My, my, my.  I have tiny things going wrong over here.  They wouldn't be going wrong if Chris were home!  

I found out that changing the bulb on the headlight was slightly more complicated than plugging in a vacuum cleaner. I can do that.  I can do that in the dark!  Youtube had a very nice man recording his wife's bulb changing expedition while he narrated.  Great.  Thank you nice people.  I promptly went out to try my hand at it.  Twist and remove cover.  Unclip the holder-inner-wire-thingy.  Easy.  Ease out the bulb.  Unplug two prong bulb from wiring harness.  Done.  Plug in new bulb--tut, tut do not touch the bulb with fingers!  The new bulb has three prongs and a big plastic part not seen on the old bulb.  Rats.  The headlight I had pulled was the good one, so we'll just put 'er back together and go exchange bulbs tomorrow.

These little critters cost a small fortune, relative to their size!  Maybe they have platinum in them.  I get to the store.  Just noticed it is getting dark.  I pop the hood and reach for the dead headlight bulb.  If I pull it, take it in, and show it, I can match it.  Normal so far.  I reach in and twist off the cover, release the wire and gently pull...the whole crazy thing apart.  The plastic in the harness crumbled under my fingers and the metal parts were snapped off or fused on. 

Did I mention it was dark the temp was dropping swiftly, and I had on my Sunday clothes?  That shouldn't really be a problem unless the headlight is the one under all the greasy wiring.  So my greasy hand is now holding the remains of the plastic connector, Hunter gets the keys out of my coat pocket, I get my purse sticking my whole arm through the handle.  It's black.  The grease won't really show.  The only help they offer me costs $349.  (I saw it online for $99!)  A whole new headlight assembly.  Learning the jargon on the fly, I figure she is offering me a whole new headlight.  I believe I want a headlight wiring harness. Don't need the whole deal, don't want to work on that one without adult supervision and don't want to cough up that kind of dough to fix a light on an eight year old car. 

So, I put the headlight case back together and left.  When I got home, I emailed Chris.  Now Chris is far away and hates to not be able to take care of things while he is gone.  All I asked was, 'Do you have a favorite website to get Volvo pieces from?"  No hysteria there.

About 20 minutes later, the phone rang. It was a call for me from across the world.  Now I know how to get him to call anytime he is not in the air!  He had a couple of questions, and we figured it out.  I found the wiring and it only costs $19.19.  I'll drive the other car until I get the part and get it in.  See, I got a headlight out warning from the Staters three days ago and I do want to be responsible.  If it turns out that it requires some special manskills to install, I'll call Andy--he's down the road.  Andy and Chris work together.  He is our signal.  When Andy leaves, we know Chris will be home on the return trip.  The guys swap off on family watch, too.  Handy.

I already had Tom from church come and replace the ballast in my big kitchen light.  He is an electrician.  He was here to give us a quote on wiring the shed out back when he noticed the light out.  I hadn't changed the bulbs because they were the long ones.  We keep the long ones in the attic.  Pulling down the stairs is hard because I am too short.  I had it planned for Saturday, really.  It is good he was here because not only did he catch on to the ballast being blown, he had one to replace it.  I would have left it for Chris, most likely. 

The car incident snowballed, however, when Chris suggested I drive the Explorer until the wagon was ready.  Well, I WOULD just drive that one, except when I went to start it yesterday, the battery was nearly dead.  Wouldn't start.  So when Chris suggested that I use it, I asked him if there is any reason why it was juiceless.  He said it was weak when he left.  I put 2 and 2 together--  weak battery plus several nights around thirty and one at 19 degrees. No more battery.  So I get to jumpstart the thing and go get a battery.  Except Chris very diplomatically suggested that I have Rob next door come help with that.  I guess I would rather it be Rob's fault the ignition is fried if something goes bad. 

The rest of my Sunday went alright.  We were 10 minutes late for Sunday School.  I have a child who needs to be watched like an Alzheimer's patient when it is time to get ready to go somewhere.  I took my eye off him for 10 minutes to get ready, and that was all it took.  He was not dressed.  In fact he was just out of the shower, and prancing buck naked in his room  when it was time to go.  Such an endearing little boy.  He almost wore a mom-sized handprint on his naked bum!   Funny how it works.  I say "Get out of the shower now".  He says "Okay mom.  I'm getting the soap out of my hair."  Who takes 15 minutes to remove soap from hair?  Other than that, Sunday went well. 

