tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52842988778795938592024-03-12T22:39:01.446-07:00...and my typewriter tooChristian, husband, father, teacher, life-long learner, poet, author and resident curmudgeon.Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-42912600966468768852021-02-10T08:15:00.001-08:002021-02-10T08:15:50.128-08:00Modern Problems<img id="id_faa1_c808_2c3a_9f4b" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/91xiJ29GcHm0pI31OXF-nD6m7jziPhsW2N1BmjkGC9pxAFjmvRWJB0QF3KvwVY0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-13756705433468450222021-02-06T20:28:00.001-08:002021-02-06T20:28:14.145-08:00Gandalf Quote<img id="id_8f58_f348_e26f_faf8" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/6eKrqzH1yavwt2cJZkrSD4J3irGmPTAqeWkw6KTF18KDcdAh8OpAZr8mLxrU_RM" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-81764249777647929532021-01-27T20:05:00.001-08:002021-01-27T20:05:22.474-08:00"Night Hill" watercolor<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div><div>Well its a start. Trying to keep mind active. I've been very depressed during this pandemic and didn't realize how depressed I was during these historic times. I want to write poetry, but I can't seem to get in the right frame of mind. I have been drinking way too heavily, so that may be part of the problem.</div>Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-64118565287190083432021-01-27T19:58:00.001-08:002021-01-27T19:58:32.277-08:00haiku<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div>Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-55365563237465956872021-01-04T09:37:00.001-08:002021-01-04T09:37:23.841-08:00Redo of birds on a wire<img id="id_620e_b85e_a13c_f246" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/lR4BmjpTnIYmvqOxCyoCqXMdCC6eMVChY8QriJoV_u1xu5zG5uH2i78Uv-9qQjg" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-223898353651596212020-12-25T16:39:00.001-08:002020-12-25T16:48:08.752-08:00In March I was ready for Spring<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-8b93f530-7fff-c2e3-cfb7-eacd9c2fe091" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 20pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; text-decoration: underline; text-decoration-skip: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In March I was ready for Spring</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In March I was ready for Spring,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By April the world was suffering,</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I was stuck in my little house, </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For weeks with my loving spouse.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Work continued through the gloom,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Online with a tool called Zoom.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wife and son in the other room,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Teaching, learning and meetings of doom.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“You’re on mute!” “Click your mic!”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Damn it! Shit!” “Sorry, I meant Shoot.”</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In March I was ready for Spring, </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By May, I finally found toilet paper.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">June came and Spring was spent.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Life continues, pandemic bent.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">July came and went,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wonder how my Summer was spent.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In March I was ready for Spring, </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By April the world was suffering.</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rex Seigler</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 6pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Special Elite", cursive; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">September 20, 2020</span></p><br style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-70007045963932309522020-11-18T09:24:00.005-08:002023-03-05T09:00:41.119-08:00Advent Devotional | Christmas PlaysLuke 2: 8-12 NIV
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Nothing spreads as much fear and trepidation, to young parents as hearing that your child has a part in the upcoming Christmas play. Yep, all of us parents have been there. Wondering if your budding actor will be the shepherd that undresses in the middle of the wise men entrance, or if Mary will start crying because someone moved Baby Jesus. With us, it was watching Jonah place a choke hold on the stuffed sheep and praying that its head wouldn’t pop off during the play. Beastial decapitation is rarely included in the script, but alas it does happen.
We all gather to watch these plays, rejoice, laugh and celebrate the joy of the Advent spirit of the season. No, the plays do not always go by the script, the live animals occasionally brought in for the occasion can give us a surprise, and young performers astound us with their improvisations, but the scripture and music provided give us all Hope and Joy for the season.
As a Church, we all love to see the Christmas Play, it reminds us of how Jesus’ story began, yet sometimes we forget that Christ’s story began at creation. His birth with Mary and Joseph, in Bethlehem, was a part of our salvation story.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, help us remember your plan of salvation for us. Help us to reach out to others who do not know you, and share with them love, compassion, and hope. Help us to alway be your children and respond to your word. Amen.
Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-75125479099095987402020-11-18T09:23:00.004-08:002020-11-18T09:23:40.900-08:00Silent Night Advent DevotionalLuke 2:7 ESV
And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Imagine a small Austrian town, in 1818. The town is Oberndorf bei Salzberg. It is night, you are walking home, in the darkness and the only illumination is from candles or lanterns.
The moon rises stately over the mountains and there is a crisp December crunch under your feet. The sounds of the organ come drifting serenely from the church, until a broken note breaks the serenity of the night. The organ was damaged due to water damage from a recent flood.
A young priest that was to lead the Christmas Eve Mass composed a new hymn and had his friend Franz Gruber write a melody for it. It was performed simply that Christmas Eve with only a guitar accompaniment. No other song has ever been penned that has the clarity, beauty and hope of this familiar tune, Silent Night. The song has become so integral in our Advent and Christmas time celebrations, I doubt that it would feel like Christmas without it.
