November 2005 Archives

You scored 90, on a scale of 0 to 120. You have a strong sense of responsibility toward others and a deep respect for other people, even strangers, though you are not always sure what the best course of action is. You are Lucy, the brave child who is wise beyond her years and kind to all she meets.

Are You A Lion Or A Witch?

Matt won The Biggest Loser! He looked so handsome! I knew he would win, but I was really rooting for Suzy. She is just so sweet and she looked absolutely fabulous!!! And, so did Andrea. Her and Suzy looked like they would be blown away by a mere wisp of a breeze. Seth looked awesome too and is so good looking now. And, Pete ... I was so happy to see him get the $100,000. He was muscular and looked so amazing! I cried. LM even cried! We were just so happy for them! :)

I can't wait until next season!

You should try some of the tips/tricks from the show. The deserts are da bomb! Really. I have also started eating Quaker Instant Oatmeal Weight Control (Banana Bread) and it rocks! I have always hated oatmeal. The only hot cereal I have ever liked was Malt-o-Meal. But, I am here to tell you that this oatmeal is great! It tastes just like banana bread and you don't have to add anything to it. And, it does what it claims. It fills you up. I don't even think about food until about noon or a little after and I eat before 8 AM.

Oh ... and I so want The Biggest Loser: The Workout Volume One DVD! If I can't get someone to get it for me for Christmas, it will be the first thing I buy come January. :) I want the book too. And, since I am mentioning it ... I want all of Jillian Michaels DVDs while I am at it. This one. That one. And, this one too. I would like her book as well.

I don't want much. I just know what I want. ;)

Update 2/7/06: If the item is striked out, I now have it.

I feel a bit better now. I just had to give it over to God. After that, I exercised for an hour and then I went to bed. And, I slept all day. I just got up a couple of minutes ago. Unfortunately, I am still sleepy! I wish I could stay in bed for the rest of the evening, but there is supper and laundry to be done.

I will be going back to bed at 7 PM so I can watch The Biggest Loser finale in quiet. It is two hours tonight and I cannot wait to see how changed everyone is and who actually won! :)

I am off of here for the rest of the day. I have to get a few things done, read on a journal, eat supper, and then chill with one of my favorite shows. I will not be accepting phone calls or dealing with anything other than what I have outlined above. Let's just say that my bandwidth has been exceeded and now it is time for me to recoup.

I just got off the phone with the principal and he told me that my nephew did tell him and the teacher that there had been a family emergency and that my daughter was to go home with him. I then spent thirty minutes explaining to him the horror I went through looking for my child and how I did not appreciate them not calling me or my brother to verify what he had to say. The principal said that it never crossed his mind to call because it was the end of the school day. He also told me that he would be dealing with my nephew about this.

I am still so upset about this that it isn't even funny. I was so scared yesterday. My children come straight home from school. I know where they are every minute of everyday. I don't let my children run around and they don't try to do so. They know that I will not tolerate that kind of behavior from them. So, to have my child missing for about three hours ... you just cannot imagine.

At first, I didn't know what to think. When the girls that my daughter walks home from school with came by the house and I saw that she wasn't with them, I got scared. They said she had told them she had to leave with her cousin. I then thought that she had to be with LM and his nephews because he had them working after school and he had said that he might pick her up from school. But, when he called me and said she was not with them ... my heart stopped.

Not even a year ago, a fourteen year old girl was gang-raped over on 14th Street. All I could do is freak out and wonder if my twelve year old baby had walked home alone and met the same fate. LM said that while he drove around looking for her that he kept playing it out in his head how he was going to tell me that someone had done took our baby. We were both in tears. Neither of us knew what had happened, it was way past dark, and our child still wasn't home.

My nerves are still shot. I can't imagine anyone putting us through this just because they wanted to get out of a detention. Can you imagine that? And, my nephew doesn't even care. He even had the gall to lie about it. He shows absolutely no remorse. I am ashamed of him and hate it that while I love him, I cannot trust him.

I cannot even begin to express my anger and pain. It just doesn't make any sense that anyone would put a parent through that. I barely slept at all and when I did it was nothing but bad dreams. I thought LM was going to have to go to the ER and get a tranquilizer or something. He was in worse shape than I was and didn't sleep at all either.

I just keep praying for God to help me calm down. I don't know what to do other than that. This situation has just totally freaked me out and it really scared me. You just can't imagine the anquish.

Update 9:06 AM: I just got off the phone with the Superintendent of our schools about this situation and how distressed I am that the school did not even bother to call me or my brother and verify what my nephew was saying. I also explained to him how the school would have been liable if anything horrible would have happened to my child since my nephew did give that story to school officials and they did not check to see if it was true or advise my daughter not to go home with him because they did not know if the story was true. He agreed with me and said that he would most definitely handle the situation and apologized for the distress we have suffered as a result of this.

