Treeless - Day 3 - Part 2

We'll need a new sidewalk, but the house is now safe.  No more "sword of Damocles" hanging over it. 

These are some of the HUGE chunks of wood that they dropped safely in a small area.

Snowing sawdust in the backyard.

Our new bird feeding station.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Treeless- Day 3, Part 1

Here's this morning's work.

Seeing a tree with no branches reminds me of emptying everything out of a house where you've lived for x number of years and the house gets all echo-y and vacant.  It's kind of sad.

I'll post more at the end of the day.



Treeless - Day 2

12-29-11

I'll just post some pictures here. 

The crown was too tall to reach from the bucket.  One of the men climbed another 15 feet in the tree to cut the top branches.  Please notice that the tree itself isn't ten feet away from the front of the house and the street isn't much more than that on the other side.  Add power lines to the mix and you have a real treat for tree removal people.  These guys dropped everything in that tight little space.  Amazing!

Treeless

Our mighty more-than-a-century-old tulip poplar is starting to come down today.  The thing is over 90 feet tall and more than 14 feet around the base.  I can't begin to imagine how many storms it weathered in the last hundred years.  It has survived some pretty good ones in the six years we've been here.  But a few years back, Hurricane Ike blew through southern Indiana with 80 mile an hour winds for over five hours, and the old tree didn't fair so well.  The trunk has a huge split in it wide enough to see daylight through.

We had a tree guy chain the two parts together, but we knew it was only a temporary fix.  This year has been very stormy.  When the leaves fell this season, I was driving up from the west (not my usual route) and was horrified to see how bad the split had become even with the chain.  Thankfully, it didn't come down on us or our neighbors before we could take care of it in a safer manner.

Here are a couple of photos from today.  I'll update as the work progresses.

This morning 9 am

This afternoon around 3 from the back of the house.

No way was I going to get under their feet.

2012

I went on Facebook on Christmas in order to post a happy birthday message to Jesus.  I very nearly finished the post with "Next year in New Jerusalem". 

When I look at the news, I see new leadership in certain east Asian countries and many of the Middle Eastern countries.  Should the Muslim radicals have their way, there will be another attack on Israel.  And then what?  Joel 3 says that the Lord will defend His people.  Amos 9 finishes with "'I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,' says the Lord your God."

I get goosebumps matching up Biblical prophecy and the daily news. 

When the fig tree is used in the Bible, it mostly stands for the nation of Israel.  Jesus said (Luke 21) that this generation, the one that sees the sign of the fig tree, shall not pass away until all these things take place.  The generation that saw the replanting of Israel began in 1948. 

So I do what it says to do in Luke 21:31, as I see these things happening, I look up, for my Redemption draws near. 

I can't wait!!

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Winter?

There's no snow predicted for Christmas here.  None in the immediate forecast either.  However, the robins have once again disappeared and I saw a flock of sandhill crane flying south.  I'm guessing they know something that the weathermen don't.

At least there won't be any weather slowing down the people going to visit family and friends.  That's the good part.  Otherwise, it mostly looks a lot like November - gray and wet.

Merry Christmas, and thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Just in Case

Just in case someone hasn't seen my Christmas letter yet, I'm going to post it here.  The original Christmas letter had a different picture of Angela, but I posted that one earlier and thought a new one might be more interesting.  I wish everyone a wonderful Christmas with happy memories of both God's gift and family times together.

Christmas, 2011

Love to all of my families and friends.

It’s been quite a year here in Seymour.  My brother John visited twice – once in March and once in September.  We were able to visit Lori and her family in Kentucky, and John also wandered through Oktoberfest with us.  We carried a Flat Stanley with us (for a friend in Tennessee) and had a great time.

Angela also visited twice – once in August and once for Thanksgiving.  We are more than proud of her.  I had no idea that accountants spent so much time flying from city to city.  Here she is resting from her hectic schedule guarded by her watchdogs.  Abby turned two in July, and Buddy is now 8 years old. 

Les is four years at his current job, and I have been at the library for over six years.  This town has welcomed us in. I get a real sense of belonging when people say, “You remember when that building used to be …” or “She must have gone to school with you.”  Our church is filled with wonderful people who are bent on sharing what they have with the local community and outreach to the Dominican Republic.  Every year we gather shoes for the Dominican kids so they can go to school, new shoes for local children who need them, shawls for hospice (my special project), blankets and hats for Riley’s Children’s Hospital, and a food gathering project for Community Provisions.  This summer we raised 12 ½ tons of food.  I also teach Sunday School and Les has been asked on occasion to lead the adult and teen classes.

This summer I arrived at that certain venerable age where Ivy Tech allows me to take classes tuition-free.  I took a library course which gave me enough points to recertify for my library position.  It was both challenging and fun.  I decided to continue with online classes.  I started one almost as soon as the virtual ink was dried on the final exam of the library class.  Another class will begin in February. 

I intend to pursue my writing more intensely than I have for the last several years.  Also I sadly seeded most of my large garden to grass.  I’m keeping what Mother would call a “postage-stamp garden” and will hike to the farmers’ market for most of my fresh veggies.  My garden has yielded sparse results for three years, so I’m going to let those who do it better be my suppliers.

If you are interested in viewing my current doings, I’m keeping a blog at http://mydailyadventure-kathi.blogspot.com/. 

Love to you all and best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a very blessed New Year.

