DIAMONDS ARE A GIRL'S BEST FRIEND

We live in a town that is an antique hunter's destination. Years ago my longtime friend Barbara asked me to be on the lookout for pink and green depression goblets to match the three she had inherited from her mother. She described them to me. I keep an eye out when I travel or browse the stores downtown. Last month when she came to visit we spent an afternoon shopping the antique stores. In one of the malls we spotted her goblets. They had five of them and she even bargained a bit on the price. Last week she emailed her purchase had arrived UPS intact. She is exstatic to have found them relating the only other time she got close she had been told by a dealer they had just sold some an hour before her arrival. I have never seen them. Her sister in ND has an incomplete set of sherbet glasses in mom's pattern. Barb now has me keeping my eyes open for those. Today when I checked on eBay I got excited. They sure looked like what they are hunting for. Alas, the seller's not says they are not Tiffin. They are look alike depression glass. It is easier now to hunt for them because we know the name of the pattern.
So---If you every see any Tiffin, Diamond pattern, pink with green base sherbet glasses let me know. There are some that have green stems. They want the ones with only the green base.
Barb or Mary Cay if you are reading this, perhaps this eBay dealer has other stock: http://cgi.ebay.com/4-BI-COLOR-PINK-AND-GREEN-VASELINE-ETCHED-SHERBERTS_W0QQitemZ120147673408QQihZ002QQcategoryZ1029QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

Wally and the Beaver...Make that Wally and the Gopher

When our son was deciding on which college to attend, he narrowed it down to three. He contemplated UMD, Madison, and St. John's. He was accepted at all three so needed to consider how each fit his aspirations. He had many friends who were enrolling in Madison, UMD and the U of M twin cities. SJU offered great scholarships...what to do? In the end he chose SJU because he said he would be more able to focus on his studies there. It is a scenic though remote campus with a reputation for low drop-out rates and high numbers completing an undergraduate degree in four years. College is an adjustment, his campus was isolated and he had no car. Perhaps he regretted his choice the first few months. His old buddies at other schools were having different experiences. That passed quickly and he now appreciates the choice he made. I remember him telling me he was working out at the school gym that fall and looked over and saw Wally Czczerbiak on the next machine. I was not initially impressed because I did not know who Wally Czczerbiak was. He was a Timberwolf player and the Wolves were in training at St. John's. It guess getting the boys away from the big city distractions works for basketball players and students. Yesterday I heard the U of MN Gopher football team is checking in at SJU today to train. Alas Wally C. was traded to the Celtics in 06. Now Kevin Garnett will follow. These are the only two Wolves I could name. And to think I just learned how to spell Czczerbiak. What a waste.

SLOWER THAN...or- The Great Boston Molasses Disaster of 1919

My computer tech guy is on a three-day fishing trip this weekend and my computer is slower than molasses. What to do. I won't try to diagnose the problem because I do not understand the answers or the questions the programs ask me. Should I say "yes" or "no" to the inquiry of what it wants to do to correct the problem. I have been down this slippery slope before and chosen randomly only to have to take it to a higher source (not God, the Geek Squad). I will just wait. I thought, "It is running slower than molasses in January". This inspired me to look for a photo online to illustrate this piece about a slow computer. When I Googled "molasses in January" I came upon this site: http://edp.org/molasses.htm

Can you believe it? A molasses disaster? I don't mean to make light about the loss of life in this disaster, especially with what Minnesotans have been going through. I might need to suppress a snicker about someone's obituary reading: "Death by Molasses". This disaster had more victims than our bridge collapse. Most of those who survived are probably gone now too so I do not risk offending too many people I hope. It is a sticky situation. It reminds me of the early Smothers Brother's song, "I yelled fire when I fell into the chocolate". Why did he yell 'fire' when he fell into the chocolate? Because no one would have helped him if he had yelled 'chocolate'. Just when we are struggling not to be fearful and avoid bridges, I now have to keep an eye on those tanker trucks full of sorghum. They make molasses from sorghum.

