Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 4 Comments

The Inconvenient Truth is …

Al Gore is full of beans.  For your consideration, yet another snowfall (if somewhat light) here in Southeast Texas.  I think this makes the third time I’ve seen snow in and around my hometown a mere 30 miles from Galveston, in my entire life (almost 45 years …..)

There’s not a flippin’ thing “warm” about what’s happening in my front yard right now:

Our back gate …

The swing AJ built from salvaged oak floor boards when his dad had his floor replaced ….

A blanket of snow on the back of my truck ….

While I know it won’t stay around until tomorrow (yesterday’s high was in the 70’s, so the ground is much too warm for it to last), it was falling heavily enough to put up a good fight!

Our tulip magnolia in front of my kitchen window ….

More pictures of my tulip magnolia …

The dogs’ little house in the back run (they are so spoiled — they never use this, we just have it in case they are in the backyard and need some shade — 95% of the time, they are 100% house pups looking for a lap to crawl into — even the 65 lb. golden retriever!  Yikes!)

Anyway, thought ya’ll would enjoy a little peek at what’s happening here tonight!  🙂  (I promise New Orleans photos are coming soon ….)

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 3 Comments

From Ben Stein – Worth Reading For Sure

I can only hope we find God again before it is too late!!

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees.. I don’t feel threatened. I don’t feel discriminated against. That’s what they are: Christmas trees.

It doesn’t bother me a bit when people say, ‘Merry Christmas’ to me. I don’t think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn’t bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a Nativity Scene, it’s just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don’t like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don’t think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can’t find it in the Constitution and I don’t like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren’t allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that’s a sign that I’m getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it’s not funny, it’s intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham’s daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her ‘How could God let something like this happen?’ (regarding Katrina) Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, ‘I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we’ve been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?’

In light of recent events… terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O’Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn’t want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says “Thou Shalt not Kill, thou Shalt not Steal”, and “Love your Neighbor as Yourself.” And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn’t spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr Spock’s son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he’s talking about. And we said OK.

Now we’re asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don’t know right from wrong, and why it doesn’t bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves. Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with ‘WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.’

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world’s going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send ‘jokes’ through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you’re not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us. Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it… no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don’t sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 1 Comment

Wouldn’t It Be Nice ….

One of my homeschooling buddies sent this around – I found it funny, and a little comforting in a “wouldn’t it be nice, but it will never happen” kind of way … of course, all my out-of-state buddies who believe in personal responsibility and independent living are more than welcome to immigrate (as some already have – Hey, Tim – so glad you’re here!)

Subject: THE COUNTRY OF TEXAS — Yep TEXAS!

 
 
Please note that Texas is the only state with a legal right to secede from the Union . (Reference the Texas-American Annexation Treaty of 1848.)
 
We Texans love y’all, but we’ll probably have to take action since B. Hussein Obama won the election.  We’ll miss you too.  
Here is what can happen:

#1: Barack Hussein Obama becomes President of the United States , Texas  immediately secedes from the Union .


So what does Texas have to do to survive as a Republic?

1. NASA is just south of Houston , Texas .  We will control the space industry.

2. We refine over 85% of the gasoline in the United States .

3. Defense Industry–we have over 65% of it.  The term “Don’t mess with Texas ,” will take on a whole new meaning.

4. Oil – we can supply all the oil that the Republic of Texas will need for the next 300 years.  Yankee states?  Sorry about that.

5. Natural Gas – again we have all we need and it’s too bad about those Northern States.  John Kerry will have to figure out a way to keep them warm….

6. Computer Industry – we currently lead the nation in producing computer chips and communications–small companies like Texas Instruments, Dell Computer, EDS, Raytheon, National Semiconductor, Motorola, Intel, AMD, Atmel, Applied Materials, Ball Miconductor, Dallas Semiconductor, Delphi,  Nortel, Alcatel, etc, etc. The list goes on and on.

7. Medical Care – We have the largest research centers for cancer research, the best burn centers and the top trauma units in the world, as well as other large health centers. Dallas has some of the best hospitals in the United States

8. We have enough colleges to keep us going: University of Texas , Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Rice,  Texas State, SMU, University of Houston , Baylor, UNT ( University of North Texas ), Texas Women’s University, etc. Ivy grows better in the South anyway.

