Dear Senator Cruz...or any Republican for that matter...

Thought it time to resurrect this:

Dear Mr./Ms. Republican,

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I 
have learned a great deal from you and understand why you would propose and
support a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage. As  you 
said "in the eyes of God marriage is based between a man a woman." I try to 
share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to 
defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that 
Leviticus 18: 22 clearly states it to be an abomination. . . End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements 
of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25: 44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and 
female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine
claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you 
clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in 
Exodus 21: 7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for 
her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her
period of menstrual uncleanness - Lev. 15: 19-24. The problem is how do 
I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a
pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev. 1:9. The problem is, my neighbors. 
They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35: 
2. clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to 
kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an
abomination - Lev. 11: 10, it is a lesser abomination than 
homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21: 20 states that I may ! not approach the altar of God if I 
have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does 
my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle- room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair 
around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. 
How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11: 6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes 
me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19: 19 by planting two 
different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of 
two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to 
curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the 
trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev. 24: 10-16. Couldn't 
we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with 
people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20: 14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, Mr./Ms. Republican,  and 
thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I am confident you can
help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and 
unchanging.

Interesting Podcast Episode

I listen to a number of different podcasts and came across a new one yesterday. It's called "The Edge of Sports" with Dave Zirin.

In this particular episode, Dave interviews Dr. Harry Edwards, a renowned sports sociologist. The main subject was regarding March Madness and the NCAA. But towards the end of the interview Dave asks Dr. Edwards about Donald Trump. He states that what the ascendancy of Donald Trump says about us is that we are an extremely volatile society - divided by race and class - exploited for personal gain, particularly by the Republican party going back to Nixon and the southern strategy.

To call Trump names is not appropriate. I've quoted and paraphrased his remarks:

“I’m not concerned about Donald Trump. I’m not concerned about what he is or might not be. What I am concerned about are the people who are frustrated enough, desperate enough, hurting enough and so forth, to follow him. Those are the people that we’re going to have to sit down to the table with and say, Ok, what are our best options in terms of resolving the issues and, so forth, we’re confronted with. I’m not concerned about Donald Trump. Donald Trump is a clown. We need to look at the real legitimate frustrations, the pain that so many people feel that they would be driven to support this kind of hucksterism, this kind of performance…those people who are following him are Americans, too. How do we embrace, how do we engage, how do we respect their pain, concerns and issues even if they are “racists”? The world is pulling against all of us. We need to get a grip and get on with it.”

An Alternative to Donald Drumpf? Yes, I think so...

Walter For President Facebook Page

What God Hath Wrought

Booty

Today was a glorious day! Went to the farmer's market and brought home these goodies, or booty, as I like to say.

Ciao!

Lazy Sunday

Iowa Caucuses

Yes, it's that time again! National elections are right around the corner.

I watched the Iowa caucus on C-Span last night. It was very interesting - but also somewhat disturbing. I understand tradition but the caucuses tend to exclude a lot of people - if you want to participate and "cast your vote" you've got to devote an entire evening to this. No early voting - if you've got to work or not available this one evening you're out of luck. Not only that, your vote is public not private! Not liking this.

From now until the election I will post some thoughts on the election, the candidates and the parties. I will leave emotion out of it and discuss the facts.

Ciao.

Peanut

One of our sweeties...Peanut.

Merry Christmas

While driving around looking at holiday lights...pretty, huh?

Halloween in St. Augustine

Had a lovely time spending Halloween in St. Augustine. TNT always know how to throw a great party!

Neat wolf in historic St. Augustine.

Dead Donna greets you in the foyer.

Dr. Watson, I presume?

It's elementary, dear Watson.

Ghoulish...

Another ghoul in historic St. Augustine.

Halloween is Coming

Working on our costumes.

Frogger

Saw this little guy while sitting on the porch this evening.

Enjoying the 450th Anniversary of St. Augustine

Labor Day Respite

In St. Augustine to celebrate its 450th anniversary and enjoy some much needed down time.