I am so upset! For over two hours I have called around looking for my oldest daughter. I have called her aunties. I have talked to her friends. No one knew where she was and she was supposed to be home from school hours ago.

Then I get a phone call. She is on the phone and she tells me she is with my sister-n-law. I ask her where she has been and she tells me that my brother's youngest son told her to come home with him from school because I wasn't home and it was a family emergency. She said she was there and when my sister-n-law came home, she rode with her to take my niece home. My sister-n-law is the one who told her to call me because she wanted to make sure it was alright. She didn't know what my nephew had done or that we had been searching for hours.

I am so angry. LM is beside himself. I was this close >< to calling the police! I did not know what had happened to my baby. All I knew was that she had never not come straight home from school. Her friends had said she told them she had to do something with her cousin, but I was thinking maybe she was with LM and the boys working. Until I spoke to him and he had not seen her!

I am totally trippin' out here and I am so upset about this. I cannot believe my nephew would do something like this. How he would dare do something like this, I have no clue! Why he would even do it, I have no clue! I have never been so scared and to find out that I was put through this because of him ... it just makes me even more upset. I didn't know if she had been raped walking home from school or was dead in a ditch! And, why? Because he told her to come home with him because I wasn't home.

I so cannot wait to talk to my brother.

Update 6:28 PM: My nephew told my daughter that I wasn't home and there was a family emergency so he could get out of a detention. He told her, the teacher, and the principal that there was a family emergency and that my child was to go home with him. She had to stay after school and was left to walk ALONE to their house because my nephew went off joyriding with a friend while she was doing an after-school project.

This is the kind of thing that I talk about when it comes to these kids. This is the kind of stuff that they learned living with their grandmother. She had them for four years and she totally ruined them. She turned them into liars and criminals. They have absolutely no respect for authority, adults, or anyone. They think they should be able to do whatever they want and get by with it. They do not think they should take responsibility for any of their actions.

And, my brother and his wife have to deal with that. How they do it, I do not know. I think I would lose my mind!

I cannot wait until tomorrow. I am going to have a long talk with the principal. I want to know why he, or that teacher, would just take my nephew's word that my daughter was to go home with him. I want to know why my brother or I wasn't called to verify it. It does not make any sense for a school to just take a child's word for something like that. Any other time, a note from a parent would be required.

I also had a long talk with my daughter and she is being punished for this as well. She knows better than to believe anything those kids say. She should have known that if there had been a family emergency, she would have been hearing it from a school official, not her cousin! For her to believe my nephew who is a compulsive liar and criminal ... that just does not make sense. And, she is lucky she did not end up in a really bad situation.

Update 10:59 PM: I talked to my brother and he is not happy with what happened at all. I told him I am going to talk to the school tomorrow. It just does not make sense that the school just bought that story. My nerves are shot. I am beyond upset.

Make up can do wonders ...

When I started blogging, I knew I wanted a place to talk about my faith and share the Gospel. That has led me to share a lot of things that I read and my thoughts on various issues. What I haven't done is talk about my faith from an intimate perspective. It is obvious I am a Christian, but I don't spend a lot of time talking about the "kind" of Christian I am.

I am what is called a Charismatic Christian. I am the only one in my family that I know of as well. I was raised in a Missionary Babtist Church and was a member until my teens when I changed churches and was baptized into the Jesus Name Pentecostal Church. It was there that I first realized that I could have a personal and close relationship with God. Spiritually, I was on fire.

As I said, I am the only Charismatic in my family and I got a lot of grief for my Pentecostal days. My family, professed Christians themselves, was not happy with me refusing to wear makeup. They didn't like it when I started wearing dresses everyday and stopped cutting my hair. I didn't wear jewelry either. I was teased in school something fierce and then got a lot of flack for it with my family as well.

I was young and inexperienced in the ways of Satan back then. I did not realize that I was experiencing the same persecution the Bible spoke of and that God expected me to stay strong in my faith as a result. Instead, I left the church and turned to the ways of the world and did what the world does--sin in abundance and abandon.

Eventually, after wandering around a bit and wondering where I actually fit in, I started reflecting on God again. I missed the close relationship that I had with God but I wasn't so sure that I had to wear dresses everyday of my life to have that relationship again. I knew that I believed in speaking in tongues, prophesying, and healing. I had seen it and felt it for myself. I knew that I believed that worshipping God was more than just sitting in a pew and listening to a preacher talk. Worship is a lively experience for me.

It was at that time that I realized regardless of what church I attended, I would always be Charismatic. My faith had taken root. It didn't matter what I spent the last few years doing, my heart knew what it was like to have a close relationship with God and continued to long for that relationship again.

