P J's Notes

Evangelism Explosion - 10/24/06

2006-10-25T07:23:00.001-07:00

My Dear EE Friends,

God is so good... Again and again he reassures us that He wants so deeply for us to allow Him to use us to be His witnesses. He reminds us, by showing us, that there is quite a harvest waiting right here in the Jackson area.

Tonight there were six more people who made professions of faith in Jesus, and there were nine others who prayed for assurance of their faith. Also there were many visits made tonight where we just reminded people how very much our Lord loves them. We found lots of hurting people and many who were in need of prayer.

Time and again we continue to meet people who were misplaced by Katrina. One team tonight talked with a Christian lady who had lost all of her material possessions. The EE team lovingly encouraged her by reminding her that nothing could separate her from the love of our Father and that nothing could take away her salvation. They prayed with her and felt that they had experienced a divine appointment indeed. She was so lonely and needed someone with whom to talk. God had placed that team exactly where He wanted them to be tonight.

Rex Robinson, Lu Harding and Richard Corkern went door to door with the religious questionnaire and met a guy named Mario. Mario prayed to receive Christ tonight and told the team he had been praying for answers and was so thankful that God had sent them to him.

Bob Turner, Heather and Ryan Reese met Michael tonight as they went door to door. Michael is 28 years old... though living with a girl friend, he recognized his need for the Lord and prayed the sinners prayer. Now, having asked Jesus to be Lord of his life, he realizes that he needs to get his relationship with his girlfriend straightened up as it should be. The EE team will go back next week to meet with Michael and his girlfriend, to witness to her and help and encourage them further in getting their lives on track.

Luke 19:10
The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.

I took my team, Tommy Smith and Beverly Shelton to the laundromat at Colonial Mart tonight. There was only one man in there, all alone, washing his clothes with his two precious little boys . The Lord spoke through Tommy and Beverly to this man, and he too prayed to receive Christ.

Terri Wissel went with Linda Deddens and Toby McCarty to UMC again and three more people opened their hearts to Jesus.

Every team that went out tonight was used. God's Word never returns void. We must be faithful to go, and remember that there results of our visits is left up to the Lord.

Col. 4:5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Our trainees have almost completed the memory work. The remaining weeks left in the semester, they will be doing all of the talking. The trainers will be there just to catch them if they need help. We are so proud of how hard they have worked and for their faithful attendance. I believe they are certainly experiencing the joy of being outspoken witnesses for our precious Jesus.

Reminder for EE Participants:
Next week EE will meet on Monday evening to avoid the interruptions of
Halloween trick or treaters on Tuesday evening.
Supper will be at 5:30, on the second floor of the CLC. in the large
auditorium, room 200. Please park in the parking garage or CLC lot.

Thank you, EE friends, for continuing to be faithful prayer warriors for us.
Col. 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ.

Lovingly His,
Dot

Evangelism Explosion - 10/24/06

2006-10-25T07:23:00.000-07:00

Evangelism Explosion for 10/17/06

2006-10-18T16:31:00.000-07:00

Dear EE friends,

This was another wonderful night. There were 8 professions of faith tonight and 3 other professions of faith in the last few days when our EE people made themselves available for the Lord to use.
Sunday evening, Richard Corkern visited with a FBC guard who prayed to invite Jesus into his heart. The guard said that he and his friends were trying to figure out how to get good enough so they could accept Christ. After Richard told him that Jesus came/died for sinners, the guard understood and humbly and gratefully prayed to receive the gift of salvation.

Beverly Shelton was at our FBC booth at the Fair last Thursday evening. She had two interesting visits with two individuals.
1) Beverly( an EE trainee) witnessed to a young mom with two beautiful little girls, both of whom were born out of wedlock. This young woman confided in Beverly that she was so burdened and covered by her sin. She wept deeply when Beverly shared with her. She realized that Jesus would forgive and forget her sins, if she would just give her heart to Him and let Him be Lord of her life. What a precious moment as Beverly watched this young woman begin her new life as a new person in Christ. Her spiritual birthday would be October 12, 2006. A day she will never forget.
2) Beverly also witnessed to a Jewish man who walked up to our booth at the Fair and pointing to our sign that said 'Living water', he said, " I want some of that". Beverly knew he was not asking for a cup of cool water, but really wanted to know about our Jesus. She presented the Gospel to him and was able to answer many of his questions. He was not quite ready to pray to receive Christ, but he is searching, and she was able to help him along the way...Please pray for Ronnie.

The team that led the Muslim to Jesus last week went back to do a follow-up visit tonight. The lady told the team that this had been the most wonderful week she has ever had in her entire life. No doubt, she has praised God all week for His gift of eternal life.

Two of the people tonight who prayed to receive Christ were member of the Christian Life Center. Follow-up will be done with them next week by those two teams. Perhaps they will be prospects for our membership.
Eric James, Johnnie Jamison, Heather Reese were on one team
The other team was Bob Turner, Ryan Reese, and Barbara Hall.

The other six professions of faith were at UMC in the ICU waiting room.
People there seem to be very ready to open their hearts to Jesus. This team was Terri Wissel, Pam Smith, and Toby McCarty.

As you can see, the trainees are learning more and more, and soon will be ready to present the entire Gospel with only His help. We trainers will be there if they need us, but they are about ready to take flight!
We are so happy for our trainees because we know the joy it brings to be ready and able to be used by our Lord. Whether we are planting seeds, helping with assurance, or leading a lost person to saving faith in Jesus, it is such a tremendous privilege.

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

2 Peter 3:18
Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever..

God bless you,
Love,
Dot

ALABAMA on QVC!!

2006-10-12T07:28:00.000-07:00

Randy and Teddy were live on QVC from the Sound Shop Recording Studio in Nashville yesterday evening. I recorded the show with my VCR and also called in and ordered a copy of the new CD plus the bonus CD that is an exclusive for QVC customers. Randy and Teddy performed some of the songs on the new CD - Songs of Inspiration - they had some studio musicians playing with them, although I believe I saw Larry Hanson in there too. Jeff was "under the weather" and couldn't be there: I don't know why Mark wasn't on drums.

I'm looking forward to getting this new CD. I was told to expect it around November 2nd. Waaaahooooo!!!!

Evangelism Explosion for 10/10/06

2006-10-11T05:33:00.000-07:00

What an exciting and amazing night! I had prayed that God would give them a good night - He more than answered that prayer by giving them a great night!!

Dear EE friends,

What an exciting night! The Gospel was shared 19 times resulting in 15 people who accepted Jesus, and only 4 people who rejected Him. We met 14 people who were already Christians, and 3 people who made a recommitment to Jesus. Numerous seeds were planted. Often it takes many times of hearing the Gospel for some people, before it is accepted. We are so thankful that the Lord will use us in whatever stage He chooses. Sharing His great Message is such a privilege and joy.

Bob Turner, Barbara Hall, and Ryan Reese met Taqina and her daughter, Aquila, as they went door to door in the Belhaven area. Taqina was raised Muslim but has been pursuing Jesus for the last 8 years. She thought she could work her way to heaven, but after hearing the Gospel and realizing that heaven is God's free gift to those who love Jesus, she dissolved into tears as she and her daughter prayed, thanking God, and inviting Jesus into their hearts as Lord and Savior.

Terri Wissel, Pam Smith and Toby McCarty went to Methodist Rehab.
They reported leading 5 people to Jesus. A Rehab nurse directed them to "Larry" who is paralyzed on both sides and can hardly talk. It was so touching to listen as he struggled to pronounce his words as he accepted Jesus' gift of Eternal Life.

A "way of life" experience was told tonight by Lavell and Pam Smith. They are both trainees and led 3 people to Jesus, not even on Tuesday night!!
One was an employee with Lavell, and the other two were met through a mutual friend and did not even speak English. A translator interpreted for them.
Way to go, Lavell and Pam... You don't have to wait until you get it all memorized. Share from your heart or read it to them from the track. God will bless your efforts!

Our trainees now can lead in the "introductory part" of the visits and also can lead in the "commitment part" of the presentation. They have learned the skeletal of the Gospel and will soon be filling in the gaps of this skeletal outline.
We trainers are turning more and more over to them to do each week on the visits, and they are doing so well. Please continue to pray for them.

It was indeed another great Tuesday evening. We are never disappointed.
God is so faithful and is our Great Encourager.
We are all just simple church members who are asking God to use us to spread the Word of His precious gift of salvation.

Romans 1:6
I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

2 Corinthians 12:9
My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

We all thank you for your prayers, and I want to encourage you to pray about the possibility of your joining us next semester. Tuesday night just might become your favorite night of the week too!

In His precious name and with His love,
Good night again...
Love,
Dot

Ashlyn Jade Marie Cedotal

2006-10-10T09:27:00.000-07:00

My great-niece Nikki had her baby - Ashlyn Jade Marie Cedotal - yesterday at 6:19 p.m. She was 7 pounds 8 ounces and measured 20 inches long.

The delivery was via Cesearian section and when Ashlyn was first born, she had difficulties with getting oxygen. The doctors took her to NICU and put an oxygen line on her. They said that there's some fluid in her lungs, but that in a day or two she will be fine.

This is it for now...

Good afternoon!

2006-10-09T11:28:00.000-07:00

It's Monday afternoon - Columbus Day. But it's not a holiday for State Government here in Mississippi because we take Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday in April. So we trade that for Columbus Day. Bob is off today since his child is out of school and he needs someone to stay with him.

This weekend - nothing real exciting. LSU managed to lose to Florida - the team forgot to show up; the bright spot in the SEC is that Auburn finally tasted defeat - at the hands of the Arkansas Razorbacks.

I don't really have much other news...we're still waiting for Nicole (Nikki) to have her baby. She was admitted to the hospital last night and labor induced. They were to do a C-Section if she doesn't have it on her own by lunchtime. Bill hasn't called me to give me an update.

Good Morning!

2006-10-05T06:49:00.000-07:00

Not a whole lot to say so far this morning. It was a blah evening and night. There was only one item in the mail and there was football and baseball on TV. I watched some of both, then went on to bed. Sukiey got in there with me for a while before getting up and, as cats like to do, rambling. She seems fond of sleeping on the couch although when I come home in the afternoon/evening, I sometimes find her in the waterbed.

Evangelism Explosion 9/19, 9/26 and 10/3

2006-10-04T15:20:00.000-07:00

Here are the first 3 EE Reports for this semester. I'm not able to do EE this semester due to my work schedule.

9/19

Dear EE Friends,

God has tremendously blessed our efforts in Evangelism Explosion again. Tonight we had 20 teams of 3 going out to share the message of His gift of Eternal Life.
Of these 60 people, half of them are brand new trainees!

Vic Holsapple is again teaching the Gospel presentation material to the trainees. Ronnie Falvey is polishing up the associate trainers in hopes of having them serve as trainers next semester, and Eric James is leading the trainers in a study of how to deal with people we meet who are of other faiths.

Following the class time we moved out into the city in search of lost people with whom we might share Jesus. Some of our visits were with people who have visited our church, and some were door to door surprises.

Tonight the Gospel was shared 24 times. Isn't that wonderful ! That is what EE is all about. Our goal is to train our church members to boldly share God's Plan of Salvation in the everyday walk of life.

As a result of those 24 Gospel presentations, 24 people were given assurance of their salvation and 7 people prayed to receive Christ !

Terri Wissel, Pam Smith and Toby McCarthy led three people in the ICU waiting room at UMC to Jesus.

Bob Turner, Ryan Reese and Barbara Hall met a 14 year old, named Ashley, as they went door to door in Clinton. Ashley prayed to receive Christ.

Tree James, Jamie Butler, and Shelly Self led 25 year old, Shoufa, to Jesus.

My team, Beverly Shelton and Tommy Smith, led 9 year old twin girls, Bailey and Brooke, to faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

As I mentioned earlier, our goal is to teach our trainees to share Jesus. If in the process someone wants to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are blessed indeed to be a part of this Divine Appointment.

So often people are confused about their faith and need reassurance of their salvation. This was the case tonight with 24 people who heard the Gospel presented. How grateful and comforted they must feel tonight too!

One Christian that was met tonight by Bob Mabry, Herb Foreman and Linda Clark said he had asked God this morning for a "sign" to help confirm his belief. This man joined them in prayer before the team left his house and thanked God for sending these three people to him tonight. ... another Divine Appointment! That is what keeps us wanting to go on these visits!

We continue to meet people displaced by Katrina. Please pray that we can be alert to their specific needs.

Our new trainees this semester are: Warren Speed, Marla Speed, Jeremy Campbell, Connie Foreman, Robin Mayfield, Mike Thompson, Ryan Reese, Barbara Hall, Beverly Shelton, Tommy Smith, Johnnie Jamison, Heather Reese, Pam Smith, Toby McCarthy, Carol Lindsey, Reed Givens, Peggy Powell, Lavell Smith, Lu Harding, Jeanne Boykin, Jan Patton, Renee Overholt, Bo Smith, Chris Mills, Carolyn Varnell, Lisa Harris, Skip Bowman, Robert Thompson.

Thank you for your faithful prayers for Evangelism Explosion.
Please pray:
1) that we all will be sensitive to God's leadership on our visits and as leaders for our trainees.
2) that the trainees will find study time to prepare their homework and memory work each week.
3) that God will protect us as we travel in the city at night.
4) that we will be ever mindful that God is the most important member of each team.

We were faithful to share the Good News tonight, and the Bible reminds us that His Word does not return void....Isaiah 55:11
So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty.

The verse I claim for our trainees is 2 Timothy 1:7
For God does not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

Good night...
With His love,
Dot

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9/26

Dear EE Friends,

Oh, how I love Jesus, and Tuesday nights at First Baptist Church Jackson!
My heart is just bursting with excitement tonight. Our prayer partners must have really been doing some very deep praying tonight because we certainly had another great evening.

The trainees are doing so well with their memory work. They are now ready to participate in or even lead the introductory phase of the visits. They know how to ask diagnostic questions that give insight into a person's spiritual understanding of who Jesus is and what He did for us on the cross.

Tonight the Gospel was shared 14 times! There were 10 Professions of Faith, and 4 people received assurance of their salvation! Thank you, Jesus, for allowing us to be part of this ministry of evangelism!

Satan was at work too though trying hard to distract the people who were our Divine Appointments. Dogs were growling and phones were ringing right at the time for the prayer of salvation, yet those who were inviting Jesus into their hearts acted as though they did not hear the dogs and that the phone calls were surely not important. Praise God!!

How humbled we are to watch God work through simple people like we are, to give Eternal Life to a lost person. That is a joy that is indescribable.

Tonight 10 people prayed to receive Christ ! The harvest is so ripe right here in Jackson. I am very thankful that our church knows that it is important to send out the workers..
I took my team, Beverly Shelton and Tommy Smith to visit a couple who had visited our church. They were not home, but their 16 year old son and 19 year old daughter were there, and after hearing the Gospel presentation, opened their hearts and invited Jesus in as Lord and Savior. Eric said he has a church to attend, but Kyarria did not have a church or a Bible. We gave her a Bible and invited her to our church on Sunday. She plans to meet us there.

Vic Holsapple , Peggy Powell and Lavell Smith led four people to Jesus as they went door to door doing a religious questionnaire. They were all about 25 years of age...named Scott, Roxanne, Joseph and Robbie.

Ken Blackstock, Mark Butler, and Marla Speed led Ashley, age 30, to Jesus.
Ashley said, "God has been 'connecting the dots' in my life." He just recently got a job and now has the security of Eternal Life !

Ken Sims, Jenny Cox, and Jan Patton talked with Perry, who prayed to receive Christ. He is about 30 years old. They met him going door to door. God had him so very ready for their visit.

Terri Wissel, Pam Smith, and Toby McCarty went to UMC and led Tammy and James to saving faith in Jesus.

Watching people open their heart to Jesus is such a blessing.

In EE, we are especially eager to train people so that they can confidently share their love for Him and His plan of salvation for us, wherever God might choose to use them.

Many of our teams reported meeting hurting people in the city. The Gospel presentation gave these people encouragement and often reassurance of their faith in Jesus.... even if there were no new professions of faith.

Psalm 119:133
Order my steps in your Word, dear Lord; Lead me, guide me through this day. Humbly, I ask Thee to teach me your will: While You are working , help me be still. Order my steps in Your Word.

Have a wonderful week...and please remember to pray for these new Christians... and for our EE trainees, as the memory work increases.

To God be the Glory, great things He hath done...

With His love,
Dot

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10/3

Dear EE friends,

My EE report is late because I have been in PA, and I did not get back until late last night.
Jenny Cox was kind enough to gather the EE info for me so that I could share with you what happened.

There were 15 professions of faith !! and no doubt, countless seeds planted.

Team members- Chris Mills, Doug Smith and William Pierce visited with a 30 year old girl named Courtney whom they met as a result of going door to door and using the religious questionnaire. Courtney had been struggling with her faith but after hearing this wonderful Gospel message, accepted Jesus as her Savior. Courtney attends her family church in Mendenhall.

Team members -Terri Wissel, Toby McCarty, and Beverly Shelton visited at UMC. They said," We went to the UMC McDonald's where three accepted Christ. Then we went in the intensive care unit where two more people accepted Christ. Finally we were coming our of the parking lot and spoke with the lady in the ticket booth, and she accepted Christ too!"

Isn't it obvious how important it is for us to just open our mouths and witness !
God will do the rest..

Team members - Ken Sims, Jenny Cox and Jan Patton shared with the FBCJ security guard, Donnie, and he accepted Christ. They had already shared the Gospel with 4 people in Brandon and planted some seeds and given assurance for another one's salvation.

Team members - Tommy Smith, Peggy Powell, and Vic Holsapple met Heath by knocking on doors. He was 25 years old and lost. Heath prayed to receive Jesus as well !

This is really amazing!
Connie Foreman is one of our new trainees. Connie teaches computer classes at the Hinds County detention Center and found a creative way to "share" the Gospel.
She got the inmates ( Brittany, Pam, Lori, Stacey, Krystle, Latrinia and Charisse) to type some of the EE outline and then she asked each one to answer the diagnostic questions. She talked with them about their answers and had 6 professions of faith! She gave all the inmates information about baptism. One will be released soon and expressed interest in attending FBCJ and getting baptized after her release.
Way to go, Connie !! and remember, Connie is a "trainee" in EE. She is still learning, and just look how God is using her already !!!

As you see, I missed a very exciting night. I was praying hard for them as I am sure you were too.

Remember.." The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest fields."
Mt 9:37-38

What a blessing and privilege it is to witness for our Lord !
With His love,
Dot

It's Been A While...

2006-10-04T14:46:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I last posted....a tad over 2 months. I've been fairly busy lately and haven't had a whole lot of time to get in here and post like I would like to do. I'm going to try to do better, though.

For now I have a lot of catching up to do...this will be rather lengthy...

August 26th:

I've had a few days off again, but I'm back to work now. I took the weekend off and combined with my 3 regular days off that gave me 5 - almost a vacation! This will be kind of lengthy, I warn you.

Saturday I went with a group from my church via chartered bus down to New Orleans. The Women's Ministry had put the trip together. There were about 50 or so women plus the male bus driver (he owns the bus). Our reason for going was to attend a conference headlined by Anne Graham Lotz - yes, Dr. Graham's daughter. It was held at the New Orleans Arena which is next door to the Superdome. It was also free.

We left Jackson about 5:30 a.m. and got into New Orleans about 8:30 a.m. and to the Arena about 8:45 a.m. I noticed how quiet it was for a Saturday in New Orleans as we rode in on I-10. There was very little traffic. As we rode in, I noticed that there were houses with those infamous blue tarps on them and that some of the areas looked to be deserted. I also saw some of those codes - the ones that were spray painted on once they were checked - still on some buildings. This was to the south side of I-10. To the north side there seemed to be a little more activity.

When we got to the Arena, the bus dropped us off and we started inside but the Security people stopped our group - some of the women had brought their lunch with them. There was apparently a miscommunication and the Women's Ministry had understood that we could either bring a "sack lunch" or purchase lunch from the concession stands. I'm not sure what eventually happened as those of us who didn't bring food with us were told that we could go on in to the Arena and find seats. My co-worker Vicki and her friend Mary Nelle and I had chosen to go the concessions route, so we went on in.

We found good seats and then Vicki and I went and rambled around for a while at the tables and made purchases before rejoining Mary Nelle and waiting for the conference to start at 10:00 a.m. Besides Anne Graham Lotz, there were other speakers and musical performers. There were breaks in the morning and afternoon as well as for lunch. Vicki, Mary Nelle and I went to the concessions area and got boxed lunches (complete with drinks) for $11.00 each and went outside to eat.

We noticed that the Hyatt Hotel was still quite pockmarked with blown out windows, the Entergy HQ building had a couple of windows missing and another building nearby had a window or two missing. The Amtrak train came in while we were outside and I noticed that not many passengers got off or on the train going back to Chicago. There was a menacing looking cloud overhead and we got back inside the Arena just before it burst and let loose with a ferocious thunderstorm. Fortunately, there were no power issues.

I don't have any idea what the head count was in attendance, but I'd guess about 5,000 or so. There were buses from other churches and we heard there were people who had traveled in from Texas, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee plus other groups from Mississippi, in addition to all the ones from Louisiana. The conference ended about 6:30 p.m. and we were underway about 6:45 p.m. headed back north.

We stopped at Pass Manchac on Lake Maurepas for dinner at Middendorf's Seafood and our group split into two groups - about 25 in each group - so that we wouldn't overburden one of the restaurants (there are two - next to each other) with all of us. Even so, we received excellent service and I certainly enjoyed my fried shrimp dinner. We left again about 8:30 p.m. and arrived back in Jackson about 10:45 p.m. Vicki and Mary Nelle dropped me off and headed home. I got up to my apartment and Sukiey was glad to see me. I was in bed for 11:00 p.m. and she was close to me.

September 14th:

Good afternoon Ted... It's 2:15 p.m. as I'm writing this. I got a call from Aunt Fran last night letting me know that Mollie is failing. She has been given three days to one week to live. This sudden and abrupt change in her condition was brought about due to a procedure that had a complication - a fatal complication. The doctors put a scope down her esophagus to look at her heart and check on it and they made a mistake. They accidentally punctured a hole in the esophagus and fluid began building up in her body. They've said that there's nothing they can do to fix the problem. From what I understand, it has to do with her being so weak - they're afraid that she's not strong enough to withstand surgery to try to stitch up the hole. According to Virgie, her sister, she's not in any pain, but she is conscious and aware of what has happened to her and what her prognosis is. I talked with Virgie last night - her son Jonathan was driving her home to pick up her car so she could return to the hospital and spend the night with Mollie - along with Mollie's daughter Tara. She said that she and Tara are trying to spend as much time with Mollie as possible while she is still alive. She told me that "we're going to lose her" and "there's nothing they can do". She's a retired nurse, but has kept up with medical advances and procedures, so she ought to know.

