Things to do when you can't sleep!

Well, this is unusual. Usually, Sue is the one that ends up waking up and coming out to the living room. I was reading a book and finally put my light out at about 3:30 and here it is 6:05 in the blessed am. Can't sleep. Uncomfortable. Oh well. Maybe this is good. I can actually blog more than once a month!

As I said in the last blog, the house is starting to take shape. We stopped at Wally World yesterday, and picked up a few odds and ends that we still needed. I am still in shock that we actually have bought this house. We can do what we want with it. We don't have to get anyone's permission to do anything. For example, later today, Directv is coming out to install our satellite dish. We don't have to get permission from a landlord to have it installed! I love it!

If we want ( and we do ) we can get a dog. As a matter of fact, we have already picked out the breed of dog to get. We are getting a Sheltie. We have done some reading on the breed, and we have friends who have one who is still pretty spry at 20. Long life for a dog!

Of course there is a downside to owning a house. I hooked up a hose in the back yard, only to find that I will need to replace the water faucet outside because it has a heck of a leak! Oh well.

More news when it becomes less available!

The Joys of Owning a Home!

The Joys of Owning a Home!
Well, the financing came through. We now have moved in. Moving was
A lot of fun. The movers showed up on Saturday, the 27th to move the big items. (The couch, the computer desk, the beds etc)
We had a friend from church show up with two of his sons to help us move the rest of the stuff. We got the majority of it out on Saturday, and went back Monday for another load. Tuesday we went to get the rest of it, and discovered that the Apartment management had come in and taken out the stove. We had been paid up till the 1st of June, but that didn’t seem to bother them. Oh well, we are well out of that place.

I have been trying to do all the little odd jobs that need to be done, putting up showers, putting magnets on the cabinets, etc. Apparently I have been trying to do too much too soon. We went and picked up Tara on Thursday of last week, (The 1st of June) and she, Sue and Sandy got together and jumped on me telling me I was overdoing it.
I had to cut back on wheat I was trying to do. Oh well.

There is definitely a lot of things to do, I just wanted to try to get things done so I could relax. I guess I have to relax and do these little odd jobs little by little.

I will keep you all informed as things progress!

Been a reeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay long time!

Man oh man, time flies when you're having fun. Or in my case, when you finally get a life! We have been very busy with this that and everything else. Got an extra chunk of $$$ for Uncle, so decided to get out of this %$@& apartment we have been living in for the last two years!
We started long for rental houses, at first in the paper. We made a few calls, and seemed to get nowhere. Nobody returned any calls.
Next we called a friend of a friend, who is a ReMax agent. He started looking at places for us. We ended up looking up in The Colony. My first thought was, “Dang that’s a ways up there!” At first it really seems like it is. It is roughly 10 miles from where we are now. We found a place we liked, not the greatest but decided we could live there for a few years and at least be happy we were not living in the apartments from Hell anymore.
We paid the deposits on a Thursday, and Monday we were still waiting to hear about the deal. Sue told the girls that we had the place and we would be moving in on the 12th of May. ( Which is what we had decided on ) Mandy we get a call from Jordie our Remax guy. The other agent on the house had rented it out from under us. He was nearly as steamed as we were!
During our search for rentals, Jordie had mentioned that as I am a veteran we should seriously look into buying a house, instead of renting. At first I was resistant, because I really didn’t think we could. However the guy Jordie uses for finance, crunched the numbers and tells us we can get a conventional loan.
Back to the drawing board.
We started looking for a house to buy. We ended back up in The Colony, because what we can afford, the best deals are there. We are getting a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage place with a fireplace, and ceiling fans in all the rooms. Nice fenced in back yard etc.
SO now we are waiting for the financing to go through, and praying that we can get in.

Been a long time...

Boy oh boy can life get busy! In the time since my last post, we have obtained a car. A 1989 Ford Crown Victoria (Which I promptly named"Vickie"!) I know, my first thought was, those things blow up!!! When this opportunity came, Sue reminded me that I had said "I'll never drive one of those!"
However the friend who helped us find it put it in perspective for me. The police cars we have all read about that have blown up were generally hit from behind at a high rate of speed. One that I know a lot about was Phoenix, AZ Police Office Jason Schecterle, who was filling out reports in his Crown Vic Cruiser, when a drunken cab driver slammed into him in excess of 100mph. So it's a matter of perspective. By the way, Shecterle survived although he was severely burned, and has had have many surgeries to reconstruct his face, and will likely face more over the rest of his life. A courageous man with a loving wife and children, who should have our prayers. A year and a half (or perhaps two) after the accident, he is back at work doing public relations for the Phoenix PD ( or something along those lines)

Anyway, we now have a car, and that has freed us to do a lot of things we couldn't do before.
We have been taking care of things, and going places that it was difficult for us to do before. Thanks, God!!!