For years, I did not know much about being "Reformed" or any such thing. For that matter, I have never been into all the so-called intellectualism of Christianity that differentiates and segregates the Body of Christ into all these different terms like Calvinist, Arminian, Reformed, and so on and so forth. I am perfectly alright just being a Christian.

Yet, I have to admit that I am a Charismatic Christian and I do mostly believe in the Five Sola's of the Reformation. I say mostly because I do believe in them, but I think that too many of the "Reformed" seem to forget that works do fit into our walk with Christ. While we cannot be saved through our works, faith without works is dead (James 2:26). Too many of us get to thinking that we can act anyway we want and do anything we want. I just don't believe that to be true.

I guess as time goes on my blog will reflect more of my charismatic ways and beliefs. I haven't delved too deep into my faith here, but that does not mean that I won't in the future. This blog is not only to help me work out my faith on the page and share the Gospel--it is also my place to document my walk with Christ. That, of course, includes the more intimate views of my walk and where my faith leads me.

Update 3:30 PM: I just noticed that Adrian Warnock has a post on what is a reformed Charismatic. Go check it out. It is pretty interesting.

Yep, that is right. My blog is now two years old as of November 24th. With all the Thanksgiving festivities and cooking ... well, it totally slipped my mind. :)

Blogging has been therapeutic for me in so many ways. It has been an outlet for my love of writing. I have enjoyed documenting my life, my interests, my joys, and pains. I love sharing my thoughts on the things that interest me, the latest news story, politics, and my faith. It has become a passion for me, even if there are times that I do consider giving it up.

I have made some great friends along the way. I knew Donna, Shylah, and David before I started blogging. The rest of you have popped in and out, some commenting, others emailing, and I have loved getting to know you. I have even enjoyed some of the weird email, comments, and questions that I get at times. :)

I started this blog as a private journal and didn't even have commenting implemented in the beginning. People could read, but they couldn't respond. I wasn't sure I wanted anyone able to just say whatever they wanted to say about my life and my feelings. It was a big step for me when I set up commenting. And, I am glad I did even though there have been times I have been surprised by the audacity of some people.

I never started blogging to make money. I have never implemented ads or any of that other site revenue stuff. I blog because I love to blog. I read blogs because I want to know what is going on in your life too. But, of course, if you want to reward me for two years of doing something that I enjoy ... I do accept large cash donations. ;)

You know your Thanksgiving dinner was da bomb when your kids, who have whined all week leading up to the holiday about leftovers, get up first thing in the morning and ask if they can have them! I about fell out! All week long I have heard them complain and whine. They wanted to eat somewhere else, they didn't want me to cook, because they knew they would be eating leftovers for a couple of days. Now, they cannot wait to eat them! LOL

Everyone said the meal was great and it was. My in-laws enjoyed it. My nephews went on and on. The dressing was fantastic. The turkey was so juicy! I let it sit for about twenty minutes before I started cutting it and the juice literally flowed from it. K's boyfriend, my brother, and various others fell in love with fried cabbage. The pies were awesome! Everything was just so good. Even my newest great-nephew tore up some mashed potatoes and giblet gravy.

I got to see my other great-nephew at my brother's house. He is getting so big! J and K's bellies are getting out there too. I cannot believe we are going to have two more great-nephews. They are definitely going to be the generation for boys. Even on LM's side of the family we have been having boys. And, I adore them too. Especially L and X from my side and Devon from LM's. Those are my babies. :) I am just hoping that my nephew D and his girlfriend have a girl. We need at least one girl in the bunch!

Though, I admit I get so excited when I see my great-nephews! I especially love it when my nieces bring them over for me to babysit. I love being the aunt to them that I never really got to have. And, I really love being a great-aunt. I didn't think I would, you know? I thought it would make me feel old. But, it doesn't. It makes me happy to hold them, love them, and for them to know me.

God is definitely awesome. He has blessed me in ways I never imagined He would. And, as I get older and hopefully wiser ... I learn to be thankful for everything He brings to my life. I work to learn from the lessons that He provides and the mistakes I have made. I work to be the aunt that He wants me to be, the mother that I need to be, and the friend and sister He tells me to be.

We are all miserable up in here! We are so full that it is not even funny. We were satisfied after our dinner. We are full as ticks after the meal we ate at my brother's house. My sister-n-law did a great job and we all enjoyed it. And, I got some quality time with my newest great-nephew. He laid on my shoulder forever and just let me rub his back and chill with him for a bit.

The dishes are done. The house is clean. The leftovers are in the fridge. Even the ham and turkey meat has been pulled from the bones and put away. I have a nice ham bone for beans now sitting in the freezer and the dogs are tearing up that turkey carcass.

