Stories and other stuff

Every now and again, I misplace something.  Not as often as I used to because I make a deliberate effort these days to put things back where I found them.  What I misplaced is a little booklet of daily devotions called Our Daily Bread.   Occasionally, I share them with you.  Today will be one of those occasions. I found my booklet this morning.  I suppose I should have realized it fell behind the nightstand next to my bed.  I honestly thought I looked there for it.  I'd actually grabbed a replacement copy a couple of weeks ago at church but gave that away last week.  There's a story behind that but as always, I'm not gonna share it yet.  I meant to pick up an additional copy the other day at church, but forgot. The title of the post is "somewhere in the night''.  Somewhere in the night last night, as I slept, my glasses fell off the nightstand and hit the carpeted floor.  As a result of the impact of falling a mere three feet at...

I posted this earlier, but nobody read it yet so it gave me a chance to re-write it. Y'all know I'm a baseball fan.  I really love the game.  Every now and again, you find a game that turns out to be one of those great games and you're glad you watched it. Tonight's game between the Dodgers and Nationals is on TV.  I was thrilled that it was because I haven't seen them play this year.  What a game so far!  It's in the tenth inning and this game has had just about everything! The Nationals called up a player and today was his first major league game.  The kid is 19 years old.  His first at-bat was a bouncer to the pitcher.  His second at bat was, well, a little better... a double to the bottom of the center field fence.  His third at bat he had an RBI on a sacrifice fly that put the Nationals ahead.  It was 3-1 Nationals in the bottom of the ninth.  And then: A couple of passed balls, a double, and a player reaching first bas...

I stole this from Facebook but if anybody's looking to get me the perfect birthday present, this (or a car battery for my Saturn) would be a wonderful choice. I are a mechanic.  I hate sitting around.  Last night, there was a problem with a jet found during a flight that needs fixed and I couldn't help the guys on my crew fix it because of my stupid elbows.  They were all working on this airplane and several will be this weekend, but not me because I'm on light duty. It's like being a fireman and having to watch a fire burn while others put it out.  It's no fun. I'm sure my fellow aviation maintenance friends will find the humor in this as well.  Happy Friday!

When I was young, I used to talk about girls and cars.  Nowadays it's pretty much food, fixing stuff, and ailments.  Today's topic is about ailments. As I age, new words enter my vocabulary.  Today's is bursitis.  While it sounds like an old guy thing (and maybe it is, I don't know), what I do know is that I have it in both elbows.  I know it hurts.  I know Ibuprofen doesn't make it feel better.  I know ice makes it hurt worse.  I also know I'm grounded from pretty much all chores for the next week. That sucks.  I had to call a friend and ask him to take a chore for me because I can't do it.  I could probably start the mower but not the trimmer.  It's like mine, it takes a dozen or so  pulls to get it running. Light duty, ice, and a balm for my elbows was the order from the doctor.  And stretches.  But the light duty thing is going to drive me nuts. I mowed my lawn on Saturday.  I need to mow it again. ...

The Mrs. always told me that if I did this thing or that thing to this house, it would try to eat me.  I think about that every now and again.  I've actually been very good to the house of late, trying to fix this thing or that thing, trying to clean up the yard from a year of disinterest on my part. My house is 53 years old.  It has a few issues from time to time that I have to deal with.  The screen door not opening this morning is just another one.  Here's my day so far. After a horrible night's sleep and my elbows killing me, I woke up for good at about ten after seven.  About nine, I decided to head down to the church.  I have a couple of projects (that are going to have to wait until tomorrow at this point) I need to do.  I put my stuff in the car and thought I'd make a quick trip to Lowe's for a new spark plug for my trimmer.  A new spark plug (and finding the seal for the gas cap floating in the gas tank & reinstalling it wher...

I saw all of this a while ago on my Facebook page.  It starts out with the newest on top, the oldest on the bottom.   Sometimes, the story just writes itself. "I'm Proud To Be Christian" by Aaron Chavez You have been equipped by the Creator of the universe to overcome every obstacle. Forget what you lack and let God take care of you! Unlike ·  · Share · 1,8044693 · 15 minutes ago via Sendible ·  "I'm Proud To Be Christian" by Aaron Chavez 2 hours ago  via  Sendible You may be about to give up on a marriage, on a troubled child, on a lifelong goal. But God wants you to hold on. "I'm Proud To Be Christian" by Aaron Chavez You may be facing an ongoing struggle right now but I want to encourage you to stay in faith. If you stay in faith, you allow God to carry your burdens. God has promised He will go before you and smooth your path. Unlike ·  · Share · 7,274232561 · 6 hours ago via "I'm Proud To Be ...

