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Transamerican Auto Parts

Our Story

From Humble Beginnings to Retail Storefronts

1961 “Quality Parts, Lowest Prices, Fastest Service and Fully Guaranteed”

Something I learned from George about business: Take care of your customers. Find them the part they need even if you have to buy from a different source at a higher price. Just keep them happy and they will keep coming back.—Rody Roland, Gear Squad

In 1961, George Adler accepted a job as the sole full-time employee of a new company, Transamerican Auto Parts. The business had a humble start, selling replacement Jeep parts to small off-road shops and Jeep dealerships. These businesses were serving the needs of Jeep owners who were just starting to use their Jeeps in the great American outdoors.

Once the phone began to ring, it was George who answered and filled the orders. When a customer needed parts faster than standard shipping would allow, George delivered the order himself. For one customer, he drove overnight from Los Angeles to Oakland to ensure the parts arrived on time. Soon enough, George’s customer service instinct had earned the loyalty and respect of Jeep dealers throughout California.

George, sensing opportunity, bought into the company with his father in-law for $5,000. This investment decision would prove to be a great one.

1964 The Catalog Business

In 1964, George tackled the catalog business after seeing a Sears Jeep parts catalog. The first Transamerican Auto Parts catalog was developed and assembled on the family kitchen table. The catalog generated some early signs of success, so George forged ahead with his mail order business by running his first advertisement in Four Wheeler magazine. At this point, George was going after a new customer, the end user. To position the company better for that segment, George changed the name to 4 Wheel Parts Wholesalers. He also expanded the product offering to include parts for other 4×4 trucks, like the Chevy Blazer and Ford Bronco.

1976 Two Retail Storefronts

I first met George in the early/mid ‘70s. I don’t remember the exact year, we were young and things were moving pretty fast. Transamerican/4 Wheel Parts was located near LAX airport. The neighborhood was not exactly upscale. When I went there, which was usually after dark, I parked as close to the building as possible and ran for the front door.—Hike Pollem, Industry veteran

In the 1970s, George raised the stakes even higher by pursuing a retail storefront strategy. The lean-and-mean, one-man show was officially a thing of the past. Under George’s direction, 4 Wheel Parts was signing leases, hiring employees, and investing in inventories for two retail stores. Opening the second 4Wheel Parts location in Oakland, California was a major step for the company. Failure would have meant a significant change in the company’s future. However, George’s determination and instinct would lead to success. Along the way, many great employees helped these locations succeed, including Ruth Eidel, Tim Retallick, and Ripper Gledhill — who still serves TAP today as the Director of Store Operations.

1982 Five Retail Storefronts

George is a real car guy — specifically off-road car guy. Doesn’t need a Frost & Sullivan report or big committee to fill him in on the roots, reasons and passion for all things motorized. Lives it and breaths it, which must have so much to do with the company’s success and ability to move faster than the competition.—Jim Chick, Bestop, Inc.

By 1982, George had grown the retail presence to five stores, four in California (Oakland, Gardena, Oxnard, and Van Nuys) and one in Hawaii. 4 Wheel Parts was now a legitimate retail player in the growing off-road parts business.

Because George was an intuitive genius regarding proper inventory investment, our first stop was always the warehouse to check out the inventory on hand.—Tim Mongi, Transamerican Auto Parts

During this time, the company was also increasing its product offering and inventory base. Aggressive inventory growth was risky, but George made it pay off with his knack for identifying trends early and being diligent about carrying only the highest quality products.

1985-2000 Manufacturing & E-Commerce Start-Up

1988 Pro Comp Manufacturing

Lessons learned from George: “Learn on my time, not on my money.” “Don’t tell me your ideas, do your ideas.” “We don’t want to be the biggest, we want to be the best!” “To be the best, we need the best people.”—Rich Botello, Pro Comp USA

In 1988, George tackled the challenge of vertical expansion, launching a manufacturing business called Pro Comp. Pro Comp initially produced off-road lighting under the brand name Explorer. At the time, KC HiLiTES was the popular brand, but the ever-aggressive George Adler wanted his own brand. With help from Pete Brown at KC HiLiTES, this vision became a reality.

Lights would serve as a launching pad for many great Pro Comp products to come. Shocks were next, followed by suspension systems. This was another huge gamble for the company, but one which would prove instrumental in the continued growth of the business. Today, Pro Comp is a recognized leader in off-road suspension.

1998 Florida Retailing

4 Wheel Parts became a nationwide retailer in 1998 with the opening of the Orlando store. Today, 4 Wheel Parts operates five retail stores in Florida.

1998 Manufacturing Tires and Wheels

The most important business knowledge that I got from George was urgency. Whether it is a sale, a customer service issue, a cost-saving plan or anything important, it is imperative that we should approach it with a strong sense of urgency. This thinking keeps business priorities in proper order.–Tim Mongi, Transamerican Auto Parts

George seized opportunity again by launching Pro Comp tires in 1998. The trigger was the closure of a competing manufacturer that was prominent in the tires segment. Nothing motivated George Adler like a hole in the market. But to make the move, he had to commit to buying 36,000 tires upfront in the first year. He of course had no sales history to gage the potential success of this new venture.

George was fearless once again. He put in his initial order and sold twice that number by year-end. The quick success of Pro Comp tires resulted in part from the leadership of Scotty Ward, a long-time company manager. This was another example of George identifying talent within the company, and then giving that individual the opportunity to succeed.

Pro Comp soon followed up on its successful tires business by launching wheels.

1999 New Channels

Thirty-eight years after the inception of Transamerican/4 Wheel Parts, George was still driving loyalty in the same manner he always had — by finding new ways to support his customers. In 1999, this support came in the forms of new print and digital content. Lifestyle magazine Off-Road Adventures produced its first edition and e-commerce site flickered to life with a few thousand SKUs. It was 1999, the year Napster shook up the music industry by using the Internet to enable file sharing. didn’t generate the buzz Napster did, but the site did give more consumers access to the off-road parts and equipment they needed.

Today, the magazine continues to mail over 3 million copies annually, and serves as the company’s central marketing initiative. The Internet also proved to have staying power, and e-commerce remains a large part of the 4 Wheel Parts machine.

2000-2011 Expansion through Acquisition & New Media

Transamerican continues its innovative support of the off-road lifestyle by establishing a new concept called Truck and Jeep Fest. Truck and Jeep Fest is a convention-style show featuring manufacturer exhibits, themed activities, and exclusive pricing. Truck and Jeep Fest has become enormously popular with off-roaders and off-road manufacturers. Ten years later, Truck and Jeep Fest is the largest show of its kind and a mainstay in the industry. The show travels to nearly a dozen cities around the country each year.

Transamerican launches Dealer Services, International (DSI). DSI leverages Transamerican’s established distribution network and scale to provide aftermarket products and services to auto dealerships.

