during the night. During the course of the day we discovered that there is swelling around his feet and ankles and now even into his legs, as well as fluid around his heart. So Judy, my step-Sis is visiting him. "How long has this swelling been going on?" she asks him. "Oh for about 4 weeks or so." Four weeks??? 4 freakin' weeks and he's only just mentioning it NOW??? No wonder he is having TIA's and heart trouble. I am sure that he thinks that if he just ignores it, maybe it will go away? Criminy. SO they have him on a diuretic and the DC'd all the meds that might be causing his allergic reactions. He seems to be stable for the evening. This means I can take a couple of benedryl and go to bed and actually sleep.

On a more light hearted note, there is the subject of Blakes new/old car. He was given an old Mazda 323. It was fairly beat up but runs pretty good! So Skyler and Andrew came over today to help him paint his car...

Tidbits on the fly

Ok so...
Dad has a TIA (mini Stroke)
Brother bogues out and gets hammered at local bar. Must come back to Oregon from Rhode Island due to inability to function in society and actually take care of dad's needs.
I fly out - emergency style - to take his place.
Dad gets hospitalised for pneumonia.
I pack up 75% of his house for the move from RI to here.
I get dad installed in rehab facility and come home.
Work for a week.
Today:
Dad gets re-hospitalised for allergic reaction to meds.
I get new tixx to fly back there for two weeks starting the week following Easter.
So...after a ghastly week at work what am I doing tonight?

Prometheus and Bob!

The Last Debate of the Decade

I really hate to get into these sorts of philosophical debates that modern college students are so fond of. I also detest it when the debate comes down to the existence of God and His input in our world.

I believe that I can NOT make anybody change their belief system if they have no desire to.
Their spirituality is between them and God.

Likewise, this is MO OWN personal blog.
If I want to write about God here, its my business, and I don't feel the need to defend God.
He is more than capable of defending Himself -ya know, being God and all - and He doesn't need my help.

I also don't expect to be called stupid for having had experiences with my God and writing about them on my own blog.

Having said all this, I would like to take time to answer a series of letters I have rec'd from a good friend regarding this God I speak of.

My friend's sentiments are very commonly held among "educated people" and as is also common among "educated people" there is only a little bit of truth to the notions implied.

So I will paste snippets from my friend's letter and then my responses to them, so that nobody need ever bug me about it again. Every one will know where I stand and they can choose to delete my blog from the list of places they visit , or they can read on.

I am not here to thump anybody over the head , but likewise, I will not change my views unless given VERY good information and a reliable tracking of such information.
I haven't yet seen it, from the intelligencia of the world, or anyone else.
Conversely, I have very good reasons to believe.


My friend writes:

Mishehl, if God can do anything, why can't he still do all of his good will without all this pain?
<>
i just know that i could do a better job than this. and i'm just a human. how can that be? how can there only be one way of doing things? This is the same god who killed his own Son Jesus cause he couldn't think of any other way to cure sins.



My response:

First of all, I would counter that last question you asked with one of myown:

"how can there only be one way of doing things?"

Why would there be MORE than one way?
Why?


Frankly, as horrible and evil as the world has become, in a small, strange way I am glad He has let things go on as long as He has.
I mean, He could have put an end to this all so very long ago, but if He had, then I would be rotting in hell which is what I would deserve for the choices I have made, and any angry or lustful thots I have ever entertained.
I am glad that He gave me time to find Him So that He could change me from the inside out.

I am imperfect.

Originally humans were designed for perfection and eternity,
but we allowed ourselves to be told that we were better than God,
we allowed ourselves to believe that we are the masters of our own lives.
We allowed ourselves to think that we could be like God,
and the result of such choices was imperfection imputed to all mankind through Adam/Eve.

My choices are imperfect, and as a result my life is imperfect.
I was born bearing the taint of the original transgression.

I was born imperfect.
I came out screaming and crying.
When I was two I had temper tantrums.
Not because my environment trained that into me.
I was just born that way.
But God is not willing that any imperfect person should perish, but that even the most Vile-evil-swine-monster have a chance to see the error of their ways and to understand the reasons He was willing to sacrifice His own Son : so that the most vile could have a chance to be changed, down to the very roots of their heart.
He does not reckon the vilest sinner as any worse than the secretary who snitches a post-it note pad from the office.
He does not reckon one atrocity as more offensive than another.
All are imperfections.
He designed us originally, to be perfect. Because of His nature, He cannot reside with imperfection - its the old "Dog Poop In The Brownies***" analogy.
(***See botton of this post if you haven't heard it before. )

Whether there is a little imperfection or alot, matters not.
Its' there, so the whole person is ruined/tainted.
I cannot change myself and neither can you.
No one can change their inner nature permanently.
Your life is just like mine in that regard. And so is everyone who's ever been born..
There is no such thing as good deeds done by humans. At least not the kind that "Win Points" for one with God. We can not earn our way to a right relationship with God and a regenerated heart/nature. Its just the taint -whether a little or alot. (again with the Dog Poop Brownie story) It's not because we are made badly - but because all life is tainted by original sin. Its why there are zits and the flu and cancer.
Its why flowers die and things decay.

i swear i could think up better ways of doing things if I were god,

You are not alone in your sentiments.
When Satan lived with God - he was called Lucipher then - he was created as one of the most beautiful beings.
In Him were the giftings of beauty and song.
He lead the ANGELS to sing.
He began to look at himself and see/percieve his own value more highly than he ought.
He became consumed with pride and arrogantly said to himself that He could become like the Most High - that in fact he WOULD become the Most High.
That is when He became truly ugly and vile. His nature turned to pleasing him self. Self came first. Self self self. He "believed in himself."
Much like we humans. When we think of our selves inaccurately we become arrogant and vile, thinking that it is more important to serve our own needs and have things our way first..

and yet i'm not and everyday lately has hurt so much and i just don't understand why a good and divine god is choosing this for me. And the best answer God gives us when Job complains for similar reasons is just that "well i'm God -- who are you? sit down and shut up."


