Sad news

Just when you think your life is hard, you get news that makes you realize that the same affliction strikes us all.  This morning I have news that a dear friend of mine is facing some unknown problem that tests will show on Thursday.  This lady and I have been friends for 30 years.  I watched her kid grow up.  She is a vibrant person always the one to help make things fun.  Her husband had to retire before he wanted to because of a dibilitating disease.  Now she is facing a crisis.  It blew me away.  I hope the news on Thursday is good.  That there will be a surgery, that recovery is assured.  In my long life of 66 years I have said good bye to way too many friends.  It is something you think you should get used to, but you don't.  It is something that the victory of the empty grave on Easter makes a little easier... Oh death where is thy sting?  But you still do not welcome it.  Not when it is close.  Not when it is someone your age.  Not when it is someone who needs so much to live and not die and leave this world at this point.  Not when a husband needs her to be there.  It is not fair.  Two people in a marriage should not be sick at the same time.  Not fair.  Not fair Not fair. 

Since noone reads this blog, and I need to cry out.  This is my outlet.  I will probably post more when I know it. 

In the meantime, it makes the sufferings I have from Diabetes, and a chronic cough seem minor.  I must get on and get doing.  Breakfast to fix.  Food to put in the freezer.  A newsletter to write.  I feel so wooden.  I hope the news on Thursday is good. 

Besides this the husbands of both of my sisters are sick.  And one of my sisters is not doing so well either. 

Today is Pearl Harbor Day.  69 years ago our nation and world was faced with unimaginable catastrophe.  I feel like someone just dropped a bomb on me but much lessor proportions.  And we know that we are more than conquerors through Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Making my own leftovers

Every once in a while I will buy a large turkey when they go on sale in the stores close to thanksgiving.  This year I got an 18 pounder, at 49 cents a pound.  This is by far the largest bird I have ever cooked.  What was I thinking?  I was not so sure about dragging that much weight, heated to 350 degrees or more, out of the oven to baste it or even to get it to a table to cut it up.  A friend of mine had put herself in the hospital carrying such a bird out of the oven a year ago.  

Enter the Cyber Monday sale at Meijer's a local grocery/department store.  I had gone there after exercise class on Monday to get an extension cord for my out door lights.  While looking for the cord a clerk pointed out to me that these roasters by Rival were on sale for only 24 dollars. Right on the front the advertising claimed that it would handle up to an 18 pound turkey.   I picked up the box.  It did not feel too heavy.  I got it on the bottom rack of the cart and finished my shopping.  

When I got the roaster home, I put the frozen bird in and the lid fit.  I questioned whether the sides were thick enough to handle the heat, so I roasted some potatoes in it.  They turned out great and the counter did not char.  So I roasted the two pounds of carrots that were in my crisper.  Those, too were delicious.  Toward the end of the week, I took the turkey out of the freezer and put it in the garage to thaw.  It is about 48 degrees in there.  Three days later, the bird was almost thawed, so I finished the job in the kitchen sink, as my mother had done when I was growing up.  

I got out the roaster, turned it on, and after checking for feathers and rinsing out the cavities, I plopped the bird on the rack on the removable pan inside the roaster.  I totally forgot to buy the broth to inject into the breast, so I used a can of chicken noodle soup instead, putting the veggies and noodles in the bottom of the roaster pan.  The noodles ended up getting stuck to the side, but a little elbow grease got them out later.  The bird was supposed to take four hours.  It looked done after two, so I lowered the heat and cooked it one more hour.  Then I turned it off and went to bed.  

The roaster is in pieces drying here and there leaning on furniture in the dining room as there is no more room in the kitchen.  So, before breakfast I have to wipe that off and get it put away.  Then sometime I will have to get the rest of the bones out of the dark meat. 

Cooking a turkey is a lot of work, but what a lot of meat for the winter I now have.  Healthy meat.  Fortunately the  trash can in the garage where the garbage is bundled up is cold enough to keep the bones secure till garbage day.  My hat goes off to all of those ladies with families including my own Mom years ago, who went through this routinely every year for their families. 

It must be the memory of those years when I was a child and I would get up Thursday morning to observe the end of thawing, and the cooking with all the wonderful smells of sage, celery and onion in the stuffing (we stuffed our turkeys back then).  My mom made such a feast for four or five, and the leftovers were as wonderful as the meal, perhaps more so.  Overeating used to be a problem, but as I age it does not seem to be anymore.  I only had about two ounces of the meat last night and that just to be sure that the meat was indeed done and moist. 

