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Hello, All!

Because of all the issues since the loss of my domain name, 

Margaret's Musings has moved...

Please come visit me at my new home:

Committed Thoughts

I'm looking forward to seeing you there!

Thursday Thoughts

I've had a lot of jobs in my life time...more than my fair share.   Here are ten things I have learned...not necessarily the top ten.  They are in no particular order.

• The ones making the most money are not always the most knowledgeable or the hardest working folks in the group. 
• There seems to always be “one” in every group who keeps getting all the breaks/raises/pats on the back, even though everyone (except the one handing out the rewards) knows they don’t deserve it.
• There will always be one person who drives you crazy.  Hopefully, that person won’t be the boss. 
• There will always be change.   Often, the changes will get changed before the change takes place.
• The sign of a good manager is when your staff respects and likes you.   It’s an added bonus when your coworkers like you, as well. 
• Respect is never given when it’s demanded.  What you have in that situation is pretense and bad attitudes.  Respect is earned.
• It often takes more than just being the “most qualified” to get a job.  A really smooth interview or an immediate connection with the prospective employer often outweigh good qualifications.  Then there’s who you know…
• If you have a job, be thankful…even if you don’t like it or are treated unfairly.  There are many people who would love to have your job and not have to worry about making the house payment or feeding the kids.
• When in the presence of the Office Gossip, keep your eyes and ears open, but your mouth shut.  You are standing in muck, after all.  
• None of us are indispensable.  

Have a great Thursday!

Son of God

I went to see Son of God last night.   I was a little disturbed.

When Roma Downey and friends put together the Bible TV series, I watched the first hour and saw so many inaccuracies that I didn’t watch the whole series.   It is a shame when a group has a platform to reach the world for Christ and chooses to omit/alter what the Bible clearly states.  I don’t think even the timeline of the Bible should be changed, much less a storyline.   Leaving out pertinent details is just as wrong.   If I didn’t already know Christ, I believe I would have left the theater in confusion as to why He was crucified on the Cross.   Above all, the reason Jesus came to die on the cross should have been clearly covered.   There was no explanation of the gift given to us on Calvary’s Hill, nor how His shed blood saved us.  Other than Jesus placing a quick kiss on the cross as he carried it and a quote of John 3:16, salvation was largely ignored.

I know some people have been awe-inspired by this movie, but sadly, it is a watered down imitation of God’s truth.   I’m not saying the movie was a colossal waste of time and had no truth in it (there were definitely tears shed).  But I am saying that you cannot blatantly change a Bible account and call it truth.   What Jesus did when He walked on this earth should be told exactly how it happened.   His actions were according to God’s plan and need no tweaking or modification. 

There are a few more movies coming out in the next month or two I’d like to see:   “God’s Not Dead” and “Heaven Is For Real.”   I think I’ll pass on “Noah,” I think it may be too Hollywood for me to thoroughly enjoy.   It’s not like these people are changing a book of fiction…they are attempting to alter the Word of God!   

A case like this is just one more reason to study your Bible.   Memorize what’s in those pages…get the Word into your heart and soul so that you are full of the Truth, and you will immediately recognize a counterfeit story when it crosses your path.

Monday Musings...The Snark Edition

Dear Student:
I felt so sorry for you. All you could do was lie there and cuss, and cuss you did! I know that really hurt. But…uhm…if you’d been watching where you were walking instead of texting, I am almost certain you would have seen the little brick wall that nearly broke your shin bone...because, after all, in your lack of paying attention, you had veered completely off the sidewalk.

Dear Melissa Harris-Perry:
Good grief! You reproduced! Lord, help us all!

Dear Jimmy Fallon:
I get you and Jimmy Kimmel mixed up. Which one of you took Jay Leno’s spot again?

Dear Huff Post:
Why is it that when someone “comes out,” it is headline news for days and days? Is this really any of anyone’s business?

Dear Parent:
Sometimes kids just turn out good despite your lack of effort. I can’t explain it, same way I can’t explain the best intentions produce some troubled teens/adults.

