thoughts on the news of the day: teapots

hmmm…..

            I have been searching for teapots today on the internet.  They sparked my attention this morning by a picture for a blue and white polka dotted one in an ad to the right of the day’s news.  I sort of collect teapots and my daughter has asked for one so teapots are kinda on my mind lately.

            As I browsed around the internet, I thought of a phrase that is not spoken just a whole lot in our language today.  “Tempest in a teapot,” has been used colloquially in the past but not so much lately.  It basically means making a big deal out of something that is not a big deal at all.  It came from the English term, “storm in a teacup” but the original version is attributed to Cicero who wrote “he was stirring up waves in a ladle.”

            Most tempests in teapots are self serving temper tantrums disguised as what is vitally important in the world today.  Many times they have to do with self interest groups who want their own way or lobbyists who are watching the bottom line.  The phrase sure does apply to much of the news today.  Things get stirred up that aren’t really important and the real issues go unnoticed.  

            I guess it’s important to look at all sides of an issue before spouting off.  You could be right or you could be stirring a storm in a cream bowl.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: hold

hmmm…..

            Isn’t it annoying to sit and wait on the phone while you are put on hold?  I called a doctor’s office yesterday and had to wait 15 minutes to actually get a human being.  The reason I know it was 15 minutes is because my iphone has an automatic timer for phone calls.  To me what is the most annoying part about being put on hold is when they play some obnoxious commercials about their company or product.  As if we don’t already know who we are calling.  It really rubs salt into the ear.  Speaker phone helps.  We can go about out business more or less while waiting for an actual person. 

            I decided to make a list of things I could do while waiting for someone to pick up.  First of all, I could stand.  Research has shown that standing is good for the heart and for the health in general.  Second, I could go about my work on the computer – which is almost always where I am when I am on the phone anyway.  Third, I could paint my toenails.  Painting my finger nails doesn’t work so well, for obvious reasons. 

            The best pastime is the fourth.  I could pray.  I could pray for the overworked person who will have to listen to my irate attitude when they finally answer my call.  I could pray for patience, although that is always a dangerous plan.  After all, God might really give us something to be patient about …   I could pray for all those I know about who are sick, troubled or hurt in any way.  I could pray for all those who are too poor to even have a phone. 

            Oops, gotta go … they finally picked up!

            hmmm…..

           

thoughts on the news of the day: junk

hmmm…..

            Space junk is filling outer space. It’s a serious problem.  Debris from the tiny size of a paint chip to the enormous size of a parked car is circling the earth at tremendous speeds making it dangerous to collide with satellites and space stations.  Orbital fixtures are usually able to dodge the bullets but occasionally there are near and actual collisions.  You wouldn’t think that a tiny screw or bolt would make much difference against the metal hull of a satellite or space station, but when you factor in a speed of 17,000 mph it becomes a lethal missile itself. 

            Junk.  How much do you have in your own home?  Stuff you don’t need and don’t want is probably cluttering up your personal space.  Am I right?  I was thinking about clearing out some of the clothes I have in my closet – stuff I haven’t worn in years.  Some, I hate to admit, I have never worn at all. 

            I could donate it to Goodwill or the Salvation Army where it might be distributed to someone in need; giving me a nice tax deduction.  Or I could try a resale shop or garage sale which probably wouldn’t net much.  Maybe friends or family might want it, but probably not.  At any rate, no matter what the manner, recycling is sure to make me feel better.

            I might keep them, though and wear them once in a while. But fortunately,  when I collide with my clothes, they don’t explode with supersonic speed.   

            hmmm…..

           

thoughts on the news of the day: reading

hmmm…..

            Every so often I get a post on my facebook page that says it is National Book Week.  It suggests I read a book, or do something like post the fifth sentence of the fiftieth page of the fifth chapter; or something like that.  National Book Week has been reported to be on several different weeks, so there might be some truth to the claim.

            I personally think that reading should be promoted every day of the year.  It is hard to get folks to read a book these days, but not so hard to get them to read an internet story or to pop a novel onto their iPad.  There is a general bemoaning about kids not reading any more, but I don’t think that is so true.  They read; it’s just not the classics.  They read twitter posts and facebook posts and the latest on the internet news.  They read texts and sometimes even emails. 

