Thursday’s Thoughts: Dare I? Why, yes I think I do!

Nashville, TN Zoo at Grassmere

Am I the only one who was surprised when ABC gave Roseanne Barr, a vocal Trump supporter, a show? I caught an episode or two on-demand; I never watched it was on years ago. The show covered all the bases, from Roseanne’s “conservatism” to a little boy who liked to cross-dress, peppered with plenty of liberalisms in between. It is nothing I will miss. Unconfirmed rumors say Fox will pick it up. I’ll lay a dollar to a donut that horse has been run and won’t make a third round.

As the Roseanne cast was just getting comfortable with a huge hit show, Roseanne, herself, apparently asleep on Ambien, tweeted about a former Obama senior advisor being the offspring of "Muslim brotherhood and planet of the apes."  America went nuts, as Americans are prone to do once or twice a week. The Roseanne reboot quickly got the boot, a move which reportedly is costing ABC tens of millions of dollars. And Roseanne, surprised by the instant backlash of her "racist rant," apologized, re-apologized, then "ranted" a little more.   (I think for a rant, it would have to be far more than one line...even more than the 140 characters Twitter allows.)

As a side note, the makers of Ambien tweeted this:

(A drug company with a sense of humor.)

Roseanne shouldn’t have been shocked, really. The whole world watched Kathy Griffin’s “career” spiral to Hades because of a tasteless Donald Trump photo.  She was crucified by the very people who themselves hate the man. She has since bounced back, but she is still crass, vulgar, and not funny.

But I so easily digress. 

Wanda Sykes (consulting producer) quit Roseanne right before ABC canceled it, and shortly thereafter, a video of Wanda calling Donald Trump an orangutan repeatedly resurfaced, complete with her vulgar, profanity-laced rant (a true rant) toward booing audience members who presumably paid to see her.  (I like to back up my facts with video or links, but in this case, Ms. Sykes was so vulgar I didn’t finish watching it, and don’t suggest anyone else watch it.)  I bring it up for obvious reasons.

The left blames the alleged rise in racism on Donald Trump. The right has been blaming Barak Obama for the same thing for years. I blame it on the master of deception himself: satan. He likes to keep a great nation divided, and sadly, we make his job so easy.

Did people over-react to Rosanne’s tweet? Yes.  Could it be political pushback?  When I consider a certain daily show that consistently says derogatory, rude, and often false things about Donald Trump, but is still protected by the network, I'd guess yes, it's partly political.  The tweet was mean, rude, uncalled for…and it was stupid.  Classic Roseanne Barr.  But just because we don’t like what someone says doesn’t make it racist.

Racism definitely exists. But people also hate others because they are too fat, too poor, or too different. To be called a Muslim-planet-of-the-apes child isn’t any less hurtful or offensive than when a person is cruelly mocked because of their weight, or a poor person who is belittled because she’s using food stamps to buy Oreos and sirloin instead of saltines and peanut butter. Bullying and discrimination is wrong, and one instance doesn't necessarily outweigh another, regardless of who the victim is.

“Racism” is a term that has been so carelessly tossed about every time someone is offended that no one agrees on what means anymore, and that's why people think racism is on the rise. If we can’t agree on what we are fighting, how can we combat it? I don't believe we can, and what we get is a lot of loud, offended people thinking they have the right to never be offended.  And that is where we are today: a spirit of offense running rampant across a nation, causing chaos and distracting everyone from things that are really important.

Ever wonder what would happen if our nation got worked up over Jesus? 

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Being nice was a colossal failure on my part...

Nashville Zoo

For a split-second yesterday morning as I looked in my car’s side view mirror, I wondered what was blocking my view before realizing there was no mirror there.  Someone had stolen it from a Chattanooga motel parking lot overnight.  According to a nearby Nissan dealership, a replacement could be ordered for $500 - $600.   (Uh, no.   Amazon, eBay, or a junkyard for me, thank you very little.)

At first, I thought only the mirror was gone, and I figured it wouldn’t take too much money to replace it, and I was more incredulous than mad. When Ole Boy mention the cap (back cover) was gone as well, I felt my irritation level rising. I have a very limited range of motion in my neck, and mirrors are very important, especially on the interstate.

Duct tape...don't leave home without it.