No that is not His answer.

His answer is "come to ME all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest."
Its not "and I might give you rest," it is a definite statement and a promise.

Having said all that, for someone to come to Him, they have to do the following things:

-They have to believe in Him. (I mean you can't "come to" someone unless you believe they exist.)

-They have to humble themselves and drop all notions of deserving (whatever they think they deserve), notions of their own greatness, and acknowledge their inability to change their imperfection to perfection under their own power. The fact is, do I deserve Hell and death? Yes. Do I have better? Then I need to get over myself, and let God do what He wants in me, to me and through me.

-They have to be willing to trust.

These are not religious do's and don'ts, these are just simple facts that you could apply to any loving relationship.
You can't be arrogant and loving.
You can't be arrogant and a true friend to some one.
It just doesnt work. Its the same thing in a relationship with God.
One has to be open, honest, vulnerable and true.

When a person truly admits their 100% neediness to the point when they are heart broken by it, then a place-a new freedom- is opened up in their heart that God can fit His loving hand into and begin to remake. He scoops out the crap (a painful process) and then He can heal the cracked vessel only AFTER we LET Him in to heal, THEN he can begin to fill the vessel with good things. It is better to humble ones self in honesty than to wait to be humiliated by a loving Creator who knows we need to get to that humble place before we can truly excel.

I suppose one difference is that there is a kind of "belief" that is more than mere mental assent.
I mean, I believe in George Washington.
I know he existed.
Can I talk to him today?
No.
Would I trust him to heal my child or my father, or intervene in a situation at work?
No, and for obvious good reason. :o)
There is another, deeper belief that goes along with mental assent.
This is one of the ways that belief in George Washington is different than belief in God.
I can talk to Him, He does hear, He does answer and He does act.
Alot of the time He says "no Michelle, I don't think you really want that" or "just be patient, I've got something going on there that is bigger than you and you can't understand it right now, but you will eventually, when you get here with me." (He says this to me because I often ask for things that are either selfish, or that I haven't thought out. I guess for an illustration, I would say...it's like I am driving a highway. Trees line the road on both sides. There are hills and valleys and ALOT of curves. Sometimes, other people or circumstances are 'driving' ahead of me and I percieve them as being in my way - and some times they are indeed an obstacle.
God is in a helicopter over head.
He can see around the curves and over the top of the hills and he can tell me when and when not to try to pass these people.
If I go on my own, I risk not knowing whats ahead. Sometimes I may never know, but much is at stake and I am not willing to gamble.

The kind of belief I am talking about is the kind that has shoe-leather to it - it is like an otherworldly belief that comes from making the choice to humbly trust, and wait and see.
Future faith ,and the ease with which it is flexed, is based upon practical application of this "trust and wait and see" activity, rather than blind faith.
Blind faith is not faith.
It is just wishful thinking, and is a waste of energy, imho.

I am a goal oriented person.
I like trackable reults.
If I put a seed in the dirt, I have a relatively good reason to believe that it will grow if I do my part, by watering it and feeding it etc.
Do I make the seed grow?
No.
Can I see its innermost workings down under the soil?
No.
Do I have faith that it will grow?
Yes.
Why?
Because past experience has taught me as much.

It is the same kind of faith that fuels my ability to let God have His way so that things get done in my life.
No I am not always happy. I am not freakin Polly Anna, but I know that any setback is not permanent - not because of me or any great faith excersized on my part, but based upon what I know and have experienced with regard to who God is and His nature.

It comes from telling myself that I don't know everything, and that, if left to my own devices, my world would become "The Lord of The Flies" reality show.
It all started by taking the simple choice to try to trust, and humbly watch, patiently...just try it Michelle...what if God really did care? WHat if you really didn't owe Him anything and what if you really don't have anything to lose? What if...? And I did. And it has lead to a wild adrenaline rush of a rollercoaster life that I would have missed out on had I not tried. Other people have peaceful, uneventful lives. Godly lives. Thats what I thought my life was suppsed to look like too. God said to me. "Oh get real! You need a challenge! You need a party, girl! You need adrenaline and energy and no dull moments. You need to live out the weirdness I gave you, because I like you this way!"

