I seem to have gained, it seems, some followers of the blog. So I’ll just come out and say, “Has it really been two weeks since I’ve written?”
“Well, yes it has,” if I can answer my own question. So here we are two weeks later than before. Spring is definitely in the air; March Madness (basketball) is well under way; I am already behind in my spring yard work; life seems to hurtle ever more quickly down the line of time.
Time.
Sometimes, I feel like I’m at the side of the time stream, looking on as a bystander. Other times, it feels like I’m right in the middle of it and it is carrying me downstream more quickly than I ever wanted to go. And there are a few times when the stream seems to be thick as molasses and I’m stuck in it and can’t get out.
This thing called time is an ever-changing chameleon, never predictable, always going somewhere. It is at once a friend and an enemy. It soothes and gives peace, and it grates and makes life miserable. It is cussed and praised. It is real, yet not tangible. We don’t know what it is or how it works, but we live with it, see the results of it, and keep track of it with clocks and watches.
Einstein proved that time is (or appears to be) a variable. He also showed that we should think of space-time…not space and time. Yet we calculate to the nth degree the span of a second.
We compensate for variations in the span of time in our satellite communications networks (GPS, for one). Yet we all age at the same rate and are all similarly affected by the passage of time.
We don’t know the future, try to forget the past, and don’t appreciate enough the present. We waste time, kill time, pass time, and mark time. We all have the same amount of time in a day. Yet some of us are much more productive than others of us and some of us seem to have an endless source of time to accomplish what others could only imagine.
It’s a great gift, this gift of time.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Carry Yourself Back
I don’t know about you, but there are certain sounds and songs that bring various memories and incidents to my mind. I think most people react this way to, say, a love song or the song of a certain species of bird, etc. Then there are songs that tend to take one way back to simpler times in childhood.
One such song for me is the Captain Kangaroo theme song. As many of you know, Captain Kangaroo was a children’s show that ran on CBS for many, many years in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. I don’t know how long…you can Google it if you like.
The Captain was always polite…always entertaining…always even somewhat predictable. He taught manners and proper behavior and enlightened us with various animals, special guests, and by other means. His Treasure House was filled with wonderful, wondrous things, both living and inanimate. Bunny Rabbit, Mr. Moose, Dancing Bear, Grandfather Clock (To wake Grandfather Clock, he would always say, “On the count of three, I want you to say ‘Grandfather’, but say it softly so as not to startle him.”), Mr. Green Jeans, Dennis, Tom Terrific, and many others.
The theme music for the show, if you recall, always played when the house keys were off of the hook, and stopped when the keys were put back on the hook. Most of the time, one heard only a portion of the theme music, but once in a while, for some reason, much of the theme was allowed to play.
I recently found the theme as I remember it on the show. The song is entitled “Puffin’ Billy” and can be found at http://www.gocek.org/sounds/captain-kangaroo.mp3
Go ahead and take a listen. Carry yourself back to the simpler time.
One such song for me is the Captain Kangaroo theme song. As many of you know, Captain Kangaroo was a children’s show that ran on CBS for many, many years in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. I don’t know how long…you can Google it if you like.
The Captain was always polite…always entertaining…always even somewhat predictable. He taught manners and proper behavior and enlightened us with various animals, special guests, and by other means. His Treasure House was filled with wonderful, wondrous things, both living and inanimate. Bunny Rabbit, Mr. Moose, Dancing Bear, Grandfather Clock (To wake Grandfather Clock, he would always say, “On the count of three, I want you to say ‘Grandfather’, but say it softly so as not to startle him.”), Mr. Green Jeans, Dennis, Tom Terrific, and many others.
The theme music for the show, if you recall, always played when the house keys were off of the hook, and stopped when the keys were put back on the hook. Most of the time, one heard only a portion of the theme music, but once in a while, for some reason, much of the theme was allowed to play.
I recently found the theme as I remember it on the show. The song is entitled “Puffin’ Billy” and can be found at http://www.gocek.org/sounds/captain-kangaroo.mp3
Go ahead and take a listen. Carry yourself back to the simpler time.
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Mish Mash
I think I saw a "first" today. Our guest speaker at church used an electronic gadget (I don't know what it was) to store and retrieve his lesson notes. Instead of shuffling cards or papers, he poked on the screen from time to time to bring up new pages. I wonder how much longer it will be until I have something like that for the lessons I teach.
Other things I've recently seen/heard/found out:
The downtown Topeka business district has many closed storefronts. I don't know if it was the recent recession or not, but Kansas Avenue between 5th Street and 10th Street has probably 20 or more storefronts that are empty. It makes the downtown area rather dreary compared to what it was a few years ago.
On a related note...the restaurant that was on 6th Street downtown also has closed. That's the place I talked about in one of my earlier blogs...http://hubblefan.blogspot.com/2006/06/downtowner.html That's kind of a sad thing. I had wanted to eat there yesterday while we were in town.
I did eat at the Hanover Pancake House on Kansas Avenue. It's been there for years. I ordered bacon and three eggs with pancakes. Oh, my goodness! Four large slices of bacon, three eggs cooked in butter over medium well, hashbrowns also fried in butter that were crispy just right, and two of the largest pancakes, yet so very good pancakes with warm syrup and more butter. It was every breakfast junkie's dream.
There is value in bookstores one can go into and touch the merchandise. Online is fine, but sometimes I need to peruse a book before buying. I'm glad the Christan bookstore in West Topeka is still open. Got a Joshua commentary there that I can use in my next adult class.
The Topeka library has restricted computer access to patrons with library cards. So much for being able to stop there and check email, etc. Non card-holders can still peruse periodicals, though, and they have IRS forms and booklets there yet.
