QUARANTINE BLOG # 393

April 27, 2021

In case you missed it, on Sunday the 93rd Academy Awards honored movies released in a year of a global pandemic, with a socially distanced ceremony held at Union Station in Los Angeles.  Wall Street Journal film writer Ben Fritz wonders, “whether audiences will return to theaters for the films the Academy Awards typically honor,” which this blogger translates as films most people wait to see for free.  

Anthony Hopkins won the best actor award for “The Father.”  Rotten Tomatoes calls it, “a devastatingly empathetic portrayal of dementia.”  I’ll pass.  Or as Siskel and Ebert used to say, “Two thumbs down.”  Frances McDormand won for “Nomadland.”  Rotten Tomatoes says, “Hang in there with its slow pace and downer of a story.”  Two thumbs down.  And “Nomadland” won the best picture.  Two more thumbs down.  With tickets almost $10, even for old people, and popcorn more than that, I’ll wait for them to stream for free, and then I think I’ll pass.

👉  And now for some good news.  American tourists who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 will be able to visit the European Union over the summer, the head of the bloc’s executive body said in an interview with The New York Times on Sunday.  The fast pace of vaccination in the United States, and advanced talks between authorities there and the European Union over how to make vaccine certificates acceptable as proof of immunity for visitors, will enable the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, to recommend a switch in policy that could see trans-Atlantic leisure travel restored.  

“All 27 member states will accept, unconditionally, all those who are vaccinated with vaccines that are approved by E.M.A.,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said.  The agency, the bloc’s drugs regulator, has approved all three vaccines being used in the United States, namely the Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson shots.

👉  Three comic strips for your amusement:

👉  If you are a horse race fan (“Like to see some stuck up jockey boy sitting on Dan Patch”) the first Saturday in May will bring you “America’s Greatest Race” and the fastest two minutes in sports.  At Churchill Downs this year’s 147th Run for the Roses is back at its regular calendar spot.  Except for last year, the Kentucky Derby has been staged on the first Saturday in May every year since 1947,  missing only last year (the race was run in September).  If you can’t get tickets – and for the most preferred place to watch the gallop, you have to buy more than one – you can take your mint julep and turn to your local NBC station (I’m not sure how they are doing it or what the telecast will look like, but USAToday reports the broadcast will be 5 hours long, beginning at 2:30 p.m.).

About those tickets – and Churchill Downs will be at about 40% of its 165,000 capacity – a second mortgage won’t be necessary, but it will still be expensive to watch in person.  The bargain price ticket, infield-only general admission, is $80 if you buy it by Friday, $85 on race day.  Reserved Box Seating is $725 and you must buy 6 tickets for a total of $4,350.  If you want to be in Millionaires Row or have a Turf Club Table (food and drinks included) prepare to spend at least $1500 for one ticket.  I think I’ll wait for the 6:50 p.m. post time, and turn on local channel 26.  And they’re off!

👉  “I Enjoy Being a Girl” is the showpiece for Linda Low, the lead showgirl in Rodgers and Hammerstein 1958 musical Flower Drum Song.  The musical is a love story about growing up Chinese in America, the clash between the traditional values of the old country and the modern ways of America.  The lyrics praise the traditional values of being a woman who longs to be the object of a man’s affection.  Flower Drum Song was not as successful as other Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, but “I Enjoy Being a Girl” remains popular.

The most unusual cover occurred when Cheryl Ladd and Miss Piggy bashed a dummy and Kermit is set loose in Ladd’s dressing room.

👉  Today’s close is by Debbie McDaniel.

“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Sometimes the needs in our lives seem to mount up high. Maybe you’re waiting, or have been praying, for help, for a breakthrough. Maybe you feel like it’s been slow in coming, or that you can’t see a way out of your current situation. Maybe the needs seem to far outweigh the reality you’re living in. You’ve lost hope, feel alone in the struggle, and the weight of stress seems too hard to keep shouldering.

Whatever the need – physical, spiritual, financial, emotional, relational – His truth reminds us that He’s got “this thing,” whatever it is, that concerns you.

He is able. Fully. To provide what you need.

“And my God will meet (supply, provide for, accomplish, complete) all your needs (necessities, tasks) according to his glorious (bright, majestic, splendor) riches (wealth, abundance) in Christ Jesus.”

Our God who created the entire world and designed you and I with such purpose and intent can provide, will provide, out of His richness, fullness, wealth and treasure, for every single need we have. He gives favor. He lines up our pathways to be in the right place at the right time. He miraculously accomplishes so many things for us every day that we may not even be aware of. And He will bend over backwards just to give to you out of His riches. Whether we realize it or not. Because He loves us.

We will never out give the richness of God for us. Because His provision is really not based on us. It’s based on His character, and He is Jehovah-Jireh, the God who provides.

I’m resting there today. Right smack in the middle of His abundance. Hope you are too.

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