I discovered that the dark meat is usually more attached to the bone than the white meat.  I threw out all of the skin and fat that I could find but was amazed at how much fat was in the water at the bottom of the pan.  In previous years I would use this to make gravy, but I will settle for store bought low fat gravy.  Also,  turkey cooked in a roaster does not brown well, and there was little skin crisp enough to tempt me.  I am amazed at how much I have acclimated to my leaner habits with food.  

I am a little concerned about the cooking time and the heat, but the bird appears to be done, and since I will be reheating most of the meat and freezing it today or tomorrow, it should be OK. 

Post Thanksgiving ponderings

I had a friend mention about traditions changing. Rather than mourning the old, she is embracing the new.

Made me think of my life.  How I started years ago putting up my own tree and making it fun.  She made me think of other things.  Like my cranberry relish that I learned to make after eating it at a Frankenmuth Michigan restaurant.  Yesterday I got to share some of this with an old friend who came to visit with her dog for Thanksgiving. Because of the dog the tree didn't get put up.  But it will get up today, thanks to help from another friend.   Because of a lingering cold, my energy levels are down and I do appreciate the help.

Today promises to be a good day, of cleaning, and getting some of the Christmas stuff out and up, a day later than my usual "tradition."  When you don't have a family to cook dinner for,  you may be blessed, as I am with a later or earlier celebration of the holidays with your extended family, or you may not have anyone but a few friends to have a celebration with, or you may end up alone, which is when establishing your own private traditions becomes a good way to make the holiday special if only for you.  You are worth it.

It would be easy, especially when you are younger, to remember the days when you were part of a nuclear family, either as a child, or as a parent.  It is then that those memories of joys that are no longer part of your life can become bittersweet, or even grow into depression.  It is then that you have to reevaluate and find things you can enjoy about today, and do them.  Even reading a book, or working on a project, or watching the plentiful Christmas movies or other fun things on TV, can be savored.  In this computer age, social networking sites can be a way to connect as well.  As long as you rejoice with your friends in their postings and not get jealous.  Do your own thing and be blessed.

When you stop and think about it, there are many people in this world whose families have grown, or who never grew families themselves.  You are not alone, even though you may be physically alone. 

Carpé Diem   (Seize the day) is a good attitude if you can handle it.  It gives each day its joy and is not dependent on other people to succeed.  You just have to look at the list in your head or elsewhere of things you need to do, and pick and choose.  John Donne said once words to this effect  "Do the thing that lies nearest to you, and then your next duty will appear most clear"  I learned the truth of this in my Freshman English Lit class taken my Junior year (don't ask) at Central Michigan University.  It stuck with me.  It is golden advice.

I remember well one year when I was first living alone and had to put up my Christmas tree all by myself.    I kept putting it off, because it was work for me, and I was working full time, but once vacation started it was still not up and I had to go to a midnight Christmas Eve party for our singles group.  It was Christmas Eve for Pete's sake and there sat my tree in a pile in the living room.  So I got to work.  As I hung the ornaments I started to feel better.  I felt the presence of my Savior with me as I put up the tree.  I realized that I am never alone, and in this special lonely slice of time His presence made me feel loved.  After the tree was lit, I had time to sit and look at it.   I remembered with sadness a day a long time ago when my Dad was too depressed to help us put up our tree when my sister was in her early twenties, and I was just sixteen.

Our family had always gone to the Christmas tree lot late to get the bargains.  Then we would bring it home and Dad would saw off the end and we would put it in the old stand with water, and get out the old lights with the big bulbs and check them and get them on the tree.  Then the rest of the decorations would be put on by us girls.  I guess my parents were depressed about changes caused by us growing up.  My Dad refused to get a tree.  So I went out and bought one and brought it home, and somehow got it cut off.. maybe Dad did that.  As I struggled with it he lay on the couch and kept saying that he didn't know why I was bothering with all this stuff because "Christmas was for kids" and we weren't kids any more.

Nevertheless, I got the tree up, and decorated, all by myself with negative comments from my parents, who prior to this year had always provided beautiful Christmas memories, and continued to do so after that year as well.  I am not sure what was going on in their lives that year, but I got the tree up all by myself and we all did enjoy it.  for the week or so that it was up.

As I thought about that tree, and sat looking at my 1980's artificial tree I noticed an ornament one of my teacher friends had given me.  It was a Hallmark fake cookie dough ornament that simply said "J O Y" .  As I viewed the ornament I thanked the Lord that I was not alone when I put up that particular tree, but that He was very much with me.  As I thought about that, He sweetly spoke into my mind, that I was not alone either on that dark December day when I was sixteen and put up that other tree, that He was with me then as well.  I was able to share that story at our singles gathering that evening, and each year I remember it, and if I have a tree, I hang that JOY ornament where I can see it from my easy chair Christmas morning while I have cocoa and toast, and some quiet moments with the Lord about whom Christmas is celebrated.

