For Michael Jackson.... With Love...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lVUvOLdg50

Recent rumor has it that the accuser, Jordan Chandler, now in his 20's, has since recanted his allegations against Michael Jackson.

I never did think Micahel was guilty. And he was acquitted in the second case.

Yet the ignomy of all of the speculation and aspersions has caused his legacy to be tarnished horribly.

It's pathetic.

Life Center is Fabulous

I visited Life Center this morning for worship services after hearing so many good things about it for years. It lived up to all of the terrific comments! I really love it there and plan to go again next Sunday at 9 a.m.

Today I've also been finalizing one of my Elance client's copy for his Facebook page. I think it's ready to roll out now, but he's in Australia so I won't hear back from him for several more hours, I don't suppose. He's a day ahead and six hours behind (perhaps even more, since we have Daylight Saving Time up here and Aussies don't)... so it's Monday at about 8:30 or so where he is. I expect he'll find the changes to his liking, and if not, it'll be back to the drawing board on Monday morning (my Monday morning!) because I've signed off for the rest of today to rest. There's a lot of writing I'll be doing this week. HURRAY!

Next weekend we have a Writer's Edge meeting at Church For All Nations on Saturday and on Sunday we (Writer's Edge folks) are hosting a baby shower for a lady named Tonia whose husband Karim is serving in Iraq. I'm very much looking forward to both events. The following weekend is my garage sale, and it's shaping up nicely. Amy Ulen donated a bunch of crafts materials and Mary Jo Robinson says she'll be dropping some things by for it, too, in the next week or so. I still need to make at least two garage sale signs and mark most of the items, but there's still time for that...

Guess that's all for now. There's nothing else terribly earth-shaking going on around here. Oh! I bathed the guinea pig again -- is that newsworthy? (To the guinea pig, it is! He started out squealing at the top of his considerable lungs, hating his bath and hoping the SPCA would hear his distress and come a'running, but within two minutes he decided it really felt kinda good, so he settled in and forgave me quickly.)

What a WONDERFUL Outing!

Temporary Captain Kris pilots the craft into

uncharted (to her...) territory

Setting out from a Gig Harbor marina...

The REAL Captain of the vessel, Timothy Acker

"Oh, the pirate's life for me!"

Kris and Tim just before "taking" a Chinese grain ship

anchored in Puget Sound (yeah, right...)

Today was one of the most enjoyable days of my entire life.

Remember several weeks ago when we had a Writer's Edge meeting at Point Defiance -- or, I should say, when we planned a meeting for Point Defiance and got rained out and ended up at the Antique Sandwich Shop near Point Defiance?

Well, during that meeting one of our members invited those of us who were in attendance that day to go boating on his yacht at some time in the future, and today was the day we picked. Unfortunately most of the people who were at the Point Defiance meeting had other plans for the day, so just four of us could make it... (There was room for six more.)

What fun we had! We saw seals, jellyfish, lots of other boats of all kinds, and we had a close encounter with an anchored Chinese ship.

We took lots of pictures with my camera. Our host had two Jamaican pirates wigs on his yacht, so we donned those for a few photos as we floated next to the Chinese ship. Pret-ty hysterical!

The day was perfect -- upper 80's. The sky was blue, and we were all in the best of moods. It was more fun than three barrels of monkeys. Oh! And the captain of the boat made me captain for more than a half hour and went below deck while I steered the yacht... so I was in charge of keeping everybody dry and above water all that time. I'm happy to report that I didn't let 'em down and that the real captain got his boat back without a scratch or a dent in it!

I finished three more Elance projects this weekend, and there will be many more this coming week so, God willing and the creeks don't rise, I think I'll be out of the hole financially starting this month again. I have four regulars now, so won't have to worry as much when one of them goes on hiatus in the future as I have others to keep me busy should that happen.

Guess that's all for tonight.

A Final Word About Michael Jackson To His Thousands of Bashers

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by sweat; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."

~Teddy Roosevelt

I Have Decided... Cocooning is Healthy!

In an effort to be less insulated, a few months ago I decided to venture out and read news items and the on-line comments that readers/viewers make about them. During this time, there is one thing I've discovered: there are a lot of mean-spirited, spiteful people out there, Democratic and Republican, Independent and Green, gay and straight, conservative and liberal, left and right, smart and dumb, progressive and racist.

And it astonishes me and makes me want to pull my head back into my shell and disengage. Because if I don't, I might catch the fever and go as insane as so much of the rest of the human pack.

Stuff like that feeds on itself. Instead of listening, reading and learning when we hear a contrary opinion, we all crouch in defensive/offensive modes and decide to "make 'em pay for their outrage." Or, at least, I tend to want to do that (but don't, thank the good Lord!) whenever I hear someone (gleefully and with malice-aforethought) lambaste an on-line opinion with which I agree.

