CNN.com - Ivory-billed woodpecker not extinct, as feared - Apr 28, 2005

CNN.com - Ivory-billed woodpecker not extinct, as feared - Apr 28, 2005

I love this story!! It is just a great story. A woodpecker thought to have been extinct for 60 years has been documented in Arkansas. Isn't that refreshing? I must say this ivory-billed woodpecker looks very much like the pileated woodpecker I used to see in my yard when I lived near the James River here in Richmond. Once one was pecking on my gutter! This story made my day..

BBC NEWS | Middle East | US to sell bunker bombs to Israel

BBC NEWS | Middle East | US to sell bunker bombs to Israel

Here's something you won't hear on the evening news (or any US news)! Why is it okay for some countries to have Nukes, but not others? Who makes the rules? Does the US follow any global rules anymore - or did it ever, for that matter. I betcha our President won't be mentioning this during his "news conference".

Basketball bad news

Tim and I had double-whammy college basketball disappointments the other day. First, we read Roy Williams of UNC is losing his 3 best rising seniors, including the indomitable Sean May. What a disappointment! Even more disappointing, Jerry Wainwright is leaving University of Richmond (Tim's alma mater). We really like Jerry. I hate to see him leave. Thank goodness we still have Jeff Capel at VCU and COACH K! Now, onto Nascar.... May Mark Martin win his first championship this year, his last in Nascar. He deserves it above anyone! Go, Mark!

Evil's Willing Followers

Evil's Willing Followers

Very interesting article about the Holocaust. It's actually a review of a movie about Hitler called "Downfall". If we see Hitler as a mere man, how do we explain the complicity of the German people in the Holocaust? I am just interested in how large groups of people can be convinced of an evil that doesn't exist (the Jews, attacks by other countries) by an evil person or persons. I am interested in group thinking and mindset and how to prevent something like this in the future.

It doesn't happen on an open page. It happens very insidiously. I guess in our times of corporate owned media, the validity of information we receive as a large mass of people concerns me. Thank goodness for the internet! I don't know how I would think if I didn't check out news sites from other countries. It would be a lot more difficult to receive balanced information. Of course, I guess you could always watch the F station. Isn't that fair and balanced? Ha Ha!

Anxiety

I have been feeling a little anxious. So, tonight when Sweety (cat, a male) didn't come home, I began to worry big time. I let him out at 1pm and it is windy and 42 outside. I was more worried than I have been in a long time. I spent about 1 1/2 hrs feeling like this. About 10 minutes ago I prayed (finally!) about it and asked God to bring Sweety home and take care of my anxiety and a moment later a sweet peace came over me. I heard Sweety cry in my mind's eye and I went to the back door and called him quietly. He wasn't there then I saw a flash of his eyes and he was running toward the door. Thank you, God for bringing our little fella home. I feel so bad about letting him out anyhow but he tries to get out all the time and wants it so badly. I just worry he will get hit by a car. We live in a quiet neighborhood but I think that's what happened to Booger and we don't ever want to go through that again. Thank you again, God.

Ryder

Haven't done much blogging this week.. We are in Taurus now, started the 21st I think. Let me talk about my dog, Ryder. He is 12 years old. When I got him I was living with Rick, my old boyfriend, and I had been thinking that I would like to have a dog. I hadn't had one since I was a girl and she wasn't mine, she was the family dog. I felt like she was a little neglected-in danger of getting hit by a car, she'd get big ticks on her. I don't think people took as good care of their pets then as they do now. Anyway, I had a picture of a dog in my mind and my friend, Cheryl, who is an animal rescuer-you know how strays find their way to people like that-showed me of a picture of a dog up for adoption. Well he looked like the dog in my mind's eye. I knew he was for me/us. He was named Frankie by the humane society but we named him Ryder. He was found in Church Hill, an old area of Richmond and he was mangy and underweight. He was about 8 months old. Well, we got him and he changed my life for the better. When Rick and I broke up a year or two later, I got Ryder. We became very attached. I also had 2 cats-Buster & Booger. Buster ran off in 1995. Booger and Ryder entered into the Brown family (Tim and the boys) with me in 1998. What a rude awakening for Ryder! He had to share me with a man and 2 kids. He didn't like it one bit. Of course, I've always felt guilty about shattering his universe that way and he is still my baby. He's a long haired dachshund/beagle mix and has become slightly plump in his old age, just like his "Mumma". I wish I knew how to insert pictures because he has the sweetest face you have ever seen. He is my shadow. He follows me everywhere in the house. Before I met Tim he went everywhere with me and he and I loved that. If weather permitted once in a while I would take him to work and visit him in the car during the day. I was convinced he'd rather do that than stay home alone. Once we drove to Indianapolis and I couldnt' find a pet friendly hotel on the way so I snuck him into my room. He only barked once, thank goodness. Being a hound, his nose is always stuck to the ground and he loves to run and chase and be chased. Frequently in his dreams he's on the hunt with light barks and growls and paws going! It's so cute. I love that boy. I have a language just for him. He was Cutie-Patooty long before Roseanne called anyone that! He's older now and tires out so much faster than he used to, but he still loves to play and run. He's such a good boy.

