National Day of Prayer...how did you spend it?

Jim and I were going to celebrate it today. Connersville usually has a prayer meeting at noon on the courthouse lawn. For some reason, the organizers decided not to hold it there this year. We found out (too late) that they held it this morning at 7:30 at Living Waters Worship Center here in town. We were really bummed! This year, especially, we DID NOT want to miss being able to corporately pray for our nation.

It seems President Obama decided to only sign a proclamation regarding the National Day of Prayer and not hold any formal gathering. Apparently, he wanted to get away from the way Bush had handled this in the past...

{PAUSE PLAYLIST OVER ON THE RIGHT BEFORE VIEWING VIDEO}





Seems we have come A LONG way from the days of Ronald Regan who prayed this prayer:

Ronald Reagan, February 6, 1986


To preserve our blessed land we must look to God. . . . It is time to realize that we need God more than He needs us. . . .

Let us, young and old, join together, as did the First Continental Congress, in the first step, in humble heartfelt prayer. Let us do so for the love of God and His great goodness, in search of His guidance and the grace of repentance, in seeking His blessings, His peace, and the resting of His kind and holy hands on ourselves, our nation, our friends in the defense of freedom, and all mankind, now and always.

The time has come to turn to God and reassert our trust in Him for the healing of America. . . . Our country is in need of and ready for a spiritual renewal. Today, we utter no prayer more fervently than the ancient prayer for peace on Earth.

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. . . .” And God bless you all. link

Did any of you attend any public functions today? Regardless, our nation is in great need of prayer...any day, not just today. PLEASE pray for our leaders. It isn't too late. Is it? I have to keep reminding myself, "With God, ALL things are possible"...no matter how hopeless it looks. And from where I stand, it is looking pretty bad...

Please pray for the future of Connersville, Indiana...

Here is the sign in front of the Western Avenue Baptist Church in Connersville today:



This is what they are talking about:

{PAUSE PLAYLIST OVER ON THE RIGHT FIRST}




(sorry about the commericals in the next video...)





Fox 59's coverage:






THE PRODUCT:





THE PITCH:




Back in the 30's, Connersville was known as "Little Detroit" because of all the automobiles which were manufactured here. That could be another post someday...

Jim, Emily and I went up to the old Visteon plant after work. Luckily, the weather was perfect! Jim talked to one of the county commissioners and he estimated that there were around 5,000 people who attended the festivities. Apparently, Carbon Motors officials hadn't been told about any of this and the company president said, (as they unveiled the car) that they were truly overwhelmed. One of the elementary schools had the children write letters about why they should locate in Connersville, and the president was so impressed, he went to the school to speak to the kids. Tomorrow. the protype and the company officials head to Indy to meet with Mitch and others.

We won't know for awhile whether or not this godsend will actually be coming to give Connersville and the surrounding area a much needed ecomomic shot in the arm. In the meantime we are praying. Sure would appreciate any extra prayers from anyone who reads this. I will keep you posted.

House passes "Hate Crimes" bill...AKA...to blog or not to blog a controversial topic...THAT is the question.

The world of blogging has been quite eye-opening for me this past year. I have followed several DIFFERENT types of bloggers...crafty, "religious", thrifty, sports orientated, homemakers, parents, political, horticultural, photographic...the list is endless.

My post tastes have likewise been varied. Sometimes I like to "forget about it all" and zone out with American Idol and/or the Bengals. Sometimes, I just can't. Sometimes I just have to "talk" about politics and/or religion. It is just in my makeup. I can't help it. This is one of those times.

Last week, Jim showed me a site he had found while perusing the net. Interestingly enough, the site is Canadian. The article starts out this way:

Hate Crimes bill, Worst Attack on First Amendment Freedoms of Speech, Religion in American History

Twisted H.R. 1913 Passes House Committee


"While America slept on Wednesday April 25 we woke up to find headlines about how Michelle Obama likes to sneak out and eat at fun restaurants. Not so well covered by the media was the passage of the Hate Crimes bill re-introduced and passed in committee by John Conyers. (D-MI) What does it mean?"

