Surreptitious Saturday

The Feckless Fisherman

Yesterday I made my first fishing pilgrimage of the season to Doug's [a former school parent] pond. I fished for a little over an hour & caught six bass. The first one was the best:  17" & fat. I wouldn't have been surprised if it would have gone 3 lbs. I also caught 14", 15", 15", 13", & another 17" bass, all on black, wiggle-tail worms. It was pretty windy, & my fail-safe hula popper didn't engender even one strike. I only had one other fish on the line, which I couldn't land because I didn't get the hook set. And I didn't lose any lures, despite one pretty serious snag on underwater branches near the end of my time. All in all, I'd have to rate yesterday's expedition as a B, B+.

Wit & Wisdom of Cal Thomas *

From Norfolk Daily News column (4/18):  "California act really unbalanced. The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard arguments over whether pro-life pregnancy help centers in CA should be required to post notices informing women of the availability of abortions elsewhere . . . According to Ingrid Duran, state legislation director for National Right to Life, the nation's oldest & largest pro-life organization, 'There is no provision in the so-called Fact Act that would require abortion facilities to inform women about the resources available from pregnancy resource centers . . . ' It is the abortion industry, which makes money off these vulnerable women, that fears information, otherwise they would be posting signs in their facilities about alternatives & the help available during pregnancy & after birth. The pregnancy help centers, unlike abortionists, don't charge for their services, raising the question of who cares more about women.

"I once debated a liberal feminist about this. She said I was implying women aren't smart enough to know what their choices are. I replied, 'Fine, then let's remove the labels from packaged products because women should be smart enough to figure out whether they contain corn or green beans . . . " COMMENT:  Abortion providers will continue to fight tooth-&-nail to keep women in the dark, because abortion providers are part of the darkness that Scripture clearly warns us against.

* One of my two favorite partisan pundits, along with Jonah Goldberg.

LOL Educator *

"From USA Today State-by-State (4/13):  (Louisiana) "Senators have unanimously agreed to require the state's public schools to display 'In God We Trust' in their buildings. Sen. Regina Barrow's proposal also would require the schools to teach students about the motto." COMMENT:  This is an extraordinary piece of legislation, but my reaction is tempered. This motto is well-grounded in our nation's history & culture, but one could rightly argue whose god in our multi-cultural world is worthy of our trust. I'm not sure that I trust thoroughly secular educators to teach about the only true God, Jesus Christ. Plus, imposing this education on students will almost certainly provoke a lawsuit & is unlikely to persuade its enemies.

From LCMS Reporter (Jan. 2018):  "How did pastors & teachers answer last month's question:  What do you tell your congregation/students in the wake of a mass shooting such as the Nov. 5 tragedy that took 26 lives--half of them children--at a church in Texas? Here are some responses (see more at reporter.lcms.org):  From a sermon by Rev. Jonathan Meyer, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Mission Valley Texas: 'This isn't about guns, or religion, or race, or social programs. This is about evil & wickedness & hatred & selfishness, & about the depths of depravity to which a human heart can fall when the devil is allowed free reign there . . . To counter the devil's attacks, St. Paul says, 'put on the whole armor of God' . . . That is the answer against the chaos of this sin-stained world that we live in:  put on the armor of God, given you in your Baptism . . . Trust the promises Jesus made you in your Baptism . . . Live your life freely as a forgiven & redeemed child of God, that others may see your sure & certain confidence in Jesus."

From American Heart Association pamphlet:  "Regular physical activity can improve quality of life & relieve stress, tension, anxiety & depression. You may notice a 'feel good' sensation immediately following your physical activity & also note an improvement in general well-being over time as physical activity becomes a regular part of your life. Physical activity can:

• release stress & calm you
• improve your mood & help you think clearly
• keep your mind off cigarettes if you're trying to quit
• help control your appetite
• help you lose weight if you're overweight, or stay at a healthy weight
• give you more energy & stamina
• lower your blood pressure
• increase your 'good' HDL cholesterol level
• reduce your risk of developing heart disease & stroke
• help control blood sugar by improving how your body uses insulin
• improve your quality of sleep
• help you feel better about how you look."

COMMENT:  I'm convinced that a glaring lack of physical activity has contributed to my heart disease, which led to the insertion of 3 stents last month. I'm trying to remedy further damage through cardiac rehab. I'm working on my 4th week in this program.

* Loony old Lutheran educator