QUARANTINE BLOG # 46

May 15, 2020

Monday was the 39th anniversary of the premier of CATS in London’s West End.  Today you can watch the original stage version on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAAaq7M0aXs The stream goes live at 2 p.m. and will be available for 48 hours.

👉  In a matter of weeks, the coronavirus has changed the Western wardrobe.  From being a curiosity seen only on Asian tourists, masks have become as essential – a signal of civic virtue and a passport to many public spaces denied to the bare faced.   And I remain amazed at the number of people who do not wear them.

Well, perhaps the plain medical-blue style is the stumbling block. Louis Vuitton’s Virgil Abloh designed a simple black mask emblazoned with the arrow logo of his own Off-White label for $95.  If you want to buy one from LV, you are too late.  They sold out almost immediately.  But, they are available on eBay. Here is one link for a “buy it now” at $475: https://www.ebay.com/itm/OFF-WHITE-Label-Black-Logo-Face-Mask-Seasonal-2013-Virgil-Abloh/392799435961?hash=item5b74abbcb9:g:hO4AAOSwFLpevVip
Okay, I give you that eBay link with tongue firmly implanted in the side of my cheek (the eBay offer is legitimate however).  This is just a friendly reminder, a nag if you will, to get a mask and wear it!

👉 Today is the next-to-last look at children’s television from earlier days.  The last selection will be Sunday.

“Sesame Street” is 51 years old and is still going strong. It is now on HBO, making it less-accessible to many children, but in 2015 the decision to leave PBS was forced by an $11 million debt – they are now 10 times that amount in the black.  Jim Henson and Frank Oz introduced us to Bert, Ernie, Oscar the Grouch, the Count, Cookie Monster and Big Bird back in 1969.  The show is set on a city street full of valuable learning opportunities.

After the success of the Muppets on “Sesame Street,” creator Jim Henson took Kermit the Frog and gave him a whole new set of theatrical friends which ran as “The Muppet Show” from 1976-1981.

The emphasis was on zany fun, as the characters put on a variety show featuring wise-cracking Fozzie Bear, glamour-loving Miss Piggy, a Swedish chef, a wild rock band, and Statler and Waldorf heckling from the balcony.  One of the coolest things about “The Muppet Show” was its weekly guest stars – Julie Andrews, Carol Burnett, George Burns, Johnny Cash, Phyllis Diller, Mark Hamill, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, and 117 more of entertainment’s best.

“Schoolhouse Rock!” was series of educational short cartoons aired as part of ABC’s Saturday morning lineup from 1973-1979, sandwiched between half-hour shows.  The subjects featured “Multiplication Rock,” “Grammar Rock,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AyjKgz9tKg and “America Rock.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyeJ55o3El0

👉 The last unemployment figures I saw said 22,000,000 Americans are out of work.  Congress pitched in to help, with a $2.3 trillion stimulus package.  Now our elected representatives are working on another one, actually three more proposals.

The most generous package being considered is the Automatic Boost to Communities (ABC) introduced by Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA).  It calls for $2,000 monthly payments, per eligible individual plus dependents, to be made for at least 12 months during the payment period, with an additional $1,000 monthly payment to be made for 12 months following the cessation of the $2,000 monthly payment period.

Under the Tlaib/Jayapal plan, U.S. citizens, residents, and nonresident aliens who have been in the U.S. for more than 3 months, beginning on December 13, 2019, are eligible to receive benefits.  There is no income requirement.  Estimates of this most generous stimulus is $10 trillion.  The current national debt – spending more than the nation takes in (bankruptcy for you and I) – is $25 trillion, and it increases $4 million every day.  If this proposal, or any of the 3 under debate pass, the government will simply print more money – there is no precious metal backing our currency; we went off the gold standard in 1971.

I don’t know who said it, but a statement about income and spending needs repeating: “When your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall.”

👉  I met Terry Flemming when he was assigned to be the district superintendent for the Augusta District of the North Georgia UMC Conference.  Over the years he served here, he demonstrated time and time again that he was a friend of the local church and a pastor to pastors.  My ministry at Macedonia was greatly supported and enhanced by this man of God.  After Augusta he returned to pastoring and will retire in June, at the end of the church year.  The following piece was written by Terry:

God never promised that life would not hurt.  God did promise He will one day wipe away every tear. (Revelation 21:4)

God never promised that no storms would come.  God did promise that the life built on the rock would weather the storm. (Matthew 7:25)

God never promised that our enemy would never come in like a flood.  God did promise that if that happens, His Spirit would raise up a standard against that enemy. (Isaiah 59:19)

God never promised that we would escape the fire.  God did promise that if we go through the fire we will not burned. (Isaiah 43:2)

God never promised it would all be easy.  God did promise He would never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6; Matthew 28:20)

God never promised that life would always be rosy.  God did promise that for the called, all things will be woven together and harmonized for their good and for His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

God never promised we would never get sick or injured or killed.  God did promise He will raise every believer from death never to die again. (John 6:40)

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