Mollie and Virgie's sister, Beverly and her daughter, Virginia, are flying in tomorrow (Friday) from California (San Diego area). I understand that Beverly is quite upset (rightly so) and feels like "the doctors have taken her sister away from her". I talked with Ray last night and he said that he is in a quandary as to what to do. He was supposed to have left earlier this week on his grand trip that takes him through Canada and around the country, but he had to postpone it (again) due to a dental problem. He had to postpone the trip he had planned to make when his mother (Aunt Hilda) died and had rescheduled it for now. He's undecided as to whether to go ahead and embark on the trip and then when Mollie goes, to catch a flight from wherever he is (the closest airport in the area) to New Orleans or to stick around home and wait for word and then fly to New Orleans from Los Angeles or even to go ahead and fly on out to New Orleans ahead of time.

I also learned that Aunt Ruby and Robin were in an accident in the van on Monday. It was a "doozy" from what Aunt Ruby said; however, they weren't hurt and the van's rear bumper was all that sustained damage. They had gone to Hammond and were in the left turn lane waiting to make their turn when all of a sudden a car plowed into the back of them. The woman driving the car was going about 40 miles per hour and she was talking away on her cell phone - and obviously not paying attention to the traffic ahead of her. The "doozy" part is that when the van was struck the collision turned the van completely around facing the opposite direction from which they had come. Fortunately, there was no traffic in the inside lane next to them or they would've been nailed by oncoming traffic. When they stopped, Aunt Ruby said that she and Robin were both stunned and it took them a minute or so to figure out what had happened. She said that first she thought that the end of the world was starting, then she thought that Osama Bin Laden had set off a bomb on them, then she finally realized that they had been hit by another vehicle. They recovered themselves and got out and the woman driving the car that had hit them was already out examining the damage to her car. There were plenty of witnesses and someone had already called the police - who arrived moments later - and they had the vehicles moved into a nearby parking lot. Once they took the information, the police released Aunt Ruby and Robin and told them they could go on their way, so they did. However, the woman who hit them had extensive damage to her car and the police told her that she could drive her car, but that they didn't recommend it because it might lock up on her. Aunt Ruby didn't say what the woman chose to do (if she knew). They went on and did some shopping, then returned home. Robin had called her mother and so she called Carol back and told her they were okay. I'm surprised, knowing Carol, that she didn't leave work immediately after getting Robin's first call and come down there.

September 17th:

Okay, I promised to let you know what Bill had to say about Bootsie. He said that he had taken her to Dodge City - not the vet they normally use - and the vet had found that Bootsie is full of tumors - stomach, back, lungs and possibly even in her brain. Now whether they're cancerous or not, we don't know. Well, he had the option of having her put down when he was there at the vet, but he was so emotional that he was unable to handle doing it then. He said that if she lasts through the weekend, he's going to take her in to Dodge City on Monday afternoon after work. He wants to do the humane thing, but at the same time he's reluctant to let Bootsie go. By the way, Pat is in agreement with him - she doesn't like the idea of putting Bootsie down anymore than he does, but it has to be done if she makes it till Monday afternoon. Even so, it won't be the same in their household without Bootsie - with Rascal only.

I did get news last night that Mollie is still with us. She is calm, semi-conscious and aware of what's going on around her. The medical personnel are beginning to disconnect some of the IV and tubing connected to her. They're giving her morphine every couple of hours to keep her pain down and keep her comfortable. The task fell to Tara to explain to her mother that she's dying; Mollie seemed to know already and told Tara that she's "tired of fighting". Beverly and Virginia arrived Friday night from San Diego and Beverly said that when Mollie saw her, she smiled and gave an indication that she recognized her sister.

September 22nd:

Monday morning - around 9:30 a.m. I got a call from my cousin Ray in California. It was around 7:30 a.m. his time since there's a two hour time difference. He was calling to inform me that Mollie had died earlier that morning, but he didn't know what time, as Beverly hadn't told him when she called. He did tell me that she had told him that she wanted to call Aunt Fran herself, so he wasn't going to call her. I held off calling her as well.

Ray's sister Kay called while I was on another call; she didn't get to leave a message as she got another call. When I got free, I saw that it was her and so I called her back. She said she had gotten another call and that she was about to call me back, but I got to her first. Kay told me that she was planning to drive down to Baton Rouge from Little Rock for the visitation and funeral. She asked if I would like to ride down with her. I was still waiting for the arrangements; I hadn't yet made any travel plans, but I said yes - that would be great. She said that she was going to stay a couple of extra days past the funeral, so I would have to find another way back. I told her that was no problem - I could catch the Amtrak back to Jackson. We decided to talk again later after we had the arrangements information and make our plans.

I went on with Vicki and Laura to the Women's Luncheon at Church. It rained on Monday so we took Vicki's car. Actually, we would've gone in Vicki's car anyway; she detoured by the Credit Union on the way back for me to get some cash for travel purposes. When we came back, I found a notice on the door of the entrance to Sterling advising us that the hot water was going to be turned off at 1:00 p.m. to work on repairing a leak in the lobby area and it would remain off until the leak was fixed. Along about 6:00 p.m. I went down and saw they were still working on it.

Well - it got to be an interesting evening - when they turned the water back on, it flooded the lobby and the carpet in Jean's office was soaked. There was a major mess. They got it cleaned up pretty well and got the leak fixed and the water back on. But - Chris and I had to walk down here to the Center in order to use the restroom before the repairs and cleanup was done.

I went back upstairs and around 8:00 p.m. I called Kay and she said that she was about to call me. She said she was doing some laundry in preparation for making the trip to Baton Rouge. She said that they were also having hot water issues at their house - the hot water heater had gone out. Anyway, she had the arrangements and gave them to me. We made plans for her to come into Jackson Tuesday afternoon on the way to Baton Rouge - a little bit of a detour - and pick me up. I gave her directions to Sterling so she would be able to come straight to me. She figured she would be about 3:00 p.m. getting here.

Tuesday morning I got a shower and dressed; then I called Steve about the spare keys I had given him. A little later I walked over and got them, then took them to Chris. She was going to keep an eye on Sukiey for me. I hung out at home - in order to get packed. I determined to travel light and I did. I took one gym bag with all the clothes and underclothes I planned to bring and the other stuff I needed - toiletries, etc.

I was ready and waiting on Kay. She called to tell me that she was running later than she thought - she had left Little Rock later than she had planned. She got to Sterling around 4:00 p.m. and we put my gym bag and a tote bag with some other stuff in it in her car and took off. We headed to I-55 South and got on there. On the ride down we had a very good conversation - catching up with what each other was doing and all. When we reached Amite, I had her to exit and turn right towards Montpelier and we drove through the countryside - which Bill and I have found quicker than going all the way to Hammond to get on I-12 and go in to Baton Rouge that way. We came out at Denham Springs and got onto Florida Blvd. and made our way down to Greenoaks Funeral Home.

When we pulled in, we saw the parking lot was quite full - people were having to pull around on the sides of the cemetery to park. There were also lots of people around. I had come dressed for the occasion; Kay wasn't - she had come comfortable for the long drive. She had planned to change in the restroom but there was no chance of her slipping in there to do that without being seen by some of our family members.

We pulled around where others were parking. I got out and Kay drove off. She later told me that she had located a somewhat isolated and semidark area where she did a quick change. Then she drove back around and found a parking space, then joined me in the Chapel. I had been asked by several people where Kay was and I certainly didn't want to tell them that she was in the car changing clothes, so I said that she was taking care of something and would be in shortly.

When Bill and Pat saw me, Bill realized he had forgotten to order flowers and so after we visited with some family members - since we were seen before we could escape - he and I went to the front desk of the funeral home and inquired about placing an order. One of the ladies there gave him the phone number for the flower shop that was attached and he called and left a message on their answering machine. Then we went back in the Chapel.

Kay showed up and we reconnected. She visited with various family members; Bill and Pat left early because he had an early wake-up call Wednesday morning. We stayed till around 8:30 p.m. and then I realized I had forgotten my medication, so she and I left and went to Ryan's - down the street - for dinner. I took the meds and after we finished eating, we set out to find a hotel. We went down Airline to where there was "hotel row". We went to several of them inquiring about rates and had determined which would be the least expensive and were on our way back there when I caught a sign at Days Inn with a lower rate. We decided to stop and inquire. We found that indeed they had the lowest rate, so we jumped on it and rented a room in what they called "University Hall".

We pulled around back to the room we had gotten and unloaded our stuff from the car and hauled it up the stairs to the room and after some difficulty, we got the door open. We put our stuff down or hung it up in Kay's case. We were both tired - it was around 11:00 p.m. by the time we were ready for bed. The only room they had for the rate we got was a king size - so they claimed - but it looked more like a queen to me since it appeared to be the same size as my waterbed. By that time we didn't care...it was okay with us. We set a wake-up call for 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday morning we were given the wake-up call and then got up and moving. I took a shower and got dressed and then Kay did the same. We went over to Cracker Barrel for breakfast, then headed out. Kay stopped at a car wash - she wanted her car washed before going to the funeral, but the place was swamped with customers and it was going to be 20-30 minutes at least. We went on and got there around 10:30-11:00 a.m. The funeral began at noon. I noticed that the plant that Bill and I sent was delivered while we were sitting and waiting for the service to begin.

There were several pews with reserved notices on them - for the pallbearers and for the family. Well, Kay and I wound up sitting with Beverly, Virginia, Guy, Harvine and a couple of other family members - on the 3rd pew I think it was. We were about to move, since we weren't the type of family in the marker description, but the service started before we could and also the chapel was packed - just about SRO. Besides, our sitting where we did was what Mollie herself would've wanted. When her mother died, although Bill and I were related to her mother by marriage, when we tried to move elsewhere prior to the service, Mollie grabbed us and asked us where we thought we were going. She insisted we sit in the family section with them.

When the service began, there were two pastors who got up and spoke - taking turns of course. Guy, Mollie's brother, also got up and spoke. He later said that it was easy for him to write the eulogy he delivered because every word of it was true. He said that it's easy when it's the truth.

After the funeral service was over, we made our way to the car and got in the procession line. The cemetery is directly behind the funeral home, so we didn't have all that far to go in order to reach the burial spot. We found that we had to park and walk a little way, though. After a short service there, it was announced that everyone was invited to Mollie's house for a celebration of her life party. That was a perfectly natural thing to do: have a celebration - because Mollie loved to entertain and serve as hostess for various functions since she had the size house to do that kind of thing in. There was food, food and more food. It seemed to keep showing up.

I took just a few pictures and I didn't try to get a group shot although i wish I had now. Finally, around 3:30 p.m., Kay and I decided it was time to go back to the hotel and change. En route, we stopped at a Circle K convenience store on Airline and Kay gassed the car while I went in and got copies of the newspaper - for the obituary. We went on back to the hotel and changed - I put on shorts. I realized that I had only brought one tee shirt. Kay and I went out to ramble a little bit. We stopped at the car wash and this time we were successful. Then we went to the Wal*Mart at Cortana and while in the store I got an LSU tee (what other school is there?!) and a couple of other things. Kay got a couple of things as well.

From there we drove back down Airline and on down Goodwood Blvd. to the library there. We went in and were able to use computers there to check e-mail. I had a flood of e-mail and only checked the ones that were most important - I scanned the senders/subject lines. Still - I didn't get through all of them since Kay was waiting on me. I did print several of them and took them back to the hotel to read.

After we finished at the library, we rode down Goodwood Blvd. and back over to Airport Blvd. to get on Florida Blvd. and swing back around to Airline. We decided to check out the Hammond Aire Shopping Center and located Purple and Gold Sports Shop in there. I went to look at their selection through the window since they were already closed. We decided we would go back the next day and I made note of what time they opened.

Then, we drove on down Airline to Coursey Blvd. and rode down it a little ways and decided to get something to eat there and take it back to the hotel. Even though we weren't really hungry, we figured it would be better to eat rather than wake up in the middle of the night and be hungry and have a problem!!

We got back to the hotel and settled in for the night, ate and then made a few phone calls. It was around midnight by the time we got to bed because we stayed up talking and swapping stories. Kay had talked with Lowell's Uncle Howell a couple of times and we had been trying to run down family history. He's very knowledgeable about it. The crazy thing is this...Tara, Mollie and Melvin's daughter is married to Lowell - and he's related to Mollie through his mother, Marie, and consequently is related to us (and Tara of course, however, it's distant enough that they were able to marry). We're still not sure how the tree shakes out - Kay said she would've liked to have taken notes as Howell (who is related to us as well) was explaining things to her, but she didn't because she wasn't sure about how that would've looked or been taken by the others at the get together after the funeral. She noted that Ray (her brother - remember?) wouldn't have been the least bit embarrassed to whip out a note pad and take notes while talking with Howell.

Then Thursday morning we were awakened by my cell phone. We more or less slept in since we weren't in any real hurry. The call was from Vicki and she was calling to tell me that her aunt had died and that the funeral was Saturday in Baton Rouge at the same funeral home and burial in the same cemetery. She wanted information on getting there and on where to stay as far as hotels go. I gave her the information she requested. When I got off the phone, Kay asked me what that was about and I told her.

We decided we might as well get up since we were awake. I took a shower and got dressed and then Kay did the same. I called and talked with Bill while she was in the shower and getting dressed. I made arrangements that we would meet him about 1:30 p.m. at the Wal*Mart in Walker. We packed up and got all our stuff and took it on out to the car - we were done with the room. Then, we pulled around, went in and checked out.

It was decided we would skip breakfast and stop first at the Purple and Gold Sports shop. We went in and browsed quite a while. I wound up purchasing two ittems - a key ring and a can cooler. When we left there, we began discussing where to eat lunch. Kay suggested Piccadilly Cafeteria and then I suggested Brunet's Cajun Restaurant. She was agreeable to that and we made our way to the place. I had a fried shrimp poboy and she had some type of crabmeat entree.

Once we were done at Brunet's, we drove on out to Walker and to the Wal*Mart - but pulled over in the strip mall next to it and went in at the Dollar Tree and went in and browsed and ended up buying a few things. I got Sukiey a toy and a couple of beef- hide bones for Romeo since Chris won't let him have rawhide and I'm aware of that.

When we got done in Dollar Tree, Kay and I rode over to Wal*Mart and I called Bill and told him where we were parked. We went in for a few minutes - we needed to use the restroom for one thing. Then I went in the store and looked at their LSU stuff while Kay went to the Customer Service area to return something she had bought and wound up not needing. I opted to purchase a gold LSU hooded sweatshirt with a purple fleece interior. I got checked out and was looking around for Kay when my phone rang - it was Bill and he was out in the parking lot. Kay saw me and came to where I was and we were walking out and met Bill coming in the store.

He was talking about going in and getting a drink, but we decided not to. He wanted to stop and get his car washed, but decided not to either as it looked like rain. He pulled his car down by Kay's and we moved my stuff to the trunk. After a few minutes, he and I headed out and got on I-12 and drove over to Hammond. We stopped at a convenience store and got drinks and snacks, then he took me on to the Amtrak station and I purchased my ticket to Jackson. He waited with me until the train showed up and I got on board.

While we were waiting all of a sudden we heard a noise and it seemed like everyone in the crowd went to look - turned out there was a "fender bender". We heard it but didn't see it happen, so we didn't stick around waiting for the Hammond PD to show up. The train was a few minutes late, about 10 I guess. Then we got underway and bound for Jackson. We stopped en route at McComb, Hazlehurst and Brookhaven. At one point we had to stop and just sit as a southbound freight train was coming and it had to pass us on the other side. We also had to back up past Crystal Springs in order to let a freight train change tracks so it could pass us. Once we were clear of freight trains, the engineer put the hammer down and although the speed limit for the Amtrak trains is supposed to be 70, I heard a guy say we were doing 90. We got in to Jackson about 6:00 p.m.

When I came out of Union Station in Jackson, I knew Noelle would be picking me up. I saw her car and went to it and found that Mrs. Palmer was with her. As it turned out, Christina was there to pick up incoming passengers also. We got back to Sterling and Noelle stopped and let me out prior to going into the parking lot so it would be easier for me with my bags. When I got in, I went and got the mail and saw Lena. She checked Jean's office and found that I had packages waiting and got them for me. They were the Guideposts Christmas cards and a book I had ordered from Amazon.

I got upstairs and began unpacking and also made a few phone calls to let family members know I had arrived back home. Then I started going through the mail and I also had to get Sukiey calmed down as she was kind of hyper and excited to see me. I had a pile of mail and so it took a while to get through it all. When I finished, I called my cousin Jeannine in North Carolina - she lives in the Raleigh area, but my cell bill shows it as Wake Forest. We talked for a few minutes and then it was lights out - I was tired and went to bed.

This morning I got up and going before the alarm went off. No - Sukiey did not wake me up, but I did wake up during the night once to find her snuggled up next to me. This was the first time I had been gone for several days and "Auntie Chris" had been tending to her. I don't think she was thrilled that i left this morning, but she did realize I was returning to work.

Our time together gave us a chance to catch back up with each other. I learned some things about Kay's life that I didn't know and she learned some about me. She's married to Jimmy - a real estate developer - and they live in midtown Little Rock. They have two daughters - Courtney (25) and Kelly (21). They also have a couple of cats and a dog. Courtney is a student at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock attending law school. Kelly is a senior at the College of Charleston in Charleston, SC. She spent a semester attending school in London, although I don't remember which one. Kay and Jimmy were both students at Florida State when they met and got married. After graduation they moved to Memphis, but wound up moving on to Little Rock, Jimmy's hometown. His dad had died and so they felt that he would have a better opportunity in the real estate business there where he knew people plus they could keep an eye on his mother. Kay and Ray (her brother) were born in St. Louis because that's where their parents were at the time. Their dad, my dad's brother, worked for the FDA as a chemist and had been transferred from New Orleans.

The pictures I did take while at Mollie's house include shots of the lake in the backyard and the stone walkway with the flagpole in the center that had been put in since I was last there. I also got shots of Beverly and her daughter Virginia, Trase and his wife (I don't know her name), Victoria - who is pregnant and it was announced at the funeral and in the obituary that she is expecting a girl and will name her "Mollie Elizabeth" after Aunt Mollie. This was planned prior to Mollie's death; it takes on added significance now. Oh - I did get a picture of Kay with Beverly, too.

There was quite a crowd at Mollie's house. When Kay and I reached the Bellingrath subdivision, I told her to just drive down the main street to where all the cars would be parked - and that's what she did. It worked - we had to park on the side of the street a few houses down and walk back to Mollie's house. We stayed until it looked like a lot of people were leaving and that the main family members were starting to get tired out and ready for guests to leave.

Tara took her cousin Michael (bad boy that he is) outside for a "discussion". They were sitting on the bench that Mollie and Melvin had installed on the deck by the lake. We didn't get to say goodbye to her, but we did speak to most of the other family before leaving. I don't know what the "discussion" was all about, but it was none of my business regardless.

Melvin, Mollie's husband of 53 years, has Parkinson's and is in the beginning stages of dementia. He has a tendency to stumble and fall when he walks, so they have to watch him. He can't live alone, although he has told them he would like to go back to his house (the one where the get together was) to live. Lowell told us that at the visitation and went on to say that he had had to sit his father-in-law down and have a strong talk with him. That's the reverse of the way it usually is, but... Anyway, Lowell said that he told Melvin that he can't go back to his house because of the risk of him stumbling and falling. He said that he went on to explain to him that Tara had just lost her mother and he wasn't going to take the chance of him stumbling and falling and her losing her daddy too. He said that Melvin seemed to understand and accept that.

Lowell also told us that arrangements for Melvin's care have been made. He said that they have fixed up a room in their house for him - with a bed, TV, telephone and clothes. Sidney has done the same at his house for his father. In addition, Pete, the golden lab retriever that Mollie gave Melvin as a Christmas gift a few years ago has moved over to Sidney's house and stays there. Tara later told us that she has made arrangements for Home Health to come in twice a week - Tuesdays and Thursdays I think she said - and spend the day with her father so she can get out and do things she needs to do - run errands, meet people, etc.

I got a chance to talk with Beverly for a few minutes while at the "Celebration of Mollie". I asked her what they were planning to do with the house. She said that Tara and Sidney have the luxury of waiting. They don't have to sell it right away, so they're going to wait. From what I gather, Melvin is not really mentally in a position to make such decisions and Tara and/or Sidney have power of attorney. I know that Tara was making all the decisions regarding Mollie's care and needs.

By the way, Mollie and I shared a special bond - that I won't let be broken, even though she's gone. The bond is that she is the oldest grandchild and I'm the youngest grandchild on our fathers' side of the family. There's a 26 year age difference - but it mattered to neither of us. Mollie's middle name was Leila, after our grandmother, but she didn't like it, so she shortened it to Lee. They used Lee in the program and in the obituary since that was Mollie's preference.

September 28th:

I walked over to the Clark Building about 4:45 p.m. to meet Vicki and Laura. I rode with Vicki and we swung over by the Woolfolk Building to pick up Mary Nelle and Laura followed in her car. We swung around by First Baptist and Laura parked her car and then came and got in with us.

We all rode over Hal and Mal’s. It’s a restaurant/brewery that’s in what I think was the old train station. There we met Laura’s friend Sue – she had gotten there ahead of us and got a table. I was not impressed with Hal and Mal’s. I ordered a shrimp poboy and it was mostly French bread and lettuce. The fries weren’t all that good either. According to what I saw, it appears that Vicki and Mary Nelle made the best choices (roast beef and gravy and a hamburger, respectively). Plus, the service was lousy. It took way too long for us to get our orders and then we had to more or less rush eating. When we paid our checks, it took more time to get our change. Then, fortunately I realized that something was wrong – I had given a $20 and at first I didn’t think anything about it, but then noticed that I didn’t have the right change. My bill was $11.50 and I received $3 in change. We called the waitress over and inquired and she said that apparently the cashier couldn’t read her handwriting and apologized. She went and got that straightened out and came back with the right change.

We left there and headed on over to First Baptist – it was about 6:35 when we finally got inside and since it was “Artist Circle” and then “General Admission”, we wound up sitting in the “back 40”, the elevated section in the back of the Sanctuary. We had some time before the concert started, so Mary Nelle and I went out to the foyer and checked out the tables. We got some K-LOVE radio stuff (I’m sending a couple of things from them to you) and then at Michael W. Smith’s table, I purchased two tee shirts – the tour tee and a tee with a graphic of a piano and his name on it. When we came back in, I showed the tees to Vicki and she hurried out there and got one for Holly – the piano tee.

There are three Christian radio stations in Metro Jackson: K-LOVE, STAR 93.5 and American Family Radio. All three had representation at the concert. Each was giving away materials of a promotional nature and K-LOVE was selling shirts, caps and other items.

Okay – back to the concert…

One of Michael’s “roadies” came out and spoke and then the house lights went down and out came Michael along with a lady and another guy. I don’t recall their names. The lady played guitar and fiddle; the other guy played a synthesizer of some sort – a mix of piano and percussion. Michael was also on piano. There was no drummer. They put on a great concert – playing for about an hour and a half and then taking about a 15-20 minute intermission break and then returning to the stage to play for about another hour; they received a standing ovation demanding more, so they came back out and did a one song encore. The songs were a mix of old songs from the beginning of Michael’s career, middle of career and new songs – from his upcoming new CD Stand that will be released in about a month or so.

At the beginning of the concert, I made my way down to the front and took a couple of shots, then crept close and knelt down to get a few more. I had taken some from where we were sitting, but didn’t think those would be very good. After making my way down there and taking those few shots, I went back to where we were sitting. Then, when Michael came out from behind the piano, I went back down and got a couple of shots of him standing up at the microphone talking to the crowd and then made my way back to where we were sitting.

Michael was talking about Compassion International. It’s an organization that works with children in countries that aren’t as developed as the U.S. They teach the kids about Jesus and the Bible and they seek sponsors for these children. He had a video from the organization that he had put onscreen for us to watch. Michael and his wife Debbie sponsor five children each month if I remember correctly. During intermission Vicki asked a volunteer for one of the sponsor packets and then I went out into the foyer to view the packets and I decided that I wanted a boy from Colombia since I’m familiar with that country due to knowing Jim and Kay Harless – retired missionaries to that country. They partnered with Colonial Heights while they were in service there, so that’s how I know them.

I found a little boy – almost six years old – in Colombia. His name is Carlos Manuel Gomez Riascos and his birthday is the same as Vicki’s, and Randy and Allison Owen. That’s December 13. I read his profile and looked at his picture and decided he was the one. At first I didn’t realize about the birthday, but after I filled out the paperwork and turned it in, I looked at the packet again and saw his birth date and then it registered with me.

When I finished getting registered, I was handed a package. It was a gift from Michael. There had been an announcement that if you chose to sign up as a sponsor and paid your first month at the concert – by check, cash or credit card – you would receive a CD set of Michael narrating The Gospel – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – an eight audio CD set as a gift. I accepted it, along with my copy of the paperwork (which serves as my receipt) and made my way back into the Sanctuary – where the concert had just resumed. It took a few minutes to do the paperwork.

When I returned to my seat, I showed the packet to Vicki and told her I had sponsored him. I also told her that he shares her birthday. She thought that was interesting. Then I showed her the audio CD set that I had received as a gift from Michael. I didn’t take any more pictures because I had finished the roll that was in the camera and wanted to just enjoy the remainder of the show, which I did.

At the end of the concert, Vicki slipped out and took off – out into the foyer – with the sponsor packet she had gotten. We sat and waited for her and after about 10 minutes she returned and she had the audio CD set too. She had decided to sponsor the little boy whose packet she had been given. I don’t know what his name is – Vicki didn’t bring her packet with her today – and she couldn’t remember his name – but he’s also from Colombia.

When she came back, we began making our way out of the Sanctuary and to the vehicles. Sue had some stuff that belonged to Laura and so she drove Laura over to her car so they could move it into her car. Vicki, Mary Nelle and I loaded up in Vicki’s car and they took me around to Sterling and dropped me off, then headed home to Morton – where Vicki would drop Mary Nelle on her way home. She said that Holly was already in bed when she got in, so it was this morning before she could give Holly the tee shirt. She said that Holly liked it. She also said that she wasn’t able to say anything about the child she picked to sponsor from Compassion as they were in a rush this morning.

The only disappointment of the night was that I didn’t get to meet Michael and get an autograph. Oh well…

Now, for some “breaking news”….

Alabama - Songs of Inspiration, an album of traditional hymns, standards and two new songs that will hit stores October 24, 2006.

The album will be simultaneously released by RCA Records to traditional retailers and by Provident Music Group to Christian retail outlets. We first started thinking about this in 1990," recalls Randy, "and it seems like fans have been asking for it longer than that!
The timing just happened to finally work out to record the album now."

Alabama - Songs of Inspiration is the Country Music Hall of Fame band's first new album in over five years, the first since the band's farewell tour wrapped up in October 2004, and the first album with inspirational content in the group's history. Included are classics like "Rock of Ages," "How Great Thou Art," "The Old Rugged Cross," "Amazing Grace," "His Eye Is On The Sparrow," "In The Garden" and more.

Two original songs, "One Big Heaven" and "Rain" - both written by Randy - were recorded for the album. Dr. Ralph Stanley contributes vocals on "I Am The Man Thomas." Stanley co-wrote the song, which also features Stanley's grandson on mandolin.

Gospel standouts The Isaacs provide beautiful vocals on "I Need Thee." Teddy's three granddaughters join the kids group that sings along on "Jesus Loves Me."

The enduring Christmas classic "Silent Night" was also recorded for the album. Says Randy, "We recorded two Christmas albums, but we never cut that song. It fit the project, and it's beautiful!"

Alabama will make a rare live appearance on QVC Wed. Oct 11 at 7pm ET/6pm CT with a preview performance of portions of this new release.

Hmm…I never watch QVC, but I just might have to make an exception and try to get home early that day to see this!!

October 2nd:

At a tad after 4:00 p.m. I began freshening up and getting ready and then headed off to church – for the David Phelps Concert.

The concert wasn’t to begin until 6:00 p.m., but I wanted to get a good seat. When I got over there, there weren’t many people in line – maybe 15-20, and I put my stuff down on the floor at the end of the line to hold my place. I went over to David’s table and purchased a copy of his new CD/DVD – Legacy of Love – it has two discs in it. I also got a baseball jersey from his song The End of the Beginning and then went back to my spot in line.

They opened the doors to the Sanctuary at 5:00 p.m. and let us begin going in. I was able to get a seat on the front row on the right side. A perfect view of the stage – excellent for picture taking! J J A crowd began coming in and the Sanctuary nearly filled up. I would estimate a couple of thousand, maybe a little more, turned out. Then Stan took the stage to open the concert and one of his announcements was that it had been requested that there be no flash photography. Well – that kind of deflated some people, but not me. My Vivitar camera has different modes it can be set in. One of them is “no flash”. I found that mode and used it to shoot almost the entire roll during the concert, but leaving about three frames for the post concert “meet and greet”. There’s a thing next to the viewfinder that will blink red if the light is not right or green if it is as the camera is automatic exposure. Well – with 400 film in the camera and a front row seat, plus shooting frames when the light was right – I always got a green light when I put the camera up to take the shot – I feel like I should have some good pictures.

David played for a little over an hour – his concert was our Sunday night Worship service – and then left the stage. Shortly after, I left out too. I went on out to find out about the “meet and greet” and wound up second in line. He did an encore, but by that time I wouldn’t have taken anymore stage photos anyway.

It was a short wait for David to come out to the table area where his products were set up. When I got up to him, I asked him to sign the CD – and he signed the CD itself, not the cover – and also I had a birthday card with me. I had bought this card sometime back because I liked it, although at the time I didn’t really know who I would give it to. Well – I knew Vicki wasn’t coming to the concert because she had other plans. So – I decided it would be her card and took it with me, although her birthday isn’t until December 13^th.

I told David that it was a birthday card for a friend of mine and asked him if he would sign it for her. He said “it’s a birthday?” and I said “yes”. So – on the left (blank) side, he wrote “Happy B-Day” and then signed below it. I didn’t tell David that her birthday isn’t till December. It’ll keep!! J J I asked if I could get my picture with him and he said yes, so I found someone to take the picture. A lady behind me told me she’d take it for me if I would take hers for her. I said yes and set the camera and gave it to her. I asked her to take two shots in hopes that one will turn out well and I can include it in my Christmas card photos. When I was done, I started to leave but then remembered I had to take the lady’s picture. She set the camera for me (a digital) while David was signing her items. Then, she and her daughter posed with David and I got a couple of shots with her camera.

After that, I found I had one more frame remaining on my roll, so I turned back and took a picture of David talking with fans. I thought it would make a neat picture. Then I stopped to talk with a couple of people I knew. After that I headed home. It was dark out, but I opted to walk, rather than go try to find someone to give me a ride to Sterling. I called Aunt Ruby and talked with her all the way home, and also kept a watch on my surroundings. The streets were just about deserted – only a couple of vehicles and no pedestrians out and about, until I reached Sterling – but by then it wasn’t a big deal. I got inside the lobby and finished up my conversation with Aunt Ruby as I got inside my apartment.

I made a couple of other calls after that and then went on to bed. I had to get up this morning and come in to work. I’m making the transition back to Monday thru Thursday days. So, I got Sukiey settled down and she was in the bed with me for a while, then got up and went rambling like cats like to do.

Well – it’s about 11:20 a.m. and I’ll be leaving in about 25 minutes for lunch. Vicki and Laura aren’t going to be able to go – they’re taking Kathy out to lunch for her birthday. I’m not going with them – I’m going on to church for lunch. I know Rose and her friends will be there, but I’m not sure about Mary Nelle.

I brought the two rolls of film that I have taken – the other roll I started while in Baton Rouge and finished at Michael W. Smith’s show – with me this morning along with the York Photo Lab kit. I filled out the order form and got it ready and put the stickers where they needed to go and then packaged it up to put in the mail. Around 10:15 a.m. Vicki came over and we walked down to the AmSouth Building and I went in and dropped it in the mail – it’s a postage paid mailer – while she went on. With my left calf muscle bothering me, I didn’t think I could walk any more than there and back to the Center if I were going to walk over to the church for lunch. I daresay I’m anxious to get these rolls processed and the pictures and CDs back so I can see them.

I’m moving back to David Phelps for a few…

To share with you, on the CD Legacy of Love he does a sort of rockin’ version of Just As I Am – he did it last night during the concert – and he also did Vicki’s favorite song of his – one that I like a lot too. That’s called The End of the Beginning and it appeared on his CD Revelation a couple of years ago or so. He also did the traditional version of Just As I Am, which is also on the CD. There are 18 songs on the DVD and 15 on the CD. Three songs are on the DVD only – Arms Open Wide, Interlude: Behold the Lamb, and Behold the Lamb.

Okay, the dates that I have listed aren't necessarily the dates these events took place. They're the dates I noted them in another log that I keep.

JOEL C. ROSENBERG

2006-08-03T13:35:00.000-07:00

JOEL C. ROSENBERG

Again...

2006-05-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

Here I am again...

I had no difficulty sleeping today - waking up shortly before the alarm went off. Sukiey left me alone and didn't bother me. I think she's realized that Mom is working nights and sleeping days right now.

When I came in tonight, Ignacio pointed out that Vicki had left some things for me. One was my Avon order and the other was my certificate from the class I took last week. I earned 14 hours of education credit as a result. Don't know what that does as far as possibly getting me a raise.

I had e-mails complimenting me on the photos from the EE Banquet - they were pleased.

Not much else to note right now...

Updates...

2006-05-16T21:34:00.000-07:00

Some time has passed between the last entry I made prior to the entry concerning the EE Banquet. So, let me bring things up to date...

Since that time, I've had a couple of doctor visits - of the checkup variety. Nothing serious there.

I've also been enjoying Sukiey's company and companionship. She is a beautiful, sweet and loving cat.

Saturday morning (5/13) became real interesting...Chris woke me up to get ready for the newspaper gig. Well, I walked out in to the living room and noticed a piece of paper on the floor by the door - it had been pushed through from the outside. I went and picked it up and read it - it was from my neighbor directly below.

I was on the phone to Chris - got a problem! The problem was that my bathroom was leaking into hers. I went and tried to turn the valve off but couldn't because I wasn't strong enough. Chris came up and brought Malcolm with her (the security guy). He got it turned off, then went and talked with the lady downstairs; then he went to notify the manager.

I called the answering service and set the wheels in motion for maintenance. A plumber showed up and checked the bathroom out - he thought it was the valve, so he replaced it; that didn't correct the problem. Turned out the tank was cracked. So - he headed off to Home Depot to buy a new toilet for my bathroom.

The manager stopped by before leaving to go to her standing beauty shop appointment. She was glad to know things were being taken care of.

The plumber came back and changed out the toilets and got everything put back together, then a maintenance guy came with a wet/dry shop vac and vacuumed the water up off the bathroom floor. He also checked out the downstairs apartment and said it would have to wait till Monday and it dried out.

Since I had cleaned out the bathroom, I found that I had space for Sukiey's litter box, so I moved it there and showed her where I had put it. I wanted to use the closet space where I had the litter box for storage. Sukiey has accepted the change in the location of her litter box.

Sunday evening Chris and went to Wal*Mart and one of the things I got while there was a new bath mat. It has a rubber back to it so Sukiey can't push it out of the way like she could the old one. It's also "animal themed". I like it and Sukiey hasn't tried to claw it.

Well - starting this week (Monday) James and I began working nightshift and will for the next few weeks. I'm not super thrilled, but I'll deal with it. Sukiey seems to be figuring out that I'm working nights - when I came in this morning, she was hyper and excited to see me, but settled down so that I could sleep.

EE Banquet 5/9/06 - a selection of photos

2006-05-16T21:12:00.000-07:00

Our faithful leadership:

Dot Gamblin, Vic Holsapple & Ronnie Falvey

The Trainees for the Spring Semester, 2006

Ken Sims, David Townsend, Debbie Wall & Ronnie Falvey

Ken Sims

David Townsend & Debbie Wall
ENGAGED!!

Evangelism Explosion 5/2/06

2006-05-04T08:06:00.000-07:00

I have no comments to add except that I had to miss the final visitation night because I had to have emergency dental surgery earlier in the day and was in no condition to attend and go on any EE visits.

Dear EE Friends,

Tonight was our last night for " on the job training". The semester seems to have gone by very quickly. The feeling tonight of all of the teams was so genuinely expressed when one group said, " We love doing this and will miss it. Can't wait til next semester!"

Tonight we had a great evening! Seven more people accepted the free gift of Eternal Life !!

That makes the grand total of 93 Professions of Faith this semester. What a joy!

Eric, Rick and Jenny met a 15 year old guy in Clinton tonight named Konrad. After hearing the Gospel, Konrad prayed to receive Christ. He was so thrilled and could not wait to tell his mom. He does not have a church home, so we will pass his name on to our Jr. Hi Minister.

Betty, Bill and Kendra Sue led Jocelyn and Dewane to Jesus. They are 20 and 18 years old. Dewane is a member of the CLC and Mission First. They are potential members for us.

Bob M, Bob W, and Karen were going door to door and led Johnny to Jesus. Johnny attends First Presbyterian and is 80 years old... Wow! Don't you know he will sleep well tonight!

Ladd, Linda and Hank met Tamethia as they went door to door. She was lost, but now is saved.

Terri, Chris Mills, and Jamie met James tonight at Methodist Rehab. James is 45 and opened his heart to Jesus too. He is a member of a Baptist church in Rolling Fork.

Ken B, Linda and Jared met Mary as they went door to door. Mary was 73 and lost, but after hearing the Gospel, she prayed to receive Salvation. She is a member of Antioch Baptist Church in Pearl. As the team was leaving her house tonight, she said to them, " I am so glad you came here tonight!"

In addition to the seven who received Eternal Life tonight, nine others were given assurance of their Salvation after hearing the Gospel.

It is so sad to see how many people know so little about what Christ did for us on the cross. Getting this message out to people who have not heard should be heavy on the hearts of all Christians.

Next week will be our closing banquet, and we will be finished with the training for this semester. If you know of someone who would like to participate in the fall, please pass the word around. We will invite new people to join us during the month of August with a informative banquet and sign up opportunity. The first real night for EE will probably be immediately after Labor Day in September. We will finish up the fall semester close to Thanksgiving.

Evangelism Explosion is a program that I wish our whole church would be on fire to do.

It is thorough training in sharing the Gospel. It is challenging. It is rewarding. It stretches us out of our comfort zone. It is bonding with other church members participating. It is exciting, and God's presence is so real. His blessings are so abundant.

He does not ask us to do more than we are capable of doing with His help, and we learn to lean on Him for everything.

What else could we do on Tuesday nights that would be more exciting or better than this ?!?!!

We will have at least 50 trainers ready now for the fall semester. That means we can handle as many as 100 or more new trainees. Pass the Word around. We will be ready.

"Now unto Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever! Amen ! Ephesians 3:20

With a grateful heart to you who faithfully prayed for us this semester.

With His Love,

Dot

Updates

2006-05-04T07:46:00.000-07:00

Gee whiz...I didn't realize it had been so long between entries.

Here goes with my trying to get caught up here...

Sukiey went to the vet on the 27th and got her final booster of the feline HIV vaccine. She was well behaved and they didn't even take her out of the cage to give it to her.

Later in the day, Chris and I picked up her friend Ouida and went shopping at Wal*Mart in Pearl. Then, we took Ouida home and stopped at Krystal for dinner on our way home.

I got over to the Clark Building around 8:45 a.m. and circulated – checking to be sure everything was “on go”. Gary had his grill set up and ready to go in the corner of the parking lot. I went in the Data Services Conference Room – which is where the folks who were going to make the hamburger patties and cut the sausage up were to meet. They weren’t in there yet, but I left the box of gloves that I got for them.

Then I went up to Myra’s office to talk with her and also stopped in Claude’s office for a few minutes. On my way back down, I went by the DS Room again and they were in there and had started work. I had my camera along – I took a few pictures. I went on out to check with Gary, the chef, and he was manning the grill – getting it ready. I got shots there. Then I went in to check with Kathy and Michele – and from there up to the 12^th floor of the REL to check on the status of the ballroom.

Things kind of got fumbled. The lady over at Finance and Administration who handles the reservations of facilities wasn’t in that day; she didn’t leave instructions for her people about our plans, so we had to make them track her down and find out what to do. Their folks came over and got us set up after we ran another group out of there who shouldn’t have been using the room in the first place.

Once all this was done, things settled down and the rest of the cookout went off without a hitch or glitch. The sausage and hamburgers and other fixings and desserts and stuff were brought up and the line formed – some 65-70 people showed up out of a 90+ membership – and the food was devoured, although there was more sausage leftover than expected. We received a number of positive comments regarding the job we did in putting the cookout on and they were pleased with how we did it.

Around 1:30 p.m. I left and went home and took my LSU jersey off and hung it back up. I stayed around the house for the remainder of the day and that was about it. Chris called me around 10 p.m. and said that we didn’t need to be at the newspaper site till 10:00 a.m., so Saturday morning we stopped at CVS and dropped in my refill requests and a roll of film to be processed.

Chris was going to attempt to visit someone she knows who is in the Flowood Women’s Jail and I sat in the car while she went in, but she came back pretty quickly saying that there were no visitors allowed on the last weekend of the month. Well – this was the last weekend. Then we stopped at Krystal for breakfast and got to the newspaper site at 10:00 a.m. We got started – I did 2 routes and that was all I could handle. I ended waiting on Chris to finish – and we were there till 7:00 p.m. I wasn’t a happy camper – since it was pouring down rain.

Sunday morning Chris dropped me at Church and picked me up afterward – and we went to CVS to get my prescriptions and hers, plus the photos. Later in the afternoon we went to Walgreens to see about some stuff they had on sale, but they were out of stock on it. We came home and I went up to my apartment and retired for the night.

Evangelism Explosion 4/26/06

2006-04-26T06:33:00.000-07:00

Good morning everyone!

Last night was our second to last night of visits - this coming Tuesday night will be the last that we will go out with the trainees to share; the following Tuesday night will be the banquet which concludes the semester.

As Dot notes, Ken, Jared and I went to an apartment complex in Pearl and found a lady named Debbie after talking with a guy named Mike who leads a "house church". We sort of tag teamed the presentation - Jared did most of the work and did a great job; Ken picked up with the clarification after she indicated that she would like to receive Christ; then he handed the ball off to me and I ran with it (to use a football analogy) in praying for Debbie and then with her in the Sinner's Prayer. Then, I handed it back to Jared to pray again and he gave it back to Ken to finish up.

By my count, we now have 86 professions of faith for this semester. I won't put it past God to, if He wills it, allow us to see 100 professions of faith this semester - we need just 14 next week and we all know that nothing is impossible for God.

In Him,

Peggy

Dear EE Friends,

Tonight the Gospel was presented 16 times and there were TWELVE professions of faith!!

All of these people who accepted Christ tonight were met completely under God's guidance.
The religious questionnaire was used, and the people were complete strangers to us and our church. They were Divine appointments indeed.

Ken Blackstock, Jared Yates, and Peggy Alford met Debbie as they went door to door. She is about 49 years old and was lost until she openend her heart tonight.

Ladd Bratcher, Hank Holman and Linda Clark met a Portuguese couple in their early thirties, Marcel and Samira, as they took the religious questionnaire and went door to door. This couple prayed to receive Christ, and they are potential church members for us.

William Pierce, Diann Zachery and Vic Holsapple visited with a man and his four daughters, ages 9,13, and 20. They are from Magee, MS, and were in the lobby of our Baptist Hospital. They each answered the diagnostic question " Do you know for certain, that if you died tonight that you would go to heaven" by saying "yes", but did not know why God would/should let them into heaven. After hearing the Gospel presentation they understood clearly what Jesus had done for them on the cross.. and why their faith alone, in Christ alone, would mean that they could enter heaven sin-free. What a gift our Lord offers us!

Then Terri Wissel, Chris Miller, and Jamie Butler led five people at the Methodist Rehab Center. Three were from Jackson and two from Rolling Fork.

Tonight God's Word was left in many places, and He promises that His Word never returns void.
"So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accopmlish that which I purpose. Isaiah 55:11 (NRSV)

The Gospel was shared 16 times tonight and five other people received assurance of their
Salvation.

We have only one more week for the teams to go out visiting this semester. Then there is our final banquet because the training will be completed for this semester. We will all be equipped now to share the Good News where ever we might be in our everyday way of life.

It is our prayer that God will put people right in our faces that want or need to hear His Word.... We are ready and eager!!

"Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life...Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you." Matthew 28:19-20 (MSG)

Thank you for being faithful prayer warriors for us.

In His Love,
Dot

I'm Baaaack........

2006-04-25T11:35:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I last posted an entry...I've been busy and away from the computer. I have a new photo of Sukiey to share with you. Yep - that's my girl!! She really is a very sweet and loving cat.

Last night Sukiey had a hairball. I heard her and knew immediately what it was since it was the second time this had happened. So - I got up and went to the refrigerator to put in to operation Chris' home remedy that she had taught me. I got Sukiey and greased her front legs down real good with butter and tried to feed her some butter as well, but she didn't care for that idea much.

Later on I got up for another reason and discovered she had brought up the hairball, so I had to clean that up. Yuck!!! But, Sukiey's not any trouble. At least I don't think she is. I love my cat!

She has taken to wanting to attack my hair. It's only been in the past few days that this has happened. It's likely because I changed shampoos - I wanted to try a type of Garnier Fructis that I had seen advertised. Apparently it's attractive to Sukiey.

Sukiey has also gotten new food and water bowls. They were a gift from a friend - that's all I'll say about that. She likes them too - and they work better for me as well. Plus, I'm in the process of changing her from Chef's Blend to Purina One - which she seems to like better. And, I'm trying to wean her off canned food or down to as low an amount as possible each day.

Well - this is it for now...

Announcing...

2006-04-12T10:44:00.000-07:00

The engagement of two of my good friends from First Baptist Church - Jackson, Mississippi....

David Townsend and Debbie Wall

Congratulations!! May you be very happy together for many, many, many years to come!!

Both are Ole Miss graduates. Debbie is from Oxford and David is from Pontotoc.

Evangelism Explosion for 4/11/06

2006-04-12T10:35:00.000-07:00

Good morning friends/family!

It was yet another wonderful night - with great weather for traveling around the area to go "fishing". As Dot noted, the teams were "scrambled" - that is, the trainees were reassigned to a different trainer that they hadn't worked with before in an attempt to let them see how different trainers handle the various situations that come up, etc.

I was teamed with Donny Lowery and Bob Mabry. Since I've been used mainly as a "floater" this semester, I've gone out with both guys at least once already. Before we left, Donny told me to look at the cards. I told him that the last time I did that, I got a feeling about one of them, the team leader and I nearly got into an argument due to the driving distance, but he finally agreed to make the visit and we wound up leading a young child to Christ that nightl. I picked 2 cards that I kind of had feelings - not super strong like before - about and we were off. Before leaving the church, I prayed for our visits - the people, us, the other teams.

One of the visits was with a man in Brandon - Donny lives in Brandon, but he and Bob were unable to locate the address on one of our maps. So, Bob called the phone number and reached someone - but not the person we were looking for. Looking back, God obviously closed that door! Instead, we set out to try to find Gloria - who lives sort of in Jackson's "inner city" - and had some difficulty finding her, but eventually we were successful.

Once at Gloria's house, I was positioned in front and knocked on the door. She responded with something like "who is it?" and I identified all 3 of us and made sure to tell her that we were from First Baptist Church - Jackson. She opened the door to us and we stood out on the stpes for a couple of minutes talking, then she invited us inside. After we were seated, Donny started with the Gospel presentation and asked her the 2 diagnostic questions - to which she responded with "works" type answers.

Donny plunged ahead and did a fabulous, nearly flawless presentation of the Gospel. Bob and I were sitting back watching the interaction between Donny and Gloria and I know I was praying for both of them. Well - Donny reached the point in the presentation about commitment and he asked Gloria if she would like to accept this free gift of eternal life and claim Jesus as her Lord and Savior. Gloria said yes, so he clarified what that meant; she still said yes when he asked again, giving her "an out" as it were.

About that time, I stepped up to the plate and kind of barged in. The time of commitment is my favorite part of the presentation - when asked, I tell team leaders that if they'll get us to the time of commitment, I'll take it from there. Several times this semester, it has worked out that way too. Well - I asked Donny if he would like for me to lead and he gave it to me to run with. I prayed first for Gloria, then again, with her following me, in a "sinner's prayer", and then I gave it back to Donny to pray for her that she would be strong in her new found faith. We talked with her a while longer and I got some information from her - I wrote it in the notebook I carry with me on EE visits. Before leaving, we prayed with Gloria one more time - as we did, she broke down in tears of joy over the decision she had made as a result of our visit.

When we were in Donny's truck on the way back to church - we only had time for this one visit - we were talking about how it went. I apologized to Donny for barging in on the time of commitment and he said he didn't have a problem with that at all. Bob hadn't said much through the entire visit; he claimed that he was admiring Donny's skillful presentation - I was too for that matter - and I told Bob that at the last, I was trying to draw him into the conversation by asking him questions about Stan and his preaching style and programs for kids.

Some special prayer notes on Gloria:

Her mother, Helen, is coming out of a nursing home on Thursday to live with her.
On Saturday they will be moving to a new residence - she gave us the new address, her phone number will stay the same.
She asked us to pray for her children and grandchildren, some of whom are living with her
Her brother, Sylvester.

Thank you for your faithfulness to pray for our teams. The semester is coming to a close in about 4 weeks. We have 3 more nights of visits and then the final night will be our end of semester "graduation" and banquet.

In Him,

Peggy Alford

Here's Dot's part...

Subject: EE Report: Heaven is rejoicing!!

My Dear EE Friends,

Tonight was fabulous!

Tuesday nights have long been my favorite night of the week because we can so easily see God at work, and we are allowed to be part of it. How great it is, that He commands us to be His witnesses and then turns right around and blesses us tremendously! There is an indescribable joy in sharing the Gospel and seeing someone come to accept Him as Lord and Savior.

Just for tonight, the trainees were assigned to a different trainer for a little variety in looking for lost people. We each have a favorite "fishing spots", and it was fun mixing the teams up a bit.

Heaven rejoiced with us tonight in seeing EIGHT people make professions of faith and thus experience their spiritual birth.

Ronnie Falvey and Bob Waller visited with a mother and her four children ages 8-13. The dad was not home. The man and his wife were former members of our church sometime ago. Ronnie shared the Gospel with the children and they all prayed to receive Christ!!! They live in Pearl, and they indicated that they might very likely come to our church this coming Sunday and walk the aisle. What a memorable Easter this will be for that family!

Eric James, Hank Holman and Linda Deddens made contact with a lady who signed up at our church booth at the state fair last fall. She was 30 years old and lost. After hearing the Gospel presentation she prayed to receive Christ. She has a 9 year old son and she too is a potential church member. She says her son needs Sunday School, AWANA, and would enjoy Upward basketball too.

Ken Blackstock, Mary Burkett, and Rick Olson also made a visit with a lady in her 30's who had registered at our state fair booth last fall. Latasha also prayed to receive Christ as her Lord and Savior.

Bob Mabry, Donny Lowery, and Peggy Alford visited with Gloria, a 44 yr. old lady who uses our CLC. After hearing them share the Gospel, she accepted Christ as her Savior and Lord.
She is interested in the single adult ministry of our church.

My team for tonight was Chris and Karen Ball. We knocked on apartment doors. The first door opened to us and was a lady named Heidi, about 60 years old, of German decent. She attends Pinelake, but did not have a much understanding of the tremendous price Christ paid for us on the cross. Karen shared the Gospel so beautifully and gently with her and then Heidi prayed for Jesus to come into her heart.

We then knocked on a second door which also opened to us. Chris shared this time with a 35 year old man named Casey, and Casey received assurance of his salvation. Chris too did a great job with the presentation.

All in all, we had the eight spiritual births, and nine others who received assurance of their salvation. It was our joy tonight to help those nine better understand what Easter is all about. So, there are 17 people who are very happy tonight that they opened their doors to our EE teams and then opened their hearts to Jesus.

Several of the other teams made great visits of encouragement in and around the hospitals... sharing the love of Jesus with families and praying with them. The people were so thankful for the visits. Many of them had no one with them from a church. Having received a touch from our Lord, they had smiles on their faces as our teams left them.

I hope these emails can somehow convey to you the blessings we receive from our faithfulness to share His Message. His Word is so very important...

Jesus declared
" I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless his is born again." John 3:3

May God bless you too for being our faithful prayer support.

Love,
Dot

Sukiey's Antics....

2006-04-10T14:27:00.000-07:00

This morning when I got finished in the shower and was coming out, as I opened the curtain, there was Sukiey sitting on top of my clothes which were laying on the toilet seat lid. I had to make her get down so I could get to them and get dressed! The cat, though, is no trouble.

On the way to lunch...and then afterwards,,,,

2006-04-10T14:23:00.000-07:00

As we were walking past the Capitol to and from the luncheon, we passed a rally being held on the steps of the Capitol. I’m sure you’ve heard all about the immigration reform rallies that are being held all over the country. Well – Jackson is not being left out. That’s what was going on at the Capitol and news crews from channels 3, 12 and 16 were there to cover it. It seemed that people kept arriving and the crowd kept growing. I think there were some there who were counter-protesting, too.

When I got back from lunch, one of the things I did was to log on The Animal Rescue Site and I wound up placing an order for a lanyard and a teddy bear. They were having a special – shipping is 1¢ for today only for all U.S. orders. I wasn’t sure about that – but sure enough on the invoice and the confirmation I received via e-mail, they showed $2.95 for shipping and then a credit for $2.94 – so indeed, I was only charged 1¢ for the shipping. Hmm…I’ll be looking forward to receiving the lanyard and the bear. There were a few other items I would’ve liked to have purchased, but… The e-mail indicated that my order provides 28 bowls of food for animals in sanctuaries and shelters. And speaking of, when I checked out at Pet Smart on Friday, I was given the option to donate $1.00 to animal charities and I did. I’m just passionate about animals and being kind and loving to them.

Over the Weekend...

2006-04-10T14:21:00.000-07:00

Thursday I left out of here at 12:00 p.m. and went home. I went upstairs and changed to a pair of jeans and then laid down on the couch and Sukiey got up there with me. We took a nap, then later Chris called me to say she was coming up with another cage. I grabbed Sukiey, but couldn’t hold onto her and she took off to her “hidey-hole” and so Chris had to come on in and get her because I couldn’t. We got her in the carry cage and went on downstairs. Of course she squalled while in the elevator since she doesn’t like the movement they make. Once we were out of there, though, she was fine.

Jean’s sister, Becky, had decided she would go with us – so we loaded up Chris’ car – put Sukiey’s cage on the back seat and Becky sat back there with her. We headed over to the Vet’s office – and had a short wait for Dr. Boyd. Sukiey was called for while I was dealing with the front office ladies – and so Chris took her to the exam room. When I got done, I joined Chris in there. Dr. Boyd announced to me that Sukiey had gained a pound – which was good because it meant she was eating good. As for Sukiey’s hair loss, she said it could be a number of things and told us what some options would be. We decided to hold off for now and see how she does in 3 weeks when she goes back for her next feline HIV booster. She got the shot and then when Chris opened the door of the cage, Sukiey just sat there and Chris had to “encourage” her to get her to go back in the cage.

I had written the Vet’s office a check for $87.00 – which included a single dose of Revolution – the flea and heartworm medication, plus the cost of the feline HIV shot she was getting and a balance due from the previous visit that we didn’t pay. That clears the ledger on Sukiey for now.

We left and headed over to the post office, where I put the package with my friend Carol’s letter and some stuff in the mail to her, and also purchased a book of stamps. Then, we went back to Sterling Towers and took Sukiey up to my apartment. She ran out of the cage when we opened it after going inside. She headed straight for one of her “hidey-hole” spots. Chris took the cage back down to her apartment and dropped it off; then she, Becky and I headed out again. This time, we were en route to Pet Smart.

At Pet Smart I got a pail of Tidy Cat litter – 27 pounds – and noticed that with my Pet Perks card it was on sale for $8.49 and I had a $2.00 off coupon, so it would be $6.49 plus tax. Chris also had a $2.00 off coupon and so she got a pail as well. Becky was purchasing cat food for her cat, Midnight. When we got up to the register to check out, they went to one register and I went to another. Well, Chris realized that they gave us the $2.00 off for the coupon, but not the Pet Perks price. The clerk said the litter wasn’t on sale and we told him it was – that there was a sale tag on the shelf. One of the managers went back to check and found the sale tag we were talking about; when he returned he had it with him. He said he would honor the sale price – and he refunded $2.14 to each of us – because the sale tag was still up on the shelf when it should’ve been taken down. Later we decided someone on his crew probably got chewed out because that tag hadn’t been removed.

We returned to Sterling Towers and unloaded the car. We got buggy to put everything in – Chris dropped off her cat litter pail down- stairs – then we went up and dropped Becky’s stuff in her apartment and then went on up to mine and dropped my stuff off. Chris went back down and returned the buggy and took her pail of litter to her place. Later, Chris and I met back up and headed out to the Kroger in Brandon – we met Ronnie and Beverly there – and went shopping. Ronnie is big into coupon shopping. At the end of the trip, I had purchased almost $40.00 worth of groceries yet paid less than $20.00 for them. I saved 53% on the bill. J J

Then, we stopped at Krystal on the way back and got something for dinner. At Sterling, we unloaded our purchases and headed on to our apartments. I put my stuff away and got ready and went to bed. Sukiey has found a spot in the bed that she claims as her own. She gets on a pillow that’s above my head – because I don’t sleep all the way at the top next to the headboard. She likes that spot and I let her have it.

Friday I slept in and later on got a call from Chris. She was taking her car to be serviced – the oil needed to be changed – and to be checked out since it was making a noise we weren’t sure about. She said she would call me later after she knew what was going on. I went down and did laundry and then hung out with Sukiey for a while. Chris called later in the day and was back. They had found that the timing belt was about to come off – so they had changed it – and also changed the oil. We went out – to CVS to get those pre- scriptions that I had ordered refills of. Then we went to Pet Smart again and got a copy of Pit Road Pets – a photo book of the NASCAR stars and their pets, a bag of Purina ONE and a couple of other things – a jug of Friskies Chef’s Blend for one thing.

We were under a severe weather watch – but the severe part never materialized as far as I know. We did get the rain, though. And – it cooled us down as well, because Saturday morning it was down around 57 degrees when Chris and I left to go meet Ronnie for our newspaper gig. We did 3 routes each – as Ronnie picked up some extra work for us and it was around 3:30-4:00 p.m. when we finished – actually I finished at least an hour and a half ahead of Chris.

When we left there, we stopped at Krystal and I got a cross between lunch and dinner – as I was hungry. Then we went on to Sterling and I went up to my apartment and laid down for a little while with Sukiey to rest. Chris had to almost turn right around and head out again – she had about an hour before going back out to her Church group meeting.

Well – I overslept Sunday morning – I’m going to have to fix my alarm clock so that I don’t keep doing that. So – I missed Church again. Oops! Sukiey and I got on the couch and fell back asleep. Later in the day I watched the NASCAR race and strangely enough, I can’t remember who won. L L I watched some of the Sunday Night Baseball game on ESPN before going to bed. I did accomplish something Sunday – I did some cleaning of my desk and threw out a lot of trash – about ¾ of a garbage bag full. I’m not done with cleaning the desk though – I just got tired from working on it and had to quit. I’ll continue with it at a later time.

I also got my deadbolt issue corrected – it appears. Chris told me to spray some cooking oil on the key and then try inserting it in the lock and to go in and out with it in order to lubricate the tumbler inside. I did – and it worked. I tried it several times and it was working. I had been having trouble getting the key to go in the lock. Now it slides right on in. So – this morning I locked the deadbolt when I left for work. She came up and checked out my sink and disposal – and the water is draining much better now, but she says I need to have Jean to send Hewlit up to work on it. I may request that later this week.

I got to bed around 8:30 p.m. Sunday night and woke up a couple of times. Sukiey was in her favorite spot. One of the times was around 4:00 a.m. I woke up with a coughing spasm and Sukiey didn’t appreciate that, so she got up and went and got on the couch. I was disturbing her beauty sleep! J J I got up and got a drink of water to ease the coughing issue.

Oh yeah – I did finish reading Paul and the next book I plan to start is The Journey How to Live By Faith In An Uncertain World by Billy Graham. I have the book with me today if I get time to do any reading. Right now things are quiet – but they could break loose at any time…

Also – in the mail over the long weekend was the purple paw pin that I ordered from The Animal Rescue Site. I have it on – clamped to my polo shirt collar – this morning. I think it’s pretty cool myself…

I talked with Chris for a few minutes this morning…she said she has a doctor’s appointment this afternoon – cardiology I think – and that she’s going to stop and get some canned cat food while she’s out because that’s the only way she can keep Precious – a problem child cat – in her apartment instead of rambling off somewhere. I have plenty of canned food for Sukiey – so I suppose that I won’t be buying anymore for a couple of weeks.

Oh – while we were at Pet Smart on Thursday, I decided to purchase a tee shirt. The proceeds were going to Pet Smart Charities. The tee shirt was $10.00 and there was no sales tax. I haven’t worn it yet, though, because I didn’t want to get it dirty doing newspaper stuff and I didn’t go with Chris Saturday evening to the “Fun Night” at her Church. I was just too tired.

Tiger Tour 2006

2006-04-05T16:29:00.000-07:00

Y'all know I'm a "rabid" LSU Tiger Fan...well get this....

Bayou Bengals of Mississippi TAF Chapter

Hilton Jackson
1001 E County Line Rd
Jackson, MS 39211

June 12, 2006

Featuring Coach Les Miles, Athletic Director Skip Bertman, LSU Chancellor Sean O’Keefe, TAF CEO General Ron Richard, LSU Alumni Association CEO Dr. Charlie Roberts, LSU Foundation CEO General Bill Bowdon
6:00 p.m. Doors Open
7:00 p.m. Event Begins
Dinner Served
Silent Auction Items provided by TAF
LSU Merchandise on sale from the LSU Alumni Association
LSU Highlight Videos

I've ordered 2 tickets for my friend Chris and myself and I'm eagerly anticipating the date...

Family Photos

2006-04-05T10:36:00.000-07:00

The photo of Ray & Kay was taken at Ruby Tuesday's in Jackson on 3/24/06. The photo of me with Ray & Kay was taken in front of Sterling Towers in Jackson on 3/24/06.

Ray and Kay are the son and daughter of the late Curtis Ray Joiner, Sr. and the late Hilda Kohler Joiner. Their father and my late father were brothers. They stopped in Jackson en route to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to begin taking care of some final details of their mother's estate.

Photos of Chris & Me with Romeo on a road trip

2006-04-05T10:31:00.000-07:00

Chris and I took a road trip on I-20 on 3/26/06 and drove over to Vicksburg, then on across the river into Louisiana and we stopped at the Tourism Center. Chris took Romeo for a walk and we each visited inside the Center. We took pictures with this sign while there.

New Photo...Sukiey

2006-04-05T10:23:00.000-07:00

I finally got her to cooperate a little and let me take a few pitures of her.

Evangelism Explosion - 3/28 and 4/4/06 and some notes

2006-04-05T07:43:00.000-07:00

Good morning friends and family....

I'm sorry I haven't passed on the EE Reports for the past two weeks before now. My life has been like a whirlwind of late. Here's why....

I moved back to working shift on Monday, March 14, 2006. Currently I'm working 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, then 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday. That means that I have Thursday afternoon, Friday, Saturday and Sunday off.

The first Thursday I was off, my friend Chris and I took Sukiey (my newly adopted cat) to the Vet for a check up and her shots. Dr. Boyd checked her over thoroughly and ran the feline HIV test on her - it came back negative, so she gave her the feline HIV vaccine in addition to the other annual shots that were due. Friday, Chris and I ran some errands - to Target and PetSmart and a couple of other places.

Saturday Chris and I worked our "newspaper job" - working at The Clarion-Ledger's distribution facility out in the airport metroplex. That entails for us to insert the comics section and advertisements into the preprinted sections of the newspaper - usually the real estate and Southern Style - and then someone comes behind us later on and adds the rest of the Sunday newspaper and bags them for the delivery carriers to pick up in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

After getting done there, we go somewhere to eat and then run any other shopping errands we might have before coming home. By that time, we're both pretty well worn out. However, we paid a visit to the Wal*Mart in Madison and did some shopping to check it out.

The second Thursday I was off - I went home and just "chilled out" with Sukiey and didn't do much.

Friday - 3/24 - my cousins Ray and Kay stopped in Jackon and we had lunch at Ruby Tuesday's. Chris and I had a couple of errands to run afterwards.

Saturday was the newspaper job - it usually requires 6 or more hours of the day and we try to get started early - like around 7-7:30 a.m. if possible.

Sunday - well I was kind of lethargic and woke up later than I had planned; it was a beautiful day, so Chris and I decided to take a Sunday drive and we took her puppy, Romeo, with us. We rode over to Vicksburg and then on across the river on I-20 and stopped at the Louisiana Tourism Center in Mound. We took pictures crossing the river both ways and also at the Tourism Center with the big Louisiana sign. I got shots of Chris with Romeo and she got shots of me with Romeo. He was on his leash, of course.

On our way back, we detoured at Bolton and went to check out and get pictures of a horse farm we had seen from the Interstate. We were followed by the police - because of Chris' conspicous looking car - but they didn't stop or question us. Then, coming back into Jackson, we encountered police and emergency vehicles working an accident on I-20. There was a flipped 18 wheeler off of the side of the Interstate into a patch of trees.

This Thursday afternoon I spent at my friend Etta's house. We worked on the charitable organization's books on her computer and finally figured out what was wrong with her printer - it entailed a trip to Office Depot for print cartridges.

Friday Chris and I made a major shopping trip to the Wal*Mart in Pearl and when we got back to Sterling Towers, we were barely able to unload the car before Jean, the manager, was wanting us to go to Dr. Majure's office and get flea treatment for her sister's cat, Midnight. I put the perishable and frozen stuff away and came back down to ride with Chris over there and back.

Saturday - again we worked the newspaper job and I finished well ahead of Chris, so I went up to Krystal and got lunch for us. When I got back, she was still working at her runs; she stopped and ate, then I left out and went to Wal*Mart to get some things I had forgotten. By the time I got back, she was ready to go and she insisted that I was driving because of how tired she was.

When we got back to Jackson, I drove on to CVS Pharmacy to pick up a couple of prescriptions and Chris came in and got batteries she needed, then she drove home.

I was exhausted and the time change didn't help me any. I overslept Sunday and missed Church again - once I finally woke up and got myself together, I went down and did several loads of laundry that had backed up.

Yesterday afternoon. it was quiet, not much going on around here and I was reading a book and about to go to sleep, so around 2:30 p.m., I asked and was granted permission to leave. I went home, got ready and climbed into bed. Sukiey joined me. We both fell asleep - I woke up about 4:30 p.m. and got changed into jeans and my Atlanta Braves tee shirt and put on my tennis shoes.

Then, I got the stuff I needed and went down stairs and over to meet Michele - who dropped off at Church for EE.

Here are the EE reports for 3/28 and 4/4/06 from Dot:

Dear Friends,

Evangelism Explosion is reaching such an exciting time in the semester!

The trainees have just about mastered the required memory work and are taking a very active part now in the presentation of the Gospel. Each week from now on, it will become more and more natural for them. They are certainly getting caught up in the joy of it all. As Bob Waller said to me tonight, " I just LOVE to go fishing!"....and I agree with him 100%.

Tonight we had 12 professions of faith...

Bob Waller, Chris Ball and Karen Ball led a young mother of three to Jesus tonight.
Vic Holsapple and Guy Reedy led a 50 yr old Catholic man to Jesus.
My team (Jan Boteler and Don Goss) led a 29 yr old, single, Catholic guy to Jesus.
Terri Wissel and Rick Olson, and Jamie Butler led a family of 9 in the UMC waiting room to Jesus!

The other teams had some very important appointments tonight as well. The Gospel was shared many times, and many people were drawn closer to our Lord. Those visits are so very important too because often it takes several spiritual conversations with someone before they are ready to pray to receive Christ. Each link in the chain of events leading to a profession of faith is very important.

We are so proud of our trainees. They are so faithful to study and do their homework and are doing very well ! God has blessed us this semester, and we are so very thankful.

Ronnie Falvey and Vic Holsapple are wonderful leaders for Evangelism Explosion. They love this ministry and their enthusiasm is contagious!

Thanks for being faithful prayer partners for us. Prayer gets for EE what only God can do.

" God blesses those who obey him: happy the man who puts his trust in the Lord."
Prov. 16:20
With His love,
Dot

Dear EE friends,

Hurray for daylight savings time! It certainly makes looking for addresses easier!

There were five professions of faith tonight and five other people needed assurance of their salvation. The Gospel was shared many times tonight in the Jackson area.

Bill Boteler, Terri Wissel and Kendra Sue Robinson led 20 year old Kim to the Lord tonight. Kim works for the MS State Hospital. She is a potential church member for us.

Bob Turner, Barbara Westerfield, and Peggy Alford led Brian and Elisa to the Lord. They are about 30 yrs old and also are potential church members for us.

Richard Corkern, Betty Hindman and Christopher Alexander led Lolita to the Lord. Lolita lost everything in NO during Katrina . She is 63 years old.... also a potential member.

Linda Clark, Hank Holman, and Ladd Bratcher led Bob to the Lord. Bob lives in the Belhaven area, and might possibly be interested our church too.

These teams will be busy next week following up on these new believers. Hopefully we can bring them into our fellowship at First Baptist, and they can be discipled further.

It is so exciting to watch the trainees gain confidence in witnessing as they carry the major portion of the Gospel presentation now.

The homemade loaves of sourdough bread, baked in our church kitchen, are such a hit with the people we visit. I trust the ladies in the church kitchen are experiencing a blessing for doing this for the Lord through EE.On the top of each loaf, we attach a message and a scripture that reads:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am the bread of life. " John 6: 47-48

Have a wonderful week! Thanks you for your faithful prayers.

Love,
Dot

My comments:

On 3/28 I went with Richard and Betty and we went to a trailer park next to Patrick Farms Golf Club. We did questionnaires and found that they were already Christians and perhaps just needed reassurrance of their salvation. Richard misplaced his portfolio and realized it after we left the park; we returned and I spotted where it was left, so he jumped out and went and retrieved it.

On 4/4 I went with Bob and Barbara. Originally Ronnie had me teamed with Vic and Guy, but at the last minute (literally - we were going to the car) changed his mind and put me with Bob and Barbara. Before leaving the Church, we called a guy named David, whom they had led to Jesus the week before about stopping by for follow-up. He was receptive and wanted us to call him back around 8:30 p.m. to see if he would be back home as he had to go out somewhere. We opted to go in the Belhaven area and knock on doors.

The second door we knocked on opened to us. There we met Brian and Elisa. We learned they were a married couple - Brian is from the Canton area while Elisa is from New Orleans - the lower 9th Ward near the Industrial Canal. She and I connected due to the fact that we're both "Louisiana girls". We quickly established the fact that Elisa was already a Christian - of the Pentecostal background - and that Brian had a Methodist type background, but didn't seem to have ever accepted Christ. So, we focused on Brian.

Bob, Barbara and I tag-teamed the presentation and at the end of it, when we asked if Brian would like to receive the gift of eternal life, Bob made sure that he clarified beyond a shadow of a doubt what this involved and then asked Brian again. Again he said yes. So, Bob handed things off to me to lead the time of commitment and have him to follow me in praying the Sinner's Prayer. Then we asked the diagnostic questions again and this time Brian scored an A+ - he knew the right answer to why he should be allowed into Heaven.

Before leaving, we formed a circle and joined hands and prayed together - Elisa reported that her sister Corrina (sp?) has anxiety attack issues. We pray for her and ask that you will too.

Also - please pray for Debbie - she's Ronnie Falvey's ministry assistant. One of her best and very close friends, Marilyn, passed away earlier this week and Debbie has gone to Texas to attend the funeral. EE depends on Debbie a lot so we want to take care of her during this time in the best way we know how - through prayer.

Thanks and In His Service...

One of my passions...

2006-04-04T10:04:00.000-07:00

One of my passions is animals! I'm very much an animal lover and friend. This is borne out by my decision to adopt Sukiey (my cat) even though I have a waterbed.

I'd like to share with you one of my favorite websites...

http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com

If you'll go there regularly and click on the button to fund food for animals, I'll appreciate it and so will Sukiey and the animals in this charitable program. It doesn't cost you anything to go there and click - sponsors take care of that.

Please check it out today! An animal will thank you!

First Weekend in April...

2006-04-03T14:41:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon! It’s about 4:40 p.m. and that’s after setting the clock ahead an hour over the weekend. I sure didn’t like that idea – losing an hour of sleep. L L My body clock will eventually catch up, though.

Okay, here goes my attempt to recap the 3 ½ day weekend I had…

Bob showed up at 11:55 a.m. on Thursday and so I was able to leave just after 12:00 p.m. – after doing “turnover” with him. I went home and changed clothes and laid down for a little while on the couch – with Sukiey up there with me. We slept for about an hour or a little more. Then, I got up and got ready – and went down to the lobby to wait on Etta Mae. She was a little after 2:30 p.m. arriving to pick me up.

We went back to her house after a stop at Taco Bell to fetch something to eat. Once there, we ate and then got to work. We did the data entry and then went to try to print the receipts – but the printer still would only print the color parts. That’s when it hit me – the problem with the printer was that the black cartridge was empty! I opened the “hood” on the printer and pulled the black cartridge out and shook it and didn’t hear anything, then I checked the color cartridge and I heard liquid in it. So – I told Etta Mae that I believed that was the problem. We grabbed the 2 black cartridges she had – the one I had taken out and another empty – and took off to Office Depot. There she bought another black and another color (so she would have a spare color) cartridge and we turned in the empties for recycling and got $3 off the price of one of the cartridges and a free ream of paper for the other.

When we got back to her house after the trip to Office Depot, I installed the black cartridge and pulled what we had been trying to print back up on the screen and tried again. This time we were successful in getting it to print like it should. I was like I couldn’t believe I was so dumb! By that I meant that it didn’t occur to me to check the status of the black cartridge before. L L Oh well – it happens to the best of us. L J

It was around 7:30 p.m. when Etta Mae dropped me off at Sterling Towers. I went up and hung out with Sukiey and I did try to read a little of Paul and then went on to bed. I slept in Friday, since I knew Chris wouldn’t be ready to go to Wal*Mart before at least 11:30 a.m. and then was kind of leisure-like when I did get up. I got a bath, dressed and was ready so that when she called and said she was ready to go, I would be able to go on down and meet her.

It was around 11:30 a.m. when Chris called and said she was ready to go to Wal*Mart, so I went on down and met her and we were off. I had brought 2 rolls of film with me to drop in at the photo lab. When we got to the store, that was the first place we went – we made a bee-line to the lab and dropped the rolls in. Then we started rambling through the store and I got things that were on my list (plus some things that weren’t) and then we stopped back in at the lab after it had been about an hour and picked up the finished prints. I checked them out and paid for them. We resumed shopping and finally finished up a little later and I got checked out.

We loaded the car up and headed to Sterling Towers and when we got there, I went and got a buggy, while Jean came out and asked Chris to go to Dr. Majure’s and get Becky’s cat some Frontline. We unloaded my stuff and I went up and dropped it off, putting the perishable and frozen stuff away, but leaving everything else. Then, I went back down and returned the buggy and rode with Chris to the Vet’s office to get the stuff. She got Revolution instead of Frontline.

We returned from the Vet’s office and Chris dropped the stuff and her change in Jean’s office – she had left to go run an errand. I went on up to my apartment and unloaded the remaining bags and put the purchases away. I spent the remainder of the day with Sukiey. And – I tried to read some of Paul.

Saturday morning Chris called and woke me up to get ready and go do the newspapers. We got out there around 7:15 a.m. – earlier than usual – because Ronnie and Beverly had to make a trip to Vicksburg. We worked at the runs and finally they left around 11:15 a.m. to go home and clean up and change, then head off to Vicksburg. Chris and I stayed and worked – I finished up way ahead of her. So, she sent me down to Krystal to pick up lunch – when I got back with it, she stopped and ate, then went back to work, while I took off again – this time to the Wal*Mart a couple of blocks down the road.

When I got there, I found an Atlanta Braves jersey that I liked and put it in the buggy, along with some new underwear – my original reason for going. Then I went back to the Photo Lab. They were kind of crowded. I had one of my CDs with me and I used the Kodak machine to make some reprints of some of the pictures so I could share them. I got copies of the shots of Chris with Romeo on our trip last Sunday, a shot of me with Romeo on that same trip, a shot of Sukiey, shots of Kay and Ray, plus a shot of me with them,. I ended up with a total of 18 reprints and I paid for them before leaving the Lab area. I went on to shop for a few things I had forgotten – including Easter cards – some of the reprints are coming to you in one of them.

After I was done, I went back to check on Chris and she had finished up finally – a few minutes before – and she insisted that I drive. Her feet were bothering her; she took her shoes and socks off in the car. We headed off and made it back to Hinds County (where Jackson is) and to CVS. I went in and picked up my prescriptions and a couple of other things. Chris came in while I was in there – she needed batteries. She got them and we took off for home – she drove this time.

We got back to Sterling and I unloaded my bags out of the car and went on upstairs. I found Sukiey on the couch when I went in. She has gotten to where she likes to do that. I put everything up – the Braves shirt was still on the hanger, so I just hung it up. I opened the packs of underwear and got them out and put them in the laundry basket after taking the tags off and did the same to the bras I bought. I had a pile of clothes in the basket by that time.

I was tired out Saturday evening, but after relaxing for a little while, Chris and I went down to Taco Bell. We got our orders “to go” and after eating, Chris came up to check on Harold’s cats – Patti and Kelly – and she came by to see me. We decided to move Sukiey’s litterbox – after she showed me how Harold has his. We moved it to a closet next to my bathroom – put the towel down on the floor of the closet and then put the litterbox in there. We had cleaned the litterbox before moving it. Once Chris left, I went and got Sukiey and showed her where her litterbox had been relocated to.

Sukiey had made a mess with the litter – so Chris went down and got the community broom and dustpan and came back up and we cleaned up the spilled litter from the original location. We also set up the portable vacuum cleaner to charge for future use – the directions said to let it charge for 24 hours before use.

I finally went to bed Saturday night – after changing the clocks that needed to be done manually – and Sukiey got in bed with me. During the early morning hours I heard a noise and I wasn’t sure where it was coming from – so I sat up to try to figure that out and about that time I saw Sukiey coming out of the closet. Then I realized that she had been in the litterbox and that’s where the noise came from. J J

Sunday morning I woke up and was lethargic – for lack of a better description. I shut the alarm off and went back to bed. I fell back asleep and woke up around 8:30 a.m. Well – too late to go to Church. L L I called Chris to tell her. I finally got up and went to have breakfast and then take a bath. Once I was done with that, I headed downstairs with the laundry basket and supplies and I took Paul with me to read while waiting. One of the young couples who live at Sterling was in there doing a pile of wash as well. I don’t know their names, but he’s real friendly while his wife isn’t – oh, she’s not rude, but she just isn’t as outgoing as he is. They finished up with the dryers about the time my laundry was done washing, so it was a case of “timing”. Once I got the dryers going, I went in the lobby and sat down to read Paul and made a little progress with it. I finally got everything done and returned up to my apartment and put it all away.

Then, I laid down on the couch and Sukiey got up there with me. We both took a nap and later on I called Chris – she had already gone to her “cell” meeting, but called me when she came back. I was on other calls a couple of times, but we finally connected. I told her that I wanted to go get Sukiey a regular food bowl for her canned food – but Chris said she had a bowl for Sukiey and she would bring it up as she was about to come up and check on Harold’s cats. She brought it to me and I put some canned food in it for Sukiey. Chris was able to get to see and pet Sukiey – as she was lying on my bed.

Chris and I did some further cleaning and rearranging and made a little more room for Sukiey and me to maneuver around where her feeding area is. I like it better and so does she. Hopefully sometime soon we’re going to do some more cleaning and I can toss out some stuff I no longer need and make more room. Right now it’s quite cramped.

By the way, Chris accused me of “pampering” Sukiey. The reason: I set up a night light near where her feeding area is so that the cat can see to eat when it’s dark. J J She said that cats have very good vision and Sukiey really doesn’t need the light to see by. I’ve left the night light set up, though. That’s in case I get up during the night and want to go in the kitchen as well as for Sukiey. What do you think? Am I going overboard here?!

I watched the NASCAR race from Martinsville, Virginia and was pleased that Tony Stewart won – although I was rooting for Bobby Labonte. Bobby and teammate/car owner Kyle Petty were both knocked out of the race – Bobby’s transmission broke and Kyle was having gear problems. Hopefully they’ll have better fortunes at the next race.

Evangelism Explosion for 3/28/06

2006-03-29T13:15:00.000-08:00

Vicki dropped me at Church last night for EE. It looked like rain was imminent – but it never did to my knowledge – and that we were going to be sparse on folks, but they finally began showing up just after 5:30 p.m. I was prepared to cover for Dot, but she was one of the group who came in late. She said that she and Tag had gotten home from Pittsburgh about 4:00 p.m. I asked her and she said that their son, Dr. Clark Gamblin, is at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center/Hospital. I overheard her saying something about Carlyle/Carlisle, PA too – but I’m not sure what that was about – I didn’t ask.

For the second week in a row, William was absent. I suppose that he’s dropped out in order to begin his spring camping trips. He had told me that the reason he stopped doing EE was that it interfered with him being able to go camping – something he loves to do. However, in my view, EE is much more important.

Rick, my team leader, was there last night again. Ronnie split us up, though and used both of us as “floater” people. I wound up with Richard and Betty and we went out to a trailer park off of Greenfield Road in Brandon and did several questionnaire visits. I think we did like 4 visits and found that each person turned out to be a Christian, but we were able to ask the diagnostic questions and to the second question we got surprising answers. Richard was able to probe a little more and find out whether or not they had ever made a profession of faith and accepted Christ as their Savior and Lord. When we left the trailer park, we got about a mile down the road and Richard realized that he was missing his portfolio he had been carrying. I remembered that he had brought it with him on one of our stops in the park; we turned around and went back and went to the second street we had been on. As we were driving by, I spotted it on the porch of one of the trailers we had visited at, so he hopped out, went up and retrieved it. Then we left the park a second time and made our way back to Church. The report back session was already in progress.

Here’s Dot’s report…

Dear Friends,

Evangelism Explosion is reaching such an exciting time in the semester!

The trainees have just about mastered the required memory work and are taking a very active part now in the presentation of the Gospel. Each week from now on, it will become more and more natural for them. They are certainly getting caught up in the joy of it all. As Bob Waller said to me tonight, " I just LOVE to go fishing!"....and I agree with him 100%.

Tonight we had 12 professions of faith!

Bob Waller, Chris Ball and Karen Ball led a young mother of three to Jesus tonight.

Vic Holsapple and Guy Reedy led a 50 yr old Catholic man to Jesus.

My team (Jan Boteler and Don Goss) led a 29 yr old, single, Catholic guy to Jesus.

Terri Wissel and Rick Olson, and Jamie Butler led a family of 9 in the UMC waiting room to Jesus!

The other teams had some very important appointments tonight as well. The Gospel was shared many times, and many people were drawn closer to our Lord. Those visits are so very important too because often it takes several spiritual conversations with someone before they are ready to pray to receive Christ. Each link in the chain of events leading to a profession of faith is very important.

We are so proud of our trainees. They are so faithful to study and do their homework and are doing very well ! God has blessed us this semester, and we are so very thankful.

Ronnie Falvey and Vic Holsapple are wonderful leaders for Evangelism Explosion. They love this ministry and their enthusiasm is contagious!

Thanks for being faithful prayer partners for us. Prayer gets for EE what only God can do.

" God blesses those who obey him: happy the man who puts his trust in the Lord."

Prov. 16:20

With His love,

Dot

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According to my count, we’re now at 47 for the total number of professions of faith. Of course, EE isn’t just about numbers – as Ronnie put it last night, “that’s icing on the cake”. Instead, EE is about training people to go out and share their faith.

In the trainer session, Ronnie went over chapter one with us in the textbook by Dr. D. James Kennedy – founder of EE. I took notes as to what he had to say, but I didn’t bring them with me this morning or I would share with you 4 things Ronnie said give us confidence in the reliability of the Bible. Maybe I’ll grab my notebook at lunch and I can list them after that. He gave us a homework assignment – to read another chapter – he doesn’t have us studying each chapter, but instead we’re skipping around – and note what the chapter says to us. I’ll try to get that done over the next few days – before EE next week.

Betty dropped me off at Sterling – around 9:30 p.m. We found that we have common ties to Louisiana. Her mother was born in Hammond, although she didn’t really live there for a long period of time. Somehow she wound up in Clinton and met and married Betty’s father. I was told that her parents have been married for 58 years – yesterday was their anniversary. J J

When I got up to my apartment, Sukiey was on the couch waiting for me. I put some canned food down for her and moved her bowls like Michele suggested, but Sukiey didn’t like that, so I moved them back, and I eventually figured out (this morning) that she didn’t like the canned food I put down either. I put a different type of canned food down this morning and I saw that she did eat some of it – I’ll find out when I get a chance to go home – either at lunch or tonight after work – whether she ate any more of it and likes it or what. I’m just trying to give the cat some variety instead of the same thing all the time.

This morning I was leaving out to come to work and as I did, I was talking to Sukiey. When I stepped out and closed the door, I saw Harold – an older guy who lives down the hall – standing at the elevator. He observed “so you talk to your cat too?!” and I said yes. He said that he talks to his (he has 2) and that he thinks they understand him most of the time. While waiting for the elevator, I walked around to the landing dumpster and tossed the empty container of Tidy Cat in. Speaking of Tidy Cat, I got a response from them about the comment I e-mailed them a couple of days ago. They thanked me and said they are sending me some coupons for Tidy Cat products.

The Weekend...

2006-03-27T16:38:00.000-08:00

Thursday afternoon I left here and went home. I changed into a pair of jeans and a tee shirt and mostly hung out with Sukiey. I also saw Chris and we made plans to go Friday morning to the Wal*Mart in Pearl for some cat supplies. I didn’t do much Thursday evening; Sukiey woke me up during the night wanting her litter box changed. Yes, I got up and did that! She also wanted some food and I put some down for her.

Friday morning I did get to sleep in a little before getting up and getting ready. Chris and I left for the Wal*Mart in Pearl around 9:30 a.m. and found what we needed – she got cat litter and cat food; I got some cat food amongst some other things. By the time we checked out and got back to Sterling, it was almost 11:30 a.m.

I had just unloaded my bags and put the things away and was playing a little with Sukiey when my cell phone rang…I saw the call was coming from area code 501 – and I knew it had to be my cousin Kay’s cell phone. I answered – it was! J J It was around 12:00 p.m. – they had made better time from Little Rock, Arkansas than they had expected. She said they had exited I-20 at State Street and were at that time sitting at a train crossing that was blocked by a non-moving train. I told her I knew exactly where they were – at the Fowler Buick Crossing. She apparently looked around and saw the signs for the dealership and said yes, where they were. I told her that I wasn’t sure how to give them directions to get around the train without possibly getting them lost. She said they would just sit and wait on the train – if it got to be a lengthy wait, they’d cal me back, but asked that I give them directions from where they were and so I did.

I went down to the lobby – with my camera in tow, loaded and ready to go – and waited just a few minutes before they pulled up in Kay’s white Volvo wagon with her Arkansas plates. I discovered her brother Ray was driving. He got out of the car and came and greeted me with a hug. I went over to the car with him and Kay insisted that I sit in the front seat and got out and gave me a hug as well. We started off – on down Griffith Street, but I told Ray he should turn around and so he did and we went back out to High Street and got on I-55 North and off at Lakeland Drive. We were looking for the Cozumel location Vicki had told me was out there, but couldn’t find it, so instead we turned around and headed for the Ruby Tuesday.

There we had a nice lunch – they treated me – and then when we went outside, I had them to pose for a couple of pictures. When we got back to Sterling, I called Chris and she came out and took the camera and took a shot of the 3 of us – Ray, Kay and me. We said our goodbyes and they headed out – well about the time they were getting to the Interstate, Kay realized she had some things for me – some of her mother’s stuff – and she had forgotten to give them to me, so she called and they turned around and came back long enough to give them to me. The items were an ice cream set that I had given her at Christmas a couple of years ago and a vase that her mother had had and wanted me to have. J J I thanked them and they headed out again – to make their way to Baton Rouge, possibly stopping in Hammond. I haven’t talked with my brother, but they said they were going to try to connect with him while in town.

Their reason for going to Baton Rouge this trip was to meet with their mother’s CPA so they could finish and file her final tax returns. They expected to be down there through Tuesday, maybe Wednesday. Then, they’ll head back to Little Rock and Ray is going to use Kelly’s car – she’s the daughter of Kay and husband Jimmy – since she’s in England studying (I’m not sure what) and won’t be home for 6 months. They were going to sell it, but Uncle Ray asked if he might use it as he rambles around some on this trip.