We found a generic mirror at O’Reilly Auto Parts…the lady in the store was very nice and helpful, and very appreciated for helping us get it rigged up. We headed to Wal*Mart for duct tape reinforcement, because as we all know, duct tape fixes everything. While in Wal*Mart, I realized I’d left my very favorite pillow at the motel. Seriously, I shed a tear. But I refused to go back; in retrospect, that was rather stupid, but I had a growing disgust of the whole situation and did not want to backtrack. Instead, we bought two new pillows. I really regret not going back for it.


I decided to get some potato chips because, as we all know, junk food cures disgust. It really doesn’t, but any excuse works. As I perused the 98 different chip varieties, I told myself I would not let this ruin the whole day. I made up my mind to be grateful for all that I did have, and thankful that the thief only took my mirror, and (hopefully) didn’t damage anything else. I said to myself and to God, “I’m going to be nice about this.” I prayed for the person who took my mirror. For good measure, I smiled at the lady who nearly plowed into my buggy (shopping cart for those outside the south). I was letting my good attitude show!

I went to check out. 

And that was about the time my good attitude checked out, too.

Ole Boy was out of my sight by the time I moseyed toward the exit. A Wal*Mart employee popped out of nowhere and asked for my receipt for the pillows. I tried to move ahead a little so I could see where Ole Boy was, but she didn’t like that, so she then demanded a receipt. The receipt was walking out the door! I completely forgot I was supposed to be nice. I called out for Roger (I didn’t yell, I still had control of the little bit of class I possess, but had he not heard me, I am not sure what exactly would have happened to my self-proclaimed class.) Anyway.

She really did act like we were trying to pull one over on her (two receipts with a total five items on them, which she scrutinized like they were fake), then she snapped “Have a nice day.” I retorted, “It’s a little late for that!” As I was leaving the store, I said, “Chattanooga steals from me, and accuses me of stealing.” It could have been my mood, perhaps it was her attitude, but by the time I got to the car, I was angry, and I didn’t have anything nice at all to say, and the focus of my anger was a certain Wal*Mart employee. Because, you know, she was doing her job, albeit a little rudely, but maybe she didn’t like my reaction to her original request?

Ole Boy was irritated, too, but he pointed out things could be worse. I agreed, and I told him about telling God I wasn’t going to let this ruin my day, and I was going to be nice, blah, blah, blah. He said, “You failed at that…”

I wasn’t finished failing.

When I got home and got on my computer, I had an error message…I’ll spare you the history on computer issues which involves a crash and complete loss of everything… and I took out my day’s worth of frustration on Dell. It wasn’t pretty.

And it was just a side view mirror. 

One might have thought they took the whole door.

When I got in bed last night, I had a lot of repenting to do.

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Thursday's Thoughts

Snapped at Lowe's lol

A child was behind me screaming for all he was worth as I was leaving Walmart the other day.  The thought crossed my mind, “What if he's being kidnapped?”  We tell our kids to scream bloody murder if someone tries to snatch them, but in these days of “don’t spank your kids,” little ones are so indulged by their parents that they shriek and carry on just because they don’t get their way.  And the prophet-of-doom thought hit me, “America won't be sunk by the Hillary Clintons or the Donald Trumps of the world, but by parents who won’t discipline the next generation.

You know how children argue?  America’s Christian community is sometimes immature like that.  Too many are more concerned with being right than with having a relationship with Christ.  The world does not know Christ followers by their love for one another (John 13:35).  They can’t see a difference in their own life and the life of the Christian.  The world needs love and the good news of Christ: the Gospel.  And they need Truth, which is so very hard to find.

You have the right to be offended by anything anyone says, you get to choose what offends you and you may call out the “offender,” harass and publicly shame them for their offense…unless they tell you it is comedy.  Then you can’t be offended at all, and you probably need to choke out a laugh, or you will be the one who is shamed. 

Demand more than mediocrity.  Demand it from yourself first, then those around you.  If we don’t demand more, won’t we always get less?   As an example, if we support Hollywood peppering every movie with sex, foul language, and liberal idealism, is there any reason for them to give us anything but trash?   It breaks my heart when a popular preacher lists his five top movies on Facebook, and 4 of them are Rated R. 

With as much as I float blog ideas around in my head, one would think I would post more often.  When I actually sit down to write, sometimes I draw a blank (though I’ve had 39,857 ideas in the past two days) or I can’t remember if I’ve already said it in a previous post.   (Sometimes I repost on purpose, don’t want you to think I’m that addled…though it may be a possibility.)

