2:113, #417: Divine Suicide

This morning, over a bowl of cranberry instant oatmeal with honey and a perfectly brewed 16oz mug of Brew of Bravery Boca Java coffee, I read John 10. Look at the language Jesus uses here and you'll understand the title of this post:

John 10:17-18 "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father." [italics are mine for emphasis, as if you didn't already figger that one out.]

The Romans driving in the nails were, so to speak, the Jack Kevorkians of their day, lending a hand in assisted suicide. Wonder which ones of them came to faith, as did the one thief on the cross? It aint no wonder I'm glad for the Resurrection!!
Got sin covering?

2:112, #416: How To Glorify God

It dawned on me this morning that one of my Chinese granddaughters wants to make her primary focus in life to glorify God. Now that's a rather huge topic if you don't look carefully at Scripture.
So...John 15:7-8 says, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you. By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples."

It's just that simple: Get born again, know the Scriptures really well, and ASK WHATEVER YOU WISH (which will be stuff He wants to accomplish as you work on the process). I'd suggest you write down your requests and their answers in whatever format suits you. For me, 72 spiral notebooks with 185,578 specific answers in them has been one way I've been able to show how faithful the Lord is just to one guy.

Go bear much fruit in prayer, prove to be His disciple, know He gets glorified...it really is that simple.

2:111, #415: The Binding Of God

You know by this time how my brain works. Well, I was repairing a bookcase here at Camp Cornelius and had to remove a row of books. One of them was entitled, The Binding of God. I simply held the book up to one of my compatriots and said, "Feed Him cheese!!"
Time for some lunch, now that I think of it.

2:110, #414: Bird Songs and Tenors

Did you ever actually listen to what the birds are "singing?"

This morning one was like the bass singer in choir with one repetition, probably reminding himself of his personal ontology: "Birdie, Birdie, Birdie."
Another one I heard earlier in the week must have been sitting outside the Grey Havens living room looking over our collection of great movies. His/her refrain was "Video, video, video." I kid you not!!
Then, of course, there's Ironhead the Woodpecker...he's obviously the percussion section when he's trying to chow down. By the way, if Darwin was right, just exactly HOW did a soft-billed bird hammer his face against a tree to develop a wood-piercing drill beak and how was it genetically passed on down through the generations?!!
My favorite here at Camp Cornelius is Boo Radley, my Mockingbird (if you don't recognize the reference yet, check out To Kill A Mockingbird). He's a lot like tenors...just can't seem to make up his mind what he wants to sing, so he'll take over everybody's lines as it suits his mood.

Speaking of tenors, I'm eternally indebted to two: dear old Dad who contributed to half of my DNA chain in 1951 and The Kapellmeister, who was instrumental (notice how I got music and giving into this sermonette?!) in my coming to faith back in 1980...not surprisingly, the "Maverick" version of "Amazing Grace" just came up on my computer speakers, so I'm closin' and rockin'!!!
Got Ten Thousand Years of Praise?!!

2:109, #413: Friday Fowl Questions

My brain's been working this morning; especially since I saw some doves eating chickweed and I've been pulling chickweed all week in an effort to spruce up Camp Cornelius. I was also reading about mounting up with wings like eagles, so here goes...
Now, if chicken's eat chick weed (which they do), shouldn't doves eat Dove Bars? Or, as I had pointed out to me, if doves became lawyers, would they join a Dove bar?

If robins are so fat, should the Surgeon General publish a warning that eating worms could lead to obesity?

If a dove bar like Cheers (the old TV show) opened, would it be called Coos? Would they sell Coors? Oh, and should bars only sell light beer during the day and dark beer at night?

If an owl got so smart he won the Nobel Prize for something, would he be a Bird Brain? Oh, and does anyone other than I think it's ironic that the Peace Prize is named after the guy who invented dynamite?

Do baby roosters take offense at being called 'chicks?' Do they get sexually disoriented? Do they get conflicted, have issues, and hence, wake everybody in the sound of their crowing just for spite for the rest of their lives?

Do cardinals like the one I call Richelieu get together to vote on who will be the Avian Pope?

If humans get avian flu, do birds get sapien sickness? Like Matthew 6:26 says, "Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?"
Got birdseed?