What does it mean...indeed. I guess it depends on which news outlet you choose to watch. The liberals all believe this is the GREATEST thing to happen since, well, I guess since Obama was elected. The conservatives, on the other hand, believe it is just one step closer to taking away our constitutional rights to free speech. (Oh, and the Fairness Doctrine hasn't even come up for vote yet. Wait till THAT happens!)

Quoting again from the Canada Free Press:

"The bill co-sponsored along with 42 other representatives and crafted by openly gay Congressmen Barney Frank is riddled with gay agenda politics and disregards the will of the people. It was introduced between sessions when little attention is being paid to discussions or votes in the house and is riddled with skullduggeries. Have legislators now come to the place where their own personal lifestyles can get some lawful credence if they think it deserves it? Let’s see.

Books have been written and a few movies made when ordinary citizens undertook to get a law enacted or changed in America. Years of legal battles, hearings, evidence and impassioned testimonies resulted in landmark legislation that changed the very civil landscape of the nation. In the end a ‘wrong was righted’ and America was made the better for it.

Today we may have come to the place where America is being asked to ‘wrong a right’ with Congressmen Barney Frank’s H.R. 1913. Similar bills such as H.R. 1592 were struck down by Presidential veto in 2007.

With much of the nation distracted by the financial crisis and the new almost patronizing concern for gays fostered by the Obama administration added to the latest trend of representatives voting for anything but the will of the people the stage may be set for the passage of this potentially dangerous bill.

The dangers of the bill are inherent in its very premise and it could serve to become the first bill in our history that guarantees freedoms to one group of citizens at the expense of freedoms to another.

For the best point by point breakdown of the problems with H.R 1913 I would refer anyone with nominal intelligence to the Tony Perkins’ article ‘Why Congress Should Reject Federal Hate Crimes Bill’ posted on the Christian Post April 21, 2009. Perkins shows how the bill comes into conflict with the 14th amendment which guarantees all Americans ‘equal justice under the law.

The ‘hate crimes bill’ is an affront to states sovereignty and if misinterpreted by any level of law enforcement will quickly become a ‘thought policing’ bill to wrest even more freedoms from the average citizen by essentially demanding that special groups get special justice."

Another good article I found concerning this (written with a Conservative slant)can be found here: Here is an excerpt:

"A federal hate crimes bill heavily criticized by religious liberty advocates moved a step closer to becoming law today after being approved on a vote of 15-12 by the House Judiciary Committee. The bill, H.R. 1913, will now be considered by the full House of Representatives.

The Judiciary Committee rejected a number of amendments offered by several congressman seeking to protect religious liberty, to protect the unborn, to protect against violence by illegal aliens, and to clarify the bill's meanings of "gender identity" and "sexual orientation." One of the rejected amendments, offered by Congressman Gohmert of Texas, sought to ensure that ministers could not be prosecuted for abetting a hate crime simply because they preach from the Bible or other holy book."

Hmmm...see where this could be heading?

You would have to be living under a rock not to have heard about Carrie Prejean (Miss California) and Perez Hilton's infamous "differences of opinion" at the Miss USA contest last month. Never have I heard such vitriol as came spewing out of Mr. Hilton's mouth after that. If the shoe had been on the other foot, and Ms. Prejean had used HER freedom of speech in such a way to lament the reason she lost the pageant, you had better believe the **** would have hit the fan! (I chose not to include the You Tube link where he made very crude remarks about her on his site. I am including a debate between Hilton and a right wing conservative radio talk show host which aired on Larry King. I saw it that night and LOVED the point Prager made at about 2:00...)



If this weren't such a serious time in the history of our nation, it would almost be laughable...

