Early October of this year featured a five-day trip to Rock Creek, about 25 miles north of Bishop on 395. This celebrated a Riter centennial: Dad first traveled up here on a washboard dirt road in 1925, and he got me hooked on Sierra fishing, camping, and Fords. On the second day, my sis now living in Kentucky called, and the topic of trout came up. She declared she didn’t care for them, too many bones. Being trained in debate, and knowing the tastiness of trout, I used an old line, “Life is like eating fish: pick out and discard the bones, and enjoy the meat.”
She didn’t buy that, but…
Read MoreUntil he moved away, Jim and I met regularly at the Swing Inn in Old Town Temecula. Breakfast and God talk and job and health issues and well, just life. Guy times. Good times. Once, Jim brought up a friend of his who had a marvelous job opportunity in another state, and every step seemed orchestrated by God. Prayer inundated it all. They asked for input from trusted friends. Too many coincidences to be coincidental. The job turned out to be the proverbial “died and gone to heaven” type. Until…
Within a few months, the job ended, bringing financial devastation. Jim wondered why? Where was God when he seemed so involved in the move?…
Read MoreAbout a month ago, after worship at our church and lunch at Lucy’s Mexican Café, Sheila and I headed to a local winery and relaxed at a patio table. A few moments later a woman, mid 20s, sat down at the next table with a plate of BBQ piled high on a bun. Even after eating, my mouth began to water at the aroma and sight. “Excuse me, ma’am, but you’re torturing me. That smells and looks so good!”
She replied with a smile, “Would you like a taste?”
I…
Read MoreUpon deciding on a total knee replacement, the amount of details to prepare for it astounded me: exercises, medications, getting a driver for two 45 mile trips to the Kaiser hospital in Riverside and other appointments and activities—no driving while taking oxycodone. And the horror stories arrived—incredible, unimaginable pain for months.
So I began strategizing, and got it organized. Even the rehab equipment. I planned the yard work that needed to be done before the surgery, including mowing our lawn the day before they chiseled my knee out. Then spring arrived, and I soon realized…
Read MoreFor about four years, one night each week I’d head east from Oxnard to Newbury Park on Potrero Road, the old Conejo Grade, much was steep and winding with fine curves…ideal for my Mustang ragtop. Returning uphill at 10 PM, Potrero had no traffic at all, and I could let the Mustang be the sports car Ford designed. When approaching a curve, I let off the gas to decrease my speed…braking while turning doesn’t give you optimal control. No one ever caught or passed me on that road, and I felt pretty confident about my cornering, until…
Read MoreAs Jerry and I headed east on our 2022 East Coast trek in May, I had low expectations for the Kansas section of I-80. My wife grew up east of Dodge City, and my midsummer or winter visits birthed memories of dry and barren, with no real hills. But our third day was Sunday and I wanted to worship, so I popped on Mercy Me, and I focused God while riding. Gentle hills emerged and in May, the fields…
Read MoreGot up this Sunday AM, fried an egg, grabbed my coffee and opened up the AP news on my laptop, to find a random attack at a Detroit area splash pool. A 42 year old man randomly walked up, fired at least 28 rounds, wounding nine with one in critical condition. He calmly left for home, where police soon found him—killed by his own hand.Since 2001, terrorism and random shootings, international and domestic. seem to fill our news. We call that evil, as we should. Yet…
Read MoreThis post may be my most politically relevant and unyieldingly nonpartisan. Some time back, a commentator, who’s been around since Watergate, expressed that he is more concerned about the future of our country now than at any time in his life. Why? We can’t agree on truth. We don’t seek truth. Partisans, on both sides, decry as “Fake News” anything that doesn’t match what they already want to believe. We accept, as gospel, rumors with no evidence. The divide between left and right grows because…
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