A couple of years ago, I looked up that Hallmark ornament on E Bay and found out that it was actually worth a few dollars more than my friend paid for it, since I have the original box.  Sell it?  I think not.  It has far greater value to me, as I remember that 1980's Christmas tree, and even remember the friend who gave me the ornament, but especially the One who will never leave or forsake me, whose birth we honor in this season.

From a letter

I hesitate to post this, but it expresses my feelings about change.  Change that has happened because I lived to be the young age of xx.  Got one of those emails from a friend explaining why folk send forwarded emails rather than write.  I had often thought it was because they just wanted to smile and say HI>  like meeting them on the street, or seeing them at the local coffee shop.  My mornings when I can consist of reading some of these, but I don't forward.  I know it is annoying.  I am skilled at deleting much of my email, but make a point of sometimes reading it.  Today I read Flylady emails and learned about how decluttering can free up children as well as adults, even ADHD children with whom I have had much experience during my years in public education. 

The following is my reply to Pat and Ernie, who had sent me a charming fictitious story about a man being admitted to heaven through a humble gate, because he refused to enter the pearly gates if they would not let his dog in as well.  I went on in my reply to state how I felt about these emails and about changes in the church, and in particular music in the church, and how the emphasis on families sometimes brought sadness to those of us who are alone, but how Jesus, who ministers to singles brings hope. 

Because this is long, and I know my friends don't need to be burdened with my thoughts, I have eliminated my email list on this post only.  Perhaps I will include a photo, but since noone but me will read it, perhaps I won't. 

Well here goes.  The entry is long, so I will shut up.  Have to go do my breakfast and check the laundry, and open the blinds, lest my neighbors think I died.  Then get to weight watchers.  Nuff said.  If you read this.. Thanks.

Thanks Ernie  (or Pat) 
Wonder if that place takes cats as well?
Anyway, That is what I figured about folks who forward emails.  Sometimes I reads them.  Sometimes I don't. 
It won't be long before most of my friends that are my age or older will be in that place, pets or no pets.  We can trust our Heavenly Father to do it right in that department.  If it were me, I would have a tough time figuring out what to do with all of the animals we attach to ourselves. 

Mitch Miller died yesterday.  He was 99 years old.  Wow!  Singing must be good for you. 
I am only 65, so I am a young something or another, but already I cannot do many of the things I used to do, and somehow, sadly, church is not the thrill it once was to me.  But Jesus remains the same....  as was promised in Scripture.

I thought last week when we did Communion and the pastor made such an emphasis about families sitting together, and I sat alone, most of my single friends having either died, or gone elsewhere, how the original Communion was with 12 single men and the Lord.  With children and women being around to tend to the house.  That gave me comfort and I could once again concentrate on what God had given us so freely in Jesus, and not on the peripherals that I no longer had in my life. 

They did manage to sing one song that was familiar and touched my heart.  How much more can I ask for?  The new generation is not touched by the music that touched me in the past and still touches me now.  It was good to see many in the front rows standing and lifting their hands in worship for this particular song, a modern arrangement of Amazing Grace.  Funny, but I don't see a lot of singing going on with many of the newer songs like we used to back in the day. 

But last night I watched the final moments of the AG youth talent convention (National) being held in Detroit this week.  The music, was not anything I had heard before, but the words were plain and tied in with the message being given by an articulate young black preacher.  My heart even responded to the message....  "Give Him your dirt... and give Him your talent"  and let Him do what he pleases with both.  Simple, profound Gospel message of the Lordship of Christ.  I remembered how this truth was taught to us back when we were young adults, in the Navigators,  Inter Varsity, or just plain our own church youth movements in our young days as Christians. 

I hope I have run the race well.  I have certainly tried.  Somehow I missed the boat on getting married and having children, and thus grandchildren.  Or perhaps it was not intended to be.  Nevertheless, I have served, I have kept the faith.  I have passed it on.  Now it is in the hands of this new generation, or generations.  Makes me wonder how the older generations felt when I was young.  I know there was criticism, but the music remained for them,  I think.... Or perhaps they wanted a more contemplative music, and our beat was too fast....  I don't know. 

