Cats: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

When we lived in Greenville, South Carolina, we had several cats and a couple of dogs as pets. One of our dogs, affectionately known as Charlie, was a beautiful standard poodle. But he became very jealous of the kids, and we finally sold him to a couple who had no children of their own. As it stands right now, we are down to one cat, and he is pictured here:


His name is Kitty Baby. Friends of ours in Greenville named their cat Kitty Baby, so we borrowed the name from them. Kitty Baby was rescued from the dumpster at our local McDonald's in 1993. Daniel was working there at the time, and he brought Kitty Baby home in a little shoe box. I determined to take the cat to the humane society the next day, but Nancy and the kids prevailed upon me to keep their cat. I did not take Kitty Baby to the humane society, and he is still with us to this day.

I must say that Kitty Baby is pretty selective about who he will allow to hold him. For some years, he was a male chauvinist cat, and he would not go to any female members of the family. Of course, when Peyton and Oscar come over to visit, Kitty Baby goes into deep hiding. He will have nothing to do with the grandchildren. He has mellowed out in his "old age," but he still has his preferences.

The reason that I even bring up Kitty Baby was an article in London's Daily Mail. It seems that some veterinarian in Brighton, England, decided to give Prozac to a cat named Twiglet. Acording to the article, "the patient would not go out for fear of being bullied, moped around the house and sought comfort in eating. The 12-year-old grey tabby, whose weight had ballooned to 15lb, became one of the first pets in Britain to be given anti-depressant drugs, on the advice of a vet who said she had 'anger management issues'. And the results have been dramatic. Five months later, Twiglet has lost almost 7lb and is roaming around the back garden without fear." I don't know about you, but medical science seems to have branched out a good bit over the years. You can check out Twiglet and her owner here:


And I close today's lesson on pets with a couple of photos of "bad-looking" cats. Perhaps these two need a little Prozac as well:

What Happened to Winter? Part II

I know that some of you out there have been quite worried about our seeming lack of winter here in southern Minnesota. Just to set your mind at ease, winter has made an appearance, sort of. We experienced temperatures around zero over the weekend, and we even had a light dusting of snow today. The folks at the Weather Channel are suggesting that we might have the coldest sustained temperatures of the winter this coming weekend, with the mercury dipping down to ten below or so for a couple of nights.

Aside from keeping yourself warm, you also have to be concerned about your vehicle being able to start on bitterly cold mornings. If there is anything wrong with your vehicle, or if there are any weak links in any of your vehicle's systems, the cold winter weather will invariably expose said weaknesses and cause a degree of misery or inconvenience. But we figure that if we can get through February, we only have to survive March. Hope springs eternal, literally speaking. If anything, winter helps you to appreciate spring and summer.

Forty Years Ago

It's time for a little nostalgia. I grew up in Plymouth, Michigan, which is just west of Detroit. In many ways, the Plymouth that I knew in the 1960s is quite similar to the City of Owatonna, Minnesota, where we have lived for the past twenty-three years. This is a current photo of Owatonna's Central Park:


Just to the north of Owatonna's Central Park is a bank building designed by Louis Sullivan. Folks from all over stop by to take photographs and check out the interior. It is an architectural masterpiece.



Compare Plymouth's Central Park with Owatonna's. They are strikingly similar. When I was a teenager in Plymouth, one of the big activities of the year was the Fall Festival, which was held on Labor Day Weekend, as I recall. There would be food and all kinds of gala activities over the weekend.


At any rate, I was a high school senior exactly forty years ago. Our high school building had been around for decades, and there had been renovation and modernization over the years. I remember my Latin teacher (yes, I took Latin in high school) describing how the building had burned in 1918 when SHE had been a student. Since I graduated in 1967, Plymouth has built three new high schools in conjunction with the nearby community of Canton. My old high school is now Plymouth Central Middle School. This is what my old high school looks like today:


During the spring of 1967, I enjoyed all of the perks of being a senior and making preparations for graduating in June. I remember two or three significant events in the midst of all the hoopla. One of the big decisions that I had to make was where I would go to college. I had applied to Schoolcraft Community College and to the University of Michigan. Schoolcraft had accepted me without any conditions, but the U of M accepted me conditionally. I suspect that my GPA in high school was not quite high enough for their standards.

Of course, my parents wanted me to consider going to a Christian college, and I was certainly open to that possibility. Since Dad and Mom had ties to Bob Jones University, we decided to make the trip down to Greenville. We visited campus during the week of Bible Conference. I stayed in the dorm and attended several of the services, and it was during that week that I heard Ian Paisley speak for the first time. I went by the Admissions Office and spoke with David Christ, who was in charge of Admissions. I thought it interesting that someone with that name was employed by BJU, but he and I have been friends for many years in spite of that fact. The rest, as they say, is history. I was accepted by BJU and of course returned to Greenville that fall as a freshman. I will write more on that experience in another post.

When I returned to Plymouth, I went on another trip, this time to New York City. I was in a high school class called International Relations, and one of the perks of that class was the opportunity to visit the United Nations. So the members of our class boarded the train in Ann Arbor and made our way overnight to Grand Central Station in New York City. We spent about four days in NYC, visiting the United Nations and seeing the sights. We visited the Statue of Liberty and Rockefeller Center, among other things. We also took the subway (at night, no less) down to Greenwich Village, which was most interesting. But our sojourn in NYC came to an end, and we soon made our trek back to Michigan.

