Welcome to “do nothing Thursday” once again. It is a crispy right fall-looking morning at sixty-five degrees and lots of sunshine. I call this “Do-Nothing Thursday” because I have nothing on my calendar schedule that I have to accomplish. In reality, I have a lot of stuff that I need to do.

I think first thing today will be to feed the birds. Everything is empty out there with the exception of a  woodpecker cylinder and the hummingbird feeder. Old “Buzzwing” the hummer was here a few minutes ago. I suspect his days are limited for here and he’ll be moving on before too long. I need to go to Pet Foods and pick up another 80 pounds of sunflower seed too and I need to make a list of things to get at Wild Birds too. It is going to be an expensive trip. But, ya’ gotta’ pay to play and we do enjoy our birds.

Other things on my list include riding “the bike to nowhere” for about five files or so; putting the battery charger on my backyard John Deere, (it was dead when I tried to start it last evening), Then if I feel up to it, I really need to get out in the garden with a hoe and get some of the weeds out of it. And my flowerbed back here is so over grown, I don’t know if I’ll ever get it straightened out. And in  between all of that, we plan to go to Princeton and drop off a bag of plastic bottle caps to Lyles Station. They take them and they send them off to have benches made out of them. I have a plastic bag hanging on my back door that we put them in and it about to break because it is so full. I’d really hate to drop one more cap into that bag and have it break and spill all over the floor.

So that is what a “Do nothing Thursday” looks like. It’s like any other day except it isn’t on the calendar.

Wow, August is almost over. Only two more days and it will be September. One of the good gigs is that we have three vacations coming up before the end of the year. In September we are going to Las Vegas and California to see Heather for a week. In October we are driving to North Carolina to see Lisa for a week. In December we are going back to Las Vegas for the National Finals Rodeo. Being laid up for all of Spring and most of Summer, has made us anxious to get on the road once again.

But now —- it is time to start on my “do nothing” list. I hope you have a wonderful day. Go with God.

Good morning on a Tuesday morning. It is another cloudy warm morning and it looks like it could rain most any moment although my Accu-weather app says that it won’t rain for another 114 minutes. I know they try to make it “pin-point” weather but that’s kind of silly.

Yesterday I had office hours in the morning and I didn’t get a thing done. My co-pastor and I were so busy talking about an issue that it took up all of my time. And the worst part is that the issue is still not resolved at least for him. I have resolved it in my mind. Anyway, it kept me from working on the sermon I was working on and I didn’t get around to doing my blog.

Yesterday afternoon it rained some more and I did work on a couple of sermons. Then I rode  my exercise bike for forty five minutes and I practiced my song that I’m going to play Sunday. If I hadn’t told you, I’m playing “Peace in the Valley” on my trumpet. I don’t think I ever pictured myself still playing trumpet solos at seventy-five years of age. Is that weird? I think it is even more weird that I actually sang a duet just a couple of weeks ago. What’s wrong with me??? Last evening, I just watched some television and relaxed. I don’t do that often enough. Although Sunday night I did stop and watch Serengeti. What a wonderful series that is. I can’t even imagine how hard it must have been to film that documentary. They have the most amazing close up wild animal shots I have ever seen. I can’t stand award shows from the entertainment industry but that show should get all kinds of awards. It is following I think seven different kinds of African animal through the seasons of the year in Africa. The narration is being done by a young African woman who starred in some movie. As I recall, she won an Oscar for her performance in that movie. I have recommended the show to all of my Facebook friends and I and recording it on my DVR to watch again sometime.

Today I need to take Ms. Kate to the clinic to have her blood drawn. It is an every six week thing. Then I have to go by FEDEX and drop off a package. So maybe we’ll grab some breakfast while w are out.

That’s about it for this cloudy morning. I hope your day is brighter aand is full of spiritual son-shine. Peace.

What a beautiful and lazy Saturday this is. I’ve accomplished nothing today so far and it is now a quarter after twelve in the afternoon. And you know what, I plan to do more of the same the rest of the day. I did ask Ms. Kate if she would like to take a drive to some place and get something to eat but she is in about the same frame of mind that I am. So, we may just end up sitting here in the sunporch looking at one another and playing on our IPads. But it does seem a shame to waste a good day by staying indoors.

