Monthly Archives: April 2006

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Yin & Yang

 

A Bit Of Both

You are 60% Calvin and 40% Hobbes

Calvin & Hobbes, like a scruffy yin and yang, are in perfect balance within you. Like Calvin, you’re weird,  a bit insecure, and can be a trouble-maker. But like Hobbes, you’re down to earth and sensitive. It’s a risk to say it here, after just a ten question test, but I’ll bet you’re smarter than  most. Both Calvin and Hobbes are crafty, clever  characters, and any one made from equal parts of each is a force to be reckoned with.

My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

free online dating free online dating
You scored higher than 45% on calvin
free online dating free online dating
You scored higher than 38% on hobbes

Link: The Calvin Or Hobbes Test written by gwendolynbooks on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test
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Word of the Day

autochthonous

Yeah. Just try pronouncing that one without a pronunciation guide. I’ll give a huge prize to the person who can — Larry, you’re excluded. Your genious mind knows words only God has  pronounced correctly or used properly.

If you’ve never heard or seen this word before, take heart. I never had either (not that that’s really any consolation). It was the winning word from the 2004 national spelling bee.

Which means there are grade schoolers out there smarter and better spellers than us.

Now there’s a cheery thought with which to start your day.

au·toch·tho·nous (ô-tkth-ns) also au·toch·tho·nal (-th-nl) or au·toch·thon·ic (ôtk-thnk)
adj.

  1. Originating where found; indigenous: autochthonous rocks; an autochthonous people; autochthonous folktales. See Synonyms at native.
  2. Biology. Originating or formed in the place where found: an autochthonous blood clot.

This English lesson is courtesy Starbucks‘ post-consumer fiber sleeve on my vente chai, and made possible by Dictionary.com, my everything on The Internets.

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It Is Finished

A week after it began, my car search is over. I’m heaving a big sigh of relief.

Yes, I committed myself to a 5-year loan, but my payments are under $300/mo (by $20) and I paid the amount out the door that I wanted. And I got a brand spankin’ new car (23 miles when I drove it off the lot) which will last me for-ever (I drove my last one of these for 10 years). I stood up to the sales people and won. Yippee!

Okay, truthfully, I had a lot of help. My friend Natalie’s husband works in the car sales industry. He called a friend who pulled in a favor from another friend and got me a sahweeeeeet sweet deal.

Everyone listen up. Go see Corey at Crest Honda and buy a car from him. He deserves all the commissions he can get. He’s a good, good man.

Oh, and here’s my new car. Except mine is red, of course!
Honda_civic_ex

Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches and wisdom
and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions
and his methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be his counselor? And who could ever give him so much that he would have to pay it back? For everything comes from him; everything exists by his power and is intended for his glory. To him be glory evermore. Amen.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your
bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your
spiritual act of worship.

Romans 11:33-12:1

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Are You Real or Am I Talking To Myself?

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Passionofthechrist1_1 Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. — 1 Peter 1:3-9

It was as natural as breathing. I didn’t even think about what I was doing. I just started talking, so grateful that I wasn’t alone on this journey.

I was driving down to Murfreesboro yesterday to check out a car or two. The lot was closed, but I wanted to see the vehicles anyway. No sales people bugging me is the best way to shop, in my opinion. My friend and co-worker, Natalie, is loaning me her Jeep. Since her husband is out of town for the week, she can drive the Honda and the Jeep would have just sat at their home or at the airport. Instead, I get to put some more miles on it.

I was in the middle of voicing my gratitude at not having to go this journey alone when it hit me, hard. I am alone in this car. No one is here with me. What if… what if God doesn’t really exist? What if all that stuff Pastor Rick spoke of this morning — all the stuff "The Da Vinci Code" says about Jesus, and about Christianity being built on lies — what if its all true? And no one is really here with me, listening to me wax all grateful for their presence? What if the truth is, I’m all alone, period?

It came so hard, so fast, and felt so real I literally felt dizzy. Suddenly the warm, surrounded feeling I had was gone, replaced by cold stark aloneness.