Today isn't about me.  It's about all of the wonderful, marvelous things God is doing for me, things that I couldn't cause to happen by myself.  I can only boast in the Lord today and I'm happy to boast about what believing on Jeuss has done for my life. For every trial I've been through the last couple of years, there has been blessing.  Most of those blessings were to learn lessons I'm going to need as I move forward in my life.  Praise God for those lessons!  They were hard.  They hurt.  They were necessary and I'm so thankful for them.  I couldn't see how then, but I can now! Praise God for answered prayers!  And not just mine!  I see them in the lives of others, too!  I'm happy to see God at work everywhere!  It brings me joy to know that He's trustworthy and I love to hear stories of what He does in others' lives moreso than telling about what He does in mine!  Praise the Lord for not abandoning His children. I...

Being a "newbie" Christian, there are a lot of things I don't know.  A fer instance is that Chuck Colson, who did time in prison for his part in Watergate, became a Christian and God used him mightily.  He passed away today.  I'm kind of interested in knowing more about him because it's good to see how God uses the fallen to accomplish His good works. And in that, there's hope for me, too! I had such a blessed day.  I got a ton of stuff done around here.  The list is long and I laid it out on my Facebook page.  I'm too tired to type it again.  It was a busy day and I'm sore.  It's a good sore though. As I make the clubhouse turn towards 48, I'm making some new acquaintances.  The latest one is named "tendonitis."  The doc says it's from being a mechanic all these years.  All I know is that my elbows hurt really badly sometimes.  Like this sometimes.  Icy hot doesn't help. I had a blessed day.  I know I said th...

Safety Glasses?  Check. Hearing protection?  Check. Extension cords?  Check. Full gas can?  Check. Hedge Clipper?  Check. Well, I'm ready.  Guess you can tell what's on tap for me this weekend, huh? Yup.  It's my annual battle with the fitzers.  They'll win in the end but at least in the spring I like to pretend I have a fighting chance.  I'll clip them back, they'll grow forward.  They're further down the list.  My list starts with dragging the de-thatcher across the front lawn.  Last time I did this, I swear I could have had enough dead grass to make a bale of hay.  I have a thatch rake, cut the tractor attachment makes much quicker work out of it. After thatching comes mowing the jungle.  It's going to be difficult because of all the rain we've had.  It's getting green and yellow, and tall, too.  After mowing, I have do deal with yellow.  Darn dandelions, anyway.  I have some good stuf...

I'm in a wonderful mood today.  I have a lot to be thankful for and I'm so grateful.  I was doing my daily Bible reading and I came across something that King David wrote in a song.  We should tell of the things the Lord does for us.  He's right and God does so much for all of us. I got to see that yesterday.  The Lord filled a need for someone I know.  It was in an odd way, but nonetheless, the need was met.  Praise God for that. Today's blog is about that.  Romans 8:28 points out that all things work to the good for the believer.  Sometimes we can't see that in the moment but sometimes we're blessed to see that, looking back, some things that were meant to harm us were actually for our own benefit. Some things I will never understand this side of Glory.  I mean that.  I have friends who are going through things that I just don't understand and never will.  But that's another matter for another day, I suppose.   I ...

Short post tonight gang.  We're going to talk about the book of Daniel.  OK, I'm not going to talk about it, I'm going to read chapter five.  You should, too. If you'd like to know why, you can find the first answer at bbnradio.org.  Go to their on-demand programming and look for a program entitled "Dynamic Living".  Take a listen.  Then take another listen to today's Running to Win (short version) online.  I don't know if BBN has this program on demand but if they don't you can find it at oneplace.com Yes the three things are connected.  Both programs were using the book of Daniel.  One used Chapter five and the first part of that program I heard earlier at my lunch break (which was yesterday).  The second half of the program will be on at 8:30 p.m. MST on BBN radio (99.5fm).  Running to Win airs this morning at 7:30.  It also aired at one a.m. which is on the drive home from work time for me.  I found it interesting ...

I don't know who I'm writing this to, but whoever it is, I'm hoping that the Bible verses I'm sharing tonight will help.  I can't explain why I needed to write this other than the story I'm telling you about it. I often speak of little random(?) things that happen in my life.  This little blog is going to be about another one of those little things. First off, let's start with the text for this message.  It's  Romans 10:9-17  (which will open in a new window when you click the link so it's easier to switch back and forth when reading!)  and it's all about Salvation. I saw Romans 10:9 earlier in the week.  Someone I know shared it on Facebook and I thought at the time it was a little random because there wasn't a comment to go with it.  Just the verse.  I actually looked up the verse to get the context of that particular passage.  You know me, context is key. I thought as I read it, 'yup'.  These scriptures sum up what i...

