rambling rosemarie

I've spent a good deal of my life thinking that morning people were just a little daft. Why would anyone enjoy getting up early? Certainly sleep was more desirable than any sunrise or quiet moment in a still home. Now I would have to concede that with a little maturity and gray hair comes a different perspective. Mornings are where it all happens. We've had some unusual autumn-like weather here in the Blue Grass and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Autumn is my favorite season for many reasons. One prominent enjoyment; cool, crisp air. Fall is when I open every door and window, even if doing so invites gale force winds to blow through my home. My dog hides under her sheepskin and the cat anchors herself inside the carpeted tunnel of her cat condo while I walk around barefoot and clothed for the beach. Last night temperatures dropped into the 50s. Ahh, bliss! I woke to the sound of baby birds singing and cool tranquility to greet me. It makes me happy. Instead of stumbling o...

In the innumerable list of things I do not understand, one that stands out currently is the preoccupation with the amount of money made in private sector and taxes paid on that money by persons running for political office. If the IRS is happy with the contributions the candidate is making and the FBI and CIA are not coordinating efforts to take them down to face criminal charges, why are the citizens of these United States so concerned? Isn't making/having money part of the American Dream? Isn't that why so many people play the lottery? Visit casinos? Don't we all rejoice and even brag a bit when our CPA reduces our tax liabilities legally? Frankly, I find it puzzling and inconsistent that so many are piling on the bandwagon and chanting for Mitt Romney to make public his tax returns. Why should he? Why is it an issue? It's an issue because one of the other candidates, namely the democratic machinery that wants to re-elect President Obama, wants us to believe it ...

My dog, The Bodacious Miss Maria Consuelo Thibodeaux Jones, is equal parts abject fear and Polyanna optimism. She's sitting at my feet right now hoping to eat the crumbs from my table. I am devouring some chicken while I sit and type. Admittedly, she stands a good chance of walking away with a full belly as typing and chicken eating are not the best combination of things with which to hone your multi-tasking skills. She has been sitting quietly as I read my normal blogs and news feeds. She doesn't mind at all when I yell that the computer. Even when I pound my desk yell things like, "Aw, come on! Nobody is that stupid!" she pretends not to notice. However, don't take a load of clothes out of the dryer or hold some mail in your hand and expect her to get within 10 feet of you. Before you ask, no she was never beaten with clean clothes and I have never tortured her with mail. She's just goofy. She has her idiosyncratic behaviors and for the most part they ...

This morning I was watching Good Morning America, which is my habit each morning since terrorists targeted the World Trade Center. It's a habit I can't seem to break and one that makes me crazy because of what passes for journalism these days. Today I got up and walked away from the TV and took my coffee with me, a sure sign I had no intention of actually watching the program. The folks at ABC decided to make an entertainment event on the tragedy in Colorado again. They ask the stupidest questions of people. "What were you thinking when you saw the gunman?" "What did your hero say to you as he was leading you out of the theater?" "What were you thinking when you used your body tho shield you daughter?" It makes me want to scream and throw things and rather than risk the loss of my television, I left and went to my office. I was surfing Face Book and grumbling to myself when one of my friends posted an article with an eye catching title. ...

There were some odd things that crossed my mind as I hid in my closet from the storms on Friday, not the least of which was the irony over trying desperately to get into a closet when most of this warped world is trying to get out. In the days leading up to the storms I had prepared as safe a place for myself as possible having purchased a home without a basement in what locals now tell me is "tornado alley." Where were they when I was looking for a place to buy? I had stocked my safe spot with water and dog food just in case my furry friends needed a snack while we were in there. They also had a dog bed and come comfy rugs to lay on. I sat on a leather ottoman tucked in the corner where my long sleeved v-necked tee shirts tousled my hair. My gray old buddy, Chet the Wonder Dog, couldn't figure out why I was calling him into the closet. He's sort of blind and mostly deaf but he's really smart and knew we'd never spent time in that part of the house together...

