One day I was telling Mom how badly rain was needed around these parts due to the high burn danger. She reminded me that I had written about being tired of the rain but actually much time had passed between the days of rain and days of no rain. There has been little precipitation of consequence since mid-February and wild fires are being fought in this area. Smoke has filled the area down the river, coming from GA as has happened in the past. When I drove to Palm Coast last week I saw lots of places along the highway where the woods have been burned. It does look so sad to see the stubble remaining....
I just came back from the kitchen and heard rain on the walkway so it is doing what was predicted but not nearly as torrential as expected. That's a good thing! Who wants hail anyway? Today there were plumbers on the property with the water shut off for the entire compound to repair a slow leak near The Club. The water was to have been shut off around 9:00 a.m. but was still on when I left for Bible study. It came back on around 4:00 pm because I could hear it filling my toilet. Immediately I went to flush the potty and then went to the kitchen to wash my wastebasket. Just then Connie called me, instructing me to run cold water in the kitchen sink and then flush my toilet. Oh oh.....too late! And I had done that in reverse order! Now what? She assured me it was not a problem, but the water in the toilet would run brown for a while, which is why it was suggested to run the kitchen faucet first, to get the sediment out. From previous experience, I know that the brown water can really stain the bowls. I went around and flushed them all, and then poured bleach into each one for overnight. They need it anyway, from sitting unused so long, at least the other two back bathrooms are unused.
There is a 'new' local TV station showing reruns of older shows such as "Seinfeld" and "Frasier", which is a nice thing. The not-so-nice thing is that they also show back-to-back public service announcements which annoy me terribly. The price for being able see "The Wallet" episode, where Kramer has to pretend to be Elaine's boyfriend. Frasier just made a funny, saying about Daphne's cooking, "Even Hannibal Lecter couldn't keep that woman's food down!" Now, Martin is presenting Frasier with a painting he had admired in a restaurant...only Frasier did not really like it, just trying to get a table! Oops!
Our Bible study today was fine, but with fewer folks around the table. Twila is still in rehab and Ethel was traveling to one of her grandson's swim meets. We believe Gretchen stayed home because of the rain in the forecast, although it held off until later in the afternoon. We went to lunch at Longhorn and yes, those who ordered from the kids' menu got the sippy cups again. Mike C. and I ordered from the regular menu so had real glasses for our sodas.
The table conversation was interesting, and it never ceases to amaze how 'diverse' the take can be on the same news stories! Some are appalled that Duval county might have to close some of their schools due to low scores and reduced funding. A few in the group see the reason in eliminating the schools and/or the programs in order to meet budgets, but then others are horrified at the thought of it. Art, music, and sports are all available outside of the school system, but folks are so accustomed to having it as part of the curriculum. I heard a businessman interviewed a while ago on a TV news show. He is an American who works and lives in China, declaring that the reason American kids cannot compete with Asian kids is because American kids are "taught self-esteem instead of academics!" Mike offers an interesting perspective, having taught in Lutheran (private) schools as well as inner-city government schools in Jacksonville. Clay County is experiencing the same situations of budget cuts due to decreased revenues, since so many homes are in foreclosure, hence, less real estate taxes coming in. I sure hope the teachers don't riot because of it...
After lunch I stopped at Winn Dixie to take advantage of the specials seen in their flyer this week. Got the toilet paper which was buy one/get one, plus the 'shopping like a rock star' deal: Buy 2 Digornio pizzas and get free pizza rolls, free chicken wing appetizers, a bottle of Diet 7-Up, and two free Breyer ice cream! All for $14.98!! Can't be beat! Justin will relieve me of one of the pizzas, the wings, pizza rolls, and perhaps one of the ice creams. I will keep one of the pizzas and one of the ice creams for sure...maybe both!
On this same subject, Jackie told us today about a report she'd heard that Christians are more likely to be overweight than non-Christians. WHAT? That is ridiculous....Talk about profiling! So, therefore, anyone who is not overweight must be an unbeliever. Sure would make outreach a whole lot easier---all you would have to do is 'size' a person up to see if they know about their Savior. Everyone at the China Buffet must be believers, too, so I guess one would have to go to the gym and fitness centers to seek those who have 'fallen away'. There can be a study about anything these days!
