Is “reading” a newspaper without paying for it “stealing”?

I was at the Flower Hill Starbucks this morning when a man opened the door, grabbed a Washington Post off the stand and walked out. Mind you, he didn’t buy anything. He just took the paper from the stand, walked outside, sat himself down at a courtesy table and began to pour through it. Since all the newspapers are for sale, not for loan like the chess set, this really annoyed me.

While I finished my coffee, I concluded the jerk had an exaggerated sense of entitlement that pervades Maryland. From my first glimpse, he didn’t look like a homeless person but since it’s Sunday, I opened my mind to the possibility that he might not be currently employed or otherwise have some financial difficulty. I decided that I would not only say something to him but also drop three one dollar bills on his table so he could properly pay for the paper he now had scrambled all over the table.

 I said “The paper is for purchase, not free. If you can’t afford to pay for it, here is some money. Go make it right.” He didn’t catch my point at first so I said it again as I went back to my car. I could here his twang in the background so I went back but not too close. I said in a snitty tone “You don’t even realize what you did was wrong. Do you?” He proceeded to argue with me so I made my point again and walked off. He thought he got in the last word by “sweetly” telling me to “Have a nice day.” He brought the paper back inside and I took my three dollars back.

Actually, I am going to have a nice day. I am going to blog his iniquity over the cyber universe.

See Vote Now box.

What is the Christian Bible?

Listening to Dr. Stanley's sermon "Our Anchor in Times of Storm" made me ponder a bit more about what I feel the Bible is to me. He defines it as "the record of God’s unfolding revelation of Himself through the spoken Word, in nature, in history, and ultimately through the coming of His Son Jesus Christ into the world.”

My thumbnail sketch is the Bible shows us God's efforts to communicate with his people. Some people have heard God's voice as a whisper. Some hear it loudly, mostly because they aren't listening and God wants to get their attention.

What do you think about the Christian Bible?

Two days left to Vote: Is Sexting Cheating?

See Vote box at the top of the page, right-hand side. So far everyone Says Yes!

The Erosion of Cinema Civility

As I waited for the MARC train to depart Union Station, I read an article in the Washington Post Express about theaters having to crack down on movie goers because they are using their smart phones, cell phones, tablets, etc. while they are watching the movie. If I wrote the article, I would ask “do these folks really think they can do two things at the same time?” Or why do I always end up in front of the guy who puts his knee in the back of the seat?” Instead, Christy Lemire asks “why must we talk, text and tweet in the middle of a movie? And, what can theaters do to stop this erosion of cinema civility?”

As to why, she briefly mentions generational differences and as to how, she refers us to Rotten Tomatoes’ “10 Commandments for Movie Audiences”.

I don’t think the cause of decreasing civility is as simple as a gap in generations. My elderly friends act like they were born with a cell phone sticking out of their ear just like the neighborhood teens. What’s different now is communication is predominantly electronic. Communicating through something creates an emotional distance between the speaker and the hearer. Emotional distance increases insensitivity towards others.

The other culprit is our national obsession with instant information, easily translated to instant gratification. One fine day this obsession will do us in. All that needs to happen is for an entire power grid to go down and the electronic-device zombies will stare at their dead electronic “friends” in a panic.

My personal and professional experiences tell me that enforcing move theater civility is a tough order to fill. May the force be with them. 

Doreen vs the Trout

As I was just about to leave Michigan to move back east to Maryland, Ron and I decided to take one last drive through the area. We passed Spring Valley Trout Farm and I mentioned that I had never been fishing. Ron replied that he and his mother went fishing all the time and headed the car into the lot.

Of course, I was assuming all along that Ron would join me in the fishing adventure but as we got to the counter, he only ordered one pole and one can of bait. Being a sturdy New Englander, the sight of cut up, yet squirming, worms did not do me in. So we proceeded to the pond. There were families having picnics under the pavilion to the left and a large pond to the right. It was getting cloudy and looked like we were in for rain. With great wisdom, Ron announced that rainy weather meant good fishing. What did I know. It sounded good to me. So off we went.

There were children fishing on the end closest to the picnic tables so we went to the far end. I successfully put the first worm on the end of the pole and plopped it into the water. I don’t know what magic I thought would happen but things seems pretty quiet. As I asked Ron “how do I know if I caught one,” I raised the pole and there was a fish attached. I screamed like a sissy girl flailing the pole this way and that. Ron grabbed the pole and pulled it towards the bucket they gave us. Ta da, it went it. We unhooked it and off I went to try a second time.

I had a bit more trouble with the worm but managed to get it on. Inspired, I plopped the pole in the water and again was wondering how I would know if I caught a fish. I pulled up the pole and low and behold another fish was attached. Since I wasn’t expecting it, I screamed like a sissy girl - again. Ron had a bit more trouble helping me get it to the bucket but it was success number two. I kept thinking if I were a baseball player, I’d be batting 1000.

This thought jinxed me. I put the worm-laden pole in the water for a third time but this big old fish got away. I had my eye on him. I was not leaving without him for dinner!