Well thanks for hearing me vent.  Sometimes I need to write these things more for myself than for others.  I guess because I actually can type pretty well (Had to for my job ) I tend to put things on paper and it helps me to think.  Or perhaps I have too much time alone.  Well it is time to get on with my day and see what I can do about the laundry that will never dry hanging in my basement today.  Perhaps the laundromat?  I did quilts in my poor little extra big washer yesterday.  Was so shocked when that worked.  But wet they were too heavy for the dryer, so they are draped across lines and furniture in my little 400 square foot basement, two floors down. 

Mornings for me consist of waiting till 7 AM to take my blood sugar readings and my pills, then off to the bath or the kitchen for breakfast, then on to my day.  Today, I have weight watchers.  And all that housework to do, and perhaps I can catalog a few books, as the donation load is piling up again. 


On Aug 3, 2010, at 8:04 AM, ERNEST WARD wrote:

This explains why I forward jokes, and it says it all for me.

 A  man and his dog were walking along a road.
 The man was enjoying the scenery, 
 when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead.

 He remembered  dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years.
 He wondered where the road was leading them.

 After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road.

 It looked like  fine marble..

 At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight.

 When he was standing before it, he saw a  magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the  street that led to the gate looked like pure gold.

 He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one  side.

 When he was close  enough, he called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'

 'This is Heaven,  sir,' the man answered.

 'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?'  the man asked.

 'Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up.'

 The man gestured, and the gate began to  open.  'Can my friend,' gesturing toward his dog, 'come in, too?' the traveler asked.

 'I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept  pets.'

 The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the  road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.

 After  another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt  road leading through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. 

 There was no fence.

 As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning  against a tree and reading a book....



    'Excuse me!' he called  to the man. 'Do you have any water?'

 'Yeah, sure, there's a pump over  there, come on in.'

 'How about my friend here?' the traveler gestured  to the dog.

 'There should be a bowl by the pump,'  said the man.

 They went  through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with  a bowl beside it..

 The traveler filled the water bowl and took a long drink  himself, then he gave some to the dog.

 When they were full, he and the dog  walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree.

 'What do you  call this place?' the traveler asked.

 'This is Heaven,' he  answered.

 'Well, that's confusing,' the traveler said.

 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'

 'Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell.'

 'Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?'

 'No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.'


 Soooo. Now you see, sometimes, we wonder why friends keep forwarding stuff to us without writing a word. Maybe this will explain it.

 When you  are very busy, but still want to keep in touch, guess what you do?  You forward mails.

 When you have nothing to say, but still want to keep contact,you forward jokes.

 When you have something to say, but don't  know what, and don't know how....you forward stuff.


 A  'forward' lets you know that you are still remembered, you are still important, you are still  loved, you are still cared for.


 So, next time if you get a 'forward', don't think that you've been sent just     another forwarded joke, but that you've been thought of today and your friend on the other end of your computer wanted to send you a smile.

 You are welcome at my water bowl anytime !!  
 

A day in the life....

This week I had a flood in the basement and had to deal with wet rugs (so glad I never carpeted, but used small rugs).  I washed them out on the sidewalk with the hose and on the suggestion of a neighbor hung them on the fence while the sun was shining. 

Glad I brought them in, for we were hit by fishflies that night.  Rugs did not dry, either in the sun, or in the basement on the line with a fan.  I took a chance and ran them through the dryer for ten minutes.  Hung them up again.  You only have so long to deal with wet things.  Hopefully the one that seems to be a good sponge will be dry when I go downstairs this morning. 

Recycling has been added to our Township's new trash removal.  Before this the condo only paid for waste pickup.  This new service has enabled me to make quite a pile of old magazines and other items each week to add to the newspapers and by getting rid of plastics and cans in the bin rather than the trash bags, my trash is a lot easier to deal with.  I have a big basket about the size of the recycle bin in the garage where I put items that can go either to the resale shop  that feeds the hungry, or to my friend Audrey, who has her own resale shop in Addison.  They are doing a great trade right now because their prices are right and they are located on a main intersection near the Michigan Nascar Racetrack.  I felt so good because my recycle bin was full, the stuff that filled the basket was all taken by Audrey, except for three binders, which  a Facebook friend wants,  and I had only one big bag of trash to put out.  Now I am starting on this weeks culling.  40 years of teaching produces a lot of stuff.  But I am getting through it and it feels good. 

Sometimes the mundane things can still give joy.  Have a great day. 

I couldn't find a photo of a mayfly, so I put in one of rabbits which are cuter, but still a pest.  We have them too, here on the hacienda. 

