A Day in Outer Cyburbia

We were gliding along on techno perfection while the antivirus days went into a single digit countdown. With three days remaining, we paid and began the download that would cover three computers for another year.

But six hours later, (ain't dial up grand?) there were still tweaks and restarts and two hours of it...only to discover that the download failed.
In the meantime, another company contacted, another payment and another download. There were insurmountable software conflicts rendering the new download unsuccessful. Stress escalated while we burned up cell minutes and time trying to locate the process by which one recoups financial refunds.

Many unsavory words later, the XM radio sputters like frying electric bacon and falls silent.
Not a good week. (My always Indian Tech Support people are not sure what to do with a dead radio, and have to call me back...)

The AV countdown zeros out and our computers are as unprotected as naked babies at a hungry wolves convention after a 40 day fast. We go to a physical location and purchase AV software with a real disc and paper instructions. It works on the old XP desktop and we think, what the heck. It'll be easy. It's self maintaining. No worries.

The downloads, at a local coffee shop goes off with out a hitch. Three little laptops in 40 minutes, bing bing bing! All three current and completely up to date. There are glad tidings galore.
Until a tool bar turns up missing. The protection continues, but it keeps squirreling away the toolbar download into quarantine, treating it like a virus.

At home, glad tidings disintegrate, when we realize the software is self-preserving, or more aptly, self absorbed. It will get online, but not allow ANY pages to load. This is unacceptable. We are mostly home PC users with (ho hum) dial up.

I call tech support after five hours of agonizing and they instruct me to do two things: change the Vista firewall, (I do, no change) or take out the software.

Then we discover there is a no return policy on opened software.
Instead of slamming the phone down, I try talking in a calm voice not my own, what's plan "B"? After moments of uncomfortable silences, "Mr. C" writes notes to the desk and gives me a customer number, and his name to show the return desk. Stating, "I can't fix it, and they really should give your money back... I can't promise they will..."

The next morning, I decide to do the unusual. I am alone in the house and say, "The Lord's favor is upon me. And such and so Computer software Company is going to return my money. I say, Jesus, go before me and prepare the way. I thank you that they returned my money. Thank you Lord."

Sure, I put on make up wore nice clothes and even, I never do this normally, wore that fragrance no man can resist--(Or so they said on Sunday morning) Vanilla. My only objective is to restore peace to our house and our budget. Get the money.
the deck is stacked against me. They already have the money, and their longstanding policy is NO RETURNS on software unless defective. It wasn't. The soft ware works great in the wireless places. I walk in minutes after they open and I am first in line. I explain the story.
I am remembering one thing--God plus one is a majority.
"We don't take returns on software," he says.
"I know," I say. "Here's the name of the tech, and the number of the problem we were having. "

This customer service guy is not a people person. He is dark haired young pleasant and skittish as a cat dancing in a frying pan. He keeps looking at me without so much as moving one facial muscle.

"Well, let me go talk to..." He gets side tracked.
"Do you need the card to credit the account?"
"Yeah," he says and he does the transaction anyway, even though they NEVER... "the reason we don't is because you have to give an email address to get the code."
"Yeah, I know."
He credited the account. It was almost as if God Almighty had control of him, despite his complaints, he proceeded. I'm thinking there is something to this talking out loud, like, Thank you Lord for selling my screenplay for 70G's! Thank you Lord for funding Sam's college education! Thank you Lord that XM called me back today and offered a free replacement radio! Thank you that all my friends are wildly successful financially, personally, spiritually and in their work!

From now on, you may see me talking to myself out loud a lot more.

I left there and went straight home.
And you want to know what was totally crazy?
Every light for 24 miles was green.

Judge Roy Moore

"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."