Above in downtown listening to Mavis Staples. Yeah. Good times.

Ciao.

We ARE the 20%!

Pathology report: Sydney is cancer free! No chemo needed! Yippee!

Ciao!

Sydney's Home

Sydney resting comfortably a few minutes after returning home.

We've had better weeks than this...and we've had worse. This is life.

Lisa noticed some odd behavior from Sydney Monday at lunch and decided to work from home the rest of the day in order to keep an eye her. Sydney was lethargic, not interested in food and seemed to be getting weak. Miriam took a look when she came home from work - saw that Sydney was pale and decided we needed to get her in to the ER - something was not right.

An ultrasound revealed a splenic mass and internal bleeding. The ER doc indicated a strong possibility of hemangiosarcoma - an aggressive and deadly cancer. She spent the night and received two blood transfusions as her red blood count was low. She also underwent several other diagnostic procedures to rule out any obvious metastasis. All came back clear.

So, Tuesday afternoon she had a splenectomy to remove her spleen and its associated mass. While in there they did see a nodule on her liver but it was too dangerous to excise. So, we don't have any idea what it is.

We're waiting to get back the pathology report that will tell us if the splenic mass was a hemangiosarcoma. Unfortunately, all indications seem to suggest that it is. But there's a small chance it's not.

We're hoping that small chance comes our way.

To read more about this: National Canine Cancer Foundation

Stay tuned.

Justice Thomas - An Embarrassment to the Court

So, marriage equality has been decided...finally. The dissenting justices arguments were quite interesting.

"The corollary of that principle is that human dignity cannot be taken away by the government,” Thomas wrote in his dissent. “Slaves did not lose their dignity (any more than they lost their humanity) because the government allowed them to be enslaved. " ~Clarence Thomas 

George Takei had an interesting response to it to which I agree totally.

"It seems odd that Justice Thomas, as an African American, would be an opponent of marriage equality. His own current marriage, if he had sought to have it some fifty years ago, would have been illegal under then-existing anti-miscegenation laws. I cannot help but wonder if Justice Thomas would have felt any loss of dignity had the clerk’s office doors been shut in his face, simply because he was of a different race than his fiancée. It is a sad irony that he now enjoys the dignity of his marriage, equal in the eyes of the law to any others, while in the same breath proclaiming that the denial of marriage to LGBTs works no indignity." ~George Takei 

Love Wins!

"No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.

The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Sixth

Circuit is reversed.

It is so ordered."

Celebrate Love

On February 20, 2015 we unexpectedly got married. Let us explain.

We went to the courthouse that afternoon to apply for a marriage license. We learned that our 18 years together enabled the Clerk of the Court to waive the normal three day waiting period. And just like that we got hitched - no pomp, no circumstance. We informed family and friends by sending them a text of our marriage certificate.

Getting married was not a surprise to us - during a New Year's Eve party the Ouija board had foretold that our nuptials would take place in 2015. 

At the time of our marriage ceremony we had no rings. That's not to say that we hadn't given any thought to them. It's just that for the better part of 17 years we had been looking in vain for THE ring that we had seen at an art's festival in 1997. We didn't buy it then because we wanted an aquamarine stone and he had none. 

The idea of rings pretty much dried up....until our friend Terry asked if we were going to get rings for each other. We shrugged it off. But then she had a great idea - what if we could find someone to make the ring of our dreams? The quest began and ended on Aviles Street in St. Augustine.

However, the rings were only the beginning. Once again our friend Terry asked if we were planning a celebration. We looked at each other and said, "No". But she reminded us that the New Year's Eve party she hosted - the same one with the Ouija board - was also an audition showcasing her creative catering skills in the event we got married and wanted to celebrate. 

Terry was right - we needed to celebrate our special union. The date was picked, the menu selected, and the venue, their home, was transformed. Terry and Tom gave us a magical night - and celebrate we did.

We thank everyone for your love and support!

Ciao.

It's beginning to look a lot like....Spring!