2:108, #412: Grampa Bob's Advice to Unborns

I gave the following article to Archangel Monday night; a bit of advice that's kept me focused when I see it stuck in at The Great Commission in Matthew 28:

The "romance" of a missionary is often made up of monotony and drudgery; there often is no glamour in it, it doesn't stir a man's spirit or blood. So don't come out to be a missionary as an experiment, it is useless and dangerous. Only come if you feel you would rather die than not come. There are many trials and hardships. Disappointments are numerous and the time of learning the language is especially trying. Don't come if you want to make a great name or want to live long. Come if you feel there is no greater honour, after living for Christ, than to die for Him. That does the trick in the end. It's not the flash in the pan but the steady giving forth of light, it's shining on and on that we need out here. Our job is to make all hear the Word. God's job is to give penetration to His Word. --C.T. Studd

What I want to do is get Christian Pregnant Sisters to read this out loud to their unborn progeny as a sort of life's-gonna-be-tough disclaimer to prepare them for post-utero living. My rewording would go like this:
LIFE is often made up of monotony and drudgery, so DON'T COME OUT as an experiment!!
There are many trials and hardships...first of all will be the butt slap you get to get you breathing after Mom's muscles pound you for hours on end! THEN, disappointments are numerous...especially during the teen years...the time of learning the language is especially trying...you think after 12 years of school and 6 of home-school learning the lingo you'd be adept at it. You want a great name? You'll probably get stuck with Seth, Beth, Josh, or Emily. And your nickname could be a doozer, depending on your other family members' sick senses of humor. Maybe you'll get lucky and Grampa Bob will come up with one for you!! ;p
You want to live long? OK, 70-80 years seems to be the average Biblically.
But, given you're a Covenant Kid, you've already got a missionary calling, so get to know Jesus EARLY in life, listen to Mom and Dad, read your Bible a lot, and "become one with the ride" as you remember that the Lord CAUSES all things to work to your good as you love Him; even if the circumstances suck. (Tell Mom and Dad that's a dynamic equivalent translation of Romans 8:28 to impress them with your Biblical skills!)
Peace, Love, Lock and Load!!
Grampa Bob...or in your case, perhaps Great Grampa Bob

2:107, #411: Adam and John Deere

I was out doing some mowing today and had a question epiphany. Riding around on my old John Deere is about as pleasant an occupational endeavor as there is in my estimation. I actually get paid to take care of the place and the only downside would be my allergies. However, given that allergies probably didn't exist pre-Fall...just a guess...I wondered whether Adam and Eve would have taken Satan's bait if they'd have had a John Deere to ride around on in their care of The Garden. Heck, who would need to know what good and evil were while cruisin' nude on a green and yellow tractor?!!

A good cigar probably would have been nice, too.
Just a thought.

2:106, #410: Jesus Buys Breakfast

On a Bible not-so-trivial quiz, probably a goodly portion of folks who have read the New Testament would know that Jesus' first miracle was turning water into wine, as John specifically says in Chapter 2 of his gospel; although a lot of Babdists would probably shudder at the knowledge, I'm thinking, given their aversion to all things vino here on Earth That Is.

How would you fare on what was His last recorded miracle? This subject dawned on me the other day as I read of His ear replacement miracle on Malchus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Well, needless to say, I've done some checking and have a different conclusion. Now, for purposes of this post, His ins and outs in the blink of an eye using his resurrection body, as well as his ascension into Heaven do not count as miracles because it would appear they are standard operating procedure in a resurrected body. However, that argument dismissed out of hand, I'm calling it Breakfast on The Beach in John 21 where the disciples had caught zippo while night fishing but got 153 large fish on the right side of the boat after Jesus pointed out they should drop a net there.

Interestingly...at least to me...He already had fish and bread cooking on hot coals, no doubt, for Himself and his anticipated Bible study group who were just pulling in to The Beach. You know, that might be a great name for a fish and chips shop at the seashore! In any event, He told them to bring Him some more fish, presumably for second helpings or to supplement what He had. Now, just where did Jesus get the batch of fish and bread He was cooking? Did he chuck a line in for some Lake Galilee fly fishing? Did He stop off at the local market for fish and bread? Did He just say, "Let there be fish, bread, and charcoal?" Danggit, but He'd be handy to have around at a Memorial Day BBQ!! Or a Labor Day Get Together where nobody works on Labor Day! Hmmm...kinda makes me think of the Eternal Labor Day Tailgate Party called The Marriage Feast; well, we all know how my mind goes tangential at the drop of a fish! ;p
Got tartar sauce and butter?

