HAPPY ANNIVERSARY

The wife & I are celebrating 48 years of wedded bliss today. Yes, wedded bliss. Through valley lows & mountain highs, it has truly been blissful, & I have been blessed far beyond what I have deserved. Lois has been a faithful help-meet, especially during my months of recovery from my serious accident. She is a godly wife, & she has been a blessing & a godly role model for our children & grandchildren. I think I got the better part of this deal. Here's a prayer for a wedding anniversary.

"Heavenly Father, on our wedding anniversary I come to your throne of grace with a prayer of thanksgiving. I am grateful to you for my spouse. I bless You that by Your direction the pathways of our lives met & our hearts were united in true love.

"I thank You, dear Lord, that our love for each other has been preserved & strengthened through the years. In Your divine wisdom good days & bad, health & sickness, & all other experiences have bound our hearts & lives closer to each other & to You, our God & Lord.

"I confess that I have not always been as kind & thoughtful as I should have been. I regret that I have sometimes been selfish & indifferent. Help me to make amends. teach me to be quick to forgive & to forget any fault of my spouse, even as You no longer remember my sins for Jesus' sake.

"If it be Your will, grant us additional years of wedded happiness; cause the love that unites us to become stronger each day. When our life is over, take my loved one & me to the heavenly home that You have prepared for those who love You. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen." My Prayer Book

And just so you know, I got Lois a really expensive card, & I'm taking her to Divot's Downtown--a new restaurant, highly recommended by our daughter Rachel. Because that's just the kind of husband I am.

ACCIDENT UPDATE

I have made a lot of progress since my serious accident on Jan. 8, when I ran a red light on the way to church & got hit by a firetruck. It could have been so much worse, & I am thankful to God for preserving my life. I am also thankful for the many thoughts & prayers that have come my way.

My ribs are still somewhat sensitive--I fractured 3 of them. My right hand, which I fractured, still lacks some strength & flexibility, but I completed my OT & have exercises that I do at home.

Yesterday I had an epidural-steroid injection for my neck. Although I've suffered from a degenerative condition for years, the accident definitely aggravated my symptoms. One of the side effects is high blood sugar, which I'm experiencing, but I already am experiencing some relief. I'm not really supposed to be feeling much relief for 24-48 hrs.

RESOLUTIONS REVIEW

Here's the report card for my 2023 New Year's resolutions.

> Average 1 road trip per month. C+ T hanks to our trip to visit the kids in MN over Memorial weekend, we're up to 3. Our trip to Europe next month will get us closer.

> Lose 5 lbs. A+  I've lost 16 lbs so far, thanks to my "pseudo-diet." I probably could have set my sights a little higher.

> Add to our NP list. A+  We visited Biscayne NP in FL lasts FEB. There's a chance we might add a couple more parks to our list later this year.

> Avoid desserts. C  I was doing abysmally until I was diagnosed with seriously high blood sugar in FEB. Since then I've been doing much better. I'm trying hard to count carbs.

> Exercise & walk at least 4X per week. C  I've been walking just about every day lately in order to prepare for the serious walking we'll do in Greece & Turkey next month. I'm up to about 2 miles per day.

> Publish my "Buzzwords" devotion book. C  It's been a slow process. I'm still working on my final edit, & then I have to find a publisher.

> Write a new devotion book. B  I'm work on a 52-week "Chapter & Verse" booklet, & I'm making slow but steady progress.

G.P.A.  B

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

We've been keeping up with our favorite procedurals on Paramount+ (CBS). We've also been watching back-seasons of S.W.A.T. on Hulu. It's hokey, yet entertaining.

WHAT I'M READING

I finished reading "Becoming FDR:  The Personal Crisis That Made a President," by Jonathan Darman. The personal crisis was polio, which definitely shaped him. The author is an obvious FDR fan, but he doesn't hesitate to share FDR's foibles. He also shares some disquieting info about Eleanor. Overall I would give it 4 stars out of 5. I started reading, "In the Steps of Saint Paul:  An accessible guide to Paul's travels," by Peter Walker, in preparation for our trip retracing Paul's missionary journeys in Greece & Turkey next month.

TRENDING NEWS FROM THE BABYLON BEE *

* Your trusted source of fake news

> Study finds Target going woke has gotten more families out of debt than Dave Ramsey.

> Due to high crime, Mafia closes its Chicago office.

> Conservative wife turns into pillar of salt after looking back at Target.

> Man at Tower of Babel upset he didn't get the cool British accent.

> Deal reached on debt ceiling as McCarthy offers Biden two pints of chocolate chip ice cream.

> With all other companies going woke, conservatives make last stand at TX Buckee's.

