I believe that God does not view us, his creation, as worthless miserable pieces of snot. I believe that God wants us to live to our full potential that he created us to be. I believe that God wants us to be perfect as he and Jesus are perfect. I believe that given our sinful nature we can never be perfect but that does not excuse us from even trying. Continue reading I Believe

  Here is a picture with Yvonne and I that was taken at Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York in the early 1990s. Continue reading Fort Ticonderoga

  I, like most senior citizens have my share of health related issue. Probably more than most. It seems that every time I go to the doctor lately he has diagnosed me with yet another condition! The last time he notified me that my blood sugar is on the high side of normal so he added yet another prescription to my list. I also can’t seem to get out of a chair without grunting anymore. In other words, I am falling apart! If I were to become fixated on all these conditions I would likely never get out of bed … Continue reading Don’t worry about whether you are healthy enough to do something… just do it!!

As mentioned in the last post I am in the initial process of building a slot car track in my old paint room. One important part of being retired is that I now have time to pursue things that I have enjoyed doing in the past.  In my youth I built many a model car and airplane. It seemed to feed my ingrained engineering fever.  Now that I have time I want to bring back some of that joyful time but with a different twist. I was surprised to see that slot cars are still an active hobby. They came … Continue reading An Inspiration….

  I seem to be hobby deficient lately so have been looking for yet another hobby. Slot cars are on my mind. I have cleaned out a room in the barn to build a track. Of course I won’t look like the White Lake track about that that is a beautiful inspiration for mine. Continue reading Slots….

My wife Yvonne’s maiden name is Wierschke. Of course that is very German in origin. I am going way way back in the photo archive to pull out the above picture. According to the note that was attached to it the picture is of her grandfather and the corresponding brothers and sisters. I don’t know exactly when it was taken but it was probably around 1900 or so. Since Yvonne is from Wisconsin which is the beer capital of the U.S. it is not surprising that she has a strong German background. Continue reading German Heritage

  Here is one of the many barn pictures we took on our recent trip to northern Wisconsin. Given the state of the barn this might be the last picture ever taken of it. Continue reading This Old Barn..

In many Bibles, some words are set apart with a red font. Why is this? It is to remind us that when God became Man and personally gave us words that those words are probably something we cannot afford to miss. So why don’t many churches today take the “red letters” to heart? Why aren’t we doing more to be Christ’s hands and feet to the poor, the disenfranchised, the weary, the ill, the fatherless, and the prisoners? It’s all there–in red letters. Why has the Church shirked its responsibilities, leaving the work to be done by governments, rock stars, … Continue reading Why Red Letters??

  Since the Christmas season is quickly approaching I thought I would pull this one out of the archives. This is a picture of me and Yvonne’s first Christmas together. It was taken during my first visit to the “crazy” in-laws in 1987.  We both had a lot more hair and a lot less wrinkles back then! Continue reading Our First Christmas Together

I believe that all of the Bible must be viewed within the life and words of Jesus Christ.  No other standard is acceptable. I believe that although well intentioned by their authors many of the words in the Bible are a distraction from the true messages of Jesus Christ. I believe that Jesus actually intends us to do what he said. I believe that the last part of the Great Commission should be the focus of our life. We must teach others to do as Jesus commanded. That is what this life is meant to be about. Continue reading I Believe…

A few posts back I announced that I have given up on following or participating in politics. It has just become to grinding for me. Last night I was reading a book called The Essential Thomas Jefferson and I came across the following quote in his letter to John Randolph dated August 1775 My first wish is a restoration of our just rights (he was talking about the British government’s unjust laws for the colonies) ; my second, a return of the happy period, when, consistently with duty, I may withdraw myself totally fro the public stage, and pass the … Continue reading In Good Company…

Nothing better than a county fair. The kids have fun and there is lots of greasy food to eat :) Continue reading County Fair…..

Here it is 9:10am and all my clocks except for the computer say it is 8:10am.  I guess we forgot that Mr. Bush decided to go it alone again and change the date when the time changes. The rest of the world changed but I guess we didn’t. Long story short.. we missed church. But I think God will forgive me on this one. So, I will repeat the process again next week. Continue reading Going it alone….