2:105, #409: Whatever Happened to...?

...Cleopas, one of the two blind-sided disciples on the Road to Emmaus? He might have been on John Newton's mind during the writing of "Amazing Grace"..."I once was blind, but now I see." (Danggit, as Elfson might say, maybe Newton was channeling Cleopas by the guidance of the Spirit that fateful day!...in a post-Reformational, Zen sorta way in the providence of God, of course.) The trouble is, when Jesus "opened their eyes" at supper He disappeared and they started talking about the heartburn Jesus gave them on the road! I wonder if Dr. Luke would have prescribed the herbal version of Prilosec for them?

...The Rich Young Ruler of Luke 18:18...he went away saddened because he was so rich, but Scripture is silent on whether he eventually sold all his stuff and followed Jesus, as He told him in the Matthew 19:21 account of the story. Mark 10:21 says Jesus "loved him" and then told him to take up his cross and follow...is that like "Jacob I loved, Esau I hated" of Romans 9:13?...indicating the Rich Guy was elect unto salvation from before the foundation of the world?

Malchus...the soldier who had really quick reflexes and only lost an ear to Peter's sword instead of his whole head in the Garden of Gethsemane? Did he and the other troops sit around later on over a bottle of Chianti discussing just exactly HOW Mal got his ear back...it was not with some futuristic skin mender like Mal Reynolds' ear-restoration in Firefly, you can bet on that!! Luke says Jesus "touched his ear [presumably the bleeding stump] and healed him." Did Malchus go back to the garden and retrieve his old ear to serve as a trophy...or maybe as a piece of testimony evidence after his conversion experience?

...The Centurion who glorified God, according to Luke 23:47 by declaring Jesus was a righteous man after He gave up His spirit on the cross? Matthew 27:54 and Mark 15:39 say the Centurion said Jesus was the Son of God, too, so based on Jesus comment to Peter earlier in the Gospels that it was the Spirit who gave Peter the ability to say the same thing, I'm guessing The Centurion will be "standing guard though the angels sleep" in heaven, as "The Mansions of the Lord" just played on my computer!! Of course we know they don't, but it's an encouraging image as it follows the line "Where no mothers cry and no children weep..." like I'm doing now.
Guess I'm looking forward to having my tears wiped away, as it says in Revelation...

Y'all have a good day.

2:104, #408: Worm, Worms, & Worming

This wriggling mental path began yesterday when I picked up an eight inch night crawler from the blacktop that had been washed out of house and home by recent rains. He/she is now a productive member of my Garden's aeration crew. All you squeamish types feel free to think, "Eeuuww," as the spirit moves, at the visual of the slimy rescue by compassionate and practical Grampa Bob.

Today, One Year Book of Christian History actually starts off with "it was not a fad diet." This was the authors' play on the Diet of Worms, to which Martin Luther went on April 17, 1521 to defend his books that were under scrutiny...hence the picture above. In the midst of some butterflies-in- the-stomach circumstances (butterflies/caterpillars/worms connection), Good Old Marty was able to "stand firm in the Lord and the strength of His might," making his historic statement that catalyzed The Reformation.

The second entry was from Spurgeon's Beside Still Waters where he focused on "rejoice always" and listed out a bunch of unpleasant circumstances...of which he had more than his share. I thought, "HOW?!" The Spirit tapped the inside of my head, so to speak, and said "rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice." Oh, Yeah...look at Him instead of the stuff flying off of life's ceiling fan!! ;p

Next in my throne room reading was Selwyn Hughes's Every Day Light that points out that prophets Ezekiel, Daniel, and John saw God on His Throne in times of perplexity to "remind them of whose universe it was." (I wonder if Marty L. had a similar notion while standing before Charles V?!!)