Read a story today about a 90 something lady who had a lot of spunk.  She invested in the stock market, and left a lot of money to the small town she lived in.  I gather she did not have much family, but made the most of her life.  The big thing was, she was frugal and industrious.  She was blessed with good health and seemed to be happy.   She cut her own firewood until she was in her nineties and worked as a fish filleter until she was seventy.  There is a video of her at this site, and she appears vibrant and interesting.  She was interested in opening a pool for the children of her community.  This was a no regrets type of older person who blessed her community and those around her.  At least that is the spin I got from it.  I only can hope that many of us can be so blessed with health and purpose even into our old age.  The Bible talks about this. Hope we can live it. 

DKG installation

Why did the red rose turn black when this same photo was taken with a flash?  Strange.  Photo from last night's banquet at Sajo's where I discovered that the fish is very good indeed. and Maria on the other end did not like the pecan encrusted chicken.  I have found it overly sweet too as my appetite has changed.  Banquet was May 18th, 2010.  Just decided I should post something other than Easter here.  Biding my time till seven AM when I can take my tests and get on with my day.  It is a beautiful sunny day here in the neighborhood.  There is a lot on my to do list, getting these photos (19 of them) of the banquet formatted and on their way was one of the first things.  

I shall take my meds, lie back down and listen to my readings for today next.  Then off to breakfast and meetings, shopping, and canceling membership at Snap Fit.  Nothing wrong with the place, except it is dark and full of young hunks, and probably the place where I got the H1-N1 flu last fall.  No place to sit between exercises, and I like the hospital gym better for comradie and senior awareness, and places to sit, and a nicer decor.

Between WW and the gym, I hope to no longer be the largest person in photographs. 

Easter Thoughts

I woke up this morning thinking about of all things  Easter egg hunts.   This was never a part of my childhood memories.  I do remember hunting for our Easter basket, and playing an old 78 rpm plastic record of Gene Autry singing "Here comes Peter Cottontail, hopping down the bunny trail."  Our baskets were old ones that Mama had saved in the basement from previous years and were newly filled with green paper grass, and single color eggs, and candy eggs and chocolate bunnies.  We would eat the jelly beans first and perhaps the candy eggs that were not so tasty, and admire the colored eggs, until Mama collected them and put the in the refrigerator to cool for later deviled eggs.  As I got more sensitive to terms I learned to call these stuffed eggs.  Who wants to think of the devil on Easter?  

The first Easter egg hunt I remember was one that Jean and Ray Atchinson had for their grandchildren at their house in Flint, where my friend Kathy and I had been invited for Easter.  I thought that was an interesting thing to do with eggs and wondered what one would do if the kids did not find all of the eggs that were hidden in and around the house, a tri-level on a large lot. 

Many years later  my nieces and nephews planned a hunt for their children at Woody and Betsy's house.  I had heard of egg hunts before these events, such as the "Annual Easter Egg Hunt" on the White House lawn.  I never heard of filling plastic eggs with candy until my niece's hunts which continue to this day.  Then my church started hosting a community egg hunt, which has gotten bigger and bigger each year.  Yesterday's hunt had beautiful weather, but was held inside, because last year's indoor hunt proved to be very worthwhile.  The last two years the hunt has included face painting and a petting farm display.  

Petting Farms used to be stationary events, with a host of animals that lived where the farm was.  There was one at Canatara Park in Sarnia, much easier for us to get to back in those days prior to terrorist threats that have caused us to make our borders tighter. That farm had goats and beautiful peacocks.  We did not pet the peacocks.  There was also a petting farm at Boblo Island for a while, and I will never forget the time we took the 8th graders to that amusement park on our annual 8th grade end of the year trip.  Another teacher, Sandy Z.  had purchased a small bag of feed and was feeding the goats and other small animals when a Llama tried to get her bag and although she was holding it high over her head, the animal could almost reach it with its long neck.  I am not sure why the petting farm let you wander in the pen with the animals but they did.  I was nearby and being taller was able to take the feed bag away and thus free Sandy from her unwelcome admirer.  To this day, I would bet if the two of us got together and Llama's are mentioned, Sandy would remember and we would have a good laugh.  

Well Today is the Day we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord, and our choir is singing a dynamite song  a modern arrangement with the theme of how God sent Jesus from His birth to his resurrection with one purpose,  to rescue His prize creation, man, from the chains of sin and death!  The choir doing it here, is not ours.  Hopefully ours will be a little less deadpan, but the song is powerful! Click on the Title to see a choir in the south do this.  

Jesus Saves 

Travis Cottrell Worship leader series, Jesus Saves.

"Freedom's calling Chains are Falling Hope is dawning, bright and new.

Day is breaking, Night is quaking, God is making all things new!