I took a sip of my nearly full Chai Cream frappuccino hoping to buy my mind a little time to process this new reality. But it didn’t bring the satisfaction it usually does. It only made me feel colder. A very unsettling thing in a soft-top Wrangler on a hot day. What the heck was going on?

I thought I was long past the doubting-God thing. He’d made His presence so real and powerful over the last few years. Times when I wanted to die just to shut up the pain in my soul, He was there. Right beside me. Sitting, or kneeling, holding my hand, caressing my face. I knew He was there. I could feel it with every fiber of my being. Even though I couldn’t see Him. I thought I could never doubt His reality again.

Yet here I was. Alone. Talking to… myself? Had He ever existed? Had He ever been there with me? Even with my past experiences to draw on, I had nothing. The overwhelming reality of being Alone in that Jeep, being Alone in my life crashed in on me like a crash of Rhinos at 30 miles an hour. And I was flattened by it like so much brush.

Then I heard a whisper. "What if I’m not real?"

What if God isn’t real? What does that mean for my life? As I thought through this overarching question, and all the other ones rising from deep within me — I didn’t even realize I was listening that closely to what Rick was saying, and yet somehow all I could remember hearing were the questions he said the book raised — I realized I could only come to one conclusion.

If God isn’t real, I’m insane.

I’ve heard voices that aren’t my own. I’ve responded to one of those voices, made life-altering decisions based that voice and made radical choices in who I will become. I’ve based my character and my hopes of becoming more than I am on what this voice says. Most importantly, I’ve started believing who this voice says I am — rather than who my own heart and eyes say I am every time I look in the mirror, observe my behavior or listen to my own thoughts.

If God doesn’t exist, I’m hearing voices. And that means I’m insane and need to be locked up in a padded room with a pretty little white jacket as my main attire.

Speaking this realization into the air didn’t have the effect a happily-ever-after story would have it. I was still Alone.

So I went back over everything again. And I realized something was missing in the first draft of my answer. The Truth is, I could very well be insane.

The Truth is, I choose to believe when my senses fail me. I choose to believe God is real, even though I cannot see Him or touch Him or sometimes even feel Him with my spirit. The Truth is, I choose to believe God is actively, personally, intimately involved in my life. I choose to believe He speaks to me, moves me in the direction that is best for me and ensures the best for me.

The Truth is, all we can truly know is what Is right now. The rest we have to believe. We cannot know our past, because it’s gone and all that’s left is subjective reflection. We cannot know the future, because it hasn’t happened yet and all we have is our imagination. All we can do with the past and the future is believe. Believe what has happened really happened the way we remember — or were told. Believe what will be will really be the way we imagine. But today. The right now of this moment. That, I can know. But only for this moment, then it too passes into the realm of believing.

In that moment yesterday I made a choice. One that I realize now I will have to make time and again. Until I die. I chose to believe. To believe my subjective reflections of the past, believe the stories I’ve been told about God and all that I’ve read in the Bible. I didn’t feel it. I didn’t have an emotional, experiential moment of revelation — which is extremely disconcerting to this very post-modern girl. I crave those emotional experiences, those powerful times of feeling God’s intimate presence! But, alas. None came. Still, I chose to believe.

My mind wandered a bit after making my declaration of belief. I was momentarily distracted by traffic and stupid drivers. Before I realized it, The Voice was back. Not the one that brought doubt, but the One that brought a familiar intimacy. He recommended getting over one lane, as the freeway entrance was coming up and reminded me that the far right lane turned into the on-ramp to 1-24, pointing it out to me as we approached.

And just like that, I was no longer Alone. If I ever truly had been.

In this I greatly rejoice, though now for a little while I may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that my faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

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Amending My Hopes and Plans

Ever had to do this? Ever had to amend your dreams because reality cut in on your dance? It kinda sucks. But, that’s life I guess.

I called the bank yesterday afternoon and got a reality check. Turns out I hadn’t really been allowing enough for taxes/registration, etc. So the amount of car I can afford went down a couple of thousand. A new car is pretty much out of the picture at this point. And some of the cars I’d been looking at are definitely out.