9. We have a ready supply of workers.  We could just open the border when we need some more.

10. We have essential control of the paper industry, plastics, insurance, etc.

11. In case of a foreign invasion, we have the Texas National Guard and the Texas Air National Guard.  We don’t have an Army, but since everybody down here has at least six rifles and a pile of ammo, we can raise an Army in 24 hours if we need one.  If the situation really gets bad, we can always call the Department of Public Safety and ask them to send over Chuck Norris and a couple of Texas Rangers.

12. We are totally self-sufficient in beef, poultry, hogs, and several types of grain, fruit and vegetables, and  let’s not forget seafood from the Gulf.  Also, everybody down here knows how to cook them so that they taste good. Don’t need any food.
This just names a few of the items that will keep the Republic of Texas in good shape.  There isn’t a thing out there that we need and don’t have.

Now to the rest of the United States under President Obama:

Since you won’t have the refineries to get gas for your cars, only President Obama will be able to drive around in his big 9 mpg SUV.  The rest of the United States will have to walk or ride bikes.

You won’t have any TV as the Space Center in Houston will cut off satellite communications.

You won’t have any natural gas to heat your homes, but since Mr. Obama has predicted global warming, you will not need the gas as long as you survive the 2000 years it will take to get enough heat from Global Warming.

Signed, The People of Texas

P.S. This is not a threatening letter – just a note to give you something to think about!

SLEEP WELL TONIGHT.  THE EYES OF TEXAS ARE UPON YOU!!

One Nation Under God

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 1 Comment

Answering Pottermom’s Xanga Survey & My Husband’s Email because these things go around the world

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your Friends. Okay, here’s what you’re supposed to do, and try not to be a scrooge!!! Change all the answers so that they apply to you. Then send this to a whole bunch of people you know, INCLUDING the person that sent it to you…… Tis the Season to be NICE.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?

Brown craft paper, brown string … artfully tied, of course.    

 
2. Real tree or Artificial?

Prefer the real thing, but packed schedules make the artificial one more convenient.   

 
3. When do you put up the tree?

Whenever there is time and AJ gives me the green light. 


4. When do you take the tree down?

At whatever point I’m ready …. (I don’t really get to ENJOY it until after the holiday is over, so I like to leave it a little longer ….)


5. Do you like egg nog?

Yes, with nutmeg sprinkled on top.  Jack in the Box has a mighty fine egg nog shake right now, too.


6. Favorite gift received as a child?

Books (yes, I was, am and will always be a NERD).


7. Do you have a nativity scene?

Yes, we do.


8. Hardest person to buy for?  

AJ, because there are many things I would like to be able to buy him, but limited funds prevent me from going nuts …. (Yater surfboard, Jeep top, new greenhouse …)


9. Easiest person to buy for?  

Jami – books, books, and more books … gotta’ love a kid that loves to read …..


10. Mail or email Christmas cards?

I’m a stationery junkie … I love nice paper with beautiful artwork, so when I do send them out, they are most definitely the real deal …..


11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?

Worst/funniest … my grandmother, rest her soul, gave me a black sweater with BLACK and GOLD metallic ostrich feathers around the neckline one year.  She was a flashy girl, that Peg.  Fortunately I was able to return it.  Whew!  (But in her defense, she also gave me garnet earrings one year …)
 
12. Favorite Christmas movie?    
It’s a four-way tie between “A Christmas Carol” (the George C. Scott version), “White Christmas,” “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” … I CANNOT choose between these four.


13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?

Sadly, December 1st.  A pox upon you early shoppers!  Bleh!


14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?  

Not yet, but I may do so this year ….


15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? 

Diann’s spaghetti with a boiled egg, Goofy Cookies, fudge ….


16. Clear or colored Christmas lights?

I like the ones that look like stars/diamonds (that would be the clear ones) ….
 
17. Favorite Christmas song?     
Hmmm … this is TOUGH!  The first one that came to mind was “The First Noel,” but I also love “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear,” “Silent Night,” and “Joy to the World” …. 


18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?   

I would prefer to stay home, but we make the rounds the 23rd, 24th, and 25th … then I sit for the next 10 days and stare at my tree before taking it down … LOL


19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeers?