The next stop in my bibliophilic meandering...bookworm wriggling one might say...providentially planned of course...was Daily Meditations For Prayer that focused on Ephesians 4:30, "Don't grieve the Spirit" (by forgetting all of the above good stuff about Jesus in spite of your circumstances was my conclusion).

The tail end of this wormy tale was from D.L. Moody's Thoughts For The Quiet Hour, Philippians 2:13, "...for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." Now to quote Emperor Joseph II of "Amadeus" fame, "Well...there it is!"
Got New Worm Theology?!!

2:103, #407: Iced Up Windshield

Yessiree, Bob, this morning before the sun arose, there was ICE on my truck windshield that I had to defrost and scrape as well as frost all over the lawns that are springing up (is that why it's called "Spring?") while I'm waiting for them to dry so I can get out on the Ole John Deere.

Made me a believer in Global Warming...NOT!

Well, not only did I hear Ironhead the Woodpecker (Woody's cousin, twice removed, I believe) banging away this morning, I currently hear some aluminum soda cans crying out to be recycled...yes, I communicate with inanimate objects, too.
Got sunshine, Lollipop?!

2:102, #406: Ides of April Stuff

Today is an interesting day in history, not just because "the eagle flies" in automatic deposits to our bank accounts for those of us paid on the 15th and end of the month schedule! It also happens to be when I turn 57 years, 5 months old...for any of you who need a flimsy excuse to party! ;p

April 15, 1865 President Abraham Lincoln died as a result of the gunshot wound to the head he took on Good Friday the 14th at Ford's Theater (a former Baptist Temple) while watching the comedy, "Our American Cousin." I wonder if there's a connection between the fact that he died on this date and your wallet might also as a result of the Infernal Revenooers?!!

Also, Cornelia Johanna Arnolda ten Boom came into this world in 1892, lived what Jewish tradition considers a blessed life, and died on her birthday (the crux of the tradition) in 1983 at the tender age of 91, having survived Buchenwald Concentration Camp during World War II and actually forgiving the guy who ratted her and her family out that caused them to be put in prison. Tante Corrie became, as she described herself, a Tramp for the Lord and changed a bunch of lives. Her various books are all good reads.

Finally, John Harper...was his character even in the movie "Titanic" which I have not seen?...Just checked the full cast and only "Praying Man" comes close...led his last individual to Christ just before drowning on the early morning of the Ides of April, 1912 when the Titanic, the "ship that God could not sink," went to Davey Jones's Locker thanks to one BIG chunk of floating ice. Harper's story is recorded in The One Year Book of Christian History, for those of you who want some details.

AND...it's officially Skunk Dead On The Road Season today, as could be attested to when I stepped outside a bit ago to answer table needs and direct the Red Cross bus here at Camp Cornelius now that it's actually 9:30am, in spite of what the post down below here says.
Y'all have a good Ides!!

2:101, #405: Wolf Furniture

Yesterday we went over to Hanover, Pa. to go to church and visit with The Cook's family. I spotted an interesting sign in York as we cruised on down the road, "Wolf Furniture." Needless to say, my first question was, What type of furniture do wolves use? Do they use sectional stuff for when The Pack shows up unannounced? Is it funny fur type from the 70s or would that be too much like killing those you love to get to sit on them? Does the Alpha male get to sit in the recliner?

Then I wondered just how many wolves there are in York County that there would be a store to cater to their domestication needs. The moral of this story is, Ladies, you may domesticate a wolf, but he'll always be a wolf...live with it.

AOOO, Werewolves of London!

Now, if two old saints go to The First Church of the Walking Dead and wolf down communion by tincture, just exactly how efficacious is it?!! When a couple of old rams hear a wolf in sheep's clothing, should they just stand up and say, "Baaaa, Humbug?"
Just thought I'd ask.

2:100, #404: GORT the One Point Calvinist

Last night we watched the 2008 version of "The Day The Earth Stood Still." I enjoyed it, actually. One thing I noticed, GORT the robot...a much better and scarier version than the 1951 guy, I thought...must be a One Point Calvinist. The Line is drawn...VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY IF YOU GET VIOLENT TOWARD KLAATU!! His One Point would be that the entire human race is totally depraved...the first part of the 5-point T.U.L.I.P.!