It was sooo cool to get so many comments yesterday — and from some I hadn’t heard from in a while too!! Yippee! Thanks everyone for the great comments/conversation. I so appreciate any and all advice and ideas I can get on this one! Never does the single life feel as lonely as when I have to make a huge decision like this. Yuck. On the other hand, I don’t have to compromise with someone else on what I want. Which is a very good and fun thing. I just have to compromise with the bank and my finances. Which  brings me back to the point of this post.

My dream car has been a Prius for about a year now. A Honda hybrid just hasn’t been as appealing, but it still makes a good second choice. However, they have just priced them completely out of my range. It makes me so angry at times. How will we ever be able to gain our freedom from gas-dependence and from OPEC as long as car companies insist on overpricing hybrids and leaving the common middle-to-working class buyer completely out of the market? We are the ones who do the most driving. Back and forth to work. Back-and-forth. Back-and-forth. Grrr. And with gas prices as crazy as they are, and promising to get crazier as life goes on with no hope of ever coming back to sanity, hybrids or at least really good mileage cars, are a moral and financial imperative. This is when capitalism drives me nuts. Normally I’m a huge fan of the free-market capitalist society. But times like this, when big companies call the shots and us regular people suffer the consequences and pay the price — literally — I’m about ready to call for government regulation. An absolute sin in the Republican/Conservative word. But who cares about politics when I’m trying to buy a good car?? Certainly not me. Dry

I don’t know how so many people are able to afford cars to begin with. Man, they are expensive! I think I earn a decent living. I earn much, much more than when I first started yet. Yet I can still barely afford a new Civic. It’s unbelievable.

Now, granted, I’m trying not to finance more than about $14k at the most. But still, you would think that for $19-$20K out the door I should be able to get a really good, mid-luxury kind of car. You know, something that’s more than a beginner buyer out of college would get. Something like a new Camry or Accord. But nope. Those are WAYYYYY out of my league. Unless I want to pay over $300/month. Which I think is outrageous. I’m looking at keeping my payments between $275-$290/mo which is as low
as I can seem to get them in order to get a nice car with low miles. But even then, I’m looking at 3-year old cars. I could get a lower monthly payment by getting an older, or less appealing car. But, dang man! I’m 40 years old. I want to drive something nice and reliable. Not just something that doesn’t cost a lot. Aaaaauugggghhhh.

Perhaps my thinking is out of whack with reality, I don’t know. Do most people pay that much a month for a car? That just seems crazy to me.

Part of the problem, too, is that I really want to save money and start going to college in the next year. I need to not spend that much on a car each month, so I can put some aside for school/savings.

And part of the problem is I just hate debt. And the thought of being so in debt for a car just freaks me a little. But I guess that’s just something I have to get over in this new world of overpricing.

Now I’m looking at buying a used car. One with low miles and good reputation. Still looking at the Element. Still looking at the Acura I was in the last post. Still considering the Dodge. I’ve now added a used Beetle Convertible I found at Carmax or a new hard top I could afford — the woman at my bank’s negotiations office suggested that one.

I never did well with constantly shifting options. I don’t exactly know why. Is it my personality or something else? Whatever the reason, I tend to do better when I have more time to consider and then less time to deal with anxiety when the time comes to implementing my plans — in this case buying the car.

I keep clinging to God’s promises to be with me and to provide for my needs. But I still suffer from a good strong case of the nerves. So many things to think about, so little time to really mull them over (Yeah, I guess I’m a big "J" after all, Wendy).  I get scared that I’ll later regret my purchase, regret spending so much each month on my car.

And lest you think I’m just freaking out because it’s a car. Ha. Let me set you straight. I freak out at any large purchase. And at every major commitment. I freaked at committing to 4 years on a team that I’d not spent any time with overseas — turned out I was right to do so, but that’s a story for another post. I freaked out when the SBC office I was temping for told me if they hired me they wanted me to make a 3-4 year commitment to the job (what the….????). Needless to say, I didn’t say yes. I will probably freak when my future husband asks me to marry him. It’s just the whole idea of not having an escape clause, just in case I get into something and discover its a complete hornets nest and I need out fast.

