Psalm 145:13 (NIV) ~ The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. 

The Lord is faithful to all His promises. 

Here you have a cast iron guarantee from the word of God; the Lord is faithful to all his promises. His promise is a promise you can depend upon. You can reply and lean on His promise with all your might, with the full assurance that He is faithful to all His promises. In fact, if you look back into the Old Testament in Joshua 21:45 (NIV), Joshua tells all who are listening, his words echo with an absolute truth and power in God through the corridors of time, and even today they shake the very earth which we stand on with their overwhelming, awesome substance and filled with a power-packed faith and carried on the very authenticity of the integrity and character of God, “Not one of all the LORD’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; everyone was fulfilled.” He is a covenant keeping God, who is faithful to all His promises. 

His covenant is a covenant of love towards all He has made; a covenant of promise; a promise which resounds through the very Universe with this amazing theme, “God is faithful to all His promises and loving toward all he has made.” Every star, every planet, every celestial, heavenly angel, from everything that God has made, from every mountain top, every valley, every plant, every bird of the air, every fish of the sea, every creature which lives on the earth, from every plant, to everything that has the breath of life in it, can testify and join together in a beautiful symphony sung in one accord, “The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made.” 

My friend, what an amazing Scripture to encourage our hearts with, and build us up for the day ahead, from our text for today in Psalm 145:13 (NIV), “The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made.” 

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

i’ve started bringing some of my home playmobil pieces to preschool.  we’ve had good luck keeping them in their own space.  no lost pieces yet.

it is encouraging for me to watch children play with teeny tiny pieces in slow and small movements.

i made a photocopy of some items for the children to match.  oh, they like this.

for ice week, i brought the ice bergs.

i was surprised  at the strong desire for flags.  straws, labels and crayons suited just fine.

i’m not sure who is more excited….them or me.

• 1960’s
• 1977
• 20^th century
• Aerials: 4 collections 1938, 1940s, 1946 many of them Fairchild Aerial surveys, and 2 large framed aerials from the 1930s.
• Arlington Mills
• Photos from the book Artwork of Lawrence 1892
• Beal: 3 photographs, 1 of Tower Hill reservoir and 2 of mill workers
• Bellevue Cemetery
• Burke, David
• Ceplikas: 57 photographs
  • There are two black and white photos (undated) showing the destruction of the Oxford Paper Mill
  •  Two color photographs document candidate Dwight Eisenhower’s visit to Lawrence October 12, 1952
  • Saint Patrick’s Day Parade 1983
  • Semana Hispana 1983
• Ciofolo: 58 photographs
  • Holy Rosary Catholic Church
  • 2 photos of the flood of 1936
  • Water Tower at the Reservoir
  • Radio station WLAW studio
  • May Processional (1930s). 
  • St. Patrick’s Day parade
• Deacy: Empire State docked at City Wharf, Newburyport, Mass., Aug. 27, 1886. 
• Dept. of Public Works
• Douglas: 3 glass plate negatives
  • Lawrence Public Library, old building
  • Fountain in the Lawrence Common
  • Soldiers’ monument decorated for Memorial Day
• Farrell: Balloon ascension by Geo E. Greenleaf of 49 Union St. Boston, Mass., July 4^th, 1890, at 5 P.M., Lawrence, Mass.”
• Fire and Ice: Ten photographs from a program run in the Lawrence Public Schools in 1980 entitled “Fire and Ice.” 
• Lawrence Fire Dept.
• Lawrence Up-to-date
• O’Reilly, James T.
• Phyllis Tyler political photographs
• Vermont Store
• Volleyball team
• Alfred P. Franz postcards
• Lawrence High School Class pictures
• Essick family photos (and World War II scrapbook)
• Alphonse Napolitano

Topics covered are:

• City buildings (City Hall, schools Court Houses, State Armory, Essex County Jail, Lawrence Public Library, fire stations, Post Office, Railroad stations, Police station, and the Poor farm)
• Important sites (Great Stone Dam, parks, monuments aerial views, bridges, rivers, canals, and the Hearse House)
• Businesses and commercial buildings Cregg, Building, Bay State Buildings, small businesses, Opera House, Franklin House, Colonial Theater, four theaters in a row, Eagle Tribune Building, Star Theater, Hotel Needham,  Lawrence Savings Bank, and Macartney’s Block)
• Streets (Haverhill St.. Broadway, Essex St., Lowell St., and Market St.)
• Industries (Pacific, Atlantic, Washington, Ayer, Wood, Everett, Lawrence Machine Ship, USWOCO, Jersey Ice Cream, Flour Mill, and Alfred Kimball Shoe Co.)
• Civic buildings (churches, Lawrence General Hospital, Masonic Temple, Merrimack Valley Country Club, Lawrence canoe Club, YMCA, Tuberculosis Hospital, and Turn Hall)
• Miscellaneous (Bodwell House, Fassanella painting, Columbus discovering America, 1936 flood, advertisements, announcements, etc.)
• Hinckley: 13 photographs of Lawrence, Massachusetts and its environs at/or around 1903.  The pictures were photographed, developed, and matted by Forrest Hinckley.  Scenes include the circus, the semi-centennial parade, an automobile race in Lowell, September, 6, 1909, a view of the river, Arlington Mills, an organ factory in Methuen, and the Boston to Manchester trai