Look how much time I have to post when the spouse is gone!  It's past my bedtime and I am off now. 

First, someone pointed out that this sentence sounded like we should all hang around and wait to be dead. 

God is not a lucky rabbit's foot, but one does get to take comfort in knowing that no matter how bad it gets, we eventually get to go to our rest.

This is not exactly what I meant!  I wanted to say that peace is available.  A little different. 

I have been leading a study by Beth Moor that is fascinating.  It is about the fruit of the spirit.  Now I have studied this fruit many times in the last 35ish years .  Isn't it cool that every time you study you see something new?  I am not so sure why this is so different but it is exciting to see what all is available if I can but exercise some self-control long enough to concentrate on listening to God.  Listening.  Hmmm.  Do you know me?  I am better at it than I was.  My poor husband.  I am still training him to just tell me--no hints, no subtlety.  He is actually pretty good at it.  ANYway, I am excited --to get back to what I was saying--to once again visit the lives of people like Paul and Job who rode lifes' waves with a degree of calm and resolution.  God does not promise us that life will be easy, simply that HE will be there in the bad to provide us some calm. 

I just found out that one of my friends from Portland area is now a Buddhist.  I always wonder about that.  It seems that people I hear usually list the reasons they go to a different religion.  Then I am puzzled that they didn't bother to study Christianity long enough to find the same principles in Christ's teachings.  Except that we have a messiah willing to erase our errors and pave the way for a personal relationship with God.   Our GOd actually wants to hang around with us.  That is not usual for a religion's God.  I know the muslims just work and follow their god and hope that when the final judgement comes they will make it in.  Yes, I do know that many Christian sects believe that way as well.  I prefer to strive to grow in God rather than to strive to always be good enough to avoid hell.  FOR ME, it makes more sense.  I do believe there is a period after "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved."  this could be argued all day--and it has been.  In a way it doesn't really matter because from my point of view, everyone who believes gets in, even if they aren't sure .  

In Christianity, people are free to discuss and disagree about the finer points.  Not so with the muslims.  The extremists work very hard to run the program.  there is a part of the Koran --a part the Extremists embrace-- that says you can insure your route to God by killing people who aren't muslim, or even muslims who aren't the vicious ones.  Doesn't that sound like salvation by human sacrifice?  I am only half kidding.  I wonder why we aren't hearing more about the differences between the moderates and the jihadis.   It amazes me that this killing machine  is protected as a religion.   I don't think the moderates are supporting the crazies.  I think they fear them.  I would. 

That was a happy place, no?  I have just discovered Facebook.  What a fun quick way to keep in touch with some of my friends.  I don't really advertise my blog because I mostly want to keep it as family.  It is more fun.  I have caught up with people I had lost track of. 

Chris has started the process to sign up for a few more years.  It does seem a tad rash to retire into the main workforce at this time.  We would be starting a whole new career for Chris. 

Hunter is getting good at his guitar playing.  His teacher is a perfect match.  Christopher is cranky about playing the piano.  He is learning Silent Night and that is keeping him interested.  I am singing in the choir for the Christmas program.  I like to sing. Ah, I have been doing computer maintenance in the background as I write.  It is done.  I am going to bed.  I have been up waaaay too late these days.  When Chris is gone, I find it hard to go to bed.  He called today with a progress report.  Only three more weeks or so. I think he badly misses the boys.  They are a lot of fun.

Today I am not going to do anything more than relieve the stress that is being caused by the media and the political season.  I turn on my news and hear the drumbeat of negativity and it is wearing me out.  I have one of those wacky personalities that thinks we should all play by the rules.  That means being as honest as one is capable.  I cannot accuse all of these people of actually lying, but they are certainly ignorant or not plain-speaking.  My news habit will be put ut rest for a few days until I simmer down !