First off, let me apologize for the quality of the photos.  I took the first one today and cropped it.  The second one is a crop of a photo with Simba in it.   It gives you a bit of an idea of what Ba looked like and what the little one looks like.  The kitten wouldn't lift his head so I could get his pink nose in the photo so you'll just have to take my word for it. Today was an awesome day.  The praises at church far outnumbered the concerns!  That's always a blessing and I threw my 2 pennies worth, as did Miss June.  She's so thankful for this providence from God.  This little one truly is a gift from above.  Pink nose and all. I make a bit about the pink nose because most pussycats don't have them.  None of the ones we're temporarily caring for do except this one.  And y'all would have to admit that just having one pussycat in a litter is a might unusual.  Momma kitty is doing a great job of taking care of the lit...

I like spring.  I like watching to see what's coming up next in the flowerbeds.  Tulips are up next and lilacs won't be far behind.  There's the smell of freshly cut grass.  And then there's the inside of the joint. I've had the spring cleaning bug this week.  I took a day off to get caught up on some yardwork that I neglected to do last fall.  With the uncertainty of whether or not I'd be able to stay in the house all but removed, I decided it was time to get busy. I like it that cleaning products come in coordinated scents.  I found a lavender floor cleaner and air freshener.  The house smells nice and fresh.  I scrubbed the carpet in the bedroom today.  It gets dirty from the mutts.  I dusted and mopped too. It's kinda chilly outside today, so cleaning up the inside seemed like a good idea.  Miss June hasn't been home much lately and I don't mind doing the things I did today up in here.  I'm really gaining an unde...

I told you about Ba (RIP Simba) a while ago.  The story of him trying to poop in my shoe resurfaced the other day which made this story at least to June and I a little funnier. I'm all about spaying your pets.  My dogs are fixed and brother do I see the need to fix pussycats.  One of ours isn't though and she apparently escaped the confines of our house a while ago.  This morning I woke the sounds of soft mewing.  I thought it was coming from outdoors, but nope.  It's in here. So, I have to tell you the story of Simba as I remember it being told to me. Simba was an only child, an oddity in the world of pussycats having kittens.  A single kitten I think is quite rare.  Ba, who apparently was not little when he was born, was an only child.  I told you that Simba and my relationship was quite tenuous until he came home to live his final weeks with us.  Well, Simba was a black and white pussycat with a pink nose. We discovered a baby...

I had the melody "He is Risen!" stuck in my head last night before bed.  Imagine my surprise when this was one of the hymn selections at church this morning! I hope you enjoy this.  Happy Resurrection Sunday!

Today is Good Friday.  Today marks that day that Christ was crucified on the cross.  He paid it all, gave His all, and died for the sins of all of us.  You, me, all of us. Today we should all remember that.  Forgiveness had a cost.  And it was Jesus who paid it by hanging on a cross of wood with nails in outstretched hands and through His feet who paid that price in blood.

I dropped the engine of my tractor on my finger today.  It hurts. It really hurts. Hey, things happen, but the tractor story is a good one about patience and attention to detail.  I got in a hurry to fix it the other day and assembled the starter incorrectly.  About seven dollars in parts incorrectly but I have a great story about this. I bought the parts on e-bay for $7.75 on Tuesday afternoon.  They were on my doorstep at nine-thirty this morning, from Ohio.  I went to the shop where I bought the original repair kit and they didn't have another one.  I really didn't need another one so to speak, just the certain parts that once you put together that you can't take apart.  They don't come in that kind of kit anymore, but they used to and I found them on e-bay.  I had an appointment this morning but after that appointment, I worked on the tractor.  A band-aid and a can of fix-o-flat later, and by one o'clock this afternoon, the tractor ...

Red Greene says that if they "Can't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy."  I think handy was a good description of me today, but I gotta give praise and credit where it's due.  Here's my story: We bought a microwave for the kitchen, the over the range kind, to replace an old one that came with the house.  The one we bought didn't last very long so we found a replacement demo model from Home Depot for a reasonable price.  This was a few years ago.  I had to have both units repaired under warranty and we kept using the newer one because the turntable went round and round and back and forth and it has a cool blue interior.  The older new one was kept in storage as a spare. A couple of weeks ago, all the buttons quit working on the fancier of the two except the easy on button and the lights button.  I swapped it out for the spare.  Three days later, all of the buttons on the spare quit working.  I swapped it out for the one...