Heavy Heart

There are so many things about this world I just do not understand. When God looks at HIs world, what does He see? How does He feel? My heart feels heavy, even despairing when I see man's evil behaviors, and the results of that behavior in the world. I don't need to list all our sins. They are easily found everyday in the news and sadly in our own homes and hearts.

Rococo
image: www.4design.tv/gallery/sadness.htm

Logic

I love this cartoon. Our dog, Mac, and our cat, Fuzzbuster, have their identities all mixed up. The cat really thinks he is a dog, while the dog, thinks he is part of the family, a human, I guess. To truly be human, Mac would have to stop rolling in dead animals and get over his claustrophobia in buildings. Fuzzbuster needs to learn to bark more realistically and wag his tail a little faster. On the other hand, we human members of the family would definitely benefit from learning to use logic more effectively. I'm sure. Problem is, see, our emotions tend to get in our way. Once upon a time, (long ago and far away), I thought that the male of the human species was more logical and less emotional than the female. However, after being married for 25 years and raising two sons, I have changed my mind. Men are just as emotional as women. They have conveniently learned to disguise their emotional decisions with faulty logic much like the kind found in this cartoon.

Rococo
www.math.union.edu/harris.jpg

NO MORE MATH

"I'm finished with math forever!" exclaimed the junior in highschool. It was the final day of geometry. "No more numbers for me!" She managed to make her way through college without another math class, believe it or not. Sure, she did math without thinking about it, probably on a daily basis. But she managed to get a husband that liked to do all the financial business of the family, plus the grocery shopping! Wow! What a guy! Anyways, all that to say, this woman, with an absolute aversion to numbers, is now taking ALGEBRA I. Reason? She is a mother. I am convinced that mothers will do anything for love. They will fight tigers, walk on nails, give birth, and... take math with their 16 year old homeschooled sons!

Rococo
Image: voyager2.dvc.edu/faculty/doraoavessu/faqs.htm

Taming Men

I've been hard on men in my recent blogs. Perhaps I've given the impression that our current cultural situation is, purely and simply, caused by the male sex. This is, of course, erroneous. I am happily married with two wonderful sons and a lovely daughter. I agree with the comments made by the lone ranger that women should act like ladies if they want to be treated as such. It is just as hard for a young man to find a chaste woman these days as it is for a girl to find a faithful man.

So how are women to blame for their plight? Women are not satisfied with the place God has given them in life and relationships. He created them to be helpmates for their husbands. Feminists want to be like men. They want power. To be like men, they have to have everything that men have. Thus we have the sexual revolution. Women now have equal pay for equal jobs, the right to vote, and sex without commitment to husband or children. True, many women "get stuck" with kids in spite of birth control and abortion, but they do have the comfort of their children in their old age. They may have to raise their children alone, but this responsibility tends to assuage their guilt over a promiscuous life.

Believe it or not, men have guilt as well. What does an unattached male do with his guilt over not taking care of his children and the mother of his children? There are all kinds of ways of temporarily dulling guilty feelings, but long term, perhaps women are better off than men in this society. A 'free-lovin" man usually ends up cold, old, and alone.

When raised correctly, young men are not animals. They, too, have minds as well as bodies. They long for companionship with a woman they can respect and to whom they can commit their lives. But our society has turned, has bent, toward a perverted way of viewing the sexual relationship between a man and woman. Only women, happy to be women as God intended them to be, can tame men, who often don't even realize what they are missing.

Rococo and Sir Colin

image: nightofartists.com/vicki/artwork/liontamers.jpg

Male Conspiracy

My most recent foray into a video store left me feeling like I needed a bath. As I walked down the isles looking for an interesting or funny movie to watch on vacation, I alternated between feeling grossed out, curious, embarrassed, drawn, intrigued, shocked, tempted, horrified... I felt like I was in the wrong store. Surely this was more like a pornography shop, or a gift shop for some violent fringe group, not a good ole American movie lovers store. I know I live a sheltered life, away from most of current American culture, but it saddens me to see where our culture has gone and is going. Do we worship what is represented in the video stores?

NEWS FLASH

Real women do not look or act like the sex goddesses of the screen! Popular culture tells them they should, so they will be wanted. Women want to be valued and desired for who they really are, not for some fantasy idea. They come in all shapes and sizes and they have brains as well as bodies. Their brains went missing during and after the sexual revolution of the sixties. Reproductive freedom? Ha! Women pay for abortion with their bodies and their minds. Men have it better than ever. Now they can get sex without commitment. What do women get from the deal? Equal pay for equal work? Single moms raising kids single-handedly and working full-time to support them! It almost seems like...but, no it couldn't be... a male conspiracy.

Rococo

Choice or Chosen?

