Started off this morning to the sounds of the coo-coo. Hope it doesn’t mean I’m going to be getting lost again.

Had a chance to walk along with Ron, from Belorado, who sat next to me at Mass last night. His friend, Kerri has some sort of lung infection, perhaps pneumonia, so she took a taxi on ahead to Burgos. I saw him lighting candles in the church. People on Camino do that—even non-believers. It’s a lovely way to remember someone—living or dead. And it brings comfort. Ron said that he has been lighting candles at each church he comes to for his daughter, who died at 28. She would now have been 35. She evidently got entangled in drugs.

The walk was easy from San Juan to Atapuerca where I saw the standing stones put up by some prehistoric peoples living there 900,000 years ago.  But then the route got serious. Very tough climb to Cruz de Matagrande—our high point for the day. Rough rocks and scrub trees. Lots of loose stone. Found Michelle resting at the top. We started down together but the trail split into several different tracks toward the bottom. I took the “shortest” route along dirt tracks through fields of grain. She took the one that headed for the nearest village and seemed more clearly marked. As I walked along, I saw fewer and fewer people and the track got more and more narrow. It was deja vue all over again. Now I knew why the coo-coo had been talking to me.

Let me interrupt this narrative to present a brief commercial for compasses. You should always carry one on European trips. And one is especially important on a walking tour like the Camino. Maps can be wrong, or at least confusing, and a compass can lead you out of dead ends and wrong turns by at least keeping you in the right general direction.

And so it was this day. As the track got smaller and smaller there were little paths leading off to the right and the left. But my compass told me to keep straight on. So I did. And Mirabele dictu, Miracle to tell, it lead me to another pilgrim-bridge built for idiots like me. 

It carried me over the highway again—just like before. BUT, when I found the airport on my left, instead of on my right as the map said it would be, I realized that I had missed the “scenic route” into Burgos along a “peaceful river.”  Instead, at a little suburban town called Villafria I found myself smack dab on the sidewalk running parallel to the main road leading into Burgos. It was about lunchtime so I stopped in a diner to get a bite to eat and “study this situation,” as my dear-old-dad used to say. When I walked in and set my pack down I saw that Christina there getting a little smackeral too. She was the woman who surrendered her bottom bunk for me in San Juan.

We sat together. She too felt like she was at a crossroads in her life. She was 40 and finding it hard to surrender her youth. She said she was waiting for the city bus. The man behind the counter had told her she could catch it right out front—so that’s what she was going to do. And some “older man” had told her he had a great place to stay, and had handed her a card, so that’s where she was going to stay. She asked what I thought. I told her I was staying at the Municipal Alburgue. She said “Maybe I should do that.”  I didn’t know what to say.

When I got up to leave, she decided she wasn’t going to pound along the pavement through the industrial section of Burgos when there was a perfectly good bus system. And she wasn’t going to stay in the municipal alburgue when strangers hand you a card. It’s fate!  Me, I told her I was going to be a purist. The only ride I would accept would be in an ambulance. I saw her wrinkle her nose as she caught a whiff of my self-righteousness.

And it was a boring walk past soulless tire factories, parking lots, and repair shops along a busy 6-lane road. But I told myself, “life is going to have its boring bits; we need to learn to live with them.” So I had 6 or 7 kilometers of “life-lesson.” I hope Christine saw my virtuous self as she motored past in her air-conditioned bus to her fate-selected accommodations.

I’ve think of myself as being open to the Spirit. She told me that’s what she wanted. I should have told her that, even so, you don’t want to be a ping-pong ball in a hurricane—being blown all over the place. Yes, be open to the Spirit—but don’t be guided by every spirit. Some of them don’t mean us well.

Stopped at the Church of San Lesmes where I sat on the benches with the other homeless men and watched a wedding party form up outside the door. It looked like it was going to be quite an affair but as it was threatening rain I decided to push on. And then the sky opened up and buckets poured down. I sought refuge in a bank lobby and put on my hooded rain cape and discovered why real peregrinos carry rain pants and rain jackets instead. The cape was useless. It didn’t really cover that much and the wind whipped it up over my head when I ventured back out on the street. And then the torrential rain turned to hail. Whee. I quickly found another bank lobby.

Finally arrived, drenched and exhausted, at the multi-story Municipal Alburge. After I showered and settling in, Michelle arrived. She had been assigned the very next bunk. Cool. The building was very modern and the bunks were built-in, as were the lockers beside them. Had a sudden urgent call of nature and forgot to check on the availability of papel igenico before commencing. That’s a big “Ooops” in a Spanish bano. I didn’t want another shower so it was essential that I find some other way to clean myself. My clean, white linen handkerchief had to take one for the team. It was softer, at least, than the usual papel even if not quite as “desechable.”

Michelle and I ate supper in a “kabop shop,” around the corner from the Alburge, then went to take pictures of the cathedral and the famous statue of the Peregrino studying his blisters. Burgos is a lovely town, and the parks in the old city have sycamore trees pruned to within an inch of their life. Lots of buskers playing musical instruments, and another wedding party at the Cathedral. Tomorrow we enter on the infamous Meseta, sort of like the midwest of Spain—flat grassland, swept by sudden rains, wind-storms and notoriously unpredictable weather. Hail one minute then scorching hot and windless the next. I had no trouble falling asleep. I was seriously tuckered.

