Keepin' Up with The Times

This morning I made my 2nd visit to one of the churches from my "bowl."

How I came to visit was a bit interesting.

For those who have followed The Dialogue Den for the past few months, you know that I have been enjoying a "Season of Visitation" with regard to where I have been worshiping on Sunday mornings.

For those new to the blog I'll give you a "Cliff's Notes" version and let you know that I have a church home where I have been a member for over twenty years, yet for the past three years or so God has been urging me to visit other churches. I ignored the urge for a couple years and finally, this year, I decided to be obedient...and visit.

To be 100% clear, I am not looking for a new faith as I strongly proclaim my faith in Christ as Lord and Savior. Nor am I looking for a new church home, because I'm happy where I am currently.

I am however, enjoying the various styles of worship, and Scriptural messages that I have heard at churches other than my own.

How do I decide where to go?

I'm glad you asked.

I pay attention to where my friends "check-in" on Sunday mornings and I place the names of those churches in my "bowl." On my designated week to visit, I randomly pick a church from "the bowl" and that's where I head the following Sunday.

So what made today's (and last Sunday's) visits interesting was that this church was the most recent one that got added to my "bowl." That's never happened before.

A few weeks ago one of my friends noticed that I'm visiting churches so she invited me to hers. I thanked her for the invitation and told her that I would add her church to my list (didn't wanna have to explain 'the bowl') and that I wasn't sure when I'd be there, but that I would be one day...at Gods' "go."

Well, wha'da'ya'know...hers was the church that I pulled to visit last Sunday.

I enjoyed service there.

They don't have a building of their own yet so they have service in a middle school auditorium. That was just fine with me. I've always said that I can worship at the beach or at a park...as long as God is being praised and His word is going forth...that's all that matters. I even told her about my own church and how we were "homeless" for 18 months before we finally got a building of our own. So for those 18 months we shared a church building. Our service would begin at 8:30 and we would be finished in time for the other church to have their service begin at 11:00. Yep.

So I'm sure that soon enough they will be in a building of their own.

In the meantime, the worship was solid...the preaching was solid and God is getting the glory.

One thing that I noticed today was how "young" the church was. I mean, I was probably the oldest person in attendance and their use of technology was an example of how "young" the church is.

At my church, we have a "Meet and Greet" portion during the service where we go and say hello to each other, and preferably say hello to someone we've never seen before to make sure that visitors feel welcomed.

At this church, they have what's called "Tweet and Greet." You find someone to say hello to, take a "selfie" with them, and then post it to social media. Yep.

Where some churches frown upon the use of cell phones in church, this one actually encourages it...at least during that part of the service. I thought that was pretty cool.

Overall, I enjoyed my visits to Kingdom Culture Worship Center. Now I'm looking forward to where God will send me next.

In the meantime, Let the DIALOGUE begin: Are you on Twitter? If so, what's the last thing you tweeted?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

The Dates Beside The Dash

Yesterday I went to Inglewood Park Cemetery with a friend.

While I waited for my friend to conduct some business there I decided to take a look around. Not so sure if that was a good idea.

I know that I will probably get this wrong but here goes anyway.

I headed over to the wall (I think it might be called a burial vault, but not sure), and began looking at the dates on the outside of each, seeing how long each person lived and noticing the relationships between individuals. Husbands buried with wives. Children buried with parents, etc.

Then I got to a section where the dates next to the dash were much closer...too close. These were babies and young children.

Some only had a month's difference between the first and second date.
Some had a few years.
Others only had one date...with no dash.

My goodness! It was heartbreaking.

As I continued to walk by I wondered how the families are today. Are they still hurting from the loss? Did they have more children after the loss of the ones who were gone? What caused the little ones to go so soon? Illness? Accident?

Finally I just had to stop and say a prayer for them all...that they were able to find comfort and peace somewhere along the way.

My friend came back out and could tell that I was a bit "shaken up." I didn't realize how strongly I had been affected by the loss of those tiny individuals I'd never known. Funny how that happens. I think what got me the most was the fact that every single person buried in that cemetery had a story. EVERY ONE. Young and old. I hope that in their absence, someone thought enough to tell it.

One thing's for sure...aside from the ocean, cemeteries are the most peaceful places on earth. Other than yesterday, I'd never been to a cemetery beside those times when saying a final goodbye to someone.

I've never been one to "visit" anyone's grave because for me, the memory is in my mind and heart...so I have no desire to go to an actual site. Everyone's different though. We all grieve, mourn, and remember differently. That 's absolutely fine.

