"Peaceful Easy Feeling"

I am imagining the headlines now......"Old Lady Attends Her First Rock Concert". Yes, by golly, I did. My longtime "Desperado", Jeanmarie, and I went to the largest indoor venue "In The City", last Wednesday night, to see the Eagles.
Everyone knows some of the songs that the Eagles have done.They are not the "New Kid in Town". This band has been around since the late nineteen-sixties. I've been told that they are one of the top-ten best bands of all time. And, after attending the concert, I certainly believe it.
Jeanmarie and I had a chance to "Take it to the Limit". We had a super time. As "Pretty Maids All in a Row", we were perched two rows from the top of the arena, and if there hadn't been a roof on the Sprint Center, we could have stayed to see a "Tequila Sunrise".
This "Witchy Woman" has now heard live Rock, Jazz, Zydeco, Classical (including Russian Liturgy), Pop and Country. "Life's been Good" in "The Long Run".

Great God: Sometimes it is good to step out of our comfort zone. We know that you have given us life in order to experience whatever we can. Life can be so full. Keep us ever mindful of your omnipotence and your omnipresence. We are your servants.

Sweet Dreams

Halloween is approaching. Time for ghosts and goblins. It is my least favorite time of year. And, here's why......
I am going to state, with authentic surity, that nothing good ever came from watching scary movies. Don't like them. Never did. Never will. Scary movies will keep coming back to haunt you.
The first really scary movie, that I can remember seeing,  was "Snow White". It was very frightening. It has to be the all-time kid-scarer of cinema. What was Walt Disney thinking? That movie has a scary looking queen, who becomes an even scarier looking witch, a killer woodsman, creepy trees, creepy logs that chase, a trecherous swamp, long falls in darkness, etc. It has poisoned food, a talking mirror, and to top it all off.....seven kind of creepy little men, who expect one small girl (although she has a big voice) to cook and clean for all of them.
The Indiana Jones movies scare me. Spiders and snakes creep me out. Cobwebs are just as bad. War movies are scary. Gangster movies frighten me. The Godfather movies are way too violent. Don't even get me started on the monster genre. I don't like murder scenes on TV. And, all of those Crime Scene Investigation shows are way too bloody and explicit.
I prefer not to watch anything that is the least little bit scary. I want to see nice, happy stuff.
Real life is frightening enough.

God and gracious God. My faith should keep me from being afraid, but it's hard not to be frightened. Keep me strong and be my anchor in times of trouble.
Keep me "safe and secure from all alarm".
I am ever thankful for your everlasting arms.

Deja Vu, sort of.

The bad news is, my car got towed this week. I parked in a no-parking zone, but I didn't know it. The no-parking sign was installed backwards, so when I pulled into the spot (the same one where I had been parking for a couple of months, where there was no sign), I couldn't see the lettering. Not seeing the sign, whichever way it was facing, is apparently not a valid excuse. Installing a sign, facing the wrong way is not a crime. It's just stupid.
Reason, it seems, in so many aspects of our daily lives, has disappeared.
The good news is, the car was not stolen or wrecked. Just removed, very expensively, to a tow-lot. You may remember the account of my last automobile loss. A couple of years ago, my former car was a victim of a hit-and-run. I called it the "Automobile Murder on St. John Avenue".
I don't have very good luck with cars.

Kind and all-knowing Lord: Teach me to focus on all of the positive things happening in my life. I know that my blessings are many. Help me to always be aware of the wonderful people and events that come into my life. Bad stuff should be the little stuff. Each new event is a learning experience. I am blessed beyond belief.

Short People got.....

Just the other day, I entered into a serious discussion regarding chairs. My employer asked me what type of desk chair I would prefer to use in my new cubicle?
Now, that might seem like a very easy question to answer. Many folks might reply brown or black. They would choose either slick upholstery or nubby. Some might even ask for leather, or more likely "pleather" these days. Most people prefer a black metal or silver toned frame for their chair.
Me?.....I replied, "Small and adjustable, please."
You see, I am vertically challenged. I'm shorter than the average American. I do not do TALL chairs! I avoid going to restaurants that have those fashionable, taller-than-average-tables. When faced with that type of seating, I can almost always climb up onto those tall stools by myself, but I have a really hard time dismounting, without assistance.
And, I don't like deep booths. That's a different type of chair challenge for shorties. Deep booths are built for tall people. My legs stick out straight and my feet don't touch the floor in that style of booth. (Think of a toddler on a regular chair.) Not only do I find them uncomfortable, there is something slightly off-putting about not having your feet on the floor. In a deep chair or booth, I must sit on the edge, never relaxing, in order to touch the floor with my toes.
In both of those seating situations, I often think about how I would not be able to hurriedly unseat myself, and run for the door. I can imagine the headlines now. "Short Lady Stuck on Stool".
So, I asked for small and adjustable. Kind of like myself.

