Zombie Jamboree

We should have seen this coming. We live in a culture that is currently glorifying werewolves and vampires. In movies and on the tube they are romantic, mysterious characters. Pause while I groan. When I was young we listened to the Kingston Trio sing "Zombie Jamboree".
I doubt I knew anything about voodoo culture. I just liked the Kingston Trio.

Disclaimer: I don't believe in zombies. I don't believe in vampires or werewolves. I do believe people can be fascinated with the dark side and demons are real.

I arched one eyebrow and couldn't resist following a story online about the CDC releasing info on what to do in a zombie attack. Excuse me? A government official released a survival plan for the public to defend against zombies? Maybe that budget could be cut.

Pursuing this further, I found out they used the catchy "zombie apocalypse" release, to get people to read the info and stock a home survival kit. Have enough water, food, medications, flashlites etc. to take care of your family. Well, that I agree with. Take care of yourself. Don't just rely on the government to come in and swoop you up and meet all your needs. You may stand on your roof a long time.


I guess their plan worked. I read their zombie survival plan. I think we need more peanut butter in the cupboard in case of disaster. Google: CDC + emergency preparedness, zombie apocalypse. Photo from the CDC website.

In the Shelter of His Wings...

Last winter our son and his new wife bought a home in a nearby community. The housing bubble has caused steep drops in property prices, and they got a beautiful home at a very good price. While homeowners continued to be distressed about falling value of their homes, young first-time buyers benefitted.

Our second son has been a renter for seventeen years, and this prompted me to look online for a condo he could afford. I may sound like a pushy mother, but he needed a nudge.

My husband and I began the hunt and were surprised at some of the deals on foreclosed or short sale condos. Even before the bubble burst, condos were overbuilt in the metro and prices were soft. Around Christmas I found one online that we all liked.

After the holidays we contacted the realtor and started viewings. Our search narrowed to one particular unit and we were disappointed when it didn't work out. It's a longer story, but to be brief a similar apartment in the same building became available (it had an offer pending that the bank didn't accept). The realtor called and asked if we were still interested and we proceeded.

I fell in love with the beautiful kitchen and the huge walk in closet. It is the size of a small bedroom. The building is older but was redone in 2005. Everything looks new.

It was a short sale and the deal took five months but at the beginning we prayed and put it in God's hands. Let it proceed if it is your will, we said. It did proceed and yesterday we helped our son move in. He is now the proud owner of a beautiful apartment in a nice neighborhood next to a nature center. He is two miles from his brother and has cut twenty miles off his commute to work.

That is no small blessing when gas is almost $4 a gallon. The condo also has a heated garage.

The selling price was just 20% of what it sold for six years ago. A blessing.

God is good.

Harmon Killebrew is Not Dead, He is Safe at Home

When I was fourteen the Washington Senators moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Twins. Now we had our own team to root for and it made a baseball fan out of me. It made a baseball fan out of my dad. I can still mentally see him listening to the radio broadcast of the Twins with Herb Carneal calling the plays. I can still feel the excitement I felt in 1959 when "Hammering" Harmon hit that ball long and hard. I believe his team record for longest home run still stands. He was consistently a good hitter. He was consistently a good guy. After retirement he was an active volunteer helping kids learn the game. He didn't beat his wife or make headlines for drug abuse.

His eulogists praised this nice guy who lived a good life. His kids and pastor portrayed a believer who trusted Jesus Christ for his salvation. I like to think of his welcoming committee in the next world as God standing with arms stretched out, saying, "Home safe, Harmon".

God Save the Queen

QE2 is touring Ireland. She is the first British monarch to set foot on Irish soil in 100 yrs.
Security is on high alert. Today police detonated a pipe bomb on a public bus.

The Queen must be a trusting person. I would guess not all the citizens of that country are happy to see her. Anglophiles can take comfort she is not visiting (rural) China where exploding watermelons are going off like land mines. Reportedly, they were overfertilized, grew too large, and are now suddenly bursting. You thought Gallager made a mess. We are talking fields or dangerous fruit. Cordoned off square miles of melons. Wouldn't you hate your obit to read: "Died when hit by watermelons." Sad day for our financiers.

What You Talkin' About, Arnold?

Oh, my. My condolences to Maria and the kids. Arnold has admitted to being a bad boy and joined the John Edwards scalawag club. I think Robin Williams is also in that club. Didn't he have an affair with his kid's nanny? Bad boys.

This movie poster made me groan. "Nothing is inconceivable". Indeed. Don't hold politicians up as heros or role models. Gossip says Arnold is trying to resurrect his acting career. He will probably have better luck with that than running for office.

I'm pretty sure if he ran for president someone would want to see his birth certificate.

On a Mission From God

My dear friend Mary is again spending spring as a volunteer servant evangelist. She is in Serbia teaching English in a church sponsored community outreach program. The local Serbian church runs the school free of charge to help people learn or improve their English speaking skills. Speaking English improves their job opportunities. The program is run by a national who formerly owned a language school. Mary had previous volunteered at his school and now returns to help the students practice their skills with a native speaker. She has a big heart for people and loves experiencing other cultures and sharing her faith in Jesus.

Yesterday, a group of 16 men from our small church (attendance is only around 140 a week) flew to Hungary to volunteer their labor remodeling a donated old building that will become a church for the local Gypsies in Fadd, Hungary. They will work side by side with Gypsy men. Terrific opportunity to serve and build relationships. We are keeping them in our thoughts and prayers. Our church will reap the benefit of stronger bonds being built among these men. there are three father / son teams among the group. The ages are mixed from one college freshman to some closer to my age. We pray for their safety and for them to be a great service to the Gypsy church.

Our church has many ties to service and evangelism in multiple countries in eastern Europe.
We are on a Mission From God who also pray and finacially support those who are sent.

Raising Cain

This is not an endorsement. This an inquiry.

Disclaimer: I am not a member or affiliate of either major political party and consider myself a right-leaning independent. I have previously been a member of both parties at different times and done door knocking, fund raising and attended conventions as adelegate.

A couple weeks ago a conservative friend on Facebook posted articles about Herman Cain. Mr. Cain "won" the Republican debate somewhere in the south and leads in the Iowa Republican straw poll. Many Tea Party members are supporting him.

Who is Herman Cain, I wondered. The first thing I found out is that he is an African-American Republican businessman. Why am I still surprised at that? Allan Keyes is an African-American Republican.

I have watched a few of his speeches on You tube and read some articles written about him. I don't know enough to have a firm opinion but am intrigued by the idea of an African-American Democrat running against an African-American Republican in 2012. While this would surely trigger a backlash and surging third party, I like the idea. Martin Luther King's dream would seem even closer to fruition.