Proud to be a Minnesotan

Much attention has been focused this week on the collapse of the I-35 bridge over the Mississippi in Minneapolis. Matt Lauer and the Today Show broadcast from here. Brian Williams did the news from the banks of the Mississippi. President and Laura Bush are here today. There have been so many comments about the community working together and even civilians putting their own lives at risk to help in the early minutes.
There has been much praise for emergency preparedness and pre-planning. When I was involved in emergency planning and safety as an ER worker I witnessed much of this first hand. When the news hit, our county planners quickly dispatched water rescue crews with boats and divers to help. I am grateful to the good people who take seriously their roles in public safety. Perhaps Minnesota Nice still is true. In some cities much of public works projects are jeopardized by graft and involvement of organized crime. We are blessed to have clean politics even if we do not agree with every politician. The mayor of Minneapolis and our governor conducted themselves well providing leadership and comfort.
The deterioration of our nation's infrastructure has been in the news lately and concern was escalated after this catastrophe. (It is amazing there were not many more lives lost.) We need to continue on not living by fear, but using wisdom to plan. Funds are not unlimited. We need to pray for protection. What would happen if we concentrated on praying for safety of the bridges we and our families cross? We can only imagine. Remember when Jesus left this earth he put us in charge until His return.
I love Psalm 127 and especially verse 1:

"Unless the Lord builds the house,
its builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city
the watchmen stand guard in vain."

A good God still hears prayers. The destroyer is still subject to the authority of the believer.

Progress

- 60 # this A.M. finally! Yahoo

Minneapolis Bridge Suddenly Collapses

There was no other news anyone in Minnesota heard yesterday except the horror of the 35 Interstate bridge collapse in Minneapolis. I was cooking supper when my husband called, "Come here. Look at this." All local stations broadcast continuously for hours into the night reminiscent of the 9/11 coverage. After a quick peek, I went to the phone to call our kids making sure they were not on that bridge. My heart goes out to those who did have family on that bridge and also those who anxiously waited to hear from loved ones whose location they did not know. Early TV news showed a school bus scrunched next to a burning 18 wheeler on a edge of a section that buckled. In the hours that followed, every angle of this was covered. I left to exercise at the gym, only to find this was the only conversation anyone could have. At 10pm I turned to the BBC international news to find the BBC spending over ten minutes talking about and showing footage of the collapse of the bridge in the US. When we are confronted with horrifying news, part of dealing with the reality is talking about it and reviewing it.

This was a heavily used bridge and many could identify with it's random collapse. Forty years ago when it was built, we lived very near to it and over the years crossed it countless times. This incident only confirms that we need to live ready to die. I don't mean that to be morbid. I just live knowing there will be an end. There is a date unknown to me that will be chiseled on my tombstone. My readiness is that I don't know how or when this life will end, but I know what comes next. We make those arrangements now. Eternal life is still a free gift accepted while we are alive by accepting what Jesus Christ has offered to us. May a gracious God comfort those who have lost family and friends on that bridge.

It's Only Fair

It is August 1st but signs of fall are here. The days are shortening. The State Fair is coming. Big box stores are having sales on "Back to School" supplies.
We spent four hours today at the Washington County Fair. Our church mans a hospitality tent where people can eat their food at a table in the shade. We also give away bottles of ice cold water and have Veggie Tale cartoons for the kiddies. It is appreciated by hot tired families. Our pastor has a heart for just doing helpful things for people. Our most unusual church ministry: clean porta-potties on the Lumberjack Days parade route. Is that "thinking outside the box"? Sounds like thinking inside the box. Oh, well.
We spent four hot hours helping set up and serving and came home totally exhausted. I wonder why people venture out in this hot weather. My love of the northwest grows every year. Even Minnesota has gotten too hot. That is a lot of whining for someone with central a/c. Imagine what people who make their living picking agricultural products fourteen hours a day experience. My brother in-law's great-grandparents were slaves in Louisiana working in the sugar cane fields. I don't think the master's were offering them ice cold water or air conditioned housing either. That said, I will stop whining and be thankful I am living in a time when we have much more comfort than those who went ahead of us.