In the bleak midwinter It’s bleak it’s bleak it’s bleak bleak bleak
In a world pandemic It’s bleak it’s bleak it’s bleak bleak bleak
Groundhog Day is coming soon It’s like we’re in the movie though
Running on a hamster wheel A great pandemic hamster wheel
Okay, I’m not as depressed as that sounds. Perhaps you also can find some solace and catharsis in an Adam Sandler The Wedding Singer-like venting of frustration, however.
I’m not depressed, but I am tired. Pandemic life plus putting the finishing touches on a kitchen remodel in the midst of holiday baking season leads to exhaustion. And to minimal baking getting done. And sometimes to attempting to burn the house down while trying to learn the new stove.
Don’t drive, errr cook sleepy, friends.
As the Covid landscape looks bleak, bleak, bleak and we wonder where the last two (!!!) years went … we need all the things … vaccines, natural immunity, masks, distancing, avoiding gatherings without precautions, well-ventilated spaces, hand hygiene, testing, treatment, healthy lifestyle choices, more accurate reporting and analysis of the data … and most of all, a balance of science and compassion.
Stay safe, sane, and healthy … and love thy neighbor, my people.
Mama cardinal blends in with the bleakness.
And then strikes a pose.
I was really trying to get a shot of this chickadee.
Am I the only one who finds something ominous in an army of Santa figurines?
The decorator shall remain nameless, but here is Linda Blair in sugar form.
Happy Advent season, now that we’re well into advent season.
Joy has been hard to come by in the era of pandemic life and social media shrieking, hasn’t it?
I find myself intentionally making time for things that spark joy.
Like spray painting the pumpkins I’ve had on the porch with a coat of white and a coat of glitter. And adding red bows.
We could have thrown them in the woods for the raccoons, but let’s be honest. The raccoons really don’t need our help finding something to eat.
I watched The Chosen Christmas special the other night. It’s streaming free on YouTube and on The Chosen app, plus it’s showing in theaters for at least a few more days. The first hour-ish is a music concert with various artists, followed by a stand-alone episode. As much as I don’t actually enjoy a ton of current CCM (Contemporary Christian Music), I found it sparked joy. Definitely watch, and if you haven’t watched the first two seasons of the regular show, go do that. Easiest way is via their app – watch on your device or click a button to send to your Wi-Fi connected tv. You can also find the episodes on YouTube. Free to stream, as everything is crowdfunded.
Another viewing option to consider … we wrapped up the 66 Books in 52 Weeks overview study of every book of the Bible. All lessons are free to watch on the YouTube, with a link in each description to a pdf outline. Here’s a link to the playlist of all lessons. Go through them in order or hone in on a particular book. Whatever brings you joy.
With that, I’m going to go find something joy-sparking, possibly involving coffee at this point in the day. I plan on being on hiatus until sometime after the first of the year. May you have a peaceful and joy-filled holiday season.
Discussion topic: Does SpongeBob spark joy for you?
Note that triangle through the trees. It’s not the Bermuda Triangle. Triangle of Progress? Triangle of Doom? Triangle of Joy?
This nighttime setting on my phone camera is wild.
I’ve had the weirdest combination of songs stuck in my head. It started when a friend sang Just a Closer Walk with Thee at … not church like you might expect. A funeral.
I’m pretty sure the deceased would say there are worse things that could be stuck in my head.
A PBS special about country music, hosted by Hee Haw dude Roy Clark – who by the way has been deceased for a few years – was on the television the other day. Iconic song after iconic song was featured.
Can we just stipulate that Tammy Wynette’s Stand by Your Man doesn’t play the same in 2021 as it did in 1968? K. Thank goodness that one didn’t get stuck in my head.
What did get stuck in my head was the oh so sweet and satisfying pre-chorus of Rhinestone Cowboy.
There’s been a load of compromising … On the road to my horizon … But I’m gonna be where the lights are shinin’ on me …
Admit it, you kept going. At least in your head.
Discussion topic: What compromising is okay and what compromising is not so okay? On the road to your horizon, that is.
P.S. Click on the link to watch the music video. It is vintage.
P.P.S. Does anyone else picture Robert Redford in The Electric Horseman when they think of this song?
Not quite so vintage, but it is Celtic … another PBS special inserted this one in my brain. I think it must be fundraising season.
For those keeping score, the annual Feliz Navidad – Christmas Shoes count stands at 11 – 2.2 in the group text. The good song always is #1. The bad one is #2.
You’re welcome.
And yes, 2.2. Someone heard a short clip on a radio show discussing worst Christmas songs ever.
I’m doing my part to be a team player by not listening to Christmas radio. I can’t escape the occasional store Muzak, but overall I’m winning.
When last we visited, the discussion surrounded blowing chunks.
Or something like that.
Since then you may have visited with family or friends for Thanksgiving. Hopefully no blowing of chunks was involved.
