Rob's Ramblings

It's been a while since I have posted, I figured you might be weary of my ramblings after 12 uninterrupted days of state fair musings. :-)

Life continues as usual, with a few bumps in the road. The much-anticipated trip to Tijuana in December has been cancelled, due to happenings in San Diego. The church there, Ocean View Church, is in the midst of a massive expansion project. After being in one of their services, I can understand why they need to grow. The church stands at about 1,400 members, with 3 services, one of them being in Spanish. It is an incredible church with a powerful outreach to the people of San Diego. Due to this, they are constantly growing, and they need to make room. The pastors of that church are very involved with this project, and are unable to break away for a trip to Tijuana. However, I have been assured that there will be a trip next Summer with my name on it. I am dampened at not being able to go love on those kids in December, but God has a plan. I have to trust it. It will make next Summer's trip even more special. Yet, I don't know if I can wait that long! I could always just go on my own, but I really don't have peace about doing that. To venture alone into an unknown country with only one previous trip under my belt is madness. Maybe one day, but today is not that day.

I have also become wrapped up in the latest Jan Karon novel. Jan Karon is a noted author, mainly of the Mitford series. The Mitford series is comprised of about 12 books following the life of a minister and his family in a small community called Mitford. In Mitford, everyone knows everyone else, and people care about each other. There is a very colorful cast of characters in this series, and Jan Karon's pen causes the characters to jump off the page and endear themselves to you. If you love to read, and enjoy novels about life in a small town, The Mitford series might be a good fit. You WILL want to read them in order, as the books sequence as time goes by. The first book is called "At Home in Mitford." Jan Karon releases a new Mitford book every few years, and people jump on them quickly. Those of us who are fans will read them at high speed, finish, and want more. I hope that Jan Karon does not plan to retire anytime soon. I am almost done with the current one, "Somewhere Safe With Somebody Good."  That is one main reason why the blog has been neglected. I've had my nose in a book.

As September draws to a close, and October draws near, I start think about Fall activities. In the Fall, I will celebrate a double number birthday at 44. October 26 is about the greatest day of the year. I love to celebrate my birthday. I don't bemoan growing older, or the few strands of gray that are slowly creeping in. It's a reason to celebrate another year of life that God has so graciously given us. I also look forward to Thanksgiving. The day before Thanksgiving is a major holiday for me, as it's my annual "day of baking." I go into the kitchen and whip up a colossal amount of all kinds of goodies that I take along to Thanksgiving get-togethers. In the next few weeks, I will make up an ingredient list, scour the cupboards to see what I have, and begin collecting what I need. In the past few years, I have added an extra bonus to this day of baking, and invite the people who read my blog to stop by the house for a sample of what I have. More info to come on that soon.

Speaking of giving things away, does anyone need some red home-grown tomatoes? We are nearing the end of the season, and the tomatoes will not last much longer. Every year at the end of the growing season, I declare a garden winner. What veggie in Rob's garden gets the gold medal for being productive? This year it goes to the tomatoes, with sunflowers 2nd and corn 3rd. I have several cantaloupes, but they are small and wither before they are big enough to benefit from. That pathetic honeydew melon has never gotten bigger than an acorn in the 2 months since it's appearance. The same goes to my pumpkin vine that had a few tiny pumpkins on it that finally died out. I never saw a trace of anything from my watermelon or cucumber plants. It was a first-year garden, so I have a better idea of how I'm going to go about it next Spring.  

I've rambled long enough. I have much to accomplish today, and it won't get done by staring at a computer screen. I wish you a blessed weekend! Until next time.......

***Rob***