Say, what’s that bear eating?

One of my beloved family members is off mucking about in Alaska right now.  I love them and miss them. My final words were to keep away from the bears.

My friend the bear.

So, last night I mentioned that to my coworkers. Hilarity ensued.  The following lines are from the rapid fire conversation that took place in the minute after I mentioned that I’d warned them about bears:

“Oh, look!  How soft does that fur look. I’ll just gently pet them and find out.”

“Man, that is a great shot. But the sun’s behind the bear. I’ll just swing around on the other side and get a better angle.”

“That poor cub is lost. It’s so cute. I’ll just carry it over to mommy bear so she won’t have to go get it off the road.”

“I’ll take the cub over to the mother. Maybe when she sees what I’m doing she’ll share that salmon with me!”

And so it went … I love my pod mates.

Walt Longmire/Craig Allen Johnson Fanboy alert.

This summer has been a tough one for me. Health problems for a family member, the stress and burnout that came with crashing through the wall and completing my second novel in 1/2 the time originally allotted, website updates for old customers, and the commencement of a new book during the busiest time of the year at my “day job.”

I’d had enough fun. I was lethargic, sullen, perhaps even a little depressed when you get right down to it. But that didn’t last long once I’d found Longmire on the A&E network. The show (which is awesome) is based on the books by Craig Allen Johnson. The books are even more awesome. (UPDATE:  For those of you who are sensitive, the books/show are not “Christian” literature or drama. Be forewarned. To all my old sailor buddies, it’s pretty tame stuff.)

A cure for the summertime blues

I’m a voracious reader and love me some television junk-food. Longmire fills both spots in my universe. The show isn’t junk, but it has all the nice parts of junk food like spice, sugar, a hint of something you just cannot put your finger on, a little beef jerky, some rum, a cold Rainier, and some whipped cream on the top.  The characters are fairly true to the books. Little changes here and there to make stories work better in the short time of an hour. The acting is good, the scenery is breathtaking on occasion and the cast are a joy to watch.

But the books… I read one and within three days had all of them on my Kindle. Now, three weeks later, I have finished them all. I will not throw out spoilers, but they sure are humdinger books. For those of you who devoured anything that Tony Hillerman wrote, you will find Craig Johnson does it as well but with a little more humor and a little more snark. Jim Chee won’t be there, but his Cheyenne and Crow counterparts are a welcome substitution.

Johnson’s writing style is minimalist in many ways and he invites youto use your mind and envision the world he has in front of him. The dialogue is spiffy with morons being morons and smart guys being smart guys, and the reset just being themselves.

I could go on for quite a while here, but the point is my funk has left after reading these books. I’m ready to write again and enjoy it. Largely because Craig Johnson has sent Walt Longmire to rescue me from my state of ennui.

Thanks, Craig.

I left my brake pads in San Francisco.

This video is emblamatic of nothing. I just thought it was really cool. And for anyone who’s spent as much time in San Francisco as I have, it’s fun to see some old sights. 

Parents: do not let your teenage sons watch this video. It might be the end of the “mommobile” if you allow that to happen. (I cannot imagine now trying this in 1977 with my mom’s Ford Granada, but I sure would have tried it back then.)

 

Where is church?

Worship service

Church is different things to different people. For some people it’s the worship service at a conference of Christian writers.

To others, it’s a Cathedral with a majestic altar.

Cathedral

Maybe for you it’s putting on your Sunday best and heading off to the local church where you spend a couple of hours singing with the choir, listening to the pastor and then opening up the doors of the church for people to accept Jesus. 

It might be worshiping in the rough cut hut of a rainforest chapel while on a missions trip.

Hut church.

Perhaps, it was meeting with other Christians in a small restaurant where you joined your voices together in song and praise after a great meal.

Restaurant church

Then again, it might be meatloaf church. Earlier this week I posted a recipe for meatloaf that was designed to serve 300 people. That’s every bit as much of a church service as any of the above. In Matthew 25:37-40 Jesus explicitly addresses the need to take care of our brothers and sisters who are hungry. I like that church most of all.

Meatloaf Church

Friends of mine, Bob and his wife Patricia are stewards of that little corner of Christianity. They bought a church a while back and use the proceeds from the business they own to provide tutoring programs and host meals for the people we are commanded to care for in this life. Bob and Pat, with the able help of a cast of dozens (especially Pam, Pat’s sister) put on a “good neighbor meal” every second and final Saturday of the month at that church. Bob’s not the pastor, he lets a couple of local congregations use the building each week, and a bunch of other groups and churches come in biweekly and do the meals.

That’s a part of “Church” in the Biblical sense. It’s serving your fellow man as though he was Christ. It’s doing those good works in a tangible way. It’s being footsore, stiff, sweaty, overheated, and suffering from dish-pan hands while making, serving, and cleaning up after a meal. It means a personal investment above and beyond just footing the bill. That’s church as well.

I hope that you will consider doing this act of kindness in your own life. Find a kitchen for the poor. Don’t wait for Thanksgiving or Christmas, do it this month. The poor are with us always… I have that on good authority. And they’re hungry, hot, tired, and unloved year round. You can help with three of the four by joining a local church or civic group to meet this need. If you’re in the Twin Cities area, leave a comment here and I’ll put you in touch with the right people, get the ball rolling, and even provide you with some ideas for meals.

You can do it by yourself, you can organize your friends and family to help and contribute, or you can just wander on in (after we talk) to help out with a meal someone else is providing.

The cost is pretty reasonable: $500 or less to feed 300 people. That means that you can shell out $250 (on average a little bit closer to $300) to feed 150 people, our usual turnout. I quote the 300 figure because we’re getting better at preparing meals for future dates and freezing them until we’re ready. There’s a huge economy of scale in doing things bulk style. Once you’re ready, we’ll help you scale it up.

All I ask is that you pray and reflect on this request. And then just leave a comment. If you’d like to remain anonymous, make sure you mention that in your comment and I won’t publish it.