Use Your Words! - 17 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 492

Micah 6:8
Daniel 5  John 8:3-11
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?


I read recently that a survey of emoji users indicated that a significant majority of them think that using emojis at work is totally appropriate. (I thought of this because for some reason today is World Emoji Day.) I have long railed against the decline of the use of actual words in our society as we move to a post-literate world. (Does anyone think that would be a good thing?)

I mention that I've been against this for a long time simply to emphasize that it's not merely a getting-older-and-therefor-more-curmudgeonly kind of knee-jerk reaction. It's a more heartfelt knee-jerk reaction than that.
I have no doubt that you have heard parents telling their young children to "use your words" many times. I also have no doubt that you have never heard parents tell their children to "use your emojis." Are we going to go back to pictograms for everything? Will we lose the ability to read and write alphabetically? Will Bullwinkle ever be able to read fan mail from some flounder?

This isn't life or death stuff, but it's the next level down. Please - Use Your Words!

Given the terrible flooding going on in the greater Grosse Pointe Metroplex, I doubt I'll be able to celebrate Record Store Day here today, but I do want to acknowledge it. I miss being able to browse through the racks of records (even CDs, tapes, whatever format of recording you prefer) in an actual store, discovering - and buying! - music I might never otherwise have heard. Go shop at a record store if you can.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Maybe Possibly Opening In The Near Future? - 16 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 491

Micah 6:8
Lamentations 3:44-47
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

There are hints and suggestions that Justin Trudeau may be considering opening the Canadian border to fully vaccinated US citizens for non-essential travel. That would mean things like tourism, visiting friends and family, going to the Labour Day Classic. As much as I want to head across the border, I'm not going to rush to buy tickets nor make hotel reservations. He's busy saying things that sound a bit like what everyone wants to hear, but with enough ambiguity that there's no telling when any of this will really happen.

We're still, then, at the point of only allowing crossing for essential business. (Interestingly, there is not official list of what's essential - the Border Agents have quite a bit of freedom to decide on a case-by-case basis.)

So the question arises: is transporting Canadian garbage to Michigan essential business? I'm hoping the answer is no. After all, I can't go spend money in Canada, so I'm hoping they're not still able to send all their garbage to landfills here in Michigan. It's time for Toronto to choke on its own garbage for a change. Eco-poseurs.

But I'm not bitter.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Just Keep Going! - 15 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 490

Micah 6:8
Jeremiah 31:21-22
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

I heard the traffic report on the radio this morning. Apparently there was a problem at the intersection of I-94 and I-69, "that's in Port Huron," the reporter explained. That explanation actually was helpful, because, despite their being purportedly-perpendicular Interstate Highways, I-94 and I-69 actually intersect in two places. The problem one of this morning - in Port Huron - is where they simply don't make sense: I-94 Eastbound is actually Northbound there, and I-69 Northbound is actually Eastbound.
The other, more reasonable intersection is at Marshall, and it - more specifically its cloverleaf - holds a special place in my memory.

Today would have been my Mom's 87th birthday, so having this reference came on a very appropriate day. When I was a kid, I got to go spend a week with my cousins in Indiana (originally Fort Wayne, later Warsaw), and at least once we met my Aunt Peggy at about the half-way point, Marshall, where friends of hers lived.

This trip was special, We took the I-69 exit from I-94 and the first loop was the one to head us South on I-69. We didn't get over quickly enough to merge onto the highway - we were stuck heading for the next loop. Well, to make a long story short (too late!), we ended up doing all four leaves of the cloverleaf, bringing us back to that first loop which we then navigated correctly, ending up on I-69 as we intended. Five loops of the cloverleaf rather than one! We were enthusiastically delighted. Mom was embarrassed. It was a great day.

Hey! Bonus Celebration and Fun!
Today is National Tapioca Pudding Day! I really like tapioca pudding. It's not terribly common these days, but if you have the chance to celebrate with a bowl, raise a spoon to Ryan, Colin, and Ricky. 