In questioning this claim, my wish is not to diminish the life of Jesus, but to honor it as fully as I can by asking whether his elevation to divinity is something he would have wanted. One telling clue to Jesus’s self-awareness can be found in the tenth chapter of the gospel of Mark when Jesus was approached by a man who called him “Good Teacher” (v. 17). Jesus’s response was immediate and startling, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone” (v. 18). I have heard some say Jesus was, in a clever way, … Continue reading Did Jesus Ask Us to Worship Him??

   I live just a couple of counties south of Parke County Indiana. To those who know it Parke County is covered bridges.  Here is a picture that was taken in the fall of 2001. Continue reading Fall in Parke County…

I believe that too many Christian denominations today spend far too much time idolizing Jesus and far too little time actually doing what he commands. I believe that those who think that getting into heaven simply requires saying that Jesus is my savior are flat out wrong.  Many of these will find out that Jesus will not recognize there words without backing them up by actions. I believe that  many Christian denominations totally ignore or rationalize away Jesus words in the Lord’s prayer that we will be forgiven by God in the same degree that we forgive those who sin … Continue reading I Believe…

A Personal Peeve…. One of the things that constantly peeves me off is related around my wife and I eating at restaurants. For the most part when the waiter/waitress discover that I am deaf the check almost always goes to my wife instead of me. This seems to peeve my wife all even more than me. She often gives the check back to the waiter and tell him/her to give it to me. I want to give a hint to all you waiters out there that it is probably better from your point to go ahead and give the check … Continue reading Attention Waiters….

I am going to start a new category called “Don’t Sweat It” It will be primarily based on the books by Richard Carlson one of most popular is entitled DON’T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF. With all the myriad of books that Carlson put out I am surprised that he missed one major group. So, starting with this post I will be pulling out some of the topics from a couple of these books and try to put a senior citizen twist on them. No, I am not a Ph.D. or as motivational as Carlson but I am a senior citizen … Continue reading Don’t Sweat It…

  I believe that the Bible is a collection of documents created by man for man. I believe that some of the words and overall messages in the Bible were inspired by God. I believe that much of the words attributed to Jesus accurately portray is overall message of living and salvation. I believe that the Old Testament text became mostly irrelevant to a Christian’s life when it’s prophecy was fulfilled by Jesus through his death and resurrection. Continue reading I Believe…

Don’t under spend your income/savings I know this is the opposite of what all financial planners espouse. Since many seem to enter retirement with too little savings under spending their money is just not possible. But for those of us who saved throughout their pre-retirement years we have, if no major health emergency hits us, more than we need for the absolute necessities. If you managed to be part of the second group don’t leave all your savings to your heirs. You sacrificed throughout your life to put money aside so go ahead and spend it. I am one of … Continue reading Retirement Don’ts

Here is a picture from our 2009 trip west. It was taken at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka Kansas. The picture was taken during when the federal government mandated school integration in the 1960s.  The pure hate showing in the face of the girl on the right scared me when I say it then and scares me even now. That girl is now a senior citizen; I often wonder if the hate showing here consumed her life or was she able to overcome it? Continue reading Brown v. Board of Education..

  With Fall now in full swing here in the Midwest I am looking back on summer. Continue reading Butterflies and Flowers

Last Thursday there was an accident just down the road from our house. I live on a somewhat twisty rural road that has just too many people going too fast for the conditions. Sorrowfully a life was ended in this accident.  I have watched the young man of 24 years come speeding around that corner probably hundreds of times. I don’t know if he just liked going fast or if his life was so far out of control that he thought he “had” to go fast.  Either way that ended last week as he was speeding around that turn swinging out on … Continue reading A Life Lost..

They say as you get older you need to exercise your brain so it doesn’t go soft. In that light this new category just popped into my head so I thought I would give it a try.  We all need to learn, or maybe re-learn, new words. So here is the word for today vi·car·i·ous [vahy-kair-ee-uhs, vi-] –adjective  1. performed, exercised, received, or suffered in place of another: vicarious punishment. 2. taking the place of another person or thing; acting or servingas a substitute. 3. felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others: a vicarious thrill. 4. Physiology . noting or pertaining to a situation in which oneorgan performs part of the functions normally performed byanother. I am thinking mostly of number three.  That is we often live our dreams through the experiences of others. I have to admit that I am a junkie when it comes to the TLC channel program entitled … Continue reading Vicariously….