The liberals seem to hate our guts. Plain and simple. Right wing conservatives seem to have sunk to such a base degree as to warrant total and absolute disgust in the eyes of leftie liberals (I used to be a liberal, but never hated the "other side"...never thought they were stupid, "redneck, racist teabaggers" as Jeanane Garofalo recently stated...but THAT is another post for another day.) The eyes, in which "we" have sunk so low, are found in Hollywood, the bulk of main stream media, and unfortunately, the people wielding the power in this country right now. (Don't get it twisted, as my friend at work says. I don't for one minute believe McCain would have been much better....). But the fact is that this country is changing. Change I for one don't want to see. This isn't the first time change in the United States has occured and it won't be the last. THIS change, IMHO, is absolutely not for the better.

Since I have written this post from a conservative slant, let's get ready for the "Fairness Doctrine" and allow equal time to the left. But before I do, I want to state that I do not believe this law is needed. ANY act of violence is a "hate crime" and I don't believe one group of people should be protected any differently...over and above...any other group...REGARDLESS of the circumstances.

PAUSE PLAYLIST OVER ON THE "RIGHT" (ha ha...never thought of that before) FIRST













Which brings us to THIS SITE...the TransKids Purple Rainbow Foundation.

How about this site?

Parents/Guardians and Family Members
of Gender Variant / Trans-Identified and Questioning Youth,
and Gender Non-Conforming Young Children


God help us...

ETA Jim said jokingly after reading this, "if everybody listened to bluegrass gospel, we wouldn't have this problem." I know that there may be some who read this post who may not see all this change as a problem, but rather as progress. I am fully aware that someone who reads this post may "let me have it with both barrels", but hey, we still have freedom of speech in this country...at least for now.

2009 NFL Draft... AKA... How did YOUR team do???

OK, let's just get to it...This is what MY team was up to this weekend...




Round 1, Pick 6 (6) Andre Smith OT 6'4" 332 Alabama



DISCLAIMER...I didn't write any of the "Pick Analysis"...just the comments in the brackets. The credit goes to the NFL site:

Pick Analysis:Marvin Lewis has stated that he wants to get back to running the football, and Smith gives the Bengals a dominating offensive tackle to run behind. Though he had a series of mishaps in the run up to the draft { uh oh...another potential jailbird??? No, for some reason, he just left the combine early. At least I HOPE that is all it was! OUCH! }, there is no denying that Smith is one of the best tackle prospects in the draft.

{PAUSE MY PLAYLIST OVER ON THE RIGHT FIRST}



Round 2, Pick 6 (38) Rey Maualuga ILB 6'2" 249 Southern Cal


Pick Analysis:After surprisingly dropping out of the first round, Maualuga lands with the Bengals at No. 38. The high-motor playmaker from USC gives Marvin Lewis a heavy hitter at middle linebacker. With last year's top pick (Keith Rivers) coming back from an injury, the Bengals have a pair of young and athletic linebackers to anchor the middle of the defense. {Our version of Troy Polamalu. LOL Hope he is a fraction as good! I just found out he injured his hamstring at this year's combine. WHAT?? Surely nothing serious...}



Round 3, Pick 6 (70) Michael Johnson DE 6'7" 266 Georgia Tech



Pick Analysis:The Bengals pick up an edge rusher with first-round talent with their selection of Johnson. A tall, rangy athlete with explosive quickness, Johnson has the ability to run down quarterbacks from the backside. Though he doesn't play with great effort at all times, he has the potential to be an impact player as a situational pass rusher.



Round 3, Pick 34 (98) (Compensatory selection) Chase Coffman TE 6'6" 244 Missouri




Pick Analysis:A foot injury prevented him from probably being drafted higher. He's an excellent receiving tight end, but he'll have to learn how to block. He has outstanding hands and will be one of those move-type tight ends. His father was an All-Pro tight end with the Packers. His coach at Missouri said Coffman is the one guy who will go to the NFL and be good right away. {one can only hope...}



Round 4, Pick 6 (106) Jonathan Luigs C 6'4" 301 Arkansas




Pick Analysis:Cincy needed a center and looked at all of them. The Bengals staff coached at the Senior Bowl and saw Luigs quite a bit. He was a four-year starter and the center of the year in 2007. Some people feel he tailed off. The question is, how is he going to handle the power nose tackles? He may have to hit the weights a bit to handle the Ravens and Steelers defenses.