So I humbled myself (still wrestle with that!) and just asked myself the simple question..." What if...?"
It has made all the difference in my life.
:o)

But humility is unpopular, and it is impossible to be humble 100% of the time.
I will NEVER conquer it until I am dead.
And people want too much to believe in themselves.
That will lead them no where.
Thats not an imaginative statement.
I mean all you have to do is look around at people, both "In the Faith" and out of it.
When any one of us is unsurrendered to God, our life hurts. (If course life also hurts a bit when we are surrendered because that is the nature of things here at the moment.The difference is that we gain peace and a thrill when we know we will see God's hand work it out one way or another in ways that we can't possibly have influence.)
Things bother us and we feel depressed, hurt or angry, which is a natural out working of putting our own ideas ahead of Gods.
Humans are created beings.
How can the creation compete intellectually with The Creator?
No way.
I would not be so arrogant as to think I could compete with God intellectually and demand that He give account of Himself to me.
Might as well paint me red and call me Satan.
;o)
heheh.

God is a God of paradoxes it would seem
Its one of the things I love about Him.
As a human in my current state, I find it difficult to grasp that, what I consider to be two completely opposite things/ideas which can not possibly co-exist at the same time, I find that with God, they can and often do. I can not often understand how this can be, but it does happen in the spiritual realm.
I guess you can say that I am not afraid of the spiritual side of the universe. I was once a practicing witch. It taught me enough to know that there is only death and sadness and vileness in a life spent outside of a daily relationship with God.It also taught me that, while I am in a right relationship with God, through Christ, all the forces of evil are no match of the Creator. Yes, they can cause people to hate me. Yes they can cause people to abuse or torture or kill me, but that is the only power they have.

Humans were created for eternity.
That is why broken relationships hurt.
That is why death is such a horrid thing.
Relationships are broken and we are built for eternal relationships.

At the proper time, this WILL all end.
The sheep and the goats will be seperated.
Some who thought they were Godly will find out they missed the whole point and spread woe through out humanity while here.
They will recieve the same reward as Satan and all of his host.
No one deserves that either. Hell was not built for humanity, and God does not send them there. People choose to go all by them selves when they reject the payment that was given in their place - the sacrificing of His own Son.
He imparts the perfection of His own Son onto us, so that His deepest desire can be realised -"that none should perish."


The Dog Poop Brownie Story;

A girl and her friend were making brownies one day while dad sat at the table reading the newspaper. They assembled all the ingredients and were mixing and stuff. In the meantime, they were talking. The first girl said to her friend, "Well I don't believe that God would send me to Hell. I mean I am basically a good person - oh sure I'm not perfect, but nobody is. I don't kill anybody, and I try to be nice and do good things. What is up with this whole Jesus thing?"

The other girl sought to answer her friend and they got into a deep theological discussion regarding original sin and man's inability to save himself. Dad got up from the table and went outside for a while. The girls prepared the baking pan and preheated the oven. Dad came back in with a little box. He went over the the drawer and got out a little teaspoon.

He sat back down at the table.

The first girl asked, "what's in the box?"

He held it out for her. The overwhelming aroma of dog poop filled her nostrils. She wrinkled up her nose and said, "ugh! What are you doing with that?!"

He ignored her question but went on to speak:

"There are alot of "good people" in the world, but you are right, nobody is perfect.

And we have to be.

God is perfect.

In the book of Mattew, the bible tells us that "we are to be perfect, even as our Father in Heaven is perfect."

Can you do that?
No, and I can't either.
It's just like you said.
Nobody can.
But because God is completely perfect, He can't have anything around him that is marred or imperfect in any way - no matter how good they appear to be, or try to be while they are in the flesh.

This means that God has a huge problem.

He wants us ALL to be with Him for all eternity.
He created each one of us differently because He wanted to spend all of eternity with some one just like me, and like you and like each one us. Because sin and death have come into the world making everything created imperfect ,he can't be around us.

It breaks His heart.

Anything that is imperfect must be destroyed.
But He doesn't want to do that.
Still, the nature of God and the Nature of the Universe are immutable and 'facts is facts.'
So no matter how good a person is, they are not perfect, and God can't have a relationship with them."

The dad scoops out a teaspoon of the dog poop and plops it into the brownies, as the horrified girls protest.

He goes on:

"Ok. I think its time to bake the brownies."

The second girl says, "What??!!! Are you crazy? What are you doing! We can't bake these now!"

The dad answers, "Why not? I mean it's mostly good in there. Oh sure its not perfect, but ...?"

The girls look at the brownies and then at dad, the sudden light of understanding coming on behind their eyes.

Dad speaks,

"Its like that with God.
He is perfect.
He can't have imperfection around Him.
Not even a tiny bit.
It has to all be removed.
But fortunately for Him (and us) He has come up with His own solution:
He will send His own Son, in effect coming to earth Himself, and He will undergo all of the trials and ugliness of this world that we encounter, and He will not make any mistakes. He will live our perfect life for us, and then He will permit His own blood to be spilled, on our behalf, taking all of our imperfections on Himself, so that He can undergo our punishment/destruction for us. This will reverse the problem and once He has made this transaction, God will put His Son's perfect life on us, and the payment for the imperfection will be complete.
The imperfection will be removed as far as God is concerned.

No matter how "good" we try to be, we can't be perfect.
We are like the dog poop brownies.

God loves us, but not our imperfection so He must get rid of it, while keeping us.
Imperfection must be destroyed and He must remake us from scratch.

This is what He has done and you don't have to jump through any hoops.
You just have to trust and believe.

Things and junk

Well the girls did well on the first day of their lenten sacrifice.
Scout almost used a spoon today to stir her coffee, and she ate her breakfast cereal with a fork and then drank the milk afterward.

MacKenzie is reading instead of playing Club Penguin on the computer, and seems happy about it.