Dear Piers Morgan:
Good riddance! TaTa! Skidaddle! Be gone, and be gone quickly! So happy to be rid of you! Go home! Please don’t come back.

Dear Nashville:
Sorry about all those germs I brought you over the weekend. I really intended to feel much better…I even took a needle in the derrière to speed up recovery (only it didn’t)…and then I picked up something else on top of the cold I already had by the time I got there.

Dear Nashville Relatives:
Yeah…you wouldn’t have enjoyed my company.

Dear Hand Santizer:
I realized as I was slathering up my hands that *I* was the germy one.

Dear Sister:
Don’t tell me! I don’t believe that if I wasn’t using so much hand sanitizer I might not be sick. I haven’t been sick in a good while, but when I do it, I apparently like to do it double-whammy style.

Have a great week, Y’all!

Thursday...

My Back Yard

Ole boy and I often eat our dinner in a restaurant.  Last Friday night, we hit the Chinese buffet.  (Obviously, I’m not low-carbing it lately…and my MayPop jeans are showing it!  They may pop anytime!)   I didn’t eat as much as I usually do, and the half-eaten egg roll and left over few pieces of shrimp went into a sandwich bag I happened to have for Mr. Gibbs and Roscoe.  I should have realized something was up when the manager (owner?) came over to my table to ask, in his heavily accented English, if everything was OK, and if I needed a “to go” box.   They had never done that before.  

When we got up to pay, Ole Boy went to the register and I stood near the door, but I noticed that same manager-person gesturing my way.   I walked over to see what was going on.  Ole Boy was having a hard time understanding him, but I caught that he was going to charge extra for my meal.  Neither of us could figure out what he was talking about (especially since I ate less that I normally do, and I was not the biggest person in the place!).  I finally figured out it was because I’d put those few left-overs in my “doggie bag.”   I pulled it out to show him it was just a few half eaten morsels.   He then calmed down and didn’t charge extra.  But I was really embarrassed...there's no telling what the other customer's were thinking about the commotion.  Probably won’t go there again for a good long while…which will be a handy tool for staying low carb.  Ole Boy and I have had a few giggles about it...I just hope no one thought I was trying to steal food.

Ole boy and I were discussing what to do for my upcoming birthday weekend.   “After all,” he said, “how many times do you turn 50?”    “That depends,” I said, “on how many times I lie about it.”   (I think I might possibly lie about my age if it wasn't a sin.)   I haven’t seriously lied about my age in a good many years…though having to say "I’m 50" might tempt me a little.  Maybe I will just cast looks of great disdain to anyone who would dare to ask my age.      

I am disappointed in my lack of snow.   I often say that if the weather man calls for it, we don’t get it; if they say “no accumulation,” that’s when we get it.   Case in point, the last few days:   Monday night they said “little or nothing” and we got nearly two inches (certainly enough to close the schools and half the town).   Last night and today they said 3 to 5 inches…we’ve barely got a wet dusting.   I remember one instance when snow wasn’t even mentioned in the forecast.  I was on my way to work and it was snowing the biggest flakes…so pretty!  And it snowed a good five inches that day. 

These are shots from other years, because 

there not much to photograph around here today.

The (frozen) Rock Pile...TVA Reservation

Winter Wonderland somewhere in Southern Tennessee

 

UNA

 

Flashback Friday

Remember that bad mood I mentioned?  I still have it.   If you read this whole post, you may end up in a bad mood, too.   Be forewarned. 

UNA snow...a few years ago

Rememberwhen I mentioned losing my custom domain name?  It’s still causing me issues, and I still hate Google.   Now, I find out that all my links to other pages in my blog are broken.   I fix them as I find them, but I link back to prior posts a lot.   And I find that everyone “following” me before the Google-debacle no longer gets notification that I’ve posted.   For those who signed up for email updates before…I don’t know if they still get those updates.   At this point, I’m doubting it.  I am seriously thinking of changing to WordPress. 

UNA Snow...it was an unexpected big one

Remember that low carb new lifestyle I embarked upon?   Yeah.  That is mostly a memory these days. 

