whereisjodi.

The past two weeks I've been enjoying the beauty that is God's creation here in Idaho. I was up in the Sawtooth mountains camping and hiking for a week, then on the lake in McCall for my family's annual waterfest. While in the Sawtooths, camped at the edge of a lake at the base of two magnificent mountains, I discussed with friends the magnificence that must surely await us once creation is released from the burden of sin.

I was moved to tears a couple times by the staggering beauty of those mountains when we were hiking. And to think that everything we see is "groaning" for release...

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. Romans 8:20-22

It's unimaginable trying to figure out how much more magnificent things will look! What a glorious day that will be, for so many reasons, when we and creation are freed from the weight of sin.

Meanwhile, I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things. The news is...interesting as ever. Instead of blasting right into seriousness, I thought I'd share something that caused me to laugh out loud last night. I'm a subscriber of netflix and usually read a couple user reviews before starting a movie I've never heard of. This is by far my favorite review ever:

The description of this movie is a lie. It was written by lying liars with an agenda composed of lies about lies. Rather than millions of people being trapped beneath the earth, there are like 10 people. In one building. It is dumb. If you took dumb itself and purified it using a distilling array you would not get pure enough dumb to describe this horrible horrible movie. Horrible. Simply horrible. And dumb. Composed of stupid dumbness. And lies. If you watch this movie and complain about it I will spit on you for being dumb.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For many months now, I've considered the news I read and watch on television to be adhering very strictly to the motto: All Bad News, All The Time. Seems like everyone in America can't afford to buy gas, is on the verge of starving and one week away from having their mortgage foreclosed on them. The first 15 seconds of 80% of the stories on our nightly news here in Idaho begin something like this: "With gas prices at an all time high and food prices soaring, blah blah blah bad news."

It aggravates me so much, I have to admit, that I'm consuming less and less news. I've been known to storm out of the room until the news is over, or yell at the TV on rare occasions: "If you'd just quit saying everything's so bad, maybe people wouldn't be so terrified and they'd start spending money again!"

That's probably why I found the words of one of McCain's advisors this week so refreshing. He was quoted as saying we're in a "mental depression" and that America is a "nation of whiners." Forget McCain, I'd like to vote for this guy!

For years I've said, if I were President, that I'd make all teenagers go live in a third-world country for a year before they graduated high school. I've been irritated to the core by the lack of, well, reality in the minds of most teenagers who whine when their parents won't buy them a new $150 pair of jeans every week. So you can imagine how sick to death I am of the whining of my fellow Americans about the cost of rice at the local Wal-Mart when they're still chugging down $5 lattes at a record pace and movie theaters are still churning out popcorn by the boatload.

If the news media can be trusted to the slightest degree, we really are a nation of whiners with no -- absolutely no -- international perspective. Do you realize that if you have a bank account, regardless of the amount that's in there, you're wealthier than 90% of the world? Do you know how many millions, no hundreds of millions, of individuals are living on this planet without the things we consider basic necessities -- clean water, comfortable bed, more than one pair of pants? And we're throwing a national hissy fit because the price of good, clean, healthy milk that we didn't have to put a smidge of effort into producing costs 30% more than last year, that is, if you don't print out a $1 off coupon from your personal computer/printer in the comfort of your own air-conditioned, internet-enabled home before driving to the store, no doubt by yourself or with only your family, in your comfortable running-most-of-the-time automobile on well-maintained roads with street lights and friendly police officers making sure you're safe and an entire medical system on hold to whisk you away and fix you for free if you can't afford it and if your kids are screaming after the milk run you can pull through the drive thru and pick up more clean, pre-prepared food that you did nothing to produce before stopping off at the air-conditioned gym where your kids are entertained while you chug away on the treadmill, sipping from your clean bottle of water while listening to your favorite music on an iPod and reading close captions on a wide variety of television stations blaring about how rotten our standard of living is.

What we need in America is just a little bit of perspective. That's the point I imagine ol' whatshisname was trying to get across, but unfortunately the McCain camp has already thrown him under the bus... I guess I won't get the chance to vote for him after all.

Meanwhile, I ran across a site that made my heart swell today. Three cheers for Fox News and their new campaign: Real American Stories. If you're tired of all the woe-is-us stories, in frequency matched only by America-is-horrible stories in the mainstream media, check out this site and remember for a few minutes why you live in the greatest country in the world.

Posted by authorjodi at 02:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last night my parents and I were watching a movie when the power went out. Not completely surprising since it was our first 100+ weekend and air conditioners all over town were gasping from the strain. My first thought was of a book I read a couple weeks ago where the power goes out worldwide and people are forced to start over from scratch. Quite quickly I checked my watch and cell phone to make sure fiction wasn't becoming reality. ;)

We ended up playing pinochle by candlelight and headlamp and had quite a few laughs before the power kicked back on an hour later. What a different world it is with electricity! I remember standing around the desert in Senegal when our car ran out of gas, surrounded by complete black stillness...

Saw a great cartoon as I read the funnies yesterday before church -- it reminded me that a couple months ago I was watching an 80's movie <courtesy of Netflix> and was astonished to hear the enviromental pitch that manmade global cooling was going to bring about a new ice age. We humans must be mighty powerful, only 20 years later we've now made it too hot to survive. Check out the cartoon here.

And I just saw the trailer for the new movie from the folks that brought us Facing the Giants. Looks pretty good:

Posted by authorjodi at 09:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm not sure which is the bigger irritation -- junk mail or forwards. Unfortunately my spam filter isn't 100% perfect, so every once in awhile I have to scan through my junk mail folder with one eye closed trying not to see the profane subject lines. I've been getting loads of Nigerian bank scams lately, but this morning I got a new one that actually made me sorta mad. I know I shouldn't invest emotional energy in scammers, but is nothing sacred anymore?

Dear Beloved in Christ,
 
It is by the grace of God that I received Christ in my life, knowing the truth and the truth have set me free, having known the truth; I had no choice than to do what is lawful and right in the sight of God for eternal life and in the sight of man for witness of God & his mercies and glory upon my life.
I am Mrs.Edwards the wife of Mr. Spelling Edwards, my husband worked with the Chevron Texaco in Egypt for twenty years before he died in the year 2002.We were married for ten years without a child. My Husband died after a brief illness that lasted for only four days. Before his death we were both born again Christians.
Since his death I decided not to re-marry or get a child outside my matrimonial home which the Bible is against. When my late husband was alive he deposited the sum of ($6, 000, 000,00) with a Bank in Nigeria. Presently, this money is still with the Bank and the management just wrote me as the beneficiary to come forward to sign for the release of this money or rather issue a letter of authorization to somebody to receive it on my behalf if I can not come over.
Presently, I'm in a hospital in Ghana where I have been undergoing treatment for esophageal cancer. I have since lost my ability to talk and my doctors have told me that I have only a few weeks to live. It is my last wish to see this money distributed to charity organizations anywhere in the World. Because relatives and friends have plundered so much of my wealth since my illness, I cannot live with the agony of entrusting this huge responsibility to any of them.
Please, I beg you in the name of God to help me Stand and collect the Funds from the Bank and as soon as the fund enter your account take 30% of the total money, while 70% will be for work of God.
I want a person that is God fearing that will use this money to fund churches, orphanages and widows propagating the word of God and to ensure that the house of God is maintained. The Bible made us to understand that blessed is the hand that giveth. I took this decision because I don't have any child that will inherit this money and my husband's relatives are not Christians and I don't want my husband's hard earned money to be misused by unbelievers. I don't want a situation where this money will be used in an ungodly manner. Hence the reason for taking this bold decision. I am not afraid of death hence I know where I am going. I know that I am going to be in the bosom of the Lord. Exodus {14 VS14} says that the lord will fight my case and I shall hold my peace. I don't need any telephone communication in this regard because of my soundless voice and presence of my husband's relatives around me always. I don't want them to kn! ow about this ! d evelopment. W it
As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact to the Bank in Nigeria where the money is been deposited. I will also issue you a letter of authority and deposited certificate of claim that will prove you as the new beneficiary of this fund.
Psalm 23
Your in Christ,
Mrs.Edwards

Posted by authorjodi at 09:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

My parents and I took Bertha to the mountains this past weekend to celebrate mom's completion of 6 1/2 weeks of radiation treatments. We found a lovely spot right next to a fast-flowing river under a canopy of pine trees. It was tremendously beautiful and relaxing, including the benefit of no cell phone reception since we were in the middle of a deep canyon. As a bonus, instead of melting in the heat we actually had to run the heater a good portion of the time.

Saturday we had spurts of rain and one brief hailstorm, but Sunday broke beautiful and sunny and the mountains were calling to me. I struck off just after noon on a little hike, telling my parents to expect me back by four at the latest but probably sooner. As witness to the fact I was expecting a short hike, I only took two small bottles of water and no food, although I did take a sweatshirt in case the rain started up again. Oh, and the ever-present mace I carry that makes dad feel better, although I did hope not to have to test the efficacy of mace against a rattlesnake... :p

Continue reading "Climb Every Mountain, Ford Every Stream." »

Posted by authorjodi at 02:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I just read a very uplifting piece about the generousity of average Americans -- the truth about our philanthropy toward the developing world vs. the perception that everyone hates us and we're not doing enough. You can read the whole thing here in just a few minutes, but here are three of my favorite quotes:

• ...the $8.8 billion in giving from American religious institutions to developing countries was $1.5 billion more than the total giving from all private sources in 30 of the world's major industrialized democratic countries combined.

• When consolidating all assistance funds flowing from the United States to developing countries, the total is $129.8 billion. This is the total of government aid, philanthropy, and remittances -- funds sent directly by private individuals to other private parties in developing countries, often family members. A far second in total giving behind the United States is the United Kingdom at $20.7 billion.

• Barack Obama spoke at the commencement ceremony at Wesleyan University the other day. He talked about national service and, recalling John F. Kennedy, committed to doubling the size of the Peace Corps if elected president. From what I see and what the data shows, Americans don't need government to make them care, contribute, and volunteer. If anything, they need less government so they'll retain and keep control of more of what they produce and subsequently share with those in need.
  

Posted by authorjodi at 01:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A number of years ago I was having one of those awkward first-date chats when our conversation veered, as is often the case with me, into fiction. Our budding relationship took a decided turn for the worse when he said he didn't read fiction because "I prefer truth." Oooh, that steamed me. :p

I'm not in the mood to wax eloquent about the benefits and impact of fiction just now <I defended it here not long ago>, but yesterday I was deeply moved by my current read: Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. The book is about South African race relations, published in 1948. One of the characters is writing about his love for his country, but disgust with the injustice he sees in its treatment of blacks:

Therefore I shall devote myself, my time, my energy, my talents, to the service of South Africa. I shall no longer ask myself if this or that is expedient, but only if it is right. I shall do this, not because I am noble or unselfish, but because life slips away, and because I need for the rest of my journey a star that will not play false to me, a compass that will not lie. I shall do this, not because I am a negrophile and a hater of my own, but because I cannot find it in me to do anything else. I am lost when I balance this against that, I am lost when I ask if this is safe, I am lost when I ask if men, white men or black men, Englishmen or Afrikaners, Gentiles or Jews, will approve.

Therefore I shall try to do what is right, and to speak what is true. I do this not because I am courageous and honest, but because it is the only way to end the conflict of my deepest soul. I do it because I am no longer able to aspire to the highest with one part of myself, and to deny it with another. I do not wish to live like that, I would rather die than live like that. I understand better those who have died for their convictions, and have not thought it was wonderful or brave or noble to die. They died rather than live, that was all.

