My very sweet and VERY smart friend, Renee Dallas (wife of one of my heroes Joe Dallas), has started a blog called “WifeBoat: Help for Women in Crisis.” She writes about her own story of struggling through the divorce of her first marriage caused by adultery in It Happened to a Nice Christian Girl .
No warning signs; no red flags. Years into our marriage, we’d just had our first child when he broke the news, along with my heart: I’m seeing someone else, and I’m not breaking it off.
Crash! And nothing would ever be the same. But rather than dive into all the gory details (you didn’t think this was one of those blogs, did you?) let me share some questions my 24 year old self asked then, and the answers my older-but-won’t-tell-you-her-age self would now give to that frightened, crumpled young woman who wailed, “This wasn’t supposed to happen to a nice Christian girl!”
[From It Happened to a Nice Christian Girl — WifeBoat: Help for Women in Crisis]
I am so happy that Renee is blogging. She has much wit and wisdom to share. I pray great blessings over her, her efforts and the women who will find a safe haven in WifeBoat .
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The more I dug into the above site the more grievous the information. When I saw the little girl near the end of the opening trailer … my heart breaks. They say there are more slaves in the world today than ever before. I am sitting here not understanding the depth of all the emotions running through my soul right now. Anger, sadness, sorrow … I don’t know what else to say right now.
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Someone sent me a video that was a very creative waste of time. It had a bunch of talking I didn’t quite understand and then was sort of a slideshow of photos, photoshopped and not, of people like myself who no longer identify as gay alongside some notorious figures who were caught in very public scandals. I would post the video but it mocks Jesus with some silly South Park song in the background and mocking His work in mine and many others lives. Also, it has a porn image right there in the mix so I don’t think that would be very appropriate either.
The person who made the video was the same person who made an earlier video which compared me to the Pillsbury Dough Boy Monster out of the move Ghost Busters. They implied that I needed to be destroyed like that monster was.
So why am I posting about this?
[click here to continue reading …]
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As regular readers of this blog may remember, I am spending now through the early part of September working on a writing project. What I haven’t really shared much about is that this is also a season of rest and reflection.
I know that I am a “driven” person but it’s become really clear lately that it is hard for me to be ok with slowing down. I might whine a little bit (or a lot) about how busy I am but, in all honesty, I do like the drama of chasing around a million different people, issues and projects. My mind is constantly swirling. It’s like a thundering brain storm of ideas, opinions, creativity, criticism, encouragements, doubts, humor, ministry, questions, wanting to improve … get the point? That’s cool on one hand and not cool on the other. It’s cool because that is how I am wired. It’s not cool when I can’t slow down and be content in simply being singly focussed and still. When unchecked, it’s also a wall of sound that sets up writer’s block for me.
[click here to continue reading …]
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THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE
Generally, I enjoy the X-Files. I am not cult-ish about it but I think, if you have read my blog more than twice, you know that I like very weird metaphors, odd stories and finding any hint of light in complete darkness.
It’s just how I roll.
This movie was really an episode that went too long. It was like the script was made for television’s 41 minutes (a usual hour show has around 20 minutes of commercials … so I hear.) I am saying that because at one point I was thinking, “this is the longest hour and 40 minutes ever!” Then I thought, “Just think of it as an episode, not comparing it to the last major film.”
Then I was cool. I actually got into it. Then it …
[click here to continue reading …]
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Altamonte Springs Police Go Green
posted by Bruce Larson on Jul 8, 2008 4:28:32 AM
… The Altamonte Springs Police Department has recently added 16 new Toyota Prius Hybrids to its fleet of automobiles. The city planners first started discussions on replacing some police vehicles back in 2003, and, with rising fuel and maintenance costs, this decision made good sense. Four more are on order.
The Prius Hybrids get about 45 mpg while the Impalas previously in use only saw 17 mpg. The fuel savings are not the only area where the city and its residents will save, however. Annual maintenance costs for the Prius’s are one half the cost that the old Impala’s required, said Robert Pelton, Altamonte Springs Public Information Officer. Therefore, even though the new cars initially cost about $1200 more up front, they pay for themselves in the first two months of operation.
[From Orlando Sentinel - Altamonte Springs Police Go Green ...]
That sounds good and all but for some reason the old movie Tron popped in my head. There’s a part of me that wants the Altamonte Springs police to be environmentally apathetic brutes who will run right over bad guys. At the same time, I am environmentally aware without the “Green” conspiracy business. It is nice that they are helping to not fund the Middle East as much. I hope to, and I hope everyone else will do the same in the near future.
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Had a good day with the Mom’s. Took her to a fancy lunch and then saw “Baby Mama” with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
It was an ok movie. Quite funny in places. I would suggest others see it as a rental though.
Happy Mother’s Day!
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