4WP, from top to bottom, has been a first-rate operation to deal with. They are tough negotiators, yet understand that both parties must make a dollar. There is not enough room in this article to list what I have gleaned from George, Greg and their team.—Bret Lovett, Superlift Suspension Systems

By this time, George and a hand-picked team of leaders had built an off-road empire. Transamerican Auto Parts was the nation’s largest retailer of 4-wheel-drive parts and accessories. The company managed a nationwide chain of retail stores, a complex inventory and distribution system, a manufacturing business, a thriving e-commerce site, a catalog business, a call center, and a magazine. The culture throughout the organization reflected George’s opportunistic and passionate style.

George retired in 2005, selling Transamerican Auto Parts to a Private Equity Group. The rest of the Transamerican management team, including George’s son Greg Adler, stayed on to run the company.

4 Wheel Parts was all about growing with stable companies that could back up their products, warranties, and pledges.—Jim Chick, Bestop, Inc.

Under Greg Adler’s leadership, Transamerican strengthened its reach within the Jeep segment by acquiring leading Jeep parts cataloger, 4Wheel Drive Hardware (4WD) from a private equity firm. The 4WD acquisition also included Performance Products, which had been purchased by 4WD in 2003. At the time of the acquisition, 4WD and Performance Products held significant market share positions in aftermarket parts for Jeep, Toyota truck, Porsche, and Mercedes.

We will continue to grow our company with the same passion my father had when he started Transamerican so many years ago. Our future success is determined by developing exciting new products, adding new store locations, creating innovative websites, and making smart acquisitions.—Greg Adler, Transamerican Auto Parts

Greg continued aggressive expansion by acquiring Smittybilt, an established manufacturer of Jeep and truck parts and accessories. The move gave Transamerican a sizeable footprint in the manufacturing and wholesale segments of the aftermarket for off-road products.

Understanding the importance of the online community, Greg built an Internet team so Transamerican could expand its online presence through site improvements and social media activity, including:

  • Launch of social media profiles for 4 Wheel Parts and 4Wheel Drive Hardware on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube
  • Acquisition and re-launch of, a leading online retailer of WARN products
  • Launch of

The ownership of the Transamerican changed. The new owners became a consortium of Financial Institutions and the Senior Management team.

Transamerican celebrates 50 years in business, while continuing to strengthen its position. Greg Adler pursues the expansion strategy started by George half a century earlier, through strategic acquisitions and innovative websites. 2011 accomplishments include:

  • Launch of featuring user-generated content
  • Launch of Truck & Jeep Fest to the Hawaii market
  • Acquisition and re-launch of suspension manufacturer Rubicon Express

Stay tuned for more Transamerican milestones to come!


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A few weeks ago I went on a little spring break trip to visit my family in Los Angeles. A few things happened, followed by a few more, and so on. Here's a multiple-part photo journal of events that mattered to me while I was there. Enjoy!

After years passing this sign millions of times (at least) since the age of 6, I finally decided to indulge my curiosity and visit the mysterious highway exit known as Zzyzx Rd. Originally known as a government outpost Soda Springs, CA was rechristened Zzyzx in 1934. Zzyzx was founded by a crackpot evangelist who split his time between hosting a radio show in L.A. and managing his health spa and hotel in Zzyzx. Its strange name was claimed to be a real word, which he used to properly name his spa so that it would be "the last word in health".

Kelso Dunes as seen from Zzyzx.

After the federal government dubiously "reclaimed" the land on the technicalities of mining claim laws, the Cal State university system took the land over in 1976 and manages it to this day. CSU nows operates a Mojave Desert research center in the converted health spa and hotel facilities that the original owner built. Soda springs still exists on the grounds of Zzyzx, and is actually the last existing habitat for the endangered Mohave Tui Chub, the only fish currently native to San Bernardino County.

After taking my sweet time at Zzyzx, I decided to extend the usual, tedious trip between L.A. and Vegas into an extended field trip. Next stop: Vasquez Rocks.

While most recognize this place from scenes in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey and a plethora of other films of varying quality, the Vasquez Rocks were initially known for being a favorite hideout for the notorious Tiburcio Vasquez. As a kid, the Vasquez Rocks were a favorite boy scout hiking spot of mine, to the point that I was pretty well-versed in the history of their infamous namesake.

Despite growing up in within the educated Spanish ruling class, at age 17 Vasquez descended into a outlaw lifestyle which included ample amounts of robbery, theft, prison breaks, and womanizing. Since he was usually on the run, he found the canyons around the Vasquez Rocks to be an ideal hiding place.

Siltstone conglomerate in the foreground. CA Hwy 14 and the San Gabriel Mts in the background.

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English Tagalog Translation of hospitable

In english tagalog dictionary, "hospitable" is "mapagbigay sa pakikitungo". See more translations below.

hospitable adjective
mapagbigay sa pakikitungo
magiliw sa mga panauhin

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Contribute translations, meaning, definition, synonym, sample usage and/or any information for terms, phrases and words that people are finding. Many visitors come here finding for translations for a certain phrases and terms but were unlucky. Maybe you have answer. Share your knowledge in the whole world and many will be happy with it. See if you have knowledge in the following terms:


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Traveling Luck for Kokur Mango Laghmān, Afghanistan Afghanistan flag

Alternatively known as Kukurmangu

The timezone in Kokur Mango is Asia/Kabul
Morning Sunrise at 05:54 and Evening Sunset at 17:59. It's light
Rough GPS position Latitude. 34.8614°, Longitude. 70.3608°

Weather near Kokur Mango Last report from Jalalabad, 66.9km away

Weather Temperature: 26°C / 79°F
Wind: 2.3km/h West/Southwest
Cloud: Few at 15000ft

Satellite map of Kokur Mango and it's surroudings...

Geographic features & Photographs around Kokur Mango in Laghmān, Afghanistan

populated place a city, town, village, or other agglomeration of buildings where people live and work.

intermittent stream a water course which dries up in the dry season.

mountain an elevation standing high above the surrounding area with small summit area, steep slopes and local relief of 300m or more.

shrine a structure or place memorializing a person or religious concept.

Accommodation around Kokur Mango

TravelingLuck Hotels
Availability and bookings

mountains a mountain range or a group of mountains or high ridges.

area a tract of land without homogeneous character or boundaries.

peak a pointed elevation atop a mountain, ridge, or other hypsographic feature.