> Local woman has more Hobby Lobby decorations than Lobby Hobby.

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE CALIFORNIA . . . 

"CA lawmakers to honor anti-Catholic sisters of Perpetual Indulgence member, despite Dodgers backlash." Fox News Online

. . . LIKE NEBRASKA

"Tax credits for private, parochial school scholarships passes. Nebraskans will soon have the opportunity to get tax incentives for donating scholarship funds for private & faith-based schools under a bill passed in the Legislature." Norfolk Daily News, 5/25

. . . LIKE ALABAMA

"AL bans transgender female athletes from women's college sports. FNO. Because, common sense.

"Alabama becomes first state to ban discrimination against mullets." Babylon Bee

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"Liver, insects, sardines--oh my!:  8 'gross' foods that nutritionists say you should eat." NRO. I actually like sardines.

"John Kerry, climate crazies are coming for your burgers & 4th of July." NRO 

6 TERMS FOR VORACIOUS READERS

1. Bookworm (English); 2. Book caterpillar (Finnish); 3. Book moth (Hungarian); 4. Library moth (Romanian); 5. Library rat (French); 6. Book swallower (Welsh). Uncle John's Awesome 35th Anniversary Bathroom Reader

CORPORATE CAUTION

"A new era of corporate caution? Don’t threaten me with a good time. Imagine a beer company that just wanted to make good beer and sell it to you. Imagine if that company wanted to sell beer to everyone but didn’t feel that its job was to make you more accepting of transgender individuals, any more than it felt its job was to warn you about the national debt or teach you the value of standardized testing in public schools or warn you about North Korea’s intercontinental-missile program. Imagine a beer company that liked its existing customer base and didn’t feel a need to reeducate those customers and get them to give up their “fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor.” Jim Geraghty, Fox News Online

TOAST

"Social Security is toast. So is Medicare.Too many of us old people live longer, so there are not enough working people to support us. Soon both Social Security and Medicare will be broke." John Stossel, Townhall. And why aren't people connecting this to the millions of unborn "working people" who have been aborted since Roe v Wade?

SCARING CHILDREN

"As nearly every standardized test is showing, our schools are doing an abysmal job teaching kids how to read or do math. In some cases, kids graduating from high school can barely read their diplomas.

"But the schools are wildly succeeding with their climate change indoctrination program. When I speak to kids on high school and college campuses and ask what the greatest threat is to their generation, the answer isn't China's aggression. It isn't a drug abuse problem that is becoming the leading killer of our children. It isn't the failed schools or the corrupt government or the more routine violations of freedom of speech. It isn't the $32 trillion national debt soon headed to $50 trillion. (I always remind the kids, I won't be paying for this Mount Everest-sized debt burden. YOU will.)   

"No, they almost all raise their hands and moan that they are most worried about global warming or "climate change." We are raising a generation with millions of Greta Thunbergs. A Daily Telegraph poll found that more than half of teenagers surveyed believe that the world "may end in their lifetime" because of climate change. No one has ever told them that the climate has been changing for as long as the planet has existed. They've apparently never heard of the ice ages. The earth has gone through centuries of warming -- and that was before air conditioning, which the climate czars want to take away from us to combat warming. Figure that one out." Stephen Moore, Townhall       

LIFE'S GOD-GIVEN VALUE

"In 1920, two German physicians published a book called The Permission to Destroy Life Unworthy of Life. In it, they argued that 'death assistance' should be extended to 'empty shells of human beings' such as those with brain damage, psychiatric conditions, & mental disabilities. They argued that money spent to care for 'meaningless life' could be used by those socially & physically fit. It was just a matter of determining which lives were worthy of life. History demonstrates that such thinking led to brutal Nazi experiments & death camps, forced sterilization programs in some European countries, & radical 'eugenics' movements in Britain & the U.S. The value of human life does not depend upon what someone is able to do or not to do. God creates life. God made the first two human beings in His image (Gen. 1:26-27). Even though this image was lost when sin came into the world, this original, lofty position still gives value to human life (Gen. 9:6)." Engaging the Psalms, edited by Rev. Peter Jurchen

THE HUBRIS OF PROGRESSIVES

"The hubris of progressives never ceases to amaze. They flit about, from issue to issue, never bothering to consider the real-world effects and unintended consequences of the policies they take up and impose at whim. What’s been happening on the border since Biden took office, for example, is the definition of a man-made disaster. By overturning Trump-era enforcement policies, and by raising the prospect of a comprehensive immigration reform that would provide amnesty for illegal immigrants, this administration contributed to record-levels of unauthorized border crossings and to a spiraling humanitarian crisis that affects not just the Southwest but also far-flung cities like Chicago and New York.

