Is anybody out there?

It is about 11:30 a.m. and I have spent this morning catching up on paperwork that I had let go last week. The mood around work today is a little quiet, it seems everyone is trying to get back into the swing of things. I imagine everything will pick up after lunch.

As the sun begins to fade on my long weekend, I position myself on the porch; cigar in one hand, and a hot cup of very strong coffee in the other. In the stillness of my surroundings, I begin to replay all of the tasks which have made up my last three days; yard work, cooking, reading, writing, riding, napping, and let’s not forget, eating. My mind then plays back the faces of all the people I have interacted with; Michelle, my neighbors, old friends, my in-laws, even our favorite server, at our favorite hangout. All of the tasks, and all of the people, have added richly to my last 72 hours, and although, my body is tired, my mind is refreshed, and for the first time, in a long while, I have breathed deeply!

“Your silent tents of green We deck with fragrant flowers; Yours has the suffering been, The memory shall be ours.”–Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love,
Where there is injury, let me sow pardon.
Where there is doubt, let me sow faith.
Where there is despair, let me sow hope.
Where there is darkness, let me give light.
Where there is sadness, let me give joy.
O Divne master, grant that I may not try to be comforted, but to comfort;
not try to be understood, but to understand;
not try to be loved, but love.
Because it is in giving that we receive, in forgiving that we are forgiven, and in dying that we are born to eternal life.

St. Francis of Assisi 1182-1226 a.d.

1. Re-connect with my Spiritual roots.
2. Start helping others again. I have become very selfish.
3. Reconcile a couple of old friendships.
4. Take a vacation.
5. Learn to laugh again.

This car is made entirely of cake! Let’s see I Eat Snowman Poop try this one! More photos of the car.

All my life I have experienced the power of words. They are containers, filled with an awesome ability to make one laugh, cry, or call forth a long forgotten memory. They have been used to fell nations, and lift others to power, they have brought hope to a frail husband as he stands at the casket of his bride of 40 years, reminding him he shall hold her again one day soon. Words have made some poor, and others wealthy beyond their wildest imaginations. Words can hurt and heal, move people to love or hate. Recently, I have been thinking about some words which we no longer use and how I long for their return. Here’s a few…

“Shalom” (peace and well being to you)

“God-Speed” ( blessing and prosperity to your soul, may it be well with you)

“Thank You”

“I forgive you”

“It was my fault”

Great Sunday thus far!

7:00 Read paper and first cup of Java.

9:00 Grocery.

10:30 Picked up mulch for beds in the backyard.

2:00 Lunch: footlong with everything and Bud Lite.

3:00 Finish gardening/shower.

4:00 Pick up fish for pond.

Immediately following, a large thunderstorm rolled through, it was awesome. We had finished our outdoor work just in time, and can now sit on the porch and watch it bless our work.

Number of gun deaths per year.
Austria 334
Belgium 379
Canada 1,034
France 2,964
Germany 1,201
Ireland 54
Isreal 161
Italy 1,171
Japan 83
Netherlands 131
Spain 352
United Kingdom 197
United States 30,419

+Total number of gun deaths of all countries excluding the United States: 8,061

+The combined population of all countries excluding the United States is 516 million,
compared to the U.S. population of 300 million.

stats from World Health Organization

On Friday I told you about my FIL having an accident in his 1962 Triumph. Here’s the photo’s from the crash scene. He walked away with a bruised knee!