• Kellett:. Photo is of a house at the northwest corner o Hampshire and Lowell Streets.
• Kerwin:
  • H.A. Buell & Co. Grocers and Tea Store located at the corner of Common and Garden Streets (79 Common St.). 
  • C.M. Goodwin store at the corner of East Haverhill and Prospect Streets
• Marsden:
  • McKay’s Machine Shop 1895
  • Water department clearing the filter beds 1900
  • Ice making on the Merrimack River
• Mayors of Lawrence:
  • Storrow, Charles S.
  • Bartlett, Enoch
  • Warren, Albert
  • Rollins. John R.
  • Oliver, Henry K.
  • Saunders, Daniel, jr
  • Barker, James K.
  • Wright, William H. P.
  • French, Alfred J.
  • Bonney, Milton
  • Armington, Pardon
  • Melvin, Nathaniel P. H.
  • Davis, Frank
  • Davis, Smith Brown Wilkinson
  • Tarbox, John K.
  • Tewksbury, Robert H.
  • Hayden, Edmund R.
  • Saunders, Caleb
  • Simpson, James R.
  • Webster, Henry K.
  • Breen, John
  • Bruce, Alexander
  • Mack, Alvin E.
  • Crawford, John W.
  • Collins, Lewis P.
  • Doe, Henry P.
  • Rutter, Charles G.
  • Junkins, George S.
  • Eaton, James H.
  • Leonard, James F.
  • Grant, Alexander L.
  • Lynch, Cornelius M
  • Kane, John P.
  • White, William P.
  • Cahill, John T.
  • Scanlon, Michael A.
  • Hurley, John J.
  • Mahoney, Daniel D.
  • Rochefort, Walter T.
  • Landers, Michael A.
• McCann
• Misc. 19^th Century Images

• Offer, George
• Panorama photos
  • Lawrence Common with Lawrence Police Department strike 1919
  • “Co. L 5^th Infantry MVM on strike duty at Lawrence, Mass. Feb. 1912”
  • “Co. D 1^st Corps Cadets Mass. Volunteer Infantry on duty during mill strike at Lawrence, Mar. 1912” 
  • “So. Lawrence’s offering to the World War” and “Retail merchants association of So. Union St. and vicinity” World War I
  • Italian fraternal group with Bellini Band
  • Lawrence, Mass. Legionaires Fire Drum Bugle Corps
  • 1177 Company CCC  Conway, N.H.  June, 1940
  • 1916 National Guard
  • World War I Soldiers
• Rendle Homestead

• Rollins School Classes of 1926, 1938, 1940, 1943, 1945, and 1946
• School buildings

• Sargent
  • Original Bay State Building
  • Appleton Block

• Stereo views
  • Mills: (exterior and interior) Pacific, American Print Works, Washington Mills, Everett Mills, Atlantic Mills, Pemberton
  • City buildings: South Lawrence Train Station, City Hall, Essex County , Opera House, Police Station, Oddfellows Hall
  • Great Stone dam
  • Streets: Haverhill St. Canal St., Essex St., Jackson Court, Garden St.
  • Aerial views: from Prospect Hill, from Tower Hill
  • Churches, St. Mary’s, Universalist (Church of the Good Shepherd), Garden St. ME, Eliot Congregational, 1^st ME, Free Baptist), Unitarian Church, Trinity Congregational,
  • Businesses: Winslow’s tailoring, Mason Hardware,
  • Andover Bridge collapse
  • Lawrence Common
• Lawrence, Mass. Streetscapes:

• Vogt family
• Lawrence city buildings
• Lawrence City Council, 1986-1989
• Diners
• Early photographs
• USO Scrapbook
• Misc. 19^th Century Images
  • Aerial Essex St. between Franklin and Hampshire
  • Bay state mills
  • Universalist Church before steeple
  • Corporation reserve, Essex County fair
  • 2^nd Baptist Church
  • Fish ladder, dam, and falls bridge
  • Hildreth Furniture store
  • Robinson Block, Pine St.
  • Court House, registry of deeds
  • Essex St. Corner of Lawrence Arlington Trust Bank
  • Original Bay State Bldg. Corner of Essex and Lawrence Streets
  • Atlantic Cotton Mills
  • St. Mary’s church
  • Pacific mills
  • Fairgrounds south Lawrence
  • Common, Trinity Church, snow
  • 1^st electric trolley Essex St.
  • Eidam residence 334 Prospect St
  • Office Essex Company
  • Students at the Hood School
  • Water Tower
  • View of city from Storrow Park, 1850s
  • Rebeka Lodge
  • Pumping station

1 Samuel 15:23 (KJV) ~ For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. 

In 1955, an actor named James Dean played the part of “Jim Stark” in the film called, Rebel Without A Cause. While it was a brilliant portrayal of the changing times within a society and the conflicting attitudes of different generations, the title arrested your attention. For even today many live as rebels without a cause. They rebel against any kind of authority whatsoever, refusing to accept responsibility or accountability of any sorts. But most of all, they rebel against God, refusing to accept His ways. 