Other things that have been running through my mind in recent weeks …
The word swimmingly. Much like the word fantastic, swimmingly can be said in either a sincere or sarcastic fashion.
“How are things going?”
“Swimmingly!”
I felt vindicated of my recent pondering of the word when Stephen King uttered “swimmingly” in an audiobook I was enjoying while driving on a dark and stormy night to a performance of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. It was his nonfiction On Writing, but still.
Another phrase dwelling in my head …
Sprinkles are for winners.
Not sure how much I’m winning at any given moment, but definitely enough for sprinkles.
One more passage swirling around in my head is Genesis 50:20.
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present outcome, that many people would be kept alive [as they are this day]. ~ Genesis 50:20 (AMP)
If you recall, Joseph (of amazing technicolor dreamcoat fame) was sold into slavery by his (jealous of said technicolor dreamcoat and his status as favorite son) brothers. Now second in command in Egypt and saving the country and beyond from famine, Joseph had enough vision to see how God redeemed the hardships of decades of his life. How God redeemed the evil committed against him.
Aka see: If God is good, why do bad things happen?
I’ve learned more in recent months about some of the religious objections to the Covid vaccines, and I have heard similar objections to other vaccines in the past. Some claim the vaccines “contain” aborted fetal cells. That statement is a bit of an overblown, sensationalistic extrapolation. It is true that cell lines replicated (many, many times, i.e. many, many generations descended from) from aborted fetal cells have been used in the research and development and/or production of the Covid vaccines. Before you let that prevent you from “taking the jab”, please consider a couple of points.
By the way, I am pro-life. All the lives. At all the ages. I think faith-based crisis pregnancy centers are great. I think abortion is horrible and evil. I think it’s the great genocide of our time. I think compassion and a lack of judgment for anyone who finds themselves wrestling with such a decision is super important.
No one is actually being injected with aborted fetal cells. The origin of most cell lines used in vaccine research was from a couple of abortions performed decades ago in the Netherlands. The cells have been replicated in a laboratory setting many generations over. They are so far removed from the original, it would be a similar idea to writing me off as evil and refusing to have anything to do with me because you thought something my Grandma Pocahontas did was evil, or perhaps more appropriately Grandpa John Rolfe.
God has a way of redeeming all things. Even the horrific things.
Hey Satan, you think you got away with killing the Son of God? Three days later … watch this.
Hey Satan, you think you got away with killing those babies? Watch this.
God has a way of Genesis fiftying all the things.
I sometimes think I’m a bit of a pattern recognition savant in life, although some might say idiot savant. I see themes and patterns and say, “Well duh, of course that’s why and how all that ties together,” when most people don’t see it.
To me, the vaccines are clearly God redeeming what the enemy intended for evil and destruction … and using it to save many lives. I don’t think it supports abortion or encourages abortion. Will we someday find a way to do research and production that doesn’t involve the cell lines in question at all? Hopefully.
If you still disagree with me about the moral acceptability of the vaccines, I still love you. I still think you should choose vaccination if medically able, but I still love you.
A friend posited on the SoMe this week that perhaps those who continue dismissing Covid as not a serious problem, as really only affecting the elderly and infirm, don’t happen to spend any time around the elderly or infirm. Maybe that’s generous, maybe not.
The case numbers, hospitalizations, and test positivity rate continue to rise here in Ohio. My advice is do what you gotta do to protect yourself. We’ve learned we can’t count on others to help us out in that regard. We’re definitely not all in this together. A sad but true reality.
Supply chain and labor shortages have been all over the headlines and even the memes. Blaming the extra unemployment / stimulus cash people have received during the pandemic and labeling them as lazy is a popular mantra. While that may be true in some cases, I haven’t been sure it’s even the main reason. For working parents, for example, just the cost and availability of childcare can be a huge deciding factor, especially if it’s a two-parent home. I was listening to a podcast – The Offer with Michael Glinter – in which the host discussed the subject.
Michael is a recruiter I’ve worked with, definitely one of the best. He said he’s been predicting labor shortages for some time, largely due to Baby Boomer retirements – which we are now seeing – and the smaller numbers of Gen X-ers, Millennials, and subsequent generations. He went on to say the pandemic accelerated retirements, leaving many positions open earlier than anyone expected. Whether their motivation was avoiding exposure to the virus, avoiding mask wearing and all the other preventive hoops we have to jump through, or just being done with the hassle of it all, many decided early retirement was a better personal option for them.
In addition, Covid has caused the deaths of many over age fifty. (Not sure of the accuracy of his data, but I think it’s reasonable to assume “a significant number”.) Some of those would have been working still, leading to more open positions. Check out the October 26 episode if you want to hear more.
All that to say … don’t necessarily believe what the media or politicians or your dear Aunt Sally tell you the facts mean.