Kinda reminded me of the unrelenting power of The Living and True God when He draws The Line with His own instructions to His kids...VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY!! And the repayment plan for the bad guys..."there are none righteous, no not one"... is a lake of fire forever heated up for those who don't make Jesus The Way to the Father.

Well, needless to say without spoiling the ending, earth is NOT consumed, and Klaatu gets a chance to come back as another actor in some third-in-the-series deal. With Easter just three days away, let's hear if for the new German phrase I picked up from a missionary email from Berlin:

Der Herr ist Auferstanden!! Yep, The Lord is Risen!!
How Can I Keep From Singing?!!

2:99, #403: "I'm a priest, not a saint!"

This was Richard Harris's line as Abbe Faria to explain some piece of sinful behavior, I forget what, in the 2002 version of "The Count of Monte Cristo" that I watched last night for the first time. James Caviezel's character, Edmond Dantes, alters it a bit at the end when he kills his arch enemy in a sword fight when asked snidely by Guy Pearce as Mondego...also Ed Exley in "L.A. Confidential," "But what about your mercy?" Dantes replies, "I'm a count, not a saint."

Well, I'm a priest AND a saint...so are you if you're a Christian...no hubris...it's just that simple (as I frequently tell Archangel and Elfson.) Hey, when 1Peter 2:9 says "you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light," Pete and the Holy Spirit aren't messing around.

Likewise, when Paul writes "to the saints" in Rome, Corinth (twice), Ephesus, Philippi, and Colossae, he knew about that which he spoke in that positional situation we find ourselves as 21st century saints in Christ. OK, OK...I know about sanctification, too, and how we lack it.
Guess, "I'm a redneck, not a saint" would be my buzz phrase to explain away my oft-times not-so-Christlike behavior.
Got 1 John 1:9 coverage?!!

2:98, #402: The Robe, The Hulk, & Barney Miller

Did you know that the 1953 movie, "The Robe," was the FIRST movie made in CinemaScope?!! For you movie-challenged types, this is a movie about Christ and how His Robe changed the lives of folks "back in the day." It actually ends with two converted Romans played by Richard Burton and Jean Simmons walking away to be shot to death with arrows for their "treason" to Caligula's Rome by becoming Christians. It struck me...not very hard, but maybe a 4.1 on the Richter scale...that it was most providential that THE first wide screen movie (Martin Scorsese does an introduction to the newly digitalized version) EVER! Think about it, the first printing press item was The Bible thanks to Johann Gutenberg. The first printing in Cherokee was Christian literature thanks to Elias Boudinot, Rev. Samuel Worcester & Rev. Evan Jones. The first printing in India likewise was Christian literature thanks to William Carey et al. I wonder how many other firsts follow this pattern?! Why, there may be another great work of literature in my fingertips called God Caused the Firsts...I guess it would start with creation and go from there, Eh?

Well, after "The Robe" we segued to "The Hulk"...another one of those chick flicks ("Lady Arwen Falls for The Big Green Guy"might be the alternate title since Liv Tyler plays Dr. Elizabeth Ross, Bruce Banner's heart throb.) Now, Hulkie and Betty didn't walk into the clouded skies to Alleluias as did Richard and Jean's characters, but the gotta-be-sequel will, I'm sure, continue their Beauty and the Beast style relationship as General Ross and Tony "Iron Man" Stark team up to work their Marvel Magic against The Hulk.

Lastly, a bit of 70s laughs with "Barney Miller" capped the Sabbath night rest and relaxation show; especially with the hash brownies episode where Jack Soo utters his "Mooshy, mooshy, mooshy" line with such comic expertise. For you "Firefly" fans, Shepherd Book, a.k.a., Ron Glass appears as the jive, three-piece-suited, Afro-haircut Sgt. Harris, chain smoking and testifyin' to the efficacy of the brownies to Capt. Barney.

Well, it's time to check in to see if Chickweed Monday can be an actuality, since it rained a bit ago and may or may not be doing so now. For those of you on it, enjoy Spring Break. For those of you who aren't...GET BACK TO WORK!!