Silent night! Holy Night!
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin
Mother and child!
Holy Infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace!
Sleep in Heavenly Peace!
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
Grant us the peace of knowing that you have everything under control. Grant us the wisdom to discern what is important in your eyes. Grant us the power to do your will during this Advent season and beyond. Thank you for our salvation through Christ, Jesus.
Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-33368193641890334372020-11-18T09:23:00.000-08:002020-11-18T09:23:00.132-08:00Advent DevotionalMatthew 25: 31-40 New International Version
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Blind Man
Where did you come from?
Before you leaned against the wall
Of that jaded discount store?
Did people see your cane
And pass you in disdain?
How long did you sit there,
Before anyone spoke?
Asked you a question?
Have you been here before?
Have you sat in this heat?
What is that you said? You need to borrow a phone?
You can use mine.
You need some water, You can have mine.
Oh there’s your ride,
Have a nice day friend.
I wrote these lines in July of 2019 long before the pandemic ever struck. It was a record of my interaction with a man that I noticed sitting outside a big box store. He was sitting on the hot concrete leaning against the wall. As I passed, there was a whisper in the back of my mind, an itch, or as I like to think, the Holy Spirit.
I shopped for the items on my list, then on a whim bought a bottle of water. I usually don’t buy water, because I think the bottles are a threat to our environment. I started back to my car with my bags. There he was, the man, still sitting in the heat. His red and white cane was across his lap as he waited.
I sat down next to him, no easy feat with my arthritic back, but it allowed me to engage with him and find out if he needed anything.
This story is about one small encounter, but this meeting made a small difference, in one person’s life. It is moments like this, when we respond to that small quiet voice, the whisper of the Holy Spirit, that we experience the hope and love of the advent season.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the gift of the Holy Spirit, guide through life’s struggles, help us to know how to be your hands in this cruel world and experience love, hope and peace during this Advent season. Amen
Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-63189440753871931172020-10-21T18:06:00.001-07:002020-10-21T18:07:38.198-07:00Sitting and watching the stars<img id="id_ae99_65ff_5970_3050" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/WXxvk8cEk_YpCD0RHwjRArS51GyeG925cg5DLn2SHOMCLFeQ8NqZFgXqY1tjbAQ" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-34933885752983279392020-10-18T16:28:00.001-07:002020-10-18T16:28:45.423-07:00October 18, 2020 This is the first "real" Fall day.<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div><br></div>Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-71658379213265026242020-09-13T20:08:00.001-07:002020-09-13T20:08:43.068-07:00Thinking about Dad<img id="id_977f_4740_51a1_73e6" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/yDN3DzbJNJ0CBYiDOa9d_8bHff_jLgJwVfwmMZSP0Yq7SKyqkec7N52IhNs85WE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-26561359617612984172020-08-27T21:58:00.001-07:002020-08-27T21:58:36.360-07:00This Ain’t No Bull<img id="id_916f_7677_78aa_872a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/nJ06qGnf0o7cvHWxQHN-DcKFdyDLpfAVp1u3heNSZ4ZHOiQdVAXtm9RM1CZtVwE" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_d903_52bc_2789_475c" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/Agmhl3mRLIRWoUN1qDQOf08woB8U9sPvSAba4FqiU7zQkBfjJ05VsKjkGezlhI8" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-50206598905278719102020-08-15T19:59:00.001-07:002020-08-15T19:59:32.945-07:00Haiku<img id="id_d4a2_34bb_3aaf_4df5" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/nYNg3T4E7bec4fk7w1Dq-zeljxVoKUMcSH7GSfR6laGNVCfyb5iW5nfKhn3aMi4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><img id="id_7a64_3f18_e576_ba3" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9XWcDwkcaZqWemQ82WTRK7CZNLXcztff6l46PLSIZC3BZ97hvdq6v9KFcUqgjNA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-64445328608822715552020-07-24T11:24:00.001-07:002020-07-24T11:24:37.626-07:00Another fine myth<img id="id_b9d4_c114_dd43_3013" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/ufVF9ispGkSmOfINptZdbHHe0XHIlodg-hUuvieupZda3s6gN3zQO9d9sSDWI1Y" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/64401.Another_Fine_Myth" id="id_5460_d4c3_512d_1299">Another fine Myth</a><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-10041421494746240592020-07-24T10:03:00.001-07:002020-07-24T10:03:50.404-07:00Urban Jungle<img id="id_d443_1ce3_8454_551a" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ojST_02bmCynXRFRnPjDaAM8UPAcXGiigafJp5Z1uLwruwaUBs0WJf9LJ71Zq8k" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><a href="I love ...and my typewriter too | urban jungle, let" s="" play="" it!