  WikipediaWikipedia entries close to Kokur Mango

Airports close to Kokur Mango

Jalalabad(JAA), Jalalabad, Afghanistan (66.9km)
Kabul international(KBL), Kabul, Afghanistan (139.5km)
Peshawar(PEW), Peshawar, Pakistan (181.7km)

Airfields or small strips close to Kokur Mango

Parachinar, Parachinar, Pakistan (139.2km)
Risalpur, Risalpur, Pakistan (217.6km)


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Traveling Luck for Nav'kajåkka Finnmark, Norway Norway flag

Alternatively known as Navkkaelva

The timezone in Nav'kajakka is Europe/Oslo
Morning Sunrise at 05:28 and Evening Sunset at 17:35. It's light
Rough GPS position Latitude. 69.9833°, Longitude. 24.2333°

Weather near Nav'kajåkka Last report from Banak, 30.5km away

Weather Temperature: -4°C / 25°F Temperature Below Zero
Wind: 13.8km/h Northeast
Cloud: Few at 3000ft Broken at 4900ft

Satellite map of Nav'kajåkka and it's surroudings...

Geographic features & Photographs around Nav'kajåkka in Finnmark, Norway

lake a large inland body of standing water.

hill a rounded elevation of limited extent rising above the surrounding land with local relief of less than 300m.

stream a body of running water moving to a lower level in a channel on land.

mountain an elevation standing high above the surrounding area with small summit area, steep slopes and local relief of 300m or more.

Accommodation around Nav'kajåkka

Rica Hotel Alta Lokkeveien 61, Alta

lakes large inland bodies of standing water.

farm a tract of land with associated buildings devoted to agriculture.

valley an elongated depression usually traversed by a stream.

peak a pointed elevation atop a mountain, ridge, or other hypsographic feature.

hut a small primitive house.

upland an extensive interior region of high land with low to moderate surface relief.

  WikipediaWikipedia entries close to Nav'kajåkka

Airports close to Nav'kajåkka

Banak(LKL), Banak, Norway (30.5km)
Alta(ALF), Alta, Norway (34km)
Hasvik(HAA), Hasvik, Norway (99.3km)
Sorkjosen(SOJ), Sorkjosen, Norway (130.8km)
Enontekio(ENF), Enontekio, Finland (188.7km)


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Today we had the pleasure of meeting Patricia Wilson who is the Executive Director at Life Recovery. This is an amazing home that currently houses 13 women struggling to set themselves free of drug addiction and substance abuse.

The friendly counsellors at LIFE Recovery Home truly understand the difficult choices and issues faced by woman bound by substance additions. Confidential consultation is available to these individuals every weekday during regular working hours. Many draw from their own addiction and recovery experiences.

From the moment you step foot on the property you feel a sense of warmth. The staff greeted us with kind smiles, and the women there were equally as inviting. The space is updated and warm; the open meeting area surrounds the fireplace and combines large, comfortable furniture and lots of natural light. It truly does feel like a home.

I was amazed at what they are able to with this home! They truly have utilized every inch. Upstairs houses private rooms for it's residents, a full modern bathroom and staff and counselling offices. Downstairs the rooms are complete with their own ensuites; there is even a private space set up for children to come and visit and play with their moms. Having four daughters myself, I was really taken aback by the compassion that Life Recovery has for those struggling to balance sobriety and motherhood. The sprawling backyard is complete with a playground for kids to roam and play.

As Patricia explained, those at the house are encouraged to maintain routine and work on life skills, at all levels. As a means of supporting the house and it's costs to maintain and keep going, they opened a Thrift Store in the Clearbrook Industrial Park on South Fraser Way. Everyone has the task of working there one day per week which allows them to gain much needed employment and customer service skills.

Each lady gets to cook dinner once a week, and cooking for that many people is a large task but also helps encourage skills like organization and preparation.

Forget that this is the season to give - we really should focus on giving all the time. We are blessed; we have more than we need, and it's our duty to humanity to share. This house runs completely on donations and without our support these women wouldn't have a place to turn. There's nothing else like it in our city, so please, next time you open your closets, open your heart and think of Life Recovery House.

** Linens like sheets, blankets and towels are always needed for the house but the Thrift Store will take all of your donations and even PICK THEM UP!

We have recently moved to  larger premises in the same mall.  Our thanks to all who made this possible and we are pleased to have more room to display our goods.

The LIFE Second Chance Store, provides a valuable avenue of funding for the operations at LIFE Recovery House. Currently, the thrift store is seeking part-time volunteers for 4 to 5 hour shifts (especially on Saturdays) as well as the following items:

  • Shelving
  • Furniture/Appliances: Very Good Condition for Re-sale
  • Articles in Very Good Condition for Re-sale ie. Clothing, Shoes, Toys, Books, Misc. items

Check out LIFE Second Chance Thrift Store on

7 - 31550  South Fraser Way
Clearbrook Industrial Park
Abbotsford, BC  V2T 4C6

For more information on volunteering or for donations, please call 604-854-5928

We have a truck and are able to pick-up and deliver larger items for you.

is #7 – 31550 S. Fraserway

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Keeping you updated about what's happening in Real Estate and in the Fraser Valley!


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29th: 1 ring-tailed Hen Harrier behind Treshnish Old Schoolhouse, at least 2 Redwings at Treshnish farm entrance and at least 8 probably 9 Common Scoters close to Calgary beach.
27th: 9 Common Scoters at Calgary pier and at least 3 Turnstones at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary.
25th: 1 female Hen Harrier at Loch Carnain an Amais, Mishnish, 1 yellow-tagged White-tailed Eagle at Langamull flew over Mornish Schoolhouse and another flew west over Cillchriosd, 9 Common Scoters at Calgary pier.

24th: at least 2 Black-headed Gulls at Lagganulva.
23rd: 1 Purple Sandpiper, 4-5 Turnstones, 1 Redshank at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary; at least 8 (probably 9) Common Scoters near Calgary pier; at least 3 Long-tailed Tits at Calgary boathouse and 1 Red-throated Diver in the inner bay. 1 owl (probably Short-eared) at dusk on the Ensay side of Ensay Burn cattle-grid and a dead Short-eared Owl under the electric lines there.
A Drinker caterpillar where Ensay road hits the Calgary bay coast was my first November record.
22nd: About 40 Fieldfares at Treshnish wood and presumably the same flock around Ensay in the afternoon,3 Purple Sandpipers at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary (on rocky islets so impossible to get closer).

This Greylay Goose there seems to have a large amount of white at the base of the bill but I am sure the id is correct.

I think this is the same bird later at Calgary beach

Usual suspects: Heron

and Buzzard.

21st: Tawny Owl calling at night in Treshnish wood.
A fresh Hazel Gloves fungus was found about three trees to west of the rhododendron log pile.
At night it was unusual (this year only) to have moths coming to a window. One was a migrant, the Silver Y (my only November record) and the other Juniper Carpet ssp. scotica is a new species for Treshnish!

