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WITandWISDOM(tm) - December 2, 2002 ISSN 1538-8794 ~~~~~~~ THOUGHTS: I decided that I would make my life my argument. I would advocate the thing I believed in, in terms of the life I lived and what I did. - Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) Source: Caring Quotes, Collected and edited by the brothers Val and Bill Halamandaris, Copyright (c) 1994 Submitted by Gary Thietten ~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS: I was in the heart of Romania, preaching at the dedication of a new church. Several hundred people were milling around outside their new, white, "house of prayer". The silver of the roof gleamed in the bright morning light like a mercury stream flowing from the throne of God. There were mostly farmers and poor country folk. The people came dressed simply; their finest adornment being their rosy smiles with an occasional gleaming gold tooth! The thrill of a new church in this so recently religiously persecuted land was evident by the pageantry that attended the ribbon cutting. On the front steps of the church, choirs sang, poetry was recited, speeches were given, and tears were shed. Scarfed women laid bouquet after bouquet of fresh cut garden flowers on the front steps. Amidst this colorful floral collage, my translator pointed to one quiet man standing with his worn tweed hat clasped firmly in his leathered hands. "You see that man, Byard?" He whispered, pointing him out. "That man has dedicated the last four years of his life to building this church. He has put everything he has into making this church a reality." My friend paused and then lowered his voice even further, "He has given so much that he had to borrow shoes from a neighbor to come to church today." - Byard W. Parks (c) 1999 ~~~~~~~ THIS & THAT: You Might Be from Oklahoma If . . . You can properly pronounce all of the following, and without laughing: Eufaula, Pushmataha, Okemah, Tishomingo, and Chickasha. You know that the true value of a parking space is determined not by the distance to the door, but rather by the availability of shade. A tornado warning siren is not necessarily cause for alarm. (It's usually just your signal to go out in the yard and look for the funnel. Fun for the whole family.) If you've ever had this conversation with a friend: "Y'all wanna Coke?" "Sure." "What kind ya want?" "Dr. Pepper." You've used most of the following words/expressions in daily conversation: "reckon"; "plumb" (e.g., "plumb stove up," "plumb fed up," "plumb sick and tired," etc.); "Howdy"; "I swan" (in lieu of "I swear"); "fixin' to"; "See y'all later" (alt., "Y'all behave yourselves!") You understand most of the following concepts and expressions: dry county; The B.C. Clark Christmas jingle; "Once saved, always saved."; "Go Sooners!"; "Shoot far (fire) and save the matches!"; Vacation Bible School; Peppered cream gravy on everything, please, Ma'am; "Just open all the windows and git in the bathtub." You understand that Oklahoma is a Southern, Southwestern, and Midwestern state-all at once and this is not a contradiction in your mind. The local paper quickly covers national and international headlines on the front page, but requires 6 pages for sports and 2 pages for local church news. You know more than one woman who has used an Oklahoma University football schedule to plan her wedding date. You don't find it in the least bit odd to see "chicken fried chicken" on a menu. You know the difference between "Durant" and "Doo-rant," and you also know which state has a "My-am-muh," and which has a "My-am-ee." (Miami) A BMW is not nearly the status symbol as is a Ford F150 4x4. You don't find it in the least bit odd to find video rentals, ammunition, and live bait all in the same convenience store. You know all 4 seasons by heart: Tornado, Summer, Still Summer, and Christmas. You can't always remember which year your sweet Mama was born, but you can rattle off the years of all the "terrible hot" summers in your lifetime lickety-split. Source: The Funnies, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/andychaps_the-funnies ~~~~~~~ KEEP SMILING: The red flag on the parking meter was visible, and sure enough, Scott Seomin found a souvenir from the city of West Hollywood, Calif., on his windshield. It was a poem: The meter was red, as time had expired. In the rush cf the season, we knew you'd be tired. A parking ticket would just make you blue, And in the holiday spirit this just would not do. So during this time of friendship and good cheer, Season's greetings to you and best wishes all year. Steve Harvey in Los Angeles Times Source: Reader's Digest, Copyright (c) December 1999, http://www.readersdigest.com ~~~~~~~ TRIVIA: Surry, Canada (AP): The Mounties got their men. What they had trouble getting was a sandwich. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Constable Ed Boettcher and his partner decided to take a sandwich break Monday while on surveillance duty in an unmarked car. At the restaurant, they checked the license plate on a car parked at a nearby pawn shop, found the car had been reported stolen, followed it and helped arrest the driver and passenger. Back they went to the sandwich joint, only to find a well-known car thief getting out of a pickup truck. Sure enough, a check of the license showed the truck had been stolen and they arrested the driver. On his third try, Boettcher finally got inside the sandwich shop, but his partner noticed two men carrying golf bags into the pawn shop. It turned out their car was also stolen and they were eventually arrested as well. Source: WhiteBoard News, http://www.joeha.com/whiteboard/ |