Jesus Saves.

Hear the heart of heaven beating, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves,

And the Hush of Mercy breathing, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves,

Hear the host of angels sing, Glory to the newborn King

And the sounding joy repeating, Jesus Saves

See the humblest hearts adore Him, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves.

And the Wisest bow before Him, Jesus Saves Jesus Saves.

See the Sky alive with Praise, melting darkness in its blaze,

There is light forevermore in Jesus Saves

He will die our burden bearing, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves.

IT IS DONE! will shout the cross. Christ has paid redemption's cost!

While the empty tomb's declaring Jesus Saves!

Freedom's calling, chains are falling, hope is dawning bright and true.

Day is breaking, night is quaking, God is making all things new.

Jesus Saves.  Jesus Saves!

Oh to Grace how great a debtor, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves!

Are the saints who shout together, Jesus Saves, Jesus Saves!

Rising up so vast and strong, lifting up salvation's song

The redeemed will sing forever Jesus Saves!

Now since dawn has not dawned yet, and I need to practice, I must sit with the music, play the bad choir singing it and practice hopefully the right notes.

Happy Easter.
HE IS RISEN!  
Because He lives, we can also live! 

Late Middle Age Angst

The Ant...  From Standing in the Rainbow by Fannie Flagg

Before I give this book back to my friend, who now tells me she is going to read it again thanks to my review the last time, I wanted to copy the chapter that really caused me to identify with the book.  

This describes the world as seen through Macky's eyes after he and Norma leave Elmwood Springs MO to move to a gated retirement community in Vero Beach Fla.  While Macky's wife, Norma and her elderly Aunt Elnir settle in just fine,  he misses his old life, and finds that nobody understands or even cares.  He goes into a slump, and his wife advises counseling but Macky seeks counsel of his own.  

I am reminded of the Proverb that says to go to the ant, consider her ways and be wise.  While Macky does not say so in exactly these words.  It is what he did.

"Macky wandered over to Ocean Park, sat on a concrete bench and stared out at the blue water.  The world he had known was gone.  Not only was he living in an alien place, but while he had been busy all these years making a living, someone had changed all the rules.  For all he knew, he might as well have gone to sleep and awakened on the moon.  

When he'd grown up, everybody had more or less agreed to a certain way of living.  A certain standard.  You didn't lie, you didn't cheat or steal, you honored your parents, your word was your bond.  You didn't try to weasel your way out of things.  You married the girl.  You paid your bills.  You took care of your children.  You didn't cuss around girls.  You didn't hit women.  You played by the rules and it was expected that you would be a good sport if you lost.  You kept your house, yard, and yourself clean.

Norma said you have to just swing with it and try not to let it bother you so much.  He wished he could but somehow it seemed this new world was easier for the women to accept and adjust to.  What bothered him and other men his age and older was that the things they had been willing to die for were no longer appreciated.  Everything he had believed in was now the butt of jokes made by a bunch of smarty-assed late-night TV so-called comedians making a salary you could support a small country with.  All he heard was people saying how bad we were, how corrupt we had been, and how terrible white men were.  He had not felt like a bad person.  But just the fact that he was a white man of a certain age, a lot of people he did not know hated him.  He had never knowingly been mean or unfair to another human being in his life.  Now it seems he was the oppressor, responsible for every bad thing that had ever happened in the history of the world.  War, slavery, racism, sexism--he was the enemy and all he had tried to do was live a good and decent life.  History was being rewritten by the minute.  All of his childhood heroes were now being viewed as villains, their lives judged in hindsight by the current fad of political correctness.  Hell, now they were even taking Huckleberry Finn out of libraries, for God's sake.  It was all too confusing.

You never saw people anymore, everything was self-service, everybody behind glass windows.  And you could not get a real person on the phone.  Everywhere you called, a recorded message connected you to another recorded message and then hung up on you.  And everybody was mad and screaming about something.  He did not know which was worse, the radical right or the radical left.  It seemed nobody was in the middle anymore.  We used to be on the right track and then we took a wrong turn but he did not know where.  Was it the dope or television?  Was it having too much that did it?  He had tried to read what the experts thought but they did not know any more than he did.  All he knew for sure was that after the 40's and '50's , when he had been raised the world had flipped over like a giant pancake and everything was backward.  When he was a kid everyone had wanted to be Tarzan; now they all wanted to be the natives.  People were sticking rings in their noses-- even pretty little girls were running around with green hair, their bodies pierced everywhere.

