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Feeling Unsettled

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As of a few years ago, my daily routine began with about 20 minutes of prayer. It was somewhat meditative but mostly it was simply my way of touching base with God and lifting up my concerns to him: prayers for my family and friends; prayers for marginalized people and those facing hardships; prayers for the leaders of our world; prayers for peace, and prayers of thanks for the countless blessings in my life.  I seldom reach out in prayer anymore and that saddens me. It was an exercise that both grounded and centered me. I miss it. We used to be solid members at  Hosanna , leading a weekly bible study in our home and helping out on Tuesday nights at the church where they would offer a meal and a sermon to those in need within the community. Tammy and Rachel would paint the fingernails of tiny hands while I would apply stick-on tattoos to little arms and faces while their parents rummaged through the community clothes closet for items they could use.   Sunday mornings at Hosanna were t
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Train-Tripping and Goodbye, Maria

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Slow down, 2024! What's the hurry? I've likely wrapped up work in my glass studio until next winter. I was pleased with how many pieces I was able to create in the few months where I regularly worked on stained glass projects. Now that I've got a decent inventory in my Etsy shop , I hope to be able to focus on the panels above our kitchen cabinets and on the windows in our master bathroom when I begin work again next winter.  The final piece I did was of a mountain biker riding through a forest. Tammy bought me this wood art as a gift and I used it as inspiration for the design. I figured it was past time that I finally merged my two passions (stained glass and cycling) into a sun-catcher.  For comparison, like most of my pieces of late, it's a smallish panel . This piece of art glass won't make it into my Etsy store. I would much rather gift it to Cliff (our grandson) at some point.  Tammy has taken time lately to work on some watercolor paintings for Clifford'
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Can We Talk?

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Our curling league is done for the season. I hope to join league play again next winter and improve on my budding but limited skills.  I woke up this morning and reached for my phone on the nightstand to read Heather Cox Richardson's most recent update—an update that usually lands in my inbox just after drifting off to sleep for the night. It's how most of my mornings begin. In another era, it wouldn't be this way. I wouldn't have to spend even one second of my day worrying about the direction many in our country would like to lead us or force us to go. But that's no longer the country we live in.  Read Heather's most recent update here . It's not just the direction of our country under a Republican administration led by an authoritarian-curious kleptocrat that worries me, but that far too many people seem oblivious to what that will mean, or that some may even welcome it. I've spent my life free from such worry, always so sure that nothing would or coul
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Projects, Politics, and Pedaling

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I blinked and February was gone! I have a confession: I've been watching an embarrassingly large amount of curling videos on YouTube. Now that I understand some of the strategies (there's still much that goes over my head), I find it fascinating to watch.  I've been experiencing excessive knee pain lately. I know that curling doesn't help the matter but this began before I ever joined a curling league. I'm concerned it may possibly be related to the statin (Rosuvastatin, aka Crestor) I've been taking to manage my cholesterol level. There are reports of the kind of pain I'm experiencing as a side effect of the drug. My right knee has been a problem for me since high school when I tore the meniscus in it (twice in two months) but I've managed to keep it mostly healthy through exercise (and arthroscopic surgery in 1991). But back in December, before curling was ever a thing for me, I developed aggravating knee pain in my right knee that limited how hard I
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The Future is Upon Us (Maybe)

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I can now ✅ curling off of my bucket list. I joined a curling league at Dakota Curling Club in downtown Lakeville across the street from B52s. Like almost everyone else, I've seen the sport featured in the Olympics every four years and have been somewhat intrigued by it. So when friend and neighbor Rebecca put out an announcement looking for people to join a novice-level curling league, I didn't hesitate to add my name.  I was a little worried about my knees allowing me to get down into the proper position to push off from the 'hack' to slide the 40 lb stone down the ice but it wasn't the problem for me that I was expecting it to be. However, I did overdo it on Sunday night when the facility was open for two hours during the Super Bowl for anyone who wanted to come in and practice. I figured I threw 70 stones in my time there. The next morning both of my knees were cussing at me. They hurt! I suck at moderation. Another curler (with 15 years of experience) who was
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Please, Make it Make Sense

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After today our snow will be nearly gone as our mild winter continues. My phone's WeatherBug app shows us to be well above freezing for daytime high temps for the 10-day outlook. Even the nighttime lows are at or above freezing, all thanks to El Niño . This ocean temperature phenomenon typically results in warmer and dryer than normal conditions for the Upper Midwest, which is exactly what we've been experiencing.  Charlie would've loved this mild weather for our walks together. I'm still missing my little buddy and think about him often.  I was hoping to be seeking out some gravel roads to ride today but I've been sidelined until at least Friday after a procedure yesterday to drain a rather large cyst on my right knee. The cyst developed two weeks ago after pushing myself too hard on my indoor trainer with some climbing challenges I participated in on the Rouvy online platform I use for indoor riding. I should have eased back into training after my Covid infection
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Does the End Justify the Means?

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I was in Mr. Don Chase's World Affairs class in 10th grade at Bloomington Jefferson High School in the '72-'73 school year. I was the quiet one, very seldom adding much to the discussion (like so many other classes of mine). Much of what we talked about held little interest for me at the time, but I do recall a question Mr. Chase posed to the class one day: Does the end justify the means? I can't recall the context for his question, if there was one, but it piqued my interest and it's a question that has stayed with me throughout my adult life—perhaps for a time such as now. I've written in my blog numerous times about my disappointment with Christian conservatives and their cozying up to Trump in a most hypocritical way to advance their political agenda while undermining what I always felt was the main goal of evangelicals: to make disciples of men and advance God's kingdom. From a moral standpoint, it would seem that the end falls very short of justifying
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