Beautiful April Day

Andy's birthday was Sunday. We celebrated Sat. with him and friends to Laser Quest then CiCi's for all you can eat pizza & cake. Then Sunday I had a meeting of all the parents of kids going to Europe at my house. I was nervous about that because I don't know most of these people. It went well. I made Memom's pound cake and it was a hit. Sunday evening we went to dinner for just the 4 of us to celebrate his day. We went to Fridays. Last night Mom, Dad and Lynn came over to celebrate. As usual, an extended birthday. Everything went well. Oh, here in a Richmond suburb 2 kids fought at a high school and were suspended for fighting. Eyewitnesses had seen a gun; the next day it was found, loaded, in the clinic bathroom. Lovely! Now, I read that the other kid (without the gun) is still suspended! Okay, I am sure there is more to the story, but I just don't see any alternative. Wouldn 't one need to defend oneself from an armed opponent? I just pray for all involved there. Guns are too available, enabling kids to make snap life and death decisions. God, please keep children safe in our schools.

Church in the Wildwood

I love the old country hymns--

There's a church in the valley by the wildwood,
No lovelier spot in the dale;
No place is so dear to my childhood,
As the little brown church in the vale.

For some reason that one just popped into my head so I thought I'd blog it.

Fun Night

We had a wonderful dinner with Will and Amber tonight. They are so much fun and so sweet. Will works with Tim and Amber is Barrett's teacher. She is also a redhead. My hubby and boys have wonderful red hair. I love redheads because of that. Once in a while I'll see a very young redhead tot who reminds me of the boys when they were young. (I became their Mom when they were 4 & 7, but I've seen pictures.) They are becoming so independent. It is esp. hard w/ B, because he's only 10. But I have to let the little fella grow up. Hard! But I will because I don't want to screw him up! Hee Hee! A will be in high school next year. Wow! He's going to Europe with a school group this summer. Yikes!! I love seeing them grow and being able to share humor and current events and historical events, etc. They are the greatest and so is Hubby!! Thank you, God, for my family. I am so thankful to have a family.

10 K and gas mileage

Whew! I feel so much better than I did yesterday. I was incredibly sore from the 10k yesterday. My feet hurt, etc. Today I feel much better. I am so thankful. I didn't think I'd be able to mow the grass today but it looks like I will. Right now I should be changing the laundry over. Let me go do that. Yeah, today it's just a little muscle soreness. Yesterday it was bone soreness. My feet hurt plus I had some blisters that were hurting. Anyway, all better now. Thank you, God.

Gas mileage. I just read that some of the used Toyota hybrids like the Prius were selling for over the listing price for new ones. I'm glad people are thinking about saving fuel again. In 1983, I bought a Honda Civic CRX. It cost $8000.00. It got 60 miles highway, 50 city. I drove it for 9 years and in the end it still got about 48 miles to the gallon. In 1993 I bought a 1991 model of the same car, same gas mileage for $8000.00. I drove it for 7 years until I became married and had 2 kids and started driving a 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I feel guilty all the time for driving it but we can't afford a new car. I'm waiting for Toyota's Highlander hybrid to come out. What I don't understand about the smaller cars like the Prius is why can't you just use a gas engine and get the mileage I got on my CRX? Just wondering. I haven't done enough research to really know, but I have been wondering when I see this great mileage of 36 miles to the gallon on cars when I know Honda was making one which got 50-60 mpg in 1983. Oh, well. I am asking God for guidance on my next car. I drive cars for 7-9 years at a time so I want something to last me a while. I'm older (and heavier, unfortunately) now so some of those tiny cars might be uncomfortable.

