TODAY'S PSALM

As I continue to use "Engaging the Psalms:  A Guide for Reflection & Prayer," in my daily quiet time, I'm going to continue to share passages from Psalms. 

"O Lord, how many are my foes! . . . But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, & the lifter of my head. I cried aloud to the Lord, & He answered me from His holy hill . . . Salvation belongs to the Lord; Your blessing be on Your people." (Ps. 3:1, 3-4, 8)

RESOLUTIONS REVIEW

I missed my monthly review of my 2022 New Year's Resolutions, which I usually do at the very beginning of the month, because we were on our Hawaiian cruise. Here goes.

* Lose at least 12 lbs. F  Not even going to weigh myself, since our 15-day cruise included the speciality restaurants and/or buffets every day, along with our unlimited drink package. Suffice it to say, I'm sure I gained weight in OCT, & my chances of achieving this goal seem pretty slim.

* Cross 2 things off our bucket list. A+  We crossed off a Hawaiian cruise, a trip to Key West, & a visit to Dry Tortugas NP.

* Have fruits & vegetables at least 4X/week. A

* Walk at least 4X/week:  D

* Publish my 365/day devotion book:  A+

* Write & publish another 365/day devotion book:  B  I'm almost done with NOV. Not sure I'll have time to get this book published.

* GPA:  B-

ALOHA CRUISE POST-MORTEM

We got home from our 15-day Hawaiian cruise last week very early on TUE morning. What a great experience! We had a couple of hiccups on the way back from the Omaha airport. We got to our car in the Budget parking lot, & the battery was dead. Fortunately, they were able to give us a jump. Then there was our tire pressure. Already on the drive to Omaha the tire pressure warning came on. We stopped at a C-store & put a little air in our tires, but we knew we'd probably need more before we returned home. We stopped at that same C-store. The air pump was out-of-order. We stopped at one more C-store on the way out of town. No air pump. So, we took our chances & made it home safely. We did end up having to buy a new battery.

Food:  What can I say about the food that I didn't already say in my daily posts? The food, whether it was the speciality restaurants or the buffet, was (almost) always a treat. I say "almost," because the one meal I had of gazpacho soup & calamari steak was disappointing. I got to eat seafood just every day, including lobster tails, lots of shrimp, scallops, & mussels. Baked Alaska on the last night was a highlight for both of us. And we got to have shave ice twice! Once at Matsumoto's on the North Shore of Hawaii, & once on Kauai. I got to have my favorite:  lilikoi (passion fruit).

Drinks:  Despite our unlimited drink package, we drank in moderation. No! Seriously! Among the drinks I sampled were riesling wine, IPA beer, pina coladas, a martini, scotch & sour, bloody mary, long island ice tea, & possibly our favorite:  dirty bananas. [Look it up on Pinterest.]

Oahu:  Our good friend Myra picked us up at the port. Lois taught with her & her late husband at Our Savior Lutheran School. Two of our kids had them as teachers, & they were our choir director & accompanist. We reconnected with our pastor at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Aiea, which is adjacent to Pearl Harbor, & we toured the church & school building. Lots of good memories. Another friend who taught with Lois & had one of our kids in school picked us up at OSLC, & the four of us traveled to the North Shore. We had lunch in a local cafe in Haleiwa [mahi mahi sandwiches!], enjoyed the aforementioned shave ice, & drove to Waimea Bay & back. More great memories.

Other excursions:  We were disappointed that we were too late to sign-up for the excursion to Haleakula NP on Maui, since our goal is to check off as many NPs as we can, & I doubt if we'll ever make it back to Hawaii again. Having said that, the Road to Hanna on the North Shore of Maui was breath-taking. We took the excursion to Waimea Canyon on Kauai--well worth it. And although we've been to Volcanoes NP on the Big Island before, it has changed a lot, & we weren't disappointed. 

Weather:  The weather in Hawaii was of course nice & balmy. We got soaked in the rain at the zoo on Hilo, also on the Big Island, but we still enjoyed the zoo. It rained a little bit on & off on the Road to Hanna. At times the weather on the Pacific was very windy, also chilly, & sometimes rainy. Also, the sea was pretty rough at times. When the ship slammed into a 10-15' swell, we could feel the ship shudder. Sometimes we were left staggering around our cabin on on the decks. Thank goodness for our motion sickness medicine!

Ensenada, Mexico:  I explained in one of my posts why the Ruby Princess had to make a stop in a foreign port before returning to San Francisco. We've been to Ensenada before, but on this tour we saw parts of Ensenada that we hadn't seen before. The winery was nice. The historic convention center was nice. The shopping district? Meh.

Presentations:  The naturalist presentations were definitely a high point. We learned about whales, sharks, sea birds, oceanography, dolphins, volcanoes, & probably more. We also enjoyed the enrichment presentations about legends of comedy. Our favorite was probably the information & clips about Carol Burnett. The two presentations about Johnny Carson were very interesting, too, since he grew up in Norfolk.

Other Entertainment:  We watched several movies on the big screen out on Deck 16. We also attended several shows in the Princess Theater. Lois attended a few line-dancing classes, which she enjoyed, & we enjoyed--surprisingly--watching ballroom dancers in The Piazza.

DEPT. OF SHAMELESS JOKE-STEALING *

* Compliments of Reader's Digest, Mar/April 2022

I asked my 4-year-old, "What would you like to do today?" He shook his head & said, "I don't know, but I definitely do NOT want to do anything interesting."

FAMILY STRUCTURES

"The two-parent, male-female home has been the bedrock of societies. Some traditions have lasted because they work. When social mores are individually rejected, school shootings, street violence, & anti-American ideology can be the result. Ancient Rome & other licentious societies collapsed because of their indifference to moral restraints. What makes Americans think we can avoid a similar fate? We are committing cultural suicide & few want to risk the criticism that comes from standing against the tide. We 'invent ways of doing evil' the Apostle Paul wrote. If a judge & a growing number of people no longer recognize what many consider immorality, then immorality wins." Column by Cal Thomas in Norfolk Daily News, 10/15

MIDTERMS

I'll admit it. The results of the November mid-terms were very disappointing to me. My news & opinion sources were generally predicting a red wave, which did not happen. There were some bright spots, but a lot of disappointing results, too. Some of the candidates & ballot initiatives that were passed in various states are mystifying to me. 

However--& it's a big however--God reminds us that we are not to put our faith in earthly leaders & political parties. God is still in control. Christians are still called upon to speak out against evil, such as abortion & the LGBTQ agenda, but our mission is to advance the kingdom of God. Finally, I'll quote from Cal Thomas again. "People who are happy or breathing easier because of the outcome of this election now own its consequences. Inflation, high gas & food prices, & an open border are likely to continue. Republicans have a lot of work to do to change voter attitudes. Maybe another two years of suffering will do it, assuming the country survives." Column in NDN, 11/22