Thursday, September 23, 2010

Hot Weather Ahead

I was hoping that cooler fall weather was in store for the months ahead, but the news shows another warm weekend coming up.  These past few days have been very pleasant, but this Sunday's forecast seems to show a high of 102 degrees (and one report earlier said it may be as high as 110 degrees).  I am ready for summer to be over.  I am not a fan of real hot weather, that's for sure.

My Chrysler Sebring convertible is still in the shop.  Actually, it is at a friend's home where he is doing the work on the side.  This friend is a church member and loves mechanic work.  He is presently working at a Pep Boys auto shop in the Los Angeles area, and he is going to auto tech school at nights.  Hopefully, my car will be ready this weekend.

This past Monday I went to the Angels baseball game in Anaheim.  A man in the church got four free tickets and asked me to accompany him, his son and another fellow church member.  I rather enjoy going to major league ball games, so this was a treat for me.  There is something very relaxing about attending a game with a large crowd, having a hot dog and soda, and being with people you enjoy.  In addition, I absolutely am fascinated with watching the people around me.  I guess I have to admit that I am a "people watcher."  I look at families and am amused at their interaction levels.  Then, there are couples and other rabid fans who go crazy over how their team is doing.  There are some serious social implications in all this, but that's for another blog.....ha ha.

The game went long because of much scoring of runs and changing of pitchers and all, so I did not get home until almost midnight.  I did not get much sleep, as I had an appointment to take a friend to UCLA Medical Center the next day (Tuesday).

So, my alarm went off at 4 am and I got dressed to be at my friend's house at 5 am.  This friend is my landlord and is getting close to 80 years old.  He has a great deal of health issues, and his wife does not drive much out of this area.  So, he asked me to take him (and her) for a doctor's consultation scheduled in Los Angeles at UCLA.  We left around 6 am, and were promptly met by horrible traffic once we got near downtown L.A.  We had allowed a great deal of time, so that was no problem.  Ate breakfast at the dining cafe on campus, and he was ready for his 10 am appointment. 

After that, it was close to noon, so they asked me if I knew of any restaurants around there.  I said no, but commented that Santa Monica was just down the freeway and there would be a great many places to eat around there as it is close to the beach.  We arrived at the Santa Monica pier, and there was a restaurant called The Lobster immediately at the entrance.  They said that's where they wanted to go.  I pulled in and we had a wonderful lunch.  I had some clam chowder (with the clams still in the shell in the soup), some lobster and halibut and potatoes.

I wish I could have taken a quick nap.  The lunch and early start on the day didn't help.  But, we had an uneventful drive back to the Inland Empire.  They live in Grand Terrace nearby, and I came home to Rialto.  I got home around 5 pm.

David helped us barbecue some chicken for dinner, so we enjoyed a nice meal that night.  Pastor George Nelson comes over on most Tuesday evenings, so we can talk about his new church start in Chatsworth and catch up on any news.  He will be celebrating his first-year anniversary of the Vision Plus Church Chatsworth mission next month.  So, George came over that night and we chatted for some time.

Wednesday night I led a Bible study at church on 2 Corinthians chapter 1, where the apostle Paul tells the church at Corinth to share compassion and love with others who are in need of consolation.  Because we, as believers, have felt the challenge of trials and pain and rejection and misunderstandings, we have also felt the consolation of an amazing God who meets us at our point of need and ministers to us in those troublesome times.  We have a base of understanding and experience to share with others who are going through tough and difficult times.  There were several who came up to me afterwards and commented on how helpful my message was because of what they were presently experiencing.

It is a blessing to see how others find comfort when God speaks to their hearts at just the right moment and place in life's journey.

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