April 1, 2020
Starting out today, an old bit of humor came strangely to my mind. Came to my mind strangely? Came to my strange mind? Anyway, our pastor of 18 or 19 years ago used this in a sermon. I do not remember the point he was trying to make (and perhaps the same could be said of illustrations in my sermons, so no fingers pointed, nor stones tossed). But, in edited form, here it is.
Excerpts from a Dog’s Diary
Day number 180
8:00 am - Oh Boy! Dog Food! My Favorite!
9:30 am - Oh Boy! A Car Ride! My Favorite!
9:40 am - Oh boy! A walk! My favorite!
10:30 am - Oh Boy! A Car Ride! My Favorite!
11:30 am - Oh Boy! Dog Food! My Favorite!
12:00 noon - Oh Boy! The Kids! My Favorite!
1:00 pm - Oh Boy! The Yard! My Favorite!
4:00 pm - Oh Boy! The Kids! My Favorite!
5:00 PM - Oh Boy! Dog Food! My Favorite!
Day number 181, 182, 183, 184, same, same, same.
Excerpts from a Cat’s Diary
DAY 752 - My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape and the mild satisfaction I get from ruining the occasional piece of furniture. Tomorrow I may eat another houseplant.
DAY 761 - Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded, must try this at the top of the stairs. In an attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors, I once again induced myself to vomit on their favorite chair ... must try this on their bed.
DAY 774 - I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and maybe snitches. The dog is routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a half-wit. The bird on the other hand has got to be an informant, and speaks with them regularly. I am certain he reports my every move. Due to his current placement in the metal room his safety is assured. But I can wait, it is only a matter of time.
👉 We took the electric blanket off of our bed too soon! A couple of years ago we bought a dual control e.b. for winter time use.
Distraction: I remember winters at 117 Shenandoah Avenue where (until I was 16) the only heat in the house was a coal-fired pot belly stove in the living room and a gas space heater in the bathroom that was turned on only at bath time. The bedroom Kyle and I shared was upstairs in the front of the house, and although the door to the upstairs was always open – Mom and Dad’s bedroom was upstairs, in front of ours – the heat just piddled up the steps. So when tucking us in, we were snuggled under 6 homemade quilts, and we would roll one shoulder up, and Mom would tuck the quilts under that shoulder, then the other, and she’d repeat. Next morning we were still in that position, each in our own beds, snug as the proverbial bug in a rug.
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| 117 Shenandoah Avenue, Christmas Eve 1963 (Photograph taken with my new Fujica V-2 35 mm camera). The single window on the second floor is Kyle's and my bedroom (and the Santa Claus on the window ledge now appears annually at 233 Woodland Drive). |
👉 Another memory from 117 Shenandoah Avenue in Loch Lynn, Maryland. Every evening when he got home from work, Dad would stretch out on the couch and take a nap before supper. Kyle and I thought that was funny, but anyone who knows me now, knows I follow in my father’s nap-steps. Naptime is after lunch each day and to put ourselves to sleep, Bonnie and I play through the Star Wars movies and the Star Trek movies. Yesterday’s offering was Star Wars 3: The Revenge of the Sith. As I drifted off to sleep I remarked that in Episodes 2 and 3 R2D2 could fly, and wondered why he had lost the ability to do so in Episodes 4, 5, and 6. I dropped off right after R2 ignited his rockets, lit spilled oil on fire, and incinerated two lumbering droids.
👉 Spreading as fast as the insidious corona virus are Internet rumors (Curse you Al Gore for inventing the Internet) about treatment and prevention of the pandemic. I subscribe to Consumer Reports, an excellent magazine which accepts no advertising, pays itself for all of the products tested, and gives trustworthy ratings from which to make purchasing choices. Yesterday they sent me an email attempting to allay our concern about proper personal hygiene and home cleaning care. Bottom line – soap and water, i.e. hand washing – says Stephen Thomas, M.D., chief of infectious diseases and director of global health at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y., “is still your best defense against COVID-19.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a diluted bleach solution (⅓ cup bleach per 1 gallon of water or 4 teaspoons bleach per 1 quart of water) for virus disinfection of surfaces in the home. Wear gloves while using bleach. “Always clean the surface with water and detergent first, since many materials can react with bleach and deactivate it. Dry the surface, then apply the bleach solution and let it sit for at least 10 minutes before wiping it off.”
Isopropyl alcohol and hydrogen peroxide are also good cleansers and disinfectants. The CDC states as ineffective homemade hand satirizer, vodka (the 80-proof product does not contain enough ethyl alcohol), distilled white vinegar, and tea tree oil.
👉 Another bit of Internet raving lunatic advice is that you should leave your groceries sitting on your porch or in your garage for 3 days before bringing them into the house. So, how does that work with ice cream, milk, and fresh meat? That advice is a recipe for disaster or at least spoiled food. Chicken Little would have loved that one.
👉 In other news, Wheel of Fortune – America’s Game – is showing reruns this week. If you haven’t figured it out, the clues are $36,000 as the typical money on the Bonus Wheel (the current year being the 37th and $37,000), no triple toss-ups, and half-a-car wedges. But do not worry. My insiders tell me that new episodes will return next week. Once those have been aired, there will be more reruns. And not only on Wheel.
👉 But back to Guido Brunetti and The Waters of Eternal Youth. Investigating the murder of someone who was about to give crucial information to them, Guido and Claudia Griffoni are discussing whether the murder, who stabbed the victim, was a man or a woman.
Griffoni firmly declared that it was a man, answering Guido’s question of why with the statement, “Women don’t use knives.”
Brunetti asked, “You offering proof of that?”
“Kitchens,” she said laconically.
“Kitchens?”
“The knives are kept in the kitchen, and their husbands pass through there every day, countless times, yet very few of them get stabbed.”
And as I husband who frequently passes through the kitchen, I say, “Well, that’s a mercy!”
👉 Well, let’s bring this edition of the QB to a close with a Psalm that has particular meaning during this perilous time, and a link to the song which rose from it, a hymn written by Martin Luther.
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling.
There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God,
The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved;
God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.
The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved;
He uttered His voice, the earth melted.
The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.
Come, behold the works of the Lord,
Who has made desolations in the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
He burns the chariot in the fire.
Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.
(Psalm 46:1-11)
👉 Often called the “Battle Hymn of the Reformation,” Martin Luther’s “A Mighty Fortress” has been translated into almost every known language, and at least eighty different translations have been made into English.
During times when the Reformation seemed lost, Luther would say to his friend Melanchthon, “Let’s sing the Forty-sixth Psalm.” “A Mighty Fortress” draws its inspiration from Psalm 46.
“A Mighty Fortress” so captured the spirit of the Protestant Reformation that when Protestant emigrants were forced into exile or martyrs went to their death, “A Mighty Fortress” always seemed to be the song they chose to sing.
This pandemic, call it corona virus, COVID-19 or the Chinese virus, or another name may be with us for a long time to come, but “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God!”
Click on this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XUYZoguhEQ and enjoy a great rendition. I especially appreciate the background.
TTFN
-30-
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