With that, I realize I must glam and dash, or be late to work…or later than I want to be anyway. 

Happy Thursday!

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Monday Musings...The Who's Talking Edition

Poli-Talk:

It’s important to know what those with whom we disagree are saying, that's why I watch liberal news clips and YouTube clips of programs like The View.  It hit me the other day as I was watching Whoopi and Joy Behar Trump-rant...the “other side” cannot forgive Donald Trump for winning the presidency, therefore, they can't move on.  They would rather keep our country divided than to let the President do his job with some semblance of peace. 

If alleged legitimate news sources keep telling Americans how bad President Trump is, it is no surprise that some people…even some seemingly reasonably intelligent people…will believe what they are told.   (“Alleged” is the key word in this paragraph.)    

I going to crawfish.   It actually does surprise me (and disturb me) when people put so much stock in a rag like The Washington Post and their half-baked, quarter-truthed “fact checker.”  

Religi-Talk:

Nancy Pelosi.   This could also be political; however, I think ignorance outweighs politics on this one.   In response to President Trump calling MS-13 members “animals” who are pouring into our country, she said,  “We are all God’s children, there’s a spark of divinity in every person on earth.”   No…we are not all God’s children, and I am certain that MS-13 gang members are not hiding any “sparks of divinity.”  Their motto is Rape, Control, Kill.  I am not saying God can’t save them and make them His children…with God, all things are possible.   But this is another example of those who can’t forgive President Trump for winning.  Nancy didn’t say MS-13 is not good, instead, she chose to say President Trump calling these violent gang members “animals” is not good.  Did you ever notice how hatred affects sanity?

However, President Trump did insult my dogs on this one.
Both Rocco and Mr. Gibbs are offended.

Mr. Gibbs

Roscoe aka Rocco

Women-Talk

Gina Haspel has been confirmed as the first female CIA Director. She’s a great choice. I am not sure why the media labeled her controversial. I wonder if they thought it might help her not be confirmed? They want women in high positions…just not any woman President Trump nominates? Oops, I made that political.

Personal-Talk

I would tell you about my diet, but I’m not on one.   I pretend to change my eating habits just about every Monday; this Monday is no exception.   Finally!   Not political.

Blog-Talk

When I switched blog addresses/sites, I told myself I would stop doing these types of musings.  I haven’t been too successful in stopping.   Maybe I need a 12-Step Program.  

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Monday Musings: The "Driving Myself Insane" Edition

Instead of important issues to discuss, here are some things that have been suggested lately by those who are apparently trying to prove common sense has been completely obliterated:   

• Remove the offensive word “man” from all words.   Use person, people, or some other non-identifying (and non-related) word instead.   Crazy Cathy Areu didn’t consider that “son” is masculine when she was explaining to Tucker Carlson how instead of Goldman Sachs, “Goldperson” Sachs would be less offensive.   Poor Tucker Carl-person..oh wait.  Never mind.
• The University of Utah now has cry closets for college students to use before taking finals…complete with stuffed animals. 
• Ask babies before changing diapers to start them on a “culture of consent.”   Thankfully, “sex expert” Deanne Carson is not American…but still!   She got worldwide coverage on that little piece of insanity.   If she were in America, she may have to her name...

I really don’t believe some of these people truly want what they are calling for, they are seeking the attention.   At least I sincerely hope that is the case.  

Caveat for my final musing:  I am not talking about the bad choices of a person who causes great harm to another:

• Our courts are tied up with lawsuits filed by people who are seeking major compensation for minor inconveniences.   How many of us know the catch phrases or phone number jingles of the local attorneys who promote this kind of greed?   What happens in frivolous cases is that faux victims make true victims of some poor soul who made a mistake that caused no injury.  

Since I have spent my morning musing over these non-issues instead of something like the upcoming meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong Un, I may have added to the insanity…my own, if no one else’s.

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Wednesday's Word: This World in Which We Live

I won’t make friends with this post…but it needs to be said: 

Lily, Huntsville Botanical Garden

We live in a world where women have constructed a political pedestal, perched themselves on it with inflated egos, making unreasonable demands, but are never satisfied.  They are vulgar, loud, and deceived, calling for the "right" to kill their own babies, but labeling it women’s healthcare.  