I am hoping to be able to get into the beta version of Joost (Skype product) but for the time being I will satisfy my curiousity by messing about with YouTube.
I would like to post Blake and Andrew's Videos (aka Blandrew-mations) there.
The whole crew is trooping off to Mitchell Oregon (aka "Wanna-Be-Ghost-Town") this summer for a two week shoot of some script they have been collaborating on for a couple of months.
It is good to see them put some real planning into a project and have a proper crew assembled.
I think they are hoping for another SHS Film Festival contender for Spring 2008.

Anyway.
Not much goes on around here today.
Snow came down and was pretty. I am glad because I am not ready for winter to be finished.
I haven't added my latest recipe to Eating Plebian and am feeling a bit remiss (sorry Blue).
I have been editing some of the MP Flying Circus episodes so that they are "kid friendly, " so that my youngest can enjoy the glory that is Python at an early age.
Give 'em a good start I always say!
Although I am sure people at the church and the Christian school would argue that our family is already butt-weird enough.
On the contrary, I think that the majority of them are far too "cookie-cutter" for my tastes.
:o/
:o)
;o)

Good thing I am not God.
Good thing they aren't either.
I suppose its a good thing that None of us is God.
And I am glad He is good.

Lent

Normaly I associate giving up food, when it comes to sacrificing something at Lent.
But no....as usual the girls come up with other things.
MacKenzie and her freind have decided that they are giving up The Computer and ice cream for Lent.
And then there is Scout who has decided to pick something simple and meanignful.

She has decided to give up spoons.

This should be an interesting Season.

Moving and Spelling

So Scout has now got the bug to move to Wales.
I said, "Good Scout. You want to talk about spelling bee difficulties? You don't get any vowels there! Try that out." She answered with, "yeah but I can learn Welsh in any local pub!"

Thats my girl! Always finding the positive.

And all the while MacKenzie is wailing, "no no, I don't want to move. WE live in a puny and pathetic town and I like it that way. All my friends are here and I will never see them again."

"So", says I, "you'll make lots of new ones. You're good at making friends, and besides, that the UK is the soccer capital of the world."

She remained unimpressed.

Oh well.

Valentines Family Dinner

So we had a nice Valentines Dinner as a family (of course Scout was down with a hideous case of the Flu and Blake was battling the onset of the same).

We had a traditional "red" food, in this case, lasagna and finished off the meal with card opening and truffle eating - except that Scout and Blake could not eat their lasagna nor the truffles, so it was a subdued evening to be sure.

Evolution of a Virtual World by Lehsa

As requested by Mih, I've reposted my article here:

Many people today are familiar with online multiplayer games such as World of Warcraft (WoW), the Sims, There.com or Second Life. In many ways these games become a new reality for many of the users who frequent these virtual worlds.

Myst is a game that started out as a stand alone game. The aim of Myst is vague to those who enjoy the more in your face interaction of the first person shooter (FPS) or other action type video game. For me, Myst was the perfect escape from reality when I needed a little vacation from studies and work. The music was soothing, the scenery though static was calming and almost dreamlike, and the puzzles were incorporated into each world or "age" in a way that kept me interested and actively involved. The storyline of Myst was one I could understand... almost a parable of sorts. You as the explorer must figure out what you needed to do and who to trust.

While looking information up on Myst, I discovered a large underground community of fans interested in this surreal adventure game that up till I randomly bought it I had never heard of. Through this group I came to know the ins and outs of interacting online. I found a community of liked-minded people who enjoyed quiet pursuits of reading and writing... archeology and the art of discovering new worlds aswell as creating our own worlds through the inspiration of Myst's ethereal imagery. I also made strong friendships that have lasted the test of time, distance and some face to face interaction.

Myst to me was a world all it's own. A place I could escape to on my own and be alone. I didn't mind the character interactions with Atrus, his sons: Achenar and Sirrus or those of other characters in the various incarnations of Myst, Riven, Exile and the other sequels. I was happiest when I found a place in each game to turn my attentions to and feel the happy solace of peace and quiet. In Myst it was the singing stones in Selentic... in Riven the forest and docks of the Rivenese Village... The places were peaceful and I could feel like I was really there. No people to bother me and few interruptions. It was a nice escape.

Then I heard about URU. The community was abuzz with questions and curiosity about actually seeing D'ni, the ancient city never seen but only read of in the three books Rand Miller and his brothers at Cyanworlds had written. To see the cleft of Atrus' youth or the towering mass of K'Veer would just be a dream come true! Everyone including myself was agog with this news. There was also mention of an online version of the game. Initially, I did not see any use in playing with people in URU anymore than I had felt the need to play with others in the previous games. The idea of Myst had come to mean to many in the community, not just myself, to be a personal experience. It didn't seem right to some fans that it would be disrupted by having people other than your own avatar exploring the city. As much as I liked the idea of playing with my friends, it wasn't what I really thought would work with this kind of game.

When Uru Prologue was release as a public beta in 2002 / 2003 I didn't immediately jump into the fray to get in. I didn't try hard to get into Beta as I had dialup and figured it wasn't worth the effort if my connection was slow. I was content figuring things out in the offline version on my own or using the occasional hint or spoiler from the guidebook or online forum. My interaction with others in URU wasn't important to me. I wanted to experience this game as I had the other games... alone. I had little experience with Multiplayer Role Playing Games (MPRPGs). I didn't think having people exploring with me ingame would benefit my experience with Uru... of course... anyone can be wrong.