Sunday, 6/14/15: 15^th Day walking: From Burgos to Hontanas

Michelle wanted to sleep-in; I was anxious to get on the way so we said “Asta Luego,” and I took off at 6am. The day was perfect for walking. There was a brisk cool breeze at my back all day long. And it was cloudy, but without rain. Walked more than 30 kilometers. A new record! It’s very hypnotic walking along for miles with only the sound of the stones crunching under your feet. I heard several people say that they were going to grab a bus to take them around the Meseta. I’m glad I didn’t. It reminded me of a rocky Kansas. As I walked, I could see distant mountains, and from the low promontories I could see from horizon to horizon. For the most part the tiny villages are at the bottoms of little valleys carved into the plateau by small streams and rivers. The “walk” into Hornillos was more of a slide down the gravel path. A wonderful cup of café con leche though and I was ready for more walking.

 Gorgeous skies, distant vistas and cheerful little swifts flying out over the fields keeping me company. Natural pest control! And lovely chirping pest control. DDT never did that!

Six kilometers more and I decided to stop at a little one-building “village” called San Bol. But it looked so remote and God-forsaken I decided to push on to Hontanas, a major metropolis of 70 hardy souls another 5k away. As I walked I could see fields in all directions. And distant wind turbines far off to my left, and far off to my right. And storm clouds dropping rain far, far, away. There’s no way weather could sneak up on you on the Meseta. But, boy-howdy, my Brierly said I was close to Hontanas, and I didn’t see a thing that looked even remotely like a village. Normally, you can see your intended stop up ahead and gauge how long before you arrive. A young couple breezed past me, and the young man, a veteran of several Caminos told me to take heart—“Hontanas will sneak up on you.”

And it did.

 The land was flat as a pancake then suddenly I was at the top of a 1 kilometer plummet into the village. I slid down again and found a bed at one of the three alburges, and learned that I was sharing a room with 4 German walkers. And they were wound up! Couldn’t follow a word, but it was all evidently hilarious. And they had already staked out the bottom bunks. My poor feet. They need to invent bunk-beds with elevators.

Got my shower and ate supper outside in the sun sitting in an Adirondack chair next to Phil and Ida. Stuffed myself with those wonderful “Magnum” ice cream bars. I think one of the things I miss most about the Camino is eating as much ice cream as I want. Walk for eight hours a day and it’s really quite remarkable how many calories you can eat without gaining a pound!

That night it stormed and hailed. That distant rain I saw finally arrived. I wouldn’t have known (with my earplugs) but I was sleeping under the skylight. Like sleeping inside a snare-drum.

Monday, 6/15/15: 16^th Day walking: From Hontanas to Boadilla del Camino

Today was a perfectly lovely, if chilly day! I was really fortunate to be so exhausted last night that I turned in early. That meant I plucked my drying clothes off the line before turning in. I draped them over chairs in my room to finish drying while I slept. The other walkers have had to contend with freezing cold, soaking wet clothes today. They have them draped over their packs and swinging from lanyards like flags.

Given the nature of the Camino you see the same people over and over again and yet often walk with different people each day. That gives you the opportunity to learn what people think of each other. And there are as many different personalities on the Way as there are walkers. And many different reasons for walking 500 miles or so, from one side of Spain to the other. One friend confided in me that she didn’t like another couple we often met-up with. I didn’t tell her, but I suspected she didn’t like them because she was a bit cynical and they weren’t cynical at all. I tried out the idea with another walker (without mentioning names!) and they wondered if it might be that all of us have a tendency to think that other people are really very much like us. And so cynical people are very suspicious of people who seem to be un-cynical—they must either be stupid or hiding something. “And if I tear them down I won’t need to change my view of the world.” Maybe that’s right.

As I walked along I decided that this should be “Lessons from the Camino.”  And one of the lessons should be “Whenever possible walk with a normal stride—even if it hurts.” Because if you limp, eventually other body parts start to hurt too! You start off with a blister, so you limp to keep the weight off your left foot, so your right ankle and knee start doing double duty, so they start hurting so you start leaning on your sticks more and your shoulders start to ache as well. For lack of a blister-pad the Camino was lost! So even when it hurts, try to take a normal stride. Maybe the same is true for emotional and psychic pains as well.

 Christine ended up sharing the same room with the Germans and me last night. Heard her suggest to a friend this morning that they should rent a bicycle and bike a hundred kilometers or so. The little compromises we make tend to grow. A bus here, a bike there, a taxi when you need it. The discipline of the Camino ebbs away. No wonder some people end up taking taxies from one Alburge to another. And the whole concept of a pilgrimage falls away.

Amazing, the pontificating man I heard a week or so back passed me again today. This time with just the shorter man. The young woman was missing. And, my God, he was still pontificating at excruciating length about monetary policy, public debt, and fiscal responsibility. And the shorter man couldn’t wedge a word in edgewise!  I’ve got a feeling I’m not going to be able to keep my mouth shut.

            (to be continued)

Note:  From here on out I won't be posting blogs here but on my Crank Old Retired Lady Facebook page.  When your old and cranky it is kinda tough to keep up with more than one blog-type-are.  Thanks for reading here.

Observations of the week have fostered the growth of another OPINION in my little flower bed of crankiness.

In the past few years I find it increasingly disturbing that certain groups of young people (let's say the under 30 crowd) seem to feel entitled to everything these days. Especially their post-secondary experiences. And since I am just a cranky old retired lady who has walked the earth like an ancient, but not yet extinct dinosaur, I can name names so to speak. So ya'll I am tired of young black people, young women, young immigrants and young people with disabilities not to mention the LGBTQ crowd and others screaming that life is soooooo unfair to them because they are "put upon" yet they very seldom acknowledge that people way, way, way before them fought long and hard and lost their lives in many cases so you could whine in present time about how unfair the world is to you. A lot of people suffered to give you opportunities--going to college being one. In the current age you wanna blame it all on politics? Seriously? You tell me the Constitution and the Bill of Rights promise you things? Seems like these days everyone is screaming about how unfair their lives are from their dorm rooms at very expensive colleges where getting a hang nail is a major crisis and you need safe rooms to survive disappointment.