20th: 9 Common Scoters at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary and 2 or 3 Redwings nearer to the beach.
19th: Tawny Owl calling in Treshnish wood.
15th: 1 male Bullfinch calling at Treshnish Old Schoolhouse and 1 Black-headed Gull over Treshnish wood.
The Blackbird invasion continues with hundreds reported along the Dervaig-Salen road (Dave Sexton pers. comm.)
14th: I went to look for the Short-eared Owls but sheep gathering on the hill may have moved them on temporarily but whilst gathering, Jamie flushed 2 above Toechtamhor cottage, Haunn.
There were still plenty of Blackbirds around.This is one of a flock of at least 12 along with 2 Redwings by the cattlegrid at Ensay Burn. Although this is a female most of them are males.

For about the last fortnight Jamie has also been seeing hundreds of Blackbirds lining the roads, early morning between Dervaig at Achnacroig.
The Treshnish wood Buzzards are getting a bit less wary. The gradual narrowing of the tail bars shows this to be a juvenile

Usual suspect: Goldcrest.

13th: 2-5 Short-eared Owls after sunset, around Treshnish cow-barn and Black Park field (possibly only 2 circling back around me but I don't think so).

A small flock of 4+ Long-tailed Tits in Treshnish wood,

1 possible Jack Snipe at Treshnish boathouse and still more than normal numbers of Blackbirds around the farm. Woodcock in Black Park (will not be mentioned until spring unless high numbers occur).
12th: The 5 Common Scoters still between Calgary pier and the beach.

There were aboout 10 Redwings below Ensay farmhouse and further towards the Calgary coast, 6 Fieldfares and 1-2 Woodcocks. Tawny Owl calling in the evening in Treshnish wood.
Usual suspects: Buzzards.

One day I will catch this Buzzard defensive roll in focus

Don't look behind but...

11th: 5 Common Scoters off Calgary pier,

1 Turnstone and 1 possible Bar-tailed Godwit at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary, about 20 Redwings and later at least 12 Blackbirds below Ensay farmhouse.
Usual suspect: Shags.

An Otter on east side of Lainne Sgeir.
10th: I got back from a walk below Treshnish House where I saw a flock of at least 18 Blackbirds in the graveyard field and at least 12 in Black Park field, to see that a visitor from Ardnamurchan had seen c300 Blackbirds between Calgary and Ulva on the morning of the 8th (Alan Spellman in litt.). There were also at least 5 each of Redwing and Fieldfare around Treshnish wood and about 400 Starlings at the pre-roost gathering by Treshnish cow-barn. I don't think I have seen such a large flock there before.
This Sparrowhawk was hunting the Blackbirds (a second bird in the attack was either a Sparrowhawk or Kestrel).

A Dipper is back at Ensay Burn mouth

where I saw my first Woodcock of the season. This was my earliest record at Treshnish (my previous earliest was on 18th November last year).
A snipe flushed at Treshnish boathouse may have been a Jack Snipe (it flew fairly straight and landed only 30m away, twice). In the evening a Tawny Owl was heard in Treshnish wood.
Usual suspect: Buzzard.

Moonrise over Ensay.

9th: 1 adult and 1 immature Gannet

and 4 Turnstones at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary where there was also another pale Rock Pipit.

I am pretty sure this is a 3rd winter Great Black-backed Gull. It could be confused with a Lesser but the legs would be yellow and the bill less thick.

Treshnish Point.

8th: At least 3 Fieldfares around Treshnish wood, at least 7 Redwings near Ensay and 5 Greenland White-fronted Geese flying south over Treshnish.
There was 1 Bar-tailed Godwit at Croig, presumably the same bird present on the 30th of October. A juvenile Cormorant was showing well with white belly but photos were poor.
Usual suspect: Heron.

and a Rock Pipit with prominent supercilium but not, I think, a Scandinavian Rock Pipit (which is thought by some authors to be almost impossible to identify in the autumn).

7th: About 50 Fieldfares and at least 10 Redwings around Ensay again being hassled by a Kestrel.

There were also about 40 Chaffinches at Ensay farmhouse.
6th: 5 Slavonian Grebes off Killiechronan

where there was a wing-tagged, black dot on yellow, White-tailed Eagle.

The first winter Iceland Gull was at Knock, fish-farm out-falls

where there were about 100 Black-headed Gulls (the Iceland Gull is in the centre with spread wings)

and by the bridge, 1 Dipper.

At Laggan the 2 Rooks were still present and there were about 200 Fieldfares and at least 2 Redwings.

Usual suspects at Knock: Teal

and Goldeneye

5th: A Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard in Treshnish wood. The Fieldfare influx continues with at least 2 near Calgary Farmhouse

and over 50 below Bennan farm.
Many divers passing south around Caliach Point. Several Great Northern, at least 5 Red-throated were identified and 2 possible Black-throated. 4 sightings of Black-headed Gull (all heading south around the point). 24 Whooper Swans flew from the north and landed at sea

and slowly slowly came towards Port na Caillich (the OS map has 2 different spelling for features in this area both different from 'Cailaich' the name of the farm on sign and phone-book). There were also 9 Wigeon here.
4th: There were at least 6 Fieldares at Ensay farmhouse along with 2 Redwings and a large flock of at least 50 flew south although they could have been Starlings. 2 Fieldfares were at the road summit.
Still looking for a good Fieldfare photo opportunity but they are proving very shy.

In the afternoon there was a loose flock of about 200 Fieldares

and Redwings at Ensay farmhouse (some were also in Treshnish wood)

which were attracting the attention of a Kestrel.

23 Greenland White-fronted Geese flew south over Treshnish wood.

There was 1 Purple Sandpiper at Lainne Sgeir, Calgary (my first of the season)

with the regular Ringed Plovers.

It was a good Buzzard day.

This one caught a vole or mole.

This shows the eyelid.

After breakfast naturally ...

Flock of 23 and 7 Whooper Swans and 3 Barnacle Geese flew south over Quinish (Mike Shepherd).
3rd: A pair of Golden Eagles between Burg and Tostary. This is the female.

Here I think it is trying to cough up a pellet.

There were at least 20 Fieldfares between Reudle Schoolhouse and Burg and at least 2 Redwings below Reudle Schoolhouse.
Usual suspect: Heron.

1 dog Otter on east side of Lainne Sgeir, Calgary and a smaller Otter about 300m towards Calgary.