Gracious Lord. Our lives are full of challenges and adjustments. It is the rare time that our published and carefully thought out plans are played out just like we hoped they would be.  Give us strength and courage. Keep us ever mindful that whatever happens, You are always with us. We open ourselves to you and your plans for us.

"All of me. Why not take all of me?"

Have you ever heard the statement that women are more skilled at multi-tasking than men. Men are supposed to be more single-minded than women. Men are supposed to be able to accomplish only one thing at a time. While women, it is said, can manage to do several things, equally well, at the same time.
My vast experience seems to speak to the truth of the above mentioned statements.
Take for example, someone I know quite well, who just happens to be a male. That someone can create a marvelous cream pie. I'm talking about 3 inch high meringue on top of a tasty cream filling. Or, the same person can make delicious chicken enchiladas or a spectacular pepperoni chicken entree. But, that same talented cook has a very difficult time creating an entire meal, let alone the meal and the clean-up afterward.
That fact noted, women often take their ability to multi-task to limits they should never attempt. I had a friend who damaged her eye quite severely, because she tried to apply mascara while driving in rush hour traffic. That was way before everyone had cell phones. Who knows what would have happened if she had been putting on eye make-up, while talking and driving, to boot?
I have a good friend who watches TV, while she talks to me on the phone. I never have her full attention. To me, it is very obvious that I'm getting only 1/4 of her awareness. She is listening to me with one ear, watching TV with both of her eyes and listening to the program with her other ear.
My multi-tasking takes a less dangerous path. I like to crochet, while I watch TV. Of course, while I hear 100% of the program, I only see about 50% of the same show. I also like to check my email, while I let my nail polish dry. Truthfully, my computer key board is a bit messy. Hot pink polish really highlights a black keyboard!
Maybe, multi-tasking is not all it is cracked up to be.

Great God. It is entirely possible that we would be much better off if we really gave 100% of our time and effort to the task at hand. Life would so much more intense. Prayers would be so much more heart felt. Help us to get it right.
We honor You, when we allow You to come into our whole being.
We praise You, Lord.
 

"Reunited and it feels so good."

I attended a High School Reunion this past weekend. And, as you can imagine there
sure were a lot of senior citizens in attendance. I was not a member of the Pittsburg, Kansas,  High School Class of 1963, but my very best-est, long time-st girlfriend is married to one of that year's graduates. My special friend and I were able to get in a good visit and I enjoyed being on the outside, an observer of the festivities.
It occurred to me, as I watched these folks chat and reminisce about their high school days, that their ages no longer made a difference. They were all 17 or 18, in their mind's eye. They were cheerleaders and football players, debaters and band members. They were the "shop" guys and the basketball players. They were the curly-Q eaters and the Coke drinkers. They were the kids that were "dragging the gut", or working at the IGA.
Yes, it was true and certainly obvious that most of them were heavier and shorter and slower, but they were all enjoying the moment. For just a little while on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, they were young again and having a great time.
Life is long, if we are fortunate. We experience a great many things over a lifetime. Some of them are good and some are pretty awful. But, after 50 years, we all should rejoice and enjoy the blessings of greeting our oldest friends. They knew us when we were raw and rough edged. Now, that the edges are smoothed, they still care enough to greet us with love and warmth. We are all survivors on the road of life.
Keep on, keeping on. The good may die young, but the tough keep on truckin'.

Gracious and ever-lasting God. We love you. We treasure our blessings. Our expeiences have made us the people that we have become. You have been our guide throughout the long journey. We know that you are always with us....every step along the way.
We praise your name.

Blogs, Journals and all that junk!

I heard a statement the other day that went something like this. "There are two types of people. There are those folks who use their time to keep a diary/journal and there are the others, who are too busy doing stuff to write it all down!"
I fall somewhere in the middle. Before starting this blog, I kept a journal, trying to add insightful entries every night, before going to bed.  My journal was supposed to help organize my thoughts and help me to become a better person. But truthfully, I think it just helped me rehash the junk that was going on in my life. I poured out a lot of anger and vengeance into those pages. Journaling didn't help me sleep, but it did keep me from grabbing something sharper than a pen and using it!
Now, of course, I blog. I've gone from daily journal entries to weekly (or almost weekly) posts, and I am trying to focus on the humor, the blessings and the oddities of daily life. This is my medium of choice. And, I am a better, happier person because of the change.

Lord Almighty. Our blessings are many. Why do we focus on the messes we make? You are all-forgiving, but yet we find it hard to forgive ourselves and others.
Keep us ever mindful of your promises of abundant and everlasting life. We praise your steadfast goodness.