I wonder how many toll roads and turnpikes have an exit called "cattle pens". The Kansas Turnpike does. And the exit is exactly what it says it is, in the middle of the Flint Hills. If you Google "cattle pens kansas" you'll find three or four short articles about that exit and the pronghorn antelope heard that is being re-introduced into that area. Makes a good short read.
The Supreme Court upheld freedom of speech this past week. You know the group, which hails from Topeka. For what it's worth, that decision was a foregone (and correct) decision. I don't like their speech any more than you do. But I want that freedom there, intact, when I have something to say that someone else doesn't like. If they are ignored long enough, they'll go away. Really.
A good friend and former co-worker passed away suddenly yesterday. Makes one aware that no one knows "the time".
Other things I've recently seen/heard/found out:
The downtown Topeka business district has many closed storefronts. I don't know if it was the recent recession or not, but Kansas Avenue between 5th Street and 10th Street has probably 20 or more storefronts that are empty. It makes the downtown area rather dreary compared to what it was a few years ago.
On a related note...the restaurant that was on 6th Street downtown also has closed. That's the place I talked about in one of my earlier blogs...http://hubblefan.blogspot.com/2006/06/downtowner.html That's kind of a sad thing. I had wanted to eat there yesterday while we were in town.
I did eat at the Hanover Pancake House on Kansas Avenue. It's been there for years. I ordered bacon and three eggs with pancakes. Oh, my goodness! Four large slices of bacon, three eggs cooked in butter over medium well, hashbrowns also fried in butter that were crispy just right, and two of the largest pancakes, yet so very good pancakes with warm syrup and more butter. It was every breakfast junkie's dream.
There is value in bookstores one can go into and touch the merchandise. Online is fine, but sometimes I need to peruse a book before buying. I'm glad the Christan bookstore in West Topeka is still open. Got a Joshua commentary there that I can use in my next adult class.
The Topeka library has restricted computer access to patrons with library cards. So much for being able to stop there and check email, etc. Non card-holders can still peruse periodicals, though, and they have IRS forms and booklets there yet.
I wonder how many toll roads and turnpikes have an exit called "cattle pens". The Kansas Turnpike does. And the exit is exactly what it says it is, in the middle of the Flint Hills. If you Google "cattle pens kansas" you'll find three or four short articles about that exit and the pronghorn antelope heard that is being re-introduced into that area. Makes a good short read.
The Supreme Court upheld freedom of speech this past week. You know the group, which hails from Topeka. For what it's worth, that decision was a foregone (and correct) decision. I don't like their speech any more than you do. But I want that freedom there, intact, when I have something to say that someone else doesn't like. If they are ignored long enough, they'll go away. Really.
A good friend and former co-worker passed away suddenly yesterday. Makes one aware that no one knows "the time".
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Potpourri
I'm not sure how March is supposed to look, but March 2011 looks great, at least the first day of it. Warm, gentle breeze, sunny, puffy clouds...it has the feel of a perfect day. There's a gorgeous sunset going on outside as I type this and the day is about the best that it can possibly be.
I'm sure it won't always be this way. March is also the beginning of severe weather season in our neck of the woods. We've already had a round of thunder boomers a few days ago, and over the next three or four months, we'll experience more of the same.
There will be wind. There will be rain. There will be hail. There will be tornadoes. That's part of living in this part of the world. And it makes things interesting, to say the least. I don't necessarily like the severe weather, but I do like to hear the thunder, see and hear the rain, and enjoy the cleansing of the earth and atmosphere.
I am also looking forward to see how the year 2011 turns out. There are several things going on in our family, our church, and in work that will have some sort of resolution or advancement. And, of course, there will be new ideas, new thoughts, and new things coming along in life.
I know I'm getting older, but I continue to enjoy seeing some things in new and different ways. I hope that doesn't change as I continue to age for as long as the Good Lord allows.
We are richly blessed in life. God has provided us with an existence that 98 percent of the world's population can only dream about. Along with that comes a responsibility to partner with God where He is working. And that is where life's real challenges, joys, and satisfactions come. There's nothing quite like being the instrument of the God of the universe and seeing how He uses one's efforts in His work of redemption.
Thank you for your continued participation in my writing. I know I've slowed down some, and I know blogs can be rather passe, but I plan to continue with this for the time being. So check in from time to time and we'll continue down life's path together.
I'm sure it won't always be this way. March is also the beginning of severe weather season in our neck of the woods. We've already had a round of thunder boomers a few days ago, and over the next three or four months, we'll experience more of the same.
There will be wind. There will be rain. There will be hail. There will be tornadoes. That's part of living in this part of the world. And it makes things interesting, to say the least. I don't necessarily like the severe weather, but I do like to hear the thunder, see and hear the rain, and enjoy the cleansing of the earth and atmosphere.
I am also looking forward to see how the year 2011 turns out. There are several things going on in our family, our church, and in work that will have some sort of resolution or advancement. And, of course, there will be new ideas, new thoughts, and new things coming along in life.
I know I'm getting older, but I continue to enjoy seeing some things in new and different ways. I hope that doesn't change as I continue to age for as long as the Good Lord allows.
We are richly blessed in life. God has provided us with an existence that 98 percent of the world's population can only dream about. Along with that comes a responsibility to partner with God where He is working. And that is where life's real challenges, joys, and satisfactions come. There's nothing quite like being the instrument of the God of the universe and seeing how He uses one's efforts in His work of redemption.
Thank you for your continued participation in my writing. I know I've slowed down some, and I know blogs can be rather passe, but I plan to continue with this for the time being. So check in from time to time and we'll continue down life's path together.
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