Everyone Needs To Relax

The photo reflects relaxation in various portions of our world. Now that we have officially moved in we have our "places" to be. The ducks have their same old pond and they are quite content with it wherever I put it. My wife loves her corner windows(we curtained them tonight with rods and everything)they are a replica of her office space at the old house. When we were going through the design phase of the addition I asked her what she enjoyed most(besides me & Snickers)in the home we were vacating. The corner spot where she had her personal computer set up and where she did hours of surfing while enjoying the TV and stereo system was number one on her list of hits. The new corner is great! The point of it is exactly Southwest. Angles have always been a little on the tough side for me. Let it suffice to say I was not very good at geometry. This time, though, I really, really tried to line things up with where the sun and moon are in the sky for the different times of year. The sunlight for the wintering of favorite plants. Moonlight for nights such as this. Windows to share them all on the inside of the house as well as the outside. I suppose that is because we live out on the Great American Desert and for a lot of months of the year we are not outside often. Excluding, of course, time spent "out in it" battling the elements and shoveling snow!
My personal best place for relaxing is in front of a fire. I love to watch the flames dance amidst the logs and listen to the crackle. I often do this in the dead of winter at 20 degrees below zero, and it works! That 100+ year old stove can throw heat like you would not believe. I also love the sky above me. We are now out away from city lights(if you can call where we moved from a city with only 18,437 folks)and the traffic on 6th street. Having been raised on a farm I have always wished to be back in the "sticks" where one can listen and not hear anything. Well, that is where I am now. You can look out those corner windows and there is nothing out there for a long, long ways. Suits me just fine! I have God to commune with and my faith to sustain me plus the opportunity to revel in creation! How much better can it get before I go home to be with my Lord?
Everyone needs to have a place that brings peace to their spirit. Wherever that place is I pray you find it often and enjoy your every moment there to the fullest. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Moving Days

We are down to the end of moving our stuff to the new home. One by one and sometimes eight at a time the boxes are getting emptied. Just a few days ago we passed another milestone. The number of boxes emptied is now greater than the number left to be emptied. We're wearing down at this point. Yesterdays load included the ducks for whom we have now erected a temporary enclosure. They were happy to come back with us. How does one tell if a duck is happy? When I cornered them and boxed them up for the journey(they are in the big boxes Cheryl is examining prior to loading in the back of the van)the mallard was not happy. I was wearing buffalo hide gloves so the hands were spared the uncomfortable feeling of being totally pecked. Usually when moving animals that are cantankerous we used a noose on a stick sort of like they use for snakes. Cheryl worries that it might harm their precious necks so I opted for a combination of noose on a stick and snatch fast. Once their wings are pinned and they are off the ground they become very complacent. Cheryl couldn't believe how quiet they were in the boxes. I didn't explain to her that fear causes that silence. It's like that with people as well. Take any one of us and put a box around us and close the lid we get very quiet. Maybe not right away like the ducks, but eventually silence will reign. Life has a way of boxing us in at times. We have nowhere to turn(or so it seems)and nobody to help us out of the darkness. That is precisely the moment when God has always provided the answers for me. Faith can bring us through the darkness and into the light if we are willing to be patient and make our needs known in prayer. God is faithful and just. He will not allow His children unnecessary suffering.
That trailer appears to be filled with junk of many descriptions. But it is our stuff and for us it is "good" junk. We are God's children! He does not create junk, it's always "good" stuff. The ducks, for the most part, trusted us. Now they are out in their swimming pool splashing about enjoying the new digs. Out here on the Great American Desert there are plenty of grasshoppers and crickets to enjoy plus the vitamin enriched food we provide. And lest I forget---the bread that falls from their heaven many times a week. The big treat for them is popcorn. They love it! So, as God has provided for us we have provided for the ducks, and Snickers, of course. He was happy to see his fowl friends. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Tunnel's End Has Light

My last post here shared some of what I have been doing at the old house. This is the first time I have ever moved and taken most of the home with me. Last evening I moved the last of the interior materials into our garage. Yes, it took some time, and yes, I am weary today, but happy as well! The final pic above is of this mornings sunrise. I sent it out to friends far and near via the Email thing on this new computer. The caption read-"Ain't God Grand!" ALL of creation was celebrating this milestone with me, including my wife Cheryl who arose from her slumber at 4:37 to get ready for work(she had to be clocked in by 6am). We shared a few minutes at the table over a cup of coffee and discussed the next cycle in our seemingly never ending relocation. Next is the redwood fence(6 foot high & nearly 200 feet long) and the two ducks that it shields from the elements. I would truly like to eat them but they are my wife's pets and she will not allow it. Roast duck is sooo goood!!!
Then there is the barn that has to be moved(12 foot by 16 foot)and the accompanying potting shed. That plus the flower beds, rocks, bricks, fountain, and other landscaping details we have installed these past nine years in our 6th street location. Amazing how much "stuff" we accumulate. That shouldn't surprise me at all. I came from a "save everything" mother, who came from a "save everything" mother, who came from, etc, etc. I am getting better though. After four years of hanging on to my old IBM typewriter I finally threw it in the dumpster while cleaning out my office. The "Selectric" is history. It will be four years next month since I first began using a 'puter. Now all I can say is that they are fun,great working tools, and with my IBM keyboard I am right at home. Following our settling in process I may sit down at this keyboard and write another book. This time I will write one about performing on the "road" for 40 years. It has actually been a few more than that because the first summer out I was still in high school. It was a 9 piece Rock & Roll band that toured the midsection of the US doing one night stands. The gig only lasted 10 weeks but I did manage to glean some knowledge and get most of the wet out from behind my ears. It seems I could go on and on this morning, but there are other things that need to be taken care of. I pray God is very present in your life and that He is smiling on you as He has smiled on me this day. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Breaking Things Down

