Old Shadows

Old Shadows

Rachel: "I'll have you know, people have paid me to sing."
Jessica: "Where? The circus?"

Jessica: "Sewing a lizard on your bag is harder than you think."

Bert: "A mail order tattoo gun? Good luck reaching your own behind."

Jonathan: "I want him to lose the next election so I can hear him say 'I'll be back'."

Aaron: "If you do something, then do it again, that's Dunnigan."

Rachel: " There's another city sign. We're at Dunnigan again."

Aaron: "You know the store Bennigans? I've only been once, but if I go again I'll have been again to Bennigans."

Vicky: "When in Rome do as the Romans do. When in Mexico..."
Rachel: "Don't drink the water."

Jonathan: "It was like a black church with white people."

Jessica: "Does your camera take pictures?"
Dad on Phone: "Nope, it makes mochas."

Character Flaws

Character Flaws

We were having a discussion the other evening at Camp Harlow about character flaws. What are they, what can one do about them in oneself, and when and if you should bring them to a friend's attention.

Our definition for the sake of the conversation was "part of our nature that, while not a necessarily a sin, is detrimental to yourself or others." Talking incessantly, for example. Is that a sin? No. But Poverbs says "when words are many, sin is not absent." So that flaw could lead to sin. Likely, if your mouth never stops moving, you also aren't allowing enough delay to think over your subject, or choice of words. And if your constant talking involves interrupting people or monopolizing a room, then you're bordering on selfishness and inconsideracy.

What about virtues. Can a virtue in excess become a character flaw? The virtue of temperance -- only taking what you need and no more. What if you walk into a restaurant and send back a plate because there is "simply too much" on it. Or go to a friend's house and refuse what is offered because "all you want" is something simpler and less costly than what is offered. C.S. Lewis in Screwtape Letters calls this gluttony. It may not be in excess, but you are still demanding what you want, no matter how much trouble anyone else has to go to.

One character flaw of mine that was brought to my attention (indirectly) in a desire for attention. I often do it through self-depracation or false modesty, desiring others to tell me that it isn't true. In that instance, I threw a football well. (Once apon a time one of my kids at youth group decided no girl could live without know how, so he spent one whole lock in teaching me how to throw one.) I, of course, couldn't be happy in the fact that I had done it well, I had to make sure everyone else knew as well. I woudln't shut up about it. I was annoying myself, even. Finally someone said, "You already said that you could, yesterday." Which I had.

So how does one fix a character flaw? The drive for approval is the easy part to fix -- recognise that God's approval is all that matters. But the attention part? I'm not sure. Throw in a martyr complex and it's a bad combination. Does anyone have any thoughts?

Three to go and laundry done...

Three to go and laundry done...

Last night was our first show in our last run this tour. It was a strange venue. The room fit the stage just fine, but couldn't fit the tables. So the tables were set up in another room across the church. So after the prologue the whole audience trouped across to have dinner and dessert, and then back for the combined first and second acts.

It went well. Two of our cast members are sick. Aaron was trying not to cough backstage. Just then, a guy in the audience started hacking up a lung. I told him to try and time them to coordinate with that guy...

Today we're off to Central Point. We're in Eagle Point now. Our homestay had the most comfortable bed we've slept in in a while. Well, we were in sleeping bags in bunks at a camp for our days off. The camp had covered wagons with bunk beds. I wanted to sneak into one the last night but chickened out. I did sneak into a movie that I didn't have a ticket for. We were going to see Taxi (eh) but watched the previews at Sing Out Loud and then left. That's the first time I've ever done that...see what tour does?

A whole day to myself

Yesterday, I had finally had enough of people (actually I lasted much longer than I thought I would).

So I walked two miles to the mall, bought myself a new book by Francine Rivers, went out to Thai for lunch, looked at scrapbooking supplies and yarn at a craft store, read in the food court, went to the hairdressers, walked to KFC for dinner, and walked home.

My hair is back to its natural color now. It's darker than I remembered, but its been six years. Maybe it darkened. But the top two inches of my roots didn't get dye, and it matches. Strange....

Booking

Drea, I can't get my comments to pop back up, so here's the info:

For more details please contact the Wycliffe Northwest office.

4200 S.E. Jennings Ave
Portland, OR
97267-6485
(503) 652-1662
or(800) 269-2007
(503) 652-1541 FAX

For info about booking the dinner theaterin your church, e-mail: brenda_long@wycliffe.org

Coming Back Again

Well, tour is a week and a half from being over. 6 of us, including me, will be returning in the spring. It was a hard decision for a lot of people. Not for me. I pretty much knew I'd be back three weeks into tour.

Our next tour will be in California alone, maybe with some shows in Oregon on the way back, but I haven't seen an itenerary yet.

Prayer partners, please pray for our bookings. We have 25 booked, but need at least 35 to tour, and a full semester would be 45 shows. Also pray for those of us who will be returning. We'll need the time off to rest from this tour, and I'll be working in California over Christmas. I will get to be home for thanksgiving and the day after (our bigger holiday -- we put up the Christmas trees). Christmas I will be solo with my cats -- rather like Sandra Bullock in While You Were Sleeping.

So that's the tour update. The next one starts January 10 and runs through the middle of May.

