"I was born in Waukegan a long, long time ago. As a matter of fact, our rabbi was an Indian." ~ Jack Benny, legendary comedian, (1894-1974)

Good Tuesday morning on this cooler October 22, 2019. Last Friday evening we met with some folks who wanted to talk to us about the potential for a Santa and Mrs. Claus program for their over 55 group at their Church. I knew one gentleman, Jack, a customer from my previous day job. He has been pushing for us to meet for several years. He brought the couple who chairs this Christmas gathering. This couple, Don and Dee, was precious. He is 87 and she is 86 and they have been married for 67 years. We had a wonderful dinner at our local Olive Garden and for nearly two hours we enjoyed some lovely fellowship with these folks. We can't do anything for them this year because they have their date set and we are already scheduled, but, maybe next time. These people are long term servants in doing all kinds of work for the Kingdom. When believers meet, even for the very first time, there is always Christ as our common connection. When I gave them our Santa and Mrs. Claus card, one of them paid us perhaps the neatest compliment we've ever heard. "You guys look better than the real Santa and Mrs. Claus." I could have been a smart aleck and told them how that means we actually look better than ourselves, and, referred them to the back of the card that has my email address, "the_realsanta@yahoo.com". But, that would have spoiled the moment.

To say the least, Mr. Bentley has changed just about everything in how we do life. The photo was taken in the wee hours of my early morning time at the laptop. That would be him curled up where my feet should be resting under the computer desk. He gets up early. He goes outside. He then, typically, is ready for a return to his napping mode. I am pretty much okay with accommodating but it can get old, as Jack Benney used to say, "Well, for crying out loud!" Yes. I am aware I could make him move rather than stretch my legs out to the sides, but, to tell the truth, I'm better off knowing exactly where he is and when he's sleeping he is not getting into stuff he's not supposed to be fooling with. That helps me because I am often told I am responsible to keep an eye on him when we are up so early. He turned 11 months last week and many folks who know a lot more than we do say he is very well behaved for a puppy his age. Last week when I picked him up from the groomer, the young lady who worked on him told me he was a biter. She said when she was plucking hairs out of his ears he tried to bite her. I didn't say a word but that made me angry. Not at Bentley. At her. They run an assembly line grooming operation almost like the car wash down the block. She may have gotten his skin when she was plucking. What would any self-respecting canine do if someone was hurting them? I can hear the boys now. You never took our side when the teacher complained. Yep. Times for us, well, they are a-changin'.

We attended our little great grand Bella's one-year birthday celebration last evening. I'm not sure at what age children actually can recall their earliest birthday experience, but, it is a family tradition for us to celebrate beginning with their very first one. The experts tend to put the normal earliest recollections to be between 2 and 4 years. Don't expect too much from those who analyze these types of matters. They also tend to think the earliest of our recalled memories probably didn't happen anyway. As William Bendix used to say as he played Riley on radio and later on TV, "What a revoltin' development this is!" I wouldn't be too worried about it. In fact, I worked directly with some folks who specialized in psychology while I was employed at the Veterans Hospital. This is not a general assessment of this field, but, my observation of those I worked with could be summarized like this: Them not remembering correctly their earliest childhood memories was the least of their problems. But, keep in mind that throw down assessment came from a fellow who can remember very little about his early childhood. I'm sure they not only would need me on the couch to get to the bottom of my own issues but, my guess is, they would also need to strap me down. Another day of enlightenment furnished by your faithful scribe. Notice I did not say how much enlightenment. That, my friend, is in the eye of the beholder. Have a great rest of the day and may God bless us all. Amen. ....More later.