2:97, #401: Palm Sunday Now, Easter Back In The Day

Yessiree, Bob, here I am, back from actually attending a church service! "Back In The Day"...that would be 33AD, on April 5th, THE MOST significant event in world history occurred...JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND PERMANENTLY KICKED SATAN'S BUTT!!! OK, OK...that's a dynamic equivalent translation of the original Greek...so sue me..."He bruised his head" according to Genesis 3....Hey, any covering angel who rose up in rebellion against the Living and True God in heaven itself MUST have his head where the sun don't shine, so "kicked his butt" WOULD have "bruised his head!" ;p In any event, it's a once and done event with continuing results...thus, written in the perfect tense of New Testament Greek! A perfect tense for a perfect event...kinda providentially coincidental in a PRE-Reformational, Van Tillian, Zen Buddhist world Feng Shui! (Of course I can bring in feng shui...it was a God-given earthquake that rolled away the stone that fateful day...the angel found sitting on the rock to annouce Christ's Departure had the easy part!...wonder what his name was?)

So, today we celebrate Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem where he was riding a donkey colt in his symbolic King of Kings entrance (predicted in Zechariah 9:9 for you Biblical scholars) to the city that would turn on him in no time flat by the end of the week...hmmm, I guess I just defined the time period known as "no time flat"...5 days...producing a REALLY "bad day at the office" for the Lord...mentioned in post 2:96. AND, providentially in the coincidence of God, "You Can't Keep A Good Man Down" has rolled around on my computer list "New Mellow"...even if their context aint anywhere CLOSE to Christ's Resurrection, I'm going to appropriate some lyrics from this Alabama song:
"I'm pickin' myself up off the floor"...right off the rock in The Tomb! (Can you say "Shroud of Turin?!!")

To Satan: "You thought you could break me, add me to your list"... Obviously, YOU MORON, you didn't read the whole Script!! (Maybe that should be Script-ure)

"Gonna dress up in My finest..." (Can you say, Resurrection Duds?!!)

Oh, Yeah...now it's Judy Collins' "Both Sides Now." Sure enough, He was Himself in eternity past, "took on the likeness of human flesh" for 33 years, and returned to Glory before He returns for US!! OOORAH, OOORAH!!
Got palms up praise and worship service here at Stonewalled Charismatic Presbyterian Church?!!

2:96, #400: Felicitous Friday

April 3, 33A.D. was what Jesus might have considered a "bad day at the office." We call it Good Friday these days. Right now I'm listening to the soundtrack from "We Were Soldiers." You can get it on YouTube: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usebvLzCph4]

To fallen soldiers let us sing,
Where no rockets fly nor bullets wing,
Our broken brothers let us bring
To the Mansions of the Lord

No more weeping,
No more fight,
No friends bleeding through the night,
Just Divine embrace,
Eternal light,
In the Mansions of the Lord

Where no mothers cry
And no children weep,
We shall stand and guard
Though the angels sleep,
Oh, through the ages let us keep
The Mansions of the Lord.

This hymn was written by Randall Wallace in 2002 for the movie "We Were Soldiers," according to Widipedia's article [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randall_Wallace]. He also has, says the same article, acknowledged in interviews his deep commitment to Christianity. Turns out he also wrote and directed the movie and was influenced by his Duke Seminary past in his approach to all the movies he works on...salt and light in our spoiled dark society, I would say.

Well, I've seen too many soldiers of the Lord severely wounded spiritually in the last 29 years, two I can think of in particular, so this song tends to choke me up. The good news is that our Captain of the Host chose to fall on that day that brought forth rain and an earthquake in Jerusalem in order that the rest of us can have a place in The Mansions of the Lord.
I wonder if we get to choose paint colors for our rooms?

2:95, #399: Over Stuff

Last night we watched a Victor Borge concert once again for great laughs. For you who don't know, go to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Borge] and read the "His Style" section and you might be inspired to get a copy at your local Netflicks. Be careful...he makes you actually think and gives a Dane's view of the use of English in its off the wall permutations!!

In any event, I've been thinking about overtures for a while; especially The William Tell; which happens to be cranked on my cd player at the moment for inspiration and cerebral cortex stimulation. My thoughts have been: if there is an overture, is there an underture? What exactly is a ture? Well, Dictionary.com clued me in...Middle English "overt" came from Old French "ouvrir" which we French scholars know means "to open." NOW overtures make perfect, if boring, sense.

