Dodge Charger

*note: this is not the actual car, but a public domain image of a similar one

Since Sean's car is in the shop getting repaired because some moron neighbor hit it and didn't have the guts to leave a note, GEICO in all its wonderful insurance goodiness has graciously (yes, it's part of our policy. shhhhh, I want to think I'm special) given us a rental to use for the weekend. Sean had his choice between a Chevy Impala that was available immediately or the Dodge Charger that would take an extra ten minutes to get ready. Of course he chose the muscle car. Who wouldn't?

Before any of you get all uppity about me being excited about a Dodge, remember that this is just a rental. We didn't buy it, and we wouldn't buy one for ourselves if we had a choice. I actually detest Dodge vehicles (that includes Plymouth and Chrysler) because although they are cool and have nifty features, they quickly fall apart because they're made with very cheap parts that wear out quickly.

But since this is a rental, I can get all excited. This baby is HELLA fun to drive! It has guts. It roars. It purrs. It looks awesome. But it's going back Wednesday. Bah.

Comments

I deleted an essay-like comment today that appeared as a result of something I posted on StandFirm (see link on sidebar). This comment was entirely political, rather whiny, and posted to an entry about George's latest accomplishment. I deleted it because it was entirely inappropriate for the subject matter of my post about George.

If someone has something they want to say (even if I don't agree with it), I'm not likely to moderate comments as long as they are: posted to an appropriate topic (for future reference, any post about my son is NOT an appropriate place to whine about church politics), not spam, not containing foul language, and generally not downright hateful or vulgar.

If you feel that it is extremely important to contact me, a little bit of searching will come up with one of my email addresses. I am on Facebook. I am the newsletter editor for St. Alban's (a very easy to find email address). I am not some mysterious anonymous person on the interwebs who you can only contact by leaving an essay on a post about my son.

I do not want to have to remove the option for anonymous commentors, nor do I want to turn on comment moderation (I don't get enough traffic to worry about spam, and I get notifications via email for comments left here). If I have to though, I will. Now play nice.

Dallas March for Life

I am exhausted, but it was well worth it. George and I participated in the Dallas March for Life today. There were some tears from the moving speeches at the rally and friendships struck among the marchers. I have no idea how many people were there, but it was really great to see all the young faces.

Go Go Speed Racer

George and I just got back from getting the mail. Yes, we both walked down to the mailbox. The mailbox that is five houses down from us. George pushed his Sit 'n Stand walker all the way down to the mailbox and back. He was sooooo excited! My baby's gettin' so big. :D

...Forgive Those Who Trespass Against Us...

I read a very sad story in one of my CafeMom groups today about a woman pregnant with twins who was killed in a tragic car accident along with her unborn babies on Christmas Eve. The mom who posted this story was full of anger towards the woman who caused the accident, and the resulting conversation between us got me thinking about praying for those who have wronged us.

Most of us pray for those we love. We pray for family members who are ill, we praise God when something good happens. We pray for our friends, and we even pray for people we don't know who are suffering. But how often do we pray for those who cause the suffering?

It is very easy to say "I hate that person for what they have done" whether it be a terroristic world leader, our own president (former, current, or -elect), a criminal, or even someone close to us who has grievously wronged us. But how easy is it to forgive them? How easy is it to pray for them?

Forgiveness is not an automatic "Pass Go - Collect $200." It does not mean that we should automatically be BFF with the person. It means that we have acknowledged that a wrong has been committed, accept that it can't be taken back, and move forward. Whether moving forward involves reconcilement or estrangement is up to the situation and people involved.

But forgiveness is only a part of the command to "love our enemies." We should also pray for them. It can be as simple as "Please Lord, let that driver who just cut me off realize what he has done and repent" or "Please Lord, don't let that reckless and dangerous driver cause a fatal accident." I am learning how to pray for someone who has wronged me, my family, and my extended family. I don't ever want to see this person again, and especially don't want him near my son, but I ask that he come to know the error of his ways--that he will see how he is hurting those around him.

When I pray these prayers, I begin to feel a bit better about the situation. I put the problem in God's hands and it ends up being one more burden that I no longer have to carry.

"Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do."

Renters? Ugh

I have good news and bad news.

Good news: Our neighbors are moving. These are the people who have three generations plus extended family living in a 3 bedroom house and approximately 6 cars. One of these cars used to be parked in front of our house when we moved in (and the owner seemed very upset when I told him he couldn't keep parking it there because I'd like my own guests to be able to park in front of my house), and another was hit by our moving truck (the driver ended up getting arrested for oustanding warrants, long story. I know I was supposed to post about it but didn't get around to it. Sorry). This makes me happy because all those cars will finally be gone. Yay.

Bad news: There's a big "For Lease" sign in front of their house. This means they're not selling it, but renting it. Oh goody.

I don't want to paint all renters in a bad light, Sean and I had rented from the time we were married until we bought this house. However, we were of the rare breed of good renters. We took care of our homes, were polite to our neighbors, and always left our apartments in better condition than we found it (I even repaired nail holes in the walls left by previous renters). Not so with most renters. If our apartment neighbors were any indication, renters tend to not care about the building they live in. They tend to throw loud obnoxious parties because they can just rent somewhere else if they get kicked out. They have no investment in where they live.

I'm not worried about the property value, we bought this house for way less than what it is worth, have put in new floors, new appliances, done cosmetic repairs, and could sell it for more than the purchase price even if our neighbors were running a crack house. Well, maybe. No matter, I don't plan on selling it anyway.

What I'm worried about is what kind of people this is going to attract? Are there going to be even MORE cars parked out front? Will they have loud obnoxious parties? Are they going to be neglectful and burn the place down?

Maybe we'll get lucky and they're doing a "lease-to-own". Better that than letting it sit vacant for a year.

Update on George

It turns out George is just fine. I, on the other hand, am not. Apparently his cough is a lingering remnant of his cold. Mine has turned into an ear infection. Bah.

Good news, though, I finally got my new computer (with Vista) set up and have started transferring files from my laptop. I think next I get to install Office 2007.

It is freezing outside. Literally. Yuck.

And oh yeah! I have my Etsy store up!

Poor Baby

Is sick. My sweet little Georgie has had a cough for a week, and last night it got so bad that when I was rocking him to sleep he'd wake up every couple of minutes coughing. I could hear the phlegm in his throat. Today I have a sore throat and if I feel this crappy I can only assume how awful he feels. I think we've all been passing around a cold for the last week or so.

I'm going to call the pediatrician as soon as her office opens today and make an appointment to bring him in. Updates on his condition will be posted.