If I sing the song I can name them, but not unless I do that … I suppose it would be a memory device?  🙂


20. Angel on the tree top or a star?  

We used to have an angel, but about 3 or 4 years ago I found a really cool star — it is solid translucent plastic (I know that sounds cheesy, but ….it has lights inside that make it LIGHT UP SO PRETTY!  🙂


21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?  

Usually Christmas morning, but last year we were so late getting home from the midnight service at Trinity Episcopal Church in Galveston that we opened them in the middle of the night.  That was actually kind of cool!  I am starting to delight in the unexpected things we do as our little group of three.  Other obligations may make it difficult to have recurring “traditions,” but these are the memories I hope Jami will take with her: playing in the snow at 2 in the morning (Christmas 2004), opening gifts in the middle of the night (Christmas 2007), watching the Festival of Lights Parade with my sister, niece and nephew (Christmas 2008), visiting with Diann and Leo on random Christmas Eves (as often as we are able to do so), hopefully spending more stress-free holidays with my sister and her kids.


22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?   

The noise, the noise, the noise … oops, is my Grinch showing?   LOL  Seriously, I agree with AJ on this one … the rudeness, rudeness, rudeness and the gimmee, gimmee, gimmee …. Also, people who rip through their gifts …. I am a firm believer in taking turns and thanking the person who gave the gift before the next person opens one …. I think part of this is because I try to put a lot of thought into the gifts I give, and when the event is utter chaos, I don’t get to see what each person’s reponse is to their gift.  I want to see them SMILE!


23. Favorite ornament theme or color? 

We do not have a “theme,” unless it is “Everything But the Kitchen Sink” … our tree is a huge scrapbook of memories … just about every ornament on it is selected because of very specific meaning … AJ’s “crawfish” holding a Merry Christmas banner and his surfing Santa Claus … my Gone With the Wind ornaments … Jami’s ballerinas.  The most special ones are the ones he has carved or turned from wood saved from our real trees.  The year we were expecting Jami, he carved three hearts, with the smallest (Jami) sitting on top of mine.  Another year he carved musical notes representing the three of us, since music is such an important part of our lives (especially his and Jami’s) …. They have all been very carefully designed with much love!


24. Favorite Holiday TV show?

A Charlie Brown Christmas (I just love that little Christmas tree …)


25. What do you want for Christmas this year?   

Answering in a completely materialistic way, without regard for peace on earth and all the good stuff that anyone with a heartbeat wishes for, (LOL) What I’d like is ridiculously expensive (a Canon G10), so a good alternative might be an extra battery for my Canon Rebel XT …. maybe a new mirror/medicine cabinet for the front bathroom?  The corner benches of the kitchen ripped out and the wall re-sheetrocked so I can finish painting …. I’m pretty easy to make happy, even without $$$.  🙂






Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 2 Comments

Pizza Wars – Absolutely Ridiculous

From our local newspaper.  We used to teach kids that it was good to share, but now public schools lose money if kids dare to share:

State slices funding over shared pizza

By John Tompkins
The Facts

Published November 18, 2008

MANVEL — Despite a good review from state officials for its food program, Alvin ISD officials said they will lose $1,800 in state reimbursement after a Manvel High School student shared a pizza with other students.

Monitors from the Texas Department of Agriculture found out the student shared his food and told Alvin ISD officials the district would lose the funds because it violated the Texas Public School Nutrition Policy.

“Had they shared a french fry, it could have been the same,” said Jennifer Basich, Alvin ISD’s director of child nutrition services. “I think it’s unfortunate. We try to do our best.”

The agriculture department had three monitors visiting schools last week during a review of the district that takes place once every five years, Basich said.

Bryan Black, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Agriculture, confirmed the denial of reimbursement because of the violation.

The agriculture department placed some strict limits on child nutrition in 2004 to battle increasing childhood obesity. Texas ranks sixth in the nation in childhood obesity rates, Black said.

“The policy was put in place to help Texas children,” he said.

Sharing the pizza violated the state’s nutrition policy because the food was provided by a parent and then shared with other students, Black said.

“When they tightened the rules, they didn’t want anything coming from outside,” Basich said.

The policy forced districts to make changes, including limiting student access to vending machines, requiring healthier foods in cafeterias and barring outside food from being shared with other students.

The policy also prevents the sale of candy or other foods sold as part of fundraisers during school hours.

“The reason being that parents know what their children eat at school,” Black said.