Anywho...I'm not really sure about what more there is to say with regard to cemetery visits. So, I'll just say this: Let the DIALOGUE begin: Today is Friday. What are your weekend plans?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Where you at?

With the advances in technology and the worldwide usage of Facebook, it's become much easier to share where we are, who we're with, what we're doing, with just a touch of a button.
I'm pretty sure that 99.99% of Facebook users have "checked in" to a place at least ONCE. At least!

I "check in" often, however those who know me well know that I am very specific as to when I "check in." If you're a friend of mine and you are reading this, you've probably already said to yourself, "Yes, I know. You 'check in' when you are LEAVING a place...NOT when you ARRIVE."

Yep. That's how I do it.

I dunno. It's not that I'm so popular that folks are just gonna roll up on me. I just don't like disclosing my location...until I've LEFT the location, or am on my way out. That's just me.

I get a little giggle when I'm out with friends who like to "check in" when we arrive and they'll stop before posting and say, "Hey, are you okay if I check us in now?" That's how well they know me.

I typically say yes. I mean really, who am I...the Facebook Police? It's YOUR page, and YOUR post. I have NO right to tell someone that they can or can not post something. If it truly bothered me, I would ask that I not be tagged. But, it doesn't, and even if I am "tagged," it doesn't show up on MY page until I "allow" it on my timeline, so...it all works out.

In my case, most of my "check ins" have been at churches; my own, along with the ones I've visited. I don't really need folks to know every time I dine out, or go to Costco, or things like that. But I love sharing where I've worshiped. So after service is over (before I leave), I "check in" and post the title of that day's message along with the Scripture(s) that message came from. I do this because I understand that many folks don't go to church. Can't tell you how many times I've read or heard my friends say, "I don't do 'organized religion'." That's okay. I don't either. I do "relationship with Christ." BIG difference. However, in my '"relationship," I have been compelled to share God's message with others in the hopes that someone (even if it's only ONE person) will be inspired to look into God's Word (in whatever setting is comfortable for them), and in the process, also develop a "relationship with Christ." That's my small way of sharing The Gospel.

For the most part, I think "check ins" are great. I've found some great restaurants to try as a result of my friend's "check ins." And the churches that I have visited have also come by way of my friend's "check ins." So for me, they've proven to be beneficial.

In some cases though, I've found "check ins" to be potentially detrimental. This is when it comes to children. My skin crawls just a wee bit whenever I see a friend checking in at their child's school. When my kids were younger, I never did that until it was their LAST day of school...at that school.

I mean, I get it. The only folks seeing the post are "friends" so there should be no harm with any of them knowing where a child attends school. But in the grand scheme of things...this is THE INTERNET, so you just never know where info will end up. When it comes to children, I don't think it's wise to take such a risky chance. Heck, even when my daughters were in college, I was reluctant to post when I was at their schools. College! So yeah. If I had my druthers, I would caution parents to STOP posting where their children (at least in grades pre-k thru 12) go to school. But that's just me, and everyone is entitled to raise their children however they see fit as long as it isn't causing any harm.

Well...that's my rant for the day.

Now it's your turn. Let the DIALOGUE begin: Do you "check in" on Facebook? If so, have you ever given any thought to when you do so?

Talk to me, and tell me...where you at?!?

Til next time...

Older AND Wiser?

Old people! They crack me up sometimes. Other times, they make me shake my head.

One thing that I have particularly noticed about old people is that they do not "bit their tongues." Similar to children, if something is on an old person's mind, they are gonna LET YOU KNOW...good, bad, or otherwise.

Often times what they say can be a bit hurtful. But do they ever apologize? NOOO. Old people feel that after all their years of living, they have the RIGHT to say want they want, whenever they want...PERIOD.

I first discovered this with my great-grandmother during one of my summer visits to Ohio. In my opinion she was never the nicest woman. Not when I visited as a young child and not when I visited as a young adult.

The last time I saw her was at least 23 years ago. It may have been longer than that, I just know that the last time I was in Ohio was 23 years ago...can't quite remember if she was still alive then. So if it wasn't on that trip, it was on the trip before.

She inquired about my mother and I answered. She then said something so rude and hurtful about my mother that I began to cry. My mother. Her granddaughter. And all she could find in her heart to say was something mean. Needless to say...when she finally died at 105, I didn't shed a tear.

I said all of that to make a point about how some old people have absolutely NO FILTER.

So now we fast forward (rewind) to last Saturday.

I was out with some ladies and one of them is a bit older than I. Somehow we got on the topic of hair. She wears hers very short, like close to the scalp short. I mentioned to her that mine used to be short, like not even a quarter inch long. She was surprised by that so I showed her a picture of myself with the much shorter hair.