2nd: About 12 Fieldfares near the Ensay Burg summit (Carolyne), 15 Redwings around Treshnish wood and 1 Gannet off Caliach Point.
1 Iceland Gull at Knock fish-farm outfalls (Mike Shepherd), where was it yestrday when i went to look!.
Whilst out with Andy Mortley at Croig last week he showed me a scent marking of an Otter. He has seen Otters making these secretions so there was no doubt what it was. If it is still there I will go back and get a photo meanwhile here is a photo of this anal jelly.
I have been doing a bit of research on Otter and Mink spraints. Years ago someone pointed out that the black oily droppings with a pointed end were from Otters. But last year I was told by a long term visitor that if there were no bones visible it wasn't an Otter's and often the ones described above have no bones showing so it appears that they are from Mink. The site above describes what to look for but states that Mink skats are smaller than 1cm diameter across and I am sure I have seen larger pointed droppings so now I need to keep an eye out and nose out because Otters spraint smell is not unpleasant.
Browsing similar sites allowed me to have a stab at some tracks I photographed on Ulva in 2009. At the time I presumed they were too small for Otter and therefore Mink. I didn't know until recently that there are Stoats on Mull and Ulva and I think that this is what these tracks are (the four toes on one side looks right).

I did some research on the Hen Harrier which appeared to be hunting over the sea yesterday.
I came across this Note from British Birds
'Hen Harriers hunting over the sea
While counting gulls from the southern tip of the island [Copinsay] on the afternoon of 28th October, I noticed two female or immature Hen Harriers C. cyaneus circling over the sea some hundreds of metres to the southeast of the island. Numbers of Fieldfares Turdus pilaris and Redwings T. iliacus were flying low over the sea towards Copinsay and the adjacent part of Mainland and the harriers made repeated dives and low-level chases in pursuit of those which came close. After about 20 minutes, one of the harriers seemed to strike a thrush with either its wings or its talons; the victim dropped into the sea, only to rise again before the harrier was able to pick it up. The two harriers continued to chase thrushes repeatedly—but unsuccessfully—for a further 35 minutes and then flew back to Copinsay, where they spent the remainder of the day hunting in the conventional manner. Hunting over the sea by Hen Harriers seems likely to be even rarer than hunting over open water by Marsh Harriers. MARK BEAMAN'
I think this second Note fits the behaviour I saw yesterday better.
'Hen Harrier apparently attempting to catch fish

At 09.50 GMT on 26th December 1978, I watched a near-adult male Hen Harrier C. cyaneus passing along the eastern edge of a Pennine reservoir which is flanked by a narrow conifer belt and surrounded by open hill pasture..... On five occasions, while flying at a height of 1-2 m, it lost flight speed, almost hovered, and plunged feet-first quite slowly into the water, immersing its legs and thighs completely, with tail lying on water surface while keeping its wings clear of the water and beating steadily. It lifted cleanly out of the water after each immersion without any prey and eventually reached the south bank, where it landed. It subsequently flew out over the water three more times, but did not enter the water again. R. W. RHODES
Donald Watson has commented as follows: 'I have not myself seen Hen Harriers fishing or attempting to take fish, but the following observations are relevant:
...There are several old accounts of Hen Harriers taking dead fish, and migrating harriers, probably Pallid Harriers C. macrourus, have been observed pursuing and catching flying-fish over the Red Sea, which I quoted in my book The Hen Harrier (1977, pages 105 & 27).
'I cannot cite proof of Hen Harriers capturing live fish. Mr Rhodes's account certainly suggests an attempt to lift something from below the surface. I do not doubt that fish put back from keep-nets by anglers, such fish sometimes being dead, could be an attraction to a harrier; and one might even try for a live fish below the surface, as is suggested by Mr Rhodes's note.' EDS

1st: 1 Bar-tailed Godwit and 1 Whooper Swan at Killiechronan,

c80 Canada Geese , c50 Redwings and 4 Turnstones by Craignure Golfcourse, 40+ Black-headed Gull at Knock, 5+ at Killiechronan and at least 1 at Lagganulva.

2 Rooks near Ulva school.

About 8 Fieldares below Reudle Schoolhouse.
A ring-tailed Hen Harrier was hunting over the water and 1 juvenile Gannet both between Laggan and Ulva.
I found out today from Raymond Duncan more details of the colour-ringed Twite I saw at Treshnish Point on 20/09/2011. It was ringed on 30/01/11 at Foveran Links, Newburgh, 10 miles north of Aberdeen. This is now the 5th Mull bird.
On 16/05/2009 Tony Gibson photographed a ringed Twite at Haunn which was traced to one of 417 Twite ringed at Raggra, near Wick, Caithness between November and March 2000/2001. A colour ringed bird I found at Haunn on the 11/04/2010 was ringed at Melrose in the winter of 2008/2009 and another bird ringed in the same year at Melrose (same ring colours) was found by Alan Spellman on 12/05/2010 (a month after mine)at Loch na Keal. The 5th bird was ringed in NW England but I have no details except it looks as though it was found in between Treshnish and Loch na Keal. I am trying to find out more.
A paper on Twite rings and their movements is to be published soon in Scottish Birds.
1 Otter at Killiechronan. I think there is a cub on the left.

A Red Admiral flew at Craignure golfcourse or Salen bay (can't remember which).


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Friday, October 31, 2008

Halloween 2008

What better way to spend Halloween than hanging out at home carving pumpkins and handing out candy to kids? I'm not as much the "pumpkin-carving-connoisseur" as Trevor, but I still managed to pick out a pretty good pumpkin and an idea for what to carve. The best part of carving pumpkins is pulling the goop out of the insides and we did have fun tonight.

It was so fun to see the costumes of the tricker treaters. We were just a little disappointed at how few kids there were. We had a bit of a surge after the family stopped by. We had a 5 year old Wonder Woman with her 3 year old side kick who kept asking after the dogs that left with Trevor's parents. She just kept saying, "Gog? Gog?" We were out on the drive way and she started venturing toward the door searching for the dog until her parents collected her. It was a little awkward there for a minute. It definitely seemed to be a super hero filled night though. We also got visited by batman and superman. All the while having fun carving our pumpkins and ending the evening with way too much left over candy. All in all, we had a great night, and we loved our pumpkins!

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Welcome to my 57 home page

Click on the images below to view newer and larger pictures

It all started when my wife watched a documentary on the 55-57 Chevrolet on TV, she was so impressed that she thought we should buy one. I had always wanted to own a 55 Chev so she didn't have to twist my arm too hard to get me to buy one. When I bought my car, we were on a family vacation 500 miles from home. I had incorporated a vacation with a car hunting trip. I was looking for a 55 Chev but I had a lead on a 57 from someone I worked with. I really had my heart set on a 55 but when I saw this 57, I had to buy it. The car was taken apart in the early eighties and was never put back together. The car's rear quarters where original with no rust, dents or body filler, the other body panels were perfect other than one fender that had a big dent in it, so I replaced that. Our family vacation was cut short; I had to tow my travel trailer back home, pick up my car trailer and come back and get my new car. I bought a 327 from the guy's brother and had all the necessary machine work done and replaced all the parts in the motor. Nothing is too radical in the motor, double bump 1.92 heads, mid sixty factory Chevy II aluminum high rise, patriot headers and a Isky 270-Mega cam. The rest of the car's drive train is a M21 four speed with a 3:55 10 bolt posi out of a 74 Nova. I changed the stock steering box to a 605 power steering box, and put in Classic Drop McGaughy spindles and a brake booster from a 64 Impala. The booster bolted right on with no modifications. The main color is a Ford bright red pearl metallic with the stock ivory white for the top. The wheels are Coys, 8" on the back, 7" on the front. Tires are Nankany Sport NS-1's 255/45R17 on the rear and 225/45R17 on the front. The interior kit is the PRO-LO design from C.A.R.S. The only things left to do on the car is the headliner and stereo. There are a couple of other things I may change in the future, I guess you are never really done.