I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving dinner as much as we did. Though, I am not sure you would want to be as full as we are, but I definitely hope you got your fill. Don't forget to give thanks for all that food, family, friends, and love too. :)

Turkey, brown sugar ham w/pineapple and cherries, chicken and dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans w/potatoes, corn, broccoli and cheese casserole, fried cabbage, turnip greens w/turnips and country ham, deviled eggs, giblet gravy, cranberry sauce, rolls, garlic cheese biscuits, 2 sweet potato pies, 6 chess pies, 2 pumpkin pies, and 3 pecan pies ... all homemade.

I am now having to hide the pies as one of the pecan pies mysteriously disappeared. I had to make a run last night to the store with my sister-n-law and I came back to find that LM's hands were very sticky and smelled remarkably like pecans. ;)

Note: Unless I just get more done than I think I will with the time I have left, this will be my last post until after Thanksgiving. I hope you enjoy your Turkey Day! And, don't forget to give thanks. Count your blessings and be grateful for everything the Lord has provided you and yours. :)

Update 4:22 PM: I already have the green beans w/potatoes, broccoli and cheese casserole, fried cabbage, turnip greens w/turnips and country ham, and all the pies done. The chicken and dressings is 90% done. It just needs it's eggs and turkey broth which it will get tomorrow. And, I am now working on the deviled eggs. After the ham is cooked tonight, I will be done with all my cooking today and will be right on time for a noon meal tomorrow. :)

What is up with me and corn bread? For real. I cannot seem to leave it alone today. I decided to make a couple of pans full because I don't think what I have been saving all year in the freezer is going to cover it when it comes time to make the dressing ... and I keep on eating it. It tastes so good!

And, why is it that the corn bread you make for dressing always tastes better than the corn bread you make normally? Or does it? It seems to and I know I just have to eat it. I cannot leave it alone!

I was the same way when I was a kid. My mother would make corn bread for hours while I ate it up. She would even make these corn on the cob shaped ones in this iron skillet like thingie. It was so good. I just had to eat them!

I am going to have to hide the corn bread from myself. I just know it. But, the thing is ... how do you hide something from yourself? I mean, really, you will know where it is. And, I don't think I can wait until LM and the kids get home. It would all be eaten by the time they could hide it.

I think I will just have to make more corn bread. Thank goodness I bought two bags of corn meal. Just remember, if you hear me complaining about how I gained back all twenty pounds this Thanksgiving ... bop me on the head and remind me it was the corn bread. The corn bread did it. It and my inability to leave it alone! :)

Adrian Warnock is working on a list of Reformed Charismatic bloggers. If you would like to join, let him know!

Speaking in tongues will not be on the entrance exam. ;)

While meditating on one scripture, I felt pulled to another and it gave me great comfort and reminded me where my heart needs to be.

A Psalm of David. Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit. Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle. Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbors, but mischief is in their hearts. Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their endeavors: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert. Because they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of his hands, he shall destroy them, and not build them up. Blessed be the LORD, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him. The LORD is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed. Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up forever. ~Psalm 28 (KJVR)

I hope it touches you the way it did me.

Five days until Thanksgiving ... are you ready? I have the majority of my shopping done, though I do have a few more items to pick up. All the big stuff has been in the freezer for a few days. But, I still have a ton of stuff to do!

1) Scrub the bathroom! That is a definite. We cannot have guests and the bathroom not be pristine. I want everything scrubbed with bleach and smelling good.

2) LM has to get all that junk out of the living room. The man is back to piling stuff up again and it is driving me nuts. It also makes the living room look trashy.

3) My desk needs to be dealt with. Everyone and their mother, it seems, thinks that my desk is theirs to pile junk on. It has enough of my junk on it! It doesn't need anyone else's junk. :)

4) Sweeping and mopping the floors ... throughout the house. I want them clean enough to eat off of. I just pray no one is actually gross enough to do so! LOL!

5) I need to clean the kitchen. I need to clean every surface of the kitchen and the inside of the oven. I like things very clean. It is okay, but not as clean as I would like it to be.

6) Dusting, dusting, dusting. With winter setting in on us I have noticed that the dust builds up much faster than when I have the windows and doors open on a regular basis. That has to be dealt with. I do not like dust bunnies. They are not as cute as they think they are.

7) Tuesday, I need to make all the pies.

8) Wednesday, I need to get the broccoli and cheese casserole, chicken and dressing, and greens almost done. They will finish cooking Thanksgiving. I will also cook the ham later that night.

9) Of course, Thanksgiving will be the day that the turkey and the rest of the side dishes are cooked.