To me, that passage is as moving as some of the great calls to action in Scripture. It reminds me of Joshua, of David, of Shadrach and the boys going into the fire because they would not bow, of Daniel praying his way into the lion's den. Sometimes I feel that the country I have loved with fierce devotion is disintegrating around me, ashes falling from the sky of a once great nation. There is a conflict in my deepest soul when I think of the battle that lies ahead, the lines already being drawn, neutral territory shrinking by the day -- and yet at the same time, a soul-deep yearning within to follow with unswerving devotion that One and Only Star that will not play false. Life does indeed slip away.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've always disdained forwarded e-mails. The $100 check personally signed by Bill Gates; the gift certificate from the Gap; the blessing chain that hasn't been broken in 20 years; the virus that will bring about the end of Western Civilization as we know it unless you delete a particular directory file; and my personal least favorite...the Jesus wasn't ashamed of you so you shouldn't be ashamed of Him and thus you'd better send this to everyone you've ever met and maybe even some you haven't. Of course I'm not speaking of personal forwards -- I get lots of lovely forwards from friends about different issues they know I'm interested in -- but the mass anonymous forward really gets to me.

However, over the years I will admit I've come close to hitting the button a time or two. The problem as I see it is one of the slippery slope: if I forward the cute kitten e-mail one day, the next I might be telling all my friends not to buy gas on May 1st <1987> to show the gas companies we mean business. ;)

This morning my dad forwarded me an e-mail entitled "Why Women Outlive Men" which contained a number of hilarious pictures of men and the stupid unusual solutions they sometimes come up with for various problems. I would love if some of my friends could get as much of a laugh as I did, but I'm unable to send it on as I'm sure it's been circulating for years. That's the problem with mass forwards in an age where almost everyone has a computer -- it's all been done before. Oh well...I'll just post one of my favorite pictures from the e-mail and retain my spotless anti-forwarding record. :p

Posted by authorjodi at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Once, in an effort to help me understand myself better, my mother gave me a book on birth order. It wasn't called the curse of the firstborn...but it might as well have been. ;) Within, I discovered a fabulous label for myself: the frustrated perfectionist. We FP's like doing things perfectly, but recognizing the sheer impossibility, we often give up without even trying. I've used that label as an excuse for my messy room <house, car...> for over a decade. :p

However, we can all grow and stretch, right? I'm visiting family on Camano Island this week and every time I'm confronted by the majesty of the view out their window, unfailingly I find myself wishing I were a painter. I probably ought to mention before continuing that my artistic abilities were inherited from my maternal grandmother, who freely admits that every animal she creates looks exactly alike, save the elephant recognizable by his long trunk alone. Out of self-preservation I've figured out how to draw a house and can identically reproduce it whenever I'm asked to draw something <usually by a small child sketching something better than me in about 30 seconds>.

So...this morning I set aside my FP tendencies, knowing good and well my efforts would be in vain, and tromped outside to sketch a water fountain in the rose garden. The result was as I'd imagined -- my aunt thought the fountain was an owl, grandma thought it might be a frog -- but what a lovely half hour I passed sitting with the sound of bubbling water swirling around me, the wind blowing through the trees and birds chirping.

My abject failure as an artist reminded me of last week's sermon in Romans -- I may not be the next Monet, but Paul assures me that my gifts and talents are a unique and necessary part of the body of Christ. Some paint pictures of such beauty you want to cry, others sing in a way that gives you chills <another gift I do not possess>. I could go on and on, but it's comforting to know that the original Artist has uniquely gifted each one of us for the particular path He's selected. What'll be fun is when we get to see the tapestry He's weaving from the other side. Maybe I'll even get to draw something recognizable up there.

Posted by authorjodi at 04:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

My dad owned the first version of the Macintosh computer. I remember it didn't even have a hard drive, you had to save things to a floppy. A few years later my first computer was a Mac laptop that had something like a 250k hard drive. I may be mistaken, but I think that's about one song these days.

Over the past decade I've been fairly well pidgeon-holed into PC's because of the company I worked for and the type of consulting I did. However, I've always had rude remarks for all things Microsoft, and today I'm preparing to break rank. As painful as it always is to plunk down the change for something that goes obsolete the moment you take it out of the box, I'm quite excited. Maybe it's because I've been indoctrinated by too many Mac commercials a la:

Posted by authorjodi at 12:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

PETS at risk of self-harm are increasingly being prescribed anti-depressants because they cannot discuss problems in their lives with others, a leading veterinarian says.

I thought this article was quite funny, and a good way to return to blogging. It's funny how quickly a month can pass once you get out of the habit -- and things have been so far from the routine in my personal life that I haven't been able to work up the energy to blog about my usuals <sex show at a college that removed a cross some thought was offensive, co-ed showers in Maryland, 13-year-old arrested for throwing a pencil, and a brothel in Prague offering free services if you're willing to be filmed for their website>.

Since Christmas I've been in a season I jokingly refer to as payback. Though my parents aren't what you'd strictly call "perfect" and my grandma and aunts always roll their eyes when I refer to their daughter/sister as my sainted mother, I'm thoroughly and completely grateful for the parents God granted me.

Through the months of January and February I've been making small repayments for all those years of care, laundry, pocket money, moral support, meals, dishes and diapers <in no particular order>. Both have had rather significant health crisis' in the past months -- significant enough that I experienced my first real brush with thinking about them as mortals rather than superheroes who would always be around.

There are some real bummers on the road of life, but being forced to recognize your parents' mortality has got to be one of the majors.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I spent an hour and a half on the phone with a nice gentleman from India who watched the sun come up while instructing me in the fine art of hard drive reformatting. Despite being slightly jealous that his call center desk had a view of the sunrise while the closest I ever got to that in cube world was a flourescent light exploding over my head <jk> ... we had a marvelously successful conversation.

Well, the sunrise and the fact that his compatriot yesterday assured me I had everything I needed to reformat, but as it turns out I now have to repurchase Windows Office if I want to ever read a word doc again. Ahem. How cool is technology that, at one point, I was able to allow Andrew from India control over my computer and watch while he rapidly maneuvered my mouse to install drivers, all the while still chatting on the cell phone. It really is a small, small world.

I've spent all evening reloading programs and content -- have to say I was actually a little sick to my stomach when I'd moved all my data from the last many years onto an external hard drive and then hit the self-destruct button. Who's to say the external drive won't flip out and fry itself <and take years of projects with it> in the space it takes to reformat the computer? Thank God, literally, that things seem to be ok and the instabilities are gone.

The only bummer so far <besides the office fiasco> is that I backed up the wrong browser favorites folder, so the 30 or so articles I'd saved to blog about went pooof. Oh well.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning I was running late so I went tearing out the door to Bible Study without a coat, nor my cell phone. The coat was a problem because it was 19 degrees and it took the whole 20 minute drive for the car to warm up sufficiently enough that my fingers didn't stick to the steering wheel in a scene not dissimilar to the tongue-to-the-flagpole incident in A Christmas Story.

The cell phone was a problem afterward, when I had the bright idea to call a friend for a late breakfast since she lives near the church. Once I realized I'd have to pull over at the gas station and plunk an unknown amount <it's higher everytime I look> into a payphone to call my dad to get her number <because of course I don't have it memorized -- it's in my PHONE!>, then spend another unknown amount calling her, all while standing coatless in the 19 degree weather...well, I just drove home instead. ;)

Meanwhile, I wait none too patiently for DHL to arrive with my reformatting disc from Dell. Yes, my dear four year old Lulu has finally decided to lose her mind. I'm going to try to rehab her by reformatting the hard drive, but the outcome remains uncertain. Not uncertain is how painful it will be to part with $3 grand, should the maneuver prove unsuccessful.

Posted by authorjodi at 01:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Technology is, at times, a beautiful thing. Yesterday morning I sat in Southern California watching a live stream of my nephew being dedicated at my brother's church in Las Vegas while texting my parents who were watching the same stream in Idaho. :)

Another marvel of technology...something a coworker showed me today that has me completely mystified. Click here for an interesting brain test -- and if you can figure out how they did it let me know! :p

Posted by authorjodi at 09:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I felt a little out of the loop tonight when my father called to tell me the news channels are flush with questions about how Hillary pulled it off yesterday, despite all the polls. I didn't check into it right away because I was on my way to that paragon of American consumerism -- the home of Mr. Chuck E. Cheese -- where you can experience the privilege of dropping 5 bucks on tokens to walk away with 20 cents worth of plastic crepe. ;)

When I got back to the hotel I thought I'd flip on Fox News for a little bit and do some catching up. The first thing I saw was a story on a French-developed video game offering you the opportunity to try to shoot down planes flying at the World Trade Center. The second story was about a woman who posed as a 13-year-old boy and harassed a girl into committing suicide. I think that's all the broadcast news I can handle tonight. :(

Two stories that caught my eye in a quick online-news-browse:

• NBC reporter admits that "it's hard to stay objective" while covering Barack Obama. That's about as shocking as...nevermind...not much is less shocking than someone in the MSM finally admitting to bias.

• A woman I read about some time ago is back in the news. She's a British Airways employee singled out for wearing a cross to work who, consequently, filed a discrimination suit as the company had no problem with coworkers with other beliefs wearing symbols of their faith. She's lost the discrimination suit, but plans to return to work wearing the cross.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I saw a commercial last night for a new show that gives children to teen couples who think they would be good parents. It must not have been more than a 30-second clip, but I think this is a reality show I could get behind! :p

Meanwhile I continue with my mini-dip back into the corporate pool. I'm experiencing the struggle I have every time I've returned over the past two years -- finding it really hard not to slide back into the political, gossipy muck that exists here with one intrigue after another.

The worst part is that they've realized the folly of dissolving my department two years ago and are now reassembling it. I'm fairly certain I could have my job back tomorrow if I nodded my head in that direction. Not so certain I could have the sweet deal of working from Boise, but it's definitely not out of the question.

Steady, hefty paycheck. Reliable money to pay off my bills. A responsible, contributing member of society... ;)

But I'm not sure I'm ready for a return to that ball and chain. I'm not sure I want to give up the faith gains of the past two years by rejoining a lifestyle where I can provide for myself quite nicely without overtly needing God.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I had to laugh today -- I was flipping channels this morning and landed for a few moments on a special about a new movie called Mad Money. Apparently Diane Keaton, Queen Latifah and Katie Holmes conspire to steal money from the Federal Reserve. It's all for a good cause though, Diane's movie husband Ted Danson lost his job and all their money.

I can't remember exactly, but Ted Danson said something like it's good to have criminals you can root for -- yes, technically they're taking money that doesnt' belong to them, but it's a little teeny crime and you can get behind them because life has done them wrong. And come on, they have so much fun while they're doing it. 

All I could think of was the ludicrous hypocrisy of the 'piracy is stealing' campaign Hollywood keeps running. Make stealing look hip and cool in movie after movie, grind morals down into the dust and make good folk look square...then turn around and tell people stealing from you is bad. Uh...yeah.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Too bad I don't work in Hollywood: I could blame my blogging absence on the writer's strike. ;) As it is, I've no one to blame but myself...but I guess I've dragged out my hiatus about as long as I can justify.

In the days to come I'll work back into the usuals -- like the homeschooling mom who fled her home rather than put her kids in public school <true story>. Or the mom who got kicked off a public bus for reading the Bible while on her way to church with her kids <no details yet, just heard about it on the radio>. And I'll probably start writing about my experiences in Senegal as a way of helping process some of the things I saw.

However, as the header says, I'm easing back in. Hence, three videos from youtube that have come to my attention in recent months.

• A beautifully creative youth group 'skit' <for lack of a better word> to the song Who Am I, by Casting Crowns, using only white gloves and black lights.
  
• The first audition for Paul Potts on Britain's Got Talent. I wouldn't have known about this if someone hadn't sent the link, but it brought me to tears in a triumph of the human spirit kind of way.
• And I can't help but include a football video that I just read about in Time magazine. Trinity University's 15-lateral, 61-yard touchdown with 2 seconds left on the clock. Try not to laugh too hard at the announcers as the clip progresses.

Posted by authorjodi at 05:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning as I trotted up to the store wearing a coat thrown over pajamas, a crooked ponytail and bent glasses, I realized that my life would be materially damaged by fame. You know those hideous tabloid photos of celebrities caught outside a Starbucks or going into the gym? Yeah, I'm afraid I'd be that type of celebrity. :p

But what was I to do -- my mom needed something and she wouldn't be caught dead at the store in her pajamas...and we're leaving for Senegal tomorrow so I'm in a charitable mood. ;) Actually, we're leaving before the crack of dawn. We have to be at the airport at 4:45a owing to our large group, many boxes and departure on the busiest travel day of the year.