I didn't expect to get stuck in URU as much as I did. I did what I could but in the end I asked a friend for help. He told me "get online and I'll show you." I couldn't fathom how this was going to work out but I joined the URU site and connected my game to the net. Dialup was slow and cumbersome and yet I felt a kind of excitement I hadn't felt before. I had never played any sort of real "online" community game at that time and didn't know what to expect. Once the game loaded and I created my avatar and finally loaded Uru Live, my ideas of playing alone soon ended. I finished the initial puzzle, made it to my home age (Relto) and linked where I was told to get the communicator (the KI) so my friend could help me with the game.

From the beginning of this little adventure in URU I was bowled over with excitement. I couldn't wait to see everything that I could in this online world and when I knew my friends were coming to meet me I got more excited. My ideas of exploration alone versus exploring with friends changed in a heartbeat. I didn't see myself playing URU offline as much as I had expected. I did nearly everything related to the game on Prologue with my friends new and old. It was the best experience I'd ever had with any kind of game. I felt like I had it all, till the day Uru went away.

I missed the last day of Uru Prologue... I was saddened as was the online Myst community. People began to write stories, create art, make images through photoshop showing their friends and themselves still exploring URU together although they were now apart. Going into URU offline was now depressing to me. Where I initially thought I would dislike people joining me in this online world, I now missed the interaction with my friends. It was a sad day for the Myst community. As a gift, Cyanworlds gave the fans the first expansion pack To Dni free to replace the world we had lost. With this new expansion pack fans were finally able to explore the city of Aegura and wander through places we'd only read of. Soon Cyanworlds was selling a new expansion pack called Path of the Shell in which we were given far more content to explore.

Yet this was not the end of the dream... A new gift was on the horizon as new sequels to Myst were being released. This gift was called Until Uru. This was a user run version of Uru. It was the same content found in Uru Prologue but now fans were able to control the game in ways we hadn't been able to in the past. Many fans created their own servers called "Shards" where other fans could link in and join URU online as if Prologue had returned. Some shards were faster than others while some had more options than others. It all depended on the skills of the person maintaining the shard. People could once again run through the city of Aegura and join their friends in games of hide and go seek in the forests of Kadish. It was a miracle for those of us who had lost an online world and to those who had never seen Prologue.

Until Uru was not a true replacement for URU Live / Prologue. It was never meant to be more than a temporary solace to those of us who missed the online interactions with friends. As a temporary world it was never meant to last forever. In just the last 2 weeks, Until Uru was closed down. Apparently I was one of the last people to roam it's silent halls. I had no clue that it was to be shut down that very night, but I ran around a random shard and played in the silent city. There wasn't anything new but it felt like home. I wanted to see things that people did with this world created by two brothers. I wanted to see how people had made it a home by making this world their own.

Still, this is not the ending. It has yet to be written by fans or Cyanworlds. Myst Online is the newest incarnation of Uru Live. It has been given a new life to breath and live in the hearts of fans old and new. It has been given a new lease on life and a new chance to enchant those who have explored the depths of D'ni and those who are only beginning to gain an inkling as to what these worlds are. It will begin slowly like a seed in the earth. The seed will grow... the roots will take shape... a tree will grow and soon it will emerge.

If you feel the need to follow the call, you need only journey as far as the desert bird which flies over head.

~L~

POCCNR Valentines

These little cards came home from Siberia with Stu last year.
They were created in Russia - hence the un-readable sentiments...






This kitty is my particular favorite because, if you have a cat of your own, you know how amusing it is to twirl things in the air above them and watch their little heads go round-and-round-and round, which is what I imagine this kitty to be doing with all the words looping around it.

And now it is time to revisit our old friends, the "Anti-Valentines":

I thought that I could love no other
Until, that is, I met your brother.-----

Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you.
But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead,
the sugar bowl's empty and so is your head.-----

Of loving beauty you float with grace
If only you could hide your face.-----

Kind, intelligent, loving and hot
This describes everything you are not.-----

I want to feel your sweet embrace
But don't take that paper bag off of your face.-----

I love your smile, your face, and your eyes
Dang, I'm good at telling lies!-----

My darling, my lover, my beautiful wife:
Marrying you screwed up my life.-----

I see your face when I am dreaming.
That's why I always wake up screaming.-----

My love, you take my breath away.
What have you stepped in to smell this way?-----

My feelings for you no words can tell
Except for maybe "go to hell."-----

What inspired this amorous rhyme?
Two parts vodka, one part lime.

No Offense But...

There is a phrase that people use as a door mat.

"No offense But..."

The majority of the time, people use this phrase in order to say something offensive without being held accountable for it.

They don't even couch the offending comment(s) in nice language, which is a dead give-away to their true intent.
I mean, if they TRULY were concerned with sparing the feelings of the other person it would show in their language through out the exchange.

My kids even do this right before they berate one another...well they did. I mean I call them out on the carpet for this because the intent of the heart is what matters.

People need to be accountable for what they say.

This Changing Earth

The Earth Changes.
It is our only true constant - well, that and God.
I do not deny that there is concern among people regarding the possibilities of global warming.
I just want more proof than a clamoring society and a few media puppet experts.