In the UK, a civil order (ASBO) may be made against a person who has engaged in anti-social behaviour. In today’s society, some actually revel in anti-social behaviour to the point they wear any ASBO (anti-social behaviour order) like some sort of sick badge of honour.  

To be a rebel without a cause is to press the self-destruct button, having no respect for anything or anyone, allowing anarchy reign. In one sense, you raise a clenched fist up to God and say to Him, “I will not obey you, nor will I follow your ways, or accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, I will do things my way!” But the Bible warns us in 1 Samuel 15:23 (KJV), “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.” 

The alarming thing is that one day people who take such an approach and refuse to bow the knee to Jesus Christ in this lifetime, who do not repent and ask God for His forgiveness, will have to bow the knee before Him at the Judgment seat, where their pleading for forgiveness will be fruitless. 

If you want to be a rebel, then rebel against the enemy of souls and do the will of God.  Be a rebel with a cause against the tide of opinion of those who want nothing to do with God. Be a rebel with a cause, rebelling against all that is evil and fight the good fight of faith. Submit willingly to the Lord, with hands raised and hearts surrendered. Stand firm in Him, with integrity and honour before the Lord.

My friend, when you rebel against God, you in essence, turn your back on Him. Turn your negative rebellious attitudes over to the Lord and let Him give you a new beginning and fill you with a positive Christ-centered life.The Bible says Acts 3:19 (NIV), “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” Repent, do a complete turnaround from the direction in which you have been going, and go the other way. The Bible also says in Jeremiah 6:16 (NIV), “This is what the LORD says: ‘Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” Only in Jesus will you find peace, joy, rest, order, a cause worth living for and a home in heaven to look forward to.

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

Vi è mai capitato di avere quei periodi in cui per quanto tu ti ostini di tenerti tutte le cose in mente, in realtà tu non ce la fai?

Si bene, questa è la mia situazione, perchè anche se avessi una agendina in cui scriverci le cose, avrei il coraggio di dimenticarmene lo stesso.

Sarà il tempo? O semplicemnte i residui di una anestesia che ha addormentato il mio cervelle per la bellezza di 8 ore?

Mah chi lo sa, questa mattina avevo l’impressione che la pelle della fronte tirasse più del solito, effetto lifting?

Oltre ad essere così particolarmente confuso, anche quando parlo mi inceppo più del solito, non so è come se la lingua avesse un nodo, anzi doppio, e che non mi permettesse di pronunciare correttamente le sillabe, oltre al fatto che se sto scrivendo faccio gli errori di prima elementare, come non confondere le particelle mp con mb e cose simili.

Bah, o semplicemente con l’università sto disimparando l’italiano, e sto disimparando a comunicare, o l’epilessie galoppante oltre a dare delle strane scariche al mio cervello le da anche alla mia lingua.

Sta di fatto che o per questo o per quello non ho nemmeno voglia di studiare, di mettermi sui libri, ho perfino mezza intenzione di cambiare totalmente facoltà, per non parlare che mi sono messo in testa di fare un provino per entrare in una Tv musicale Milanese.

Ovvio, i sogni di un bambino invece di esaurirli in qualcosa di concreto, li sto espanendo quasi come se dovessero occupare la mia vita, ed invece di avere un qualcosa che mi riporti a terra, (a parte mia madre)  la mia mente vole in posti che nessuno sa. Credo che nemmeno un tossicodipendete pieno di erba riuscirebbe ad avere un stato mentale come il mio.

Sarà perchè non dormo a sufficienza? Sarà perchè ho un ciclo mestruale? O semplicemente sarà perchè ti amo? Come i “ricchi e poveri” cantavano… (che nome assurdo).

Mentre il mio viaggio all’interno del mio vuoto della mia massa celebrale, mi ritrovo a dover vivere accanto a delle persone con cui se parlo di qualcosa di profondo a volte non mi ascoltano, dicono che sono cose tristi, cose a cui non vogliono pensare perchè c’è altro nella vita ci si può anche divertire.

La TV ci ha così fottuto la testa? Dobbiamo sempre ridere come dei rincoglioniti? Guardando pseudocomici che credono di essere far ridere, mentre sembrano solo dei patetici burattini che penosamente cercano di far muovere le labbra del loro pubblico?