When I returned from the store I washed down my malaria medication with a generous helping of airborne while reading the paper. The two top stories? One: BSU's heartbreaking loss last night to Hawaii. Two: the melee that took place at the mall Friday morning.

The game was a tough one and none of the BSU paraphernalia we were wearing seemed to have much effect. In truth, we were outplayed, and that's a hard thing to admit of the team you love. Especially disappointing after last year's amazing season and our history of coming alive at the end to win in the last seconds. But the headline of the sports section this morning was "Paradise Lost" and that just made me laugh out loud. Talk about an overstatement.

Our mall opened at 1a Friday for a "Rocking Shoppin Eve" or something like that. Unfortunately they were overrun, a few were injured and the paper found several people to quote as they whined about false advertising, overcrowding and lack of planning. My favorite quote was from a mall spokesman who said they wouldn't do this again since their intent was to make a fun shopping experience, not pander to greed. Good for him!

Whoops! I was meaning to have a ramble, but it's taken me two hours to write this much as I'm continually interrupted by Senegal prep. I guess I'd better get a move on and get out the door on errand duty.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

<Photo credit> 

Posted by authorjodi at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Cali has recovered her land legs remarkably well after a year on the road. However, she wasn't a big fan of being stuck in the basement with no outlet for her very important staring-at-the-scenery duties. My dad, animal lover that he is, constructed a lovely outdoor salon for her ladyship and I kept the window above my bed open just enough for her to go in and out at leisure.

Unfortunately, the weather has now turned wicked cold at night and the open window is a clear and present danger to Cali's sunbathing privileges.

Lucky for Cali, this evening my dad, once again, came to her rescue. He constructed a plank/pet door/duct tape scenario that will allow her to come and go without turning me into a frozen block of ice. The only problem is...she doesn't seem to comprehend the strategy. Observe the line up of four treats at the bottom of the picture, trying to lure her back inside. Can you teach an old cat new tricks?

Posted by authorjodi at 10:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Saturday our Senegal team heard from a Latin American missionary who works among African Muslims. He said, among many other things, that they get along swimmingly because of similarities in cultural values. The story that struck me the most? He said you Americans have the watches, but we have the time.

Sunday I left the house at 7:30 in the morning and returned at 10:30 at night, with only an hour that wasn't accounted for by a meeting, or a luncheon, or a command appearance. This is acceptable to me because it's the final weeks before we head out to Senegal -- things have to be done and it's just too bad if, every so often, there's a confluence of all day events. When we get back I'll return to my busy though not always hectic lifestyle.

However, I know many people near and dear to me who live hectic-ly as a matter of course. I'm sorry to report that I didn't have a grand epiphany to solve the American problem of over-schedule-ization. ;) I just found it interesting to ponder this weekend in light of other cultures.

Posted by authorjodi at 05:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I think if I were a kid, or I had a kid, I'd be frequenting the come-lately Harvest Parties that are now all the rage. Several years ago I volunteered at a Trunk-or-Treat at my church in California where the parking lot was full of cars decorated in various ways. All kids had to do was stroll down a couple lanes and their bags were overflowing with pre-screened-for-safety sugar bombs -- then they could hike over to the moonbounce or rockwall, grabbing a hot dog and cotton candy on the way.

I've sat at the kitchen table working all evening, getting up sparingly to hand out candy to the 25 or so hearty souls who've braved the brisk night air and I found myself wondering -- what are you doing wasting your time in a neighborhood? Half the neighbors aren't even home! Of course, we would have turned our lights out ourselves, but there's this new thing in Boise where the sexual predators are supposed to have their lights out...

There were a couple cute kids, several giddy teens and the standard smart aleck:

Smart Aleck: That's the scariest costume I've seen all night.
Me: I'm not wearing a costume.

...and always the ever-present, watchful parent waiting down on the sidewalk. Do you remember the Halloween scene in E.T.? That's how I remember Halloween growing up. You could wander the neighborhood with your little gang of friends and your parents didn't need to worry about you unless you weren't back by 9.

Ahh, the good old days. :p Well, at least I'm continuing one tradition -- my mother always signalled the beginning of the Christmas season by playing Christmas music on Halloween. I've had mine playing all night:

Just hear those sleigh bells ringaling
Ding, Ding, Dingaling Dooooooooooo

Posted by authorjodi at 08:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On Tuesday I tackled Turtlehead <or Turtle Head> in the Red Rock Canyon of Las Vegas. A pal suggested it and we took off about 2pm on the 5-mile round trip. 

Yes, that means 2 1/2 miles straight uphill. Wow, were my legs burning by the time we got to the top 2 1/4 hours later! But wow was it a beautiful view.

I had no idea there were such amazing mountains so near Las Vegas -- we only drove about 15 minutes from my brother's house to the parking lot where we started. 

Why don't I do this more frequently? I love hiking and seeing the various beauty that the Lord has created for us to enjoy, but more often than not I just end up laying around on a couch reading or watching the boob tube.

Two verses kept running through my head as I drug myself up the mountain. The first was Psalm 19:1, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." The second was Romans 1:20, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."

Posted by authorjodi at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

My first nephew was born two nights ago. My parents and I drove all night from Boise to Vegas and were able to meet him about 12 hours after he popped out. He was still a bit ticked, I think, from his abrupt entry into a world quite a bit meaner and colder than the one he most recently inhabited.

Does anyone else ever think of what they'd do if they were famous? Maybe I'm alone in that...but one thing I decided was that I'd rather have a Jodie Foster kind of family where I don't allow my family to be photographed, rather than the, well, I don't want to be mean but it seems like some stars allow their kid to be photographed...or even abruptly adopt a photogenic child from Africa...just so they can boost their sagging careers. Toward that end, no pictures of C here. You'll have to trust me that, even when ticked, he's quite cute. :p

He was also born on 10/10, which as all of you know is Taiwanese Independence Day, so he's bound to become President or something. But more importantly, he has really long fingers which I think will make him a shoe-in for MVP as the wide receiver that won the game in some future SuperBowl. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 10:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday I sold my scooter just in time to pay a few bills that desperately needed paying. However, I'm sorry to say, before I even took the time to be grateful I was already boo-hooing about the fact that the money would run out by next week because of the aforementioned bills and my motorhome was never going to sell and I was never going to get a temp job and I'd be mooching off my parents for the rest of my life... :p

Thankfully I got my head back on straight and took a moment to thank the Lord for His just-in-time provision and ask that He would continue to give me what I need...just when I need it. And lo and behold, this morning I got my first call from the temp agency. It's not a for sure job -- I have to interview for it -- but just the possibility sent me to my knees in gratefulness for the Lord's gracious provision and encouragement to me in my weakness.

What a wonderfully gracious God we serve. He not only forgives our sins at the moment of salvation, He continually forgives our doubts and unfaithfulness for the rest of our lives!

This morning I was reading Daniel's explanation to King Nebuchadnezzar about why he was able to interpret the King's dream when no one else could -- he said no one on earth could do what the King was asking, "but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries." That phrase just gave me chills! It's quite likely that I'll never have the opportunity to speak before a king <or even a President>, but I hope that by my life and actions I can show to others that there is a God in heaven who can do any number of mighty things.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Have you heard of the new program Reaper on the CW network? Until I read this article, I hadn't. Apparently the premise is a young man who finds out his parents sold his soul to the devil, so on his 21st birthday he has to start working for Satan bringing back souls who've escaped from hell. In case you can't guess from that synopsis, it's a comedy.

On the Cartoon Network we have Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil, wherein Lucy, the daughter of the Devil falls for DJ Jesus <hay-soos> which brings many comic difficulties because she's the antichrist and he's the second coming of Christ.

I'm no stranger to watching programs I probably shouldn't <see my recent newsletter about integrity>, but the descriptions of those shows pretty much appalls me. I have a fairly large grey area regarding entertainment -- as long as it's well written, entertaining and engaging, and as long as there's not too much swearing, or too much illicit sex, or too much making fun of God...

But when a program crosses the line in such a big way it no longer falls in the grey area -- and there've been a long string of those. When Sex and the City was so popular I tried to watch an episode to be culturally relevant and tuned in to a frank discussion of a sex toy that made me blush and change the channel. Same with the Sopranos -- trying to join in on what everyone was talking about, I tuned in to Tony Soprano in a strip club with actual naked ladies gyrating in the background. Switch! Or the new summer series Saving Grace, where I tuned in because it was supposed to be a moving story of spiritual redemption...and I was treated to foul language and an opening scene better suited to a porn film.

How do we remain culturally relevant when, increasingly, we can't in good conscience engage in some of the main cultural dialogues taking place?

Posted by authorjodi at 01:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

To me, the most frustrating thing about scams is that it makes me more wary of trusting anyone. I'm trying to sell my scooter on craigslist and just got the usual I really want your item but I'm out of town and oops I paid too much can you just deposit the check and give me a western union transfer of the overage and I'll give you 100 bucks for your trouble because I'm just too rich and busy to worry about sending out another check...

ok...my name is Brian Whales from new york brooklyn...i;m out of the state right now and i  will have to instruct my secretary to mail out the check to you..you dont have to bother yourself about the shippment cause my  moving shipping company will take care of that....i cannot get good one around NY...that is the reason i look your area...i will be waiting to get your full name and address..where the check will be mail to...plus the phone number...i will be waiting to hear from you soon so,we m the seal our deal..

At least this one is obvious and slightly laughable. I wish there were an easy way to report scammer addresses, and more importantly, that they couldn't just go out and create 7 kajillion more so that reporting them is basically worthless. So, on the off-chance you're ever unfortunate enough to have dealings with this dope <and yes, he didn't even spell his alleged first name correctly>, his address is:

"brain whales" <leliky5@hotmail.com>

Posted by authorjodi at 04:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I just got back from registering with a temp agency in an attempt to earn a little cashola before Senegal. I don't know if it was the zero-sum bank account that finally knocked me out of my change-in-life lethargy, or whether I've just finally had enough time to process...but I feel like I've got a little energy back to charge ahead.

This weekend I was up in the mountains with my Senegal compadres having a team-bonding experience. We spent hours upon hours sharing our stories with each other -- everyone got a half hour and most of us used it. And I have to say, hearing where people have come from and what different pains they've experienced throughout their lives...it's remarkable. It was such an encouragement to hear how God had worked in each life -- every one a unique story, but the common thread of salvation running throughout. What a blessing to be entrusted with those stories!

Last night we had a World Vision lady come speak to us who has been to Senegal about 12 jillion times. She talked for just about 2 1/2 hours straight and we were all still leaning forward soaking it in at the end. I think we're all feeling a bit under-qualified...but it's nice to know we're all feeling that way. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 01:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week I met with a gentleman who works in a closed country and, among other things, he told me how different even their daily lives are in regards to spiritual matters.

Because they're so restricted on what they can say, they have to be very careful about how they live. I had such a strong reaction to that -- it made me think that if we worried more in America about living lives that reflected the grace and love of Christ instead of just talking about it, we'd certainly be better off. I know we are

"...the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life." 2 Cor. 2:15-16

I take that to mean we'll smell regardless of how we may live out our faith, but how much better if the witness of our lives drew people to Christ even more than our words.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday my mom talked me into going to the first video session for one of the women's Bible studies our church is starting this fall: Beth Moore's Daniel. I've got to say, I was wildly impressed.

The thing about the first session which impacted me the most...I'm saving for next week's newsletter...which you can sign up for on the upper lefthand side of the screen. :p

But another thing that stuck in my mind was something she said about God and how He warns us again and again about certain sins. We dabble, we flirt. And then after awhile -- if we're not careful -- we get burned. She said there was a time in her life when she felt like she heard God say to her "I'm not kidding!"

It reminded me of a poem I wrote many years ago. If you want, you can laugh at the dorky flash presentation I made with it here. It continues to amaze me how God can deliver us from besetting sins, from pits that have almost destroyed us, and then after awhile we start dancing around thinking...oh, it wasn't that bad.