Kay and Jimmy have 2 daughters – Kelly is 20 – almost 21 – and Courtney is 25. Both are in school – Courtney was leaving that day to go to London to visit her sister during spring break. Jimmy is in the real estate business in Little Rock. Ray is Kay’s older brother and he’s a retired teacher from the Glendale, California school system – he taught for some 30+ years before retiring after the last school year.

I went on and did laundry after that. I was almost done when Chris announced she wanted to go to the battery store to get a new battery for her cordless phone and I wanted to go with her and get Sukiey some cat treats at Pet Smart. So, Lena said she would finish my laundry for me; we went to the Interstate Battery place and got Chris’ battery; I got a spare for my camera while there, and then stopped at Pet Smart and I got the treats I wanted.

We stopped at McDonald’s on the way back; when we got back, I went and claimed my clothes and then went upstairs and put every- thing away. I talked a little while with Janice and then went to bed. Sukiey woke me up during the night to have some food put down for her.

Saturday morning Chris called and got me up early – to do the newspapers. We went out there and got to it. We finished up earlier than before – around 12:00 p.m. We left there and went by the Coffee Roastery and then went to the Wal*Mart in Pearl. I got a thing of cat litter and also wound up purchasing 2 pairs of shoes – actually a pair of boots in “sand” and a pair of brown sandals. I got the boots on clearance for $5.00 and the sandals were their regular price of $5.88! Chris couldn’t find any shoes she liked at a price she also was willing to pay. I also purchased socks and a replacement sunglass case – I lost mine on Friday. I think I left it at the Ruby Tuesday – laid it down to take a picture after taking my clip-on lenses out and then failed to pick the case back up.

Then we stopped at the Arby’s in Pearl and had lunch and came on home. I went up and put my stuff away and laid down and took a nap with Sukiey cuddled up on top of me. She loves to sleep like that and I don’t mind it either. By the way, I received my refund check from the State Tax Commission in the mail on Saturday.

Later, I went down to see Chris about something and she asked if I wanted to go for a taco. I said yes. She had given me some cat stuff that apparently got mixed up with hers, so I shot up to my apartment and dropped it off. Then, we took Romeo (a/k/a Barkey Butt) with us and set out for Taco Bell. We passed the place on High Street and wound up going all the way to County Line Road to eat. We left Romeo in the car – it was a cool evening. Before leaving the Taco Bell, though, we did request a cup of water for the puppy and they gave us a small cup, which I took to the fountain area and found the “water only” button on a dispenser and filled it about ¾ of the way.

Upon leaving, I discovered Chris had a mischievous streak to hit her and we headed for the I-220 loop around to West Jackson and we ended up riding all the way around back to I-55 North and then got off at High Street. She wanted to stop at the Sprint Mart Shell – so we did – she went in and got what she wanted and what I wanted while I stayed in the car with Romeo. He whined for most of the time she was in the store.

Oh yeah – as we were turning in at the Sprint Mart Shell, we noticed there was a wreck on the other side of the intersection and we asked if they needed us to call the police for them – a guy said the cops had already been called, but they weren’t there by the time we left, so Chris got her cell phone and called 911 and advised them of it. They said they would dispatch officers.

We got back to Sterling and parted ways. She took Romeo and went home while I went on up to my apartment. I got myself ready for bed, then laid down on the couch and read for a while, with Sukiey at my feet. Finally I went on to bed – Sukiey woke me up about 3:00 a.m. wanting food. I put some down for her and she was fine after that.

Chris called me early Sunday morning – around 7:30 a.m. or so – and wanted to know if I wanted to take her car to Church. I told her I had decided I wasn’t going. But, we decided to go take a “Sunday drive”. So – later on – around 9:30 a.m., we met up downstairs. I brought my camera with me and she had Romeo – we decided to let him accompany us. We set out on the drive – went up to North Jackson and hit I-220 and went around to Clinton – where we got off on Springridge and pulled in at the Kroger Fuel Center and filled up Chris’ car with gas. She walked Romeo while I pumped; then I went and paid for the gas and got in the car with Romeo while she added a quart of oil.

We set off in the direction of Vicksburg – roughly 30 miles away – and kept going – across the Mississippi River into Louisiana. So – now I can say that I’ve been in my home state once this year already. We stopped at the Tourism Information Center at Mound. I pulled out the camera and got a couple of pictures of Chris and Romeo with the Louisiana sign; she took the camera and got a shot of me with Romeo and the sign. I had taken other pictures en route and took a couple more while we were there. I went to the rest room and then came out and kept Romeo while she went in. Then when she returned, I went in the Tourism Center and browsed, plus got a decaf cup of Community Coffee (the official coffee of Louisiana). She went in and got a cup while I held on to Romeo.

Then, we got back in the car and headed west again – to the next exit – and turned around and headed east back into Mississippi. We were almost to Bolton when we saw a horse farm on our right. I remarked that it would make a very pretty picture – considering the weather was gorgeous, even if a bit chilly. J J We went on down to the Bolton exit, got off and turned right, then went in search of a way to reach the frontage road. We found it – and also noticed a Bolton police officer sitting parked in his cruiser just back off the road. We drove on past him and down the winding road. Well – the next thing we knew – we found the horse farm and it was on the left. We pulled over on the right side of the road to park, but Chris decided she’d rather be on the left, headed back out. So – a Lincoln Town Car (or something similar) passed by us, then Chris did a U and pulled over on the side of the road next to the white picket fence.

I got out of the car; she stayed inside with Romeo. I hiked a wee bit to the fence and started checking for camera angles. I got several shots – what I believe will be beautiful shots – and then went to get back in the car. I discovered that Romeo had gotten excited and was trying to follow me out of the car and managed to spill the cup of water in my seat. Chris didn’t have a towel, but she did have a plastic grocery bag, so she put it down to try to keep my bottom dry on the ride back. As I was coming back to the car, that same Lincoln (or whatever) came back down the road in the same direction we would be going.

We pulled back onto the road – and as we driving along, we encountered that same Lincoln (or whatever) parked off of the road and pointed in our direction. As we were approaching, it began moving – backing up – and as we passed, it pulled out and behind us. It followed us back around to where the Bolton police cruiser was parked. Chris signaled and turned left – the Lincoln (or whatever) kept going on down the road. We made our way back out to the “main drag” of Bolton (not a real big town to begin with) and on to the exit for I-20 towards Jackson. J J

This wasn’t the end to our adventure, though…

As we were driving along - about the time we were approaching Clinton, a black four door truck with darkly tinted windows passed us on the left (we were in the right lane) and then slowed. Next thing we knew – a guy rolled the rear seat window down and half hung out of it with a camera taking pictures of Chris’ car. Chris told me “smile – you’re on candid camera”! J J

Then as we were approaching Ellis Avenue, we saw police and other emergency vehicles in the road ahead and slowed down like the other traffic was doing. Then we saw that we were being signaled to move to the far left lane to go around. We did and as we passed by, we saw that an 18-wheeler had run off the Interstate and flipped over among some trees. On the news, later, we learned that the driver had only minor injuries and the police suspected him of having fallen asleep at the wheel.

We got home without any further adventures and I stayed home with Sukiey and watched TV and did some cleaning for the rest of the day.

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Today’s Women’s Luncheon was excellent – June’s son-in-law and pastor of First Baptist Church of Canton – was the speaker. His name is Bro. Donnie South – I believe he’s working on his doctoral degree at this time. I picked up a copy of the April schedule on the way in and then after eating, settled down and took notes as Donnie was speaking. I’ll share them with you…

The Heart of Jeaus…Compassion

When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Matthew 9:36 NIV

The heart of Jesus is compassion – how He shows His compassion. The life of Jesus was one interruption after another – but there was always compassion.

Matthew 9:35-37

1. Heed the leadership of the Spirit. (John 14)

God will give opportunities

2. Encounter the multitudes…

Jesus went to the people.

When God calls we must go

3. Act on the need…

He healed.

See that people’s needs are met.

4. Realize the true need.

Sheep without a shepherd.

5. The Savior is waiting…

For you to realize there are hurting people all around.

This spells H E A R T! The heart of Jesus is compassion.

Donnie also shared a slideshow of photos he had taken on a trip to Cambodia. They were very powerful.

At the end of the Luncheon, I went up and waited in a short line to greet Donnie and when it was my turn, I asked him to sign my Journal and he was very gracious and did for me.

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Michele just called me and said that Kathy asked her what we were talking about regarding Chris and me being followed. When Michele filled her in, Kathy informed Michele that there’s a serial killer on the loose – has been for about 2 years – and it’s being kept rather hush-hush by law enforcement in order to try to flush the individual(s) out. Bolton is an area where the bodies have been found; Clinton is another. So – indeed – we were being followed! The Lincoln was following us to find out who we were and what we were up to. Then – the truck on the Interstate with the guy hanging out the window taking pictures – Kathy said they took pictures of Chris’ car so they could check it out later. Michele said that by now the police know all about Chris and possibly me as well. They could’ve run the license tag and got who knows what information on her and/or me.

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In today's mail...

The packages were books:

· The Journey How To Live By Faith In An Uncertain World Billy Graham

· Where God Was Born: A Journey by Land to the Roots of Religion Bruce Feiler

· The Sion Revelation: The Truth About the Guardians of Christ’s Sacred Bloodline Lynn Pickett & Clive Prince

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James left early; Daryl is outside and Ignacio should be in behind him shortly. I'll call a wrap to writing today and continue later...

Notes - Wednesday and Thursday

2006-03-23T06:41:00.000-08:00

I got a call from my cousin Kay in Little Rock Wednesday and she said she and her brother Ray (from California) are going to be passing through Jackson on Friday and they want to stop and have lunch with me. They're to call me when they start getting close to the Metro for directions.

Wednesday night Sukiey was on the couch when I got home. This was her second night to have done that. She's been staying in her "hidey-hole" spots and coming out when I get in. This morning she wanted to cuddle with me and didn't want to get up so I could get out of bed. I finally got her to cooperate around 5:45 a.m. Then I had to go fix her breakfast as well as mine before getting ready for work.

Evangelism Explosion for 3/21/06

2006-03-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

Good morning friends of Evangelism Explosion!

Tuesday night was our first night back after taking Spring Break the previous week. We
discovered our attendance was down as several leaders were out, along with a few
trainees. Ronnie had a commitment with his daughter that he had to leave to attend;
Dot is on vacation, so I'm filling in for her this morning in sending this out. Our
intrepid Vic Holsapple perservered with some not necessarily needed help from some of
us leaders who were there. :) :)

To kick the evening off, we had some entertainment. Mrs. Shiny Yates came and sang for
us while accompanying herself on piano. Shiny sang 3 songs: Amazing Grace, My Tribute
and Love One Another. She also had Vic to read the following that she had prepared:

"Love One Another"

Love one another as I have loved you.
Forgive one another.
Help one another.
Accept one another as I have done to you.
Share this bread together. It is my body.
Drink this wine together. It is my blood.
Share joy together. I will give you rest.
Sing together. I will give you everlasting peace.
Love one another.
Cherish one another as I have loved you.

Here's how the evening went:

Linda, Jared and Ken went out to do a state fair follow-up. They presented the Gospel
to Cheiron, his sister and brother-in-law. Gave assurance to them.

Bob M., Linda C. and Teenie were asked to come back later by the person they attempted
to visit with.

Bill, James and Beth gave assurance to the person they visited with.

Rick, Freddy and Peggy visited in North Jackson with a CLC member's brother; the member
wasn't home. Asked the diagnostic questions, got nowhere but left information.

Kendra Sue, Betty and Bill went out; Bill shared with us about a "way of life" that
happened at a Baptist Medical convention he attended. He was able to share EE with a
hotel employee who was downcast and the lady made a profession of faith.

Vic, Guy and Karen went out as a team and wound up providing assurance to 2 people.

Bob T., Ed, Barbara and Chris met with David and he made a profession of faith.

Ken, Chris and Jamie attempted to visit, but were unable to talk with anyone, however
they did leave information.

Mary, Don, Hank and Rex did a state fair follow-up with Kay, but were not admitted, so
they left information; another person they talked with nailed the diagnostic questions.

Chris, Richard and Linda visited with a female who needs counseling and work.

Eric, Jenny and Mark had a visit with 2 people who turned out to be Christians.

Prayer Requests:

Mr. Hurst and his 10 year old son

John - brother of CLC member; no clue about God

Cheiron - severe mental/emotional stress; mom has lung cancer

Allen - evacuee from New Orleans; financial difficulties

David - profession of faith

Kaye - that someone can reach her

Kimberly and son - moved from Ocean Springs

Dana - moved from Biloxi and is having surgery

According to my count, there were 30 attempts, 12 were completed, the diagnostic
questions were asked 9 times and there were 2 professions of faith.

We appreciate your prayers every week so very much. Please continue to pray for our
teams - leaders and trainees - as our semester runs through May 9th.

In His Service,

Peggy Alford

My First Long Weekend...

2006-03-20T15:38:00.000-08:00

First of all, I left out of here at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday and went on upstairs after talking with Chris. She was in the lobby and they were having a birthday lunch for Jean. I wasn’t invited and I didn’t try to invite myself. I’m not a part of “Jean’s clique” and don’t even want to be. I went up and changed clothes, then hung out with Sukiey afterwards. When the lunch was over, Chris called me. We discussed the idea of going ahead and telling Jean about Sukiey. It was finally decided that we would – or rather Chris would – and so she went back to Jean’s office to do that, as she had gone home to call me.

Chris went back to see Jean and she informed her that I had Sukiey and that I had been keeping her on a “trial basis” to see how it would work out – if she and I would bond. She told Jean that we had indeed bonded and that I wanted to keep the cat, so she wanted Jean to know that I have her. They discussed the business of my putting down a pet deposit and that would cause my rent to increase by $25.00 per month. Well – Jean finally told Chris for me not to put down the deposit because if I did, Lee would begin expecting the extra $25.00 per month in rent. Frankly – I don’t think that place is worth $475.00 per month (what I pay now) – let alone $500.00!

After talking with Jean, Chris went back to her apartment and called me. She told me what the results of the discussion with Jean were. We decided that we would go ahead that afternoon and take Sukiey to the vet (Dr. Troy Majure) instead of waiting till Friday around mid-morning. So, Chris came up and we “captured” Sukiey and got her in the carry cage and we took her down – via the elevator – and had to listen to her squall the entire way down. Sukiey doesn’t like the elevator but I’m not sure why. Chris says it has to do with the movement involved.

Once we got out of the elevator with her, she calmed down. Chris showed Sukiey to Jean so she would know what cat Chris was referring to and I went for my mail. I found that the order of address cards had come in and so I took the mail with me when we left to go to the vet’s office. She was completely calm the entire trip to the vet and while at the office. She didn’t cut up or try to fight while Dr. Beth Boyd (one of Dr. Majure’s associates) was examining her.

Dr. Boyd weighed her and told us Sukiey weighs 8 pounds. She also tested her for feline hiv and it came back negative, so she gave her the vaccine and told us we would need to bring her back in 3 weeks for a booster and then 3 weeks after that for another booster, then she would be good for a year. She checked Sukiey’s heart, lungs, and whatever else they check on a cat. Dr. Boyd also gave her the usual shots – rabies and whatever else. Sukiey has an appointment on April 6^th for the feline hiv vaccine booster. Dr. Boyd said we should use a product called Revolution on Sukiey to treat her for heartworms and fleas; I bought one package and will get another when I take her back for her booster in April.

When we finished at the vet’s office, we loaded Sukiey back up in her cage – she was more than willing to get in it because she knew it meant she was going home. J J Then we left there and went in search of something to eat. We wound up at Captain D’s – Sukiey was good and calm the whole time we were out with her. When we returned to Sterling, and got back in the elevator with her, she began squalling again. But – once we got out of the elevator and let her out of the cage in my apartment, she was fine.

Thursday night she was kind of drowsy – from all the shots she had gotten and the bit of blood drawn to test for the feline hiv. She was running a little fever too. Sukiey stayed in the bed close to me instead of getting in her “hidey-hole”. I said something to Chris about it and she said that perhaps, if Sukiey wasn’t feeling better Friday afternoon, we could call Dr. Majure and ask him about giving her an aspirin. An aspirin to a cat?!

Friday morning I got up and fed Sukiey, then went and did my laundry while Chris went and helped her friend Rose. She doesn’t drive much and she’s elderly, so Chris takes her to do errands and stuff. Well, when Chris came back, I was done. She and I left out and we knew that I was missing Sukiey’s rabies tag they had given me. We stopped by Dr. Majure’s and sure enough, I had left it on the counter when we left the day before. They gave it to me and I pocketed it this time.

When we left Dr. Majure’s office, we went over to Bill’s Coin Shop. They didn’t have the Nebraska quarters in yet – I would’ve been surprised if they had – but while there, we purchased the Jefferson nickels from 2005 that weren’t meant for circulation, I purchased a Walking Liberty silver dollar – yes 2006 silver dollar – it has one ounce of fine silver in it and it came in a holder and it’s brilliant uncalculated. It cost between $14-15. I also wound up with 3 Kennedy halves: 1971, 1974 and the bicentennial issue of 1976. Chris made some purchases as well.

Upon leaving there, we headed up to the Junction Shopping Center. There we parked in the Target area and I went in to get a few items: baking soda (Aunt Tootie had told me that I should put it in the bottom of the litter pan prior to putting a liner bag in the pan); shaving cream, a new Wisp and refills; and I also bought a pack of refill cartridges for my new razor as they were 50 cents cheaper at Target than at Wal*Mart. I had a difficult time believing Target was that much cheaper on something!

When I was done, we moved the car over to PetSmart and I got a package of cat treats for Sukiey; Chris got some things she needed there as well. Then, we went to Books-A-Million and I purchased some magazines and we stopped for lunch, then went back to Sterling. I hung out with Sukiey for the remainder of the day and also did some reading. I discovered a flea on Sukiey, so I told Chris and we decided that Saturday we would put the Revolution on her.

Saturday morning we headed out to the newspaper site and did the newspapers – we finished earlier than usual – about 1:00 p.m. From there we went to Ryan’s for lunch, then down the street to Bass Pro Shop. There I purchased some birthday cards, a Bass Pro sweatshirt and a can cooler, plus I got a rewards card. From that point we went to a Cingular and were able to get one of the techs there to show me how to send photos I took with my phone’s camera to people by e-mail.

Then we went home to Sterling and put the Revolution on Sukiey – she wasn’t real thrilled for a while, but she got over it. I had a hard time getting her to get up – she was laying on top of me on the couch – when I was ready to go to bed. She squalled at me for making her move!

Sunday morning I called Chris and she said she wasn’t feeling good and that I should take her car – so I took her car to church and was going to come back and get her, but she left me a voice mail that I got before leaving Sunday school and so I went on to CVS to get my prescriptions and then went to Taco Bell and picked up lunch before returning home and bringing her the keys back.

I hung out at home the remainder of the day – it was nippy, chilly, rainy, damp and wet. I didn’t care to get back out in it for anything.

Sukiey - - photo

2006-03-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of my cat Sukiey. She's a sweet, loving and loveable cat. She's also a "purring machine".

Tuesday Night...

2006-03-15T05:32:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night was unusual - there was no EE, as we were taking Spring Break. That was Ronnie's decision. I was glad to have the night free, but it seemed strange not to be going out on visits at the same time.

Well, when I got in last night, I found Chris and Romeo in the lobby. She and Lena were visiting; she had just returned from walking Romeo. He grabbed the handle of his leash and began looking at me - the stinker wanted me to take him again! I didn't, though.

Chris told me she was going to Wal*Mart and asked if I wanted to go with her. After a few minutes, I went up to my apartment and dropped my bag and checked on Sukiey, then came back down and met up with Chris. We headed out to the Wal*Mart in Pearl to do some shopping.

We stopped at an area where there were sports cards and supplies; I picked out several packs of cards - basketball and hockey - and finally found some card pages. I told Chris that I needed a 3 ring binder - to put the pages in.

Then, we started browsing some - and made our way to the pet stuff area. We picked out more cat food - 9 Lives. Since I already have several cans of chicken, I decided Sukiey may be tiring of chicken, so I got her 2 packages of other 9 Lives canned cat food. I hope she'll like them - I have another serving left in the can that's open, so I'll give her that tomorrow and then on Friday I'll try her on a new can. Chris also bought some 9 Lives. And, she insisted on buying a scratch pad with catnip for Sukiey.

After spending some time in that area, we went on to the entertainment area. Chris' reason for going in the first place was to purchase a VCR for Jean, the resident manager, for her upcoming birthday. She went looking at the VCR selection and I went looking for and found a copy of Alan Jackson's Precious Memories - his new Gospel music CD. I inquired about getting the photo of Sukiey taken off my phone's camera - printed, that is. The guy at the camera area said unless my phone is Bluetooth enabled, they couldn't do it. I told him it wasn't because I don't really know if it is or not. I'll have to check on that.

We made our way through other areas of the store - I got the 3 ring binder I needed. Finally we reached the check out and were indeed checked out and headed to the car. It was after 9:00 p.m. by the time we left Wal*Mart. We stopped to pick up something to eat at Krystal on the way back to Sterling.

By the time I got to my apartment and and unloaded the bags, it was after 10:00 p.m. I had a couple more tasks before going to bed. I put the scratch pad out for Sukiey and she went wild over it. Overnight she spent more time in the bed with me than on previous nights. Then, this morning when the alarm clock went off, I got up and fixed her breakfast and put it down for her, then fixed mine. She went to town eating. I told her I would be home around lunchtime to check on her.

Sukiey is really adjusting and acclimating herself to living me (or maybe it's me living with her). I was playing with her in the bed this morning and she was very much enjoying that. Chris said that Sukiey deserves to have me after what she's been through in the past with her previous "owners". I suppose that was a compliment, I'll take it as such.

This is about it for now...

Sukiey and Me...

2006-03-14T06:18:00.000-08:00

Last night when I got home from work, I found Chris and then we went up to my apartment. She wanted to come up and check on Sukiey - see how she was doing since she's been living with me or is it that I'm now living with her?!

When we opened the door and went inside, we called her. She immediately came out from her "hidey-hole" and let us pet her and play with her. Chris showed me how to use the wand thing to play with her.

Then, later, after Chris left, I laid down on the couch and was watching TV. I was waiting for 24 to come on. Well - Sukiey jumped up on the couch and settled down on top of me. She made herself comfortable and became a "purring machine". She stayed there - when it was time for me to get to bed, I had to nudge her to get her to move so I could get up!

She got in the bed with me - although she didn't stay all night. She is becoming more and more content - Chris said it was obvious to her that Sukiey is bonding to me and that she's a much happier cat in my apartment.

This morning Sukiey got up when I did and waited for me to put some of the canned food down for her - then she got busy eating it while I went to take a shower and get ready for work. When I left, she was up in her "hidey-hole" as I could see her tail hanging down.