Well, my little snowflakes, you are there getting your college degree because people born generations before you fought tooth and nail and put it all on the line so you could whine from your $40,000 a year college campus and go in debt for your educations via government subsidized loans meaning that a large portion of your degree, has been most likely subsidized or paid for by the American Tax Payer in some form or another. Of which I am one.

So before you you burn my flag because America is so horrible how about I burn your student visa that lets you be here at an American university (probably getting American financial aid)? Please don't start lecturing to me at my age about how tough life is until you review a few things. Back when I was a kid (I've waited six decades to say that by the way) only about 20% of people went to college and you went because you needed it to GET A JOB, unless you were a "draft dodger" way back in the 60s and 70s and didn't wanna go slog through the endless, wet , stinking jungles of Viet Nam and get your hiney shot at because you generally got an educational deferment so you could complete said education. And BTW vets, good job to those who had the guts to do leave the comforts of a dry, warm USA and fight. Fear and discomfort was pretty motivating to go become a teacher or social worker... Or maybe you should contemplate how Democrat Governor George Wallace was telling young black people they couldn't go to those very colleges back then. Women were not so welcome either. But those are different rants ladies and gentlemen. The point is, college was not an automatic "gimme" and if you needed a degree to pursue your chosen occupation it was a different attitude than today where people do things "bass ackwards" as my dad used to say. You don't go to college to find what you wanna do my dear snowflakes. You do your research and find how you wanna earn your living and THEN find the training that helps you do that which may be a college degree. Or not.

College should not be an automatically provided extension of your tax payer high school education. You "do" college because you need it to get to a vocational goal. It's not summer camp for pity sake! But if you have to go to college to fulfill your chosen career path via higher ed, please don't lecture me about how rough it is until you have thanked those people who fought long and hard so you could be there. No one owes you a living so stop blaming Trump or conservatives or politics in general and take advantage of the opportunity you have to get your education or training or whatever you are doing so you can survive the rest of your lives instead of being eternal children.

I don't wanna pay for your permanent vacation without a compelling reason as I am most likely subsidizing your school career in some form through my taxes. Many of my generation remember the phrase "working my way through college." And we did literally. So, at least have a little appreciation for what people before you gave up and sacrificed so you could be where you are today because if you are jobless and homeless and camp out on my yard you are most definitely getting off my lawn.

https://mindaskew.wordpress.com/

It has become obvious that the President actually is a bystander in office, and not even a very observant one.  An astute observer from the nearest

corner would accidentally obsorb more knowledge about the internal activities of the presidency than he knows, or admits to knowing.. 

This is a warning to anyone considering doing business with this company. Many have complained of not receiving the  items they ordered and the excessive shipping and handling charges that they are stuck with.  One web site has posted over 600 complaints!

If you are like me, you’ve been adding non-meat kitchen scraps to a pile of leaves, old soils from spent plants, grass clippings, and other clean organic matter to your compost pile or compost bin all winter long.

Now you can make your own potting soil for starting seeds or potting flowers. Unlike the store bought, expensive potting soil, you will know just what this stuff contains.

No matter that the compost pile is full of twigs, half decomposed leaves, and pebbles. You shouls sift it just like flour before baking a cake.

For my soil making sifter, I use a tray I made of galvanized small wire mesh nailed to a square of one by two boards. I lay the sifting tray on my garden cart. However you chose to sift, here’s what you do next:  Follow my pictures:

https://picasaweb.google.com/113237450216085969004/Compost#

Shovel compost onto the sifting tray

Use your hand or a hoe to move the compost over the wire mesh

After the soil sifts through you are left with any larger, rough bits.

Those bits would have robbed your flowers or seeds of nutrition.

Remove the rough bits and put them around plants as mulch.

Sift the compose until you have enough for your potting or seed beds.

Add peat moss, wood ash, and other ingredients on the sifting tray.

Peat moss, for will also leave wood chips that will harm new plants.

You are ready to use your natural potting soil.

Just one more tip. If you don’t use all the sifted soil, put the remainder in a container and cover. I use a plastic bucket with a tub over it. This prevents nitrogen from escaping into the atmosphere. You want to keep it for your plant roots next time you pot plants or start seeds.

Best of the garden to you,

Steve

Each morning, while enjoying my first cup of coffee, I check out my favorite sources for news on the Internet. Today I came across a very disturbing video of a young punk knocking out an old man on the Red Line train in Chicago. After this punk knocked out the old man, the rest of the gang stood around and laughed. Here is a link to the video where you can watch it for yourself.

As I watched the video, it reminded me of the same problems we have in Columbus, Ohio. We don’t have public trains or subways, but we have a problem with gangs using the public bus system to move around. Columbus area and other large cities like Cleveland have an ever growing problem with gangs and crime. And just like every large city in the country, they are Democrat strongholds that bring the very ideology which enables the problem to grow.

I believe gang activity is directly related to the growing increase in high school dropouts. In 2008, the Columbus dropout rate was 40%. Recently a new federal law requires those who state they are transferring to new schools or dropping out of the public system be verified. These new laws have shown that the dropout rates are much higher than once thought.