Round 5, Pick 6 (142) Kevin Huber P 6'1" 220 Cincinnati




Pick Analysis:The first punter off the board is an outstanding weapon as a directional punter. Huber has the ability to flip the field with his booming punts, and he will emerge as a viable weapon in the kicking game. {EXCELLENT!}

Round 6, Pick 6 (179) Morgan Trent CB 6'1" 193 Michigan




Pick Analysis:Trent had a lot of starts in college and he runs pretty well. He's fast in workouts but does not play to his timed speed. He's not a good tackler. There have been questions about his backpedal and he struggles in route recognition, but his athleticism gives him a chance. {We shall see...}



Round 6, Pick 36 (209) (Compensatory selection) Bernard Scott RB 5'10" 200 Abilene Christian




Pick Analysis:Scott is an ideal third-down back. He's the type of player you want to get out in space isolated on a linebacker after catching the ball. The Bengals can use him as a potential replacement for Kenny Watson. Many red flags, including his age (25), being kicked off two teams (one in high school, one in college) and several run-ins with police. {Oh boy...should fit right in!!! And he went to Abilene Christian???}

{Do you think he is worth the risk?}



Round 7, Pick 6 (215) Fui Vakapuna RB 5'11" 244 BYU



Pick Analysis:Vakapuna is a big, strong running back. He does not have as much quickness or change-of-direction skill, but he's a situational running back that can be productive at the goal line. The Bengals locked in on Vakapuna at the BYU Pro Day and then followed through with the pick.

Round 7, Pick 40 (249) (Compensatory selection) Clinton McDonald DE 6'2" 289 Memphis




Pick Analysis:McDonald shot up draft boards and into draft consideration after an outstanding workout at Memphis' pro day. His athleticism gives Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer something to work with.



Round 7, Pick 43 (252) (Compensatory selection) Freddie Brown WR 6'4" 215 Utah




Pick Analysis:Brown lacks experience but has some upside going into Cincinnati with the unstable wide receiver situation there. He is a tall possession receiver who's not afraid to go over the middle. He can go up and get it, but he doesn't have top-flight speed. He really broke out and became the go-to guy in his senior season.




I realize there are a lot more nuances to all these newbies, but for now, WELCOME TO CINCINNATI, GUYS! Wear your stripes proudly and show us what you got!!!

So Derek and Greg...how did the Colts and Bears fare in the draft this year?

***heads off to read all about the draft on the Bengals forums where THOSE guys really understand what happened this weekend and how it will affect us next year***

American Idol...Past due update

I just can't seem to really get into it this year...However, my friend Tonya informed me this morning that she, her daughter and I ARE going to the concert in Indy this summer. It will be fun with Brooklyn. She is 11 and a huge Adam and Allison fan...

OK, so here's the update. The one to go 2 weeks ago was 23 year old Scott MacIntyre, from Scottsdale, Arizona. {The following is from Wikipedia because I felt it was so interesting I wanted to tell you all about him.}

"While not completely blind, he suffers from tunnel vision and has only a two-percent field of vision. He started playing the piano by ear when he was three years old. He was taught by a neighborhood piano teacher near their home in Redondo Beach, California. At six years of age, he began training in classical music. When Scott turned 10, the family moved to Toronto, Canada. They lived there for four years, and in that time Scott studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music. The MacIntyre family then relocated to Arizona and Scott studied under Walter Cosand, a university professor of Arizona State University. He was home-schooled until the age of 14, when he was admitted into Arizona State University's Barrett Honors College and Herberger College of the Arts. Scott won the 2004 Arizona Young Artists Competition at Herberger Theater in the vocal division. In 2005, USA Today named him one of its twenty College Academic All-Stars. In 2005, MacIntyre performed as a guest soloist with the Phoenix Symphony. The same year, MacIntyre was diagnosed with kidney disease and in November of 2006, he had to spend ten months undergoing dialysis, severely hampering his capacity to perform and travel. In 2007 on August 22, Walter Cosand's wife Patricia donated her kidney to MacIntyre, which saved his life. He graduated from ASU in 2005, and he was received in the White House by Laura Bush as one of the RFB&D (Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic) scholarship winners in 2006. He obtained his masters degree at Royal Holloway, University of London and the Royal College of Music, where he studied on a Marshall Scholarship, one of the most competitive scholarships in the United States, awarded to only 40 American students each year."}