Ever notice that things tend to go wrong at the worst possible time? My dog never gets sick when I have a few extra bucks in my pocket that aren't spoken for. He gets sick when my check engine light is on, my semi-annual payment for car insurance is due, the bills for the endoscopy I had at the hospital are coming in and my kidlet is unemployed and could use some help with groceries for my ridiculously cute grandson. My take on that phenomenon? Sometimes the worst possible time is ultimately the best timing. I have mentioned before that I love earthquakes. I love severe weather. I like it when lightning strikes so close by it makes the hair on my head and arms raise slightly. I love it when the rumble of the earth moving wakes me up in the middle of the night. I like to see the rain come down in sheets. I don't like it that people get hurt or lose their property. I am not sadistic. Having lost all I own in a flood I know the feelings of emotional bankruptcy that come with th...

I found this gem at my friend Turretinfan's blog . It is well worth the time to watch it and it is exactly what I need to hear given my current state of mind. Our God is so economical. He weaves everything together so perfectly. What a 'coincidence' that I should find this clip now. The man speaking is Voddie Baucham and you can find out more about him here .

It's been a while since my last article and I am feeling kind of twitchy about a lot of things. I really have missed the opportunity to let the things percolating in my brain have a chance to spill out into my blog and as a result I feel sort of toxic. I mean, I could probably die from holding my opinions in for too long, you know? I considered writing about my recollections of 9/11 and I still may. I also thought I might ease on back into things and then I saw something that caught my attention and I thought, "Oh yeah, that's hitting the blog." Fair warning, if you are offended by the occasional swear word, don't play the video below. There's nothing worse than what you would find in a PG13 movie or on television. In fact, it is from television. It is Craig Ferguson's monologue from his late night program. And, though I might have left the one or two expletives out knowing that my pastor reads my blog, I couldn't have said it better myself. Speaking o...

Sometimes this world is ugly and I don't want to be here any more. I know this seems a sharp contrast from the post I made here about how everything we do matters. It's not really. I still believe those words. In times like these, I cling to them. It's just that I know that heaven will be so much nicer. Here I am free from the penalty and power of sin, there I will be free from the presence of sin and sin is very ugly business. Today my oldest girl miscarried her baby boy. She was 5 1/2 months pregnant. I am heartbroken for her and her husband, they are grieving the loss of their son. I am grieving the loss of my second grandchild. His death was traumatic and trauma always changes people. Always. I know that this is something that his parents will survive, but they will never be the same, nor should they be. Life can and will be good again. There will be time to enjoy the blooms of spring and the warmth of sunshine on their faces. Time will pass and the pain wi...

It's been a few days since I have posted anything, not that I have been missed. It's more that I have missed the chance to put some thoughts down and think them through. There is a nagging feeling I have that that I am missing something important. That somewhere in the list of strange things I think about, there is one worth pursuing. Do you think about things you never hear anyone else mention? I do. I had a lovely conversation with my friend, Carla. You know you are building a great friendship with someone when you feel comfortable in sharing those strange things you think about and they don't run away in terror. So what do I think about? What does God think is funny? Can you know everything, be sovereign in all matters and have a sense of humor? Our humor is tainted by sin, God's is not. Does he laugh at pratfalls? Or does he have more of a sense of enjoyment? I laugh when I watch little piglets play. Does he? What does God think is beautiful? Are some things...

Within the sovereignty of God is a fundamental truth, nothing is wasted. Each and every minute of our lives is preparing us for something, though we may never know how significant that something will be. I used to tell the college students I worked with that Matthew 1:2 "To Abraham was born Isaac; and to Isaac, Jacob; and to Jacob, Judah and his brothers;" was my favorite verse for encouragement. Of course they would read it and ask me why and I would take them to Genesis and give my version of the story of Joseph. It went something like this: Joseph wasn't smart enough not to rub it in his brother's faces that he was their father, Jacob's, favorite. Maybe he was that naive, or maybe without guile- I don't know for certain, all I know is he got to hang out with Jacob while his brothers had to do the real labor. It was sort of silly of him to mention his dream to them, don't you think? How would you react if your brother said he had a dream where you wou...