Speaking of which, I continue to see people claiming vaccines have caused thousands upon thousands of deaths. The vaccines. Not Covid itself. They typically refer to VAERS, the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System to say, “See?!? All these people received a vaccine and then they died.”
Dear hearts, dear hearts, dear hearts.
That’s not how it works. That’s not how any of this works.
I try not to unleash the science nerd too often, I really do. But Science Nerd Jenn’s eyes have rolled to the back of her head and kept rolling right on out the door. I’m also, quite frankly, livid at the mis- and disinformation that continue to spread. Stick with me for just a minute and a quick story.
As a former mandated reporter to FAERS, the FDA’s equivalent to VAERS for drugs, medical nutritionals, biologics, etc., I have some insight on this one.
Anyone – absolutely any human being – can submit a report to FAERS or VAERS. That right there should make you raise an eyebrow at quick conclusions assumed from the raw data. The two systems are merely data collection systems, so that where there are large numbers of red flags, potential problems and their root causes can be investigated. All of that is good. We want to find problems and solve them as quickly as possible,
Some people because of their employment must report to these systems.
While working for big pharma, I was required by law to report any adverse events I learned of related to our products, whether I was at work or not. I was formally trained on what an adverse event is, what information to try to collect, and how to report.
Say, for example, you and I are at a mutual friend’s baby shower. A joyous social occasion, full of small talk, word games, and cupcakes. Knowing I work for the maker of Product X, you say, “Oh hey, I tried Product X the other day, and I blew chunks like I’d never blown chunks before.”
Blew chunks.
Called Edgar.
Upchucked.
Tossed your cookies.
Lost your lunch.
Worshiped the god of the porcelain throne.
Called Ralph on the big white phone.
Choose your favorite.
Someone else at our table chimes in, “You know when I was pregnant, I tried Product X and I blew chunks for three days.”
Yet another friend offers, “They gave my 98-year-old aunt Product X in the nursing home, and she died a week later.”
Three adverse events I had to report. And I was just there for the cake and to throw down on the word scramble.
I saw Lyle Lovett on an episode of Blue Bloods the other day. Likely during the Wednesday marathon that happens on one of the digital channels. It’s the soundtrack that plays around these parts. Which reminds me … you need to read Becoming Duchess Goldblatt if you haven’t already. Lyle Lovett himself appears in the audiobook version. Also don’t judge a book by its cover. Trust me. Just trust me.
Which reminds me I need to dig out my copy of his Joshua Judges Ruth album. How can you not love an album titled Joshua Judges Ruth???
As I continue losing my mind over the state of the world, country, humanity and society in general, and my own little corner of the planet in 2021 … we are suddenly up to oh-my-gosh-Thanksgiving-is-in-two-weeks.
!!!
I don’t know if everyone is just done with life, rules, or what … but I keep encountering a decided DGAS attitude.
DGAS, for those not familiar with the acronym, stands for Don’t Give A … Single Flying Rat’s Patootie.
I’m sure that’s it. DGASFRP is too difficult to pronounce. Dee-gas just flows off the tongue.
Is it fatigue (I get that), ignorance, apathy, a lack of kindness?
Two poll workers told me they liked the Be Kind mask I was wearing when I voted in the recent election. I guess maybe they encounter more than their fair share of unkindness.
The latest Covid data doesn’t support the lack of caution being practiced.
But rugged individualism.
And many still think data is the plural of anecdotal evidence … and correlation equals causation.
Sometimes in life we can’t even determine the causation – too many variables. Sometimes we don’t know why. Sometimes we can figure it out maybe eighty percent but not a hundred.
I did have an encouraging moment driving home from a lack of caution encounter the other day. With the music on shuffle, Mitch McVicker’s Freedom – a Jesus-y anthem – came up … followed by George Michael’s Freedom ’90 – an um, up yours anthem I guess.
Eh, I’ll use my freedom to do what I gotta do. To do what I can. Maybe by the grace of God it’ll be enough.
Progress is a thing of beauty.
Sometimes you try to take a picture of the sun & a UFO shows up.
I’m not the first person to say, “Comparison is the thief of joy.”
The interwebs are having trouble attributing the phrase to any one originator, so we’ll just call it a famous saying.
“You’ve heard it said …”
I’ve heard things said lately that have me noticing a couple phenomena.
There seems to be an attitude among believers, a belief if you will, that they need to do something glorious and extra churchy in order to be of value to God. Among women I sometimes find an assumption that in order to be worthy in the kingdom they need to be married and have babies. Like, they actually believe deep down in their soul that marriage and motherhood is the only way to be a Godly woman. And if they have not achieved those things … then they are a failure.
Hear this. Those are lies straight from Satan.
Men may have a similar belief, I don’t know, maybe it’s just not as prevalent or the lack of a ticking biological clock plays a role.