Just the usual ramblings....

10 k All done!

I'm so glad-I finished the 10 k today. I'm glad it's over. I did it in under 2 hrs, I'm pretty sure, which was my goal. Tim finished it in 48:38! I'm so proud of him. Way to go, Darling! It is a wonderful race. The only thing I don't like about it is the crowd. There are about 18,000 people in it. It makes parking and getting around difficult. Not good if you're a little claustrophobic. Otherwise, it is wonderful. It a beautiful route, down Monument Avenue. There were a lot of good bands along the way. Lots better than last year's bands! A lot of people have race parties at their houses along the way. There are cute cheerleader squads along the way too. It was very easy once I got past the 1/2 way mark. There were a lot of dogs, too. I saw a lot of cute dogs and thought of Ryder. Luuuuv! When we arrived home the boys were outside playing basketball. That's great. I love for them to play outdoors.

Stressed! 10 k race tomorrow

Well, I'll be crawling over the finish line here (Richmond) tomorrow after I have walked, definitely not run, the Monument Avenue 10 k race. I am not looking forward to it. I have not trained and I just want it to be over. I am glad it is going to be relatively cool. Tim is running it; he'll probably be done not long after I pass the 1/2 way point. He has been training. This is special because it is the 1st anniversary of his first race. Since then he has done 2 half marathons and 1 whole marathon. I'm so proud of him. Today has been incredibly stressful. I have been feeling depressed and unmotivated this week. I am grieving the death of a man who made a huge impact on my life. His funeral was last Sunday.

Liberal Baptist: A Progressive View of the Bible

Liberal Baptist: A Progressive View of the Bible

I wanted to save this blog because it is the closest to my theology I can find, and expresses it beautifully. I have to print the whole thing here.

A Progressive View of the Bible
In a recent graduate seminar dealing with baptist distinctives someone proclaimed, "liberals do not have an authority." I could not disagree with this statement more. As a baptist, I affirm the authority of the written scriptures, which is contained in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Testament. I believe that this Bible contains a written record of God's revelation to and interaction with humanity. I also affirm that the Bible is a crucial source for instruction for the Christian and the church. Just because I differ on the nature and proper interpretive method of the Bible does not mean that its' message is not authoritative for me.

I do not believe, however, that the Bible was verbally inspired through passive humans who recorded those words with little (or no) influence from their cultural and temporal understanding. Rather, I believe that God inspired the general thoughts of these human authors within the framework of their culture and understanding. This requires much "cultural translation" if the message of the Bible is to be applicable for our day.

I also do not maintain that the stories contained in the Bible must reflect actual historical events. Rather, the biblical narratives portray traditions that were developed over a period of time and that likely had some historical basis for their origin. Such a view does not, however, weaken my faith in God or in the message the scriptures communicate.

Christians must reject the notion that the Bible is a rule book of universal, timeless absolutes. In its place, we must embrace a vision of the Bible that appreciates the cultural context in which those books were written. We must understand that our culture, and our understanding of humanity, God, and the universe have significantly improved. New insights into science, technology, psychology, etc. should be brought to the table as we attempt to interpret the message of the Bible for our day. Only then will we arrive at the true meaning of the scriptures.

posted by JC Baker @ 4:56 PM 3 comments

Yahoo! News - U.S. Blacks Lag Behind Whites in Money, Jobs -Report

Yahoo! News - U.S. Blacks Lag Behind Whites in Money, Jobs -Report

I can't believe this is still so. Well, actually I do. Until we fully understand the real history of racism in this country, and realize what I call the "instituitonal racism" that still exists, nothing is going to change. If you live in America, you come from a culture of racism. You have to work consciously on changing this for yourself. So few of us do. I wish people understood this issue better. I am not black. I am white. I constantly am working on my own racism. It starts with noticing-how would this news report appear to a black child watching it? I'm not talking about the aforementioned report, but a report that ran on one of our local stations in Richmond years ago. I still remember it. It was a report on crime in a certain area of town. Yes, blacks are in this part of town more than the burbs but it is still a predominantly white area near the VCU campus. The report was talking about the rise in crime. It showed whites at a bar having a drink, then it showed a young black man being arrested. I noticed. I wrote a letter to the station. This is what we, as whites, have to learn to do. I fall back all the time, but I try. Think about that little boy watching that news report. What does it convey to him?