Roller Coaster Ramblings

The Tour de France will end this Saturday and i am pretty confident that Lance Armstrong will not be bringing home an 8th victory, and i am happy with that. When he announced his return to professional cycling he said his intended goal was to raise awareness of his charity "Live Strong" and he's been doing an outstanding job of raising cancer awareness. I was concerned that his own personal drive would cause a distraction between him and his Astana team mates, but when Alberto Contador took the lead and then made sure he stayed there this past weekend, i like how Lance is playing the team member. Everyone knows Lance has ambition and drive, but i am glad to see that he is not so caught up in all that enough to realize that he is a team member and he can still get his message out by helping his team and team mate win the overall Tour. Just to be completely random... i ran across this YouTube video of a marriage proposal at Disney World and thought i'd share it. Today there are a lot of news articles on how President Obama referred to the police who arrest a Harvard Professor, Henry Louis Gates Jr, as 'acting stupidly'. This has brought to mind several recent 'altercations' with the public getting televised and not really showing the police in general in a very good light. I am not going to speak to all of the recent events, nor am i able to speak intelligently about the incident in Cambridge, MA. It is impossible to govern or police a citizenry without its consent. There is a time and a place to voice concerns about some actions - the time may not be when the officer has you pulled over, or he is confronting you (even in your own home). More often than not, if you work with the police in a cordial tone and attitude, you will be on your way much sooner. Last night my beloved and i went out to dinner. I was not feeling all that great so i ordered up a couple of blueberry pancakes with blueberry syrup. Yum! My love got her usual roast beef with mashed potatoes and cooked carrots. Of those menu items the kids only like the roast beef so she likes to indulge and go out to eat so she can savor it. *lol* Speaking of spending time with my beloved, last night we put in the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice. We had started it earlier in the week (well, it 300 minutes long!), but i was not going to be denied last night! I stayed up until 12:30 just to finish it! What a goof i am, but i do really like that movie. I finally got to try out my new hat. It started to rain and i realized that i had left my windows open in my car so i donned it and took off. One of the few times i've regretted parking at the furthest point from my office building. But i love it already. Water resistant, light weight, vented and a nice wide brim to keep the sun off my neck and the my glasses dry. I continue to struggle with a fear of man regarding the letter i want to write. I've not slowed myself down enough to just pray through it and get the pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard as it were). Please just pray that ultimately God is glorified with whatever takes place.

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to [1] a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, [2] and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me. [3] Follow the pattern of the sound [4] words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. (2 Timothy 1:6-14, ESV)