A Masterpiece from Horizon to Horizon

I haven't posted in a few days.  Not much going on.  We made some visits to ailing residents.  On Saturday, this is what I found when I stepped out of the Q with my laundry... a dust storm!  This was not here earlier.

After lunch, the dust settled and it was once again beautiful, so T and I got our eight miles in.  It's also warming up again after a couple of days of cool.

Sunday was great!  Don's message was so good.  The Holy Spirit was present and as one man stated, "I just wanted to run up and down the aisles, shouting."  I'm not sure where he's been worshipping before he got here, but I'm happy he enjoyed worshipping with us. 

We were invited to Barney's for lunch with about thirty others.  Thankfully, it's a buffet, so we all got seated and were enjoying a good meal pretty quickly.

Sunday afternoon, I rode first, alone, without being prompted by anyone... eight miles.  Aren't you proud of me?  I had been back at the Q for about an hour when "my conscience" knocked on the door, so guess what?.... I rode six more miles with her.  That's a total of fourteen miles for Sunday!

Monday, a day of rest for us.

Tuesday, there was a park meeting in the community room with the manager.  Don went.  T and I rode our bikes, skipping the meeting.  Glad we did.  We were mentioned in regard to almost running over someone in a golf cart with our bikes...  the manager!!! Oooops.  We'll catch that stop sign next time.  Hey, I slowed down and looked both ways.

Tuesday afternoon, I rode (in her car) with T over to Eloy to visit with the superintendent of schools there about a volunteer program for those in our park who are interested in encouraging at-risk students.  It was a great meeting... she was very receptive and eager to have volunteers.  Volunteers will need to be finger-printed and a background check done.... $65/each.  We'll cross that "bridge" when we have volunteers.  Thelma is a retired Michigan teacher who loved her job, and the student that is assigned to her will be blessed beyond measure.  We want the community around and outside of the church here at the resort to miss us if we are ever not a church here anymore.  (Does that make sense?)

While I was gone, I missed Abby on The Ellen Show this afternoon.  I was upset until I found it today on YouTube... just the part Abby is in.  I love what she said about seeing her family again one day.  (don't forget to mute my playlist before watching this video)

Now it's Wednesday.  We went to Casa Grande and found a portable ice maker on sale at Target.  We've been looking for one for over two years.  Yeah!! No more buying bags of ice!

It's been cloudy all day, so I knew the sunset was going to be beautiful.  As the sun was setting, I walked around the cactus garden click pictures in the dusk.  I just love this miniature.... ... upon closer inspection... what are those holes in the top?  Oh how cute!  Salt and pepper shakers!I must ask Toma what kind of tree this is.  It has dropped it's beans all over the ground... .... only a few beans, you see. The sun is setting... right on cue.I love the glow of the setting sun on the cactus garden.  

.... and then I turned around.  Oh my!

The sky was on fire!!!

I have done nothing to these pictures... no editing. Most of these are toward the east, northeast and southeast.From second to second, the clouds and sun painted a new picture.  Enjoy.Is this not amazing?!~

I apologize that this post is long.  Hope you enjoyed the pictures.  Wish you were all here to witness The Master Setting the Sky on Fire.

"And all these things will be added unto you."  We are so blessed.

~*~*~*~

Worry is like a rocking chair — it gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere.
— Dorothy Galyean

Abby

Abby Rike, our friend who was on The Biggest Loser show this season, will be on The Ellen Show, tomorrow, Tuesday, November 3rd and on The Today Show the 3rd, as well, in the 8 o'clock hour (CST). What an amazing lady she is and we pray only awesome things for her future.  Set your DVRs.

Making Your Bible Come Alive

from the messages of Adrian Rogers

BIBLE MEDITATION:
2 Timothy 2:15 - "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
Why is it that sometimes when we read the Bible we leave our common sense at the door? You don’t just pick up a book, open it at random, and start reading in the middle of a paragraph. The book wouldn’t make any sense. In order to understand and get the full appreciation for the book, we read it sequentially and in paragraphs or units. When you read the Bible, read for quality not quantity. Don’t see how much of the Bible you can read. See how much of the Bible you can assimilate and apply! Maybe what you need to do is spend a week studying one verse.
ACTION POINT:
In your Bible reading today, stop and ask yourself, "What is God telling me?" Not "What does this say?" But "What is God saying to ME?" Then seek to put that into practice today.

Pass This On To a Friend || Discover Jesus

G'bye to friends

When I walked outside this morning to go down to tell Nancy and George goodbye, the sky was full of activity... to the west....... there goes one!.... .... and to the east.

Nancy helps George connect the Clydesdale to the fifth-wheel.  They are heading out this morning and we are so sad to see them go.  We love them so.

Yes, it's this cool this morning.  Right before she ducked her head, Sherrie Walker said, "Do you not go anywhere without your camera?"  But Ray doesn't mind as he flash a great smile for the lens.  I don't know what Sherrie's problem is, she always looks picture perfect.  I know, it's a woman thing.  She probably doesn't have her make-up on yet, but trust me, she's beautiful without it.
Yeah!!! Jack and Kathy Gordon are back... friends across the street and down a few sites!  They had to travel through the snow to get here.