  I believe that Christ loathes our personal pride and selfishness and celebrates our humility and compassion. I believe churches should be recognized by their works today not by their buildings or ceremonies either past or present. I believe that Jesus meant us to follow his example, not idolize him. I believe that God created the universe as more than a just holding tank where we wait until we go to heaven. Continue reading I Believe…

Just in case you forgot, winter does come early in some years.  This picture was taken on October 8, 1989 in Indianapolis.  We got over the foot of snow that day!   Continue reading October Snow!!!!

This is a new category post where I will talk about those people and things that I believe are truly right about the world today. Lately I tend to look back at things and always notice where we went wrong or where I believe we are off track. Always viewing the world with that attitude can be depressing indeed! I need to stop and celebrate where we get it right. For this post I celebrate those people and organizations that help us remember our history. Of course this includes some of my favorite places to visit which are historical villages. … Continue reading I Celebrate…Historical Centers

I want to feel that I have changed the world at least to some small degree. So the above question at least occasionally enters my mind. This query is somewhat related to the previous post about being childless. If I were fortunate enough to have had children I could at least hold out hope that they might change the world because I gave them life. I could think that maybe my kids or grandkids will be the ones who: 1) solve global warming, 2) cure cancer, 3) bring peace to the Middle East, or 4)something maybe less dramatic but equally … Continue reading Will the World be Different Because I Was Here?

All of us who have lived a good portion of our lives have some regrets on how some things have turned out. One of my biggest regrets is not having children. As I mentioned before my wife Yvonne and I did not meet and get married until we were over forty years old. Yvonne was already in menopause by then so children were not in our future. We did discuss the possibility of adopting but like many other things we procrastinated so long that even that option was not really doable. But, given that my deafness is congenital I was … Continue reading Life’s Regrets….

I think all States in the U.S. are divided up into counties and each county has a county seat.   I happen to live near one of them. The country seat is where local government takes place. Almost all county seats have a courthouse to carry on their business. As a result most courthouses are surrounded by a courthouse square. In the past this was the very center of the local community. Today most but not all courthouse squares are skeletons of what they used to be. Many of the functions that used to take place at the courthouse square … Continue reading Town Squares…

Let’s do another post on my high school days or maybe I should say where I lived during my high school days. As I mentioned before I went to a Catholic school from the first through the seventh grade. So, I was primarily taught by nuns and priests. I have mentioned before that my mom deserted my dad, brother, and me when I was in the sixth grade. Soon after that dad could no longer afford the mortgage payments on our house. He did manage to sell it for a small profit and then we moved to a rented farmhouse … Continue reading High School Memories…..

I believe that Jesus meant us to be humble rather than proud. I believe that Jesus meant us to be selfless rather than selfish. I believe that humility and compassion are the two most important things all Christians must strive to. Everything else is small stuff. Continue reading I Believe

The above title is somewhat of a shocker from a person like me who is reflecting on his retirement years. So, let me finish the sentence here. Retirement is a meaningless void until you make it otherwise. The second part of the sentence definitely changes the first. Yes, retirement does usually clean off the blackboard of life so that it is ready for a new agenda. We no longer have the long string of responsibilities that tied us to a job for so many years. For the most part we are free to re-invent ourselves in a different light. That … Continue reading Retirement is a Meaningless Void….

“Stuff” has been on my mind lately so I pulled out a November 2008 blog post on one of my other blogs and re-posted it below. I am in the process of cleaning out my barn and it is loaded with stuff (shame on me!!). Sometimes I would just like to throw it all away and start over again; maybe this time I could refrain from the temptation of accumulating it all over again. But I kind of doubt it. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> November 2008 Ok this maybe anti-American but Jesus was definitely anti-stuff.  When Jesus sent out his disciples to spread … Continue reading Stuff