You're welcome.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Let's Go, Kids! - 14 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 489

Micah 6:8
Acts 3:17, 4:26
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is Bastille Day. Yes on 14 July 1789 a mob stormed the Bastille - the central event of the French Revolution. Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité. That's sounds really good, doesn't it?
Of course it didn't turn out that way. Not only did it end in Napoleon's taking the crown as Emperor of France (there's a democratic form of government, non?), but in the years leading up to that event, the very ideals of the revolution were subverted and reversed.

As the Who described it (or something like it), "Meet the new boss; same as the old boss." I would edit that very slightly to "Meet the new boss; worse than the old boss."

Some time ago I read a fascinating biography of General Alex Dumas, the father of Alexandre Dumas, titled, "The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo" which reset many of my perceptions of both the Revolution and of Napoleon. It's a fascinating story (a Pulitzer Prize winner, for that matter) and I highly recommend it to you.

Having studied French in school from grade four through grade twelve, I was (and am) a bit of a Francophile, but this was definitely a dark time in the history of France. Still, it's better to know the facts than to live in ignorance, non?
In spite of that, the Berlioz setting of "La Marseillaise" is a really stirring bit of music.


Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Getting Used to Disappointment - 13 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 488

Micah 6:8
Job 6:19-21
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Just about four weeks ago (link here) I asked for help in choosing an edition or version or translation of the Epic of Gilgamesh, but I got no help. The closest I came was a retired teacher friend who lamented no longer having her teacher's copy of Gilgamesh which she was sure I would have loved.

I'll ask for suggestions again - what version of Gilgamesh should I buy and read now? I don't really hold out much hope, based on the first round of replies (or rather, reply), so I guess I'll just have to get used to disappointment. Sometimes I feel like Inigo Montoya.


In an interesting side-note for today, I discovered that on 13 July 1977, the town of Kinney, MN officially seceded from these United States, hoping for foreign aid which was easier to get than getting funding for a local water system was from the State or Federal governments. Playing the Duchy of Grand Fenwick card, they offered to declare war on the U.S. and lose quickly, then accept war reparations.
Fortunately for all involved, a war was not necessary, and they eventually got a grant to complete the local water system.
I'm rather proud of those resourceful Kinneyites (or whatever they call themselves), and might even apply for a passport there to add to the US and Ladonian ones I already possess.

For even more fun, join in today's celebration of Barbershop Music Appreciation Day. It's not all "Sweet Adeline" and "Lida Rose" anymore, you know. Check out this fun one, and this one too.

You're welcome.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Blood Will Tell - 12 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 487

Micah 6:8
Ezekiel 18:19-20
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Flipping through channels the other day, we came across an episode of "Bones" that we hadn't seen. Frankly, I thought Heidi had seen every episode, and I've seen quite a few, but I was clearly mistaken here. At any rate, this episode was one where all the characters were playing slightly different versions of themselves, and in a setting a few decades before the normal time of the program.

Now, I didn't watch the whole thing, so I don't know if it was a dream, or alien abduction / time travel, or a drug-induced hallucination, or what, but that really doesn't matter. What caught my eye was that Billy Gibbons (he of ZZ Top fame), who plays the father of one of the main characters in a recurring role situation, was there, playing an acoustic guitar.

Doing a bit of sleuthing (after all, it's an investigative program, right?), I discovered that Billy is a direct descendant of the English composer and virginalist, Orlando Gibbons. Imagine that musical talent flowing down through the generations, from the composer of so many madrigals and a large number of keyboard pieces (Glenn Gould claimed Gibbons was his favourite composer!) down to the famed guitarist (#32 on Rolling Stone's list of the top 100 guitarists of all time). Isn't heredity amazing?

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Worship - 11 July 2021 - Plague Journal Day 486

Micah 6:8
Ephesians 1:3-14
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

 

 

For our 9:30 worship service have a solo at offertory time, and two hymns for us to sing while Doug plays. Yes - we're back to congregational singing. We're Methodists again!
Remember, we'll be streaming for all those who can't join us in person, and intend to continue that practice indefinitely.

As usual, today's stream should just appear as the latest entry on our YouTube channel, here.
You'll find all our previous worship videos right there at that same place, and today's stream will stay there as a recording as well.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264