Choir practice this morning went good and we and a few more join us.  We're growing.

Wendy and Rick came over for a panini and hot soup supper.  Afterwards, we played three games of Spades.  I'll just say... "Yeah Girls!!"  It was fun and as always, we laughed a lot.

We are so blessed.

~~~~~

Lord, may our lives be set apart
And useful in Your hands,
Pursuing righteousness and faith
As we fulfill Your plans. —Sper

A Christian’s greatest joy is to be used by God.

Woo the Hoo!... girlfriend time!

("Woo the Hoo" is a phrase I borrowed from sweet Stacie, who just started her blog, My Journey to Becoming a RockStar, because it's fun and I just love it.)

Our eight mile bike ride was postponed until 10:00 this morning because it was about 40 degrees this morning at 8:30. (It was 34 when Don got up.)  I rode over and trimmed the back of T's hair and then we rode. 

At a little after eleven, Nancy and I went to Casa Grande to meet Snookie, Donna and Ginny for lunch at the Creative Cafe, a new experience for Ginny and Snookie. 

Here's Nancy while we are waiting for the other three to arrive.  They kind of, sort of got lost but got to the cafe before noon.  I was experimenting without using the flash inside the cafe.

Snookie taking a picture of Ginny with a lemon on her fork.  "Are you going to eat that lemon, Ginny?"  (sorry about the back light)Nancy and Donna.My Triple Berry Salad w/ grilled chicken.  Which was delicious with raspberries, blackberries and strawberries and white cheddar cheese.  I also had a cup of hot Veggie Pesto soup that was equally yummy.

Ginny's gyro and Greek salad.

Donna's and I don't remember what kind of sandwich it was... turkey something and broccoli salad.

Our very attentive waiter, Anthony....who was happy to take our picture with all of our cameras.  Thanks Anthony!!I just could not leave without getting a picture of Jimmy, famous for the saying on his t-shirt.  Jimmy remembered me (not by name) and even asked how my husband was today.  Such a sweetheart.We had a great time and apologize to the ladies at the table next to us for being a little loud.  All five of us are full-time RV'ers, which means that we have no real estate back "home" to go home to.  Our home is where we park it, wheel estate.  Snookie and Bob are the only ones who also have a park model at a resort here in Arizona where they spend the winter, but they travel in the summer with their fifth-wheel.  Woo the hoo!!

Thanks to my niece, Tammy, I will be able to watch this week's Biggest Loser show.  It's not posted yet, but it should be soon.  Here's the link if you missed it:

http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/categories/season-8/1159355/

I will tell you that Abby goes home this week, at her own insistence, and my Leslie told me that it is an incredible episode... BL really did right by Abby and she is on the road to complete health and as Leslie said, "HOTNESS!"

You go Abby!!  Because of your inspiration, I'm exercising and Stacie is exercising and so many others across this nation.  I know that you are going to be in demand as a motivational speaker.  I am so proud of you!

On a sadder note, our little wandering man, Art, passed away late yesterday.  It's sad, but it's also a blessing that he didn't linger on this earth very long after his body and mind stopped functioning.  Thank you for your prayers for his family.

While Don was walking and visiting this morning, he was told that Roy, a gentleman who sang in the choir with us last winter, died during surgery this week.  We are shocked and saddened.  Please pray for Roy's family, also.

Well, tomorrow Nancy and George leave this park headed to Peoria, AZ to work on a SOWERS (Servants On Wheels Ever Ready) project there.  We have so enjoyed having them here and are sad to see them leave, but we pray the best for them, always.

We are so blessed. 

Ta-Dah... the dust is gone!

Tell me.  Do you see a motor on this old bike anywhere??? There's my "conscience"... right on schedule.  Why does she have a jacket on this morning? Because it's 54 degrees with a strong breeze this morning, but thank the Lord, there's no dust blowing.  There were a few clouds to the south.Eight thirty this morning.Toward the north, only blue skies.The skydivers were enjoying the beautiful morning.

Sunscape RV Resort is preparing their float for the Veteran's Day parade.

This is me on my bike this morning.

I sure need to get these steps painted.  Oh, look! there's my motor-less bicycle!

Don and I learned that one of our local friends is in the hospital with colon problems, so we went to Casa Grande to visit her this morning.  She's better, but still not sure what treatment she will be receiving.  Please say a prayer for Elaine.

Tonight, we walked up to the Community Center with George and Nancy to watch the "jammers" pick and grin.  Sing it, GH!

Bob and Naomi are celebrating 59 years of marriage this week and are still dancing.  Here's a silhouette of them.

Don Tomes.

Dennis Harvey, the very talented harmonica player.

Don.

Virgil.

Sherri.

Marie and her squeeze box. 

We are so blessed.

Eight...

The bougainvillea has a flower in a flower.I'm very bummed that I missed Biggest Loser tonight... and forgot to record it. Abby is gone and I missed one of the best shows.  She is such an inspiration and I can't believe I missed this episode!

Yes, Thelma came at 8:30 this morning and we rode our bikes eight miles.

George and Don started working on a project... steps for the Q that are a little safer for the older folks who come to visit us.  Over in a common area, there are several sets of steps available for anyone who needs them, so they picked out the best set and brought them back here to work on them.  A handrail was needed.  So George went to work attaching a hand rail. Now, all I need to do is paint the new steps.  Thanks, George.  Your help is greatly appreciated.

Around noon, the wind has already picked up and the dust is beginning to blow.

This afternoon, Nancy, George, Don and I went over to Quail Run to share a pot luck dinner with Rick, Wendy, Bob and Snookie.  By the time we left, the dust was so thick, the sun was barely visible.From the road, the wind tunnel can still be seen through the dust.  There are no sky divers this afternoon.The sun is almost completely blocked by the dust blowing.The view over Interstate 10.It's almost a brown-out.  This is what a desert dust storm looks like.Here's Snookie arriving at the pot-luck with her wonderful potato salad and green bean salad.Wendy said the pool was drained today for repairs.  Notice how the palms trees are blowing.The blessing for the meal has been prayed and it time to eat!  Wendy, Snookie, Nancy, George.After a wonderful meal, we thoroughly enjoyed sitting around telling stories... I think we told about eight stories and we laughed a lot.

Bob Quinn telling about riding his bike around Quail Run... 7 1/2 miles.   Snookie listening to Wendy.Wendy said, "I'm getting really sick of hearing about you riding your bike EIGHT miles EVERYDAY!"Rick Fury.

Donna O'Neil arrives......just in time to take a group picture.  How funny... there's EIGHT of us!!!!George and Nancy Reid, Don and me, Snookie and Bob Quinn, Rick and Wendy Fury.  

We had a great time together.  We just love these friends from our first winter in Arizona here at Quail Run, even if they teased me unmercifully tonight.  It seemed that every subject discussed containing a number... well, that number was changed to eight.  You know, I'm beginning to think they don't believe I ride my bike EIGHT miles everyday.  Bob even wanted to know what kind of motor I have on my bike!!! 

We are all so blessed!