E così dopo una domenica passata a guardare gente che guida nei Go Kart, come se non bastasse passare 3 ore al giorno in macchina immerso nel traffico, vedi gente che si rifiuta nel vedere che servono per aprire lo sguardo un po’ più in la di quanto si è abitati.

Non è che sono un magnate dell’arte, non sono un sapiente, anzi ignoro molte cose, sono un gran ignorante, non conosco un mucchio di cose, sento l’urgenza interiore di sbranare un dipinto, un film, un qualcosa che si chiama opera d’arte.

Un mio amico dice che forse i miei amici sono ancora troppo piccoli, un’altro dice che non hanno la mia stessa sensibilità, io non so cosa sia questa cosa, io so solo che farebbe bene a certa gente che non sa ragionare, o ragiona con il culo.

La mia mente è in ferie, lo è da molto, e dopo la crisi in treno, penso sia partita per il deserto del Sahara. Il mio analista non dice un emerito cazzo, sto iniziando a pensare di pagarlo per nulla, o forse le cose me le dice e sono io a non metterle in pratica.

Mi manca l’amore, un qualcuno d’amare. Scopo con persone che poi non vogliono altro, Francesco dice che non mi devo lamentare, sono io a creare rapporti di questo tipo, forse a ragione, solo che a volte adoro fare la puttana.

No, non intendo essere come Melissa P. che dopo una stagione è morta, forse ha investito i soldi dei suoi tre libri in una casa alle isole Kaiman e se li sta godendo con il suo convivente, forse facendo sesso a quattro.

Un’altra cosa che ho scoperto è quella di odiare le persone che si fingono per bene, che davanti non dicono nemmeno una parolaccia, perchè non sta bene in pubblico, dicono. La realtà è che queste persone rappresentano la falsità, non credo che Gesù cristo in croce cantasse “il waltzer del moscerino” forse un pezzo dei “Prodigy” avrebbe più senso.

Si le persone perbeniste, cui non puoi dire nulla di sboccato, sempre serie.

La mia mente è in ferie e forse, è una fortuna ad avercela li!

Bjork – Human behavior

This collection consists of twenty-three receipts starting with December 31, 1827 at the Saco, Maine Post Office for $2.15 and the last dating 1858.  The first thirteen receipts are either post office receipts or property tax receipts from Saco, Maine.  The Salem [NH] Post Office receipt is from Packard’s first year as a Grace Church minister.  Lawrence was not a town yet so Packard must have done his post office business in nearby Salem, NH.  The remainder of the receipts are in the Town or City of Lawrence and are either post office or tax receipts with the exception of number 16 where Packard was using town money to pay for space for a schoolhouse, number 23 when he bought stock in the Lawrence Agricultural Library, and no. 24 when he bought a subscription for the Lawrence Courier.

Dr. George Packard was born in 1803 in Wiscasset, Maine.  He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1821 and practiced as a physician for fifteen years. He was ordained deacon in Richmond, Virginia May 1843 and Priest in Boston, May 1844.  His first parish was Christ Church in Andover.  He became the minister of Grace Episcopal Church April 20, 1846, a year before Lawrence became a town.  He served the church as pastor for thirty years.  He founded the Lawrence Provident Association later known as the Lawrence City Mission (now Family Services of Lawrence).  He served on the School Committee from 1848 to 1852, 1861-1868, 1873-1875.  He was Superintendent of Schools in 1855, 1858-1860.  Dr. Packard died November 30, 1876.

The library has two collections.  The first collection is composed of two bound volumes.  One is called History of the New Spinning Mill constructed at the Upper Pacific Mills Lawrence, Mass. 1888-9 and the other is called the  History of the Eastweave Shed built at the Upper Pacific Mills 1889-1890.  The 2^nd collection includes one broadside, a photo, a salesman’s ample, and 4 handbills concerning timetables and company sick leave policy.

The Pacific Mills was incorporated in 1853 with capital of $1 million.  The original mills and print works were built by the Essex Company, remodeled in 1882, and enlarged and added to over the many years of its operation.  In the latter part of the 19^th century it was considered one of the foremost corporations in the world.  Abbot Lawrence, the city’s namesake, was the first president.  The company started as a producer of women’s dress goods in wool and cotton, and included a print house and dye works.  By the 1890s the mills were producing calicos, lawns, shirtings, and a large variety of other products.  By 1895 there were over 200,000 spindles turning.

I wrote this as my response to the latest Read Write Prompt over at Read Write Poem. It was a P-themed prompt this week, and you had to include some or all of the following words:

Procrastinate, Posthumous, Parallelogram, Porous, Processional, Plethora, Prevaricate, Plaster, Pernicious, Platitude, Prickle, Polyglot, Pea.

I read them out loud and instead of looking up the definitions of the harder ones, I figured I’d go with a bit of a nonsense poem and just throw them in wherever they sounded good. “Plethora” initially escaped my attention, and then escaped my ability to work it in to the poem.