Did anyone notice I was gone?

Sorry it's been a few days since my last post. I have been just a tad busy.We received my back-disability this week, and we had a lo of long needed things to get. Now we are in the market for a car. God will provide.

Not to mention that Sue and I are both still in school, and also homeschoolng Sandy. I need to have a 48 hour day.

Hello everyone: This is Mike's better half Sue. I finally got around (I was looking for my square, but couldn't find it, so I thought I would just go with the round) to posting on here. Hi Mike! Love you sweetie. I probably won't be posting on here much at the moment as I am busy with my schooling and Sandy's (our oldest daughter) schooling. We are homeschooling her at it is a challenge to keep her interested in school. Anyway, here is my hello and welcome to everyone.

Sue

Moday Musings

Monday Musings
Well it's Monday. I just finished reading a book about the Apostle John, called The Beloved Disciple." by Beth Moore. A very interesting read.
I am now reading "An Autobiography of God", by Loyd John Ogilvie. He uses the parables of Jesus to give a better picture of God.

Can you tell I am on a theological kick? I read a lot of different types of books. I read novels, Sci-fi and fantasy, thrillers, horror, Cop stories and the like. I also read biographies, autobiographies, true life crime cases, and have recently added theological studies to my list. I get the feeling that God is behind this latest interest.

It's probably got something to do with having found a great church a couple of years ago now, and taking over the library at that church. I have been cataloging the books into a computer database, and as I do, I have been seeing titles that make me think, "Hmm, I ought to read that!"

One excuse after another has caused me to not read most of the books I have found interesting, and now I feel led to read most of them. Will it make me a Theologian? I doubt it. Will it give me a better understanding of the God I serve? I hope so.
I do not mention this pursuit to show that I think I am better than anyone. I know well that I am no better in many ways than the lowliest of the lowly. I am just a struggling Christian who wants to find a better way to find what path God has set before me. If anyone who reads this is lifted up by God to follow similar pursuits, then Praise God. He put the idea into your heart, not me.
Blessings to you all.

The Book of Daniel

The Book of Daniel

We watched this controversial new show out of curiosity. For those not familiar with the storyline, “The Book of Daniel” is a new NBC show starring Aidan Quinn as The Rev. Daniel Webster. Daniel is an Episcopalian minister with a gay son, a daughter who gets arrested in the opening for selling pot, a brother in law who has just absconded with $3.2 million in church funds, and a pill popping habit. On top of this he sees and talks with Jesus Christ. (Garret Dillahunt) Therein lies part of the controversy this show is already causing. Without having seen it a many people are up in arms over the depiction of Jesus in a weekly television show.
Jesus, as portrayed by Dillahunt uses humor, empathy, and love. When Daniel asks Him to solve a problem, Jesus advises, but makes Daniel look within for answers. Instead of giving Daniel a specific answer to a problem, Jesus comforts him and offers advice.
     Several TV stations have refused to air the program, and that is their right certainly, but condemning this program without even giving it a look , in my opinion is the same as judging a book by it’s cover.
     I suspect the show will not last through it’s 13 episodes that have been filmed, but I for one am intrigued enough to give it a chance.
     A couple of seasons back, CBS ran a series called” Joan of Arcadia, which starred Amber Tamblyn as a 15 year old high school freshman who saw God, in various forms. Sometimes it was a “Cute Guy” other times He would appear as an old lady. Sometimes He was even a child.  The show was slow to pick up an audience but managed to last 2 seasons before the network dumped it. Again my opinion is that canceling “Joan” was a loss for quality television.
     Is “Book of Daniel” quality television? I don’t know it’s hard to say from one episode. I hope NBC gives it a chance for us to find out. I hope the network doesn’t bow to pressure from people who have not or will not watch it, to decide for the rest of us.

Film Review: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

I told you the other day I would write a review of this film, and here it is.

Sunday afternoon, Sue and I took our three girls, 14, 12, & 10 to see the movie. (Tara and Elisa, the younger two had already seen it in Missouri, but the rest of us had not).

This was a much-anticipated film, having seen the teaser trailer, then the main trailer of it several months ago. I had not read the books before, so this summer we borrowed them from the church library, and proceeded to read them. Sue had read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe as a child and enjoyed it. We both enjoyed all seven books.