I don't regurgitate everything I hear on the evening news or the Today show.
Just because something sounds possible, doesn't mean it is fact just because the media trots forward their selected "Expert," or if the general population thinks a thing is right or wrong - even as a majority doesn't make it so.

The Earth changes.
Man "CAN " affect it, but more importantly, Man is small and arrogant in nature.
Fortunately God has provided Himself with a way to erase His vision of our behaviour, and attitudes, and see us the way He originally designed us to be.

He owes us nothing, but because He is good and loving by nature, He reaches out, where religion is only Mankind reaching up.
That is the difference between God and man.
Our reach is stunted.
He has to be the one to do the reaching and fortunately for us, He has achieved that.
Unfortunately, alot of humans want to slap that Reaching Hand away for the sake of their pride.

Having a relationship wtih the One True God, The ALmighty Creator of the Universe is not necessarily religion, although religious organizations can serve Him in various ways, God is God, and Man is not.

Good for us.

Anyway, this is an interesting video clip sent to me by a friend with regards to the ever changing and remarkable weather patters we see.

I love the weather.
I love the sky and its violent changes and storms.
Enjoy the clip.
:o)

When Genius Strikes...

...does it beat you over the head until you are unconscious, and leave you with no recollection of it's presence when you awaken?

Ok, while Scout was re-watching this, I realised that, at this years Mysterium we need to gather as a huge clot and sing and do this dance together.

Tape it and upload it.
Wouldn't it be horrific?
Wouldn't it be dreadful?
Wouldn't it be stupefyingly wonderful? (in a painful sort of way?)
Let's DO THIS!!!!

This is SOOOO for Lehsa

I KNOW how you love this song!
I KNOW this becasue you have said as much in the past.
This is for you, dear.
;o)
mwah-hahahahah!

"Global Warming" my Gi-normous hiney!!!

Hey! isn't it crazy?
The cold spell that happens every few years.

Human are worried that our emissions have created this huge global warming issue and that may well be.

How ever, I don't hear anybody stating the obvious opposite:

Humans! You are arrogant!
You IMAGINE that your presence makes a difference to the cycles that this planet has been in for eons?

You are small (crunchy and good with ketchup according to "certain beings") and it is very likely that you have not so great an imapct on this planet as you might think. And you ARE very wont to think so highly of your own magnificence. ( BTW, isn't that what got Satan/Lucifer cast out? He fell in love wiht his own beauty until he couldn't see past it and became ugly and vile etc? Soemthing to think about...) ANY---Waaaaaaay...

Humans, it is just as likely that you don't make any difference and our globe is doing what it does the way that God designed it.

Get over yourselves humanity.

Your only value is what God assesses to each individual, and to Him you value as a person is priceless... but as far as afecting such a grand and global change - - - well, get over yourself humanity.

Such things are counter to what people want to hear.

but its my blog and I can say what I want.

People don't have to read....unless they have signed up for an RSS feed and then they have to delete it asap, after the begin to get offended, but oh well, what can I do about that?
:O)

It has gone beyond all reason or control

I am a hapless, helpless victim...
I hear it while I am trying to sleep.
I eventually drift off into sleep and upon waking, it is the first sound I hear reverberating within the confines of my cranium.
Some body help me or offer advice to combat the insipid, redundant Song.

I kid you not.
I am hearing it and singing it all the live long freaky day.

My head is particularly stuck in the revolutions of "I was once a treehouse, I lived in a cake, but I never saw the way the orange slayed the rake..."

In the name of all that is holy PLEASE (*on knees, beseechingly*) PLEEEEEEZE make it STOP!
Stop the madness!!


Help?

movie worth watching

Lady in the Water!

Ok sure its gotten some crappy reviews but if you child is between the ages of 11 and above and has seen LotR without flippin gout due to the scariness then I would say Lady in the Water is a great movie! If youa re a person who can easily suspend disbelief, (not to say that it was unbelievable) but it is based upon myth. If you are a believer in the values of myth and the joys of fantastical beings...if you are a person who believes that even the smallest creature can change the course of the future, then THIS is a movie for you!

For your edification:

Now this is deep and meaningful.

Interesting

This is a really interesting report.

Potpourri : soul searching, part 137

How is it that we spend so much lifetime in confusion and yet we get some things so absolutely right on?

Though much in life eludes me, I know somethings deep within my core.

For example: I know that my energies are best spent investing in the care of my kids, as opposed to working a fulltime job. I do NOT udge moms who are able to work, I merely say that I do not have the emotional energies to be so divided for any length of time.
Though my kids be teens, they still have emotional needs, often unspoken ones, and my energies are best spent trying to anticipate them and either be there, standing in the gap for them and with them, or withholding judgements or advice knowing that some lessons they need to learn on their own, and I need to remain available to help them pick up the pieces.

The pursuit of happiness is futile.
Happiness depends solely on the "happenings" in your life.

Pursuing happiness is a waste of good energy, for the rich and the poor suffer alike.
The wise and the fool equally have strife and trials.
There is nothing new under the sun.

What then, can we look to?
What then, can we strive for?

A life well lived.
(In my own experience this is not something that I can do apart from the strength gained by
daily conversations with God Almighty Himself.)