I am wearied from turning on my media and hearing political operatives saying/inferring:

1.  OF COURSE We are in a recession.  If you don't agree you are an idiot.

2.  You rich people need to pay more taxes.

3.  Just LOOK at how high our carbon emissions and energy use are compared to other developed countries.

4.  The government should get any extra money you have because it can provide______.  (fill in blank with health care, welfare, investment in research for all things I deem researchable to solve all things I consider to require solving.)

Here is why:

1.  The economy is slowed.  Yes, a percentage of people are losing their homes.  (We didn't 'gamble' with fishy loans when we bought our home.  We bought within our budget.  Wisdom over foolishness usually wins.)  Some folks are losing their homes from legitimate loans and circumstances, but those are lower percentages.  Yes, the unemployment rate has fallen from above statistically full (95%) to just about a historical average.  I understand some pockets are worse, but recession is measured with national statistics.  Recession is measured by benchmark numbers which our economy has not yet met.   It's not pretty and may get worse, but it is NOT A RECESSION.  To declare it so is either ignorant or dishonest.

2.  According to most politicians' calculations, I am in the "rich" category.  My husband is a military officer without a flying bonus.  It is a simple matter to look up the income of military personnel and you will note that we are solidly middle class.  I have lived in military housing that was too decrepit to allow the homeless to occupy when the base closed.  I have been a recipient of the patchy health care that the socialists would have you believe will be a panacea for all our medical ills.  (It will not.)  Don't get me wrong, our life is a good one.  We are not whiners.  It is a fact that we could make very much more with my husband's skills on the "outside", but choose this life of service.  My point is, we earn our money and wish to keep as much of it as possible for our future and our family.  We have increased our income steadily as we have risen up through the ranks.  I have seen corporate families' lives improve as they rise us through the ranks.  My friends who are teachers make more money the longer they teach.  My point is that the percentage of poor may be static, but the percentage of those permanently poor is considerably lower than those who are just out of school, in college,or in entry level jobs in the workplace.  The poor who are poor now are not all poor in five years.  In five years, a percentage of the poor will be new faces in the job market.  Likewise, the middle class moves up.  The pie is not finite.  Run out and grab a piece of your own and leave me to keep or disseminate mine as I choose.

3.  I cannot find the statistics I need in the short time I have here, but steadily the USA matches its energy usage per capita to its GDP per capita  within one or two ranking points.  We do have some waste, but people are sloppy and often take the path of least resistance--like taxing people to pay for their needs instead of working for it.  This means, yes we use big, but we produce big as well.  Comparing the USA to France or any other country is useless unless you measure per capita.  We are not hogs; we are a country with a large population and large land mass that supports a great deal of the world's population.  Without that consumption, there would be no extra loot to save whales and pay for AIDS care in third world countries. (Countries which may have wealth, but will never develop due to a lack of democracy and an abundance of corruption in their governments).   So put that in your pipe and smoke it.   (On a snarky note, someone needs to tell Mr. Presidential Hopeful that a lot of us cannot afford, nor do we think it comfortable to put our thermostats all the way down to 72.  That is for Al Gore and his strata.)

4.  As I write, I am unable to come up with a program that the Federal Government runs efficiently or effectively.   Why on God's green earth would I vote for someone who intends to swell those programs or invent new ones?  People who required financial assistance used to be taken care of by their community until the Great Depression overwhelmed us.  If the programs implemented by the govt. had been temporary then, entire generations of capable people would not have gotten used to the humiliation of living on handouts from the government and people with extra would not see the logic in giving their assets to govt programs that deliver 30 cents on the dollar.  I can hand someone who is working their way out of a tough situation a dollar and they will have an entire dollar.  Health care is not a right.  Investing in energy cell division research is constitutionally not the provence of government.  There needs to be some stopping point. 

Ach!  I could go on and on, but I am vented for a bit and do feel better.