Remember mytorn fingernail I mentioned yesterday?   This morning, I smashed my pinky while putting wood in the fireplace.  You’d be surprised to know how much one uses a pinky while typing.   It’s painfully noticeable to me today.

Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains (I caught
that bird just one second before he flew away.)

I hope that America makes some smarter choices on the next two elections.   VP Biden can’t think of “any obvious reason to not run for president.”  Really, he said that.   Then again, we do have to consider the chosen leaders that keep getting elected…no wonder he can’t think of any good reason.   America is in a mess, and deception abounds.  Thrives.  Flourishes. Proliferates.  Pontificates lies and distortions of truth.   I find it astounding (and disturbing) that Christians voted for the current administration.  Twice. 

The heaviness of the paragraph above lends to my bad mood.  Every news source is just more of the same sensationalized stories, and there is rarely any good news reported, even on Christian news sites.  I am so thankful that I know Jesus, because if I didn’t and had to live in this world, I believe I would be overwhelmed with the confusion and disorder.   I will spare you any further political rant in this post…but you know I will touch on it again.  Too many Christians are silent about what is happening in America, and mistakenly believe that God and government do not need to mix.

If you ever doubt America is drowning in deception, just read the comments on any online news source. 

My backyard...snow from a years ago

My final Friday Flashback…a previous post from 2011

Shutting out current events and closing my eyes, I go back to being a carefree little girl with flowing brown hair and cat-eyed glasses.   I remember how pleased I was for a nickel reward, which meant five pieces of bubble gum, which would promptly all go into my mouth.   The biggest bubbles could only be blown with a mouthful of gum!   A nickel would also buy a six ounce Coke if you went to Underwood Elementary.  Five cents would buy at least five pieces of candy, or a little box that held even more.  My shielded world consisted of family, church, school, and my little circle of friends.  

This morning, I long for a simpler day…

…back to the time where the biggest problem I had was not being able to find my glasses.   (To this day, certain relatives won’t let me live one particular incident down, when I put them in my grandfather’s denture container…which truly grosses me out now...and all my cousins were enlisted to help find them.  No one did until Grandpa took his teeth out that night.)   In those days, spending the night with Lisa or Tammy was all the entertainment I needed, and entertained I was.  There was no need for Wii, Nintendo, or DX games.   We had Monopoly, Parcheesi, Chinese Checkers and Barbie.  Before cell phones took parents away from small children, I could talk to my mom in the car, and she talked back to me.   It breaks my heart to see so many parents ignoring their children as they do everything with a phone stuck to their ear. 

Oh, how I long for a simpler day…a nickel day…when life was less hectic, less demanding; quieter in my little world. 

I hope your day is a Nickel Day…

My backyard

Thursday's Thoughts

:::Yawn:::  I love my dogs…but.   

(Not to be confused with loving my dog's butt.) 

Two nights ago, Roscoe (aka Rocco) kept waking me up whining because he wanted treats.   Spoiled!   He did get one, but apparently he wanted to pull a Margaret and binge.   He wasn’t allowed the opportunity; hence the whining.   Last night, I stepped outside around 3 a.m. to get another log for the fire, and both Rocco and Mr. Gibbs followed me out.   They immediately spied some intruder (neighborhood dog, I suspect) and before long, the whole neighborhood was awake.  Except Ole Boy…because he can sleep through an earthquake that happens after the tornado that he also slept through.

After I finally got the dogs back in the house, I said something to Ole Boy that wasn't very nice, because I thought he was still in bed after all the commotion.  Imagine my surprise when he answered...he had finally decided to wake up.

This long, cold winter is wearing me out. :::shiverMeTimbers::: And my dry skin!  I need spring!  

I’ve had a case of the mully-grubs lately.  I’m not sure if it’s the cold or my upcoming birthday.   I really thought I wasn’t going to have any issues with turning 50…after all, I am actually admitting my age this year.  But I did have a moment of panic when the work email went out that we would be having my “Big O” party this month.  That was the first time I’d felt a little angst.  Then Ole Boy mentioned something about “no longer being in my forties.”  Yeah, that didn't help.  Then I tripped going down the stairs at work and broke a fingernail when I caught myself on the railing...which really isn't a big deal, especially when you consider that I didn't fall down the stairs...but it made me tear up anyway.   That's when I decided to place blame on my birthday.  Ding Dang 50's.