Revelation 22:7

~~~~~~~

America the beautiful,

or so you used to be.

Land of the Pilgrims' pride;

I'm glad they'll never see.

Babies piled in dumpsters,

Abortion on demand,

Oh, sweet land of liberty;

your house is on the sand.

Our children wander aimlessly

poisoned by cocaine

choosing to indulge their lusts,

when God has said abstain.

From sea to shining sea,

our Nation turns away
From the teaching of God's love

and a need to always pray.

We've kept God in our temples,

how callous we have grown.

When earth is but His footstool,

and Heaven is His throne.

We've voted in a government

that's rotting at the core,
Appointing Godless Judges;
who throw reason out the door,

Too soft to place a killer

in a well deserved tomb,
But brave enough to kill a baby

before he leaves the womb.

You think that God's not angry,

that our land's a moral slum?

How much longer will He wait

before His judgment comes?

How are we to face our God,

from Whom we cannot hide?

What then is left for us to do,

but stem this evil tide?

If we who are His children,

will humbly turn and pray;

Seek His holy face

and mend our evil way:

God will hear from Heaven;

and forgive us of our sins,

He'll heal our sickly land

and those who live within.

But, America the Beautiful,

If you don't - then you will see,

A sad but Holy God

withdraw His hand from Thee.

~~Judge Roy Moore~~

The Light

Forgiven by Stacey Lee Christian

I found some really beautiful work on this site so I wanted to pass it along to you. I remember once wondering what kind of work would I produce as a Christian, and dreaded the thought of being limited to one book to draw from. They clearly think outside the box.

What do you feel looking at this one?

Want to see more?

The Lord's Art

I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions. I either start in November or February with a life style change, so that I don’t lose heart when my regimen doesn’t go according to plan. It's a lifestyle change, meaning I'm adding it to my life no matter how long it takes.

This stems from having failed at diet programs after being obsessed with the scale. Four years ago I began one that required food combining. Although I felt better, and lost a few pounds, I quickly slid off track when my weight plateau-ed. When restarting the program, the hyper-fake voice of the author set me on edge.

I’ve walked, because I heard it’s great for losing 20 pounds. That never happened. I felt more fit, and continue to work out, but I think the trick with walking is to stay out of the kitchen as long as possible…

I’ve biked, crunched, ellipted, Jane Fonda's with aerobic, I synchronized with Denise Austen, exercised, lifted weights and Pilate-ed with several different instructors and I’m not complaining about the strength and flexibility I’ve gained, but I didn’t lose weight. I had a very fit and toned heavy body. Not thinner not lighter.
I tried making peace with my size. Then a sale would come along and I'd be forced to go shopping for clothes. When the size I chose didn’t fit, all I could see in the mirror were all the lumps and curves. All I felt was a growing disgust with a body that seemingly refused to take the right shape and be less all the way around. I promised to starve myself thin again, and fail after a few days. I’d eat lo-cal, no fat, no sugar, no taste foods. All to no avail.
Meanwhile, my exercise buddy shed weight like a snowman in a heatwave.

The most weight I’ve lost in the last five years is about ten pounds, and that might be a stretch. It didn’t stay off and when it came back it brought a few friends.
When I heard someone lost 40 pounds with this book and kept it off, I thought, that’s what I need! A Christian Twelve Step weight loss program.

The book arrived Saturday. The first chapter is so easy, this blonde had no trouble reading through the first lesson. Even though I didn’t know what to expect, I already feel different. I’m only on the first chapter which breaks into daily lessons. I'll finish in twelve weeks. I’ll let you know at the end of each week, how much I’ve lost. Forty pounds in three months would be amazing, but I would be thrilled with 20—my pre-wedding weight. Especially, if I kept it off.

A New Venue

The jury's still out about whether I will continue this blog past March, but I'm getting my feet wet in another venue.

Check it out here: The Music and Arts Journal

Ticket Please

Where are you going?

If you know where you're going,

who are you taking with you?

90 Percent Inspiration

This post marks my 243rd post. It also means I'm 2/3 through my 365 commitment. I have to tell you, it was challenging, but not as bad as you might think.

I like that it has challenged my brain most days, trying to come up with something new to post every day. It's also been freeing. Because if I don't get to post it today, I can post it the next day.

Usually, I don't mind my brain being taxed.

Monday with a headache, our writer's group leader introduced us to the formula for sonnets. I'll probably get around to writing one, I was having an internal melt down trying to accomplish it.

Check out this one by one of my friends in the group. It's beautiful and thought provoking.

SONNET

Eleven Questions to Where You Are

Good people can't stand the sight

of deliberate evil;

the wicked can't stand the sight of

well-chosen goodness.

Proverb 29:27

Are you familiar with the feeling we get having chosen a candidate

who's won?

Nothings feels like victory. Nothing feels so American as your candidate becoming president. In the beginning, there's so much hope, so much promise. As if everything good could finally happen.

This time will be different.

Many of us have felt the sting of disappointment when our hopes were dashed, when that individual didn't meet our expectation, or fulfill the promises from the campaign trail, or embarrassed us or our country.

Why do we even let our hopes get raised every four years?

We're like people who get severe hangovers from drinking and then show up at the bar for happy hour.

When are we going to get serious and realize that fallible people are running our country, that they have their own agendas, which seem so rarely to coincide with our own?

When will we as a collective whole realize, that men or women do not have the power to keep this Titanic country from crashing against icebergs, or from sinking?

Isn't it time?

Isn't it time for Americans who are always saying God Bless America, to do something to bless God?

What are we, or you, or I doing to make sure that God even wants to bless this country?

Who am I following, man or God?

Where is my hope being invested in, financial institutions or people?

In who's agenda am I becoming a pawn?

And, if I'm giving my life, am I on the right side of the board?