After living in this house for about two years, I have officially finished the painting.  I finished it in the manner of the woman from Proverbs and hired it done.  A single mother from our church had to sit out from college and tend to ailing family members, and as her job was through t he school had no income.  She can paint.  I helped her with the last room because it was a real bear and I wasn't paying her enough for the hassle. I figured that out about an hour into the room!  She painted the office and then the kids' jack and jill bathroom.  This room was too cramped and did not have enough ventilation for me and my allergies to do.  I sacrificed for the master bath though.  We have one of those big bathrooms with wasted space and a toilet in a room.  The W.C. is a great idea unless one has to paint in there.  The room is too tiny for air.  We ran the fan and had a LARGE fan sucking out the fumes, but I got LOOPY!  We had a great time at that job.  Also, my friend who needed a dollar got a whole dollar, not 30 cents from the govt.  But this is not about charity it is about the victory of having my painting done.  The guys at the paint store helped me find colors.  They look great, too.  (The colors look great -the guys at the paint store looked okay, but I wouldn't say they looked great.) 

Chris is off tending to his family this weekend.  He finally got his brother's legal papers in order for him and straightened out the confusion his caretaker had over her accounting concerns.   He took his brother up to see their father in Iowa and it sounds like they enjoyed themselves.  Grandpa Jack is in frail health and we fear a call in the not too distant future, but who knows...

Hunter is getting on with his guitar lessons.  I keep telling him he can play like Eric--our cool youth pastor--and he seems to be a perfect fit with his instructor.  Christopher is growly over practicing piano.  I quit telling him that it was time to practice and would he play his lesson for me?  It's working for now.  That child has a stubborn streak of passive resistance.  I have NO IDEA where he gets that trait.  Must be his father?  Both children are excellent negotiators.  I have to be very vigilant in explaining the difference between that and disobedience.   Often, they are unvow in the latter, but not always.  Here is where some people would say, "they could be great lawyers".  Please spare me the headache of that kind of haranguing.  "Hunter, have you washed the car yet?"  "Say Mom, that depends on your definition of yet."  Great.

We have had pretty steady rain for a day and a half.  In our backyard we have about 4 inches measured.  Our little microclimate usually gets less rain than 5 miles to the north and south of us.  It is kind of crazy to watch the weather map and see the rainclouds split to go around us.  We can drive home in the blinding rain and arrive to dry sidewalks. 

I am taking an exploratory expedition to Colorado Springs next weekend.  Originally the entire family was going, but the car became undependable and we can't take it or the trailer, plane tickets are beyond the budget for the four of us and Chris is going to be gone for a couple months starting late Sept. so I get to go.  By myself.  Alone.  Me.  Except I have arranged for a girlfriend who is also considering moving to the area--probably more toward Denver for her--to meet me.  She was one of my bridesmaids.  We met in college.  It will be fun.  I have to figure out what to look for while I am there.  We have done a lot of internet research and I have a map of the area with actual housing developments listed. 

We would like about 5000 square feet, an indoor heated pool, a barn for the horses and steers (yes, and sheep).  A pond, and maybe thirty acres.  We are going to get a 25 year old house about 2500 sq. ft. on about 2 acres and like it.  Maybe we'll raise a chicken! 

It will be nice to have room to grow our own meat and have a garden.  Having a garden is a tad scary for me to think of right now.  Oh how poorly I have kept my current 10x15 plot.  I have so little idea what is wrong with my plants.  The peppers are great and if I can beat the bugs to it, I have one cantaloupe which has not rotted.  The beans did okay, too.  Last year I had great cukes, this year, no.  Something weird happened to my zucchini.  Well, one just rotted, the other got some odd split in the stem near the ground and over a month or so, the plant kept growing and looking fine.  I picked one zuke, and two weeks later, the split had gone all the way up and the thing died.  I was not surprised, but the split looked funny.  It resembled worm action, but I never found bugs.  Last year we had corn with some fantastic fungus that made the ears look like brains.  It was amazing to see them come bursting from their husks.  We looked it up and we can't ever grow corn there because  the fungus is always in the soil.  We are avoiding fungicides and most pesticides in our tiny plot.  I fear the rain will get my melon. 

It is very late and my brain is recovering from the paint fumes.  I must admit, I had coffee later in the day and should have not.  Maybe the news would not have gotten to me if I hadn't been so loopy.  Much to do to screw in all of the fixtures and tidy up for the arrival of the king late Monday.  See you later Wally Gator!