The Apostle Paul said singleness is preferable, but marriage is great, too. I’m not sure where we got so off track. Some churches do send a very clear message from the pulpit idolizing marriage and procreation. For other people, I think they misinterpreted what they heard preached, plus probably family influence played a role in what they believe is expected of them. The relative complete lack of sermons on singlehood versus marriage and parenthood certainly hasn’t helped. Here is a singleness sermon from a couple years ago I recommend.
In a similar vein, I find some people believe they need to, vocationally, do something glorious and specifically churchy in order to be worthy. Preacher, missionary, nun, etc. But Paul kept making tents. And he said (in Colossians 3:23), “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.”
The body is made of many parts, friends. And loving your neighbor encompasses a big giant broad variety of things.
So maybe take a breath.
It’s not about performance or achievement. It’s not about fame or notoriety even in the name of spreading the gospel. We’re responsible for being faithful, God is responsible for the results.
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” ~Micah 6:8
It might just be lack of sleep and fumes emanating from the kitchen construction today, along with the ragweed that really, really needs to die. Good grief, that pollen is hanging on.
Two years ago on this day, as the social media memories have reminded me, I was unsure whether I’d successfully get out of Estes Park in the middle of a winter storm warning. Think a foot-and-a-half of snow and zero ragweed.
I got home fine with no delays, but it was sketchy for a while. Everything will likely be fine now, as sketchy as it may seem.
With the changes in daily life and cultural shifts over just the last two years, if you haven’t acknowledged at least some of your feelings as grief, maybe it’s time. There are many things rightly to be grieved besides the loss of people who have died.
A sense of normalcy.
Although shaking up a routine that has become a rut is healthy, a global pandemic isn’t a healthy way to do it.
Trust.
Community.
Friends we thought were generally likeminded but turned out not to be.
Respect.
The ability to engage in civil discourse.
Jobs.
Right now I’m grieving the loss of the ability to upload a few new photos, either in bulk or one at a time, because apparently our interwebs are too slow today.
Everyone grieves at their own pace. If you feel like you should be jumping for joy and back to normal (whatever that is), but you don’t really feel like it or you don’t really feel normal … that’s probably normal.
My friend the creeper is back, in case you were wondering.
The name’s Creeper. Brown Creeper.
‘Tis the season apparently.
Thankfully, she/he/they – I haven’t inquired as to the bird’s preferred pronouns – doesn’t seem obsessed with flinging her/his/itself against my bedroom window repeatedly, nor does she/he/they seem fond of singing at the top of her/his/their lungs early in the morning.
Some days it seems like the entire world has gone mad, doesn’t it? It feels like we’re collectively flinging ourselves into a closed window over and over, hoping to get a different result.
Extending love and grace to all has been requiring more conscious effort, when often it had become second nature. I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing.
And with that, I have to get out of here for a trip to the happiest place on earth, i.e. Target. My neti pot flung itself onto the floor and cracked. (Okay, maybe I bumped into the cabinet it was on.) If you know me, you know how important it is that it be replaced immediately.
Peace out, girl scouts. Maybe I’ll find some grace or love or compassion or at least self-care at the store. I’ll keep you posted.
“There was mass confusion. Pretty sure the enemy has all of us discombobulated right now.”
Isn’t that the truth. If you’ve never read C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters, definitely go do that ASAP. It ought to be required reading of all believers. Here in the comfy first world anyway. It’s a fictional but chilling tale about how the devil and his minions might attack, manipulate, and distract a person … and – spoiler alert – distraction is not that difficult.
Think about all the things that aren’t turning our eyes upon Jesus, but away from him.
Are they just things? Necessary things? Useful things?
And who doesn’t struggle with distraction and getting caught up in the things of earth?
I guess reminders to ourselves and each other to remain vigilant are a good idea.
“Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.” ~1 Peter 5:8-11 (MSG)
The Devil is a big fan of discombobulation.
The other day, while not dissenting from the kingdom of noise, a line from the television show Blue Bloods stood out. Tom Selleck – who is hot, has always been hot, and will always be hot, much like Harrison Ford and Mark Harmon – asked, “How do you budget your integrity?”
I don’t know, what some people refer to as their beliefs and rights these days makes me wonder. Like, where is that line in the sand defining what their values are in the first place.
“Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity, than a person who is crooked, though he is rich.” ~Proverbs 28:6
I’ve also been wondering if we should ban the word mandate from the English language. Some people seem to get really incensed about it. I think I heard the president saying something would be a requirement not a mandate. Are we going to have to ban the word requirement next?
Man, if only we could mandate common sense and empathy.
But, as a mentor of mine liked to remind me, common sense is not that common.
May your life be less discombobulated this week, friends. Stay vigilant.
Someone was apparently discombobulated & left this behind at the gas station.
Discombobulation. Circus. Kinda the same thing.
I did not harvest these from the yard,
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