Good Morning!
Today’s header photo is from Roscuro.
On this day in 1818 the U.S. Senate ratified Rush-Bagot amendment to form an unarmed U.S.-Canada border.
In 1922 Annie Oakley shot 100 clay targets in a row, to set a women’s record.
In 1944 the destroyer USS Laffey survived immense damage from attacks by 22 Japanese aircraft off Okinawa.
In 1947 the Zoomar lens, invented by Dr. Frank Back, was demonstrated in New York City. It was the first lens to exhibit zooming effects.
And in 1968 major league baseball’s longest night game was played when the Houston Astros defeated the New York Mets 1-0. The 24 innings took six hours, six minutes to play.
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Quote of the Day
“It is possible to fly without motors, but not without knowledge and skill.”
Wilbur Wright
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Today is Bobby Vinton’s birthday.
And it’s Gerry Rafferty’s too. From Gerry Rafferty
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Wandering Views 
Evening or morning all
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I’m tired and ready for some sleep, but I just sprayed a roach to kill it here in my small bedroom and have to wait for the fumes to air out. What would you all like to talk about???
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First? Hoorsy! It’s the 16th! We made it again.
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Morning ladies. 🙂
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glad that you made it to the 16th, Janice. I was praying for my cpa.
hmm… hate the aroma of mortrein. Maybe I’ll sleep on the couch.
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Hooray!!!!
Sweet crocus flowers for today.
I have a sore throat. 😦
Jo killed a roach. 🙂
Husband said of the last ten years that this was the year he saw the most big tax bills due. I refrained from asking if it was Bush’s fault.
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Here’s a timely QoD: Do you file your taxes by April 15 or do you file for an extension? If the latter, why?
(we always file on time but like I’ve said before, I’m borderline OCD; what I’m trying to determine by the question is what’s the point of delaying a deadline instead of just getting it over with?)
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We filed for an extension this year. It usually depends on how much time my husband has for pulling together all the figures from the business and getting them loaded into the system. He will do others before ours if time is running out.
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Good Morning Everyone. Just checking in to say hello.
Chas, I shared your thoughts on Easter with my priest and associate priest. They both liked it.
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Kim, tell them to use whatever they find helpful.
Janice, I talked with a guy who volunteers help for tax returns. He said they worked like mad till midnight. Then, suddenly nothing to do.
I have never filed for an extension. I keep a folder for current taxes and along the first of the year I buy TurboTax and work on it sporadically for a couple of months, then sometime in February I sit down for a few hours and bring it all together. Then I sit on it till mid March and file it. In the future, I will file it on about 1 April.
I have a strong dislike for TurboTax, but all my data is on it and I don’t have to transfer it every year. It just goes back and grabs the data.
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We have never filed for an extension. We have some friends who always filed for an extension. I don’t know if they still do. I never understood the point, since any possible payment was always due anyway. I can understand if there was a major event that made it impossible to get it all together.
I was not too happy to read here yesterday, that my husband disliked my grandson enough to give him grits. 😉 Thanks, anon. You are a good editor.
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I was surprised last night when I called the office right after midnight and another worker answered the phone. My husband and tso others were still there. Usually by that time all would be gone exvept for my husband. Husband said the last client was there around 10:00 pm and they did have some last day walk-ins without appointments (clients they had done in the past). Husband will be working today on some of the extension returns that were almost finished. Preparers are now functioning as auditors and are responsible for verifying backup documentation for what the client claims should go on the return. The preparer has to keep cpoies of backup info so we have a scanner now. The first year we that was required we made copies of everything. Imagine the extra expense of paper, copier ink, time on the clock for employees and extra filing cabinets, etc. So some clients may have to file an extension to be able to find backup paperwork.
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Interesting, Janice. I had no idea.
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Extensions: I never do my taxes, husband does. At times he has filed for an extension. Sometimes because working overseas can make things complicated and sometimes because work takes precedence and sometimes because paperwork does not show up in time and sometimes because he procrastinates. Usually it is done in such a way as to be done enough ahead but not too much.
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I filed for an extension once, I guess it must have been an extra-chaotic year.
