QUARANTINE BLOG # 198

October 14, 2020

Journalistic honesty compels me to point you to yesterday’s blog for a correction.  A reader pointed out, correctly, that the candy which melts in your mouth, not in your hand, is properly written “m&m,” not “M&M.”  The quarantine blog strives for accuracy.  Let all of those who publish fake news use us as a guide!

**  Here’s one from our “You’ve Got To Be Kidding Me!” Department.  Israel-born actress Gal Gadot is going to team up again with “Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins in a new film about the legendary Egyptian Queen Cleopatra.  “Cleopatra is a story I wanted to tell for a very long time.  Can’t be more grateful about this A team,” Gadot said.  The film is a retelling of the epic tale made famous by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 classic.  

The announcement drew criticism, with some railing against the casting of an Israeli as the Queen of Egypt, saying that an Arab or Black woman should have won the role. Journalist Sameera Khan, a former correspondent for Russia Today, with 50,600 Twitter followers, and a previously Miss New Jersey said, “And shame on you, Gal Gadot.  Your country steals Arab land & you’re stealing their movie roles.”

You’ve got to be kidding me!

**  All of you jewelry lovers need to mark this date on your calendars.  On November 11 an exceptionally rare, 14.83-carat “fancy vivid purple-pink internally flawless” diamond will go on the block at Sotheby’s auction house.  I am letting you know early in case you want to arrange financing before you bid.  The oval-shaped gem, dubbed “The Spirit of the Rose” is expected to fetch up to $38 million.

“The occurrence of pink diamonds in nature is extremely rare in any size. Only one percent of all pink diamonds are larger than 10-carats and only four percent of all pink diamonds are graded ‘Fancy Vivid’ and display a rich, vivid color,” said Gary Schuler, the worldwide chairman of Sotheby’s jewelry division.  He called the gem “a natural wonder, steeped in Russia’s century-long diamond tradition and cultural heritage.”

**  Back to the jukebox.  The Beach Boys formed in Hawthorne, California in 1961. The group’s original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine.  Distinguished by their vocal harmonies and early surf songs, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era.  The Beach Boys began as a garage band led by Brian and managed by the Wilsons’ father Murry.  In 1963, the group gained national prominence with a string of top-ten singles reflecting a southern California youth culture of surfing, cars, and romance, dubbed the “California sound.”  The Beach Boys are one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful bands of all time, with over 100 million records sold worldwide. 

In January 1963, the Beach Boys recorded their first top-ten single, “Surfin’ U.S.A.”, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsDKMkPCOeA which began their long run of highly successful recording efforts.

Surfin’ Safari: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMChBJZUDK8. This one is worth watching just for the incredible videos of the ocean and the surfers.

One of their “hot rod songs” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8g1HtpTonJI “Little Deuce Coupe.”

In 1964, the Beach Boys faced new competition, the Beatles.  Paul McCartney cited “God Only Knows” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOMyS78o5YI as his favorite song of all time, and said that it, and the album from which it was released, “Pet Sounds” was the primary impetus for the Beatles’ 1967 album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."

**  Today’s close is from John North, Ambassadors for Christ International.

“Don’t be troubled.  Trust in God.  Trust also in me.  My Father’s house has room to spare.  If that weren’t the case, would I have told you that I’m going to prepare a place for you?  When I go to prepare a place for you, I will return and take you to be with me so that where I am you will be too” (John 14:1-3 CEB).

Who, or what, are you trusting in?

The world’s answer to that question is that you need to trust in yourself and what you can do about your circumstances.  Or some people trust in the circumstances themselves.  But neither of these are dependable things to trust in!

Circumstances are constantly changing.  A person who trusts in them will be constantly swinging between happiness and discouragement.  And a person who trusts in his own ability to deal with circumstances will soon discover that he cannot control his health, or the actions of other people, or even his own sinful nature.

No, there is only one place to put your trust if you want to find peace.  That place of rest and security is found when you decide to totally trust the Lord and his will for you.  That doesn’t mean that you just resign yourself to God’s will – it means that you embrace his will as the best thing in your life.  Why?  Because you trust him!

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