I suppose when most people move they do not take their house with them. That probably applies to everyone but me! I am a chronic "saver" of stuff. This move has got to be my last. God only knows what I've been thinking, but I have the salvage rights to the home we sold. After having lived there for nine years(and previously stayed there a lot after I bought it for the folks)I grew very fond of many parts. So, I've been in destruct mode for weeks. The old living room(3\4 inch tongue and groove oak paneling)is moving with us to become the walls of the new studio. The master bedroom is moving with us to become a guest room, and all of the other parts and pieces I can pull out within the next few days will become part and parcel of "The Project." The best part of the whole process happened the other day when Gordon(lead guitar)and I were attempting to salvage the 5' X 9' mirror that adorned the east wall of the living room. It was way heavier than either of us expected. I kicked a bucket out of the way, Gordon zigged, I zagged, and I only wish we had the foresight to have a recorder running! The crash was enormous. It was one of those once in a life time sounds that will never be forgotten. We looked at each other and for the first time since we've been together neither of us was laughing---at least not for a moment. What a relief not to have to find a place for that mirror in the new home. I will for sure cut a piece of it out and save it for future use, but the 45 square feet that really had nowhere to go are now gone. Whoosh!!! What a project! Mirrors are amazing in what they reflect. God also is amazing in the manner in which He reflects His love through us if we are obedient and let it shine. We have to get the project completed. It is already getting very close to freezing at night out here on the Great American Desert, and like the squirrels we have to get our house in order before it is 20 degrees below zero. I've been riding the HD Ultra back and forth to the old place as I tear out the guts of the house. That is a blessing! The early morning air and the crisp temps bring me fully alive. That plus the thunder of the pipes on the road make the day begin sweetly. I am worn and I am tired, but at this point I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Perhaps one day God will heal me of my "saving" affliction. As for now I am quite content to save what I can of the past as I prepare for the future, and that includes folks that are lost, also. Many prayers go out tonight for daughters struggling, and friends suffering. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

It's Been A Long Time

My last entry was July 3rd and I was in the process of an amazing amount of construction. That isn't over, yet! I took a break from the "Home Work" to attach a hitch to our Pontiac Transport Mini Van. I remembered a blog I did a while back while wrenching on the HD Ultra while I was down under the van. The work came out well and the hitch really, really works. LOL.....I do miss being out here on the net several times a week, but that will change. We are almost finished at the old house, except for moving the ducks and the barn. I still have salvage work to do(the plan now is to tear the whole house down in about ten days. I'm sort of glad of that. I bought the home for my folks, and then moved into it because renting just doesn't work well. That was nine years ago this fall. Now we have a virtual palace that has only to be completed. I am now the chief electrician, plumber, carpenter, and all round work person. That is why I saved a few hundred dollars by installing the hitch myself. What the hey, I have the tools and the hands for it. The best part of the whole process has been the umptine reminders of how much God has truly blessed my life.
We did take a few days off for the rally in Sturgis. That led to a booking for our musical talents at the dedication of the Avenue of Flags at the geographical center of America in BelFourche, SD. So we were out west for a short time, and then returned for several days culminating in a rousing performance on Sunday for a church that was sans pastor. That was also a reminder of just how much I enjoy sharing God's word and how good He has been in both of our lives. Moments in time-we all have them. Mine was watching Cheryl perform the National Anthem while I played the trumpet to one of our pre-recorded(I do that, too)backgrounds. Fun! that is what life is all about when it is lived according to God's plan and in accordance with His will. I know we aren't always exactly certain what that will is, but if left to my own devices I know without a doubt I would be lost. I pray that your summer has been a "good one" and that you are living with God's Grace ever in your midst. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Independence Day Approaches

My time has been being burned on the "project" as it has moved toward final phases. We signed the papers on the place Tuesday. It is now ours 100%(and the bank, of course). A fall taken in the basement hall has slowed my ability to keep working 10 hour days. The prayers of friends and family have sustained me in the midst of the healing process. I pray that part is about over. Deadlines were met. Inspections have come off better than expected. Even the electrical got a green stamp of approval. Still there is much to do and a year from now we should have it all completed. This is our moving month. I replaced my old(7 months)drivers license with a new one with our correct new address yesterday. I might not have to have done that right away, but it seems my wife, Cheryl, borrowed my license to validate purchases on my account at Lowe's and forgot where she put it! LOL!!! Anyway that was a well spent few hours yesterday during which I had the opportunity to peruse home magazines and found some wonderful ideas. I pray that your celebration of the 4th of July is a good one and that you and yours are all safe and happy on this holiday weekend. In Christ's Love, Preacher.

Tried, Tired, Tied!!!

>The thing is never the "thing" or so a pastor friend of mine has informed me. We are almost done with jumping through the financial hoops. It seems that there are a of licensed folks in the world that take exception to a country preacher doing his own wood work. I have been checked once a week to make sure that I meet "code" expectations. Duh.....I grew up playing with unfinished blocks of wood. If one piles them up and they fall down then you try again. Had I had the advisers I have now I probably would have been in group therapy since age three.

So, my exertions have now met the acceptance of the county, state and local officials. Whoosh!!! What a relief. Now I shall remit pics of what has been continuing to happen before I subscribed to an anxiety attack of enormous proportions. Yeah, "I KNOW IT AIN'T A POLE BARN AND IT IS WITHIN THE COUNTY'S JOURISDICTION!!!' Give me a break. I have busted my nether regions making this acceptable, and everyone has a problem. There will come a point in time when I may deign to assume persecution on a faith basis. Nonetheless I continue to persevere.
Many thanks for all the prayers offered on our behalf. In Christ's Love, Preacher.