Wesandmen blogspot has a resident theologian "on staff". The theologian is also a walking dictionary and encyclopedia. He excels at Trivial Pursuit, however, trivial he is not. Family pursuits are his specialty. He has made the choice to be a good family man. He has also made the choice to be a Christian, or was he chosen? What do you think, Baroque? You are the theologian. As Christians, have we chosen our own destinies, or did God choose for us? If we are sinners, how can we make the right choice? Perhaps God has to choose us, we merely responding to Him in faith. How does our will fit into this picture? Baroque? Theologian? Are you there? Waiting for your words of knowledge and wisdom!

Rococo
Image: www.debanae.net/clipart

Different Music

There has been a request that the wesandmen bloggers sign their screen names to individual posts. So you know what to look for, our screen names are: Rococo, Baroque, Bachman, and Sir Colin. As you can see, the majority of the posts are from Rococo. If" different music" so to speak is desired, perhaps you could make a special request such as, "We want Baroque!"... repeating this request over and over until the blogger feels so admired and needed that he overcomes his shyness at putting his "music" out there for the whole world to hear.

Rococo
image: www.hcc.cc.il.us/online/acsm163/Music.jpg

Annual Mud Day

One of the wesandmen bloggers has entered soil as an interest in our profile. Because of the location of our abode, we do have lots of soil around us. It has been used for various purposes, including farming. My understanding of soil in that context is rather limited but I do have experience with the substance in various other veins, perhaps the most spectacular of which has been Annual Mud Day. This is a day in which the younger members of wesandmen are encouraged to wallow in the mud to their hearts' content. A hole is dug and water poured in until we have thick, dark mud, which is a variety of soil, by the way. The consistency depends, I suppose upon how much clay is in the soil. Clay is good for wallowing because it causes the mud to cling most becomingly to one's skin. We do have a champion wallower on Mud Day. Bachman's intensity for getting covered has not yet been beaten. Indeed, in other places he has been known as Mr. Intensity.
Cleaning off the soil from the Mud Day contestants usually falls to me and requires my favorite weapon, the HOSE. The old clothes have to be trashed and I have seen traces of soil remain in ears for weeks after a particularly competitive contest. It takes perseverance to hose down these brave contestants but I gladly take on the job. This is because I do not want the soil in my house, my primary domain and area of responsibility. Indeed, I have fought the good fight against soil in the house for many years. Sadly, when the battle is over and I am laid to rest, they will probably bury me in the stuff.

Rococo

Chimps Get New Names

The alpha chimp has cast his vote and the survey is complete. We have two nays, two ayes. and one maybe. I will cast the final vote and say that reason says no, but imagination says yes. Anyways, the chimps will get new names, but I doubt they will appreciate the gesture. Oswald, of course, stays, but Benji becomes Frank, Colin becomes Ralph, Timmons is Jack, Jeeyun becomes Blurp, and Nicholas morphs into Oscar. We all have animals we know and love. I just wish I could get into their minds and see what they think of us.

Rococo

williamcalvin.com/portraits/ape%20portraits.htm

Survey Results

We have survey results! Two of our readers have weighed in on the side of animals possessing a sense of humor. One reader asserts that humor is a result of higher intelligence unknown to animals. A fourth reader has maintained that perhaps some animals with higher intelligence may appreciate humor. Perhaps the fifth chimp...er...reader could settle this important question for us. So how about it...Do we want #5 to contribute to the discussion? YES! We want #5! We want #5! We want #5!

Rococo

image: www.physics.gla.ac.uk/-kbarrie/graphics/Laughing.gif

Names

Since my survey was such an overwhelming success, I've decided to name the Chimps.
Nearest foreground is Oswald. To his right, all alone, is Benji. In the foreground to Oswald's left is Colin and then Nicholas. Finally in the left background, are the only couple, Timmons and Jeeyun.....If you would like these guys renamed, you must complete the survey. All of you. You know who you are!

Survey

Please answer this question: Do animals have a sense of humor?

image: http://mywebpages.comcast.net

Basketball Jones

Since high school, my interest in basketball has increased rather than gradually fading away as is common with maturing young adults. I confess that I have watched the film from my younger brother's games (some of it twice), and have lots of ideas. It makes me wonder if I should consider coaching at some level after college. Next week, there will be an all day camp for the team, and I will be present. Unfortunately, I doubt that the guys I played with a scant year and a half ago will respect me enough to listen to me, although I do feel that I have some insight into their situation. Anyway, since they may never get the dubious benefits of my analysis, I thought I could write some of it down.

As with any team, this one has strengths and weaknesses. Sadly, the biggest weakness, namely, the inability to practice more than once per week, will probably not be addressed. Fortunately, there is a glaring weakness that could be aleviated. In the six games that I saw, the team shot 32 percent cumulatively. Of course, there are teams that simply cannot shoot well, and must make up for this deficiency in other areas, but such is not the case with this team. The three players with the most shot attempts are all adept shooters. The beauty of it is, thanks to the plodding pace that characterized them all year, the team was committing relatively few turnovers by the end of the season. In the first game, there were 36 turnovers. In the final game, against a full court press, this team coughed up the ball only 13 times. What never changed the entire year was depressingly bad shot selection. Only four players took a significant number of shots, and they were all guilty of taking wild lay-ups and contested jumpers, when they could have passed the ball or even shake and baked their way into better position. Taking good shots is, perhaps, the most basic common sense advice a coach can give his players, but when the greatest NBA stars take shots that cause any coach to nash his teeth in frustration, who listens? In two games against the same team, our starting shooting guard took fourty shots, and made ten of them. Both these games were decided by a few points.