~~~~~~~~

>>What is your birth verse?<< Mine is:

2 Corinthians 5:20 NIV
We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.

Answered prayers

Monday.  Yeah!  It's a new week and time marches on.  This week and October 2009 will be done... over.

When I entered the living area of the Q this morning, Don was sitting in his recliner, just sitting there, instead of at the table with the laptop.  "Hon, are you okay?"  "No, I'm bummed," was his reply.  And here's the story:

Back in August, Don ordered a "free trial" of Acai capsules for me because the online ad was so convincing... just order a months supply and only pay the shipping.  They were so sure that we would be thrilled that then we would want to order more.  Great idea, huh?  I'll also order using my debit card. By the time our orders caught up with us in Texas, the fifteen days they give you to cancel your order before they start debiting your account was expired.  Not only was there two orders, the two orders consisted of two different products, both totaling $65.  Not only that, we didn't learn about the 15 day limit until I opened the order.  Now the light bulb has come on and we realize we've been scammed.  They supplied the toll free number to cancel the order, so I called on September 14th and canceled both orders, getting cancellation confirmation numbers.   Good, that's taken care of.  We chalked the loss up to a good lesson learned.  Not so fast.  The end of September, we received another order AND $65 x 4 was again taken from our account.  I called them again and this time, customer service was very rude to me.  We refused the shipment and hoped they would refund our money.  October.... this morning, again, $65 x 4 is pending to be taken from our banking account.  No way!!!  And the other was never refunded.  So, after my eight mile bike ride with Thelma, Don's morning walk, and our devotional and prayer time, Don and I headed to Bank of America in Casa Grande.  They were wonderful, placed us in an empty office with the Dispute Department on the phone and that young man took our information and said that because I had the cancellation confirmation numbers and the date, our money would be back in our account tomorrow.  He then canceled both of our debit cards and ordered new ones.  Then we were issued a temporary card until our new cards arrive in the mail.  The CS guy said they have been getting a lot of these complaints and most folks don't even realize that they should call the company to cancel.  He also said, the way the company has their procedures set up is legal, but it is not legal that they are ignoring the cancellation request.  I tell you this story to hopefully, help someone avoid what we've been through.  And, by the way, Acai may be an excellent product, it did not do for me what they promised, if indeed, there truly was acai berry in those capsules.  Who knows, they may be the reason I got sick.  Thank You, Jesus, for answering our prayer regarding the $$ missing from our account and for the folks at the bank being so nice.

After all that, we met Rick and Wendy at the Chinese Buffet for lunch, planned our dinner for tomorrow night and came back home.

Since I now realize how far I'm riding my bike, boy!!, I'm tired!!, so a nap was the order of the afternoon.  Pitiful, isn't it?

Great news from John Long.  Here's John's blog post from last night:  http://thelongs-ontheroad.blogspot.com/2009/10/hospital-report.html 

John, also called today and said Judy may even get to go home today or tomorrow.  Praise our wonderful Lord and Savior!!

We are so blessed.