The Middle of the Pack

I'm just sure it was my friend Sammy Ford 's fault (he was the one that told me to "watch the right foot" when I started my trek back to Mississippi from Texas. Going across Texas, the speed limit is 75.....and that means I can drive 80 (five miles above the limit). No, that means I SHOULD drive 80. Anyway, I DO set Cruise Control (for what it's worth.....I then proceed to pay no attention to it....my right foot has a mind of its own and before I know it I'm going.....well, no sense in making everyone worry about me and my heavy foot!) I have a friend who says he's "keeping up with the traffic" and that's EXACTLY what I was doing. Texas was okay....but I crossed the state line into Louisiana, and suddenly there's LHP cars everywhere. Those white cars with Louisiana Highway Patrol written on their door had cars stopped on both sides of the Interstate all the way across that state. (I figured they needed money and this was how they were getting it.) Figured that out when I stopped for one of those "necessary breaks," and in the Rest Areas half the bathrooms were closed. I am in the "middle of the pack" .....and I am just doing my part in "keeping up with traffic." Who wants to cause a wreck because they're trying to abide by the speed limit??? Topped the hill, and there he sat .....in the median. Bless his heart, when it was safe for him to give chase....he DID. (At this point, I was watching him in my rear view mirror.....and thinking....."surely he won't pick my white car out of the middle of all this traffic. Will he?") He is 3 cars behind me....blue lights flashing....and traffic is still flying....about 15 miles above the speed limit. (Where's that 5 miles I should have been going? And, if I am the one that gets stopped this ticket is going to be pretty pricey!) By now, I am beginning to formulate excuses in my head for why I'm driving so fast. (1) I didn't think he'd care, not one bit, that I was rushing home to Mississippi because we had tickets to "Evita." However, I might start singing "Don't Cry for me Argentina" and he'd certainly send me on my way (no, you DON'T want to hear me sing!) (2) Then I decided I could use the look toward the sky and say "Thank you, God".....and hopefully, he'll say...."What? Why?" and I'd say "they were scaring me to death....I was having to drive that fast....right in the middle of them. I HATE driving like that....it doesn't feel safe." And he'd say...."well, you be careful ma'am and slow down!" And away I'd go. (3) However, what I really wanted to say was....."I am SO glad you stopped me".....and he'd look amazed and say....."Excuse me....what?".....and I would say...."Louisiana is the only southern state for which I didn't have a ticket....and I collect them!" I decided my sense of humor might send me to jail....so I'd have to shelve that one. Whew!! Suddenly, I realized he had chosen his prey....and it wasn't me. The moral to this story probably should be.....slow down, abide the speed limit, use cruise control, don't let your foot slide over onto the accelerator.......yada, yada, yada. However, I am still going with "if you're gonna' drive fast....get in the middle of the pack, for goodness sake!!" (Yes, I have BEEN at the back of the line in my history of being "Sarah Andretti.")

Emancipation Day Affects Tax Filing Day

Tax day, in the U. S., is always April 15th......except this year when it will be Tuesday, April 17th.  Wait a minute!  When April 15th falls on a Sunday, tax day is always the next day.....except this year. Wonder why?

According to Google information - we have a "two day relief" this year. Because Washington, D. C. celebrates "Emancipation Day" on Monday, April 16th!

"What is Emancipation Day?"  you ask.

"On that day in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act(an act of Compensated emancipation) for the release of certain persons held to service or labor in the District of Columbia.^[26] The Act freed about 3,100 slaves in the District of Columbia nine months before President Lincoln issued his broader Emancipation Proclamation. The District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act represents the only example of compensation by the federal government to former owners of emancipated slaves.^[27]" 

So, the Federal Goverment compensated Slave Owners who had slaves who had been freed? And the District of Columbia still observes this as a holiday??

"On April 16, 1862, President Lincoln signed the "District of Columbia  Compensated Emancipation Act."  This law prohibited slavery in the District, forcing its 900-odd slaveholders to free their slaves, with the government paying owners an average of about $300 for each. In 1863 state legislation towards compensated emancipation in Maryland failed to pass, as did an attempt to include it in a newly written Missouri constitution.^{[1][4][5][6]"}

"On January 4, 2005, Mayor Anthony A. Williams signed legislation making Emancipation Day an official public holiday in the District.^[28] Although Emancipation Day occurs on April 16, by law when April 16 falls during a weekend, Emancipation Day is observed on the nearest weekday.^[29] This affects the Internal Revenue Service's due date for tax returns, which traditionally must be submitted by April 15. As the federal government observes the holiday, it causes the federal and all state tax deadlines to be moved to the 18th if Emancipation Day falls on the weekend and to the 17th if Emancipation Day falls on a Monday.^[30]" 

"Each year, activities will be held during the public holiday including the traditional Emancipation Day parade celebrating the freedom of enslaved persons in the District of Columbia. The Emancipation Day celebration was held yearly from 1866 to 1901."

"In Columbus, Mississippi, Emancipation Day is celebrated on May 8, known locally as "Eighth o' May". As in other southern states, the local celebration commemorates the date in 1865 when African Americans in eastern Mississippi learned of their freedom. 