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

In My Time

Shortly before I was born, my grandfather sold the plow horses to buy a small tractor for his quarter section family farm.  Everything in that sentence has gone out of date in my lifetime!  In my mother's time, she went from outhouses ( in South Dakota in winter, brrr!) and heating the house with a wood burning kitchen stove (had to have at least one window cracked open even in winter for an oxygen supply) to our well insulated, state of the art heating systems which turn on and off automatically.  She rode in a Model T.  Propeller planes began to take passenger flights here and there in the country. 

By the time I was in fifth grade, man had circled the earth in a space ship and, before I went to college, people had placed footprints on the surface of the moon.  As a college student, only the very dedicated learned about computers.  The mainframes took up spacious rooms and had to be programmed with a special language on punch cards.  Now we have hand-held computers of all sorts from iphones to e-readers that access the world in under a second.

In Daniel, there is a verse that I have been pondering lately.  Daniel 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. KJV

I can't even reasonably ask how much more knowledge can be increased.  At the rate it's going, no one will be able to learn generalities.  We will all have to specialize in something so that we will be able to know anything at all.  As for running to and fro, among other examples of travel in general, there are real estate agents that keep a file of people to whom they have sold houses.  At the end of five years, they call those people back and tell them that it's time for them to move again.  Very few people live anywhere near their relatives anymore. 

The most telling sign of all is the re-establishment of Israel as a nation in 1948. No other nation in history has ever come back to its land and re-established a language long since gone out of use, let alone after 2,000 years. See Ezekiel 37, Jeremiah 31:21, and Amos 9:11-15 for examples of verses about the restoration of Israel.

I believe this is what Jesus was talking about when He said, "This generation shall not pass away until all these things have happened." Matthew 24:34  That generational count began in 1948.  Those people are 63 now.

And in the end, all I can ask myself is, "How much longer do we have to wait until the "end" arrives?"  I can hardly wait!

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

The Robins Are Back

Yes, it isn't even Christmas yet and the robins are back.  I'm thinking it will be a much milder winter than last year.  The robins know.

According to the fogs in August, we should have 8 or 9 snows.

According to the date of the moon on the first snowfall, we should have 5 snowfalls.

According to the robins - not much of a winter at all.

I vote for a little winter, but mostly I side with the robins.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Finished!!! - Well, Almost

Today I took the final exam for the library class that I've been working on since August.  The teacher allowed three hours for this test.  I've always been good at tests and I planned to knock off this one in an hour or so.  It ended up that I was only a few minutes short of the three hour limit and terrified that I might not finish in time.  I may not have gotten an A, but I'm sure that I passed which, for this class, is all that matters.  I need to pass.

Tomorrow is a trip to the dentist and, on Wednesday, I start another online class.  This one will be easier and more fun.  God willing, it will also be profitable.

Final Exam Coming Up

I've been lax about my blog while I was taking the online class.  Wow!  Was there a lot of homework!  Plus my brother visited for a week and Angela came during Thanksgiving week. But life is about to slow down a tad.

Christmas shopping is finished.  I have laid in a little extra food in case of bad weather. I have only my Christmas letter to write and send out.

I got my mother's Christmas letter a couple of days ago.  I know our family is widely scattered and we tend to keep track of each other once or twice a year - but mostly with the annual Christmas letter.  I did think, however, that when some family member or other died, the news would get around.  I was amazed to hear that I lost another cousin in August.

One might expect aunts and uncles to pass away, especially when they are well into their eighties.  Of those on my mother's side, I have lost only two married-in uncles. I'm the third oldest cousin on my father's side and the oldest one on my mother's side.  This is the third cousin I've lost, and they were all younger than I am.  Two of them were the only sons in their family.

I wonder sometimes - is our family so large that the statistics allow for some younger ones to die, or .... what? 

I had a Bible verse in mind about the death of young people.  When I looked it up, I found that I had the words wrong.  Whether this applies to my cousins or not, I can't say, but here is the verse that comes to me when I don't understand why someone suddenly disappears from my life when they haven't fulfilled a good number of years:

Isaiah 57

 ¹ The righteous perish,
   and no one takes it to heart;
the devout are taken away,
   and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
   to be spared from evil.
² Those who walk uprightly
   enter into peace;
   they find rest as they lie in death. (NIV)

Our nation especially is rushing towards amoral/immoral "lifestyles" as fast as it can.  Anyone who stands up for right and wrong is called bigotted, prejudiced, etc.  We aren't supposed to make someone "feel bad".  I wonder how those people will "feel" when they are dead and no longer able to change their minds about where they end up. 

God does not need anyone's permission to exist. 

(How do I get from Christmas letters to the state of the nation to hell in one blog?  I don't know.)

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

Going for Ten

These shawls are numbers five and six.  I have two more finished, one in the works, and one undecided as to pattern.  Maybe the last one will be a laprobe or something more masculine again.  And maybe it won't be the last one either. lol

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Ripple Shawl

Today I turned in three shawls and one lap robe.

This is the newest one and the only one I haven't posted yet.

I used a large hook and only one strand of yarn.  That made it more open and a little more lacy looking.

I spent four hours on homework today which is okay because the end is in sight.  I have a week's break and then only one project and a final exam.

Angela is coming on Wednesday.  And then Thanksgiving.  Woohoo!!

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Less Stress

Right at the time I started my online class with lots more homework than I had expected, we also lost a coworker in my department.  So I have also been working extra hours.  I thought we would be short of help for only a week or so - especially in this ecopnomy where so many are looking for work.  Not so!  That was August.  This is November!  It's been a struggle to juggle everything and I've eventually found a few corners that had to be cut if I was going to keep up with the necessary things.