Man, I sound like a control freak, huh. Perhaps I am. But God seems bent on changing this whole facet of my personality. Or at least loosening me up. Pretty much my whole life for the last 6 years has been one long constant stepping out in faith, facing my fears head-on and and choosing to trust God for the seeming impossible. I don’t take much time to look back and marvel at where I came from. The present always seems to captivate my attention and keep me tied up in concern — and occasionally, awe. But every once in a while, I look back in wonder and amazement at all He brought me through, all He’s done for me and all I have become since the new millennium began.

The night my car died, God took me back to an old, once familiar passage that I hadn’t looked at in a while, Romans 5:1-11

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For
if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the
death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be
saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

"Since we were reconciled, how much more…." It rang through my head. And my heart. I heard God whisper, "how much more will I give you, my precious daughter! How much more will I provide. I met you at your point of need even before you knew you needed. Just because I adore you. How much more will I give you now that you know your are My beloved and are committed to becoming all I dream for you? How much more!"

And that’s what I cling to right now. That’s what I use to calm my fears and settle my nerves. I just keep crying out to Him, "Help me choose the best!" and believing in "how much more" He has for me.

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Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Mo…

…which one should I buy…

heck if I know!

I am in love with this one.

But this one’s also very much grown on me.

However, with the price of gas, this one and this one in particular (one of my very favorites!) are the best ideas I’ve seen.

And yet…. my insurance on the Acura is twice what I’m paying now, and the Civic isn’t much lower. Surprisingly, the lowest 6-mo premium winner so far goes to the Element. Wow. Never expected that from an SUV-wannabe.

I’m still in love with the Dodge Caliber though. But everyone, and I do mean everyone, I know is telling me to steer clear of Dodge. They say the engine just isn’t up to snuff.

Hmmm…. what to do, what to do…

wish I knew.

I really do.

(perhaps in the meantime, I could pick up some extra cash as  poet… wha’cha think? Cool1 )

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Say Goodnight, Gracie

Snowy_car
Life through me a curve Tuesday night. But I still managed to hit the ball. Whether it’s a base hit, double, triple or even home run is yet to be determined. But for now I’m just running like heck for home plate.

How’s that for a baseball metaphor? Rolleyes_1

My car’s engine suddenly developed a very baaaad sounding noise as I started it up Tuesday night in the Kroger parking lot after doing my weekly shopping. After staring vainly under the hood for a few moments (what did I think I was going to find? One of those trunk monkeys going crazy on my engine???) I took up an offer for a ride home an older gentleman offered me. I got my groceries put away, called my insurance company, finally getting a chance to use the roadside assistance towing I’ve paid $1/mo for and got my poor baby up to the mechanic I trust in Hillsboro Village.

Yesterday morning they broke the news to me. "It’s dead, Jim."— or in this case, Lu. I promptly got a case of adrenaline-itis. That is, I got a rush of energy that resulted in not only securing a pre-approved loan from my bank, but also in further researching several cars I’ve considered buying for some time, to cleaning my kitchen from top to bottom. Yes, I was a cleaning machine! I was in the process of starting on the bathroom when the adrenaline finally ran out and I crashed on the couch for a couple of hours.

Since then I’m bumming rides from co-workers and my wonderful (have I mentioned lately I looooove living here) landlady/friend, Donna, to get to and from work. And I’m researching cars like mad.

I’m looking at used and new. There are pluses and minuses to every car I’ve looked at, which, I guess, is true with just about everything in life. You get more in one area, but sacrifice something in another in return.

I’m living with a constant state of nervousness. I want with all my heart to make the best choice I can, but no matter which way I go I’m spending money I don’t have. I hate debt. I hate it with a passion. But there are just some things I believe are worth going into debt for. A good, reliable car is one of them.

In spite of the nerves, I’m convinced God protected me and will provide. My car died in the safest of places: a parking lot. Not on the freeway late at night, or in the Appalachians where it would have cost a fortune to tow it anywhere. Not even on city streets full of traffic and tired drivers frustrated at another obstacle between them and home or work.