The Murder of King Tut
by James Patterson & Martin Dugard

Copyright: 2009
Pages: 332
Rating: 5/5
Read: Nov. 13-15, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; 2010 Countdown Challenge
Yearly Count: 60

First Line: It was New Year’s Eve as a somber, good-looking explorer named Howard Carter, speaking fluent Arabic, gave the order to begin digging.

King Tut, the Boy King. Less than a decade after becoming Pharaoh of Egypt, the boy dies mysteriously. In the years following his demise, his name is essentially wiped from the history books. Even today, the death of King Tut remains somewhat of a mystery. Howard Carter’s life mission was to uncover a virgin tomb; he wanted King Tut’s tomb the most. He began his search in 1907. It would take many, many years before he finally found Tut and the world would finally begin to understand the Boy King. In this book, James Patterson teams up with Martin Dugard to really look through all the evidence and put Tut’s life and death in a spotlight like never before – true crime and history collides in this book as Patterson unravels the mystery surrounding the Boy King.

Being a history major, I love anything history pretty much. But here recently my husband, mom, and dad, all went up to Indianapolis to see the King Tut exhibit. It really reignited my interest in Egyptian history. I was unfortunately never able to take a course in college on Egypt, but I knew some things from different museum trips and whatnot. But this book was really interesting to me. It read like a novel, which will make history interesting to a lot more people. (It also has the name James Patterson on it – which I have come to the conclusion sells a book like nothing else.) It’s really an easy read. And yet it’s historical. A lot of people don’t read historical books because they might feel bogged down or whatever the reason – however, if you are one of those people, please pick up this book!! You will not be bogged down at all. It reads like all of Patterson’s other works – like a novel. If you have any interest whatsoever in Egypt, this is an interesting book. However, I do want to add, that I’m not completely sold on Patterson’s conclusion – that it was a conspiracy of the three people closest to him. I’m not saying that it isn’t true, it very well may be, but without knowing more information regarding the mystery surrounding Tut’s death I’m not sure if this is right. Who knows if Tut was even really murdered?! However, if he was, there was almost certainly some sort of conspiracy, and it definitely revolved around the desire to have the power that Tut had as Pharaoh. But one of the three people that Patterson names, I’m not completely sold on being a part of the conspiracy. I think that there could possibly be other explanations for that person’s actions. But that’s just my opinion … I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good murder mystery, because that’s what this book is all about!

Parvana’s Journey

Author: Deborah Ellis

Page Length: 199

Reading Level: 6.3

Genre: Realistic Fiction

PLOT SUMMARY: Sequel to The Breadwinner, Parvana’s Journey captures the reader’s attention from the very beginning. Parvana is alone in war-torn Afghanistan, her father dead, as she sets out disguised as a boy to cross the Afghanistan countryside in search of her mother and sisters. If the Taliban discovers her, thinking she is a boy, they would enlist Parvana into the army. If they find out she is a girl, they would punish her for being without a veil and without a male family member. She must then keep a low profile, not exposing herself to this danger. She sees death and destruction everywhere she walks.

First, she finds a baby boy lying near his dead mother and rescues him, feeding him the best she can with water and rice. When she tries to take shelter in a cave, she comes upon a boy about 9 years old, who has lost a leg to land mines. Asif is rude and angry, but he is good with baby Hassan, cleaning the clothes that serve as diapers and helping to keep him clean and fed. These three set out on the road until they come upon a minefield and a strange little girl who is taking care of her aged grandmother. The children rest here for a while until a bomb destroys their shelter and kills the old woman-then they take to the road again. Just as they are near death from starvation, they stumble on a refugee camp run by international agencies and are taken in, given minimal food and shelter. Their problems are not resolved, however, and more disasters await them.

REVIEW:  This book certainly displays the resilience of children who endure extraordinary circumstances. Ellis has been in Afghanistan collecting oral histories from women in refugee camps and this has been the basis of Parvana’s story. In one sense, it is a straightforwardly realistic narrative, but the circumstances the children face are almost unimaginable, certainly to children in the West. Strengthening the sense of reality is Ellis’s ability to capture the tension between the children–their bickering as their fears and suffering overwhelm them, their fantasies of safety and shelter, and their loneliness and desperate need for adults on which to depend. This is an excellent way for young Americans to understand the plight of the Afghani people.

AREAS FOR TEACHING: theme, setting, point of view, main idea and supporting details, characters, conflict,  plot, compare/contrast, cause/effect, conclusions, generalizations, predictions, audience and purpose, voice, mood, tone, narrative, writer’s motive, World Literature, drama, tragedy, and epic.

TOUCHY AREAS-PAGES: Sensitivity of children surviving alone crossing areas with mine fields and starving most of the time.

RELATED BOOKS: Habibi by Naomi Shihah Nye, A Little Piece of Ground by Elizabeth Laird, Shabanu: Daughters of the Wind by Suzanne Fisher Staples, Under the Persimmon Tree by Suzanne Fisher Staples. Books by the same author: Breadwinner, Mud City, and Off to War: Voices of Iraqi Refugees.