Finally!!  Finally we have a lady who has been hired to work in my department.  I like her and hope she stays with us for sometime to come.  Besides that, I have only three weeks left of my class.  This coming week, I turn in a paper on my visit to another library.  The week after is a major group project for which I am responsible for the main paper.  The last week involves a final exam. 

In the same space of time - like before Thanksgiving - I need to finish my Christmas shopping for my northern family.  Angela always visits over Thanksgiving and then carries my gifts back with her.  Usually, that makes a nice escape valve before Christmas.  My shopping is done and I have only to get my Christmas letter ready and out.  This year...maybe not so much.

We'll see how it all plays out.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

P.S.  Ivy,  I'm thinking of making three more squares for Trinity's afghan.  When I made the strips, they stretched out to over five feet.  Once I sewed them together, they stabilized into a shorter blanket than I had intended.  Hopefully, you will be willing to sew them on to her afghan and make one big enough for her to grow into.

Love, Me

Pinwheel Shawl

I started this one as an afghan, but since I am a slow knitter at best, I thought I would make it into a shawl.  Someone in hospice will be happy with it.

I also finished weaving an afghan with yarn through a mesh fabric.  I can't post that one yet as it is a Christmas present to one of my family.  Shh! don't tell.

There's plenty more to come.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Waffle Scarf

Vacation Day 3

Yesterday I bought a little extra yarn and finished this waffle stitch scarf.  I do not yet know it's final destination.  I just wanted to try out this stitch.  I suppose that I could do a lot of different patterns as small blocks and then sew them together as a sampler afghan.  But I think if I make them all into something useful like this scarf, possibly someone somewhere will benefit.

Waffle stitch was fun and easy.  I have a few more patterns I'd like to try. 

The end of my online class is in sight.  Another month, I think.  My major projects are finished and I only have to keep up with week-to-week assignments.  Then we shall see what crochet I can do.  I also plan to do some more writing of children's books.  Do you think I can get at least one more published?

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Flying Plane-free

When I was little, I used to dream about flying.  When I was quite young, I could fly as high and as far as I wanted.  The older I got, the lower I flew and usually I would only go as far as the places I knew.  Somewhere around the age of eight or nine, I had one flying dream where I was so low that my belly scraped the ground.  I never had another flying dream after that.

I have from time to time pondered those dreams ever since.  Do you think that the soul remembers the time before it was born into a body?  The time when it was free to fly?  Do you think that at some point, the soul becomes so tied to its body that it forgets how to fly?

I've had the same feeling a couple of times when I was awake.  Those times were when I was in touch with God while I was praying and once when I wrote a 50,000 word story in 19 days.  There was no time to edit or make any corrections.  It was pure creativity - inspiration, if you will. 

I remember how much joy there was in those flying dreams and I look forward to the next time I'll be allowed to do it again. 

Happy All Hallows' Day.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Starting on the shawls

I'm starting on some shawls, possibly for hospice.  There were doubters on facebook - among my own family no less - who thought it took me a long time to do the step lapghan listed in the previous post.  I started this 20"x66" crocheted and woven shawl on Friday at 7pm.  I finished it on Saturday at 10pm.  In between, I also slept and worked an 8 hour shift.

The nickname "Speed-of-light Eickstadt" had nothing to do with being fleet of foot.  It had to do with my crochet hook.  lol

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

A Couple of Crochet Projects

Here are two of my current works in progress.  The step lapghan only needs a border and then it will go to a wounded veteran through Soldiers Angels. http://soldiersangels.org/blankets-of-gratitude.html

I appreciate our troops and this is the very least I can do for them.  I always try to get three lapghans in the mail during the fall.  As soon as the garden goes down, I pick up the crochet hook.

The flower one, assuming I get enough of it finished, is planned to become a prayer shawl for hospice.

We'll see what I finish along with the class I'm taking.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Northern Lights

A couple of times when I was young, Mother called me outside at night to see the northern lights.  It was always amazing to see the flicker and play of the aurora.

Tonight I spread out a sheet in the living room and brushed Buddy out really well.  I took the sheet out to shake the hair away and saw northern lights - in southern Indiana!  I had no idea they would be visible this far south.

The lights started with columns of a pale light reaching up above the Big Dipper which was hanging low in the sky.  Then the lights turned red, then stronger red and spread wider to the east and west.  The whole thing thinned until it resembled a heavy, reddish fog and finally faded away entirely.

Mother always said that a red aurora meant war.  Perhaps that came from the red auroras that appeared when Germany bombed London and again on December 7th, 1941, the day Japan bombed Pearl Harbor.  She would have remembered those events personally. 

I am aware that solar flares are the main cause of northern lights.  I also believe that God hangs signs and wonders in the sky.  We'll have to see if the omen holds true this time.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Noticing

I notice things that most people don't.  I'm not sure why I do and most don't, but I like what happens inside of me when I make connections.

I notice when the night goes out of the air in the morning.  Something changes in the atmosphere - maybe the humidity or that one degree of temperature.  Suddenly, it isn't early morning anymore.  It's full day.

When I was cleaning the backyard this morning, I found a violet and a dandelion.  I also saw a robin.  That combined with nippy air made me feel springy instead of almost winter.

A couple of the years since I've been in southern Indiana, the robins stayed all winter.  Those were mild winters. Last year, the robins disappeared around November 4th.  We had 13 snows.  Smart birds to get out of here before that all fell!  I will note when I stop seeing them this year.