As graduation approached, one more memorable event occurred. During our final exams, the Six Day War between the Israelis and the Arabs broke out. Since I had just been to the United Nations, I followed the proceedings with great interest. I was particularly impressed with the diplomacy of Abba Eban, Israel's foreign minister. It was finally time for graduation. The graduation ceremonies were held in those days at the PHS football field, and on June 16, 1967, I received my high school diploma. I was ready to conquer the world, but as I will discuss in future posts, my life's history took quite a few twists and turns during the next forty years.

Four-Dimensional Ultrasound Scans

The Internet is a major source of information, and every once in a while, a remarkable story comes to light. The Daily Mail of London ran such a story on January 16. It seems that British scientists have developed an amazing new technology. This new breakthrough is known as a "four-dimensional" ultrasound scan. According to the Daily Mail, "The new 4D scan uses the same frequency of sound waves as in a normal ultrasound. But the sound waves are directed from many more angles, producing a 'real-time' video of the foetus as it moves and allowing scientists to say the images are in four dimensions. This advanced technology has allowed scientists to capture the development of foetuses like never before, including twins and triplets jostling for space in the womb while grasping each other's hands and even faces. The images have also allowed scientists to create life-size silicone models and astonishing computer-generated images of the multiple foetuses, some of which are seen in the pictures shown here."


As far as I am concerned, these images are a stunning acknowledgement that a baby in the womb is a miracle of God's creation. I am reminded of Psalm 127:3, which states that "children [are] an heritage of the LORD: [and] the fruit of the womb [is his] reward." These images serve to remind us that every child is a gift from God; we have no business supporting abortion.

What Happened to Winter?

At this time of year, the cold weather usually has us in its icy grip, and the Pillsbury campus often looks like this. But such is not the case this year. It is not my desire to get into the global warming debate, but it is worth noting that the weather here in southern Minnesota has been wonderfully mild the last couple of months. During our first winter in Owatonna (1984-1985), we saw the thermometer dip to 28 degrees below zero by the middle of December. And we received a fair amount of snow as well. Over the years, we have had our share of brutal winter weather during December and January. But this year, we have had exactly two snowstorms (if you can call them that). We had six inches on November 10, and then we had two inches on New Year's Eve. The temperatures have been quite moderate as well, with readings in the 30s and 40s not at all uncommon. But it is supposed to get down below zero by early next week for those who love cold winter weather.

If you are from Colorado, the very thought of any more snow this year sends shudders up and down your spine. I wouldn't much blame you for feeling that way. And who knows? Perhaps we will get dumped on before spring arrives. About all we can do is talk about the weather, so we will have to take it as it comes. Since I am not an winter outdoor enthusiast, I am grateful that we have gotten off fairly lightly this winter.

Dr. Walter Fremont (1924-2007)

Dr. Walter Fremont had a remarkable influence on the development of Christian education in America during the last third of the twentieth century. And he served as a wonderful influence in my life. When I came to Bob Jones University as a freshman in 1967, he was the Dean of the School of Education. Four years later, I graduated from BJU and was preparing to teach history on the college level. I worked on a master's degree at Clemson University, and then Nancy and I returned to BJU in the fall of 1972. I taught history at BJU for eleven years under the leadership of Dr. Edward Panosian (who taught History of Civ at BJU for 42 years).

Yet, it was Dr. Fremont who was always a role model and a Christian gentleman. He was famous for his enthusiasm and zeal, both in and out of the classroom. He would sometimes take off a shoe and a sock and comment on "how beautiful are the feet" of a Christian. About twenty years or so ago, he was stricken with Lou Gehrig's Disease. The disease may have slowed him down a bit, but it was wonderful and heartwarming to visit him in Barge Memorial Hospital on the BJU Campus. You came away realizing that you had been in the presence of a remarkable individual.

I am honored to have known him, and I am greatly honored that he was a friend. We will miss you Dr. Fremont.

The Political Realities of Early 2007

On occasion, I plan to offer my take on the political scene, both here in Minnesota and on the national level. In the interest of full disclosure, I am the co-chair of the Republican Party here in Steele County, so you can consider my comments in that light. By any measure, Republicans had a rough time in the 2006 elections. Gil Gutknecht, our Republican congressman for the last twelve years, was defeated for reelection. Several Republicans running for statewide office were also defeated. But our Republican governor, Tim Pawlenty, managed to win his race by 20,000 votes. We can be grateful that we have a Republican governor, considering the fact that both houses of the State Legislature are controlled by the Democrats.

Governor Pawlenty is a believer, and as part of his inaugural activities, he began the day by attending a worship service at the nondenominational evangelical Wooddale Church in Eden Prairie (see attached photo). Philosophically, Pawlenty is a moderate conservative, but more important than his political philosophy is that he is a man of his word. We need more political leaders like Governor Pawlenty; he is one class act. I am proud that he is my governor.

On the national level, President Bush's popularity has declined since his reelection in 2004. Republicans have lost their majorities in the US Senate and the US House. But now is not the time to despair. There will be another election in 2008. If Democrats in Congress overreach and engage in ultra-partisanship, then Republicans can make a comeback. I never like to see my candidates lose elections, but under our constitutional republic, the voters get to decide on who they want in office. Republicans need to do a better job of articulating what they stand for, and they need to give voters a reason to vote Republican in 2008. The Chinese proverb says, "May you live in interesting times." Stay tuned, because the next two years will be very interesting. There will be many twists and turns before we vote again in 2008.