="" https:="" www.podbean.com="" ei="" pb-cj5vk-e4566b'="" id="id_6d8e_6394_1e06_5d07">audio file</a><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-7425418396592908812020-07-23T19:43:00.001-07:002020-07-23T19:43:46.949-07:00It Rolls On and On<img id="id_4250_5bee_c13e_20af" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/P7eScTwoceN1S6U1-5oNLhMuk6ZCnSyOKWCCT-BD51ePesca4E8e1VDZ29xhgUo" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-57715714555169416082020-07-20T20:51:00.001-07:002020-07-20T20:51:24.468-07:00Birthday <img id="id_8bca_ab12_eb23_d4a2" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/fYsieALG6L344Kbe3wPytCMs3qlIHpLAD3x5092bOx3UXAsLx9m1p4l0ln2Qxqc" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-58644681771777359182020-07-14T21:13:00.001-07:002020-07-14T21:13:26.171-07:00Summer night on the patio<img id="id_d79_f008_fb72_36a0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/mD4psRPpcV-zE7SH3xLWnKcMoYhQMzf8gjIJO1A0NQ2kF2fP_3ubz0YSuerCgn4" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br> <div><br></div><div><img id="id_a9c5_baee_5f5d_bdde" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/p4A4HsqZvsHNeIyYtOAXUzh_9PsXsgn3xP4aZvc4Iavg4qY863W0WQfSWUnKETk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 392px; height: auto;"><br><br><br></div>Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-60461930794144016192020-07-08T22:16:00.001-07:002020-07-08T22:20:53.613-07:00Umpa Lumpas, BLM, and Internet Debauchery <font face="Courier New">Many things are really ticking me off. The Grand Imperial Umpa Lumpa (Trump) and the Wicked Witch of the East (DeVos) and the TEA (Texas Education Agency) and Governor Abott, have all decided that beyond all costs it is a must that schools must be in a face to face classes in the fall and that parent should have the final say in whether their children go to school face-to-face or virtually. The districts are mandated to offer this, but there are no firm safety guidelines, except some useless suggestions and no funding to go along with this. Teachers who have already been asked to do things way beyond the acceptable job description and with out adequate funding for so long, many of them are going to snap.</font><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">Also, there are no firm guidelines on how we are to start back to school safely, but we already have in place a testing calendar,</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">Now this is where a long convoluted conversation should begin that covers many different topics. Yes, Black Lives Matter, I get that and I truly understand the depth and gravity of that situation and the importance we should all be having that discussion. It is a matter of privilege and I will redouble my efforts to self examine my hidden biases (I have now for a while) and work to end them in the world around me. But there is another conversation of privilege that is not necessarily a racial one, but it is also an overlapping one, and that is the privilege to have a reliable, and affordable access to the Internet.</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">Most of my students have access to some sort of Internet capable device, usually a cell phone. There are so many discarded phones around, and statistics show that there are know more cell phones on the globe than there are people, an estimated 16 billion (<a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/245501/multiple-mobile-device-ownership-worldwide/" id="id_5bff_3d03_ee0_627b">Statistica</a>). Many of those are Internet capable regardless of cellular activation in a WiFi environment.</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">Do students have access to WiFi at home? Do students have access to other necessary supplies at home? Do students have adequate nutritional support at home? With the rising unemployment, inflation, reduction of income, certainly indicate that many families will have to make some serious choices about finances, and WiFi and other school supplies are often, and justifiably so, are not very high on the family priority list. I get it.</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">I also get that we still know very little about this disease. We don’t know if you gain immunity, or how long you will have immunity. We don’t know why some people are infected with the exact same germ and are totally devastated, while others are asymptomatic, or are only inconvenienced by the illness. We don’t know what the true long-term effects are, because there appears to be neurological effects as well as devastating long-term effects on the pulmonary system.</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">So let’s go and send kids (by the way the infection rate for the population of the under 20 years old is rising) to face-to-face school environments in older buildings with cranky HVAC systems, and rooms to small to provide the suggested distancing rules with teachers, some of which have health conditions that are dangerous with Co-Vid 19 and no real plan on how this will work out. We are already in a national teachers shortage, and in Texas and abyssal supply of substitute teachers. </font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">This insanity needs to stop. I want to get off this ride.....</font></div><div><font face="Courier New"><br></font></div><div><font face="Courier New">That is all for now, for me, and my typewriter too.</font></div><div><br></div><div><br></div>Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-77458843544459628162020-07-08T21:35:00.001-07:002020-07-08T21:35:22.135-07:00July 7 2020<img id="id_5cda_2f33_9d52_4f0b" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/dXLuhwpzbIz3YwBineZa90YpgK_DimhBq8-VsBuqhtJqz7a8xmaWJh_pQh0weaY" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-91991867403668602492020-05-31T18:56:00.001-07:002020-05-31T18:56:17.760-07:00Peace<img id="id_74ee_a143_4bd1_ad14" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/wMCIwJGZ2Hi3LhTDJ1wowIuz6WaJM9fwBnWgaefhE3clCmN0SRjejy_6tSJFv2w" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-67721380544719225622020-05-30T21:54:00.001-07:002020-05-30T21:54:40.102-07:00Sins of Racism<img id="id_21fa_f390_a65b_a1b5" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/IZMjt9gF_aJR_e5y3O5vZmIT3ki4BMfjOj9i5tJVS-GlHlcXytGREZ2RCz7oonk" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><img