Outside of the incident, Alvin ISD received a good review from the agriculture department, with the district having high marks for having a wide array of choices, offering fresh foods and keeping “outstanding” documentation and records, according to a copy of the review’s suggestions and comments section, provided by Basich.

“Child nutrition has worked diligently in providing quality menus and numerous choices,” the review states. “These are presented in an attractive and appealing manner. District offers many fresh fruits and vegetables and encourages those options to students at every meal service.”

Alvin ISD schools have lunchtime monitors but it can be difficult to make sure each student is not sharing food they brought from home, Basich said.

“We send out a letter to parents,” she said about the policy. “When you have several hundred students in a cafeteria, it’s hard.”

In a lot of Alvin ISD schools, when a parent wants to eat with their child, they often sit at a separate table to help ensure the food is not given to other students, Alvin ISD spokeswoman Shirley Brothers said.

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 2 Comments

Grandma Games

I’m not sure what some of you will think about this, but I have to share it because it was fun and sweet and silly and made a sad event so much more pleasant …

We buried my husband’s grandmother yesterday.  She would have been 94 this December 19 if she’d lived a few weeks longer.  The Lord knows best, though, and she is home with Him now.  The funeral service was quite lovely (as lovely as these sad events can be) and I think that she would be pleased by what was said.  She would especially have loved the flowers, as she was quite the gardener and her favorite color was pink.  The casket spray was a beautiful blanket of pink roses and greenery.  And to the side was a small nosegay … two white roses for her children, five yellow roses for her grandchildren, and 9 red roses for her great grandchildren.  Very sweet, indeed.

After the trip to the cemetery, we went back to Grandma’s house to eat, visit, and reminisce.  Back in 1995, Grandma started keeping a journal faithfully.  She wrote in it each and every day, documenting newsworthy items of world, national, and personal natures    .  I’m not sure who came up with this idea, but a good old fashioned Irish wake evolved thusly:

Mark (our cousin) made slips of paper to go in three cups.  In the first cup were slips of paper for the years 1995 through 2008.  In the second were slips of paper January through December.  And in the third cup were numbered slips for the days of a month.  We took turns drawing a year, a month and a date and then the appropriate book would be drawn from the shelf, opened to the month and date and then read aloud to our family.

If, in the course of reading the entry, your name was mentioned, you had to take a drink of your beer, tea or lemonade (this way non-drinkers and kids were able to participate, too)!  Because Grandma was very diligent about recording the events, phone calls and letters sent to her by her children and grandchildren, it’s a good thing we had a limited amount of adult beverages on hand … or else things might have gotten much sillier than they needed to! 

We are not big drinkers (not really drinkers at all), but it was such a lovely and fun way to spend the evening remembering our dear Grandma.  I think she would be quite pleased by the laughter that outweighed the tears, though there were plenty of those to go around, too.

Blessings on you all, and hug your loved ones a little tighter, because this thing called “life” passes by so very, very fast.


AJ and Grandma (Christmas, 2005)

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 13 Comments

And a heavy sigh was heard across the land ….

There may be shouts of joy in some quarters tonight, but true conservatives are sighing with heaviness of heart following this evening’s terrible loss to Obama.  

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 1 Comment

Past Due Notice

I posted this in a comment on another blog, but I liked it so much, I decided to post it here, too:

Interesting (and true) thoughts from Jefferson:

“If once the
people become inattentive to the public affairs, you and I, and
Congress and Assemblies, Judges and Governors, shall all become wolves.
It seems to be the law of our general nature, in spite of individual
exceptions.”

and

“Every generation needs a new revolution.”

It seems that with the wolves at the door, we are past due for our revolution ….

Posted on by Laura Jinkins · 2 Comments

How Could It Have Happened?

This Emmy-winning program ran in 1981/82 …. it takes a little while (about 45 minutes) to watch both of them, but I think you will find some eerie correlations between this based on real life program and what is happened in our country right now. 

ALSO — go to 15:10 in the video and see if you notice a similarity between the logo chosen by the history teacher and anything that you’ve seen in recent days.

The Wave (Part 1)

The Wave (Part 2)

It’s amazing the similarities between this story and what’s happening right now … the mindless devotion to The Wave, threats against anyone who speak against the The Wave … some might find this to be “cheesy” in an afterschool special kind of way, but the truth can’t be denied and this is what’s happening in a large portion of our nation’s population RIGHT NOW.