My first bike ride in ... 20+ years!

Behold ... my bike! I've wanted a bike for a very long time ~ years and years, in fact! It seemed that whenever I actually had enough money saved to purchase one, something would come up and the money would no longer be there ...
On one of the days last week when I was over at my mom's and Roy's, trying to teach mom how to use her computer, Roy asked if I had a bike. He said Lorraine (his first wife) had a hardly-used bike and it was out in the "barn" out back ... would I like to see it? Well, it was a little dusty and kind of covered in cobwebs, etc. but it came home with me! It's a 26" 3-speed. The tires needed inflating and the seat needing raising, so Mr. Jones went to work on that for me ... and voila! Today I tested it out around the neighborhood, and then I decided to venture out and hit the trail!

We live really close to White Pines Trail, which is a great biking trail that goes for miles and miles. I haven't looked it up on the internet to be able to give you accurate details about it, but I think it used to be part of an old railroad right-of-way. Anyway, it's just across the other side of West River Drive, behind the small businesses and auto shops that line that street ... look how pretty it is! I took it all the way to 5/3rd ball park tonight ... I know at least two young fellows who used to live in this house who regularly biked downtown and back without much effort, so this will seem real whimpy to them ... but I am just getting used to this bike thing ... plus, the brakes are extremely loud and squeeky ... they don't exactly have you stop on a dime!
I left our house at 5:45, biked past the ball park and along the Grand River. I stopped several times to take some pictures.
How peaceful and quiet it was there tonight! I've always wanted to walk along this trail, but I'm whimpy when I'm walking too. I know years ago Mr. Jones and I walked all the way to Rockford going the opposite direction on this trail. It's so much easier to ride a bike! The river is still high from all that rain we got last week from Hurricane Ike ...

All along the river there are places to park your bike and sit on benches ... this lookout place is somewhat submerged ...So, I have a free bike ... however, after this test run, I think I may have to invest in a softer more padded seat for it! Ouch!

Maggie Mae

The phone rang at about 9:00 last Sunday night. I picked it up not expecting anyone special on the other end ... but then I heard this: "Hi CJ!" And I screamed! And she screamed! It was my roommate, Robbie, calling me from Florida. It had been over a year since I had heard her voice. There are few people in the world that I love like I do her ~ and what's weird is this: we were only roommates for our freshman year, and one semester of our sophomore year!
Thirty-seven years ago right now (!) we were freshmen at what was then Grand Rapids Baptist College. I was coming there from Detroit, she from Racine, Wisconsin (just a little north of Milwaukee). I walked over to Miller dorm, found my room, went through the door and there she was! She introduced herself, smiled her wonderful smile, and it was instant friendship! Do you know the definition of a kindred spirit? I'm not sure I've ever really seen it defined, but to me, it's someone who is always on the same page as you ... someone who you can start a sentence and they can accurately finish it for you! And laugh ... and cry ...
I don't think I have laughed harder with anyone on this earth. I love her dearly. She is one tough lady too. She and her husband Scott (who stole her from me during our sophomore year) spent a few years as missionaries to Chad, Africa as well as many years living on a houseboat (if I'm not mistaken) along the Amazon River in Peru. They had an iguana and monkeys for pets! And she's not afraid of insects (good thing, living along the Amazon, huh?).

Anyway, she called Sunday night to say she had received my invitation to join Facebook (which, by the way, I am totally addicted to). So we're working on getting her signed up, but she has some computer issues that are preventing that. We talked for over an hour, every minute pure joy!

Oh, and what's with the Maggie Mae title? Well, that was her college nickname! We all had nicknames at college ... I'm not kidding! Mine was "Gatelady" (serious!) as well as "CJ", and Robbie's was "Maggie Mae" because her middle name is Margaret (which she hates). At dinner one night, one of us shortened Margaret down to Maggie and it was the fall of 1971 ... Rod Stewart's song Maggie Mae had been #1 for weeks and weeks ... so Maggie Mae she was ... though not at all a loose woman as the song would suggest. But that was 37 years ago now. And yet years can go by without us conversing, she can call me, and in one second we are screaming, laughing, reminiscing ... so wonderful to hear her voice! Here's to you, Maggie Mae!

A picture comparison of Galveston ...

Since we rain-soked folk up north here in Grand Rapids have been under the remains of Hurricane Ike for the past 8 hours or so, I thought it would be appropriate to show you what it did to Galveston and kind of compare pictures from our spring trip there. Nick called me a few hours ago and told me to log onto a site on the web, chron.com, and see the photos there of what Ike did to Galveston.

This first picture is what is left of a place called Murdock's, a really typical tourist-trap kind of beach souvenir shop, one of dozens that line the beach on Seaway Drive on Galveston Island. I have pictures somewhere of the inside of this place absolutely stocked to the brim with every kind of seashell, sand-dollar, shot glass, beach towel, wooden sea gull, cheap jewelry, bathing suit, T-shirt, cover-up, flip-flop, ad infinitum known to man ... but I can't find that set of pictures!

