PROVERBS FOR TODAY

I'm working my way through Proverbs during my daily quiet time, using the Living Bible, which Lois & I received as a gift from my parents. Here are some proverbs I encountered today that really hit home.

* "The good influence of godly citizens causes a city to prosper, but the moral decay of the wicked drives it downhill." (11:11)

* "To quarrel with a neighbor is foolish; a man with good sense holds his tongue." (11:12)

* "Without wise leadership, a nation is in trouble; but with good counselors there is safety." (1:14)

* "Your own soul is nourished when you are kind; it is destroyed when you are cruel." (11:17) 

CALIFORNIA ODYSSEY POST-MORTEM

Here are some highlights of our recent trip to CA.

> Spending time with John & Wanda, Lois' oldest sister.

> Spending time with Blake & Teresa, our niece & god-daughter, & their 5, count 'em, 5 kids.

> Exploring in & around Kingsburg.

> Visiting Sequoia, Yosemite, & King's Canyon National Parks.

> Exploring in & around Casa de Olson in Bass Lake. 

> Relishing CA cuisine, including Blake's artfully grilled burgers, along with salmon, roast duck breast, Chinese, Mexican, & barbecue.

> Relatively hassle-free flights.

> Enjoying movies with Joh & Wanda, including License to Wed, Jeremiah Johnson, The Martian, The Shop Around the Corner, You've Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle, & An Affair to Remember.

What you lowlights, you ask?

> I knocked a bottle of Jamison Irish Whiskey off the top of a cabinet in Casa de Olson. Alas, the entire contents were lost in the ensuing crash.

> A 4-hour layover in the Denver Airport, although this allowed us to feast on over-priced yet tasty food at a Mexican, sit-down restaurant.

ONE TO GO

Some of you know that Lois & I "collect" license plates. We record license plates as we spot them. You can only count one if you see it outside that state. During our recently concluded trip to CA, we picked off 3 more license plates. We saw Nevada & Utah in Sequoia National Park, & we saw Montana in Kingsburg. That brings to 49 the states that we've seen. The only one left is Hawaii, which could be a challenge.

NATIONAL PARK PROGRESS

We visited 3 more national parks while we were in CA:  Sequoia, Yosemite, King's Canyon. Each was spectacular & unique in its own way. That brings to 16 the number of parks we've visited; 17 if you count Rocky Mountain National Park, which I've visited, but Lois hasn't.  Since our Alaskan trip has been cancelled again this summer, we plan to visit national parks out west, so we should be able to add considerably to our list.

ROAD TRIP UPDATE

Thanks to our recent trip to CA, we've now accomplished 6 trips. My New Year's resolution was to take 8, so we're well on our way to meeting this goal. You might be interested in knowing that our travels in 2021 have accumulated 9,255 miles.  [And since I've gained 8 lbs this year, that works out to 1 lb every 1,156.875 miles.] Our miles this year may exceed all other years except the years we lived in Hawaii.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

Since returning to Norfolk, we've been catching up on our CBS shows. We're all caught up on NCIS & Seal Team.

WHAT I'M READING

While in CA, I finished reading "The Earth Is Weeping:  The Epic Story of the Indian Wars for the American West," by Peter Cozzens. [No matter how many times I read about the Battle of the Little Bighorn, things don't end well for Custer.] Now I'm reading "The Martian," by Andy Weir. [Yes, the movie is based on this book.]

COVID UPDATE

Lois & I got our 2nd Pfizer shot on WED. No side effects other than sore arms. And our arms aren't even as sore as they were after the 1st shot!

DEPT. OF SHAMELESS JOKE-STEALING *

* Courtesy of Reader's Digest, Dec 2020/Jan 2021

"These may be some of the more creative justifications for speeding that police officers have encountered.

* "I wasn't speeding; I just got a haircut & it makes me look fast.

* "I thought the sign for I-95 meant the speed limit."

* "I have a cold, & when I cough, my foot mashes the pedal."

"The little girl I babysit asked if I had a boyfriend. I said, 'Not anymore,' & she said, 'Boyfriends are a waste of time.' Then she turned to her brother & told him, 'You're gonna be a waste of time.'"

"I hated going on job interviews until I realized the perfect answer to the question 'What is your biggest weakness?' is 'My interview skills."