Noticing weather patterns is one of my favorite things to do.  I was counting the fogs in August.  While I marked about 8 fogs, one of my coworkers, who travels through more open areas to get to work, said she's counted one for almost every day of the month.  I guess we'll see who comes out closer.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Early this morning

I heard on the news last night that there was to be a meteor shower between midnight and dawn this morning.  Les and I went out at 6 am in the frosty air. 

The sky was as clear as I've ever seen it. I can't tell you how many solar-stellar spectacles I've missed because of clouds.  Early this morning was not one of them.  I could see more stars than I remember ever seeing before. 

Orion hung right over the roof of our house and that was where we were to look for the meteors.  They were not spectacular.  If you've ever had a fields vision test at your eye doctor's, you know what the meteors looked like.  They were tiny flashes in the sky in the area of Orion's club. 

While I was admiring the sky, the two dogs were trying to herd me back into the house.  They couldn't understand why I would want to stand in the backyard before dawn in the frost when we could all be snoozing cozily inside.

I'm just glad I didn't miss this event.  It was quite wonderful.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

John and Abby

Abby, our foundling dog, had a difficult beginning in her life.  She was abused and then abandoned with her brother in November at the age of four months.  I do not understand how someone could do that to a baby dog. 

Anyway, Abby has issues with tall men.  We've learned to tell our taller guests to sit down in the rocking chair that is right next to the front door  so that Abby can see them without having a panic attack.  She barks like the world is coming to an end and growls after she finishes barking.  It tends to be intimidating to our friends.  Some people love us enough that they visit anyway.

When John visited in April, Abby growled at him all the way to the end of his visit.  Surprisingly, and happily, he came back this week.  Abby accepts him much better, but please watch the sequence of her state of alertness in these pictures.

John is slowly winning her over.  It will be a wondrous day when she greets him at the door in a happy way.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Cold Fronts

This week, we have had two cold fronts come through.  In both cases, the clouds at the front of the front looked unusual to me - and I've seen a lot of cold fronts in my day.

Here are a couple of photos from Sunday's cold front:

The flying object in the third picture is not unidentified.  Les was throwing a ball for Buddy to fetch.

Here are a couple of pictures of the front we drove under going home from Kentucky on Thursday:

Farther under the front was a very unsettled area with lowering clouds.  I was glad when we came out the backside of this front.

Perhaps it will frost this weekend.  I had predicted the 4th or 5th of October based on the first thunderstorm in spring.  It will be pretty close.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kentucky Sister

My husband, brother, and I went to visit our Kentucky sister yesterday.  I got to spend a little time with Ivy, my newest niece, and her daughter Trinity.  Trinity is inches away from turning two.  Here are a couple of the pictures of the day.

Our family has a certain sense of humor that we understand and that makes us laugh.  Not everyone gets it.  Just be forewarned about the next picture.  Our family would laugh.  I was helping with a Flat Stanley project for a friend's daughter.  Put those together and you get this:

We had a wonderful time.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Do You Suppose...?

A patron asked me about something called huck weaving or Swedish weaving.  I had never heard of it, but I gamely tried to find her some kind of information on the subject.  Well, I got curious and dug a little bit. 

With Swedish weaving, you can take a piece of monk's cloth, some yarn, and a yarn needle and turn a plain piece of white cloth into a piece of artwork.  The designs can be quite intricate and beautiful.  The process is simple.

Since I don't have a piece of monk's cloth handy, I pulled out a piece of afghan weaving mesh that I've had since before I got married.  Maybe I'll get it finished yet. 

I suddenly have so much to do that I've caught myself asking the Lord, "Will we be able to do crafts in heaven?  Will we give each other gifts?  Am I learning all of these things at once so I will know what to do when I get there?"

My favorite scent of Yankee Candle is no longer in production, so I might take up candle making once I run out of the ones I have.  What's next?

I hope I can do some of this stuff in heaven.  I sure don't have time to do it all now!

"If we had but world enough and time..."

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Ten Years Later

It's been said that our generation remembers where they were and what they were doing when three events happened: the assassination of President Kennedy, the explosion of the Challenger, and the attack on the World Trade Center.

I remember.  I remember how everyone suddenly became neighbors, no matter where we lived in the country.  I remember how everyone looked to God for at least a short time.  I remember flags springing up on cars and homes.  I remember the death and the heroism, and the families and friends who lost someone.  It seemed like everyone in the country at least knew someone who died.

I remember.  We must never forget.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Feeding Sheep

Yesterday Pastor told us a story during the sermon which captured my fancy.  See what you think of it.

A woman and her elderly mother started coming to our church for three months and then asked to become members.  The mother said that she had learned more about the Bible in three months than she had in 48 years at her old church.

Not too long afterwards, their previous pastor found out that they had transferred their membership and paid them a visit. He told them they were making a huge mistake gong to that church and the pastor didn't teach the truth.

When our pastor found out about the visit, he called the other pastor.  He said, "I hear you visited with these two ladies."

"Yes."

"I heard you told them I don't teach the truth."

"Yes."

"Have you ever attended one of my church services?"

"No.

"Have you ever heard one of my sermons?"

"No."

"Have you ever listened to a CD of one of my sermons?"

"No."

"Then how do you know that I don't teach the truth?"

"Well... You shouldn't steal other church's sheep!"

Our pastor said, "I don't steal sheep.  I plant grass.  If they get fed better here than they do in your church, that's your fault, not mine."