Now to the movie: There are a few, very few, departures from the book. One, depiction of a German attack on London prompts the mother of the four Pevensie children to send them to an imposing mansion in the country. The event was mentioned only briefly in the book, but opened the film. I know there were a few other minor alterations, but for the life of me I cannot remember them.

The director, Andrew Adamson (Shrek& Shrek 2) has done a marvelous job of translating this beloved C.S. Lewis work to the silver screen. The film was shot almost entirely on location in New Zealand, which also recently doubled for Middle Earth in Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

The casting of the children was artfully done. Casting children in film roles can be problematic at best in many cases. You often wind up with a kid who cannot act, or are so sickly “cute” as to invoke immediate diabetes. In this case however, the filmmakers held out for some kids who could actually act, and do it well. The older Pevensies, Peter and Susan were superbly played by William Moseley, and Anna Popplewell, respectively. Skandar Keynes plays the sullen Edmund who finds himself led astray early in the story.
However young Georgie Henley as Lucy, the first of the four children to enter the magical realm, easily steals the show! She is a delight to watch, and could be likely be among the youngest actors to be nominated for a best actress Oscar.

Tilda Swinton (Vanilla Sky, Constantine) is regally evil as the White Witch, but manages to bring to the role an icy humanity even though she is clearly the villain of the piece.

Liam Neeson (The Phantom Menace, Schindler’s List) voices the enigmatic lion, Aslan.

The visual effects are outstanding. When you first view the Land of Narnia, you can almost feel the cold of the winter without end. I would highly recommend this film. See it, and then go back and see it again. There are some battle scenes, and mild violence that may be a bit frightening to younger children. The film is rated PG.

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year one and all. Here’s hoping 2006 will bring joy to everyone. I know in our lives he prospects are looking pretty good thus far. We have many blessings heading our way, some have already arrived; our kids, some of the disability money, and most important of all, my continuing relationship with my Wonderful Counselor, Jesus Christ. None of the former would have been possible without the Latter!

Today we plan to take the kids to see The Chronicles of Narnia. I will write a review of the film for tomorrow’s blog.

In the meantime, we are getting Tara and Elisa packed for their flight home tomorrow. Our good friend Kurt ( one of the contributors to the blog )  has offered to take us to the airport, and we greatly appreciate it.  This will be their first time on a plane. They will be flying with each other under the watchful ( hopefully ) eyes of the flight attendants of the airline.  We will miss them, but we will soon be busy getting Sandy on insurance here in Texas, getting her curriculum figured out for home schooling, oh yes, and Sue and I will be starting our next classes in school ourselves.

Friday and Saturday I will be attending the Church Officer retreat at our church, and preparing for ordination as a Deacon on Sunday. Quite an honor to have been called, I pray that God will guide me in this service.

At any rate there are a lot of new things happening in our lives this year. May your lives be as blessed as our lives are. Happy 2006

The Wit & Wisdom of Dubbya!

It was a heckuva phrase..
By Arthur Spiegelman Fri Dec 30, 9:05 AM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Call it the wrong phrase at the wrong time but "Brownie, you're doing a heckuva job" was named on Thursday as U.S.
President George W. Bush's most memorable phrase of 2005.

The ill-timed praise of a now disgraced agency head became a national punch line for countless jokes and pointed comments about the administration's handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster and added to the president's reputation for verbal gaffes and clumsy turns of phrase.
Paul JJ Payack, president of Global Language Monitor, a nonprofit group that monitors language use, says Bush's statement in support of the then-director of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency may be remembered for years to come.
"The 'Brownie' quote leads our 2005 list of Bushisms -- memorable phrases or new words coined by the president," Payack said, adding that Bush may be the foremost White House creator of new words, citing such past efforts as "misunderestimate" (to seriously underestimate) and "embetter" (to make emotionally better).
Ten days after Bush verbally patted Michael Brown on the back before the TV cameras, Brown resigned amid a public uproar over his qualifications and the administration's failure to get aid to New Orleans after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Although the president did not originate any new words this year, he had several notable statements, Payack said, citing the following:

-- "See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda," Bush said in explaining his communications strategy last May.

-- "I think I may need a bathroom break. Is this possible?" Bush asked in a note to Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice during a U.N. Security Council meeting in September.

-- "This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous. And having said that, all options are on the table," Bush said in Brussels last February.

-- "In terms of timetables, as quickly as possible - whatever that means," the president said of his timeframe for passing Social Security legislation in March.

