:. it's back .:

Just got the lab results, and my Grave's Disease is rearing its ugly head once again.
DANG.
And why did Robert Graves have to be the first to identify the disease? Why couldn't it have been Robert Twinkle?
I'd love to say I have Twinkle Disease.

dang.

:. things i've learned .:

I've learned some things in my trips around the block. In honor of my natal anniversary, here are a few:

1. you don't have to worry about what people think of you, because they aren't.

2. he who has God, plus many things, has nothing more than he who has God alone. (I wish I had said that, but it was C.S. Lewis.)

3. because I believe the above statement, I know we would all be better off with less 'things'. And more God, of course.

4. now and then I like to contemplate the difference between then and now.

5. sometimes life is hard, but it's never the end of the world. Unless, of course, it's the end of the world.

6. if it were the end of the world, it would be too late to do all those things you've put off doing.

7. we tend to forget that this life is only a drop in the ocean compared to eternity. that's why we worry more about the status of our bank account than the status of our soul.

8. we all take way too many things for granted, including people we love.

9. we have NO IDEA of the depth of God's love for His children.

10. nor do we have ANY IDEA how holy God is, either. (We tend to think He's like us, only bigger. Wrong.)

11. we often confuse the patience of God with acquiescence. Big mistake.

12. life was never meant to be a bed of roses. (We got kicked out of the garden, remember?) It's actually more of a crucible; a place to refine us into the people we were meant to be.

13. it's futile to run from God. He fills heaven and earth . . . where are you going to hide? Better to stop running and submit. You're guaranteed a much happier ending.

14. there is no such thing as greener grass. That is simply an illusion created when we look through eyes of discontent.

15. Dorothy was right, there really is no place like home.

And just for the record: If I were a tree, I'd have 54 rings. I wonder how much girth that is in the arboreal world?

:. proud as can be .:

Department Press Release

Barbara Carlton named "Woman of the Year in Agriculture"

TALLAHASSEE – Think back to the popular 1960s television show "The Big Valley." Ranch matriarch Victoria Barkley, played by legendary actress Miss Barbara Stanwyck, rides her horse in from the range, manages the family ranch, raises successful children and, all the while, conducts herself as a prim, proper and charming lady. If you thought that could only happen in Hollywood, think again.
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson today announced that another "Barbara," Mrs. Barbara Carlton, has been selected to receive the "Woman of the Year in Agriculture" award for 2001.
"The name Carlton is legendary in Florida's agricultural history," Bronson said. "Barbara has carried on the proud tradition of her family name, and is certainly one of the hardest-working women in agriculture."

I don't know why I'm just finding out about this now.

:. unbound and unharmed .:

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were thrown into a blazing furnace because they refused to bow down and worship an idol. They were given the opportunity to lay aside their belief in the One True God and live; they chose otherwise. They trusted their God to save them, but even more impressive than their faith was their refusal to compromise "even if He does not."

They were tightly bound and thrown into a furnace so hot, the unlucky guards assigned to toss them in perished. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? They walked around in the fire "unbound and unharmed". A fourth man, whom, in the pagan king's words, "looks like a son of the gods", accompanied them on their stroll through the flames.

The king immediately ordered them out of the furnace, and in utter amazement found "the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them."

If you are in the furnace today, don't give up hope. He is with you! He is with you! He is able to see you through the affliction, unbound and unharmed. Trust Him! You will come through the fire drenched with the fragrant aroma of Christ.

:. odds and ends OR just to give katie something to read .:

I realized this morning that our cool weather has taken away my favorite summer past time: complaining about the heat and humidity. Not that I'm complaining about not being able to complain! This summer has been wonderful.

The smell of chicken stewing first thing in the morning is nauseating. HOWEVER. Chicken quesadillas for lunch with my girls is worth it.

A guy walked past my house last night, talking loudly to himself in what sounded like Russian. Not sure if he was using Berlitz . . . or if he is some sort of spy who didn't know the Cold War has ended. (or has it?!)

Here's something you never want to see: a HAZMAT crew at your local Mexican restaurant. (and they weren't having lunch.)

Something else you never want to see: someone's worldly belongings piled on the curb. (Obviously an eviction.) Just saw that the other day.

Oh, and I've decided to get a motorbike and take a little trip. Say, from John O'Groats to the Road of Bones. Anyone want to come along?