10) We cannot forget to give thanks!!! I also have to put everyone on the spot and make them say why they are thankful this year. I love that part. :)

Yep, only five days to get all that done. By the time I am finished, I will probably be thanking God that I got it all done and didn't fall out! LOL

I am not shy. I will be happy to tell you!!!

• The Biggest Loser : The Weight Loss Program to Transform Your Body, Health, and Life
• Winning by Losing : Drop the Weight, Change Your Life
• The Biggest Winner - How to Win by Losing: Cardio Kick Box
• The Biggest Winner - How to Win by Losing: Shape Up Complete
• The Biggest Winner - How to Win by Losing: Maximize Complete
• Food Network Favorites: Recipes from Our All-Star Chefs

But, then again, there are a lot of great gift ideas on my wishlist as well. ;)

Update 2/7/06: If the item is striked out, I now have it.

Yesterday, I came across a link to this site over at Adrian Warnock's blog and have been fascinated with it's contents ever since. If you have checked out Theopedia: An Encyclopedia of Biblical Christianity, do so. I highly recommend it.

And, John Piper is the featured theologian over there. I did a review of his book, God Is The Gospel, not long ago. I highly recommend it as well. :)

I just got this in email and I wanted to pass it on. I feel very strongly about this issue and have already signed the petition. I hope you do too.

Michael Newdow, who has already filed a suit to take "under God" out of the Pledge of Allegiance, is now suing to remove our national motto from our currency. He says that "In God We Trust" must go.

Help us secure one million signatures on the petition below to stop Newdow. Remember that only one person--Madelyn Murray O'Hare--was able to get prayer in schools banned. We must not allow one person--Newdow--to get our national motto removed from our currency by our silence.

During the last session of Congress, Representative Chip Pickering introduced a constitutional amendment to guarantee the right to use and recite the motto and the Pledge of Allegiance. Your petition will encourage Rep. Pickering to re-introduce his constitutional amendment in the present session of Congress and send a message to the judges of the 9th U.S. Circuit.

Click here to sign the petition.

I won't be posting much for the next few days. My sister-n-law passed away yesterday. If you don't mind, please keep our family in your prayers as we go through this difficult time.

Thank you.

Update 11/14/05 8:07 AM: I will be out of pocket for most of the day. The funeral is today. Thanks to everyone that has commented and emailed. I appreciate your words, support, and prayers during this time.

I finally made it through the plateau I had going on and have lost a pound and a half this week. I am so happy! This was the second plateau I had hit and it had set in hard for three weeks. That can be quite discouraging, especially when you get on the scale after all the hard work you put in just to find out the scale has not moved at all.

I finally received the FIRM Step to go with my FIRM DVDs! I cannot wait to give it a try too. I have to wait until I get to feeling better and I hate that, but I understand why. The last thing I want to do is crack my skull from getting too dizzy or something, especially trying something new. For the last few days I have had to take it easy as it is and that has been a pain in the butt.

This illness has kept me so fatiqued and feeling all funny. The doctor says it is a sinus infection. I don't know about that but it is responding slowly to the antibiotics he put me on. I can't wait to feel like my old self again so I can get back on the ball. My goal has been to lose one to two pounds a week. I won't be able to do that if I have to keep slacking off due to illness.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, get your head out of your butt ...

"We need to make sure that there's no abuse in the current system," he said. "We need to make sure there's full transparency, and if there's any price gouging, we need to cut it out."

With record profits for oil companies, I don't think there is any question of whether or not price gouging is going on. Do you?

The real question is ... what is going to be done about it?

I made the call. I hope you do too.

The Death of Compassionate Conservatism
by Jim Wallis

Last week, I spoke with other religious leaders at a press conference in the U.S. Capitol, urging the House of Representatives to oppose cuts in social services in their budget bill. When it was over, we walked to the rotunda to offer a prayer for our nation and its leaders, that they would do the right thing for people in poverty. Suddenly, we were face to face with Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and took the opportunity to deliver our message directly to him. He listened politely, but offered little response.

The House is scheduled to begin debate tomorrow on its budget bill, which includes $54 billion in cuts. On the table are cuts of $9.5 billion in Medicaid - by requiring co-pays for pregnant women and children for the first time; $8 billion in foster care, child support enforcement, and aid to the disabled; and $844 million in the Food Stamps Program, which would prevent 300,000 people from receiving food stamps. Forty thousand children would be cut from reduced-price school lunches. Lawmakers intend to follow these with a further cut of $70 billion in taxes that will primarily benefit the top 3% of taxpayers. The message from Congress is that in response to Hurricane Katrina, we're going to cut services for the poor, cut taxes for the rich, and increase deficits for our children and grandchildren.