She also said it'd be lovely if Satan would just say "come with me and I'll have you in the worst hellhole of your life in three weeks." It'd be easy to resist that kind of call...but of course he presents his plans much differently. I love the quote Francine Rivers uses <I think it might be from Shakespeare> at the beginning of her novel Redeeming Love, "the Prince of Darkness is a gentleman." I always think of that when I think of how Satan so slyly makes his sales pitch.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I guess I'm going through a transition phase, but I haven't felt like I had even a smidge of something interesting to write about lately. Part of it is pure busyness and letting blogging fall to the wayside now that I don't have quick topics like what stranger I talked to today or what's happening with the book. Part of it's probably the fact that I'm trying to clear away the haziness to figure out the next steps in my future...

Regardless, sorry about the dearth. I'll try to not let a large chunk of time go by again without at least posting some weird news. For instance, did you read about the town that outlawed dog barking? Previously your dog could be cited for a noise disturbance if it barked for more than five minutes...but as of Sept. 18 barking for less than five minutes can bring the police to your door.

Me and my sore arms will now head to bed. I spent three hours at Central District Health today with some of my Senegal compadres getting caught up on shots. I got Yellow Fever in the left arm and Hep A in the right, and I've got a Typhoid booster in the fridge. In a couple more weeks I'll go back for Meningitis, Hep B and a Malaria prophylaxis. I'm pretty sure this is the most shots I've had to get for any country I've been to...

Posted by authorjodi at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Have you ever heard of that expression? I got my bell rung? I just returned from an evening at the lake with my folks, some older friends and an MAF couple who is just beginning deputation. What a fun evening we had trying out my dad's summer toy: the wake surfboard. Thankfully I didn't get my bell rung tonight as I did at the lake a couple weeks ago. That time the world didn't stop spinning until the boat was pulling up alongside. It was, however, quite a bit colder and it might have been our last boating trip for the summer as the dam is being lowered a foot a day.

Interesting conversation with the boat next to us when we were pulling out. They said "how was your night?" We responded. They asked the MAFers "why did you move to Idaho" but then didn't give them time to respond and went right into the bad economic opportunities in Idaho and how we'll all be better off when we kick those Republicans out of office. Alrighty then. That was the end of the conversation and we both went our separate ways, but I had to just laugh. Of course they're super entitled to their opinion, but I found it incredibly funny that they so vehemently expressed it, conversationally out of left field, as their third remark to total strangers. Oh well.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 08:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I wonder if Cali's predilection for plopping near the computer has anything to do with the issues I've been experiencing the past couple months. Maybe there's a little cat hair floating around in the motherboard...

On a completely different topic, after almost a year on the road I've figured out the key to marketing a book successfully and I'm convinced it's going to make me a bestselling author next time around. I'll write the book, then publish it under someone else's name. Someone who's a salesperson by nature and not afraid of anything. Perhaps I can convince my brother... :p

Posted by authorjodi at 02:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I arrived in Pennsylvania safely after stopping for gas and a very important item at an RV dealer I passed. Note to self: never again waste precious cash buying two bottles of toilet bowl odor-controller chemicals. I purchased two big bottles when I set out last September and just recently opened the second one. Unfortunately, I soon had probably cause to read the back of the bottle and discover that the chemicals didn't retain their effectiveness after freezing in Boise over Christmas. Let's just say that, owing to the rather ripe conditions, that particular stop was high on my list today. ;)

After dinner tonight my relatives took me bowling. My first score was 66, my second 121 -- so based on my progress I'm confident that if we'd only played one or two more games I could have earned my 300 ring. ;) Did you know you could get a ring for bowling a perfect game? I didn't until tonight. I never much liked bowling, but a big honkin' ring is something I could work toward.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

"(Hello) Kitty is a cute icon for young girls. It's not something macho police officers want covering their biceps."

So says the acting Chief of the Crime Suppression Unit in Thailand. He's created a punishment for police officers who commit misdemeanors such as parking illegally or littering -- they have to wear a hot pink Hello Kitty armband. The "shame" and "guilt" is supposed to keep officers from doing it again and possibly keep them from committing more serious offenses.

I thought that'd be a great story to start off with as I return from my lakeside hiatus. Somehow I haven't been able to kick-start my brain back into gear...reminds me of how I used to moan about being back in my cubicle the first day after vacation. ;)

Actually, I'm trying to kick-start more than just my brain -- my motivation has taken a serious hit as well. I'm heading up to Pennsylvania today to stay a couple days with another aunt and uncle, then I'll pop through Lancaster to speak at a book club. After that I'm steering Bertha onto the long road home...some 3500 miles to cover on the way back to Boise. Speaking of which, I'd better wrap up because I hear I've got a very small window of time to drive through D.C. and Baltimore without hitting the worst of the traffic.

Posted by authorjodi at 07:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As I suspected, the cell reception hasn't improved much since last year's week on the lake. The family just went to tour homes in Tamarack, so I had them drop me at the local Moxie Java which is, I think, the easiest place in town to get free wifi. I've got a couple hours before they return to get some work done and maybe even read a few news stories.

Sometime during the past year I read a story that talked about increasing levels of internet addiction...sadly, I think I might be borderline in trouble. It's amazing how disconnected I feel when I can't check my e-mail. I'm having a wonderful time on the lake and it's been quite relaxing, but I want to be able to check every night to make sure I haven't got THE e-mail from O'Reilly or Oprah or whatever... Last night I was holding my computer in all kinds of awkward positions against the window, trying to pick up even the slightest hint of a signal. :p

And now I'm going to copy one of the first blogging gurus, the Evangelical Outpost, and repost a couple of my favorite entries from the past year since I'm technically on 'vacation' and that's what I saw him do when he was in the same position...

Posted by authorjodi at 01:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Happy Saturday morning! I'm writing from the basement of my parent's home once again, having flown in from Virginia on Monday. It's pretty nice to be home, especially considering I'm here for our annual family week at the lake. Of course, I've been attending a high volume of meetings and get togethers in the few days I've been here, soundly reaffirming my theory that the only thing you need to do to make yourself popular is to make yourself scarce. :p

Posting will be pretty slim through next week as I'm not sure how much access I'll have in McCall, let alone whether I'll be able to drag myself from the lake. ;) One quick site note: I've had to finally give in and make commenters authenticate themselves. I apologize for this extra step, but it's my understanding that you only have to fill out a quick form once and you're good to go. I've just been inundated with spam comments and I can't take it anymore!

Posted by authorjodi at 11:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I woke up this morning and went gator hunting...hunting for pictures, that is. We went to a nearby park/swamp thing that had a lovely raised boardwalk so you could stroll in relative safety while searching for gators. We saw loads of turtles, birds and fish, but only two gators -- one little baby of about two feet and one real mean-looking teenager of approximately five feet whom we nicknamed Larry.

My host veered off the path <which was not necessary in my opinion> so we could walk along the grass near a particular pond, then proceeded to tell me fifteen years ago a family had been picnicking there and the son rolled down the hill as kids love to do and was attacked by a gator. The dad jumped in after them and...they buried the gator in the coffin. He had me hook, line and sinker up until that point. ;)

Continue reading "Gator Bait." »

Posted by authorjodi at 02:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I may not know what God plans to do about paying for a brand new transmission, but He sure set me up in a nice place while I wait for it to arrive. I've been sleeping in true luxury -- the air conditioning blowing so strong at night that I have to use a blanket! ;)

I'm staying with a family whose conversation is interesting and very my-kind-of-humor-ish, not to mention that they're exceedingly kind and hospitable and try to feed me every time I turn around. And finally, I don't have to spend very much time in the steam room that is the Florida outdoors! :p

I had a thought a week or so ago about the gentle ways in which God works in our lives. I graduated from Multnomah Bible College, and while the school had a lot going for it, there were also some big negatives while I was there. By the time I graduated I was so sick of Christians and their hypocrisy that I didn't want to go to church or even be around Christians <and now I realize I'll have to write a pro-Multnomah blog to make up for this one>.

Continue reading "Unparalleled Luxury." »

Posted by authorjodi at 08:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I've made a little fun of people who prayed for patience -- isn't that just like asking God to drop frustrating people and situations into your lap? I guess I should have known that praying for faith would be just as foolhardy...

After a morning of consultations between me and the mechanic, my uncle and the mechanic, me and my uncle, me and my father, the mechanic and my father........ ;) I had the dubious honor of ordering a brand new transmission for Bertha. That's a slightly better outcome than ordering a brand new engine, but I have to be honest, I'm still in a bit of sticker shock.

In truth, the consultation between me and my father included a few tears before I got my act together, so if I don't see a serious bump in my faith level after this, I think I might have to put that particular prayer on hiatus. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 03:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

A couple praises in my life have me singing today. First, my house rented in less than a week and there will be no lag in collected rent, therefore no need to quickly make a couple grand to cover the mortgage. Praise God! Second, a much needed person has arrived to help out with my part in the short term mission ministry at my church and an issue that's been giving me both headaches and nightmares. Praise God again!

In honor of that, I'm going to give you a couple good news items I found today:

• I read a great, cheerful article this morning by Janet Folger regarding the abortion fight. It's about as inspiring a piece as I've read in a long time on that subject and reminded me of a factoid that popped out at me last week when I read O'Reilly's Culture Warrior. He said <if I remember correctly> that 85% of the counties in America do not have physicians willing to do abortions. To me that is a wonderful statistic.
  
• US Weekly has decided not to put Paris Hilton on the cover this week, nor even mention her in the edition. Here's to more of this kind of responsible journalism! ;)
• A 72-year old man seemed like an easy hit for a 27-year old pickpocketer. Unfortunately for the thief, the 72-year old turned out to be a former marine and gave the kid something to think about.
  

Posted by authorjodi at 01:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Propel Fitness Water." »

Posted by authorjodi at 09:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Today I demonstrated once again that I was not born with a green thumb. I joined my host Sandy, herself a master gardener, at the local botanical gardens where she volunteers. We were charged with planting seedlings...or potting cuttings...sheesh, I can't even remember the correct lingo! :p I do know I was very nervous cutting off leaves willy nilly and jamming green stalks into the soil, but I managed to get a few done. Thankfully we soon moved on to "upgrading" and I was able to let Sandy handle the plants while I kept her supplied with wheelbarrows of dirt and trundled pots back and forth with a little yellow wagon. I got quite the system going and told her some were born with green thumbs and some were born efficiency experts. ;)

It felt pretty productive actually. As most of my work is computer related, there was something really satisfying about a spot of manual labor <especially when I no longer had to actually touch the plants and therefore risk killing them>. Of course I know myself well enough that if I had to work outside in the heat and humidity everyday the satisfaction would waver pretty quickly. 

We took a quick tour around the gardens and I got a lesson in Floridian alligators, ie., they're EVERYWHERE. Some dude was standing a couple inches from the pond as he was cleaning undergrowth and just casually mentioned he was keeping his eye out for the 8-foot alligator that lives there. Apparently you can't dip your toes into any water around here without risking the big whammy-slammy. I kept picturing in my mind's eye that stupid alligator movie I watched last week. ;)

I ended the day going to the movies with Sandy and her grandchildren. They wanted to see Pirates of the Caribbean so that's what we saw and I just have to say...wow. Seriously, wow! How could they spend that many millions of dollars on special effects and not toss a few bucks toward hiring a screenwriter capable of putting a coherent plot down on paper? :p

Posted by authorjodi at 07:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Dilbert.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Saturday I was pretty wiped out from my week of driving and vending, so I sat in front of the telly and watched a few movies while working on a sewing project. I'm a little embarassed to admit this, but I actually sat through Lake Placid...an incredibly silly movie about a 30-foot crocodile and the plucky paleontologist, grumpy cop, suave fish and game officer and nutty millionaire who try to catch it. My favorite part of the whole movie was the following exchange between the requisite 'couple' after they decide to capture the crocodile instead of waiting for the feds to come in and kill it:

Plucky Paleontologist: We're doing the right thing.
Suave F&G Officer: You might feel differently if you get eaten.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

When I was nuking leftover chili for lunch today I happened to catch part of a story about the International Space Station and the fact that the astronauts were woken up this morning to Nicole C. Mullen's 'Redeemer.' It's one of my all-time favorite songs and to hear it blaring out of the station was absolutely marvelous, let alone the fact that the mid-day news let the song play over the air for a few lines...or even that they found such an item newsworthy.