I struggled to put a fourth worm on the pole but determined to catch what had now become my “white whale,” I followed "Moby Dick" around until I could put the pole right in front of him. He was a big old fish and he didn’t get that way by snapping at every pole in the pond. I waiting patiently as a fine mist of rain began to fall. He came close two times. Like Jaws, the third time he nibbled at the bait. I jumped for joy bringing the pole out of the water and there he was flopping about to beat the band. We had quite a struggle to get him in the pail but success was mine. He was still flopping about wildly as we went to check out counter.  No one else's fish were flopping like that. I had a live one! I was proud of my three catches. The Toles would eat well tonight.

As we finished dinner, I was amused to find myself very proud that I had caught dinner. This primal urge welled up in me and like a cave man, I shouted “um gow ah” “me catch food”.

Doreen 1. Fish 0.

Spring Valley Trout Farm, used with permission. 

Praying the Right Way

There is some Christian conversation on whether one has to pray or not. Some feel that God already knows so in the (in)famous retort of Gilda Radner “Why bother?” Prolific author CH Spurgeon, one of my favorites, (AKA The Prince of Preachers), is on the Yes side.

My concern is that many who do pray don’t have the proper approach. They either ask God to take some bad thing away or to give them some good thing. Presbyterian publication These Days hits the nail on the head: 

• “do not tell God what (you) must have; “ask what God would have (you) do.”
• “do not tell God the direction God should take; “ask God to guide (you).”
• “do not hold up to God (your) dreams and visions; “ask God to grant (you) dreams and visions.”
  (“These Moments”, Sylvia Cleland. October, November, December 2010)

The Christian Bible endorses bringing all things to God in prayer (Philippians 4:6; Proverbs 3:6; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Timothy 2:1). Thus, the framework these intercessory prayers should take is to ask God to help you through whatever circumstance you are in.

Some suggestions on how to approach this are as follows:

• Instead of Saying: I can't take this any more. Say: God, please give me the strength to cope with this.
• Instead of Saying: Let me win the lotto. Say: God, please give me the means to meet my obligations.
• Instead of Saying: I can't stand that person/those people. Say: God, please give me tolerance of others.
• Instead of Saying: That person's doing something wrong. Say: God, please show them the way to enlightenment.
• Instead of Saying: Why is this happening to me? Say: God, please show me the way to enlightenment.
• Instead of Saying: Why is it always me? Say: God, please show me that I am not alone and will overcome.
• Instead of Saying: I feel broken inside. Say: God, please show me how to become whole.
• Instead of Saying: I feel despair. Say: God, please let me feel hope.
• Instead of Saying: I can't forgive… Say: God, please show me how to forgive.
• Instead of Saying: I can't forget… Say: God, please help me find peace.
  Source: old chain e-mail

Hourly Struggles

Have you ever felt that evil was winning? That no matter what you did, you ended up on the wrong end of the stick? You probably already know that you aren’t alone. For decades, no matter how good I tried to be, no matter how persevering, I just seemed to lose in the end.

My spiritual journey has many gaps as well as the normal ups and downs. This may seem like an oxymoron, but I was raised Catholic by non-believers. I hung in there until Confirmation. Then, in my early 40s, I found Gaithersburg Presbyterian Church and have grown spiritually over the last ten years. What I learned is that my childhood wish that things would keep improving until I died was really a “childish” wish.

The reason why became clearer as I read CH Spurgeon’s devotion for the morning of March 2^nd: “We are engaged in a great war with the Philistines of evil.” The Christian Bible never promises a trouble free life. In fact, it says just the opposite: “In the world ye shall have tribulation.” (John 16:33) The evil of the world will plague mankind until the Second Coming of Jesus. This plague comes from within as well as from without. Being left alone is also a long-held desire for me. Spurgeon’s evening devotion for February 20^th warned me that evil comes even in solitude.

What I also learned is that I should not try to avoid temptation. The first reason is that unless I have achieved a mature holy spirit, I will be an easy pawn for Satan. The second is that there are things to be learned from trials that can be shared with others. This works for me because I don’t feel I wasted my suffering. The third reason is that earthly imperfections need to be weaned out of me if I want to go to Heaven.

What is the practical solution to this? I must continue to study scripture and mature spiritually so I can put the whole armor of God on “for the arch-deceiver will seize [my] first unguarded hour to make [me] his prey.” (February 20^th)

Vote Now: Is Sexting Cheating?

The Washington Post's Express newspaper's cover story for June 8, 2011 asks a simple question: Is Sexting Cheating?

Rep. Anthony Weiner's social media antics and final admission of guilt generated a lot of emotions. As a Christian, I know that thoughts count just as much as actions. America's moral compass is upside down and needs to get back on track. Buy voting Yes, you support the return to marital fidelity and self-respect.

See Vote Box in upper right-hand corner.

Check out the new Page "My Favorites”

Some of my favorite local businesses:

Hershey's Cleaners,

Starbucks at Flower Hill,

Giant at Flower Hill,

Luxury Nails

Check out the new Page "Public Service Info”

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids,

The Great Hangup,

Protecting Our Ocean Wildlife

Check out the new Page "Statement of Beliefs"

I tried to be brief but comprehensive.