MOVIE CONNECTIONS: The Kite Runner (2007), Massoud, l’Afghan (1998 documentary), Passing the Rainbow (2008 documentary), Massoud, l’Afghan (1998 documentary).

ART CONNECTIONS:

http://www.culturekiosque.com/art/interview/Afghanistan_museum_treasures_2.html

http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3705/context/cover/

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/02/19/oldest-oil-painting.html (scroll down there is a short video displaying various pieces of artwork)

RELATED WEBSITES:

http://learningtogive.org/lessons/unit189/lesson4.html

http://www.eslprintables.com/buscador/buscar.asp?nivel=intermediate&age=0&tipo=any&contents=parvana%27s+journey

http://www.public.asu.edu/~apnilsen/afghanistan4kids/index.html

http://www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00001973.shtml

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/asia/afghanistan/timeline/index.html

http://www.uwm.edu/Library/digilib/afghan/index.htm

REVIEWED BY:  Tammy Leitzel

Matthew 6:26 (NIV) ~ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 

To God you are a priceless masterpiece, a trophy of grace, a beautiful vessel made by the potter’s hand, woven by the very finger of God. God loves you because you’re so valuable to Him.  

Note if you will the wording from Matthew 6:26 (NIV), “…yet your heavenly Father feeds them.” God cares for all of His creation, but He gives special attention to you. If God cares for, and feeds, the birds of the air, how much more will He care for you and want to bless you? God wants to look after you, because to Him you’re valuable and so precious beyond words. You are a matchless beauty beyond compare and He loves you and wants to pour out His blessings for you over your life because you’re worth it.  

My friend, let our text for today lift up your spirit and cheer your heart from Matthew 6:26 (NIV), “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” How much more valuable? Much more than you could ever think of, or ever imagine, because He loves you so, so much. 

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

Pain and Wastings

Author: Carrie Mac

Page Length: 122

Reading Level: 3.6

Genre: Fiction

PLOT SUMMARY: Ethan grew up on the bad side of town near Main and Hastings known to others as Pain and Wastings. Ethan’s mother was involved in prostitution and drugs – a life that eventually led to her murder. Ethan has been forced to grow up in foster homes. His anger and indifference to the world has landed him in legal trouble for which he is assigned to spend time with an emergency response crew. The events that happen on the nights out working the neighborhood remind Ethan of the pain he’s tried to avoid but just can’t escape anymore.

REVIEW: For an Orca book, this one was pretty good. I really liked the pacing and the way the author slowly reveals the tragedy that Ethan has so carefully disguised and tried to ignore responding to all these years. This book does deal with sex in the form of prostitution by both his mother and Kelly. In the story, drug use issues are prevalent and murder takes place. This is an intense read that the kids would probably stay hooked on—beware of all the “inappropriate” content.

AREAS FOR TEACHING: sequence of events, internal conflict, external conflict, character traits, dialogue, cause and effect, point of view, flashback technique

TOUCHY AREAS-PAGES: p. 104 “the man had finished, zipped up his pants…” and “her head bloody,” p. 96 “long enough to squeeze me through my jeans and give me a French kiss”

RELATED BOOKS: The Beckoners, Crush, Charmed, Retribution, Storm

RELATED MOVIES: “Forrest Gump”

RELATED WEBSITES:

http://www.orcabook.com/contributorinfo.cfm?ContribID=148

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/360816.Carrie_Mac

http://www.teendrugabuse.us/teendrugstatistics.html

http://www.teen-drug-abuse.org/

REVIEWED BY: Dayna Taylor

For the average bored UK housewife, there are few things in life that bring more excitement to her than the delights of the joke poo.

Gone are the days of the dutiful and quiescent little wife and in her place, rebelling against the all mighty drudgery she still has to endure, is a lady with the audaciousness of a silly sniggering boy.

Yet the charms of ‘le joke shoppe’ are not only reserved for boys and men, there are females of the species whose humour goes little beyond what the Americans like to call the ‘bathroom’.

And this is exactly the sort of place a joke poo must find itself. On the housewife’s mother and father in laws’ beautifully soft creme bathroom carpet, right next to the lavatory. The proudly perfect joke poo lies in wait for it’s next shocked victim to scream, ‘What the f**k???’, WHO THE H*LL SHAT ON THE CARPET?!!!!!!’

Failing that, wait until your neighbours have just mown their front lawn, then place aforementioned joke poo right in an area of the lawn where will they immediately see it. Stand back and wait for the obligatory, ‘F*****G DOGS!!!!!!!’

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN JOKE POO

Measure out 100g plain flour, 50g of margarine, add 1 egg and a drop of cold water and mix up into a dough.

Mould the dough into any shape poo you like, small and fat, long and thin, curly, whatever is most pleasing to the inner joker in you, and the most convincing to your unsuspecting poo finder.

