Meet Molly

"The average dog is a nicer person than the average person."- Andy Rooney

This little muscle-bound dog guarding the pile of corn from local wildlife is Molly, our 3 1/2 year old Jack Russell Terrier, or Terror, depending on the day. Molly was my gift on our two-year wedding anniversary though she's really Chris's dog. She's quite the tom boy and does her best to keep our little eight acres clear of cats, mice, deer, raccoons, squirrels, crows and of course other dogs. She's so intent on standing her ground that she even insists on "marking" her territory, going so far as to do her best in hiking her little leg to pee. We've afraid she might have some gender confusion issues, but like any good parents, we love her anyway.

Molly spends her days making her rounds while Chris and I are at work. She's not fenced in, so she visits various neighbors and has little trails she travels every day through the woods and beyond; we really have no idea what she does from 7 a.m. - 4 p.m. But she must get her exercise; she's solid muscle and never runs out of energy. She spends her evenings in Chris's lap in the recliner, and then around 9 p.m. she jumps up and heads to her crate in our bedroom regardless of whether or not we're ready for bed.

Now, don't get me wrong. Molly has been quite the little 12 lbs. of trouble since we got her three years ago. She's nearly went bald from a non-contagious form of the mange (a daily dose of heart worm pills took care of that). And we nearly poisoned her to death by bathing her regularly with a brand of puppy shampoo that, unbeknownst to us, was poisoning her, causing her to constantly throw up. And of course, the more she threw up, the more she stayed in the house, and the more we bathed her. It cost about $300 in testing and vet bills before Chris figured out what was really causing her to be sick.

But nothing tops last Christmas when we took Molly to my grandparents house. We left Molly in the yard to chase the wild cats, knowing well that she wouldn't catch one, but that the pursuit would certainly keep her occupied for a few hours. We were right; she didn't catch a cat. But she did do several hundred dollars damage to my grandparents' car and truck as she ripped out wires and light bulbs and even a plastic fender well while pursuing a few cats that took refuge under my grandma and grandpa's vehicles.

When Chris went to check on Molly, there she was standing amidst broken headlight bulbs and wire fragments, covered in grease and wagging her tail. We could have died! We promptly loaded the little devil up and headed to the ATM machine to make a down payment toward fixing the destruction she caused. My grandparents refused the money, though, and my grandpa (the most frugal man on Earth) managed to wire everything back together and only spending about $5 dollars in the process.

But despite the expensive vet visits, the vehicle destruction and the fact that she sheds everywhere, we love the little mutt and really enjoy having her around. As Roger Caras said, "Dogs are not our whole life, but they certainly help make our lives whole."

Good Intentions and Weak Will

I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful
nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For
what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I
keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do
it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

Romans 7:18 - 20 (NIV)

Chris and I finally broke down and joined the 21st century a few weeks ago by ordering Dish. Now that we have cable, I can finally watch the shows I always see previewed on the television in my hotel rooms when I travel. One show I've been wanting to watch for quite some time is Intervention.

For those of you who haven't seen this show, it focuses on a person who has an addiction (i.e. alcoholism, drugs, gambling, etc.). At the end of the show, that person's family and friends host an intervention. On the few episodes that I've seen, the addict always agrees to go to some sort of rehab in the end. However, whether or not they stay in rehab and then are successful in "beating" their addiction is a different story.

It's so easy to sit in my recliner and become exasperated with these addicts. How can they throw away their family, lives, money, jobs, etc. for alcohol or drugs? It's so frustrating to watch them as they struggle with their addiction and then see them head off to rehab with a new-found hope, only to learn in the end their spouse is divorcing them because they went back to their old self-destructive habits.

But, the truth is that many of us have something in our lives with which we struggle daily; for me it's food. No, I'm not "overweight." By some standards I could probably even stand to gain a few pounds. But that's not the point. Every day I wake up and say, "I'm going to eat healthy today. I'm going to stay away from sweets. I'm going to order a salad at Chili's instead of a cheeseburger." And what do I usually do by the end of the day? Snack all afternoon. Eat too much sugar. Order the cheeseburger.

Drugs and alcohol may be more destructive than a daily candy bar or a cheeseburger with fries, and they're definitely more addictive. But regardless of the weakness or the addiction, it seems to boil down to the verse listed above, and how we as humans struggle daily to make the right choices, but so often our sinful nature and weak will seem to triumph.

Tonight Chris and I had dinner at Outback. I probably ate the equivalent of a loaf of their delicious honey wheat bread in addition to half my meal (and a side salad with Ranch dressing). Then (even though I was quite satisfied), I couldn't resist ordering the "Chocolate Chocolate Tower" with raspberry sauce. It was probably enough cake for a party of six! Of course Chris and I managed to make a sizable dent in the giant hunk of chocolate cake. Now I really regret that dessert (though I won't admit that to Chris!). I'm too full to sleep. Tomorrow I plan on starting my day by going into the gym and then eating smarter.

My weak will won over tonight, but tomorrow is a new day and another opportunity to start anew. And maybe tomorrow will be the day I start eating healthier for good. And maybe I'll mess it up again. But I'm definitely going to keep trying.