She looked at the pic...looked at me, then said, "Hmph! You need to go back to THAT style. It was much cuter than your hair is now and you looked younger too."

Well, I'll be!!!

I didn't even know how to respond to that.

Was I insulted? A lil bit.

Did it take me long to get over the comment? Not-at-all. I quickly reminded myself of her age and that unfiltered comments like those come with the territory.

Kinda made me wonder what I will be like when I get her age. Will I be mindful of other folks' feelings and  THINK before I speak. Or will I just let'er rip like the old folks do?

Who knows.

Gotta tell ya though, I've been lookin' at that old pic and just MIGHT do the "BIG CHOP" once again. I've done it twice since 2013 so one thing I know for sure is that the hair will grow back. Maybe this time it'll grow back healthier, or, maybe...just maybe...I'll keep it short for a change. After all, it makes me look cuter and younger, right?

Now Let the DIALOGUE begin: What's the RUDEST thing an old person has ever said to you?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Tag Check!

This morning I spent a considerable amount of time posting items on eBay   to sell.

I listed 13 items and have 4 more bins full of clothes to post. I am determined to get them ALL listed within the next 7 days.

I don't know how most eBay sellers go about listing their items but I happen to be a bit meticulous. I iron everything and then photograph them "on display." After photographing, I then post on eBay and add a description along with the price I want.

One part of the listing asks where the product was made. I'm not sure if that's a new field or if I've always just bypassed it before, but this morning I actually populated that field for EVERY item and was saddened and disappointed to find that NOT A SINGLE ONE was "Made in The U.S.A."

I had items made in Egypt, El Salvador, Mexico, China and Vietnam.

That got me to wondering WHY we don't make more clothing here in these great United States of America. I immediately answered my own question. COST.

It costs far less to have items made "overseas" than to do so here on "American soil."

I've often heard folks say, "Well sure, we could manufacture those items here, but then we'd have to pay the legal wage to our workers and that would drive the price of the items up."

That got me to wondering again.

Just how much would the price of, say...a pair of jeans increase if they were made here? And most importantly, would we (I'll throw myself into the mix) who are demanding that jobs be "brought back to the U.S." be willing to pay that increase?

I mean, yeah...it would hit consumers a bit harder in the pockets, but...it would greatly benefit our economy by way of creating more businesses (here) which would in turn employ more U.S. citizens. Personally, I think that's worth paying and extra dollar or two when we look at the overall picture, especially if the businesses are located in the inner city/urban areas where so many folks need work and opportunity.

In my opinion though (and this is just my opinion as I am certainly NOT an expert in business), I believe that many of the jobs can be brought back, workers can be paid a fair and legal wage, and...consumer pricing does NOT have to increase? Why do I think those things are possible? Two words --- CORPORATE GREED.

I'm fairly certain that if the higher level executives who are cashing in fat paychecks would TRULY desire to see our country thrive economically by bringing jobs back, then they will agree to take cuts. I mean c'mon...most of them wouldn't even feel a financial difference, and the cuts could possibly work out to be less than what they currently pay in taxes. So my way (again, just my opinion) is the best way to go, and a "win-win" all around.

Unfortunately, I think I may be part of a very small minority.

Many folks will demand that jobs be brought back here, but when they find out that they will be directly effected by such an action, the demands get pretty silent.

So, what is the solution? I wish I knew.

In the meantime, I will continue to post my items and hope that somewhere in these 4 bins of clothes, I will find something that was made here in the U.S.A.

Who knows? Maybe I'm part of the problem. I can honestly say that when I buy clothing, I rarely (if ever) look to see where it was made. I just don't. I typically look at the price and if it's within my budget, I get it. Perhaps I can be more mindful going forward with regard to looking for more products that are made here. Hopefully that won't leave me naked, with nothing to wear. I know...that's pretty drastic, but considering that so far, NONE of the items I posted were made here...things could end up that way...hypothetically speaking.

Now Let the DIALOGUE begin: Let's do a lil experiment. YOU...right there...right now...look at the tags on the items you're currently wearing and let me know where they're made. I'll go first and tell you that the Old Navy tank top I'm wearing was made in El Salvador and my Danskin pants were made in Cambodia. Yep! So go 'head...take a look at yours. Then...

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Santa Barbara Birdy

A couple weeks ago I spent a day at the beach in Santa Barbara. Oh how I love the water! "My Place of Peace" is what I affectionately call it.

Interestingly enough, I've lived my entire life in California yet somehow never made it to Santa Barbara. What's up with that?!?

Anywhoo...so I went a couple weeks ago for the first time and enjoyed it.