Ms. Kate is the latest person in our twosome to play “Dancing With the Stairs”. Last evening she was going from the sunporch into the family room with her hands more full than they should have been. Somehow she tripped going up the two steps and fell. Her injury is a two inch by four inch “skin removed by brick” wound on her left arm. She didn’t holler for me but waited until I came up from the basement to tell me. It was a bloody mess. I put Neosporin on it and wrapped it for her. Today we have to go get some proper sized bandages  for it. She a bit sore today but not as bad as I thought she might be. I think we both need keepers.

What I need to do is get my butt outside and fill the Backyard Buffet. I don’t know how muddy it is though. We’ve had almost three inches of rain this week. But I see a lot of feeders out there that are empty.

Yesterday Ms. Kate and I went to St. Joe Inn for “Schrooms and Beer” with Bob and Brenda. It is always  great to be able to do that. Bob seems to get more frail all the time. I think he is 87 now but he is such a good friend. He and his wife Georgia Ann were two of our favorite people when I was the pastor of the parish in Ft.Branch. We try to get together once every six weeks or so.

Well, we are going to get out of our recliners and start moving. Y’all have a blessed weekend.

Rain, rain, go away. We don’t really need you today. Welcome to a rainy Thursday morning. It has been raining on and off all week. We’ll have “showers” like we are right now that are light but persistent, and then we’ll have thunder and lightening and heavy rain. All of this started the other day when we lost power  for nine hours. Ever since then it has either been stifling heat and humidity or raining. We are supposed to have our worship service outside this coming Sunday but we decided yesterday at the staff meeting to keep it indoors. The “corn flies” have been persistent too and that makes it really uncomfortable.

The feeders are empty at the Backyard Buffet. But the rain and wet yard and mud keep me from walking around out there. So, my guests will have to remember that they are wild birds after all and not my houseguests. I was riding my recumbent bike Tuesday and watching the dang black birds and starlings out there on the suet. They waste so much of it and any other feed that they go after. They peck hard at the suet and more falls down on the ground than they actually eat I think. I can’t tell because of the flowers whether other birds then clean up the ground clutter. I suspect that the cardinals do because they are as much ground feeders as they are from the feeders. And the wrens and sparrows and finches are always digging and scrambling and scratching around too. So, while unintended, maybe the nasty starlings etc. are helping the other birds out.

Today is my sister-in-law Karen’s seventy fifth birthday. I don’t know why I find that so significant but I do. I reached my 75th birthday in July and it seems like something that should be celebrated. Three quarters of a century is a long life. And frankly, my health is good enough to go another decade I think. I want to do a small celebration though. I have a bottle or two of wine that is as old as I am and I see no reason not to pull the cork on it. If my accident taught me anything this year, it is to live live to the fullest. So, she and I need to make a decision when we are going to celebrate together. I’m thinking I want Bob and Brenda to share in the celebration. Brenda loves a good wine and Bob has reached 88 years old now I think. We’re meeting them tomorrow for our Schrooms and Beer day. I’m looking forward to that.

I guess it is time to sign off of here and either get another cup of coffee or get on the Bike to Nowhere and maybe crank out five miles or so. I have about decided that I’m going to keep it at five miles. That is forty minutes of exercise and I don’t really need to be doing anymore than that. So, while I make that decision, (I’ll probably get more coffee) you go out there and have yourself a blessed day full of the Lord’s goodness. Peace.

Good morning on this second day of the week. Or —- is it the third day of the week. It depends on whether one counts Sunday as the last day of the week or the first day of the week doesn’t it? Sunday is considered as part of the “weekend” and yet the calendars put it as the first day of the week. So, I guess technically this is the third day of the week, although that has always been Wednesday. (Some people seem to believe that I over think things; others just think I’m weird.) Any way —- Happy Tuesday!!!

It is already hot this morning and we are scheduled or at least predicted for an oppressive heat/humidity day. Then later today we are facing thunderstorms. Hopefully there won’t be any damage like the other night. Our forecaster said last night that the weather pattern had changed and now we are looking at storms all the way through Thursday. This is typical August weather for our area.

I have a lot of guests at the Backyard Buffet and it is almost empty. I reckon I better fill things up again today. I don’t want any riots out there. The squirrels are already hanging onto a branch of the pussy willow tree looking into the sunporch to let me know they want the feeder refilled. What can I say; it sucks to be them. And, — the starlings and blackbirds keep coming around looking for food. I don’t mind disappointing them either. The gazebo shaped safflower feeder has plenty of seed in it and that supplies the cardinals with what they like and I have plenty of food out there for the finches and the woodpeckers, so maybe I won’t rush out there.

I’m trying a little something new today. I left my orthotic off today and put on a pair of my regular shoes. As long as I use my cane, I can navigate around the house just fine. My doctor said that I can do that as long as I’m careful, and the doctor said it doesn’t hurt the leg for me to do that. My caution is steps. There are two steps down into the sunporch and I made it just fine as long as I really watch it and don’t try to get ahead of myself. But it feels good to have on my “real shoes” instead of having the new “boat-sized” shoes I have to wear with my orthotic. My next thing is to try to ride the bike without the orthotic. It shouldn’t be a problem but we’ll find out here in a few minutes. I don’t think I am quite ready to venture out in the yard without my brace either. Uneven surfaces are not my friend just yet. I just need to be careful and not push things too far or too quickly.

That’s my ramble of the day. Stay out of the heat if you can today. Stay inside and read a book. Have a blessed day. Peace.

Good morning on this blessed start to the week. It's great to see the sunshine this morning. I'm at work and am just catching up on some things. In a few minutes I'm heading out to do some parishioner visitation and take comunion to a couple of folks. It will be the first time I have been able to visit these folks since my accident in February. They have some really steep steps with no handrail making it very scary to try to get in and out of theoir house. I finally talked to them and we figured out that I could come through their garage. So, that's what I'm going to try to do. From there I'll head to the nursing home to see a couple of folks.

Last night was interesting. I was sitting at my computer and the lights went out. I'll tell you what; that is one dark basement when the power is off. I sat there for a few moments and tried to figure out where the flashlight was. I knew that I had one there on my desk somewhere but in pitch-black I couldn't see anything. I felt around and felt around and finally found it. I went up stairs and it was storming like crazy. The worst thing was that my generator had not kicked on like it was supposed to. It has an autostart function but it didn't work. I think that when the gas and electric company came out and put a new meter on the gas line they cut the gas off and that shut down the autostart. So, I grabbed my raincoat and went out and fiddled around with it and it started  up and ran just fine for the next eight hours while the commercial power was off. But, I was the only house around that had power. I offered the neighbor to come over but they said they would stay where they were and just go to bed early. When I reported the power outage, I asked to be notified when the power came on. It was 0100 hours when they called me. As I drove to the office today, I saw that there were a lot of yards that were full of tree debris. The weather forecast calls for another storm maybe this evening and then again on Wednesday.

Okay, I'm running out of time. I need to put my laptop up and head out for my appointment. Have a blessed day.

Good morning, and. Happy end of the work week, at least for some people. I know I certainly do; I have a wedding to do tomorrow and then of course Sunday is a normal day of work for pastors. I know at least two of my daughters will be working tomorrow too. Julie  will be going in and working on “web-orders” for the college bookstore she manages, and Lisa will be at the auto garage that she and her husband Gary own. I don’t know about Heather or Stephanie.

The children’s song sings about “four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie”. I’ve had a flock of blackbirds here all morning and there are at least twenty four of them. They always seem to know when I have freshly filled the feeders and they are here first thing. They stay for an hour or two and run other birds off. I think they are Grackles and Red-wing Blackbirds, and some nasty old Starlings. They are almost an indigo blue/black. But now, the squirrels have decided to join the part at the Backyard Buffet and that will be a tussle between the squirrels and the blackbirds.

I made comment yesterday on Facebook that I didn’t have anything on my immediate to-do list and therefore should have time to get it all done. Well, I got quite a bit of work done outside yesterday. I had a whole stack of larger limbs that have fallen out of my trees that I have been just stacking off to the side of the yard. They were too big to just break in to pieces and put in my garbage can, I had to use my chainsaw. That stack has been there for over a year and has just gotten larger because I couldn’t get out there to do anything about it. Yesterday I asked Ms. Kate to help me and we got it all cut up and put in the garbage can. We also cut back a bunch of weeds and some of the phlox that had developed mildew. Then I filled bird feeders, so despite no immediate to-do list, I got a lot of work done and by bed time I was totally bushed. That seems to happen a lot easier these days. I must be getting old and soft. That’s why the bike riding is good for me. It helps to build up stamina and if I lose a pound or two in the process, that’s just added benefit.

Speaking of my bike, I’m going to finish my coffee, eat a yogurt, and then get on for a ride. Between my Gaither gospel video on You Tube and all of my critters to watch out at the Backyard Buffet, I’ll be well entertained as I take my ride to nowhere. While I do that, I hope you go have yourself a glorious day. Take time to speak to God today. God is waiting to hear from you.