And nobody answered a direct question anymore with a simple yes or no.  Everything was answered with some kind of rhetoric.  And he knew far more than he wanted to know about perfect strangers.  Things people used to be ashamed to talk about now sold books and got them on television.  Murderers were being asked for their autographs and turned inot celebrities. Football, basketball, and baseball player could beat up their wives, take drugs, go to jail, and still stay on the team and make millions. It didn't matter what kind of person you were anymore.  He remembered when a professional athlete was someone to look up to; now the sports page read more like a police blotter.  

And never in a million years would he have dreamed that one day baseball players would be wearing earrings.  Or that some girl would be singing on television in her brassiere.  Life was all so different, with this one having two mommies, and another one two daddies.  

He did not know what to think anymore.  The way it looked to him, the world was not getting better' it was getting worse.  He sat there for about an hour and gazed out at the water, wondering where and when it was all going to end.  

He leaned forward and rested his elows on his knees and stared down at the sandy ground, as if looking for an answer.  After a few minutes he noticed a tiny ant that walked underneath him, struggling to carry what looked like a large piece of potato chip.  It was much too big for him to eat, but he was headed somewhere with it anyhow.  He watched the ant as it kept going and banged into another concrete bench, went around it, crawling over rocks and other obstacles, determined to get back home with his treasure.  It was much too big for him to carry but he did not seem to know it.  

Macky sat there and watched the ant struggle along until it was out of sight and he smiled for the first time in weeks. "Who knows?" he thought. "If he keeps on going, the little son of a bitch might just make it."

This chapter was in a section called The Nineties.  That was the decade of OJ Simpson, and Madonna.  Things have changed a little, and it is the conservatives of whatever race who are being blamed for all of the troubles of the world these days.  But there is a certain identity here.  

I will say that after this chapter, Macky discovered the internet and started interacting with other men who had similar interests.  He became more enjoyable himself, and began to be the doting grandfather and accepted and enjoyed entertaining his family in Florida.  

Another interesting character in the book is Tot Wooten, a woman with a difficult life.  At one point she had a nervous breakdown and withdraws from people.  While people were afraid for her, the time was well used as she evaluated what was really important to her and she was able to move on.  

This is a happy book, but does not mince on life's problems.  Written by the woman who brought us "Fried Green Tomatoes" and "Red Bird in Winter" it gives marvelous insight into everyday life with its problems and resolutions.

A good book: Standing in the Rainbow

Review

Standing in the Rainbow by Fannie Flagg is a very long book, but it has short chapters.  I borrowed it from a friend, so you won't find it listed in my library, and at first I only read it when I had to go to the doctor's office or other places because by the time I got through one chapter, it would be time for my appointment. 

But now I am close to the end, and I realize that I have gotten to know and relate to Fannie Flagg's characters, some of whom were children when I was, and are now new senior citizens.  Their reflections during the 1990's relate to what I have experienced, or what I have seen others experience. 

I heartily recommend it.  But I warn you.  It will take a long time reading, but it is well worth it. 

Time to Blog again Reflections on Joshua

I got wordy on FB, so I copy it here. Hope nobody minds. Saturday in the life of a single retiree.

What is on my mind? That is the Face book question for posting: Here is my answer: Reading & caring about my friends' journeys today. Listening to Fly lady talk about staying on routine to a group of women whose husbands have been recently deployed. (She is such an encourager.) Making coffee upstairs to take into the bath with me. Hazelnut, with Coffee mate today. Pure Ambrosia. Warm suds, wash hair, listen to Marla, sipping creamed hazelnut coffee.

Already have bed made, and did light vacuuming. And listened to the whole book of Joshua on Bible Gateway. Feel good. Our online Devotional journal has us in Judges. I did that earlier, listening as I read and written in the journal. But I was behind, and had missed much of the preceding book, so I set Bible Gateway to read it from chapter 1 to 24, and curled up in bed to listen.

It was still dark out and it was cold. The cat cuddled with me. I noticed that Judges from today repeated some of what Joshua had already said. Sometimes I think a lot of this ancient stuff about the law and conquering the land is like what I would find at the county building where the register of deeds office is, or in a lawyers library full of law books. Yet it is included in the canon of Scripture. So it must be important, and actually there are little nuggets of truth to be gleaned.

Like today when I realized that Israel was not claiming the land of Canaan. They were reclaiming it. Abraham had the original deed, after all, and the famine that caused Jacob and his sons to go to Egypt caused them to abandon it. So actually they were reclaiming it after 400 years absence.

During that time all of the people called the Canaanites had moved in and built cities, and now Israel was reclaiming it. For some reason God did not like the Canaanites and commanded Israel to obliterate them. Sometimes they did. Sometimes they didn't.