So when I noticed that I was irritable and whiny (ok, more irritable and whiny than usual) I consoled myself by formulating some snarky blog posts in my head that included things like: 

Dear Lady:

You are too old to wear a skirt that short.  And it’s way-yonder too cold for that!

Dear Person:

You must be talking in circles, or I am hearing in squares, because that just sounds stupid.

Dear Other Person:

Please shut up.  I feel assaulted.

You get the idea.  And some of the things I wanted to say weren't nice at all…you know, like the nice things I said above. 

So, yeah.  My birthday.  This cold weather.   My normal attitude.   Probably not a good combination.   I should doodle more and think less.   Here’s a doodle I did some months ago.  I was surfing the net looking at other people’s doodles, and came across several that looked like this…so I did one for myself.     

If I could figure out Picasa, I would have cropped and framed it...
it's in a bound graph-paper book, so it was a little difficult to scan.

Have a great day!

Monday Musings: My Head Noise Edition

Proudly, I… …didn’t watch the Grammys.  Not much there for me, at all!   But since I do live in this world, I couldn’t help but catch clips and comments.   I do not understand the fascination with Beyonce, (even less so with Jay Z), and I think I was subjected to more of her butt on that clip (that I can’t unsee) than I was of Miley’s. (shudder)  

Nothing to say… …to certain people while they ramble.  Usually, I just smile and nod.  Sometimes, I’m not able to pull off a smile or a nod, so I just shade my head in disbelief.   To the rambler, it all looks the same.

Explanation to… …a dear lady, not understanding the workings of email, Facebook, and the internet in general, asked me if an email conversation could be viewed by anyone on the internet.   I have to tell her, “No, it’s just between the folks emailing each other…and the government.”  

I’d like to complain… …about these repeated cold snaps; but instead, I believe I will give thanks that it’s not any worse than it is, and say a prayer for those above us.   (Didn’t I have this same thought just last week?)  

Sarcastic thing I didn’t say… …to the student who decided she’d just keep her hands germy instead of using hand sanitizer (when a sink and soap wasn’t readily available) because she didn’t want “little dead germ carcasses” on her hands:  “Not only are you redundant, but I can see why you think ‘dead carcass’ germs are worse than live flu germs.”

Other things I didn’t say this week...well, not within earshot, anyway:

• Put a coat on that baby!  Don’t you feel that cold wind?!
• Visit with your friends later…right now, the light is green!  Go, go, GO!
• Get off the phone and drive!
• Quit texting and drive!
• Aaargggg!!!

Two Cent Tuesday

Just my two cents worth.

You may want change.

I know you are chomping at the bit, Treasured Reader, to know how I’m doing on my New Year’sDecisions!  What?  You don’t remember my More or Less list?  (Lucky for you I’ve linked it HERE!)  In answer to the question I know you are on the edge of your seat for…I’ve done opposite.   Yes…all the “mores” are “lesses,” and all the “lesses” have stayed about the same…or they are “mores.”

…Except for sugar.   I’ve done well to stay away from that nasty little addiction, and I’m dropping a few pounds.   Thanks to Deb’s posting of an article HERE, I was able to figure out a few of my whiney whys (“Why, oh why, can’t I get started again?”) and get back on the right track.   If you think I’m giving myself credit here, I assure you I know from whence my Help comes.   It was no accident Deb posted it when she did, and I thank her and God.

  

Hopefully, my “two cents worth” today won’t leave you wanting change.   Speaking of change, am I the only one who has a tough time with it?   “Change” often takes a lot of effort.  “No change” is the path of least resistance, and the path most taken by me, and I suspect the path chosen by many of God’s children.

People often call all everyone “God’s children.”   That’s not so.   All humans are God’s creation; those who are born again through Christ are God’s children.   And too many of His children don’t have a clue exactly who they are, and that we really can trust Him.  I know I don’t have a full grip on it.  Wish I did.