That's why I attend there.  The grass is excellent, juicy, and fresh every week.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

There's Something about September

Yesterday it was hot.  The last few days it's been in the neighborhood of a hundred degrees.  Today it is cooler, the cold front having come through last night.

Every year, there is a point at which I start planning ahead.  Today I bought enough honey from a friend of ours "to last through the winter".  From here until snow, I will put things by "to last through winter". 

I can still find robins if I look for them.  The trees haven't starting turning in earnest yet.  The grass is green, and there is no promise that the weather will stay cool, but I am planning for winter.

Maybe that's because we lived 8 miles out in the country when I was young and we kept a pretty well stocked pantry and big freezer.  There was no promise that the snow plows would get to our road inside of three days should we get a big snow. 

Maybe it's because I am the daughter of a farm boy and the child of Depression babies.  The Great Depression shaped the outlook of the children who lived through those years.  Some of them still won't throw things away, because they might find a use for it.  They learned to reuse, repurpose, invent, and make do with things today's children don't look at twice.  Anyone who thinks the previous generations didn't have "green" motivations hasn't spent any time with their grand- and great-grandparents.  Those people were the thriftiest, least wasteful people in the last century and a half.

We could take a lesson from the Depression babies. Here are my mother's three rules for buying anything:
1. Do you need it? 2. Can you get along without it? 3. Can you afford it?

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Awakened Brain

Maybe it's because I've started to study again.  Maybe it's because the fall is upon us and I don't have so much outside stuff to do.  But I have a class or two on my future study list.  One is on Children's Literature (In college, we called it Kiddy Lit.) under the category of library studies.  The other is an ungraded online class about writing for children. 

I enjoy Children's Literature classes because it gives me a good excuse to read children's books.  Not that I need much encouragement in that department, but I also find out which books are considered classics, hot topics, and current works of excellence.

The second one is taught by an executive editor from Scholastic.  As much as I understand that it is more of a generic class.  The critiques as very mild and are not likely to be much help in shaping a manuscript for market.  But I am intrigued to find out what an editor says the current trends are and what advice I might glean from one who chooses books.

I do remember asking God to help me find some new dreams.  It feels good to have new goals.  Some of the old ones were wearing a little thin.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Laughing at Homework

I'm taking an introductory class on libraries.  One would think that after 6 years of working at one, I would be able to handle that.  Right?

Chapter 2 study questions. 8 of them. I'm on question 3 which asks, "How did Gutenberg's invention of movable type change reading and printing in Europe?"

I started answering the question.  I typed the first sentence and then the giggles hit me so hard I could barely keep going.  I would never have written this answer when I was in college the first time.  I guess age makes you less afraid to laugh at yourself and at truly ridiculous things.  Furthermore, I'm older than the teacher and if I want to laugh at the class, I can.  So there.

Here's what I answered:

      "Handwritten books often took a year to copy and were prone to mistakes.  Gutenberg’s invention of movable type made it much faster to reproduce errors.  You could quickly make thousands of copies with the same error in each one.  I am thinking of the Wicked Bible published in 1631 by Robert Barker and Martin Lucas, the royal printers in London.  It lists one of the commandments as “Thou shalt commit adultery”.  They lost their printer’s licenses over that one.  (Sorry, that question cracked me up.)

            (Okay, straight face.)  Gutenberg’s invention allowed more copies of books
             to be quickly printed...."

(Lifting a glass)  Here's to a more mature outlook on the hilarity of life and a good laugh in the face of it all.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Poison Ivy

I have been pulling the same weeds for 6 years now and, not until this summer, have I had to recognize what poison ivy looks like.  I'm on my second round.  The first time, it went away fairly easily.  This time, it went from the back of my right hand to my face, my left arm (I cross my arms when I sleep) and into my hair.  Needless to say, I visited a doctor this time.  I now know what the stuff looks like and am prepared to do battle.  Actually, I'd rather never go anywhere near it again, but that won't solve anything.

Wish me well.

Kathi

First Day of Class - in Ages

I had my first chapter read yesterday.  I finished my first assignment and aced the first quiz.  I love school!  Always have. 

Short but sweet tonight.  I'm going to start on the next assignment.  Chapter 2, here I come!

Don't you wish your kids had that attitude?

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

Feast of Trumpets

While I know that Jesus can come back any time, any day, any year, and it's not mine to say when, I also know that there is only one unfulfilled Jewish feast.

The Feast of Tabernacles was fulfilled when Jesus put on a dirt body and "tabernacled" with us.  Jesus fulfilled the Feasts of Passover and Atonement when He died, and the Feast of Firstfruits when He rose.  The Holy Spirit showed up on Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks.

What's left?  Only the Feast of Trumpets.  When Jesus comes back, He will appear with a trumpet call. 

"For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will be with the Lord forever.  Therefore encourage each other with these words."  1 Thess. 4:16-18 NIV

Therefore, each year, while the news announces to me more loudly each day that the stage is being set, I watch for my Redemption to show up.  I especially pay attention during the Feast of Trumpets.  This year it will be on September 29th. 

I am NOT proclaiming a certain date for Christ's return!  I am saying that God is a God of order.  If He fulfilled each of the other feasts on the appropriate day, why would He change the pattern now?  But I am willing for Him to show up today if He wants to.  I'm in no hurry to wait another month and a half, or another year, if He has a different date in mind.

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

Abby's Perch

I caught Abby sitting in one of her favorite perches.  I just thought I'd share it with you.