This is what the car looked like in 1998.

Here are some photos of the work in progress, click on the images for bigger pictures

Here are some before and after pictures of my interior. Can you believe I paid $400 for that old rusted out seat? It looks ok now with the frame repaired, new springs, new foam and the PRO-LO design interior from C.A.R.S. Still have to do the headliner.

And my future project. This is what the car looked like when I bought it, it came with a 327 and a M20 four speed. I have since put a 10 bolt rear end in it, drop spindles and power brakes. I will take the body off and redo the frame and floors once I have all the mechanical work done. I think I have been bitten and infected by the Tri-Five bug.

If you have any comments or questions about this page please email me


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Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Highlights From The Barthel/Van Kooten Book On The Star Of Bethlehem (Part 2)

You can read part one here. You can read my review of the book at Amazon here.

- As far as I recall, none of the authors who places a date on Matthew's gospel puts it before the year 70. Instead, we get many comments like Beck's assertion that it was written "about 90 CE" (287). There's no interaction with the many good arguments for dating the gospel earlier. Matthew's similarities with the other Synoptics and differences from John make more sense if all of the Synoptics were written close together, followed by a larger timeframe before John was written. The imprecision of the prophecies of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple make more sense if Matthew was written before those events in 70 rather than a scenario in which the prophecies were fabricated in 70 or later. The prominence of Matthew's gospel in the earliest centuries of Christianity makes more sense if the gospel was circulating under Matthew's name well before John's gospel was published. Extrabiblical sources suggest a date around the middle of the century for Matthew rather than a date at the close of the century. Etc. You can read more about these and other arguments in my collection of articles on Matthew here. It's striking how so many scholars accept and assert the later dating of Matthew without making any effort to interact with counterarguments that are so substantial.

- As another example of how weak scholarly claims about such issues often are, here's Beck's assessment of how the star account in Matthew may have originated. Notice how facile his reasoning is and how it tells us more about the mindset of certain modern scholars than the mindset of the earliest Christians:

"The precise circumstances of its [the star account's] genesis are irrecoverable, but I would imagine something like this: a group of Antiochene Christians proclaiming, 'Yes! And the true king and savior of the world was visited and adored by magi, too [as with Tiridates' visit to Nero]!' The 'star' was then fitted into the narrative. Maybe there was a separate, pre-existing story about it, maybe not." (287)

- But Beck is an expert on Mithraism, and his comments on that subject are more significant. He doesn't think Mithraism had the sort of influence on Christianity that skeptics sometimes claim it did:

"When did the Mithras cult get underway? I see no reason to change the view I advanced sixteen years ago, that the cult as we know it from the copious archaeological record started to blossom some time in the last two decades of the first century CE. If I am right, Mithraism cannot have influenced the very early development of Christianity or Christianity's stories….This is an appropriate point at which to acknowledge that a cult celebration of Mithras's birthday at the winter solstice is not improbable, although there is no record of it, as there is for the public celebration on 25 December of the birthday of the official Sun god…But I must emphasize that although this Mithras [at Nemrud Dagh in the first century B.C.] may have been a precursor of the god of the Roman mystery cult, he was not one and the same. Iranian Mithra had further metamorphoses to undergo in his journey from East to West." (289, n. 19 on 292, 294)

- Stephan Heilen's chapter is one of the best in the book, primarily as a refutation of Michael Molnar's view of the star. You'd have to read Heilen's entire chapter to get the full force of it, but here are some highlights:

"Also, why should Matthew write that those astrologers 'saw' a star if that star (in Molnar's opinion, Jupiter) was actually occulted by the Moon? This leaves us with the grave objection that 'Molnar's star was both invisible and unpredictable.'…Molnar tries to make us believe that astrologers from a country where no historical evidence for the practice of Hellenistic astrology exists practiced Hellenistic astrological geography with unusual astronomical protases, unusual astrological apodoses, unusual associations of signs and countries, and unusual emphasis on ecliptic latitude in an unusual prospective manner to identify extraordinary future events….Prospective searches for royal horoscopes are, in contrast, unknown in Greco-Roman antiquity….at the time of Herod, a dozen other countries were certainly associated with Aries…The chances that hypothetical Eastern astrologers (the magi) would have chosen Judea are minimal…no one among the ancient readers and commentators who were native speakers of Greek, understood Matt 2:1-12 in such a way [as Molnar does]….the transmitted text of Matt 2:9 clearly does not and cannot mean astronomical retrogradation….In sum, there is not a single instance of demonstrably and indisputably technical astral language in Matthew's story of the magi….After all of the public attention Molnar attracted and the religious importance some readers have attached to his theory, it will be difficult (if not psychologically impossible) for him to admit the validity of the objections that have been raised. Nevertheless, that would be an act of greatness." (342, n. 193 on 342, 343-4, 347-8, n. 217 on 349)

- In an ecumenical, religiously pluralistic culture like ours, people often lose sight of the greatness of Jesus' character, how different he is than other religious leaders. I was struck by some comments Helen Jacobus made about the second-century A.D. Messianic figure Simon Bar Kokhba. These comments are especially significant in light of how Jesus and Bar Kokhba come from such similar contexts (Israel and Judaism in the early A.D. era):

"The letters reveal that a punitive and coercive system appeared to be in force under Bar Kokhba's 'rule', corroborating the early Christian accounts of his behavior as bullying. In rabbinic sources, he is apparently portrayed as cruel and as a killer, in contrast to being a righteous judge, because he kicked Rabbi Eleazar ha-Modai to death at Bethar….According to some early church sources discussed, he was regarded in some circles as setting himself up as a rival messiah to Jesus. Rabbinical texts indicate that Bar Kokhba had been proclaimed the messiah in connection with Num 24:17, but as a defeated, cruel, self-appointed 'prince,' they emphatically repudiated any assertion that he was the 'son of the star.'" (422-4)