Getting a good shot is actually not as difficult as it may appear when confronted by a swarming zone defense. In fact, even if none of the players change their ways, I think this year will see an improvement in field goal percentage. This will come partly because the same four players are all significantly better and know each other. Just as importantly, the point guard will probably be able to dribble-penetrate defenses--creating more open shots.

I have not said a great deal about defense for a reason. This team was fairly effective defensively last year and will improve correspondingly this coming season. In many ways I wish that I could have played with these guys. Despite their problems they have the most balanced team in the history of the organization, with a tall, athletic, and high-scoring front court, a multi-talented point guard, and a gifted shooting guard.

Bachmann

image: www,home.2onnet.nl/hdehoop/cartoonsx.htm

She Smiles at the Future

Honestly? I've not yet learned to emulate the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31. Strength and dignity are not yet mine. Hardworking? She makes all the household clothes! Not only does she handle her household with delight, but she stretches out her hand to the poor as well!

In comical contrast, I couldn't make a dress if I tried. ( I have). I work, but with delight? As for the poor? I'm too concerned about my own poverty to worry about Africa. I fall abysmally short of the woman who smiles at the future. Did this woman even exist? Ah... it does say," An excellent wife, who can find?" I'm saved! This is a man's IDEA of the perfect wife.

Still, that smiling at the future...

Rococo
picture: www.literary-cat.cwc.net

A deadly weapon in the hands of a bored mother!

What could make a mother turn this weapon on her children? Easy. Boredom. On a hot summer afternoon, a mother, who shall remain anonymous, frequently convinced her normally bright young children to play "Water-Mother-May-I". This game must be played with small, gullible children, as many as you like, and a mother, on a hot, really hot, boring, really boring, summer day. The children, and the mother must all be so bored that they are desperate for amusement, which makes them (the kids) ready and willing to take risks, and her (the mother) feel rather sadistic. Here's how it goes. The mother holds a HOSE which contains freezing cold water. She points the hose towards the grass or flowers, away from the children. The children line up awaiting her command. The object is the same as in regular "Mother-May-I" except that with each command the children must say "Mother-May-I" and then do as she says while being sprayed with icy water. The closer they get to the finish line, the harder and colder the water gets! The weapon of choice then begins to be aimed directly into the face of the bravest child. Why would any kid in his right mind voluntarily let his mother spray him in the face with cold water? Simple. Boredom.

Anonymous

More Real Than Time

Change is in the air with the return of school and the end of summer. It looks like a slight cooling in our weather, which is a very welcome change. Fall will be a breath of fresh air to clear out the cobwebs that have accumulated in my brain over the lazy summer. Why do we cling to the present when the future may bring wonderful happenings? True, there will be sorrow mixed with joy, but changes make life interesting. Only a breath away lies eternity, more real than time.

Rococo
clocks: http://joseph.vespera.org

Ripe

Finally, the melons are ripe. We picked the first 18 cantalopes and one watermelon.

No Mirror

Yesterday was black as night
Today seems somewhat gray
But lighter, brighter, brighter yet
Will come, will come, one day!

When His face of light and love
Shines clear and near and dear
When His arms around me wind
So close, so close, no mirror!

Oh, to know His shining warmth
To glory in His face
Past and present fade away
Jesus Christ, His name!

Rococo
photo: http://ozthunder.com

Bugged

Have I mentioned that I hate summer? I hate summer! As if the 2 weeks of 100+ weather isn't enough, now I itch all over and my head is full of...I don't know...snot, I guess. The elements are all conspiring against me. And the bugs! Nasty crawling, chomping, stinging, multiplying creepies! Maybe the ripe, juicy melons to come in a few days will change my mind, but right now I wouldn't care if summer went away forever.

Rococo
illustration: pc59te.dte.uma.es

Christmas at Home

Contentment in life is hard to find. I often think, if I just had this or that I would be content. However, once the desired object or experience is achieved, I begin to want something else! Learning to be content with what I have brings peace to my life, but to desire more for the right reasons is a good thing. For instance, my house is a sufficient size for the four of us living here, but when other family members visit, it feels cramped. I would love to have a great big dining room-kitchen that would host extended family for gatherings in the years to come. No family reunions in motel rooms for us. Christmas at home with Grandma and Grandpa is what I envision for my family! Yes, it's a lot of work, but the memories of home and family are wonderful for children and grandchildren.

Rococo
Christmas tree from myschoolonline.com