This cold is driving me mad.  I don’t even own a coat made for degrees Fahrenheit like this!  I dress in layers and slap some gloves on.  If I weren’t so prideful, I’d wear those furry suede boots my sister gave me, because they sure are warm.   Thing is, the kids here on campus are wearing them, not sure what they’d think about a grandmother stealing their style.  I could sure use them this morning, I can’t feel my toes. 

It’s time for me to get to work.  Stay warm!

Monday Musings: The Disturbing Edition

Disturbing: dis·turb·ing  [dih-stur-bing] adjective

upsetting or disquieting; dismaying

Dear Obama

It's very disturbing that you lied to America.  Repeatedly and frequently...and have not shown one ounce of remorse.  It should be disturbing to you that people are beginning to refer to your your administration as Barakistan.

Dear Duped America:

You are a group that is growing smaller every day.  But it's disturbing that you still support an administration that consistently tosses out detrimental decisions for this great nation.  Put your faith in God, not in a man who is lying to you.  

Dear Cousin:

It’s a little disturbing that you believe that God created the heavens and the earth…over a stretch of millions of years.  When Genesis 1:1 said “In the beginning God created…” that is exactly what it means, he created; it was done.   In Isaiah 51, He reminds us again that “He stretched out the Heavens and laid the foundations of the earth.”  In Isaiah 48, God, Himself, tells us “My right hand has stretched out the heavens; and when I call to them, they stand up together.”  With that power, it would not take millions of years, and millions of years would be evolution, not creation.

Dear Driver:

It’s oddly disturbing how mad you make me when you hold up a long line of traffic to make an illegal turn.  Don’t.   Just don’t.   And quit texting!   

Dear Black Grapes:

It disturbs me that you taste so good, but make my teeth so sensitive.   You almost aren’t worth it!

Dear Winter:

It is coldly disturbing that you can’t seem to keep your temperature above 40°.  And these night time temps that are below 10°?   The south not liking this!   I am putting in my request now for 60’s and sunny on my birthday weekend coming up in February. 

This is not what we are getting this year.  This was a
rare snow we got a few years ago...it was beautiful,
didn't last long, and didn't shut down the entire town.
Just the way we like it.

Dear Upcoming Birthday:

You really aren’t disturbing me.   You thought you would, didn’t you?

Dear Upcoming Birthday:

You really aren’t disturbing me.   You thought you would, didn’t you?

Dear God:

I ask for mercy for America and the disturbing mess we are in; please forgive us and put us on a Godly path, with righteous men and women candidates for our next two elections who will be placed in the positions now held by the ungodly.  And all winter jokes aside, please have mercy on those who are dealing with dangerously cold and treacherous wintry weather conditions.    

Monday Musings

Dear Dennis Rodman:

Are you nuts?   Oh, wait.  That’s like asking a goldfish, “Are you wet?”  Obviously you are.  Why don’t you put that ding-dang basketball in your mouth and shhhh.

Dear Melissa Harris-Perry:

I am embarrassed for you because you don’t have the good sense to be embarrassed for yourself.

Dear WalMart:

I don’t understand why you need two Super WalMarts and one Walmart Hometown Market in a town this size.  Greed personified…or store-sonified, as it were.

Dear Sam’s Sports Grille:

You brought me food with a hair in it, and made me wait until everyone else in the party of 20 was almost finished eating before you brought me a replacement.  Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like maybe you should have given a little bit of a discount.   Your service just ain't what it used to be...and you have only been in the Shoals a short time.

Dear Old, Large Oak Trees on UNA Campus:

Don’t drop a limb…they’ll cut you completely down!

Dear America:

You are as mixed up about right and wrong as Sodom and Gomorrah was.  Remember, that didn’t turn out too well for Sodom and Gomorrah.

Monday Musings: The Blue Monday Edition

Today is Blue Monday.  Factors such as Christmas debt, the weather, the realization that resolutions have already been broken, and of course, the normal “I hate Monday” attitude, has caused this day to be dubbed the most depressing day of the year.