And while I’m not financially in the "perfect" place I wanted to be at the point I bought a new car —honestly, I’m not sure I’d ever have gotten to that "perfect" place. I have a tendency to move the goal posts on myself— I do have enough to put a good chunk of change on a down payment.

He provided this last car at just the time I needed. It got me all around LA duringPromo79
the most difficult time in my life, took me across the country and then back and forth between South Carolina and Nashville quite a few times. I named him Col. Jack O’Neill, after the character of the same name from the Stargate SG-1 tv series. The O’Neill of the series, played by Ricky Dean Anderson, was a cranky, irascible, but completely lovable "old" man who hated being ordered around, never did as he was told and complained a lot while doing stuff. That was my car. irascible, but completely lovable; obstinate, cranky and old. But I loved him a whole lot. God gave him to me and I never forgot His generosity — nor the generosity of my friends, David and Gina, who so graciously lent the Colonel to me for my first four months back in the States, then sold him to me a couple of months later.

God will provide this time. He already has. I just want to make a choice here that will honor God with the money He’s provided. Please Pray that I do just that.

Say Goodnight, Gracie.
Goodnight Gracie.

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Words – Get ’em Right

Badday Nothing drives me bananas more than bad English. Not the kind spoken by foreign visitors to America, but by those who live, work, and are (supposedly) educated here in the U.S. What is up with our society lately? We’ve gotten so lax in our English that I’m sure the "Mother Country" is ready to go to war to force us to change our official language from "English" to "Cheesy American".

When someone mispronounces a word it drives me absolutely batty. No matter how easy, or complex. I figure, if you don’t know how to pronounce it, you ought not be using it. For example, I’ve been listening to Erwin’s podcast of a couple of weeks ago. He constantly uses the word "optimalize." I’ve noticed people do this a lot: add "-ize" or "-ed" or to shift a word from noun or adjective to verb. For example,the past tense of to orient is changed to "orientated", which is not a word. —Are you listening people, it’s not a word! :::ahem:: :::cough::: :::straightening out my shirt::: — The word you are looking for is oriented. Hence, the sentence would be "He oriented himself to his surroundings." NOT "He orientated himself…"

Grrrrr!!!

Okay, back to Erwin. The word he was trying to convey was optimize. I knew that. I understand that English is not his first language, having been born in El Salvador and not arriving in the US until he was… 10, I think….?? I was willing to overlook it. Once. Maybe even twice. But he continued using the word throughout his 44 minute podcast. AAAUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!! Drove me nuts!

I love Erwin. I love hearing him speak. I miss sitting through his talks two or three times a Sunday (once or twice while running sound, a third just for the heck of it). But, come on. He’s got a Master’s, for goodness sake. His wife has a Master’s. And she’s a teacher. If nothing else, she should have been able to correct his bad English. But, alas, it persists.

Don’t get me wrong. I still managed to get a great deal out of his message. But not without a lot of gnashing of teeth and constantly correcting him — as if he could hear me all the way out here in Nashville…. sheesh.

One of my best friends often calls me a walking Thesaurus. She always calls or emails me when she needs a big word to more powerfully convey the meaning behind her thoughts. I can always give her at least one or two off the top of my head, more if I’ve got a computer nearby. God knows (!!) how much I love my Thesaurus. I admit it, I’m a word-snob. I love words. I love how they sound (when they are pronounced correctly — one of my friends once pronounced the word cacophony as "kakuh phoney"…. "because that’s the way it’s spelled" — aeeyah! — but I digress).

But its not just that I love words. I respect them. They have power to convey deep meaning, to conjure images only the mind can see or create. They have the power to heal wounds and mend hearts, and the power to destroy kingdoms and kill the soul.

I don’t think people have the proper respect for words; for our language. If they did I think their pronunciation and usage of words would be far superior to what it is now.

Now, grammar and spelling… well, that’s a different story. One we will not get into. I’ll I will say is, I looooove me my spell-checker!

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Be Careful What You Say…

…history may prove you wrong.

"Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." (Lord Kelvin, president, Royal Society, 1895)

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." (Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943)

"There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home." (Ken Olsen, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977)

"The telephone has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us." (Western Union internal memo, 1876)

"Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value." (Marshal Ferdinand Foch, French commander of Allied forces during the closing months of World War I, 1918)

"The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?" (David Sarnoff’s associates, in response to his urgings for investment in radio in the 1920’s)

"Professor Goddard does not know the relation between action and reaction and the need to have something better than a vacuum against which to react. He seems to lack the basic knowledge ladled out daily in high schools." (New York Times editorial about Robert Goddard’s revolutionary rocket work, 1921)

"Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?" (Harry M. Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927)

"Everything that can be invented has been invented." (Charles H. Duell, commissioner, US Office of Patents, 1899)

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Missed Me By That Much

Nashville_lightning I survived nature’s latest temper tantrum in Middle Tennessee, and it was a doozy. Well, for everyone but my neighborhood. We seem to have some sort of bubble over Forest Hills. I watched with rapt attention to all the news reports on all the local — even some nationwide — stations and kept hearing about how bad it was all over Nashville and to our north and south. Then I’d look out the window and see sunshine with scattered clouds. I’d step outside and feel an occasional raindrop, hear an occasional peel of thunder, but otherwise all was still, quiet, peaceful even. Birds singing and everything you’d expect from a beautiful but cloudy day.

At one point WKRN‘s city-cam showed an impending super-cell fast approaching. The weather-casters warned us a tornado had been spotted and those of us in Forest Hills needed to take cover immediately because it was headed straight for us. I stood and watched from my back porch as the tail end of that huge super-cell passed over us, darkening the sky to the north and east as far as I could see. Newscasters on every channel were reporting golf ball sized hail falling outside their studios and throughout Nashville. But sunshine was the only thing that poured over me.

Later, when the tornadoes had done their best in Gallatin, Hendersonville, Goodlettesville, Columbia and beyond, and all the newscasters were reporting that the worst had past and all was calm in Nashville, that’s when all hell seemed to break loose around my home. The wind blew hard against my walls, causing the hard rain to sound like huge bb pellets smacking into my windows, lightning flashed and thunder rolled. The lightning and thunder faded after about an hour and all that was left was the wind and the rain.

I’m so grateful to God I "missed out" on all the crazy weather earlier! My heart aches and grieves for the all those who lost property or loved ones. It was all so unexpected, and so fast. We knew there’d be "severe weather", but all the models I’d seen put the worst of it to the south of us. Certainly I didn’t expect it to slam those in the northern part so terribly. I’m sure they didn’t expect it either.

It did amaze me, however, that as I left my office — a little before 2pm — that everyone around me seemed oblivious to the danger at hand. Everyone seemed out for a Sunday drive, going lazily down the street with not a care in the world. Meanwhile, the am radio station I was listening to was broadcasting constant tornado warnings for Davidson county (our county) and saying a tornado had been spotted on the ground right near the 65. I’m yelling and honking and begging people to move so I can get home before it gets worse.

Yes, I know the warnings were for northern Davidson county, and yes, I know the tornado hit the 65 far north of where I was, but still. It wasn’t that far.

I’ve decided. I like earthquakes far better than tornadoes. There’s no warning with earthquakes. There’s none of this crazy "its coming right for you, take cover now!" weather-caster-driven anxiety that leaves a person in near panic for hours at a time and then exhausted for days afterward. Earthquakes just hit, bang!, and it’s done. No warning. No sirens. No intense newscasters. No changing your daily routine to rush home in time to get to a safe spot. No pre-storm runs on the grocery store as all of Middle Tennessee rushes to buy milk and bread —-what the… is that about anyway???—- You just go about your daily life till it hits.

Yep, you gotta be prepared. You gotta already have your supplies (are you listening Nashville?). You’ve got to already have a plan for meeting up, for getting home, for taking care of business until things normalize a bit. 

And I say, all of that beats this crazy "severe weather alert" weather caster-driven insanity Nashville calls "storm watch". Give me a surprise 6.7 (or 7.1 depending on who’s in power) Northridge quake over an anxiety-ridden tornado-waiting afternoon any day.

For great pictures of the devastation, go here: