The Election

  This past Sunday there were two letters to the editor in the Paducah Sun warning that "Obama, Democrats have nation on brink of economic, social ruin"  and  "It's our Christian duty to vote for leaders based on biblical truth"  The first letter talks about a socialist agenda and urges us all to vote for freedom from the oppressive anti religious regime that is obamaism.  The second letter proclaims that if we continue down the same road (killing babies and same sex marriage) nothing but God's judgement awaits us and we may already be experiencing it. May god have mercy on us.  This letter was written by an 86 year old retired Baptist pastor. 
   These views should not surprise me because I hear them from coworkers all the time.  But they do alarm me.  I want to shout that I am a democrat and I am a Christian.  These two beliefs are not incompatible.  I'm also tired of being made to feel ashamed for being a democrat.  The second letter talks about biblical truth and anyone who has read their bible can immediately recognize that the bible is not a simple book.  It requires study and there are many conflicting stories.  There are biblical admonishments about divorce, lending money, women cutting their hair, having slaves etc etc.  The bible actually has very little to say about homosexuality. So why do some Christians hang everything on one verse while ignoring others?  What the bible does teach is that Jesus spent his time with the outcasts in society- the lepers, widows, the poor, the Samaritans.  He also taught that we should love our neighbors, which are not those people that are just like us.  Our neighbors are the lepers, the poor, widows, those from other countries, and even homosexuals.  How can man proclaim homosexuality a sin when scientists cannot even tell us the cause of homosexuality.  Would we condemn a child with Down' s syndrome? 
    I know that if we take the bible literally it doesn't all add up.  I also know that I am voting for a President of the USA not a spiritual leader.  I want a president that can lead this country through tough economic times.  Obama has been doing this for the last 4 years. Based on that, I believe he deserves another 4 years. 

Decisions decisions.....

    I hate having to make big decisions.  Maybe I've never been good at it.  I'm more the type that just goes along with the flow not always realizing the direction I'm floating.  I guess I can be impulsive and I do like new challenges.  A few decisions I've been proud of is marrying my husband and becoming a nurse practitioner.  I'm also glad I spent time at home with my kids when they were little.   Not too long ago I made a job decision that I look back on and regret.  Now I'm faced with another job decision and I feel paralyzed by it.  How in the world can I decide again?  Can I rectify my other mistake or am I doomed to repeat it.  I don't totally understand why I screwed up so that's not good as I'm looking to make another similar decision.  I wonder if there's a process I can follow.  Some kind of systematic steps to follow.  I think I'll list pros and cons of both possibilities.  And then I'll pray and look for any kind of guidance.

Bike Relay

   This past weekend I had a great time.  After working on friday, we drove down to Memphis.  I joined other friends down there to do a 24 hour bike relay for St Jude.  Our team was the cyclepaths and we raised about 7500$ for St Jude.  We started riding at 6pm and continued until 6pm on Saturday.  I think everyone thought I was crazy to be excited about going.  We road on Riverside drive and pitched tents in Tom Lee park.  I slept under the stars like a baby.  I woke up Sat morning and enjoyed a yoga class overlooking the river.  The food was great as well as the weather.  I felt such a sense of peace and thankfulness to be there.  Memphis is really my home town although I have alot of mixed feelings about it. On Saturday I felt nothing but love for Memphis.   Family came out and offered support.  Our 8 member team got along great and enjoyed ourselves.  I'm still savoring the weekend.  We're already thinking of next year.

Birthdays

  Last year I got to celebrate my birthday with my aunt who celebrated her 100th birthday.  It was such a special day.  Aunt Lora has since died.  This year I celebrated one of those milestone birthdays.  As fate would have it, this year's birthday was miserable.  Right before my birthday, my boss at work came to me and said administration wants to cut back hours and this could affect my job.  Then I went home to get a speeding ticket in the mail.  I hate those photo cops.  I think it's a sleazy way to make money.  So we have a camping trip planned for the weekend, and a new dog to take.  My husband greets me with news that he has found a home for the new dog.   Logically I couldn't turn down a home for a soon to be large dog that needs shots and to be spayed and fed puppy chow for at least 3 more months.  And this doesn't even consider all the things she'll chew up and the time required in training, but it made me sadder.  As it turned out we threw out all logic and decieded to keep her.  What can I say- she can swim  and we named her Ginger. 

 

So while we were camping I went over my data plan on the cell phone.  I haven't ever done that before and didn't get any kind of warning.  And then my toenail came off.  Happy 50th birthday to me.  Yes I'm whining. 

Nature's Bounty

 The garden is running my life about now.  I have done everything I know how to do with zucchini- relish, bread, cakes, and jelly as well as an ample supply in my freezer.  I am done with zucchini.  Now for the tomatoes.  Friday I canned 10 quarts of spagetti sauce.  Today I made a batch of salsa.  I'm glad to have some tomatoes this year- Last year we didn't have any.  We're freezing them too.   The peppers are everywhere.  My husband eats them and some we have frozen.  We actually had corn this year too.  That's a first for our garden.  Our sunflowers look pretty majestic.  They will make some nice pictures and bouquets and food for the birds.   They are my personal favorite because they don't require much work on my part and are so pretty.

25 years of Nolan reunions

   We just got home from our annual family reunion.  This year it was in Hot springs, Ark.  There were 29 of us altogether.  The reunion included granny, four sisters and one brother and our families that includes grandchildren now.  There were two babies under a year and a 2 and 3 year old plus some school age kids too.  It's great to see how we have grown.  This was our 25th year to have the reunion.  It was so good to catch up with everyone.  We had some good meals together and did a little sight seeing in hot springs.  We also had a cousin come to share a day with us with lots of good genealogical information and pictures. How lucky we are to have Eugene in the family.  We all  enjoyed ourselves.   

Cats

  I had the thought recently that if I could only have one pet, it would be a cat.  Not that I don't love my dogs and birds but cats are so easy and so loving.  I always remember having cats but we didn't aquire a dog until I was 4.  The dog was more of a long term project requiring quite a bit from us.  Cats have always been independent and adaptable.  My Memphis cat has been a good example of this.  Cats can live inside or out, the city or country.  Grandma's cat disappeared for 6 months before turning up a half a mile away in a barn.  He was none the worse for wear.  And nothing is better than  a kitten.  No one can be depressed that owns a kitten.  It's entertaining to just watch them.  Right now we have 6 cats in the immediate family.  They all have their own personality- some more likeable than others, some don't get along and others seem to like each other.  A cat in the lap is a wonderful thing.