- The book has a lot of material on the church fathers, some of which I haven't discussed before. I've long known that there's a passage in Irenaeus in which he describes the star as a supernatural entity that was small and mobile enough to enter the house where Jesus' family was and stand above his head (Demonstration Of The Apostolic Preaching, 58). Something I hadn't noticed before, though, as far as I remember, is that the same passage refers to how the star "appeared at His birth to those men, the magi" (quoted on page 436 of the book I'm discussing). While that language doesn't require that the star appeared only to the magi, it does lean in that direction. Otherwise, the qualifier "to those men, the magi" could easily have been left out. The phrase seems to make more sense if the star is a highly local phenomenon. Darrell Hannah also cites a passage in Origen in which he seems to distinguish between the star of Bethlehem and "comets in the sky and suchlike" (440). As I've said before, it seems that Origen's view of the star changed over time. But the passage Hannah cites adds further evidence to the conclusion that Origen held at least a non-cometary, and probably a supernatural, view of the star for a while. The passage in question is a fragment of Origen's partially lost Commentary On Matthew. Hannah dates it to "Origen's final decade, 244-54" (n. 17 on 440). That extends the period during which Origen held the view in question. Hannah's chapter also has a lot of other material on patristic views of the star, though he's focused on how Numbers 24:17 was interpreted and related issues, not the star in general.

- George van Kooten is an example of a scholar who rejects much of the historicity of the infancy narratives, yet accepts the historicity of significant portions, such as the star, the magi, and Jesus' Davidic ancestry (621-2). Skeptics often suggest that only inerrantists accept something like the star or the magi. Sometimes they go even further by claiming that inerrantists only accept such things because of a prior commitment to inerrancy that isn't based on any evidence. Van Kooten is yet another example of how false that characterization is.

- I think the magi were Arabian. But for those who think they were Persian, van Kooten provides a significant line of evidence to that effect in his chapter (496-646). He argues that there was an unusual era of peace and interaction between the Parthians and Romans from about 20 to 2 B.C., which was significantly different than the state of affairs before and after that period. So, what Matthew reports aligns well with how Persian magi would have acted and been perceived around the time of Jesus' birth.

- Van Kooten makes some other points about the historicity of the passage that are applicable regardless of whether you view the magi as Persian:

"The magi are still called 'magi,' [in Matthew] which is remarkable for two reasons. Firstly, the framing of the Bethlehem narrative within the context of Matthew's depiction of Jesus as 'the son of Abraham' [Matthew 1:1] would have made it very easy for Matthew to have styled the magi as Chaldeans, who were primarily known as astronomers and would also have better fitted Abraham's original background amongst the Chaldeans. Secondly, as we have seen, the magi were receiving bad press in the Flavian era as magicians. The fact that Matthew did not use the term 'Chaldeans' seems to suggest that he received earlier, specific information about magi and consciously decided to maintain it." (622)

So, this is yet another instance in which the infancy narratives have material that meets the criterion of embarrassment and in which the author made a claim less favorable to Christianity when he had an opportunity to make a more favorable claim. Though van Kooten mentions two points above, I think we should take note of three:

- Magi had a highly negative reputation.
- The reputation of Chaldeans was better at the time.
- Chaldeans also had a close relationship with Abraham, a figure Matthew and the early Christians in general thought highly of.

Yet, Matthew includes magi rather than Chaldeans.

You can read my Amazon review of this book I've been discussing here.

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A playhouse, pattern books, and the forming of a little artist

Here is part two of three (fair warning, it's kind of LONG)!  A reminder that Sunshine Club sign up ends tomorrow—you can click here to sign up!

So I'm in my little studio and starting my new art journey, but in reality, the journey doesn't just go back to 2002, it goes back to those days of the 1970's. The true beginning started with a little freckle-faced, red-headed girl and that girl was me.

I drew all the time when I was little and it was my favorite thing to do. My 2nd favorite thing to do was playing dolls in the playhouse my dad built me. I'll never forget the day my dad finished this "House of Dreams". It was built inside our converted garage-turned playroom—the playroom was pure 1970's with golden shag carpet and a pool table and then a train track on top of the pool table. And my two story playhouse was built in the corner. Yes, the house had two stories (it was more like a loft in a room) but my dad made it look like a tiny house with cut out windows in the top and bottom rooms and my mom painted flowers around the house to make it look like a garden surrounded it.

To me it was everything a little girl could imagine. It was my very own playhouse and I was so excited about it that it may as well have been the Ritz Carlton! I couldn't wait to create my own little "worlds" inside. And my dad placed new light blue carpet (a piece that was leftover in carpeting the living room) and I was ready!  I moved my barbies and dolls and doll furniture in with delight. Cardboard boxes made little living areas for the dolls and I spent hours upon hours imagining and playing.

For the art side of life, I drew many hours too. My parents recycled in the 70's (which was unheard of back then) and my dad gave me all these big leftover desk calendars from work. I used the back of the big white pages to draw. Many, many pages were filled with girls and flowers and houses and more girls. My art and playhouse life was magical. Plus my parents and my brother put up with my often stubborn and red-headed spirit. But my parents always encouraged me and gave me space and freedom to pursue things that I was passionate about like drawing and playing in my playhouse.

I had one "official" painting class that I took from a neighbor down the street but I never felt like I understood painting as an 8 year old. What I did love was going to the fabric store and sitting at the wooden tables with all the big heavy pattern books. I would open those big books and slowly turn each page and study the sketched girls with their fun outfits and poses. I just loved those books! Then one day, my mom saw that the old ones were on sale and cost next to nothing so she bought some. And my mom was frugal so this was a big deal! When she brought them home, it was like Christmas!

I would study the pattern girls and then pick out my favorite and sketch, and I kind of created my own  "homemade drawing class." Pattern books taught me about form and style of fashion too!

Which takes me to the teen years! My dream in high school was to be fashion designer and live in NYC, and my other two friends planned to also go! Tiffani was going to be a police woman on a horse in Central Park. And Denise was going to be a ballerina for the New York Ballet. Oh, and my other dream in high school was to have a white convertible cabriolet. (Do you remember those?)  Well, none of those things panned out, but my mom reminded me the other day that I did became a "fashion designer". I just use paper and paint instead of fabric and thread.

Being the practical woman that my mom was, she suggested I take a home economics class in high school and learn how to sew if I wanted to be a fashion designer. So I said, "Sure, why not?" I thought sewing would be super easy, but I didn't like following the directions well and realized very early that I was not a seamstress. My zippers didn't zip and my dresses hung sideways. So the glittery world of fashion design started to fade away.

Despite my failure as a "home ec girl", I entered a 4-H competition in "Fashion". Yes, I was in 4-H club! And I loved this club! But I didn't work much with chickens or pigs or goats or cows. Instead of going the "farm way", I went another route and entered the "fashion" category. And it involved spending hours making a big record book (that's a big book about stuff you do in your category). And then I gave a speech in Atlanta. I hated speeches but had to give it in order to compete.