A life lived in seeking to do good, even when it does not benefit ones self, actually ends up benefitting ones self in the long run.
A life lived by putting one's own needs last - this is not to ignore ones needs, but to count them as secondary or less than those of another's - leaves one being challenged to achieve greatness, and fosters humility in ones self.

We all need to choose to eat our own "Humble Pie."
The alternative - if we are lucky or God favours us - is that we will be humilated in order to bring about the blessed state of humility.
Frankly, I would think that choosing to humble ones self would be vastly preferable to being humiliated by God, via circumstances or repercussiosn from poor choices.

Do we cry "Justice! Let there be justice in the world!?"
Or do we cry "Mercy! Grant unto us mercy for we are an imperfect species, destined to ever fall short while we exist within our fleshly tent?"

Frankly when I am tempted to say, "I deserve better!," I think what I should really be saying is,
"What do I deserve?
Do I deserve Hell and Death?"
Yes.
"Do I have better?"
Yes."
Then I should shut up, get over myself, and seek to do good to others before seeking my own good."

Though I own this personally for my self, I fall short in carrying it out with any regularity, even so, I believe that it is a universality that could be owned by most Americans - and even by most westernized cultures.

I HATE this new Blogger interface

I hate Google, and I HATE with a passion this NEW interface.
It sucks!
I can NOT customise my new template the way I could the old one.
I hate that Google is forcing everythign under "One-happy-freakin-golden-roof!"
Ain't so.
I cam avidly looking into finally purchasing my own domain and will set up my own blog somewhere else where I am the one in control.

I HATE huge conglomerates.
I hate Microsoft, I hate Wal-mart and I basically hate big companies in principle...but look at me?
I am stuck as a prisoner to these same companies mentioned - except Google - because the only things I can afford are what they provide - and even then Microsoft is overpriced and buggy.

But until I grow in my abilities, I am stuck with some of these ills.

It bites.

Saturday Morning Wake Up

Well it is a herd of teen girlies holed up beneath my roof, while The Boy(tm) is away at Break Away Retreat for the weekend. In his absence they have absconded with the Desktop and parked multi-images of some teen hearththrob named "Jeremy Sumpter"(tm) (sp?) anyway, and to top it off, I awoke to much gleefull cackling as they watched this.

Stu is taking them all tubing up at HooDoo (local ski hill) today, and I will shampoo the carpets and get the laundry done while they are all up there freezing off their wee buttocks.

One year gone

Well James,
It's been a whole year.
It has been the worst year in a lot of ways.
I have known a couple of people in my life who have passed, but none of them were as good a friend as you have been to me.
I guess it all boils down to this:
I suppose God can wait to see the rest of us, but He just couldn't wait to have you right there with Him.

The Kirkpatrick Twins miss you in Canker Shores.
They were in the office earlier today working on a write up covering your one year remembrance celebration. I found it sitting on their desk, still waiting to go to print. After blotting away the numerous mocha-soy-decaf-latte stains I decided to print an excerpt of it here. I am sure they won't mind...

January 24th, 2007
Canker Shores Remembers Field Correspondant:

The town of Canker Shores is marking the passing of one of their own:
Jim "Zimmy" Zimmerman, who passed away on January 24th, 2006.
"Zimmy" as he was called by the locals, was a long time contributor and field correspondant for the Canker Shores Newspaper "The Shore Throat."
Local business owner, Marv Gillespie recalls, "He was a stout hearted lad who always had a ready hand out stretched to the needy or down-trodden."
January 24th has been set aside by town officials as a local holiday hereby known as "Zimmy Day."
The first celebration of remembrance was marked by an early AM Mass said at Our Lady of Absolute Absolution Catholic Church, with the pealing of the Bells set to commence at noon.
The event was well attended, with the crowd of worshippers filling the church and spilling out into the adjacent parking lot.
Father DuPuis was unable to get the electrical system which activates the bells to function properly, due to damage received during a storm last September so he opted instead to climb into his Chevy Impala and blow the horn 45 times, while the congregation prayed. The battery in his Impala began to wear down after a while, sounding more weak and anemic as it went. He decided to cut the service short at about 37 honks, secretly hoping that nobody was counting.
A community pot-luck was held in the evening at the One Way Baptist Church after which time an impromptu dance broke out in the narthex despite the protests of Elders Wives.
All in all, the day was well spent remembering the young man who touched so many lives.
Zimmy was one of our top correspondants, most noted for his coverage of local crimes and atrocities. His numerous personal writing credits include "Whale Dies", "Poor Santa", and "Sam the Ugly Dog." An archive of his personal works can be found here.



Anyway James,
you are still dreadfully missed - which I know was not your plan for any of us.
It's ok.
I look forward to seeing you again someday.
I suppose by then you be able to find time to tell me whatever happened with that "Mysterious Post."

;o)
Anyway, you are missed.
Thanks for being a big brother.
See ya around, ya goofball.

What a day

Well to those who sent them, thanks for the Birthday cards and wishes.
:O)
The last 24 hours have been fraught with tears as we anxiously awaited and then transmited word on our friends involved in the terrible car crash last night.

It is funny how sometimes God seems to keep you on your toes with regard to the need to pray for someone.

That is pretty much all I did last night.
This morning the church service was put on hold, while the entire church (500+) people prayed, members of the congregation praying aloud by turns. Grant (2nd grade) was not expected to be released from ICU until tomorrow or Tuesday night. He healed up well this morning and gained strength and was removed from ICU late the morning and placed in his own room.
(!!!!)
While Tim remainds in ICU, recent updates indicate that he is stabilizing.