id="id_4c9b_f57a_4b97_bdb8" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/aXUdPSJBGuXLoKg5K67zmt0l1UuJSPm5pkysXAVLe_6U_0C61P5YcOFLeltNFa0" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-67727301271948779792020-05-24T19:38:00.001-07:002020-05-24T19:38:59.601-07:00Stormy Weather<img id="id_4977_90a1_335f_856b" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/_7MEJJAfb0ua0ppS1ovyJ3T6oHbvP2yb7uKAWQKG9GtiPgSIpeGH-RIrqtLAUkA" alt="" title="" tooltip="" style="width: 746px; height: auto;"><br><br> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5284298877879593859.post-91521419282309721272020-05-16T21:48:00.001-07:002020-05-24T19:34:35.661-07:00 Devotional inspired by Evan Hansen<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="content_LETTER.BLOCK1" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;"><tbody><tr><td class="Image MainText" valign="top" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" style="padding: 0px; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div align="center" style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span size="3" face="Times New Roman" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><strong>Thursday, May 14</strong></span></div><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><div align="left" style="text-align: left;"><span size="3" face="Times New Roman" style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br></span></div><div align="left" style="text-align: left;"><span size="3" face="Times New Roman" style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br></span></div><div align="left" style="text-align: left;"><div align="center" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Comic Sans MS", Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><div class="Body" align="center" style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, serif;"><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b>Matthew 22:36-40 New International Version (NIV)</b></div><div align="center" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><i style="font-size: 14pt;"><sup>36</sup> "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" <sup>37</sup> Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'<sup>38</sup> This is the first and greatest commandment. <sup>39</sup> And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'<sup> 40</sup> All the Law and the </i><i style="font-size: 14pt;">Prophets hang on these two commandments."</i></div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">A couple of months ago I was listening to the musical Dear Evan Hansen, by Steven Levenson, I was driving so I didn't really pay attention to the storyline, I just noted that the lyrics of one song really hit home. This week, I revisited that song, and realized it is about each of us in some way. It was a song about our separation and the loneliness. We are a people in a modern culture, connected more through social networking than ever before in our history. We can and do communicate instantaneously with people on far sides of the globe, yet we have a hard time telling the people we love most, how we feel. Sometimes the largest separations come in the same house.</div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">Somehow, somewhere in our digital age, during the time of tragedy or disaster people, pull together and reach out to those around them, usually in a digital way, that is not costly to them, but in a cheap digital tribute that makes them, and us feel better and more useful, because we have responded, to the situation.</div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">Let us take time now, while we have to collectively pause, and renew the connections to those we love, to those who are disconnected and lonely.</div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">Dear Evan Hansen, is a social commentary on a reality that we as Christians do not have follow. We can take action, and make connections, and serve those who may look ok on the outside, but are actually lonely and hurting inside.</div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">For the moment, we may have to make do with a digital touch or hug, God's love cannot be taken away as long as we share it.</div><div style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"> </div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><b>Prayer</b></div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><i>Heavenly Father, help us to remember those who are lost, who are lonely, who are isolated and without any hope. Father help us to realize who most needs your love, and how we as a people can connect them to You. <strong>Amen</strong></i></div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><i><strong><br></strong></i></div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><i><strong>Rex</strong></i></div><br></div><br></div><div align="left" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></div><br></div><br></div></div></div></div><div align="left" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Comic Sans MS", Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><div style="font-size: 12pt;"><span size="3" face="Times New Roman" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br></span></div><div align="left"><span size="3" face="Times New Roman" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br></span></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody;" id="id_91c6_b1d_2910_92"><tbody><tr><td class="SpacerHeight" height="1" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" style="padding-bottom: 9px; line-height: 1px; height: 1px;"><img height="1" vspace="0" border="0" hspace="0" width="5" alt="" src="https://imgssl.constantcontact.com/letters/images/sys/S.gif" style="display: block; height: auto; width: 5px;" id="id_5ed8_8bf9_fb7f_6952"></td></tr></tbody></table> Rexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03766355718380448212noreply@blogger.com