            But that’s not so wholesome and educational.   Maybe it’s not the same as curling up with a good book on a hot summer day.  Right. It’s not.  But I don’t think we should therefore come to the conclusion that people don’t read anymore.  I would guess that there is more reading done today than any time in history, it’s just different.

            I am all for reading.  I do a lot of it; but it is mostly for my job.  Its journals and magazines and articles posted on the internet.  It is research information that I am given via google.    It keeps me up to date on what Princess Kate is wearing, but it also tells me what is going on in Libya.  Is that so bad?

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: God

hmmm…..

            Last Sunday Michelle Bachmann, a GOP presidential candidate said the following:  “I don’t know how much God has to do to get the attention of the politicians.  We’ve had an earthquake, we’ve had a hurricane.  He said, ‘Are you going to start listening to me here?’"    It’s as if she was blaming politicians for the disaster.  A spokesperson for Bachmann said that she was saying the comment in jest; that it was a joke.  But that was after the uproar about it.

            Is that how God works?  Does God cause natural disasters because of our bad behavior?  Perhaps you remember the statement Pat Robertson made 10 years ago on national television about 9/11 being punishment for our sins.  How cruel to say that about innocent victims.  That comment was shut down almost immediately.

            My understanding of God doesn’t work that way.  God doesn’t play Santa Claus, nor does God punish us by causing natural or unnatural disasters.  At least my God doesn’t.  I think God cries when we cry and rejoices when we rejoice.  We are a part of God, just as God is a part of us.  I believe that Jesus came to save us from ourselves and that includes the natural disasters we sometimes cause by our carelessness with our natural resources.

            So I think Michelle Bachmann and other politicians and self made theologians should be careful what they say.  It’s kind of like playing God themselves, don’t you think?

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: moles

hmmm…..

            Much ado about not much.  Two events this weekend fit that category.  They are Hurricane Irene and the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA).  News media hyped both events but they paled in comparison to their news emphasis.  We seem to believe what the news tells us – that Hurricane Irene will be colossally destructive and that the VMA’s will be a show like no other show before it. 

            Now, I am sure that those who lost their homes, or in a few cases a loved ones life will not think that the hurricane is a minor event.  That is true.  And I don’t mean to be unsympathetic to their plight.  Comparing it to an entertainment event in poor taste is probably not fair either.  But it must leave most of New York annoyed that they were warned of a disaster waiting to happen when in reality it was just a little wind and rain.

            It’s easy to make a big thing over nothing.  We do that sometimes.  We anticipate a predicament when really it is only a problem to be solved.  We make monsters out of moles.  That’s where faith comes in.  We must have faith that things will turn out; that in the end good will win.  Maybe that’s a little naïve given the enormity of the weekend’s event, but maybe not.  Maybe prayers were answered when the hurricane subsided and mammoth losses did not occur. Maybe, just maybe God is in charge after all.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: powerless

hmmm…..

            Almost a million customers are without power in the Mid-Atlantic United States as hurricane Irene continues its attack.  That means no lights, no air conditioning, no microwave, no TV.  I would suspect that before it’s all over, counting New York City and surrounding areas, that figure will be millions more.  At least it is not in the middle of the winter when icy temperatures would make it life threatening to stay in the area.  I mean, hard as it may be, we can live without our flat screens.

            No power.  That happens in our lives, too.  We are powerless over so many things.  We are powerless over diseases out of control.  We are powerless over children out of control.  We are powerless over crime and illegal drug use which is totally out of control. 

            But there is another power; and that power is God.  Followers of 12 Step programs are apt to call God their Higher Power; that is, a power greater than themselves.  It is the energy that flows through us so that we might live and breathe and have our being -- so to speak.   It is our job to plug into the power and to let it flow within us.  I think that’s what the scriptures mean when they say that nothing is impossible with God.  We are powerless but God is not.

            As easy as it is to say, and as inconvenient as it is to live through, finding ourselves without power is a good way to remind ourselves that God is in charge.

            hmmm…..