Why are so many dropping out of school when the federal government is pouring hand over fistfuls of taxpayer dollars into the system? I believe it is because the federal government in its continual efforts to spread the wealth has created a growing class of people that no longer see an education as something of value. After all, who needs an education to  qualify for a job when you have federal/state governments that will pay for a roof over your head, provide you with food stamps, medical coverage, smart phones, and assistance toward utilities? Then you can spend your time hanging out and making money under the table often through illegal drug sales, prostitution, and good old-fashion theft.

The Columbus area has deteriorated and become quite expensive for the taxpayers over the past decade or so under the leadership of  Democrat Mayor Coleman who was recently re-elected to his 4th term.. These days, the busiest place in Columbus is the courthouse. In the middle of any given day, you see the buses pull up in front of the courthouse with runs to an area in the inner city every 15-20 minutes. Each bus is packed to capacity with standing room only full of young adults who just had their day in court

We have also had to go through extensive/expensive building additions to increase the size of the courthouse because of the increase in crime. The one major private sector benefit has been the need to increase housing for attorneys, judges and their staffs. Unfortunately, the increase in gang activity was a key factor in other efforts to restore downtown Columbus. One was City Center Mall. It was a three story shopping mall, very upscale with every major department store imaginable. It had very nice eateries and an underground parking facilities. Though the Mayor of Columbus blames the competition of other malls in the suburbs for its failure, the truth is people like myself no longer felt safe shopping there because the inner city gangs started making it their hangout causing trouble. When walking to your car in the underground lot with your hands full of packages, you became an easy target. One by one the anchor stores pulled out and Mayor Coleman with taxpayer dollars bought the mall and had it torn down and turned into a ‘green space”. So leftist of him. The private sector efforts and jobs lost all shot to hell…. but let us all rejoice in the few public sector jobs this new green space created in its upkeep. Idiots.

So how did things get this way? Go back to the sixties when President Johnson and his Democrat Congress started the Great Society that was suppose to end poverty by spreading the wealth to the poorest of us. And since then those programs have grown just like every other spread the wealth program before it. Instead of pulling people out of poverty, they have created more! And the more dependent they became on government, they have learned how to game the system to the point they no longer see education or personal responsibility as a necessity.

Columbus is no different than any major city across this country. It’s a travesty and as long as this “spread the wealth” mentality is allowed to continue, it will only get worse.

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     This doesn’t happen all at once- but slowly and gradually, at different rates for different traits.  It took longer for some things to disappear in my son, while others were destroyed much earlier in the disease.  For N (my son) one of the first things to go was his sense of humor (a close second was any display of affection); while his demonstration of common courtesy (such as saying “thank you” and “please”) along with his sense of responsibility, and willingness and desire to help others was one of the last things to disappear.

    Who and what N once was is now gone.  His personality no longer exists (at least outwardly, but I’m hopeful that it’s still a part of his brain and not chemically destroyed).   His individual spark has been doused. He now bears no resemblance to who he was before this awful disease started. 

     Schizophrenia has eliminated any sign of the original personality and temperament that made him N.

     And the worse thing: N doesn’t even realize that this drastic change has occurred.

Basil is a 2 year old basset and he is a French basset.  The French like frog legs and Basil likes to play with frogs.  He finds them somewhere on our property and picks them up and relocates them.  He then puts them down and either sits down next to them or lies down next to them and when they jump, he does the same thing all over again---picking them up, carrying them to another location and putting them down, putting his nose on them until they hop.  We have managed to relocate over 10 frogs this season and our neighbors do not seem to mind having us dump the frogs in their pond.  Basil does not harm the frogs, he just seems to enjoy playing with them.

Basil is a real character when we take him in the car.  He likes to have the windows rolled down halfway (what dog does not!?).  He usually bellows as we are driving to a small town just down the road from us.  He has a basset friend, Cleo, who looks forward to seeing him when he goes for a walk on her block.  We have been wondering what the people in the housing development that we drive by are thinking as Basil bellows out the car window.  "What was that noise?  Who has a dog or other animal that makes that kind of noise?"  All of the houses are surrounded by block walls and the noise just reverbrates through the yards.  Basil has not taken to howling in the car yet---we are waiting for that one.

Basil has been a part of our lives for over 14 months now and he is a real joy, so affectionate and loving.  He really enjoys to be held and everyone in the neighborhood knows where he lives and most of them have been by for a visit.  He still does bark and bellow at the horseriders that come by.  He can't quite figure what kind of dog a horse is!  And someone down the street has a cow and a braying donkey that both let loose on a regular basis.  So with the hound dog, the mooing cow and the braying donkey (and the honking geese periodically), it gets to be quite the country.

Have a great weekend and will touch bases next week.

"Let the glory of the LORD endure forever..." Psalm 104:31 NASB

What are some of the more important or noticeable reasons why people who say they’re Christians don’t act like it?

1. They are disappointed with God. 2. They're distracted by other things, and get their focus off of Jesus. 3. They mingle with unbelievers in dangerous relationships 4. They have unchanged tendencies 5. They are self-reliant rather than being reliant on God through Jesus Christ (they try to trust in their own strength instead of in the strength of Christ).

I recently started a Christian Course through Christian Courses (www.christiancourses.com). I learned the above information from that course. It's one of those courses you have to pay for if you take it for credit, but it is free if you're not seeking credit. Needless to say, I am taking it for free. I started it on Tuesday, and I just finished the first lesson tonight. I have spent hours on it, but it is very good. Only nine more lessons to go. Ha! Ha! The title of this course is: 10 Reasons To Believe Real Christians Can Look Like They're Not. I have found it very enlightening, and I think it may prove particularly helpful to me. The first lesson dealt with being disappointed with God. The point was made that when we suffer disappointments, we are very vulnerable to the lies of Satan about ourselves, and about God. When we fall for those lies,  the results start piling up in our lives even as we face more disappointments. As a result we may become disappointed with or even bitter towards God. As students of this course, we are encouraged to journal about whatever God stirs up in us about past disappointments; then we are advised to invite Him into those disappointments so that we can surrender to Him and His truth, and not be deceived by the lies Satan may have fed us when we first experienced those disappointments.

I'm looking forward to learning the other five reasons why people who say they are Christians don't act like it. Stay tuned, if you're interested.

Well, guess that's it for today. I hope anyone who happens to read this blog has a great day in the Lord. - Ray

• Defaulted Mortgages: I buy defaulted second mortgages secured by residential housing.   My task is to rehab the mortgage by restructuring payments, term., and conditions.  Once the home owner has proven his commitment by making regular on time payments for 6 months or longer, It is time pass the mortgage on to another investor.

• Judgments:   Does someone owe you money?  If you have a valid, legally enforceable court judgment - CA$H paid for Judgments
  

• Domain Names:  I register domain names - drive traffic to them (this is one way Google determines search rankings), making nickles and dimes from advertising or product sales.  Once the domain name is over 1yr old, has traffic, and ranks on Google search - it is time to put up the "for sale" sign..

Not only did the work slack up because of the economy...but it got too hard on my back and thumbs.

I only have a GED for an education and before sheetrock...all I did was weed eat state parks.

My wife and I need help.

Also when I was young and stupid...I broke into a drug store to steal pain pills...after accidentally shooting myself in the knee

and a so-called "doctor"; refused to give me any pain medication.

So I  got drunk and took some.  I got five years probation.

I'm not like that anymore.

If you know where an older man like me can get a job before I loose my car and house and all the utilities get shut off....

please let us know.

1: Homeless People;

            While it's true that many are homeless because they "choose" to be: there are thousands even with children who don't want that, but circumstances forced them into that lifestyle. They would work, if only someone would give them a chance.   Much to ours and Americas' shame, many of them are Veterans who lost sight, limb, and sanity fighting for "US". It's a shame & disgrace that our brave & wonderful Veterans must eat out of garbage cans, sleep in culverts or cardboard boxes on the very streets they fought to defend.  God will judge us all soon on what we do, or do not do, for our less fortunate brethren.

2: Sex Offenders;

   All sex Offenders ARE NOT rapists or Pedophiles who harm children. Some sex offenders was lied to by young girls who pretended to be of age...then screamed "rape"...because they didn't want Mom & Dad to know she was a bad girl! Many good men have been ruined for life by such girls who wear make-up, dress-up & act like hookers. They have fake ID...so how's a guy supposed to know she's lying? Is it, then, his fault, or, hers? Yes, it's his fault for thinking with the wrong head. It's her fault because of acting or playing the part of a grown-up young lady, and lying to guys. Sad thing is...these girls feel no remorse for ruining good mens lives & having them sent to prison. These, too, shall be judged someday soon.

3: Overweight People;

   America has become a cruel place for overweight people. They're heckled, taunted, made fun of and called many different names. While it may be true that some are overweight because they "do" sit around all day doing nothing but eat...there are many who actually eat very little and gained a lot of weight because of certain medications or surgeries performed on them. People with Asthma, like me, must take Corticosteroids...which blows people up like Helium filling a balloon. Some woman become overweight because they had Hysterectomies & was put on Hormones...which also make you gain much weight. If you find that hard to believe...just look at dogs/cats that have been "fixed"...just about every one becomes fat afterward, and the same happens with humans who are  "fixed".  I know, because before my Hysterectomy I only weighed 135lbs. I eat very little at all, and yet I now weigh 200+...because of the surgery & Asthma medication combined. It happens, and we Fat people have no control over it. So, before we heckle or taunt or judge any more "fat" people...think about this...THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS WHAT THEY SEEM TO BE!!! And remember, We should not judge...lest we be judged. Thanks for listening, so to speak, take care, God bless, and, "Smile...'cause God loves ya much!"

Below is a cut and paste of the dream I had, along with all the associated information, that I sent to a friend of mine via FaceBook email:

www.rodeotrickrider.com

www.youtube.com

All rodeo trick riders and Fans of Trick Riding! Come visit www.rodeotrickrider.com Learn about trick riding Find Trick Riders to Hire Buy the Trick Riding DVD Talk to other Trick Riders on the forum Post your shows Sell your horse related stuff for sale in the Classifieds!

With Fond Regards

Arnfried Klein-Werner
Motivator & CEO - Be Motivated Today

http://www.BeMotivatedToday.com/72306

    My first post to Copper.net is about my personal experience in the Military. Before I joined I never knew a Lesbian. I met many in my four years. None were ever identified as Lesbians or removed fron the service. This was before Don't Ask Don't Tell. My brother however, is a gay man who I love dearly and is not what you typically consider a gay man to be. He also was a military member before me. If this world is so narrow minded that sexual preference soemehow limits ability, or intrudes on unit cohesion, then those people have not really experienced the multicultural world in which a true American lives. These people are sincerely mistaken. The Lesbians I knew were the best soldiers. I cannot remark about my brothers experience it would be hearsay to do so.

    I am appalled that the Supreme court has lessened the opinion which was heading in the correct direction because old time powers that be want to feel secure in their veiw of cohesion and will not go forward from the traditional past. Life goes on. They need to get over it. As long as units are aware of the standards and do not allow abuse, there should be no problem,  Right? People will chose thier preferences. It's the American way. I chose to have children, so hopefully you wont feel this post is slanted toward any 'devious' alliances. I have none. I am appalled by two steps forward one step back. Americans pay for all of this bickering in the judicial system. Does it really truely bother you that some people have other sexual preferences? Do you stay up at night worrying about what your neighbors do in their bedroom? Do we all think that the barracks will become an orgy? I mean why is this so hard to let go of people?

   So I figure, this morning I will pay by my cell phone, but when I go to put the amount to pay in, the phone is saying the opposite of what I am paying. After a few times of that, I am denied access to a later time.  Aren't we glad, no matter what we do, or how many times we turn away from God, he doesn't deny us access to him. He doesn't tell us wrong answer, what is your pass code? We can access him at anytime, day or night, their is no complete chaos.

Hebrew 12:1  And let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

Luke 21:19 In your patience possess ye your souls.

My testimony today: Lord, thank you for having patience with me. I wasn't acting the best that I can be today, My daughter thought I was angry with her. I told her no, just upset with the situation at hand, trying to pay my phone bill. But you let me know that I wasn't acting as I should, and I thank you for the conviction you put in my heart. Without that I would fail. So again, thank you Lord, for the knowledge I have in even the smallest things, that I need to ask for your forgiveness. And you are always there to forgive me. That I don't have to call a computer to get denied access.

Have you ever looked up at a towering city skyline, and wondered who built that? or gazed at the expanse of the Golden gate Bridge, or  the Amazing St Louis Arch, and or The Massive Height of the Sears Tower. Have you ever wondered who completed these amazing, architectural buildings? it was Union, men, and women, hard working. The next time you look out over a massive struture, and or see a creative architectural building, the chances are, that a Union Man, and or Women. Helped Build it. Unions have provided for many years, great pay, and benefits, to its workers, the benefits for out weigh, all the problems, that have been generated by those who do not like the unions, the Unions have given men, and women, a decent wage in which to support their family.  Plus provide insurance, and pensions, many Union B.A. Business agents, and Union Officials, deserve to be respected for providing good jobs. We need Unions to help, negotiate better wages, pensions, safety, and or any other issues that could occur. We need to stand up for Unions!

                                            GOD BLESS AMERICA!

                       Who Built these amazing structures? IRON WORKERS OF AMERICA.

                                                     STAND UP FOR UNIONS!

  Soon she would begin to learn how cruel this world can be, and there are people out

  there that are mean and cruel. They are willing to use anyone no matter how old or

  young they are.

          Don't get me wrong , there are some children that will never know what it is like

  to not have anything to eat. A place to live that is not on the street. They have parents

  that really care. They feed them, clothe them, make sure they have shoes and coats to 

wear. And have a safe and warm happy home to live in.

          And there are the other ones that carry the title of mother and father. But it's

   just a title. Makeing sure that their child has everything she needs is the farthest thing

   from their minds.

   They can only think of where they are goint to get the next drink, fix, or even the next person

    they can have sex with. Sex of course can be an addiction as well.

          The sad part is, there is someone paying the price for these addictions. It's the children that

   they brought into the world.

          See the thing is, this circle of life has always been here. The cruelty wasnt  just to the

   children it was done to the women as well. It just wasnt talked about to anyone. Besides

   people who saw or heard anything turned and looked the other way.

   The child and women are brain washed to believe they are so bad they have to be kept

   in line and punished. That made it alright to do these things to them.

          So again a little innocent baby is born into this world. Not asking to be brought

   into this world. But soon would begin to learn how cruel this world can be. Because the

   circle of life has to continue.

          Let me leave you with this thought and question. WHEN WILL PEOPLE STAND

   UP AND MAKE THEIR VOICES BE HEARD TO SAY NOW IS THE TIME THAT

   KIND OF CIRCLE OF LIFE HAS TO BE STOPED?  IS THERE ANYONE OUT

   THERE THAT IS NOT AFRAID TO MAKE THIS STAND FOR THESE PEOPLE

   THAT CAN'T SPEAK OUT FOR THEMSELVES?

           So tell me are you one of the people that sees but turns the other way? Pretending

   they never saw or heard anything?

Puddy Kat & Gable are a cats.  They were both strays that we adopted or maybe they adopted us, you can never be sure with cats.  Puddy was being fed by my brother, Larry.  She followed him down to our house one afternoon and would go from one to the other for food.  She was injured on her last adventure out side the house.  After a $150 trip to the vet, she became our house cat.  She doesn't even ask to go out anymore.

Gable was also a cat my brother was feeding.  He just showed up at the door one day and asked to get in.  However, Puddy was not very keen on the idea of another cat to share her litter box, so it took nearly 2 months for her to let him come in.  Gable is a tom cat and we just can't keep him in all the time.  However, unlike Puddy, he doesn't stay away for several days, he always comes back to eat at least once a day.  Then he naps in the cool for a day or 2 sometimes before he wants back out. 

He loves to be petted.  He also like to bit gently on your fingers.  We have discovered that he has several teeth missing and has a hard time chewing dry cat food.  We are now giving him canned cat food and he is really doing better.  After he eats he has stopped racing to the kitchen we get up.  He lays down and takes his nap. 

The bag that Puddy is sitting in is crocheted from plastic grocery bags.  It's a great way to keep those bags out of our garbage dumps.  If you want to learn how to make yarn out of them, just do a Google search for recycle plastic bags.   You will find  everything you need to know and it has step by step pictures. 

     Also; I cannot find a way to accelerate Firefox for dialup that has a "refresh image with full quality" option. This frustrates me to no end. I do not want to spend any money for a third party Addon outside of my copper.net subscription.