More fromMATTHEW CONTINETTI

The Underestimated Kevin McCarthy

The Paradoxes of Post-RoeAbortion Politics

"In March 2021, Biden said that Harris would run the government’s response to the border meltdown. More than two years later, on the same day that Harris planned to meet with the tech executives, the Pentagon was busy deploying military personnel on the southern border to brace for the coming surge in illegal immigration when emergency protocols end on May 11.

"No one at the White House seems to have noticed the jarring, continent-sized disparity between the president’s goals and his vice president’s competence. One can only imagine the scene earlier this year, when Biden, reviewing the deteriorating situation along the Rio Grande, turned to his second-in-command and said: Heck of a job, Kamala. Now go figure out this AI thing." Matthew Continetti, National Review Online

ABORTION IN THE CLASSROOM

"There was a time when schoolteachers — even if they broached controversial topics in class — kept their opinions private. It was a badge of honor for teachers who could lead a classroom debate and keep their students guessing as to their instructor’s opinion on the matter. Was the teacher a skilled enough rhetorician to defend a view contrary to the one that they held for the sake of their students’ intellectual growth? Well, that time is no more. Last year, gender or critical race theory seemed like the height of advocacy in the classroom. Now, even abortion is becoming less of a taboo.

"In a recent issue, the influential education magazine Rethinking Schools, whose books sell upwards of 200,000 copies and make it onto college reading lists, declared that educators must begin teaching about the benefits of abortion. The Dobbs decision, it claimed, warrants an “all-hands-on-deck response to ensure abortion for those who want and need it.” Namely, a teacher’s “most critical role is to combat the silence, shame, and misinformation around abortion” through instruction. Topics worthy of coverage include the right to an abortion, abortion stories from the advocacy group Shout Your Abortion, and literature that addresses “sex, sexual violence, pregnancy, forced pregnancy, sterilization, abortion, and miscarriage.”

"But this magazine is not alone in advocating for the inclusion of pro-abortion messaging in schools. At Inside Higher Ed, a professor argues that we should allow no more discussion on this topic than we would “child labor laws or women’s suffrage.” It’s a settled issue to teach, not a controversy to debate. After the Dobbs decision, an advocacy arm of the National Education Association took to the streets in protest, arguing that it was imperative to help students do the same." Garion Frankel & Daniel Buck, NRO

FLORIDA

"Today, the Florida legislature concludes its 2023 session. And good Lord has it made the most of it. In the space of just three months, Governor DeSantis and the Republican supermajority have created the largest school-choice program in American history, banned abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, made Florida the 26th constitutional-carry state in the nation, forced unions to abide by the Supreme Court’s Janus decision, cut taxes by $2 billion, banned sex-change operations from being performed on minors, barred DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives in universities, expanded the use of mandatory E-Verify in the state, achieved a previously unthinkable collection of tort reforms, declared driver’s licenses issued to out-of-state illegal immigrants invalid in Florida, prohibited state and local governments from considering ESG (environmental, social, and governance) factors in their contracting and investing decisions, extended last year’s Parental Rights in Education law through twelfth grade, made it illegal for financial institutions to discriminate on the basis of “religious, political, or social beliefs,” and prevented credit-card companies from tracking their customers’ gun purchases." Charles C.W. Cooke, NRO

MERCY KILLING

"CNN published a piece with the headline “Doctors performed brain surgery on a baby before she was born and now she’s thriving.” (Note: “baby,” not “fetus.”) A 30-week scan revealed that the baby had a condition known as vein of Galen malformation. More than half of babies born with the condition get very sick immediately and of those, there is a 40 percent mortality rate. Her parents opted for a trial treatment of in-utero surgery, which was ultimately successful.

"Contrast this with another CNN report, published the day before: “Because of Florida abortion laws, she carried her baby to term knowing he would die.” (Again, note: “baby,” not “fetus.”) In this case, the baby’s mother was warned at 24 weeks that her unborn child did not have kidneys, a condition known as Potter’s syndrome. She was told that her baby would not survive and that she was at high risk of preeclampsia. CNN reported that “Florida law allows abortions after 15 weeks if two doctors confirm the diagnosis of fatal fetal abnormality in writing, but doctors in Florida and states with similar laws have been hesitant to terminate such pregnancies for fear someone will question whether abnormality was truly fatal.” Therefore, “what followed was an agonizing 13 weeks of carrying a baby she knew would die and worrying about her own health. It left Dorbert with severe anxiety and depression for the first time in her life.”