The part of the beach where we visited was close the pier and the water was very calm. The waves almost seemed as though they didn't want to be waves at all. Every now and then was the occasional "crash" just to remind beach-goers that we were indeed at "the beach."

While there, I spent some time watching the little cutie in the pic. I'm just gonna refer to him as male for the sake of simplicity.

Originally he was quite a ways back from the water. Like right at the edge of where the dry sand ends.

He'd stand there, way back, and watch the water roll in.

Then he'd scoot a little closer, cautiously, waiting for the water to roll in again.

I don't know how long I watched him, nor how long it took before he was finally as close to the water as he is in the pic.

Then he just stopped, stood, and watched. For a really long time.

At that point he reminded me so much of myself. Standing at the ocean's edge, enjoying the tranquility that is always found there. Sometimes I stand and just think. Allowing my head to clear.

I'd probably be reaching to say that my little bird friend was clearing his head. For all I know he may have been waiting for something to wash up that he could eat. In this pic though it just looks like he's looking out and wondering, "What if?" as I myself have done so many times.

If by chance he was there for answers, I hope he got 'em.

Although Santa Barbara was quite a drive just to get to the beach when I live pretty much 20 minutes away from at least 5 others, I'm glad that I can now say that I have been. One of these days I hope to go back and find my way down to the coastline where the big waves were coming in. There's gotta be a way to get to those, there's just gotta.

How 'bout you my friends, Let the DIALOGUE begin: When was the last time YOU went to the beach, and which one was it?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Life Goes Better With A Song

Anyone who knows me well knows how much I absolutely love MUSIC. At home I actually listen to music far more than I watch television. I can go DAYS without turning on "the boob tube," but not a day goes by when I don't listen to or sing a song...or both.

Thanks to Pandora, getting my daily "music fix" is easy. I tune in and out flow my favorites, along with some new stuff every now and then. I typically listen on "Shuffle" mode because I prefer variety, but every now and then I pick one of my "stations" and listen that way.

You may be wondering what type of music I listen to. Again, anyone who knows me well knows that my listening taste is about as eclectic as I am, so my artists are all over the board.

Lucky for you, I'm gonna list all of my current Pandora stations so that your day can be complete. :-)

Ready? I've got a lot of 'em.

Here goes:

2Pac (Tupac)

Adele
Alexander O'Neal
Alicia Keys
Anita Baker
Antonio Vivaldi

Blackstreet
Bob Marley
Boney James
Brian Culbertson
Bruno Mars
Byron Cage

Candy Dulfer
Carl Thomas
Casting Crowns
Chante Moore
Chris Botti
Corinne Bailey Rae
Curtis Mayfield

D'Angelo
Daryl Coley
Dave Hollister
Donald Lawrence
Donny Hathaway
Dorinda Clark-Cole

Earnest Pugh
Earth, Wind & Fire
Eric Benet
Erykah Badu

Fantasia
Fryderyk Chopin

Gap Band
George Howard
Ginuwine
Grover Washington, Jr.

Hall & Oates

India.Arie
Israel & New Breed

Jagged Edge
Jaheim
Jesse Cook
Jhene Aiko
Jill Scott
Joe
Johann Sebastian Bach
John Coltrane
John P. Kee
Jonathan Nelson
Justin Timberlake

Kelly Price
Kem
Kenny Barron
Kim Burrell
Kirk Franklin

Ledisi
Leela James
Loose Ends
Ludwig van Beethoven
Luther Vandross
Lyfe Jennings

Martha Munizzi
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Sapp
Mary J. Blige
Maxwell
Maze & Frankie Beverly
Mercyme
Michael Jackson
Mike Phillips
Motown

Norman Brown

Ohio Players
Ottmar Liebert

Pink
Prince

Raheem Devaughn
Regina Carter
Rhian Benson
Ricky Dillard & New G
Rihanna
Robin Thicke

Sade
Simply Red
Stevie Wonder
Sting

Tank
Teddy Pendergrass
Teena Maria (this was the very FIRST station I added. She's my All-Time FAVORITE artist!)
The Four Tops
The Isley Brothers
The O'Jays
The Spinners
The Temptations
The Winans
Tony!Toni!Tone!
Tyrese

Urban Comedians

Vesta
Vicki Yohe

Will Downing

Yolanda Adams

So there ya have it folks! As you can see, I've got plenty to sing, dance (or hum) along to on any given day.

Now it's your turn. Let the DIALOGUE begin: I seem to be missing artists that begin with Q, X and Z. Got any suggestions? If not, then tell me this...who are your top seven musical artists?

Talk (or sing) to me!

Til next time...