Paula told Scott she was more proud of his accomplishments than anybody else who had ever graced the AI stage. He has a very good voice and was a real sweetheart.



Last week, the judges used their one and only save of the season to rescue Matt Giraud from elimination. Matt has a "jazzy" type of voice and played in a piano bar before AI. (He reminds me of Elliot Yamin from 2 years ago whom I liked very much.)






So that brings us to tonight. Because Matt got the "save" last week, that means 2 are eliminated this week...and it is disco week!

First one to get the boot tonight was a 23 year old mother of 3 from Memphis, TN...Lil Rounds



The judges have been BRUTAL to Lil the last few weeks. They all claimed that even though she does have a great voice, she just can't seem to "make the songs her own"...

Last year's American Idol runner-up, David Archuleta, performed along with disco icons Harry Wayne "KC" Casey (of KC and the Sunshine Band), Thelma Houston, and Freda Payne who performed a disco medley. (Thelma STILL has it, BTW!)

The final elimination of the night was a real bummer for me. It was between Anoop Desai and Allison Iraheta, both of whom I really enjoy listening to. The last one to go tonight was 21 year old Anoop. He is from Chapel Hill, NC and was really starting to show what a great voice he has. Seemingly a VERY sweet kid...

Here is one of his performances...unfortunately, it cuts off at the end! GRRRRRR






Goodbye, "Noopdawg". I WILL MISS YOU!!!


So that leaves us now with the Final Five...My boy Danny Gokey is still in the running along with Adam Lambert, Kris Allen, Matt Giraud, and Allison Iraheta.

A Post by Jim...AKA remembering the "good ol' days"

Today is such a BEAUTIFUL day that it started Jim reminiscing about his childhood. He remembers when children weren't allowed to stay in the house on a beautiful spring afternoon. Children didn't just sit in the house reading, watching TV or playing video games. (well, there certainly weren't any video games...maybe no TV either!) Sometimes they had to go get supper:





JUST KIDDING, PEOPLE!


He said he remembers his mother saying, "You boys get outside and play!!!"


Jim says he thinks THIS is what she was talking about...


{PAUSE PLAYLIST FIRST}



Pretty good, huh? Jim DOES love his bluegrass! (So do I...) BOTH kinds!




and




Have a BLESSED Spring Weekend!

Something's Brewing...AKA...How do you prefer your tea...Parties?

When you think of tea parties, in your mind's eye do you see something like this?





Perhaps, this image springs to mind...








Or maybe, THIS is what you envision:







If you only get your news from your local newscasts and the evening network news, chances are you may not have heard much about the numerous Tea Parties that are going to be held around the country (and abroad) tomorrow. (But you will have heard lots of other INFORMATIVE tidbits such as everything there is to know about the new puppy in the White House. "Bo" (for Bo Diddley), is plastered all over the news right now.)

