Wednesday, April 28, 2010

AN ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION.


















No. That is not a mini-volcano. But it raises a question
in my mind.

Consider a few of the more recent volcanoes.
  • Eyjafjullajokull
  • Loihi seamount
  • Mount Amukta
  • Fourpeaked
  • Mount St. Helens
  • Kasatochi Island
When these things erupt, I've been told that
they emit more pollution than the entire
human race. And the expert that I talked to
said, more pollution than humans have in
their entire history. Now that is each volcano.

And we have some agencies to combat
pollution. For example;
  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • U K Environment Agency
  • Northern Ireland Agency
  • German Federal Agency
  • European Environment Agency
  • National Environmental Agency.
When any of these recent volcanoes erupted,
did any of our environmental protection agencies
issue the volcano a citation, warrant, ticket or
arrest them for polluting?????

Or, were they too busy worrying about some poor
old boy burning trash in his back yard????




Friday, April 23, 2010

THE THEOLOGIAN'S MOTORCYCLE


















This photo has nothing to do with nothing. It is simply
a concept motorcycle for a motorcycle company that
has no concept about motorcycles.

I am simply a simple old man that likes simple old
motorcycles. That makes us compatible.

Now take the simple old motorcycle below.


















Do you see those two rear shock? If you are in no hurry
to adjust them. Then drag you feet over to the tool box.
Then chat a while with a friend. That way it would take you
less than five minutes to adjust them. Not even time for
a cup of coffee.

If you were in a hurry to adjust those shocks, it would
take less than 120 seconds - for both of them.

So the grand kid comes in with this newer motorcycle
below. Same brand. But new and fancy. "Grandpa,
will you adjust my back shock? When my girl friend
rides with me it bottoms out."

He was not man enough to tell her to loose weight.
Or may be he just wanted to live a little longer.
Or, may be keep his girl friend!

"Sure kid. Where is the shock at?"

Now the reason I call this a theologian's motorcycle is
that theologians like to complicate things. (You might
use some one else.) And as you will see, it appears that
the motorcycle company must have added a theologian
to the design team.

















Adjust the shock now in five minutes. You are kidding.
It's more like five hours. Notice the steps now that a
theologian has been added to the team.

-Jack up and block the motorcycle. (I added a sky hook.)
-Remove exhaust pipes.
-Remove storage box.
-Remove tool kit.
-Remove lower shock bolt.
-Remove tie rods from rocker arm.
-Remove upper shock bolt.
-Remove shock from motorcycle.
-Take to bench and adjust.

Reinstall by reversing the removal steps.



































Now that's just like a theologian. Do you want to get to
know God personally? Well I'll just tell you how;
-Come to my church and listen to me talk.
-Then come up front so I'll know my talk did something.
-Then say this simple prayer.
-Then we have this ceremony for you to go through.
-After that you will go to our class to learn the 35 things
you must believe to be like us.
-Here is a list of the 117 things you must do.
-And here is the list of 378 things you can never do.
- OH! I almost forgot. You pay here.

Sound familiar????

But how does God look at it?

Jesus tells us about a tax collector [Now you can't get
any lower than that.] who wanted to get right with God.
He was dead serious and simply cried out, "God be
merciful to me a sinner!" Jesus said he was justified.

When Jesus was dying for you and me, one of the
criminals being executed with him called to him.
"Jesus, remember me when you come into your
kingdom." Jesus told him that he would be with him
in Paradise that very day.

When a Jailer was about to commit suicide because
of circumstances in desperation he called out to
the apostle Paul and his pardner, "Men, what must
I do to be saved?" They replied, "Believe in the Lord
Jesus, and you will be saved,..."

I don't know about you. But I like simple old
motorcycles and I like the simplicity that God
allows in turning to him, if we will.



Tuesday, April 20, 2010

THE OLD MOTORCYCLE


































I made a mistake. See, I even got the images all mixed
up. Of course you don't know what a mistake is. But
if some one will not tell you, it is in the dictionary.

I "had" and old GS550 that I had tinkered with until it
would scream. I took it off the road and used it to ride
around the house and field.

Tinker with it and ride it. But then we begin to clean up
around here and I made the mistake of getting ride of it.

It did not bother me until this spring. Then bam. It hit
me hard. I wanted an old bike to tinker with and race
around the place on. My street bikes are fine just the
way they are. They are for riding - not tinkering with.

















A dirt bike would do all I wanted. But I wanted to strip
it down the way I wanted. Half the fun is in the tinkering.
The the other 90% is in the riding. (You add it up.)

My conscience would not allow me to spend much on it.
The major priority was, CHEAP. You know, just a little
more than I would carry in my wallet.

For about a month I searched ebay. Yes there were
several there - in Main, California or Washington etc.
But I did not want to travel more than about two
hundred miles to get it.

A month of following ebay, craigslist, the newspaper
and all the local shoppers resulted in nothing.

















Next step. I ask some of my online friends to pray for me
and my situation. That was a Friday morning.

By Friday after noon the Lord let me understand the
part the motorcycle was to play for me.

The next day, Saturday, a friend just happened to come
by. I mentioned my search to him.

He just happened to need gas.

While getting gas an acquaintance of his just happened
to come out of the store.

His brother-in-law had passed away and he just
happened to have an old motorcycle setting in his shed.

It just happened that he was trying to sell it for his sister.

On Sunday I went and looked at it. It just happened to
be exactly what I was wanting. Even one of the favored
brands for this project.

It just happened to be in the correct price range.

Oh! and it just happened to be between two and three
miles from my house.

So on Monday I just happened to go to the bank and
get him the cash.

And before the week was out it just happened to be mine
and setting in my shop.

















As you can see, I'm changing both the style and the brand
of it.

Of course these are only external changes.

It is not like when a persons turns their life over to the
Lord Jesus Christ and He changes them from the inside
out.

Now you can go on working things out with your own
"smarts" if you like. But as for me. I like it best when
God begins to work it out for me.

You can call this old bike junk, ugly or a rat bike.
But I call it fun.