The Writing on the Wall

(Taken from the Picture Bible, David C. Cook, Publisher.)

I consider myself fortunate, as I was introduced to Bible stories early in my clergy home.  It was a simple way of presenting them, through cartoons.

But I find a sort of comfort in reviewing them, because the idea of either mad or incompetent "King" is honestly reported. No excuses.  

So, we can refer to them, now and again, to find out where certain expressions come from.  

The King was upset, due to "the Writing on the Wall" and asked 
 Daniel to interpret.

The Cheeks of a Blue Fish

Why share this? It reminded me of when I was a naive kid just out of Luther College, my brother's former father-in-law told me a tall tale, at a restaurant, about filet mignon. He said, it was "the cheeks of a blue fish", and I believed it. 
He asked me how it tasted.
I said, "It tastes like beef". 
He replied, "well, sometimes the cheeks are so thick, they taste like beef."
"Really?"
"Yes, and sometimes, they've been known to go on land and carry a walking stick." 
At this point, my cousin, at the table, involuntarily spit out his drink.

Close "Call"

After Yoga, 🧘‍♀️attempted Christmas shopping at my favorite book shop, and it was like a magical fairy land for kids' stuff👧...
But then, after consulting with my other 1/2 🧔on my cell, drove intently toward home, 🚗and attempted getting chicken on Sr. discount. This involved getting there before 9 p.m. 
One car was in front of me, as the clock ⏰was ticking: "Yeah, I'd like Famous", 8:54, "What do you have in Famous?" 8:55, "Sides?" "Yeah, I'd like beans."🍲8:56, "No, I changed my mind; make that Mac 'n Cheese."🧀 8:57...sweat, sweat...😢 "Will that be it?" "What did you say you had in Famous?" (unintelligible) "Is that it?" 8:58, sweating buckets, now.🥵 "That will be $19.95."
 "Hello?" "Yes, may I take your order?" Whew, and for 1/2 the price, too!😜

New Neighborhood Grocery bellies up

Well, Fresh Market is closing out, had to get a few items, and they deducted half my purchase. 🥰 Of course, I had to leave a token of my esteem...my hat, 💂‍♀️ (which was placed on a post outside, never to be seen again, by me).
 But I did run into a friend from childhood,👧 and we agreed the design and atmosphere wasn't like the old Plumbs, the open and friendly neighborhood market. 
Bill said they must have hired a consultant.👨‍🏫

Life's a Bowl of Cherries?

Since retiring, I've had the benefit of sleeping deeply.😴 A couple times, though, while sleeping, I've been aware enough to know I'd like to get out of the situation I'm in, be it working too hard or being chased by something,🏃‍♀️ and I'd like to wake up. So, what if when we go to sleep at night, we are actually in the Spirit world? ☁️🌤️ That could mean that when we wake up, we're only acting 🎭 as if we're alive. The moral of this is we shouldn't take "life" seriously. 🍒

Sounds like a Plan

  (Picture from Preview of a book by David Joachim)

My Co-Grandma, Marilyn, rounded up some Sloppy Joes to take home to my husband, who was recovering from a bug.  This made it possible for me to throw some easy things together.  

Bill got a can of peas, a can of baked beans, (I already had cut-up onions for the beans) and of course, the Sloppy Joe Sauce, and a couple of buns she'd sent. 

I laughed when I recalled to Bill that this reminded me of our book, A Man, A Can, A Plan, which our daughter was considering buying us before we actually did...as a Joke.

So, I picked the book up again from the cookbook shelf, just to look through it and thought..."Hey, this isn't so bad!"

It also brought back memories of going to the then, Plumbs, with the book, so I could get the recommended items.  This was a neighborhood store, now replaced by Fresh Market.  People, seeing me look through the book with its kids' early reader cardboard pages, got curious.  I started explaining the book to the customers, and soon, developed a line of people following me around the store aisles.

The book uses words like, "dump, nuke, slop, spackle, manhandle, hack off, drizzle, squirt, drop, and plop", because it's especially for men.  And you don't have to measure too much, because you're dumping already measured cans of things together. 

Near the end of the book , too, is the manliest of man's deepest desires, a section on...Beer.

Annie Again

My daughter took me to see another "Annie" production, along with my grandaughters, at the Grand Haven Community Center.  And this time, I didn't have to review or know the names of the players, except that Annie was one of the girls' babysitters, and her faux mother was "Annie's" actual mother, who often picked the girls up from school.  They and all the players were spectacular!

Writers often say they write to find out what they think.  

I couldn't help but notice that, though set in the time of the Depression, the play mirrored a lot of what we're going through now.  The homeless in Hooverville, for example, complained that the then President Hoover had made them what they had become today.  President Roosevelt needed to jump start the factories, and of course, Annie herself gave Roosevelt and his team (including Mrs. Perkins who advised Social Security) hope. Fraud, in the form of myriad Annie's parents coming forward for money, was rampant.

And so, just week's before the election, singing about "Tomorrow", filled the theater with hope.