I’m still waiting for my refunds, both fed and state have received & approved them but I failed to set up for direct deposit so it’ll take longer, I guess, to get the checks in the mail.
Back to fire coverage today, but then (maybe) on to forgiveness. 🙂 Found this article that I thought was good in terms of forgiveness for Christians.
http://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/why-forgive/
I think our secular society has sometimes fallen for what might be seen as a “cheap” forgiveness in the trend of victims of violence to immediately proclaim publicly they have “forgiven” their assailants or those who have taken the lives of children, for example. It sounds spiritual, but sometimes also superficial to me I suppose, especially when divorced from the context of Christian forgiveness. True forgiveness is tough work for most, especially when there is no repentance (and sometimes even when there is, amen?). 😦
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Amen. We have to remember what we have been forgiven. Makes it easier.
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Indeed.
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Addendum to yesterday’s 10:17: I don’t know if I’ll use this or not, but Muslims do not believe Jesus died on the cross. The Koran, Sura 4 about v. 156 “And for their saying, “Verily we have slain the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, an Apostle of God.” Yet they slew him not, and they crucified him not, but they had only his likeness.”………..and they did not really slay him, but God took him up to Himself.” Not from the Koran, but other teachings, possibly a Hadith, they believe that Jesus will return with Mohammed and take all the crosses off the churches.
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Christians believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Written by men inspired by God.
Muslims believe the Koran to be the very word of God, written by Mohammed as Tertius wrote the Roman epistle. (Rom. 16:22)
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Are Jews still waiting for a Messiah? If not, why not? If so, why don’t we ever hear anything about it?
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It amazes me all the real estate agents who file for an extension. You are going to owe in October, plus you will have to pay interest.
Is there a benefit to filing in October that I don’t know about.
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Linda,
Good question. I’ve wondered about that too. You rarely here it mentioned.
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Linda, I believe observant Jews are still looking for the promised Messiah. He was eagerly anticipated during Jesus’ time. How do you expect Mary interpreted the angel’s message in Luke 1:32&33? And Zacharias in Luke 2:71-74? I don’t think their theology has changed.
But I haven’t followed Jewish theology. I didn’t pay attention to Muslim theology until 9/11/01, even though I was in Arabia for eight months in 1952. Judaism has never presented a threat. Whereas Islam is militant and is charged with expanding Islam through the world. Preferably by persuasion, but by force if necessary. Read about what they’re doing in England now. And France.
Islam is not a religion of peace.
Islam is an existential threat. They are serious.
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For the extensions, people who file them are suppose to pay what they owe by April 15th. It is the filing of the return that gets to wait. No extension on paying what is owed. If you don’t pay then you get a penalty and accrued interest on top of taxes owed.
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Considering forgiveness and reconciliation, I am thinking you could have a forced reconciliation by outside people or factors and still not have forgiveness at the heart level.
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Earlier as I was getting ready to go out, Miss Bosley plopped upon my pocketbook. She has noticed that I pick it up when I leave so she was going to have a sit-in to protest and prevent me from leaving. I think she has slowed down a bit lately.
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Jews for Jesus discusses this issue of why they need to be called Jews for Jesus–and why Jews have a distorted idea of who/what the Messiah is. http://www.jewsforjesus.org/publications/newsletter/march-2014/why-all-the-fuss
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regarding forgiveness: my test for my self is whether I can truly pray for the other person and for their good.
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The plant is called ‘bloodroot’, named for the red juice found in the root. It has some medicinal properties, both internal and external. Externally it is used to treat problems like eczema; internally, it is more dangerous, as it can alter consciousness at high doses. We found it growing in our wood.
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We have a blood root plant around here. It is a bit different, however. It does have the red juice. I have never used it, though. It looks so much more like spring, than the white view out my window. Sigh…
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Speaking of the view from my window—I watched a hawk (I believe a Northern Goshawk) swoop out of the sky and grab one of three squirrels chasing one another. It carried it half-flying and walking to under some pines. We watched it kill the squirrel and then eat it. It ate for about an hour. Then it sat back on it’s haunches (if hawks have those!) and looked quite full and satisfied. It finally flew up into one of the pines and eventually off to somewhere else.
