I can't keep it inside anymore...& why would I want to?

At last my love has come along
My lonely days are over
And life is like a song

Ohh yeah yeah
At last
The skies above are blue
My heart was wrapped up in clover
The night I looked at you

I found a dream, that I could speak to
A dream that I can call my own
I found a thrill to press my cheek to
A thrill that I have never known

Ohh yeah yeah…
You smile, you smile
Oh and then the spell was cast
And here we are in heaven
For you are mine....
At last
- Etta James "At Last"

I love you, Beautiful

"A NEW ENTRY!" (insert fanfare here)

As was shown in my letter to the idiot in the teal green T-Bird a few weeks ago, I agitate reeeeally easily on the road. Some of you may remember the Goofy cartoon where he's nice & mild mannered as a pedestrian but turns into a raving lunatic when he gets behind the wheel. If it weren't for the fact that the short was made about 10-15 years before I was born, I'd swear that it was a cartoon about me. I am the prototype for "Mr. X."

Case in point: one day this past week, I was heading home, taking my normal route through the canyon - a nice drive if you don't have anyone in front of you. Inevitably, though, there is always one driver that decides they want to take in the sites & test their brake lights out at even the slightest curve in the road. This day was no exception. Since there isn't enough room to pass through the canyon, I was forced to follow this funeral procession until I got to the turn towards home. I made the turn & it looked to be clear sailing all the way. It was truly a beautiful site.

Until I caught up to the drivers in front of me.

Two cars. The one in front driving with its hazards on. The one behind them obviously as frustrated as me. We would accelerate up to about 40, then drop to 30, then back up to 50 then down to 25. The lead car looked to be having some car trouble, making it so he couldn't maintain a decent speed. Not a problem really...if the driver had the courtesy to pull over & let traffic pass! Is it really that hard to look in your rear view mirror & pull over when you see that you have traffic behind you? I didn't think so.

A little common courtesy, people. That's all I ask. It saves me from getting ulcers & you from getting run over by me.

Well, I'm back. My service has been changed & I have been sent back to the world of dial-up. The sound of the modem firing up will again haunt my dreams. I had forgotten how horribly slow dial-up is. I hunted around for the best deal with the best bells & whistles & finally settled one non-AOL/MSN company. Having dealt before with those two, I was in no hurry to join forces with 'em. But, this will do for now. It's amazing how not having access to the 'net can make you feel like you're living in a cave. I could even do without the phone (well, not right now - more on that later :) ), but being cut off from the web, with it's access to every point on the globe is almost unthinkable. I even entertained the thought of going outside for awhile * shudder * I fear that all the radiation I've absorbed from my monitor may have destroyed my body's ability to handle sunlight. Not a pleasant thought.

Falling. Falling hard.

Ny-Quil...sapping...consciousness...

Or could it be - MIND CONTROL?!?

You laugh...but check out this site:

Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanie

I'm going out to get some foil right now!

The Crows

Those of you reading this post were probably invited by me & know my beliefs. Those of you who stumbled here on accident, please indulge me while I write a more Spiritually based post.

One of my favorite sections of Scripture is Luke 12:24:

Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds?

* Itty bitty side note - I found it interesting while looking for that verse that Bibles are copywritten. You can copyright God's word? Who knew? *

Anyway, this section has been a great comfort to me when things seem a bit overwhelming. There have been many a time that I've been on the verge of a freakout, only to see a crow or raven & be reminded that I am important to Someone. Today, I was in the Burger King drive-thru, further clogging my arteries with flamebroiled goodness. Things have been a bit tight & stressful lately & I've had a lot on my mind. While ordering, I heard a "clunk" on the roof of the truck. Looking in the reflection in the window, I saw that a big crow had landed on top of my truck & was walking around. While this wasn't as spectacular as the appearance of the dove at Christ's Baptism, it still gave me a sense of peace that has lasted throughout the day. It's funny how God works - the different ways He speaks to our hearts. Some have heard audible voices. For some it's signs & wonders. Me? Well, I've never heard the voice of God in my ear, nor have I seen a lot of signs & wonders. But I do see the crows every day.

& every day I'm reminded of just how special I am.

The country seems to be much smaller but oh so much bigger all at the same time lately. *sigh *

On a less cryptic tangent, my 'net service died on me earlier today. Why this can't happen at work, I don't know. I have a cable modem & as I was dinking about on the computer, I saw the cable TV flicker in & out. This apparently caused the modem to have a siezure, resulting in a wee little bit of service interruption & blinking lights on the modem. After calling the cable company to verify that I hadn't been switched off or that someone hadn't tripped over the cable going directly to my apartment, I was told that I'd have to call tech support, which I had to do after I got home. I got home, praying that the modem would be miraculously healed (hey, He listens to every prayer - figured I may as well give it a try). Alas, my poor modem was still in a coma, lights blinking like a heart monitor. I called tech support & followed their instructions - turn off the computer...disconnect the modem...wait 30 seconds...lather, rinse, repeat. Nothing worked. Mr. Tech Support then said that a technician would have to be sent out to check out the modem. As is usual for any kind of in-house cable service, the only hours available were from 10a-noon. Is this the only time that cable technicians are allowed to go out on service calls? Are they really that busy during the rest of the day? The only time that was available that wouldn't result in me losing valuable sleep time at work was next Saturday, 1p-3p. So, wanting to take any time that I could get my hands on, I reluctantly accepted that time. I resigned myself to the fact that I'd be without serivce for over a week, comforted only by the thought that I would be credited for the downtime. After settling in for a game of Civilization & plotting out my conquest of the French, I looked down at my modem, who returned my glance with a greenlit, steady smile - the modem was healed! Much dancing & heaps of thank you's to the Man Upstairs ensued.

& thus, you have this little tale.

I really need to get out more.

There are times when living in such a big country has its drawbacks. What I'd give for a teleporter.