Bake in a hot oven for about 10 minutes. Wait until it’s cool and then paint with brown gloss paint, or brown vinyl silk paint.

There is no reason to limit yourself to just one colour of brown, or brown at all actually. White is a good colour, as is mustard or orange. The main thing is to make sure you create a thoroughly creditable joke poo, authentic in it’s line and form, but not necessarily smell.

A point to note: ensure the paint is dry before you place your poo where you plan, otherwise you may find you get a thick ear from the person you are playing the trick on!

That’s it, enjoy and do keep in mind that most people will not find this as funny as you do.

Acts 2:2 (NIV) ~ Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 

The word “suddenly” is a very powerful one. In total, it is mentioned 45 times in the Bible. Three of the ways the word is used are as follows: first, in Hebrew ‘pitom’ is mentioned 12 times meaning, all at once, in an instant, by surprise, so quickly, unexpectedly. Then in Greek ‘exaiphnes’ is mentioned 5 times, meaning, unexpectedly and lastly, ‘aphno’  is used 3 times meaning, suddenly like a rushing wind. 

Oh, for God to breakthrough suddenly in answer to prayer! Oh, for a “suddenly moment” to happen. What a tremendous blessing it would be, if we have been praying for something to happen, when suddenly God brought the answer. 

He can heal suddenly.

He can move suddenly.

He can deliver suddenly.

He can bring the breakthrough suddenly.

He can bless you suddenly.

He can provide suddenly.

He can save suddenly. 

Suddenly, He can make a way where there seems to be no way, in an instant, so quickly, all at once, by surprise, God can move suddenly. Oh, for more “suddenly moments” from God! 

My friend, in our text for today, the disciples were gathered together in one place to pray, when, as the Bible says in Acts 2:2 (NIV), “Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.” Suddenly, everything changed, as the Holy Spirit came as tongues of fire and rested on each of them. 

Oh Lord, take us by surprise, bring a revival suddenly, let Your fire fall suddenly and fill our earthen vessels afresh with the Holy Spirit. Oh Lord, move suddenly when we least expect it, take us by surprise Lord, and have your way, do something way beyond our hopes and dreams and move suddenly with something new in our lives. 

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

I only realised that COD 6 and Modern Warfare 2 were the same thing 2 days ago. I guess it shows how much I really know about videogames. The full title must be Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 or something.
I’ve never had a COD game, because my dad doesn’t like FPS games (or any these days) and I’m too young for them. Even though I’ve heard year 7s talking about how far they’d got on the latest one. There are even films I’m not allowed to watch. I can’t watch the Big Bang Theory (even though I like it and we’ve got pages of it on our PVR) and my parents don’t even think of letting me watch something like Heros or Lost or other stuff people watch. My parents don’t like soaps or the X factor but they do watch I’m a celebrity get me out of here. I can’t because it’s on ‘too late’ for me. (My bedtime is supposed to be 9:00) Back on topic, I never get games as soon as they come out either. I always have to wait for Christmas or my birthday. If you ask me, that was a big mistake in parenting, because when I’m older I’ll do it all the time because I’ve been waiting so long to do it.
Another problem is not having the latest consoles. My family has a PS2 and 2 PSP 300s (one for me and one for my brother) We also used to have a Commodore 64 from my Dad’s childhood (or teens or something) which he threw away cos he couldn’t sell it. I used to enjoy playing the odd ancient game on it. Ah well. PS2s will be like that soon too.
I’m not exactly sure what the general topic of this post actually was. I don’t think I’ll change the title though.

I hope my parents don’t read this; I know my grandparents sometimes do, and my friends from school sometimes do. (Especially James. He even comments sometimes) My parents never read this as far as I know.
You know you’re in trouble when your grandparents are more technically advanced than your parents. (My mum mainly. I swear she has technophobia)

Ett smakprov ur Per Pettersons Jeg forbanner tidens elv. Huvudpersonen Arvid är ute och kör bil med sina döttrar.
Det var fint å ha dem begge i baksetet. På den måten kunne de snakke med meg om hva de ville uten å måtte se meg i ansiktet, og jeg på min side slapp å se inn i ansiktene deres, och noen ganger lot de være å se på hverandre i tillegg, og da satt vi alle tre og glante ut av vinduene hver vår vei uten å si noe som helst, mens bilen trilla videre, og alle visste vi at ting ikke var som de skulle være. Jentene visste det, og jeg visste det, og hun som ikke satt i bilen visste det kanskje best av alle, og det var derfor hun heller ikke var med på disse turene.
Sånn var situasjonen.

Inte så svårt som man tror, eller hur?
Mer om Petterson här här och här.
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Psalm 103:1 (NIV) ~ Praise the Lord, O my soul. 

