"For a nation which has an almost evil reputation for bustle, bustle, bustle, and rush, rush, rush, we spend an enormous amount of time standing around in line in front of windows, just waiting." ~ Robert Benchley (1889 – 1945) actor, author & humorist

Sending out a huge shout out to our parents on their 38th wedding anniversary. It's a long story but we know that God was at work in bringing mom and dad together. We as a family are so very much blessed by them as our parents. We thank them for all they have done in our lives and most especially we thank God for His provision. Happy Anniversary and know that we love you both. Amen.

Good morning out there on the highway. The information highway. The digital gateway to the world. Need I say more? It is good to bid you a warm welcome here on this Wednesday, September 9, 2015. I suppose there's some good news regarding the long wait times for those who are awaiting Veterans Administration health services. A watchdog report issued last week tells us that 300,000 of those on the waiting list have passed on to their reward. That's 35% of those on the combined lists from all the various medical facilities. I'm not sure what to make of that finding. On the one hand the statistics immediately improve when these are deleted. This change happened only because of this woefully inept method of keeping up with those who have worn the uniform of our nation. The VA responded by saying their systems needed to be updated. You think? One even cautioned that they lack the authority to take anyone off the list. This reminded me of the time a local elderly man here in this area somehow became listed as having passed away. This meant his Social Security was cut off. He needed those funds to survive. Enter the late Marvin Zindler, a local TV personality. He attempted to intervene on behalf of this obviously still alive gentleman. Finally, he personally accompanied the old fellow down to the Social Security office. The interview is a classic. It would be good on any comedy program because even with the fellow staring them in the face they would not agree that he was alive. Nothing surprises me, even when it comes to stuff like dead people waiting on our government to announce they can now see the doctor.

For those of us who are grandparents memories play a vital role in our day by day living. We bought our house back in the summer of 1984. Those grandkids on the left in the photo have grown up with this being their MiMi and Poppy's abode. The two boys being held will both soon be 10. That will help date my recollection. There's something special about that. When I go home to visit mom and dad I can see down the hall into the room where I slept as a boy growing up. Lots of memories. Those stairs in our house could tell some tales. They have been romped on. Jumped on. Our boys were teens when we moved into that house. Those stairs have been turned into school buses and rocket ships. All of those kids on the left have done their fair share of playing on those stairs. Sure. A few of them took a few tumbles but fortunately no really bad injuries. The girl on the right continues the tradition. That's our great grand Madi (Madelyn Joy) and she too loves to play on those stairs. When I go home there's something about that place that gets hold of my heart. I want our kids, our grandkids, and our great grands to feel that way when they visit our place. (Wherever it happens to be.) I know it's not the house itself, it's the love and fond memories there, however, it can also be a landmark of sorts that memories are built upon. (The memories are there even if the house is not.) I can look out of my mom's kitchen window and see in my mind's eye Paw Paw Mac hoeing out in his beloved vegetable garden. I can see in the hall bookcase books that I read as a child. All of these are things to be thankful for. And, just so you know, ..... I am!

Sentimentalism? I wouldn't have a prayer in winning a case to prove I'm not a sentimentalist even with one of those fancy-ambulance-chasing lawyers. And, believe me, I do know there's a balance in being so steeped in the past that one might fail to embrace the here and now. At the same time, I do feel for those who look down on us who enjoy our memory walks. I just don't want to know that same feeling. That silly country song comes to mind, "If Loving You is Wrong I Don't Want to be Right." The application? If enjoying the memories from the past makes me less intelligent well I choose the lower IQ and while you are at it, pass me some of mom's homemade cheesy grits with butter on top. I have no idea why I threw that in but it somehow made a connection. To me. Not you. To me. I hardly even mentioned the food. There's been legendary feasting done in my past. That too is a part of my heritage. Some people eat to live others live to eat. I just love old fashioned home cooking, period. Mom and I were rehearsing the other day the huge family reunion barbecues we enjoyed back in the day when Uncle Asa came in from Florida. He would dig a pit in the yard and stretch hardware cloth over some stakes. You can hardly imagine how much meat he could smoke on that makeshift grill. I remember my soon to be brother-in-law declaring how that he had never been around people who ate the way we did. Not much later he became a full fledged card carrying member of the club. He became one of the eaters being watched by others. And, another memory comes to mind, what a man he was! Our beloved Kenneth who left this old world way too soon but left behind a legacy of faith and good works. Enough already. I think you get where I am coming from. Enjoy and may God bless us all is my prayer. Amen. ....More later.