All suggestions are accepted.

Creation   

Nehemiah 9:6

Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

Genesis 2:7

And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

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There is only one God in heaven who has made the heavens, the earth, the seas and everything in them.  He preserves His creation even today.  God also has created man from dirt.  We turn back into dirt after we die.  We ourselves cannot create life from dirt.  Only God can breath into us the breath of life.  Therefore, our lives come from God.

Covenant

Genesis 17:2-7

And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

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Back in the beginning of time God in heaven made a covenant with Abram.  God changed Abram’s name to Abraham which means “Father of a multitude”, and God promised him that he would be a father of many nations.  In other places in the Bible we learn that a blessing was to come to all nations from Abraham and his seed.  The word seed means a descendant.  From one of Abraham’s descendants a blessing would come to the whole world.  Also, note in the verse that this is an everlasting covenant.

Commandments

Exodus 20:1-20

1. And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

3. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

5. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

6. Thou shalt not kill.

7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8. Thou shalt not steal.

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: bu t let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.

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These are the Ten Commandments.  There are many, many more commands than these in the Bible.  At the end of the second commandment, God says that He visits iniquity… and shows mercy to those who love Him and obey His commands.  We learn from the Bible that “The wages of sin is death.”  We also learn that lusting after a woman’s beauty is adultery, hatred is murder, and as a “man thinketh in his heart; so is he.”  In other words, we are all guilty of disobeying these commandments.

Condemnation

Romans 3:19-20

Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

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The commandments given above along with the complete Old Testament law was to make the “whole world guilty before God” as stated in this verse.  The last part teaches that no one can keep the whole law to be justified, made righteous.  This means that as the Bible says that “There is none good; no, not one.” “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:10,23

Compassion

Romans 5:6-11

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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We do not have the ability to do good in order to gain eternal life and have access to God.  We are sinners, but as the verse above teaches God commendeth, or showed, to us His love by Jesus Christ dying for us.  Jesus was the sinless Son of God.  Because Jesus is righteous, He was able to make the necessary sacrifice for the sins of the world.  Jesus was born of the virgin Mary; he healed the sick, made the lame to walk, and caused the blind to see; he reproved the hypocritical religious leaders, and reached out to the hated tax collectors.  He kept the entire law of the Old Testament.  He eventually became so hated that the world in that day crucified Him to a cross.  However, it was all in God’s plan because this innocent man’s death paid the complete sin debt of the world.

Conviction

Romans 4:2-8

For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

Galatians 2:7,16

Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.

Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made.  He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

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As seen above we can be made righteous by believing in Jesus Christ.  We are not made righteous by doing good.  By believing in Jesus Christ, we are following in Abraham’s footsteps who believed what God told him.  Jesus Christ was born out of the Jews which are all descendants from Abraham.  Therefore, Jesus is the seed through whom all nations are blessed.

Confession 

Mark 1:14-15

Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Romans 10:9

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead; thou shalt be saved.

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Dear God in heaven who made me, please forgive me for not keeping your commandments.  I believe Jesus died for all the wicked things I have done.  I believe that Jesus rose from the dead.  I am willing to confess Jesus to others.  Make me righteous through Jesus.  I pray this in Jesus name, Amen.

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John 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

I would love to hear your comments, questions, and or decisions.  Please write to me at scripturetoday@copper.net.

I bought a small 3 acre place when my Mom was diagnosied with lung cancer over 7 years ago.  I was 45 at the time and it made me realize that it was time to eo something that I always wanted to do.  Live in the country.  Both of my parents came from farm lives.  Mom made it through her lung cancer that time, but than my Dad was diagnoised with lung cancer and died shortly after I moved out here.  Such is life. 

But this was the best thing I have every done in my life.  We raise chickens, geese, ducks and rabbits.  We also have some guinnes.  I love them, but my hubby thinks they are sooo ugly. 

Today the sun is shining and one of the news channels says this is one of the top 10 days of the year for weather.  Too bad I had to spend most of indoors at work.  Blue skies and green pastures.  Nature is finally coming back to life after a very hard winter.  I can't wait for my flowers to start growing and blooming to show color  I lobe zinneas and marigolds. 

Well, I have bored you all enough.  My hubby is the writer.  Here's hoping everyone has a great week and a wonderful day. 

They are weakening the bottom of the ladder! Soon the top will fall! No? Lets wait & see!

There has been one snow storm after another leaving a cover of four feet on the ridge.   As we lacked any snow removal equipment other than shovels, the last snowfall was too heavy to move manually.

The man who plowed the driveway in December named Buck left me his card.  Normally I’m very good with such things, but this time I misplaced it.  Embarrassed I called a neighbor for Buck’s number.  The neighbor knew his name, but Buck’s number was not listed.  An Internet search revealed Buck’s parents and they gave us his number.  Buck said, “Sure honey, I call you before I come.”  When there was no return call, Buck dismissed me with “Can you call someone else?”  Luckily our neighbor suggested Mutt.  Mutt was in the hospital, but his son was willing to come, although he wouldn’t give me an exact time. 

Does anyone have a normal name, like John, Bill or David?  I’m tired of having to depend on “Buck’s” “Mutt’s” and other such characters.  There must be interesting stories behind these first names.  I only wanted a plowing service not a story.   Right when my husband and I were ready to give up, the son showed up.  We both leapt and cheered knowing our confinement was about to end.   He had a big machine only capable of going in one forward direction.  He did an adequate job, enough for us to get out and for me to get stuck twice in the driveway.