Low and behold, I won state in Georgia in my category! And so that meant I could fly to Chicago and stay in a fancy hotel for an entire week and skip school! And the best part, I went with my best friend, Laurie, ( who also won in her category). The week was filled up with bliss! The kind of bliss that would be in a rated-G teen movie! Laurie and I danced with cute boys from Tennessee. We made our hair big and wore our super hip 80's sequin dresses. We rode in limos, ate at Ed Debevic's, (the 50's diner with waiters that were real live actors.) We ordered coffee on silver platters. We bought overpriced candy apples from Chicago's famous and beloved store, Marshall Field's. We skipped the 4-H tours to museums so we could ride in limos and go shopping in downtown Chicago. (The hotel limos were cheaper than taxis so we always went the hotel limo route or maybe our personal limo driver was just being nice.) The week was a dream for two girls from a small town.

But during that week, there was a not so dreamy part. I had to go to this fancy top floor suite of the hotel and sew a 4-H sweatshirt with all the other girls who were the "Fashion" winners of their states. I didn't want to go because I didn't like sewing. I was horrible at it actually. But since I was in the "fashion" category, I apparently was supposed to be an excellent seamstress (note the "stress" part of that word). Well, my sweatshirt was a disaster! I didn't make it well and it had tons of holes all in it because I didn't "sew" it correctly and I misunderstood directions. Hmm.. or maybe I didn't read them in detail. Anyway, I was desperate to get out the situation, so I secretly snuck out the door of the fancy suite when no one was looking and carried my hole filled sweatshirt as a memento. Needless to say, my fashion designer career had lost the glitter. I was done with sewing. So on to college in Alabama and not New York City fashion world.

College life took me to Samford University and I kind of left my art life back in Cedartown. I was now caught up in being "Suzy Spiritual"  and thought being a missionary was the highest form of Christian living. How much I wish I would have had an art mentor who loved Jesus and helped me see that God uses all kinds of work for His glory. But that was a lesson I would learn later and in deeper, richer ways. I did discover Seaside, Florida in college, and the first time I visited the magical beach back in 1989, I was determined to come back. It held something very special to my soul.

After College life:

For the 20's part of my life, I took a job as Girl's youth leader at a church in Birmingham, AL. For the next 9 years of my life, I was on staff at Covenant Presbyterian. I loved my job! I actually got paid to hang with high school girls, share with them about Jesus and lead Bible studies. It was a dream! I would take the girls on camp outs to the beach at Grayton Beach in Florida. We would sing songs and jump the fence to the Seaside pool and swim in it. We had "Sparkle Night" where the girls dressed in their mom's prom gowns and we all put loads of glitter in our hair and on our face and then go to PF Changs and eat dinner. There was no impressing the boys, it was just for fun and it was hilarious and filled up with laughter. I loved those times!

Ski trips to North Carolina and Colorado (seeing Tom Hanks in Beaver Creek), scary rafting trips, backpacking, camping, lock ins, mission trips to Baltimore and lunches at Brookwood Mall were all part of the journey. I ate tubs of cookie dough and cheetos and drank lots of coke. I definitely was eating like a teen but I was a 20 something year old.

And my art life sat in a corner of my heart as I still thought that being "an artist" was a waste of time. I had more important things to do like eat cookie dough with teens!

Oh, did God ever have to change my self-righteous heart!

And you know what? He did just that. He started changing my heart. Towards the end of of my 20's, I had this desire to create and make things but God had to show me it was of Him and that I would not be "wasting my time."

I decided to read books about creating and making art, and I read through Madeline L'Engle's Walking on Water and Michael Card's, Scribbling in the Sand. With those two books, I basically learned this—that God was the great CREATOR and he loves when his children CREATE. It all made sense! God is the GREAT ARTIST. All I have to do is look outside and see the trees and sky and flowers and sea and then look at everyone around me and how we are all designed and shaped by his hand. So with studying about God.. this theology of Him was helping me understand how powerful art can be and how powerful it can be to show HIS Love and HIS Grace and His Creativity and Color and Sunshine too!

So that's Part 2 (Tricia's growing up years) Stay tuned for Part 3 tomorrow! (the last part of my Art Story!).

P.S. There is still time to sign up for Sunshine Club and you can sign up : here.  Tomorrow is the last day to sign up and receive the hand painted ornament. And the price for club goes up after tomorrow!


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Monday, December 8, 2008

Oh, Christmas Tree

With Aunt Susie here to watch the boys, we took the opportunity to take Amelia to the tree farm to get our Christmas tree. It was, of course, snowing and one of the coldest days of the year -- 11 degrees with the wind chill. We bundled up and made fast decisions!

Daddy and Amelia at the Christmas tree farm.

Amelia enjoyed seeing the "reindeer" and playing in the snow.

Amelia and the "reindeer."

Amelia did not enjoy falling in the snow. She fell just before we took this picture with her next o a tree just her size. She was very concerned about getting the snow off the seat of her pants.

Amelia next to "her" tree -- a 3.5 footer that was just taller than her.

Now if only the elves would come decorate the tree for me...

1 comment:

Amy said...

Oh my gosh, Amelia is so freakin cute! I love her little pink coat:). Lennon and I picked out our tree the other day too! It looks great and smells wonderful.


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Friday, 5 August 2016

Good Morning!
Today sees the start of another Challenge over at QKR Stampede.
Here is my DT card

The Challenge this week is #203 Things with Wings!

I choose digi24296 Chicken Little Digi-Stamp
Awhh! just look at that sweeties little face! Coloured with Copics. I put the 'spots' on the umbrella using Gelly Rool pen.  Papers from stash...Chicken cut on the Cameo.. A tiny bit of Washi tape for her to  stand on. Lawn Dawn dies and Computer generated sentiment.

 Challenges entering.

Animal Friends ~ Summer
Crafting with Friends ~ Anything Goes
Kitty Bee Designs ~ All about Animals
Polkadoodles Crafting ~ Summer
The Paper Girls ~ Washi It Up
A Snowflake Promise ~ Summer
Inspiration Destination ~ Anything Goes
Southern Girls ~ Anything Goes
Polkadoodles Crafting ~ Anything Goes

Thank you so much for calling..
BIG apologies for posting yesterday. My world is very topsy turvy at the moment and I thought the 4th was a Friday . Dooohh!!!!!!!


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Herbie Mann Comin' Home

Friday, January 18, 2008

The End of Reason, The Start of Incivility

I want short entries, lean entries.

This one stinks of pessimism, doesn't it? What's got me ragging isn't a shortage of coffee, but the abundance of political overload.

My political season was getting overfull sometime late in 2000. By the time of the Supreme Court settlement before inauguration day, I was out cold.

Limit the political season to a straightforward 5 weeks.

I'm paralyzed with reinforced hyper decision.

Later, Freunden!

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