"This heartbreaking diagnosis was doubtless a cause of great suffering for the baby’s parents. But it is not clear how abortion would have solved anything. In one scenario you have the baby’s almost certain death by kidney failure. In another, you have the baby’s certain death by doctor-inflicted dismemberment (D&E). The CNN story acknowledges that another couple with the same diagnosis opted for an experimental treatment that resulted in their baby’s survival." Madeleine Kearns, NRO

HUNTER'S LAPTOP

"Republicans are ramping up incriminating information on Hunter Biden as President Joe Biden insists his son did nothing wrong. A new report reveals that former intelligence leaders needed to give Biden a "talking point" during 2020 presidential debates with former President Trump when they began dismissing the Hunter Biden laptop from Hell stories. 

"According to the Washington Examiner, Mike Morell, former deputy director of the CIA, reportedly sent a recruitment letter in October 2020 to several intelligence officials a few days before the second presidential debate between Biden and Trump. Morell reportedly admitted that the letter's purpose was to give Biden a chance to deny any "accusations" if Trump were to bring up the topic during the debates." Sarah Arnold, Townhall

HAPPY MAYDAY!

When we lived in Havelock, which was a neighborhood on the north side of Lincoln, there was a tradition of leaving May "baskets" outside of front doors. Usually this meant a styrofoam cup filled with popcorn or candy. We ran into the same tradition in Hawaii. Actually, Mayday was a bigger deal in Hawaii. Our Lutheran High School hula group--which won awards &, no, I am not making this up--would perform at various venues on May 1. I got to see them perform at St. Mark's Lutheran School in Kailua one year. They were pretty impressive. No such tradition in Norfolk.

RESOLUTIONS REVIEW

You may find my monthly New Year's resolutions review a tedious exercise in self-indulgence, but it's my blog.

> Average 1 road trip per month  C-  Going into May, we should have made 3 RTs so far. Due to my accident in JAN, we've only made 2. This month we're spending a couple nights at the Lied Lodge in Nebraska City, but we have some catching up to do.

> Lose 5 lbs. A+  I've lost 10 lbs so far.

> Add to our National Park list. A  We visited Biscayne NP in JAN. 

> Avoid desserts. C  I'm counting carbs. Could be doing better. Could be doing worse.

> Do my PT exercises and/or walk at least 4X per week. C  I've been doing PT for the last month or so, & now I'm walking at least 1 mile per day.

> Publish my "Buzzwords" devotion book.  C  I finished writing them & proofed them once. Then Lois proofed them. Now I'm proofing them one last time, after which I will search for a publisher.

> Write my "Chapter & Verse" devotion book.  A  I'm making steady progress.

G.P.A.    B+

BUCKET LIST

It seems like we keep adding to our list. Looks like we'll have to live into our 90s. Here's our current list, in no particular order.

* Fishing trip with my son Nathan

* European river cruise

* Creation Museum & Noah's Ark Encounter

* Add to our Civil War battle sites. [We've been to Manassas, Lexington, Gettysburg, Pea Ridge, & Appomattox.]  

* Add to our National Park list. [We've been to 25 so far.]

* St. Paul's Missionary Journeys in Greece & Turkey. [We're booked in June.]

* New York City & New England.

* Canadian rail tour

* Texas tour

* Colorado tour

* Caribbean cruise

* Washington/Oregon Coast

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE SOUTH KOREA

"A S. Korean art student consumed a $120,000 piece pf art that comprised a banana duct-taped to a wall because he was 'hungry,' according to media reports." Fo News Online

LIKE UTAH

"Utah hiker, 70, fights off mountain lion with a rock after he's ambushed in canyon." FNO

CALIFORNIA

"CA DoorDash driver seen faking delivery, taking a oic, stealing pizza." FNO

"San Francisco Whole Foods hit with 560 calls of violence, drugs, vagrants before closing." FNO

"Yosemite Valley reopens after heat wave causes flooding concerns." FNO

POLITICAL POTPOURRI

"Young Democrats 'frustrated' 'disappointed' that Biden's running:  'Way too old.'" FNO

"POLL:  Americans fault media for dividing nation." Drudge Report

"In ominous threat to nation, Biden says he will 'Finish the job.'" Babylon Bee

TRENDING NEWS

"Uber lost & found list includes unique items like lightsaber, fog machine, pets, fake blood, & teeth." FNO. Two of my brothers-in-law drive uber. I'm just sayin'.

"Short on staff, prisons enlist teachers as guards." DR

"Noah starting to think the woodpeckers were a bad idea." Babylon Bee

CLIMATE CHANGE

"Climate chaos? Bugs will thrive in an ever-warming world, say scientists." FNO

HERE'S TO YOUR HEALTH

"Meat crucial to health, scientists say:  Call for end to 'zealotry' pushing vegan diets." DR