Thursday, March 26, 2009

Thursday Trivia

This is last Sunday - lunch on the patio. The day before, the big girls and their cousins were running around in the sprinkler and sunning themselves on the lawn.Remove Formatting from selection




The dirt here in the flower bed is so dry.




This is today - Thursday. DC just called to say that his employer is sending them home in a few minutes. School has been dismissed. It's very slick on the streets. As Care Bear said this morning, "Well, that's Colorado!" And it's so true. And I have to say I haven't heard too much complaining, since we're all so concerned about the lack of snow we've had this winter. So here it is - the crazy storm we've been expecting, and somewhat hoping for. Maybe rain would be nicer for spring, but we take what we can get!






This happened in Denver recently:

"A parrot whose cries of alarm alerted his owner when a little girl choked on her breakfast has been honored as a hero.

Willie, a Quaker parrot, has been given the local Red Cross chapter's Animal Lifesafer Award.

In November, Willie's owner, Megan Howard, was babysitting a toddler. Howard left the room and the little girl, Hannah, started to choke on breakfast.

Willie repeatedly yelled 'Mama, baby' and flapped his wings, and Howard returned in time to find the girl already turning blue.

Howard saved Hannah by performing the Heimlich maneuver but said Willie 'is the real hero.'

Willie got his award during a 'Breakfast of Champions' event Friday attended by Governor Bill Ritter and Mayor John Hickenlooper."

Earlier this week when I went to visit A Hint of Home, I found this tribute to Paul Harvey, who recently died at the age of 90 after 58 years of amazing, winsome, wise broadcasting.



I copied this piece from her site:

If I Were the Devil by Paul Harvey© 1999 WorldNetDaily.com


If I were the devil...

I would gain control of the most powerful nation in the world;

I would delude their minds into thinking that they had come from man's effort, instead of God's blessings;


I would promote an attitude of loving things and using people, instead of the other way around;


I would dupe entire states into relying on gambling for their state revenue;


I would convince people that character is not an issue when it comes to leadership;


I would make it legal to take the life of unborn babies;


I would make it socially acceptable to take one's own life, and invent machines to make it convenient;


I would cheapen human life as much as possible so that the life of animals are valued more than human beings;


I would take God out of the schools, where even the mention of His name was grounds for a lawsuit;


I would come up with drugs that sedate the mind and target the young, and I would get sports heroes to advertise them;


I would get control of the media, so that every night I could pollute the mind of every family member for my agenda;


I would attack the family, the backbone of any nation.


I would make divorce acceptable and easy, even fashionable. If the family crumbles, so does the nation;


I would compel people to express their most depraved fantasies on canvas and movie screens, and I would call it art;


I would convince the world that people are born homosexuals, and that their lifestyles should be accepted and marveled;


I would convince the people that right and wrong are determined by a few who call themselves authorities and refer to their agenda as politically correct;


I would persuade people that the church is irrelevant and out of date, and the Bible is for the naive;


I would dull the minds of Christians, and make them believe that prayer is not important, and that faithfulness and obedience are optional;


I guess I would leave things pretty much the way they are.



I haven't had a chance to listen to him much in recent years, but this is my favorite piece - I hear it every Christmas on our Christian radio station - they play it often in the days leading up to Christmas. You can listen to it here, or read it below.

PAUL HARVEY: THE MAN AND THE BIRDS

As read on the radio

Unable to trace its proper parentage, I have designated this as my Christmas story of “The Man and the Birds.” You know the Christmas story, the God born a man in a manger, and all that escapes some moderns—mostly, I think, because they seek complex answers to their questions, and this one’s so utterly simple. So for the cynics and the skeptics and the unconvinced, I submit a modern parable:

Now, the man to whom I’m going to introduce you was not a Scrooge; he was a kind, descent, mostly good man, generous to his family, upright in his dealings with other men. But he just didn’t believe all that incarnation stuff which the churches proclaim at Christmastime. It just didn’t make sense, and he was too honest to pretend otherwise. He just couldn’t swallow the Jesus story about God coming to earth as a man. “I’m truly sorry to distress you,” he told his wife, “but I’m not going with you to church this Christmas Eve.” He said he’d feel like a hypocrite, that he’d much rather just stay at home, but that he would wait up for them. And so he stayed, and they went to the midnight service.