My response -- even after counting to ten -- is often, "What the hell is the matter with people, that they have to bash others who don't happen to agree with them?" Whatever happened to agreeing to disagree and behaving civilly to each other? Was it ever a reality, or have I just been living in a bubble of my own making my whole life?

It astonishes me that people can't disagree agreeably. No wonder the world is in the mess it's in! What has happened to mutual respect and honoring? Did we ever have it (except for a very few)?

I know there has been mud slung in politics since the beginning of the Republic, so I'm not even talking about politics right now. It just seems that with any topic or issue with two sides, there are those on both sides who dedicate themselves to being creepy about it... treating the other side like crap (belittling them, etc.) while getting their own opinion out there.

It stinks. It just stinks. I have decided that gazing out into the world and engaging it is painful and not worth the effort.

I want to love humankind. When I read or see stuff like this going on, it makes me want to divorce my species and take up with some other... one that has more scruples. There are many of them: elephants, dolphins, the great apes, the lesser apes...

Someone taught me when I was little that we are an evolved species, placed higher than the rest. The species that established this questionable hierarchy was, of course, the human species. And I can see where it might be true. We're apparently the only species that can utterly affect the planet (for good or for ill) with our intellect, prowess, and powers.

Going back into prehistory, it was God who deemed us the apex of His creation (at least here on Earth). After venturing out into the world of news and commentary, I can't help but think He should be seriously re-considering the hierarchy now, when He sees how feebly most people regard and abide by his Golden Rule and the ten commandments.

He must be really, really disappointed. I certainly am. As His so-called "image-bearers," there must be a carnival funhouse mirror standing between Him and us -- because I don't see His image or His love in many of us out here.

It's pathetic.

I like my cocoon, the one that my mother, DeForest Kelley, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandella, Gandhi, the Holy Spirit, and others wrapped around me to help me feel safe and beloved.

It must be frightening out there. Just a few glimpses, and I'm convinced: I'm happier right here, wrapped in the love of people and memories that reflect God's grace and mercy.

You can keep the world. There's very little I see in it worth having.

But a better one is right around the corner!

Important Communique from the White House...

Here's an email I received today from the White House. I want to share it with you:

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As the President's advisor on Homeland Security, I am passing along the following message from Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Homeland Security, and Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education, who are leading the efforts to prepare our Nation for the coming flu season.

Fellow Americans,

This spring we were confronted with an outbreak of a troubling flu virus called 2009-H1N1. As the fall flu season approaches, it is critical that we reinvigorate our preparedness efforts across the country in order to mitigate the effects of this virus on our communities.

Today, we are holding an H1N1 Influenza Preparedness Summit in conjunction with the White House to discuss our Nation's preparedness. We are working together to monitor the spread of 2009-H1N1 and to prepare to initiate a voluntary fall vaccination program against the 2009-H1N1 flu virus, assuming we have a safe vaccine and do not see changes in the virus that would render the vaccine ineffective.

But the most critical steps to mitigating the effects of 2009-H1N1 won't take place in Washington — they will take place in your homes, schools and community businesses. Taking precautions for this fall's flu season is a responsibility we all share. Visit Flu.gov to make sure you are ready and learn how you can help promote public awareness.

We are making every effort to have a safe and effective vaccine available for distribution as soon as possible, but our current estimate is that it won't be ready before mid-October. This makes individual prevention even more critical.

Wash your hands regularly. Take the necessary precautions to stay healthy and if you do get sick, stay home from work or school.

We are doing everything possible to prepare for the fall flu season and encourage all Americans to do the same — this is a shared responsibility and now is the time to prepare.

Please visit Flu.gov to learn what steps you can take to prepare and do your part to mitigate the effects of H1N1.

Take Care,

Kathleen, Janet and Arne

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Stay safe, loved ones!

Veggie Tales

I took in a free movie with Wendy and the kids this morning at the mall. Figured it was okay becauseI had already spent four hours writing for Elance clients between 5 a.m. and 9, and kids and summer only last so long.

We saw a Veggie Tales movie about pirates -- cute show with a great message, of course.

Amy Ulen will be by in a while for a short visit and to drop off some items for the upcoming garage sale. Maybe she'll have time to catch me up on her life and to tell me a little about using her schoolroom as a lab for my writing class. I need to learn more about that... I've been imagining teaching copywriting and other forms of writing, and think I would really enjoy it. Especially copywriting!

One of our fuses have blown, so the garage doors and the freezer in the garage don't work at the moment. We'll see if we can get that figured out this evening...

That's about it for now.