They have confused men about who they are.  However, if a man is confused about how to interact with a woman because of the behavior of so-called radical feminists, he is most likely looking for contractual sex, not a committed, healthy, Godly relationship.  A godly man will know how to treat a godly woman, and he will have to diligently search to find her…but she is out there.

Conversely, Women, there are still godly men in this world.   You will have to search a little harder to find him.  Don’t settle.

In this world, public schools fill the heads of our youth with conflicting voices that have no clear guidance.  Morality’s voice is quickly becoming more distant and soft, drowned out by the reverberations of a roaring enemy, until our children are deafened by rampant deception.  They are told love equals sex…”Here, have a condom!”…and they are rewarded for mediocrity.  There is a political plan to steal our children!  (Keep in mind who else is out to kill, steal, and destroy.)

We keep saying that today's students are going to have a hard time in the real world, but one day, they will all be the “real world.”  The battle is fierce for America's children!  Thankfully, there are still good parents bringing up good Christian young men and women.   But make no mistake, our youth need a lot of prayer!  As does America!

We live in a world where people would rather see the demise of our country than allow Donald Trump peace and space to do his job as President of these United States, which is the most important job in the free world!   But they keep shooting darts of distraction, looking for any small BB to make into a bullet aimed for destruction.  Disrespectful and demanding; they embody what they accuse others of being if one’s opinion is different than theirs.  Yet God has directed us to love them.  How to love them?  Employ the Golden Rule.  I’m working on it, Lord.  I’ll work a little harder. 

Are you ready for some good news?  God works with a praying remnant who will believe and seek Him.  God wouldn’t have destroyed Sodom had He found ten righteous people.  Be one of the ten!  Prayer definitely changes things.  Brothers and sisters in Christ must stop acting like step-brothers and sisters who argue and nitpick, and begin walking worthy of our calling, like true children of God.  The world should recognize us by our love for each other!  We need to make a world where Pentecostals hold (spiritual) hands with Church of Christ members, Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians…all of us side-by-side, praying in one accord, growing the remnant (because the remnant is not a denomination, it's people with clean hands and an upright walk with God), standing strong against the bully that is seeking whom he may devour, using every willing tool he can find…and there are many tools.    

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Tuesday's Thoughts

Dove in my backyard

I’m a scroller…not to be confused with a troller, though admittedly, I have trolled social media…adding my 3 cents worth, worded in such a way to provoke.  God doesn’t like that.   Over the years He’s reminded me He doesn’t like it, and many are the comments that get deleted, or never get fully typed.  But I still type them out in my head.  I don’t think God likes that, either.

Years ago, I posted some sharp retorts to a man on a message board.  I was completely right, but entirely wrong to post like I did.  That night, I dreamed a man being so angry, so, so angry, and he couldn’t do anything about it.  I think I knew he was mad at me in the dream...but one thing I remember for sure is that when I woke up, I knew God was telling me He didn’t like my behavior.  Call me crazy, call me a dreamer…it’s probably true. 

I am almost certain some of my bad moods are Facebook-induced.  This world, People!  Have you noticed what’s going on?   Of course you have.   But I’m going to toss out at least 4 cents worth tomorrow so you can be as disturbed as me.  

I was in Wal*Mart this afternoon, and I realized that I really wanted to give in to the depression that was trying to creep in.  But I was too far back in the store to throw my hands up and run screaming to my car…I have a cold and no energy.  It would have embarrassed me having to stop midway to the front door to catch my breath during a coughing fit, trying to explain to the police between gasps and coughs that Facebook drove me crazy.  

The things people post…surely they can’t believe all of that stupidity.  Mindless!  It’s a virtual landfill.  I go pilfering around looking for valuables…and I find them:   a scripture someone posts, a heartwarming video, a note from an old friend, or new photos from family who live far away. 

But it is still a toxic wasteland. 

And I wonder why I’m in a bad mood!  Not really, it’s because of this world in which we live…what a great name for tomorrow’s post:  This World In Which We Live

But in the meantime, I’m going to work on not saying the first retort that comes to mind (some of them are good zingers; not Christlike, but zappers), not typing everything I want to type, and not slapping anyone.

I must live in this world. 

It’s probably best I don’t slap others.  

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