It is Monday (I don’t hate Mondays), I did spend too much for Christmas, and I have undecided every decision I made last Thursday.   But I’m not depressed.   I am musing; however, and I’ve come up with some food for thought.

While I am not negating the strong physical chains of addiction, I have come to realize that our failure to overcome is spiritual, not physical.   After all, Christ Jesus paid the price on the cross for our freedom.   This most simple road to freedom is only complex because I keep forgetting that the battle is won by Someone else, and I must not, indeed CANNOT, rely on my own strength, only His.  I keep saying that, but that is what I repeatedly try to do.   My strength?   Zero.  I’m exhaustingly weak.

Addiction is a dreadful thing.  It will beat you until you can’t stand up, and it will kick you when you’re down.   I watched this video this weekend, and while it is not about addiction, I think if you’ll invest six minutes of your life to watch it, you will see why I feel it goes along with what I am saying in this post.  I promise it will be a well invested six minutes. 

The preacher told a story in church yesterday about a dad arriving home to see his three young boys playing in the front yard, each of them with a baby skunk.   The father jumped out of his car and yelled “Run, boys, RUN!!”   They each picked up their skunk and ran as fast as they could.

I need to learn to run to Jesus, to leave the problems behind, and any problem that follows me, I need to place at the feet of Jesus and leave it there.   Pride will disguise itself as truth and convince me that indeed I need to do something in my own power to shed this food addiction, but the truth is the only time I’ve ever felt this was easy was when I was giving Him all the credit and being obedient to the one thing God repeatedly told me:   Get rid of the sugar.   Instead of relying on my own power to do that, I need remember where my Help really is.  

John Stallings penned a perfect song for what I am now trying to absorb, Learning to Lean.   Here are a few of the lyrics, and a video, just in case you’re interested.

All He asks is a childlike trust

And a heart that is learning to lean

Learning to lean, learning to lean,

I’m learning to lean on Jesus

Finding more power that I’ve ever dreamed

Since I’m learning to lean on Jesus.

Because I really don't know how to fully rely on Him, I'm going to be writing more about traveling the "Leaning Road" in the next few weeks.  I have a lot to learn...hopefully, I'll have a lot to share.  

I have posted this several times before...
Today felt like a good day to post again:


When you get to the end of your rope,
Here are the Knots to hang on to:
We are hard-pressed on every side, yet Knot crushed;
We are perplexed, but Knot in despair;
Persecuted, but Knot forsaken;
Struck down, but Knot destroyed
—II Corinthians 4:8-9

Have a great week!

New Year Musings: The More or Less Edition

Have New Year’s resolutions ever worked for you?   My normal “resolve” is to not make any. 

However, I did make a goal In November, 2012, to make a real effort to read my Bible every day, even if it was just a few verses.  I did very well with that goal…I think I missed 3 or 4 days in 2013.  This year…I will continue to do that, only I will endeavor to spend more time memorizing.

I’m tired of myself.   Really. Worn. Out.  I learned a lot last year…the most important thing I learned is that pride (thinking *I* am really doing something on my own strength) is perilous to my success, disobedience is dangerous, and sugar is hazardous to my health.   Somewhere along the line last year, I thought I could do my own thing, and I am now painfully aware that I cannot do that and find peace, happiness or victory.  

So…I have decided, more or less, that I need to make some decisions, and resolve to stick by the decisions that I make.   So, in 2014, I will endeavor to spend…

More time trusting, less time worrying

More time memorizing scripture, less time daydreaming

More time being thankful, less time complaining

More time praying, less time gossiping

More time doing, less time procrastinating

More time writing, less time (online) gaming

More time reading, less time surfing the 'net

More time chewing, less time swallowing

More time relying on God, less time looking to my own strength

Most of all…I need to get this deep in my heart/soul/mind:

More of Him, less of me.

I will remember “one day at a time.”   And I will immediately contradict that by saying 'no sugar' for the (almost) whole month of January…starting today, because I did, indeed, have sugar yesterday.  In February, my plan is for sugar to be a non-issue.

PS:  Did you notice that "write more?"  Yeah.   And maybe I'll even write more in my blog!