Shortly after the family drove away in the car, snow began to fall. He went to the window to watch the flurries getting heavier and heavier, and then went back to his fireside chair and began to read his newspaper. Minutes later he was startled by a thudding sound, then another, and then another, sort of a thump or a thud. At first he thought someone must be throwing snowballs against his living room window; but when he went to the front door to investigate, he found a flock of birds huddled miserably in the snow. They’d been caught in the storm, and in a desperate search for shelter had tried to fly through his large landscape window. Well, he couldn’t let the poor creatures lie there and freeze, so he remembered the barn where his children stabled their pony. That would provide a warm shelter, if he could direct the birds to it.

Quickly he put on a coat, galoshes, tramped through the deepening snow to the barn. He opened the doors wide and turned on a light, but the birds did not come in. He figured food would entice them in, so he hurried back to the house, fetched breadcrumbs, sprinkled them on the snow, making a trail to the yellow-lighted, wide-opened doorway of the stable. But to his dismay the birds ignored the breadcrumbs and continued to flop around helplessly in the snow. He tried catching them; he tried shooing them into the barn by walking around them waving his arms. Instead, they scattered in every direction, except into the warm, lighted barn. And then he realized that they were afraid of him. To them, he reasoned, I am a strange and terrifying creature. If only I could think of some way to let them know that they can trust me, that I’m not trying to hurt them, but to help them. But how? Because any move he made tended to frighten them, confuse them. They just would not follow; they would not be led or shooed, because they feared him.

If only I could be a bird, he thought to himself, and mingle with them and speak their language! Then I could tell them not to be afraid. Then I could show them the way to the safe, warm . . to the safe warm barn . . . but I would have to be one of them, so they could see and hear and understand. At that moment, the church bells began to ring. The sound reached his ears above the sound of the wind, and he stood there listening to the bells pealing the glad tidings of Christmas . . . And he sank to his knees in the snow.



And sadly, now there will be no more "Rest of the Story."


Have a great day wherever you are, as we feel like Christmas in Colorado!



24 comments:

Sam said...

Hi Dawn!

The variation in weather is just crazy out there! How adorable that Care Bear said, "That's Colorado!" Too cute!

The story about that parrot is amazing.

By the way, did you hear that they're making a movie about Ramona Quimby? I'm worried it will be disappointing, as movies about beloved books so often are. Still, when I read about it I thought of you! :-)

Sherry said...

as tired of I am of the snow, we've had SO much here, seeing your pictures makes me a bit homesick. Snow days were the best there. Enjoy!

grammy said...

I live in Longmont and we got that same storm. I thought it would snow all day...but it is as calm as can be right now. I tried to shovel a little, but it is just to heavy for me to move. I had heard about the parrot, but didn't know it was in Denver (o: Happy Snow Day to ya.

Carole Burant said...

Isn't it unbelievable how fast the weather can change around from one day to the other? I guess you did need the moisture, no matter which form it came in! lol

Still lots of snow here and although it rained all day yesterday and it did help melt some of it, still lots to go yet. I'm sure we'll still have a snowstorm or two as we usually have snow until mid to end of April.

I loved reading about the parrot...animals/birds are such smart creatures and have saved so many human lives.

Also loved reading the Paul Harvey stories. I can just hear his voice saying all that:-) I used to love listening to his radio show and I don't think many of us will ever forget "The Rest of the Story"....

Robin said...

The weather is so weird right now. My family lives in North Dakota and they are busy, busy, busy sandbagging against the mighty Red! And all the while they are in blizzard conditions getting 18 more inches of snow! Crazy!

Mary said...

Dawn,

The weather has been crazy this year. I read about the Red River flooding and people in Fargo having to evacuate.

It seems it is nice here one day and cold the next. Today was fairly nice, but March isn't over yet, so we could get snow or a hard frost anytime.

Love that the parrot got the award. He certainly deserves it.

Take care, my friend and enjoy your weekend.
Blessings,
Mary

Just Call Me Grammy said...

Thanks for the comment on my blog and the invite here. I enjoyed looking through your posts. I was sitting here thinking that snow would make me depressed at this point and the my great surprise the weather man just said we may get snow on Saturday night--aaaaah! It surely won't last long this time of year and hopefully won't be as deep as yours:o)

Barb said...

Based on what I've been seeing on the news all day today, I think you got a whole winter's worth of snow today. This storm is so massive, we even got snow here in Grand Junction today. I guess those of us who live in the state should not be surprised at the spring blizzards, but somehow, it always IS a surprise, right?

I remember hearing Paul Harvey on my mom's kitchen radio, when I was a child in the 50's. He had one of those voices you'll never forget.

Nadine said...

I love that piece from Paul Harvey - thanks for sharing it Dawn.

Sharon Lynne said...

It's hard to imagine snow, when it is sunny here. But we did get some rain and wind a few days ago.