I'll try to check on her at lunchtime if I can - or I may wait till later in the afternoon, after the mail has run and go pick it up and take it upstairs. Depends on how things go around here.

Woo-Hoo!! Dr. Sally K. Ride!!

2006-03-13T13:27:00.000-08:00

In today's mail I received a signed color 8x10 photo from Dr. Sally K. Ride - the first American female to fly in space. She sent the photo I sent her back unsigned.

I went over about 30 minutes or so ago to Sterling to check the mail, pick up my medications and go up and check on Sukiey.

Nice and fast success - considering that I only sent the request off on March 2!

Over the Weekend....

2006-03-13T13:19:00.000-08:00

Monday, March 13, 2006

Good afternoon folks! It’s just about straight up 1:00 p.m. I’m finally getting a chance to open your file in an attempt to try to bring you up to date about my busy weekend. Yep – I had a busy one!! So here goes…

Friday evening when I got home from work, I freshened up and took care of a few things, then went downstairs to wait for Bobby to swing by and pick me up. He showed up and we hightailed it over to Chad’s house. Andy and Allison had just gotten there and Andy had their grill in the back of his truck. He and Chad unloaded it and took it to the backyard and started prepping both grills that they had and got them going.

Once everyone arrived, we gathered in Chad’s living room and had our Bible study while a couple of the guys were tending the grills. I think they were in there too, they just popped out every once in a while to check on the progress. They were cooking shish-ka-bobs on the grills. Mark spoke on the topic of temptation and he shared with us about how he has an accountability partner and how it works. I have notes – but not with me - so I won’t be able to go into detail with you.

Once Mark was done, we had dinner. There were the shish-ka-bobs and corn on the cob, salad and a couple of other things. For dessert we had cookies and a chocolate cheesecake with cherries on top. I brought a cookie home with me. And – I caught a ride with the Ware gang – Greg, Brad and Tina – they’re brothers and a sister. Greg and Tina live in Forest over in Scott County and Brad lives in Brandon (here in the Metro). It was on their way home, actually, so that’s why Allison asked them to drop me at Sterling – it would’ve been a slight detour off of I-55 South; but Greg (who was driving) didn’t go that way. He took the city streets and dropped me off.

I talked with Chris when I got home about working with the newspapers on Saturday. She called me early Saturday morning – around 6:15 a.m. I think it was. I got up and got ready and we left out around 7:00 a.m. and were at the DC site by around 7:20 a.m. We got an earlier start than usual.

When we got finished, which was around 2:30 p.m. we left the DC site and headed for the Wal*Mart in Pearl. Once inside, we went shopping – first we went to the pet supply area. There we bought:

Friskies Chef’s Blend dry cat food

Cat “starter kit” – containing:

Food dish (dual)

Water bowl

Litter box

Litter waste bags

Rake for litter

Tidy Cat litter

Ball toys

Wand toy

Collar

Groceries (fill-in needs)

When we were done at Wal*Mart, we started to go to Arby’s for lunch but decided we wanted to go to Barnhill’s instead. So, we hightailed it to Sterling and dropped off the Wal*Mart purchases – since I had some frozen items in there. Then, we got back in the car and went up to Barnhill’s on County Line. They just opened a week or so ago. We got there at 4:00 p.m. and had to wait in line to get in, but were out of there about 5:00 p.m.

While in Wal*Mart we had tried to use the pet id engraving machine, but couldn’t get it to work. Well, we were going to Pet Smart to get some puppy food for Romeo, so while we were there, we used their machine and got an engraved tag for Sukiey – I put “Sukiey Alford” and my cell phone number on it. I also got a 7 pound container of Tidy Cat as Chris decided that what I bought at Wal*Mart might not be enough to last awhile. Chris got the Science Diet that Romeo eats.

We left Pet Smart and returned to Sterling; I went up with the Tidy Cat and the tag. Chris went home. I got the air cranked up – it was kind of stuffy. Then, I got busy – I did a little cleaning up that needed to be done; I got my bed’s act together – got the covers and blankets back on it properly and tucked down where Sukiey wouldn’t be able to get to the mattress. Finally, I went downstairs and Chris was in the lobby with Romeo. She had been out walking him.

Chris and I went back to her apartment with Romeo and we got Sukiey out of her hiding spot. I was able to catch her and get a hold on her. I took her to Chris to put in the carry cage, but she managed to escape and went up under Chris’ bed. Chris got her out and this time got her in the cage. She was just a squawking as we carried her up to the lobby and got in the elevator and took her up to my apartment.

Once we got inside, Chris opened the door of the cage and Sukiey ran out like she had been shot out of a cannon. J J She ran and found a spot to hide. Chris fixed the cage for her and the stool that she likes to sleep on. We put the toys out too. I had opened the kit and fixed the litter box and put food and water down for her. Chris gave me some cans of 9 Lives for her to eat in addition to the Friskies Chef’s Blend.

Chris left and I laid down on the couch and was perusing the magazines I had gotten – I was more or less ignoring Sukiey on purpose to see how she would act. Finally, she came out from her “hidey-hole” as Chris and I call it. She came to me and would let me pet her and would lick and nibble at my fingers. When I finally went to bed, I opened the door and left it open – I had closed it when I went down. Then, about ½ an hour later, I felt a thump and looked and Sukiey was in the bed with me. She didn’t stay, though; she went back to her “hidey-hole”.

Sunday morning I got up and fixed Sukiey some of her canned cat food – put it down for her. I had breakfast as well. I closed the bedroom door and kept it closed while I was having breakfast and then taking a shower and getting ready for Church. I came out and shut it behind me. I told Sukiey that I was heading to Church and would be back later. One thing I did was leave the TV on – tuned to Animal Planet – on low volume.

At Church we had a nice service. Mark preached and brought a good message. Then, after a “pit stop”, I went up to Sunday school. We had our first lesson in Hebrews and David taught it. Debbie will teach next week. I didn’t go out with the group for lunch – I wanted to get home and check on Sukiey.

When I got home, I went and changed clothes and then went and laid on the couch for a little while to watch the Arena Football game. Sukiey came out and got up on the couch and laid down on top of me briefly. She was purring. Then, she got up and went back to her “hidey-hole” and I got up and got my stuff together and went down to do laundry. I made a few trips up and down – and finally got it done.

When I was able to stay put, I laid down on the couch and watched the rest of the NASCAR race and believe it or not, Sukiey came back up and laid down on top of me for a while. She was licking me and nibbling my fingers. Chris called and I gave her an update on Sukiey’s bonding progress. Last night I curled up on the couch and she got up there and laid down by me. I was finally able to figure out how to use the camera in my phone and I took a picture of Sukiey – actually I took several pictures of her before I finally got a good one of her. Then, I went down to see Chris and while down there, I used the camera and took a couple of pictures of Romeo – took a couple of attempts to get a good one of him.

I went to bed and left the door open and she came and got in the bed with me a little later. She seems to be spooked by the waterbed, though. She seems not to like the waves. And, she seems to be spooked as well by the elevator noises. But, she’ll eventually get used to that. I felt the same way at first and I adjusted.

This morning – oops! There was a miscommunication and somehow I failed to remember that I was supposed to come in to work for 7:00 a.m. I knew Bob is out – on vacation this week, but I forgot that they wanted me to start working on shift this week. So – I got in for 8:00 a.m. and they weren’t too upset – once I explained about my confusion. They understood.

Well – I’ve been moved – over to the Operator workstations. I couldn’t log in at first, so I had to use my regular one. I put in a ticket to have the team copy my id over. Jeremy and McKinley finally got over here and did that – now I’m using the same one Bob uses – since I’m working in his place this week. I’m also able to log on to the one Allan uses. I’ll have to share again– I’m not real happy about that, but…

Vicki, Laura and I went to the Women’s Luncheon and Mark spoke today. That makes 3 events in the past 4 days that I’ve heard him speak at. It was a good one too – he used some of the material from Friday and Sunday – combined it sort of. I took notes.

Around 3:00 p.m. I plan to go over to to Sterling – to do 3 things: pick up my mail, get my meds for this evening and check on Sukiey. Since I didn’t realize I would be working till 7:00 p.m., I didn’t bring my meds with me and I hadn’t thought I would need to check on Sukiey, although I made sure she had plenty of food and water when I left this morning.

Oh yes, this morning Michele S. came over and brought me a bag with some “cat stuff” in it – toys and catnip. I’ll take it home with me later tonight.

I’ll pause here for now and have more later…

It's Friday!!

2006-03-10T06:17:00.000-08:00

It's Friday and that means that the weekend its almost upon us!! The yucky, nasty weather that passed through here yesterday is gone and has given way to a sunny morning! It's a bit cool out there, however, currently in the upper 49's. However, we're supposed to hit a high of 80 degrees according to Ken Johnson on Channel 16.

Chris and I had a long talk last night - we discussed my pending adoption of Sukiey - the cat - and what all that will entail and what I will need to take custody of her. Chris said she will take Sukiey to the Vet - Dr. Majes, I think his name is, and have her checkout and also have her nails and claws trimmed down. She said that Sukiey doesn't bring her claws out much - a hopeful sign for me.

Then Saturday, after doing the newspapers, we're going to stop at Wal*Mart and check out getting the stuff I'll need - cat food, litter, litter box, a toy or 2, and whaterver else we can think of, plus I may get a few more grocery items, and I want to get a pack or 2 of tab dividers instead of buying a day planner - I can make my own with the 3 ring binder I've got.

I'm excited about getting a pet - and I'll let you know how it works out...

Weather

2006-03-09T13:56:00.000-08:00

Earlier this afternoon the bottom fell out of the sky - figuratively speaking - and it absolutely poured down. I got somewhat damp when I was coming back across from the Clark Building where we had our staff meeting. I think I've dried out now, though. At one point the thunder was so hard that I could feel it shake the REL.

The rain has now moved out of the downtown area, but the temperature dropped to 54 degrees. I don't know if it has gone back up any or not and if we're still under a tornado watch. I guess I'll find out on the 5:00 p.m. news. The way the rain was falling water was just gushing down the street - that's how I got wet in the first place.

New Work Schedule!

2006-03-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

Our new work schedule was released today during our staff meeting. The new schedule is effective on 3/20/06 and I'm going back on shift. I get to work with James. Seems like no one else wants to work with him - but I don't have a problem with doing that. I don't understand why others do. We're going to be on an 8 week rotation - meaning we work 8 weeks of days, then 8 weeks of nights, then we rotate to the opposite shift and work 8 weeks of days followed by 8 weeks of nights and then back again.

Steve didn't say anything about my promotion, but it was pretty much self-evident that something was different because I'm back on shift. No one asked - but I expect someone will go privately to Steve or Purvis and ask why I'm back on shift. At least there were no outbursts. Michele (our H/R Director) sat in on the meeting - I'm not sure why she came, since it was the first time she's done that. Maybe she was there in case any H/R type questions came up - so she could answer them. I didn't have a problem with her being there, though.

Steve has requested that we put our phones on vibrate or silent when we're at work in the Center since with so many people and most of us having a cell phone plus the phones in the Center - well, it gets crazy with all those rings. I understand and I just switched mine to hopefully vibrate - it doesn't give me an option to vibrate only or to silent from what I could see. I did turn the phone completely off during the meeting.

Well this is all I have to say on this subject...

Woo Hoo!! Todd Walker!!

2006-03-09T07:38:00.000-08:00

I'm pleased to announce that I received a signed card back in the mail yesterday from Todd Walker. He's a former LSU Tiger and is now with the Chicago Cubs, but the card I sent him was from his deays with the Minnesota Twins. He signed it for me - it's authentic - I can tell because it's signed by inkpen instead of a Sharpie.

Later on folks...

Evangelism Explosion 3/7/06

2006-03-08T06:32:00.000-08:00

Good Wednesday morning!!

Okay , here we go again...last night I went out with Ken and Chris (again). Ronnie actually gave me the choice between two teams that needed a female - I've been serving as a "female floater" this semester. Chris was in the Trainee session with Vic, while Ken and I were in the Tranier's session with Ronnie. He handed out copies of Dr. D. James Kennedy's book Why I Believe to those who didn't already have a copy. I was expecting to have to pay for my copy, so I brought my wallet (it would later prove good that I did). Well - Ronnie announced that the books were gifts to us as a thanks for our faithfulness. I had gotten my copy from Debbie on Sunday after class. Ronnie did give us a "homework assignment". We're to reach chapter one - Why I Believe in the Bible - and mark or underline a passage that we think is useful as a defesnse with someone who says they don't .

Well - when we broke out of the Trainer's session, Ken went and found a visit card and he showed it to me. I looked it over - but wasn't impressed and besides the address is in a bad area of Jackson. Ronnie has given us permission to veto making visits to areas we don't feel comfortable in. Well - I exercised that with this card. Then, I started looking at the other visit cards on the table. All of a sudden a card (figuratively speaking) jumped out at me. I looked it over good and felt a very strong sense that we were supposed to make that visit. I showed it to Ken and when he saw the address, he wasn't real thrilled and said it was almost to Carthage. I still had that strong sense that we were to make the visit and wouldn't let up - so Ken agreed that we would attempt it, but if we didn't connect, we would come back and do apartment complexes with religious surveys. I said "fair enough!".

We gathered Chris out of the Trainees session and the other stuff we needed - including two loaves of bread. I had helped Dot to tie the Scripture passages on to the bread with the green ribbon she had brought. Debbie N.'s kitchen team had baked a number of loaves for us to take out on our visits as a gift.

Ken, Chris and I headed out in Ken's van and made our way to Lakeland Drive - which is the route to Carthage - and made our way to the address on the visit card. I wasn't saying much because all afternoon and into the evening I had had an "off and on" headache. Well it was back and I had no Tylenol nor anything to wash it down with if I did. We found the address and discovered that it was the residence of the parents of the lady who filled out the card. They tried to give us directions to her house, but were failing, so the mother called her and gave the phone to Ken and he got directions - she actually lived in Bay Pointe (a golf club community). We gave a loaf of the bread to the mother for her kindness to us.

Then, we loaded up and headed out towards Bay Pointe. As we were going down the road, I asked Ken if we could stop at a convenience store and let me get some Tylenol. He said "how about this Dollar General?" Sure enough - there was a DG out in the "boonies" and it was still open. He pulled in and I got out and went in - I found they had the small bottle of real Tylenol (trial size) for $3 and the DG (generic 100 count) for $2. Which do you think I chose?! If you said the $3 bottle you're wrong! I got the medication and a Mountain Dew (the only drink they had besides Diet Pepsi (and my stomach doesn't tolerate Nutrasweet) and rejoined Ken and Chris in the van after paying for it. I took two of the caplets and washed it down real good.

We found our way to the house in Bay Pointe and were met at the door by Pamela. Ken apologized to her - he had realized that her card said she would like to be contacted by letter - but she said that was okay and invited us in. We discovered we had a family of five on our hands: Pamela, husband Will, daughter Courtney and sons Chris and Willi, Jr. We wound up having a really good visit with them - Pamela and Will were very strong in their faith; Courtney and Will needed assurance and Chris, the youngest at eight years old, made his profession of faith last night. We left the other loaf of bread we had with us with the family as a gift.

After we finished up there and were heading back, Ken called Ken B. and let him know we were on our way back to Church and that we had had one POF and four assurances. I asked Ken if he thought the trip out there was worth it and he said "I should say so!".

Next week we're taking Spring Break, but we'll be back in action on the 21st. Please continue to pray for all of us involved with Evangelism Explosion. By the way - when we came out of the house, Chris asked about my headache and well...it was gone!!

And now - to Dot's report...

EE report... EIGHT more for the Kingdom!!

Dear EE Friends,

Tonight was such a great night. Our trainees are moving along so well with the memory work, and we are most thankful to you for your prayers on their behalf. Our main focus is to successfully train these people to share the Gospel... and then hopefully they will catch the joy of sharing Jesus and want to help us train even more people in the fall. The harvest is there... we need the workers.

Tonight was especially joyful because of the eight professions of faith:

Eric J., Mark B., and Jenny C. went to visit with Leo, at the request of Eric T. who has been witnessing to Leo for several weeks as they worked together. Eric Troyer had faithfully been allowing Jesus to speak through him to Leo, and tonight when the EE team arrived, Leo's heart was ready to receive the gift of Eternal Life. What team work!! Not only did Leo accept Jesus tonight, but his wife, Eunice, did also!

Eric, Mark and Jenny also led Christy to Christ. Christy is a student at Hinds and works at the Golden Corral. She is 22. She lives next door to Leo!

Terri W., Jamie B., and Freddy H. were used tonight to bring 4 more people to the Lord.One was a 75 year old lady in the waiting room at Methodist Rehab Hospital. Then later, in another waiting room they led a family of four to Jesus. They visited with several people there who were already Christians, and some of them asked the team to specifically pray for their family member who was ill. What a privilege to carry everything to Him in prayer!

Chris M., Ken S. and Peggy A. went to visit with a family of 5 tonight. One of the children had participated in Upward Basketball. The 8 year old son prayed to receive Christ. The parents and the other two siblings were already Christians but needed some assurance. The conversation was quite good concerning the importance of this decision being an individual/personal acceptance of Jesus' gift of salvation.

So many other visits were very amazing how God sent certain teams to certain places where they would have something surprisingly in common with those strangers. He is so at work sending us exactly where He wants us to be. That is one of the wonderful parts of this whole operation.... watching Him at work !!

One more thing.. ... Ronnie had asked the ladies that work in the church kitchen if they would bake us some loaves of homemade bread to take to people on our visits. They graciously agreed to do that, so tonight we had 20 loaves of bread to give away. The people loved it!! We attached the scripture, John 6:47-48 to a ribbon that tied around the bread.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am the bread of life.

Again, many thanks to you for your faithful prayers. Next week we will all be on Spring Break sharing Jesus wherever we happen to be. Our next EE time will be two weeks away.

Now unto Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever! Amen! Ephesians 3:20

With His love,
Dot

Woo Hoo!! Joe Montana!!

2006-03-07T06:25:00.000-08:00

Good morning! It's been a few days since I last made a blog entry. I've been a bit on the busy side of life lately.

The last time I blogged I reported receiving a signed Troy Aikman photo in the mail. Well today I can report receiving a Joe Montana autograph in the mail - it came yesterday and was postmarked Oakland, CA.

Since my last blog entry...

Chris and I went and did newspaper inserts on Saturday with Ronnie and Beverly and then went to the new Wal*Mart in Madison to grocery shop and generally check the SuperCenter out. It's the largest one in the Metro I believe. It seemed that 90% of Madison County and 75% of Hinds County was in that store - it was jam packed with shoppers. You could hardly move in some areas - people would be slow poking their way around and you couldn't get around and ahead of them.

Sunday I went to Church and in Sunday school we received our new study guides for the book of Hebrews that we will begin this coming Sunday. After class, Debbie and I went to Ronnie's office and she got me a copy of Why I Believe by Dr. D. James Kennedy - the founder of EE. We will begin studying the book tonight in the trainers' sessions. Better bring my checkbook so I can pay for my copy of the book!

Monday Vicki and I skipped the Women's Luncheon at Church - they were having a "co-ed" thing and we weren't interested. Instead, we went to LifeWay Christian Stores and I purchased a commentary on Hebrews and a couple of other things; Vicki got a book by Billy Graham. Then we moseyed down the block in the shopping center and went to Best Buy.

There I purchased a copy of ALABAMA's new box set - Livin' Lovin' Rockin' Rollin' - The 25th Anniversary Collection and a new cell phone case - the kind I really wanted, plus some eargels for my headset. From Best Buy we stopped over at Jason's Deli and ordered lunch to go, then returned to work.

Last night I watched the 2 episodes of 24 with Kiefer Sutherland - that hottie! I'm already looking forward to next week's episode! My other favorite on the show is First Lady Martha Logan - played by Jean Smart - who was on Designing Women all those years ago.

I learned yesterday that we will get the new work schedules on Thursday at the "mandatory" staff meeting. I say "mandatory" because it's normal for someone not to show up even though attendance is supposed to be mandatory. They don't seem to get in trouble for not showing either.

In the mail last night I received my prescription order of Folic Acid from drugstore.com and the Chris Cagle CD from yourmusic.com plus a letter from my pal Carol in Pennsylvania. I also got several magazines and a few pieces of junk. My Credit Union statement came in as well - I'll try to reconcile it sometime today.

I discovered last night that my potassium prescription was almost gone, so I called CVS and requested a refill. Then I talked with Chris and she said that I could use her car to go to the pharmacy and pick it up this afternoon - I'll have to wait till Bob returns from lunch - I don't dare go before he goes to lunch in case that I might accidentally be delayed getting back and prevent him from going to lunch at 11:45 a.m. I don't want to go through that again!

I suppose that this will do it for now - I'll blog again later...

Woo Hoo!! Troy Aikman!!

2006-03-03T06:09:00.000-08:00

I went home from work sick - once I got to feeling somewhat better, I started a load of clothes I had dirtied as a result - and also checked my mail. In there was a signed picture of Troy Aikman. I examined it and I don't think it's a preprint - it's a 5x7 instead of the trading card I sent. That was returned and a Cowboys helmet sticker was included.

On the other hand, my Jeff Gordon request was RTS.

Lately...

2006-03-02T10:41:00.000-08:00

Nothing of real major importance has been going on. No new successes. I have sent out via the mail in the past few days:

Anderson Cooper (CNN)
Patrick Duffy (Bobby Ewing)
Dr. Sally K. Ride (first American female to fly in space)

I'll let you know if I get any responses from any of them.

WOO HOO Kiefer Sutherland!!

2006-02-28T11:36:00.000-08:00

Hi y'all!

Friday evening (2/24) when I got home, I found an envelope had been slid underneath my door. I picked it up and looked at it. Seeing the code "K.S." on it, I knew that meant that it was from Kiefer Sutherland a/k/a Jack Bauer on 24. What a lift it gave me to see this hottie had signed and returned the pictures I sent him. I had had a tough day at work - we had some problems right at the end of the day.

Then Saturday (2/25) I got another surprise - retired Dallas Cowboy Jay Novacek (#84) had signed and sent back the trading card I sent him. He now has a ranch in Brady, Nebraska and he included his business card.

My co-worker Kathy scanned these for me. :) :)

Today...

2006-02-23T08:51:00.000-08:00

Today isn't too bad - the wether has moderated a little. It's still overcast and dreary looking outside; I think there may be the possibility of rain moving in.

Bob will go to lunch at 2:00 p.m. today - I'm not sure what time I'm going. Vicki is out sick today - so says her voice mail.