I have to tell you, I'm really and I mean really enjoying this aspect of the Bible Belt. A church every few blocks, fish and other Christian symbols plastered on different business signs, even the weatherman telling you on Saturday night that it looks like rain so make sure you take an umbrella to church in the morning. I realize people are people and a Southerner is just as prone to wander as us in the Northwest, but the outward trappings of faith are deeply encouraging to me as I'm much more used to my anti-God part of the country.

Continue reading "Monday Morning Musings." »

Posted by authorjodi at 11:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We sang another wonderful hymn in church yesterday: When the Morning Comes. I googled the lyrics and the first reference was to someone reading part of the hymn at the 9/11 Memorial Service at the National Cathedral. The second reference was to an original arrangement by Elvis Presley, which is the version I'm quoting:

Trials dark on every hand and we cannot understand
All the ways God will lead us
To the blessed promised land
He will guide us with his eye
And we'll follow till we die
And we'll understand it better by and by

Well children by and by when the morning comes
All the saints of God together at home
We will tell the story of how we overcome
And we'll understand it better by and by

Temptation's hidden snares often take us unaware
And our hearts are made to bleed
For some thoughtless word or deed
And we wonder why the test when we try to do our best
But we'll understand it better by and by

Well children by and by when the morning comes
All the saints of God together at home
We will tell the story of how we overcome
And we'll understand it better by and by

And we'll understand it better by and by

Posted by authorjodi at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

QuickLink: Anantanand Rambachan, a practicing Hindu, has been appointed head of the religion department at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. The college issued a statement explaining their position that the study of religion is "a cognitive, not a spiritual, exercise."

Most interesting quote to me:

"It is only ignorance of other traditions or the refusal to be challenged by their claims which enables one to explain away religious pluralism by the naive conclusion that one's own tradition is true to the nature of God and that all others are false."

I believe I'll have to disagree with that statement. My religious beliefs don't stem from ignorance or a refusal to be challenged -- rather, on things I read in the Bible. It is not Jodi Cowles, peon writer of not much consequence, who said you can only come to the Father through Jesus Christ. If someone has a problem with that statement they can certainly take it up with the Author.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I flipped on the tv this morning to find five channels in a row covering the breaking news of reporters standing outside Paris Hilton's home. All were breathlessly waiting for the sheriff to arrive so they could film her being hauled back to court. As I sat there in a kind of stupefied awe that we'd sunk so low as a nation, I felt a little sorry for the poor thing. I mean, if I'd spent my entire life having my every whim catered to and never once had to experience negative consequences for my actions, I might also go a little nutso at the prospect of spending a few days in solitary confinement. Although I don't feel sorry enough for her to sit and watch live coverage all day long...

What bothers me the most about this story is that it's even being covered. Seriously, where's the story about Israel on the brink of all-out war with its neighbors? Where's the story of the President trying to breathe life into his dead immigration bill? Or Putin trying to revive the Cold War? If anything deserves 24-hour news coverage maybe it should be a listing of every product-of-China the FDA is banning from importation into the States because of poisonous properties -- at least then we could keep up on what we shouldn't be buying.

Paris Hilton is about as far from a good example of a functioning, responsible adult as you can get, but we're not being very good examples ourselves when we keep on watching.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This just keeps getting worse -- now the FDA is warning of lead poisoning in children due to high concentrations of lead in certain Chinese imports such as jewelry, toys and eye shadow. In addition, the FDA halted imports of eight brands of eye shadow because they contained "microbiological contamination." I was under the impression that I'd be fine if I just avoided Chinese-imported food...but now I'm seeing that other products are suspect as well.

What blows my mind is how we've let ourselves get into this position. I remember way back in 93 when I was visiting the Ukraine and heard interesting information about the McDonald's in Moscow. They had their own dairy, their own farm, their own supplies of everything so that they could ensure the quality of the product people were buying. Not to be too gross, but there was no other way to confirm that what they were serving was beef.

Over a year ago I decided to contaminate something imported from China as a plot point in book two. I guess I'll have to rethink that now -- I don't want my novel to read like old news. :(

Posted by authorjodi at 11:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

When I was in junior high my mother and I went to see the movie The Secret of My Success. In it, Michael J. Fox played a small-town boy who went to the big city to make his fortune. He struggled his way through one difficulty after another, but in the end, found success by getting the girl and wresting control of the company from his ruthless uncle.

I can't count the number of movies I've seen where success is defined in a similar fashion -- getting the girl <or occasionally the boy> and scoring that great job, or winning the lottery, or pulling off an improbable heist <which is justified because you stole from a mean person> and retiring to the Caribbean.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about success. My year on the road is winding to a close and I find myself evaluating, wanting to prove or justify to myself that I made the right decision when I chucked normal American life for this Bedouin existence.

Continue reading "Success." »

Posted by authorjodi at 08:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning I got out a pair of sneakers I hadn't worn since returning from the Middle East and found a seashell and a scarab beetle carving resting inside. The scarab beetle was one of a pair given to me as a 'gift' by a young lad in an alabaster shop in Luxor, Egypt. We'd been warned not to accept 'gifts' so I told the lad no several times, but after he kept insisting I finally got aggravated and just took it. Then, as expected, he asked where my husband was. The scam is a common one and had been pulled on my sister-in-law just the day before. A lovely gift for a lovely lady...then put the guilt-whammy on the husband to pay for it. So I told the lad that my husband wasn't there -- technically the truth, but a lie in spirit.

No matter how much cross-cultural training I'd received over the years, in that moment, after two weeks traveling through tip&bribe cultures, I snapped and decided to teach that boy a lesson. It was a split second decision, and one I regretted the moment I walked out the door. 

Continue reading "What A Wretched Woman I Am." »

Posted by authorjodi at 04:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I expanded my horizons tonight and tried a different Chinese dish than my per usual Kung Pao Chicken. Consequently, Hunan Chicken is now my favorite...as long as I have enough rice to tone down the spiciness. But the key part of the evening was, as always, the distribution of the ever-wise fortune cookie. Mine was so apropos for the lazy slacker that I am at heart that I decided to share. My fellow procrastinators, this one's for you:

You'll accomplish more later if you have a little fun this weekend.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday I did three interviews on three different stations, which was quite fun -- today I'm immersed in the stuff of daily life. What a letdown! :p

I'm thinking there's got to be some sort of spiritual lesson in the stuff. You know what I mean: the laundry, the dishes, paying bills, mowing the lawn. All the stuff that it takes to keep life churning along. All the stuff that you'd rather hire a personal assistant to do so that you can be involved in the exciting endeavors! But like I said, I imagine there's a spiritual lesson there...

My stuff today is finding a repair shop who can do an oil change and check out Bertha's mysterious knocking. I've got plenty of other things on my to do list, but this mission takes precedence as I'm not too keen on dropping my engine by the side of the road. ;) I've already had a time in prayer asking that I don't 'get took' by some good old boy -- mechanics are not my favorite species.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, I just have to share something about the 'business' of blogging. I don't know if anyone but other bloggers will find it as funny as I do...but in the last couple weeks I've noticed a significant drop in comments. Granted, I don't get many comments anyway, but lately I've been going days at a time without hearing a pin drop from anyone. This, I'm ashamed to admit, I found increasingly depressing. 

Yes, it pains me to say this, but I have a writer's temperament <up-down-up-down>. This temperament is magnified by blogging because I publish, as it were, every day instead of working on something, like my novel, for five years, then giving it to my mom and having stomach pains until she gets back to me. ;)

Continue reading "Feedback." »

Posted by authorjodi at 02:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Tuesday Morning Musings." »

Posted by authorjodi at 08:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I visited the Birmingham Botanical Gardens yesterday and saw some magnificent roses. Sorry to be redundant, but I had to post both of my favorite pictures because I couldn't decide between the two. 

Posted by authorjodi at 07:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

“God has brought me to this place, and He alone will let me go to my home. You cannot do anything against God.”

So said Bahaa el-Akkad, a 58-year old Egyptian convert to Christianity, responding to officers of the State Security Investigation. On April 28th of this year they told el-Akkad that he would stay in prison for 10 years if he didn't renounce his new faith <he had 'insulted Islam' by converting>. Inexplicably, only a few hours later he was released to rejoin his family. If you'd like to read more about this wonderful act of courage, click here.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I fled Southern California too soon! I could have been in on the six-movie, 17-hour Star Wars marathon at the Los Angeles Convention Center. And let me tell you, I totally would have gone. I wouldn't have dressed up, but I would have gone. I've been in on a few marathons over the years -- although none that extreme -- and there's nothing like watching something you love with others who feel the same way, whether it be just a couple of you or a couple thousand.

Asked about the folks who dressed up, the event spokesman said:

"You get the usual assortment of Storm Troopers running around. I imagine it's pretty uncomfortable to sit for 17 hours encased in plastic."

Posted by authorjodi at 09:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "A Writer." »

Posted by authorjodi at 09:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm having a writing day today, working on book two. As you can see, my writing partner is quite supportive, although she does sleep through a majority of the work. ;) 

I have to tell you -- without being too specific -- that I'm finding it appalling how easy it would be to truly cripple a key component of our infrastructure. I did a little creative brainstorming, researched a small amount, talked to a few people in the know, and voila...a pretty good plan for a catastrophic. long-term disaster with a decent chance of successfully pulling it off. If I can so easily formulate a workable plot for my FICTION book, how many of the folks who truly hate us are already scheming something similar?

Posted by authorjodi at 03:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Movie Guide, my newest bookmarked site, has two articles today that I found interesting. First, the bad news. According to a government study, some schools in England have stopped teaching about the Holocaust and the Crusades, for fear of offending their Muslim students.

The report added that, in dropping the Holocaust, teachers feared “anti-Semitic sentiment and Holocaust denial among some Muslim pupils.”

Schools dropped the Crusades, including the reasons Christians wanted to take back the Holy Land, the report said, because a more truthful description of the Crusades “would have challenged what was taught in some local mosques.”

Continue reading "Bad News, Good News." »

Posted by authorjodi at 06:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

My dad sent me a fascinating quote this morning in regards to Jerry Falwell's death.

"My mother always told me that no matter how much you dislike a person, when you meet them face to face you will find characteristics about them that you like. Jerry Falwell was a perfect example of that. I hated everything he stood for, but after meeting him in person, years after the trial, Jerry Falwell and I became good friends. ... I always appreciated his sincerity even though I knew what he was selling and he knew what I was selling." - Hustler magazine founder Larry Flynt

I'm not sure where my dad found this so I can't attribute it, but wow. What a great example of tolerance <the historical definition, not the new-fangled one>. They disagreed vehemently but were able to treat each other with respect and become friends. I imagine they still tried to convince one another about the rightness of their respective causes...

This is a good reminder for me, especially as I've been thinking lately about graciousness. What would my quote-unquote enemies have to say about me if I keeled over tomorrow?

Posted by authorjodi at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Graciousness." »

Posted by authorjodi at 09:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm sorry, but I totally need this product. Cali comes prancing across my keyboard quite frequently and I just have to wait til she feels good and ready to move on. Although that's not as bad as her proclivity for coming to stand right on top of my Bible when I'm reading it in the morning. I try not to think that she's possessed or anything... :p <Thanks Hal for the product recommendation!>

Posted by authorjodi at 04:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Stats." »

Posted by authorjodi at 10:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Bugpods, Solar-Powered Hats & a Linen Belt" »

Posted by authorjodi at 09:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It rained off and on all night -- mostly a lovely pitter patter with occasional downpours. I could have almost believed I was in Oregon or the Idaho mountains when I looked outside, but the second I stepped outside I was hit by a wave of humidity that reminds me exactly where I am. ;)

I'm working on a project for my old company this week so I asked the ranger for directions to the nearest sign of civilization -- a coffee shop with internet access. Turns out I had to drive clear into Marshall. I feel kind of bad that I haven't seen the movie yet, but nobody has asked for that credential so I'm ok so far. 