She's managed to unzip two of the couch pillows from the back of the couch.  Oh, well.  It's pretty much the dogs' couch anyway.  lol

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

What Won't They Fry

'Tis the season for state fairs and local fests.  When walking around the concession booths, you wouldn't be at all surprised to find fried bread - also known as donuts or funnel cakes - and fried vegetables of various sorts.

Lately, I have noticed that no food is left out of the deep fryer.  Grab your cholesterol medicine and check these out:

deep-fried Derby cake

fried Snickers bar

chicken-fried bacon

fried avocado

spaghetti and meatball on a stick

hot beef sundae

fried pizza cones

Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich

deep-fried Twinkies

fried Coca Cola

fried lemonade

fried beer

Key Lime pie on a stick

fried butter on a stick

fried frozen margaritas

fried S'mores PopTart

fried chocolate

fried Frito pie

fried grilled cheese sandwich

fried banana split

fried Jelly Bellys

fried cookie dough

This list is not exhaustive.

Yikes!!!

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Joke

I got this joke from one of my aunts.  I'm not telling which one, because a couple of my cousins and one of my sisters might not think it's as funny as I do.

"I was eating lunch on the 20th of February with my 7-year-old granddaughter and I asked her, "What day is tomorrow?"
She said "It's President's Day!"
She is a smart kid.
I asked "What does President's Day mean?" I was waiting for something about Washington or Lincoln . . . etc.
She replied, "President's Day is when President Obama steps out of the White House, and if he sees his shadow we have one more year of unemployment."
You know . . . it hurts when hot coffee spurts out your nose . . . . . ."

Laughter is good medicine.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Fan Letter

Almost a decade ago, the picture book Chickens May Not Cross the Road and Other Crazy But True Laws came out in print.  In that time, I have received two - count them - two fan letters from children.  Today I received the second one.  The sad part of that is that it was mailed to me in April.  This letter, which was sent to Houghton Mifflin first, took four months to get from the child to me.  I answered it and had a response in the mail the same day. 

I am disturbed that I was not able to give that child the benefit of a quick response.  What if the letter was written to me in order to complete a report on an author?  That opportunity is past and a new school year has started.  Children accomplish emotional and rational growth during a summer.  What if my book is now too young for that child and he's no longer interested in an answer from me?

In case you have ever written to someone you admired and didn't get a quick response, please understand that it might not be the fault of the one you wrote to but rather the staff surrounding that person.  Those of us who are not exactly overwhelmed with admiration are thrilled to hear from our readers. 

Thanks, Cody.  You made my whole week.

Kathi

True or Not True

I have had opportunities to discuss evolution with a number of people along the way.  I don't see how it holds up either by Biblical means or by true (proven) science.

The lessening of the earth's magnetic field, the finite energy of the sun, the dating of the Mount St. Helen lava dome (1986) to 350,000 years with some compounds dating 2.8 million years old, and the disproval of spontaneous generation, among other evidence,  refute evolution. 

Scientists who believe in evolution created the landing module for the first lunar mission.  Given billions of years, they expected somewhere around 6 feet of space dust to have accumulated on the moon's surface.  So they designed "camel feet" for the module so it wouldn't sink into the dust. Go to Google images sometime and search for pictures of footprints on the moon.  It may be an inch deep.

(If you argue that the "lunar landing" never happened, that it was all staged, why didn't they pile up several feet of dust for the pictures?)

My personal biggest reason for not buying the theory of evolution is sex.  Two unrelated animals cannot have viable offspring.  Either the gametes will be too different to begin life or the offspring will be unable to live in its environment.  Animals of more closely related kinds might have viable offspring, but they will not be recognizable to possible mates.  Their actions, voice, or appearance will not attact mates.  A donkey and a horse are close enough in type to have offspring, but mules are sterile.

Even more compelling, how in all of time and all the earth could a male and female, both fully functional and both very close in kind, accidentally find each other to mate?  What evolutionary benefit would male organs and female organs be, separate from each other?  How and why would sexual reproduction accidentally develop? 

The theory of evolution demands at least as much faith as believing in a creation designed by an intelligent Designer. 

I once sat in a college biology class and listened to the professor describe the intricate exchange of two chemicals in the nerves.  One chemical allows the electric signal from your brain to pass to the muscles.  The other chemical inhibits the electric signal.  If these two elements don't do what they are supposed to do, either you would not be able to use any of your muscles, or the electrical signals would be continuous and you would have constant seizures.  Please don't expect me to believe that this came about accidentally!  What creature could live through any experimental stage?

Bombadier beetles have two compartments in their bodies that store chemicals which explode when they come in contact with each other.  How would any prototypes survive without being fully formed in the first place?

One more point.  Some people try to combine evolution with the Bible.  They'll say that the "seven days" really mean "a very long time".  Or God oversaw evolution over a very long time.

If you decide that the first chapter of the Bible is not true or is inaccurate, at what point do you draw the line between the true and not true parts?  If you start ripping pages out of the Book, when would you stop?  What exactly would you have left?

Think about it.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

What Happens Next?

I want to give credit to my mother for teaching me at a young age to ask myself, "What happens next?"  It was her way of training me about consequences or, if you will, sowing and reaping. 

Her original lesson probably had something to do with the way I treated my baby brother. If I hit John, what happens next?  At first, the answer would have been that I would get in trouble.  But as John grew, the answer became "John will hit me back and then we'll both get in trouble".