Blake (6th grader) was the only one conscious when the rescue vehicles arrived.
All fo the windows of the van were blown out, but he is talking to rescue personnel:

"I'm ok! Jesus is here. He's right here with me so its good. Please take care of my brother and sister and dad first. I am ok. I know that Jesus is with me."

He said the same to the abulance driver and to the hospital staff upon arrival.

This little guy has amazing faith, and when the crap hits the fan, what comes out of us is what is true. If we freak out and crumble in fear, or if we profess truth and take comfort from it.

Anyway, little dude said it all.

So it was a subdued (as much as possible) birthday. None of us were in much of a celabratory mood. Really, it was best just hanging at home with family, watching Farenheit 451 and having lasagna for dinner.

Not such a bad day when you consider the whole earth and the multitude of possibilities.
:o)

My freinds in car accident

The principal of our school is a very good freind of mine.
We have kown their whoel family, through think and thin for many years.
Tim and 3 of their 4 children were just in a terrible car wreck.
The children have minor injuries and Tim was take by helicopter to the nearest hospital.
These are such good good people. Their kids are firendly and polite.
Tiem and Peggy have been through the ringer with Peggy's internal ailments during the past few years and now for this to happen.
It is horribly tragic.
These are people who do not love God merely in name only.
They truly live out their faith in ways that I would aspire to.
They treat everyone equally, and with love and respect.
If you are a praying person, please pray for Tim.
Please pray for their family.
I will update as the days go on.

Thank you.

Thanks for voting!

Thanks you guys, for helping me out here.
I really am pathetic I guess.
For one, I probably wouldn't have picked any of the things you guys did - (hence my need to query those who are smarted than I) and in the end, the organizers allowed me to have three entries, so along with the Joe -vs- the Java painting, I ended up going with what you guys chose as fotos:

The first one was Farmstead, and the second was Hooded Mermaid.
So I had them printed out at a buh-zillion dpi today, matted and framed and delivered into the hands of the organizers..

The next question is:
apparently they are having an "Artists Reception" friday night...

Is it "bad form" if I do not attend?

I detest forced social events, but I also do not want to piss anybody off.
Since it is the first time I am in this partiular show, I probably should attend out of respect, shouldn't I?
Crap!
You're probably right.
Ok.
Well, thanks for answering that.
;o)

Please Vote Here

I need your help!

I have been invited to submit one photo as well as a canvas to a local art show. I
already know which canvas I am putting up this time around (Joe -vs- The Java) but I don't know which photo to submit. My deadline is tomorrow.

I have posted the entries here:











Warren Burial Ground

Hooded Mermaid

Towel Butterfly

Shadow Puppets

Farmstead

Madras House

Can you please vote using the comment section below, either that or email me privately if you prefer?

I really haven't ever submitted any photos to a show yet and am torn as to which I shoud pick.
I only want to submit one.

Thanks for your help!

mih-

Keeping Priorities Straight

What a guy - that Walt!
So after my recent exodus from Admin-dom at the Lysts.com (A recent death in the family and the need to begin looking after my 80 yr old Da has left me litle time) Walt and I were chit chatting about some residual lyst business, and in an email, he touches on said business, but then gets right to the "meat" in that he says, "now lets talk about these technical problems that are keeping you from getting into the cavern."

Man!
Gotta love his dedication to serving others!
And to persevering to maintain community - that sense of "let no one be left behind."
Dude is a man after my own heart!
Gooooo Walt!


mih-

Deschutes County Sherriff, Sisters Oregon Office: Swaggering Small Town Cops Swoop Down on Innocent Youths

Dang am I pissed!
Who the heck ever heard of a 10:pm curfew outside of a bloody war zone?
So it is Saturday night, January 13th.
I live in a small town.
Population less than 1200.
The most news worthy crimes here tend to be infractions commited when deer wander into the wrong yard, or when some kids prank the local busy body by lighting a sack of dog poop on fire and leaving it on her porch.
Imagine my ire, when my son comes home after I have dropped him off at 11pm for a simple game of Capture the Flag with his mates, and he comes home to regale me with tales of policemen chasing down others in his party and actually accosting him - asking him "what he had been drinking and where is the spray paint?"

I swear!
What is this town coming to, when kids can't even go out and play a game together without being accused of soemthing just because they're there?
Yeah I could see maybe in a city. but people!
This is freakin' Sisters!
Norman Rockwell-ville. (Or almost)
It must have been a slow night at the donut shop to bring these guys down into Sisters for a "Raid" on two capture-the-flag teams.

Who the heck ever heard of a 10pm curfew?
The whole state of Oregon has a midnight curfew....who do the Sisters Law Enforcement Officials think they are, instituting something other than what the state mandates with no good and visible reason??

Well, when the officer approached my son, my son stood there and answered the man and gave him his name and phone number and address and all that, and all I can say is "Bring it on John-Law!"
You better call me asap!
Otherwise I willc ome down there and ask you these questions face to face.
(Don't make come down there!) ;O)
I require some answers and they better be dang good ones!


Moral of the story?
Don't care who you are: don't mess with my kids, unless you have a good reason and even then, you are gonna do some explaining!