Continue reading "We Are...Marshall." »

Posted by authorjodi at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "The Piney Woods." »

Posted by authorjodi at 03:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I keep feeling my lymph nodes to see if I've contracted Cat Scratch Fever. Cali is making me seriously reconsider my decision to allow her to keep her claws. I think the guy at the Humane Society caught me at a week moment two years ago, telling me declawing was not the way to go. Since then I've cringed at the destruction of my couch, my chairs, my carpet...but Saturday night might have been the final straw.

Continue reading "Bartonella henselae." »

Posted by authorjodi at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 09:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We walked a couple blocks to have dinner tonight at an outdoor cafe; a soup known as the national dish. I ate most of it, but left the meat chunks as I often do when I'm in a foreign country. As we got up to leave a young boy came up to beg from us. I've gotten fairly used to it and ignore them as I've been told to do, but this time my friend decided to get a bag and give the boy our leftover fries. Much to my horror, he went over to the table, took my spoon and ate the pieces of meat I'd left.

My friend tells me that he's a professional beggar, that his clothes are too clean and he's got shoes and he probably gets sent out on the job by his parents. She's says it's a culture where people eat from a communal pot so eating out of my bowl was no big deal for him. While I appreciated her attempts to make me feel better, the whole episode left a bad taste in my mouth.

Continue reading "Conviction." »

Posted by authorjodi at 01:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

One of my favorite songs is by a group called The Kry. It's an older song -- I think 80's or early 90's. Of course to some that's not considered old, but to me it is. ;) I didn't look it up, but as I remember these are a few of the lines:

No one will ever go hungry or cold
No one will hurt or will ever grow old
No one will die and leave someone alone
That's when I'll know
I'm home forever, no pain or disease
All will be equal and all will be free
True love will come and we'll fall to our knees
That's when I'll know I'm home

A friend of mine died today. She was only a couple years older than me and she died in her sleep. A couple hours before I got the news I was doing some work on our short term bulletin board and saw several messages from her -- taking care of people and answering their questions...and I was grateful that she was so on the ball while I was a little out of the loop over here. It's just sort of stunning that she's gone.

I don't understand God's ways. At least I'm finally old enough now to understand that I never will. What I do know is that He is good. And right now I'm overwhelmed with a feeling of happiness for her. Don't get me wrong -- it's not for me. But for her what an amazing thing to fall asleep with the worries and cares of this world on her mind and wake up in heaven. To pass from death into true life. I'm sure she's dancing.

Posted by authorjodi at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Monday Musings." »

Posted by authorjodi at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

While I couldn't be more thankful that God dropped this consulting job in my lap, I can't believe how much I feel removed from my "real" life. I'm working 10-12 hours a day trying to complete the project and toss up a prayer of gratitude every time I think about it since my tour funds were running quite low -- but it's weird not to have more than five minutes to toss out a quick post! Let alone the fact that I'm not responding to e-mail or keeping up on the news or recording any podcast episodes and etc. ;)

I guess that means I'll be composing a long catch-up post over the weekend! And remember, starting next Wednesday I'll be heading out on my tour of Israel, Jordan, Egypt and the unnamed other country. My plan is to post a little about what I've seen each day, so it'll be pretty much like the norm in format -- but the content should be a little different than you're used to. :p

Posted by authorjodi at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

This afternoon I had to wait a few minutes for a meeting so I picked up a copy of that gripping guilty pleasure, The National Underwriter <motto: The Leader in Property & Casualty News>. Luckily I only had to read for a few minutes or I might have fallen into an irreversible coma, but I did manage to read most of one interesting article on bizarre risks.

For instance, remember a couple years ago when the Red Sox fell victim to an enthusiastic fan who grabbed a ball before the outfielder could get it? Someone bought it and blew it up with dynamite as a publicity stunt, but apparently at the last second they panicked and decided they'd better by some coverage in case someone sued that bad luck had spewed all over them. Elsewhere, a European wine expert had her taste buds insured for 10 million pounds.

In other news, my brother sent me pictures of the new Airbus A380 and I'm telling you, I have never seen anything so decadently luxurious as the first class cabin. Wow.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Children's Books." »

Posted by authorjodi at 10:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

$3.09 is the price of gas here in SoCal, although it very well could be the temperature! It is HOT here -- good thing I sweltered in Dallas a couple days to prepare myself. Of course, having to dress in business casual and sit in a small conference room with 20 people and 30 computers makes the climate seem a little worse then when I'm relaxing in Bertha wearing my usual uniform -- shorts, t-shirt and flip flops. ;)

Continue reading "309." »

Posted by authorjodi at 08:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I just witnessed something that brought tears to my eyes. I was standing in line at the burrito bar when I heard people starting to clap -- and I mean a lot of people. It started as just a few, but within seconds a wave of clapping and whistling swept over the whole terminal. I had an idea what it might be but didn't want to get my hopes up lest it was just some lame professional basketball team.

I finally spotted troops walking along the upper concourse. They took almost ten minutes to deplane -- and people stood and clapped the whole time. It was really quite something.

Maybe it's true that we're near to tearing each other apart in this country over the war and other culture-clash issues, but I was so proud that my fellow travelers could set that aside for a few minutes to honor those who offer their lives to protect our right to argue.

Posted by authorjodi at 10:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

As promised, here's a picture of the redneck moment when my uncle and one of his employees tried to fix my step the other night <Class S Mishap>. What really needed to happen was for my uncle to get out his blowtorch so he could bend the metal back in place, but as the steps were about six inches from the propane tank he decided against that move. Instead, they hooked a tow strap around the basketball pole and used a little elbow grease to bend it back into place. I suggested if the basketball pole didn't work they could hook it to the back of the Porsche sitting in the garage...but they didn't much like that idea. ;)

My longsuffering cat after Dog #1 moved from sniffing her rear to laying beside her.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

After writing this I'm going to head to bed for a small nap, but other than that necessity it was great to be up so early that I could attend the Wycliffe Associates morning devotions. We sang some hymns out of the Baptist hymnbook, the ladies group performed special music, there were several announcements and lots of laughs. It made me think what fun it would be to participate in a community such as this -- lots of retired folks who spent a couple years playing golf before deciding they wanted to do something different with their remaining time. Very similar feel to the SIL base in Arizona I visited awhile back.

Continue reading "Faithfulness." »

Posted by authorjodi at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Just as an fyi, I'm home in Boise for a week so postings might be a little slim. I'm the techy for our church's short term mission online training program so I had to come home and teach a class for our teams heading out this summer. Also need to attend a mandatory orientation for the Senegal trip next fall that, Lord willing, I'll be going along on. All exciting things and an opportunity to see the fam and a little snow.

The interview I did about "Taking a Stand in the Public Square" is now archived here if you'd like to listen.

Posted by authorjodi at 02:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I decided to ignore V-Day and take the night off last night, so I did a 3-D puzzle and watched a little TV. Did I mention the RV park I was at the past two nights had 60-channel cable? Bad. Very bad. :p

Anyway, here's a picture of my amazing handiwork. Have you ever done a 3-D puzzle? This was my first one and I found it not only way difficult, but also quite fun. I think I'll try another with something besides a zillion pieces of blue! ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 09:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm sitting in the parking lot of the Wycliffe SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics) center in Catalina, Arizona after navigating the 4-lane-white-knuckle traffic of Phoenix yesterday. I was on my way to Tucson to visit my aunt, but decided to stop in and see the place my grandparents lived for a year in the 80's. They were here when the center was first being built and I met several people yesterday who said my grandpa wired their house.

I don't know how many of you have heard of Finishers, but as I got toured around yesterday meeting different people, that organization came to mind. Finishers coordinates mission opportunities for adults who may have retired from their first career but are still strong and able and want to be used of God.

There are around 100 volunteers here who qualify under that heading. They mostly live in RVs and spend the winter months doing all kinds of different work to assist the local staff and translators in Mexico. I only met a handful yesterday, but I decided right off the bat that they are having a ball giving God the second half of their careers!

I hope that I'm as faithful in my second half when that time comes around.

Posted by authorjodi at 09:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

If you notice a change on the left side of the screen...it's a new widget I'm trying out. It should show you whether I'm online or not -- if I am you can chat with me. :)

Of course, I picked a poor time to test this out -- I'm heading toward the Grand Canyon tomorrow where cell service is pretty much nil.

Posted by authorjodi at 07:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This post is for my pinochle-loving family. ;)

This was one of my hands yesterday when I spanked Grandma two games to none right before taking her to meet the shuttle. I know it's not 1,000 aces or a double fam, but I melded my entire hand! Grandma and I counted it as 580 because we counted a 240 round robin in addition to the fam, but Jason counted 540 when he saw the picture this morning. I'm thinking it's probably 540 after all, but thought I might take a family poll. :p

Posted by authorjodi at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Americans spend more time with their computer than with their spouse. My favorite statistic? "A majority of Americans (52%) describe their most recent experience with a computer problem as one of anger, sadness or alienation." Read more.

You can sign up to have Amber Alerts in your area come to your cell as text messages. Might be a good thing to consider. Read more.

In one of the more moderate Arab countries in the world, Jordanian men do away with their daughters and nieces approximately 20 times a year in "honor" killings. Unwed sex is considered such a stain on the family's reputation that they would rather spend six months in jail than live with the embarassment. That is, until public pressure made the government get rid of the special penal code that gave "honor" killers as few as six months in prison. Now the practice is regarded as any other homocide. Harsher punishments have been discussed, but "conservative lawmakers argue that tougher penalties would lead to promiscuity." Read more.

Posted by authorjodi at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We played Balderdash tonight -- the game where you make up answers and then go around and vote for which one you think is right. I nearly died laughing when I was in charge of the question "What is the movie Case of the Lucky Legs about?" Can you guess the right answer?

1. A shipment of frog legs finds its way to the doorstep of a young boy who wins the lottery.
2. A pair of ugly mannequin legs that tries to be famous and at the end gets displayed in Victoria's Secret.
3. A centipede.
4. A paralyzed woman wins a set of legs.
5. A 1950s based film about a Cuban immigrant who becomes an international track star.
6. Perry Mason goes after a beauty pageant promoter who leaves town with the prize money.

If that doesn't convince you that Balderdash might be a good option for family game night, I don't know what will. :)

Posted by authorjodi at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Another entry in the "artists have the right to explore anything category" came to my attention this morning. Dakota Fanning is currently appearing at Sundance in a movie called Hounddog, which features a scene where she is raped. She was 12 at the time and, according to both the filmmakers and her mother, the scene was "carefully choreographed."

I don't know what "carefully choreographed" means exactly, but I'm a little sick to my stomach that anyone would consider it filmworthy material to make a 12-year old girl pretend she's being raped. I'm not denying that 12-year old girls (and younger) are raped every day, I'm just not sure a film showing the act is the best way to get the message out. You can read more here.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, we all know about e-mail forwarding and how ludicrous it is -- at least most of us -- I happen to know several forwarders who need to take an etiquette class. What gives me the biggest laugh is the wrap-up at the end after you've looked at some cute pictures, or read a touching appeal for money from a kid dying of a rare disease in England, or even signed a petition to make sure the government doesn't start charging a fee for each e-mail you send...

There's the straightforward "send this to 10 friends or a piano will fall on your head." Or the "you'll receive a check from Bill Gates worth five cents for every person you forward this to." But my favorites are the religious wrap-ups that say something along the lines of "you forward cute pictures of cats to all your friends, why won't you forward this special blessing? Remember if you deny Christ now, He will deny you later."

Along those lines, my sister-in-law just sent me a great one. So as not to besmirch her good character, I should add that I asked her to forward this one after she told me about it because I wanted to share it here:

"You don't have to share this with anybody, no one will know whether you did or not, but you will know and so will He."

I, of course, immediately deleted the e-mail.

