QUARANTINE BLOG # 311

February 4, 2021

Booker T. Washington, who rose from slavery to become the founder of Tuskegee Institute – now Tuskegee University – wrote in his autobiography, Up From Slavery, “I was born a slave on a plantation in Franklin County, Virginia.  I am not quite sure of the exact place or exact date of my birth, but at any rate I suspect I must have been born somewhere and at some time.”

“I was born in a typical log cabin, about fourteen by sixteen feet square.  In this cabin I lived with my mother and a brother and sister till after the Civil War, when we were all declared free ... The cabin was without glass windows; it had only openings in the side which let in the light, and also the cold, chilly air of winter … there was no wooden floor in our cabin, the naked earth being used as a floor.”

A cabin on the Burroughs Plantation in Franklin County, Virginia.

Washington remembered a stranger who came to the plantation after Lee’s surrender at Appomattox and read the Emancipation Proclamation.  “After the reading we were all free, and could go when and where we pleased.  My mother this was the moment she had been praying for.”

Statue of Emancipation Proclamation Reading off Front Porch of Big House (statue by Lloyd Lillie).

Washington wrote that rejoicing lasted for only a brief period and then there was some change in feelings upon return to their cabins.  “The great responsibility of being free, of having charge of themselves, of having to think and plan for themselves and their children, seemed to take possession.”

👉  Quarantine Blog is not the Toy Hunter (Jordan Hembrough) of TV fame, but we continue looking at some old toys you may have had and today are worth big bucks (if they are MIB – Mint In Box).

We start today with Hasbro’s Lite Brite, introduced in 1967, and consisting of a light box with small colored plastic pegs that fit into a panel and illuminate to create a lit picture. Today, an original MIB Lite Brite can go for well over $300 – not bad for a game you paid $20 for.  The value on the original issues is typically $20-$50, and the reason they go for less than some other toys is the number of sets made, condition, and the fact that they are still being made today.  

Hasbro is risking the wrath of the PCP (Politically Correct Police) with their Lite Brite LED Flatscreen.  It is about the size of a computer pad, but they face the wrath of the PCP because they offer them in Flatscreen for Boys and Flatscreen for Girls.  The gender-benders will have a fit if they find out.

Happy Meal Toys have been around since 1979, and have remained popular ever since. Certain themes have become collectibles, like Beanie Baby Happy Meal toys and Disney characters.  The article I read said one of the Disney characters recently sold on eBay for $300.  The most expensive sold piece I found was actually a set of Lot of 84 “100 Years of Magic Walt Disney World McDonalds Happy Meal Toys” which went for $90 (plus shipping).  Still, not bad for something you acquired for free (if you discount the price of the Happy Meal).

Beanie Babies were a huge deal for a long time, from the early 90s into the late 2000s, and certain members of my family drove me to distraction stopping at every roadside purveyor to find the critters (the finger is pointed at no one who has ever received their mail at a Georgia zip code).  The fad has long since died down, but there are still collectors willing to pay thousands of dollars for rare or limited-edition Beanie Babies.  My initial research for this section said that a 1997 first-edition Princess Diana Beanie Baby can go for up to $600,000.  I found one on eBay listed at $25, and another for $550.  And one on Etsy for $54,401.86 (free shipping) when I wrote this.  It was up to $56,224.90 this morning.  Bottom line here: if you don’t know what you are doing, don’t.  The one in the picture above 54K Etsy model.

👉  Wall Street Journal yesterday reported that if everyone in the U.S. who says they definitely plan to get vaccinated gets the shot, it still won’t be enough to end the pandemic.  That’s because vast numbers of Americans are either unsure about getting the Covid-19 vaccine or say they will never get it. 

Studies show that to stop the spread of Covid-19, between 70% and 80% of the population must develop immunity.  Nearly a quarter of unvaccinated adults indicate they won’t get the shots, the U.S. Census Bureau survey finds, some fearing side effects, others distrusting government.  Christopher Thomas, a cardiologist in Minnesota, said he tells his patients that he had a fever for two days after receiving his second dose of vaccine and it was easily managed with a couple of acetaminophen.  He tells them to compare that possible discomfort with the more serious complications and blood clotting he has seen in Covid-19 patients.  And death.

👉  A couple of smiles from Non Sequitor before we close:

👉  Today’s close is by Chuck Swindoll.

I am hard pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and watch the NFL ... yet to remain in the pulpit is more necessary for your sake (Philippians 1:23-24, Swindoll Paraphrase).

Now don’t get me wrong. I love to preach. But I also love professional football. With only minor adjustments, both “loves” can be maintained without much difficulty, but on Sundays when there’s a big game, I freely admit, I have a conflict. I’ve thought of all sorts of alternative plans:

Have church on Saturday. Ask an usher to signal the score periodically. Call in sick.

Each “solution” has its problems. Conflicts lead to frustration – especially the ones much more serious than the one I just described. I do have one solution that will at least ease the burden of conflict when consistently applied: prayer. Paul wrote, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand” (Philippians 4:6-7).

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