Now that we were free to walk outside, late one evening, we heard a long howl off into the distance.  It didn’t sound like a wolf so we guessed it was a coyote.  Once there was a path in the driveway I could see my covered rhododendrons had all been eaten.  Deer tracks were lacking and the cuts were clean so I guessed rabbits.  This will be the second year the rhododendrons have been picked clean.  On the Whetstone Ridge trail all the rhododendrons foliage is gone up to where the deer cannot reach.  My small plants are no match for starving animals.

With so much snow, staying inside is mandatory.  Thank goodness for television and the Internet.  Turner Classic Movies are playing thirty one days of Oscar.  I’m watching the film Dr. Zhivago.  What a bleak story.  A few distant branches of my maternal ancestors from the seventeen century could have been Ruethean.  I imagine their lives were very simple, subsistent farmers mostly.  They probably could see the Carpathian Mountains from their flat fields.  Having been to northwestern Romania, the fertile level fields abruptly stop at the peaks, horses tied to poles, suffering in the heat and cold.  My maternal grandfather talked of the wolves howling at night with his job to sleep with the horses to keep them safe.   Although it is seven time zones away, I guess I haven’t strayed very far.

The other night, when driving up the road leading to our house, I saw two of the strangest looking animals.  One was buff colored like a woodchuck but much slimmer sitting on its backside eating something.  Shortly after, a grey animal appeared by the side of the road, sitting on its hind legs looking like a cat but with a long rat’s tail.  Are we growing new animals in the mountains?   Probably not, eyes at night can play tricks on you. 

Next time the search for a tractor.

 .

How are your finances? I am retired, living on a fixed income - annuity plus social security. No raises for 2010 except in prices. I keep my receipts from previous months and here is a small sample of some price increases from 6 Dec 2009 to 8 Jan 2010.

Viva Paper towels up $1.73.

Washer detergent up $1.49.

My favorite taquitas up $.43.

My favorite frozen dinners up $.75.

Oh yes, the electric company is getting another raise in rates. Anyone want to stay cold this winter??

What do you want to bet at the end of 2010 we will be told there will be no raise for 2011?

Anyone else out there that has some info on rising prices? If so, lets send them to our congresspersons.

Another thing, why does the politicians and big business not see that the recession is caused by big business shipping our jobs out to other countries. Do they think the citizens do not see this?? Do they think we are all idiots? Big business ships out our jobs - uses illegal aliens in their businesses and keepss their headquarters in the USA to enjoy all of the perks and tax breaks that Uncle Sam gives them. While our citizens go without - lose their homes - end up on the street. Hurray for out politicians that look out for us.

Then there is the myth that illegal aliens pay into social security and pay taxes. Not true. They do not have bona fide social security numbers. Their employers can withhold those two taxes from their pay but they cannot send it into either agency. Why? Because the SSA and IRS would or should immediately spot the fake SSNs and there would be inquiries or investigations. So, if the employers withhold the taxes, they get to keep the money.

Do You See What I See?

ARTE Y CULTURA: MUSICA, HISTORIA, DEPORTES, MODAS, LITERATURA, CINE, TEATRO......                                                                 DON OMAR DONARA ORFANATO A REPUBLICA DOMINICANA      Por Susana Pujals

El popular cantante de reggaeton conocido como Don Omar, afirmo recientemente que donara un orfanato para ninos huerfanos sin hogares en Santo Domingo, Republica Dominicana.

How can they charge full price for 1/2 service?

Is the blog directory starting to load too slowly?

What do you think?

http://www.mycopper.net/blogs/imweezie/2009/09/05/The-mother-of-all-hidden-objects-pictureHELP-JEFF2/

Here are several tips on how you can handle this:

1) When you place an image, scale it smaller then make the image a hyperlink to the original URL source.

I made this post as an example:  http://www.mycopper.net/blogs/Kurticus/2009/09/08/Lifes-a-Bear/ 

To do this, insert the image to your post using the Insert Image control. Select your image then drag the corner image control to scale your image smaller. With your image still selected, choose the Create Link control. Paste in the URL for the original image. You may want to select "New Window (_blank)" under the Target drop-down-list to launch the picture link in a new window.

2) Leave image large and add scroll bars.

Insert image using Insert Image or Insert Image from Editor. Do not scale.

Click on the HTML tab of the post editor and look for the IMG tag for the image that needs scroll bars. Place the <IMG /> element within a <DIV> element like this:

<DIV style="OVERFLOW-X: auto; WIDTH: 100%;"><IMG border=0 alt=burritocat.jpg src="http://www.mycopper.net/files/Kurticus/Cats/burritocat.jpg" width=960 height=730></DIV>

The style applied to the DIV element is the key. WIDTH:100% will make sure the DIV element is as wide as the parent element allows it to be. OVERFLOW-X:auto will add the horizontal scroll bar if the contents are wider than the DIV container.

I noticed the horizontal scrollbar caused a vertical scroll bar as well so in my example, I also added OVERFLOW-Y: hidden; to the style so the vertical scroll bar would not show.

See http://www.mycopper.net/blogs/Kurticus/2009/09/09/Feeling-Crispy/ for an example.

3) Try writing your blog posts using Windows Live Writer.

This tool has some nice advanced image control utilities such as the ability to place a small sized preview in the blog that links to a larger version.

This pumpkin image was dragged to the Live Writer  editor from a web page. Then the corner was dragged to scale it smaller. That’s it – Live Writer does the rest.  http://download.live.com/writer

View the blog post on Publishing with Windows Live Writer for more information on setting up and using this free tool from Microsoft.