These plans for deep cuts to social supports, paid for by tax cuts for the wealthiest, are contrary to the national priorities we need to protect our most vulnerable citizens. We need strong moral leadership in Congress, especially during this time of war, record deficits, rising poverty and hunger, and natural disasters. Cutting food stamps and health care that meet the basic needs of poor families is an outrage. Cutting social services to pay for further tax cuts for the rich is a moral travesty that violates biblical priorities. The House leadership seems to be saying they literally want to take food from the mouths of children to make rich people richer. If this ideology and politics of rich over poor prevails and our leaders fail to govern from a set of moral values, then the religious community must conclude that compassionate conservatism is dead.

As this battle for the budget unfolds, I am calling on members of Congress, some of whom make much out of their faith, to start Bible studies before they cast votes to cut services that will further harm the weakest in our nation. They should focus on the gospel imperative - what Jesus tells us about our obligations to the "least of these." Some of them have heard the slogan "What would Jesus do?" Now they should ask, "What would Jesus cut?" Budgets are moral documents, and they reflect our national priorities and values. In the name of social conscience, fiscal responsibility, equal opportunity, protecting our communities, and the very idea of a common good, the upcoming budget votes will be closely watched by people of faith.

I urge you to read the alert that follows, pick up your phone, and call your member of Congress. Tell him or her to show political will in standing up for the least of these, as Jesus reminds us.

---

Call Rep. [Your Rep.] now, toll-free:

(800) 426-8073 (Thank you, American Friends Service Committee).

The House of Representatives will vote on this immoral budget proposal as early as Thursday of this week, and a one-minute call from you and others could mean the difference between a "yea" or a "nay" vote from Rep. [Your Rep.]. Dialing the number above will get you to the Capitol switchboard. When you reach an operator, ask for Rep. [Your Rep.], and when connected, say something like:

"As a person of faith from [Your state], I urge Rep. [Your Rep.] to vote "no" on this immoral budget bill that cuts $54 billion in vital services to vulnerable people, including Medicaid, foster care, food stamps, and child support. These cuts will hurt survivors of Katrina and countless working families. Along with proposed tax cuts for the super-wealthy, these are the wrong priorities at the wrong time."

After you call, click here to tell 10 friends about our call-in day. With your help, we can jam the phone lines for justice in Washington! Spreading the word about this outrage is critical to the success of our campaign.

Via Sojourners.

I got this over at Delites' ...

Angel needs a ride. (A new stationwagon would be nice.)
Angel needs grace in order to turn to God? (Actually, God grants me grace.)
Angel needs no angels. (I don't agree with that!)
Angel needs toys. (I love toys!)
Angel needs a home with playmates. (We all need playmates!)
Angel needs to be positioned on the dashboard. (That would be uncomfortable!)
Angel needs commitment and stability. (Oh, I definitely agree!)
Angel needs someone to help her develop her full potential. (It wouldn't hurt.)
Angel needs your support. (It wouldn't hurt!)
Angel needs a little extra help. (I wouldn't turn it down!)
Angel needs to connect with people. (Always a good thing.)
Angel needs to be pampered with gifts. (You betcha!)
Angel needs a bubble bath every month! (More like every day!)
Angel needs it. (Depends on what it is.)
Angel needs to be supervised when in the house. (LM would agree with that!)

When I did "Rogue needs" I got ...

Rogue needs some color. (I am cool being white, okay?)
Rogue needs to keep an eye on the law. (It helps at times.)
Rogue needs a place. (A log cabin would be nice.)
Rogue needs beware about threat. (What threat?)
Rogue needs to be made of money. (Don't I know it!)
Rogue needs to get crits at least 50% of the time. (Okay ...)
Rogue Needs Women! (Uh, nope.)
Rogue needs to deal some heavy damage in the opening moments of a fight. (I can handle that.)
Rogue needs a little money for ale! (Wouldn't hurt.)
Rogue needs a little help here. (You can say that again!)
Rogue needs more themes. (Not really.)
Rogue needs to have some more group-related powers. (Okay, you got me.)
Rogue needs no introduction to beer geeks. (Hahahaha!)
Rogue needs help! (Oh, honey! If you only knew!)
Rogue needs to be an absolute knockout. (Who says I ain't?)