Otherwise, nothing to share at this time.

Evangelism Explosion - Tuesday 2/21/2006

2006-02-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

EE Report - You Won't Believe This One!!

Dot is absolutely correct when she says "you won't believe this one"!! It was a wild but wonderful night for Evangelism Explosion - not too chilly and there was no inclement weather (at least where my team was).

Donny, Mary and I went to an apartment complex in Ridgeland with the plan of doing door-to-door religious surveys.

We first met Manuel - who seemed hesitant to talk with us at first - especially when Donny was asking him personal questions - such as where he was from, etc. Later we talked as we moved the vehicle to another area and decided he might be in the US illegally and was unsure of whether we might really be INS folks. None of us are, by the way. Manuel is Catholic and he doesn't speak English very well plus none of us speak Spanish - so there were communication difficulties. We basically got nowhere with him as a result, so we moved on.

Then we met Charles. He had just moved to Jackson from Baton Rouge. It's unclear to me why he moved. I think he may have family in the area. When he said he had come from Baton Rouge, I pointed out my LSU necklace. Charles said he was a Southern University fan. But - he and I connected that way. We asked him the diagnostic questions and then went on to try to share the Gospel with him, but he said that it wasn't a good time and asked if we could return later. We said we would, thanked him and said we would return next week.

Then we moved the vehicle and when we got out, Donny passed a few EE tracts out to passersby. We were looking for a group of apartments that Donny and Mary hadn't been to previously, and found a set. The door we knocked on (at random) opened to us - after we identified ourselves, of course. There we met Kisha - a senior at Tougaloo College. She moved to Jackson from Cleveland, MS. Donny asked her the diagnostic questions, which revealed to us that she was lost, so we asked for permission to share the Gospel with her and it was given. After going through the presentation via a tag team effort, Donny asked if she would like to accept Christ and she said yes. So we led her through the time of commitment and she prayed to receive Christ as her Lord and Savior. Then we got the information for followup purposes and left some materials with her.

When you read Dot's notes below, it just might blow you away. It did me and I was there at report back time! I was shocked to learn that the total number of professions of faith were higher than Mary and I had counted.

Now - here's Dot's notes:

Twenty-three people prayed to receive Christ tonight! What a night!!

While our most important focus is on training our trainees to share Jesus, when someone wants to pray to receive Christ, we are, of course, thrilled!

Tonight Terri took her trainees, Jamie and Freddy, to the McDonald's at UMC. They were going to witness to four people who were there for supper because they had a family member in the hospital. Before they began to share the Gospel, these four asked them to please wait a few minutes until the rest of their family arrived, so that they might hear it too. Well, it turned out to be a family group of 15 people. They were all members of Baptist churches, but no one could answer the diagnostic questions correctly. After the Gospel presentation, all 15 of them wanted to pray to receive Christ!

This team also later visited with "Mattie" at UMC McDonald's. Mattie was lost and searching and also prayed to receive Christ.

Vic and his team, Diann and Guy, led "Gloria" to Jesus tonight. She is a Catholic from Colombia, South America.

Ken S. and his team, Chris and Beth, led "Tonya" a 26-year old graduate of MSU to Jesus. They met her as they went door-to-door in an apartment complex. She is looking for a job and is also a potential church member for us.

Bob W. and his team, Chris and Karen B., led "Steve and Emily" to Jesus tonight!

Team members Donny L., Mary B., and PJ met "Kisha" as they went door-to-door. Kisha is a senior in college and was lost. After hearing the Gospel, she prayed to receive Christ!

Bob T. and his team, Ed and Connie, met Nate as they went door-to-door. Nate was lost but accepted Jesus tonight. He is single and about 30 years old. They are hoping to meet him for church on Sunday.

Several of the other teams were either doing follow-ups with new Christians from last week's visits or planting seeds in new places.

I know you can see the urgency and importance we feel for becoming equipped to share our faith. There are so many people right here in our city who do not know Jesus as their Savior and Lord. The harvest is so plentiful and our church needs to be busy equipping as many people to share the Good News. We are living in such uncertain times and people need the Lord.

This is not just a Tuesday evening event. Tuesday evening is just our training time, but we are to be on the alert everyday of the week, for whomever God puts in our path to hear His Word.

Our trainees are working so hard and are doing beautifully. Please do continue to pray for them as their memory work continues to grow.

"God does not give us a spirit of timidity...but of power and love and self- discipline."
2 Timothy 1:7

TUESDAY - WHAT A DAY!!

2006-02-22T08:46:00.000-08:00

Tuesday - what a day!!

When I got home yesterday, I found the Donnie Allison signed card and photo among my mail.

Then I connected with Chris - she provided me with 2 Nevada state quarters and I gave 1 to Vicki when I met up with her after work so she could drop me at Church on her way out of town.

I think I'll create a separate post for EE...

MyPoints

2006-02-20T11:02:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd share with you that I'm a member of this neat website called mypoints.com - it's set up so that you can earn points towards a lot of really cool stuff. I'm a fairly new member, so I don't have a lot of points just yet, but I'm looking forward to when I can redeem them for gift cards from my favorite stores. They send me e-mails all the time with opportunities to earn points. Even if I'm not interested in the particular offer, I'll usually visit the site just to accumulate the points, but there have been offers that I've been interested in and I plan to visit and make purchases.

Go check it out and see what you think!

Well - hey, the weekend's almost here...

2006-02-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

Yep - the weekend's almost here again! But, this time they say here in Jackson that we're supposed to have a cold spell.- with the temperatures in the 30's both Saturday and Sunday. Cold rain is forecast for Saturday and icing is a potential issue for North Mississippi. I guess I'll stay indoors for most of the weekend except when I venture out to go to Church.

Till Monday....

Woo-Hoo -- Donnie Allison!

2006-02-15T08:53:00.000-08:00

Janice sent me an e-mail with this attached - that's the Press Pass "Legends" card of Donnie on the left and the man himself sitting at Bev's kitchen table on the right affixing the signature on the card. She hasn't mailed the card and photo to me yet - but she will sometime very soon.

Just wanted to share this!

The Weekend/Today

2006-02-13T11:51:00.000-08:00

Well - the weeknd went fairly well - except that it was cold here - colder than what Jacksonians are used to. I was told in Sunday school that we actually had flurries to fall Saturday evening. I didn't see them - though I tried to look a couple of times.

Saturday - not much of anything happened other than that I did laundry and the usual chores. Sunday evening after Church I went with Etta Mae and we worked on CEF stuff on her computer - but had some problems and I've got an e-mail in for expert help on some of the software.

Today Mr. Gates is in a much more civil mood than he was last week after the problem he and I had. The whole thing was stupid to begin with. I went to my luncheon today and he will go to his - I won't dare jeopardize him doing that again!

I have something up my sleeve besides my arm with regard to Valentine's Day tomorrow - something that I, as the Employee Club President, will do for everyone in the agency - members and non-members alike. Can't say what it is or it might spoil the surprise.

The luncheon was great - we really enjoyed the speaker - she did a great job - talked about love relationshhips and how none of your other relationships will be right if your relationship with God isn't right to begin with.

Well - I suppose this is it for the present time...

Thursday night

2006-02-10T07:43:00.000-08:00

I dropped a package to a friend of mine in the maildrop box on the corner before going home. Then, when I went home, I went over to Chris' before goiong up to my apartment. Little Prince Romeo was cutting up - he wanted me to walk him - so finally Chris and I attached the leash to his collar and I set off with him. He and I had a good long walk - exercised both of us actually! In the lobby he had to stop and visit with Harold - another resident - both going out and coming back in.

After visitng with Chris awhile, I said I would like to go to Wendy's to pick up dinner and so Chris handed me the keys to her car. She didn't want anything nor did she want to ride along. I went down to Wendy's and found it was busy - the Dixie Nationals Rodeo is in town and across the street at the Coliseum.

I returned home and parked Chris' car, then returned her keys and finally got up to my apartment. I also talked with Aunt Ruby and she said they won't be coming this weekend since incelement weather is forecast and Landon doesn't need to get out in that. Her phone had been out of order for several days.

I read and made some additional headway on Walking The Bible by Bruce Feiler before going to bed. Then I called Etta Mae and Chris. Etta Mae and I might get together this weekend if the weather isn't too bad.

This morning my brother called me to get some info he needed for his passport application. I gave it to him - he said he was sure I would know it and that's why he called me.

Vicki is out of the office today - sick I think - since she was going in that direction yesterday.

This is it for now...

Last night and Today

2006-02-08T10:33:00.000-08:00

Good afternoon - it's just past 12:30 p.m. in my time zone. It's just Purvis and me in the "house" at the present time.

Last night Michele dropped me off at Church for the Evangelism Explosion kickoff meeting. There was a crowd - Debbie had warned me that we had a lot of new faces. Well we had some 50 or so people in attendance - about double last semester. My ex-fiancee (William) showed up and registered. He has done EE preveiously, so he's qualified to be a trainer like I am. Since he hadn't preregistered, Debbie was unable to warn me that he would be participating this semester.

I participated in a demonstration of the Gospel presentation last night with Dot, Vic and Ken S. as the EE team. I played the part of the lost person/prospect. They told me I did a great job playing the prospect - well I called Aunt Fran and asked that she and Uncle Pete pray for us about the demonstration. They did and God calmed my nerves and blocked out the fact that there were 50 or so people watching. I think another reason was that I know the presentation well enough that I knew what was coming next and so I was able to concentrate on Dot and Vic (Ken S. is somewhat of a wannabe comedian) and responded with them conversationally. I wouldn't look at Ken S. because I knew if I did I would lose it (my concentration).

Afterwards Mary gave me a ride home - it was around 9:00 p.m. I brought home the papers from the night plus a copy of the group photo from last semester taken at Eric and Tree's home. I'll post it on my refrigerator later. I put some of my favorite pictures on there - with the magnets I collect holding them on.

Bob is still acting rather childish after what happened yesterday. He chose to stay and wait for me to return instead of asking the bosses to hold down the fort for those few minutes. I'm certain he did it on purpose - so it would give him a reason to stir up something and try to get me in trouble. Why he would want to do that I don't know.

This morning Purvis asked me what time I wanted lunch and I said 11:00 a.m. - no, I'd rather 11:30 a.m., and he said that 11:00 a.m.would work better, so I said okay. I called Chris and told her that I could go to lunch at 11:00 a.m. and I would come and get her then. She said okay. As I left to go to lunch, Bob called my name and told me that on Tuesdays he goes to lunch at 11:45 a.m. I just looked at him and said okay and walked out.

I went over and got Chris and she had me to drive - we went down to the post office so she could mail her tax forms. After that, we made a trip to CVS so that I could pick up my potassium prescription. Then we came back and at Sterling, Chris got out and opened the gate with her card and I pulled through and into the parking lot and parked her car, then went to meet her and return her keys.

I was back to work before 12:00 p.m. so I was not late getting back today either. Bob didn't say a word to me, he just got up and walked out. I assumed he was going to lunch. That is downright childish of him - to refuse to communicate business things with me.

I'll continue at a later time...

Overnight and Today

2006-02-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

Last night it was cool and damp; this morning the sun was out and the rain had finally exited the area. I talked with Janice for a while last night and then settled on the couch and watched 24 with Kiefer Sutherland. It was another great episode. After that I went to bed.

This morning I came in to work, carrying, in addition to my briefcase, 2 large bubble mailers - one addressed to Kiefer Sutherland and the other to Josh Tuerner. Inside each was a document/photo mailer addressed back to me and in Kiefer's was 2 pictures printed off the Internet and a letter requesting that he sign and return them; in Josh's was a copy of HomeLife with him on the cover and a letter asking that he sign and return it to me.

About 11:00 a.m. I went over and got Chris' car keys and went down to my Credit Union to take care of some business, then I went to the post office and got the packages to Kiefer and Josh in the mail - postage applied to the SASE mailers (back to me) and to the outside bubble mailers. I also got a book of 2006 Olympic Winter Games stamps - in the 39 cent denomination. They were nice looking.

From there I went and made a bill payment and then went to Popeye's for lunch - picked it up and brought it back. I didn't get back quickly enough for Bob to go to his Men's Luncheon - well he could've gone as UJ, Steve and Purvis were here and would've held down the fort for 15 minuts or less. He just wanted an excuse to nurse a grudge against me or soemthing. I tried to apologize but he didn't want to hear it, so I just backed off and I've not spoken to him since.

Tonight is Evangelism Explosion and Michele said she will drop me off at Church for it. It's really just an orientation time and since this is my third semester, I really don't need to go, but I plan to anyway so I can check out who's doing EE this semester and get a team roster and whatever else.

Oh - I received the Jason Campbell autograph request back in the mail yesterday - bad address - so I looked up on the NFL site and got the correct address for the Redskins and resent it this morning. Maybe I'll have some luck with the different address.

This is it for now...

The Weekend!

2006-02-06T06:06:00.000-08:00

Well the weekend is over once again...the Pittsburgh Steelers have prevailed. I know my friend Carol's husband Bill is elated as he's a huge Steelers fan.

In Friday's mail I received football cards back signed by Daryl "Moose" Johnston and David Lafleur. Both are retired Dallas Cowboys and David is also a former LSU Tiger.

Friday night Allison swung by and picked me up - we made a trip to Madison to attend the Bible Study with Mark Byrd at David and Elizabeth's home. After Mark spoke, we had a real nice dinner and time of fellowship. Allison dropped me off about 10:30 p.m.

Saturday I did 2 loads of laundry and also came over to the Center to use a land-line phone to call Cingular and have my new LG C2000 camera phone activated. Then Chris and I went to the post office and to Krystal for lunch.

Sunday I went to Church and then came home and hung out and waited for the Super Bowl - I was rooting for the Steelers because of Bill, but would've been just as happy had the Seahawks won - first-timers...

This is it for now...

Friday - heck of a day already...

2006-02-03T07:58:00.000-08:00

Here we go already - and it's just now 10:00 a.m. The Clark Building has been the vitim of a power failure this morning. Sterling was partially affected by it, but everything seemed okay when I left to come in to work. The microwave was blinking so I reset the time on it - otherwise things didn't seem to be bothered. I did note that my hair dryer didn't seem to be working at it's full regular power.

This morning I have checked the FedEx tracking link for the Cingular package I'm expecting in today - and as of just now it says that the package is still at the FedEx facility in Richland, rather than being out on a truck for delivery. I'll check again later and see what the status is. And, I'll check when I go home for lunch.

Earlier this morning I did an online search and found a shareware checkbook program that came highly recommended and downloaded and set it up. Then I entered my Credit Union information up to the present. It's got an icon on my desktop for easy access. I'll have to try and remember to lock my desktop everytime I step away from it for any length of time. I'm not sure if I'll keep using it or not - this is a demo version and I'll have to pay for the unlimited version. I'm not sure what I'll do - keep it or delete it.

This is all I have for now.

Thursday...errands and stuff

2006-02-02T10:28:00.000-08:00

It's 12:30 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. I got back from lunch a few minutes ago and thought I'd post an update...

I called Cingular Wireless again this morning, as overnight I realized I had questions about the changes I made to my account yesterday. I talked with a Customer Service Representative and he cleared up my confusion and then suggested that I drop the 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. calls - I had been paying $7 extra per month for the privilege of having my nights and weekends start at 7 p.m. instead of 9 p.m. With over 3K in rollover minutes, he said I didn't need that right now. So, I authorized him to drop it off. And, while we were discussing things, I asked about getting my bill paid - told him I had changed banks and didn't have my new debit card yet. Well - I went ahead and paid the bill as a bank draft on my CU checking account so as to stop the auto pay attached to my former account - so the computer wouldn't attempt to draft it out of that account and cause an NSF fee or something like that.

I checked online and found that my new flip cell phone was picked up by FedEx and arrived at their Memphis facility overnight. It should be here in Jackson and delivered to me tomorrow sometime. I forgot to tell Jean, the building manager, when I went home at lunch, that I'm expecting a package from Cingular to be delivered tomorrow by FedEx. I'll tell her or Lena (the housekeeper) this evening. Jean signs for almost every package that comes in anyway.

I went home - well actually over to see Chris - and while in there, I stopped in Jean's office and dropped off my February, 2006 rent check. Then I went to see Chris and got her car keys. I drove down to the Credit Union and made a deposit, then went over to the post office to get a money order to pay a bill - I could pay it either online or by money order. I decided to pay it via money order. I had some other things to mail while there - now all that's taken care of.

Then, when I was done at the post office, I went down to CVS Pharmacy - at Chris' request. She had ordered a refill of a prescription and since she still can't drive because of her foot surgery, she asked me to go pick it up and gave me a check made out to CVS and signed, but the amount was blank. She called them to let them know I was coming to pick it up for her - they know me as I do business there too.

While I was in the store, Chris called to see where I was - she was hoping to catch me before I had left the pharmacy to come back home. She wanted me to pick something else up for her - a couple of packs of 90 minute cassette tapes. I found and got them and then went to get the prescription and also some things I wanted. I paid for my stuff, then paid for Chris' stuff, then discovered they had 12 packs of certain soft drinks on sale 3 for $8 and so I got 3 of them at that price.

When I returned to the apartment building, I went and parked and hauled everything inside and then went out to Chris' with her stuff. After a few minutes, I went up to my apartment and unloaded the drinks and brought the other stuff I got back to work. I was a little late, but that was okay...

Claude and Allan are in the house and Purvis is at lunch; otherwise, it's quiet around here. I may try to read this afternoon if I have sufficient downtime. The book I'm still working on is Walking the Bible: A Journey By Land Through The Five Books Of Moses by Bruce Feiler. I'm enjoying it - it's a very good book, it's just taking a while to get through.

This is it for now...

Wednesday evening

2006-02-01T15:25:00.000-08:00

Here I am again - it's almost 5:30 by the clock on my desk phone. I'm more or less home alone here in the Center. Little John is still rambling about but otherwise the rest of the crowd are gone. I'm waiting on the relief guys to come in at 7:00 p.m.

I set up a new e-mail address yesterday and finsihed the address book today, then printed a copy of it. I'm about done using my Yahoo addresses due to all the spam I get in them. This address will be guarded and not used for sign-up things.

I received an e-mail from Cingular confirming my order and now it's a matter of waiting on it to arrive. I showed Steve the phone on the Cingular site and he liked it - it's a camera phone. I won't use it for that very much since it will cost extra to use it for that purpose - downloading or sending photos, that is.

Not much else for today - this will be it...

Well I Did It!

2006-02-01T10:56:00.000-08:00

I had been unhappy with the bank I've been a customer of for 4 1/2 years for quite some time. Today I finally took the step to fix that. I went to the Credit Union where I'm already a member and opened a checking account with them and transferred money into the account. I was using Chris' car - I drove down to the Credit Union and took care of that and then drove across the street to the Post Office to get stamps while I was in the area since I will be in need of them before long.

When I got back to the apartment complex and went to return Chris' keys, Romeo was cutting up like he wanted to be walked, so I asked Chris if she wanted me to walk him. Instead, she asked me to take her to the vet to get some antibiotics for the cats and Romeo. We went over there and then returned to the apartment complex and after I did a couple of things, I came on in to work. I got with our payroll officer and made the change with her so that next month my paycheck will go to either my new CU account or to me in a paper check.

I also called Cingular about my cellular account and wound up getting a new phone for free and the same plan as I had for less money. They're shipping me the phone and I ought to have it in the next few days - by the middle of next week - FedEx is the carrier.

Not much else is going on for now - this will do it for the present time. I'll be working till 7 p.m. tonight, so I may blog some more this evening.

Cliff, Julie & Landon @ Christmas

2006-01-31T10:20:00.000-08:00

Thought I would add a photo of Cliff, Julie and Landon at Christmas in here. This was Landon's first Christmas and he turned one year old on January 8th - yep, same day as Elvis!

Julie is now in school - nursing I think - and Cliff works full-time with a cellular-related company - connected to BellSouth/Cingular I think it is. Guess you could say I'm proud of Cliff for what he's doing with his life.

The Weekend

2006-01-30T12:19:00.000-08:00

I spent the weekend helping Chris - since she had foot surgery about a week and a half ago. I took Romeo out to walk and exercise him several times. It was inclement weather Saturday, but I did take him out one time that evening.

Sunday after church I went to the Evangelism Explosion Launch Luncheon and after that Mary brought me home. I took Chris to the store - that is, I drove her car and she rode along. She wanted to get some cigarettes and a couple of other things. When we came back, I went up and took a nap and watched Arena Football for a while then went down and got Romeo and took him out for a walk and exercise.

Today - Vicki, Laura and I went to the Women's Luncheon at Church and after we returned, I went and got Romeo and took him out to walk and exercise. Then I came back to work. It's not real busy around here - good thing since Bob is out today because his son is sick and he's got babysitting duty.

Landon Joshua Davis Brooke

2006-01-27T10:28:00.000-08:00

This is Landon - son of my cousin Carol's son Cliff's girlfriend, Julie. Hes one year old and shares his birthday with Elvis (January 8th).

Cliff has indicated a desire to adopt Landon if and when he and Julie marry. Carol isn't waiting for that to happen - she already treats Landon like he's her grandson - to the point of calling him by the full name that I used in the title - his last name is Davis; Cliff's last name is Brooke. Carol uses all four names when she wants his attention so that she can take a picture of him and at Christmas - indeed - there were many pictures taken of this little guy - I'm guilty as well. This is one of my shots of him in the little red wagon Carol and husband Robert got him.

Me - A Picture!

2006-01-27T08:04:00.000-08:00

Taken on a visit to Glacier National Park in Montana while on a mission trip with First Baptist Church. We were in the Avalanche area of the park and were goofing off a little before our worship service started.

I'm not much on having pictures taken of myself - but this one is okay with me to be shared.

Brooke Clan

2006-01-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

This is a is a photo of some of my family in Louisiana. These people are members of the Brooke family: Robert, Carol, John Lewis, Cliff, Robin, Julie, Landon, Rachael and Carol's mom, my Aunt Ruby.

Thought I'd share the photo with you. I may post a photo of Landon, age one, tomorrow by himself.

Good Night...

2006-01-26T14:51:00.000-08:00

Well it's nearly 5:00 p.m. - which means time to mosey on out and home for the day. One more day left in the work week for me.

Till tomorrow...

Annoying...

2006-01-26T12:48:00.000-08:00

This afternoon we're experiencing something annoying - we can't access our e-mail or ASSIST tickets because the server those software applications are on keeps bouncing. But - we can access the Internet all we want and then some!

I don't understand what's going on - maybe the Data Network team will get things straightened out soon.

Just wanted to blow a little steam...