QUARANTINE BLOG # 670

February 16, 2022

Bonnie was working on our taxes Monday, getting things ready to go to our CPA, and she asked me a question about our security cameras.  I was looking through the check register which she keeps on her computer and found the following entry:

I immediately pointed it out to her and asked what sin I had committed that only cost $150.  She said the first “S” should have been attached to DAVID and a space after which would have made it DAVIDS INS – David’s Insurance.  That’s her story and she’s sticking to it.  

I know the entry is a mistake because Jesus paid for my sins, not with money, but with his death and resurrection.  Priceless!

👉  The New York Times Style Magazine says “The Big Short: Miniskirts Make Their Return.  Hemlines are on the rise for spring, with leg-baring, ’90s-style minis that flare, slit and hug the hips.”

If you want to be in style and purchase the outfit the anorexic-looking model above is wearing, you’ll fork out $8,900 for a Chanel jacket, the top is $2,350, the skirt, $4,350, and shoes, $1,300.  There is an undertop you can’t see which goes for $3,500.  The jewelry is finished by Tiffany & Co. with rings going for $4,200 and $1,700, and earrings for $6,200.  You’ll have to the Style Mag’s word for the accessories because they don’t show up in the picture.  You’ll need to write your check for $30,150.  Tax will be extra.

👉  Well, after my recorded misconduct and the outrageous wardrobe expense (no known connection between the two) I think it is time to look at some comic strips.  

First up, Calvin and Hobbes:

Next, a great truth from Dustin:

And thirdly, one each from Non Sequitur, Pearls Before Swine, Pickles, and Pluggers.

👉  The comic strips also have some political comments to make:

👉  In QB 649 we had a story about David Bennett Sr. whose failing heart was replaced by a genetically engineered pig heart.  Five weeks after surgery Mr. Bennett began physical therapy.  His new heart shows no signs of rejection, and is functioning normally.  The next step is getting Mr. Bennett’s legs strong enough to start using a walker.

👉  Catherine Graham had gone to California to visit her daughter and appear on “The Price is Right.”  She won a fire pit and a love seat and was up on stage ready to play “Side By Side” with host Drew Carey.  Correctly guessing the price at $7,696 instead of $9,676 she won a trip to New Hampshire.  That’s not a bad prize, but Graham was less than thrilled because she lives next door in Massachusetts.  She confessed she was hoping for somewhere a bit more exotic than the “Live Free or Die” state, which she said she’s already visited “a million times.”  She told a local TV station, “I just wish it was Tahiti or some place, or Bora Bora.  A cruise around the world maybe.”  

I think the Southern expression, “Well heavens to Betsy” (an exclamation of surprise, anger, happiness, really any emotion) is appropriate here.  But hey, she did win five nights at The Hotel Concord, daily breakfast and one dinner, along with $80 in additional food spending.

Side Bar Your Honor: Rooms are listed for $175.  Picking the most expensive dinner item (20 oz ribeye for $44), salad ($7) and appetizer ($15) and the $80 in additional food spending totals to $2,166 (for a 7 night stay).  That leaves $5,530.  Airfare was coach – Google Flights lists the round trip from LA at $555 and Economy Plus at $1,035.  I’m counting between $4,000 and $5,000 left over.  So I am wondering, why is the trip so expensive?

Quoting from the hotel’s website: “Occupying the fourth and sixth floors of the Capital Commons building with views of our historic State House, The Hotel Concord is the perfect setting for your Granite State getaway, meeting or special event.”

QB hopes Ms. Graham enjoys her stay.

👉  Before we close, QB has a new category of jocularity – quotations:

🛐  Today’s close is by Erin Keeley Marshall.

“If you don’t go with us personally, don’t let us move a step from this place.” (Exodus 33:15 – NLT).

We sensed change on the horizon. Through much prayer and soul-searching, we put our house on the market to open the door for Jesus to move us if He was guiding as we thought. But months went by with hardly an interest shown, regardless that we dropped the price significantly three times.

In the meantime, we searched for our ideal neighborhood and school system. As time passed, our favorite areas and homes changed. We prayed more heartily that God would hold the place of His choosing and would not move us at all if we already were where we belonged. And as time passed, we grew in faith and surrender. Not always easy lessons.

I’m guessing the Israelites dealt with similar trust-challenges while they wandered in the wilderness. Jesus continues to bless His peoples efforts to release their will to His. There simply is no better place for any of us than enveloped in His presence. As Moses prayed, may we continue to ask at deeper levels, “If you don’t go with us personally, don’t let us move a step from this place.”

After eighteen months, Jesus surprised us by selling our house a month before the contract ended. I’m typing now from our new home – one of the first we looked at, one that was not priced right back then, one that was owned by a family who was experiencing Jesus doing new things in their lives, and one that fits us ideally. If we had jumped instead of waiting for Jesus to move us, we would have robbed Him and our family of the joy of His best.

Waiting on Jesus is the best. And best is better than easy.

Faith step : Are you sensing Jesus preparing you for something new? Pray that He will hold you where you are until He’s ready to go personally with you to the next step of His choosing.

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