To do it yourself, go to Google and type in "(Your Name) needs" and see what kind of results you get. :)

I got this from Donna who I don't link to because she has stalkers ... :)

Name four books on your bookshelf:
The Chronicles of Narnia
Seeking Him
Walk Away the Pounds
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible

Name four DVDs Movies in your collection:
EdTV
The Gospel of John
Ray
Signs

Name four things on your walls:
The Purpose Driven Life Calendar
A black & white photo of my dad w/two of my uncles
A collage of 30 photos of various family members
A picture of me and LM

Name four things in your wardrobe:
Lots of black Bugle Boy socks
Slinky black dress
T-shirts!
Slacks

Name four artists in your music collection:
Betty Wright
Matchbox 20
Joe
Mahalia Jackson

Name four real life stores you shop at regularly:
Wal-Mart
Sav-A-Lot
Christian Book Store
Family Dollar

Name four things in your bag:
Wallet
Gloves
Umbrella
Ink pen

Name four things in your cupboard that are in cans:
Green beans
Sardines in mustard sauce
Mushrooms
Asparagus

Don't forget about the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. You can read more about it at the Persecution Blog. Time is running out, though! If your church is going to participate, you had better get to clicking. :)

Billy Graham has a free offer this month for the BGEA 2006 Prayer Calendar.

"Through its colorful photographs and inspiring monthly Bible verses, you'll be reminded of ways you can pray for the life-changing work of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Request your free 2006 wall calendar online now!"

Click here to take advantage of this free offer.

I found this wonderful site and I wanted to take a minute to share it with you. It is called The Way of the Master. The first thing the site will ask you is if you are a Christian. Even if you are, select "No" and follow it to the end conclusion. It is very enlightening and well worth the few minutes you will spend.

Tim Bete, of In The Beginning ... There Were No Diapers, sent me this in email and I wanted to share it with you here. He graciously gave me permission to copy it and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. With Christmas right around the corner, I am sure you will get a big kick out of it!

'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS (BATTERIES NOT INCLUDED)
by Tim Bete

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, not even my spouse;
With only six hours left, until morning light,
Assembling kids' presents would take me all night.

19,000 pieces -- bolts, washers and screws,
To be put together, and me with no clue;
All I had for tools were some needle-nose pliers,
A Swiss Army Knife and a Phillips screwdriver.

When out on the lawn there arose such a racket,
I threw down my pliers and put on my jacket;
I swung open the door, to check out the noise,
And saw a red-suited man, bringing more toys.

I shouted, "Hey, you on my lawn, what's the idea!"
As my shrubs were being eaten by eight small reindeer;
The big man looked up at me and said with a smile,
"There's more to assemble -- it will take you a while."

"My kids don't need more toys," I countered right quick,
But he wouldn't hear "no," that stubborn Saint Nick;
"These new toys have detailed instructions," he said,
And he winked as he lifted a bag from his sled.

Then he pulled a bunch of woodchips out of his bag,
"It's a dollhouse," he said, as he looked at the tag;
"It has 6,000 small pieces, plus one or two,
You can make it if you have a gallon of glue."

"And, there are no axle holes on this toy car,
With only two wheels it won't go very far;
Perhaps you can whip up some rubber for tires,
I'm sure you can do it before you retire."

"But Nick," I pleaded, "don't you have simple toys?
Can't they build simply things -- those elves you employ?"
"How 'bout a ball, a rag doll or gun that shoots darts,
Or some other present made of only one part?"

Santa said, "Those kinds of toys are pass? these days,
It's complicated gadgets that are all the craze;
So, please take these here toys and I'll be on my way,
I have houses to get to and visits to pay."

"I don't want any more toys!" I yelled quite in shock,
Then I slammed the door shut and I secured the lock;
And I took off my coat and went back to my bench,
And tried to read the directions -- printed in French.

Then just as I found I was missing a screw,
That old coot came sneaking right down through my flue;
"You forgot all these toys," said the man dressed in red,
Then he put his sack right down and here's what he said.

"You're not alone staying up all through the night,
Dads all over the world are in the same plight;
They don't have the right tools, or any instructions,
They're eyes are bleary and they're minds don't quite function."

Then he left me there speechless, alone with my work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk;
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle;
But I heard him exclaim, as he jumped in his sleigh,
"You'll need 62 batteries -- all triple A."

Excerpted from In The Beginning ... There Were No Diapers by Tim Bete, ©2005. Used with permission of the publisher, Sorin Books, an imprint of Ave Maria Press. Available at bookstores, online retailers, 800-282-1865 and www.sorinbooks.com. More of Tim's work can be read at www.TimBete.com.

If you missed my review of In The Beginning ... There Were No Diapers, you can find it here.

The title says it all. I actually feel even worse today than I dd yesterday. Today I sound like I am dying. Yesterday, I looked like I was dying but I didn't sound like I was dying. Now, I do. My throat is already dead. My nose is dying a slow runny death. My head will most likely explode and when it does, it will be dead.

I still walked today, though I did not jog. I figured if I was going to die, I was going to die healthy. Heh.