The other squirrels were absolutely motionless for the longest time. Then the two left gradually braved moving a bit to keep an eye on the bird. I think they may have stayed in the tree until the bird left, although, I lost track at the very end.
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Now that I look closer that does look like the blood root plant that grows here. I usually don’t see it so concentrated and without other green plants around it.
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Keeping very busy just now. Currently occupied in putting the finishing touches on second sibling’s wedding gown. This has been the most hectic build up to a wedding yet, and I’ve helped with quite a few of my cousins’ and siblings’ weddings. Oh well, it’ll be all over in just a few days.
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Praying for your enemy really does foster a softened heart toward them.
Deadline rush all day today, just filed a story (after tweeting and FB) from a news conference where la fire chief said our fire was arson. The arson dog was doing his job in there all day today, we also got some good pics.
What a crazy week. I did send out a couple email requests today to people who may help with the Easter story (and I spoke with the assignment editor which gave me a little more clarity on what she’s looking for I think).
Bad part about trying to write a fast story from home: Annie the cat loves playing with my notebook as I frantically transcribe on the computer, knocking the notebook onto the floor so I completely lose my place …
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“Blue Velvet” reminds me of when I was in 7th grade and my girlfriend Patty and I would sometimes stop at a place called “Little Mo’s” on our walk home from school to get a coke (which, I think, cost a quarter at the lunch counter). They had a juke box in there and I loved that song (knowing very little about any other popular music at that time in my life).
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Now that Emily & Forrest are upstairs, it has been very nice having more privacy & quiet, & being able to do things I need to do without (as much) interruption. Of course, Forrest likes to pop down every so often. I think he misses seeing me all the time. But he still sees me every day for at least a bit.
Unfortunately, the rest of the “moving stuff around”, & getting my home back to the way I want it is going slowly. Emily still has to go through & clean up a bunch of stuff in her former room, which will again be the living room. I’m doing the little things I can do until the rooms can be switched (getting the living room out of the dining room, & bringing the dining room table & chairs up from the basement, as well as turning Chrissy’s former room into an office or den).
Also, now that I have to do the things Chrissy used to do, I am trying to fold them into a new routine. People talk about how important routine is for little children, but I find it is important to me no matter what age I am.
Quite frankly, with all the discombobulation, I sometimes feel somewhat confused & anxious. To combat that, I try to focus on working on one project for the day, to feel a sense of accomplishment & moving forward.
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This has been a season of ‘discombobulation’ for me, too 🙂 Glad that you’re getting your upstairs back and there will be more room, Karen. I hope as things settle down you’ll be able to find time to have some fun reconfiguring your living space so you can enjoy anew your home!
Looks like I’ll be on the clock for a while here, got a tip an arrest has been made in the arson but I can’t (so far) seem to find anyone who will or can confirm it. Arrrg.
But I have received responses to my Easter story inquiry I sent out a few hours ago that look promising.
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I can usually muster up a prayer for someone who acts as an enemy when I sm not in their company. So I can’t personally use that as a guage on whether or not I feel forgiving of a person. When someone continually gouges at me when I am in their presence I feel like gouging back when I should be spending time pondering why they do what they do. Analysis usually brings me to compassion and from there I can go to forgiveness. It’s like walking a mile in their shoes. Some people are just so hard to forgive because they will not refrain from constant gouging. Distance from the person in such instances may be the only way to foster forgiveness.
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I was in contact with someone like some years ago, JaniceG. Since then I’ve been able to keep a good distance, but I did work through a process at the time that helped me to feel kinder toward her. She especially hated Christianity, which I suspect was the source of her problem with me.
Forgiveness typically requires much prayer, self-reflection, time and work (which is why I sometimes wonder when people so immediately announce — very publicly — that they’ve forgiven someone who’s done something horrendous to them).
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Not sure if you saw my post, yesterday?, about the difference between forgiveness and trust. I believe I have forgiven, but cannot trust and do not want a relationship, since there is no trust and that person is not safe to be around.
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