Posted by authorjodi at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I've often thought that the Sundance Film Festival is a showplace for all that is envelope-pushingly awful in Hollywood. At least one of this year's entries seems to confirm that opinion. Zoo is a documentary about bestiality in general and a Washington man who died in 2005 after having sex with a horse in specific. In an article I read, the director states:

"A lot of people looked at me as if I was an exploitative person, dredging up something for profit, and that bothered me. I was certainly asked many times, often with a wrinkled brow, 'Why are you making this film?' It was something I did resent; I thought artists had the opportunity to explore anything."

His last statement sums things up for me, both for Hollywood and for our culture at large. Explore anything, no limits, no moral boundaries.

Posted by authorjodi at 02:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm a procrastinator. I always have been. In 8th grade I wrote an entire semester's research paper in one night. In college I pulled more all-nighters than I can even remember and I'm not sure a single one was strictly necessary if I'd paced myself as some of my more organized friends.

This can be summarized best by the following, frequently occuring scenario. My mom and I have a project to work on, as well as a movie I rented for the evening's entertainment. Mom wants to get the work done, then watch the movie. I vote for the opposite. When we do it her way we occasionally don't get to watch the movie. When we do it my way we end up staying up way too late because the work took longer than we thought. I'm sure that's not terribly shocking. :p

Continue reading "Personality vs. Character" »

Posted by authorjodi at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I was reading alumni excerpts from my school's new blatant attempt to join the 21st century blogroll when I came across someone quoting this speech from a recent episode of CSI:

The truth is a moral compass that can only point you in the right direction. It can't make you go there. Our culture preaches that you shouldn't be ashamed of anything you do anymore. And unfortunately this city is built on the principle that there's no such thing as guilt. Do whatever you want. We won't tell. So without a conscience, there's nothing to stop you from killing someone. And evidently, you don't even have to feel bad about it. - Gil Grissom, CSI, Season 7 Episode 4, "Fannysmackin"

How completely true and how completely unexpected. I don't watch CSI so I wouldn't have come across this quote without stumbling onto it this way -- that's one thing I love about the blog world!

Posted by authorjodi at 09:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Sorry for the complete lack of postage over the past several days. I can't even pretend I've been snowed in without electricity or locked under 4-inches of ice like my cousins in Oklahoma. To be honest, I just haven't felt like I had anything to say that wasn't completely inane. I think this was mostly to do with a head-in-the-sand mentality. You know the one. Big change coming your way...fear and trembling abound...maybe if I hold my breath and pretend it isn't happening it will go away! ;)

My previous little two month book tour was a successful minor-risk experiment. I found out that God would provide for me and arrange divine appointments. He would protect me in the parking lots of various W/M's. He would throw little clues my way in order to lead me in the right direction. But even with all of that, the truth is, I'm still oh me of little faith.

Continue reading "Decision Making and the Will of God." »

Posted by authorjodi at 01:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

...but in the continual effort to make a living, I'm now including google ads on my site. I will, of course, remove them once I get on the Times Bestseller list (ha ha), but for now Bertha needs some gas BAD! ;)

On a positive note, I experienced another grim sign of aging today when the optometrist diagnosed astigmatism in my left eye. I had to wander around Costco with a pager for awhile, waiting to see if I could adjust to the new contact which felt like it was bigger than my eyeball. It's weighted somehow, but I'm sure knowing that had nothing to do with the fact that every time I blinked I felt like the weights were spinning crazily around the bottom. I was asked for a 1-10 comfort scale and gave it a 6, somewhere between wanting to gouge my eye out and not feeling anything.

Of course, when I said what I was looking for, the doc cheerfully assured me that hardly anyone gets to that elusive place where you don't know you're wearing them. With my expectations thus demoted, we tried the next brand and it seems to be a lot more comfortable. In fact, as I type this almost two hours later I can hardly feel a thing.

Posted by authorjodi at 05:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I was surprised to see that the movie adaptation of Ted Dekker's book Thr3e is out today. I haven't heard any buzz about it from Christian friends, but on the strength of how much I loved the book I'm heading out to plunk down my money on opening night. I'll let you know what I think of it. Check out the trailer here.

Posted by authorjodi at 04:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 03:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Under the category of what goes around comes around...I read a funny article in the paper today. I couldn't find it on the Idaho Statesman website, but here's a link to the same article quoted elsewhere. Basically, it talks about fears of celebrities where HDTV is concerned. All their wrinkles and etc. brought to high definition life on the 52-inch screen of someone's home theater. :p

I have to admit, I'm one of those that occasionally snickers when I see an especially bad picture of a celebrity as I'm walking through the grocery checkout stand. They spend so much time and money making sure we only see them at their best and most radiant -- it's just kind of nice to know they sometimes look like crap when they go to the grocery store at 10 o'clock at night for a bottle of milk. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 11:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Just got back from a big Friday night date -- watching The Nativity Story and going to Fuddruckers with my parentals. We used to go to a Fuddruckers in Portland years and years ago and I have to say it hasn't aged well in my memory. Good burgers, don't get me wrong, but over $10 for burger, fries and shake is a bit much.

But the movie...wow! It was just wonderful. I don't know how many of you had the same reaction I did to The Passion, but when that first scene opened it brought tears to my eyes because it was so beautifully filmed and I thought finally we have a quote-unquote Christian movie that is done to full Hollywood potential. I can't say I enjoyed much else in The Passion -- it was too excruciating to watch -- but I had that same sense of joy throughout the entire movie tonight.

So many things I liked -- a couple of them new ways of looking at the story I'd never thought of. It was so moving to me when Elizabeth turned around to greet a very anxious Mary and started speaking verses I've read over and over. Overall, it was just really, really well done imho and a beautiful counterpoint to the other garbage masquerading as Christmas movies.

Posted by authorjodi at 07:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Most of the glasses were dirty so I had to rummage through my parent's cupboard in search of a cup with which to take my Airborne. Some might say taking Airborne at this point is like closing the barn door after the animals have escaped, but I'll try anything after several days of head cold.

What I found was an old, blue tin cup. We used to use it when we went camping and it reminded me of an episode of Little House on the Prairie I saw recently. I only caught the last couple minutes of it, but Mr. Edwards was struggling through a blizzard to make it to the Ingalls' home on Christmas Eve. He finally arrived, and as he sat in front of the fire thawing out, he told the girls he'd run into Santa and agreed to pass along their presents since Santa might have trouble getting over the swollen river since he had so many other places to go.

Laura and Mary were thrilled when Mr. Edwards passed them their new Sony PlayStation 3's...not! :) They each got a tin cup, and they were effusively thankful. I remember thinking WOW when Laura said how cool it was that they wouldn't have to share a cup anymore. Obviously she didn't say cool, but that would be the modern translation. I wonder what kids will be thinking is cool twenty years from now.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I wonder if the CDC has ever done a statistical study regarding the relationship between Christmas and the prevalence of flu. Grandma's house was an incubator for a couple different types. Luckily, I only caught the "head weighs 1,000 pounds" variety -- in my opinion much preferable to the "spend the night in the bathroom" variety.

We were playing cancellation hearts one day when we heard we were about to receive envoys from the "night in the bathroom" house so we all quickly created face masks out of towels, napkins and the like. Grandma actually had a mask she'd bought for spraying insecticide, but the rest of us looked pretty silly -- which, to be fair, is what we were going for. The Kerby family motto is anything for a laugh. Although, now that I think about it, that is the default motto after the original and still going strong second place is the first loser. ;)

Continue reading "The Flu and other Tales of Christmas." »

Posted by authorjodi at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Just got back from running some errands and my wish has been granted -- snow and more snow! Although, it's now slicker than snot as my dad would say. ;) I slid several times going slowly around corners, but nothing too bad. I'm sure glad I don't have to be driving in this for rush hour traffic!

If you want a laugh you can look here to read about the latest poor 5-year-old written up for sexual harassment. Further down in the article it cites a poor 4-year-old. I can't conceive of a child at that age understanding anything about the adult idea of sexual harassment. Poor kid. At least the charges don't follow him to middle school, although I imagine the rumor mill will.

Posted by authorjodi at 05:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Dad and I just returned from picking up my brother and sister-in-law at the airport. On the way we dropped off Bertha at the repair shop to have the door rebuilt. When driving home from Vegas a couple weeks ago I looked back and saw the top of the door flapping in the wind...hopefully this will solve that little inconvenience. :)

Something about picking up family at the airport has finally made it seem like Christmas. I guess it has something to do with the deep-seated emotion of family tradition -- doesn't seem quite real until everyone is home. And now that they made it in, I can hope wholeheartedly for a big snow storm tonight! Of course everyone is now napping and I'm racking my brain for a cheerful podcasting topic for today's episode. I just finished making a triple batch of rice krispies. I tell you what, if someone invented a device that made it so not everything in the kitchen ended up covered in sticky marshmallows -- that person would have my gratitude. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 03:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The propane ran out Saturday night. When I woke up it was 25 degrees inside Bertha and Cali's water dish had frozen solid...so last night we moved into my brother's old room. My room, in the tradition of all empty-nesters, has become something else entirely. ;)

Interesting survey done in the UK -- kids said the best things in the world are 1) being a celebrity, 2) good looks, 3) being rich. "God/heaven" squeaked into the top 10, but just barely.

Posted by authorjodi at 10:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Someone forwarded me this article about giving myths. The liberal care much more about the poor than those stingy conservatives, right?

Continue reading "The Season of Giving." »

Posted by authorjodi at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I may have been reading too many books about the Marines in too a short time. A couple weeks ago I finished Making the Corps; now I'm halfway through Battle Cry by Leon Uris. Subsequently, two nights ago I dreamed I was in boot camp, not doing very well. ;)

Though I'm only halfway thru, Battle Cry reaffirms why Leon Uris is one of my favorite authors. He's not writing Christian fiction, so I can't recommend it without a PG-13 rating, but he is so good at well-researched history wrapped in a great story. I nearly fell out of bed laughing last night at one scene, even though I know that the boys are just getting ready to go into some horrific battles after half the book has explained the preparation.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've just finished wrapping a bunch of presents while listening to Christmas music and have suddenly kicked into the Christmas spirit. It took me a lot longer this year than it usually does. Might have had something to do with the fact that I didn't have to pull out my 20 plus pairs of Christmas socks to start wearing to work...or maybe because I haven't spent much time in stores so I haven't heard the Christmas muzak since the day after Halloween. Regardless, I'm there now!

Towhit, I've decided to impose a moratorium on this blog regarding grim political and/or opinion articles until after Christmas. I'm saving those I feel like commenting on, but I'll try not to blast you with them all the day after Christmas! ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 02:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've just finished wrapping a bunch of presents while listening to Christmas music and have suddenly kicked into the Christmas spirit. It took me a lot longer this year than it usually does. Might have had something to do with the fact that I didn't have to pull out my 20 plus pairs of Christmas socks to start wearing to work...or maybe because I haven't spent much time in stores so I haven't heard the Christmas muzak since the day after Halloween. Regardless, I'm there now!

Towhit, I've decided to impose a moratorium on this blog regarding grim political and/or opinion articles until after Christmas. I'm saving those I feel like commenting on, but I'll try not to blast you with them all the day after Christmas! ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 02:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, I let Cali loose in the garage for an hour yesterday. I have no idea what the outcome was but I didn't find any unidentifiable rodent bits laying on the floor. ;) Thanks for all the advice -- I think I might also run down and get a couple traps.

I had a bit of dog trouble last night as well. All of a sudden I heard some major whining coming from the back yard -- went out and found the dog had fallen into the window well. No injuries or anything, but it's about 4 feet and he couldn't get out. I had to crawl down in there in the dark with all kinds of grody bits clinging to my pajamas and push his big dumb carcass out.

Posted by authorjodi at 10:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ok, not technically...it was in the garage. When I arrived unexpectedly early for Christmas, I inherited care and feeding of my dad's dog since my parents are out of the country. He's a good sort of dog. Big collie, jumps all over everyone with his muddy paws, trips you when you're walking because of his insistence that he stick his nose and feet at your ankles. But I digress.