All of that stuff inside these beach shops are strewn all over Seaway Drive ... here is a gentleman taking a sign that says "There are no bad days at the beach." Speaking of stealing, I lifted those pictures above (and the very last shot on this post) from the internet.
The picture above is how Murdoch's looked last April when I was strolling along in the late afternoon, seeing what I could see. Walking east from the Flagship, down the beach, this is the first set of shops a person comes to.
I took this shot on the back deck of Murdoch's, looking at our Flagship Hotel!

And this was taken UNDER Murdoch's ... there was about a mile's worth of these little shops on stilts ...
I love the look of them, the pilings and decks ... there is something just perfect about them to me.
I walked for an hour underneath and around these piers and shops ...
This was what the beach looked like between Murdoch's and the Flagship last spring ... and below is what it looks like today ... ouch ... such a sad sight for me! I can see the Flagship, but it looks to be listing a bit, doesn't it? And all of the shops and piers and walkways ... gone!

Thankfully the storm surge was not as high as predicted, and the seawall protected the island pretty well. However, the island is completely trashed from what I can see on the news. Last word from Aunt Peg in Houston (via Sabrina) was that her power was out but she was okay. That's good to know. Pictures from downtown Houston are pretty unbelievable as well. Hurricane Ike certainly wasn't a wimpy hurricane like Humberto was last year when we were there! If you don't recall my story about Humberto, you'll have to look back to September 2007 and read about us driving across the causeway to Galveston Island in the middle of a tropical storm (we neglected to listen to the news that day ... it was just a tropical depression that morning!) only to arrive late afternoon to find the island practically deserted, sandbags around buildings, etc! My pictures of the incredible surf pounding the seawall were kind of disappointing ... but I really am thankful NOT to have to go through a storm like Ike!

Hoping the Flagship doesn't sink ...

This is the Flagship Hotel, on Galveston Island, where Mr. Jones and I stayed (only one night) last April so that I could get up before the sunrise to walk the beautiful beach and take pictures. The Flagship sits on a 1000 foot pier that juts out into the gulf. I've been watching the storm crashing over this pier all day ...
I've become pathetically addicted to the Weather Channel! Following the progress of Ike. Wondering if Galveston Island will survive ...
It feels personal ... and I've only been there a handful of times ... I can't imagine if this was where I lived each day of my life, had a job, a home, a whole history here. Pictures today show tons of these pilings shoved up over the 17' storm wall and onto the road, the surf crashing in ... it's difficult to take my eyes off of it ... they say this is the worst storm to hit Galveston in 50 years and reminiscent of the great one that hit in 1900.
I'm thankful Nicolas, Rachel, Nathan and Nia moved from downtown Houston to San Antonio this past summer! They used to hang out quite a bit at Galveston Island and places like Kema, on Galveston Bay.

Sabrina called this morning and told me to turn on the news because the Flagship was in the background of the news coverage on Ike. She reminded me that when a huge storm came on the Sea of Galilee long ago, all Jesus had to do was to speak "Peace" and everything came to a standstill! Picture that happening right now with this hurricane! Sabrina also said she spoke by phone to Aunt Peg last night, invited her to come to Austin, only to have Peg state that she was going to stay at her house there in Houston and wait out the storm. She lives on high enough ground to where the storm surge shouldn't be a problem ... but hurricane force winds will be upon her all night. So, we are praying here for all of you down there in Texas ...

A very busy few days!

I haven't posted any news on this blog for a week now and it's time I did so! But there really isn't any NEWS to tell you! It's been kind of a crazy busy week ... and so my thoughts are scattered here and there and everywhere. This will be a very random and disconnected post of these days ... I hope you will be patient with me because this might be difficult to follow!
Since I last wrote, we have had a few occasions of actual measureable rain ~ so our yard and flowers have kind of perked up a bit.
Look at this one rogue zinnia! It jumped away from the rest of the crowd and decided to bloom in the crack of our sidewalk ... a bit of a rebel, wouldn't you say?

I was tempted to pull it out, afterall, it certainly looks out of place with all of those other zinnias along the south wall of our garage behaving themselves nicely ... but I have completely fallen in love with flowers this summer and just can't bring myself to yank this one out! So here it stands alone, holding its head high ....

Thomas K. has been busy chasing butterflies, grasshoppers, birds, and even bees! He is ecstaticly happy protecting his territory, picking fights with the neighborhood cats, and being our watchdog. Mr. Jones's wounds have healed but he and Tommy STILL have not become friends ...
Saturday afternoon was our all-church carnival/picnic. We had beautiful weather for it and had a great time.
We arranged to meet folk from our LOGOS class there at the picnic and then everyone came over to our house afterwards to continue eating and to get to know each other a little bit better. We had a really great time of it. I love these friends of ours ...

