The Decision

I have made a major decision to join with a new church. I am now attending Grace Community Church http://www.gcomchurch.com/ .

It’s a new church, only a bit over 3 years old. It is Bible based rather than tradition based. Any Sunday could different, there is no set pattern followed that MUST be followed. No dress code. No “happy masks” required either.

Instead of Sunday School classes, people join “community groups” and fellowship over a Bible study that is picked by the group to meet their own unique needs. At this point, I’m doing a bit with the missions program. I’m glad to be a part of a team, as I need some time off from heavy-duty responsibility.

Himself and I have been struggling with the decision to come here, even tho we felt it was the right move. Speaking for myself, the past couple years I have been disillusioned and angered by things I have witnessed at our old church. I was in the office area a lot volunteering and working on things for the mission group I led, and I started seeing some serious unChristian attitudes and actions. It’s amazing what people will say without looking around to see who could hear them! A few very serious incidents happened in ’07 that compelled me to find another place to worship.

As I said, it was a hard decision to make. Partly because I knew that as soon as I started attending the new church I would become a pariah in the old one. As one person at the old church said, “…THOSE PEOPLE are the chaff that has been blown away from the wheat…” Ouch. It’s terrible when you feel led to join with another church but have to weigh it against the fact that friends you know at your first church will no longer speak to you when you do. But I guess it really drives home who is a “FRIEND” and who was actually just an acquaintance.

A Quick Update

Life has been moving faster than normal. Seems like I have had no time to sit down and write for pleasure. So I'll give a quick update and then try to keep something going at a more regular pace.

Himself: He got back the end of August from a difficult season. Poor fishing and lots of injuries made it a long 3 months. He loved seeing our home set up, and is really getting into the work we need to do on it.

The House: Is coming along nicely. I had the upstairs finished be the time Himself got home. Since then we have made a major dent in the boxes that were stuffed in the garages. Soon we will be building the shelves to hold the containers for the things we want to keep (seasonal decorations, items from other countries, etc) and will be doing the final sorting. It will take a while to finish but will be well worth it.

The yard is a BIG task, as it’s been neglected for a while. First issue we have to deal with is some drainage problems. There’s a lot of washing when we have a heavy rain. A portion of the driveway is starting to look like a mini Grand Canyon! I also need to decide where I want my jonquils planted… and then get to planting! The iris and daylily beds need some serious attention before winter. The rest can wait until Spring. I’ll be spending the cold months sketching plans and ordering seed.

Wedding Bells: My sister is getting married in early November and I am her Matron of Honor. So all the wedding plans are thrown into the mix. I’m hosting a bridal shower at a beautiful B&B mid-October. It’s going to be a High Tea. I’m looking forward to it! Then of course there are all the things that need to be done for the wedding itself. Himself is going to be the usher.

The Trips: We decided we wanted to make a trip back up to MN to see the relatives up there. So we are heading up the first part October, coming back just a couple days before the shower. We will be back to TN by the 22nd. Then it’s back up to MO for the wedding on the 8th… and the 10th we leave for FL for our Panama Canal cruise.

Photography: I have a show coming up with the photography club in Nov. It’s a major exhibition at the Clarksville museum. The title is “The Nature of Light”. My work “Arctic Light” features photos I took while in AK this spring. I’m also working on a couple books on blurb.com that I would like to have done in a few weeks.

And there you have it. If I missed anything, drop me an email and I will fill you in.

Juried Art show entry

I gave my first juried art show a try, entering two photos for consideration. I was a bit hesitant at first, as the idea of "trying out" to be allowed in a show was kind of scary.

I'm excited to say that one of my shots was selected to be in the competition!

This photo is called "Bering Sea Cod". I took it off of Adak Island as cod were being brought on board for processing. That's one of my favorite shots on the whole trip.

Political Saber Rattling - PLEASE STOP!

No, I'm not talking about what is going on between the Obama/Biden and McCain/Palin camps. I am talking about the non-stop bombardment of "anti" rants against one or the other Presidential hopeful sent by too many people who have my email address!

Suddenly people who haven't seen fit to contact my in a couple years are sending me forwards of political email propaganda. Truths - half truths - outright lies... it doesn't seem to matter. Just hit that forward button... don't bother checking it out.

I have actually READ both "The Audacity of Hope" and "Faith of My Fathers". I would be happy to discuss either one with you... IF you have read them too. If you haven't; I don't need your emails that pull quotes out of context.

Please stop.

I have formed my own opinion WITHOUT the daily "I hate What's-His-Name" emails. The only new opinions I am forming is about each and every person who has sent me this unsolicited garbage.

A lot of you won't be receiving my new email address when I change servers this week...