I am not so sure I buy that tactic for today, and apparently the Israelites did not either, but that is when the power left them. Not because they were merciful... they made the Canaanites their slaves. But the power left them because after Joshua was gone, they forgot God, and did not obey Him, so God cut short His power.

What lesson for us in international matters? Has not our country turned away from what our forefathers taught us? Have we been turning away from the God of the Bible? Are there alien people trying to take over our land? Only we are not in Egypt, we are right here and it is happening. That is scary. From what I read today, it sounds like we need to individually return to what we have been taught, embrace it, throw out what is not true and move on. At least in our own spirits we shall have peace with God and that is after all the most important thing anyway. If we like Caleb and Joshua live to lead out people again in the ways of righteousness, so be it. If not, We must follow the Lord. Joshua said to the people Choose you this day whom you will serve. But as for me and mine, we shall serve the Lord.

Well I just heard the coffee finish. So I shall leave the computer, pour myself a cup put the speakers on in the hall and proceed with my day. Hope you have a great one too.

Oak Ridge Boys singing preceeded by interview

CLICK ON THE IMAGE ABOVE TO LINK TO MY PERSONAL LIBRARY

I am experimenting with linking my Blog to Library Thing.... Toasty's Mom's Library. a long time ago I decided to use this tool to account for all of my books that I have at home so that when I would go to organize them, I could find them easily. So rather than put them in order, I simply gave them locations based on what shelf in my house they were on. This also helped me in eliminating duplicates, as well as weeding the collection, AND more importantly in finding them to loan. Unfortunately I may have neglected to eliminate them from the list as I have been culling them, but most are still here.

You may browse by clicking on the headings to arrange by author, Title, or other column head, or you can type a key word in the search frame to quickly determine if a book is in the list. If you use this and want a book, give me a call or an email.

Thanks.

Springtime in Michigan

These are photos I have taken today from my walk on the warm side. 70 degree weather. A beautiful day in South East Michigan. A preview of Spring. Wonderful!

This free digital scrapbooking design customized with Smilebox

The Child is Father of the Man

Someone on Facebook suggested that I blog this. I replied that I sometimes WAX Eloquent. So here it is. I was thinking about the passing of life and how it was reflected in the Facebook posts of my friends, who range in age from 13 to 78 years of age and many in between.


Wordsworth poem I learned in school. Was thinking about how your perspective changes as you get older.

Found out WW wrote this when either he or his sister was getting married and he was wondering what the changes would bring to him.

Same poem that starts with My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky, so was it when my life began, So is it now I am a man; So be it when I shall grow old, or let me die, the child is father of the man Child is father of the Man; I could wish my days to be Bound each to each by natural piety. 1802.... See More

I used to love WW's references to nature. Not sure what he means by natural piety. Was he a Christian, or a naturalist? Whatever, there is a continuity to life, and it goes by faster than we think it will.

Reading the various posts on my FB page elicited this. I have posts by kids and college students who are interested in crazy jokes, and high school activities. Not too many folk posting about the superbowl tomorrow, wonder why?

Then in the middle of it all a post by a friend whose ninety year old mother just died. And a prayer request by a friend my age for his adult kids. And posts by folk who are older than I am. They are not so pensive. They post jokes, and political statements.

Today I have a birthday party for some folks who have been getting together for years to celebrate each others birthdays. They started when 50 seemed old. Now most if not all have passed that marker.

Facebook is certainly an interesting microcosm of life.

Well, as I put the finishing touches on my rearranged office, and watch the Saturday Today show, and drink my morning coffee with Amaretto coffee mate in it, I think of my day... No one will probably read this far, so I will not worry. I should go down and pick up the laundry I put in at 6:30, and I should start getting ready for the party tonight. Plus I have bills that must be paid.

Seeing snow in Washington DC or Virginia or somewhere on the screen now. So glad it is not here. We had a dusting but I still see green on the lawns out my office windows.

We had these types of snows in other years. I remember one that came right after Christmas vacation, and I got to call my co-workers to tell them the vacation had been extended. But not this year. For the first few years after retirement, I would listen to the school closings and still get a feeling of excitement. Not so much anymore. But I found that even doctors will allow you to miss an appointment if the weather is bad.

Well, enough rambling. Time to go shower, and finish the laundry and take my mega lot of pills and eat and do my glucose tests and make the bed and and and and. Then perhaps to rest a little. What a beautiful day we have been given today. If you are healthy, and alert, the day is something to seize and enjoy and for which to be thankful.

SMILES!