Fox News (especially Glen Beck...who is rapidly gaining "Lou Dobbs" stature in my eyes) has been covering the REAL news pretty well and the internet is rife with news about the tea parties. Tomorrow, April 15th, will be the official "Tax Day TEA (Taxed Enough Already) Party Day". The following is taken from their website:

Are you fed up with a Congress and a president who:

vote for a $500 billion tax bill without even reading it?

are spending trillions of borrowed dollars, leaving a debt our great-grandchildren will be paying?

consistently give special interest groups billions of dollars in earmarks to help get themselves re-elected?

want to take your wealth and redistribute it to others?

punish those who practice responsible financial behavior and reward those who do not?

admit to using the financial hurt of millions as an opportunity to push their political agenda?

run up trillions of dollars of debt and then sell that debt to countries such as China?

want government controlled health care?

want to take away the right to vote with a secret ballot in union elections?

refuse to stop the flow of millions of illegal immigrants into our country?

appoint a defender of child pornography to the Number 2 position in the Justice Department?

want to force doctors and other medical workers to perform abortions against their will?

want to impose a carbon tax on your electricity, gas and home heating fuels?

want to reduce your tax deductibility for charitable gifts?

take money from your family budget to pay for their federal budget?

WOW! Pretty strong words. I happen to agree with every one of them. But you know, as adamant as I feel about how screwed up our government is right now, I wasn't going to even blog about the tea parties...until I read this.


"Tea Party Protesters Gird for Possible Liberal Backlash

Tea Party organizers are poised for a possible backlash during their nationwide demonstrations on Tax Day, April 15.

What would a party be without party poopers?

As anti-tax protesters organize tea parties across the country on April 15, rumors are swirling that a backlash is brewing.

Some believe ACORN, which has been under scrutiny for accusations of voter fraud, is preparing to crash some of the tea parties. But ACORN says it is only helping to organize dozens of rallies on the same day in support of President Obama's first budget.

"This is the first we've heard of these so-called 'tea parties.' And, frankly, a bunch of small get-togethers by fringe conservative activists dedicated to simply saying 'no' is of little interest to us," said ACORN spokesman Brian Kettenring.

He did not say where the pro-Obama rallies would take place, leaving open the possibility that they may clash with some tea parties.

Tea party organizers, meanwhile, say they're not worried at all about possible disruption.

"If ACORN wants to send some of their paid, pretend activists to show up, that's fine," John O'Hara, who is holding a tea party in Chicago, told FOX News. "They don't have a message that resonates with the American people or resonates with this broad coalition that's upset with the spending that's going on in Washington."

"We don't take them seriously," said Mark Mekler, who is organizing a tea party in Sacramento. "We expect people to attempt to infiltrate, we expect people to attempt to disturb what we're doing.

"But the reality is this is a very broad-based grassroots movement," he told FOX News. "There is no leader at the top. There is no individual event that they can disturb that would cause us a problem nationwide."

Taxdayteaparty.com, which is helping to organize the protests, said more than 250 locations in all 50 states will hold rallies on April 15. Some believe ACORN will try to make the tea parties look like fringe group efforts at best, and racist undertakings at worst.

Mekler said he is not concerned with how outsiders may try to portray their efforts.

"The people who are involved understand they're not racist, they're not fringe, they're not even partisan," he said.

"I mean, these are events where we have across-the-board Democrats, Republicans, conservatives, liberals, libertarians. The people who are going to be there know what's going on. We're not worried about these folks polluting the event."

ACORN said if there are protesters, it won't be from its ranks.

"The idea that ACORN is out to disrupt these meet-ups of fringe activists is yet another conservative fantasy," Kettenring said.

"At this point, it would not surprise us to wake up tomorrow and see conservative media fingering ACORN's 500,000 member families as the principle cause of global climate change," he said in a written statement."

Here is the original link:




My friend Milah, over at From My Back Porch told me about a movie that I HAD to see. The movie is an HBO movie entitled, "John Adams". It is very lengthy and I haven't finished it yet, but I am LOVING it. It tells the story of how and why our country was founded. The people of that time could no longer live under tyrany rule. I don't know how you feel about it, but to me, a so called "2 party system" in this country is leading us along the same path! (But hey, as I mentioned in a previous post, in Missouri, the fact that I voted for Ron Paul alone makes me considered as part of a new modern militia! so what do I know???)

PAUSE PLAYLIST FIRST











Let me leave you with this song. Country music isn't really my cup of "TEA", but this is appropriate for this post. Make sure my playlist over on the right is paused...




HAPPY TAX DAY!