The Tale of the Crucified Crook

One book I'm currently reading is called "No Wonder They Call Him The Savior" by Max Lucado, a popular Christian author. This book examines the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It reads between the lines of this familiar (for many) Bible story of Jesus's crucifixion and paints a picture for the reader of what many of the instances must have been like, such as witnessing Peter's denial of Jesus or Pilate's hesitancy to sentence Jesus to death.

My favorite chapter in the book so far is on the thief on the cross. In this chapter, Lucado has the reader examine what Jesus was trying to teach us by telling the thief that he would go to heaven when he surely deserved to go to hell. He begins by pointing out that our value systems are so messed up today. Clothes and other material possessions go for top dollar, but the value of humans is at an all-time low, he says. Lucado says that man's value system is based on two criteria: appearance and performance.

He then points the reader to look at God's value system where man has hope and a destiny beyond what this world has to offer. He goes on to say that the lesson Jesus sought to teach us from the thief on the cross was that "a person is worth something simply because he is a person." Throughout the Bible Jesus simply forgives people even when they don't deserve forgiveness.

Lucado's illustration of the conversation between the thief and Jesus goes like this:

Thief: Any chance you could put in a good word for me?

Jesus: Consider it done.

And that was it. Jesus was illustrating once again that his love for us doesn't depend on what we can do for him. We are valuable no matter what. And now to my favorite part of Lucado's point and the end of the chapter where he writes:

"And it also makes me smile to think that there is a grinning ex-con walking the golden streets who knows more about grace than a thousand theologians. No one else would have given him a prayer. But in the end that's all he had. And in the end that's all it took. No wonder they call him the Savior."

That powerful illustration gives me chills. And besides the obviously lesson on grace and the love of God, it's also a good illustration on the grace we bestow on one another. How many times in a day do we become impatient and short tempered with family, co-workers and customer service representatives for minor inconveniences, when Jesus has forgiven us of all our sins? What a wonderful lesson on not only the grace we've received, but also the grace we should give.

The Phenomena of MySpace

MySpace is an unbelievably popular way for people of all ages to communicate and stay in touch now days. I used to think it was for teenagers. Boy was I wrong! After learning that one could search for old schoolmates, I decided to check it out. I couldn't believe how many people my age and older who I went to school with have a site on MySpace. It's like a virtual high school reunion! Who married who, who has kids, who looks totally different and who hasn't changed at all.

But, I still don't get the appeal of all the "friends" and the bios and the messages. Maybe it's because I've never been a very social person. I've always preferred having a few close friends than many good acquaintances. I have trouble staying in touch with the few friends I have; in fact, I really don't have any good friends outside of family, work and church.

I wonder if MySpace is a fad, if it will go the way of the chat rooms that were popular when I was in high school. Or will MySpace continue to evolve and more and more users will continue to log on? I'm not sure, but I do know it's not for me.

Ford F250: 0, Angus Cow: 0, Richard & Chris: 1

What happens when your life flashes before your eyes? Some say they see a bright light. Others see the faces of their loved ones. For Richard and Chris that flash looked like a big, black Angus cow.

Chris and Richard headed out hog hunting last Saturday outside of Bristow at about 6 a.m. At about that time, a local farmer's cows had gotten out of their fence, and one of them decided to hang out in the middle of the highway. You can guess what happened next. As Richard and Chris rounded the top of a hill Chris had just enough time to shout "COW!" before it was too late. They smacked the cow going 65+ miles an hour.

Brakes slammed. Airbags deployed. And down into an embankment they went. Chris was buckled up and didn't even hit the airbag. Richard wasn't, and his head hit the roof. But, to make a long story short, both were fine. Chris didn't even have a bruise or a scratch on him, and Richard was only a little sore.

Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the cow nor the truck. Thankfully Richard had his truck raised 6" recently, so the cow went under the truck instead of over it. The truck is probably totaled, and the cow, well, the cow probably didn't know what hit him.

This freak accident was one of those instances that makes us all realize how quickly life can change, though fortunately after this incident not much changed at all, though we now keep a sharper eye out for fellow drivers, pedestrians and cows.

Four racoons, three deer and a fox

Every year around Dec. 15 I face the same predicament - What in the world am I gonna get Chris for Christmas? I have a long rap sheet of failed gifts...the James Avery ring that said "I am my love's and she is mine," (he actually RETURNED it!) or the clothes that are always a size too big or too small. But this year, I finally got it right!

I bought a game camera, which for those of you non-hunting types means a camera that you post outside to take pictures of wild game or in some cases a Jack Russell Terrier named Molly. The camera (or the corn on the ground in front of it) has been a huge success among the furry little critters in our little corner of Guthrie, including several button bucks (i.e. male deer with tiny antlers poking out), a whole family of raccoons and even a red fox (which, much to Chris's chagrin, opted to use the corn Chris provided as a toilet rather than his midnight snack!).

So, the highlight of Chris's evenings now is to see what appeared before the camera the night before, and I finally got it right this Christmas. The only problem is his birthday is March 1st - just around the corner! Any suggestions?