Somehow that particular training attached itself to almost everything in my life.  For instance, if it's high summer, what happens next if I park my car facing south?  The seat and the steering wheel get very hot and I will be sorry when I have to drive with burning hands.  Solution: as often as possible in summer, park facing north or in shade.  In winter, I would want to park facing south in the sun so the wind won't blow right into the engine.  The car will be as warm as possible if the sun is shining and it will be easier to start the car. 

If store-boughten dog food isn't contributing to the health of my dogs, what happens next?  I can choose to keep feeding them convenient food and pay for vet bills and have them be less healthy and die younger, or I can improve the quality of their food and have healthier, happier dogs, fewer vet bills, and keep them with me longer.

Also since I learned to stop hitting my baby brother at a young age, we were able to become friends sooner.

Thanks, Mom, for the training.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Garage Sale, No Rain

It was supposed to rain both Friday and Saturday this weekend.  I held my garage sale those days and prayed for no rain during garage sale hours.  So far, no rain.

We succeeded in getting rid of some big things and some extra s-t-u-f-f.  We just didn't need all of the things we had.  What didn't sell will go to the Lutheran thrift store and the extra book will go to Friends of the Library.  Everybody gets something good out of the deal.

I'm not witty or even necessarily coherent tonight.  Too much not enough sleep.  I'll do better next time.

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

Garage Sale Tomorrow

I meant to hold this garage sale next week, but I can only walk around the heap of stuff in the dining room for so long and tomorrow is it.  The extra stuff is going!  Some of it is good stuff - even a few precious things.  But if I haven't used it and have no intention of using it, why should I keep it?

It has finally dawned on me that even if I don't have something that reminds me of a person or event, I'll still have those memories.  And if I lose the memories, senility or whatever, then having the thing won't necessarily bring the memory back.  I don't have to keep dusting the items to keep the memories.

The heat seems to have broken - at least a little bit.  For that, I am very grateful.

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

Flight to Heaven by Capt. Dale Black

I spent a good chunk of my day finishing this book, Flight to Heaven by Capt. Dale Black. I seldom find a book I can't put down.  This was one of the few.

In my opinion, it is much better, more well-rounded, more fulfilling than 90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper.  And all of the glory goes to God.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

A "No List" day

Here's what I do when I don't have a list to guide me. 

Vacuum, fix a window, go to the post office and the library, clean two storage rooms, pull together a pile of stuff for a garage sale, bake two loaves of dog bread and make a pot of dog stew.  I also worked on my current yarn project.

Buddy is terrified that we're moving again because I've been making a big pile of stuff in the dining room.   Abby hates it when something changes.  I've had to sit at the computer every so often during the day so the girl can relax a little.

Just wait until we have the sale and strange people start walking around on our yard.  lol  It's going to be a trip!  But I'm happy because it's going to be good to get the dead weight out of here.  Yes!!!

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Good Morning, Dogs

My two dogs hate it when I sleep too long.  They get concerned for me if I'm not up and at 'em shortly after sunrise.  In summer, that's much too early for my taste, but apparently dogs like first light as much as the birds do.

Buddy comes to the bed with two tennis balls stuffed in his big golden retriever mouth.  He will casually spit them out by my ear, by my armpit, by whichever body part he thinks might attract my attention.  He wants me to throw the balls so he can chase them.  Great fun first thing in the morning, right?  I, being a human and not thinking too clearly after being recently fast asleep, throw them to get rid of the slimey things.  But that just plays right into the paws of a golden who loves to retrieve as much as he loves to eat.  Boomerang balls.

Abby has several ways of "seeing to my welfare". I might suddenly have a cold, wet nose pasted to my own nose.  She might sneak onto the bed and curl up next to me, suddenly raising the temperature of my environs to something over a hundred degrees. Or, my personal favorite, and I mean that, is that Abby has mastered the word "mom".  She will simply hum the "m" if the situation isn't too critical.  I'll hear a low, quiet, growly "mmmmmm".  If I don't respond, she'll do it again until I do respond.

The more stressed she gets, the closer she comes to completely saying the whole word.  Abby's early abuse has led her to an abiding distrust of men in general and tall, thin men in particular.  One time, the postman came to the door with a good-sized package for me.  He knocked, and I went out on the porch to take the package.  Abby was inside the glass door watching in horror.  Suddenly she came out with, "momomomomom".  The postman and I looked at her, then looked at each other in surprise.  Neither of us laughed, because Abby was so obviously in distress.  But we both heard her say the word repeatedly.

And none of this has to do with feeding or going outside.  Les does that for them.  Then they come to get me up.  Sigh!

I haven't needed an alarm clock all summer.  So, how is YOUR morning going so far?

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Long Weekend

Usually when I get a couple of days off in a row, I make a list of everything I want to accomplish and I cross it off when it's done.

This weekend, in spite of dust and weeds and pruning, my list will be short.  Dog bread and reading.  That's it!

Well, not really.  I know more than that will happen.  I get bored if I sit too long.  But I'm not going to make a list.  Everything extra that I do will just be an accident.  lol

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Another Blog by Me

Told you my life is never boring.

I've added another blog to my repertoire, http://kathisbooklist.blogspot.com/

There's not much I love better than books and, now that I've started blogging, this seemed like the perfect thing for me to do. 

I hope that, as you read what you like, you will add your book reviews to my book list so it will become a useful tool for people who want to know what to read or what not to read.

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi

Borrowed Wisdom

I ran across this in another blog.  I really like it.  In many respects, it is a calling to follow where Jesus led.