On our way home from church Sunday morning, we were driving down Samrick and about a dozen wild turkeys were crossing the street in front of us ... but did I have my camera? No!
So I quickly ran into the house, grabbed my camera, and ran back up the street to take pictures of wild turkey ~ but not a single one of them stuck around for a photo op!
So instead, I photographed these beautiful flowers ... so full of life, bursting with color! I love them all!
God said, "Let the land burst forth with every sort of grass and seed-bearing plant. And let there be trees that grow seed-bearing fruit. The seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came." And it was so. The land was filled with seed-bearing plants and trees, and their seeds produced plants and trees of like kind. AND GOD SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD. Genesis 1:11-12
I spent more time this week over at Nana's, attempting to teach her how to use her computer. We had about a six-hour session yesterday! Both Nana and I did very well I think. Neither of us lost our mind, and I think progress was made! It's been 60 years since my mom has done any typing at all ... so I admire her courage to give this a try. It's going to be slow-going, though, and I only hope she is patient enough to see it through.

I also got introduced to Facebook this week and actually opened an account. I've been avoiding doing that for a long time because I KNEW I would feel overwhelmed ... and I do! I really have only one goal in mind with this Facebook stuff, though, and that is to get back in touch with my dear cousins who live all over the country. It's been really really fun so far to hear from them, see pictures of their families, and enter into their lives just a little bit. Another HUGE benefit from Facebook is that I can actually talk to Jesse almost every day. He regularly checks his account there and we've been leaving each other short daily messages. I can't describe to you how comforting it is to just hear a word from him!
Our fall church schedule has resumed and is in full swing over at church where I volunteer with 3-year-olds, both on Sunday and Tuesday mornings ~ and this week, also Thursday morning! I've dragged Mr. Jones into this worthy endeavor, dropping him off at the nursery, where he is 100% happy cuddling babies. I have been impressed by the Lord, though, that He wants me to be AVAILABLE to serve Him. It's really not so much about my ABILITY as it is about my AVAILABILITY ~ and then trusting Him for strength and wisdom to carry out whatever job He gives me to do.
"God made the earth by his power and he preserves it by his wisdom. He has stretched out the heavens by his understanding. He is the creator of everything that exists ... the LORD Almighty is his name!" Jeremiah 10:12 and 16

I've been editing photographs and designing cards all week, as well as planning our trip to Texas (we leave in just three weeks!). Tonight, I'm invited over to a friend's house to hear about some medical products she is selling, and Saturday night is Super Saturday, working with five-year-olds.

I told you this was going to be a rambling kind of post ... so consider yourself all caught up with our lives here at the Jones Junction. I told you there really was NO news! Talk to you soon ...

A soft and gentle sound ...

"Who sends the rain that satisfies the parched ground and makes the tender grass spring up?" Job 38:28 NLT

I woke up this morning to a refreshing sensation ... a peaceful and lulling kind of rhythm, dancing across my window pane ~ one of my very favorite sounds! It was 5:15 in the morning ... I rolled over, sighed deeply, and gave thanks! It was raining! We have had almost no rain in our part of Grand Rapids for nearly six weeks. Our yard is not very green any more, and many of our flowers have just given up and died. But we have had a soft and steady rain all day today ... remnants of Hurricane Gustaf ... and my heart is glad because of it!

"God ... does great works too marvelous to understand. He performs miracles without number. He gives rain for the earth. He sends water for the fields." Job 5:9-10 NLT.

Nana's computer!

Look at my mom's new E-machines computer! On the hotest day of the season so far (!), Mr. Jones and I spent time with Nana and Cookie helping to choose just the right sale computer over at Best Buy, and then installing it, getting internet access, and setting up accounts, etc. Look at her nice 19" flatscreen monitor ... I'm a bit jealous! :)
I don't know how normal folk bring home all of these boxes with all of these confusing instructions, cables and wires and EVER get anything plugged into the right places! I guess people do it all the time, without losing their minds! But it's a good thing we had Mr. Jones to do this for us; otherwise, it just would NOT have happened at all. Roy's house is over 50 years old and the outlets were not grounded (whatever that means!), so that was a problem. I won't put you through the details of our 5-6 hour process; but at the end of the day, everything was hooked up, the internet was running, and we had my mom set up with an e-mail account of her very own ... mission accomplished (!) ... well, at least for now!

You have to know, though, that I was about on my last nerve after the first hour of this routine! So in order to save my sanity, I took regular rambles outside to Roy's beautiful yard and garden area ...

We also uploaded some software for Nana's camera so that she can upload pictures from her digital camera ...

You have to realize, though, that the last time my mother typed anything at all, it was on a manual typewriter; so when we had her try out her new keyboard, it was really really awkward for her. And having her manipulate a mouse was MORE than awkward! Plus, I've been commissioned to teach my mother the ropes of using a computer ... imagine that! Me ~ a completely technically-challenged individual, teaching my poor mother how to use her computer, which is a lot different from this older computer I use. This will definitely be a challenge for me ... but perhaps I will learn some things in the process!

Roy was absolutely fascinated by all of this technology. It was so much fun to watch his face as we were showing them around the internet. He especially likes the satellite images of neighborhoods, etc.

If you want Nana's e-mail address, I'll be glad to send it to you! I'm not sure she will remember how to access her e-mail account until she has further training, but our goal is that she will be able to communicate via e-mail with anyone she desires, be able to adequately surf the internet to keep up with the world and what's going on out there, and be able to enjoy her digital camera to the fullest!