Friendly Public Service Announcement

Friendly Public Service Announcement

I just received the year end report from Compassion International. It is a child sponsorship program I've been involved with off and on. For $28 a month you provide a child with education, sanitation, heath classes, and you have the option to sent extra money (there is a limit to how much you can give per year) to the child's church for their family. The church then decides how best to use it to better their living conditions.

This program's mission statement impressed me. In order to meet the requirements for charitable organizations, 80% of donations must directly benefit the children. And they have a policy of staffing their overseas programs with people from that country. And, the decision of who needs sponsored is made by the local church.

I've loved sponsoring my kids, and getting letters and pictures from them makes my day. If anyone has every wanted to try it, there is only a one year commitment (when I first started you pretty much assumed you'd have the child all the way through their education, if possible). So, here's a copy of the report they sent me. It contains their annual report, and some statistics on sponsorship.

"Thank you for your faithful support of Compassion?s ministry. In a continuing effort to be good stewards of the gifts and resources that have been entrusted to us, this year we are making Compassion?s 2003-2004 Annual Report available online...It was an extraordinary year at Compassion.

Sponsorship is up worldwide: 83,988 children were sponsored during the year.

Thousands more children than expected were registered in our program.

Compassion?s ministry is launching into new countries around the world.

The Leadership Development Program continues to attract students with great potential.

Maintaining a Strong Tradition and Trusted Reputation At Compassion, we?re doing everything possible to maintain our strong tradition as a leader in Christian child development and trusted reputation for good stewardship. Thank you for partnering with us. Sincerely in Christ,

Dr. Wesley K. StaffordPresident and Chief Executive OfficerCompassion International

Releasing children from poverty in Jesus? name"

Peter and the Starcatchers

Peter and the Starcatchers

I just finished reading this book. I've read a good deal of Dave Barry, and hadn't caught the memo that he's writing fiction. I found another book of his on the shelf that I didn't buy, but will eventually.

I thought this book was excellent. I've liked Peter Pan stories for a long time, and love the movies based on them -- especially the latest Peter Pan live action, and Hook.

This book deviates a bit from the original stories (because, we wouldn't have a pre-Neverland Peter if he's carried off by Tink right away). Instead, he is the leader of a group of orphans being sent as servants to a barbaric King. He doesn't know his age, but as the leader, he is always one year older than the oldest boy in the orphanage. The five boys are put aboard the Neverland, a run down ship also carrying Molly, a young girl with a secret. She can talk to Porpoises for one thing. And she seems to be in the possession of a mysterious trunk that is heavily guarded, and when touched, shimmers and sounds like tiny bells tinkling.

Eventually, as a result of Peter's snooping, he is let in on the secret. Bits of stars that fall from heaven have magical powers. Their dust can make people fly, and turn ordinary beings into magical ones. She and her family are part of a secret society to keep the starstuff from falling into the wrong hands. Fast on their tail is a pirate ship, with none other than the Fierce Captain Stash. He has heard that the Neverland is carrying the greatest treasure in the world. And the Captain of the Neverland seems to have his own secrets.

After a battle on the high seas in a storm, the trunk, orphans, starcatchers, shipmates, and pirates are marooned on an island populated with 'savages'-the Mollusk Tribe. As all involved chase around after the trunk, some hints of the Pan stories yet to come are given.

My favorite part of the book is when the trunk drifts into a blue lagoon. It is leaking starstuff into the water, transforming the ordinary fish into Mermaids.

I didn't know what to expect, but it was worth the money I spent for the hardcover. I assumed that a book by Dave Barry would be parody, or at least comedy, but it is legitimate storytelling. If you've read any of Barry's books and newspaper columns, there is some dialogue that you could bet he wrote. I don't know the other author at all, so I can't make any comparisons there. A good, if fast, read -- geared for kids, and produced by Disney -- so watch out for the movie to be out in theaters sometime soon. I hope they'll be smart and get the kid that played Peter in the live action version. I suppose he'll be too old, but it would be great for continuity.

Stats

My blog has just reached it's 800th post. I thought that was pretty impressive. My word count to date is 110,124. If it had a plot, it would be a book by now.

I just looked at my blogcounter and someone came to my website looking for Vargus Pinup Girls. Does that frighten anyone else?

Today was the perfect way to spend a cold, gloomy afternoon. We spent our days off at a camp and retreat center in Eugene, Oregon. We're just about the only people here besides the staff, so we kind of have the run of the lodge. After breakfast, three of us went into the fireside room and crafted. Jessica was knitting a scarf, Julie collaging a card for her brother. I was thread crocheting. Later, Aaron joined us. He didn't craft, but he did hang out, look out the window at the fall weather, and entertain us with his guitar. And Tasha joined last of all, working on a quilt. In the afternoon everyone left except Jess and I, and we spent three hours working on our various projects. And she'd never heard Odyssey, so we listened to half a dozen episodes. Now she's got one of them. I've sucked someone else in! (maniacal laughter)

Tomorrow our homestay is going to take Ashli and myself to fabric and yarn stores. Once I finish this project, I'll need to start another. After all, Christmas is coming. And tomorrow night we have a show here in Springfield.

Flashback

Flashback to the 90's

At dinner I looked down at my watch and went "6:20! Star Trek is on! I'm missing it!"

Haven't done that for a while...