Stories

I don't like games on my phone.  I think they're a distraction, and many of them are downright annoying.  Besides, I do have the IMDB app, and as long as you have that, you have all the distraction you need. I do have one game on my phone.  Chess. To say I know how to play … Continue reading Check and Mate.

So, it's been interesting since my mom died last month.  In a lot of ways life has gone back to normal.  Back at work.  Kids are back in school.  Dog still barks at squirrels and people and cars and trucks and well, nothing much at all. In other ways it hasn't.  We spend a lot … Continue reading DAMN IT!

Edna Murphey had an idea.  Her father was a surgeon and was working on an antiperspirant to keep his hands dry during surgery.  Edna tried it on her armpits and realized that not only did the liquid keep her armpits dry, it also kept them from stinking.  She bottled it and shipped some of the product to … Continue reading Edna Murphey thinks you stink.

World War II cost the United States over 300 billion dollars. The government funded the war through increased taxes and selling war bonds. Celebrities would peddle the bonds.  Communities would have bond rallies, offering pie and coffee in exchange for the purchase of war bonds.  And of course, the posters. "Doing all you can, Brother?" … Continue reading Obligation

A number of weeks ago, I wrote this post about how NOT to talk about God. Treating a relationship with God like an insurance policy (You better have one, or else.) may scare people into professing some kind of faith, but it will not inspire the kind of faith that will change anyone's life in any … Continue reading Marketing God, part 2

Three weeks ago I wrote this post about how NOT to talk about God, with a promise to post part 2 the next week.  But then something happened.  More than something, my mother died on September 2nd after a very brief illness. We had her service last Friday, which was beautiful. Now we grieve. When … Continue reading Personal Privilege

Marketing God, part 2 will be back next week.

A few years ago this happened. A tree fell on our house, smashing the roof over the garage.  One of those events that was all-consuming on that day, but now we look back and think, eh. Luckily, things went pretty smoothly from there.  We have great coverage, and the insurance company was very responsive.  We … Continue reading Marketing God, part 1

This is the remote for our television in 2015. This was the remote for our television in 1978. The top one is easy.  I can sit in my chair, and with the press of a button watch something different. The bottom one was not.  If I (or anybody else, since I was the youngest) wanted … Continue reading Remotely

I love feel good sports movies, the kind that leave you feeling like you can do anything, and that the world is a good place.  You may think of classic movies like Chariots of Fire, Hoosiers, or Miracle and wonder why I feel the need to confess. I'm confessing because it's not just the classics.  I'm also a sucker for … Continue reading While we’re confessing…