Update 11/6/05 3:51 PM: I am still massively sick. I can't stay awake long before my need to zonk out becomes more than I can stand. I went to bed last night at 6 PM and got up at 4 AM this morning, just to turn around and go back to sleep at 6 AM. I have napped twice since then and am about ready to go back to bed again. If I am feeling no better tomorrow, I am going to go see my doctor.

I am sick. My nose is stuffy and my throat hurts.

Update 1:59 PM: I feel like I am going to die. I am so sick. I don't feel good at all.

On a nicer note, I saw the car LM is buying me today. It is a Ford Taurus stationwagon. It is a mauve-ish color. It seriously needs a bath. The interior is a bit faded, but other than that the car looks wonderful. It will look amazing cleaned up. I am tickled pink! Especially since I had to sell my silver stationwagon a few years ago. I really hated that too. When you have three kids, a stationwagon comes in real handy. And, it uses less gas than a minivan. :)

Now, I am off to die.

There are not many pastors out there, especially pastors who have hit the big time, that can say that they are not getting paid by their church or living in a big grand house with lots of cars. A lot of these people take their newfound fame and fortune and start living high on the hog.

Not, Rick Warren. Rick Warren is tithing 90% and living off of 10%. He is still living in the same house he lived in fifteen years ago. He even paid his church back for the 25 years of service they paid him for and now he does it for free.

Today, Rick Warren is all about doing as Jesus did. He is setting up churches, teaching, helping the poor, and assisting the sick. What a grand place the world would be if there were a thousand more like him.

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/177/story_17718_1.html

Here of late, LM has taken to teasing me about some good news he has that would make me very happy ... but he wouldn't tell me what that good news is. He has teased me about it so much that I don't even respond any more. I kind of figured that he was just pulling my leg or something.

Anywho ... today he tells me that the good news is that he has been paying down on me a car. He has already paid half of the total cost of it and will have the balance paid off soon! He said it is really pretty, runs beautifully, and only needs a radio.

I am so happy! I cannot wait!

The White House is not too happy with The Onion using the presidential seal ....

"I've been seeing the presidential seal used in comedy programs most of my life and to my knowledge none of them have been asked not to use it by the White House," Dikkers said.

"I would advise them to look for that other guy Osama (bin Laden) ... rather than comedians. I don't think we pose much of a threat," Dikkers said.

Via CNN.

Today was an interesting day in politics. Senator Harry Reid forced the Senate into a closed session to discuss the manipulation of intelligence that was used to go to war in Iraq and the subsequent cover-up that led to the indictments last week. It was the first indictment of a sitting White House official in well over a hundred years. And, the Republican-led Congress has blocked an investigation for over a year.

But, that doesn't surprise us one bit, does it? Watergate was never this exciting. For real. But, Harry Reid has balls and I am proud to have him in the Democratic Party.

Also, The Stakeholder has a scathing post on Kentucky's own crony to Tom Delay, Anne Northup ...

When Anne Northup was running for re-election to Congress in 2004, her campaign told voters that she was not afraid to take on the tough issues. What she didn't tell the voters of Kentucky's Third Congressional District is that her idea of taking on the tough issues is to play follow-the-leader.

Anne Northup has failed in her mission to be an independent voice for Kentuckians. When she was faced with the tough decisions, she caved. When push came to shove, Northup voted with recently-indicted Congressman Tom DeLay 94 percent of the time, often to the detriment of Kentucky families. She doesn't just vote with DeLay; she's in his pocket too.

Anne Northup is among the top ten recipients of dirty money from Tom DeLay's political action committee, ARMPAC. She has received $42,000 from DeLay, even while over half of her constituents earn less than that a year. When she had to choose, she put Tom DeLay and the Republican money machine ahead of average Kentuckians.

Shame, shame, shame.

Just got this and wanted to spread the word:

Sojourners is excited to announce the revised and updated version of Jim Wallis' The Call to Conversion: Why Faith Is Always Personal But Never Private.

Originally published more than 20 years ago, this classic helps establish the theological framework behind the national best-seller God's Politics - and is remarkably relevant and contemporary for a new generation of readers.

If you enjoyed God's Politics, then The Call to Conversion will take you deeper to find the biblical and theological foundations for social justice and peace.

The Call to Conversion offers a prophetic appeal for our times - times marked by a growing gap between rich and poor, shocking images of extreme poverty revealed by Hurricane Katrina, and outrage over a government that spends billions on war while pushing tax cuts for the rich and program cuts for the poor - despite record budget deficits. Where do we find hope? Jim Wallis critiques modern culture and politics, offering inspiring stories and vision to challenge our way of thinking.

"We need a religious revival. And we may get one...the revival that Jim Wallis predicts." - Minneapolis Star Tribune

You can get your copy here.