Continue reading "A Mouse in the House!" »

Posted by authorjodi at 01:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Do you have any shopping from amazon.com to do this Christmas? If you use the amazon box on the right, then do your shopping, I get a miniscule referral fee that may, some day, add up to enough to cover a month of hosting this blog. ;)

Posted by authorjodi at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

"I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens." Abraham Lincoln

Posted by authorjodi at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Now here's something you'd want your kid doing in the basement!

And here is a cool article about pictures of animals taken inside the womb.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 11:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A picture of horror.

Posted by authorjodi at 01:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I probably should have stayed up a little later last night and posted that I arrived safely in Las Vegas, but truthfully I was so tired from WHOOPING my brother and sister-in-law in a 4-hour game of Risk that I just fell into bed. ;)

But yes, I did arrive safely. I knew I was getting close when I saw a billboard advertising that you could try out any kind of semi-automatic gun at a certain establishment...followed in the next mile or two by a billboard advertising that you could, if so inclined, shop for a new car while naked at a particular car lot.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Interesting article I just read about megachurch pastors in general and Ted Haggard in specific. What I always find especially interesting is how the media goes about finding their so-called "experts." Now I'm not saying Haggard didn't sin, or that megachurches or Christianity in general never makes mistakes...I'm just talking about expert witnesses.

As far as I can tell, they quote four different sources, all of whom are college professors. More than half the article deals with what they think might happen to Haggard's church, yet they quote no attendees. They use no quotes from any of the several other megachurches they mention. In fact, in this article dealing with Christianity and the impact on individual Christians because of our cultural shift toward megachurches...I can't see evidence that they spoke to even one Christian. Like I said, I find it interesting. They did bring up some good points, which is why I linked to it in the first place.

Posted by authorjodi at 10:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 01:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 06:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I went with my former roommates out to the Air Show yesterday after church. What an amazing sight! First of all, hundreds of polite young men and women in uniform bringing order to the zillions of people wandering around in non-uniformed chaos. They sent us all through metal detectors and trollied us from the acres and acres of flat dirt used for the parking lot, all with organized efficiency.

Continue reading "Edwards Air Force Base Air Show." »

Posted by authorjodi at 07:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It must have been the visit Friday, but I had a dream last night that I was back in the building, except we were all in cages set up against the walls. Bars came from the top and bottom and met in the middle, leaving a small spot where you could sort of wave your arms. Every once in awhile they would open the bars and you could get out for a minute or two before being locked back up. Analyze that one!

I went to my old church yesterday -- you might recognize it from the book as the church George and Amanda attended. Here's a picture of the trailer that comes every week because they meet at Moorpark College and have to bring in all their equipment:

Posted by authorjodi at 04:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

"...since they held that all morality was a mere subjective by-product of the physical and economic situations of men..." That Hideous Strength, C.S. Lewis.

I thought that quote apropos since I was just discussing moral absolutes a couple days ago. It always strikes me as odd when I'm reading a book from yesteryear that speaks as if written today. Or, at the very least, makes me wonder if society is as it has always been. I remember being sort of thunderstruck when reading a passage in Augustine's Confessions that described the way people reacted to the rampant immorality in the theater of his day (around 400 AD). I thought I might just as well be reading a modern expose' on Hollywood.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That is the cheery song sung by the man in the center of the picture below. One of the later lines in his song was "support your local wino." He was, in actual fact, one of the least offensive things I saw on my walk from Venice Beach to Santa Monica Pier and back. To be fair to Santa Monica, the worst stuff was along the shopping mile in Venice. I don't know why I forget, but every time I walk down there I'm assaulted by tarot cards and psychic readings, t-shirts with sayings I am embarassed to read, let alone wear and all manner of moral filth. I used to love walking around and looking at the wild variety of people, but now I just feel like I need a bath.

I actually took my video camera, all flush with last night's "motivation," but just as I worked up my nerve to approach the first person with my three tolerance-related questions...the battery went dead. So much for that!

Posted by authorjodi at 06:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday my aunt and I went to see One Night With The King. I would highly recommend it -- one, because it was well done and two, because it was clean, clean, clean and I'm not sure they could have used much more Scripture as actual dialogue. If you haven't heard of it, it tells the story of Queen Esther.

After the movie we checked out C28: Not of this World. That was the store of the guy I chatted with for such a long time at the Harvest Crusade. I couldn't be more tickled with this store, let me tell you. I think it's mainly set to appeal to the younger set, but I managed to find a t-shirt I could buy. :p They said kids walk in there thinking it's any other trendy mall store, then ask what in the world it's all about. They've had six kids pray with staff to become Christians in their most recent store that's only been open two months. And the best part -- it's a viable business (or as viable as any new retail store). I tried to talk him into moving into the Boise mall but he said that's a ways off. He's concentrated on opening six new stores in northern California in the next little while. Meanwhile, you can order from the website I linked above.

Since I seem to be in a recommending mood, we were on a movie streak and watched Diary of a Mad Black Woman last night. I'm sorry to say I'd never heard of Tyler Perry, nor his stage plays, but I intend to rent the whole lot now that I've seen the first one he made into a movie. It was so funny. And again, clean with a great message. Apparently Tyler used to be homeless, but has since achieved wild fame and fortune with his plays and attributes it all to his faith in God.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I tried to power through Perelandra last night because I was so close to the end. Sadly, I had to give up in the middle of the last chapter because it was really difficult to understand what he was saying and I was not at my most coherent. This morning I dreamed I was in a physics class and in the back C.S. Lewis was giving a lesson for those students who were having difficulty. I raced back to get a good seat at the table because I was in desperate need of extra help. Luckily, the phone woke me out of a dead sleep just as I was getting that sinking feeling that sometimes occurs when you know you're about to endure a long discussion that you have no hope of understanding.

I blame Famous Dave's BBQ. Last night, on the recommendation of my hosts, I ordered the Two Buns and a Heart Attack Burger (not it's real name) which was a burger topped with bbq pork and bacon. It was quite good but we had to waddle out. It's a good thing there was a Barnes and Noble across the parking lot -- I figure we were able to burn off almost 10 calories walking over there.

Posted by authorjodi at 01:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning I took my life into my hands and went downtown to take my motorcycle skills test. A month or two ago I passed the written test to get my permit. Much fear and trembling was involved as I read the handbook cover to cover while waiting for my number to be called. I've been a pretty good test-taker all my life, but something about the DMV throws me into a panic. I actually failed an Idaho licensing test about 7 years ago, but that's neither here nor there.

So anyway, this morning, after forcing Eggos and coffee down my queasy stomach, I decamped to the Harley dealer on Chinden and heard the blood rushing in my ears as I got there a minute too late to see an elderly gentleman on a scooter fail the test. I missed his mistakes, but I heard him complaining to the other two petitioners. Luckily I was able to watch a big dude on a big bike literally crawl through the cone swerve so slowly he had to put his foot down twice. While we watched, the next gal in line carefully explained the markings painted on the pavement, which looked like a nightmarish maze. She'd been there several times practicing and was worried. Big dude passed with a -9 ... -10 being the key figure. Next gal started up and managed to put her foot down and squash two cones. She passed with a -5. Me and my Honda 90 were up. I had to make a tight turn without hitting any of the yellow lines, then stop with my front tire in a box. Cone swerve at an alarmingly slow pace, then a U-turn within the specified box. Fast stop and fast swerve and I passed miraculously with a -1. My little bike is responsible I think, as she is so slow and so short that I couldn't help but wrest her into the right maneuvers. Watch out world!

Posted by authorjodi at 03:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I love my church. I grew up there and after many years in different states it has been a joy to reconnect this past year. I'll miss it when I go on my tour -- and by "it" I mean the body collective, all the old and new friends I've made. 

This morning the pastor was teaching out of Exodus 16...all about the whiners and complainers and how instead we should be "singin in the rain." He's a multimedia guy so he showed a clip of both Gene Kelly prancing around and then, later on, Tevye complaining to God in Fiddler on the Roof. Between musicals ;) he said something that really resonated with me. He said when it begins to rain, you quickly realize the broken gutters and unfinished repair projects. That is so true with me. I just merrily prance along and it is only when real life interrupts that I think "ahh!" I should have read my Bible more or prayed more or been more loving to this person.

My mom spun her car in the rain Saturday -- she did two complete turns and managed to miss entirely the cars in the two lanes next to her. I have no doubt that my mom knows how much I love her and of course I could have treated her better all my life...but if she had smashed up I wouldn't have any guilt wrapping around my grief. But I can't say that about all my relationships. I think it would be better if I went around and fixed a few gutters pre-emptively.

Posted by authorjodi at 08:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I guess I'd better practice blogging more frequently since I'll be leaving on the big tour in a little over a week... I'll start this evening by telling you that I'm a little sick to my stomach over just listing my car for sale on craigslist. I should preface this by telling you that I've really been praying God will use this whole tour thing to strengthen my faith.

I've had faith through finding the right RV -- even though at times it seems like I'll be driving off in a pile of rusted bolts strapped together with duct tape. I've had faith through finding a renter -- even though they called a week later to say the cable guy found water in the crawlspace under the house. I've even had faith as I watched my bank account slide toward the inevitable.

As I list my car for sale tonight I wonder at this new and astounding lack of faith I'm showing. This has always been the plan -- sell the car to pay off the last of my debts, pay for the vinyl advertising on the RV and have a little ready cash for the next year. This is a smart plan, a good plan -- one that I've thought through a thousand different times.

But tonight I realize that selling my car is waving farewell to the last of my independence. From now on I will be tied to this bucket of bolts RV that has had so many surprises so far that I'm almost afraid to go out there at night. And my little scooter... Can't forget that. I can toot around to the grocery store on the scooter if I don't feel like driving Big Bertha. And no, that's not her name, but I haven't settled on one as of yet.

So you see, once the car is gone I have no more semi-liquid assets to rely on. If God doesn't provide for me I'll be reading the classifieds as I limp home in Bertha (now I'm getting attached to that name). So much for all that faith I've been growing.

Posted by authorjodi at 06:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

After months of praying about my job situation (if or when to leave), God swooped in and got me laid off. Talk about a surprising answer to prayer. Sheesh. The division reorganized and I was given the option of moving back to California to work at a new office there. It took me less than a second to make that decision...so I got 60 days notice.

I wish I could slip into that feeling I have when God has just pulled off some wonderful act of grace or mercy...and stay there. But no, I'm a weak vessel and end up whining "wait...wait...what do you mean you're answering my prayer? Now what do I do...I have a mortgage!"

What I'm going to do after June 9 remains to be seen, but in the meantime there is God's grace.

Posted by authorjodi at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So I thought for a lark I'd get personalized plates for my ever-reliable Honda this year...and what could be better than using my favorite Bible verse that inspired the website: as4me. Unfortunately, I just got a letter back from the DMV saying my plate choice was rejected due to a profane or derogatory alternate meaning. I feel like I need to call them and explain my less-than-profane idea -- I'm afraid I've been listed in some big, bad federal database as a perv.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For the last week and a half I was down in California on a business trip. It wasn't supposed to be that long -- originally it was just a week, but things happened and I had to stay on. I'm not sure if God is trying to tell me something or if it's my own impatience and/or irresponsibility, but I felt like I was in a jailcell, constantly banging my head trying to get out. I want so much to be FREE. FREE to really shepherd the online training process this year. FREE to lead projects that come up on the spur of the moment. FREE to take a month and go secret myself away on one of these fabulous freighters I've been reading about so I can make a good start on my second book.

Lord, grant me patience. For the millionth time I'm reminded that Your timing is not mine.

Posted by authorjodi at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was at Costco on Saturday with a bonus burning a hole in my pocket. Should I be responsible and get a needed lawnmower...or should I go crazy and get some cool speakers for my iPod? Or even better, should I put it in the bank? Being a homeowning adult is very distressing. I remember in high school when the only decision was whether to burn the whole paycheck or save it til next week's check so I could get something better. Now I have to think about how long I could keep the house and postpone moving in with my parents if I lost my job. I walked out of Costco with a bag of lettuce and a $16 dvd. I am so dull.

Posted by authorjodi at 03:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 03:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by authorjodi at 01:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)