However, most of us think that "over" means "above," "higher than," and such like. Under, on the other hand, means "below," "beneath," or "lower than." But when you throw them in front of another word they end up meaning "excessive" or "inferior," like over/under-achiever, over/under-weight, etc. On the other hand, if a person can be overbearing...realy obnoxiously trying to dominate others...why don't we using "underbearing" for those who shrink like the violets into the wallpaper?

And then there's "overwrought" meaning all worked up, agitated, knickers-in-a-twist condition. Nope...there's no "underwrought" for those of us who are Mr. Mellow and "learning to be content in whatever circumstances we are" as Paul wrote to the Philippians. Oh, and for you wordsmiths..."wrought" has its origin circa 1200-50 and is from the Middle English wroght, the metathetic variable of worht, past participle of worchen...to work. Don't you feel edified?!!

Thus endeth the lesson for the day, i.e., it's over! ;p

2:94, #398: Dandelion Delight

For those of you who didn't have the experience of a German-descended maternal grandmother living in the Eastern Pennsylvania region who cooked dandelion as a vegetable...you have been passed over for one of the true joys of culinary art and have my sympathies.

Yesterday I was digging hellacious chickweed from around a couple of my Chinese maples and decided, since The Cook said he'd cook it, to gather a large freezer bag of the stuff. Well, last night's sausage, stuffed shells, and bacon-dressing dandelion was a FEAST!!
Then, to make it an even better evening, I smoked half of one of my newly gotten Charles the Great cigars while meticulously cleaning the bulk of the dandelions of dirt, chickweed, and clover in preparation for some more fine eating.

When the next level of growth occurs in the God-given veggie department on my lawns...the yellow heads...I think I'll pull a bunch in order to experiment with the brewing of some dandelion wine. I only ever had some once back in my B.C. days from an uncle-in-law, but OOOOO, BABY was it some fine sipping liquid!! Of course, there is a five-year aging time, but the last 57 went by pretty fast, so I can anticipate the next five rolling along like Ike and Tina Turner's version of "Proud Mary."
Hmmm...what cheese goes with dandelion wine?
Smoked Gouda, of course!

2:93, #397: April First Facts or Happy Liar's Day

Last year's post, "April Fools and Bubble Wrap" didn't even touch on a lot of the reality of this day that might be called International Liar's Day...you know, the day when it's ok to ignore Proverbs 6:18-19, "Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows and death, so is the man who deceives his neighbor, and says, 'Was I not joking?'"

Every year at this time I celebrate a distinguished, if unheralded (gee, now I guess it's heralded!), event of 1944...Yessiree, Bob...Bill Sexton's marriage to Ginnie Murray and the eventual appearance of their two boys...James the Elder and Robert the Younger... on this planet!! When I asked Mom why they married on April Fool's Day...Dad died in 1958 when I was six, so I didn't get to know him...she said she didn't know. However, she told me...long before her Homegoing in 2006...that he and I shared personality traits to a great extent...so the inherent humor of an April 1 wedding day makes perfect sense to me, given that presupposition...in a Van Tillian, Post Reformational, Zen Buddhist sort of way, of course! ;p

Other events of April First down through history are also interesting. According to The One Year Book of Christian History (tell me you haven't picked up your own copy yet because you're waiting for me to eventually quote every entry!), on April 1, 33 A.D. Jesus remarked to his disciples upon their architectural observation of the Temple that it would be trashed in the not-too-distant future (check out Mark 13 for the story)...guess He wasn't April Fooling anyone, considering the Jerusalem Local Events of 70A.D. when Roman General/Future Emperor Titus trashed the place for the MSN (Masada'S Next) newscast!! FYI...aint that a great 1850 picture by David Roberts of the event that's in public domain!! Gotta love Wikipedia!!

One other interesting bit of history for April 1...it appears to be the publication date in 1952 of the Big Bang Theory of the creation of everything. Might I suggest the "brilliant" scientists might have chosen the date for a reason?!! Maybe the Lord's sense of providence in a coincidental frame of reference worked out that detail as well as that of the trashing of the Temple.
Ya think?!!