Burglar

God indeed works in mysterious ways. Today I was off for Veterans' Day. We decided to go to a nearby town to Target and other stores. Upon returning home about 1:30, we found a strange pickup truck in our driveway. Our dog was going nuts in the LOCKED backyard 6 foot privacy fence. I went in through the house to the backyard to find a young punk trying to get into my house through one of the back doors. He gave me a cocamammy story about why he was there. I asked him if he were on drugs or something. I sent my son for my cell phone and called 911. As he scaled back over the fence, I went through the house and was able to chase him down the driveway as he screeched off. I gave the dispatcher his license plate number. When the deputy arrived, he told me this guy's M-0. Yes, they'd been looking for him. Two hours later the deputy called me back and asked me to come to a nearby neighborhood to ID him. He'd hit 3 houses today and they found pawn receipts in his truck dating back a few years.

IF I had not been home today, AND IF we had not gone out of town, AND IF we had not returned when we did, this punk would still be robbing. GOD orchestrated this and used us to get this guy off the street. IMHO.

CVS for .49

Here is what I got for .49: 5 Palmolives, one L'Oreal Revitalift, and one cat calendar for 2009. I made $18.99 in ECBS!

Dad's Birthday

Sunday was Dad's 81st birthday. I am so thankful God has allowed me to continue to have him. He is wonderful to me and a surrogate dad to Matthew.

Teaching

Friday I got this unexpected surprise from a student. Most of the time teaching is very frustrating, but it's times like this when a student hugs you and says "you're great" that make the difference.

Buddy

Here is Buddy resting on the couch.

Buddy is our 5 year-old lab mixed with perhaps golden retriever. He is such a joy. He is fiercely protective of *his* home, which includes *his* yard, *his* street, and anything else he sees. One little quirk he has is that when I give him a Milk bone dog bone, he immediately wants to bury it. Here he is after coming in from burying one. (Notice the brown nose.)

Voting

I voted. I got to the polling place at 6:30 and although there were at least 30 people ahead of me, I was out by 7:15. It feels good to be in a country where you can still vote.

CVS Deals

I went to CVS for a few deals Saturday. I got about $42 worth of products and spent $33, but I got $22 back in ECBS. So, in reality, I spent about $11 for all of this. It's not my best trip, but it wasn't too bad.

Winter Herb Garden

With the cooler weather, I have moved a few of my herb plants inside. This is a tray of basil and rosemary. The basil went crazy on the porch this summer. This is the first time I've ever tried growing herbs, and they did very well. I still have single pots of Greek oregano, marjoram, and parsley to bring in. Does anyone have good luck with herbs inside during the winter?

Election

I remember the first time I voted for President. Ronald Reagan was running in 1980. Reagan was to me like John Kennedy was to another generation. I have never not voted since then. I will be out Tuesday at my polling place before it opens to secure my place in line. It is a critical time for our country, and I am concerned about the masses who seem to be flocking to Barack Obama simply because he is a "feel good" speaker. Yes, I said "speaker". He has a gift for oratory, no doubt about it. But, many things concern me about him:

• His lack of experience
• His associations with hatemongers
• His stand on abortion
• His plan to grow our big government even bigger and spread the wealth around to those who don't want to work. (A student last week wrote he liked Obama because he was going to give people Medicaid.)

Our country needs prayer.

Prayer Plant

This prayer plant started out in a small plastic pot in July of 2007. When I was in the hospital for my cancer surgery, some colleagues at work got it for me. It was small enough to rest on the hospital room table. About a year ago, I had to transplant it into a slightly bigger pot. When the weather turned colder last November, it moved into the garage for the winter. (Since I have pets in the house, I have no house plants near them.) Recently a co-worker gave me two really big fake terra cotta planters. The other day I transplanted this plant yet again. It has tripled in size since I got it. Soon, it will be time for it to go to the garage for yet another winter. This plant remains a symbol to me of God's faithfulness in the wake of my cancer. It has continued to thrive as I have.