-- "Those who enter the country illegally violate the law," Bush said in describing illegal immigrants in Tucson, Arizona, last month.

Global Language Monitor uses an algorithm to track words and phrases in print, electronic media and the Internet. The words and phrases are tracked in relation to their frequency, contextual usage and appearance in global media outlets.

The Party's Over...

Well here it is, nearly the end of another year. The news media are talking about the big events of 2005. I am going to mention just one.  Most notably, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The devastation of New Orleans was catastrophic, but (now prepare your cat-o-nine tails to flog me here!) sadly inevitable. You have a city that built under sea level, protected by sea walls that can only withstand a Category 3 Hurricane. Hurricanes for the last several years have been getting stronger, and stronger. Did anybody think about trying to reinforce them just in case? No. We got a lot of “Oh well a Category 4 isn’t gonna happen.” No It was a Category 5! ( I read something the other day that by the time Katrina actually hit, the winds had actually diminished to a Category 3. I’m sure that the people who died, and those who have been displaced and lost everything are really glad that the storm wasn’t as bad as everyone thought it was!)
Of course this comes from the same people that don’t believe in the Kyoto Accord. Global Warming is a myth. Iraq has those darn WMD’s I know it Just gimme some more time and we’ll find ‘em!

Suffice it to say that I have a little trouble feeling sorry for people that get flooded out year after year and keep going back. To me this is the same as someone who walks out into traffic and gets hit by a car. He gets medical treatment, then goes out and walks into traffic again, and again, and again! Not big learning curve is there!  Frankly I say let New Orleans go back to the swamp! (Got those whips handy?)

Then there were the people of Gulfport, Mississippi. Remember them? Anybody?  Several hundred people died and lost their homes and businesses there, but do we hear about them? Not really New Orleans get all the coverage, ad most of the help. Well, I suppose one good thing did come out of the disaster.
Michael Brown (of FEMA) found himself a better job!

The post Christmas Pre NewYears Oh Good Grief the bills are coming soon Holiday Blahs!

Well folks, Christmas has come and gone. (Judging by the amount of people that showed up for church there must have been some really great parties I wasn't invited to! Actually we were invited on Christmas Eve after the Service to go have some hot chocolate and goodies at the home of some very good friends. Our hostess, Clarice had an excellent idea. After we were all served, she had everyone in our group tell a story of their fondest Christmas memory. What a wonderful way to share Christmas past with those who were there, and to celebrate the Christmas present, and yet to come. (Take that, Charlie You little Dickens!!!) For my family, and myself this has been a Christmas to remember, and proof positive, that God listens to and grants our prayers. Perhaps not in the time we would like them granted, but nevertheless, granted just the same! Several things we had been asking or, and waiting on have all come in at the same time. We have not seen our youngest two girls (Sue’s from a previous marriage) for several yeas due to some legal wrangling my wife's ex has caused. She took him to court to get the visitation expanded, and before it actually came down to a court hearing, he rolled over, and agreed to everything we wanted. Our oldest, (my daughter from a previous marriage ) has been living in a group home due to health problems and other issues with my ex, and we have been jumping through the hoops for two states, is now here permanently. I applied two years ago for disability as my beck was totaled in a car wreck several years ago. I got the word just before Christmas that the disability has been granted by the government. Now, We will be able to catch up on our bills, get our hands on a car, and move into a house rental. Plus the added benefit of being able to start paying God back for all the wonderful things he is dong n our lives. To finally be able to tithe as I need, and want to. Let's face it, all of these things are gifts from our marvelous Lord. Without God we would have nothing, amount to nothing, and literally be nothing. Praise His Holy Name!!!!!!

Here I am in all my glory!!! (Just kidding about the glory but this is me!) 

Welcome to my new Blog!

I decided to switch my blog over here, as Kurt Booths' is thru Blog spot. I was using Yahoo 360. Any way, It is the day before Christmas, picked up my daughter Sandy from the airport yesterday, and we are waiting for my Wife Sue to get home from Missouri ( or as we call is Misery) with our other two, Tara and Elisa.
Sandy will now be living here permanantly sice we are done fighting with the State of Arizona to get her here. But she is finally here, and with all of us together, we are really going to be a family for Christmas this year. Thank you Jesus!

This is going to be a relatively short post, ( for me) There are a million and one things to do, Sue, the kids, and I are are going to be lighting the Advent Candles tonight at church, ( I am sure Sue, Tara, and Elisa are likely to be about dead on their feet. Then tomorrow we celebrate the Birth of our Saviour.
Merry Christmas to all, and may God Bless.