Though federal law outlawed slavery in the state, Mississippi itself did not ratify the federal constitutional amendment abolishing slavery until February 7, 2013.^[31]""

"In Texas, Emancipation Day is celebrated on June 19. It commemorates the announcement in Texas of the abolition of slavery made on that day in 1865. It is commonly known as Juneteenth. Since the late 20th century, this date has gained recognition beyond Texas, and has been proposed for a national Emancipation Day."

And, this, my friends is why you have an extra day.....this year.....to file your taxes.

(Note: Quoted passages have been copied from Google searches.)

#April15 #WashingtonDCEmancipationDayObservation

#slavery #emancipationdayaffectsfederaltaxday

Got Coffee Creamer but Fake Eggs

You've heard that old saying....maybe you've even said it, a time or two......."the squeaky wheel gets oiled."

Yesterday morning, Mike and I arrived at the doctor's office 30 minutes before 9 a.m. (for a 9 a.m. appointment), with plans to go to iHOP (yes that, "we have no cream, for your coffee") for Breakfast, afterwards.

First of all, the doctor's office was "cold enough to hang meat" (I've got lots of these little sayings stored away in that raggedy old book, in my head). We decided that we were so cold.......we'd be exchanging our initial reason for the visit to being treated for pneumonia!

I finally decided on an idea. I went to the "sign in desk" and suggested a "fund-raising effort......by renting blankets to those of us waiting." (The thermostat got turned up.)

Anyway, we sat so long....people began introducing themselves to each other! Mr. Green was the nicest little man who had overslept that morning......until 5 a.m.

But I digress (I just love that word, and it fits most of my conversations, so well!) We were there so long, the Breakfast we had planned to have at the "we don't have creamer" restaurant turned into "we should just order lunch" (but, we didn't.)

We sat down, and our server came and we ordered coffee. She questioned, "would you like cream?" then she looked at me, and said, "of course you would!" (with a smile). Maybe we've been there too much......naw, we just made an impression!

About 10 minutes into our meal, the General Manager came out (apparently, it had "made it to the back" that "the complainer is out there"). This time, her uniform was clean, and her hair was brushed. She was very nice and congenial, and she asked, "How is everything?" I replied, "Everything is great, you have cream!" She said, with a smile, "I keep it, just for you."

Yep, the squeaky wheel gets oiled!

(Another hint for you......DO NOT order scrambled eggs at iHOP. Fried eggs are REAL......the scrambled eggs are fake. Yes, I did....and no, I won't the next time!)

Maybe I'll get that place shaped up, after a few more visits......or they'll invite me to "don't come back!"

#LaureliHOP #nocreamerformycoffee? #squeakywheelgetsoiled #fakescrambledeggs #waitinginadoctorsoffice

From The Cross to The Coffin

Our Pastor, Tim Beard, has been in the "church business" for almost 50 years. He was educated at Emory University, and in Jerusalem. He's well read, well spoken, well loved, and he's funny. He relates to people, he's a Bible Scholar and a Master Storyteller.

Everyday he sends out a Morning Prayer, via text message, to his "church flock" as well as to many others. If he's late - we wonder what's going on? Is he sick? Is something wrong with Marge, his sweet wife? 

On Saturday, there had been a second text message. 

"Tomorrow: The Coffin"

We got to church, and the Church Bulletin didn't list "The Coffin" as the sermon.

After the Choir's special of "The Way of the Cross Leads Home" Bro. Beard began talking about "The Cross." My thoughts were, at the last minute, he'd probably changed his mind. I was a little disappointed. Over the years, I had heard the sermons about The Cross - I wanted to hear about The Coffin.

I settled down and listened as he crafted a story with a perfect ending. He took us on a journey from The Cross at Calvary, through verses in the Bible, down through the years. I usually leave church with the feeling that he'd been talking to me. This day was no different. Had I looked at others and been "glad" that I wasn't them? Had I felt pity for myself? Had I asked, "what can I do?" 

Burl Cain was the Warden at Angola Prison in Louisiana for 21 years. He was credited with changing the violent and deadly prison culture with "moral rehabilitation." In the nation's largest maximum security prison, which covers an area larger than the island of Manhattan, he brought God.

He had several interdenominational chapels built in the "little city," and in 1997 he asked Tex Reardon (who was associated with Billy Graham Ministries) if he could get Billy Graham to come to Angola.

Because Rev. Graham was in poor health, his son Franklin went. Two more chapels were built - one with a Steeple and a Cross high enough that it could be seen by the prisoners on Death Row.

And The Coffin?

Prisoners, who died in Angola, were buried in cardboard boxes. Cain viewed a prisoner falling into the empty grave, because the bottom had fallen out. He vowed that would never happen, again. There were craftsmen among the prisoners, and Cain decided to have Coffins built for the prisoners out of  treated Plywood.

Franklin Graham, while visiting Angola, witnessed the beautiful coffins and ordered 6, for his family. Billy Graham was laid to rest in one of these Coffins. A Cross was carved into the top, and the names of the three men who had built it were engraved in The Coffin. 

From The Cross at Calvary to the Cross on The Coffin at Angola, now resting in Montreat, NC.

Those questions Bro. Beard asked, on Sunday......I'm working on them!  

#thecross #thecoffin #Angola 

Look what happened, today!!