The Paradoxical Commandments
by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

© 1968, 2001 Kent M. Keith

A Simple Thought on Politics

I understand that life is not fair, but it would be nice to see a level playing field.

The left-leaning media and the liberals call the conservatives names of every kind - obstructionists, racist, bigot, the party of corruption, etc., etc.  And almost everything that is discovered to be true is practically a hanging offense.  If a RUMOR is started about a Republican, they have to leave office because of the "seriousness of the charge".  Just for a rumor!

If, however, the liberals in Congress are found to be guilty of sexual discretions, it's their personal business.  It may even be a resume enhancement.  (Should we bring up Al Gore's "package" photo?)  If one of the members of Congress used to belong to the KKK, it is never brought up, let alone named as racism. 

Credit where credit is due, Nancy Pelosi has called for ethics investigations into the last two issues that arose. 

But now, with the economic welfare of the country in grave danger, the House passes something semi-viable, and the Senate declares it DOA without so much as a proper debate, let alone a vote. 

Now who's obstructionist?  But no one is going to call them by that name.  It might hurt a liberal's feelings.

I just want a level playing field.

Kathi

Just a Stray Thought

Neither heaven nor hell is a democracy.

I could expound on that, but it seems to be worth individual thought.

Kathi

Some of My Inkle Weaving

My brother John made me an inkle loom.  I've been practicing weaving belts and bands on it.  Here's some of my work.

I'm going to try to make enough bands and belts so that I can set up a booth at one of the next farmers' markets.  The fourth Saturday each month is open to people who do handcrafts.

Thanks for visiting with me,

Kathi

the Light

A couple of statements I heard this morning stuck with me in a big way.  The Scripture was Jesus saying, "I am the Light of the world".

There are many people who deny the Light, but no one denies the darkness.

One of today's stories: Two men went out to explore the world.  One took a torch.  The other decided he didn't need one.  When they returned, the one with the torch said, "Everywhere I went, there was light."  The other responded, "Everywhere I went, there was darkness." 

The point is, when you go, everything depends on Who you take with you.

Kathi

Two Sad Stories with a Pretty Good Ending

Buddy and Abby are our third and fourth dogs. 

First, we got Chester, a 5-year-old golden from one of my college roommates. He was a well-trained dog and helped teach us dog novices how to keep an indoor pet.  Chester lived to be 12 1/2 years old - pretty good for a large-sized dog. 

Chester lived with us for about 2 years and did okay, but not what I would call thriving.  I decided that, since he came from a house with another dog and a cat and two growing children, that our house was too tame for him.  We thought we would give him a dog friend.  And that's how Chelsea came into our lives.

Buddy and Chelsea

I had never raised anyone or anything from the ground up, so this was a REAL learning experience for me.  Chelsea came with a bladder infection, so we were up every two hours every night for a couple of months.  She went through three courses of medicine before it cleared up.  I was nearly dead by then, but somehow that bonded the two of us for life.  Chelsea was with me through three moves from state to state.  When I didn't know anyone around me, Chelsea was there.  I wouldn't say she saved my life, but she certainly helped maintain my sanity.

Two summers ago, on July 7th, we had to put Chelsea down.  She was 10 3/4. I told Les that I hoped Buddy could manage to be an only dog, because it was too hard to put our pets to sleep.  Well, Buddy made it five months.  Then he went from sad to really sad.  We both spend good chunks of our week working, and he was alone in the house for hours at a time. 

Finally, I relented.  I went on http://www.petfinder.com/ and tried to pick out the perfect dog to be Buddy's new friend.  What I found was a smallish female which looked like a black lab.  The article about her described her as a very laid back dog.

We visited with the family who had her (the lady works in our vet's office and we all knew each other) and learned this puppy's story - as much of it as anyone can know.

When I saw her, I immediately knew that her name had to be Abby, so that's what I'll use in this story.

Abby and her brother (who now lives in Michigan) were found wandering in the woods behind this family's place.  They happen to be dog rescuers.  The two puppies were about four months old, abandoned in the woods in November.  We don't know how long they were on their own, but it took a while to stop Abby from being a garbage eater.  We know they had been abused.  Abby had a spot under her chin that was caused by neither fungus nor bacteria.  Should we guess that it was a cigarette burn?  She also has a scar along the inside of her thigh.  Don't know when that happened.  She barks at all tall thin men - especially ones with lightish hair.  My brother John has to sit down before she'll crawl up to him for a timid petting.

The point of this story - tonight's point anyway - is this.  Abby was about 4 months old when she was found in November.  Backtrack that and you get July.  We choose to say that Abby was born on the same day that Chelsea died.  It is sort of poetic and gives me a small sense of continuity.  I am aware that they are not the same dog, not the same personality of dog.  Chelsea was all golden retriever down to her toe nails.  She was the consummate companion dog.  Abby, for all that she looks like a black lab, is 100% Jack Russell terrier.  We call her our terrier-ist.  She barks at everything.  She dances on her hind legs when we come home. She stands on her hind legs to look into bushes for birds.  She likes to climb. She runs rings around Buddy, who just stands and watches her with an Odie-like grin on his face.  She was a digger before we started feeding her better food.  She has caught and killed a couple of birds.  The girl is FAST! 

No, she isn't Chelsea, but she can share a significant day with her predecessor without any stretch of the imagination.  And she does like to curl up next to me just like her predecessor did.  She just doesn't take up as much space on the bed.

Buddy and Abby

Thanks for visiting with me.

Kathi