Six times in the book of psalms you can read this exact phrase, “Praise the Lord, O my soul.” It can be found in Psalm 103:1, 103:2, 103:22, 104:1, 104:35 and 146:1. The word “praise” in the Hebrew language has many meanings, all with different responses. Here below are those which are listed relating to the theme from our text for today from Psalm 103:1(NIV), “Praise the Lord, O my soul.” 

Exodus 15:2 (NIV), “He is my God and I will praise Him.”

(All numbers from the Zondervan NIV exhaustive concordance)

5658 ’nawa’ to praise. 

Deuteronomy 32:3 (NIV), “Oh, praise the greatness of our God.”

2035 ‘hab‘ come, give, ascribe, bring praise to God. 

2 Chronicles 30:21 (NIV), “…By the Lord’s instruments of praise.”

6437 ‘oz‘ vigorously praise, stout-hearted. 

Psalm 7:17 (NIV), “Sing praise to the Lord.”                

2376 ‘zaman‘  to sing, sing praises, to make music, to chant, to sing, to play instrument to worship God. 

Psalm 9:1 (NIV), “I will praise you, O Lord.” 

3344 ‘yada‘ to express praise, to extol, to make a public confession, to lead in thanksgiving, brings praise. 

Psalm16: 7 (NIV), “I will praise the Lord.”

1385 ‘barak‘ to bless, pronounce blessings, give praise. 

Psalm 18:3 (NIV), “I will call to the Lord who is worthy of praise.”

2146 ‘halal‘ to make one’s boast in the name of God, hallelujah, to cheer, bring praise; to sing wedding songs, congratulate, to speak words invoking divine favour. 

Psalm 22:3 (NIV), “You are the praise of Israel.”  

9335 ‘thilla‘ proclaiming the excellence of a person, praiseworthy deeds, theme of praise. 

Psalm 26:7 (NIV), “Proclaiming aloud your praise.” 

9343 ‘toda‘ thank offering, thanksgiving, an expressing of thanksgiving, choirs that give thanks. 

Psalm 47:7 (NIV), “Sing unto him a psalm of praise.” 

5380 ‘maskil’ psalm of wisdom and praise unto the Lord. 

Psalm 66:17 (NIV), “His praise was on my tongue.”  

8128 ‘romam‘ praise in exaltation.  

My friend, whether you lay down prostrate before the Lord, or you are standing with hands raised is sweet surrender, or bowed down on your knees before your King, or dancing with spontaneous joy, shouting out with victorious words, making a joyful noise, bursting out, bubbling over or even flowing with extravagant worship, let it all be done under the banner of praise unto the Lord. 

In our text for today, David speaks to his soul, He is speaking words to raise his spiritual temperature, he encourages himself in the Lord, he motivates his soul into worshipping the Lord. The Bible says in Psalm 103:1(NIV), “Praise the Lord, O my soul.” May we all say a hardy “Amen”, in response to David’s example and may we say to ourselves, “Praise the Lord, O my soul.” 

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

Een filmpje met een vlucht spreeuwen in Denemarken:

Deed me denken aan analoge beelden van een school sardines die gaten en tunnels lijkt te vormen als een zeehond of een haai er zich in stort:

Van die laatste is er trouwens ook een making of:

Jeg forbanner tidens elv (aka det norska projektet) är enormt bra. Den handlar om livet — alla dumheter vi gör när vi bara lever på och hur vi ställer till det för oss och plötsligt upptäcker att det är försent att ställa tillrätta. Och ändå måste man försöka. Bokens Arvid försöker.
Det är ett väldigt bra porträtt av hans mamma, “mora mi”, som är en riktig människa, en individ med tankar och känslor och egenheter. Hon, som aldrig fick utbilda sig vidare, blir rasande när Arvid slutar skolan för att som sann maoist börja jobba på fabrik och vara en del av arbetarklassen. (Men han är ju född arbetarklass, tycker grannarna förvånat.)
Det är också en skilsmässoroman, och en skildring av kärlek, och syskonkärlek. Sorg och saknad. Och så läser de böcker! De läser Hemingway och Remarque och Somerset Maugham och allt möjligt, Arvid och hans mamma. När Arvid köper calvados är det för att han alltid undrat hur det smakar, ända sedan han läste Remarque.
En annan grej jag gillar att tajma in är rätt årstid. Nutiden här är november 1989 med murens fall och allt.
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Läs även andra bloggares åsikter om Per Petterson, böcker, Jeg forbanner tidens elv, läsa på norska, Nordiska rådets pris

he won some supreme award of excellence
while dancing the macabre of elegance
positive to be so elegant
and never doubted heaven sent
saunter sideways and a lisp so set in stone
they kissed his lips so troublesome

they somehow described it in a poem
kid calypso for the brave ones
but a coward for the new

he’s the one they always shun
though it’s never what they do
a reservation for the common folk
just to take his turn
and for the sake of homage tokes
from past and present urns
spaces places
never meant a thing

he’ll carve a pumpkin with a spoon
just to hear you sing.

Penyanyi dangdut, Duta Kondom Sutra