The three of you look great in your hats. Rather like colorful characters in a book.

Speaking of books...(and characters) Care Bear is certainly has some wonderful gifts/talents that are developing. I love hearing about her books and enjoyed her picture of the rabbit.

Needled Mom said...

I was wondering how you came out with the snowstorm. It looked incredible on the news this evening.

We have always loved Paul Harvey. I will truly miss him, his wonderful attitude, wit and amazing stories.

That parrot story is incredible. Thanks for sharing.

Have a great weekend. Hopefully, the snow will clear up for you. I am sure it is a welcome sight.

Karen H. said...

Good Morning Dawn,
Oh my, what a difference a day makes huh? Yall did get the Snow tht you needed. Hopefully it will helpe out with the drought yall have been having. I know around here in the Spring we usually gert lots of rain and when Summer gets here, we hardly get anything. We are all wishing for some of that Spring rain come Summertime. The Snow is prettty and I'm sure the girls had a good time playing out in it. I heard on The Weather channel earlier this morning where yall maybe getting some more snow. Wow, I can't believe the story of the parrot. That is one smart parrot I must say and has beeen taught well. I enjoyed the readings from Paul Harvey. He will be greatly missed for sure. "THANK YOU" for sharing some great memories of his stories. Take care my friend and have agreat day. May GOD Blesss you and yours.
Love,
Karen h.

Hootin Anni said...

First ... love the tribute to Paul Harvey.

And then, the blizzard...yes, my sister told me about Denver and up into Wyoming with lots of accidents along I25. This doesn't surprise me at all. I remember one 4th of July we were celebrating with snow fall in the foothills. This is Colorado for you.

I love the south. LOL

At least I know from experience that the Spring storms don't last long there.

Hootin Anni said...

I commented: "At least I know from experience that the Spring storms don't last long there."

I mean experience living in Colorful Colorado that is, but you knew that, right? LOL

Hootin Anni said...

Dawn: Ya, Greeley stinks...literally. Well, used to anyway, and it's still my impression of the town. [I remember all the huge feed lots when I was a kid. LOL]

And as far as breaking the drought...I'd much prefer rain to snow. You don't have to scoop rain.


Stay warm and indoors. And more Wednesday? My sister didn't tell me that.

~Anni

A Hint of Home said...

Thanks for the P. H. tribute. He was quite a man.
I hope you got to enjoy some of the snow you had. What a contrast to last week.

nancygrayce said...

I heard you were having crazy weather there....we've been having stormy weather here, but we're down to a nice slow rain! We needed it badly!

Loved the Paul Harvey stories...

Ms. Kathleen said...

We still have snow but it is so pretty with the sun shining on it. I can't wait for the wildflowers to start blooming... And a picnic in the yard! How fun!

Christa said...

My daughter posted some video of the snow in CO. It was something. I think it may have been part of the storm that we had in Calif.

I used to listen to Paul Harvey. He was good. His description of the was the USA is headed is very real, and scarry, "If I were the Devil" Oh yeah, the devil knows.
Have a great day
God Bless

Linda said...

Hi Dawn,
I'm trying hard to get all caught up. My Dad is home from the hospital. We took him home this afternoon. Thank you so much for your faithful prayers.
While we were in his room at the hospital, we put on the weather channel. When I saw the snow storm in Denver, I thought of you. What crazy weather, but I'm glad you'll be getting some help for "dryness" out of it all.
I have always enjoyed and admired Paul Harvey too. Such wisdom. Thanks for sharing these pieces.
Have a blessed weekend dear one.

Shawna said...

Oh wow. I do hope we get that much snow, but we aren't guaranteed any at all. We'll see. I would love to have an amazing amount of snow.

Love the story of the parrot! What a blessing that bird is!

I've read those 2 things from Paul Harvey but had forgotten them. What a wise man.

Dawn, I am not into vampires either, at all, but so many Christian women have read them and liked them and watched and enjoyed the movie, I thought I'd give it a try. I'll let you know how it goes. I am a skeptic. :0)

Have a happy weekend!

Susie said...

Hi Dawn,
What a contrast in your weather there!
We're having temps in the 80's today which was a change for us too :)
Loved reading the story of the hero parrot.
xo

Unknown said...

I had heard on the news about your sudden spring snow storm. A blizzard, they called it.

We will miss Paul Harvey. We loved him.

Susan said...

We heard about Denver's 15" and I thought of you. We had a little of the white stuff today ourselves.

This is the 3rd post I've seen the Paul Harvey post on. Shows how wise and dearly loved we all knew him to be.
Susan